Rocking Retro: Men At Work – Business As Usual
Last night, while winding down from an amazing evening watching Monsters of Folk at Stubb’s (M. Ward is god, for those not in the know), my friend Derin, acting as evening DJ for our small party, put on the album above – the successful 1981 debut from Men At Work. It was a wise selection.
Business As Usual is best known for the hits “Who Can It Be Now?” and the would-be litigious nightmare “Down Under.” It is one of the most successful albums of the early 1980’s (in good company with a little album called Thriller), selling 15 million albums worldwide, 6 million of those stateside. In the US alone, Business As Usual spent a surprising 15 weeks at #1, and Men At Work remain the only Australian band to score the #1 song (“Down Under”) and #1 album in America simultaneously.
The album is heralded as an 80’s pop classic, obviously, and for good reason. Main songwriter Colin Hay could certainly craft a pop gem (with the occasional help, it should be noted, from Ron Strykert and Greg Ham) and the album’s contribution to the then-burgeoning New Wave sound is unmatched.
