1/24 - What Hall & Oates Hit Was Almost the Sample in a Dr. Dre Classic?
Plus trivia on Family Ties, Beastie Boys, Eiffel 65, and more
The ‘80s & ‘90s pop culture you loved, forgot, or never knew existed
January 24th, 2025 • Issue 240
Be Kind, Rewind
What happened on this day in the ‘80s and ‘90s — plus lots of bonus trivia
Friday, January 24th
1982 - The San Francisco 49ers defeated the Cincinnati Bengals in the Super Bowl.
1984 - The first Apple Macintosh went on sale two days after its famous dystopian Super Bowl commercial.
1987 - Billy Vera and the Beaters’ single At This Moment hit number one.
At This Moment was a number one hit six years after it was released, thanks to Family Ties.
Billy Vera was a journeyman songwriter and singer who managed to get a record deal in the late ‘70s. At This Moment was his second single off his 1981 self-titled album, and made it to number 79 on the Billboard Hot 100.
After that album, Vera (and the song) both faded out of the spotlight. Vera started performing again at small clubs.
In 1985, Billy Weithorn, a Family Ties writer/producer, saw Vera singing At This Moment at a club. And Weithorn thought the song would be perfect for the background for a romantic scene on the show between Michael J. Fox and Tracy Pollan.
That episode aired — but Vera’s record deal had long expired and the single was out of circulation. So he made a quick deal with a new company to distribute the single.
By the time they hit the market, though, no one remembered the song. Until Family Ties used it again, during a flashback montage after the Fox/Pollan characters broke up.
And this time, the song hit the charts — and made it all the way to the top.
1988 - The WWF held its first televised Royal Rumble, won by Hacksaw Jim Duggan.
1989 - Serial killer Ted Bundy was executed by electric chair in Florida.
1991 - Boyz II Men’s debut single, Motownphilly, was released.
1995 - The O.J. Simpson trial began.
1996 - The FDA approved the fat substitute olestra in spite of the potential for “anal leakage”.
Saturday, January 25th
1980 - Paul McCartney was released from jail in Japan after being held nine days on drug charges.
1981 - 52 American hostages arrived back in the U.S. after 444 days in Iran.
1981 - The Oakland Raiders defeated the Philadelphia Eagles to win the Super Bowl.
1987 - The New York Giants defeated the Denver Broncos in the Super Bowl.
1992 - Color Me Badd’s single All 4 Love hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100.
1994 - R. Kelly’s single Bump n’ Grind was released.
The music video for R. Kelly omitted the most famous part of the song.
This isn’t the prime example of R. Kelly having horrible judgement, but at least it’s a benign example.
The official music video for Bump n’ Grind — which has been all but scrubbed from the internet, like most of Kelly’s work — did not include the signature moment of the song.
Which is: Kelly’s a capella opening like “My mind is telling me no. But my body, my body's telling me yes.”
Instead, the music video, which features a live concert performance of the song, jumps right into the chorus.
1995 - Adina Howard’s single Freak Like Me was released.
1998 - The Denver Broncos defeated the Green Bay Packers in the Super Bowl.
1998 - David Beckham and Posh Spice got engaged.
1999 - The first-ever hand transplant in the U.S. was performed.
1999 - The Tom Green Show premiered on MTV.
1999 - The Blair Witch Project premiered at the Sundance Film Festival.
Sunday, January 26th
1979 - The Dukes of Hazzard premiered on CBS.
1986 - The Chicago Bears defeated the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl.
1988 - The Phantom of the Opera opened on Broadway.
The Phantom of the Opera is the longest-running Broadway show in history.
The show ran from January 26, 1988 through April 16, 2023 — a total of 13,981 performances.
1991 - Surface’s one hit, The First Time, hit number one.
1992 - The Washington Redskins defeated the Buffalo Bills in the Super Bowl.
1994 - The Critic premiered on ABC.
1997 - The Green Bay Packers defeated the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl.
1998 - Edwin McCain’s single I’ll Be was released.
1998 - Bill Clinton said “I did not have sexual relations with that woman.”
2001 - The Wedding Planner hit theaters.
Monday, January 27th
1984 - Michael Jackson’s hair caught on fire on the day that was the exact midpoint of his life.
1991 - Whitney Houston famously sang the National Anthem and the New York Giants defeated the Buffalo Bills in the Super Bowl.
1993 - Andre the Giant passed away.
1995 - The Golf Channel debuted.
The Golf Channel was the first single-sport cable network.
The Golf Channel was the first single-sport paid channel (others would follow), and was a premium network for its first several months.
1997 - The Verve Pipe’s single The Freshmen was released.
1998 - Will Smith’s single Gettin’ Jiggy Wit It was released.
1998 - Shania Twain’s single You’re Still the One was released.
Tuesday, January 28th
1985 - We Are the World was recorded.
1990 - The San Francisco 49ers defeated the Denver Broncos in the Super Bowl.
1994 - The Beastie Boys single Sabotage was released.
It turns out the real meaning behind Sabotage was… the Beastie Boys getting annoyed with their producer.
Sabotage was viewed as an anti-establishment track, and fans and critics speculated it was railing against everything from paparazzi to religion to the government.
Nope.
In 2018 — nearly a quarter-century after Sabotage was released — the Beastie Boys revealed it was them complaining about their producer/sound engineer, Mario Caldato Jr.
He was pushing them to finish songs on their album, and when they wouldn’t, he’d “sabotage” the songs with weak instrumentals and other mediocre production elements.
So they wrote Sabotage to describe their feelings about his approach.
1994 - A judge declared a mistrial in the Menendez case.
1995 - Memphis received a Canadian Football League team.
1995 - Corona’s one hit, Rhythm of the Night, peaked at number 11.
1995 - TLC’s single Creep hit number one.
1996 - The Dallas Cowboys defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Super Bowl.
1999 - 112’s single Anywhere was released.
1999 - Yahoo acquired GeoCities.
2001 - The Baltimore Ravens defeated the New York Giants in the Super Bowl.
Wednesday, January 29th
1987 - Physicians Weekly announced that Mona Lisa’s smile was evidence of facial paralysis.
1989 - MLB decided to retire its game-winning RBI stat after nine years.
1993 - “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” went into effect.
1994 - Queen Latifah’s only top 40 hit, U.N.I.T.Y., peaked at number 23.
1995 - The San Francisco 49ers became the first team to win five Super Bowls, defeating the San Diego Chargers.
1996 - Garth Brooks refused an American Music Award, saying Hootie and the Blowfish deserved it more.
1999 - She’s All That hit theaters.
2000 - Eiffel 65’s one hit, Blue (Da Ba Dee), peaked at number six.
Eiffel 65 got their name from an Excel spreadsheet plus part of their phone number.
Eiffel 65 — an Italian trio — kept an Excel spreadsheet with possible group names as they were working on their music.
After they recorded Blue (Da Ba Dee) and a record label wanted it, they quickly picked the name “Eiffel” from their spreadsheet.
Then, when their producer was writing his contact phone number, the last two digits (“65”) wound up on the label copy.
The graphic artist who got the disc thought the band’s name was Eiffel 65, so that stuck around.
2000 - Savage Garden’s single I Knew I Loved You hit number one.
Thursday, January 30th
1982 - Hall & Oates’ I Can’t Go for That (No Can Do) hit number one.
I Can’t Go for That (No Can Do) was the original sample that Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg rapped over in Nuthin’ But a ‘G’ Thang.
Nuthin’ But a ‘G’ Thang was originally written with Hall & Oates’s pop, almost disco track as the lead sample. Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg even did a demo over I Can’t Go for That, with Snoop recording his part from jail.
Eventually, Hall & Oates were dropped and Nuthin’ But a ‘G’ Thang used Leon Haywood’s I Want’a Do Something Freaky to You instead.
1983 - The Washington Redskins defeated the Miami Dolphins in the Super Bowl.
1988 - INXS’ single Need You Tonight hit number one.
1994 - The Dallas Cowboys beat the Buffalo Bills in the Super Bowl.
1995 - Kevin Eubanks became band leader of The Tonight Show.
1996 - Magic Johnson came out of retirement to once again play for the Los Angeles Lakers.
1999 - The New Radicals had their only top 40 hit, as You Get What You Give peaked at number 36.
1999 - Britney Spears’ ...Baby One More Time hit number one.
2000 - The St. Louis Rams defeated the Tennessee Titans to win the Super Bowl.
What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?
A look at the reboots, revivals, throwbacks, retro insights, and nostalgia in the news
Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal shared a photo of them together, wearing their When Harry Met Sally outfits, with the caption “We’re reuniting for something iconic.”
The reboot of 1984’s The Toxic Avenger is coming to theaters later this year. Peter Dinklage is the star.
Rick Astley says he’s never rickrolled anyone.
Weezer had a surprise hit with their cover of Africa back in 2019 — but Steve Lukather, the guitarist from Toto, thinks Weezer didn’t even like the song. He believes Weezer’s lead singer, Rivers Cuomo, performed Africa, “to take the piss out of it, and it blew up in his face and now he’s got to play it every night.”
Get Your Book-It Stickers Here
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Have a great week!
-Sam