Expert: Bong Santos - 7/11/2006

Question
There was a song in the 80s or early 90s that used to be on the music video tv staion rage and used to be on the radio all of the time but I only know the how the chorus goes and it goes like this I think   YOU WERE PLAYING THE PART FOR THE ULTIMATE PRIZE AND I WAS SPELLBOUND BY MISS DEVINE AND YOU GAVE IT AWAY AND YOU GAVE IT AWAY YOU GAVE IT AWAY

Answer
Dear Ricky,

Nice clue! I didn't have a hard time figuring out the song. Unmistakably, it is MISS DIVINE by the Australian group ICEHOUSE. Though it has had varying personnel, ICEHOUSE is essentialy a vehicle for the work of IVA DAVIES (born IVOR ARTHUR DAVIES on May 22, 1955 in New South Wales, Australia). DAVIES formed the first version of the band with bass player KEITH WELSH under the name FLOWERS in 1980. Their debut album is called ICEHOUSE initially released in 1980 in Australia as FLOWERS.  It was re-released in the U.S. in 1981 as an album by ICEHOUSE. It generated the hit WE CAN GET TOGETHER (Hot 100, #62, 1980). The group changed its name to ICEHOUSE to avoid conflicts with another band already called...THE FLOWERS. We best remember the band from their 1987 release MAN OF COLOURS which generated three Hot 100 hits, CRAZY (#14, January 23, 1988), ELECTRIC BLUE (written by IVA DAVIES with HALL & OATES' JOHN OATES, #7, May 21, 1988) and MY OBSESSION (#88, July 16, 1988). They had two more hits, NO PROMISES (from the album MEASURE FOR MEASURE, Hot 100, #79, August 9, 1986) and TOUCH THE FIRE (from the album GREAT SOUTHERN LAND, Hot 100, #86, October 21, 1989). MISS DIVINE which did not made the U.S. charts is from the 1992 album CODE BLUE.

Here is its lyrics:

MISS DIVINE / ICEHOUSE

Hey yeah
Hey yeah
I was spellbound by Miss Divine

Hey yeah
Hey yeah
I was spellbound by Miss Divine

You were always the one who would dance
on a sheet of thin ice
Always one step ahead
Always holding the winning ace
Thinking no-one could reach you
Way up in the sky,
you just looked out of place

You were playing the part
in the perfect disguise
And I was spellbound by Miss Divine
You were planning the crime
for the ultimate prize
And I was spellbound by Miss Divine
When you spoke like a poet
you were reading the lines
And I was spellbound by Miss Divine
I believed every word
of a pack of lies
I was spellbound by Miss Divine

You were always the one
who would lead in the big town parade
With the jokers and clowns
as they followed your masquerade
Thinking no-one could reach you
Way up on the wire,
you just made one mistake

You were fixing your gaze
on a new sacrifice
And I was spellbound by Miss Divine
And you looked so detached
as you twisted the knife
And I was spellbound by Miss Divine
And you questioned your conscience
by throwing the dice
And I was spellbound by Miss Divine
And you gave it away
and you never thought twice
And I was spellbound by Miss Divine
And you gave it away
You gave it away
You gave it away
You gave it away
You gave it away

You were playing the part
in the perfect disguise
You were planning the crime
for the ultimate prize
When you spoke like a poet
you were reading the lines
And I believed every word
of a pack of lies
Hey yeah
Hey yeah
I was spellbound by Miss Divine
Hey yeah
Hey yeah
I was spellbound by Miss Divine

You were fixing your gaze
on a new sacrifice
And you looked so detached
as you twisted the knife
And you questioned your conscience
by throwing the dice
You gave it away
Yeah, you gave it away
Hey yeah
Hey yeah
I was spellbound by Miss Divine

I was tongue-tied, tantalized, mystified
I was so surprised
I was compromised
And you know you gave it away
And you know you gave it away
And you know you gave it away
Hey yeah
Hey yeah
I was spellbound by Miss Divine
Hey yeah
Hey yeah
I was spellbound by Miss Divine

Maraming salamat po!

BONG M. SANTOS
Manila, Philippines