169: "Shout" vs. "Relax" (w/Justin Lewis)!
Song Vs. Song
Todd Nathanson
4.7 • 781 Ratings
🗓️ 13 May 2026
⏱️ 68 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
It's the mid-'80s and two bands have figured out that what people want is British guys giving commands in two-note chanting choruses. Which is the best more-chorus-than-song song of the mid-'80s, "Shout" by Tears for Fears or "Relax" by Frankie Goes to Hollywood?
Thank you to special guest Justin Lewis, check out his great book "Into the Groove: The 1980s: The Ultimate Decade in Music History" which you can pre-order in the US here or buy in the UK here!
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hi, I'm Todd Nathanson. |
| 0:03.9 | And I'm Lena Morgan. |
| 0:05.4 | And folks, you don't have to jump for joy, but you should. |
| 0:09.5 | Because this is song versus song, and we are doing a very special mid-80s matchup. |
| 0:15.5 | We were arguing about today. |
| 0:18.4 | Frankie goes to Hollywood's relax versus tears for fears shout. |
| 0:25.4 | I'm sure I had a reason for this. |
| 0:27.5 | Lena, what was I thinking when I did this one? |
| 0:31.1 | They sound like they're in conversation. |
| 0:34.0 | There you go. |
| 0:34.8 | That's the official, right? |
| 0:36.8 | That's like, that's our bullshit term that we use. |
| 0:39.2 | They sound like they're in conversation. |
| 0:41.7 | You listen to them back to back and you think these songs feel like they coexist in a space. |
| 0:46.8 | And they do. |
| 0:47.8 | Yes. |
| 0:48.5 | You know, we got Frankie Goes to Hollywood, one of the biggest acts of 1984, |
| 0:53.0 | depending on what shore you're on. And Tears for Fear is one of the biggest acts of 1984, depending on what shore you're on, and |
| 0:54.8 | Tears for Fear is one of the biggest acts of 1985, and to talk this over with us, we have a special |
| 1:01.9 | guest in the studio today. Mr. Justin Lewis, please introduce yourself. Hi, I'm Justin Lewis. I'm in |
| 1:08.1 | the UK. It's lovely to be here. Thanks for inviting me on. |
| 1:11.9 | Oh, yeah, thank you for dealing with this incredible time difference. |
... |
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