The MARK’S VINTAGE VINYL page features something from Mark’s collection of recordings from over the years. Most of it is on vinyl – hence the name – though there will be a few entries from his CDs (remember those?).
Friend or Foe, by Adam Ant
- Debut solo album by British singer and musician Adam Ant (born Stuart Goddard), released in 1982.
- Punk rock band Adam and the Ants released three albums and had a five year run until 1982, when Adam Ant (actual name Stuart Goddard) ended the group to start a solo career, going full out glam pop rock. Friend or Foe was his first of six albums that he would release between 1982 and 2013.
- Fresh out of college, I was buying used records regularly, across a wide range of genres. Seeing the video for Goody Two Shoes on MTV, and always interested in new wave music, I plunked down $3 at The Wax Museum on Lake Street in Minneapolis and bought the album. I also bought two of the earlier Adam and the Ant albums.
- Turns out that the earlier albums were popular in the UK, but I found them basically to be unlistenable. Friend or Foe managed to reach #16 on the U.S. album charts, and it is a bit more listenable to me. The single Goodie Two Shoes peaked at #12 on the Hot 100 and at #7 on the Top Tracks chart.
- This album is just 80s silliness, which was the whole point, from Mr. Ant’s perspective. So, if I’m feeling particularly silly, I’ll give it a spin, 40 years later. Here’s the video to Goody Two Shoes. It’s a fun, goofy dance rock song. “Don’t drink, don’t smoke…what do you do?”