Note: this release was originally purchased as a LP, later replaced by this CD.
It's not exactly on the level of Beauty And The Beat, but I feel this album is vastly underrated, contains the group's best song, is miles better than Vacation, and I played the crap out of the thing back in 1984. Moving past California surf-pop and New Wave, producer Martin Rushent and the band put out a real rock album. You can really tell how the band had improved its technical skills by this time, especially Gina Schock who seemingly destroys her kit on every track and Kathy Valentine who I hear playing licks she could only dream about 3-4 years earlier. I never felt Jane Wiedlin got the attention she deserved, which I'm told is why she quit the group and I can't say as I blame her. I love Belinda Carlisle, but she definitely has some pitch problems throughout that Rushent should have caught and corrected. But I'm just nitpicking as this album is 37 minutes of fun and pairs wonderfully with the aforementioned Beauty And The Beat.
Press of the time:
- Robert Christgau (A-): "having peeled away several layers of resistance, I find the record thrilling."
- Rolling Stone (★★★★): "a bold, unselfconscious LP of out-and-out rock & roll"
- Smash Hits (3 out of 10): "sometimes mildly diverting, sometimes profoundly boring."
- Billboard: "musical growth and a more rounded set of new songs"
- Record Mirror (★1⁄2): "The Go-Go's are strictly no no's this side of the Atlantic"
Album chart peaks:
- US Billboard 200: #18
- Billboard Rock: #26
- CashBox: #14
- Rolling Stone: #14
Tracks: The group's all-time best song is the first track and lead single, Head Over Heels (#11 pop, #33 rock, #49 dance). Other top cuts are Turn To You (which should have charted higher than #32), I'm The Only One (which should have been released as a single), Yes Or No, Capture The Light, and I'm With You (which sounds like it could have come directly from Beauty And The Beat). Beneath The Blue Sky is an example of the poppy tracks in the early '80s that bands would write about Cold War fears (similar tracks that come to mind are 99 Luftballons, It's A Mistake, Two Tribes, etc.). I'm usually done after 9 tracks as Mercenary doesn't do much for me, but I'll give them credit for trying to rock a waltz.
Some CD releases have a bonus track of Good For Gone, the b-side to the Head Over Heels 45 single. My copy does not, but I have that track on the 1994 compilation Return To The Valley Of The Go-Go's.
Personal Memory Associated with this CD: Talk Show is one of 5 or 6 albums that immediately take me back to the summer of 1984, my all-too-brief few months between high school and college. That summer started off with a trip to California with the high school band (below), followed by my 18th birthday, a college orientation weekend, and church camp. Aside from those activities, I worked the drive-thru at the local Burger King, briefly dated a co-worker, and watched a lot of Love Boat reruns, MTV & the summer Olympics.
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| Your humble blogger performing at Disneyland, June 1984 |
Other "Summer of '84" albums for me include Difford & Tilbrook, Purple Rain, Heartbeat City, Rebel Yell, and the Footloose soundtrack.
In 1984, a new strip mall had opened about a mile from my house and it housed the new (and only) dedicated record/cassette store in town. The place wasn't particularly well-stocked, but I bought my LP of Talk Show there and asked more than once if they were hiring. They weren't so I carried on at Burger King until it was time to leave town to begin my college experiences. Sadly, the record store didn't even stay in business for 12 months.
Previously revisited for the blog:
Return To The Valley Of The Go-Go's (1994)
Vacation (1982)
Beauty And The Beat (1981)
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