Love ‘Em and “Leo” Fast: Holiday Sidewinder’s Ode to the One-Night Stand

In the summer of 2018, Australian pop singer, Holiday Sidewinder released her catchy single, “Leo,” with its refrain including a synthesized rhyming roll call of lovers, everyone from Leo to Rodrigo, Marco to Diego, and a few others. The track could be seen as one woman’s reinterpretation of Prince’s “Little Red Corvette,” the tale now told listing the names of “the jockeys that were there before me,” as His Royal Badness once sang.

“Leo” is certainly intriguing, for it manages to sound like one thing, but say something completely different. Sidewinder’s vocal style suggests coy innocence, while the lyrics point to a woman who doesn’t mince words (“I’ll give you tonight, but I won’t call you tomorrow”), even brazenly forewarning: “Lock up your husbands, and lock up your sons.”

Provocative content aside, and there’s lots of it, “Leo” works on its own as a smartly constructed pop song. The first verse features a bass-synthesizer as the hero instrument, giving it all kinds of ‘80s feels, with Sidewinder’s aforementioned vocal delivery adding a dreamy effect; her character mojito-intoxicated in the nightlife. After the roll-call refrain, the rapid-fire drums give way to the carefree-sounding chorus, the morning walk of (no) shame has never sounded sunnier, thanks, in part, to more melodic vocals, reminiscent of Gwen Stefani’s. And with the start of the second verse, the bass-synthesizer gets replaced by a deep bass-guitar riff, only solidifying its ‘80s new-wave nostalgia. Take a listen, and you too might quickly love it; if not, just move on.

Pop Playlist: Sheena Easton: “For Your Eyes Only”

This theme song to the 1981 James Bond film, featured Sheena Easton on vocals and in the opening credits, the only singer to appear as part of these signature, silhouette-heavy sequences. Easton’s vocals are crisp; the song’s verses are soft and seductive, using the classic espionage phrase as a parallel to convey the love, devotion and “fantasy you freed in me/only for you.” By the chorus, Easton lets this classified secret out, only to hide in the shadows of those intentionally softer verses once again, confirming “For Your Eyes Only” as a smartly constructed track. (Other Poptimum picks from this sensational singer: “Morning Train” as sweet pop vocalist, but by mid-’80s steered toward “bad-girl” singer [“Strut”; “Sugar Walls,” written by Prince; “U Got the Look” with Prince].)