Two recent (to me) media sources have proved to be a lot of fun for me lately: XM Satellite Radio and YouTube. Long-time readers (or people with way too much time their hands) may remember a post where I talked about “Com-Pak music“. Basically, it means what was playing on the local hits station when I was working at my first job. I mentioned “Joyride” by Roxette specifically, but there are a whole list of songs that snap my mind back to that time.
That’s where XM comes in. I’ve found myself spending a surprising amount of minutes listening to songs on the 90’s channel, and several of the songs have turned out to be Com-Pak music. Tonight I heard another one on the way back to the house, and I decided that sharing some of these might be a fun way to kill some posts on the site.
Enter YouTube. It’s pretty difficult for me to find whole songs to link to in audio format, but if a song had a video, someone has probably posted it to YouTube. The added fun is that since I didn’t have cable or satellite TV in high school, this is the first time I’ve seen a lot of these videos.
So, without further ado, here’s tonight’s edition of Com-Pak Music Theater:
Sweet Sensation: If Wishes Came True (1990)
Here’s a perfectly happy little bubblegum love tune that wants nothing more than to be an Exposé song when it grows up. Except, out of nowhere, the 80’s attack with full-force power ballad guitars! There’s even a guitar solo bridge complete with modulation! Whoa.
The video’s great, too. The choreographed-synchronized posing complete with wind machine and fake rain (could it be warm September rain?) is my favorite part. They really do want to be Exposé when they grow up!