Doesn't Really Matter

Platinum Blonde's breakout hit

If you were a kid listening to Canadian radio in the 80s or a big fan of Much Music/Musique Plus, you know this song.

Are you sitting comfortably? Then we’ll begin.

It cut like a buzz-saw when it came out. It’s punk/rock/pop ascetic didn’t sound like anything else. It featured a spoken line before the song began, inspired by the opening to BBC Radio kids show Listen with Mother. The band’s look was incredibly distinctive, with all the band members having dyed their hair blonde. The lead singer had a British accent.

The song was inspired by the time Holmes was travelling to an airport but didn't make it because the Irish Republican Army had blown up an entrance to the highway. Most people missed that part, instead identifying with the chorus:

It doesn't really matter
I've been through this all before
It doesn't really matter to me

Produced by David Tickle, the band of Mark Holmes, Sergio Galli and Chris Steffler broke out with this song in 1983, the first single and the opening song of the album. It took the Canadian airwaves by storm and the band quickly transitioned from playing bars and schools to hockey arenas around the country. By 1984, only Rush was a bigger selling Canadian band.

Canadian iconic music video director Rob Quartly directed the video and was nominated for a 1984 Juno award for it. ¹ The video starts with Holmes sitting in an armchair in an all white room, looking at slides. It’s probably a callback to the famous Maxwell ad but it’s become an iconic moment in Canadian music video history. From there it uses the language that was common in new wave videos of the era mixed in with images from the news to give it some gravitas. It’s worth the watch.

Mark Holmes had done a Behind The Vinyl session for this song, in which he talks about how it came together.

Enjoy your song of the day!

1. He lost to himself with his video for Corey Hart’s Sunglasses at Night. He had 4 of the 5 nominations that year.