Sunday's live chat: Anthems of the '80s

YOU MISSED IT?: This week's chat is now history, but the transcript is still here. Just click on the comments link below too see what we talked about.

THE CHAT TOPIC: Anthems of the 80s. We had some great suggestions, which I'll use our choices for a future podcast. (Personal fave remains Queen's "Radio Ga Ga")

PODCAST: This week's podcast -- Top TV theme songs of the 80s -- which went online Saturday. I'll be releasing the full ranking on Monday or Tuesday. Plenty of time left for you to lobby me to get your picks in there. (What will be No. 11 on the list? Magnum or Night Court?)

GET-TOGETHER UPDATE: Don't forget the Aug. 2 Regeneration Tour stop in Las Vegas and the July 30 Journey/Cheap Trick/Heart show in Tampa. E-mail me and ask me for details on either gathering.

Do we owe you a bag of Funyuns?

Thanks to uber-friend and fan Brad, we now have 11 (instead of 12, thanks Sean) mini bags of Funyuns already autographed and sitting in little boxes ready to ship out.

The question is: Do we owe you a bag? If so, shoot me an e-mail!

Meanwhile, Brad has used his superior technology skills to craft a Funyun theme song of sorts. Think "Art of Noise" mated with "Max Headroom." Click here to listen.

Also, don't forget about our new weekly Sunday Night Chat. The fun begins about 9 p.m. right here on the blog. Just in time for you to finish up Mother's Day activities and pour yourself a much-needed beverage.

"... Someone still loves you"

It was one of the most sublime moments in '80s music: A sold-out Wembley Stadium falling in love again with Queen during the band's 1985 Live Aid Performance. The highlight of their short set -- "Radio Ga-Ga" -- the one time all afternoon when everything came together, if only for four minutes.

Whenever possible, I recommend starting your workday by playing the song. Nothing bad can happen when you start the day with an upbeat Queen song. (Better than picking "Who Wants to Live Forever" or "I Want To Break Free.")

But is "Radio Ga-Ga" just a happy phenomenon, or was it one of the truly great "anthems" of the '80s? I'm thinking of making our Sunday night chats on the blog a regular event -- what does everyone think? Maybe 8 or 9 p.m.? We'd have a topic to get us started -- I was thinking "name your favorite anthems" might be a good start. You know my feeling already ...

"You had your time, you had the power. You've yet to have your finest hour."

Live Chat: 'Here's to successful fertilization'

Are you ready to laugh, cry and swear off the opposite sex? You better be, because our latest podcast is now ready for an unofficial debut.

The subject: the great 1988 John Hughes semi-autobiographical flick "She's Having A Baby."

Click here to download it. It's not on iTunes yet, so you'll have to use the this link.

Among the topics that are discussed:

• Is this John Hughes' best flick of the 80s? Or possibly just his most under-rated one?
• OK, so maybe it's not his best flick. But is this the best soundtrack?
• Which co-star steals all the best lines -- Alec Baldwin, John Ashton, maybe even the great Dennis Dugan as Kevin Bacon's  disgruntled mentor at the ad firm?

As always, I'm here and free to chat as you listen to the show. Gotta love Saturday chats. Hit me with whatever topic you like. Meanwhile, the obligatory list.

TOP 5 MEMORABLE LINES FROM SHE'S HAVING A BABY:

5. "College is like high school with ashtrays."

4. "He's plenty old and people don't mature anymore. They stay jackasses all their lives."

3. "You're quite the barbecue chef, Jake."

2. "How do you feel about alcoholics?" ...  "Um, I like alcoholics?"

1. "You BURNED the dog!"

80s night! Morris, Prince, Herbie!

Rihanna and Morris Day were the performance of the night during the Grammys! "Jungle Love!" Unless Steve Perry shows up and sings "Stone In Love," I think this is a lock.

Hey gang, I'm online and chatting live during tonight's Grammy Awards 50th gala celebration and celebrity car wash.

Why an 80s chat now? Because Stuck in the 80s co-host Sean Daly, who bribed me into forgoing my usual Sunday night ritual of Karate Kid and Jagermeister, says the night will be full of 80s performances. Check out his Pop Life blog for his keen observations on the actual awards.

There's Herbie Hancock, who already won for best contemporary jazz album. He's also up for best album of the year -- what? Did he re-release "Rockit"? Sean says there's no way he's winning, but thanks for showing up.

(At about 11:30 p.m., when Herbie actually WON album of the year, Sean nearly passed out as all the oxygen in his entire body left all at once.)

Tons of 80s moments. Morris Day! Cyndi Lauper! Tina Turner!

And then Kanye dressed up like Tron.

OLD SCHOOL ONLY: I'm told that if I play nice and make no more snide comments about Jay-Z, Sean will let me go back to his place after the Grammys for cookies, Goldschlager and "The Girls Next Door" on his Tivo.

TINA IS QUEEN? Always fun to see Tina Turner on TV. But couldn't she have pulled a Mad Max and wailed out some "We Don't Need Another Hero" for us?

CALL A CAB: Cab Calloway gets the Lifetime Achievement Award finally. Call it a very loose connection, but with 1980's "Blues Brothers," I wonder how many people would remember him these days.

[AP and Getty Images photos]

New podcast: Romance in the 80s

Last year, Stuck in the 80s thumbed its nose at Valentine's Day with our special "Love Stinks" podcast. (Go back and listen again if you must.)

This year, we're embracing all the gooey, sticky, homicidal romantic tendencies of the 80s in our latest podcast -- "We Really Love 'Love' Afterall" episode.

So get ready to enjoy our picks for best romantic movies of the decade along with some syrupy love songs that will have whistling Air Supply out your who-ha in no time.

Why all the love? Because it was a one-on-one, candle-lit podcast with me and Stephanie Hayes. (Shhh, nobody tell Sean Daly.)

Click here to download and hear the podcast. Or click here to subscribe to all our shows for free on iTunes.

Also, let me know what you think of the new theme music for the show, provided by Germany's Check Battery Daily.

TOP 5 ROMANTIC 80s MOVIES YOU PROBABLY FORGOT OR NEVER SAW:

5. ROXANNE (1987): Steve Martin, Daryl Hannah. "Your breasts, they're like melons. No, no, they're like pillows. Can I fluff your pillows?"

4. LADYHAWKE (1985): Matthew Broderick, Rutger Hauer. "I should have known better; every happy moment in my life has come from lying."

3. ALWAYS (1989): Richard Dreyfuss, Holly Hunter. "I know now, that the love we hold back is the only pain that follows us here."

2. MADE IN HEAVEN (1987): Timothy Hutton, Kelly McGillis. "Remember heaven? All you have to do is think about where you want to be and you're there."

1. SOMEWHERE IN TIME (1980): Christopher Reeve, Jane Seymour. "Come back to me."

Live Idol chat again tonight

Sean Daly is a blue-caped, donut-wielding villain, able to sweet-talk anyone into doing an American Idol chat.

And so it goes that I'll once again be hosting a live chat tonight on his Pop Life blog during American Idol's auditions from Atlanta.

So if you're so inclined to read my running commentary and chat along between adult beverages, come find me there at 8 p.m. I'll be the one with the speech impediment. (Who am I kidding? We're still in the Deep South, y'all.)

TOP 5 THINGS TO EXPECT FROM IDOL IN ATLANTA:

5. Obligatory shot of the Varsity Restaurant, and those bedeviling chili dogs that haunt my dreams ... and my keg-sized gut.

4. At least a dozen really painful references to peaches and "Gone With The Wind." Maybe Paula pulling a Vivien Leigh and saying, "Rhett, you big stud, take me to bed or lose me forever." Wait, wrong movie.

3. More explosive self-loathing from Simon. But that's OK in Atlanta. Just ask the Braves, Falcons, Hawks and Georgia Tech fans.

2. Randy will arrange for Georgia State Troopers to administer a sobriety test for Paula after she mistakenly votes to send her folding chair to Hollywood.

1. Ryan Seacrest opening the show outside the Georgia Dome and the statue honoring Michael Vick. Well, maybe not.

Live chat: Ready for Idol chatter?

With Times pop music critic Sean Daly on family leave, I'm the point man for this week's American Idol blogging duties.

So join me at 8 p.m. tonight on his Pop Life blog for all the sugary goodness. We'll chat live. No alcohol required. Though clearly it would help.

What can I hope for in tonight's show -- aside from possibly my cable provider blacking out the show locally?

STEVE'S TOP 5 LIST OF COOL THINGS THAT COULD HAPPEN WHILE HE'S HANDLING AMERICAN IDOL DUTIES:

5. All contestants forced to choose between singing a John Waite or Asia song.

4. Simon shaves his chest hair in order to look better in his white undershirts.

3. Randy draws the short straw and shows up drunk this week.

2. Paula instead forced to call everyone "Dog."

1. How about Carrie Fisher showing up in the slave girl bikini this time?

Just give me a fun song

OK, gang, the latest episode of Stuck in the 80s is ready to go online. Are you ready for it?

It's the "Novelty Songs of the 80s" show. And I gotta admit, it took me four full days (well, bits and pieces) to edit this monster together. Cutting and pasting. Pasting and cutting. Drinking and recovering.

(I uploaded it Wednesday night for a sneak preview and live chat -- you'll see the comments below. Click here to download the official show. Or click here to get all our shows for free via iTunes.)

Fair warning: Despite the very sexy photo of Weird Al, none of his music appears on this show. We'll be doing a whole special show on him some day -- some day soon I hope.

DON'T FORGET: We're doing the live call-in show on Saturday, Jan. 26, from 4 to 5pm Eastern Time. The number to call is 727-892-2655. If you get a busy signal, keep trying.

A trip down Sentimental Street

Welcome to a rainy night here backstage at the Night Ranger/Dennis DeYoung show in Clearwater.

I'm all set up and ready to blog from my customized dressing room, complete with my own personalized sign. It's four-star service for Stuck in the 80s.

Night Ranger should take the stage in about 30 minutes. Right now, I'm stressing out, trying to practice the stage announcements. Once that's over with, I can finally relax.

Any bets on what Night Ranger will open up with tonight? Still Rock in America? When You Close Your Eyes? I should have stopped Jack Blades and asked when he passed by my door a few minutes ago.

7:45 p.m. -- Just about 10 minutes until I take the stage and try to avoid having a heart attack. I'm betting all my money that NR will open with "Rock in America."

Just got the rundown of tonight's events. Night Ranger will play for about an hour. Dennis DeYoung gets nearly two hours. I'll be back between sets to fill you in.

7:55 p.m. -- Stage announcements are over. I got a few laughs on my Ron White joke . (He's playing here on Valentine's Day ... nothing says 'I love you' like a bourbon-guzzling comic from Texas.) I passed Night Ranger on the way back to my dressing room and wished them luck. Guitarist Brad Gillis smiled and said thanks for the intro.

9:15 p.m. -- Night Ranger just finished up. Great set. And to settle all the bets, they opened with "This Boy Needs to Rock."(I think. I was still racing to my seat when they took the stage.) They didn't play "Rock in America" at all. The last two songs were "When You Close Your Eyes" and, of course, "Sister Christian."

One revelation: Guitarist Brad Gillis has guns the size of Jose Canseco and is easily one of the most under-appreciated hard-rock guitarists. Amazing show. I think the majority of the crowd, though, was there primarily to see Dennis DeYoung, so NR didn't get the full adoration they deserved. Still, it was the first time I've seen NR in concert. And I left impressed.

9:30 p.m. -- Five minutes to Dennis, so I'm back to the auditorium. The stage is set up with a huge backdrop, resembling the facade of Paradise Theater.

11:15 p.m. -- Holy crap. Dennis DeYoung is 60 years old and his voice is as strong and pure today as it was when I saw him with Styx back during the Mr. Roboto tour. He can still hit 99.97 percent of the notes -- leaving only the the most voice-shredding ones alone these days.

Dennis was dressed in what looked like a black velvet suit, his hair still short and white. As a performer, he's really got his act down, teasing the crowd with little dance moves, great quips and a playful showmanship -- waxing his eyebrows before doing some air-guitar windmills -- rarely seen in rock circles.

He opened with "Grand Illusion" and then it was hit after hit after hit. "Paradise Theater," "Lady," "Castle Walls," "Suite Madame Blue" -- all classic renditions. Close your eyes, and it's Styx you hear on stage.

There was only one song in the set, I think, from his solo career -- "100 Years From Now." That tune hit No. 1 on the charts in Quebec last year. DeYoung has enjoyed a lot of success in Canada -- as has Styx both then and now.

He ended the show with "Don't Let It End" and, of course, "Come Sail Away" -- showing once again why it's one of the greatest rock anthems of any decade. Times pop critic Sean Daly, who's over in Tampa tonight covering the George Strait concert, called my cell phone during "Come Sail Away" and listened for a while. (I got the better end of the concert review assignments tonight. No question.)

11:35 p.m. -- Just had a short one-on-one chat with Dennis. I told him I hadn't seen him live since the Roboto tour, and I asked him why we didn't get to hear "Desert Moon" tonight. "Because they booked Night Ranger to open!" Dennis said with a serious face before breaking into a great laugh.

Any rumors that DDY is a bit of a curmudgeon should be put to rest now. He's as personable as they come and has a great sense of humor -- both on stage and in person.

Dennis' wife Suzanne (photo left) made the trip with him to Clearwater (she's also a background singer). Yesterday was their 38th wedding anniversary. As most Styx fans know, two of the bands biggest hits were written by Dennis for her -- "Lady" and "Babe." He sang them both on Saturday night, looking over to her often.

11:40 p.m. -- Here's some interesting news. Jack Blades of Night Ranger is due to fly to Cuba tomorrow for that big GTMO show, but he forgot his passport in L.A.! So it's being flown -- by itself -- on a plane so that he can still leave as scheduled tomorrow morning.

[Photos by Marina Spears]