April 1986
THOMPSON TWINS
AS IT DEVELOPS!
Hello, and welcome to the first issue of ROCK-SHOTS. The first issue...? Well, OK—I’ll admit you might’ve seen a magazine on the newsstands with this very name. Perhaps you even bought a copy. If you did, though, you’ll notice that ROCK-SHOTS really has changed.
CONTENTS
QUIDNUNC'S CONFIDENTIAL!
Michael Logan
After desperately seeking a script that didn’t make her gag, Madonna has finally taken Sean Penn in hand and signed up for her next big screen appearance. Yes indeed, the bride and groom will be romancing the clone in Shanghai Surprise, a Raiders Of The Lost Arktype adventure set in 1937.
MADONNA AN EXCESS OF SUCCESS?
Yes, Madonna has indeed achieved superstar status. Last year, her name became a household word, as the fashionable songstress was seemingly everywhere at once—on MTV, the movie screen, the concert stage, and even in the better boutiques, where her own inimitable line of clothes were sold.
BORN IN THE USA: THE MOVIE
1985 proved to be an unbelievably glorious year for Bruce Springsteen. Bruce’s Born In The USA album reached sales of over nine million copies in the U.S. alone. He toured all over the world (and in many of those places donated money to charity), received a bunch of music awards, released seven singles from his album, starred in five videos, participated in the USA For Africa “We Are The World” event, got married and also took part in Steve Van Zandt’s Sun City project.
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN
DURAN DURAN HANGIN' IN
It's been a controversial year for the gorgeous members of Duran Duran, those very successful and extremely popular “Fab Five” guys from Great Britain. It’s been well over a year since the guys got together to record an album, and—with the exception of their landmark performance at Live Aid last summer—they haven’t performed together as a unit in that time.
TEARS FOR FEARS TELLS ALL! TELLS ALL! TELLS ALL!
If you think 1985 was a good year, imagine how Tears For Fears feel. The British duo, consisting of Roland Orzabel and Curt Smith, have captured the hearts of music lovers all around the world with this year’s Songs From The Big Chair. Their second album, Songs is a multiplatinum collection of hits that just can’t stop being played on the radio.
ROCK STYLE!
With the exciting news that Michael J. Fox will be starring in the upcoming Born In The USA movie (see page eight for more on that!), the 24-year-old star of Family Ties and Back To The Future will—once again—be getting involved in rock ’n’ roll...one of his first loves.
REEL MUSIC!
Musicians have been making the transition to the big screen ever since Elvis—recently, Madonna in Desperately Seeking Susan and Prince in Purple Rain, of course—but few seem to be doing it with the sheer zeal of Gordon Sumner, a.k.a. Sting.
HOWARD JONES: KWIK KWOTES!
Would you believe this guy once worked in a Saran Wrap factory? It’s true! “I was making it from big rolls into smaller rolls, so you could put them inside the packs and all,” he told us at ROCK-SHOTS. Boy, you’d think there’d be a song in there somewhere.
HOWARD JONES
GO WEST
RICK SPRINGFIELD
COREY HART
WHAM!
VAN HALEN
NOTE-WORTHY!
Is it the biggest news of the decade? That’s hard to say. But when word came that David Lee Roth was leaving Van Halen, more than a few eyebrows were raised in skepticism Halen without David Lee Roth? Why that’s like a baloney sandwich without the bread!
BEHIND THE SCENES!
Who better to go behind the scenes with than Adam Ant? One of the most exciting per formers of our time (or any time), Adam’s latest record Vive Le Rock, has put chin back in the spotlight in a big way—and his tour of America has been one of the greates shows of 1985.
DAVID LEE ROTH
WHAT’S NEXT FOR DAVID LEE ROTH?
“Solitude is a very sweet drug,” David Lee Roth said not long ago— and it looks like he means to prove it. In the wake of his departure from Van Halen (see page 40 for the latest on the Roth-less VH), though, the question is: what can the wildly creative Roth do to top his own act?
PAUL YOUNG: KWIK KWOTES!
Solo success came to Paul Young with The Secret Of Association—and here’s a few of the rough-voiced singer’s views on his profession and how he sees himself: “I don’t think a song should be done one way. I get a kick out of arranging other people’s songs and everything.”
MIAMI VICE COPS & VILLAINS FOR THE '80s
It’s the biggest television phenomenon of the ’80s. Heck, forget the television “qualifier,” and just say that it’s one of the biggest phenomenons of the ’80s in any field. When Miami Vice debuted on Fridays at 10 p.m. last season, NBC carried the show at a loss, meaning it wasn’t scoring terribly high in the TV ratings.
CYNDI LAUPER
HUEY LEWIS: THE LONG WAIT
There really seems to be some connection between Huey Lewis and waiting. Consider the following: when CBS took over the distribution chores for Chrysalis Records—the label Huey Lewis & The News—Sports had been on the shelf, ready to go for over six months.
JOHN COUGAR: KWIK KWOTES!
Maybe you first discovered John Cougar Mellencamp with his “Jack And Diane” and “Hurts So Good” hits of a few years ago. Or perhaps he first grabbed you with “Crumblin’ Down,” “Pink Houses” or “The Authority Song” from his wonderful Uh-Huh LP.
JOHN COUGAR MELLENCAMP
THE WHIPLASH SMILE OF BILLY IDOL
It’s the recording news of early 1986, no doubt about it: Billy Idol’s long-awaited new album, Whiplash Smile should be in the stores by the beginning of March...to the relief of Idol-watchers everywhere. ROCK-SHOTS heard the inside scoop on this latest venture and we can report that Billy himself is describing it as “a very personal album.”
SIMPLE MINDS TOUR EXCLUSIVE!
If Simple Minds seems like a strange name to you, how would you feel about Johnny & The Self-Abusers? It’s no joke! That’s the name Simple Minds originally started out with, back when they were beginning! Of course, the late 1970s were a strange time.
JIM KERR OF SIMPLE MINDS
A-HA
PAUL YOUN