I went to high school in the 80s (1980 -1984 to be exact), and few songs had as much impact on teen life at the time than Valley Girl by Frank and Moon Unit Zappa. Of course, back then a name like "Moon Unit," was so bizarre, it was half the story. Today, parents seem to be in a competition to name their children unusual things (example: my nephew Lux).
The song introduced the whole concept of a valley girl, and added words to the lexicon, such as "bitchin'," "tubular," "omigod," and prases like "totally tubular," and "gag me with a spoon."
Moon (in the song) was the quintessential Valley Girl, but I'm not sure that the fans of the craze the song inspired ever caught on to the irony of the song. Moon & Frank were definitely riffing on the ridiculousness and shallowness of teens of the day. Maybe Moon and Dweezil should revisit the idea, as we are now more shallow than ever.
Another place irony was never acknowledged was Solid Gold, an awful (but popular) show in the 80s. Here is Moon's performance in a craptacular bit on Solid Gold. Check out Marilyn McCoo's headband! Oh, and happy 40th, Moon!
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