I know what I'll be listening to at the gym tomorrow...
July 8th marks the (I cannot freakin' believe it's been that long) 40th anniversary of the release of the Go-Go's debut album, Beauty and the Beat.
I won't go into detail on the history or significance of the band or their post-punk/new wave/pop offering that rose to become the first number one album by an all-girl band. Instead, I'll let the others tell you why the album is so great and simply relate a story:
Around my freshman year of high school, when music became a much more significant part of my life, I visited Record Town with enough money to purchase my very first album. I didn't realize then, but this would be a seminal event in my life and my choices came down to Olivia Newton-John's Physical, Blondie's Parallel Lines, or Beauty and the Beat. I lingered in the store and mulled long and hard before finally choosing ONJ.
Weeks later, I did wind up buying Beauty and the Beat, making it one of the first ten or so albums I ever owned. Today I have an extensive collection of vinyl, cassettes and CDs that I cherish, and it all began with that trip to Record Town. I'm also proud to say that my three finalists that day were all albums that had major success and historical importance in popular music.
Among other accolades, Parallel Lines was Blondie's breakthrough album, spawned six singles, was number one in the US and UK, and its single "Heart of Glass" was one of the biggest crossover hits of all time, dominating both black and white radio stations in the early months of 1979.
Physical sold over ten million copies; it's title single was number one for (a then record) ten straight weeks; and an accompanying compilation of videos for each of Physical's tracks served was one of the first ever video albums.
But back to Beauty and the Beat. It's well-produced blend of Belinda Carlisle's throaty lead vocals, group choruses and surf-rock drums and guitars, combined with infectious beats and underrated musicianship (drummer Gina Schock is a standout) set the benchmark for all-female band success on the album charts. In this regard, the album trail blazed for a number of 80's and 90's radio-friendly punk and rock artists including Green Day, Joan Jett, and The Donnas (who, ironically, went on to master the pop/punk fusion the Go-Go's originally intended but wound up straying from.) From "We Got the Beat" (a punk record disguised as dance-pop) and the power-driven "How Much More", "This Town" and "Lust to Love", to the frolicking "Our Lips Are Sealed", and the haunting lyrics and harmonies of "Fading Fast", the album is nothing short of an early 80's treasure.
To recognize Beauty and the Beat's anniversary, the band is holding a listening party that you can access through Apple Music or Spotify.
And if you've read this far and are a true Go-Go's fan, let me reward you with a rare bootleg from one of the group's early concerts.
Go-Go's: Live at the Sun Plaza Hall, Tokyo, Japan, 1982
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