Pop culture songs are tricky. Just look at that current Scouting For Girls song about James Bond. I am not cynical enough to say that Scouting For Girls have picked a release date just because Quantum Of Solace just came out. But some commentators might. Just as some people may note a match up between the release of Baltimora’s Tarzan Boy a few months after Greystoke: The Legend Of Tarzan mopefest was released. But this would again be a case of coincidence – as the jolly Eurodisco of Tarzan resembles in no way the dull Christopher Lambert starrer. To me Baltimora’s song was a much better match to the playful Johnny Weissmuller Tarzan season shown during the 1985 summer holidays. Us indoorsy kids not playing out in that balmy summer were not big time record buyers – so our Cheeta love alone could not be why punters in their droves snapped up this pop culture special – without it being a novelty single.
One of the things I always appreciated about Baltimora’s lyrics in Tarzan Boy is how little it really refers to Edgar Rice Burrough’s most lucrative creation. more »
Pete Baran in FT • 2 Comments