About This Quiz
Share your knowledge about the classic rock songs, videos, and artists that made the '80s great!Nine months after "Still Loving You" hit number one in France, there was a noticeable increase in the number of babies born. Although the band Scorpion is German, lead singer Klaus Meine always sings in English, to reach the American market.
The Stray Cats featured Brian Setzer, Lee Rocker, and Slim Jim Phantom. Their rockabilly style included exaggerated pompadours and many tattoos.
Dire Straits were initially in actual dire straits. Even after they found success, finances took their toll. The characters in their computer-animated video for "Money for Nothing" were supposed to be more detailed, but the band ran out of money. Happily for them, the video still won Best Video at the 1986 "MTV Video Music Awards."
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Bret Michaels wrote "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" for his band, Poison. The rose symbolizes his budding career. However, his budding career cost him his relationship with his then-girlfriend. That loss is the thorn. He wrote the song while on the road, on a yellow legal pad.
Jon Bon Jovi is the only band member signed with the record label, so he makes all business decisions for the band, Bon Jovi.
Frank Zappa, Dee Snider, and John Denver all testified. Dee Snider's band, Twisted Sister, was included on the Parents Music Resource Center's Filthy Fifteen, for violence in the song, "We're Not Gonna Take It."
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The Mary Jane Girls were Rick James' backup singers. James suggested that one singer, Jojo McDuffie, should be given a solo contract, but the record company chose instead to sign several singers as a group, fronted by McDuffie.
Outside of Australia, Midnight Oil is best known for their protest song, "Beds Are Burning," about returning native Australian land to the Pintupi tribe.
UB 40 stands for Unemployment Benefit Form 40, a form used at the time in the UK. One of their hits is "Red Red Wine."
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Before American Chrissy Hynde helped form The Pretenders, she worked in England as a music journalist for "New Musical Express."
"Jenny (867-5309)," by Tommy Tutone, is dated because there are no longer many pay phones in our world, much less pay phones that only charge ten cents per call.
Lita Ford and Ozzy Osbourne wrote and recorded this song together. Lita Ford was once engaged to guitarist Tony Iommi, who was in Black Sabbath with Ozzy Osbourne.
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U2 was named "Band of the '80s" by "Rolling Stone" magazine. Bono, born as Paul Hewson, got his stage name, "Bono Vox," from the name of a hearing aid company.
In the '80s, Kenny Loggins enjoyed great success by writing and performing movie theme songs. These include "I'm Alright" for "Caddyshack," "Danger Zone" for "Top Gun," and "Footloose" for the movie of the same name.
The next line is "Everybody wants a little romance," from "Working for the Weekend," by Loverboy. The original working title was, "Waiting for the Weekend."
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Billy Idol's real name is William Broad. He was going to be Billy Idle, since one of his teachers called him an idle student. He ultimately chose Billy Idol, which is arguably cooler, to avoid confusion with Monty Python's Eric Idle.
Eddie Van Halen performed on "Beat It," as a favor to producer Quincy Jones. Oddly, Jackson's album, "Thriller," kept Van Halen's album, "1984" from reaching number one.
Although some people like to diss the band Europe's top song, "The Final Countdown," it's frequently played at sporting events.
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MTV first aired on August 1, 1981. The very first video was "Video Killed the Radio Star," by The Buggles.
In Echo and the Bunnymen, Echo is a drum machine. The Bunnymen are vocalist Ian McCulloch, guitarist Will Sergeant, and bass player Les Pattinson.
"Rockit," by Herbie Hancock, was the first single to feature a scratching solo, and it fused jazz with hip hop. The music video showcased animated robot sculptures by artist Jim Whiting.
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The band's producer, Rupert Hine, was an amateur pilot. He suggested "The Fix" because he liked the phrase in aviation, "getting a fix" on something. The band liked it too, but they added an extra "x" to avoid drug connotations.
The band Depeche Mode took their name from an out-of-print French fashion magazine simply because they thought it sounded cool.
Springsteen wrote and performed "Born in the U.S.A.," about the troubles Vietnam vets faced when they returned to the States. Springsteen had been called to serve in Vietnam, but he failed his physical exam due to a concussion he had suffered at the age of 17.
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Rick Allen, the drummer for Def Leppard, lost his arm in a car accident on New Year's Eve, 1984. He learned to play drums again with a specially designed, computerized drum kit. Allen is known as the Thundergod.
In the early days, Angus went directly from school to rehearsals, still wearing his school uniform, and the style became an odd tradition. AC/DC got heir name from the abbreviation for "Alternating Current/Direct Current."
Phil Collins replaced Peter Gabriel. Originally Collins was their drummer, and he sang demos of songs for singers during their auditions. Eventually the band members realized that Phil Collins was the best vocalist they heard.
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Guns N' Roses' guitarist, Slash, got his nickname because he was always in a hurry. In fact, he once competed in BMX at a professional level.
Queen and Duran Duran both had drummers named Roger Taylor. They were not the same guy - Queen's Taylor was born in 1949 and Duran Duran's Taylor was born in 1960.
The River Styx formed the boundary between Earth and the Underworld. The gods swore binding oaths on this river and it had the power to make someone immortal or invulnerable. Achilles was dipped in Styx, except for his heel.
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"Sledgehammer," by Peter Gabriel, featured dancing chickens - raw and plucked, not living and feathered. Some say this video was played more often on MTV than any other.
Bryan Adams was named "Canadian Artist of the Decade" for the 1980s, by the Canadian Recording Industry Association. When Adams was young, he traveled a lot with his father, who was a diplomat in the Canadian foreign service.
"Don't Come Around Here No More," by Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, had a video with a surreal "Alice in Wonderland" story line. Some viewers objected when Alice turned into a cake and the band ate her.
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Foreigner and The Clash both had members named Mick Jones. Also, both played guitar and sang. Are we sure they're two different guys?
The song is "The Eye of the Tiger." It was parodied by Weird Al Yankovic as "The Rye or the Kaiser (Theme from 'Rocky XIII')."