U2 - "New Year's Day"

(Debuted April 2, 1983, Peaked #53, 12 Weeks on the Chart)

I could have not timed this song more perfectly unless the actual New Year's Day didn't fall on a weekend this year. So, for my final entry of the year, I'll toss out this U2 song that is a lot more familiar to listeners than its #53 peak position would normally indicate. However, in its initial chart run, U2 wasn't nearly as well-known as they soon became.

A song that was ostensibly about the Polish Solidarity movement, which was subjected to a crackdown by the Communist government in December 1981. Interestingly, Bono began the song as a love song to his newlywed wife on their honeymoon and eventually reworked the lyrics. As part of the LP War, which also included "Sunday Bloody Sunday," "40" and "Seconds," it helped set the Irish band's notoriety as a group that wasn't afraid to take a political stance.

That said, the thing worth pointing out in "New Year's Day" isn't its message but a musical matter. It's one of those songs that shows how important the rhythm section (bass and drums) is to a song. In essence, the two instruments combine to form a driving force -- like the timing chain/belt in an engine -- to propel the song forward. There's other interesting elements of the song, like The Edge's dual use of the guitar and piano, a rather simple melody and that wail that Bono gives before he begins the words. However, the song's base is what allows all of that to happen.

"New Year's Day" also included the line "Under a blood red sky..." That would be the title of U2's concert LP, recorded as they supported the War album.

Spandau Ballet - "True"

(Debuted August 6, 1983, Peaked #4, 18 Weeks on the Chart)

Spandau Ballet's name came from an inscription a friend of the band found in the bathroom of a Berlin nightclub: "Rudolf Hess, all alone, dancing the Spandau Ballet." Hess was a former deputy of the Nazi party in Germany and was the last remaining convict in Germany's Spandau Prison from 1966 until his death in 1987. That said, the song "True" has absolutely nothing to do with him or his former cronies.

Instead, "True" is a romantic ballad that was a worldwide smash. In addition to its #4 showing on the American pop chart, it was a #1 single for four weeks in the U.K. and charted highly in about 20 different countries. It would be sampled on the 1991 P.M. Dawn hit "Set Adrift on Memory Bliss" and appear in several movies over the years. The constant exposure has given "True" a place as a quintessential 1980s hit.

The song reflects the band's interests in jazz, soul and R&B and even mentions Marvin Gaye in one of its lines.

The Fixx - "Saved By Zero"

(Debuted May 28, 1983, Peaked #20, 16 Weeks on the Chart)

The first Top 40 hit for the British group The Fixx featured a memorable (and oft-repeated) guitar and bass riff and echoing reverberated backing lyrics that lent it an ethereal quality. It fit in nicely with much of the moody, dark material coming out in its day by synthesizer-based acts.

Written by the group's members, the title refers to a Buddhist philosophy where "zero" represents a point where all material possessions are gone, as well as the corresponding debt and the bills needed to maintain those things. In effect, having nothing is seen as not only having nothing to lose but also nothing owed to anybody.

The video for the song (shown below) features a frustrated artist who is torn by his childhood rejections and his fear of "selling out" by his fans. As an added bonus, there is imagery galore: a woman falls through a ceiling window, singer Cy Curnin smears paint over his body, wine spills, a pair of hands in shackles rips through a canvas and a blind man shows up at an art show. And a lot of paint gets splashed around.

Billy Joel - "Allentown"

(Debuted November 27, 1982, Peaked #17, 21 Weeks on the Chart)

Among all of Billy Joel's albums, The Nylon Curtain is perhaps one of his best conceptual statements, as well as one that is easily forgotten amongst bigger and poppier statements like Glass Houses and An Innocent Man. One of the themes explored in that album is the one that leads it off in "Allentown," which is about the death of the steel industry and its effect on those who rely on it to make a living.

It's a message I definitely picked up on, as a kid who grew up in a Northern town that had been largely built around one industry (in my case, paper mills). I watched those mills around me shut down, one at a time, until most of them were gone. When our parents were growing up, it wasn't uncommon for them to be told to try and get a job in one of the mills and seeking the certainty of a regular check and the protection of the union. However, that same advice wasn't given to me and my peers as it became obvious that the jobs there were drying up. Instead, I was encouraged to seek my fortune elsewhere, and that's what I did.

Today, there is a lot of talk about jobs and workers, not only from the politicians but from the voters as well. If anything, it's not a new concept; here are lines of a song from 30 years ago that explains the same situation as others are living through now.

Berlin - "The Metro"

(Debuted May 28, 1983, Peaked #58, 10 Weeks on the Chart)

Despite having the name of a German city and featuring other European locales in this song, Berlin was one of the many groups to emerge from the Los Angeles scene in the late 1970s. Founded by bass guitarist John Crawford, the band was influenced by keyboard-driven acts like Kraftwerk and Ultravox rather than the "skinny tie" guitar-based power-pop of many of its contemporaries.

"The Metro" was one of the band's highlights. A synth-heavy, atmospheric tour de force, the song features random images from what appears to be a sudden breakup and the train ride back. It also was a great use of singer Terri Nunn's vocal range. The video (shown below) made use of Nunn's good looks and was a staple of MTV programming in 1983, which might surprise those who see the song only peaked at #58 on the pop chart.

The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra - "Hooked on Classics"

(Debuted October 31, 1981, Peaked #10, 18 Weeks on the Chart)

When Stars on 45 took a medley of Beatles songs to #1, it began a short-lived craze of merging a number of songs together into a single track united by an electronic drum beat. Stars on 45 released followup singles honoring Stevie Wonder and ABBA, and medleys of Elvis, the Beach Boys and one featuring the real Beatles (a mash-up of songs from their movies) appeared from those artists' record companies.

And then there was a series of "Hooked On..." records that saluted different styles. Swing had an album, as did country, but the first of them was called Hooked on Classics. It was essentially a medley of classical music set to a disco beat and was arranged by Louis Clark, who once directed the backing musicians for The Electric Light Orchestra. This time, he directed the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in London. The album and single were so successful they spawned four more sequel LPs.

Surprising those who may have guessed there would be a limited interest in classical music by casual fans, the single made the Top 10 on the pop chart. In the case of younger listeners like me, it helped me to realize that some of it was already familiar from cartoons and movies. If anything, it gave me another musical outlet to look into, even if I didn't bother looking too deep into it.

Jeffrey Osborne - "I Really Don't Need No Light"

(Debuted June 5, 1982, Peaked #39, 15 Weeks on the Chart)

After singing on a number of hits in the late 1970s as the singer of the group L.T.D., Jeffrey Osborne went his own way in 1982. His first solo single was "I Really Don't Need No Light," which Allmusic describes as "moody and rhythmic." It features a pulsing synth line, which lends it a contemporary feel, to go with a string arrangement that gives it a fuller sound.

It barely reached into the pop Top 40, but was a solid #3 hit on the R&B chart and crossed over to the adult contemporary chart as well.  It would quickly be overshadowed by its followup single "On the Wings of Love," but Jeffrey Osbourne made it clear he was striking out on his own right out of the box.

Glenn Frey - "The One You Love"

(Not Available on iTunes)

(Debuted August 21, 1982, Peaked #15, 17 Weeks on the Chart)

When The Eagles broke up in 1980, it wasn't long before its members were releasing solo material. Since Joe Walsh had already recorded solo material, it was natural for him. Former member Randy Meisner also appeared late in 1980 with a hit single, but the main creative members of the band didn't get started right away. In Glenn Frey's case, he released his first solo LP No Fun Aloud in 1982.

"The One You Love" was the second single from that album and the one that charted the highest. Frey's style with The Eagles had been described as "laid back," but his rendition of "The One You Love" is a little too laid back in places. The song is a lamentation about being on the wrong end of a love triangle, so its low-key mood is appropriate. However, the saxophone solo by Jim Horn that glides throughout makes the song even better.

Joan Jett & the Blackhearts - "Do You Wanna Touch Me (Oh Yeah)"

(Debuted July 31, 1982, Peaked #20, 14 Weeks on the Chart)

One of the biggest hits of 1982 was "I Love Rock & Roll," which seemed to be everywhere that spring. After spending six weeks at #1 on the pop charts, Joan Jett was suddenly a bigger star than even she probably expected to be. As a result of this sudden newfound fame, a single was issued from her previous Bad Reputation LP, which received little attention when it came out in 1981.

"Do You Wanna Touch Me (Oh Yeah)" was -- like many of Jett's singles -- a remake. It originally was a #2 U.K.  hit for Gary Glitter in 1973 but wasn't a hit in the U.S. With its straightforward beat and crunching guitar riff, it was a perfect match for her style. For its second wind, it made the Top 40; not bad for an "old" song that was overlooked the first time around.

Sparks - "I Predict"

Debuted May 15, 1982, Peaked #60, 7 Weeks on the Chart

Sparks was a duo made up of brothers Russell and Ron Mael. They were Los Angeles natives but moved to England in the early 1970s when they began to attract a cult following that weren't able to get in their home country. Despite a handful of hit singles in the U.K., they never had their first American hit until 1982 when "I Predict" was tagged as the only single from their Angst in My Pants LP.

The reason for their decade-long drought in the U.S. is apparent in "I Predict": they have a quirky nature and a twisted sense of humor. Neither of those qualities will make friends among American radio programmers, but the English audience clued in on it quickly.  Despite their short list of hit songs on this side of the Atlantic, the brothers are still recording as Sparks and still have a rabid fan base.