By Gregg Shapiro

Contributing writer

The 180 gram vinyl Chrysalis/EMI reissue of The Specials 1980 self-titled domestic debut album (produced by Elvis Costello with the exception of one track) is a cause for celebration. Message music of the highest order, The Specials also packed a party into their songs, while filling in the gap between punk and hip-hop. The horns, the rhythm guitars and the distinctly ska beat combined to make your body move, while lyrics made it necessary for you to pay attention. “A Message To You Rudy,” “Nite Klub,” and “Concrete Jungle,” perfectly illustrate The Specials’ special powers to entertain and enlighten. It’s also worth noting that The Specials were the launching pad for Terry Hall (later of Fun Boy Three and co-writer of the Go-Go’s hit “Our Lips Are Sealed”) and Stan Campbell.

In the U.S., in New Jersey to be precise, The Feelies were feeling the punk rock/new wave urge on their 1980 debut album “Crazy Rhythms” (Bar/None), now available along with 1986’s “The Good Earth” (Bar/None/Coyote). The rhythms are indeed crazy and jittery on “Crazy Rhythms,” thanks in large part to drummer Anton Fier (later of the Golden Palominos and Pere Ubu), and can best be experienced on “The Boy With The Perpetual Nervousness,” “Fa Cé-La,” “Loveless Love,” “Raised Eyebrows,” and a cover of the Beatles’ “Everybody’s Got Something to Hide (Except Me and My Monkey).” Both reissues include inserts for additional bonus tracks for download. 

Peter Buck of R.E.M. also admired The Feelies and co-produced the above mentioned “The Good Earth” with NAMES. But a few years before that, Buck and the rest of R.E.M. released “Reckoning” (IRS/UMe), the Athens, GA band’s second full-length album in 1984. Newly available in a remastered and expanded double disc deluxe edition, “Reckoning” finds the band riding the college rock wave that they helped to stir up into existence. Accessible and almost commercial, songs such as “Don’t Go Back To Rockville,” the jangly “Southern Central Rain (I’m Sorry),” “Harborcoat,” “Pretty Persuasion” and “Second Guessing” set the stage for the alternative music scene that was waiting to emerge. The second disc in the set was recorded live at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago (!) and features songs from “Reckoning,” “Murmur” and more.

Over on the left coast, Red Hot Chili Peppers were perfecting their punk funk sound. They attracted the attention of George Clinton who produced their 1984 album “Freaky Styley,” which has been reissued on 180 gram vinyl by EMI, and the pairing works well throughout, including a cover of Sly & The Family Stone’s “If You Want Me To Stay.” But it was 1987’s “Uplift Mofo Party,” also reissued on 180 gram vinyl by EMI, with the hit single “Behind The Sun,” that helped the RHCP on their way to becoming a household name.

After spending the ‘70s as a member of the Eagles and dominating the charts and airwave, Don Henley (performing on November 9 at the Rosemont Theater, 5400 N. River in Rosemont) went solo in 1982 with his “I Can’t Stand Still” album which featured the hit single “Dirty Laundry.” But it was his 1984 release “Building The Perfect Beast” that truly made him a solo superstar through the hit single “The Boys of Summer,” as well as the tracks “All She Wants To Do Is Dance” and “Not Enough Love In The World.” The aforementioned songs, as well as later hits including “The End of the Innocence” and “The Heart of the Matter” can be found on the CD/DVD compilation “The Very Best of Don Henley” (Geffen/UMe), which also features a few music videos.

With the arrival of the Violent Femmes in 1983 and the BoDeans a few years later, the Milwaukee, Wisconsin area was suddenly a hotbed of interesting music. The BoDeans’ 1986 debut “Love & Hope & Sex & Dreams” (Slash/Warner Brothers/Rhino) introduced us to a band that never quite equaled the mastery of its first album, but what a first album it was. More than 20 years later, tracks such as “She’s A Runaway,” “Fadeaway,” “Still The Night,” “Rickshaw Riding” and “Say You Will” are still knockouts. The expanded CD/DVD reissue of “Love & Hope & Sex & Dreams” includes bonus tracks a concert DVD recorded in Minneapolis in 1985.

Wisconsin’s neighboring state Minnesota had already staked its claim to 1980s musical credibility through acts such as Prince, Husker Du, The Replacements and Soul Asylum, by the time The Jayhawks landed an album in 1986. Like Soul Asylum, it wasn’t until the 1990s that The Jayhawks finally attained some commercial success and recognition. With only one substantial hit to their name, the lovely “Blue” (from 1995!), The Jayhawks nevertheless have earned the right to have their own two CD/one DVD collection “Music From The North Country: The Jayhawks Anthology” (American).

Lenny Kravitz wasn’t shy about letting his vintage influences show on his 1989 debut album “Let Love Rule” (Virgin), newly reissued in a 20th anniversary deluxe edition. The title track, “I Build This Garden For Us” and “Be” are undeniable homages to John Lennon. There are also traces of funk, soul and glam, which aren’t bad influences to claim. The reissue includes six bonus tracks and a second disc of live recordings.

The 1980s were the launching pad for a number of significant musical careers. Several of the artists’ influence remains as strong as ever today. Many continue to create great music, including “Years of Refusal” by Morrissey (Attack/Lost Highway), “The Eternal” by Sonic Youth (Matador), “Soul of My Soul” (Mighty Sound) by Michelle Shocked, “Real Animal” (Back Porch/Manhattan) by Alejandro Escovedo, “Halfway, Pleased” (Kook Media) by Curt Smith and “The Evangeleist” (Yep Roc) by Robert Forster.