- 01Tougher Than LeatherRun DMCSal has two sons, Vito and Pino, played by Richard Edson (who had appeared in Tougher Than Leather —see 1986 ) and John Turturro.from the chapter
- 02“Pastime Paradise”Stevie WonderDissipation, race relations, as Stevie Wonder says in “Pastime Paradise” ( Songs in the Key of Life , side two, track three).from the chapter
- 03Songs in the Key of LifeStevie WonderDissipation, race relations, as Stevie Wonder says in “Pastime Paradise” ( Songs in the Key of Life , side two, track three).from the chapter
- 04Songs from the Big ChairTears for FearsBack in 1985, I got on board with Tears for Fears, an English pop band that had a huge record that year with Songs from the Big Chair , which sent two songs to the top of the chart (“Shout,” “Everybody Wants to Rule the World”) and a third to number three (“Head Over Heels”).from the chapter
- 05“Shout”Tears for FearsBack in 1985, I got on board with Tears for Fears, an English pop band that had a huge record that year with Songs from the Big Chair , which sent two songs to the top of the chart (“Shout,” “Everybody Wants to Rule the World”) and a third to number three (“Head Over Heels”).from the chapter
- 06“Head Over Heels”Tears for FearsBack in 1985, I got on board with Tears for Fears, an English pop band that had a huge record that year with Songs from the Big Chair , which sent two songs to the top of the chart (“Shout,” “Everybody Wants to Rule the World”) and a third to number three (“Head Over Heels”).from the chapter
- 07The Seeds of LoveTears for FearsThe group labored over the follow-up, like many groups, and in August 1989, about a month after Do the Right Thing , they released the lead single from their third album, which was called The Seeds of Love .from the chapter
- 08“Sowing the Seeds of Love”Tears for FearsThe first single and the album’s centerpiece, “Sowing the Seeds of Love,” is a joyous call to activism carried by an over-the-top production that hauls out every last bell and whistle from the Beatles’ Magical Mystery Tour era.from the chapter
- 09Magical Mystery Tourthe BeatlesThe first single and the album’s centerpiece, “Sowing the Seeds of Love,” is a joyous call to activism carried by an over-the-top production that hauls out every last bell and whistle from the Beatles’ Magical Mystery Tour era.from the chapter
- 10“I Am the Walrus”the BeatlesI saw the single as a funkier version of the “I Am the Walrus” chord progressions.from the chapter
- 11Around the World in a DayPrince and the RevolutionBack when Prince released Around the World in a Day in 1985, I was a rank novice.from the chapter
- 12Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club BandThe BeatlesThe spur, weirdly enough, was a Jet article—in 1987, Paul McCartney had given an interview about the twentieth anniversary of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band , and that had sent me back to all the albums.from the chapter
- 13Neither Fish nor FleshTerence Trent D’ArbyThe review of Terence Trent D’Arby’s second record, Neither Fish nor Flesh , was a lead review, complete with a Robert Risko illustration.from the chapter
- 14“Roly Poly”Terence Trent D’ArbyOn “Roly Poly,” he credited himself with playing “Keyboards, Marimba, Electric Piano [Fender Rhodes], Organ [Cathedral Organ], Piano [Piano & ‘Jazzesque’ Piano Fills], Percussion [Special Light Tan Sainsbury’s Cardboard Box #382a], Cuica [Quica], Percussion, Sounds [And Other …from the chapter
- 15“Fight the Power”Public EnemyAnd yet every time I hear that song, I think about another of 1989’s best singles, one that came out about six weeks before “Sowing the Seeds of Love.” It was Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power,” and while it was technically the lead single from the group’s third album, Fear of a …from the chapter
- 16Fear of a Black PlanetPublic Enemy… ink about another of 1989’s best singles, one that came out about six weeks before “Sowing the Seeds of Love.” It was Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power,” and while it was technically the lead single from the group’s third album, Fear of a Black Planet , the album wouldn’t be released until April 1990.from the chapter
- 17“Everybody Wants to Rule the World”Questlove’s pickTears for FearsMy family took a trip out to California via Trailways in 1985, in the summer.from the chapter
- 18“Juicy Fruit”MtumeWe had one of those kinds of guys on the bus, or really a group of them: a small guy, a bigger guy, and a woman, and they were playing “Juicy Fruit” over and over again.from the chapter
- 19“September When I First Met You”Questlove’s pickBarry WhiteThis is one of my last romantic memories of the 8-track.from the chapter
- 20“Still Sound”Questlove’s pickToro y MoiI don’t know how many songs my mind can really absorb, though I have thought about it.from the chapter
- 21“Route 101”Herb AlpertThis song holds the same space as Herb Alpert’s “Route 101.” It’s one of those songs that would wind up on the audience mix on a Friday Fallon—they are loose, fun, with people thinking of weekend plans.from the chapter
- 22“Brass in Pocket”Questlove’s pickPretendersWhen I was in West Side Store , a movie, toward the end of elementary school (see 1981 ), I remember listening to pop albums in the car as I drove up to Northeast to make the movie.from the chapter
- 23This Year’s ModelElvis CostelloWhenever my runner picked me up to take me to the location, it was Squeeze or the Police, or Elvis Costello’s This Year’s Model , which was in a cracked case on the floor.from the chapter
- 24“Close to Me”Questlove’s pickthe CureFor two years of high school I went to a smaller school, City Center Academy in Philadelphia.from the chapter
- 25“Too Shy”Questlove’s pickKajagoogooIn the summertime, on the video show on our local UHF, WPHL-17, they played Bill Cosby’s show—not The Cosby Show , but the one from the early ’70s where he was a physical education teacher—then Davey and Goliath , and then videos.from the chapter