#23 - All She Wants To Do Is Dance

Artist: Don Henley

Album: Building The Perfect Beast
Video: After a 45 second commercial, you will be treated to this blurry video from DailyMotion which was hijacked from YouTube.  Sweet Jebus.

A great year to be a former Eagle, was 1985.  Three videos on the countdown so far, and we ain’t done yet.  The top 25 videos are littered with tunes by ex-Eagles turned solo artists.  Too bad Joe Walsh and Timmy B couldn’t join the party.

While Glenn Frey was dominating soundtracks, Don Henley released “Building The Perfect Beast”, his strongest solo album to date.  Eleven tracks, solid all the way through.  “All She Wants To Do Is Dance” is the second biggest hit from that album, peaking at #9 on the Billboard Hot 100.

And yet, on this countdown it ranks forty-two places higher than the timeless classic “The Boys Of Summer”.  Sigh.  Their positions should be flipped.  “All She Wants” is a decent song, but I never counted it among my favorites.  I can classify it as no higher than pretty good.

It’s a song about a woman with a single-minded desire to shake her booty, even though all around her chaos is raining supreme.  Many have speculating that the woman is a metaphor for America, obsessing over shiny new baubles while the world falls apart.  Don Henley sure does enjoy his biting social commentary.

The video has an unwashed feel, taking place in some sort of underground cave.  Filled with fast cuts and severe camera angles, soldiers share space with the band, each staking out territory.  A fiery Latina temptress gyrates throughout, for that is all she wants to do.

#24 - Sentimental Street

Artist: Night Ranger

Album: 7 Wishes
Video: From DailyMotion.

I have often wondered if Sentimental Street is just a metaphorical concept, or could it be an actual physical destination?  Perhaps only Night Ranger knows for sure.

In 1985, Night Ranger was in the midst of their most successful run, scoring five consecutive top 20 singles.  “Sister Christian” was their greatest and most famous hit, but “Sentimental Street” was an underappreciated gem, reaching #8 on the Billboard Hot 100.  The song retains an air of mystery, an aggressive rocker with a sweet and sensitive side.

Night Ranger still tours to this day, although they haven’t released a single in over 20 years.  It is also noteworthy that founding member Jack Blades co-founded Damn Yankees, who authored the Night Ranger-ish sounding hit song “High Enough” in 1990.

The video is bookended by fictional news coverage of Night Ranger’s disappearance in a B-25 bomber fighter plane, which graces the cover of the 7 Wishes album.  Lost at sea, the band members appear pensive, then excited when one finds a genie lamp.  This somehow leads to a sequence that culminates in a live performance before an enthused crowd.  The band ends the video still lost at sea, where they remain today.

Finally, I must say a word about the poll.  Not a single vote has been cast in the current poll, even though it has been up for over a week.  I’ll give it another couple of days before the poll closes forever due to lack of interest.

#25 - The Heat Is On

Artist: Glenn Frey

Album: Beverly Hills Cop Soundtrack
Video: From YouTube.

After spending the ‘70s with Don Henley headlining the Eagles, Glenn Frey tried his hand at a solo career in the ‘80s.  After a slow start to the decade, he hit the jackpot in 1985 with hit songs from movies and TV.

“The Heat Is On” is the third song in this countdown from the Beverly Hills Cop soundtrack, and also the most successful.  It’s a catchy tune that was frequently played at sporting events to excite the crowd.  Up-tempo beat, cool sax solo, and easily digestible lyrics, albeit a bit repetitive.

The song peaked at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100.  It was actually his first of two #2 songs in 1985, we’ll get to the other one a little bit later.  It's the kind of song that sticks in your head, usually reminding you of the hilarious hi-jinks that was the Beverly Hills Cop movie.

The video plays like a trailer for said movie, giving nearly equal time to Glenn Frey performing.  We see a lot of Eddie Murphy getting into crazy adventures.  It is also the second straight video in the countdown that features a healthy dose of car chases.

I must say that in the final analysis, I enjoyed this song.  Especially the oh-whoa-whoa-oh's.  You know what I'm talking about.

#26 - Sleeping Bag

Artist: ZZ Top

Album: Afterburner
Video: From DailyMotion with 45-second commercial, booo.  Hard to find this video online.

The only appearance in the countdown for the classic beards.  I always dug these groovy cats.  To me ZZ Top was edgy, mysterious and somewhat forbidden.  Like cigarettes or PCP. 

ZZ Top has been around since the late ‘60s, and they even released a critically acclaimed album this year.  But it was during the mid ‘80s that they experienced their greatest commercial successes.  “Eliminator” produced more recognizable hits, but “Afterburner” actually sold more records.

 “Sleeping Bag” is a groovy rocker with an irresistible baseline.  It peaked at #8 on the Billboard Hot 100, equaling the performance of the group’s other top 10 hit, “Legs”.  Most of the lyrics are incomprehensible, but there's no mistake about “slip inside my sleeping bag”.  Great line.

The video is a menagerie of all kinds of fun stuff.  Monster trucks, sexy ladies, car chases, an exploding pyramid, a bag of cash.  A young innocent couple being chased by ne’er-do-wells, as the ZZ Top guys play heroes by making helpful objects appear out of thin air, including said sleeping bag.  The classic red Eliminator (a 1933 Ford coupe) is also prominent.

The video concludes with the promise “To Be Continued…”.  However, I was not able to learn whether or not this convoluted story was actually continued.  “Stages”, the following video from the “Afterburner” album, did not revisit this ridiculously entertaining sequence of events.

#27 - Crazy For You

Artist: Madonna

Album: Vision Quest Motion Picture Soundtrack
Video: From YouTube.

OMG Crazy For You!  I love this song!  Very tough to pick a personal favorite from 1985, but along with this song it’s a front runner.  At least it better get serious consideration for favorite song in the reader’s choice poll on this blog, or I just might have to rig the thing.  Not that I would ever do that.  By the way a new poll is up, don’t forget to vote!

Anyway, "Crazy For You".  OMG!  When it was released, Madonna had the #1 album in the U.S. and this song wasn’t even on it.  Her record company didn’t want the single released because she was essentially competing with herself for sales.  Then when "Into The Groove" surfaced just a few months later, that couldn’t be released as a single in the U.S. because nobody could handle all the awesomeness. 

No matter, everyone involved got rich.  Madonna’s first ballad soared to the top of the pops, knocking "We Are The World" out of its 4-week reign at the top spot.  The bigwigs at Warner Brothers didn’t want her singing it at first, they didn’t know if she could handle it since she was being typecast as a dance club singer.  Well, she nailed it.  The song is a naked expression of physical desire, filled with wantonly brazen sexual lyrics.

The song is featured in the 1985 film "Vision Quest", a coming of age wrestling film starring Matthew Modine and Linda Fiorentino.  "Crazy For You" makes two appearances in the film.  The first time is a scene featuring Madonna performing in a nightclub, and the main characters dance together without passion.  However, when the song is reprised later in the film, they get their smooch on during a walk in the woods.

The video features a montage of scenes from the film, chronicling the developing relationship between the main characters.  There is also plenty of Madonna performing in the same nightclub from the movie scene.  The enduring image is her swaying gently on a poorly lit stage highlighted with pink neon accents, crucifix earring prominently jangling.