Telex - "Moskow Diskow"

Telex was a Euro-disco-techno-pop trio formed in Brussels, Belgium in 1978 by keyboardist Marc Moulin, vocalist Michel Moers, and composer/synth player Dan Lacksman. Over the course of almost ten years, they released five studio albums full of joyously irreverent synth music. They recorded unique cover versions of "Twist A Saint-Tropez", "Ça Plane Pour Moi", "Dance to the Music" and "Rock Around The Clock". Telex rarely played live and at the time preferred to remain anonymous to the public. They are considered along with Kraftwerk and YMO to be the godfathers of electronica. Telex music was compiled in a box set entitled "Belgium... One Point", a reference to the Eurovision Song Contest where they scored only one point - a point more than they wanted to. The song they performed, "Eurovision", was a song with deliberately trite lyrics poking fun at the contest itself. Telex have been remixed by themselves and many others. "Moskow Diskow" was an international hit in 1979.

Find Telex Cds here.

Go to the download page to get Telex - "Moskow Diskow" here.

The Brains

Speaking of Cyndi Lauper, her first solo record contains a cover The Brains "Money Changes Everything". Tom Gray, who led the Atlanta band, wrote the song and also spent some time writing additional songs with Cyndi. Later she recorded "The Faraway Nearby" for the "True Colors" LP, and "A Part Hate" for "Hatful of Stars." All Music has an excellent review of both artist's interpretations of the song.

"Money Changes Everything" originally appeared on an independent single and was later rerecorded and produced by Steve Lillywhite for the Brains self-titled Mercury Records major label debut album in 1980. The Brains released a second album on Mercury in 1981. The band suffered from the usual major label malaise, released an independent E.P. the following year and fell away into obscurity. My thanks to Tom Gray for letting me post his music.

Tom continues to record with the blues band Delta Moon . You can sample and buy Delta Moon's music here.

Go to the download page to get The Brains- "Money Changes Everything"- album version

Blue Angel & Cyndi Lauper

One of my favorite bands playing the New York/New Jersey club circuit in the early 80's was Blue Angel. Their rockabilly inflected new wave touched on the music of the 50's and 60's in a way that appealed to my friends and I, but most of all the lead singer could really sing. Of course, the lead singer was Cyndi Lauper. Listening to their only album today (Polydor, 1980) brings nostalgia not for the 50's and 60's but for the early 80's and those drunken nights dancing to Blue Angel and yelling "Cyndi" from the dance floor. Rumor has it Cyndi hated the album. It as quietly and finally been reissued on Hip-O Select in a limited run of 5000 copies but there is another rumor floating around that there is a cease and desist order from one of the band members to have it stopped. It's still available on the Hip-O site and it's linked from Cyndi's too. Get it while you can.

Order the CD at Hip-O Select. I ordered mine and it's in transit.

Visit a Blue Angel Fan site and sign the petition to see Blue Angel reunited on VH-1's "Bands Reunited" show.

Visit Cyndi Lauper's site

Go to the download page to get a vinyl rip of Blue Angel - "Just The Other Day"

For all you Smithereens completists...

Not a "Lost band" but a great band, Pat Dinuzio and the Smithereens have released The Smithereens Mega Box Set - "511 Amazing Rare & Impossible-To-Find Tracks on 21 Incredible CDS!". Limited to just 500 box sets so order yours today. You may even win a free living room concert with Pat.

Orange Juice & Edwyn Collins

I'm sure some of you know the music of Scotland's Orange Juice and even more have heard the music of the band's lead singer Edywn Collins through his solo work. Orange Juice released a lot of great music in the 80's and Edwyn Collins had a hit in the 90's with the song "A Girl Like You." He continues to make great music but unfortunately he has taken ill.

Stuart Maconie of the NME, had this to say about Orange Juice: "They had the courage to fail. They wanted to be The Velvet Underground, they wanted to be The Delfonics, they wanted to be Sly Stone and the Buzzcocks all at the same time, and they were prepared to make fools of themselves in the attempt. According to their detractors, this is precisely what they did, but why waste time on the grouses and churls when there are songs as good... did I say good? Songs as life-changingly fantastic as 'A Sad Lament', 'Falling And Laughing', 'Consolation Prize' and 'The Artisans' ... There's really not much more to say. Except that the "shoo shoo shoo shoo doo"s in 'In A Nutshell' say nearly everything there is to say in the confines of a pop song. And that... oh, don't start me off. We'll be here all night". [from Bird Poo]

Keep your thoughts and prayers on a speedy recovery for Edwyn. You can keep up with the news on his condition at his site.

Here's Bird Poo's great Orange Juice Site. Here's another.

Find Orange Juice CD's here and Edwyn Collins CD's here.

Go to the download page to get Orange Juice- "Consolation Prize"