Title: Life in a Northern Town
Artist: The Dream Academy
Year: 1985
Album: The Dream Academy
Have to work fast and keep it short tonight so not much on detail or analysis. Just a song. That's it. OKAY?????
One thing I like about the Second British Invasion of the 1980s is that there weren't really any supremely dominant bands like those of the 1960s. No-one was monopolizing the scene like The Beatles or The Rolling Stones. Yes, there was Duran Duran, Eurhythmics, Culture Club and Wham!, but none were so big that they completely overshadowed Big Country, Modern English, A Flock of Seagulls and Echo and the Bunnymen. As such, there are a lot of pop gems from the early 80s released by so-called "one-hit wonders" that are worth revisiting.
One of my favorites is "Life in a Northern Town" by The Dream Academy. I can't really say why this song resonated with me so much in 1985 since I had absolutely no point of reference for the "northern town" described in the song. But the cool sounds of the cello, English horn and kettledrums give the song a wintry aura that made me feel as though it could have been written for my northern town. In fact, the cities featured in both versions of the video (West Yorkshire and Newcastle-upon-Tyne) look as dreary and depressing as my town!
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