VOL. 1, TRACK 13: BOW WOW WOW, “C30, C60, C90, GO!”

For me, Bow Wow Wow is a shining example of what it means to be New Wave. I mean…. first of all, they recruited a 13-year-old to be their lead singer, THEN put her naked on the cover of a subsequent album. I know, that sounds horrible. But I’m sure Annabella Lwin wasn’t even the most immature member of the group — actually, quite the opposite, I heard she was hazed relentlessly by the other band members, because they didn’t think she was old or experienced enough to be in the band.

And yet… Annabella Lwin WAS Bow Wow Wow! Would they really have been so popular if they hadn’t had a bouncy, fiery, good-looking girl with half her head shaved off who was such a natural at singing/shouting lyrics? (And the lyrics to “C30, C60, C90 Go!” aren’t easy, let me tell you.)

Apparently, manager Malcolm McLaren brought in Boy George to potentially replace Annabella, before Boy George was Boy George. But that didn’t stick, because, again, Annabella IS Bow Wow Wow. Can you tell I love Annabella Lwin? She’s so freaking punk it hurts! That hair, those outfits, that attitude, that confidence — I’m sure most of that was engineered by McLaren, too, but, regardless, Annabella was the perfect New Wave face for this perfect New Wave band. (Please bear in mind that when I say “perfect,” I mean “perfectly imperfect.” Rebellious, even, against the idea of perfection!)

So here’s a little back story on this particular track, courtesy of Wikipedia:

Bow Wow Wow signed with EMI Records in July 1980 and released their first single, "C·30 C·60 C·90 Go!" shortly after that. Initially released only on cassette, it was the world's first-ever cassette single (a 7" vinyl version was released several months later). EMI did not promote the "cassingle" due to its lyrics ("Off the radio I get constant flow/Hit it, pause it, record and play/Turn it, rewind and rub it away"), which promoted home taping at a time when music piracy was a hot-button issue.

Of course, I remember taping songs off the radio too. And now I feel terribly countercultural and New Wave for doing so.

But back to Bow Wow Wow and how New Wave they were for a) promoting music piracy when they were musicians themselves; and b) making sure to put masturbation in their lyrics while also promoting music piracy. I’m giving this video a 9/10 for being so outrageously punk, it hurts. The only thing that would have elevated it to a 10 would have been better costumes. And why is Annabella covering up her head with that pirate’s hat?

I once heard someone say that why? is not a spiritual question. Actually, that guy used to say it all the time, and it got to be more than a little annoying. But I know what he meant. It’s better not to ask, sometimes. Better just to accept.

💘