And at that time I met someone who was to become one of my closest friends, Pleasant Gehman. So I went to them and they took some of my designs. Then I started designing punk clothes and I found out there was a store on the Sunset Strip in Hollywood that was selling punk clothes. I thought, I don’t know what this is, but I want it.
I saw these beautiful, huge pictures of kids in London, just dressed so outrageously. In 1976 I was in college studying design, and I was reading Women’s Wear Daily religiously. What was it about this movement that spoke to you so powerfully? I loved hearing about your punk metamorphosis in the documentary, like how people would cross the street when they saw you and how you “felt powerful for the first time” in your life.
#BEAUTY AND A BEAT ALBUM HOW TO#
And that’s why the Go-Go’s were able to get together, prosper, learn their instruments as they went along, and learn how to write songs together. It was this inclusive, small family of people who didn’t feel like they fit in with regular society. That was not the beginning of the punk scene - the beginning of the punk scene was a bunch of outsiders, art-school people, women, people of color, queer people. So it was the punk scene, which most people, especially when they think of California punk, remember as being the hardcore pushing and shoving and all guys in a mosh pit beating each other up. There was no way there was room for bands in the popular rock scene that didn’t have any experience and were all girls. Wiedlin, who co-wrote some of the Go-Go’s most popular songs, indeed has a few regrets about that era - wisdom she says comes with age and acceptance.ĭo you think the Go-Go’s could’ve come into existence without the L.A. The honor’s belatedness hasn’t dampened Wiedlin’s enthusiasm for it, though she’s eager to revisit the band’s early years, which led to Beauty and the Beat’s very existence. 6.)įour decades later, the Go-Go’s - consisting of vocalist Belinda Carlisle, lead guitarist Charlotte Caffey, guitarist Jane Wiedlin, bassist Kathy Valentine, and drummer Gina Schock - are getting inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this weekend with its newest class, a milestone that Carlisle (correctly ) believes would’ve come earlier if it weren’t for “ a lot of misogyny” within the Rock Hall. Beauty and the Beat’s success presented a moment of possibility for brazen sisterhood and musicianship on the biggest stages, even if their Billboard record still hasn’t been matched.
If “Our Lips Are Sealed” and “We Got the Beat” are the power-pop standards that paired perfectly with open convertibles, “Tonite,” “This Town,” and “Lust to Love” are their amorous siblings sweating at the Whiskey a Go Go before all the money and drugs came along, a sound that recalled the band’s roots in the Los Angeles punk scene. It’s not lazy hyperbole to state that in March 1982, the Go-Go’s accomplished something women in music never had: Their debut album, the irreverent and joyous Beauty and the Beat, hit the top spot on the Billboard charts months after its July 1981 release, cementing their legacy as the first all-women band who wrote their own songs and played their own instruments to have a No. 1 album.“We absolutely forbade our record company from putting out any more singles, which is probably the dumbest thing a band has ever done.” 1 on the Billboard charts for six consecutive weeks, spawning the hits “Our Lips Are Sealed” (named one of Rolling Stone’s Top 100 Pop Singles) and “We Got The Beat” and also earned them a Grammy nomination for “Best New Artist.” They have the notable distinction of being the only all-female band to write their own songs and play their own instruments on a No. Beauty and the Beat is a collection of hook-laden, infectious songs that stayed at No. The Go-Go’s skyrocketed to superstardom after they released one of the most successful debut albums of all time. Each copy is numbered and will only be available at uDiscover, The Sound of Vinyl and the band’s official store. To celebrate the anniversary of its release, on September 10th, UMe/Interscope will release Beauty and the Beat – 40th Anniversary Limited Edition pressed on pink vinyl with new cover art featuring a never-before-seen photo taken from the original album cover shoot. On July 8, 1981, The Go-Go’s released their platinum-selling, landmark debut, Beauty and the Beat. Limited edition pink vinyl features new cover art
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