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Mötley Crüe — Ten Seconds to Love
Ok, look. I know what you’re thinking. “Mark, enough already with the hair metal. We get it.” But. Shout at the Devil? Maybe I’m overcompensating for not listening to it when the rest of the world was, but it’s kind of an amazing record*. I mean, take Ten Seconds to Love. Ignoring (or taking into consideration, whatever works for you) the completely over the top sexism of the lyrics, this song is just nasty. And this is 1984. You know what America was listening to in 1984? Kenny Loggins and Lionel Richie. I can see why Tipper Gore was all worked up over this, why rock critics didn’t know what to make of it, and why kids thought this was the greatest thing ever.
* Amazing, with the exception of an embarrassingly weak cover of Helter Skelter. Tip: If you are a metal band, and you cover a song written by the guy that wrote Silly Love Songs, you have to bring it harder than this. Although to be fair, the Beatles version is tough to top.
