"No Time for Talk" by Christopher Cross

   “Well, I read it in town in the melancholy news… The front page story is our love is through.”

   Hey there friends, let’s mellow out. It’s time to put on our captains hats, put an extra splash of rum in our pina coladas, and catch a deep breath of that salty sea air, as the Dial brings you an overlooked single from the patron saint of “Yacht Rock”, Texas native Christopher Cross and his 1983 near-hit “No Time For Talk”!

   Cross smoothly sailed into pop music stardom with his Grammy winning self-titled album in late 1979. Blending a foundation of soft rock with elements of smooth jazz and blue-eyed soul, the Christopher Cross LP helped popularize the introspective escapism of what was then known as the West Coast Sound, but which became known in later years as Yacht Rock.

   Best remembered for sophisticated top 40 smashes like “Ride Like the Wind” (a #2 hit in 1980), in addition to “Sailing”, and “Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do)” (chart toppers in ‘80 and ‘81, respectively), “No Time For Talk” is a rather atypical song from Cross, as it features a few musical ideas that set it apart from the bulk of his oeuvre.

   A story of a romance on the decline, musically, “No Time…” initially seems a little disjointed and experimental, especially when compared to Christopher’s earlier hits. It opens with strong, slightly ominous tones that would not sound out of place on the score of a horror or science fiction film of the era. Then additional keyboard flourishes blend in, softening the vibe of the tune. Once Chris starts singing, the verses and chorus sections fall in line with his standard sound, and images of palm trees and his trademark pink flamingos will undoubtedly pop to mind.

   There’s also a rather interesting bridge section that leads off with a jazzy piano and saxophone melody, and wraps up with an almost new-age-derived keyboard passage. Following this, “No Time…” returns to Cross’ signature soft rock stylings. The tune is a veritable hodge-podge, a gumbo, if you will, of musical elements. But that’s exactly why I find it interesting, and unique among his discography.

   Like much of Christopher’s hits, “No Time…” features frequent collaborator and Doobie Brother Michael McDonald on backing vocals. Mike and Jeff Porcaro of Toto contribute to bass and drums, and Tom Scott of the Blues Brothers band provides that sweet sax solo.

   Peaking at US #33, the lowest showing of all his top 40 entries, “No Time…” was the second single pulled from his 1983 LP Another Page, following the lead single, the #12 hit "All Right", an upbeat pop/rock number. “No Time…” was followed in turn by the #9 "Think of Laura" - a heartfelt ballad tribute to his friend Laura Carter who was killed accidentally during gang violence. This was to be Christopher’s final top 40 hit.

   Despite his star falling rather quickly due to rapidly changing musical trends, and the difficulty in marketing Cross to the MTV generation, the smooth Texan has continued to release albums and tour throughout the decades. His smash hits have been mainstays of adult contemporary stations since their release, but “No Time…” has been largely abandoned since it’s original chart run.

   In current times, Christopher has unfortunately been one of a number of celebrities that was stricken with the Covid-19 virus. As I write this, May 19, 2020, Chris did not suffer any respiratory complications, but battling the virus left him temporarily paralyzed in his legs.

   Still, it is reported that the icon of soft rock is optimistic, and doctors expect him to make a full recovery, at which point he plans to embark on his 40^th anniversary tour, celebrating the very album that launched his career. I wonder if he will dust off “No Time for Talk” for the set list? I hope he makes a stop in Columbus Ohio, I’d love to check him out.

   So won’t you make time for “No Time”? Click the link below, and listen to this overlooked almost hit from an icon of early 80s pop. Do you think “No Time” deserved to be a bigger hit? What are some of your favorite songs of the yacht rock genre? Drop me a comment and let’s chat!

https://www.christophercross.com/

"Edge of A Broken Heart" by Vixen

   “I can’t believe I could’ve been so blind, but love is strange…”

   Hello again friends, and thanks for tuning into Kyle’s Radio Dial! Tonight, we head back to the late ‘80s, an era in which hard rock and pop metal dominated the hot 100 singles chart. But instead of taking a look at Poison, the Scorpions, or Bon Jovi, the Dial has fine tuned a frequency containing a quartet of lovely ladies that know their way around a catchy hook and a tasty riff. In short, these gals ROCK!

   Spray on some Aqua Net, and slip into those leather pants, as we check out “Edge of a Broken Heart” by Vixen!

   Hailing from St. Paul Minnesota, Vixen was formed in 1986 by lead guitarist Jan Kuehnemund, and lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Janet Gardner. Soon bassist Share Ross, and drummer Roxy Petrucci joined the group, creating what is now recognized as the “classic lineup”.

   “Edge” tells the story of a female protagonist giving the kiss off to a controlling boyfriend. He wasn’t treating her the way she deserved, so she takes control of the situation, ends the relationship, and begins her search for somebody new, but not before reminding the guy that he’ll be sorry “when it’s over”.

   Peaking at #26 on the Billboard Hot 100, “Edge” was Vixen’s top 40 chart breakthrough. Personally, I assumed it charted much higher, based on the frequency on which I heard it on Q107 out of Washington DC back then. Usually, rock songs that don’t peak rather high on the top 40 score much higher on the US Mainstream Rock singles chart, but surprisingly, “Edge” only got to #24 there. Vixen’s immediate follow up “Cryin’” did a little bit better by reaching #22 on both of the aforementioned charts, but neither song was the blockbuster the ladies deserved. Both singles were pulled from their 1988 eponymous debut.

   The late ‘80s was definitely the peak era for pop metal. Though Vixen definitely had a unique angle with being an all female hard rock band, they were still playing in a crowded field overall. They were fighting for record sales and airplay spins against Def Leppard, Whitesnake, White Lion, Guns N Roses, Skid Row, Cinderella, etc, not to mention the “harder” metal groups that barely got radio airplay, yet sold tons of albums and had legions of devoted fans like Iron Maiden, Metallica, and Judas Priest.

   Certainly, there weren’t that many ladies that dabbled in hard rock back then. You had Joan Jett and Lita Ford, mega successful solo artists who both began as members of The Runaways in the ‘70s, and Tina Turner, Cher, and Janet Jackson each recorded a hard rock flavored song here and there, but the genre was always male dominated. There were a few all girl groups like The Bangles and Bananarama, and of course The Go-Gos several years before them, but none of them were metal or even close to hard rock.

   Simply put, Vixen should have been bigger. I think if the hard rock field had been less bloated, they could have stood out more and earned a greater popularity. Unfortunately, the ‘90s were right around the corner with the “one-two death punch” of hip-hop and grunge which effectively crushed the dominance of pop metal and hard rock on the singles charts.

   Now here’s a fun fact. “Edge” was written by Fee Waybill and Richard Marx! Yes THAT Richard Marx, the ‘80s hitmaker that brought us “Don’t Mean Nothing”, “Endless Summer Nights”, “Angelia”, and several other hits from ‘88-’91. Fee Waybill, while not a household name, is best known as a member of The Tubes, who hit the top 10 in 1983 with “She’s a Beauty”. Watch the music video to spot a quick cameo by Marx, and a couple of visual shout outs to Cher and Poison, which are fun to catch.

   Vixen’s tune is not to be confused with an identically titled single from the previous year by aforementioned rockers Bon Jovi. This OTHER “Edge of a Broken Heart” (a different song altogether) was released in 1987 for the soundtrack of the movie “Disordelies”, however, since no commercial single was produced, it was not eligible to chart on the hot 100. However, it did manage a showing of #38 on the US Hot 100 Airplay chart (which measures only the airplay of songs, not the sales of singles).

   Sadly, Jan Kuehnemund passed away on October 10, 2013 at the age of 59 after losing her battle with cancer. The band has persevered, and still features Share and Roxy on bass and drums, though Janet left the group in 2019 to focus on her family. Newcomers Britt Lightning (assuming the lead guitarist role) and Lorraine Lewis (as lead singer) complete the current line-up.

   Give these ladies a listen below, and let me know… do you think Vixen deserved to be bigger? What are some of your favorite pop metal/hard rock tunes that got overlooked? Drop me a comment and start the conversation!

https://vixenofficial.com/

"Living in the Plastic Age" by The Buggles

   “Talking fast, I make a deal, buy the fake and sell what’s real. What’s this pain here in my chest? Maybe I should take a rest…”

   Hello friends! The Dial returns to transmit another signal containing an overlooked tune from years gone by. This time, we turn our frequency to the work of Trevor Horn and Geoffrey Downes, “The Buggles”, and their timeless classic “Video Killed the Ra-…”

   Wait. NO. That’s NOT the song we are covering today. Yes, you read that right. And yes, that does mean that the Buggles produced music OTHER THAN that iconic tune that kicked off the MTV generation. (though most of us in the U.S. had NO IDEA!) Allow me to educate you on the ups and downs of “Living in the Plastic Age”!

   Formed in London by keyboardist Geoffrey Downes and vocalist and bassist Trevor Horn, The Buggles released their first album “The Age of Plastic” in early 1980, with “Video Killed…” as the lead single in late ‘79. For a follow up cut, “Living in the Plastic Age” was selected.

   “Plastic” criticizes the trend of plastic surgery being used as a way to deal with the increasing hecticness of modern life, and this was written back in late 1979… I wonder what Downes and Horn must feel about modern life nowadays! Anyway, Trevor sings of a salesman immersed in technology, who suffers a mild heart attack. The “heart police” submit him to a facelift which supposedly makes everything better… but does it really? Trevor offers no real answer to this question, just an unsettling feeling that things didn’t improve and probably won’t at all.

   In contrast to the somewhat dark lyrics, the music video is a campy delight, featuring time traveling monks, humanoids that shoot electricity (and resemble the Silver Surfer), science fiction costumes complete with goggles, Trevor Horn being pulled through walls, Trevor Horn flying on a rotating disk (he has all the fun), and a nice little arcade cameo as the Space Invaders attempt to bomb the Buggles band members.

   “Plastic” peaked at a respectable UK #16, but did not chart at in the US. I suspect it wasn’t even pushed to radio or released as a single over here, as “Video Killed…” only peaked at US #40 (despite being a UK #1... and #1 in Australia, Austria, Sweden, and Switzerland),so American program directors probably weren’t confident that the second Buggles singles would do any better. This is a shame, because I think this is a better song than “Video Killed…” and I would have loved to have heard it on the radio.

   YouTuber and song reviewer Todd in the Shadows (seriously, he’s awesome, and one of my favorites, look him up), has described “Plastic” as sounding like Abba meets Devo, and I can think of a no more concise description of the sound of this track. The Abba harmonies are especially apparent in the vocal buildups that precede each chorus repetition, and the opening keyboard riff, which recalls tracks by the Swedish icons like “Money Money Money”, and “Does Your Mother Know”.

   The remainder of the tune carries the Devo comparisons… the cold, new wave, robotic quality of the verses, and those shouted “PLASTIC AGE!” repetitions. Interestingly, the chorus is the most musically rich part of the tune with a very 80’s blend of guitar, synths, and echoed vocals.

   The Buggles broke up after their second LP, 1981’s “Adventures in Modern Recording”, then joined Yes for the recording of that group’s tenth LP “Drama”. Following that, the guys left Yes, and Trevor became a highly prolific producer, for acts like Frankie Goes to Hollywood, ABC, Grace Jones, the Pet Shop Boys, Paul McCartney, Simple Minds, Seal, Tori Amos, Cher, Rod Stewart, LeAnn Rimes, Faith Hill, Danny Elfman, John Legend, Robbie Williams… the list is truly staggering, and I even left a ton of people out!

   Geoff didn’t do so bad for himself either, as he co-founded the AOR super group Asia with Steve Howe (ex-Yes), John Wetton (ex-King Crimson, and Uriah Heep), and Carl Palmer (ex-Emerson, Lake & Palmer), which graced us with hits like “Heat of the Moment” (#4/82), and “Don’t Cry” (#10/83). He also entered the Guinness Book of Records for performing with a record 28 keyboards on stage during a single performance.

   So, I invite you to click the video below and check out the Buggles’ second single. Do you think “Plastic” had the potential to have been a bigger hit than “Video Killed...” if given the right push in the U.S.? Post a comment and let me know what you think! And be sure to stay tuned to the Dial for more great overlooked tunes from the past!

http://trevorhorn.com/