The Last Days Of Dance Rock....

[SandraDee]

I seem to remember Prefab Sprout had an LP out called 'Donna Summer'. Any group that calls their Lp this is OK by me! :D

[Nano]

Marky, I read the songlist and think... so many good songs! Appetite, When love breaks down, "uhhh... Johnny Johnny...", "Cars and girls" (pay attention to the Bruce Springsteen-bashing lyrics), "Nightingales" (with Stevie Wonder in harmonica) and of course "Hey Manhattan", one of my favorite songs of the 80s.
Of course Prefab Sprout were always a little snobby for some, but I'm sure if you dig Morrissey or XTC you will feel at home with Paddy McAloon (band's singer and composer). Just tolerate his girlfriend doing those ethereal backing voices... There's a rich payback.

Hey Steely, an album called "Donna Summer"? :o You have to pass me some of that stuff you drinkin' pal! 8) And this is the only Prefab Sprout fan than I met...

[SandraDee]

I can assure u Nano that this isn't a Leatherman-style piss-take, Prefab Sprout actually went through a phase of releasing LPs that had famous peoples' names like 'Steve McQueen' & 'Donna Summer'. It must be their North-East-of-England strange sense of humour or something. :-?

[Chris Pontius]

Nano is pretty much correct. These styles of music didn't really die out, they just disappeared from the airwaves due to what the record labels & radio stations wanted (Especially in the US).

As far as synthpop itself goes (Depeche Mode, Erasure, PSB, New Order, OMD, etc...), there are a lot of new bands out there in that same style. In North America they're mainly known due to the internet, as practically all of these bands are on independent labels.

You might have heard of Anything Box, who had a radio hit with "Living in Oblivion".....There are many more bands out there as well. It's a shame a lot of people don't know about them.

Anyway, here's a bunch of songs you may want to check out (Mainly the older, more well-known bands/artists):

1. Marc Almond "Tears Run Rings" (Razormaid Mix)
2. OMD "Dreaming" (William Orbit Mix)
3. Real Life "Send me an Angel '89"
4. Electronic "Disappointed"
5. Depeche Mode "Route 66"
6. Alphaville "Big in Japan"
7. Peter Godwin "Images of Heaven"
8. When in Rome "The Promise"
9. Information Society "Strength"
10. New Order "Round & Round"
11. Revenge "Pineapple Face"
12. Kon Kan "I Beg Your Pardon (I Never Promised You a Rose Garden)"
13. A Flock of Seagulls "Wishing (I Had a Photograph)"
14. Book Of Love "Tubular Bells/Pretty Boys & Pretty Girls"
15. Pet Shop Boys "I Get Excited" (Razormaid Mix)"
16. Oingo Boingo "Dead Man's Party"
17. Howard Jones "What Is Love?"
18. ABC "How to be a Millionaire"
19. Bronski Beat "Smalltown Boy"
20. Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine "And God Created Brixton"
21. Blue Mercedes "I Want to be Your Property"
22. Okay "Why? Boys!" (Razormaid Mix)
23. Dead Or Alive "Brand New Lover"
24. Talk Talk "It's My Life"
25. English Boy on the Love Ranch "The Man in my Life" (Razormaid Mix)
26. Camouflage "Suspicious Love" (Radio Remix)
27. Cetu Javu "Situations"
28. Rational Youth "Cite Phosphore"
29. Sharpe & Numan "Change Your Mind" (Razormaid Mix)
30. LaTour "Dark Sunglasses"

And just for the hell of it, here's a list of 10 songs by some of the newer bands who aren't known to the mainstream:

1. Anything Box "Living in Oblivion"
2. Mesh "My Perfection"
3. Iris "Danger is the Shame"
4. Apoptygma Berzerk "Love Never Dies Part 1"
5. VNV Nation "Legion" (Janus)
6. De/Vision "Drifting Sideways" (T.O.Y. toburger wald mix)
7. Assemblage 23 "Drive"
8. Fineline "Someway, Somehow"
9. Virtual Server "Why (Would I)" (Hajas Short Mix)
10. Neuropa "Rules to Break"