![]() ![]() ![]() Then: The Human League formed in England in the late 1970s and quickly won credibility in the art-rock community, but a lineup change in the early 1980s turned them into more of a mainstream synth-pop act. Image Credit: Martin O'Neill/Redferns/ChinaFotoPress/Getty Images Catch them this summer at the Isle Casino Hotel Waterloo in Iowa and the Olathe Sweet Corn Festival in Colorado. Yet as their name might suggest, despite all the challenges they've faced, Survivor has refused to give up on the touring life. In 2006, they suffered another setback when a reported attempt to land a song in Stallone's new movie Rocky Balboa didn't quite pan out. In 2003, they tried suing CBS for naming their reality show Survivor they lost. ![]() Original singer Dave Bickler even returned for a brief period in the mid-1990s. Now: The lure of the oldies circuit was too powerful to resist, and in 1993 Survivor returned to the road. The latter song is a truly fantastic account of the Cold War battle between Rocky Balboa and Ivan Drago, but it didn't quite connect like "Eye of the Tiger." Really, how can any song compete with that? Survivor called it quits in 1989. They hired a soundalike and cut "Moment of Truth" for the soundtrack to The Karate Kid in 1985, they recorded "Burning Heart" for Rocky IV. In 1983, lead singer Dave Bickler left the band after experiencing voice problems. But the good times were brief for Survivor. He asked them to write a similar song, and they produced "Eye Of The Tiger." The song shot to Number One on the Hot 100, and soon gyms all across the country were blasting it. He was looking for a song for his latest Rocky movie when he heard "Poor Man's Son" by a Chicago band called Survivor. It's where we first saw the good side of Apollo Creed, and it's where we first heard "Eye Of The Tiger." This is all thanks to Sylvester Stallone, who was truly a kingmaker back then. Then: Rocky III gave the world a lot of amazing things. Image Credit: Ebet Roberts/Redferns/Frank Hoensch/Getty Images The band recently got dragged into court when a publishing firm flagged them for lifting the "Down Under" flute riff from the 1934 Australian nursery rhyme "Kookaburra" they were forced to hand over a portion of all royalties for the hit. Sadly, Ham died earlier this year, but Hay continues to play Men At Work's hits at his solo shows and on tour with Ringo Starr's All Starr Band. He caved to Eighties nostalgia in 1996, bringing back saxophonist Greg Ham and hitting the road as Men At Work. Now: Men At Work frontman Colin Hay managed to carve out a nice career on his own as a singer-songwriter. Why would anyone want the Australian knock-off when the real deal was back? The band split in 1986. Of course it did – they released that LP the same month as the Police's Synchronicity. That year, they released their next LP, Cargo, which failed to generate the same level of heat. "Who Can It Be Now?" was also a giant hit – and by June 1983, Men At Work were on the cover of Rolling Stone. "Down Under" was one of the biggest songs of the year, with a video that MTV played constantly. The Police didn't release any new music in 1982, and the public was so hungry for more that it was willing to tolerate an Australian group with a vaguely similar sound. Then: My esteemed colleague Rob Sheffield has a theory about Men At Work. Image Credit: Dave Hogan/Hulton Archive/Getty Images/Ethan Miller/Getty Images Pro tip: If you see the current lineup, don't spend the whole time waiting for "I Ran." Their other hit from that year, "Space Age Love Song," is just as awesome. The original lineup briefly got back together in 2003 on VH1's Bands Reunited, but the other three guys returned to their day jobs after a few shows. Catch them this summer on tour with fellow Eighties acts like The Escape Club, Boys Don't Cry and When In Rome UK. He's pretty bald these days, so the haircut is long gone, but the group still does a ton of gigs. Now: Mike Score formed a new version of A Flock of Seagulls after the original lineup disintegrated, and he's been touring the nostalgia circuit ever since. As big as "I Ran" was, today the band is more remembered for its signature look, masterminded by frontman and former hairdresser Mike Score. Their 1983 follow-up LP was called Listen, but fans opted not to do that and the group split up three years later. MTV played the hell out of "I Ran (So Far Away)," and before they knew it, A Flock of Seagulls were opening up for the Police at stadiums. ![]() The video in question looks like it was filmed over the course of about 10 minutes inside a trashcan – but that didn't matter. They had crazy haircuts, a near-perfect New Wave single and a video for MTV. Then: A Flock of Seagulls were the perfect band for 1982. Image Credit: Fin Costello/Redferns/D Dipasupil/FilmMagic ![]()
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