Sedated in the Eighties, No. 2 is an odd assortment of hit-and-miss
new wave/borderline pop songs from the 1980s. For the most part, the bands are ones that any fan of '80s music is bound to recognize: Echo and the Bunnymen, Billy Idol, Psychedelic Furs, David Bowie, Tears for Fears, The Kinks, etc. The tracks that they chose to include by these musicians aren't big chart stoppers (with a few exceptions), but they're good, memorable songs nonetheless.

Track Listing:
* White Wedding (Part 1), Bill Idol
* Los Angeles, X
* Fight Like a Brave, Red Hot Chili Peppers
* Lips Like Sugar, Echo & the Bunnymen
* Heartbreak Beat, The Psychedelic Furs
* Because the Night, Patti Smith Group
* Planet Earth 1988, The Ramones
* Ashes to Ashes, David Bowie
* Pale Shelter, Tears for Fears
* A Girl in Trouble (is a Temporary Thing), Romeo Void
* I Wanna Be Adored, The Stone Roses
* Ring of Fire, Wall of Voodoo
* Wish I Could Fly Like Superman, The Kinks
* Kiss Off, The Violent Femmes

Bonus tracks on the CD:
* Love is the Law, The Suburbs
* I Confess, The English Beat


Value
Now, I could go on and on about most of these songs and why any self-respecting fan of the '80s should have them in his/her collection, but I won't. Suffice it to say that there are winners and losers on this album (Iggy Pop's "Winners and Losers" not included!), but for the most part it's a worthwhile album that you can pick up for minimal expense. I think I picked up my copy on CD for between $10 and $13. -Not too bad for a 16 track CD. Plus, the song quality is pretty good.

It seems that these are all the album versions; so, you won't be surprised by special session recording, but then again you also won't be disappointed by a crappy live version or something. Then again, you won't be surprised by an astoundingly good non-album version. I suppose it's a toss up.

I find myself popping this CD in my computer at work whenever I'm starting to feel run-down. It helps me find a good working groove to get my projects finished. The music's not to heavy and raucous, but it's not slow and sleepy either. This is the kind of collection that you find yourself going back to time and again because it's varied enough to keep your interest.

Unexpected Favorites
Of all the tracks on this album, my absolute favorite is Wall of Voodoo's "Ring of Fire." Better known for their more commercially popular song "Mexican Radio," I personally think that this cover of a Johnny Cash (?) song is much more indicative of their style. It's rather minimalist and fairly electronic - distortion and monotony. I love it! This was definitely the sleeper hit on Sedated...No.2 as far as I'm concerned.

I never knew who did the song "I Wanna Be Adored" until I bought this album.
I could remember hearing the song once or twice on the radio, but it wasn't an over-played chart-topper, and I could never catch the name. The Stone Roses weren't exactly the '80s version of the Rolling Stones as far as American popularity was concerned; so, they and their music quietly faded into the music scene for the most part. I was thrilled to find this song on this album... and my boyfriend (now husband) was impressed that I owned something by them, much
less knew who the Stone Roses were.

"Pale Shelter" was a nice addition to the CD. I'm sure that most people think of "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" when they think of Tears for Fears; that's never really been a favorite song for me. Personally, I've always prefered "Sowing the Seeds of Love," but after hearing "Pale Shelter," I had a new reason to add the group's "best of" album (As Tears Roll Down) to my music collection.

Penultimate 80s
Actually, for such an overdone concept as an 80s compilation album, I thought that Sedated...No.2 did an excellent job of covering many of the major bands of the new wave movements of the decade. Although I'm not a fan of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, I do believe that they deserve a place in 80s music history. Billy Idol sort of burned out (and then lamed out with his Cyberpunk-ness in the 1990s), but for a brief, shining moment in the 1980s, he was a star. It's nice to see bands like The Ramones and The Violent Femmes garner enough respect to be placed on an alternative album featuring veterans like Bowie and the Kinks - and as a HUGE fan of both of the latter, I'm ecstatic to see them still getting the time they deserve. Echo & the Bunnymen, Tears for Fears and the Psychedelic Furs are staples of any 80s collection, and while often overlooked, The Suburbs and The English Beat should be staples as well. Wall of Voodoo and The Stone Roses were on the cusp of scenes that had yet to break - The Stone Roses were about 10 years too early for Oasis and Blur to come of age and hit it big; meanwhile, Wall of Voodoo is still too "out there" for most. Romeo Void has the honor of being one of the first hard girl bands, and though I'm not a fan of the Patti Smith Group, they too have their place in the 80s music history books.

While it might have been nice to have XTC, Nick Lowe or Ian Drury in the listings, I suppose I can't be too picky. After all this is only the second volume in the Sedated in the Eighties series and it seems that they have many others that follow it up.

Overall
Would I recommend this album? Definitely - if you're a fan of 80s music or new wave, you should buy this album. I think you'll enjoy it.



Recommended: Yes