198. The B-52's, "The B-52's"

 


Another one for the "know almost every song but never owned the album" pile, but that's probably true of almost every Gen X kid because these songs were so ubiquitous and frequently played.  If you went to a party between 1985 and 1995, you almost certainly heard one of the songs on this album (or, possibly, another B-52s album) at that party.  I can't hear "Rock Lobster" without the aftertaste of keg beer in my mouth.

The amazing thing (to me, anyway) about the B-52s is how one of a kind their sound is.  If someone puts on a B-52s song, you can pretty much tell it's a B-52s song even before Fred Schneider's totally unique nasally voice comes in.  They're a little surf rock and a little new wave and a lot arch and ironic.  It's an interesting contrast with Athens, Georgia's other product of the time, R.E.M. (who we will surely see on this list at some point).  R.E.M. is painfully earnest and grounded in the sound of bands like the Byrds and Big Star, while the B-52s always seem to be slyly winking at you and are as far away from earnest as you can get.  What was in the water in Athens in the late 70's?

Although "Rock Lobster" gets all the press, I'm a "52 Girls" man myself.  The harmonies between Cindy Wilson and Kate Pierson are just so fun and great, and it's a beautiful vocal performance by both.  The lyrics also give you an idea about both the band's sense of humor and their 50's/60's aesthetic:

Effie
Madge and Mabel
Biddie, see them on the beach
Or in New
York City, Tina Louise
And there's Hazel and Mavis
Can you name, name, name
Name 'em today?
Can you name, name, name
Name 'em today?
Wanda and Janet
And Ronnie and Reba, oh, oh, oh
These are the girls of the U.S.A.
The principal girls of the U.S.A.

"The principal girls of the U.S.A." always cracks me up.  This song, along with every other song on here, is also a great showcase for Ricky Wilson's guitar playing, which often relies on strange tunings and has a tight, punchy sound.  It's just exactly right for the band's sound.  (Sadly, Wilson died of AIDS complications in 1985.)

You know, it's funny - the B-52s were very consciously evoking an earlier, sunnier, more optimistic era in the US (even if they were doing it ironically).  In the age of the beehive hairdo, all the possibilities seemed wide open and a bright future lay ahead (if you were white and at least middle class, of course).  Listening to it now, it's impossible not to wonder if things in 1979, when this album came out, were better than they are now.

Does this album deserve to be in the Top 500? Yes, and Top 200 as well.  

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