Eurythmics -- Sexcrime (Nineteen Eighty-Four)

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Nevil Clavain

 

George Orwell's dystopian "1984" (released in 1949) was required reading in high school. I'd heard about it before through media and fellow students, and as the year itself approached, there were all sorts of media taking snatches of its ideas for their own purposes...kinda like teeth from Winston's mouth. And perhaps even before the hype snowballed, expressions from the book such as "Big Brother" and "doublespeak" had already made their way into the vernacular.

One example was Apple launching the MacIntosh computer. It was a great commercial although I wouldn't get my own Mac for several years.

Even Canadian sketch comedy show "SCTV" did their own tribute to "1984" back in early 1981. Not sure how Orson Welles took his "casting" as Big Brother, but here's hoping that he had a sense of humour about it.

All that stuff about "1984" had me shivering in my boots because I'd gotten the paranoid impression that once 1984 arrived, everything would change and we would all be filling our sentences with antonyms.

Then came the news in 1984 (nope, Big Brother didn't arrive) that an actual cinema version of "1984" starring the late John Hurt would be appearing in theatres later in the fall. I'd already read the novel and was primarily interested in it for the twistings of language for political advantage but never really got the gumption to head to the nearest cineplex.

But in a way, I really didn't have to. The Eurythmics were more than willing to bring "1984" to us through their single and accompanying music video "Sexcrime (Nineteen Eighty-Four)" which had plenty of scenes from the Hurt film. 

Thus far on KKP's Reminiscings of Youth series, Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart have continued to amaze decades later with the iconic "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" and then the rock 'em/sock 'em "Missionary Man". In between those two singles though was "Sexcrime" which was released at around the same time as the movie in October 1984. This one single had Annie and Dave in dance music remix mode with a whole bunch of sampling and the former sounding as if she were vigorously stating the affirmative in Japanese. The song was supremely catchy so that hearing it in the trailer for "1984" was a bit weird considering what the movie was all about. One would think that Big Brother would have sent the hounds after Eurythmics for "coolcrime".

Both the song and video got heavy airplay to the extent that I'd gotten my life's worth of "1984" visuals without having to read the novel ever again. On Canada's RPM, "Sexcrime" managed to hit No. 18 while in America, it only reached No. 81 on Billboard although on the dance club charts, it made it to No. 2.

Anyways, what was up on the charts when the movie and the single were released in October 1984? Those Top 3 look too familiar to me so I probably posted them up on a recent ROY article. Therefore, let's go with Nos. 5, 7 and 8.

5. Takashi Hosokawa -- Naniwa Bushi da yo, Jinsei wa （浪花節だよ人生は）

7. Akina Nakamori -- Jikai (1984) 

8. Yoshie Kashiwabara -- Saiai (最愛）