80s | Musicosity

80s

ABC

ABC is the present vehicle for Martin Fry, originally formed as a four-piece, and were one of the major players in the new wave movement of the early 1980s. They could perhaps also be credited with creating the short-lived pigeonhole of 'sophisti-pop' - smart suits, clever lyrics and elaborate synth-based melodies. ABC was formed in 1980 after Martin Fry, a music journalist, interviewed the band Vice Versa for his fanzine Modern Drugs.

Artist Type: 

Parliament

Parliament was originally The Parliaments, a doo-wop group based out of George Clinton's Plainfield, New Jersey barber shop. The name was soon abandoned due to legal issues with Revilot and Atlantic Records, and most of the same people recorded under the name Funkadelic, which consisted of The Parliaments' backing musicians. Billy "Bass" Nelson is credited with creating the name Funkadelic. He also switched from 6-string guitar to bass, creating room for his childhood friend Eddie Hazel to join the group.

Artist Type: 

The Blue Aeroplanes

Wonderfully eclectic and chaotic Bristol combo. Gerard Langley and Wojtek Dmochowski (dance) have been the heart of an ever changing line up since the mid 80's. It's said that if you spit in certain pubs in Bristol you are certain to hit a current or former Aeroplane. At times it seems like they're all on stage with a guitar in their hand @ once. They've gone from indie label to major and back again via legal wrangles.

Artist Type: 

Wasted Youth

There have been at least three Wasted Youths. The first Wasted Youth were a punk/new wave group from Canning Town in east London who released several records on the Bridge House label in the late 70s. Similarly to early Only Ones their sound was very Lou Reed influenced. The first two singles "Jealousy" and "I'll Remember You" remain classics of their kind The second (sometimes known as "LA's Wasted Youth") was a band in early 80s from Los Angeles, California, who played classic hardcore punk.

Read more about Wasted Youth on Last.fm.

Artist Type: 

Tom Petty

Thomas Earl Petty (born 20 October 1950 in Gainesville, Florida) is an American musician, singer, composer and songwriter.
After working with his early bands The Sundowners, The Epics, and Mudcrutch (which also included future Heartbreakers members Mike Campbell and Benmont Tench) he began his recording career with Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers when the band broke onto the national music scene with their 1976 self-titled debut album.

Artist Type: 

Tony Christie

Tony Christie (AKA Anthony Fitzgerald), a Legend within music as he has had an illustrious career which has spanned over 40 years and is still going strong now. Born 1943, Yorkshire. He started his musical life at the age of 17 (1960) in a duo called the 'Grant Brothers' and until 1969 he simply fronted bands. In 1969 he signed up with MCA records and then came his hits such as 'Amarillo' and 'I did what I did for Maria' and so Many more.

Artist Type: 

Opus

There are multiple artists with this name: 1) Opus is an Austrian pop-rock group which was formed in 1973. In 1984 they released "Live Is Life" which topped the charts in many countries, and a live recording of the song even made the Top 40 in the USA in 1986. It remains popular as a sing-along song for crowds at sports events in Europe. A cover version was also performed by the Slovenian band, Laibach.

Artist Type: 

Ratt

Ratt formed in Los Angeles, California, USA, and featured Stephen Pearcy (vocals), Robbin Crosby (guitar), Warren DeMartini (guitar), Juan Croucier (bass) and Bobby 'The Blotz' Blotzer (drums). They evolved out of '70s band Mickey Ratt, transforming into their present form in 1983, with a hint of pop about their brand of metal similar to Cheap Trick or Aerosmith. They released a self-titled mini-album in 1983 on a local label, and struck up a close personal friendship with members of Mötley Crüe.

Artist Type: 

Whitesnake

Whitesnake are an English hard rock band, founded in 1977 by David Coverdale (formerly of Deep Purple) in North Yorkshire. In their early years, Whitesnake played in a hard blues-rock and heavy metal style. By the mid-80s, the band had moved towards a more commercial hair metal sound. They were named the 85th Greatest hard rock band of all time by VH1. Whitesnake were active primarily in the 1980s, but still tour, albeit with an entirely new line-up (bar Coverdale), to this day.

Artist Type: