Are you okay? (Was (Not Was)) (LP 4821 - 4822)

Was (Not Was)  What Up, Dog? (Vinyl, Mercury Records, 1988) ****  

Was (Not Was)  Are You Okay? (Vinyl, Fontana Records, 1990) ***  

Genre: Pop, funk, soul

Places I remember: Record stores in Nelson

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Somewhere In America There's a Street Named After My dad (What Up, Dog?)

Gear costume: Walk the Dinosaur (What Up, Dog?)

They loom large in his legend (The Album Collection playlists): Part 1; Part 2; Part 3; Part 4; Part 5; Part 6; Part 7; Part 8

Active compensatory factors: Was (Not Was) was a loose band built around David Was and Don Was (not their real names, and not related), with Sweet Pea Atkinson and Sir Harry Bowens on lead vocals. 

What Up, Dog? was their third album and a breakthrough thanks to two excellent catchy pop songs - Walk The Dinosaur, Spy in the House of Love. The rest of the album is funky and pop smart with some edgy tracks as well. It hasn't aged that well in parts, thanks to production ticks of the late eighties but once you ease into it, What Up, Dog? holds up!

Are You Okay? was their next album after What Up, Dog?. It embraces more hip hop styles with effect, but the zaniness of the subject matter continued (I Blew Up the United States, Elvis' Rolls Royce) and guests (Leonard Cohen). It's all good fun for the most part, but not as consistently as brilliant as What Up, Dog.

Where do they all belong? I lost track of the band in the 18 year hiatus until their reunion but I'll stick with these two to remind me of a great time in Nelson (1990 to 1994).