Friday 80s Flashback for June 29, 2012

~newSaint's homage to Joshua's iconic line (from Wargames) | deviantart.com

[A.I. in the 80s] -- The 60s and 70s saw computers intrude more and more in business and manufacturing. In fact, the floppy disk and microprocessor, both invented in the 70s, helped to usher in an age of practical computing. But it was the 80s that saw the home computer industry take off. As computers expanded their territory from labs and offices to homes and schools, they also started to occupy more mental real estate as well. In 1983, Time magazine chose the computer as its "Machine of the Year" for 1982 (bumping their long-standing tradition of naming a "Man of the Year"). And computers provided the plot devices for several movies, usually in morality tales of technology gone amok (or greedy humans misusing innocent devices). This week in the Flashback, we will look at three tunes, each one from an 80s film featuring a computer -- or at least a sub-system -- that is intelligent and can make decisions on its own. What songs did I decide upon? Read and hear more after the break.

Magic Moment: As I drove back to the office after lunch, a dandelion seed floated into my car via the passenger side window. It dreamily flitted about the interior of my car, then made a slow pass in front of my face. After that final pass, this visitor from the true world continued its journey out the driver side window.

I thank that little traveler; 'twas a rare and wondrous gift I received.

Photo from Dandelions - A Nutritious Edible Weed

Friday 80s Flashback for June 22, 2012

[Heat Rises] -- In honor of surviving our first heat wave of the Summer of 2012, this week's theme is Heat Rises. Er, no, heat doesn't rise ... hot air rises. Man, my old high school physics prof would have blown a gasket if he saw me write "heat rises." Anyway, due to the severe weather advisory for the northeast over the past two days, severe enough to prompt many cities to open cooling centers for the first time this season, I thought we could look at some hot songs from the 80s. Specifically, I'm thinking about songs that somehow have references to hot, heat, or summer. This is quite timely with the Summer Solstice occurring this past Wednesday. Now, one song you will not find in this week's playlist is Glenn Frey's 1984 hit, "The Heat is On." That song has been completely played out during the 2012 NBA playoffs. So, what three scorching tunes do I have for you this week? Read and hear more after the break.

Friday 80s Flashback for June 15, 2012

[Fab Five to Notorious Three] -- Over the past week or so, I've been listening to Duran Duran's second greatest hits compilation, Greatest (1998). If you have this album, you will recognize this track listing (snagged from Wikipedia):

Do you notice anything about it? Well, if you don't now, you will when you read and hear more after the break.

Friday 80s Flashback for June 8, 2012

All these 80s films featured a montage. But not every montage is featured in this flashback post.

[Moar Montage!] -- Last week, I talked about that wonderful conceit of 80s films: the (training) montage. I did not, however, provide actual samples of said montages. And, although they enjoyed the music mix I offered via SoundCloud, several friends felt they were cheated out of their weekly trio of 80s tunes. And, what's more, they succeeded in getting me to admit that the post itself was something of a cheat. So, this week, I rectify that situation and return balance to the 80s Flashback universe. This week, you will see three montages from 80s films. Which scenes and tunes have I selected for this montage mania? Read and hear more after the break.

Friday 80s Flashback for June 1, 2012

"Learn balance, Daniel-san!"

[Training Montage] -- I'm in a bit of a scheduling bind, but I don't want to leave my dear 80s-philes without a new flashback. So this week, we will pay homage to the time-honored, 80s movie tradition of the montage (specifically the training montage). You remember this film technique, right? Filmmakers would use it to condense hours, days, or even longer stretches into a few minutes -- the length of a single song. The montage could be used to showcase the transition of a sloppy, unstylish youth into a beautiful prom queen. But the most common use of the montage was in sports and martial arts movies. Here, we would see the meek and weak protagonist transformed into a potential winner by a strangely cool and (sometimes) unexpected mentor. Usually, nothing prior to the montage would lead a viewer to believe such a transformation could occur. But, thanks to clipped dialog, fast film cuts, and a kick-ass soundtrack, the music video portion of the movie would leave the audience too pumped up and swelling with positivity to even realize they had been duped. Now, instead of presenting three songs featured in 80s movie montages, I'm sharing with you something a little more special. If you want to know what it is, read and hear more after the break.

Happy Towel Day 2012!

My Photo from Towel Day 2010

Woolly Krackers! Yet another Towel Day has come upon us!

May 25 is Towel Day, an annual celebration of the life and work of Douglas Adams, the man behind H2G2 (among other stories). You can get great background on the day and the man at http://towelday.org/ or scifimafia.com. Then surf over to asitecalledfred.com to read a lovely compilation of tributes. By the by, today is also Geek Pride Day (in honor of the first Star Wars film, which was released on this day in 1977. Wired's GeekDad reviews the results of the latest Geek Pride Day Survey. It's two years old, but the Daily Caller's summary of the basic rights and responsibilities of geekdom (May 2010) is a good read as well. And, in the best spirit of geeky mashups, ThinkGeek is having a fun photo contest with cool geeky prizes.

May 25 is also, strangely enough, World Tarot Day. My guess is that Douglas Adams would be somewhat amused with this intersection of superstition and intellect. But, hey, I know many geeks who also dig the tarot in one form or another. How about the Lovecraft Tarot, dedicated to the horror writing of H.P. Lovecraft, or the Vertigo Tarot, a limited edition deck with images celebrating the characters of DC Comics' Vertigo line, hmmm?

So, my hoopy froods, don't panic and always keep your towel handy. Who knows, maybe the Force will be with you as well. (If you're not sure about that, just find your friendly local occultist for a tarot card reading).

Oh, and because Towel Day falls on a Friday this year, you have the added benefit of a Friday 80s Flashback!

Friday 80s Flashback for May 25, 2012

Picture of a Poppy by Ian Britton (freefoto.com)

We cherish too, the Poppy red

That grows on fields where valor led,

It seems to signal to the skies

That blood of heroes never dies.

~ Moina Michael (who wore the first Memorial Day poppy)

[Remember the Heroes Redux] -- A benefit of having more than a year's worth of published flashback posts is the convenience of re-use. This is not only a benefit for me, who gets to save some writing and research time, but also for folks who have only recently come to know of my weekly musical sojourn to the 80s. A flashback of a flashback, if you will, provides newer visitors with the opportunity to enjoy a post they may have missed. Plus, sometimes a previous post is good enough, or maybe just topical enough, to warrant a repeat airing. Such is the case with the Memorial Day Weekend post from last year (May 27, 2011). I now re-present that post in its entirety...

We have arrived at the "official" kick-off for shorts season: a 3-day weekend that culminates in the observance of Memorial Day, formerly known as Decoration Day (check the history). Now, you might recall the 80s as being rife with anti-conflict, protest songs, so you may find it hard to believe I could find some tunes appropriate for the occasion of honoring this nation's war dead. But the 80s were as patriotic or reflective as other decades. So my only real problem was in narrowing the selections down to my usual three. So, are you wondering what gems I have chosen in tribute to those who have died while serving the United States of America? Wonder no more. Read and hear more after the jump. 

Last Week's Flashback Theme

As you may recall, the theme for the 5/18/2012 Flashback was left for folks to guess. Only two 80s-philes made the attempt to determine what tied the three songs together (my good friend Heidi offered a guess on my Facebook wall, while @Ursula_9 posted a comment on the actual blog post). Each had a reasonable idea, but neither really captured it.

Are you ready to learn the 5/18/2012 Flashback theme?

It was: Advertising (80s tunes in TV commercials)!


Go Go's song was used in a Pantene ad. (Head over heels for hairspray?)

The Cure's tune was used in an HP Printer ad (and this was probably the best, almost appropriate, use of the three).

Devo was used in a Swiffer ad. (Talk about a devolution!)


Now, go check out the latest Flashback!

Friday 80s Flashback for May 18, 2012

[This Flashback Has No Theme] -- The first few Friday 80s Flashbacks (posted back in September 2010) had no theme tying the featured songs together. Since then, every Flashback has had a theme which guided my song selection. Until today. Well, that's not entirely true. There is no stated theme for today's Flashback. But there is something that logically, perhaps loosely, bonds today's three tunes in holy flashback matrimony. Perhaps you can guess the theme after you sample today's offerings. If so, submit your best guess in the comments. But there is no need to play the guessing game to simply enjoy the tunes. All you really have to do is read and hear more after the break.