YouTubing Bananrama
I love this quote from a Bananrama documentary that I found on YouTube: "Before the 80s, girl groups were groomed like a beautiful pony, but in 1982 a britsh group cam along that kicked down the stable door."
Yowsa! Saddle up, girls! I have never actually bought a Bananarama alblum, but I have always enjoyed their songs on the radio. I did buy the soundtrack to the film "Rainman" for a piece of incidental music, and that album had the Bananarama song "Nathan Jones" on it. I found that I really enjoyed that song, as well as other Bananarama songs that I heard on the radio, like "Venus" and "Cruel Summer".
When I started looking up Bananarama videos on you tube, I was struck by two things. First, they have an awful lot of songs that they have done that I've never heard of - and second, They performed a lot of songs that I had heard of, but did not know it was Bananarama that did them. Songs, like "Shy Boy", "I Heard a Rumor", Waterloo and "Kiss Him Goodbye".. I had no idea that these were bananarama songs.
Admittedly, some of these songs are pretty dreadful, like "Do Not Disturb", "More Than Physical", "I Love The Way" and "More More More". On the other hand, I found far more songs that I had never heard of before that I thought were great, like "Middle of Nowhere", "Robert De Niro's Waiting", Take Me To Your Heart, I Want You Back and Rough Justice.
Watching the videos you can see why the group is so great. It's the freakin' motown dance moves! Those sychronized girl-group dance moves that you saw in fifties. Most stars are too self-conscience to do these kind of moves, and are too busy posing as legimate "artistés" to have this much fun on stage. Check out their dance moves in I Want You Back, "Venus", and "Love in the First Degree".
There are really only two kinds of good music: Motown - and all the stuff that is not as good as Motown. I was not born during the golden age of Motown music, so I missed it. But it's sort of an unspoken bit of common knowledge that nothing will ever begin to compare to the Motown sound.
One summer I listened to almost nothing but the same three Smokey Robinson and Miracles records. (I would occasionally take a break and listen to Otis Redding.) Things change. That was then, and this is now - But there is also Motown, and then there is everything else. Among some of the undisputed best girl groups ever were Motown sound girl groups, groups like Diana Ross & Supremes, The Ronettes, and The Chiffons.
Bananarama does not have a Motown sound, the are more like a quasi-bubblegum pop disco-zombie band. But it's not only their sound that makes Bananarama great, it's their wicked dance moves - and these are borrowed from the greats like the Supremes. It is from this great Motown fount that they draw their super girl-group mojo.
BTW, the music that I bought the soundtrack to the film "Rainman" for was a piece of background music done by Hans Zimmer. Here is a YouTube video that uses that bit of music. On the album it is listed as "Leaving Wallbrook/On The Road". You can also listen to this and other short clips from the album here. Another great song from the album was "The Iko Iko" by the Belle Stars.
Yowsa! Saddle up, girls! I have never actually bought a Bananarama alblum, but I have always enjoyed their songs on the radio. I did buy the soundtrack to the film "Rainman" for a piece of incidental music, and that album had the Bananarama song "Nathan Jones" on it. I found that I really enjoyed that song, as well as other Bananarama songs that I heard on the radio, like "Venus" and "Cruel Summer".
When I started looking up Bananarama videos on you tube, I was struck by two things. First, they have an awful lot of songs that they have done that I've never heard of - and second, They performed a lot of songs that I had heard of, but did not know it was Bananarama that did them. Songs, like "Shy Boy", "I Heard a Rumor", Waterloo and "Kiss Him Goodbye".. I had no idea that these were bananarama songs.
Admittedly, some of these songs are pretty dreadful, like "Do Not Disturb", "More Than Physical", "I Love The Way" and "More More More". On the other hand, I found far more songs that I had never heard of before that I thought were great, like "Middle of Nowhere", "Robert De Niro's Waiting", Take Me To Your Heart, I Want You Back and Rough Justice.
Watching the videos you can see why the group is so great. It's the freakin' motown dance moves! Those sychronized girl-group dance moves that you saw in fifties. Most stars are too self-conscience to do these kind of moves, and are too busy posing as legimate "artistés" to have this much fun on stage. Check out their dance moves in I Want You Back, "Venus", and "Love in the First Degree".
There are really only two kinds of good music: Motown - and all the stuff that is not as good as Motown. I was not born during the golden age of Motown music, so I missed it. But it's sort of an unspoken bit of common knowledge that nothing will ever begin to compare to the Motown sound.
One summer I listened to almost nothing but the same three Smokey Robinson and Miracles records. (I would occasionally take a break and listen to Otis Redding.) Things change. That was then, and this is now - But there is also Motown, and then there is everything else. Among some of the undisputed best girl groups ever were Motown sound girl groups, groups like Diana Ross & Supremes, The Ronettes, and The Chiffons.
Bananarama does not have a Motown sound, the are more like a quasi-bubblegum pop disco-zombie band. But it's not only their sound that makes Bananarama great, it's their wicked dance moves - and these are borrowed from the greats like the Supremes. It is from this great Motown fount that they draw their super girl-group mojo.
BTW, the music that I bought the soundtrack to the film "Rainman" for was a piece of background music done by Hans Zimmer. Here is a YouTube video that uses that bit of music. On the album it is listed as "Leaving Wallbrook/On The Road". You can also listen to this and other short clips from the album here. Another great song from the album was "The Iko Iko" by the Belle Stars.
4 Comments:
I am a total Banarama geek-a-zoid. I loved them from day one. I also dig the Belle Stars.
One of the original Banarama gals is married to the other dude from Wham!
Bananarama - total guilty pleasure of mine. I love them (especially their early to middle period stuff.)
If you haven't you should check out
Fun Boy Three - here's the only compilation available right now. They gave them their start and Fun Boy Three in terms spun from the Specials who are also worht checking out too.
Arrgh - typos. Drives me nuts you can't edit comments....
Dr. Monkey Von Monkerstein: Ha! Great geek-a-zoids like us think alike!
MWB: I was in junior high when the Specials came out with their first album! I love the Specials. I'll have to check out Fun Boy Three.
GETkristiLOVE: Apes are not monkeys, my dear. There are a distinct differences. Apes love bananas too, though!
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