from the LP World Machine, Polydor Records, 1985This song always sets my mind adrift, being one of those tracks that’s interminably linked to carefree & youthful memories, afternoons spent lazing at the beach or watching MTV for hours on end (remember, this was when music videos were played 24 hours a day, and it was fucking incredible) while my mom did whatever it is stay-at-home mom’s do when they want to avoid their kids, leaving me happily alone with my music videos, sandy feet and delusions of grandeur. Level 42 started off as a jazz-funk ensemble, but by the time this single dropped they had morphed into a slick jazzy pop act, benefiting from the new wave sounds without being defined by them; for all his mastery on the bass, I remember being more interested (hypnotized?) by Mark King’s bizarre face, which was on prominent display in the video: something like a mix between Bob Geldoff in The Wall (during the shaved scenes) & a grouper (the fish, not the leftfield ambient band). Say what you will about ‘80s music, the crap glutting up the Top 40 these days can’t touch the clean, simple brilliance on display here.
