Thomas Dolby: Dissidents

[Zhenobia]

Ah... I have many fond memories of this song, as I played it while locked up in my room reading Solzhenitsyn. Love Thomas Dolby!

[TheStevenAyers]

Saw him in concert August of 84 in Virginia Beach, he had been bumped from the Chrysler hall and landed in a club, Peabody's on the Beach. It was about 300 of us and a dance floor. Best show ever.

[CribNotes]

Wow. This digital sound quality is such crap compared to listening to this song on a top shelf turntable in my studio back in 1984 when this album came out. - back when sound systems sounded juicy and gorgeous. Can we please make 96k/24b the standard on everything please? We've had the bandwidth to do it for a long time. All of you digital content companies suck. Wow, I've got 42,000 songs on my iPad and they all sound like shit!! I'd rather have only 500 songs at super hi-rez that sound great.

[n8tureboy]

The bass in this song thumps serious ass people!

[damnyankeefl]

when people ask me who thomas is, I hate to respond with you know , hyperactive?

because that song doesn't even come close to doing this man justice...

[SerraFlame]

0:11 Just leaving myself a link to bypass the annoying intro. (Thanks for uploading anyway.)

[2degucitas]

His music always had substance and intelligence.

[munin09]

I agree with you that Flat Earth was definitely up there in his best. I like Zulu as well as some others - best album I feel.

Watching these vids I realize that Thomas Dolby was the original father of steam punk - always the visionary....

[panthervoodoo]

Once again Thomas Dolby displays just how far ahead of his time he really is. I wish him well and regret the world climate isn't conducive to this brand of musical genius anymore.

[CribNotes]

@panthervoodoo Thomas Dolby just released first album in 19 years. Youtube "Oceanea" and hear the new stuff. It's beautiful.

[CookCountyDissident]

To hell with any Communist and their Socialist cousins. This is a song for freedom fighters. STOP THIS FROM HAPPENING IN AMERICA NOW!

[n8tureboy]

I fear where to far gone brother. Too many rely on big daddy government for their bread and butter.

Nothing short of a miracle is going to stem the RED-TIDE. Better hunker down or we'll all be dissidents!

[n8tureboy]

@n8tureboy

Sorry about the misspell where should be we're!

[blohit]

wish i could go back

[RareEighties]

Anyone else notice the 'dissident' in the video with the hat perched on the back of his head (mouthing to the the 'dissident' story)is the now world famous Dutch photographer director Anton Corbijn.

[OdedFriedGaon]

Ah, finally the lyrics! just as i thought... i'll just forget i read them. the song and singing is more than enough to get my stamp of perennial approval. Thomas can do just about anything musical and i'd like it - and i'm not easy to please. If you haven't seen the live updated performance someone (i think Stevie2112Rush) has upped here, you should! Brilliant!!!

[ToddBoyle]

My writing is an iron fist In a glove full of vaseline Dip the fuse in the kerosene I too become a dissident Courting disaster we ran in the night Wings of an angel torn in flight Check it - verify it It's all here in writing, down in writing! At the hands of the press And in the eyes of the government I fell from grace I too became a dissident Like tiny insects in the palm of history A domino effect and an early end to this story

[baetterdoe]

One of my fave thomas dolby tracks

[taoistcowboy123]

What's wrong with a 3WAY Debate? The Democratic Republican Monoparty are corporate lackeys. REAL CHANGE, REFORM, HOPE!  Nader is greater!

[aheady1969]

The Flat Earth is an outstanding album.

[McCainTheTurdburglar]

I think the song "The Flat Earth" is the best song he ever did. Pity it was never released as a single- probably because it was too long.

[aheady1969]

I bet that's why. Great songs should be long, damnit! lol

[uGUYsRdumb]

that's the truth.

I was laughing about how Wish You Were Here has five tracks, yet pushes well into 42+ min...

[mongooz24]

like bohemian rhapsody, knights in white satin, american pie...long and lovely

[itchywitchy]

Love this and love TMDR's stuff, love the bass on this track.

[ncbeach22]

Great song off a great album.

[flavourgregory]

What a genius. I hear influences coming from Godley and Creme, from Wang Chung, Sting's Russians and King Crimson.... but still...Thomas Dolby combined it all to something incredible.

[eiffe]

Sting's Russians was later and he is an asshole.

[sawyerboy13]

Sting was cool in the police. On his own he sux.

[bourgeoisbrats]

It's because, like Danny Elfman, Thomas Dolby majored in music comp. Both were "zany, academia guys" who loved to piss off the instructors, especially when they started being "authoritative" :-) The comparisons to the other people you mentioned, are also based on music composition/arrangement ideas u learn in academia. Nile Rogers is a jazz musician (he actually started out playing with Omar Hakim and Marcus Miller), which is how Duran Duran got those "interesting" B-sections, in their hits :-)

[jdc8000]

love thomas dolby!

[OnlyrepublikafaninNL]

In 1988 I crossed the West Berlin-DDR border in a train at Friedrichstrasse, with this song playing on my Walkman... no better environment and timing possible..

[bukster1]

I had a dream in which I heard this song. This was about two years before the song had been released.

If I have the power to see the future, it doesn't seem to work for lotto numbers. I'll never make a TV psychic if that's all I can do.

[boeingVSairbus]

sure

[lotreamon01]

lol, i bought this vinyl in the 80's.... behold: A miracle! I too became a dissident :((((((

[Redzombie13]

man, i remember this video when i was a little, little boy growing' up watching mtv when it had the original "fab five" vj's and used to show real freakin' music videos at the time;p!!! thomas dolby was one of my favorite synth pop/electronic/new wave artists that eventually went on to influenced many of the artists that are out today such as trent reznor of nine inch nails, filter, statik-x, charlie clouser, ministry, skinny puppy, lustmord, and even marilyn manson....

[squirrelsrfun]

Dissidents. Man, I remember this video. Hearing this song for the first time inspired me to really start paying attention to production and arrangment. Just one of those rare albums where everything comes together. Dolby is the man, and Flat Earth was his best, IMO. Thanks for posting this...good memories.

[gggtrew]

According to TDMR in a 1984 Musician interview, this video was shot before Duran Duran's New Moon On Monday video by the same production company. He was angry about the similarities. I concur, although maybe hair gel and light sabers are enough to distance the two projects.

[mrc302]

I think MTV showed a longer version of this.

[StovoKhor]

This is the only version i found surfing on the net; better versions are always welcome :)

[mrc302]

Always dug this video! It's been years since I've had a chance to see it.

[jazzytds]

This one man is a machine. He has the intellect to create a monstrocity of music that duplicates a complete orchestra and more. He has the rhythm and uniqueness to not even really belong to a certain genre, he is a genre. The Flat Earth is a prime example of his genius at work. People thought "Science" was all he could do, "I scare myself, Mulu, etc...a compilation of Dolby funk.

[StovoKhor]

oh... i perfectly agree w/ u !!

[panthervoodoo]

@jazzytds Well stated. Glad to see sooooo many people appreciate this Uber Human artist. I really miss his brand of artistry.

[2degucitas]

@jazzytds perfectly stated.....

[zarwin20]

I love TD! So creative. I can't get " Hot Sauce " outta my head right now.

[fitzwarine09]

Frickin AWESOME, I had no idea this video existed. I was turned on to Dolby a good deal of time after his mainstream popularity, so I missed some of harder to find MTV exhibitions.

Great stuff; always liked Dolby's Cold War influence.  He's amazing,

[padistedor]

I've never seen this video before now. I always suspected he made a video for this great opening to "The Flat Earth". Thanks for posting!

[Timmybear]

And, of course, Duran Duran copied this with NEW MOON ON MONDAY (yes, it was in that order).

[dmoyer3]

Yes, it's Russian...

The term dissident was used in the Soviet Union during the period of 1965-1985, including Brezhnev stagnation, for citizens who criticized the dictature of the Communist party.

As with some of his other songs, like |"One of Our Subarines", (and other songs from that time) The song is Cold War influenced.

[namingnames]

run a search for thomas dolby and eddie reader. they do a fantastic dolby song for the TED talks. Its fantastic and also a recent song by dolby!

[olympia80]

Absolutely brilliant, had all his stuff in the early 80's and lost it over the years.

[sabbath69]

I've not heard this song in years, and it does not seem to exist on Itunes, much to my disappointment. It is my favorite Thomas Dolby song of all time. So thanks for posting it!

[Neville6000]

You have to buy the remastered CD's, or the 12'inch collection on CD.

[Redzombie13]

this was his second video/single from his second cd, "the flat earth" back in '84:p!!! a true early 80's new wave/synth pop classic(-_-)!!!

[StovoKhor]

My all time fav songs by Thomas is Screen Kiss.

what about yours?

[cquence23]

Mulu the Rain Forest!

"Talk To Me Mulu!"

Either that or Budapest by Blimp.

[futurekawai]

Europa and the Pirate Twins. Kept me going during a crappy school camping trip on a beach too cold for swimming. I was 12, same age as Europa, and imagined I was in the video.

[LucaT66]

I agree with you: screen kiss is one of my favourite songs. Despite its age.... it is always a pleasure listening to it.

[StovoKhor]

Ciao Luca, ( I guess u r italian like me )

What i love the most in Screen Kiss is the way the bass is played..

the 10th interval becoming a 9th and then a fake 8th..moving around the 1st grade...

lovely !

[TXSven]

I like this too....but grab a glass of wine....or a good scotch.....hit a patio and watch a sunset listening to "The Flat Earth". That is Dolby at his best.....

[Deepwatermusic]

Awesome song from one of his best albums!

[BlueGalt]

What happened to the video for Thomas Dolby's "Europa and the Pirate Twins?" It doesn't seem to be available anywhere anymore.

[StovoKhor]

i'll post it now

[ValorOfSoul]

Great video and song - eerily reflective of today's times...

[ToddBoyle]

this rocks

[Nkerklaan]

This is my favourite Thomas Dolby song. I expected the video to be really bad - it was the 80s, after all. But it was actually pretty awesome.

[StovoKhor]

glad u like it.

Stov