Did you ever imagine that the flannel-clad daze of the Nineteen Nineties would be celebrated in 2010 as a historical period in music-culture this quickly in our lives? The question isn’t why has it disconnected from the calendar this quickly, but how did it happen? Hang on to something, it gets worse. For a thirty-something year old like myself, a proud child of the Cold War Eighties, I’m struck by the realization that the first generation of alternative music known as punk & new wave has become momentous like artifacts in a museum. It’s arguable whether or not the Eighties are hip again and yes, some Satellite radio stations have invested an entire back catalog of retro to their daily formats in hope of generating profit. Staple artists like Frankie Goes to Hollywood, the Cure, and even Culture Club will be long remembered for decades to come regardless of how well history treats the genre in the future. Radio, if no other medium, will not forget. For those that doubt, one word: Tchaikovsky. Sadly however, what will be forgotten is all of the fanfare, disposable accessories and artsy memorabilia that came with Eighties’ culture. Items like logo jacket buttons, backstage laminates, suave Simon Le Bon headbands, and other authentic yet bizarre fashions are sometimes available on eBay to become a collector’s objects of desire. However, pricing for these relics is on the rise, with collectibles such as Thompson Twins’ concert Tees or Level 42 tour books are escalating into triple-digit minimum bids, evidence that my original loot of Eighties’ stuff is making a rite of passage from nostalgic to valuable. Mom, you were good to let me pile it up in my little closet space all of those years ago.

Some of my favorite series of articles in my extensive collection are the vintage Star Hits magazines which I purchased at an independent grocery store whenever I visited my grandparents every other month or so. Star Hits magazine was the American attempt to cash-in on the success of Britain’s Smash Hits whereas the premise was to break down the humility of the video star in search of answers to juvenile questions of unimportance. In other words, there seemed to be little substance amongst the glossy pages, but between the humor and irrelevance, the magazine would print song lyrics to imported, underground or ab-fab singles that weren’t always Top 40. This was indirectly a powerful marketing tool because readers weren’t always subscribers to MTV or pop radio. However, these lyrics accompanied with cosmopolitan imagery equaled sales for artists such as the Cocteau Twins, Blue Mercedes and Fuzzbox- examples of bands that were often denied airplay in the U.S. before the rise of alternative radio in the 1990s. Whether you had actually heard music from the Cocteau Twins or not was beside the point; readers of Star Hits adopted them into their record collections because the magazine recognized talent when it saw it, bridging the UK/US divide in progressive music. In other words, if Star Hits featured ‘them’, then ‘they’ must be rad.

Star Hits was published from 1984-1989, released tentatively each month yet sometimes issued inconsistently. On a few occasions, the publisher offered annual hardcover yearbook editions to capsulate the previous year’s photos, interviews and critic album reviews. Both the monthly and special edition copies of Star Hits are incredibly rare these days. Duranies alone account for the majority of copies still in existence! Good luck persuading them to release these for sale. For those of us that don’t necessarily need 6 years of vintage glossy Star Hits magazines to help us recall this golden era of hedonistic pop, there are a pair of solutions that are amazingly cheaper and far less time consuming to find. Two new recent hardcover books have surfaced that capture some of the period’s most influential artists featured in Star Hits, including an anthology devoted to the best of the magazine.

The Best of Smash Hits edited by Mark Frith (Sphere Publishing, London) is like opening a Pandora’s Box of teenage memories clustered with emotions of joy and pain. Nothing short of wonderful, The Best of Smash Hits features originally published content found in various editions of the magazine throughout the 1980s. Opening with a foreword from former Smash Hits’ Assistant Editor Neil Tennant (1982-1985), who recalls his fear of failing as a pop star only to return back to the magazine in hopes of retrieving his job, the journey begins. Keep in mind, Americans weren’t stakeholders in this project; The Best of Smash Hits was released for European audiences although there was little contrast between the UK version and its sister magazine here (Star Hits). In hindsight, some of the content in Smash Hits is simply outrageous yet very engaging. Case in point, staging artists such as the Eurithmics to test-drive pricey cassette machines (East Coast translation: ‘boom-boxes’). Can you imagine a magazine today that featured a segment with the Kings of Leon trying out the new Apple iPad? I didn’t think so either. Other features include grocery lists by Depeche Mode’s Andy Fletcher, Scritti Politti’s Green Gartside O-level exam scores, avant-garde song lyrics by Haysi Fantayzee, pop star crushes of Samantha Fox, and even a height chart featuring an escalating comparison of the shortest pop star to the tallest. Shallow as it is, every page will shower you in the fountain of youth. However, the Best of Smash Hits also features many of the series’ most intriguing interviews from the decade of greed including a pre-fame diary of the Beastie Boys, one of the first hip-hop artists to cross over into Eighties’ alternative. Trust me, there are diamonds in these mines of pages. The wow-factor blew the meter when I saw Morrissey and Dead or Alive’s Pete Burns on stage performing together, followed by a candid interview that I never knew occurred until I purchased this book. You’ll love recalling the cleverly written Letters to the Editor; the forgotten advertisements for Texas Instruments calculators and Fluorescent Ultra Hair Glo products; the laughable debate between pop stars over nuclear weapons. Made in the Eighties, Smash Hits should never be rejected in any discussion when it comes to defining journalism. Finally, if you do decide to start or complete your collection of original Smash Hits prints, there is an extensive pictorial of every Smash Hits issue released in the 1980s. From the obvious (Stray Cats, Gary Numan) to the oblivious (The Mighty Wah, Jimmy the Hoover), the covers of Smash Hits were indignant to music critics outside of the trend, who snubbed their elite noses at the thought of encouraging a culture that was blatantly promoting unconventional rock and roll. Nonetheless, the illustrations featured on the monthly covers were not only making superstars out of unknowns, they encompassed a mosaic of style, creativity, and essence that has become intangible, never to be this inspiring again. This collage of Smash Hits’ covers in chronological order is worth the price of the book alone.

Remember the 80s: now that’s what I call nostalgia by Richard Evans (Portico Books, London) is just as legitimate as the Best of Smash Hits. Reviving doses of elapsed images that were once so vivid to our youth as we voyaged through the Eighties, this heavy encyclopedia is vital to those drowning in a time warp. However, unlike the Best of Smash Hits, author Richard Evans, who has trumpeted the decade with his weekly newsletters and where-are-they-now interviews, holds our hand as he guides us through ten years of transition from post-punk to MTV, metal-hair pop to raving acid house. Whereas ‘Best of Smash Hits’ singularly glorified the musician, ‘Remember the 80s’ provides reflective insight of the decade’s pop singles, fads and even international events year by year, starting with 1980. Ironically, Evans’ version of nostalgia could even be used as a resource for the next generation. Not only are his descriptive summaries of the various forms of Eighties’ popular music elaborate and conclusive, his look back at some of the decades most memorable moments – including the catastrophic Chernobyl meltdown and Space Shuttle Challenger disasters of 1986, are proof that Evans has honestly represented the Yin and Yang of a decade that in spite of the glitter materialism of its visage, couldn’t dodge suffering and consequences. As with the ‘Best of Smash Hits’, Evans wrote the ‘80s biography for the Brits, hence many American readers will disagree that Spandau Ballet are worthy of being titled 1983’s icon. However, it is interesting to read what the fuss was all about from an Englishman’s point of view. The bottom line: A fantastic read that will attract anyone younger than 55. Book includes an opening foreword written by ABC’s Martin Fry.

Both books are now available in most US book retail catalogs or online at www.amazon.com

FLESH FOR FEBRUARY: Your Retro Roundabout Guide

Be Mine: Vintage Valentine Dance (Feb. 13 / Highland Inn Ballroom-Atlanta). Whether you were too intoxicated to remember, too shy shy to dance, or just dateless, now is your chance to relive your own Molly Ringwald moment. Dance to the beat as national and local deejays, including WRAS vets’ J-J-Jenny & Marvinista, spin four decades of music including artists highly favored here on Retro Beach. Doors open at 9pm. Cover: $7 individual tickets or $10 couples. Visit www.thehighlandinn.com for more information.

Leslie and the Lys (Feb. 23 / The Earl): Nobody recording music today has ripped off Eighties’ electro-hip-hop better than Iowan Leslie Hall. Since her last visit to the ATL, Leslie’s zany videos, including the fan-favorite ‘Gold Pants’, have become internet sensations with her career on the verge of rocketing into higher plains beyond the underground. At $10 a ticket, you’ll feel obligated to pass around another offering plate after she’s done entertaining you. Visit www.badearl.com for more information including show time.