Girl groups have been around as long as there has been popular music, reaching their heydey in the '60s when acts like Martha Reeves & The Vandellas, The Ronnettes, and The Supremes were ubiquitous hitmakers. The '70s saw a decline in such musical formations, but the '80s arrived with The Go-Gos who, unlike their predecessors, wrote and performed their own material. They were followed by British trio Bananarama in 1983 who more resembled early all-female acts.

Their debut, Deep Sea Skiving, made Bananarama stars in their native UK, but they caused little more than a minor stir in the States. They did manage to garner airplay with singles like "He Was Really Saying Something" and "Shy Boy," but the group failed to find mainstream success. Like many acts before (and after) them, Bananarama finally broke through with a hit spawned by a successful movie - The Karate Kid.

The low-key film became a surprise hit in late summer of 1984 and so did Bananarama's song "Cruel Summer" which appeared on the soundtrack. The loping, wistful song was well suited to the movie's titular character and his woes as an uprooted teen in a new school. The song's lazy feel and vocal harmonies proved to be a winning combination with music fans and "Cruel Summer" broke into the US Top 40 in August.

It slowly and steadily climbed the charts, cracking the Top Ten in October. It would remain in the Top Ten for a mere two weeks, peaking at #9, but "Cruel Summer" was much of the US' introduction to Bananarama, who would become the most successful female act ever in the UK. In the States, the group would be unable to achieve the same measure of success, but they would score several more hits during the decade including a chart-topping cover of the song "Venus" in 1987.

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