80s
Favorite 100 Songs of the 80s: (#25) New Edition – Cool It Now

“Ronnie, Bobby, Ricky & Mike.”
That has to be among the most reminisced one-liner lyrics from the 80s, regardless of music genre preference.
The most ironic thing about Cool It Now is that it’s a song that nearly didn’t get made—not by New Edition anyway. As the story goes songwriters Vincent Brantley and Rick Timas penned it specifically for New Edition to sing. However, they were unable to get a hold of any major execs at MCA. One night the writer duo followed MCA vice president Jheryl Busby to a diner and literally pulled out a cassette demo of the song and started signing over it. Busby liked it, told Brantley and Timas to come to the studio the next day and the rest is history.
I personally regard New Edition as the definitive blueprint for everything a boy band should be; from appearance to dancing and course, unrivaled vocal harmonies. I know New Kids on the Block were the ultimate boy band obsession before the decade was over but sorry folks—New Edition was flat-out better.
In the mid 80’s New Edition were the boys next door, falling for teenage love and looking to have the time of their young lives. That shines through on a lot of their music and especially with this song—my personal favorite by the group. A pioneer tune, Cool It Now was one of the first R&B/pop music hits to feature a rap interlude.
Unlike many other New Edition songs including Mr. Telephone Man (No. 44 on this list) where the group often rotated with solos, Cool It Now was all about Ralph Tresvant in the lead with the other members (Bell/Biv/Devoe and Bobby Brown) settling for the refined harmonies in the background.
The video is fun, with Tresvant basically discounting his boys on the basketball court because he’s completely smitten with a girl. I mean, he’s literally singing and dancing on the court instead of trying to hit open shots from the perimeter, prompting the New Edition crew to cautiously warn Ralph to “cool it now”. The rest of group turns to rap to provide words of wisdom to Tresvant but it only results in him calling out his boys with a rap of his own, climaxing with the famous aforementioned line at the top—because if he loves the girl who cares who you like.
It’s one of the best bubblegum R&B anthems of this or any decade.
Chart Success: Cool It Now reached number-four on the Billboard Hot 100, the second-biggest hit of their career (Hit Me Off reached number-three). It spent 25 weeks total on the charts. It didn’t finish 1984 anywhere on the year-end Billboard Hot 100, which is blasphemy.
Great Lyrics: This is what happens when you have unsupportive friends.
“Why you all coming down on me
Tryin’ to tell me how my life is supposed to be
I know you’re only trying to help me out
Tryin’ to show me what life is really about
But this time I’m gonna make it on my own
So why dontcha fellaz just leave me alone
Ronnie, Bobby, Ricky and Mike
If I like the girl who cares who you like”
Fun Facts: Brantley and Timas weren’t a one-hit wonder for New Edition. They also produced “Count Me Out”, which reached number-two on the Billboard R&B charts. As for the group, Brown left in 1986 and was replaced by Johnny Gill. The rest of the group eventually split in 1990 and each had successful solo Pop/R&B careers, none so more than Brown.
80s
Favorite 100 Songs of the 80s: (#63) Europe – The Final Countdown

I was roughly 15-years old at the time this song came out and at once it became my essential training song. Back in those days I felt reasonably confident I was just a few short years away from making my debut as a WWF superstar and the future tag team partner of Mr. Wonderful Paul Ordnoff (I always wanted to be a heel). While visualizing my worldwide squared circle supremacy, I went as far to envision “The Final Countdown” as my theme song while strutting down to the ring—greeted by a rousing course of boos.
In reality this song wasn’t really intended to get aspiring athletes fired up. Inspired by David Bowie’s “Space Oddity”, it’s actually about taking a trip to Venus and leaving planet Earth behind—or something like that.
Who really gives a shit anyway?
Whether Europe intended so or not is irrelevant. “The Final Countdown” became the backbone of sports anthems at arenas everywhere and remains so over 30 years later.
They keyboard riff at the beginning is one of the coolest things I’ve heard in my life. It deserves to be on my countdown for that alone. Everything about “The Final Countdown” is outstanding. It’s on the National Honor Society of all 80s music that’s gloriously cheesy.
Chart Success: It reached number-eight on the Billboard Top 100 and remained on the chart for 18 weeks. It didn’t finish in the 1986 year-end Billboard Top 100, which is clearly some bullshit. It did finish number-one on the Netherlands year-end charts and third in France because both countries are way cooler.
Great Lyrics: If I had paid better attention as a 15-year old, I’d have put the curling bar down and wondered what the fuck this song is even about.
“We’re heading for Venus (Venus)
And still we stand tall
‘Cause maybe they’ve seen us (seen us)
And welcome us all, yeah
With so many light years to go
And things to be found (to be found)
I’m sure that we’ll all miss her so”
Fun Fact: On of the all-time bogus fabrications is that Europe is a one-hit wonder with this song. It even made VH-1’s list of 100 Greatest One-Hit Wonders. “The Final Countdown” wasn’t even their biggest hit on the album! “Carrie” reached as high as number-three on the charts, and “Rock the Night” was a third hit that cracked the Billboard Top 30.
80s
Favorite 100 Albums of the 80s: (#86) Culture Club – Kissing To Be Clever

YEAR RELEASED: 1982
NOTABLE TRACKS “Do You Really Want To Hurt Me”, “I’ll Tumble 4 Ya”, “Time (Clock of my Heart)”, “Take Control”
ALBUM MVP: “Do You Really Want To Hurt Me”
WHY I LOVED IT: This was the Culture Club’s debut album and to call it a guilty a pleasure is an understatement. Let’s keep things real here—back in late 1982 as an 11-year old it wasn’t exactly manly to like groups like Culture Club, featuring a lead singer literally dressed like a girl. It was a different world in those days and Boy George’s appearance was far more unique than would be so today. More importantly the group’s sound was a far cry from most groups I enjoyed then, such as Styx, Journey and REO Speedwagon. Despite all that I really enjoyed this album, probably more than I should’ve. Even as a pre-adolescent teen I found “Do You Really Want To Hurt” as kind of heartbreaking. It got re-popularized years later thanks to Adam Sandler’s The Wedding Singer movie. Now that I think about it Sandler deserves a lot of Culture Club credit to a newer generation because he featured “I’ll Tumble 4 Ya’ in his Billy Madison movie. I loved “Time (Clock of my Heart)”. It was chic back then to ridicule groups like Culture Club but don’t allow prejudice to stand in the way of quality music. It doesn’t get anymore 80’s than Culture Club, man—and I love it.
COMMERCIAL SUCCESS: The album reached No.14 on the United States Billboard Top 100 and enjoyed even more success around the world—reaching number-two in Canada, New Zealand and France while peaking at three on Sweden and Norwegian charts. “Do You Really Want To Hurt Me” and “Time (Clock of my Heart)” were both monster singles, each reaching number-two on the Billboard Hot 100. “I’ll Tumble 4 Ya” was the group’s third top 10 hit from the album, peaking at nine.
FUN FACT: Courtesy of Songfacts.com on their hit single “Do You Really Want To Hurt Me: “This was Culture Club’s first single released in the United States. It was a huge and unlikely hit for the British band, who embarked on an American tour in 1983 to gain traction in that country. The song crossed over to Adult Contemporary radio, where most listeners had no idea the lead singer dressed like a girl. MTV, whose library was mostly British bands when they launched, had acclimated their US audience to guys in makeup, so Culture Club wasn’t so shocking on the channel and the group developed a huge audience of young people who liked the sound and the look.
The “look” was authentic: Boy George had been wearing makeup and women’s clothes since his school days, and while he exaggerated it for publicity, it was his preferred style. In a 1983 Trouser Press interview, the singer explained: “I wear my hair this way ’cause it makes my face look longer, my hat because it makes me look taller, black clothes because they make me look thinner, and makeup because it makes me look prettier.”
80s
Favorite 100 Albums of the 80s: (#80) Phil Collins – …But Seriously

YEAR RELEASED: 1989
NOTABLE TRACKS: “Another Day in Paradise”, “I Wish It Would Rain Down”, “Something Happened on the Way to Heaven”, “Do You Remember”, “Hang In Long Enough”
ALBUM MVP: “Another Day in Paradise”
WHY I LOVED IT: This was Collins’ fourth studio solo album after leaving Genesis and you can make a strong case it was the most refined of his four. “Another Day in Paradise” may not my favorite Phil Collins tune but it’s easily in my top five. It addresses social issues, something I don’t recall Collins abundantly speaking to before this track. It deservedly won a Grammy. “I Wish It Would Rain Down” is a sappy, gloomy love song that gives you all the feels. As a whole I’m not sure this is one of the archetypal 80’s cheesy pop albums we often associate the decade with. There’s a lack of good natured fun and a bit more substance on this effort, at least in my opinion. Having said that there is that one constant, where few if any 80s pop albums had the mega production that always seemed to accompany something Phil Collins put out.
COMMERCIAL SUCCESS: “…But Seriously” is barely eligible to be considered an 80’s album, being released just before decade’s end on November 20, 1989. This is the most commercially successful album of Collins career, as it sold over four million copies in the United States, reached number-one on the Billboard 200 and stayed there for three weeks, and produced a mind-blowing four top-five hits. “Another Day in Paradise” reached number-one on the Billboard Hot 100 and won the 1991 Grammy for Record of the Year. “I Wish It Would Rain Down” peaked at three on the Billboard Hot 100 while “Something Happened on the Way to Heaven” and “Do You Remember” both maxed out at four. “Hang In Long Enough” even got in on the action, hitting No. 23 on billboard.
FUN FACTS: From Heavy.com: “Phil Collins net worth is a staggering $250 Million. His royalties around his eight solo studio albums that have sold 33.5 Million units in the US, and about 150 million worldwide make him one of the best-selling artists in the world. Collins is also one of three artists to have sold 100 million + records both as solo artists and as principal members of a band, the list includes Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney. He has won seven Grammy Awards, six Brit Awards, an Oscar, and a Disney Legend Award.
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