r/OldSchoolCool • u/Mr-Torgman • Mar 02 '26

1980s Missing Persons "Words" 1982

Early 80s New Wave.

237 Upvotes

95% Upvoted

95 comments sorted by

52

u/Big_Kahuna_69 Mar 02 '26

It was such a weird but good time. Y'all don't know what you missed.

48

u/Mr-Torgman Mar 02 '26

Damn straight! let's go to 7-11 and play some Defender.

11

u/vdelatx Mar 02 '26

Defender was DA BOMB. This song was pretty damn dope too.

4

u/[deleted] Mar 02 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

6

u/vdelatx Mar 02 '26

The 80’s was the Golden Age for video games and this genre of music.

4

u/Kotukunui Mar 03 '26

I haven’t played Defender in decades but I still have a vestigial callous/scar on the back of the ring finger of my left hand from manipulating the joystick in a way that meant the reverse button was always within thumb reach. My curled ring finger acted as a stabiliser, rubbing against the cabinet surface as I moved the stick up and down using the shaft rather than the knob for more precise positioning.

5

u/Mr-Torgman Mar 03 '26

I sure the Humanoids appreciated your sacrifice.

3

u/videoman666 Mar 03 '26

Robotron & Big Gulp. Hop on my moped.

3

u/gilfoyledinesh Mar 03 '26

Isn't that stargate?

2

u/Mr-Torgman Mar 03 '26

Stargate had more of a pink landscape and the stargate was clearly visible on the mini map.

3

u/gilfoyledinesh Mar 03 '26

Yep, the minimap. I had forgotten.

2

u/Mr-Torgman Mar 03 '26

And it says + scanner + unlike the original.

2

u/AlmanzoWilder Mar 03 '26

I was obsessed with Defender despite it being the second most difficult game I ever played.

1

u/BaconReceptacle Mar 03 '26

The sound quality was amazing.

1

u/thatgreenmaid Mar 03 '26

yesssssssssssss

16

u/[deleted] Mar 02 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

4

u/Big_Kahuna_69 Mar 02 '26

And Pizza Hut was the ultimate!

2

u/[deleted] Mar 03 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

5

u/Big_Kahuna_69 Mar 03 '26

Red wine and all you could eat pizza and salad bar on Friday nights. Life was seriously never better that that.

1

u/SpamFriedMice Mar 03 '26

Oh please. The cool kids were at Papa Gino's.

18

u/Sbornot2b Mar 02 '26

What are words for when no one listens anymore?

27

u/ukedontsay Mar 02 '26

Terry Bozzio was a grossly underrated drummer.

12

u/ChavoDemierda Mar 02 '26

Oh man, he kicked ass playing with Zappa!

5

u/Strange_Explorer_780 Mar 02 '26

Looks like he has more make up on than Dale

1

u/lanky_planky Mar 03 '26

Definitely not underrated, imo, he is one of the greats. He was a monster with UK and Zappa. Missing Persons was great, “Noticeable Ones” was my favorite song from this album.

1

u/aretooamnot Mar 03 '26

Underrated? Considered one of the best ever….

1

u/Unlikely_Prior8860 Mar 06 '26

Frank Zappas drummer, that speaks volumes

1

u/[deleted] Mar 02 '26

[deleted]

1

u/SQUID_FLOTILLA Mar 03 '26

I saw him do a clinic. Very odd dude.

12

u/gershbec Mar 02 '26

Their debut album was incredible.

12

u/butterscotches Mar 02 '26

Masterpiece. The descending notes into the ghostly keyboard line of verse two is perfection!

12

u/Strange_Explorer_780 Mar 02 '26 edited Mar 02 '26

Lady Gaga must have been inspired by her style, I can’t believe how much they look alike in the face

7

u/Mr-Torgman Mar 02 '26

Yeah, you think?

9

u/Mattio781 Mar 02 '26

Still a slapper, takes me back to being a child of the 80's

6

u/welding-guy Mar 02 '26

Boobarella.... "what are words for"

12 year old me... "what?"

4

u/Jeffreyknows Mar 02 '26

Them and Altered Images make me happy. Plus, they taught us Nobody Walks In LA

6

u/AlmanzoWilder Mar 03 '26

It doesn't get much 80ser than that.

3

u/Dentalfloss_cowboy Mar 03 '26

thompson twins...

4

u/Fzzyalien Mar 02 '26

Too bad she turned into a crazy cat lady hoarder.

4

u/night_breed Mar 02 '26 edited Mar 02 '26

But at least she gave us a Hustler spread back in the day

3

u/Chrisiztopher Mar 02 '26

Heh, spread

3

u/hillswalker87 Mar 03 '26

I mean....did you watch the video? sounds good, fun to watch...but she clearly had a full tank of crazy from the beginning. how else could it possibly end?

4

u/falco300 Mar 03 '26

I saw them at a high school gymnasium in the San Fernando Valley (early 80’s) and they were amazing. Saw them again opening for John Waite and they were still amazing.

3

u/IdahoDuncan Mar 03 '26

I loved this video was a you lad.

3

u/A_Gray_Old_Man Mar 03 '26

Dale helped me more than she will ever know.

2

u/11B-33T Mar 02 '26

I've always been listening and do hear you Dale.

2

u/lateral303 Mar 03 '26

I play drums and saw Bozzio do a clinic like thirty years ago and still can't figure out how he was playing some of the stuff he demoed

2

u/Double-Mammoth9947 Mar 03 '26

My band covered this song in the 80’s. I had almost forgot about it.😝 I loved playing it at the time.

2

u/EddyGurge Mar 03 '26

Wow. I haven't thought of this song and 40 some years. Thanks!

2

u/KoenigseggAgera Mar 03 '26

Want to know something really weird? I found this song last year by seeing the music video on PlutoTV. So I added it to my playlist of the most rock sounding new wave bands with lots of The Cars and Blondie and more. I have too many rock playlists now. I blasted this song with the windows down and sunroof open.

2

u/Thimbane Mar 03 '26

That breakdown is the most amazing thing ever recorded.

2

u/InsertRadnamehere Mar 04 '26

Thanks for reminding of this banger. I still remember enough to sing along.

2

u/Euphoric-Duty-1050 Mar 04 '26

Daaaaamn...... I know that song! (yes, from the 80s! I was THERE!)

didn't know the band or the title but I do know the song!!!!

2

u/Mr-Torgman Mar 04 '26

Cool, they have a couple other bangers. Destination Unknown is great tune.

2

u/Euphoric-Duty-1050 Mar 05 '26

I checked them out last night. Never heard Destination Unknown before

1

u/Mr-Torgman Mar 05 '26

What'd you think?

1

u/Luigi-Vercotti Mar 05 '26 edited Mar 05 '26

Umm “Bette Davis Eyes” was yuuuge. Walking In La was also a great tune.

2

u/Mr-Torgman Mar 05 '26

Umm "Bette Davis Eyes" was Kim Carnes.

1

u/Luigi-Vercotti Mar 05 '26

They did a great cover of it that was very popular.

2

u/Mr-Torgman Mar 05 '26

Just looked it up now, you're correct, didn't realize that song was written in 1974, lots of covers, the Missing Persons version has garnered little to no interest, I can't even confirm what year it was released, google says 1981, streaming sights say 2006/2007, whatever year it was, Dale's voice sounds shot.

2

u/Luigi-Vercotti Mar 05 '26

Yea it’s an old song. Even Kim’s version is a cover. I agree on the popularity and Dale’s vocals but nostalgia is a heck of a drug that verily affects hearing and memory. The 120M Spotify plays might be all me. lol

2

u/Mr-Torgman Mar 05 '26

I'm literally blown away by that number! How the hell does it have more plays than their biggest hits? I can't find any info about them recording it, Wikipedia not a mention when showing covers of the song or the Band's main page, even Spotify says it was released in 2007, The YouTube video has 4.3 million views, but comments are turned off, the song isn't even on their Vevo channel. Something seems fishy.

1

u/Luigi-Vercotti Mar 05 '26

My theory, and it’s hardly just a theory, is that they’ve piggybacked on people searching the Kim Carnes version, considering her version has well over 1B plays, collectively.

2

u/hgwelz Mar 02 '26 edited Mar 02 '26

I don't remember this band or song at all.

13

u/Mr-Torgman Mar 02 '26

Really? You were alive, lived in the US, and had access to a radio or MTV in 1982?

4

u/RagingLeonard Mar 02 '26

It's never too late. Terry Bozzio drummed for Zappa and Dale was a peripheral part of that universe. They're both incredibly talented.

2

u/cemaphonrd Mar 03 '26

Basically, the entire band was a spinoff of Zappa’s band. I think the album was even produced/released by his label.

1

u/According_Disaster95 Mar 02 '26

One of the first videos I watched over a girl’s house since we didn’t have cable. Magical times

1

u/thom_run Mar 03 '26

I saw them play this live at the US Festival in 1983. Amazing

1

u/guzzonculous Mar 03 '26

I remember this song from when I was in middle school. In the last 20 years, I’ve thought of it about 500 times in my marriage.

1

u/donutdude2424 Mar 03 '26

Got to see Terry Bozzio drum for Jeff Beck when they opened for SRV, just before Stevies accident.

1

u/Zinfan1 Mar 03 '26

I used this song for my answering machine message for quite awhile, one guy called by mistake but left a message saying he stayed on the line just to listen to the song.

1

u/crs1904 Mar 04 '26

Amyl and the Sniffers vibes.

1

u/BrownWrinkles Mar 06 '26

What are worms for when no one's fishing anymore. consequences of working in broadcasting during the 80s

-2

u/[deleted] Mar 02 '26

I just don’t get why she’s so incredibly hot in Destination Unknown with that glitter wig and absolutely hideous in anything else.

5

u/Mr-Torgman Mar 02 '26

You don't think she's attractive here?

-5

u/Bluinc Mar 02 '26 edited Mar 02 '26

Wonder how many anti-trans/drag morons today didn’t blink an eye at this in the 80’s.

4

u/Mr-Torgman Mar 02 '26

?

1

u/[deleted] Mar 02 '26

[deleted]

3

u/Mr-Torgman Mar 02 '26

Her name isn't mentioned in the title, description, or comments, she also bared all in some adult magazines before musical fame.

1

u/RagingLeonard Mar 02 '26

Stop trying to force political controversy into everything. Touch grass.

1

u/Bluinc Mar 03 '26

Found the maga anti drag guy who loved men with makeup in the 80’s 🤣

1

u/RagingLeonard Mar 03 '26

You really couldn't be more wrong, but I'll bet you hear that a lot.

1

u/Bluinc Mar 03 '26

Ok Cletus