Yellow Magic Orchestra -- "Computer Game (Theme From The Circus)"

(Debuted February 2, 1980, peaked #60, 9 Weeks on the Chart)

For this first entry to the 80s Music Mayhem blog, we'll take a song that was inspired by one of the most lasting 1980s pastimes: the video game. Yellow Magic's first LP had two songs called "Computer Game," each having music from a different game. One of those was Space Invaders, and the other was Circus.

If the song sounds like it has an Asian flavor to it, there's good reason.They were a Japanese electropop group that was quite influential among that genre. They formed in 1978, and "Computer Game" came out the same year, even though it wasn't an American hit until 1980. The group was initially meant to be a one-time studio gig since each of the three members was also a solo artist. The album ended up leading to a major record deal, so the group carried on until 1983, when the members resumed their solo careers. They reformed again in 1993 and 2007 and still play together, as well as on each others' recordings.