Before we start, I have to say RIP Whitney Houston. Her songs may not have always been my cup of tea, but she had one of the great voices of my lifetime. I suppose one could say that they saw this coming, but that doesn't make this any less tragic. It's a huge loss to the world of music.
This week, we visit the day before Valentine's Day, 1982. I believe at the time I was waiting to find out if I was going to be accepted into a new school program. Strangely enough, that's about where I am now, 30 years later. Huh. Anyway, here's a look at what was rockin' America at the time.
40 - "One Hundred Ways," Quincy Jones featuring James Ingram
39 - "I Love Rock n' Roll," Joan Jett and the Blackhearts
38 - "Love is Like a Rock," Donnie Iris
37 - "Should I Do It," The Pointer Sisters
36 - "Bobbie Sue," The Oak Ridge Boys
35 - "When All is Said and Done," ABBA
34 - "Tonight I'm Yours (Don't Hurt Me)," Rod Stewart
33 - "Sea of Love," Del Shannon
32 - "Daddy's Home," Cliff Richard
31 - "We Got the Beat," The Go-Gos
We begin with R&B. Quincy Jones and James Ingram had their second hit collaboration with this ballad advising men to come up with many different expressions of love for their women. Very Valentine's Day. I have a memory of participating in a couples roller skate back in the day set to this song. Ah, fifth grade romance. And The Pointer Sisters are here with a retro-girl group-sounding number about being tempted to go back to an old lover who hadn't been that nice during the first go-round. Yeah, I'm sure that'll turn out well.
Two female-fronted rock bands are here. Ex-Runaway Joan Jett had her first pop hit with this eventual #1 about how love of music can lead to romance. It's pretty simple guitar rock, but it's that simplicity that has made it last. And the Go-Gos had their biggest hit with this sprightly confection about the fun of dancing and letting loose. It's not my favorite of theirs, but definitely the one that hits the most pop sweet spots.
There are four solo men in this section. Pennsylvania rocker Dominic Ierace, a former member of the groups The Jaggerz and Wild Cherry, had the second of his three pop hits on his own with this stomper about how doctors, lawyers, politicians, and other entities are less reliable than good old fashioned love. All right, but certainly no "Ah! Leah!" Rod Stewart is back, and once again looking for sex. But this time he's completely upfront that all he wants is a one-night stand, even if he feels that night might last for "24 hours or more." Rod certainly believed he had stamina. Whether he could back it up, I don't care to know. Del Shannon, born Charles Westover, is best known for his 1961 smash "Runaway." He had a run of hits that lasted until 1964, but he came back eighteen years later to score one more chart single with this pop-rock cover of Phil Phillips 1959 love ballad. Two years later, the Robert Plant-and-Jimmy Page-led group The Honeydrippers would cover this with even greater commercial success. And Cliff Richard had his last American hit with this cover of a song about coming home to a lover that had previously been a hit for both Shep and the Limelites and Jermaine Jackson. I don't think he does much with it. I prefer him in "Devil Woman" mode.
What's left are two very different groups. County vocal group The Oak Ridge Boys had their second and last pop Top 40 with this horn-flavored tune in which the protagonist and the title 18-year-old girl are so in love that they're going to elope against the wishes of her parents. The fact that these guys were in their 30s and 40s when they were singing this is a tad creepy, but I do like the bass guy's vocals. And ABBA had their last American hit with this dramatic number that deals with the divorce of group members Bjorn Ulvaeus and Agnetha Faltskog. It's very raw, and contains lines about how the two of them are "slightly worn and dignified, and not too old for sex." I had to check to make sure that was the actual lyric, and yes, it is. Didn't expect that from ABBA. But I like it. A very good swan song.
30 - "All Our Tomorrows," Eddie Schwartz
29 - "Working for the Weekend," Loverboy
28 - "Abacab," Genesis
27 - "Let's Groove," Earth, Wind and Fire
26 - "Key Largo," Bertie Higgins
25 - "Spirits in the Material World," The Police
24 - "Pac-Man Fever," Buckner and Garcia
23 - "Somewhere Down the Road," Barry Manilow
22 - "That Girl," Stevie Wonder
21 - "Love in the First Degree," Alabama
This section kicks off with two Canadian acts. Toronto's Eddie Schwartz first tasted success writing Pat Benatar's hit "Hit Me With Your Best Shot," and he would go on to produce and write for many major artists, but his only major success as a performer came with this midtempo soul-rocker about living for the now. And usually, when a song has that attitude, sex is involved. This is no exception, unless I'm misinterpreting lines like "make our own brand of delight" and "take all the comforts we may." And Vancouver's Loverboy had their most enduring hit with this dumb-fun rocker about the pleasures of Saturdays and Sundays. It's just pure silly joy.
Two British bands are here. Genesis had another of their earliest hits with this song that seems to be about paranoia that turns out to be warranted when one wakes up to find himself "covered in cellophane." Interesting. Oh, and the title comes from the way the band originally labelled the song's structure with letters. Less interesting. And the Police picked up their fourth American hit with this song about how our existences aren't very well served by earthly entities. As a kid, I thought it was cool that they could get on the radio with songs that used 50-cent words like "subjugate" and "rhetoric." Yes, I was an easily-impressed child.
Three very different American groups are in this bunch. Earth, Wind and Fire had their last Top Ten pop hit with this tight bit of dance-funk. It does indeed "glide like a 747." Behind only "September" on my list. Akron, Ohio duo Jerry Buckner and Gary Garcia cracked the Top Ten with this novelty rocker about a man obsessed with the then-huge arcade video game about a circle who eats dots while being chased by ghosts. Yes, it was a simpler time. What's great about this song is how detailed it is about the action of the game. And using actual sounds from it didn't hurt either. I can see why Homer Simpson was disappointed when The Who told him that they didn't know this song. Obviously, this is this week's Uneasy Rider. The group tried following it up with other video game songs like "Do the Donkey Kong," and "Goin' Berzerk," but they could not repeat that success. I wonder if they've ever thought of making a comeback by doing songs about Call of Duty and Grand Theft Auto. And country-pop megagroup Alabama had their biggest pop hit with this midtempo ballad comparing finding lasting love to committing a crime. Interesting metaphor. But it can't be denied that the singer had an awesome beard.
We'll finish with solo men. Florida singer Elbert Joseph Higgins had his only Top 40 hit with this ballad about cuddling up with a loved one and watching old Humphrey Bogart movies. That sounds much more enjoyable than listening to this blandstorm. Barry Mailow had one of his last hits with this ballad about hoping that a past lover will come back to him one day. It kind of blends in with many of his other hits. Nothing really distinct about it. And Stevie Wonder is here with a song about a woman who thinks she's all that, because she actually is. Stevie says his "mind, soul and body need her." Oh, is that all.
Tomorrow: Nudity!
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