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Quiz about 80s Behind the Lyrics I

Quiz about 80s Behind the Lyrics I

80s Behind the Lyrics I Trivia Quiz

You know the lyrics, but do you understand all the terms in them? Take this quiz and see behind the curtain.

A multiple-choice quiz by umpire63. Estimated time: 6 mins.

Author
umpire63

Time
6 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
131,359

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Tough

Avg Score
6 / 10

Plays
4317

Awards
Top 35% Quiz

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. Dexy's Midnight Runners sing about "Poor old Johnnie Ray" in their hit "Come on, Eileen." Who was Johnnie Ray? Hint

A white R&B singer from the 50's

A baseball player for the old Brooklyn Dodgers

A contemporary salsa musician

An Irish mercenary who fought for Irish independence

NEXT>

Question 2 of 10

2. Chris DeBurgh sang, "He is closer now and the search is on/ Reading from a map in the mind/ Yes there's a ragged hill/ And there's the boat on the river," in his song "Don't Pay the Ferryman."

In mythology, what is the name of the river that separates Earth and the underworld? Hint

Hades

Styx

Cerberus

Thames

NEXT>

Question 3 of 10

3. Jackson Browne sings that "Down on the boulevard they take it hard/ They look at life with such disregard." What exactly is a boulevard?
Hint

A street divided by a grassy median

A pier on harbor

An alleyway between two skyscrapers

A section of New York City

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Question 4 of 10

4. Kim Carnes sings about a girl who has "Bette Davis Eyes." For which movie did Davis win an Academy Award for leading actress? Hint

"Now Voyager" (1942)

"Of Human Bondage" (1934)

"All About Eve" (1950)

"Jezebel" (1938)

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Question 5 of 10

5. In "Rock the Casbah," the Clash sing, "The king called up his jet fighters/ He said you better earn your pay/ Drop your bombs between the minarets." What are minarets? Hint

Russian anti-aircraft missile launchers

Towers built near to or built into a mosque

Islamic holy men

Ponds used for ritual cleansing

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Question 6 of 10

6. Elvis Costello, in his tribute to his grandmother "Veronica," sings, "On the 'Empress of India' and as she closed her eyes upon the world/ And picked upon the bones of last week's news/ She spoke his name out loud again." The "Empress of India" was a ship registered to Canadian Pacific and was named for a Queen. For which queen was the ship named? Hint

Queen Elizabeth II

Queen Victoria

Queen Elizabeth I

Mary, Queen of Scots

NEXT>

Question 7 of 10

7. Crosby, Stills, and Nash were impressed by the Southern Cross in their song of the same name: "When you see the Southern Cross for the first time/ You understand now why you came this way." What is the Southern Cross? Hint

A constellation very close to Centaurus

The oldest university in Brazil

The large statue of Christ in Rio de Janeiro

A land point on the coast of Antarctica

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Question 8 of 10

8. Enya had a haunting hit with "Orinoco Flow." "Let me sail, let me sail, let the Orinoco flow." In what country would you find the Orinoco River? Hint

Nigeria

Phillipines

India

Venezuela

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Question 9 of 10

9. In his song "Another Old Lang Syne," Dan Fogelberg sings, "We drank a toast to innocence/ We drank a toast to time/ Living in our eloquence/ Another auld lang syne." Who wrote the original "Auld Lang Syne"?
Hint

Robert Southey

Robert Burns

Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Sir Walter Raleigh

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Question 10 of 10

10. Finally, in their hit "Cult of Personality," Living Colour sings, "Neon lights a Nobel Prize/ A leader speaks, that leader dies/ You don't have to follow me/ Only you can set you free." The Nobel Prizes are named for Alfred Nobel. Other than the prize that bears his name, for what is Nobel famous? Hint

He negotiated the Paris Peace Treaty that ended World War I

He invented dynamite

He wrote a treatise on world government

He was prime minister of Sweden

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Dexy's Midnight Runners sing about "Poor old Johnnie Ray" in their hit "Come on, Eileen." Who was Johnnie Ray?

Answer: A white R&B singer from the 50's

"Poor old Johnnie Ray/ Sounded sad upon the radio/ He moved a million hearts in mono." Ray had huge hits with "Cry" and "Walkin' My Baby Back Home." He died of liver failure in 1990. Johnny Ray is a contemporary latin musician.

2. Chris DeBurgh sang, "He is closer now and the search is on/ Reading from a map in the mind/ Yes there's a ragged hill/ And there's the boat on the river," in his song "Don't Pay the Ferryman." In mythology, what is the name of the river that separates Earth and the underworld?

Answer: Styx

The Styx separated men's shades from the living world, and the ferryman (Don't pay the ferryman!) took you across. Hades is the name of the underworld. Cerberus is the three-headed dog that guards Hades, and the Thames is but a river in England.

3. Jackson Browne sings that "Down on the boulevard they take it hard/ They look at life with such disregard." What exactly is a boulevard?

Answer: A street divided by a grassy median

Oddly enough, from the song "Boulevard." Boulevards usually have trees in the medians, also. Nice touch to a cityscape!

4. Kim Carnes sings about a girl who has "Bette Davis Eyes." For which movie did Davis win an Academy Award for leading actress?

Answer: "Jezebel" (1938)

She also took home the Oscar for "Dangerous" in 1935 and was nominated 11 times!

5. In "Rock the Casbah," the Clash sing, "The king called up his jet fighters/ He said you better earn your pay/ Drop your bombs between the minarets." What are minarets?

Answer: Towers built near to or built into a mosque

Tall towers from which the muezzin (another term in the song) call out the adhan in order to make people to come to prayers in Islam.

6. Elvis Costello, in his tribute to his grandmother "Veronica," sings, "On the 'Empress of India' and as she closed her eyes upon the world/ And picked upon the bones of last week's news/ She spoke his name out loud again." The "Empress of India" was a ship registered to Canadian Pacific and was named for a Queen. For which queen was the ship named?

Answer: Queen Victoria

Victoria was the only person to hold the title of "Empress" in the United Kingdom, and she was named Empress of India in 1877. The ship the "Empress of India" was one of three "Empress" ships, the other two being "Empress of Japan" and "Empress of China."

7. Crosby, Stills, and Nash were impressed by the Southern Cross in their song of the same name: "When you see the Southern Cross for the first time/ You understand now why you came this way." What is the Southern Cross?

Answer: A constellation very close to Centaurus

Explorers of the southern hemisphere used the Southern Cross (also called Crux) to guide them when sailing. By looking at the Southern Cross, they could figure out in which direction to sail without getting lost.

8. Enya had a haunting hit with "Orinoco Flow." "Let me sail, let me sail, let the Orinoco flow." In what country would you find the Orinoco River?

Answer: Venezuela

The Orinoco forms part of the border between Venezuela and Colombia.

9. In his song "Another Old Lang Syne," Dan Fogelberg sings, "We drank a toast to innocence/ We drank a toast to time/ Living in our eloquence/ Another auld lang syne." Who wrote the original "Auld Lang Syne"?

Answer: Robert Burns

The Scottish poet wrote this song whose title translates roughly to "old time since gone." Impress your date with that tidbit next New Year's Eve. "Should auld acquaintance be forgot..."

10. Finally, in their hit "Cult of Personality," Living Colour sings, "Neon lights a Nobel Prize/ A leader speaks, that leader dies/ You don't have to follow me/ Only you can set you free." The Nobel Prizes are named for Alfred Nobel. Other than the prize that bears his name, for what is Nobel famous?

Answer: He invented dynamite

It is rumored that Nobel was so distraught at the destruction upon human life caused by his invention (he wanted it to be used only for commercial uses) that upon his death he willed the money to fund the Nobel Prizes.

Source: Author umpire63

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor ltc717 before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

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