The B-52’s - The B-52’s

First reaction, which will show my age - “OMG this is the band that did that song from Family Guy (Rock Lobster)” Then I realized the song I was thinking about was “Surfin’ Bird” (which strangely enough appears as a cover on another album in this week’s newsletter) and that “Rock Lobster” was never on Family Guy. Then Google told me “Rock Lobster” actually was on the show, but it was in 2018, and I think everybody stopped watching Family Guy in like 2012, so who the hell knows. The point is I know very little about the B-52’s.

Continuing in the spirit of honesty, I was also expecting late 60’s soft rock when I started this album. I jumped right in to listen before researching the band, and somehow I was confusing the B-52’s with someone else, who even knows why. “Planet Claire” corrected my age-related misconceptions real quick. 

Here’s Stephen Thomas Erlewine’s take on the album, which was the B-52s debut:

“Even in the weird, quirky world of new wave and post-punk in the late '70s, the B-52's' eponymous debut stood out as an original.”

Weird and quirky is right. But what’s interesting is that from my 2023 point of view, this brand of quirky doesn’t actually sound that old. There was apparently a New Wave mini-revival in the mid 2020’s, which is probably part of where my perception comes from, plus I’m sure I’ve heard B-52s-like music in movies since I was a kid.

I had a great time listening, and although this album won’t be going in my rotation, it was a fun music history moment. 

New Jams

• “52 Girls”

Originally part of How To Appreciate Music From Our Past.