ALBUM: (Everywhere at Once), 1983
MVC Rating: 4.0/$$$ (an extra bump here for the two very strong songs. The rest of the album is 3.0 and 3.5 quality).
The Plimsouls first came to my attention through the movie ‘Valley Girls.’ I know that sounds like a bit of a sex romp but it wasn’t — really. I paid close attention.
Actually it was an early Nicolas Cage vehicle, who even at his young age was developing that amazing ability to act to be the same character in every movie.
That character, of course is Cage playing, of course, Cage.
Anyway the Plimsouls’ song Million Miles Away was featured in the movie, even a ‘live’ version of the song with the Plimsouls playing it in the club. It would fade in volume and camera attention to the band if the characters walked closer to the band. You know that effect: star talks to friend and band’s sound fades to background, then the friends turn their heads toward the band and and the volume increases dramatically.
Million Miles Away and That’s the Oldest Story are the two stellar songs — in fact two of my favorite rock songs of that era, especially the latter. The rest of the album couldn’t keep up though.
After the Plimsouls disbanded, Peter Case has put out quite a few albums as a solo act. See my post on him. And also, post Plimsouls, Paul Collins led a power pop band The Beat. Before all that, both played in an edgy new wave band called the Nerves. The third Nerve, Jack Lee, wrote Hanging on the Telephone, a hit for Blondie. The Nerves released it prior to Blondie.
This is I think a snippet of the movie only quick glance I didn’t see Cage.