Production in music is a skillful art that carries both weight and meaning. The talents of producers can be crucial in discovering the iconic (as with Van Halen’s “Eruption”) or creating an absence that an entire genre might feel as a result. Without the participation of producers,none of the music we know today would sound the way it does.
Though sometimes, producers get together with artistic talents and make something that’s a bit too heavy. A little too extra musically, lyrically, or just in all-around intent. The result might be cheesy, amusing, or possibly downright annoying, but with many of these types of songs, they reach a level of content so overbearingly questionable, they find their way good again.
Color Me Badd, I Wanna Sex You Up (1991)
For being released as the 1991 lead single to R&B group Color Me Badd’s album C.M.B., “I Wanna Sex You Up” is so quintessentially ’80s that it feels like a Saturday Night Live sketch (or that it may have inspired a few). With the lighting and fashions, Color Me Badd dwells somewhere between diet Boyz II Men and George Michael.
Despite a very cheesy backdrop (and a sensuous nature that pushes no boundaries whatsoever), “I Wanna Sex You Up” is still a grooving, warm, charming bop. Anybody who loves old school R&B won’t be able to help but get their shoulders shaking at this little jaunting sing-along, and it won’t ever wander too far from their themed playlists.
George Michael, I Want Your Sex (1987)
Unlike Color Me Badd’s exploration of intimacy, George Michael pushed the envelope a bit further toward the risqué (especially in the music video) with 1987’s “I Want Your Sex,” the first single from his debut solo record Faith. Despite this added intent, Michael comes off more as a kid trying to tell dirty jokes with a blanket and a flashlight.
He’s not exactly Prince with the likes of “Darling Nikki” here, especially with “I Want Your Sex” getting goofier (and into spoken word territory) as it progresses. While Michael doesn’t exactly pull off the stakes of the song, his classically handsome looks and trademark voice still make “I Want Your Sex” worth the price of a listen.
Def Leppard, Let’s Get Rocked (1992)
Def Leppard recorded “Let’s Get Rocked” as the final song of their 1992 album Adrenalize, and did so with the intention of creating something light-hearted with which to conclude the LP. This led to the birth of “Let’s Get Rocked,” which is about a rebellious teenager named Flynn inspired by The Simpsons’ own Bart Simpson character.
While rock music has never needed to be Shakespeare, and Def Leppard still entertains with these catchy riffs and rhythms, the outside premise is quite silly. The music video (which mixes footage of the band with badly dated CGI animation) only adds to this, making it perhaps a bit too light-hearted for the likes of Def Leppard.
Aqua, Barbie Girl (1997)
When it comes to the Danish-Norwegian dance pop group Aqua and their 1997 breakout hit song “Barbie Girl,” the guarantee that you’ll find here is overproduced absurdity. Whether it’s Lene Nystrom’s aerosol-high “Barbie” vocals, Rene Dif’s rasping “Ken” counterpart, or the song’s highly over-glammed music video, “Barbie Girl” feels like a fever dream on a steroid drip.
However, under the surface, “Barbie Girl” is a pop song that embraces the foundations of the art form so well that the hook is practically annoying in its scope. Not to mention, the lyrics of the track make a commentary on the creepy undertones of a plastic Barbie world, and just how far people will go within that philosophy.
Starship, We Built This City (1985)
Much like Color Me Badd, Starship feels mainlined into the roots of the ’80s on “We Built This City,” while actually being recorded in the midst of the ’80s for their debut album Knee Deep in the Hoopla. Co-written by longtime Elton John foil Bernie Taupin, “We Built This City” was about the dying of LA club life.
Despite this commentary on the changing of this landscape for live music acts, and the fact that “We Built This City” does have an extraordinarily catchy hook section, it is cooked in a vat of artery-clogging overproduction. Fans of the decade can certainly appreciate it, but it’s easy to see why detractors would see it just the opposite way.
Right Said Fred, I’m Too Sexy (1991)
It’s almost hard to believe that the pop group Right Said Fred wound up not only having a hit with the song “I’m Too Sexy,” but a lasting statement that continues to humorously resonate in lists of all-time pop songs. Written as a commentary on the self-centered nature of gym bros, the track clearly leans into satiric, overproduced oddity.
That being said, “I’m Too Sexy” does have a bassy, rippling rhythm as well-muscled as the abs of those aforementioned gym bros. Popular culture took notice of this as well, with “I’m Too Sexy” being interpolated in songs by popular artists like the rapper Drake, as well as singer-songwriters Beyoncé and Taylor Swift.
Vanilla Ice, Ice Ice Baby (1990)
Famously sampling the bassline from David Bowie and Queen’s “Under Pressure,” rapper Vanilla Ice burst onto the scene in 1990 with his debut single (and best-known song), entitled “Ice Ice Baby.” The track has become a bit of a cultural trope for the “white guy rapper” over time, helped along by parody like comedian Jim Carrey on In Living Color.
Despite having a certain layer of expected overproduced cheese to it (and becoming more dated with time), that doesn’t mean “Ice Ice Baby” isn’t entertaining. The rhythm is a bopper, and while Vanilla Ice isn’t likely to go down in history as the top rhyme-spitter in his class, he still knows how to rock the mic on his signature song.
Haddaway, What Is Love (1993)
Haddaway’s “What Is Love” is yet another song from the ’90s that easily sounds like it could have been stuck right into the ’80s without skipping a beat. Many listeners might likely know the track from its iconic, humorous presence in Night at the Roxbury, and it does have a certain overdramatic, lovelorn reach that suits the ridiculous film’s satire.
The associated music video is certainly no slouch in depicting a rather overwrought romance vibe, but putting that to the side, “What Is Love” also makes you want to get up and dance. Not every song is about thinking, but rather doing, so put on the track and just press play. “What Is Love” is a dance fever pulse.
Shaggy, Boombastic (1995)
Jamaican-American reggae artist Shaggy is an unusual figure. While he’s scored multiple hit songs and won his second Grammy Award in just the last few years, his adopted Jamaican stage accent and peak sound feel like they’re stuck heavily within the ’90s/early 2000s. Songs like “Boombastic” feel a bit overbearingly dated in this way compared to the present day.
Still, while “Boombastic” is prone to overproduction, its chest-puffing braggadocio knows how to charm, especially under the vestige of a ripping beat. The Jamaican affect may be a bit much, but “Boombastic” remains a solid head-bumper.
OMC, How Bizarre (1995)
New Zealand music group OMC (short for Otara Millionaires Club) was pretty on target calling their one-hit wonder “How Bizarre,” because this track is exactly that. The song has an overproduced food processor of instruments from guitars to harmonica and Latin-flaired horns, along with a lyrical rap of acid-melted storytelling.
This large, mixed bag of tricks yields just as many treats, as “How Bizarre” has a sun-kissed summer feeling that rewards the listener as a barnstorming earworm. That might make it annoying in the scheme of things, but that’s just a good pop song doing what it was meant to do. While still angling to be a bit bizarre.
0 Comments