Two Guys, One Year, Zero Attention Spans

What if one year could explain why your playlists, movie nights, and game obsessions still look the way they do? We crank back to 1981, where synths collided with stadium guitars, country hit its stride, and MTV turned music into a visual habit. From the Stones’ swagger and Journey’s eternal chorus to Human League’s neon pulse and Ozzy’s riff machine, we trace the tracks that built a generation’s soundtrack—plus the deep cuts that still deserve more love.

Along the way, we keep it real and personal: porch chairs, road trips, mom’s apple pie, and the kind of small-town detours that deliver leaf-peepers and accidental festivals. We laugh about late-game NFL roller coasters, rookie phenoms, and the inexplicable power of fourth-quarter comebacks. Then we zoom out to the bigger canvas. Raiders of the Lost Ark lit up drive-ins. Stripes taught us irreverence. Arcades stole our quarters with Donkey Kong, Frogger, and Galaga. And in the background, 1981 marked sobering headlines, from the early identification of AIDS to an era-defining assassination attempt—reminders that culture and life are always in dialogue.

If you’re chasing nostalgia or discovering why 1981 keeps showing up in modern playlists, you’re in the right spot. We map the year’s sounds to the moments that made them stick, from cassette tapes to MTV’s first wave, and we have some laughs when the football chat inevitably hijacks the agenda. Hit play, compare your top three songs of 1981 with ours, and tell us what we missed. If you enjoy the show, follow, share with a friend, and leave a quick review—it helps more listeners find their way to the porch.

Transcript

Welcome And Setup: Why 1981

SPEAKER_00 0:09

Well hello there brave listeners and welcome to another ear-scorching instalment of the MT Alternative Podcast. I'm your new presenter, Rupert P. Apparently the P stands for Poor Soul Who Got Roped Into This Gig after Daniel finally snapped. That's right. Daniel has officially had enough of Mike and Tom's endless debates about football, obscure guitar solos, and whatever else passes for conversation around here. He's off somewhere in witness protection, probably pretending to host a podcast about pottery just to recover. This week, the lads are diving into the musical wonderland of 1981, a year when synthesizers ruled, hair was massive, and everyone still thought cassette tapes were the future. Expect deep dives into the hits, some heated football banter, and of course, the usual nonsense that makes you question your life choices for tuning in. So buckle up, adjust your shoulder pads, and let's see if Mike and Tom can make it through one episode without arguing about who has better taste in music, or at least without Daniel coming back mid-show to pull the plug.

SPEAKER_01 1:56

We're still rocking live.

Life Updates And Porch Vibes

SPEAKER_05 1:58

Well, Tom, welcome back. It's been a while, bud.

SPEAKER_04 2:01

It has been a few days.

SPEAKER_05 2:03

A few days. It's been about a almost a month since we've done this. Well, life. Life gets in the way.

SPEAKER_04 2:10

Yep. If you call vacation life.

SPEAKER_05 2:13

You had a little trip you took. I went up to see, went up north to see mom.

SPEAKER_04 2:16

There you go, cool. Life. Life works. Well, that's what we work for is just that Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 2:24

I guess for that.

SPEAKER_04 2:26

Work 51 weeks so you can take one.

SPEAKER_05 2:29

One little week to have fun.

SPEAKER_04 2:31

Well, it's just like work sixty-seven years so you can enjoy five.

SPEAKER_05 2:35

Yeah, pretty much. Pretty much that Tom.

SPEAKER_04 2:38

What the hell are they trying to do to us?

SPEAKER_05 2:41

Kill us. Slowly. So uh work today was pretty productive. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 2:48

Six hours of power packed punch.

SPEAKER_05 2:52

Just to get here to do this.

SPEAKER_04 2:53

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 2:54

Porch time. Here we are in the porch once again.

SPEAKER_04 2:56

This is what we do it for. Right here. This is what it's all about.

SPEAKER_05 3:01

The porch.

SPEAKER_04 3:02

The porch.

SPEAKER_05 3:04

Let's see. We're gonna be talking about 81, music, and uh whatever else comes to mind from 81. That was a great year for me. Should have been my graduation year, but I was uh dumb and my buddy Tim graduated early, and I said, Well, I'm gonna we're going to the army together.

SPEAKER_04 3:20

Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_05 3:21

Yeah, well, yeah, it was great. We were going in, they had that buddy system thing back then, and uh lo and behold, took our couple weeks off before we went in. First weekend. Crashed into a tree.

SPEAKER_04 3:33

Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_05 3:35

Kind of derailed plans for a little bit. Just to try. That's what happened to me in 81. February of 81.

SPEAKER_04 3:41

81, man. I couldn't tell you, probably sixth grade.

SPEAKER_05 3:46

You were a wee little lad still.

SPEAKER_04 3:51

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 3:51

81 for me would have been a graduation year, like I said.

SPEAKER_04 3:55

But 86 was mine.

SPEAKER_05 3:58

At least it was the 80s.

SPEAKER_04 4:00

Yeah, eighty. Yeah. What a great time.

SPEAKER_05 4:03

80s was it was a great excellent time.

SPEAKER_04 4:07

But there was a lot going on in 80.

SPEAKER_05 4:10

I mean Well Even for me, the end of the 70s, we talked about some of the music. That's when a lot of the music's uh, like I said before, soundtrack of my youth.

SPEAKER_04 4:20

Right.

SPEAKER_05 4:21

Pretty much started in early 70s. Early 70s, mid seventies.

SPEAKER_04 4:25

And so see, now we're getting ready to kick into the music that started me.

SPEAKER_05 4:30

These these this time in the 80s, this is when I was going to mega concerts. Concerts all the time. So I kiss a million times, Ted Nugent a bunch of times, Judas Priest a bunch of times. Just naming those bands alone.

SPEAKER_04 4:44

Exactly. And see, and by that time, hell, I had just barely learned how to add and divide. Long division.

SPEAKER_05 4:54

Long division? Yeah. That's what you remember from age one?

SPEAKER_04 4:59

Well, the reason I do remember that is because how long it took me to get it.

SPEAKER_05 5:04

Ah.

SPEAKER_04 5:05

From the sixth grade to now.

SPEAKER_05 5:07

I don't remember much about sixth grade. See? To be honest.

NFL Check-In And Rookie Hype

SPEAKER_04 5:11

Long division. It it took that's why they call it long division. It takes a long time. Yep. Oh yeah, it is coffee.

SPEAKER_05 5:21

It really is. It really, really is. I'm shocked. We'll get to the hard cider in a in a little bit.

SPEAKER_04 5:25

I got my coffee going right over here.

SPEAKER_05 5:27

I got other things going on right now in my mind.

SPEAKER_04 5:32

And I bet you do.

SPEAKER_05 5:33

I I do. So our football teams are doing great. Yes, both of us. I'll be honest, I'm a little surprised at the Patriots, but I'm I'm just as shocked about the Broncos. Wish our pass defense could play better, but gee, Drake May. Yep, Bo Nicks.

SPEAKER_04 5:52

Yep. Two two square guys.

SPEAKER_05 5:55

I think they were both rookies last year, right? Yes. Yeah. So they both came in the same uh draft class.

SPEAKER_04 6:01

Yep, and and just killing that.

SPEAKER_05 6:03

The season's been great. Buffalo was in Buffalo was sweet.

SPEAKER_04 6:08

It's good to have a good defense to help you out, too.

SPEAKER_05 6:11

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 6:12

Because sometimes our offense don't put up the numbers it needs to.

SPEAKER_05 6:16

Well, and then our offense was putting the ball, giving the ball away a couple few times here in the earlier games. New York Jets. Should have beat the Raiders. We should have beat Pittsburgh.

SPEAKER_04 6:25

Everybody ought to beat the Raiders once. Twice or every time.

SPEAKER_05 6:30

Yeah. Well, we didn't, so we won't see them again. You will. Twice. Twice. Oh, you haven't played them at all yet?

SPEAKER_04 6:36

No. We get Dallas this week. They're iffy. You never know what Dallas team's going to show.

SPEAKER_05 6:46

Yeah, right. But it's at home, though, for you guys, correct?

SPEAKER_04 6:49

Right. Yeah. But so was the Giants game, and they jumped way out early. Classic Denver. Let's come back in the fourth quarter. What happens if the fourth quarter ain't long enough?

SPEAKER_05 7:01

33 points in the fourth quarter last week. I can't believe that shit.

SPEAKER_04 7:05

That's amazing. And it always happens. It always happens with a Denver team. I don't get it. Just don't understand sometimes.

SPEAKER_05 7:14

Don't want to go through football season that way. Living life on the edge. Oh, yeah, your pool, your big pool. No pools for me this year.

SPEAKER_04 7:32

Oh.

SPEAKER_05 7:32

Nope.

SPEAKER_04 7:33

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 7:34

Let's see. Yeah, so we're at home too. We're still seven and a half points foot. We got Cleveland, but you know, that could be one of those games, letdown games.

SPEAKER_04 7:42

Oh man. Look what happened.

SPEAKER_05 7:45

Oh, look when you guys played the Jets.

SPEAKER_04 7:46

Yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER_05 7:48

1311.

SPEAKER_04 7:49

Yeah. What a game, man. Exciting all the way through.

SPEAKER_05 7:52

Still go here. Still go there. Was I listening to that my way back? Probably. I believe I was.

SPEAKER_04 7:58

It was just, it was awful. And then, and then we had the audacity to throw a safety in there. Instead of a touchdown. No, but I don't think uh Denver scored the only touchdown of the whole game. Everything else was safeties and field goals. What a game.

SPEAKER_05 8:18

That's a weird game.

SPEAKER_04 8:21

Gee, whiz.

SPEAKER_05 8:23

So I'm gonna get back to my trip.

SPEAKER_04 8:25

Oh, are you still tripping?

SPEAKER_05 8:27

Nope, my my trip up north. Oh, oh, oh, okay. Visit mom. It was a pleasant trip. Yep. Got there, mom had a nice meal for us. Ooh, always does. Eating. And she uh next night made another nice meal for us. Made apple pie. Ooh. Mom's apple pie. We had leftovers. Mom made uh let's see, pumpkin bread. The next day, mom made apple bread. I don't understand how I didn't gain so much weight. And believe it or not, I didn't really do much up there. I did visit the old stop dispensaries.

SPEAKER_04 8:59

Yeah, oh yeah.

SPEAKER_05 9:01

You know.

SPEAKER_04 9:02

I got a treat.

SPEAKER_05 9:03

Yes, you got a little treat.

SPEAKER_04 9:05

Got a little yum yum.

SPEAKER_05 9:06

Little yum yum.

SPEAKER_04 9:08

Yep.

SPEAKER_05 9:08

And it's you seem to like uh yum yum.

SPEAKER_04 9:11

I I seem to. It's we have outside noises that's gonna throw me off.

SPEAKER_05 9:18

But uh yeah. My trip was good. Ride ups was okay, ride backs sucked, but yeah. Anyway, how was your you took a little trip last week?

SPEAKER_04 9:26

Yeah. With the direction and the dogs? Sort of the same direction as you did.

SPEAKER_05 9:31

No birds this time.

SPEAKER_04 9:33

No, we didn't have a bird or turtle or no riders. It was just me and my wife and and the two baby dogs, and we took them, and they always go with us when we went up to Virginia.

SPEAKER_05 9:48

Right.

SPEAKER_04 9:48

And we didn't we didn't go up there. We went to Virginia. I pointed you at looking, so I didn't know.

SPEAKER_05 9:56

No, I was tail man's coming by seeing if he was stopping.

SPEAKER_04 10:00

Oh, okay, sorry.

SPEAKER_05 10:01

Yes, I misunderstood that's the perks of sitting out here.

SPEAKER_04 10:04

I misunderstood your body movement.

SPEAKER_05 10:06

Nope. I didn't move at all. I just stared straight ahead.

SPEAKER_04 10:12

Anyway. I wasn't in Lala Land yet. We had a good time, and uh it was just a three-day week and we got away, and it's just a slow town. We we ended up going. We had no idea that there was a festival going on when we got there. But uh there were leaf people everywhere. Leaf peepers. The the the yeah, the leaf peepers. And we weren't really trying to be a leaf peeper. We were just wanting to get up there and get away from everything, and man, walked right in the middle of shit. It was like a lot of people.

SPEAKER_05 10:55

Well, let's go here. Yeah. What many mistakes?

SPEAKER_04 11:00

Yep. But yeah, uh back to football. You got some K-State and Kansas going on too.

SPEAKER_05 11:08

Tied up right now, 7-7. I'm kind of interested in this North Carolina-Virginia game because I'm thinking North Carolina's gonna get clobbered by Virginia.

SPEAKER_04 11:16

I hope not, but they probably will.

Road Trips, Moms, And Apple Pie

SPEAKER_05 11:19

Let's see. Yeah, I don't see any uh big games going on right now. Rutgers in Purdue. Anyways, Tom and I just looking over some scores for college football. Yeah. So let's see. Let's get into our music. Okay. I mean we're getting to the good stuff now. Not that it wasn't good before. No, don't mean it to sound that way, but this is the stuff that fueled my teen years.

SPEAKER_04 11:50

Yeah. And I'm my preteens.

SPEAKER_05 11:52

Your preteens. Getting ready for those teen years.

SPEAKER_04 11:56

Yeah. This is where we snuck around to listen to Kiss because we were too young. That's for older people.

SPEAKER_05 12:04

I'm gonna uh just name off some of these uh notable songs. Okay. If it jogs your memory if you know which ones they are. Of course, Start Me Up the Rolling Stones. Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 12:16

I'll never stop.

SPEAKER_05 12:17

Your favorite band, Tom Rush, Tom Sawyer.

SPEAKER_04 12:21

And that's the only song you ever hear on the radio.

SPEAKER_05 12:24

Unfortunately, it is.

SPEAKER_04 12:25

They have other songs.

SPEAKER_05 12:26

I've said this before when we talked about the music from the 70s. My album from Rush will always be 2112. I just love that album. It's a concept album, I love it. But anyway, so we got Don't Stop Believing Journey. That song has been in TV shows and everywhere. Was it in uh was that mafia show? Uh TV show. You know what I'm talking about at the end. Was that the song they were playing?

SPEAKER_04 12:50

Uh probably was. Supposedly got shot.

SPEAKER_05 12:54

Uh let's see. Jesse's girl, Rick Springfield. Another song they keep playing on the frickin radio.

SPEAKER_04 12:58

Yeah. It was a great song for the first eight weeks.

SPEAKER_05 13:02

Let's see, Tom. We got this song from 81. No, it wasn't 81 when you were listening to it. It brought back some memories from you for you. Keep on loving you from Rio Speedwagon.

SPEAKER_04 13:12

Yeah, that was the hitchhiking song.

SPEAKER_05 13:14

Yeah, I remember that well.

SPEAKER_04 13:16

Row my boat to shore. What the hell was I thinking? Oh my boo-boo.

SPEAKER_05 13:22

Anyway, see, we got Urgent from Foreigner. I believe that was uh Fourner 4.

SPEAKER_04 13:27

Right, right.

SPEAKER_05 13:28

Another one bites the dust. Uh technically 1980, but massive into 81, which stands a reason.

SPEAKER_04 13:35

Right.

SPEAKER_05 13:36

Hold on loosely, 38th Special. I do like that song.

SPEAKER_04 13:39

Yeah, that's a good one.

SPEAKER_05 13:40

All right, we got New Wave and Synth Pop. We know this one. We sing it at work like idiots. Don't you want me?

SPEAKER_04 13:46

Yeah. Yeah. Human League.

SPEAKER_05 13:48

I was working as a waitress in a company. I remember Human League. Uh Tainted Love, Soft Cell. I remember when I first heard that, I thought, oh, this is an old song from the Everybody goes, no, it's no. I'm like, what? What? Got that sound to it. Just can't get enough depeche mode. Just can't get enough. Right, right. Betty Davis Eyes, Kim Carnes. In the air tonight, Phil Collins.

SPEAKER_04 14:11

Yeah. Yeah. Excellent. Excellent.

SPEAKER_05 14:15

Yes. Every little thing she does is magic. The police, you were talking about them. Oh yeah. Whip it. Devo. Let's see. We got Pop and R and B. Endless Love. Diana Ross and Lionel Ritchie.

SPEAKER_04 14:27

Endless love.

SPEAKER_05 14:28

Woman. John Lennon. Woman. I can hardly explain. Let's see. Celebration, cooling a gang. Cell.

SPEAKER_04 14:38

Oh yeah. Good time.

SPEAKER_05 14:40

Come on. Come on. Nine to five, Dolly Park.

SPEAKER_04 14:43

Oh yeah. That's when she jumped in the shower and her blood started pumping.

SPEAKER_05 14:47

We have fucking lady. You bring me up, the Commodores. Oh, lady.

SPEAKER_04 14:54

There is another lady.

SPEAKER_05 14:56

There's a couple of them. Lady.

SPEAKER_04 14:59

You're my night and then shiny lady. Lady. No. Let me take a look at No, that's our later. That's not in the chair.

SPEAKER_05 15:07

Little River Band. Yeah, that's not a good one. And then there's uh the hell's a frickin' band, man. Sticks. I have another one, Lady.

SPEAKER_04 15:17

They do lady.

SPEAKER_05 15:18

There's a lot of lady songs.

SPEAKER_04 15:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 15:20

What if I don't hear man? We don't want to. Oh, here's Tom, here's your song. I'm Coming Out, Diana Ross. Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 15:30

I remember that.

SPEAKER_05 15:31

It was in 80, but still huge in 81.

SPEAKER_04 15:33

Sure it was. People were still coming out.

SPEAKER_05 15:35

I'm coming out. I want the world. No, I don't. Well, you really shouldn't. Oh. Okay, here we are. This is more my thing here. Hyde Rock and Metal. You've got Judas Priest, you've got another thing coming. Yeah, got another thing. Everybody loves Crazy Train from Aussie. Yeah. Flying High again from Aussie. Mean Street Van Halen. That was a good one off. Fair warning. Right? Lonely as a night, Billy Squire. Lonely as the night. When you find yourself alone. Oh, that makes sense.

SPEAKER_04 16:06

Yeah, yeah, you're lonely.

SPEAKER_05 16:08

There's nobody there. When you find yourself alone. Not like I think we're alone now.

SPEAKER_04 16:12

See, well, nobody said you had to be intelligent to write a song. You just gotta think of words.

SPEAKER_05 16:18

Oh, just put them together.

SPEAKER_04 16:19

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 16:20

Okay, we got Turn Me Loose from Love and Boy. Turn me loose. Here we go, Tom. Turn me loose. More your genre, country. I was country when country wasn't cool. Barbara Mandrell. Me too. Featuring George. George Jones. 40-hour week for living, Alabama.

SPEAKER_04 16:35

Alabama.

SPEAKER_05 16:38

Nine to five. Well, Dolly Parton again, man. Feel so right, Alabama.

SPEAKER_04 16:43

Alabama again.

SPEAKER_05 16:44

All right. Let's see. We got uh Funkin' Disco and Dance. Super Freak. Rick James. She's super freak. Super freak. She's super freak. Give it to me, baby. James Bob. I don't know this. I know a Karoti, uh Karota? Quincy Jones. I don't know what the hell that is.

SPEAKER_04 17:04

My Karota.

SPEAKER_05 17:05

Jazzy, danceable, and smooth song.

Leaf Peepers And Small-Town Escapes

SPEAKER_04 17:07

Okay. Well, how do you be jazzy danceable and smooth?

SPEAKER_05 17:11

You gotta be good. You gotta be really good. Oh, yeah. We have physical from Olivia Newton John. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 17:16

Remember we all wanted to get physical with her when we were that age?

SPEAKER_05 17:19

Yeah. Well, see, at that age, I was like thinking of her and doing other things. Let's see. I can't go for that. No can do, Noah Hall, and John Oates. That's the notable songs. Yeah. Do you have any country songs at or any songs at all that you'd like to talk about for maybe one?

SPEAKER_04 17:39

The Ron Ronnie Millsap. Right. Smoky Mountain Rain.

SPEAKER_05 17:43

Yeah, I like that song, actually. You like the big ones.

SPEAKER_04 17:47

Um I believe the Statler brothers came out uh with a couple of songs that they were big back then. Cool. The Oak Ridge Boys, Elvira.

SPEAKER_05 17:57

Elvira.

SPEAKER_04 17:59

Everybody knew that. Was that 81, though? Yes, it was.

SPEAKER_05 18:04

Oh.

SPEAKER_04 18:04

Elvira was 81.

SPEAKER_05 18:06

Okay. I don't see that has a notable on my notes. Oh. I do see those other two Alabama songs that I've never heard of. Strangely enough. Never yet. I will say I like Alabama good guitar sound.

SPEAKER_04 18:21

Yeah, they do have they had some good guitarists over the years.

SPEAKER_05 18:27

Let's see. For me, it was uh there's a lot of good albums that came out I made in killers, but Judas Priest Point of Entry, that was a big one for me. Ozzy Osborne, Diary of a Madman. Saxon Denim and Leather, like those.

SPEAKER_04 18:42

And you did mention uh the the lady song.

unknown 18:45

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 18:46

There was so many. Like uh the one liner Richie wrote in 19 he I don't know when he wrote it, not in 1981, I'm sure, but uh Kenny Rogers saying it made it a big hit right in 1981.

SPEAKER_05 19:00

Yep.

SPEAKER_04 19:01

He sure did.

SPEAKER_05 19:03

Uh let's see. We got it. A C D C came with uh for those about the rock. Now see, Back in Black I Loved that album. I don't know what it is. Anything after I don't know if it sounds the same, or they sure the hell played that they played that song over and over and over.

SPEAKER_04 19:18

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 19:18

I mean it's like Van Halen Fair Warning. I like that album. A little darker, but I liked it.

SPEAKER_04 19:23

But they didn't play that a lot.

College Scores While We Stall

SPEAKER_05 19:25

No. Well, they mean Streets Unchained. Yeah. Those were played a lot. This is Love.

SPEAKER_04 19:32

This is Love.

SPEAKER_05 19:36

Let's see. Uh Rush Moving Pictures. Blackfoot, Tom. Good Southern Rock band.

SPEAKER_04 19:43

I do like some Blackfoot.

SPEAKER_05 19:44

Yeah. I saw them with uh like I told you, it was Blackfoot, it was Thin Lizzie, and it was Ted Nugent. Westbrook Speedway. That was freaking awesome.

SPEAKER_04 19:56

Yeah. Who wants to see the Nude?

SPEAKER_05 19:58

Then we got Ariel Speedwagons, Tom Sappy, High Infidelity album there. Yeah. Got him through his hitchhiking days. New wave of British heavy metal. I do Def Leopard, High and Dry, and Pyromania. After those albums, I wasn't really a Def Leopard song. I like the old Def Leopard sound. High and Dry was great.

SPEAKER_04 20:19

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 20:21

Let it rock. Let it go.

SPEAKER_04 20:22

They should have never changed.

SPEAKER_05 20:24

Bringing on the heartbreak. Yeah. Let's see. Tigers of Pang Tang. I only know a couple songs from them Girls School. Tiger Band. Pancakes. And uh Raven don't know. Let's see. We had some Venom. Welcome to Hell, Except Breaker. And uh Blue Historical Cult, which I liked back in the day. Pat Travis Band, good bluesy band. I like Pat Travis. And Michael Shanka group, MSG. But those are my that was my pretty much a lot of songs from my youth. And um And it only gets better after that.

SPEAKER_04 20:56

Yeah, well, and like I say, I I had a lot of country in my background at that time. And in the 80s, eighty eighty one was a country year, like say there's Kenny Rogers.

SPEAKER_05 21:08

Um I'm hearing Mark with his little character. I think this is a good time right now to maybe we'll uh stop here, get the little dudes to do that thing, and hopefully it'll be a little quieter.

SPEAKER_04 21:20

We'll come back and uh forgot about the little dudes.

SPEAKER_05 21:22

Yeah, we don't forget about the little dudes. How can you forget? They were awfully quiet though today.

SPEAKER_04 21:26

I think they were a little bit quiet.

Cue The Music: 1981 Hit List

SPEAKER_05 21:29

We'll say that.

SPEAKER_04 21:30

We'll see what happens when they come.

SPEAKER_05 21:32

Oh, the only reason I know they're here is somebody told me, so I don't really hear them.

SPEAKER_04 21:37

Oh, okay.

SPEAKER_05 21:38

Which is strange. But anyways, uh folks, we'll be back after the little dudes.

New Wave, Synth Pop, And Radio Staples

SPEAKER_03 21:50

Well, well, well. Well, well, well, wait, wait, wait, wait. Oh, nice of those guys that actually let us back in the studio. What the hell have they been? Well, well, well. And we're still on that stupid musical journey. Um, so I believe it's like that. Okay. So it's not a boy, crazy. Yes, everybody bigger than us. What is everybody? Um question. Well, wait, wait, I have a question for you, okay? Well, it's not true. This is what you gave me. I don't understand a lot right now. I feel like I'm floating. I feel like I went floating. Wait a minute, that's what I'm saying, guys. Anyway, so what are you like here? What else has been happening? Like I said, it's been a while since I seen you. And then I hear that some kind of that stuff going on. Well I think that's called the body that's going to make like that. Do I have to show you the video once again? Okay. Just because it was a way to play it out, buddy. I don't think you're gonna let you know, buddy. I have a previous engagement. We don't need any more. I don't have any more of that, but I got another stuff. What do you got? I don't know when it's called but it makes you wanna lose it. Let's go check it out. All right, come on. All right, okay.

SPEAKER_04 33:20

Yeah. Back to their original song.

SPEAKER_05 33:23

Whatever.

SPEAKER_04 33:24

What do you expect?

SPEAKER_05 33:25

Exactly.

SPEAKER_04 33:26

Anyway.

SPEAKER_05 33:27

So you want to talk a little more about 81?

SPEAKER_04 33:30

Yeah. What what other kind of things like toys? Oh.

SPEAKER_05 33:35

Toys.

SPEAKER_04 33:35

Rubik's Cube.

SPEAKER_05 33:36

What kind of toys?

SPEAKER_04 33:37

Remember the Rubik's Cube.

SPEAKER_05 33:39

That's been so many years though now.

SPEAKER_04 33:41

Yeah, but 81 was the real year.

SPEAKER_05 33:45

No.

SPEAKER_04 33:46

Yeah?

SPEAKER_05 33:46

No. We already talked about the Rubik's Cube.

SPEAKER_04 33:50

No one time, but it was in other places.

SPEAKER_05 33:52

It just doesn't go away, the stupid cube.

SPEAKER_04 33:54

That's exactly right.

SPEAKER_05 33:57

Well, it's just like You know what's more important? MTV launched in 81. How did we forget this? That was my dream.

SPEAKER_04 34:09

You were dreaming that. Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 34:10

And then they made a song. Yeah. Then they made it made MTV.

SPEAKER_04 34:14

How much money did you get off of that dream?

SPEAKER_05 34:17

That was a dream time, so I didn't get anything.

SPEAKER_04 34:20

I get stuff for my dreams.

SPEAKER_05 34:22

No, you don't.

SPEAKER_04 34:23

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 34:24

Where you work. Yeah, there we go. Don't answer that.

SPEAKER_04 34:26

There's no dream. That's nightmare.

SPEAKER_05 34:29

What else happened in '81 time? Anything good? Oh, Reagan, right? Didn't he uh almost assassin or they try to assassinate him? John Hinkley. John Lee. Yeah. John Hinkley Jr.

SPEAKER_04 34:39

Yeah. Well, who was the first time?

SPEAKER_05 34:41

Can he bring the Beatles too or some shit?

SPEAKER_04 34:43

Yeah, well, yeah. John Hinckley. He was some other kind of character.

SPEAKER_05 34:49

Yeah, he was. Hey, remember the big wedding? Prince Charles and Lady Diane. Yep. I remember. And I think uh if I'm correct, when the Pope almost got assassinated there, didn't they come out with a little Pope Mobile after the little bubble? Maybe just waves.

SPEAKER_04 35:09

Yeah. The glass protector.

SPEAKER_05 35:13

The bubble. Imagine driving down the road with that, just waving.

SPEAKER_04 35:19

Too bad they didn't invent that protection.

SPEAKER_05 35:20

Hey, I have I have a question for you off of off topic a little here.

SPEAKER_04 35:25

Okay.

SPEAKER_05 35:26

I notice here when there's a funeral procession going by, everybody pulls over and stops. Yeah. Why? I've never seen that done anywhere. I get it. No.

SPEAKER_04 35:37

I actually take my hat off.

SPEAKER_05 35:40

I only asked this because I got stuck in a long ass one yesterday, and I'm like, I wasn't pissed about it.

SPEAKER_04 35:45

Don't get me wrong, but it was like Until the until you Once the hearse goes by, I thought you just go. No.

SPEAKER_05 35:51

Well no. I never did that anywhere else.

SPEAKER_04 35:54

It's just uh everybody that comes through with their lights on.

SPEAKER_05 35:58

Okay, so what if it's a two, three mile possession? Well, it's just I got places to go.

SPEAKER_04 36:04

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 36:05

I respect I'm sorry. Sorry you passed. I don't know who you were. I don't know why I'm paying respect, but here I am. Can I move on with my life now?

SPEAKER_04 36:17

He was going to his last place. And you had to go.

SPEAKER_05 36:22

Just a little gripe. Like I said, I wasn't pissed, and I'm sure Crystal was in front of me.

SPEAKER_04 36:28

Reminds me of the uh of the two fellows.

SPEAKER_05 36:31

Because let me tell you, when that thing was by, when she saw the last light, she was gone. I'm like, damn it, Crystal.

Hard Rock, Metal, And Arena Memories

SPEAKER_04 36:36

But anyway, uh reminded me of the two fellas out fishing in this funeral procession, came across the bridge. One old boy, he reels up all his reels, all of them, reels them all in, puts them down, takes his hat off, sets down, and watches it. That guy next to him says, I've never seen anybody respect the dead so much that he'd quit fishing and everything to watch funerals. He said, Well, I was married to her for 57 years. I figure I owe her that.

SPEAKER_05 37:10

Only you, Tom.

SPEAKER_04 37:12

Only me.

SPEAKER_05 37:13

Let's see. Uh what else happened, anyway? No, we got some notable movies. Raiders of the Lost Ark. That was a good movie. Chariots of Fire, good movie. Superman 2 Arthur. Aha, Tom. Stripes. Yeah, stripes. Stripes. Great movie. Boom jugga Lugga, look at a boom jugga, look, look, a boom jugga. See. Hey, video games. Donkey Kong was debuted. And uh Frogger and Galaga.

SPEAKER_04 37:40

Frogger? Gallaga.

SPEAKER_05 37:41

They used to play those in a bar. Seriously. Actually, that's a big one.

SPEAKER_04 37:46

Drink and play Frogger and Donkey Kong. But we we had them in the back of John's doodrop in. It was a video article.

SPEAKER_05 37:55

Does every frickin state have a dowdrop in?

SPEAKER_04 37:57

Yeah, we had one.

SPEAKER_05 37:58

God.

SPEAKER_04 37:59

I don't know about every state, but it seems that.

SPEAKER_05 38:02

Let's see.

SPEAKER_04 38:03

That was on the Waltons, too. They had a dowdrop-in in the Waltons.

SPEAKER_05 38:07

Yeah, we'll get into like sports. Let's see. San Franty Niners won their first Super Bowl.

SPEAKER_02 38:12

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 38:13

Let's see. Uh Los Angeles Dodgers won their World Series. Wayne Gretzky scores. Holy shit. Is that correct?

SPEAKER_04 38:22

Yeah, really.

SPEAKER_05 38:23

164 points in a single NHL season. Holy crap.

SPEAKER_04 38:27

Wow.

SPEAKER_05 38:28

Damn.

SPEAKER_04 38:29

Go for it, Wayne.

SPEAKER_05 38:30

Oh, Billy Jean King retires from professional tennis. That's pitiful. Hey, here's one, Tom. Okay. You're probably familiar with. Oh. AIDS is officially identified by medical researchers in the U.S., though not yet fully understood or named. Yes, it is. Oh, Pac-Man fever grips the world. It's called AIDS. The beginning the game becomes a pulp culture phenomenon.

SPEAKER_04 38:51

Phenomenon.

SPEAKER_05 38:52

Phenomenom.

SPEAKER_04 38:53

One of them fun words. Phenomenon.

SPEAKER_05 38:56

Anyways, anywho. It seems to be getting a little warmer. I can't tell if it's like you said if the winds died down a little or it is a typical fall day here in North Carolina.

SPEAKER_04 39:07

It is. 45, 50, maybe.

SPEAKER_05 39:10

See, we got some naked trees.

SPEAKER_04 39:13

Yeah, you used to have.

SPEAKER_05 39:15

I swear. Before it felt like it could just drop another degree and it was gonna snow.

SPEAKER_04 39:20

Yeah. But now it feels pretty good.

SPEAKER_05 39:23

Well, it doesn't feel bad.

SPEAKER_04 39:25

No.

SPEAKER_05 39:25

Of course you're bundled up like an Eskimo, but well, indigenous. Like in a Eskimo. That's yeah. Here's a weird question. Why do they name these ice cream sandwiches Eskimo pies?

SPEAKER_04 39:46

They make them cold. Indigenous pies.

SPEAKER_05 39:54

Well, that sounds stupid.

SPEAKER_04 39:56

Well, so does the Washington Commanders.

SPEAKER_05 39:59

Or the Cleveland Guardians? Who are they guarding? Guardians of the Galaxy. What is going on here?

SPEAKER_04 40:08

You have you have growth around your feet.

SPEAKER_05 40:10

What the f Okay. Too many wires.

SPEAKER_04 40:14

Yeah, too many wires in the pot.

SPEAKER_05 40:16

Too many wires in the pot.

SPEAKER_04 40:18

Nope. Anyway.

SPEAKER_05 40:19

Anywho.

SPEAKER_04 40:20

Oh, yeah. But I remember going to the movies and seeing Raiders of the Lost Ark.

SPEAKER_05 40:28

That's where I've seen it at the movie. Actually, the drive-in.

SPEAKER_04 40:31

Oh, really? I didn't see that one at the You know the first drive-in movie I ever saw?

SPEAKER_05 40:36

Torkies?

SPEAKER_04 40:37

Nope.

SPEAKER_05 40:38

Oh.

SPEAKER_04 40:39

No. I don't believe I yeah, I had to sneak around to watch that one.

SPEAKER_05 40:43

So which one was it?

SPEAKER_04 40:45

It was uh Corvette Summer with frickin'. Oh. Remember that one? What was her name? His name? Sean Cass. No, it wasn't Sean Cassidy, was it? Corvette Summer. It was Sean Cassidy.

SPEAKER_05 41:03

Pretty sure it was, Tom. Let's see. Let's look this up quick. Yeah. Corvette Summer movie.

SPEAKER_04 41:14

Yeah, I think it was Sean Cassidy.

SPEAKER_05 41:17

No. Nope. It was Mark Hamill. Mark Hamill, that's not how we got that mixed up. Well, because you know it's so much close. Oh, Annie Potts. Holy crap.

SPEAKER_04 41:27

Yeah, remember her.

SPEAKER_05 41:31

Danny Bonaducci.

SPEAKER_04 41:33

Danny Bonaducci. Bonaducci.

SPEAKER_05 41:35

Partridge family.

SPEAKER_04 41:37

That's fun to say. Bonaducci.

SPEAKER_05 41:40

An angry man. Very angry. Well, he seemed it most of the time.

SPEAKER_04 41:45

An angry man. A drummer at that.

SPEAKER_05 41:53

No, he played the bass. Yeah. Yeah. I believe he played the bass. I think it was the girl that played the drummer. No, Chris. Chris played the drummer. Chris Partridge. Yeah. Jeez. How the hell do I remember that? That's sad.

SPEAKER_04 42:08

I remember a lot about old TV shows.

SPEAKER_05 42:11

The Brady Bunch.

SPEAKER_04 42:12

Oh, yeah. Then they brought in Arnold.

SPEAKER_05 42:14

No. Oliver.

SPEAKER_04 42:16

Oh, yeah, Arnold. Or Oliver.

SPEAKER_05 42:18

Oliver.

SPEAKER_04 42:19

You know why I said Oliver?

SPEAKER_05 42:20

I thought that was John Denver's kid. Or John Denver when he was young. Reincarnated. Yeah, look at John Denver's kid, man.

SPEAKER_04 42:29

Johnny's Johnny's boy.

SPEAKER_05 42:32

Oliver.

SPEAKER_04 42:35

Oh me. But he turned out to be the same kid that played on um Ed Gossett Jr.

SPEAKER_05 42:46

Ed Gossett Jr. Blue Gossett Jr.

SPEAKER_04 42:50

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 42:50

Iron Eagle.

Country Corner: Mandrell To Alabama

SPEAKER_04 42:51

Iron Eagle. Wasn't it? Nope. That was the first one? I never saw two. I couldn't get past. Why? I don't know. It just didn't catch me at first. I turned it off.

SPEAKER_05 43:04

You were turned off by Iron Eagle 2?

SPEAKER_04 43:07

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 43:08

Okay, I got you.

SPEAKER_04 43:09

That's you know, I guess because Blue Gossett Jr. wasn't in it.

SPEAKER_05 43:16

Yeah, that's kind of kind of stupid.

SPEAKER_04 43:18

No, no, really.

SPEAKER_05 43:22

How do you have like a sequel with the original person not in it?

SPEAKER_04 43:26

Yeah, exactly. That's not a sequel. That's a new movie.

SPEAKER_05 43:29

Anyways. Tom, I think we're gonna wrap this up, bud.

SPEAKER_04 43:33

Okay. Yeah. Sounds like a good one. It was a good session.

SPEAKER_05 43:38

Actually, it was um surprised that what we end up in taking that it ended up being this good. Or at least it sounds good now. Yeah. Why not when we listen to it later, but that's a chance you take.

SPEAKER_04 43:51

Yeah. When you listen to the empty alternative podcast, everything's an alternative.

SPEAKER_05 43:57

Everything. Never know what you're gonna get.

SPEAKER_04 44:00

You don't. But uh that's the cool part.

SPEAKER_05 44:02

Any parting words there, Tom, at all?

SPEAKER_04 44:05

Yeah, I'd just like to thank God for the gift of Gab.

SPEAKER_05 44:08

And folks, that'll do it. Uh, listen to us on Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, Deezer FM, and many other sites. Once again, thanks, folks. Everyone take care. God bless. Later.

SPEAKER_00 44:23

Out. Well, that's all we have time for on the MT Alternative Podcast, thank heavens. Next week, Mike and Tom will attempt to cover the music of 1982. If they can stay on track for more than 30 seconds before diving into football scores, snack reviews, or whatever random nonsense derails them next. I'll be here again, apparently, to try and make sense of it all. Honestly, I'm still not entirely sure why I agreed to this gig. I had a perfectly peaceful life before this, and now I spend my Saturdays listening to two grown men argue about whether Hole and Oats were edgy. Anyway, tune in next time, if only to witness the chaos. I'm Rupert P. Wondering what terrible life choices brought me here. Good night.