Bananarama--Venus (1986)

     Whenever I want to listen to catchy, fun, 80's style dance music, this song, along with ,"I Heard a Rumor" are two that make the top of the list. Childhood friends  Keren Woodward, Sara Dallin along with Siobhan Fahey, who they met in art school, already had a number of successful hits in the UK. 1983's, "Cruel Summer" broke through to the top ten in America, but they had encountered a bit of a slump and had hooked up with the production team of Stock, Aitken & Waterman which breathed new life into their career.
     The song "Venus" was done by the Dutch group, Shocking Blue in 1969, and reached #1 in early 1970. The girls had used the song as a part of their act for several years, but their producers never thought it would work as a dance song. Stock and company resisted doing it as well, not convinced of it's commercial viability. The group persisted and it was included on their, "True Confessions" album. It became their only #1 and has held up well through the years as a great example of 80's dance/pop.