Episodes

Billy Squier had a very impressive number of hit songs in the late 70's and early 80's. His 1984 video for "Rock Me Tonight," however, raised the eyebrows of many fans due to its femininity and strange production. Blaine leads us through it all. Watch the video on Youtube before listening, if you can. Connect with us at tapeheadspod.com. RELATED LINKS Billy Squier, "Rock Me Tonite," on YouTube

The Atomic Cafe is an award-winning 1982 documentary made up entirely of interviews, stock footage, military training films and newsreel footage from the age of the atom bomb. We had watched it many years ago, and had a god time discussing it. We also share what it was like growing up in the nearest large town to the Hanford nuclear site, where plutonium was created for the first bomb, as well as many others. Connect with us at tapeheadspod.com RELATED LINKS: "The Atomic Cafe", at IMDB Our T...

So you have heard the famous cover songs from the 80's but have you heard the not so famous original songs?

This is a song we both loved but knew nothing about the band. To our detriment, as it turns out, because their story is quite interesting. Italy is not a country that is well-represented in the pop world, but we're giving their due today. Connect with us at tapeheadspod.com. RELATED LINKS: Our Tarzan Boy playlist, on Spotify Baltimora, "Tarzan Boy" official video, on YouTube

In this episode, Blaine puts Todd to the test with a high-stakes countdown of the biggest Diamond-certified albums of all time. As Blaine navigates the list of record-breaking industry titans, Todd must channel his deep musical knowledge to guess the iconic albums that defined music history. It’s a fun, fast-paced challenge that pits their shared passion for the 80s and beyond against the sheer commercial power of these legendary, multi-million-selling records.

1984 is Todd's favorite musical and pop-culture milestone year, so we decided to have some fun and discuss the music videos that helped make the year so memorable. Connect with us at tapeheadspod.com RELATED LINKS: Our Biggest Videos of 1984 playlist, on Spotify

After Sheryl Crow was recently inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, we felt it was apropos to tell the not-well-known back story of the Tuesday Night Music Club. Great album, but it also has a body count. We go into all of it. Connect with us at tapeheadspod.com. RELATED LINKS: Our Tuesday Night Music Club playlist, on Spotify Toy Matinee, on Spotify Toy Matinee, "The Ballad of Jenny Ledge" official video Kevin Gilbert, on Spotify Sheryl Crow, on Spotify Sheryl Crow, "Leaving La...

We're introducing a new type of episode, in which we discuss various songs that share the same name--focusing on two from the 80's--and then find lots of others, just for fun. The theme for this first one is Never Surrender, and it promises to be an ongoing series. We're spending a lot of time in Canada, focusing on Corey Hart and Triumph, as well as Todd's impending move to the Great White North. Connect with us at tapeheadspod.com. RELATED LINKS: ⁠Walking Alongside: Perspectives - "Running t...

Originally hailing from Phoenix, Arizona, the members of the band Pages moved to Los Angeles, where they released albums and eventually transitioned into the band the world knows as Mr. Mister. They created some of the biggest songs of the 80's, but there's much more to their story. Connect with us at tapeheadspod.com. RELATED LINKS: Mr. Mister, "Kyrie" official music video, on YouTube Our Kyrie playlist, on Spotify Mr. Mister, on Spotify Pages, on Spotify Bourgeois Tagg, on Spotify Toy ...

in 1986, a documentary film crew went to an arena in Maryland and, instead of filming the concert, wandered around and filmed the goings-on in the parking lot. The resulting documentary has gone on to be very famous and influential, and that is the Connect with us at tapeheadspod.com. RELATED LINKS: Heavy Metal Parking Lot, at IMDB Our Heavy Metal Parking Lot playlist, on Spotify Heavy Metal Parking Lot, on YouTube Heavy Metal Parking Lot: Where Are They Now 2006 on YouTube Judas Priest on...

Men at Work are a band that both of us love, and have seen live, and (I think) have all three of their albums. We may not talk about them much, but they're one of our favorite bands, even making it into Blaine's Top 10 favorites (see our Top 10 episodes). Add to that Colin's later-in-life fame from the TV show "Scrubs" and his reputation as a storyteller and live performer, along with the controversy of a plagiarism lawsuit, and there's plenty to discuss. This is a fun one. Connect with us at t...

In this episode, Blaine guides us through the #1 songs from the various years of the decade, and Todd tries to guess them, with varying degrees of success. Connect with us at tapeheadspod.com. RELATED LINKS Our 10 Years, 10 #1 Songs playlist, on Spotify

MTV was, simply put, the driving force and taste creator for music in the 1980s. Started in 1981, it was life-changing and ubiquitous for decades. Its relevance began to wane after it stopped playing music videos, in favor of reality television shows, and the company recently decided to cease transmission of MTV programming in most of the world. This episode is our conversation about our experiences with the network in its heyday. Connect with us at tapeheadspod.com. RELATED LINKS: Our I Miss...

To celebrate our third anniversary of the big show, we thought it would be fun to look back a bit and discuss where we started and where we're going, as well as appreciate those of you who've been with us along the way, from our embryonic state to whatever you want to call the state we're in these days. :) RELATED LINKS: Our Retrospective playlist, on Spotify

Were there songs in the 80's to which you slow-danced with your sweetheart (or your flavor of the week), but then years or decades later, you listened to the lyrics and realized that maybe the songs weren't as romantic as you remembered? These are some of those songs for us, and Blaine guides us through them. Connect with us at tapeheadspod.com. RELATED LINKS. Our Depressing Songs of the 80's, Vol. 1 playlist, on Spotify

How do we explain Max Headroom? He was a not-really CGI character but quasi-virtual TV presenter and talking head who was absolutely everywhere in the late 80's. The actor who played him, Matt Frewer, is still a very busy and visible actor in lots of movies and shows. Such a crazy and fun story that couldn't have happened at any other time. Connect with us at tape headppod.com. RELATED LINKS: Max Headroom, "Merry Christmas Santa Claus (You're a Lovely Guy" official video, on YouTube "Max Hea...

Whitesnake are epic and awesome. Yes, they are. "Here I Go Again" is one of the most iconic songs of the 80s, and that's not even mentioning the video. They cast a long shadow and have a very interesting story. We also have a hilarious discussion about their obviously euphemistic name. This song also has multiple versions over the decades, so be sure to check out our playlist on this one. Connect with us at tapeheadspod.com. RELATED LINKS: Our Here I Go Again playlist, on Spotify Whitesnake,...

In this 'very special' episode, Blaine kept the subject a secret from Todd until we recorded it. New Edition and all of the tentacles of their related bands (Bobby Brown, New Kids on the Block, and even Whitney Houston) is a supremely interesting story, and we're sure you'll agree. This one's by request. RELATED LINKS: New Edition, on Spotify Bobby Brown, on Spotify Bell Biv DeVoe, on Spotify New Kids on the Block, on Spotify Whitney Houston, on Spotify Whitney documentary, at IMDB The N...

Vinnie Vincent, botn Vincent Cusano, is an extremely interesting character. He's most famous for being in Kiss, but his career has varied widely, from working on some famous television shows to be a recluse for decades. We get into all of it in this episode. Contact with us at tapeheadspod.com. RELATED LINKS: Our Boyz Are Gonna Rock playlist, on Spotify Vinnie Vincent ,on Spotify

The Cars got their start in Boston in the early 70's, and for their fifth album in 1984, they teamed up with mega-producer "Mutt" Lange to create a huge hit album. We discuss all of it here in this extremely fun episode. Connect with us at tapeheadspod.com. RELATED LINKS: Our Magic playlist, on Spotify The Cars, "Magic" official video, on YouTube The Cars, on Spotify

When one of the biggest bands and one of then most iconic singers in the world find themselves in the same place at the same time, magic is bound to happen, as it did in the case of Queen and David Bowie's collaboration, "Under Pressure." It's quite a song, and quite a story. Connect with us at tapeheadspod.com. RELATED LINKS; Our Under Pressure playlist, on Spotify Queen & David Bowie, "Under Pressure", on Spotify Queen & David Bowie, "Under Pressure", official music video, on YouTube

We mentioned on a previous episode (actually, Todd did) that Kenny Loggins is the soundtrack king of the 80's, but now it's time for Todd to put his knowledge to the test, as Blaine challenges him to name all of the songs. Connect with us at tapeheadspod.com. RELATED LINKS: Our Soundtrack King of the 80's playlist, on Spotify Kenny Loggins, on Spotify

Where do you even start with Spinal Tap? They set the standard for parody documentaries (otherwise known as 'mockumentaries') and influenced many bands and movies in the ensuing decades. Todd was even lucky enough to see them perform live on the Break Like The Wind tour. It was super fun to tell the story of this band. Connect with us at tapeheadspod.com RELATED LINKS: Our Tonight I'm Gonna Rock You Tonight playlist, on Spotify Spinal Tap, on Spotify This Is Spinal Tap, at IMDB

The 80's were famous for soundtracks. Some of the biggest and best of all time came from back then. We explore a list created by JoBlo, which rounds up some of the usual suspects but also provides a few surprises. Let's get into it. Connect with us at tapeheadspod.com. RELATED LINKS: JoBlo Top 10 Soundtracks of the 80's Our JoBlo-Inspired Top 10 (?) Soundtracks of the 80's playlist, on Spotify Hired Gun documentary, art IMDB