Paul Young - No Parlez

English born singer and musician Paul Young was the front man for a number of short-lived bands (Kat Kool & the Kool Cats, Streetband, and Q-Tips) before going it alone and becoming a huge teen idol. His solo debut No Parlez was released thirty years ago tomorrow (July 18th) back in 1983. It charted at number 79 on the US Billboard Hot 100, number 16 in France, number 4 in Austria, number 3 in New Zealand and Norway, and number 1 in Germany, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK.

Manfred Mann's Earth Band - Somewhere in Afrika

Yesterday (February 18th) marked the thirtieth anniversary of Somewhere in Afrika, the eleventh studio album from Manfred Mann’s Earth Band. The release peaked at number 87 in the UK, number 40 on the US Billboard Hot 200, and number 8 in both Germany and Norway.

The roster of the band at this time included Manfred Mann (keyboards and synthesizers), Matt Irving (bass), Shona Laing (vocals), John Lingwood (drums and percussion), Trevor Rabin (guitar), Chris Thompson (vocals) and Steve Waller (vocals and guitar).