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Kim Wilde
A little something about Kim Wilde
Kim Wilde's 1981 hit "Kids In America" trails off with the chant "We're the kids, we're the kids, we're the kids in America!" What seems especially odd about this is that the guys singing have unmistakable English accents. The fact that the writers and performers of the song might also explain the reference to "East California."
But such is the case with western, English-language pop music. The Brits try to sound like Elvis and Smokey, we try to sound like the Beatles and Stones, they try to act like the New York Dolls, we try to sound like the Sex Pistols and the Clash, they try to sound like Blondie, we try to sound (and look) like Duran Duran, Australian teenagers try to sound like Pearl Jam, etc. The United States has made a killing exporting motown, disco, country and hip hop, then we turn around and throw our money at everything the UK has to offer, from Riverdance to Prodigy.
Born in England in 1960, Kim Wilde was no stranger to popular music. Her father Marty Wilde had pop hits of his own in the UK in the 1950s, and made regular television appearances. The older Wilde also co-wrote much of Kim's early material. At the age of 20 Kim had her first hit in the UK with this week's selection, "Kids In America," and the song faired well on the charts when released in the States the following year. Her high energy synth-pop proved a successful combination for female vocalists in 1981 and 1982, with Berlin, Missing Persons, Martha and the Muffins, Altered Images and Romeo Void helping Wilde define and etablish the feminine side of the new wave era.
After her initial successes, Kim Wilde spent a few years tinkering with her sound before finding another formula for success with her 1986 dance cover of "You Keep Me Hangin' On." She continues to record new material, though her material has ceased to chart in the States.
Lyrics featured on this page: "Kids in America" & "Keep Me Hangin' On".
Kids in AmericaLooking out a dirty old window.Down below the cars in the city go rushing by.I sit here alone and I wonder why.Friday night and everyone's moving.I can feel the heat but it's soothing.Heading down, I search for the beat in this dirty town.Down town the young ones are going.Down town the young ones are growing.We're the kids in America.We're the kids in America.Everybody live for the music-go-round.Bright ligths the music get faster.Look boy, don't check on your watch, not another glance.I'm not leaving now, honey not a chance.Hot-shot, give me no problems.Much later baby you'll be saying never mind.You know life is cruel, life is never kind.Kind hearts don't make a new story.Kind hearts don't grab any glory.We're the kids in America.We're the kids in America.Everybody live for the music-go-round.Come closer, honey that's better.Got to get a brand new experience.Feeling right.Oh don't try to stop baby.Hold me tight.Outside a new day is dawning.Outside Suburbia's sprawling everywhere.I don't want to go baby.New York to East California.There's a new wave coming I warn you.We're the kids in America.We're the kids in America.Everybody live for the music-go-round.We're the kidsWe're the kidsWe're the kids in America.