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1980's actually ended in 1988, went dormant until 1992, restarted and continued concurrently with the 1990's until 1995 and then resurfaced briefly for 6 months in 1997.
1993, when Bill Clinton was inaugurated. The entire mood in this country changed around that time. The early '90s were like an extension of the 1980s. There were some differences, but I would say 1991 was much more like 1987 than 1997.
In my opinion, the '80s began with the release of Journey's iconic album "Escape" in 1981.
Last edited by bawac34618; 11-18-2016 at 01:43 PM..
How unfortunate we don't have a music forum in CityData to discuss recording artists.
The irony is that we do have a music forum on city-data, specifically the 1980s. I have posted in that thread thousands of times as I have one of the largest 80s new wave and alternative music collection ever assembled.
The irony is that we do have a music forum on city-data, specifically the 1980s. I have posted in that thread thousands of times as I have one of the largest 80s new wave and alternative music collection ever assembled.
1993, when Bill Clinton was inaugurated. The entire mood in this country changed around that time. The early '90s were like an extension of the 1980s. There were some differences, but I would say 1991 was much more like 1987 than 1997.
In my opinion, the '80s began with the release of Journey's iconic album "Escape" in 1981.
Will 1991, was the year grunge went mainstream especially with the release of Nirvana's Nevermind album and grunge is one thing we associate with the '90s and not the '80s. But I wouldn't flat out say that 1990 and 1991 are part of the '80s. They would both be a part of the actual '90s and the echo of the '80s and the prelude of the '90s. And by 1981 disco was dead and that year would have very little '70s hangover if any at all. By '81 people were really heading into the '80s and I'd say that's where the zeitgeist of the '80s began. And remember the zeitgeist of the '80s is not the same as the actual '80s.
It's about time I draw a distinction between the actual 80s and the zeitgeist of the 80s. The former is an actual decade and began when the clock struck midnight January 1, 1980 and ended when the clock struck midnight January 1, 1990. The latter is not an actual decade but instead a portion of a decade. I'm going to say it began in either 1981 or 1982 and ended about 1989. The years 1990 and 1991 are not a part of the zeitgeist of the 80s but instead the echo of the 80s and the prelude of the 90s. Hopefully all this information will sum everything up.
I very much agree with this assessment. I would say the echoes of the 70s were a lot stronger in 1980 than the echoes of the 80s were in 1990. I think the debut of MTV rapidly accelerated the spread of a true 80s culture due to the fact that the music and fashion could be seen so readily in a way that wasn't before possible. I can remember a show like "Solid Gold" (intent on prolonging 70s culture into the 80s) would have had a much more pervasive effect on culture if not for the rapid expansion of cable TV.
As you said, what I think of as true 80s music, fashion, television, and politics didn't make it six months past Bush's inauguration. Even prior to grunge, by 1989 it seemed as if hair bands just stopped wearing their make up and Bon Jovi went "country and western". Rap artists on the East Coast stopped being "street" with fat gold chains and boom boxes and started either wearing suits or became real "earthy". The concept of an R&B band with a lead singer and actual instrument playing members fell apart all together. What used to be 80s pop now all had this tinge of "house music" about it. Madonna, Whitney Houston, Prince, Tears for Fears etc. all lacked the upbeat energy of their pre-1989 tracks.
By 1989, your consummate TV families on the Cosby Show, Family Ties, Growing Pains, etc. all saw the originally cute, youngest cast members become teenagers and the shows would take on new young cast members making these very 80s families now seem dysfunctional. Fashion in 1989 became baggier than in the true 1980s but not in a cool 1991-Carhartt, Columbia, Timberland kind of way. Think MC Hammer pants!
In my assessment, from roughly the summer of 1989 all the way through summer of 1991 was the transition between the true 1980s and the true 1990s culture. Politically, the Berlin Wall fell and by the end of 1991 the Soviet Union was no more. This was a radical global shift to say that the entire "Second World" no longer existed (You could now no longer even refer to the "first world" and "third world" with any accuracy; that was profound!). But I can definitely say by this time 25 years ago when I was Christmas shopping, all vestiges of the 1980s were dead. Look at this Billboard list:
Yeah there was quite a few 1980s artists on this chart, but in name only. Their styles in fashion and music had completely changed. The 1990s were about Boyz II Men and Nirvana and their was no turning back by this time 25 years ago.
Last edited by Steelers10; 11-20-2016 at 10:13 PM..
Reason: The end of the Communist Bloc signaled the end of the 80s!
Beatles were still big, not on the charts but their music was still being played. In the mid 1980's a survey was out that stated that the Beatles were still considered the best band ever.
Back then I was listening to the Police, the Cars, Eagles, Boston, REO Speedwagon, Fleetwood Mac, Air Supply, Oingo Boingo, Surf Punks, Berlin, Pat Benatar, Chicago, the Beach Boys, and a bunch more.
A big movement in my area was the Nardcore scene. I grew up with most of the guys that started and made Nardcore what it was, and what part of it became. Big Bad Voodoo Daddy came out of that era, not as a punk band but bringing Swing back into the open, or at least introducing a new audience to Swing music. Some of you may remember my friend Brandon Cruz from the show "The Courtship of Eddie's Father" Brandon was in a couple bands, "Dr Know" and "the Dead Kennedys".
LOL, my facebook list is littered with former Nardcore artists. We all grew up together and to this day I could never tell any of them that I actually listened to Air Supply, Journey, and a bunch of other light rock bands. I would have gotten laughed at back in the day.
Exactly what I was thinking because, you know, the appropriate forum to discuss the musical talents of Oingo Boingo is the History Forum.
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