Hey, I used to draw cartoons on this blog! Who knew?
Ah, the first of June! A summer month that is actually only one-third certified summer by our good friend axial tilt. Well, never mind our creative accounting of the seasons… the only thing that matters right now is that it’s Monday! Aren’t you excited? That means The Nest is ready to dip its toes into the deep end and fish out another drowning lost classic from that chlorine infested public pool of lost Baby Ruths we like to call the Dusty Vinyl Archive! DJ Scratchy’s always up for a pool party if it means she doesn’t have to wear anything over her thong, while the Sponkies get into a splash fight in the kiddie pool. Be prepared, this song’s gonna do a cannonball!
I don’t do politics….. at all. If you start talking politics, I’ll politely ignore you. If you write about politics, I’ll find something else to read. If the news comes on….. well, I don’t watch that shit anyway. So what’s up with the title of this post, you may ask? Well, let’s flashback to the wonderful year of 1983!
Ugh, no! I said no politics!!!
Let’s try that again….
OK, that’s definitely 1983.
The quartet of gentlemen above who you see in a variety of terrible retro hairstyles comprised the short-lived British band named Re-Flex. They recorded only two albums during their very brief time together in the early 80’s, and only one of the songs on those albums could be picked out of a lineup by even an avid 80’s enthusiast. But it’s a damned fine song… even if its title contains that dreaded P-word. Behold, the awesome 1983 Re-Flex single “The Politics of Dancing”…
Damn, is that video practically a time capsule of the early 80’s, or what?
A professor with a bowtie and a boombox? Bet you’ve never seen that before…
Big props to Mecca for making this song one of its muzak earworms recently, as it put the seed in my head to feature this song on the DVA…. even though I don’t consider it to really be a lost hit. But in checking the chart results…. “Politics” only made it to #24 in the US, and #29 in Re-Flex’s homeland of the UK. So yeah, it was kinda buried under the rug in its own time, let alone almost four decades in the future. It was on the charts at the right time, though, because I remember listening to Casey Kasum’s American Top 40 every Sunday morning in early 1984… and still remember a lot of the songs on the charts at that particular time, of which this was one of them!
You want to dance now, Mr. Reagan? Have you lost your mind, comrade?
The Nest will have more dancing and less politics next Monday! I’m Evil Squirrel, and I approve this message…
Evil Squirrel's Nest 
Oh I remember that song and indeed it was a totally 80s video AND song but got even the non-dancers up and jerking around the room. Started my Monday off JUST RIGHT!
Pam
Maybe you should try some roller skating like in the video! Just make sure to set up plenty of pillows first….
Oh yeah…..and wear a lot of pillows too!
we go with the politics of dancing… but the dancefloor can become a battlefield too, so no huge difference
If politics was a dance competition, we might get some new leaders…
I don’t remember this one. So much of the 80s is a blur to me, although I very much remember Reagan.
Who could forget Ronnie. I was too young to understand politics at the time, but he was the first President I can remember, and it was weird when he wasn’t anymore.
Hmm, clearly those retro hairstyles contributed to their quick musical exit which is too bad. Nice, snappy tune that kind of reminds me of Duran Duran. I like it! Happy Monday.
I think it was illegal to be in a band at the time if you didn’t have terrible retro hair….
This made me so happy. Thank you.
Then the song’s message served it purpose….
Those hairstyles….definitely the 80’s. The music was not aloud in Canada due to copyrute issues.
Jean
That’s mean that music can’t be shared globally. You shouldn’t be able to own a sound…
“WMG” has blocked the video on copyright grounds. However, Alexa played the song and it sounded very familiar. No, I’ve never heard it before but I have heard 80’s music before…
Even their look – I thought, ooh, it’s Duran Duran, no, Spandau Ballet… they all looked and sounded the same!
That’s what I think of millennial music…. it all sounds the same. But at least the 80’s stuff was pretty good, even if the hair was a bit dodgy….
Great word – douchbaggery – a good word for what’s going on now.
I don’t remember Re-Flex or this song but I’m feeling very nostalgic for the 80s now! Except for the hair styles. I don’t miss those. I would get myself beat up if I travelled back in time to the 80s because I wouldn’t be able to stop laughing at everyone’s ridiculous hair!