She Bop

Nostalgia usually comes with background music, and for many of us who grew up in the 70s and 80s, Radio Bahrain 96.5 FM played a significant role in making that happen. Long before MTV, Channel [V] and other music channels, it was Radio Bahrain and it's army of DJs that energised our musical universe. Who can forget Tim Manns' Breakfast Show, Mark Morrell's Mid-Morning Show or Bob McCready's Afternoon Delight? It wasn't just the music, it was also the competitions and the sense of community one experienced by listening to the same songs at the same time.

Most teenagers and 20-somethings today will be surprised to know that in those days we hardly 'saw' any of the pop idols on TV except for those occasional James Last StarParade, Dionne Warwick's Solid Gold (on Aramco) and... Top of the Pops videos that we'd rent from the video shop and share with our friends. Those memories amuse me now especially how the latest TOTP video was usually such a big event that we'd clamour to get hold of one.

Sometimes there'd be some TV channel that would show some 'real' music videos and they were quite a treat since there were quite a few gems though not many. The 80's may have been great musicwise but they definitely spawned bad fashion and corny videos... ahhh well, it didn't seem so bad back then though.

It's funny how Boy George seemed such an outrageous performer those days even though he seems so tame in comparison to others today. And who can forget Relax by Frankie Goes to Hollywood? It was banned by the BBC but Radio Bahrain didn't think it was bad enough, and so we felt extra privileged to be able to listen to it, and figure out for ourselves what the fuss was all about.

Cyndi Lauper -- wonder what she's upto these days? -- was one of those singers who wowed us for her effervescent charm, energetic sound and powerful vocals. Her colourful hairdo was so 80s, but it seemed so sexy back then that it feels embarassing to even think that we found it attractive. "Girls wanna have fun" may have earned her some degree of notoriety for all the wrong reasons but one has to admit the song was extremely catchy. However, the Cyndi Lauper song that I really like has always been "Time after time". I like its brooding quality and the way her voice cracks while she belts out the vocals.

Of course, "She Bop" is a song that I like for reasons that I cant put my finger on, but it does bring back some very pleasant memories from the 80s. I dont know if it's because of those memories that I like this song, or is it because of the rock n roll sound that I like it, but frankly, I don't care. However, one thing I do have to admit that it's one song that never fails to put a smile on my face, set my foot tapping and my body swaying... and make me go wistful at the same time because it reminds me of those innocent teenage years that will never return.