Tonight’s selections from The B-52’s 1979 self-titled debut album.
Forty years ago when I first listened to the B-52’s’ self-titled debut album, I was left speechless because I had no idea what I had just heard. I was at a friend’s house when I first heard it and I asked him to play it again. There was definitely no other music that I could draw a reference from, because it was some serious otherworldly shit.
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I spun the album many times over the years and I developed a greater appreciation for it each time. The band created their own space to occupy for decades. When their debut album was released, there weren’t many commercial radio stations that would play their music and MTV was not around yet to play their videos endlessly. It was only word of mouth, club play, college radio and a few TV appearances back then that helped the B–52’s gain some exposure.
Produced by Island Records chief Chris Blackwell, The B-52’s is an intoxicating mix of kitsch, camp, and clever lyrics, all combining to convey the feeling of being in a ‘50s sci-fi/surf movie with danceable music. — Albumism
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52 Girls [1979]
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As the B-52’s singer and keyboardist Kate Pierson tells it, guitarist Ricky Wilson introduced the riff for “Rock Lobster” by saying, “I’ve just written the stupidest guitar line you’ve ever heard.” Yet another bit of proof that in rock’n’roll, just because you’re being stupid doesn’t mean you aren’t a genius. — Pitchfork
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Rock Lobster [1979]
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Major label or no, it’s still one of the most outright bizarre albums to sell over a million copies. From the opening Morse-code beeps of “Planet Claire,” the band’s interstellar obsession is foregrounded. Its “Peter Gunn” riff, Pierson’s keyboards, and wordless vocals make up the first two and a half minutes of the song before [Fred] Schneider starts singing. It’s about their willingness to let tension build to the edges of discomfort, to startle a listener who might have thought this was going to be an instrumental only to start yelling at them about a planet where all the trees are red and no one ever dies or has a head. “52 Girls” follows that with as close to a straightforward punk song as anything they’d record with its frantic beat. Cindy Wilson goes from breathy seduction to howling menace within seconds in “Dance This Mess Around,” which then returns to a list format, this time dances instead of girls’ names.
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It was their performances that really turned fans rabid, and their look almost demanded they go on television immediately. A legendary performance on “Saturday Night Live” reached innumerable young Gen X musicians who were captivated by this outlandish dance band that was a perfect introduction to art rock for children: “Rock Lobster” could both get played on Dr. Demento and make young ears receptive to experimentation. — Pitchfork
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Dance This Mess Around [1979]
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Finding out that the other world this album is transmitting from is actually accessible on this earth is key to the joy radiating from it, especially for the young misfit listener who realizes that planet is not in another galaxy but in a sweaty, dancing crowd. It feels like they took to heart the overt message of disco, which said that there’s a place for everyone at this party, and joined it with punk’s lack of care for the straight world’s opinion. That musical and ideological pairing created songs that could light up a dance floor and stir up a pit. It’s the most wonderful thing, the ability to be arty and dancey and have killer riffs. — Pitchfork
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Planet Claire [1979]
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WHO’S TALKING TO WHO?
Jimmy Kimmel: Jason Segel, Diane Kruger, Bonnie Raitt
Jimmy Fallon: Michelle Pfeiffer, Camila Cabello, Latto
Stephen Colbert: Clarissa Ward, Pete Holmes, Anitta
Seth Meyers: Joe Manganiello, Corey Stoll, Johnny Rabb
James Corden: Jared Leto, David Cross (R 1/27/22)
Trevor Noah: Pre-empted (The Daily Show returns next week)
SPOILER WARNING
A late night gathering for non serious palaver that does not speak of that night’s show. Posting a spoiler will get you brollywhacked. You don’t want that to happen to you. It's a fate worse than a fate worse than death.
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Plastic Bertrand :: Ça Plane Pour Moi [1977]
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Don’t know about you but jumping around on a trampoline while lip syncing looks exhausting to me.
Trivia time! Roger Allen François Jouret aka Plastic Bertrand is from Belgium, not France.
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