Pac-Man, originally called Puck Man in Japan, is a 1980 maze action video game developed and released by Namco for arcades. In North America, the game was released by Midway Manufacturing as part of its licensing agreement with Namco America. The player controls Pac-Man, who must eat all the dots inside an enclosed maze while avoiding four colored ghosts. Eating large flashing dots called "Power Pellets" causes the ghosts to temporarily turn blue, allowing Pac-Man to eat them for bonus points.
Buckner & Garcia was an American musical duo consisting of Jerry Buckner and Gary Garcia from Akron, Ohio. Their first recording was made in 1972, when they performed a novelty song called "Gotta Hear the Beat", which they recorded as Animal Jack. Later, in 1980, they wrote a novelty Christmas song titled "Merry Christmas in the NFL", imagining sports journalist Howard Cosell as Santa Claus. The recording was credited to Willis the Guard and fictional group Vigorish. The song reached No. 82 on the Billboard charts. In 1981, the duo wrote a faith-based country theme to back the poem "Footprints in the Sand", performed by Edgel Groves, which reached No. 1 on many Country and Easy Listening radio stations. The duo also produced an extended version of the WKRP in Cincinnati theme song released on MCA Records in 1982.
Janet Jackson is the debut studio album by American singer Janet Jackson, released in September 1982 by A&M Records. Janet Jackson is described as a dance and contemporary R&B record. Songwriters Angela Winbush and René Moore contributed to much of the album's lyrics. Moore and Winbush share production credits with Foster Sylvers, Jerry Weaver, and Bobby Watson. On release Janet Jackson charted on the Billboard 200 and in New Zealand. Three singles from the album had little impact on Billboard Hot 100 charts, among them "Young Love", "Come Give Your Love to Me" and "Say You Do", though these singles achieved success on the R&B charts. Jackson performed "Young Love" and "Say You Do" on American TV shows American Bandstand and Soul Train in 1982. The cover artwork of Jackson's body submerged in water was based on a photo of Elizabeth Taylor. Worldwide, the album has sold 300,000 copies.
Dancing on the Ceiling is the third solo studio album by American singer Lionel Richie, released on August 5, 1986. The album was originally to be titled Say You, Say Me, after the Academy Award-winning track of the same name, but it was renamed to a different track's title after Richie rewrote several songs on the album. The album was released to generally positive reviews and it made No. 1 on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 4 million copies. The album was Richie’s second with session guitarist Carlos Rios. Following this album's release, Richie went on a long hiatus, not releasing an album of entirely new material for another ten years.
Quarterflash was an American rock group formed in 1980 in Portland, Oregon. The band was originally made up of Orinda Sue "Rindy" Ross and her husband Marv Ross (guitars), along with Jack Charles (guitars), Rick DiGiallonardo (keyboards/synthesizers), Rich Gooch, and Brian David Willis. In a 1982 interview, Rindy Ross said that she viewed the saxophone as an extension of her voice, enabling her to express things she could not express with her voice alone.
Don't Be Cruel is the second studio album by American singer Bobby Brown. It was released in the United States on June 20, 1988, by MCA Records. MCA changed producers for this album and had Brown work with hit-making songwriting and production duo Babyface and L.A. Reid. Brown dedicated the album to his deceased best friend James "Jimbo" Flint who was stabbed to death when Brown was aged 11. Don't Be Cruel incorporates new jack swing, R&B, funk, dance and soul.
Canadian singer Shania Twain has released six studio albums, three compilation albums, three remix albums, one box set, two live albums, 45 singles, 38 music videos, six promotional singles, and made six guest appearances. Twain's repertoire has sold over 34 million albums in the United States alone, placing her as the top-selling female artist in country music. Moreover, with 48 million copies shipped, she is ranked as the 26th best-selling artist overall in the US, tying with Kenny G for the spot. She is also recognized as one of the best-selling music artists in history, selling over 100 million records worldwide and thus becoming the top-selling female artist in country music ever.
American singer Usher has released nine studio albums, ten compilation albums, eight extended plays, and 81 singles. His music has been released on the LaFace, Arista, Jive and RCA record labels. Usher has sold more than 33 million albums in the United States alone and over 65 million albums worldwide. With over 150 million total records sold worldwide, he is one of the best selling music artists of all time. He has nine Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles and 18 Hot 100 top-ten singles. In 1994, Usher released his self-titled debut album in North America, producing three singles that had moderate chart success, and the album sold more than 500,000 copies. His follow-up 1997 album My Way sold over 8 million copies worldwide, becoming his breakthrough album. It is certified seven-times platinum in the US, and spawned three successful singles, including his first UK number-one "You Make Me Wanna..." and first US Hot 100 number-one song "Nice & Slow". Usher's success continued in 2001 with his third studio album 8701. It debuted at number four on the Billboard 200. The album produced two number-one singles—"U Remind Me" and "U Got It Bad". In 2002, the album was certified five-times platinum in the US for sales of 5 million copies. As of 2010, its worldwide sales stand at over 8 million.
A Public Affair is the fifth studio album by American pop singer Jessica Simpson. The album was released on August 26, 2006 in the United States by Epic Records. The album is Simpson's first effort following her divorce from Nick Lachey.
"Urgent" is a song by the British-American rock band Foreigner, and the first single from their album 4 in 1981.
Froggy the Gremlin was a character created by Smilin' Ed McConnell and brought to radio in the 1940s and television in 1950s on the Smilin' Ed's Gang show, and later Andy's Gang TV show, hosted by actor Andy Devine after McConnell's death.
The discography of Devo, an American new wave band formed in 1973, consists of 25 singles and 9 studio albums. Devo was founded by Gerald Casale, Bob Lewis and Mark Mothersbaugh. Devo currently consists of brothers Mark Mothersbaugh and Bob Mothersbaugh, Gerald Casale, Josh Hager and Josh Freese (drums). The band rose to prominence in the US during the new wave era with their single "Whip It". The band have released nine studio albums, ten extended plays, fourteen compilation albums, ten live albums, one soundtrack album and twenty-five singles.
A Tribe Called Quest was an American hip hop group, formed in 1985. They released six studio albums, five compilations, sixteen singles and two extended plays. The group was made up of rapper/main producer Q-Tip, the late rapper Phife Dawg and DJ/co-producer Ali Shaheed Muhammad. Phife Dawg was only persuaded to join when a fourth member, rapper Jarobi White, joined the group. In 1989 they signed a demo deal with Geffen Records, but not given a full-fledged recording contract. After receiving many offers, they opted for the Jive Records label, an independent rap label. In under a year, they managed to produce People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm to a lukewarm reception, reaching #91 on the Billboard 200, though it did achieve gold certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
Emotion is the twenty-third studio album by American singer Barbra Streisand, released in October 1984 by Columbia Records. It was her first studio album in four years after the release of Guilty, which has since become her highest selling studio album worldwide.
American singer-songwriter Anita Baker has released six studio albums, one compilation & live album, and twenty-four singles. Referred as the "Queen of Romantic Quiet-Storm R&B/Soul", she is considered to be one of the most successful and influential R&B artists of the 1980s. According to Recording Industry Association of America, Baker has sold 13 million certified albums in the United States, including three multi-platinum albums. She has also scored 5 number-one hits on Billboard's Adult R&B Airplay and 13 top ten hits on Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.
"Pac-Man Fever" is a hit single by Buckner & Garcia. Capitalizing on the video game craze of the early 1980s, the song, about the classic video game Pac-Man, peaked at number 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States in March 1982.
The Hits is a compilation album from REO Speedwagon. It contains hits such as "Can't Fight This Feeling" and "Keep on Loving You", as well as new tracks "Here with Me" and "I Don't Want to Lose You". "Here with Me" cracked the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100. and the top ten on the Adult Contemporary chart; however, it would be the last single to feature drummer Alan Gratzer and guitarist Gary Richrath, as they each left the band within the year following this album's release. The album has sold over 4 million copies in the U.S. which led it to go 4× Platinum.
E.T., I Love You and Other Extra-Terrestrial Songs for Children is an album by the group the Starlight Children's Chorus, released in 1983 under Kid Stuff Records. It featured a song "E.T., I Love You" by Buckner & Garcia, which was originally written to accompany the major motion picture E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial.
The discography of MercyMe, an American Christian rock band, includes 11 studio albums, two compilation albums, two video albums, and 28 singles. MercyMe, formed in 1994, released six independent albums from 1995–2000 before signing with INO Records and releasing their major label debut album, Almost There (2001). Almost There peaked at No. 37 on the Billboard 200 and No. 1 on the Billboard Christian Albums chart. The band released Spoken For, their second studio album, in 2002; it peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Christian Albums chart and No. 41 on the Billboard 200. Its second single, "Word of God Speak", spent a record 23 weeks atop the Billboard Christian Songs chart. The album has been certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and has sold over 550,000 copies. In 2003, mainstream radio interest in "I Can Only Imagine", the band's second single from Almost There, caused sales of the album to surge. "I Can Only Imagine" would peak at No. 5 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart and No. 71 on the Billboard Hot 100. Almost There was eventually certified triple Platinum by the RIAA, signifying shipments of over 3,000,000 copies, and has sold over 2.2 million copies in the United States.
"Pac-Man" is a song by British virtual band Gorillaz featuring American rapper Schoolboy Q. The track was released on 20 July 2020 as the sixth single for Gorillaz' seventh studio album, Song Machine, Season One: Strange Timez, and the fifth episode of the Song Machine project, a web series involving the ongoing release of various Gorillaz tracks featuring different guest musicians over the course of 2020.
