OK....Now I Know They Are Playing With Me.....

by Tom Dakers on Oct 27, 2008 8:39 PM EDT

I am running out the door but am here long to see the start of the game and the National Anthem. Now I thought having the Back Street Boys was scraping the bottom of the 'has been' barrel but tonight the lesser of the wimp pop dual Hall and Oates, John Oates sang the National Anthem. Now I know most of you are too young to remember Hall and Oates, and for the life of me, I can't think up the title to any of their 'hits', but trust me they weren't great. Hall was the more talented one, in sort of a damning with faint praise way. Anyway John Oates sang the anthem.....

And he wasn't bad, totally a cappella......a little shaky on the high notes but really a nice job. And he asked the crowd to sing along with him. Nicely done John, am sorry I doubted you.

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Glad

I’m not related to that Oates. Wish I was related to Adam or Joyce Carol, though.

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by Russ Oates on Oct 27, 2008 9:40 PM EDT reply actions

Adam would be cool

I’d rather be related to John than Joyce Carol, though

"Let us go forth awhile, and get better air in our lungs. Let us leave our closed rooms... The game of ball is glorious." - Walt Whitman

by hugo on Oct 28, 2008 1:30 AM EDT up reply actions

Private Eyes would be the most recognizable one

although they do have a song called Fall in Philadelphia.

"He almost has to start. Do you believe in miracles?"

by Torgen on Oct 28, 2008 6:47 PM EDT reply actions

oh ok...vaguely remember....not my type of music....

by Tom Dakers on Oct 28, 2008 9:39 PM EDT up reply actions

Maneater was another big one for them that comes to mind

and keep in mind that I fit into the “too young to remember Hall and Oates” category.

Also, as much as it boggles the mind, according to Billboard, Hall and Oates are the all-time best selling musical duo of all time (one of my all time favourite trivia questions).

by SuckaMD on Oct 28, 2008 11:38 PM EDT up reply actions

who would've thought

they sold more than Simon and Garfunkel? Music was such big business in the 80s. I remember that the maneater video had a cheetah in it, and that’s what I thought the song was about when I was a little kid. I also remember their song “Bitch Girl” which is still kind of funny to this day, though not intentionally

"Let us go forth awhile, and get better air in our lungs. Let us leave our closed rooms... The game of ball is glorious." - Walt Whitman

by hugo on Oct 29, 2008 6:53 AM EDT up reply actions

You can rely on your old man's money

I’m not sure if I would quite call it unintentionally funny. I think they meant it to be funny, it is just funny in a different way than they intended. I guess that’s sort of unintentionally funny . . .

"The NY Mets are my favorite squadron" --Apu Nahasapeemapetilon

by jessef on Oct 29, 2008 5:54 PM EDT up reply actions

I'm not sure whether to be impressed or scared by you guys' knowledge of Hall and Oates songs.....

course the 80’s was a black hole for pop music

by Tom Dakers on Oct 29, 2008 6:19 PM EDT up reply actions

boooo!!!!

no statement could be less true. The Cure, the Pretenders, the Police, Prince, early U2, Billy Idol, Joe Jackson, Joy Division/New Order, the Smiths, the 80s were a golden age for pop music. Unfortunately the most played stuff was the worst, which was not true in the 60s and 70s (maybe not the best, but definitely not the worst) but it’s been generally true since then.

"Let us go forth awhile, and get better air in our lungs. Let us leave our closed rooms... The game of ball is glorious." - Walt Whitman

by hugo on Oct 29, 2008 6:37 PM EDT up reply actions

seems we have a failure to define terms.....

Unfortunately the most played stuff was the worst, which was not true in the 60s and 70s

That’s why I said it was a black hole for pop music. Like at anytime there was good music if you went looking for it, like now, but the pop ular stuff was ummmm crap. Course I wasn’t a big fan of the Police either…more about hair and clothes than music. I’ll never be a Prince fan either but that’s more on a ‘the man’s a creep’ thing instead of a music thing. The other stuff you list I wouldn’t consider pop music in the 80s.

by Tom Dakers on Oct 29, 2008 6:54 PM EDT up reply actions

as far as me knowing about Hall and Oates

to be fair, I only know it because I have seen a programme called “Yacht Rock” which is on youtube.com . . . it is pretty funny, worth checking out if you are very bored, I guess.

"The NY Mets are my favorite squadron" --Apu Nahasapeemapetilon

by jessef on Oct 29, 2008 7:03 PM EDT up reply actions

I see

I would more define pop by the way the music sounds than by how many copies it sold, so you’re right, we’re not comparing apples to apples. I do think Prince and the Police were musical geniuses, though what happened to Sting I have no idea. Some of that stuff I listed was plenty popular, though. Anyway, I’d definitely rank the 80s ahead of the 90s and the aughts, just going by chart-toppers, so maybe not a black hole so much as the beginning of the end.

"Let us go forth awhile, and get better air in our lungs. Let us leave our closed rooms... The game of ball is glorious." - Walt Whitman

by hugo on Oct 29, 2008 7:21 PM EDT up reply actions

Likely age has something to do with everything,

someone said the golden age of anything is when you are 12. For me the Police were so light weight I didn’t listen to them. Course pop music for a good bit of the 80’s was Disco for which nothing good could be said. Supertramp and the BeeGees were pop music in the early 80’s and that was the worst of the worst…..

by Tom Dakers on Oct 29, 2008 7:28 PM EDT up reply actions

meant to say.....

Nothing is better than the music that you heard when you were first interested in music.

by Tom Dakers on Oct 29, 2008 7:41 PM EDT up reply actions

heh, Disco is always considered 70s here in the states

folk rock is early 70s, Disco and punk late 70s, and new wave etc. the 80s. I don’t dispute that they were putting out disco records at that time, but it really wasn’t the music of the time, at least, not in the states.

I agree about the age comment, the Police were actually pretty cutting edge when they started out, but they did go soft in the 80s. Great music, crap lyrics mostly.

the moral is, radio has been awful for quite some time so best to not listen, I guess. Canadians (sorry) are also at a big further disadvantage because the broadcasting rules require Canadian artists to be given a certain percentage of the air time on the radio. Not that Canadian music is bad, but that type of quota system always waters down quality.

I grew up with underground stuff and never paid attention to the radio (not ever having a car or having to drive anywhere really helps with that), so my sense is likely skewed. Plus NYC was different anyway, we considered the Talking Heads pop music.

"Let us go forth awhile, and get better air in our lungs. Let us leave our closed rooms... The game of ball is glorious." - Walt Whitman

by hugo on Oct 29, 2008 7:42 PM EDT up reply actions