Happy Music Monday! About a year ago Scott was talking with forums emperor Sam Kemmis. Sam had heard a Men At Work song and wanted to know more about the band. Scott said he'd hook Sam up. Scott forgot about that promise until today. And, coincidentally, today is Men At Work lead singer Colin Hay's birthday! You can probably figure out the rest. Let's get to it.
If you had to pick only one Men At Work song, this is really the one to pick. It was played into the ground and back again and it STILL sounds pretty okay. A nice snapshot of what it was like to turn on the radio by the pool back in 1982. And that last memorable bit is way up high in the stars, too!
Is that The Who? Well, no, but it certainly captures the feel of that classic band. This kinda-forgotten Men At Work song is quite solid, and has that 80's anthem feel the band did so well. Good stuff, isn't it?
Men At Work - Dr. Heckyll And Mr. Jive
I heard this one while at a friend's house on HBO's Video Jukebox. I never really heard it on the radio, and I don't know why, because it's great! Maybe because when the time came for this song to get released, Yahoo Serious had ruined Australia for everyone. Or was that later?
Men At Work - Man With Two Hearts
By 1985, Men At Work was pretty much over and done. This song is as lovely as anything they ever did, and yet it didn't even chart! Nobody could really say why. Maybe it was the slow rise of what would later be alternative. Maybe it was the growth of what was becoming hip hop. Maybe it was the focus on what would turn into techno and dance. Maybe it was home taping. Who can say? All that we know for sure is that Men At Work did more with their fifteen minutes than most bands.
Yes, Colin Hay. It WAS a mistake. You should have had more time. (PS: Colin Hay's not dead, he's even touring right now! Happy birthday to you, buddy!)
Throw your favorite Men At Work hits, stories, side projects or whatever in here for Sam to devour. And let us just remind you: some images come from the corresponding Wikipedia page and are here under fair use. See you next week.