The Weird and Wild Journey of Pac-Man Fever
I was a simple kid in the 80s. I liked having fun with my family. I was thrilled when we went to Putt-Putt Golf and then stopped by Dairy Queen after. I was a somewhat good kid in school with my best friends Mike and Steve. And I discovered my love for video games, something that would stick with me for the rest of my life.
But along the way, I got introduced to a neat little album released in 1982 called Pac-Man Fever. It was made by a duo called Buckner and Garcia, who understood the mantra of video games and somehow managed to translate it into catchy pop songs. Of course, the title track was amazing, but there were other fun songs as well, including “Mousetrap” (based on the Exidy game), “Do the Donkey Kong,” “Hyperspace” (Asteroids inspired) and “Froggy’s Lament” (Frogger, of course).
The album stuck with me through my childhood, creating some fun memories for the summer to come. (This was before Return of the Jedi, mind you.) But it’s interesting how much the album would be a success with the mainstream folks. Keep in mind that Pac-Man was just a fad at the time, and no one saw Pac-Man Fever skyrocketing the way it did.
The album sold over 1.2 million copies, unheard of at the time. And Buckner and Garcia would appear everywhere to promote it — even Solid Gold, which, at the time, was usually reserved for more popular artists. They even ended up on American Bandstand at one point, with Dick Clark giving them all the props of your usual Hall and Oates.
What gave Pac-Man Fever its authenticity was the way that the band actually incorporated video game effects into each song. Not sure how they pulled that off, but it was a neat trick. However, it created an interesting obstacle in the 90s when they were asked to re-record Pac-Man Fever for CD, since Columbia wouldn’t allow a direct release of the original album. (Why is beyond me.)
Buckner and Garcia were able to re-create all the original sound effects from each game — except MouseTrap. At the time, they simply couldn’t find another machine (this was before the days of emulation, mind you). So they ended up going to a pet store and recording actual dogs and cats. Not quite the same, mind you, but a neat little back-up plan, to say the least.
Nowadays, the album continues to live in infamy, still a fun little staple from the 80s. In fact, in select barcades across the country, you can still hear it play from time to time. But it’s kind of neat how a band came out of nowhere and scored a colossal hit with both the video game community and casual listeners, one that would be a blip on the radar back in the 80s. It’s not everyday that you can create that kind of magic, so kudos, Buckner and Garcia.
Have a good week, everyone. GO FROGGY GO!
