I’m not going to ramble on and on about the genius that is DEVO. Let’s assume my readers are hip and musically sophisticated enough to know all the background – bred in Akron, Ohio, conceptualized the concept of de-evolution (“we must repeat”), groundbreaking videos and albums, blah, blah. Let’s concentrate on Devo’s downward slope period.
After releasing what I feel is their second best LP, “Oh No, It’s Devo”, to a largely indifferent reception, Devo had reached the end of their initial contract with Warner Brothers Records. Gerald Casale and Mark Mothersbaugh were uncertain about Devo’s future, so there was a lull period between 1982 and 1985 that saw only one new Devo release.
The theme for the horrific Dan Aykroyd vehicle “Dr. Detroit”.
Let’s not dwell on the bad things – the “Theme From Dr. Detroit” was a great little middle-period Devo single, with a characteristic motivational lyric and hyper beat. It was also Devo’s first chart hit in some time, bringing the band enough exposure to get them another one-album deal with Warner Brothers – unfortunately, that resulted in 1985’s “Shout”…but hey, we’re staying positive here!
Let’s give some half-hearted praise to the WB for leasing out all the Devo albums to Collector’s Choice, who has reissued them all this year. I say “half-hearted” cuz they’re pretty skimpy on bonuses, unlike the vastly superior Infinite Zero reissues from the early ‘90s. Would it have killed them to simply pick those up and put ‘em back out? Feh.
Major praise goes to Target Video, who just released “Devo Live 1980”, a full-length Devo live show from, um, 1980, complete with all the filmed segments the band would show between costume changes.
Help support this site by purchasing The Devo Catalog via this link. Thanks!
One thing you won’t find on any of those CDs is the original single version of the “Theme From Dr. Detroit”. Rhino did put an extended version on the “Pioneers Who Got Scalped” anthology, but six minutes of this tune is about three far too many. So here, direct from my little Backstreet Records 45, is the single mix. Enjoy.
”Theme From Dr. Detroit” peaked at #59 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Oh yeah, “Dr. Detroit” the movie makes is now on DVD as well, but I ain’t linking to it!
Hopefully everyone has the day off - if not, here's some commiseration courtesy of actor Bill Paxton and his art-rock/New Wave collective known as Martini Ranch - "How Can The Laboring Man Find Time for Self-Culture".
Martini Ranch was centered around Paxton and Andrew Todd. They featured a number of notable guest artists on their one and only album, 1986's Holy Cow, including DEVO's Mark Mothersbaugh on this track, which helps explain its obvious DEVO-nous. The video's good fun for playing Spot the '80s Star...how many can you name?
Martini Ranch got a bit more buzz with another single from Holy Cow called "Reach", which made the 120 Minutes playlist for a bit. After that, the duo went their separate ways, with Paxton making a much bigger splash a year later in Aliens. But he'll always be evil big brother "Chet" from Weird Science to me.
"How Can The Laboring Man Find Time For Self-Culture" did not chart.
No, don't you dare click to the next blog. Seriously, you're going to like this one a lot more than you think you will.
The quintessential one-hit wonder, Toni Basil seemingly came out of nowhere and blasted the charts with the still-irresistible "Mickey" (a remake of a song called "Kitty" by the UK band Racey), then seemed to vanish into vapor almost just as instantly. That's a shame, because while Basil was not only a music video pioneer, she was an accomplished choreographer, actress (she was in Easy Rider!) and hip-hop pioneer - her breakdance troupe The Lockers (featuring Rerun from What's Happening!) were featured on Saturday Night Live as early as 1975, just as that scene was beginning to bubble up in New York - Basil should have had a few more hits in her.
It wasn't for lack of trying. Her debut, Word of Mouth is a stone-cold New Wave classic, featuring enough songs and musical contributions from Devo, that it could almost be considered a lost Devo album (it comes as no surprise that Basil and Devo's Jerry Casale were an item at the time). First off, you have a pretty faithful remake of "Be Stiff", complete with a video featuring cross-dressing poppers and lockers and the anarchistic dance stylings of one Spazz Attack on "bass", whom you may remember from the Devo "Satisfaction" video:
Word of Mouth also featured "Space Girls", a re-imaging of an early Devo tune, "Space Girl Blues". Here's Toni and Spazz Attack yet again (Basil also released Word as a "Video LP", featuring a music video for each song on the album):
Rounding out the Devo-ness is "You Gotta Problem", a nearly straight-ahead remake of Devo's "Pity You", released just a year before on Devo's New Traditionalists album - LOVE the pink French Poodles in the video:
When it came time to follow-up "Mickey's" huge pop success, all the Devo tracks were sidelined in favor of "Shoppin' A to Z", a fun novelty track that just didn't seem to catch the mass public imagination like "Mickey". A few weeks in the Hot 100 and "Shoppin'" disappeared from view - but that won't stop us all from shouting "X = NOTHING!" (and U="undies"??? At the grocery store? Eww.):
By the way, Basil conceptualized, choreographed and directed every video from Word of Mouth. I love Word and it's a shame that this seminal New Wave album that got all the way to #22 on the album charts has never been released on CD. You can grab up most of the tracks piecemeal from several Greatest Hits compilations, but I'd love to see the original album remastered and reissued someday. Love it or hate it, you can't deny Basil's debut's place in pop history.
Her self-titled followup? Not so much. Toni Basil seemed to be one of those attempts to take a borderline novelty artist and make her more "mature". That apparently included draining all the fun out of her, judging from the more "rock" sound of the album's leadoff single, "Over My Head" (featured here in its extended club version). Where Basil once demanded "I want your mechanism!" in a Space Girl voice, we now find her singing more typical love songs over generic 80s pop/rock. Luckily, the videos stayed fun:
Basil's label Chrysalis tried to breathe life into Toni Basil by working two more singles, "Street Beat" and "Suspense" (again, here in its rare club mix), but no one bit. Basil called it a day on her recording career and renewed her focus to choreography and directing. Fun fact: Basil did both those tasks for Talking Heads' "Once In a Lifetime" video.
For old time's sake (which is the purpose of this blog, I suppose!) here's Toni performing "Mickey"..with the SOLID GOLD DANCERS!!!!
"Shoppin' A to Z" peaked at #77 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1983. "Over My Head" peaked at #81 on the same chart in 1984.
"i've been sleeping twenty years or more / i remember a long time ago..."
In 1988, after four years of dormancy and a record label change, DEVO unleashed Total DEVO upon the spuds and spudettes of the world. As a huge DEVO-tee since the early '80s, I was beside myself with excitement.
Then I heard the first single, "Baby Doll", and nearly cried.
The previous DEVO album, Shout had been such a profound disappointment (excepting the genius, mutated remake of Hendrix's "R U Experienced?" and a great album track called "The 4th Dimension") that I thought a four-year layoff would help the band who was once responsible for such classics as "Girl U Want", "Mongoloid" and yes, "Whip It" recharge their creative batteries.
"Baby Doll" depressed me. It was more of the same, professional, smooth synthpop DEVO had been reduced to. I wasn't looking forward to the rest of Total DEVO, but as a true fan must, I soldiered on. Unfortunately, nothing else on the album (which was among the first purchases I ever made in the still-emerging CD format) struck me, and Total DEVO sat on the shelf.
For 17 years.
2003 rolled around and saw the long-awaited release of DEVO's video compilation DVDThe Complete Truth About De-evolution (which, missing "Experienced" and "Dr. Detroit", is not quite Complete). I sat entranced by the band's subversive genius, and when the video for "Disco Dancer" came on, it hit me - the song may seem on the surface to be about a disco dancer waking up ten years too late from hibernation and trying to fit in with the modern world, but dig deeper...it very well may be about DEVO themselves and their place in pre-grunge alternative music:
I've been sleeping twenty years or more I remember a long time ago Now I'm back to change your mind Now I'm moving right in time In a world that's turned unkind I can see what's going on behind my back
Now it's one of my favorite DEVO songs. I still hate "Baby Doll", though.
And since I haven't posted a Brain-Melting Video in a few weeks, please enjoy Jermaine Jackson and DEVO, performing "Let Me Tickle Your Fancy" in 1982. Yes. Oh, yes.
"Disco Dancer" peaked at #45 on the Billboard Club Play Chart in 1988.
* All songs are for sampling purposes only. If the album is currently in print, you'll see an Amazon link to purchase it. Supporting artists is a good thing, since labels are run by soulless whores. I KEED! Sorta. Look, if you like it, and it's in print, support 'em. If you're the artist or copyright holder, a quick e-mail to me will bring the song down ASAP. But compliment my writing first.
* Don't e-mail me asking me to repost dead links or to send you a song you can't find. Believe it or not, I have a life outside my blogging. I KEED! But don't do it.
* One more, and this is a biggie -- do NOT hotlink directly to my audio files and post them on your site, big shot. That's just disrespectful, rude, and a theft of my hard-earned bandwith.
Now, get readin', get downloadiN', and play nice. I loves me some comments. Bring it!
via this link. Thanks!
Hopefully everyone has the day off - if not, here's some commiseration courtesy of actor Bill Paxton and his art-rock/New Wave collective known as Martini Ranch - "How Can The Laboring Man Find Time for Self-Culture". 
It wasn't for lack of trying. Her debut, Word of Mouth is a stone-cold New Wave classic, featuring enough songs and musical contributions from Devo, that it could almost be considered a lost Devo album (it comes as no surprise that Basil and Devo's Jerry Casale were an item at the time). First off, you have a pretty faithful remake of "Be Stiff", complete with a video featuring cross-dressing poppers and lockers and the anarchistic dance stylings of one Spazz Attack on "bass", whom you may remember from the Devo "Satisfaction" video:
Her self-titled followup? Not so much. Toni Basil seemed to be one of those attempts to take a borderline novelty artist and make her more "mature". That apparently included draining all the fun out of her, judging from the more "rock" sound of the album's leadoff single, "Over My Head" (featured here in its extended club version). Where Basil once demanded "I want your mechanism!" in a Space Girl voice, we now find her singing more typical love songs over generic 80s pop/rock. Luckily, the videos stayed fun:
2003 rolled around and saw the long-awaited release of DEVO's video compilation DVD
