all the kids in the marketplace say (13. 017)

The third single from the band’s second studio album, A Different Light, released earlier in the year in September climbed to the top of the US charts on this day in 1986, holding the number one slot for four weeks and marked the Bangles’ first hit, and ranked Billboard’s best song of 1987. Songwriter Liam Sternberg (also a producer and performer who worked with Devo, the Waitresses, Kirsty MacColl and many others) was inspired for the title—and his biggest credit to date—whilst on a ferry-crossing of the Channel in rough waters and witnessed fellow passengers stepping carefully with arms outstretched to keep their balance, reminding him of Ancient Egyptian friezes and reliefs, composing the track around that image. The below video also received accolades from MTV.