The concept is that band members from marginally popular 80’s and 90’s groups are tracked down, wherever they may be, and convinced to perform “one last time” for their fans. The show starts tonight and airs for ten consectuvie nights. Bands include Berlin, Romeo Void, Klymaxx, Flock of Seagulls… you get the idea.
I, for one, can’t wait! Not because I’m itching to see Berlin get back together; rather, it’s because I have some larger questions that need answering. Questions such as
[ul]
[li]What of the fleeting nature of wealth and fame? Is it possible for a person to be in a group that has a Top 10 hit, is all over MTV and teen mags for a few months, makes a bucket of money, invest well, and live comfortably afterwards? Or has every last band member, to a man (or woman), blown their money on rock-n-roll excess and is now pouring coffee in a London espresso bar?[/li][li]What is a peson like when their 15 minutes ended 20 years ago? Are they still trying to hold on? Or have they accepted their fate and moved on?[/li][/ul]
So tonight I’ll be glued to the set seeing what has become of the former members of Berlin. I’m sure this show will, ahem, take my breath away :rolleyes: .
Hey Homie, The Berlin Show was amazingly AWESOME!!!
The Female Lead was Dynamite! if the rest of the shows are this good, this series
will succeed!
I was at Tower records this evening and checked out Berlins section. There’s an
interesting Extended Remix of there hits,Looks good but I’m not sure what to
expect.The Flock of Seagulls Remix album was dissappointing.I definately have
to pick up “Metro” in some form. The Berlin “Voyuer” CD looked interesting.
Looking forward to Romeo Void Tonight!
I believe that both Flock of Seagulls and Berlin have been performing in recent years, so it’s not like they tracked down long lost bandmates on those…
To answer your questions…The first one is Yes, but then again, most performers don’t make enough money off of one top 10 hit to live comfortably…
For the second one, I’d have to say both cases are true. Some move on, some don’t.
If you saw the Berlin show, it made clear that Terry Nunn now owns the name “Berlin” and has been performing on her own with pick-up players. None of the other original band members were involved.
yeah i saw an episode of bands reuinited…hated it!
what is wrong with us? there is a very good reason that these bands have been missing from our memories, and it’s an obvious one.
the stink.
its as simple as that. they may have had a song or two that made you feel like you were right about all of your childhood agnst, but thats about all of it.
pop television is becoming more and more about trying to recalim what we’ve lost in our youth, and less on where we are heading in our adult lives.
i think that people spend a ridiculous amount of time looking back at their lives and saying that “those were the days.”
sounds familiar to me. my parents used to do it all the time when i would play my Mili Vanili cassette for them. (and yes, i thought that they were a cool band…at first.) no chance for a band reunited on that one…and thats a good thing. it gives me that chance to appreciate the work that is being done today.
Flock of Seagulls and Berlin still perform regularly. I saw them last year some time with Modern English and even wrote a review about it here. Terry whatever her name was performed with at least the original sampler guy. He looked really familiar. I also think the guitarist was the same but maybe their drummer was new. He looked a bit too young. The most disapointing part was that Flock of Seagulls all wore hats so I didn’t feel right asking them to autograph my “Bad Hair” book. Well not really. I did want to buy it and have them sign it though.
Loved the Romeo Void episode- Deborah Lyall is awesome and obviously still has the same magnetic and fun personality she did when the band was new. I would love to have a cool girlfriend like her.
I liked all of these people- all resentments and jealousies were admitted, addressed, and put to rest before the band reunited and played.
I think the show has as much to do with relationships as recapturing fame and/or fortune. As Terry Nunn said, being in a group like that involved living with the other members on an almost constant basis. Think about the groups that’ve been around for a long time–they’ve known each other since they were teenagers, and been through more together than almost any other relationship you could name. Losing contact with people who’ve ridden that wave with you compares to losing a family member, or a spouse. Getting a chance to reunite with someone like that, especially on good terms, is priceless.
So where do we put in requests for future shows? I would love to see them BowWowWow sing “I want candy” again. If for nothing else than to see the lead singer with a non-mohawk haircut.
Where are they now(September 2002)
Anabella Lwin tours with a reunited Bow Wow Wow, which also includes original bassist Leigh Gorman, guitarist Dave Calhoun, and drummer Eshan Khadroo. Original guitarist Matthew Ashman died of diabetes in 1995, and original drummer Dave Barbarossa currently plays in the band Republica.
Dave Barbarossa doesn’t play in Republica anymore, as they’re quite history by now.
I’m watching the Romeo Void episode right now, and the moments of the band first getting together again, with Debora and Benjamin, especially, when Debora told him that she has been sober (finally!) for the last seven years made me cry. (I’m fairly sure, if I remember my scuttlebutt, that those two were an item at one point in the band’s history. They’re not mentioning that, though.) Tears actually came to my eyes, you could see the love between those two spark up like a struck match. It was tremendous. Seeing Benjamin sitting on the sidelines, unable to play and be a part of the reunion due to his hearing loss and continuing audiological difficulties has also brought a lump to my throat.
I wish that they were showing the live performances a little less “montage-y” and a lot more straightforward. The brief cuts to videos or footage from older performances is okay, but there should be a lot less of it, and we should get to hear at least the one BIGGEST hit from the band uninterrupted.
That aside, I’ve been enjoying this series a great deal. I’m really looking forward to Kajagoogoo, to see if Nick Beggs and Limahl can put their two decades of squabbling aside. The anticipation is killing me!
Let me tell ya…I was in love with Anabella when I was a kid, and she’s still one of the hottest rock and roll women ever. Pbhtt…they can stick their Gwens and Pinks and Britneys…Anabella’s hotter than all of them put together.
Anyway, on a related note, they should do one reuniting Adam with the Ants (who IIRC formed Bow Wow Wow after spliting from the Ants. That would all depend on Adam Ants mental health though.
Other ideas for next season…
Shane MacGowan and the Pogues although I doubt that would happen. The show seems to be concentrating on B-list one or two hit wonder (Jesus, I hate that phrase) bands. The Pogues is just to big of a monster for something silly like that.
Seattles punk forefathers The Sonics, although that ain’t gonna happen either.
Wall of Voodoo-With Stan Ridgeway of course. This one’s probably do-able. It’s not like Stan’s selling tons of records these days and it fits with the concept of the show.
Billy Idol and Generation X- Ain’t gonna happen either. With all the money that could have been made from a Gen X reunion in the 90s punk boom, it would have happened already, although, now that I think about it…didn’t that already happen at some festaval in the UK?
Billy Gibbons and The 13th Floor Elevators-Now THAT would just be TOO cool.
I never really thought of Squeeze or the Alarm as B-list one or two hit wonders, but to each their own.
VH-1 probably doesn’t want bands that were too successful (band members are all millionaires) or bands that have a lot of members still recording or performing (part of the thrill is seeing guys who haven’t been on a stage in years try to recapture the magic). Bands that were shortlived are favored because there’s more years for the former members to drift apart and lose touch with each other. It wouldn’t be very dramatic if we find out that they all still live in the same area and get together every year for the drummer’s Labor Day barbeque. Some sort of conflict or tension in the band’s history is also a plus for VH-1.
I was kind of shocked watching the Frankie Goes to Hollywood episode. I didn’t think they would air an episode that didn’t present a reunion and performance as a fait accompli, but Holly Johnson was deadset against performing and so Frankie did not take the stage.
[QUOTE=bmoak]
I never really thought of Squeeze or the Alarm as B-list one or two hit wonders, but to each their own.
I didn’t mean that in a derogatory sense. The Alarm weren’t a singles band, in the US anyway, and the only hit I can think of from Squeeze is “Tempted” although I’m sure the had others.
Oh…I forgot another reunion I’d like to see…
The German/US/UK band Belfegore, whose claim to fame was “All That I Wanted”. A song that kind missed out on the Nu-metal bandwagon by about 15 years or so. The put out one album, a single and a 12 inch, then fell into obscurity.
I like this show. I thought it was a pretty good idea.
Although I don’t know all of the bands as I was born and raised in Europe, and not all made it there (Romeo Void, What the heck is that!?).
They are going to do an episode on Extreme and the lead singer being from the city I live in now (Malden, MA) there was an article in the paper on how it turns out. I won’t say anything as I don’t know how to operate a spoiler box!
I can’t wait to see it to check out Malden on TV…
The Pogues hardly count as a “monster” in the US – “cult band” is more like it. And I’m sure VH1 wouldn’t do a piece on them unless Shane McGowan’s life has taken a sudden 180-degree turn for the better (see the film “If I Should Fall From Grace” for more depressing info.)
Nah…I disagree. More people are into The Pogues than you would think. The Pogues have a huge fan base…Everyone from punks to hippies to alt-rock fans love 'em. They may not have been the flavor of the week very long (MTV played the hell out of the Pogues at their peak) but they’re still well known.
