In the Mood for Some Plant?

This past week, Robert Plant turned 64. Yikes!!

We're all familiar with Robert Plant, lead singer for the iconic Led Zeppelin from 1968 to 1980. If nothing else, even many younger rock fans have heard or at least heard of Stairway to Heaven, one of the most memorable rockers that was never released as a single.

(If you don't know Stairway to Heaven, because like you've been under a rock, lost on a desert island, or just merely very young, check it out here. I'll wait.) 

 

Then there was his collaboration with the lovely Alison Krauss called Raising Sand released in 2007. That one was honoured with a Grammy as album of the year in 2009.

 But how about Robert Plant the solo artist?

For this classic track look back, I chose a song that we rarely hear on the radio these days. It comes from Robert's Principle of Moments 1983 solo album. In the Mood was first heard as an album cut and reached No. 4 on Billboard Magazine's Top Tracks chart. When it was released as a single in November 1983, it climbed to No. 39, peaking there on Billboard's Hot 100 chart in January 1984.

Ready for more? Ok, classic track look back bonus track time. Check out Little by Little from his 1985 album Shaken 'n' Stirred.

Some lovely English countryside in that video, if not some rather transgender creepy looking brides - not something you see everyday.

'Til next time, that's a double shot classic track look back at rock history.

I Want My, I Want My, I Want My MTV... Back

Before August gets away from us, I want to take a classic track look back to August 1, 1981, when a very cool all-music video service called MTV was born. It launched its new music service with the perfectly-themed video, the 1979 hit which became even bigger, when MTV played Video Killed the Radio Star by the Buggles.

MTV of the 80s was much different from MTV as we know it now, except to say that in my not-so-humble opinion, today's MTV is a far cry from the original. In the 80s, MTV played music videos - all videos, all the time. There were no made-for-MTV series and no reality shows. It just played the best music videos that the 80s could offer, played by hosts - the VJs. Only the hourly music news stopped the music, and that was just the talk about the music. With the exception of the late J.J. Jackson who passed away in 2004, all of the original VJs are now anchoring Sirius/XM's 80s channel, a perfect rockin' home for them. 

The 80s were truly the MTV decade. During MTV's prime, they were even mentioned in songs such as Dire Straits' Money for Nothing, where Sting joins in, singing the falsetto introduction "I Want My MTV." Didn't we all?

In 1987, MTV Europe was born, opening with Money for Nothing. Another obvious choice.

So what happened to the network that gave us radio with pictures?

As the '80s became the '90s, MTV gradually evolved, and, in my opinion, not in a positive direction. Non-music shows were aired, such as Beavis and Butthead (in September '92), and obviously were aimed at teens and young adults. Slowly these types of shows began to creep into the daily broadcast schedule, gradually taking over from music videos.

 Truly worthwhile content, right? You be the judge.

Unquestionably, MTV is still aimed at teens and young adults, but now airs reality shows and original series. Although there was no specific day when the all-music-all-the-time concept died on MTV; the days of non-stop videos hosted by people who knew the music - the VJ stars of the day.

'Til next time, that's another classic track look back at rock history, and the day-in-day-out videos that we watched, defining rock history throughout the 80s and 90s.