Help me remember this late '80s song

[Elendil's Heir]

In late 1987 and early 1988, there was a song that was frequently played on rock/pop stations in New England (and maybe across the country, but that's where I was at the time). It was in a minor key, had a male vocalist, and had lyrics which suggested that the vocalist/protagonist had been recently released from an asylum or mental institution. It had a winsome, rather sad feel to it. It might have been sung by George Harrison, but I'm not at all sure of that.

Does that ring a bell for anyone?

[WOOKINPANUB]

Hmmmm. Any others clues? Tempo? A smackeral of the lyrics?

[Talon Karrde]

Wild guesses:
REM- The One I Love
David Bowie- Ashes to Ashes (though the album it was on was released in 1980)

If it's not those, I might be able to rack my brain and see if I can think of something else. The 80's music I listen to is mostly on the New Wave side.
Do you remember if it was a synth-based song or was it more guitar based?

[Biffy the Elephant Shrew]

It might have been sung by George Harrison, but I'm not at all sure of that.
The only song I can think of by George Harrison that even vaguely fits the description would be "Cheer Down." (http://www.guitaretab.com/h/harrison-george/22785.html)

[Elendil's Heir]

Slow tempo, almost elegiac in tone. Try as I might, I can't remember any of the lyrics other than what I wrote in the OP (if I could, I'd have Googled it years ago). I'm almost certain it's neither REM or Bowie, but I'll check those out on iTunes. Having read the lyrics to "Cheer Down," I'm sure it's not that. I think it was mostly guitar and the singer's voice; no synth that I remember.

Thanks for your help so far.

[Yookeroo]

"Rio" by Duran Duran.

[Stephe96]

I always thought that "Take Me Home" by Phill Collins sounded like someone being released from an asylum.

[Stephe96]

I meant to add some of the lyrics I remember:

"I've been a prisoner all my life...
but I can say to you
that I don't remember
So take, take me home..."

Something like that

[Airblairxxx]

Isn't that a Phil Collins song?

[Stephe96]

Isn't that a Phil Collins song?

Yes, but I misidentified it as a 'Phill' Collins song! :)

[Airblairxxx]

But not PHILLL Collins.

Crap, I saw your post right before mine and thought you were the OP.




So never mind.

[NurseCarmen]

Artist: Yaz
Album: Upstairs at Erics
Title: In My Room
Lyrics: (Partial due to copyright concerns)
chorus (http://www.lyricsdepot.com/yaz/in-my-room.html)
the walls are white and in the night
the room is lit by electric light

i stand and watch the clock
i only wait for it to stop
the doors are shut and all the windows lock
the only sound is from the clock
i sit and wait alone in my room

[Talon Karrde]

Slow tempo, almost elegiac in tone. Try as I might, I can't remember any of the lyrics other than what I wrote in the OP (if I could, I'd have Googled it years ago). I'm almost certain it's neither REM or Bowie, but I'll check those out on iTunes. Having read the lyrics to "Cheer Down," I'm sure it's not that. I think it was mostly guitar and the singer's voice; no synth that I remember.

Thanks for your help so far.
Well, if you don't find the song you're looking for, you'll at least get something out of this; the Bowie song is one of my favorites. I'm not a big fan of that particular REM song though.

U2's album The Joshua Tree was release in 1987 and some of the songs from it seem like they might fit your criteria.

The Smiths' album Strangeways Here We Come was also released that year. The song that immediately springs to mind is "Last Night I Dreamt Somebody Loved Me". I'd be really surprised if it received radio play in the US though (or anywhere for this particular song). Plus this song doesn't seem like it could easily be confused with George Harrison's music. I don't know how good the iTunes preview would be, because the song has a long intro that's different from the rest of it.

It looks like George Harrison did release an album in 87, Cloud Nine (http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:jtklu325andk).

Maybe this link (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1987_in_music) will help you out. I found it by googling popular songs in 1987 (http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=popular+songs+in+1987), there are several useful looking links that turn up, but the Wikipedia one looks the most useful.

[phungi]

Institutionalized (http://www.darklyrics.com/lyrics/suicidaltendencies/suicidaltendencies.html#12) by the Suicidal Tendencies?

[Lemur866]

Institutionalized (http://www.darklyrics.com/lyrics/suicidaltendencies/suicidaltendencies.html#12) by the Suicidal Tendencies?

Slow tempo, almost elegiac in tone? :dubious:

Now that this thread is open, I have a question too.

I heard this one song? On the radio? And I think there was a guy singing? And maybe guitars?

Can anyone help me figure out what song it was?

[Stephe96]

Slow tempo, almost elegiac in tone? :dubious:

Now that this thread is open, I have a question too.

I heard this one song? On the radio? And I think there was a guy singing? And maybe guitars?

Can anyone help me figure out what song it was?

Was it Billy Joel? Sounds like something he'd do!

[VegemiteMoose]

Hey Elendil's Heir. The first two bands that popped into my head were The Housemartins and The Smithereens. Good luck, I hope you find out.

[Cabbage]

The first song that comes to my mind is I Don't Mind at All by Bourgeois Tagg (and produced by Todd Rundgren). Here's a link to the lyrics:

http://www.lyricsvault.net/songs/7365.html

[bup]

Are you familiar with The Smiths and/or Morrisey?

Lots of the Smiths' catalog would fit the OP.

[Snooooopy]

Slow tempo, almost elegiac in tone? :dubious:


All I wanted was a Pepsi. Just one Pepsi. AND YOU WOULDN'T GIVE IT TO ME!!!!!

[PastAllReason]

Are you absolutely sure about the year? Because it sounds a lot like "Everybody Hurts" by R.E.M. but that was from the early 90's.

[WishIHadACoolName]

In late 1987 and early 1988, there was a song that was frequently played on rock/pop stations in New England (and maybe across the country, but that's where I was at the time). It was in a minor key, had a male vocalist, and had lyrics which suggested that the vocalist/protagonist had been recently released from an asylum or mental institution. It had a winsome, rather sad feel to it. It might have been sung by George Harrison, but I'm not at all sure of that.

Does that ring a bell for anyone?

If it's not Take Me Home, then the only other thing I can think of is the entire Alice Cooper album "From the Inside", which is, literally, about his experiences in a mental institution. I realize that the album was released at least a decade too early for the OP, but I still here some of it getting radio play. I came to appreciate Alice only a few years ago. I think he's WAY underrated.

[arjee]

Solsbury Hill by Peter Gabriel?

[Anastasaeon]

The first song that comes to my mind is I Don't Mind at All by Bourgeois Tagg (and produced by Todd Rundgren). Here's a link to the lyrics:

http://www.lyricsvault.net/songs/7365.html


This is the song that sprung to my mind. Here (http://www.vh1.com/artists/az/bourgeois_tagg/25166/album.jhtml) is a link to a clip of the song (WMP). I remember it being played often back then, on stations in Saint John, NB, and one in Calais, Maine. (K100, C98, and WQDY). Which is pretty close to being in New England. ;)

[Elendil's Heir]

Wow! Some good suggestions.

It's definitely NOT Duran Duran's "Rio" (please... :dubious: ), Phil Collins's "Take Me Home," Peter Gabriel's "Solsbury Hill," David Bowie's "Ashes to Ashes," or anything from U2's "The Joshua Tree" album. Having just listened to them, it's also not Yaz's "In My Room," Suicidal Tendencies' "Institutionalized," or anything from George Harrison's "Cloud Nine" album.

I haven't been able to find an easily-accessible online source (iTunes, Amazon.com or Barnesandnoble.com) for The Smiths' "Last Night I Dreamt...," but will try to do so. The lyrics to Bourgeois Tagg's "I Don't Mind at All" look familiar (esp. the last paragraph); it could very well be that one. I'll look into it further.

Thanks for your help so far, everybody.

[jayjay]

It's definitely NOT Duran Duran's "Rio" (please... :dubious: ),

That's a Doper inside joke, along the lines of "Og" and "Hi, Opal!" It started in this thread (http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=296939).

[Elendil's Heir]

That's a Doper inside joke, along the lines of "Og" and "Hi, Opal!" It started in this thread (http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=296939).

Thanks - went right over my head. Now that I've read it, :p

[Cabbage]

The lyrics to Bourgeois Tagg's "I Don't Mind at All" look familiar (esp. the last paragraph); it could very well be that one.
I had (and still have) a pretty strong feeling that was the song you're thinking of; it fits your description, I heard it often around 1987, and I haven't heard it on the radio a single time since. If you're having trouble finding a clip, email me and I can send you one (my email address is in my profile).

[Anastasaeon]

Oh, crap, sorry, I didn't know my link to the clip of the song in post #24 didn't work. Is there a format you know would work?

*hoping I'm not crashing computers left and right* :(

[Cabbage]

Oh, crap, sorry, I didn't know my link to the clip of the song in post #24 didn't work. Is there a format you know would work?

*hoping I'm not crashing computers left and right* :(
Actually, your link does work (for me, anyway). I hadn't tried it until just now; I just got an impression from Elendil's Heir's post that he/she hadn't found a working link.

[Jinx]

It looks like George Harrison did release an album in 87, Cloud Nine (http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:jtklu325andk)...

Yes, how could the SDopers forget? George Harrison released "I Got My Mind Set On You", but it does not fit the description in the OP. - Jinx

[Jinx]

Here's a forgotten song from that time period, but I make no guarantees. Although you say it is not Phil Collins, Phil had a song only found on the CD of "No Jacket Required" at the end of the album that says: "...turn your head, don't look back; set your sails for a new horizon, it gets better when you get there..." It's called "We Said Hello Goodbye" but it may not meet your criteria.
- Jinx

[Jinx]

Don't overlook Pink Floyd for such a song. Pink Floyd put out the "Momentary Lapse of Reason" CD around this time of which "Learning to Fly" was the first single cut from this album. (This should not be confused with Tom Petty's "Learning to Fly".) There was another song cut from this entitled "On The Turning Away" which seems reminscient of older Pink Floyd songs of which many bordered on the seemingly insane. The third cut from this album "The Dogs of War" is lesser known. - Jinx

[Elendil's Heir]

I've ordered The Smiths's and Bourgeois Tagg's appropriate albums through interlibrary loan, and should be able to find out when I get 'em. Cabbage, the more I think of it, the more I suspect that it's the second. Thanks, everybody!

[Jinx]

Was it Billy Joel? Sounds like something he'd do!

To clairfy for the pop fans of Billy Joel, his crazy period began with the Glass Houses album and continued into the Nylon Curtain album. But, both albums preceded the time period given in the OP. Still, the Nylon Curtain is an interesting artistic experiment on Billy Joel's behalf to break away from mainstream pop music mold, IMHO... - Jinx

[OpalCat]

I haven't been able to find an easily-accessible online source (iTunes, Amazon.com or Barnesandnoble.com) for The Smiths' "Last Night I Dreamt...," but will try to do so.
.

Have you tried www.allofmp3.com? It's another site that sells mp3s either singly or as whole albums.
http://music.allofmp3.com/r2/The_Smiths/Strangeways__Here_We_Come/group_5512/album_1/mcatalog.shtml?albref=25 You may have to register to get there. That site lets you preview songs, just click the little speaker icon next to the song title (doesn't show up until you mouse over the title)

[bradministrator]

George Harrison was a member of the Travelling Wilburys, who released an album about this time. Maybe someone who remembers that album better than I do would know if they had a song like this?

[Monstre]

The lyrics to Bourgeois Tagg's "I Don't Mind at All" look familiar (esp. the last paragraph); it could very well be that one. I'll look into it further.
Except this one has a quicker tempo than what your description sounded like. I would definitely not call it slow and elegiac. Although it is primarily vocals and guitar (as described in the question).

[Wesley Clark]

Do you know any of the lyrics?

[Elendil's Heir]

Do you know any of the lyrics?

See posts #1 and 5.

[zoogirl]

If it's not Take Me Home, then the only other thing I can think of is the entire Alice Cooper album "From the Inside", which is, literally, about his experiences in a mental institution. I realize that the album was released at least a decade too early for the OP, but I still here some of it getting radio play. I came to appreciate Alice only a few years ago. I think he's WAY underrated.

WishIHad,, go here -

http://www.sickthingsuk.co.uk/

I think you'll like the place! ;) Free registration gets you into the whole site.

[Elendil's Heir]

The first song that comes to my mind is I Don't Mind at All by Bourgeois Tagg (and produced by Todd Rundgren). Here's a link to the lyrics:

http://www.lyricsvault.net/songs/7365.html

Thanks, Cabbage! [i]Finally[/] got the CD from interlibrary loan, and that is indeed the song I was thinking of. Now it's on my iPod. Many thanks to all!