Anyone who lived through the beginning of the 1980s will instantly recognize the keyboard sound that drives The Monroes “What Do All The People Know?” The song kicks off with Springsteen-esque airy piano feel but this quickly shifts to a driving guitar/keyboard combo reminiscent of Greg Kihn, The Fixx and J. Geils Band. I mean, check out the instrumental section at the 2 minutes mark – pure 1980s magic. Released in 1982, the song managed to climb to 59 on the national US charts despite the fact the band’s Japanese label went under shortly after it came out. The group tried to carry on but eventually broke up a few years later. Over the years, the song has been resurrected regularly by fans as a great lost hit. Former band members took notice and in 2013 released a re-produced version of the original song along with some material that didn’t get an airing before. Yet it was only in 2019-20 that a proper relaunch of the group occurred, including a new video for “What Do All The People Know?” There’s an even happier ending: since then The Monroes have released a slew of new songs, proving they were not a just a one hit wonder. For instance, check out “Saturday” for a particularly winning cut.

Persistence can pay off.  Enough people believed in this song to keep it coming back. Check out more of what The Monroes have to offer on their website and Facebook page.