80 Out of the Blue Turns 35! A Special Fan Tribute to Debbie Gibson and the Debut Album That Started It All!

I Could Never Do That

In this episode of “I Could Never Do That,” I “shake” things up a bit to take a self-indulgent and celebratory walk down “memory lane.”

Think back to when you were 13, 14, or 15. What or who just lit your world on fire and made you believe that "Anything is Possible?" Was it a book? A Teacher? A Relative? A First Love? Was it a song, athlete, or artist that took hold and sent you on a journey of imagination and unlimited potential?

For me, as a 14-year-old songwriter wannabe in the late 80s (i.e. the best music decade ever), that person was Debbie Gibson and that album was “Out of the Blue.”

In 1985-1986, I saved up some money to buy a 4-track Tascam multitrack recorder and, week after week, I would lay down pitiful keyboard tracks, hit rewind, and then lay down a drum machine, hit rewind again, and play guitar, only to top it off with some of the worst pitchy vocals you can imagine, but man oh man I was living my dream of making music.

It wasn’t long after that I started hearing about this young 16-year-old, rising star who was also writing and producing her own music…and that was it.

Somehow along the way, over three decades have passed and I’m so thrilled to celebrate the 35th Anniversary of the release of "Out of the Blue" by talking with a few Debbie Gibson fans and letting them share THEIR stories about the impact she had on them at the time and still has on their lives.

I chose a few old-school friends that I was pen pals back in the day of DGIF (Debbie Gibson International Fan Club), and a couple of new friends I met just a few months ago on her recent tour stop in LA. I even speak with a younger fan who, as she says, was an “Electric Youth” baby born in 1989!

There was a time I thought, “I could never” adequately thank Debbie for being such a bright light in my world, but actually, thanks to her, I have this mic and am honored to have that chance in this episode.

Episode Resources:

"I Could Never Do That" Website

Debbie Gibson Website: https://debbiegibsonofficial.com/

Instagram: @debbiegibson - https://www.instagram.com/debbiegibson/

http://www.rocknrollrescuedogs.org/

Theme Music: Your Love by Atch -License: Creative Commons License - Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0)

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