Just one word from my daughter last night launched a flood of early ‘80s memories. I wouldn’t hold it against you if you turned back now.
In 1983, I was newly married, living in a city, and working at my first “real”1 job. At some point in the spring, I decided to get my hair cut short so it would be easier to care for. I made an appointment with a friend of a family friend on the basis of their recommendation.
I returned to our tiny apartment a couple of hours later with mild chemical burns on my scalp and the worst hair I’ve ever had. The stylist (G) had talked me into a short cut and a perm,2 and my ‘do looked like it could have been a wig of curly poodle fur.
My spouse hated it. I did too, but I wasn’t about to admit that to anyone. I resolved to let it grow out and to never let G touch my head again. So I had to endure months of messy, uncooperative curls that slumped into frizz and stick-straight new hair growth.
At some point in there, a movie was released that starred an actress whose hair was a longer version of what G had aspired to with mine. As the movie grew in popularity, more and more people commented that I looked like her.3 I was young, thin, and fairly fit, but even so that was a stretch. It made me dislike my hair even more.
If memory serves, the music video for “Maniac” was created entirely from cuts from Flashdance, the movie it was featured in. Singer Michael Sembello put “Maniac” on his debut album and released it as a single. Between the Flashdance soundtrack and that release, it topped Billboard’s Hot 100 and earned Sembello and songwriter Dennis Matkowsky a Grammy award.
The first time I listened to “Maniac” this morning, the propulsive beat and syncopated ornaments sounded good. With repeated listens, it all started to sound kind of … sterile, I guess. The beat is still good, but it’s so repetitive that it sounds like a drum machine. Sembello does put some energy into some lyrics, but that comes too late in the song to convince me. Something titled “Maniac” needs more energy and maybe a surprise or two to keep listeners guessing.
Or is all that just me, still pushing back against those unpleasant memories? I dunno. But either way, I’ll be content to let today’s MotD fade back into the recesses of my mind.
Full time, union/state job, sole bread-winner … you get the idea
my hair has never taken perms well; I did try to resist it, but the stylist was insistent
t’wasn’t remotely true, in my opinion
The problem with early '80s music was that it was trying not to be disco but still sounding like disco.
I’m trying to think of something nice to write about the movie and song, but can’t. They do seem made for each other. 🤷♂️