Gen X Playlist

‘The Phil Collins Effect’: Older Pop Stars Given Hope by Former Genesis Singer’s Cultural Resurrection

‘The Phil Collins Effect’: Older Pop Stars Given Hope by Former Genesis Singer’s Cultural Resurrection

Before I get to the links and excerpts, I wanted to say how strange I find it that today’s teens and college kids apparently do not seek out older music!

When I was a teen in the 1980s, I would’ve given my right arm to have technology such as You Tube or Spotify, which would allow me to listen to all genres of music from any year FOR FREE.

But no! Back then, if I wanted to hear different genres, older music, and so on, I had to borrow the cassette tapes or vinyl albums of friends and family.

Buying a new album back then was around $9.00 or so, which to me at that time, was a lot of money.

But today’s kids don’t seem to be using You Tube and streaming services to sit and look up music from the 1940s onwards – they all seem to be listening to the non-melodic, entirely forgettable bilge that today’s 20-something bands and singers keep pumping out.

If you have the availability of something like You Tube, which allows you to look up and listen to many types of older bands and singers for free, why not use it?

‘The Phil Collins Effect’: Older pop stars given hope by former Genesis singer’s cultural resurrection

How Phil Collins became cool (no, really)

Why the Phil Collins Effect gives older stars hope
by Mark Bridge
May 31, 2021

He was hailed in the Eighties as a breath of fresh air but derided in the Nineties as naff personified.

Phil Collins has found favour, however, with a younger generation of music lovers transfixed by the drum fill that lifts In The Air Tonight.

The rapid trajectories of the former Genesis drummer’s popularity have led academics to refer to the Phil Collins Effect (PCE) as a phenomenon worthy of study that can apply to other veteran recording artists.

‘The Phil Collins Effect’: Older Pop Stars Given Hope by Former Genesis Singer’s Cultural Resurrection

May 31, 2021

The “Phil Collins Effect” has been identified by academics after a return to popularity for the former Genesis drummer and frontman.

The highly-influential musician, who appears to attract equal levels of admiration and derision, became one of the best-selling artists of all time during a hugely successful solo career in the eighties.

Continue reading “‘The Phil Collins Effect’: Older Pop Stars Given Hope by Former Genesis Singer’s Cultural Resurrection”

Lou Ottens, Compact Disc Pioneer and Inventor of Cassette Tapes, Has Died (2021)

Lou Ottens, Compact Disc Pioneer and Inventor of Cassette Tapes Has Died (2021)

April 8, 2021

Mr. Ottens actually died about a month ago, but I didn’t have time then to create a blog post in his honor.

Dutch inventor of the cassette tape, Lou Ottens, dies age 94 louOttens

Lou Ottens, Inventor Of The Cassette Tape, Has Died

Excerpts:

by Bill Chappel
March 10, 2021

Lou Ottens, who put music lovers around the world on a path toward playlists and mixtapes by leading the invention of the first cassette tape, has died at age 94, according to media reports in the Netherlands.

Ottens was a talented and influential engineer at Philips, where he also helped develop consumer compact discs.

Ottens died last Saturday, according to the Dutch news outlet NRC Handelsblad, which lists his age as 94.

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Rick Astley Drops Eighties-Inspired Single ‘Unwanted’

Rick Astley Drops Eighties-Inspired Single ‘Unwanted’

April 8, 2021

Rick Astley Drops Eighties-Inspired Single ‘Unwanted’

Track is the theme for the Qcode podcast of the same name

Rick Astley has released the new single “Unwanted,” the theme to the Qcode podcast of the same name. rickAstleyUnwanted

Listen To Rick Astley’s New ’80s-Inspired Track ‘Unwanted’

By BECCA LONGMIRE. 8 hours ago

Rick Astley is back with new music.

The singer just dropped his latest single, ’80s-inspired track “Unwanted”, which is the theme for the Qcode podcast of the same name.

Astley co-wrote and co-produced the song with Qcode’s Deron Johnson, telling Rolling Stone: “I’ve known Deron for years and we’ve always said we’d work on something together, and we finally have.”

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House Has “Dirty Dancing”- Themed Halloween Decorations

House Has “Dirty Dancing”- Themed Halloween Decorations (2020)

October 31, 2020

As one Gen X’er to another, I salute you, sir!

You’ll Have the Time of Your Life Looking at This Dirty Dancing Halloween Lawn Decor

This house wins the internet with epic ‘Dirty Dancing’-themed Halloween decorations

by Laura Laughead, October 26, 2020

We’re having the time of our lives looking at these “Dirty Dancing”-inspired Halloween decorations… even if the skeletons reenacting the movie’s classic lift scene might not be.

Halloween Skeletons striking Dirty Dancing movie poses And we owe it all to Joseph Lee from Park Ridge, Illinois.

“I’m an ’80s kid… so I was like, ‘What are some of the [’80s movies] that everybody’s seen?'” Lee told “Good Morning America.”

Continue reading “House Has “Dirty Dancing”- Themed Halloween Decorations”

American Girl Doll Company Releases a 1980s Doll

American Girl Doll Company Releases a 1980s Doll

In some of the promotion or marketing for this doll, the American Girl Doll Company has referred to the 1980s as an “historic” time or decade – which doesn’t go over with a lot of Gen X very well.

The 1980s were not that long ago.

It’s not as though the pyramids were built during the 1980s. We did have computers, phones, movies, cars, and television sets in the ’80s.

I remember in the early 2000s, driving to my job daily, listening to the Top 40 radio station D. J. start referring to 1980s songs they played as “golden oldies.” I couldn’t believe it then. I was thinking, “Is this station serious? The ’80s were only ten years ago, not 500 years ago…”

Anyway, here are some links about the 1980s themed doll:

There’s really a 1980s American Girl doll and she’s totally rad

Excerpts:

She comes with a mini Caboodle, Lip Smackers lip gloss and Care Bears pajamas.

…American Girl announced the launch of their latest doll on the TODAY show. Courtney Moore is a video game lover who spends her time playing Pac-Man inside the arcade at her local shopping mall, looks up to the astronauts aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger and lives with her blended family.

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Say Something by Kylie Minogue – Music Suggestion for Gen X

Say Something by Kylie Minogue – Music Suggestion for Gen X

If you’re Gen X (and American in particular), you may remember Kylie Minogue for her 1987 remake of a 1960s Little Eva song “The Locomotion” (personally, I prefer Little Eva’s version).

Of course, Kylie Minogue went on to release many more good songs, such as Come Into My World and Can’t Get You Out of My Head (released in 2001).

But Minogue has a new album coming out, entitled “Disco,” to be released in November 2020.

I so far have only listened to two songs off this album, “Say Something” and “Magic” (because those are the only songs to be released so far, at least as far as I am aware).

I didn’t care for “Magic” (you can listen to that on You Tube here). “Magic” is not a bad song, but it didn’t knock me out, either.

However, I did really enjoy “Say Something” and thought other Gen Xers may like it, too.

So, if you are Gen X and still love your 1980s pop, dance and rock songs, but would occasionally like a new (good) song to work out to or listen to in the car, you may want to give this 2020 Kylie Minogue song a try:

“Say Something” by Kylie Minogue – the original version

There is also an acoustic version of Say Something by Kylie Minogue which you can check out here:

Kylie Minogue – Say Something (Acoustic)

The original, disco-fied version of Say Something:

More On This Blog:

Dua Lipa Song Suggestions for Gen X (September 2020)

Vicious by Tate McRae – Music Suggestion for Gen X

Midnight Sun by Miley Cyrus – Music Suggestion for Gen X

World’s Smallest Rubik’s Cube Goes On Sale In Japan

World’s Smallest Rubik’s Cube Goes On Sale In Japan (2020)

World’s smallest official Rubik’s Cube developed by Japanese companies

Tiny but playable Rubik’s Cube, so little it fits on your fingertip, goes on sale in Japan for 198,000 yen, or about $1,900.

World’s smallest Rubik’s Cube goes on sale, with a puzzling price tag

Small Rubik's Cube — The small Rubik’s Cube, on sale in 2020

September 2020, Tokyo — A Japanese company has created what it’s billing as the world’s smallest working Rubik’s Cube.

Measuring a mere 0.39 inches and weighing less than a tenth of an ounce, the “ultra-precision” aluminum toy, which comes with its own pedestal, is tiny enough to fit on a penny or a postage stamp.

World’s smallest Rubik’s Cube measuring just 9.9mm and weighing 2g goes on sale in Japan for £1,480

September 2020

The world’s smallest Rubik’s Cube has gone on sale to mark the 40th anniversary of the original 3D puzzle.

The tiny but playable cube, made of ‘ultra-precision metal’, measures just 9.9 millimetres across and weighs two grams.

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Box Office: ‘Empire Strikes Back’ (originally released in 1980) Tops ‘Jurassic Park’ To Become 2020’s Biggest-Grossing Rerelease (September 2020)

Box Office: ‘Empire Strikes Back’ (originally released in 1980) Tops ‘Jurassic Park’ To Become 2020’s Biggest-Grossing Rerelease (September 2020)

September 28, 2020

I feel like it’s 1980 all over again!

These news headlines about a movie – Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back – that was first released in 1980 were published in September 2020:

Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back Re-Release Rakes In $900,000 At Box Office

Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back Earns $900,000 in First Weekend Return to Theaters

Excerpts:

While 2020 may be an unprecedented year on a lot of fronts, but even as the world deals with a number of challenges there are also things to celebrate — including the 40th anniversary of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back.

The beloved Star Wars film hit theaters in May 1980 and while celebrating the milestone anniversary of the film back in May wasn’t possible due to COVID-19 related movie theater closures, The Empire Strikes Back returned to select theaters on September 25th — and brought in a pretty impressive box office haul with over $900,000.

Continue reading “Box Office: ‘Empire Strikes Back’ (originally released in 1980) Tops ‘Jurassic Park’ To Become 2020’s Biggest-Grossing Rerelease (September 2020)”

Dua Lipa Song Suggestions for Gen X (September 2020)

Dua Lipa Song Suggestions for Gen X (September 2020)

Dua Lip - Future Nostalgia album cover — Dua Lipa – from her “Future Nostalgia” album cover

In 2020, pop singer Dua Lipa released an album called “Future Nostalgia.”

She later released a second album of re-mixes based off that first album called “Club Future Nostalgia.”

It is my opinion that the original versions of the songs (from Future Nostalgia) are much better than the remixes (from Club Future Nostalgia – which you can listen to on You Tube here).

(Side note: Madonna – yes Madonna from the 1980s who sang hit songs such as “Material Girl” and “Like A Prayer” back in the 1980s – sang on the “Levitating” remix off “Club Future Nostalgia,” which you can listen to here on You Tube, though I think the original version of the song is ten times better; you can listen to the original version below.)

According to the Wiki page for this album:

Future Nostalgia is the second studio album by English singer Dua Lipa, released on 27 March 2020 by Warner Records.

…She wanted to create a record with the nostalgic memories of her childhood and the music her parents listened to and put a modern spin on it with futuristic elements, which is why she ultimately went with the title.

It is meant to describe “a future of infinite possibilities while tapping into the sound and mood of some older music.”

Continue reading “Dua Lipa Song Suggestions for Gen X (September 2020)”