Last night Liz and I went to the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner. We treat ourselves on Thursday night every once in a while, for as you know Thursday is the last work day of the week in Dubai. And at the end of a week sometimes we just need a night out.
Anyway, the Hard Rock is always crawling with children on Thursdays. Imagine Applebees and Disneyland and a little Chuck E. Cheese all mixed together, and then put in the middle of a desert with very little other family entertainment. (You know, Chuck E. Cheese would make a killing over here! Chuck, get on it!)
But seriously, Liz and I were just about the only two people in the place without kids.
The only reason I mention this, of course, is because at one point on the in-house video system Nine Inch Nails' "Head Like a Hole" came on.
Seriously.
We have children running about and playing, families celebrating birthdays and Trent Reznor screaming over and over, "Head like a hole, Black as your soul, I'd rather die than give you control."
Am I that old, now, that I am going to start noticing this more and more? What was once fringe and counter-culture is now mainstream and safe?
The video before was Mick Jagger and Dave Matthews, two fairly safe characters themselves, doing a very safe live duet of "Wild Horses". The next after was the Police doing "Roxanne" - and I have it on very good authority that their former singer-songwriter is so gentrified he's even written songs for a Disney movie.
But Trent Reznor? Nine Inch Nails?
I had to look it up online, but the CD "Pretty Hate Machine" came out in 1989. So I guess we're closing in on 18 years, which seems to be standard for musicians becoming more mainstream.
"Every Rose Has Its Thorn" - Poison "My Prerogative" - Bobby Brown "Straight Up" and "Cold Hearted" - Paula Abdul "The Living Years" - Mike + The Mechanics "Eternal Flame" - The Bangles "She Drives Me Crazy" - Fine Young Cannibals "Like a Prayer" - Madonna "Hangin' Tough" - New Kids on the Block "We Didn't Start the Fire" - Billy Joel
and, to bring shame on anyone who lived through the late 1980s:
"Girl I'm Gonna Miss You" "Baby Don't Forget My Number" and "Blame It on the Rain" by Milli Vanilli
Here are a few other memorable songs from 1989 that didn't hit #1:
"I'll Be There For You" - Bon Jovi "Beds Are Burning" - Midnight Oil "Funky Cold Medina" - Tone Loc "If I Could Turn Back Time" - Cher "Kickstart My Heart" - Motley Crue "Listen to Your Heart" - Roxette "Love Shack"- The B-52's "Once Bitten, Twice Shy" - Great White "Right Here Waiting" - Richard Marx "Stand" - R.E.M. "The Look" - Roxette "Toy Soldiers" - Martika "Veronica" - Elvis Costello "Wild Thing" - Tone Loc "You Got It" - Roy Orbison
Any one of these could play at the Hard Rock, I suppose.
Well, maybe not Milli Vanilli. Although their "Greatest Hits" album was just released on March 22.
Go figure.
Lastly, here are a few recognizable albums released in 1989:
Pump - Aerosmith Cosmic Thing - The B-52's Paul's Boutique - The Beastie Boys Rhythm Nation 1814 - Janet Jackson Girl You Know It's True - Milli Vanilli Dr. Feelgood - Motley Crue Straight Outta Compton - N.W.A. Bleach - Nirvana Full Moon Fever - Tom Petty Batman - Prince Fear of a Black Planet - Public Enemy Mother's Milk - Red Hot Chili Peppers Skid Row - Skid Row As Nasty As They Wanna Be - 2 Live Crew Pump Up the Jam: The Album - Technotronic
Brings back some memories, eh?
It's going to be weird, but no doubt soon we'll probably have "Dr. Feelgood" play under an Aleve commercial, "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" selling F.T.D. flowers, and "Kickstart My Heart" shilling HeartStart Home Defibrillators.
