It only took me about five years to have all the threads where Dopers figure out a song for a person in five or less posts, and for me to recall this one song I’ve been trying to locate for ages, and to have both things happen in close enough proximity for me to put two and two together…
Back in my early college days, 1984-1986, I worked in a movie theater in Carbondale, Illinois. The manager was a big alternative rock fan, and made mix tapes to play before the movies. Lots of stuff like Talking Heads, Aztec Camera, Elvis Costello and similar music. So that gives you the general style and genre of music I’m talking about.
There is one song that I liked, but never heard anywhere other than on one of these mix tapes. It was a breakup song, and lyrically it was about a guy coming home to find that his (ex) girlfriend had taken everything he owned. The song listed all the things she took “She took his (blah blah whatever it was)” and the list went on before punctuating the list with the kicker “She left his guitar.” Queue guitar break.
And that’s all I got. It was fairly straightforward rock, but more in the Nick Lowe, John Hiatt, Elvis Costello vibe. Definitely the kind of thing you’d hear on an early college alternative radio station. Male lead singer, probably American, although English without a major accent is possible.
OK, Dopers, work your magic!
(Crap. No “Don’t hit me” smilie?)