Lyrics of the Lost

1984 - Apple’s first Macintosh computer is launched (priced at $2,500). Michael Jackson is rushed to hospital with second degree burns from fireworks while filming a Pepsi commercial. The first untethered spacewalk is made by Astronauts. The mockumentary, This is Spinal Tap , is released. Torvill and Dean win the first perfect-score gold medal for ice skating. Comedian Tommy Cooper dies live on TV...

The 1970s … a boom time for smoooth music but dark times for The Beatles, torn apart and born again in their separate musical identities, each feeling their way to rediscover who they were before The Beatles, who they are now, and who they could become (before their soft new shells harden). All four would flirt with becoming Christmas Beatles, but only John Lennon and Paul McCartney would achieve...

The year was 1995, the 1st Toy Story movie debuts and delights the world, a toxic male in Japan sends out his minions to gas people on a subway, a toxic male bombs the Oklahoma Federal Building, an ex-football toxic male is found innocent of murdering his wife and her boyfriend because a glove didn't fit, The New York times and Washington Post publish a toxic male's (Unibomber) manifesto, and the...

The year was 1983, a whole revolution around the sun from last episode's subject and I was enjoying Return of the Jedi in the cinema (despite the Ewoks) and the onset of puberty (no enjoyment there). Dave was already lamenting his youth (from a previous life), like the Dave from 2001 A Space Odyssey, Dave was already becoming the timeless star-child with a soul as old and cold and wise as time its...

The year was 1982 and while Ms Pacman was striking blows for feminism and Roger Moore's James Bond was becoming increasingly absurd, TOTO landed this lovely tune which they put some unfortunate lyrics to. Does the curvature of the earth play a part or is this an anthem for Flat-Earthers? Is Dave just a contrarian and TOTO-apologist or is TOTO themselves a Devil's advocate? Are Africa's wild dogs j...

The 1985 hit from Phil Collins with the mysterious title. Is it a simple story of youthful infatuation or is it much more metaphorical? Is SUSSUDIO the name of Apple's next virtual assistant or marital aid? Can you get it to spell "SHELL OIL" and other naughtier words upside-down on its LCD display? Is SUSSUDIO a post-hypnosis trigger-word? Black magic? Should it have been (badly) sung as a fairy-...

The 1979 hit from the Bee Gees explores either a life of eternal supernatural turmoil or just feeling a bit off and apathetic on a particular morning. What are the real tragedies we should be singing about? How do The Beatles and a 'Sergeant Pepper' movie fit in? Pop-boat-people immigration! Alanis Morissette chimes in (Dave impersonates perfectly). Kevin Costner develops a movie from this song! B...

Charlene the one-hit-wonder of 1982 (after a false start in 1976). Here is the fairy-tale story of the almost-rise and fall and then rise and then fall again of Charlene and her big hit of womanly wisdom (as written by 2 men in a conspiracy of the patriarchy). Is Charlene a ghost wandering around a mansion in an old wedding dress? Do ladies marry Englishmen when they're depressed? Sweetshops and s...

Madonna's 5th biggest hit ... that was fished out of Cyndi Lauper's bin. Enough sexual innuendos to rival Benny Hill, Freudian sex symbols (percussion), locks and keys, pointy booby-traps, how to MAKE a man love you, explosive neck-bands, chastity heart-belts, when sexual harassment was called romance, alarm-monitoring logistics, exotic dancers kissing small boys, Mathletics and fan fiction, the l...

This 1993 song gives focus to so much, including emotional men struggling with their feels (or their apathy) and their words. How can the Smooth music listener contend with the voice of Satan and still get to yoga on time? Childhood mini-traumas. The Ying and Yang of Hair and skin pigments. Canadian contributions to culture and the cinematic climax of Dumb and Dumber. Pretentious use of the word "...

A short song that has it all, including the Oedipus complex, the Beatles, moisture content, birth experiences, Pavarotti, screaming, lots of sweat, Spice Girls, Genesis, hot mamas, Jessie's and Jimmy's and Stacey's Mom, Hello Fresh meal deliveries, even the sweet lips of Jesus, bad impressions (again), tunnel-boring machines, CHUDs, and remote drones. Would you like to appear (well, vocally) on th...

Wham!!! It’s a bumper Christmas edition. What is LAST CHRISTMAS potentially about? Incest, terrorism, Jeffrey Epstein parties, heart transplants, a cursed brooch and more. A special hello to those playing WHAMAGEDDON this month - best of luck! We've got exclamation marks, the war on Christmas, a smidge of Ridge, Barry Manilow, short-shorts, sad Christmas songs, we OUT George Michael (a bit late),...

We've dipped way back into the early 70s again to assess Carly Simon's break-up revenge hit. It's pretty much all in the title ... plus drunk party guests, fruity accessories, bees, gavotting, fighting a mirror, a self-fulfilling prophecy, horribly-wounded cats, pentium computing, Space Cadet Pinball, clues and insult-puzzles, stir your coffee, narcissistic personality disorder, paranoia, haunting...

It's a listener-driven episode, as Jennifer raises Billy Joel's hit from the early 70s and recalls the uncomfortable "raw sexuality" of his stage performance. Dave's scientific background comes to the fore as he prepares a drink they call "loneliness" and we explore the ultimately tragic or heroic backstory to the song. Should pianists sing in a lounge bar or stay in the background? Did anyone ask...

It's a confession-packed episode, as one should expect when men blithely discuss what women want. Thankfully, there's an appearance by Lenny (sounds like a man's name but she identifies as female) to save it from being an unpalatable sausage-fest of Peter, Dave, and random internet message-board dudes. Also there's surprising depth to be discovered in the lyrics of Cyndi's breakout hit of 1983. Ce...