My pal Mark Allen alerted me to the Passions -- one of my new wave blind spots that happened frequently in the pre-internet days -- a number of years ago. But as is often the case, I needed to be reminded.
So despite having loaded up my library with the albums "Michael and Miranda" (1980) and "Thirty Thousand Feet Over China" (1981), it wasn't until Doug Brod included the British band's one charting single on his list of 12 Forgotten Classics by Women-Led New Wave Bands did I remember how much I enjoyed Barbra Gogan and the boys. Listen for yourself:
Brod writes:
It’s not exactly underexposed -- it’s been covered by the Foo Fighters and appears in a Grand Theft Auto game -- but this track belongs on virtually any female-led playlist of the era by virtue of being one of the most ravishing pop songs in any genre. Gentle, breathy vocals by Barbara Gogan coast dreamily on waves of glistening guitar work by Clive Timperley, late of the London pub rockers the 101’ers, which also featured the Clash’s Joe Strummer. The song is reportedly about her crush on a Clash roadie who also acted and could be seen “Sitting in a corner in imperfect clothes/Trying not to pose for the cameras and the girls.”
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