Eighties Blog – 1980s Retro Movies Fashion Music

An eightiesblog.com reader reminded me of this funny song by Gordon & Phirm called “We Didn’t Start the 80s” which is sung to the tune of Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire”. The song manages to include a huge list of eighties pop culture memories from music to tv and toys. What were you’re favorites?

We Didn’t Start The 80s Lyrics, Sing along and try to keep up!

Time to kinda look back, think about your youth.
Y’know, the defining decade for our childhood was the 80s:

Debbie Gibson, Motley Crue, Max Headroom, Scooby Doo, Jon Bon Jovi, Teddy Ruxpin, Reagan sheds a tear
Transformers, Silver Spoons, 99 Red Balloons, Mork & Mindy, Muppet Babies, Mr. Belvedere

Ghostbusters, China Beach, Blair and Tootie, Zach and Screech, Michael Milkin broke the law, Madonna wore a pointy bra
Knight Rider, G.I. Joe, Stay In School, Just Say No, Tiffany, Lean On Me, Mr. Furley, Mr. T

We didn’t start the 80s, they were burnin’ strong since we gave up Pong
We didn’t start the 80s, we were drivin’ Yugos and we loved Menudo

Miami Vice, Andrew Dice, Bobby Bland, Vanilla Ice, Donkey Kong, Pac-man, Contra scandal in Iran
Rubik’s Cube, Bill & Ted, Ferris Buehler, sick in bed, Ayatollah tried to kill us — “What you talkin’ ’bout, Willis?”

Punk rockers, Jimmy Walker, Noriega, Night Stalker, Boy George, Woody Boyd, Where’s The Beef, Avoid The Noid
New Kids On The Block, Smurf, Snorks, Fraggle Rock, Cosby Show, Alf & Fame, Corey Feldman, Corey Haim

We didn’t start the 80s, we had Bird and Magic and Inspector Gadget
We didn’t start the 80s, Gary Hart’s romancin’ and we loved break dancin’

McDLT, Double Whopper, Billy Idol, Cyndi Lauper, Soviet Union in a frenzy, Punky Brewster, Spuds MacKenzie
A-Team and Top Gun, Salman Rushdie on the run, Pop Rocks, Brat Pack, Michael Jackson was still black

Kirk Cameron, Donald Trump, John Travolta’s ten-year slump, ThunderCats, Mighty Mouse, Pee-Wee Herman’s crazy house
Flashdance, Footloose, John Belushi’s drug abuse, Swatch watch, Lite-Brite, Oprah had an appetite

He-Man, Care Bears, rippin’ jeans, crimpin’ hair, Who’s The Boss, Growing Pains, Ricky Schroeder’s choo-choo train
Dukes of Hazzard, Rocky IV, Exxon oil washed ashore,
Alvin, Simon, Theodore, I can’t take it anymore

We didn’t start the 80s, we had Mony, Mony and My Little Pony
We didn’t start the 80s, though we always diss ‘em and you gotta miss ‘em…

The 20 Minute Workout – Was it art, exercise or pornography? I would have to say all of the above when reviewing this classic Aerobicise workout series that was produced in Canada from 1983-1984 and graced the television airwaves throughout the 80s with its pretty women, tight lycra and jazzy sexamaphone riffs.

Airing around 4am these poetic exercise videos were timed perfectly for early rising executives or when you were getting back from the bar. This segment includes the lovely fitness models Bess Motta, Deborah Corday, Delyse Lively, Kim Miracle and Nicole Nardini with some very creative and inspiring movements performed on a rotating platform that promises 360 degrees of physical education.

Although the 20 Minute Workout series explored sweaty high impact aerobic exercises for all parts of the body in wonderful symmetric detail followed by a sweet cool down stretch it is most likely that males’ right arms benefited the most from these sensual eighties workouts.

Special Wheels, Faster than a Ninja, Lazers and FM Stereo!
Meteor is your ticket to the outer stratosphere, is your name on it?
Can you see in to the future?
Yes you can!

Im a little bit suspicious that mightycarmods may have been involved in creating this epic 80s commercial for the advanced Ford Meteor – America’s first practical supercar for the whole family. Ya gotta love how Ford worked in all the best 1980′s awesomeness into this television ad including ripping guitar solos and epic space shots. If only commercials were made like this today!

Hart to Hart was a popular TV show that aired from 1979-1984 starring Richard Wagner and Stephanie Powers as Jonathan and Jennifer Hart the self made millionaire amateur crime fighters that were also very sexy and in love. In each episode the couple would find themselves entangled in murder, smuggling, theft and international espionage while keeping their hair perfectly inflated.

The Harts also managed to find time to snuggle together (but not too closely, this was prime time after all) as they loved each other very much. Max was their loyal, gravelly-voiced butler, cook & chauffeur, and Freeway their pet dog.

The music is provided by 80s synth pop group OMD or Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark and the song is “Forever Live and Die”

The BBC car lovers tv series began in 1977 as a somewhat conventional and short 30 minute motoring magazine program that evolved over time to incorporate it’s present funny and off beat longer format. Being a big fan I was happy to find this mid 80s Top Gear video online. Although there’s no Stig and it is sadly lacking in high speed drifting and rare supercars there are some cool parts and it gives a taste of the European 1980s automotive scene. Check out their high tech computer graphic titles!

In this first episode of 1986 presenter Chris Goffey cruises in to the mid 80s with style in a sweet BMW 7-series while Sue Baker takes an exciting look at the second-hand tire market. William Woollard gives a cold war examination of cheap but cute Eastern-European Cars: the Skoda 105 S, the FSO 1500, the Yugo 45A and the Lada Riva 1300SL and sees if you could do better buying a second-hand West-European car. The Best part is when Chris Goffey asks the popular 80s reggae band UB40 why they sponsor rally-driver James Prochowski and interviews the driver.

The heart warming story of when swell folks go punk and how their family learns a valuable lesson in understanding and bla bla bla fake but funny! Look for familiar seventies and eighties stars Jay Underwood (Uncle Buck,Fantastic Four), Bernie Kopell (The Love Boat) and James Noble (Benson) in this corny After School Special. Some of the 80s values expressed here include the value of conformity, selling out for cash and big hair.

YouTube deleted the full video but here is a clip of the Punk make-over scene:

Don’t worry, no one was falling for that family friendly slop except naive parents – real punk rock thrived in the 80s and there was no love for the phony suburban posers that became punk overnight in appearance but not attitude. Here are some punks that weren’t faking it – The Dead Kennedys with their hit Holiday in Cambodia performed live!