Atomic Robot: (FLASHBACK) Music Friday - Featuring Heart, The Pretenders, Cocteau Twins, The Primitives, and Level 42

(FLASHBACK) Music Friday - Featuring Heart, The Pretenders, Cocteau Twins, The Primitives, and Level 42

Written By Ken Hulsey

It's Friday once more! You know what that means—time for my weekly music feature. Last week, I teased an upcoming "Flashback" piece to go along with my new Spotify playlist, "Vital Vinyl," which is a fantastic mix of tunes from the 70s, 80s, and 90s. Honestly, the new releases today weren’t exactly sparking my interest, so I thought a little trip down memory lane was exactly what the doctor ordered.

Now, with bands from back in the day, there isn’t much I can tell you that you don’t already know, right? Take Heart, for instance. Their album "Bad Animals" has always held a special place in my heart. I mean, come on—who doesn’t love some classic Heart? The band has been a favorite of mine since my youth, and you can find several gems from their catalog on "Vital Vinyl."

Then there are The Pretenders. I wore out my cassette of "Learning to Crawl" back in the day—seriously, not a single bad track on that album! I remember popping it into my old Walkman during family road trips, gazing out the window as America zipped by. As for Cocteau Twins, The Primitives, and Level 42? You can thank the folks over at the Canadian music video channel "MuchMusic" for introducing me to those artists in the late '80s. You might be curious how I stumbled upon a Canadian music video channel—let me tell you, it was all due to my dad’s frugality. Instead of paying for cable, he invested in a NASA-sized satellite dish that was plopped right in the middle of our backyard! It was a glorious time. We could catch every sporting event, enjoy free HBO, watch primetime shows days before they aired, savor some quality Canadian programming, and, if you were feeling adventurous, tune into a late-night "naughty" film while the folks were sound asleep. Not that I ever did that, of course! This little setup lasted a couple of years, until the networks got wise and scrambled the signals, making our satellite dish little more than something to throw footballs at—unless you forked out for a new box that unscrambled the channels. Just like that, surprise, cable was back! For me, it didn’t matter much since I had already moved out and was paying my own way (including peanut butter, rent, cable television, and 'naughty' films). Oh, and I can’t forget my buddy who tried to build his own satellite dish using an old car hubcap and some bits and pieces from Radio Shack. That’s a story for another time! But enough reminiscing—here are some classic tracks that you won’t need a satellite dish or a trip to Canada to enjoy.

Heart - Alone