A deep dive into 1991 Pro Set SuperStars MusiCards and the music that shaped my life.
Wednesday, September 3, 2025
#109-110 Bell Biv DeVoe (+ Alice Cooper bonus)
Bell Biv DeVoe got a pair of cards here in series 1 of 1991 MusiCards, and this card has a doppelganger in the UK edition. Also worth noting this is the first act we've come to in the set that also appears in the companion product line from Pro Set: 1991 Yo! MTV Raps. The guys of BBD lead off that set (alphabetical checklist) with 4 cards despite the group being more known for their signing. One of the Yo! cards (#3) features a tighter crop of the front photo of this card. Can you identify who they're reppin' with their threads here? I spot a USC Trojans shirt. Looks like it might be a Giants or Padres cap on the right.
The back photo here gets its chance to shine as a front photo in the Yo! set (card #4).
Bell Biv DeVoe - "Poison"
"Poison" has cemented itself as an evergreen 90s reference, often showing up in movies and TV shows. I don't really know much else from them other than the naughty follow-up "Do Me" and their association with Boyz II Men. Worth mentioning that Boyz II Men don't have a MusiCard, perhaps surprisingly, with their debut Cooleyhighharmony dropping April 30, 1991, missing the cutoff for checklist consideration. You gotta assume if Pro Set greenlit a second year of MusiCards, Boyz II Men would have had a large footprint in that theoretical sophomore set.
The front picture of card #110 here was also used as the back photo of Yo! card #1, and the crouching shot on the back is also the front of Yo! card #2.
Ha, the write up on card #110 seems to be a paraphrased version of #109, both insinuating that the group had been unable to make the kind of music they had been yearning to make for an extended period of time, until finally rectifying that creative disconnect on their debut record, Poison.
Key information that could have been provided is that these young men had previously been a part of the group New Edition. I was confused back at card #85 New Edition thinking they were a rare act on the checklist to get a MusiCard despite not being an active entity (outside of the Legends/Concerts subsets). But yeah, like Brett Alan suggested in the comments of that post, turns out New Edition never officially broke up, they just sort of drifted into a hiatus in the early 90s as they found success with their endeavors outside the flagship group.
Bell Biv DeVoe has likewise never really split, but they haven't been making much new music either. The guys keep busy with New Edition reunions, and "Poison" seems to be a staple at those concerts.
'Poison' | Legacy Tour | St Louis 2023
CUSTOM CORNER
So I had all that above drafted up ready to go in early August, but things got hectic at the end of the month and I forgot and broke my streak of monthly MusiCard posts.. Dang. I'll try to double up at some point to still hit 12 posts on the year.
I guess part of the delay was that I was having trouble deciding on a custom corner act to pair with Bell Biv DeVoe. Boyz II Men would be an obvious choice, but I think I'll table them for another time. I also considered another artist with the initials "BBD", that being a modern band I like called Big Black Delta (which I'd ballpark compare to a cheekier Nine Inch Nails). But ultimately I think the common thread of a hit song titled "Poison" being released around the same time was enough to mock up a well-deserved MusiCard for Alice Cooper.
Alice Cooper's "Poison" came out in July '89, so he beat Bell Biv DeVoe to the punch, as their "Poison" didn't come out till the following March. Funny enough, a similar thing happened a couple years later when a bunch of songs titled "Creep" became popular around the same time (TLC, Radiohead, Stone Temple Pilots).
Alice Cooper - "Poison"
But yeah, this "Poison" went to #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and #2 in the UK. "School's Out" and "No More Mr. Nice Guy" are among his other best-remembered tracks today. Instead of getting into much of a bio here, I'll link to Alice Cooper's Wikipedia entry for further reading.
As an aside, if Wikipedia ever goes away, like say due to an authoritarian government working to shut it down or at least control the information given, this blog is going to be worse for it. That and YouTube, of course. Like, I'm hopeful this blog will be readable to time-killing MusiCard collectors for years into the future, with the links and videos still hopefully working for the most part. I recently got a nice email from a lady who found my blog while looking up something while putting together series 1 from packs, so that made me happy. She said it took 3 boxes to make a set and that none of the contest scratch-offs were winners. lol
Anyways, thanks a bunch for reading and please feel free to leave your thoughts on Bell Biv DeVoe and/or Alice Cooper in the comments below.
I do remember the two "Poison"s coming out back-to-back. Probably the only situation where I preferred a Bell Biv DeVoe song over an Alice Cooper song. BBV caused more than a couple eye rolls from me.
BBD seemed to exist in the time and space where I was entirely fixated (musicwise) on pop/Top40 and then Boyz II Men (B2M? I don't know the preferred abbreviation) existed when I was obsessed with whatever the new murky sounding AM radio station I listened to in my basement was playing -- as well as whatever I was getting into with people at high school. It's so weird that those peaks were just months apart, but it makes sense, too.
Not a lot to add, except that a blog I read just posted Alice Cooper's set at a rock festival in Toronto in 1969, and mentioned that in addition to playing on their own (at that time"Alice Cooper" was the name of the whole band), they also served as backing band for rockabilly legend Gene Vincent of "Be-Bop-A-Lula" fame. That's mighty cool.
I really liked New Edition, so I got sucked into buying and listening to BBD's album. It wasn't just them... I also dove into Ralph Tresvant and Johnny Gill's solo albums too. Plus there was ABC (Another Bad Creation) who was discovered by Michael Bivins. I still have at least one song from each of these artists on my classroom r&b playlist.
I am very familiar with their version of Poison and I don't know if I've ever heard Alice's. Their version gets played on Sirius 90s channel at least once a day.
I do remember the two "Poison"s coming out back-to-back. Probably the only situation where I preferred a Bell Biv DeVoe song over an Alice Cooper song. BBV caused more than a couple eye rolls from me.
ReplyDeleteBBD seemed to exist in the time and space where I was entirely fixated (musicwise) on pop/Top40 and then Boyz II Men (B2M? I don't know the preferred abbreviation) existed when I was obsessed with whatever the new murky sounding AM radio station I listened to in my basement was playing -- as well as whatever I was getting into with people at high school. It's so weird that those peaks were just months apart, but it makes sense, too.
ReplyDeleteI always thought they discovered Boyz2Men and they then were lapped by them
ReplyDeleteAlice Cooper is a fantastic live show. I think he may finally be wrapping up his touring days, so if you have a chance to catch him, don't miss it.
ReplyDeleteJT, The Writer's Journey
Hey, I made the post! Yay!
ReplyDeleteNot a lot to add, except that a blog I read just posted Alice Cooper's set at a rock festival in Toronto in 1969, and mentioned that in addition to playing on their own (at that time"Alice Cooper" was the name of the whole band), they also served as backing band for rockabilly legend Gene Vincent of "Be-Bop-A-Lula" fame. That's mighty cool.
I really liked New Edition, so I got sucked into buying and listening to BBD's album. It wasn't just them... I also dove into Ralph Tresvant and Johnny Gill's solo albums too. Plus there was ABC (Another Bad Creation) who was discovered by Michael Bivins. I still have at least one song from each of these artists on my classroom r&b playlist.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if the band Poison ever covered either of the songs "Poison"? I could totally see them doing the Alice Cooper cover...
ReplyDeleteI am very familiar with their version of Poison and I don't know if I've ever heard Alice's. Their version gets played on Sirius 90s channel at least once a day.
ReplyDelete