1980s Pop Music Potpourri, Part 3 Quiz

Answer: Baltimore

"Got a wife and kids in Baltimore, Jack / I went out for a ride and I never went back..." Thus began the hit song "Hungry Heart" by New Jersey's Bruce Springsteen. "Hungry Heart" climbed to the number five spot on the U.S. Billboard charts in November 1980 and was included on an album called "The River." This song proved to be one of Springsteen's most popular in-concert tunes. The Boss sang these words,

"Everybody's got a hungry heart
Everybody's got a hungry heart
Lay down your money and you play your part
Everybody's got a hungry heart..."

Answer: Dottie West

Country singer Dottie West accompanied superstar Kenny Rogers on the 1981 hit song "What Are We Doin' in Love." West was born in Tennessee, and she teamed up with Rogers on several other country music songs. "What Are We Doin' in Love" reached the number 14 spot on the U.S. Billboard charts. Not surprisingly, this song climbed to the number one position in the country music hit parade. West and Rogers sang these lyrics:

"What are we doin' in love?
What are we doin' in a mess like this?
What are we doin' in love?
You were just someone I couldn't resist..."

Answer: Generation X

Star singer Billy Idol was the main star of the British punk rock band Generation X, a group which also featured Derwood Andrews (guitars) and Mark Laff (drums). The song "Dancing With Myself" went largely unnoticed when it was first released on the band's "Kiss Me Deadly" album. However, by the mid-eighties "Dancing With Myself" had become one of Idol's most popular in-concert songs. Idol sang these lyrics:

"So let's sink another drink
'Cause it'll give me time to think
If I had the chance, I'd ask one to dance
And I'd be dancing by myself..."

Answer: Nabokov

"Don't Stand So Close to Me" by The Police rose to the number ten spot on the U.S. Billboard singles charts in 1980. In the song's lyrics, Sting sang about a relationship between a schoolgirl and an attractive teacher. In 1955, Russian writer Vladimir Nabokov published his controversial book "Lolita", which told the tale of a middle-aged man who became romantically involved with a 12-year-old girl. Nabokov, born in St. Petersburg, later admitted that he was proud of "Lolita.". Sting sang these words from the first verse of "Don't Stand So Close to Me":

"Inside her there's longing
This girl's an open page
Book marking she's so close now
This girl is half his age
Don't stand, don't stand so
Don't stand so close to me..."

Answer: Earth, Wind & Fire

The highly successful group Earth, Wind & Fire recorded the song "Let's Groove" for the 1981 album "Raise!" Earth, Wind & Fire was led by the incomparable Maurice White. The tune "Let's Groove" featured the group's trademark horn rhythm section and White's soaring vocals.

This tune rose to the number three position on the U.S. Billboard charts by late 1981/early 1982. "Let's groove tonight, share the spice of life!"

Answer: Double Fantasy

The song "Just Like Starting Over" was included in John Lennon's 1980 album "Double Fantasy." This album rose to the top of the charts in both the UK and the USA. Unfortunately, it would be Lennon's last creative work- he was murdered just three weeks after "Double Fantasy" was released.

In the USA, "Double Fantasy" produced three hit singles: "Starting Over", "Woman" and "Watching the Wheels." The posthumous Lennon album "Milk and Honey", which contained material recorded during the "Double Fantasy" period, was released in 1984.

Answer: Lonely

Billy Squier was born in Massachusetts, and he became one of the first stars of the MTV generation in the early 1980s. Squier's 1981 album "Don't Say No" sold over 4 million copies in the USA and produced the hit song "The Stroke." The tune "Lonely Is the Night" also appeared on "Don't Say No." This hard-driving song featured Squier's vocals, Cary Sharaf's guitars and Bobby Chouinard's drums. "Lonely Is the Night" became a popular song on FM radio stations in the USA and included these lyrics:

"There's danger out tonight, the man is on the prowl
Get the dynamite, the boys are set to howl
Lonely is the night when you hear the voices call
Are your ready for a fight? Do you wanna take it all?"

Answer: George Benson

Veteran jazz guitarist George Benson took his 1980 song "Give Me the Night" to the number four spot on the U.S. Billboard singles charts. Benson, born in Pittsburgh, achieved considerable success during the 1980s with his crossover jazz/pop style music. "Give Me the Night" was produced by the legendary Quincy Jones- it was Jones who put the "echo" sound on Benson's guitar riffs throughout this song. Benson sang these words:

"Cause there's music everywhere
And lots of loving everywhere
So give me the night, give me the night..."

Answer: Steal Away

When Brooklyn, New York, singer Robbie Dupree released the song "Steal Away" in April 1980, some listeners thought that it was the Doobie Brothers' latest single. "Steal Away" had a light, breezy beat and seductive lyrics about forbidden love. This tune climbed as high as the number six position on the U.S. Billboard chart and featured these lyrics:

"Why don't we steal away
Why don't we steal away
Into the night, I know it ain't right..."

Answer: The Go-Go's

A group called The Go-Go's recorded the 1981 song "Our Lips Are Sealed." The Go-Go's hailed from Los Angeles and featured the vocals of Belinda Carlisle. "Our Lips Are Sealed" appeared on the highly successful "Beauty and the Beat" album and reached the number 20 spot on the U.S. Billboard singles charts. The Go-Go's sang these words:

"It doesn't matter what they say
In the jealous games people play
Our lips are sealed..."