Casey Kasem's Countdown Clues Trivia Quiz

Answer: "Borderline" by Madonna

My use of the phrase "living on the edge" hints at the song's title "Borderline." Also, "keeps on pushing" refers to the lyrics in "Borderline"--"You just keep on pushing my love over the borderline." "Divine diva" refers to the artist's name, Madonna. "Burning up everbody" refers to her first two releases from her self-titled album, "Burning Up" and "Everybody." Neither broke the top 100, though they are both timeless solid pop songs. "Borderline" was Madonna's first top 10 hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, peaking at Number 10 in June of 1984. To me, it sounded out of place on Madonna's debut album, which contained more danceable pop tunes in major keys.

"Edge of Seventeen" peaked at Number 11 for Stevie Nicks in 1981. "Toy Soldiers" (1989) and "So Emotional" (1988) were both Number 1 singles.

Answer: "What Have You Done for Me Lately?" by Janet Jackson

There are a few clues pointing to "What Have You Done for Me Lately?", Janet Jackson's first single from her third and groundbreaking album Control. (Her first two albums were titled Janet Jackson and Dream Street respectively, and only had moderate success.) As far as clues, first, Janet played the character "Penny" on the American TV show "Good Times" as a child. Penny was an abused child who had a crush on another character named JJ (Mr. Dyno-Mite!). Second, in real life, Janet's big brother MJ is of course Michael Jackson. Third, she is "taking charge" (as she says in the lead-in to the song "Control") with the question, "What Have You Done for Me Lately?" Getting the hang of it? Read each word carefully. Some are clues; some are not.

"Where Do Broken Hearts Go?" by Whitney Houston was a pensively doleful Number 1 hit in 1988. "Why Do Fools Fall in Love?" was a fun, happy Number 7 hit for Diana Ross in 1981. "What's Love Got to Do With It?" was a Number 1 comeback smash for Tina Turner in 1984.

Answer: "The Loco-Motion" by Kylie Minogue

I know its silly talk, but that's how I remember Casey Kasem talking. Kylie Minogue is the "Aussie actress" (from the Aussie soap opera "Neighbours") who did a remake of Little Eva's "The Loco-Motion" which Kylie released in the US in the summer of 1988. Of course, the question mentions "all aboard" (like they say before you board a locomotive, i.e., train). "Brand new dance" is a phrase directly from the song. ("Everybody's doing a brand new dance now!")

"Physical" by Olivia Newton-John was a Number 1 smash in 1981-1982, spending a record (at the time) ten weeks in the top spot. "Morning Train (Nine to Five)" by Sheena Easton reached Number 1 in 1981. "Dancin' in the Streets" by Martha and the Vandellas reached Number 2 in 1964.

I, like many people, think Kylie is a goddess on earth. If you ever need to cheer yourself up, play her song "Love at First Sight" and turn it up LOUD! It's like a happy pill.

Answer: "Pour Some Sugar On Me" by Def Leppard

"Pour Some Sugar on Me" was Def Leppard's fourth single from their smash album Hysteria. Despite fair U.S. success with their first three singles, "Pour Some Sugar on Me" really made Hysteria album sales take off during the song's heavy rotation on the radio and MTV. This was quite a relief to their label, because Hysteria was thought to be the most expensive album ever produced at the time.

As far as clues, "set the charts on fire" hints at their previous breakthrough album Pyromania. "Hysterical" is a reference to the fourth album title Hysteria, and "hear these cats" is a reference to "Deaf Leopard," which the band deliberately misspelled as "Def Leppard" in their name. "Sweet success" refers to the song title "Pour Some Sugar on Me". For those paying really close attention, "rock it to the top" vaguely refers to another song on the Hysteria album "Rocket."

"Sugar, Sugar" by the Archies reached Number 1 in 1969. "Sweet Child of Mine" by Guns N' Roses reached Number 1 in 1988. "Sweet Emotion" by Aerosmith reached Number 36 in 1975.

Answer: "Faithfully" by Journey

To me, lead singer Steve Perry's voice is perhaps the strongest male voice in rock music in the 80's. A lot of people like me miss hearing him sing. As far as clues, "trip" refers to the band's name, Journey. "New frontiers" refers to the album Frontiers from which the song "Faithfully" came. "Loving a music man" is a phrase from "Faithfully" as is "forever yours." "Anyway they want it" refers to one of their hits "Anyway You Want It."

"Truly, Madly, Deeply" by Savage Garden reached Number 1 in 1998. "True" by Spandau Ballet reached Number 4 in 1983. "Always" by Atlantic Starr reached Number 1 in 1987.

Answer: "Some Like It Hot" by Power Station

The correct answer is "Some Like it Hot" by the short-lived but spectacular group Power Station. As the question mentions, Power Station was formed by the Taylors of Duran Duran, the incomparable Robert Palmer and Tony Thompson of Chic. Their first and last album, also entitled "The Power Station" is a brilliant collection of big sound rock-pop. "Powerful", "stationed" and "electricity" hint at the band's name of The Power Station. "Heating up the charts" refers to the "hot" in "Some Like it Hot." Of course, Marilyn Monroe and Tony Curtis starred in the movie "Some Like it Hot."

"Heat of the Moment" by Asia reached Number 4 in 1982. Its still one of my favorites. Check out Steve Acho's "unplugged" haunting version of it. "Simply Irresistible" by Robert Palmer reached Number 2 in 1983. "The Flame" by Cheap Trick reached Number 1 in 1988 in the US.

Answer: "Monkey" by George Michael

This one is riddled with clues. "Better watch out, baby who's that" is a line from "Monkey", at least the radio single that was released in the U.S. "King" of the "jungle", "bananas", and "pounding his chest" are all simian (monkey) references, though apes are more apt to pound their chests. "King" is also an oblique reference to "King Kong" which may connote a monkey, though King Kong was a giant gorilla, which is an ape, not a monkey if we are going to get picky. I also give hints that he is a solo British male artist ("King" "British icon" "his" "London-born"), and that the song is from the album "Faith" ("first solo album", "4th number 1 single in a row"). I also refer to his birth name, Georgios-Kyriacos Panayiotou, and his famous five o'clock shadow he sported during a lot of the 1980's.

The other answers don't fit all those clues. "Tarzan Boy" was not a Number 1 song in the U.S. (#13 in 1986), and is by an Italian group, not a British solo artist. Though released by a British solo artist, "Shock the Monkey" by Peter Gabriel reached only Number 29 in the U.S. in 1982, and came off his fourth solo album not his first. "Jungle Love" (#20 in 1984) was also not a Number 1 in the U.S. and was released by an American group, not a British solo artist.

Answer: "Karma Chameleon" by Culture Club

The direct hints refer to their nationality (British), chart position and hit history (first US Number 1, string of US top 10 hits from their first album), album history (first single from their second album, Colour By Numbers), and first album name (Kissing to Be Clever). The indirect hints include "Colour" (spelled in the British way) which refers to the album from which "Karma Chameleon" came, Colour by Numbers. "Boys" refers to Boy George and the gender of all the members of Culture Club. "Luck" obliquely refers to the "karma" in "Karma Chameleon." "Club" (of Number 1 artists) and "pop culture" refer to their name, Culture Club. "Colourful tune" refers to both the album title Colour by Numbers and the song's lyrics which refer to a color-changing animal (chameleon) and several colors ("lovin' would be easy if your colors were like my dreams, red, gold and green...").

None of the other songs in this multiple choice question reached Number 1 in the US on the Billboard Hot 100, except "Red, Red Wine" in 1988.

Answer: "Maniac" by Michael Sembello

Direct hints refer to Michael Sembello as a studio guitarist, "Maniac" as a Number 1 song and the second single off the monster soundtrack Flashdance. Indirect hints included "what a feelin'" referring to a phrase that is part of the title to "Flashdance...What a Feelin'" and "crazy" as an oblique reference to the song title "Maniac." References to the lyrics include "steeltown girl on a Saturday night" and "like he's never danced before", though in the song the lyrics are about a female dancing "like she's never danced before..."

"Lady, Lady, Lady" is also from the Flashdance soundtrack, but it was never released as a single and therefore could not reach Number 1. "The Girl Gets Around" and "Dancin' in the Sheets" are from the Footloose soundtrack, another hugely successful soundtrack from the fabulous 1980's.

Answer: "Wrapped Around Your Finger" by the Police

Direct hints include references to a "British rock supergroup", "three-man band" and the lyrics which mention Scylla, Charybdis and Mephistopheles. Indirect hints include "in synch" referring to the Police's smash album Synchronicity, "a crime" referring to their name, the Police, and "firmly in hand" referring to the song's title.

As for the wrong answers, both "Bohemian Rhapsody" (#9 in 1975) and "Stairway to Heaven" (1971) were from albums in the 1970's. According to a reputable source, "Stairway to Heaven" is actually the most requested and most played song on FM radio stations in the United States, despite never being released as a single here. Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" reached Number 9 in the U.S. when it was originally released in 1975 (pre-Wayne's World). "Devil Inside" by INXS reached Number 2 in 1988. It does not include such literary references and was recorded and released by an Australian band.

There is much debate on the net as to what "Wrapped Around Your Finger" is about. Some say death, other say witchcraft and spells. I think its about the dynamics of any mentor relationship which include the day when the "servant becomes your master." Sting often writes songs that have much simpler meanings than people give them in my opinion. But many of his songs are timeless classics that never seem to leave the radio.