A timeless song doesn't have to be one like many of Bob Dylan's that tries to make a social commentary on whatever is ailing the world at the time it was written. The track could simply be the nearly accidental mix of fun and funk.
Lots of New Wave songs from the 1980s, for instance, don't strain to be lyrically aggressive, and yet, they find their way into new listeners' hearts every year. The same is true of the funk greats below from the same decade.
Will they change your outlook on life? Probably not, but that wasn't the point. Instead, they are three minutes or more of fantastic entertainment, ones that you might be listening to for the rest of your life.
Cameo - "Word Up!"
This 1986 tune seemingly came out of nowhere. Cameo had been a mostly disco band before trying a couple of numbers with synths. "Word Up!"'s great accomplishment might be that nothing still sounds exactly like it. Even an attempt to do so would be a parody and likely fall flat.
The song reached the top 10 in the United States and the UK (it hit No. 1 in New Zealand), and even today, if the track suddenly pops up at parties or the grocery store, someone is going to be moving their head to the beat and mouthing the words.
The tune is a ridiculous attempt to do something different, and it paid off huge. Plus, another song from the same record (the album has the same name as the hit tune), "Candy," is also catchy and wonderful, though with a slightly more serious bent.
Dazz Band - "Let It Whip"
The magic from this fun jam comes from the production. Released in 1982, the song features electronic drums and bass, but those are layered under real drums and real bass. The subtle back-and-forth between human and machine is brilliant.
But let's be real, what puts the song over the top is the fantastic vocals and the lead-up to the payoff in the chorus. Plus, one can help but sing along with the "oh-ohs" at the end of the chorus. "Let It Whip" proves a song doesn't have to be overly complicated to excel.
While mostly a hit in the United States, the song did chart in the top 100 in Australia and Canada. It deserved better. Of note, Justin Timberlake sampled the song in a remix of "Cry Me a River" in 2003.
Gap Band - "You Dropped a Bomb on Me"
One would assume that the funk band from Oklahoma had a lot of laughs making this tune. The title is silly, and the synth whistles that mimic a bomb being dropped are, too, but the overall effect is far from laughable. You will want to shake your butt to the cut of this gem.
Like "Let It Whip," this track also dropped in 1982 and borrowed heavily from the New Wave feel. Make no mistake, though, the track is not New Wave, but a funk gem, much like the rest of the album it comes from, Gap Band IV.
Maybe due to current world events, the title might be off-putting to many, but that was not the group's intent. Instead, it was a playful attempt to convey what it feels like to be in the agony of love. We should all be so lucky.
Add us as a preferred source on Google