The Story of Starsound
April 24, 2014 1:16 PM   Subscribe

The story of the "group" that became Stars on 45, and the sound of that story.
posted by saintjoe (21 comments total) 12 users marked this as a favorite
 
oh man, so many songs that I only ever really heard on Starts on 45 that I now have burned in my memory as the original versions. So sad for "Ticket To Ride." I can still probably sing half the first album from memory 30+ years later.

The Stars on 45 do indeed keep turning in my mind.
posted by GuyZero at 1:25 PM on April 24, 2014


I remember the medley craze, was huge in Ireland, we had our own medleys in the charts comprised of shit C&W.
posted by GallonOfAlan at 1:26 PM on April 24, 2014


Too bad there was never any video or film taken of the production process. It would have been a very interesting project to see and would have made Eggermont a bit more of a legend.
posted by crapmatic at 1:27 PM on April 24, 2014


Let's not forget Squabs on Forty Fab, where Squeeze took their own music and remixed it Starsound-style on a B-side to "Labelled with Love" as a joke.

Except the joke backfired and the B-side made the A-side a hit.
posted by JoeZydeco at 1:27 PM on April 24, 2014 [5 favorites]


Oh dear lord, it's been years since I've heard this. Yet another Dutch contribution to the world of popular music the world hasn't quite forgiven us for.
posted by MartinWisse at 1:33 PM on April 24, 2014 [1 favorite]


I hadn't "forgotten" about Hooked on Classics, exactly, but in retrospect, I really appreciated its absence from my internal playlist. Damn it.
posted by mykescipark at 1:36 PM on April 24, 2014 [1 favorite]


Oh God, I remember the whole medley craze. At the time, however, I and a bunch of friends of mine were heavily into the Beatles and we were INCENSED that they were using the Beatles' songs in - shudder - disco.
posted by Curious Artificer at 1:40 PM on April 24, 2014


Especially of course the Star Sisters, when the medley craze hit WWII nostalgia.

Actually works reasonably well, if you don't know the originals, as I didn't back in '83.
posted by MartinWisse at 1:41 PM on April 24, 2014


I hadn't "forgotten" about Hooked on Classics, exactly, but in retrospect, I really appreciated its absence from my internal playlist.

I take Ekseption to that.
posted by MartinWisse at 1:43 PM on April 24, 2014


Oh my Lord, I loved the first Hooked on Classics LP when I was a kid. I played it incessantly (on this record player) until one sad day when I left it outside and it warped in the sun.
posted by The Card Cheat at 2:45 PM on April 24, 2014 [1 favorite]


Let's not forget Squabs on Forty Fab yt

Wow, thanks for that! Also, didn't 'Labelled with Love', a nice understated retro-country ballad, seem like an odd choice for a single around that time?
posted by ovvl at 4:22 PM on April 24, 2014 [1 favorite]


the residents did it first and did it better
posted by pyramid termite at 4:36 PM on April 24, 2014


But the Circle Jerks did it best ...
posted by philip-random at 4:46 PM on April 24, 2014 [1 favorite]


Any longtime Dr. Demento listener will tell you Ivor Biggun did it best.
posted by oneswellfoop at 4:50 PM on April 24, 2014


Oh my Lord, I loved the first Hooked on Classics LP when I was a kid. I played it incessantly (on this record player) until one sad day when I left it outside and it warped in the sun.

Oh my god, Card Cheat, are you me?? I had that album and did exactly that. It was the first LP I ever bought for myself. I was heartbroken when it got melted.

I had a really odd introduction to classical music between Hooked on Classics, Looney Tunes, and an LP of the Nutcracker that someone gave me. Considering that my other favorite records were the double album of Grease and a Kenny Rogers Greatest Hits album, especially.

Medleys in general confused me at first as a kid; I could tell the songs weren't complete, and somehow I expected the song to come back around and finish them later. They also complicated my understanding of "Band on the Run" which seemed to be several other songs medley'd together, though I never heard the other songs played in their entirety anywhere. I was probably 20 before I thought about it and realized McCartney only recorded those bits.
posted by emjaybee at 5:27 PM on April 24, 2014 [2 favorites]


Stars on 45 weren't just the first place I heard the Beatles, they were the *only* place for at least 15 years after. I was a big music fan but thought classic rock was for old people (guess that's why I listen to it so much now).

I can still remember being in a record store in the early '90s and a friend pointing out an Abbey Road LP on sale in the bargain bin. My response: "Wait, the Beatles had long hair??!?!!?"
posted by saintjoe at 5:50 PM on April 24, 2014


Any longtime Dr. Demento listener will tell you Ivor Biggun did it best .

No, those listeners will tell you Stevens and Grdnic did it best.

warning: you had to watch *lots* of TV in the 70s to get this.
posted by Slarty Bartfast at 6:51 PM on April 24, 2014 [1 favorite]


Let's not forget about Meco, who did the same for movie themes like Star Wars, The Wizard of Oz, and many others...
posted by Quasimike at 8:22 PM on April 24, 2014 [1 favorite]


"posted by saintjoe (18 comments total) [add to favorites] 10 users marked this as a favorite [!]"

10 users marked this as a favourite!? I thought we had taste, ah well...
posted by marienbad at 3:37 AM on April 25, 2014


Must - link - radio - version.
posted by joseph conrad is fully awesome at 5:22 PM on April 25, 2014


Stars on 45 left a very strong impression on me. I was right at that age when a kid is most vulnerable to pop hooks, and this was just one after the next.
posted by umbĂș at 8:32 PM on April 25, 2014


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