I'm your host, Jimmy, inviting you to join me each week as I make a mixtape combining my love of '80s music with memories of growing up in a San Francisco Bay Area record shop.
The 1980s will forever hold a special place in my heart, and I've created this podcast as a way to share the decade not only with those who experienced it, but also with anyone curious to learn what it was like to be there.
So, get ready to relax and reminisce as I create a themed musical playlist comprised of artists and songs from the greatest decade to live in—and live through—the 1980s!
Join me as I create a themed musical playlist featuring songs by artists born in 1958 who helped shape the cultural shift that defined the 1980s!
Let's celebrate the artists who share the same birth year, consider how shared timing became cultural momentum, and cherish how a handful of voices, shaped by the same era, helped shape ours in return—as we make a mixtape!
Side A: Bad Reputation by Joan Jett, Kiss Me Deadly by Lita Ford, Off the Wall by Michael Jackson, Like a Virgin by Madonna, and Sign o' the Times by Prince
Side B: Sweet Love by Anita Baker, She Blinded Me with Science by Thomas Dolby, Running Up That Hill by Kate Bush, Two of Hearts by Stacey Q, and Heaven Is a Place on Earth by Belinda Carlisle
31 Jan 2026
Playlist #5: One-Hit Narratives
Join me as I create a themed musical playlist featuring songs by artists often mislabeled and misremembered in the U.S. as one-hit wonders!
Let's reacquaint ourselves with artists who were anything but one-hit, revisit the tracks that both defined and confined their careers, and reframe memory over myth—as we make a mixtape!
Side A: I Ran by A Flock of Seagulls, You Spin Me Round (Like a Record) by Dead or Alive, The Safety Dance by Men Without Hats, Your Love by The Outfield, and Take on Me by A-ha
Side B: What's on Your Mind by Information Society, 867-5309/Jenny by Tommy Tutone, Obsession by Animotion, Our House by Madness, and Harden My Heart by Quarterflash
7 Nov 2025
Playlist #4 - From Earworms to Eyerolls
Join me as I create a themed musical playlist of songs from artists that captured the public's ear while dividing it just as sharply!
Now, let's acknowledge the hits everyone knows but no one can agree on, address the songs that defined pop culture and divided listeners at every turn, and accept that popularity and unity rarely go hand in hand...as we make a mixtape!
Side A: We Built This City by Starship, Every Rose Has Its Thorn by Poison, The Lady in Red by Chris de Burgh, Kokomo by The Beach Boys, and Walking on Sunshine by Katrina and the Waves
Side B: I Just Called to Say I Love You by Stevie Wonder, Lean on Me by Club Nouveau, Mickey by Toni Basil, Ebony and Ivory by Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder, and Don't Worry, Be Happy by Bobby McFerrin
20 Oct 2025
Playlist #3 - Peculiar Peaks on the Billboard Hot 100
Join me as I create a themed musical playlist of songs from artists that entered and exited the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Chart without ever reaching the Top 40!
Now, let's revisit the songs that missed the Top 40, rediscover the artists whose peak placements puzzled us, and relish the fact that while they left the chart too soon, they never left our hearts...as we make a mixtape!
Side A: I Want Candy by Bow Wow Wow, I Melt With You by Modern English, What I Like About You by The Romantics, Hot Hot Hot by Buster Poindexter, and I Know What Boys Like by The Waitresses
Side B: Holiday Road by Lindsey Buckingham, It's Raining Men by The Weather Girls, Should I Stay or Should I Go by The Clash, It's the End of the World as We Know It (and I Feel Fine) by R.E.M., and Forever Young by Alphaville
10 Oct 2025
Playlist #2 - The Nineteen Gayties
Content Note: This episode includes discussion of LGBTQ+ history and contains reclaimed or historically used slurs.
Join me as I create a themed musical playlist of songs from artists that captured and chronicled the experience of growing up gay during the 1980s!
Now, let's remember the accomplishments of our courageous LGBTQ+ ancestors, recognize the allies who fearlessly fought for and alongside the gay community, and remind ourselves that we're here, we're queer, and history proves we've always been here...as we make a mixtape!
Side A: I'm Coming Out by Diana Ross, True Colors by Cyndi Lauper, Smalltown Boy by Bronski Beat, Do You Really Want to Hurt Me by Culture Club, and Everybody by Madonna
Side B: Digging Your Scene by The Blow Monkeys, So Many Men, So Little Time by Miquel Brown, It's a Sin by Pet Shop Boys, Closer to Fine by Indigo Girls, and I'm Still Standing by Elton John
8 Jul 2024
Playlist #1 - The Top Selling Singles of '80-'89
Let's make a mixtape! Join Jimmy as he creates a themed musical playlist using the most popular single of the year from 1980 to 1989 according to the US Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart. Think you know which song was recognized as the top single for each year of the decade? Tune in and listen as Jimmy discusses each song and offers his own subjective perspective on the greatest decade to live in and live through, the 1980s!
Side A: Call Me by Blondie, Bette Davis Eyes by Kim Carnes, Physical by Olivia Newton John, Every Breath You Take by The Police, and When Doves Cry by Prince.
Side B: Careless Whisper by Wham! Featuring George Michael, That's What Friends Are For by Dionne & Friends, Walk Like an Egyptian by The Bangles, Faith by George Michael, and Look Away by Chicago.
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