When I began listening to popular radio in the early 80s, there was about a 1 in 3 chance that any given song was going to feature a saxophone. Saxophones have long had some presence in pop music, but in the 80s, the sax – if not quite king (that was the guitar) – was royalty.
Nowadays, not so much. I like a lot of today's music, but at best you'll hear a sample of a sax every once in a great while.
This was brought home to me recently when I was listening to Huey Lewis' "80s Radio" show on Apple Music. Huey hosts this hour-long show once a week, and as you might imagine, it focuses solely on songs from the 80s...well, there are a few very late 70s and very early 90s tunes thrown in there, but you get the gist.
Huey will often organize these shows around a theme, and this morning I listed to his saxophone-themed show.
I still have 20 minutes more to go through, but so far I like his selections. Men at Work's "Who Can It Be Now" was in there, as was Hall and Oates' "Maneater." "Harden My Heart" by Quarterflash was a nice surprise, and it was good to hear "Smooth Operator" by Sade.
One selection that baffled me was Rick James' "Super Freak." Great song, but the sax solo at the end is incidental at best. Certainly not an "iconic" 80s saxophone song like the others.
Still, on balance, it's a fun listen, as it hearkens back to my favorite era of pop music AND features the instrument I've played for more than 40 years.
When the saxophone becomes cool again, I'll be ready to lay down some cool licks in the studio. I'll be 90 years old, of course, but when a modern artist comes looking for that 80s sax sound, trust me, I'll be everyone's go-to.
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