Earlier this month, my daughter and I were talking about historical events I clearly remember from my childhood. We talked about the Challenger disaster, the student massacre in Tiananmen Square, Magic Johnson and the publicization of HIV and AIDS, and the fall of the Berlin Wall. Because my brother’s family lives in Germany, we talked a lot about the fall of communism, the end of the Cold War, and the reunification of Germany.
We talked about how significant events in history spark trends in pop culture. I told her that there were quite a few songs and albums that were inspired by the fall of this period of time, especially “Wind Of Change” by the Scorpions, U2’s “Achtung Baby” album, and “Right Here, Right Now” by Jesus Jones.
Jesus Jones is a British alternative dance band that formed in 1988. Mike Edwards, Iain Baker, and Jerry DeBorg decided to leave a band they were currently part of and form their own group.
They came up with the band name Jesus Jones on a beach in Spain, realizing that they were three “Joneses” sitting on a beach in Spain surrounded by people called Jesus. They released their second album “Doubt,” in which “Right Here, Right Now” was their most popular hit.
I saw the decade in, when it seemed
The world could change at the blink of an eye
And if anything
Then there’s your sign… of the times
I was alive and I waited, waited
I was alive and I waited for this
Right here, right now”
The “Right Here, Right Now” single was released in September 1990, and was a #1 song on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart, also reaching #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in July 1991. It peaked at number 31 on the UK Singles Chart. Jesus Jones’ song “Real Real Real” also got significant airplay worldwide in 1991. The album “Doubt” quickly hit Gold status in the UK, and gained Gold status in the US once “Right Here Right Now” hit #1 in the US. In late 1991, at the MTV Awards, they won the award for Best New Video.
Since the early 90’s, “Right Here, Right Now” has been used in commercials for TechTV and KMart, and was part of two different Canadian political campaigns. Alvin and the Chipmunks released a cover version of the song for a 2007 video game.
“Right here, right now
There is no other place I want to be
Right here, right now
Watching the world wake up from history”
Want to download the song and relive the “world wake up from history”? Click the link below.
