Blast from the Past: Class of 1984, the Men

As a further tribute to my graduating year, lo those thirty years ago, this week's Blast from the Past follows last week's The Women of '84 with The Men of '84. Not the bands, that comes later. These are the solo acts. As with last week's edition, though the stars themselves will be no surprise, not all of the songs will necessarily be the ones you expect.

1. I Would Die 4 U by Prince - The little purple dude had four hits in 1984, all from the film Purple Rain. Prince has had a long career, but these would be his glory days.
2. Thriller by Michael Jackson - I'd use a different song, given this ones ubiquity, but MJ was running out the clock on this album by '84, and had no other solo hits for a while. Plus there was that whole "head on fire" incident. But I couldn't leave this on off.



3. Rock Me Tonite by Billy Squier - Squier isn't maybe the first guy you'd think of from the '80s, but I've gotta tell ya, he was huge at my high school.
4. The Longest Time by Billy Joel - Joel's discography runs so long, it's easy to forget his early-'80s MTV phase.



5. Eyes Without a Face by Billy Idol - Who knew there were so many "Billys" in this grouping? And so very different from each other. Idol, certainly, is the most '80s of them.
6. Caribbean Queen by Billy Ocean - Obviously, I'm caught in a Billy wave.



7. Running with the Night by Lionel Ritchie - Ritchie gets overrun by Michael Jackson and Prince in our memories of 80s R&B-crossover artists (which is what they were back then), but he was huge in the early 80s.
8. Sad Songs (Say So Much) by Elton John - Back when he was straight. Heh.



9. Major Tom (Coming Home) by Peter Schilling - Had to put a one-hit wonder in here somewhere.
10. Blue Jean by David Bowie - I realized that I couldn't mention the last guy, and then leave off Bowie. It wasn't a big year for him, but he was kind of between hits.



And there you have it, I've hit my limit for the week. And I didn't even get around to John "Cougar" Mellencamp, Christopher Cross, John-freakin'-Lennon, Ray Parker Jr., Bruce-yeah, Bruce-Springsteen, Rick Springfield, Rod Stewart, Peabo Bryson, Corey Hart, Steve Perry, Dan Hartman, and so many others. Maybe a sequel is in order?

Meanwhile, happy Monday!