Short Cut: Minimalist motivation.

Scenic Route: “Better” is a track that has subtleties beneath the surface. The constant 80’s synth beat, along with the confident pleading of singer Kristina Lieberson support this. Of course she can do it better. Don’t you believe her? I most certainly am convinced. Conviction like that doesn’t come from trying to get the high score on Dig Dug. It comes from trying to right a wrong. The music verifies this emotion.

OCHO) Falco “Rock Me Amadeus”

When “Rock Me Amadeus” came out in 1985 my elementary school classmates and I lost our shit over this song. It had the coolest arrangement that we just couldn’t get enough of. This was before I bought tapes so I stayed glued to the radio in hopes of hearing this weird-ass masterpiece. For a few months you could catch it in the last hour of Casey Kasem’s Weekly Top 40. Falco is Austrian and tragically died in a car wreck at the age of 40 in 1998. He holds the distinction of being the only principal speaking German singer to reach the #1 song in the US. The guitars, the DJing of the vocals, the foreign language, the guy that sounds like Egon from Ghostbusters reading off dates and facts, and “baby do to you rock me now ow aye yea,” all add to the adventure of this masterpiece.
One of my elementary school classmates brought this record single to class and we would plead, beg, and pester our teacher to play it throughout the day. We only got to hear it before we went home. Our parents must have thought that we were enamored with schoolwork as we exploded out the schoolhouse door with smiles on our faces, when in fact it was Falco all along!