Customer Reviews

Who Can It Be Now: The Lyrics Game That Takes You Back To The 80s One Line At A Time

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If my review title makes you scratch your head and say to yourself, "hmmm, where do I know that from?", you should really buy this book. (It's from Styx.) Anyway, this book is a little tongue in cheek, obviously, but it does more than just make fun of Tommy Tutone, Bananarama, The Human League, songs like 867-5309 Jenny, etc. It has dozens of little quizzes, where you see the lines from songs on one page, and then when you flip to the next page you find out the names of the groups that sang them. Interspersed throughout the book are tons of little articles (blurbs, really) about various groups, which tell you, in all likelihood, more than any human would ever want to know about, say, Spandau Ballet. But it's still a good book. I recommend the living daylights out of this one, it's hilarious, especially at parties.

"Who Can It Be Now?," named after the Men at Work song, is just over 200 pages of music and pop culture trivia taken from the '80s. Most of the book is devoted to just one-liners (not the entire song), with the lyric on one side of the page and the song title, band/artist, and bits of trivia on the opposite side. Some of the sections in the book feature one-hit wonders (like Kajagoogoo {"Too Shy"} and Toni Basil {"Mickey"}), actors-turned-singers (like Patrick Swayze {"She's Like the Wind" in 'Dirty Dancing'} and Rick Springfield), as well as bits of movie, TV, and celebrity trivia, but only if it pertains to a certain '80s song. There are also lots of black-and-white photos (pretty much on every page) of singers/performers/actors, like Debbie (Deborah now) Gibson, Michael and Janet Jackson, Mr. T, Weird Al, and the Brat Pack, just to name a few.

Despite some of the catty remarks and photo alterations (see Mary Lou Retton and Lionel Richie), this book will certainly make you laugh and reminisce if you're a child of the '80s. It's hard to digest all of the info in this book in one sitting (flipping back and forth between the lyrics and answers does lose its appeal after awhile), but halfway into it, you'll be dusting off your old CDs/cassettes/vinyls and playing them while reading this book. The only gripe I have is that there's no index or table of contents to find certain pages quicker; other than that, "Who Can It Be Now?" is a fun and nostalgic trip back to the '80s. Worth reading if you're an '80s fanatic like I am.

Buy this book! Give it to your friends! Take it to all your parties. I'm telling you. I can't put this book down. Lyric after lyric after lyric. My favorite one: "You don't have to watch 'Dynasty' to have an attitude." Vintage Prince; vintage '80s. Anyway, if you want to impress your friends, or just have a good old time, get this book.

The book takes a witty, humorous, and unprecedented look at the "wishy-washy" Eighties. Not only will the lyrics intrigue you, but so will the lesser known side facts about some of the artists that Frank and Pete offer. For example, I did not realize that Courtney Cox was the girl on stage during the video for Bruce Springsteen's "Dancing in the Dark". The book is a very easy read and fun for hours. I found myself obsessing over the lyric game. It's a definite "must have"!

An absolutely must-have book for all 1980's affecionados. Don't miss it because it takes you back to a better time

Lots of fun at a friend's birthday party! Really took us back to our high school days!

I was one of those 1980s teenagers who watched MTV when it used to play music videos 24 hours daily, and this book has a lot of the music artists who performed on MTV, including the song titles in the book. It even has a picture of Ronald Reagan, the Rubik's Cube, and other 1980s nostalgia that I remember so well. Oh yeah, it also made me remember seeing Courtney Cox on that Bruce Springsteen music video doing that swinging dance on his stage when I read about Bruce in this book...also that old Madonna look complete with the Boy Toy belt and wedding dress. :) If you want to remember the great music artists of the 1980s, their songs, and the memories, get this book!

I cannot wait for this book, to become a boardgame.....The 80's definitely were the lowest cultural point in modern history and I know every word of every cheezy song.....

A masterful effort by a wonderful author. The lyrics brought back memories of happier times and wonderful people.

This book brought back memories of some great times. I love the many references to "Proctor" from the Police Academy movies. I forgot what bumbling idiots those Police Academy characters were!!!