Welcome to a the series I have on YouTube called Retro Rock Reviews. Each week, we pick an album and do a quick review. They won’t be long shows, something quick and fun to get you through your day. For Episode 5, we jump to the 80’s after spending several weeks in the late 60’s, early 70’s. We talk The Cars’ fifth album, ‘Heartbeat City’. The band exploded with help from legendary producer Robert John “Mutt” Lange. The album was released on March 13, 1984 and spawned not one, not two, but six singles, two of which reached the Top 10 on the Top 40. The album sold over 4 million copies going 4 x’s Platinum in the U.S. alone.
So go check it out as it is live now on September 5, 2024 at Noon. Thanks for stopping by and please click “Like” and hit “Subscribe” as it helps out the site when you do.
Alright…You Picked It! This one was really close as we almost ended in a tie, but one edged out the pack by one little vote. The one vote that made it not a tie was someone said that they wanted either one album or another that I should pick, so I always go with the first name on the choices. If I didn’t, we would’ve ended in a tie. The winner for this month’s picks ended up being The Cars with ‘Heartbeat City’ and I am real excited about this one. Here are the results.
The Cars – ‘Heartbeat City’ – 8 votes
Prince – ‘Purple Rain’ – 7 votes
Genesis – ‘Invisible Touch’ – 3 votes
U2 – ‘The Joshua Tree’ – 2 votes
Bryan Adams – ‘Reckless’ – 2 Votes
Thanks to all for participating. The February choices will be up on Saturday! And the choices are all now from my collection and the next one will be some albums I have from the 90’s but probably not the ones you’d expect. Hopefully you can help me decide which one I should review.
THE CARS – ‘HEARTBEAT CITY’ (1984):
The Cars were now on their fifth studio album by 1984 and they made some changes with this one. Long time producer, Roy Thomas Baker, was replaced with some dude name Mutt…that is right…Mutt…Robert John “Mutt” Lange. I think you’ve heard of him before. Mutt had just come off Def Leppard’s album ‘Pyromania’ so he was one of the hottest producers around, plus he had done ‘Back in Black’ and “For Those About to Rock, We Salute You” by AC/DC, ‘4’ by Foreigner and ‘High & Dry’ by Def Leppard. Just a few massive albums. With Mutt signing on to do this album, he had to turn down Def Leppard’s next album ‘Hysteria’…but delay after delay allowed him to eventually join in and help with that mind blowing album.
But the Cars were different, they pure pop. They were not a hard rock band. The Cars also co-produced with the album as well. I do know that Mutt’s influence on here is huge and obvious at times as I can hear hints of his other work in these songs. This saw the band return to form and even see elements of their debut on here as well. It might be slick and polished, but is quite incredible too! If this isn’t their best album, it is pretty damn near close.
The Cars. What can be said about them that hasn’t already been said. They are one of the greatest new wave bands to ever come along and an inspiration to many. Their brand of power pop ruled the airwaves from the Debut in 1978 all the way to 1984 before they started to fade away from the scene, but never faded away from our hearts.
The band was inducted in to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2018 and the band was all there except for Benjamin Orr who died in 2000. It was really cool to see the band together again and play a few songs. The classic line-up consisted of the following members:
Ric Ocasek – Vocals, rhythm guitar
Elliot Easton – lead guitar
Greg Hawkes – keyboards
Benjamin Orr – bass, lead vocals
David Robinson – drums
We most recently we lost Ric Ocasek in 2019. As I did when Orr died, upon Ric’s death I pulled out The Cars catalog and went through it over and over again. It reminded me of how great these guys were and what a catalog of music they left behind. As a result, I decided to do an album ranking to see what was the worst album all the way up to the best. Let’s see where they stack up.
When I head David Hasselhoff (or The Hoff) was putting out a new album of cover songs, I told myself that I have to listen to this for the train wreck that it is going to be. I mean The Hoff has never been popular in the States for his vocal talent and yet, I was intrigued.
David has put together an eclectic list of covers and the most interesting part is the line-up of musicians he was able to get to assist with these covers. Let’s look at the cover songs and those individuals who helped out.
Track List:
Open Your Eyes (Feat. James Williamson of The Stooges) – Lords of the New Church Cover
Head On (Feat. Elliot Easton of The Cars) – The Jesus & Mary Chain Cover
I Melt With You (Feat. Steve Stevens) – Modern English Cover
Lips Like Sugar (Feat. A Flock of Seagulls) – Echo & The Bunnymen Cover
Heroes (Feat. Composer Tyler Bates) – David Bowie Cover
Here I Go Again (Feat. Tracii Guns) – Whitesnake Cover
Jump in My Car (Feat. Todd Rundgren) – Ted Murley Gang Cover
Rhinestone Cowboy (Feat. Charlie Daniels) – Glen Campbell Cover
If You Could Read My Mind (Feat. Ava Cherry) – Gordon Lightfoot Cover
Sugar Sugar (Feat. Steve Cropper) – The Archies Cover
Mit 66 Jahren (Feat. Patrick Moraz of Yes and the Moody Blues) – Udo Jurgens Cover
Sweet Caroline (Feat. Ministry’s Al Jourgensen) – Neil Diamond Cover
2 Loud 2 Old Music 