This week we go back to the end of the fourth month of the decade. During the week that led up to the airing of this countdown, Rosie Ruiz cheated to win the Boston Marathon, and three men rigged the Pennsylvania Lottery. Amid all the chicanery, these songs played in the background:
40 - "The Seduction," James Last
39 - "The Rose," Bette Midler
38 - "Train in Vain," The Clash
37 - "Only a Lonely Heart Sees," Felix Cavaliere
36 - "Set Me Free," Utopia
35 - "The Second Time Around," Shalamar
34 - "Him," Rupert Holmes
33 - "Heart Hotels," Dan Fogelberg
32 - "Fire in the Morning," Melissa Manchester
31 - "Do Right," Paul Davis
The first two spots on the countdown are occupied by songs from movies. German James Last, a composer and bandleader who has had massive success in Europe, primarily through big-band style covers of pop hits, is here performing the Giorgio Moroder-penned love theme from the Richard Gere film American Gigolo. Basically, it's an instrumental featuring piano and Moroder's trademark synths. I wasn't seduced in the slightest. And Bette Midler had her biggest hit to date with the title song from a movie in which she plays a singer loosely based on Janis Joplin. It's a big, beautiful ballad about frustration and hope. I think it's gotten a bit of a cheesy rep over the years, but I still like it. I can't imagine Janis singing it, though
Then we have three groups. British punk pioneers The Clash made their U.S. Top 40 debut with a song that was added so late to the London Calling album that it wasn't even listed on the LP sleeve. It's a rolling funk-rocker about a relationship that's falling apart. Just plain good. Utopia, the band fronted by musician and producer Todd Rundgren, hat their only pop hit with this catchy little popper about wanting to be let out. I'd forgotten about this one, and I was very happy to be reminded of it. I can always use more Rundgren in my life. And Shalamar return from last time with this springy bit of disco funk about taking advantage of another chance at love. I must admit I liked it better the sec...no, I won't say it. But it's true.
What's left over is a big whack of MOR. Felix Cavaliere, a former member of 60s hitmakers The Rascals, had his only solo hit with this blandwich about loneliness and stuff. I'd much rather hear "A Beautiful Morning" or "Groovin'." Rupert Holmes is back from two months ago with his forgettable song about being cheated on. Dan Fogelberg had another of his hits with this ballad that compares love to a Hilton or a Ramada. It's kind of silly, but I like that. Melissa Manchester picked up her first hit of this decade with this song about how she and her old lover would begin marathon sex sessions in the early dawn hours. I wonder if Melissa "cried out loud" during these, heh heh. And Mr. Excitement, Paul Davis, is here with a song that's just as boring as his other stuff until you realize that it has an overtly Christian theme, with lines about how "He gave his life for me," and "He'll be your guiding light." Kinda sneaky, Paulie boy. But I admire that.
30 - "How Do I Make You," Linda Ronstadt
29 - "Funkytown," Lipps Inc.
28 - "And the Beat Goes On," The Whispers
27 - "Crazy Little Thing Called Love," Queen
26 - "Breakdown Dead Ahead," Boz Scaggs
25 - "Brass in Pocket," The Pretenders
24 - "Stonp," The Brothers Johnson
23 - "Any Way You Want It," Journey
22 - "Cars," Gary Numan
21 - "I Can't Help It," Andy Gibb and Olivia Newton-John
We begin this section with two female-fronted rock tunes. Linda Ronstadt is back from last time, wondering how to get you to dream about her. I think dumping Jerry Brown would have helped at the time. Who wants to have him showing up in your nocturnal reveries? And Akron, Ohio's Chrissie Hynde and the band she formed when she moved to England had their first U.S. hit with this swaggering slow-burner about the desire to be noticed. "I'm special," Hynde sneers. "I gotta have some of your attention. Give it to me!" This might not have worked for most people, but Chrissie was, and is, special, and her demand for attention was enthusiastically met. There really is nobody else here like her.
Next we have two electronically-enhanced dancefloor classics. Lipps Inc., a group that was mainly driven by Minneapolis writer-producer Steven Greenberg, had their first and only pop hit with this jittery electrodisco number that would top the charts for four weeks. I have no idea where Funkytown is, but yes, this song makes me want to go there. And Englishman Gary Webb became a huge star in Britain in the late 1970s, first with the band Tubeway Army and then as Gary Numan. But his only impact in America was made with this synth-heavy earworm in which Numan robotically intones lyrics about being in an automobile. The first two verses are about how comfortable and safe he feels in his car, but the last two have him longing for company and contemplating getting out. Very odd all around, and you know what that means. Yes, "Cars" takes this week's Uneasy Rider.
Two soul groups are in this bunch. L.A. vocal group the Whispers, after a decade of R&B hits, cracked the pop Top 40 for the first time with this insistent groover about keepin' on keepin' on. Will Smith would later sample this for his hit "Miami." The original is way better. And George and Louis Johnson had their third and final pop Top Ten with this very good disco-funker about going out and dancing. Definitely my favorite of theirs.
There are also a pair of rock bands. Queen return from last time with their retro-rock raveup about romantic insanity. And Journey scored their second pop hit with this blast of big dumb wonderfulness that helped Monty Burns' son Larry start a spontaneous party in downtown Springfield. Arguably Journey's finest moment. It's simple, it's loud, it's fun.
I'll close my look at the first half with a solo man and a male-female duet. Boz Scaggs is her with a rockin' warning of imiminent relationship danger. Not quite in the league of "Lido Shuffle" or "Lowdown," but still, a nice little addition to his catalogue. And the youngest Gibb brother teamed up with ONJ for this pretty but insignificant ballad. There just wasn't a lot of chemistry between them. It was less than the sum ot its parts.
Tomorrow: radio infatuation, displays of insanity, and an invitation that only a fool would decline.
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Monday, April 23, 2012
April 24, 1982 Part Two
Nothing new on the 70s front this week, so it's straight back into '82.
20 - " I've Never Been to Me," Charlene
19 - "Goin' Down," Greg Guidry
18 - "Nobody Said it Was Easy," Le Roux
17 - "The Beatles Movie Medley," The Beatles
16 - "Find Another Fool," Quarterflash
We begin with Charlene Marilynn D'Angelo, a white singer who had signed to Motown in 1973 but was dropped after a couple unsuccessful albums. By 1982, she had moved to London and was working in a candy store when a Florida DJ began playing one of her old singles, a 1976 recording that hit #97 on the charts, and that provoked a re-release that reached #3. In this overwrought ballad, Charlene counsels a discontented wife and mother who wishes she'd explored the world before settling down. Charlene (or at least the character she plays in the song) proceeds to tell the woman that she herself had lived that kind of wild, adventurous life (which included drinking on yachts, gambling in Monte Carlo, and being "undressed by kings.), and that it has left her alone and unfulfilled. She then spells out in a breathless spoken-word passage that it is really the wife and mother who has the ideal life. The whole thing is quite odd: regressive sexual politics sung in a sultry, come-hither coo. It's a regular on "worst songs of all time" lists, and this week, it joins another excluive club: the Uneasy Riders.
St. Louis native Greg Guidry played in a band with future Doobie Brother Michael McDonald, and it shows on his only hit, a slick bit of soulless soul about love and stuff. I don't remember this, and I definitely wasn't poorer without that memory.
Next is the only pop hit by Baton Rouge, Louisiana's Le Roux, a band named after an ingredient in gumbo. This song is a soft-rock ballad about fame not being all it's cracked up to be. Nothing much. I was hoping for something much more interesting.
Then it's a pasted-together medley of seven songs from Beatles movies: "Magical Mystery Tour," "All You Need is Love," "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away," "I Should've Known Better, "A Hard Day's Night," "Ticket to Ride," and "Get Back." No real art to it, just pieces of classic hits ran back to back to cash in on the medley trend started by Stars on 45. Capitalism (or "Capitolism," given the record label responsible) at its finest.
Rounding out this section is the second hit from Portland, Oregon's Quarterflash. It's a Benataresque hard rocker about giving up on Mr. Wrong. Probably not as good as "Harden My Heart," but a solid follow-up. Rindy Ross was a pretty decent rock singer.
15 - "Get Down on It," Kool and the Gang
14 - "Did it in a Minute," Daryl Hall and John Oates
13 - "Make a Move on Me, " Olivia Newton-John
12 - "(Oh) Pretty Woman," Van Halen
11 - "Edge of Seventeen (Just Like the White-Winged Dove)," Stevie Nicks
This section is led off by yet another Kool and the Gang 80s hit. This is a song that finds a nice happy medium between the harder funk of their early hits and the later, poppier stuff. For it, I will get my back up off the wall.
Next is another hit by the H&O boys. It's their typical pop-rock that seems to be about how love can strike quickly and unexpectedly, and not about being, heh heh, quick on the draw, wink wink, nudge nudge, say no more. Not one of their better ones.
Olivia Newton-John followed up her huge success with "Physical" by continuing in that sexed-up vein, requesting that her beau "spare me all your charms and take me in your arms." Not one of my ONJ faves, but I have to say, I like it better than "Physical." It just seems less contrived.
Then it's Van Halen with their biggest hit to that point, a cover of Roy Orbison's 1964 signature hit. The harder rock arrangement and David Lee Roth's growling vocal make it a worthwhile endeavor. And apparently, none other than Kool and the Gang are opening for them on their current tour. There's a bill I never thought I'd see.
Finishing off this fivesome is Stevie Nicks with her first true solo hit, a chugging rocker that's about love or lust or loss or getting older. I can't really tell. Oh well, we all know it's that guitar riff that sells it, which is of course why Destiny's Child borrowed it for their hit "Bootylicious." No, Beyonce, I'm still not ready for that jelly.
Please remove your caps as we present the Top Ten.
10 - "867-5309/Jenny," Tommy Tutone
These Califorina power-poppers had their second and biggest Top 40 hit with this ode to the custom of writing "For a good time, call..." on various walls, a practice that I'm sure began not long after Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone. The singer of this song seems to think that calling the titular girl at the titular number will lead to some sort of lasting relationship. As I understand it, that's not usually how it works. Of course, this song led to many people dialing 867-5309 and asking for Jenny, causing much annoyance for those who had that number. Of course, nowadays you have to dial the area code first, even if it's a local call. Maybe that's why there aren't any songs like this these days.
9 - "'65 Love Affair," Paul Davis
This maestro of musical boredom had his highest-charting hit by applying his blandness to a tale of high school romance in the middle sixties. And no, I don't accept "dum-dum" as rhyming with "pom-poms." It's just terrible all around.
8 - "Key Largo," Bertie Higgins
Bogie and Bacall were never this boring. Bertie doesn't have to put his lips together to blow. This song blows plenty.
7 - "Do You Believe in Love," Huey Lewis and the News
Huey and his boys had their first hit with a lyrically altered version of a 1979 song by a British group called Supercharge, written by future superproducer and ex Mr. Shania Twain "Mutt" Lange. It's a somewhat catchy pop-rocker about finding romance. They would have much better stuff later.
6 - "Ebony and Ivory," Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder
The ex-Beatle teamed up with the Motown legend to asked why the races can't coexist as harmoniously as the black and white keys on a piano do. More of a PSA set to music than a song, but not bad. And it did inspire Eddie Murphy to team up with a young Joe Piscopo as Wonder and Frank Sinarta for a Saturday Night Live sketch in which they perform a song with lyrics like "You are black and I am white/Life's an Eskimo Pie, let's take a bite." I enjoyed that very much.
5 - "Don't Talk to Strangers," Rick Springfield
The Aussie rocker/soap star scored his second-biggest American hit with this rock tune in which he offers the advice parents have been giving to children for decades. But he's telling this not to a child, but his girlfriend. And this counsel seems to go double for men who speak French. Oh, Rick, no wonder you couldn't get Jessie's girl. You're just too damn possessive.
4 - "Freeze-Frame," The J. Geils Band
The Boston party rockers followed up the #1 smash "Centerfold," with another song that desccribes a love affair with a lot of photography terms, throwing out terms like "test-strip," "zoom lens," and "darkroom." It doesn't make a lot of sense, but it was catchy enough to become their second and final Top Ten. It's okay.
3 - "Chariots of Fire," Vangelis
Greek keyboardist and composer Evangelos Odysseas Papathanassiou has written and performed a great deal of music over his career, but he remains best known for this, the main theme from the Oscar-winning film about British runners competing in the 1924 Olympics. I'm sure for most people, this conjures up images of men running on a beach. For me, however, it brings back memories of Daryl Hall and John Oates competing in an egg-and-spoon race against Andrea Martin and Catherine O'Hara.
2 - "We Got the Beat," The Go-Gos
They most certainly did. Again, I like "Head Over Heels" better, but I'd never turn this off in the middle. Good good good.
And occupying the top spot on the music rankings 30 years ago was...
1 - "I Love Rock n' Roll," Joan Jett and the Blackhearts
The pioneering rock goddess and her band were in their sixth of seven weeks atop the pops with this immortal ode to jukebox-borne romance that was originally written and performed in 1975 by the British band Arrows. Solid, glam-tinged rock and roll wonderfulness.
This week's NotCaseys were "Tainted Love/Where Did Our Love Go" by Soft Cell, "Only the Lonely" by The Motels, "Heat of the Moment" by Asia, and "Hurts So Good," by John Cougar. The show opened with the previous week's Top 3 (same songs, same order), and Casey also played two extras of his own, Sister Sledge's "We Are Family" (accompanied by the story of how the World Series-winning 1979 Pittsburgh Pirates adopted it as their theme song), and Jimmy Buffett's "Margaritaville" (because it was Jimmy's biggest hit, and Casey thought that was important that week for some reason. And there were two LDDs. First, a young man dedicated The Beatles' "In My Life," to the people of Oxford, Mississippi, who he missed greatly after having moved to Mobile, Alabama. And later, a woman dedicated "Reunited" by Peaches and Herb to the man she fell in love with when both were in the Army, and with whom she recently reconnected.
And now I return you to the present. But I'll be picking you up again for another time trip soon.
20 - " I've Never Been to Me," Charlene
19 - "Goin' Down," Greg Guidry
18 - "Nobody Said it Was Easy," Le Roux
17 - "The Beatles Movie Medley," The Beatles
16 - "Find Another Fool," Quarterflash
We begin with Charlene Marilynn D'Angelo, a white singer who had signed to Motown in 1973 but was dropped after a couple unsuccessful albums. By 1982, she had moved to London and was working in a candy store when a Florida DJ began playing one of her old singles, a 1976 recording that hit #97 on the charts, and that provoked a re-release that reached #3. In this overwrought ballad, Charlene counsels a discontented wife and mother who wishes she'd explored the world before settling down. Charlene (or at least the character she plays in the song) proceeds to tell the woman that she herself had lived that kind of wild, adventurous life (which included drinking on yachts, gambling in Monte Carlo, and being "undressed by kings.), and that it has left her alone and unfulfilled. She then spells out in a breathless spoken-word passage that it is really the wife and mother who has the ideal life. The whole thing is quite odd: regressive sexual politics sung in a sultry, come-hither coo. It's a regular on "worst songs of all time" lists, and this week, it joins another excluive club: the Uneasy Riders.
St. Louis native Greg Guidry played in a band with future Doobie Brother Michael McDonald, and it shows on his only hit, a slick bit of soulless soul about love and stuff. I don't remember this, and I definitely wasn't poorer without that memory.
Next is the only pop hit by Baton Rouge, Louisiana's Le Roux, a band named after an ingredient in gumbo. This song is a soft-rock ballad about fame not being all it's cracked up to be. Nothing much. I was hoping for something much more interesting.
Then it's a pasted-together medley of seven songs from Beatles movies: "Magical Mystery Tour," "All You Need is Love," "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away," "I Should've Known Better, "A Hard Day's Night," "Ticket to Ride," and "Get Back." No real art to it, just pieces of classic hits ran back to back to cash in on the medley trend started by Stars on 45. Capitalism (or "Capitolism," given the record label responsible) at its finest.
Rounding out this section is the second hit from Portland, Oregon's Quarterflash. It's a Benataresque hard rocker about giving up on Mr. Wrong. Probably not as good as "Harden My Heart," but a solid follow-up. Rindy Ross was a pretty decent rock singer.
15 - "Get Down on It," Kool and the Gang
14 - "Did it in a Minute," Daryl Hall and John Oates
13 - "Make a Move on Me, " Olivia Newton-John
12 - "(Oh) Pretty Woman," Van Halen
11 - "Edge of Seventeen (Just Like the White-Winged Dove)," Stevie Nicks
This section is led off by yet another Kool and the Gang 80s hit. This is a song that finds a nice happy medium between the harder funk of their early hits and the later, poppier stuff. For it, I will get my back up off the wall.
Next is another hit by the H&O boys. It's their typical pop-rock that seems to be about how love can strike quickly and unexpectedly, and not about being, heh heh, quick on the draw, wink wink, nudge nudge, say no more. Not one of their better ones.
Olivia Newton-John followed up her huge success with "Physical" by continuing in that sexed-up vein, requesting that her beau "spare me all your charms and take me in your arms." Not one of my ONJ faves, but I have to say, I like it better than "Physical." It just seems less contrived.
Then it's Van Halen with their biggest hit to that point, a cover of Roy Orbison's 1964 signature hit. The harder rock arrangement and David Lee Roth's growling vocal make it a worthwhile endeavor. And apparently, none other than Kool and the Gang are opening for them on their current tour. There's a bill I never thought I'd see.
Finishing off this fivesome is Stevie Nicks with her first true solo hit, a chugging rocker that's about love or lust or loss or getting older. I can't really tell. Oh well, we all know it's that guitar riff that sells it, which is of course why Destiny's Child borrowed it for their hit "Bootylicious." No, Beyonce, I'm still not ready for that jelly.
Please remove your caps as we present the Top Ten.
10 - "867-5309/Jenny," Tommy Tutone
These Califorina power-poppers had their second and biggest Top 40 hit with this ode to the custom of writing "For a good time, call..." on various walls, a practice that I'm sure began not long after Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone. The singer of this song seems to think that calling the titular girl at the titular number will lead to some sort of lasting relationship. As I understand it, that's not usually how it works. Of course, this song led to many people dialing 867-5309 and asking for Jenny, causing much annoyance for those who had that number. Of course, nowadays you have to dial the area code first, even if it's a local call. Maybe that's why there aren't any songs like this these days.
9 - "'65 Love Affair," Paul Davis
This maestro of musical boredom had his highest-charting hit by applying his blandness to a tale of high school romance in the middle sixties. And no, I don't accept "dum-dum" as rhyming with "pom-poms." It's just terrible all around.
8 - "Key Largo," Bertie Higgins
Bogie and Bacall were never this boring. Bertie doesn't have to put his lips together to blow. This song blows plenty.
7 - "Do You Believe in Love," Huey Lewis and the News
Huey and his boys had their first hit with a lyrically altered version of a 1979 song by a British group called Supercharge, written by future superproducer and ex Mr. Shania Twain "Mutt" Lange. It's a somewhat catchy pop-rocker about finding romance. They would have much better stuff later.
6 - "Ebony and Ivory," Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder
The ex-Beatle teamed up with the Motown legend to asked why the races can't coexist as harmoniously as the black and white keys on a piano do. More of a PSA set to music than a song, but not bad. And it did inspire Eddie Murphy to team up with a young Joe Piscopo as Wonder and Frank Sinarta for a Saturday Night Live sketch in which they perform a song with lyrics like "You are black and I am white/Life's an Eskimo Pie, let's take a bite." I enjoyed that very much.
5 - "Don't Talk to Strangers," Rick Springfield
The Aussie rocker/soap star scored his second-biggest American hit with this rock tune in which he offers the advice parents have been giving to children for decades. But he's telling this not to a child, but his girlfriend. And this counsel seems to go double for men who speak French. Oh, Rick, no wonder you couldn't get Jessie's girl. You're just too damn possessive.
4 - "Freeze-Frame," The J. Geils Band
The Boston party rockers followed up the #1 smash "Centerfold," with another song that desccribes a love affair with a lot of photography terms, throwing out terms like "test-strip," "zoom lens," and "darkroom." It doesn't make a lot of sense, but it was catchy enough to become their second and final Top Ten. It's okay.
3 - "Chariots of Fire," Vangelis
Greek keyboardist and composer Evangelos Odysseas Papathanassiou has written and performed a great deal of music over his career, but he remains best known for this, the main theme from the Oscar-winning film about British runners competing in the 1924 Olympics. I'm sure for most people, this conjures up images of men running on a beach. For me, however, it brings back memories of Daryl Hall and John Oates competing in an egg-and-spoon race against Andrea Martin and Catherine O'Hara.
2 - "We Got the Beat," The Go-Gos
They most certainly did. Again, I like "Head Over Heels" better, but I'd never turn this off in the middle. Good good good.
And occupying the top spot on the music rankings 30 years ago was...
1 - "I Love Rock n' Roll," Joan Jett and the Blackhearts
The pioneering rock goddess and her band were in their sixth of seven weeks atop the pops with this immortal ode to jukebox-borne romance that was originally written and performed in 1975 by the British band Arrows. Solid, glam-tinged rock and roll wonderfulness.
This week's NotCaseys were "Tainted Love/Where Did Our Love Go" by Soft Cell, "Only the Lonely" by The Motels, "Heat of the Moment" by Asia, and "Hurts So Good," by John Cougar. The show opened with the previous week's Top 3 (same songs, same order), and Casey also played two extras of his own, Sister Sledge's "We Are Family" (accompanied by the story of how the World Series-winning 1979 Pittsburgh Pirates adopted it as their theme song), and Jimmy Buffett's "Margaritaville" (because it was Jimmy's biggest hit, and Casey thought that was important that week for some reason. And there were two LDDs. First, a young man dedicated The Beatles' "In My Life," to the people of Oxford, Mississippi, who he missed greatly after having moved to Mobile, Alabama. And later, a woman dedicated "Reunited" by Peaches and Herb to the man she fell in love with when both were in the Army, and with whom she recently reconnected.
And now I return you to the present. But I'll be picking you up again for another time trip soon.
Sunday, April 22, 2012
April 24, 1982 Part One
This week marks the thirtieth anniversary of Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Though that probably isn't important to you if you're not from Canada. Or even if you're that country's Prime Minister. But I'm mentioning it because this week's chart is from that very year, 1982. So while we were patriating our Constitution, let's see what our Southern neighbours were rocking out to.
40 - "If I Had My Wish Tonight," David Lasley
39 - "Shanghai Breezes," John Denver
38 - "Run for the Roses," Dan Fogelberg
37 - "Let's Hang On," Barry Manilow
36 - "Making Love," Roberta Flack .
35 - "Pac-Man Fever," Buckner and Garcia
34 - "One Hundred Ways," Quincy Jones with James Ingram
33 - "Still in Saigon," The Charlie Daniels Band
32 - "Stars on 45 III: A Tribute to Stevie Wonder," Stars On
31 - "Genius of Love," The Tom Tom Club
We begin with a concentrated burst of male solo MOR in positions 40-37. David Lasley is a songrwriter and session singer with a list of credits several miles long, but his only moment in the spotlight came with this ballad about hoping for love. It isn't much, and Lasley's voice comes off as a cross between Barry Gibb and Kenny Loggins. He was better off in the background. John Denver had his last Top 40 hit with this song about how the wind reminds him of his lover half a world away. Actually, it's pretty good, and probably would have been a much bigger hit had it come out seven or eight years earlier. Though I'm not sure what he was doing in China. Could he have been personally apologizing for the way things are there? Hmmm. Dan Fogelberg is here with his painfully earnest tribute to the horses who grow up to run in the Kentucky Derby. Not a big fan of the song, but I watch the race every year. It really is the most exciting two minutes in sports. And Barry Manilow scored one of his last few hits with this okay but completely unnecessary cover of a 1965 Four Seasons hit. Surely there were better ways for Barry to spend his recording budget.
Next we have a couple slices of lite R&B. Roberta Flack had her last solo Top 40 hit with this ballad about how love can exist without sex. Appropriately, it was the theme song to a movie about a woman who marries a man who comes to realize that he's gay. Kate Jackson was in it, as was the guy who played Ned in Slap Shot. Beyond that, I don't know much about it. And Quincy and James are back from last time with their mushy romantic counsel. Slick, but lacking.
Then we have a couple of variations of rock. Buckner and Garcia return from our last visit with their hit about video gamedom's preemininent dot-chomper. The novelty wears off with every listen. And Charlie Daniels and company had their last pop hit with this tune about the trauma suffered by a Vietnam veteran years after returning home. An affecting song, but I did find it strange how the opening guitar line reminded me of Blondie's "Call Me." Somehow, I doubt that was intentional.
We close this section with a couple of dance tunes. The Dutch group that had topped the U.S. chart a year earlier with a medley of (mostly) Beatles covers had their second and last American hit by giving the same treatment to one of Motown's biggest stars. The soundalike they hired isn't bad, and I always enjoy hearing classics like "Master Blaster," "I Wish," "Superstition," and the eight others featured here. But the medley doesn't really flow together the way the first one did. And Tom Tom Club, a group formed by the Talking Heads' husband-and-wife rhythm section of Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz, had their only pop hit with this rubbery strut about a very good lover. And also about the power of music ("James Brown!") It didn't get any higher than this, but it has endured as a classic, and has been sampled numerous times. An absolute member of my Top 100 of the decade.
30 - "Mama Used to Say," Junior
29 - "Theme from Magnum, P.I.," Mike Post
28 - "Empty Garden (Hey Hey Johnny)," Elton John
27 - "Don't You Want Me," The Human League
26 - "That Girl," Stevie Wonder
25 - "Baby Makes Her Blue Jeans Talk," Dr. Hook
24 - "Hang Fire," The Rolling Stones
23 - "Open Arms," Journey
22 - "The Other Woman," Ray Parker, Jr.
21 - "Always on My Mind," Willie Nelson
We begin with some male solo R&B. Brit Norman Giscombe, billed simply as Junior, had what would be his only American pop hit with this sprightly pop-funk variation on the theme explored by "Que Sera Sera." Nothing spectacular, but I like the way he sings the word "Mama" in the choruses. Stevie Wonder returns from last time with his hit about a really hot lady that he likes a lot. It's better than I remember. And Ray Parker, Jr. had his first Raydio-free hit with a rock-tinged tune about cheating. Was this admission of his penchant for doing untetthical things a foreshadowing of what he'd do to Huey Lewis a couple years later? No. It'd be convenient, but no.
Three other solo men are here. TV theme king Mike Post is here with his opening music for the hit Hawaiian-set Tom Selleck vehicle. Never really watched it, so the song doesn't really stir any memories in me. What I will say is I like the more urgent guitar parts much better than the rest of it. Elton John's hit at this time was a tribute ballad to his late friend John Lennon. It's very heartfelt, and the metaphor of a garden left to die because its tender isn't coming back is very effective. I can see why Elton finds it too painful to play live very often. And Willie Nelson had his biggest hit with this version of a song about romantic regret that had already been recorded numerous times since it was written in 1972, most notably by Elvis. I'd have to say I prefer the one the Pet Shop Boys did six years after this, but there's nothing at all wrong with what Willie does with it. It's a very commercial arrangement, but the heart and sincerity of his singing shines through.
Then there are a couple of dance numbers. English synth-poppers The Human League had their first American hit with this memorable #1. In the first verse, Philip Oakey plays the role of an impresario who discovers a woman "working as a waitress in a cocktail bar," makes her a star, and falls in love with her. But now he learns she wants to leave him, and he ominously warns that if she does, he could destroy her career. In the second verse, Susan Sulley plays the waitress-turned-celebrity, who defiantly declares that she could have made it on her own, and then says that even though she had a good time with the Oakey character and still has feelings for him, she needs to go out on her own. A fun litlle mini-melodrama, catchily delivered. And Dr. Hook had their last hit with this still-sounds-like-disco-to-me number about a woman who performs a seemingly impossible feat with her dungarees. Somehow, I don't think they mean that her pants actually speak words. It's probably some sort of reference to her ass. But it'd be pretty cool if they meant it literally. I'd strike up a conversation with a pair of Levis. Wouldn't you?
We close the first half with a couple of rock bands. The Stones are here with a strutting rocker about being unemployed and uninterested. Apparently, this was a commentary on the economic decline of Britain during this time, which caused many people to lose hope and give up. Maybe not as biting as earlier socially-aware tracks like "Mother's Little Helper" and "Street Fighting Man," but still pretty solid. And Journey return from last time, ready to embrace. No thanks, guys.
Tomorrow: a woman who's been around, two guys who act fast, and finding love through graffiti.
40 - "If I Had My Wish Tonight," David Lasley
39 - "Shanghai Breezes," John Denver
38 - "Run for the Roses," Dan Fogelberg
37 - "Let's Hang On," Barry Manilow
36 - "Making Love," Roberta Flack .
35 - "Pac-Man Fever," Buckner and Garcia
34 - "One Hundred Ways," Quincy Jones with James Ingram
33 - "Still in Saigon," The Charlie Daniels Band
32 - "Stars on 45 III: A Tribute to Stevie Wonder," Stars On
31 - "Genius of Love," The Tom Tom Club
We begin with a concentrated burst of male solo MOR in positions 40-37. David Lasley is a songrwriter and session singer with a list of credits several miles long, but his only moment in the spotlight came with this ballad about hoping for love. It isn't much, and Lasley's voice comes off as a cross between Barry Gibb and Kenny Loggins. He was better off in the background. John Denver had his last Top 40 hit with this song about how the wind reminds him of his lover half a world away. Actually, it's pretty good, and probably would have been a much bigger hit had it come out seven or eight years earlier. Though I'm not sure what he was doing in China. Could he have been personally apologizing for the way things are there? Hmmm. Dan Fogelberg is here with his painfully earnest tribute to the horses who grow up to run in the Kentucky Derby. Not a big fan of the song, but I watch the race every year. It really is the most exciting two minutes in sports. And Barry Manilow scored one of his last few hits with this okay but completely unnecessary cover of a 1965 Four Seasons hit. Surely there were better ways for Barry to spend his recording budget.
Next we have a couple slices of lite R&B. Roberta Flack had her last solo Top 40 hit with this ballad about how love can exist without sex. Appropriately, it was the theme song to a movie about a woman who marries a man who comes to realize that he's gay. Kate Jackson was in it, as was the guy who played Ned in Slap Shot. Beyond that, I don't know much about it. And Quincy and James are back from last time with their mushy romantic counsel. Slick, but lacking.
Then we have a couple of variations of rock. Buckner and Garcia return from our last visit with their hit about video gamedom's preemininent dot-chomper. The novelty wears off with every listen. And Charlie Daniels and company had their last pop hit with this tune about the trauma suffered by a Vietnam veteran years after returning home. An affecting song, but I did find it strange how the opening guitar line reminded me of Blondie's "Call Me." Somehow, I doubt that was intentional.
We close this section with a couple of dance tunes. The Dutch group that had topped the U.S. chart a year earlier with a medley of (mostly) Beatles covers had their second and last American hit by giving the same treatment to one of Motown's biggest stars. The soundalike they hired isn't bad, and I always enjoy hearing classics like "Master Blaster," "I Wish," "Superstition," and the eight others featured here. But the medley doesn't really flow together the way the first one did. And Tom Tom Club, a group formed by the Talking Heads' husband-and-wife rhythm section of Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz, had their only pop hit with this rubbery strut about a very good lover. And also about the power of music ("James Brown!") It didn't get any higher than this, but it has endured as a classic, and has been sampled numerous times. An absolute member of my Top 100 of the decade.
30 - "Mama Used to Say," Junior
29 - "Theme from Magnum, P.I.," Mike Post
28 - "Empty Garden (Hey Hey Johnny)," Elton John
27 - "Don't You Want Me," The Human League
26 - "That Girl," Stevie Wonder
25 - "Baby Makes Her Blue Jeans Talk," Dr. Hook
24 - "Hang Fire," The Rolling Stones
23 - "Open Arms," Journey
22 - "The Other Woman," Ray Parker, Jr.
21 - "Always on My Mind," Willie Nelson
We begin with some male solo R&B. Brit Norman Giscombe, billed simply as Junior, had what would be his only American pop hit with this sprightly pop-funk variation on the theme explored by "Que Sera Sera." Nothing spectacular, but I like the way he sings the word "Mama" in the choruses. Stevie Wonder returns from last time with his hit about a really hot lady that he likes a lot. It's better than I remember. And Ray Parker, Jr. had his first Raydio-free hit with a rock-tinged tune about cheating. Was this admission of his penchant for doing untetthical things a foreshadowing of what he'd do to Huey Lewis a couple years later? No. It'd be convenient, but no.
Three other solo men are here. TV theme king Mike Post is here with his opening music for the hit Hawaiian-set Tom Selleck vehicle. Never really watched it, so the song doesn't really stir any memories in me. What I will say is I like the more urgent guitar parts much better than the rest of it. Elton John's hit at this time was a tribute ballad to his late friend John Lennon. It's very heartfelt, and the metaphor of a garden left to die because its tender isn't coming back is very effective. I can see why Elton finds it too painful to play live very often. And Willie Nelson had his biggest hit with this version of a song about romantic regret that had already been recorded numerous times since it was written in 1972, most notably by Elvis. I'd have to say I prefer the one the Pet Shop Boys did six years after this, but there's nothing at all wrong with what Willie does with it. It's a very commercial arrangement, but the heart and sincerity of his singing shines through.
Then there are a couple of dance numbers. English synth-poppers The Human League had their first American hit with this memorable #1. In the first verse, Philip Oakey plays the role of an impresario who discovers a woman "working as a waitress in a cocktail bar," makes her a star, and falls in love with her. But now he learns she wants to leave him, and he ominously warns that if she does, he could destroy her career. In the second verse, Susan Sulley plays the waitress-turned-celebrity, who defiantly declares that she could have made it on her own, and then says that even though she had a good time with the Oakey character and still has feelings for him, she needs to go out on her own. A fun litlle mini-melodrama, catchily delivered. And Dr. Hook had their last hit with this still-sounds-like-disco-to-me number about a woman who performs a seemingly impossible feat with her dungarees. Somehow, I don't think they mean that her pants actually speak words. It's probably some sort of reference to her ass. But it'd be pretty cool if they meant it literally. I'd strike up a conversation with a pair of Levis. Wouldn't you?
We close the first half with a couple of rock bands. The Stones are here with a strutting rocker about being unemployed and uninterested. Apparently, this was a commentary on the economic decline of Britain during this time, which caused many people to lose hope and give up. Maybe not as biting as earlier socially-aware tracks like "Mother's Little Helper" and "Street Fighting Man," but still pretty solid. And Journey return from last time, ready to embrace. No thanks, guys.
Tomorrow: a woman who's been around, two guys who act fast, and finding love through graffiti.
Sunday, April 15, 2012
April 18, 1987 Part Two
No recap of the 70s show this week, because the only new-to-BGC song on there was a Chicago song that I found okay but unremarkable. So let's dive straight back into 1987.
20 - "Can'tcha Say (You Believe in Me)/Still in Love," Boston
19 - "What's Going On," Cyndi Lauper
18 - "Come as You Are," Peter Wolf
17 - "Let's Go," Wang Chung
16 - "Dominoes," Robbie Nevil
The second half begins with Boston's last Top 40 hit to date, a truly Bostonian power ballad full of cliches, guitar noodling, and Brad Delp's high-voiced earnestness. This is billed as a medley of two songs, but really, they could have just called it one song and got away with it. But that's not how Boston rolls. And they sold a buttload of records, so I suppose it works for them.
Cyndi Lauper is here with her take on Marvin Gaye's 1971 protest classic. I'm sure she meant well, but between her voice and the candy-coated synthpop arrangement, it just doesn't work. I love ya, Cyndi, but I gotta tell the truth.
Next is the third and last solo hit by ex-J. Geils Band singer Peter Wolf. It's an invitation to a wild, fun bash in which the only requirement for attendance is to be oneself. It's the same sort of boisterous, enjoyable party rock his old band specialized in. Very good.
Then Wang Chung return from last time, stating that they "can't hold back no more." Calm down, guys. Too much Wang Chunging can be dangerous.
Rounding out this group is Robbie Nevil, following up his #2 "C'est La Vie" with in another uptempo pop-rocker, this one about a woman who has knocked over a series of suitors in a manner similar to the titular game pieces when they are lined up. Okay song. Also, it gives me a chance to admit that I'm a sucker for a good domino trick, you know, when they set up thousands of them to climb hills and set off traps and it all forms some kind of pattern. You don't see enough of that these days. That's a fad that could use a revival. I can't do it, though. My hands aren't steady enough.
15 - "Stone Love," Kool and the Gang
14 - "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight," Genesis
13 - "With or Without You," U2
12 - "La Isla Bonita," Madonna
11 - "Walking Down Your Street," The Bangles
This section opens with Kool and the Gang's last Top 40. Like I've said before, this chart has opened my eyes to the fact that they did have a few decent hits in this decade. This, however, isn't one of them. It's the kind of bland R&B-pop that they did way too much of in the 80s. Again, however, it's better than "Cherish."
Genesis are back from last time with their beer-commercial hit. It's not bad in and of itself, but overplay in Michelob commercials kind of ruined it.
Next are U2 with their first #1, which introduced the world to The Joshua Tree, the album that established them as one of the biggest bands in the world. It's a midtempo ballad about a complicated love relationship. I probably don't need to say any more. I'm sure you've heard it several times. It's big and epic, and deserved its success. And it's much better than that Linkin Park song that ripped it off.
Then it's Madonna with her Latin-flavored ode to an island paradise full of wildlife, tropical breezes, and romance. Nothing world-changing, just simple, pleasing pop.
Closing out this bunch is the fourth hit for The Bangles. It's an okay bit of pop-rock about a woman being determined to get her man back, even if she has to "sacrifice my pride." I'm sure Susannah Hoffs can do better than this guy. And I know her band can do better than this.
And just ten tributes remain to battle to the death.
10 - "(I Just) Died in Your Arms," Cutting Crew
The first and biggest hit for these British blandmeisters was this craptastic semi-ballad about msking mistakes in love, or something. The title was inspired by a French term for orgasms ("le petit mort," the little death). And I certainly derived nowhere near that much pleasure from this hunk of shit. One of the worst #1s of the decade, surely.
9 - "Come Go with Me," Exposé
The Miami girl group's first hit established their Latin-tinged dance-pop template. I guess this was the best of the lot, but that's not saying much.
8 - "The Finer Things," Steve Winwood
Another of the hits that powered the Back in the High Life LP to triple-platinum. Bland pop-rock about appreciating love over everything else, with lyrics like "time is a river rolling into nowhere." The kind of unremarkable song that sounds just pleasant enough to fill radio airtime and become a hit. Nothing more, nothing less.
7 - "Lean on Me," Club Nouveau
The hip-hop/R&B take on the Bill Withers classic returns. Again, not a great version, but the song still shines through.
6 - "Looking for a New Love," Jody Watley
The first solo hit by the ex-Shalamar singer was this strutting dance-pop number about moving on from a bad relationship. Hardly groundbreaking, but it has a charm and a swagger. She never topped it. And it's a shame that that Cutting Crew dunglump kept it out of the #1 spot.
5 - "Midnight Blue," Lou Gramm
"Son, life is simple," little Louis Grammatico's father apparently told him once. "It's either cherry red or midnight blue." Um, that doesn't seem simple at all to me. But this song, about moving forward from past mistakes to make a better life, is terrific, shimmering pop-rock. Nothing Lou did with Foreigner came even close to this. Just a great, great song.
4 - "Sign o' the Times," Prince
When pop stars get serious, it can be disastrous. You have to actually have something worthwhile to say, and you have to say it in both a lyrically interesting and a musically engaging way. If you don't, you can come off as embarrassingly ill-informed or thuddingly heavy-handed. But Prince decided to take on this challenge, and he pulled it off skillfully, commenting on AIDS, gangs, drug abuse, poverty, natural disasters, and nuclear war over an ominously funky instrumental bed. It makes you think, but doesn't overwhelm you to the point of turning you off. For turning that difficult trick and still making it to the upper reaches of the chart, this gets this week's Uneasy Rider.
3 - "Don't Dream it's Over," Crowded House
The Aussie-Zealanders return with their biggest American hit. Still a thing of gentle, reflective beauty.
2 - "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now," Starship
I only wish something could have.
And the number one song a quarter-century ago was...
1 - "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)," Aretha Franklin and George Michael
Nearly 20 years after first hitting #1 with "Respect," The Queen of Soul returned to the pinnacle of pop with this midtempo duet with the man from Wham! Not a great song by any means, especially since the chorus practically rips off the one from "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" wholesale. But the vocal performances lift it from "meh" to "not bad." And you can't help but be impressed with how well George managed to hang with Aretha.
This week's NotCaseys were "Always" by Atlantic Starr, "Wanted Dead or Alive" by Bon Jovi, "Lessons in Love" by Level 42, and "You Can Call Me Al," by Paul Simon. During the countdown, Casey played Wings' "Band on the Run" to accompany a story of how lefty Paul McCartney learned to simply turn his guitar upside down from a picture of country singer (and 80s record-commercial legend) Slim Whitman. And he also played two LDDs. In the first, a woman dedicate The Little River Band's "Cool Change" to her recovering-alcoholic husband. And in the second, a man sent Michael Jackson's "Rockin' Robin" out to his young son, because it was the song he used to sing with the child before the two were separated by divorce.
And on to the next.
20 - "Can'tcha Say (You Believe in Me)/Still in Love," Boston
19 - "What's Going On," Cyndi Lauper
18 - "Come as You Are," Peter Wolf
17 - "Let's Go," Wang Chung
16 - "Dominoes," Robbie Nevil
The second half begins with Boston's last Top 40 hit to date, a truly Bostonian power ballad full of cliches, guitar noodling, and Brad Delp's high-voiced earnestness. This is billed as a medley of two songs, but really, they could have just called it one song and got away with it. But that's not how Boston rolls. And they sold a buttload of records, so I suppose it works for them.
Cyndi Lauper is here with her take on Marvin Gaye's 1971 protest classic. I'm sure she meant well, but between her voice and the candy-coated synthpop arrangement, it just doesn't work. I love ya, Cyndi, but I gotta tell the truth.
Next is the third and last solo hit by ex-J. Geils Band singer Peter Wolf. It's an invitation to a wild, fun bash in which the only requirement for attendance is to be oneself. It's the same sort of boisterous, enjoyable party rock his old band specialized in. Very good.
Then Wang Chung return from last time, stating that they "can't hold back no more." Calm down, guys. Too much Wang Chunging can be dangerous.
Rounding out this group is Robbie Nevil, following up his #2 "C'est La Vie" with in another uptempo pop-rocker, this one about a woman who has knocked over a series of suitors in a manner similar to the titular game pieces when they are lined up. Okay song. Also, it gives me a chance to admit that I'm a sucker for a good domino trick, you know, when they set up thousands of them to climb hills and set off traps and it all forms some kind of pattern. You don't see enough of that these days. That's a fad that could use a revival. I can't do it, though. My hands aren't steady enough.
15 - "Stone Love," Kool and the Gang
14 - "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight," Genesis
13 - "With or Without You," U2
12 - "La Isla Bonita," Madonna
11 - "Walking Down Your Street," The Bangles
This section opens with Kool and the Gang's last Top 40. Like I've said before, this chart has opened my eyes to the fact that they did have a few decent hits in this decade. This, however, isn't one of them. It's the kind of bland R&B-pop that they did way too much of in the 80s. Again, however, it's better than "Cherish."
Genesis are back from last time with their beer-commercial hit. It's not bad in and of itself, but overplay in Michelob commercials kind of ruined it.
Next are U2 with their first #1, which introduced the world to The Joshua Tree, the album that established them as one of the biggest bands in the world. It's a midtempo ballad about a complicated love relationship. I probably don't need to say any more. I'm sure you've heard it several times. It's big and epic, and deserved its success. And it's much better than that Linkin Park song that ripped it off.
Then it's Madonna with her Latin-flavored ode to an island paradise full of wildlife, tropical breezes, and romance. Nothing world-changing, just simple, pleasing pop.
Closing out this bunch is the fourth hit for The Bangles. It's an okay bit of pop-rock about a woman being determined to get her man back, even if she has to "sacrifice my pride." I'm sure Susannah Hoffs can do better than this guy. And I know her band can do better than this.
And just ten tributes remain to battle to the death.
10 - "(I Just) Died in Your Arms," Cutting Crew
The first and biggest hit for these British blandmeisters was this craptastic semi-ballad about msking mistakes in love, or something. The title was inspired by a French term for orgasms ("le petit mort," the little death). And I certainly derived nowhere near that much pleasure from this hunk of shit. One of the worst #1s of the decade, surely.
9 - "Come Go with Me," Exposé
The Miami girl group's first hit established their Latin-tinged dance-pop template. I guess this was the best of the lot, but that's not saying much.
8 - "The Finer Things," Steve Winwood
Another of the hits that powered the Back in the High Life LP to triple-platinum. Bland pop-rock about appreciating love over everything else, with lyrics like "time is a river rolling into nowhere." The kind of unremarkable song that sounds just pleasant enough to fill radio airtime and become a hit. Nothing more, nothing less.
7 - "Lean on Me," Club Nouveau
The hip-hop/R&B take on the Bill Withers classic returns. Again, not a great version, but the song still shines through.
6 - "Looking for a New Love," Jody Watley
The first solo hit by the ex-Shalamar singer was this strutting dance-pop number about moving on from a bad relationship. Hardly groundbreaking, but it has a charm and a swagger. She never topped it. And it's a shame that that Cutting Crew dunglump kept it out of the #1 spot.
5 - "Midnight Blue," Lou Gramm
"Son, life is simple," little Louis Grammatico's father apparently told him once. "It's either cherry red or midnight blue." Um, that doesn't seem simple at all to me. But this song, about moving forward from past mistakes to make a better life, is terrific, shimmering pop-rock. Nothing Lou did with Foreigner came even close to this. Just a great, great song.
4 - "Sign o' the Times," Prince
When pop stars get serious, it can be disastrous. You have to actually have something worthwhile to say, and you have to say it in both a lyrically interesting and a musically engaging way. If you don't, you can come off as embarrassingly ill-informed or thuddingly heavy-handed. But Prince decided to take on this challenge, and he pulled it off skillfully, commenting on AIDS, gangs, drug abuse, poverty, natural disasters, and nuclear war over an ominously funky instrumental bed. It makes you think, but doesn't overwhelm you to the point of turning you off. For turning that difficult trick and still making it to the upper reaches of the chart, this gets this week's Uneasy Rider.
3 - "Don't Dream it's Over," Crowded House
The Aussie-Zealanders return with their biggest American hit. Still a thing of gentle, reflective beauty.
2 - "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now," Starship
I only wish something could have.
And the number one song a quarter-century ago was...
1 - "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)," Aretha Franklin and George Michael
Nearly 20 years after first hitting #1 with "Respect," The Queen of Soul returned to the pinnacle of pop with this midtempo duet with the man from Wham! Not a great song by any means, especially since the chorus practically rips off the one from "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" wholesale. But the vocal performances lift it from "meh" to "not bad." And you can't help but be impressed with how well George managed to hang with Aretha.
This week's NotCaseys were "Always" by Atlantic Starr, "Wanted Dead or Alive" by Bon Jovi, "Lessons in Love" by Level 42, and "You Can Call Me Al," by Paul Simon. During the countdown, Casey played Wings' "Band on the Run" to accompany a story of how lefty Paul McCartney learned to simply turn his guitar upside down from a picture of country singer (and 80s record-commercial legend) Slim Whitman. And he also played two LDDs. In the first, a woman dedicate The Little River Band's "Cool Change" to her recovering-alcoholic husband. And in the second, a man sent Michael Jackson's "Rockin' Robin" out to his young son, because it was the song he used to sing with the child before the two were separated by divorce.
And on to the next.
Friday, April 13, 2012
April 18, 1987 Part One
This week we go back to 1987. This chart is from the same weekend that the first cartoon short starring the family now known as The Simpsons aired on The Tracey Ullman Show. Appropriate, don't you think? Anyway, here's the popular music of that particular moment.
40 - "The Right Thing," Simply Red
39 - "You Keep Me Hanging On," Kim Wilde
38 - "I Will Be There," Glass Tiger
37 - "Se La," Lionel Richie
36 - "Light of Day," The Barbusters
35 - "I Know What I Like," Huey Lewis and the News
34 - "Right on Track," The Breakfast Club
33 - "Mandolin Rain," Bruce Hornsby and the Range
32 - "Nothing's Gonna Change My Love for You," Glenn Medeiros
31 - "Big Love," Fleetwood Mac
Quite a few bands in this first section, so I'll divvy them up, starting with two groups from outside America and a English group with two Yanks. Britain's Simply Red had their third U.S. hit with this soul-pop number in which I think Mick Hucknall promises his lady that he'll improve his sexual technique. Or perhaps not. Anyway, good song. Canada's Glass Tiger picked up their third hit with this pop rock pledge of loyalty. Well, it's better than "Someday." And Fleetwood Mac's first single from their multiplatinum Tango in the Night LP with this funky, dancefloor-ready tune in which Lindsay Buckingham ruminates on his relationship and "a house on a hill." Crazily catchy, and probably my favorite post-Tusk Mac hit.
Now we got to the solo acts. Kim Wilde's father Marty was one of Britain's first rock stars, and in the 80s, she had a string of U.K. hits of her own, most notably "Kids in America," which also crossed the Atlantic. Five years later, she would top the American charts with this synth-pop cover of a Supremes classic. I'm thinking she rode the coattails of the song's familiarity, because on its own, this version isn't much. But I love "Kids in America." Lionel Richie had his last hit of the decade with this venture into reggae. It's a song that preaches peace and harmony. He's certainly no Bob Marley, but he doesn't embarrass himself either. And
Hawaiian teen Glenn Medeiros made his first chart impression with this version of a goopy ballad originally recorded by George Benson in 1984. Not my thing at all. Medeiros would hit #1 two years later with the dance-pop hit "She Ain't Worth It," but that was probably more due to the guy who was featured on it, the then-hot Bobby Brown.
We finish with the American bands. The Barbusters are actually Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, but it was released under the name of the bar band fronted by characters played by Jett and Michael J. Fox in the film Light of Day. The song was written by Bruce Springsteen, and it's about driving and searching for something better. Very Springsteenian. And Joan and co. do very well with it. It's still hard to imagine Michael J. Fox being in a band that does a song like this, though. Huey Lewis and his buddies had yet another hit with this okay pop-rock playlist-filler that's kind of a variation on Tom T. Hall's country hit "I Love." I would have much preferred that this had been bastardized by that "Twins!" beer commercial. No, The Breakfast Club weren't named after the movie. They had existed since the late 1970s, and at one point, none other than Madonna was in the band, as the drummer no less. By the time of their only major hit, this energetic dance-rocker about trying to catch a woman's eye through sweet dance moves, the band's only connection to the Material Girl was through their current drummer Stephen Bray, who had met Madonna at the University of Michigan and would go on to collaborate on many of her 80s hits. Yes, that's much more interesting than the song, but still, it's a catchy little number, and a worthy hit. And Bruce Hornsby and the Range are back from last time with their gentle hit about percipitation, music, and young love. Still good.
30 - "Ship of Fools (Save Me From Tomorrow)," World Party
29 - "What You Get is What You See," Tina Turner
28 - "Talk Dirty to Me," Poison
27 - "The Final Countdown," Europe
26 - "Let's Wait Awhile," Janet Jackson
25 - "Serious," Donna Allen
24 - "The Lady in Red," Chris DeBurgh
23 - "The Honeythief," Hipsway
22 - "Smoking Gun," The Robert Cray Band
21 - "Heat of the Night," Bryan Adams
I'll begin this section with bands from across the pond. Karl Wallinger left the rising British band The Waterboys to form his own one-man band, and he immediately trumped them by scoring a hit in the U.S., something his old band hadn't done. It's a catchy little midtempo rock number about heading for somewhere that seems to promise happiness and prosperity, but may not be all that it seems. This grabbed my attention from the first time I heard it, and I still love it. It was Wallinger's only Top 40, but in my opinion, he should have gotten there again with 1990's "Way Down Now." Europe are back from last time with their song with the chill-inducing keyboard opening and those lyrics about heading for Venus (Venus). And Scottish popsters Hipsway had their only hit of consequence with this catchy, New Wave-ish number that seems to be about a guy who has a lot of brief affairs with women, not someone looking to burglarize Winnie-The-Pooh. I don't really remember this from back in the day, but it's pretty damn good.
Next we'll look at solo women. Tina Turner is here with a pop-rocker about how many attractive men don't have much to offer beyond their looks. Not a great song, but her voice and energy rise above the material. Janet Jackson returns from last time, suggesting that she and her boyfriend take their time before giving in to their throbbing biological urges. And ex-Tampa Bay Buccaneers cheerleader Donna Allen had her only hit with this dance-pop fluff about a girl trying to change her heartbreaking ways for a guy. I like her voice, and the song is a little above-average as far as this genre goes, but still, nothing to get too excited about.
Then there are the groups from the good ol' U.S.A. Poison, one of the major names of the hair-metal era, had their first hit with this fun rocker about sexual congress in multiple locations, including the drive-in theater, behind some bushes, and "in the old man's Ford." Dumb, but I seriously dare you not to sing along. Difficult, isn't it? This band would go on to prevent bus driver Otto Mann from marrying his fiancee Becky, although technically, that was Cyanide, a loving tribute to Poison. And bluesman Robert Cray and his band had his only pop hit with this slow-burning story about a man who finds out about his partner's cheating and responds in the classic blues fashion, by shooting and killing both his woman and her lover. An effective song, and it features some, pardon the pun, smokin' guitar work.
The first half ends with two solo men. Argentine-born, Irish-raised Chris DeBurgh had his second and biggest American hit with this crushingly sappy song that was apparently inspired by the first time he saw his wife. That's sweet and all, but I didn't need to hear about it 50 bajillion times. I much prefer some of his more interesting stuff like "Spanish Train" and "Don't Pay the Ferryman." And Bryan Adams introduced his follow-up to the megahit Reckless album with this solid rocker that seems to be about being on the run from...something. Whatever. Bottom line, I think I may like it better than anything from Reckless. It just seems a lot more interesting.
Tomorrow: game pieces, indecision, and a superstar gets serious.
40 - "The Right Thing," Simply Red
39 - "You Keep Me Hanging On," Kim Wilde
38 - "I Will Be There," Glass Tiger
37 - "Se La," Lionel Richie
36 - "Light of Day," The Barbusters
35 - "I Know What I Like," Huey Lewis and the News
34 - "Right on Track," The Breakfast Club
33 - "Mandolin Rain," Bruce Hornsby and the Range
32 - "Nothing's Gonna Change My Love for You," Glenn Medeiros
31 - "Big Love," Fleetwood Mac
Quite a few bands in this first section, so I'll divvy them up, starting with two groups from outside America and a English group with two Yanks. Britain's Simply Red had their third U.S. hit with this soul-pop number in which I think Mick Hucknall promises his lady that he'll improve his sexual technique. Or perhaps not. Anyway, good song. Canada's Glass Tiger picked up their third hit with this pop rock pledge of loyalty. Well, it's better than "Someday." And Fleetwood Mac's first single from their multiplatinum Tango in the Night LP with this funky, dancefloor-ready tune in which Lindsay Buckingham ruminates on his relationship and "a house on a hill." Crazily catchy, and probably my favorite post-Tusk Mac hit.
Now we got to the solo acts. Kim Wilde's father Marty was one of Britain's first rock stars, and in the 80s, she had a string of U.K. hits of her own, most notably "Kids in America," which also crossed the Atlantic. Five years later, she would top the American charts with this synth-pop cover of a Supremes classic. I'm thinking she rode the coattails of the song's familiarity, because on its own, this version isn't much. But I love "Kids in America." Lionel Richie had his last hit of the decade with this venture into reggae. It's a song that preaches peace and harmony. He's certainly no Bob Marley, but he doesn't embarrass himself either. And
Hawaiian teen Glenn Medeiros made his first chart impression with this version of a goopy ballad originally recorded by George Benson in 1984. Not my thing at all. Medeiros would hit #1 two years later with the dance-pop hit "She Ain't Worth It," but that was probably more due to the guy who was featured on it, the then-hot Bobby Brown.
We finish with the American bands. The Barbusters are actually Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, but it was released under the name of the bar band fronted by characters played by Jett and Michael J. Fox in the film Light of Day. The song was written by Bruce Springsteen, and it's about driving and searching for something better. Very Springsteenian. And Joan and co. do very well with it. It's still hard to imagine Michael J. Fox being in a band that does a song like this, though. Huey Lewis and his buddies had yet another hit with this okay pop-rock playlist-filler that's kind of a variation on Tom T. Hall's country hit "I Love." I would have much preferred that this had been bastardized by that "Twins!" beer commercial. No, The Breakfast Club weren't named after the movie. They had existed since the late 1970s, and at one point, none other than Madonna was in the band, as the drummer no less. By the time of their only major hit, this energetic dance-rocker about trying to catch a woman's eye through sweet dance moves, the band's only connection to the Material Girl was through their current drummer Stephen Bray, who had met Madonna at the University of Michigan and would go on to collaborate on many of her 80s hits. Yes, that's much more interesting than the song, but still, it's a catchy little number, and a worthy hit. And Bruce Hornsby and the Range are back from last time with their gentle hit about percipitation, music, and young love. Still good.
30 - "Ship of Fools (Save Me From Tomorrow)," World Party
29 - "What You Get is What You See," Tina Turner
28 - "Talk Dirty to Me," Poison
27 - "The Final Countdown," Europe
26 - "Let's Wait Awhile," Janet Jackson
25 - "Serious," Donna Allen
24 - "The Lady in Red," Chris DeBurgh
23 - "The Honeythief," Hipsway
22 - "Smoking Gun," The Robert Cray Band
21 - "Heat of the Night," Bryan Adams
I'll begin this section with bands from across the pond. Karl Wallinger left the rising British band The Waterboys to form his own one-man band, and he immediately trumped them by scoring a hit in the U.S., something his old band hadn't done. It's a catchy little midtempo rock number about heading for somewhere that seems to promise happiness and prosperity, but may not be all that it seems. This grabbed my attention from the first time I heard it, and I still love it. It was Wallinger's only Top 40, but in my opinion, he should have gotten there again with 1990's "Way Down Now." Europe are back from last time with their song with the chill-inducing keyboard opening and those lyrics about heading for Venus (Venus). And Scottish popsters Hipsway had their only hit of consequence with this catchy, New Wave-ish number that seems to be about a guy who has a lot of brief affairs with women, not someone looking to burglarize Winnie-The-Pooh. I don't really remember this from back in the day, but it's pretty damn good.
Next we'll look at solo women. Tina Turner is here with a pop-rocker about how many attractive men don't have much to offer beyond their looks. Not a great song, but her voice and energy rise above the material. Janet Jackson returns from last time, suggesting that she and her boyfriend take their time before giving in to their throbbing biological urges. And ex-Tampa Bay Buccaneers cheerleader Donna Allen had her only hit with this dance-pop fluff about a girl trying to change her heartbreaking ways for a guy. I like her voice, and the song is a little above-average as far as this genre goes, but still, nothing to get too excited about.
Then there are the groups from the good ol' U.S.A. Poison, one of the major names of the hair-metal era, had their first hit with this fun rocker about sexual congress in multiple locations, including the drive-in theater, behind some bushes, and "in the old man's Ford." Dumb, but I seriously dare you not to sing along. Difficult, isn't it? This band would go on to prevent bus driver Otto Mann from marrying his fiancee Becky, although technically, that was Cyanide, a loving tribute to Poison. And bluesman Robert Cray and his band had his only pop hit with this slow-burning story about a man who finds out about his partner's cheating and responds in the classic blues fashion, by shooting and killing both his woman and her lover. An effective song, and it features some, pardon the pun, smokin' guitar work.
The first half ends with two solo men. Argentine-born, Irish-raised Chris DeBurgh had his second and biggest American hit with this crushingly sappy song that was apparently inspired by the first time he saw his wife. That's sweet and all, but I didn't need to hear about it 50 bajillion times. I much prefer some of his more interesting stuff like "Spanish Train" and "Don't Pay the Ferryman." And Bryan Adams introduced his follow-up to the megahit Reckless album with this solid rocker that seems to be about being on the run from...something. Whatever. Bottom line, I think I may like it better than anything from Reckless. It just seems a lot more interesting.
Tomorrow: game pieces, indecision, and a superstar gets serious.
Monday, April 9, 2012
April 7, 1984 Part Two
Before we return to '84, let's take a very brief look at April 8, 1978.
The Bee Gees were at #1 and #2 with "Night Fever" and "Stayin' Alive," respectively. Other higlights of the Top Ten include "Lay Down Sally," "If I Can 't Have You," and "Dust in the Wind"...Very few newbies here, but one of them is "Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)" by Styx, this week's #34 An unexceptional acoustic semi-ballad, broken up by some oddly placed synth solos. Just business as usual for the Bob Seger of Chicago...Dolly Parton followed up her pop breakthrough "Here You Come Again" with a song about a rebound hookup with a man she met at a party just "Two Doors Down" from her, this week at #36. Didn't know you had that in you, Dolly...And Earth, Wind and Fire were at 38 with the soaring "Fantasy." Apparently, it's been downladed 100,000 times by Japanese cell phone users as a ringtone. That's nice. But this week, I shine my spotlight on...
32 - "I'm Gonna Take Care of Everything," Rubicon
This ballad was the only hit for a band formed by Jerry Martini, a former member of Sly and the Family Stone. It's about reassuring a lover, and there's really not much more to it than that. But this band also contained two guys named Brad Gillis and Jack Blades, who would go on to form the corporate rock machine Night Ranger. And Blades would later form the band Damn Yankees with Ted Nugent and...Tommy Shaw of Styx. Wow, the connections you find between songs on the same chart never cease to amaze me.
All right, now let's get back to the buisness of 1984.
20 - "Love Somebody," Rick Springfield
19 - "You Might Think," The Cars
18 - "Got a Hold on Me," Christine McVie
17 - "Girls," Dwight Twilley
16 - "Radio Ga-Ga," Queen
The second half begins with the first single from the soundtrack of Rick Springfield's leading-man movie debut, Hard to Hold. The song is boilerplate rock about love and lust and stuff. The movie, I haven't seen, but the fact that he didn't get a second chance to carry a film probably tells me all I need to know.
The Cars picked up their second Top Ten hit with this lead single from their monster album Heartbeat City. A good pop-rocker about romantic obsession, but a lot of the responsiblity for its success may be attributable to the video, which used early computer animation to turn Ric Ocasek into, among other things, a fly and toothpaste. It looks so cheap now, but then, this was groundbreaking, mind-blowing stuff.
Next is Fleetwood Mac's Christine McVie with her first and biggest solo hit. It's the kind of happy love song she did with her band, in the vein of "Say You Love Me" and "You Make Lovin' Fun." She definitely wasnt breaking any new ground, but this was nice enough to hear on the radio.
Nine years after hitting the charts with "I'm on Fire" (accompanied by an eponymous band, Oklahoma's Dwight Twilley returned to the charts with another catchy pop-rock gem about the mysteries of the fairer sex. Tom Petty provides able and welcome assistance on backing vocals. This guy should have had more hits. Twilley, I mean. Tom Petty had plenty.
Rounding out this bunch is the last U.S. Top 40 for Queen (not counting the 1992 re-release of "Bohemian Rhapsody"). It's a synth-pop ode to the golden age of radio, as well as a criticism of the current state of the medium. Maybe not one of their best, but Freddie was still singing with passion and intensity, so it's all good.
15 - "They Don't Know," Tracey Ullman
14 - "99 Luftballons," Nena
13 - "Eat It," "Weird Al" Yankovic
12 - "I Want a New Drug," Huey Lewis and the News
11 - "Hold Me Now," The Thompson Twins
This quintet is led off by British singer/comedienne Tracey Ullman with her biggest international hit, a 60s girl-group-styled cover of Kirsty MacColl's U.K. hit about being in love with someone regardless of the negative reactions of one's peers. I really liked both the song and the Paul McCartney cameo-featuring video, but little did I know that three years later, Tracey would move to the U.S. to help launch both the Fox network and a little international phenomenon known as The Simpsons.
German singer Gabriele Susanne Kerner and the band which took their name from her stage name had a long and prosperous career in their native land, but in the rest of the world, they're known only for one song, this synth-pop tale of two children who buy a bunch of balloons and release them into the air, only to have them mistaken for enemy aircraft by East German radar, which eventually leads to a nuclear war. The song was released in both German and English versions ("99 Red Balloons"), but like most right-thinking people, I preferred the former. Anyway, for reasons that should be quite apparent, this is this week's Uneasy Rider.
Next is the first Top 40 single for novelty singer/accordionist Alfred Matthew Yankovic. He first made his name recording parodies of popular hits and sending them to the Doctor Demento radio show, so of course, his pop breakthrough would come by taking one of Michael Jackson's Thriller smashes and turning it into a story about a picky eater. Of course, he's gone on to do this to dozens more songs, and it's come to the point where having your hit redone by Al is seen as a badge of honor. But as a fan of the man, I have to say, a lot of the original songs he does for his albums are pretty worthwhile as well.
Then it's Huey Lewis et al wtih a fun little pop number about wanting a new form of recreational medication. This narcotic, however, cannot come in a pill, must be inexpensive, cause insomnia or narcolepsy, make him prone to acne or nausea. And it must make him feel the way he feels when he's alone with his lady. Yeah, I'm sure Pfizer went right to work on that. But one thing's for sure: Ray Parker Jr. listened to this song quite a bit.
This section closes with the first American Top Ten for England's Thompson Twins. It's a sweet little midtempo ballad, perfect for slow dancing at the proms of the day. And the falsetto backup vocals near the end shouldn't work, and yet they do.
Go go gadget Top Ten!
10 - "Hello," Lionel Richie
The second hit from his blockbuster Can't Slow Down was this ballad that's perhaps best known for the video in which a blind woman sculpts a bust of Lionel's head. I'm not sure that's what he was looking for, but he seemed happy about it.
9 - "Girls Just Want to Have Fun," Cyndi Lauper
This flame-haired, raggedly-yet-fabulously-dressed Noo Yawker had her first hit with this boisterously immortal statement that what ladies want most is to enjoy themselves after a hard day at work. Vince McMahon must have a special place in his heart for this song, for it was Captain Lou Albano's appearance in this video that began the chain of events that led to the first WrestleMania and, eventually, to his current dominance of "sports entertainment."
8 - "Adult Education," Daryl Hall and John Oates
These guys added to their ball of hits with this uncharacteristically dark-sounding number in which they advise a teenage girl dealing with her problems to hang in there, because "believe it or not, there's life after high school." Shockingly, that is true. And this is probably one of H & O's more underrated singles.
7 - "Miss Me Blind," Culture Club
Boy George and the...boys had the last of their six Top Tens in the U.S. with this song how much his absence will be noticed. Perhaps one could see this as hubris, particularly give that the band's career would decline soon after, but I prefer just to enjoy it as another solid pop song from a guy who knew how to craft 'em.
6 - "Automatic," The Pointer Sisters
On this funk-pop tune about how she's so in love with a guy that it seems like he's manipulating her like a remote-controlled robot, Ruth Pointer's voice is manipulated to the point where it sounds so deep it's almost male. An odd choice, but somehow, it works. Good song.
5 - "Jump," Van Halen
The song that introduced the world to Eddie Van Halen's love affair with synthesizers also became the band's first #1. Coincidence? Perhaps not, but David Lee Roth's swaggering vocals probably helped as well. And Eddie did take time out from diddling with keyboards to contribute a decent solo on the instrument on which he made his name.
4 - "Here Comes the Rain Again," Eurythmics
Annie Lennox darkly observes the return of precipitation while asking for better communication with her partner. "Want to dive into your ocean," she sings. I'm not sure what that means, but I imagine I'd let her.
3 - "Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)," Phil Collins
The Genesis drummer-turned-singer had his very first American charttopper with this big, catchy ballad that was the title song to a remake of the 1947 film noir Out of the Past. I haven't seen either, and it's unlikely I'll take a look at them now, or ever.
2 - "Somebody's Watching Me," Rockwell
Motown chief Berry Gordy's son Kennedy wanted to have a recording career, but he didn't want to be seen as riding on his father's coattails, so he got himself signed to Dad's label under a pseudonym. His career didn't last long, but it did leave behind this hauntingly awesome ode to paranoia. And I suppose having Michael Jackson sing part of the chorus didn't hurt either. Regardless, this has a definite place on my Top 100 of this decade.
And the #1 song 28 years ago was...
1 - "Footloose," Kenny Loggins
Kenny's only #1 was this pop-rock ode to kicking off one's shoes and boogieing. It also cemented him as the decade's Soundtrack King. The film it came from, of course, is the movie about a town where dancing is outlawed that introduced the world to Kevin Bacon. I've never seen it, but I can't rule out one day doing so. The same, however, can't be said for last year's remake.
This week's NotCaseys were "Relax" by Frankie Goes to Hollywood, "Borderline" by Madonna, "Oh Sherrie" by Steve Perry, and "Let's Hear it for the Boy" by Deniece Williams. At the beginning of the show, Casey played "Footloose" because it had been the previous week's #1, and later, he played "Start Me Up" by the Rolling Stones to accompany a story about how a phone had been produced in the shape of the bands lips-and-tongue logo. And of course, there were two LDDs. First, a girl dedicated Billy Joel's "Just the Way You Are" to her fiance, whom she loved in spite of the fact that he would frequently embarrass her. And later, another girl dedicated Irene Cara's "Fame" to her former social worker, because their shared love of that TV series was one of the many things that they bonded over.
And...scene. Bye for another week.
The Bee Gees were at #1 and #2 with "Night Fever" and "Stayin' Alive," respectively. Other higlights of the Top Ten include "Lay Down Sally," "If I Can 't Have You," and "Dust in the Wind"...Very few newbies here, but one of them is "Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)" by Styx, this week's #34 An unexceptional acoustic semi-ballad, broken up by some oddly placed synth solos. Just business as usual for the Bob Seger of Chicago...Dolly Parton followed up her pop breakthrough "Here You Come Again" with a song about a rebound hookup with a man she met at a party just "Two Doors Down" from her, this week at #36. Didn't know you had that in you, Dolly...And Earth, Wind and Fire were at 38 with the soaring "Fantasy." Apparently, it's been downladed 100,000 times by Japanese cell phone users as a ringtone. That's nice. But this week, I shine my spotlight on...
32 - "I'm Gonna Take Care of Everything," Rubicon
This ballad was the only hit for a band formed by Jerry Martini, a former member of Sly and the Family Stone. It's about reassuring a lover, and there's really not much more to it than that. But this band also contained two guys named Brad Gillis and Jack Blades, who would go on to form the corporate rock machine Night Ranger. And Blades would later form the band Damn Yankees with Ted Nugent and...Tommy Shaw of Styx. Wow, the connections you find between songs on the same chart never cease to amaze me.
All right, now let's get back to the buisness of 1984.
20 - "Love Somebody," Rick Springfield
19 - "You Might Think," The Cars
18 - "Got a Hold on Me," Christine McVie
17 - "Girls," Dwight Twilley
16 - "Radio Ga-Ga," Queen
The second half begins with the first single from the soundtrack of Rick Springfield's leading-man movie debut, Hard to Hold. The song is boilerplate rock about love and lust and stuff. The movie, I haven't seen, but the fact that he didn't get a second chance to carry a film probably tells me all I need to know.
The Cars picked up their second Top Ten hit with this lead single from their monster album Heartbeat City. A good pop-rocker about romantic obsession, but a lot of the responsiblity for its success may be attributable to the video, which used early computer animation to turn Ric Ocasek into, among other things, a fly and toothpaste. It looks so cheap now, but then, this was groundbreaking, mind-blowing stuff.
Next is Fleetwood Mac's Christine McVie with her first and biggest solo hit. It's the kind of happy love song she did with her band, in the vein of "Say You Love Me" and "You Make Lovin' Fun." She definitely wasnt breaking any new ground, but this was nice enough to hear on the radio.
Nine years after hitting the charts with "I'm on Fire" (accompanied by an eponymous band, Oklahoma's Dwight Twilley returned to the charts with another catchy pop-rock gem about the mysteries of the fairer sex. Tom Petty provides able and welcome assistance on backing vocals. This guy should have had more hits. Twilley, I mean. Tom Petty had plenty.
Rounding out this bunch is the last U.S. Top 40 for Queen (not counting the 1992 re-release of "Bohemian Rhapsody"). It's a synth-pop ode to the golden age of radio, as well as a criticism of the current state of the medium. Maybe not one of their best, but Freddie was still singing with passion and intensity, so it's all good.
15 - "They Don't Know," Tracey Ullman
14 - "99 Luftballons," Nena
13 - "Eat It," "Weird Al" Yankovic
12 - "I Want a New Drug," Huey Lewis and the News
11 - "Hold Me Now," The Thompson Twins
This quintet is led off by British singer/comedienne Tracey Ullman with her biggest international hit, a 60s girl-group-styled cover of Kirsty MacColl's U.K. hit about being in love with someone regardless of the negative reactions of one's peers. I really liked both the song and the Paul McCartney cameo-featuring video, but little did I know that three years later, Tracey would move to the U.S. to help launch both the Fox network and a little international phenomenon known as The Simpsons.
German singer Gabriele Susanne Kerner and the band which took their name from her stage name had a long and prosperous career in their native land, but in the rest of the world, they're known only for one song, this synth-pop tale of two children who buy a bunch of balloons and release them into the air, only to have them mistaken for enemy aircraft by East German radar, which eventually leads to a nuclear war. The song was released in both German and English versions ("99 Red Balloons"), but like most right-thinking people, I preferred the former. Anyway, for reasons that should be quite apparent, this is this week's Uneasy Rider.
Next is the first Top 40 single for novelty singer/accordionist Alfred Matthew Yankovic. He first made his name recording parodies of popular hits and sending them to the Doctor Demento radio show, so of course, his pop breakthrough would come by taking one of Michael Jackson's Thriller smashes and turning it into a story about a picky eater. Of course, he's gone on to do this to dozens more songs, and it's come to the point where having your hit redone by Al is seen as a badge of honor. But as a fan of the man, I have to say, a lot of the original songs he does for his albums are pretty worthwhile as well.
Then it's Huey Lewis et al wtih a fun little pop number about wanting a new form of recreational medication. This narcotic, however, cannot come in a pill, must be inexpensive, cause insomnia or narcolepsy, make him prone to acne or nausea. And it must make him feel the way he feels when he's alone with his lady. Yeah, I'm sure Pfizer went right to work on that. But one thing's for sure: Ray Parker Jr. listened to this song quite a bit.
This section closes with the first American Top Ten for England's Thompson Twins. It's a sweet little midtempo ballad, perfect for slow dancing at the proms of the day. And the falsetto backup vocals near the end shouldn't work, and yet they do.
Go go gadget Top Ten!
10 - "Hello," Lionel Richie
The second hit from his blockbuster Can't Slow Down was this ballad that's perhaps best known for the video in which a blind woman sculpts a bust of Lionel's head. I'm not sure that's what he was looking for, but he seemed happy about it.
9 - "Girls Just Want to Have Fun," Cyndi Lauper
This flame-haired, raggedly-yet-fabulously-dressed Noo Yawker had her first hit with this boisterously immortal statement that what ladies want most is to enjoy themselves after a hard day at work. Vince McMahon must have a special place in his heart for this song, for it was Captain Lou Albano's appearance in this video that began the chain of events that led to the first WrestleMania and, eventually, to his current dominance of "sports entertainment."
8 - "Adult Education," Daryl Hall and John Oates
These guys added to their ball of hits with this uncharacteristically dark-sounding number in which they advise a teenage girl dealing with her problems to hang in there, because "believe it or not, there's life after high school." Shockingly, that is true. And this is probably one of H & O's more underrated singles.
7 - "Miss Me Blind," Culture Club
Boy George and the...boys had the last of their six Top Tens in the U.S. with this song how much his absence will be noticed. Perhaps one could see this as hubris, particularly give that the band's career would decline soon after, but I prefer just to enjoy it as another solid pop song from a guy who knew how to craft 'em.
6 - "Automatic," The Pointer Sisters
On this funk-pop tune about how she's so in love with a guy that it seems like he's manipulating her like a remote-controlled robot, Ruth Pointer's voice is manipulated to the point where it sounds so deep it's almost male. An odd choice, but somehow, it works. Good song.
5 - "Jump," Van Halen
The song that introduced the world to Eddie Van Halen's love affair with synthesizers also became the band's first #1. Coincidence? Perhaps not, but David Lee Roth's swaggering vocals probably helped as well. And Eddie did take time out from diddling with keyboards to contribute a decent solo on the instrument on which he made his name.
4 - "Here Comes the Rain Again," Eurythmics
Annie Lennox darkly observes the return of precipitation while asking for better communication with her partner. "Want to dive into your ocean," she sings. I'm not sure what that means, but I imagine I'd let her.
3 - "Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)," Phil Collins
The Genesis drummer-turned-singer had his very first American charttopper with this big, catchy ballad that was the title song to a remake of the 1947 film noir Out of the Past. I haven't seen either, and it's unlikely I'll take a look at them now, or ever.
2 - "Somebody's Watching Me," Rockwell
Motown chief Berry Gordy's son Kennedy wanted to have a recording career, but he didn't want to be seen as riding on his father's coattails, so he got himself signed to Dad's label under a pseudonym. His career didn't last long, but it did leave behind this hauntingly awesome ode to paranoia. And I suppose having Michael Jackson sing part of the chorus didn't hurt either. Regardless, this has a definite place on my Top 100 of this decade.
And the #1 song 28 years ago was...
1 - "Footloose," Kenny Loggins
Kenny's only #1 was this pop-rock ode to kicking off one's shoes and boogieing. It also cemented him as the decade's Soundtrack King. The film it came from, of course, is the movie about a town where dancing is outlawed that introduced the world to Kevin Bacon. I've never seen it, but I can't rule out one day doing so. The same, however, can't be said for last year's remake.
This week's NotCaseys were "Relax" by Frankie Goes to Hollywood, "Borderline" by Madonna, "Oh Sherrie" by Steve Perry, and "Let's Hear it for the Boy" by Deniece Williams. At the beginning of the show, Casey played "Footloose" because it had been the previous week's #1, and later, he played "Start Me Up" by the Rolling Stones to accompany a story about how a phone had been produced in the shape of the bands lips-and-tongue logo. And of course, there were two LDDs. First, a girl dedicated Billy Joel's "Just the Way You Are" to her fiance, whom she loved in spite of the fact that he would frequently embarrass her. And later, another girl dedicated Irene Cara's "Fame" to her former social worker, because their shared love of that TV series was one of the many things that they bonded over.
And...scene. Bye for another week.
Sunday, April 8, 2012
April 7, 1984 Part One
Happy Easter everyone. And to celebrate, we're going back to 1984. This looks like a fun one.
40 - "The Longest Time," Billy Joel
39 - "No More Words," Berlin
38 - "Show Me," The Pretenders
37 - "One in a Million," The Romantics
36 - "Back Where You Belong," .38 Special
35 - "Holding Out for a Hero," Bonnie Tyler
34 - "Red, Red Wine," UB40
33 - "The Kid's American," Matthew Wilder
32 - "A Fine Fine Day," Tony Carey
31 - "To All the Girls I've Loved Before," Julio Iglesias and Willie Nelson
We'll start with the solo singers. Billy Joel had his fourth hit from An Innocent Man with this tribute to the doo-wop genre. It works as an homage, but it's also a pretty good example of the style in and of itself. It's probably the best of that LP's hits. Bonnie Tyler had her last American hit with this blustery contribution to the Footloose soundtrack. It's a big, operatic Jim Steinman production about a woman who fantasizes about a mythic "streetwise Hercules" who possesses superhuman strength and speed. Don't know if she ever found him, and I don't care. I'm a big fan of both Steinman and Tyler, and Lord knows they hit it out of the park with "Total Eclipse of the Heart," but this one just leaves me cold. Matthew Wilder followed up his debut smash "Break My Stride" with a fast, synth-laden ode to drivin', smokin', rockin' and doin' it. There's a spirit to it, but it just doesn't quite have the oomph necessary to really get the message across. This would be his last hit as an artist, and I have to say, I don't think we missed out on anything. And California keyboardist Tony Carey, a former member of the bands Rainbow and Planet P Project, had the first of his two Top 40 singles with this Springsteeny tale of the narrator's "Uncle Sonny," who from what I can make of the lyrics, was a mysterious man who was involved in some questionable activities and who met an unknown fate in the end. But that's okay. I don't always need songs to spell everything out. And I definitely remember this song fondly as an underrated gem.
Then we have two female-fronted groups. Before "Take My Breath Away," L.A. New Wavers Berlin scored a hit with this uptempo portrayal of a relationship that's souring. Singer Teri Nunn knows this is the case because she says of her lover "You tell me you love me while you're looking away." This isn't nearly as cool or interesting as their 1982 #62 "Sex (I'm A...)," but still much better and more representative than that hunk of mush from Top Gun. And Chrissie Hynde and the Pretenders are here with a song about looking for someone that can make up for all the bad in the world, who can "keep the despair at bay and send it away." A tall order, to be sure. But for someone as awesome as Ms. Hynde, I'd try.
We'll finish this section with a look at three male-fronted groups and a duet between a very odd couple. Detroit's Romantics followed up "Talking in Your Sleep" with their only other Top 40, a boring pop-rocker about a special lady. Contrary to its title, songs like this are a dime a dozen. Although I do thing it's funny that they have a band member named Mike Skill who isn't even the singer. Florida's .38 Special picked up the fifth of their nine Top 40s with this okay rock tune about wanting a woman to give a guy a second chance at love. This is not to be confused with their 1989 hit "Second Chance." Although you probably wouldn't make that mistake, becasuse for one thing, that was a ballad. And for another, it was terrible. Birmingham, England reggae band UB40 made their first appearance on the U.S. charts with this loping cover of a very minor Neil Diamond single from 1968. On this release, #34 was the highest position it would attain, but this celebration of the comforting properties of alcohol would be rediscovered four years later, and would make it all the way to #1. It might sound painfully hipsterish of me to say I liked it better the first time around, but...I liked it better the first time around. And the bizarre pairing of smooth, loungey Spanish pop singer Julio Iglesias and raspy, cannabis-consuming country star Willie Nelson on a song about all of the ladies they've, ahem, entertained during their lives (co-written by the slightly less ill-suited team of Albert "It Never Rains in Southern Califorinia" Hammond and frequent Burt Bacharach collaborator Hal David) somehow paid off in the form of a Top 5 hit. It was cheesy then, and its fromagean qualities have only increased with the passage of time. Still, I'd rather hear this than anything Enrique's ever recorded.
30 - "Runner," Mannfred Mann's Earth Band
29 - "The Authority Song," John Cougar Mellencamp
28 - "Leave It," Yes
27 - "Head Over Heels," The Go-Gos
26 - "Give it Up," KC
25 - "Don't Answer Me," The Alan Parsons Project
24 - "Tonight," Kool and the Gang
23 - "Thriller," Michael Jackson
22 - "Come Back and Stay," Paul Young
21 - "The Language of Love," Dan Fogelberg
We'll start this section with three British bands. Manfred Mann's Earth Band had their last hit to date with this cover of an Ian Thomas song about the grandeur and effort of racing on foot. There's a nice intensity to it, and evocative lyrics about sweat and breath and crossing the line. Certatinly nowhere near "Blinded by the Light," but still, pretty damn good. Yes followed up the #1 "Owner of a Lonely Heart" with this cool little confection that added some of the proggy ambition of their best years to their new pop direction. Can't really say what it's about, but that's fine with me. And the Alan Parsons Project cracket the Top 20 for the last time with this retroish tale of doomed romance that is probably best remembered for the amimated, film-noir style video, with its rumpled raincoats, dizzy dames, and musclehead villains. Loved that clip, but the song is a minor classic in its own right, at least to me.
I'm dividing up the male solo singers into the categories "First Got Famous On Their Own" and "Fronted a Popular Group Before Going Solo." Leading off the former category is J.C. Mellencamp with his celebration of sticking it to The Man, even if it always ends in futility. And it's true, rebellion is usually crushed. But it is usually pretty fun. Brit Paul Young picked up his first American hit with this synth-soul plea for a lover's return. Not bad, but I don't think anyone could have imagined that this guy'd be at #1 a year later with "Every Time You Go Away." And Dan Fogelberg had his last Top 40 hit with this number about the various miscommunications that happen in relationships. Uncharacteristically, it's an uptempo rocker, and he actually does pretty well with it. I've given Dan a lot of crap here, and I'm sure I'll continue to do so, but I give him credit for going out with a nice burst of energy.
Now we go to the American bands. The Go-Gos are here with what has always been my favorite song of theirs. The piano, the handclaps, Belinda Carlisle rhapsodizing about a love that makes it seem like "the whole world's out of sync." All of it combines to hit all my sweet spots. Top 50 of the whole decade, at least. And Kool and the Gang are here with a nice little chunk of funk-rock about losing one's virginity at 16. You know what? These guys actually had more good stuff in this decade than I remembered. I guess the stench of "Cherish" overwheled it.
We close the first half with a couple guys out on their own, away from the bands they helped to multiple charttoppers. Although in Harry Wayne Casey's case, it turns out that's not quite true. In most of the rest of the world, this sprightly throwback to his disco heyday was credited to "KC and the Sunshine Band," but for some reason, their American handlers decided to just market it as a KC solo record. Not sure it really made a difference. No matter who you say did it, it's a solid song. And Michael Jackson scored his seventh Top Ten from Thriller with the album's title track, a funky paean to the terrors offered by horror movies that even comes with a spoken-word interlude by fright film legend Vincent Price. And then of course there's that long, expensive video, which still holds up. You just can't lose with perfectly choreographed zombie dancing.
Tomorrow: the Apocalypse in German, paranoia in English, and the man who's signalled to many an artist that they've truly "made it."
40 - "The Longest Time," Billy Joel
39 - "No More Words," Berlin
38 - "Show Me," The Pretenders
37 - "One in a Million," The Romantics
36 - "Back Where You Belong," .38 Special
35 - "Holding Out for a Hero," Bonnie Tyler
34 - "Red, Red Wine," UB40
33 - "The Kid's American," Matthew Wilder
32 - "A Fine Fine Day," Tony Carey
31 - "To All the Girls I've Loved Before," Julio Iglesias and Willie Nelson
We'll start with the solo singers. Billy Joel had his fourth hit from An Innocent Man with this tribute to the doo-wop genre. It works as an homage, but it's also a pretty good example of the style in and of itself. It's probably the best of that LP's hits. Bonnie Tyler had her last American hit with this blustery contribution to the Footloose soundtrack. It's a big, operatic Jim Steinman production about a woman who fantasizes about a mythic "streetwise Hercules" who possesses superhuman strength and speed. Don't know if she ever found him, and I don't care. I'm a big fan of both Steinman and Tyler, and Lord knows they hit it out of the park with "Total Eclipse of the Heart," but this one just leaves me cold. Matthew Wilder followed up his debut smash "Break My Stride" with a fast, synth-laden ode to drivin', smokin', rockin' and doin' it. There's a spirit to it, but it just doesn't quite have the oomph necessary to really get the message across. This would be his last hit as an artist, and I have to say, I don't think we missed out on anything. And California keyboardist Tony Carey, a former member of the bands Rainbow and Planet P Project, had the first of his two Top 40 singles with this Springsteeny tale of the narrator's "Uncle Sonny," who from what I can make of the lyrics, was a mysterious man who was involved in some questionable activities and who met an unknown fate in the end. But that's okay. I don't always need songs to spell everything out. And I definitely remember this song fondly as an underrated gem.
Then we have two female-fronted groups. Before "Take My Breath Away," L.A. New Wavers Berlin scored a hit with this uptempo portrayal of a relationship that's souring. Singer Teri Nunn knows this is the case because she says of her lover "You tell me you love me while you're looking away." This isn't nearly as cool or interesting as their 1982 #62 "Sex (I'm A...)," but still much better and more representative than that hunk of mush from Top Gun. And Chrissie Hynde and the Pretenders are here with a song about looking for someone that can make up for all the bad in the world, who can "keep the despair at bay and send it away." A tall order, to be sure. But for someone as awesome as Ms. Hynde, I'd try.
We'll finish this section with a look at three male-fronted groups and a duet between a very odd couple. Detroit's Romantics followed up "Talking in Your Sleep" with their only other Top 40, a boring pop-rocker about a special lady. Contrary to its title, songs like this are a dime a dozen. Although I do thing it's funny that they have a band member named Mike Skill who isn't even the singer. Florida's .38 Special picked up the fifth of their nine Top 40s with this okay rock tune about wanting a woman to give a guy a second chance at love. This is not to be confused with their 1989 hit "Second Chance." Although you probably wouldn't make that mistake, becasuse for one thing, that was a ballad. And for another, it was terrible. Birmingham, England reggae band UB40 made their first appearance on the U.S. charts with this loping cover of a very minor Neil Diamond single from 1968. On this release, #34 was the highest position it would attain, but this celebration of the comforting properties of alcohol would be rediscovered four years later, and would make it all the way to #1. It might sound painfully hipsterish of me to say I liked it better the first time around, but...I liked it better the first time around. And the bizarre pairing of smooth, loungey Spanish pop singer Julio Iglesias and raspy, cannabis-consuming country star Willie Nelson on a song about all of the ladies they've, ahem, entertained during their lives (co-written by the slightly less ill-suited team of Albert "It Never Rains in Southern Califorinia" Hammond and frequent Burt Bacharach collaborator Hal David) somehow paid off in the form of a Top 5 hit. It was cheesy then, and its fromagean qualities have only increased with the passage of time. Still, I'd rather hear this than anything Enrique's ever recorded.
30 - "Runner," Mannfred Mann's Earth Band
29 - "The Authority Song," John Cougar Mellencamp
28 - "Leave It," Yes
27 - "Head Over Heels," The Go-Gos
26 - "Give it Up," KC
25 - "Don't Answer Me," The Alan Parsons Project
24 - "Tonight," Kool and the Gang
23 - "Thriller," Michael Jackson
22 - "Come Back and Stay," Paul Young
21 - "The Language of Love," Dan Fogelberg
We'll start this section with three British bands. Manfred Mann's Earth Band had their last hit to date with this cover of an Ian Thomas song about the grandeur and effort of racing on foot. There's a nice intensity to it, and evocative lyrics about sweat and breath and crossing the line. Certatinly nowhere near "Blinded by the Light," but still, pretty damn good. Yes followed up the #1 "Owner of a Lonely Heart" with this cool little confection that added some of the proggy ambition of their best years to their new pop direction. Can't really say what it's about, but that's fine with me. And the Alan Parsons Project cracket the Top 20 for the last time with this retroish tale of doomed romance that is probably best remembered for the amimated, film-noir style video, with its rumpled raincoats, dizzy dames, and musclehead villains. Loved that clip, but the song is a minor classic in its own right, at least to me.
I'm dividing up the male solo singers into the categories "First Got Famous On Their Own" and "Fronted a Popular Group Before Going Solo." Leading off the former category is J.C. Mellencamp with his celebration of sticking it to The Man, even if it always ends in futility. And it's true, rebellion is usually crushed. But it is usually pretty fun. Brit Paul Young picked up his first American hit with this synth-soul plea for a lover's return. Not bad, but I don't think anyone could have imagined that this guy'd be at #1 a year later with "Every Time You Go Away." And Dan Fogelberg had his last Top 40 hit with this number about the various miscommunications that happen in relationships. Uncharacteristically, it's an uptempo rocker, and he actually does pretty well with it. I've given Dan a lot of crap here, and I'm sure I'll continue to do so, but I give him credit for going out with a nice burst of energy.
Now we go to the American bands. The Go-Gos are here with what has always been my favorite song of theirs. The piano, the handclaps, Belinda Carlisle rhapsodizing about a love that makes it seem like "the whole world's out of sync." All of it combines to hit all my sweet spots. Top 50 of the whole decade, at least. And Kool and the Gang are here with a nice little chunk of funk-rock about losing one's virginity at 16. You know what? These guys actually had more good stuff in this decade than I remembered. I guess the stench of "Cherish" overwheled it.
We close the first half with a couple guys out on their own, away from the bands they helped to multiple charttoppers. Although in Harry Wayne Casey's case, it turns out that's not quite true. In most of the rest of the world, this sprightly throwback to his disco heyday was credited to "KC and the Sunshine Band," but for some reason, their American handlers decided to just market it as a KC solo record. Not sure it really made a difference. No matter who you say did it, it's a solid song. And Michael Jackson scored his seventh Top Ten from Thriller with the album's title track, a funky paean to the terrors offered by horror movies that even comes with a spoken-word interlude by fright film legend Vincent Price. And then of course there's that long, expensive video, which still holds up. You just can't lose with perfectly choreographed zombie dancing.
Tomorrow: the Apocalypse in German, paranoia in English, and the man who's signalled to many an artist that they've truly "made it."
Sunday, April 1, 2012
March 28, 1981 Part Two
There was only one new-to-me song on this week's 1976 chart, the religious funk of Eddie Kendricks' "He's a Friend." So let's just go ahead and finish off 1981.
20 - "A Little in Love," Cliff Richard
19 - "Hearts on Fire," Randy Meisner
18 - "Angel of the Morning," Juice Newton
17 - "Celebration," Kool and the Gang
16 - "I Can't Stand It," Eric Clapton
The second half begin with Cliff Richard's slab of blandness. He's kind of like the Elvis of England, you know. They kind of got the short end of that one, don't you think?
Next is Randy Meisner, formerly of both Poco and the Eagles, with his biggest solo hit. It's countryish pop-rock, not surprisingly. And it's about "achin' with desire." It filled space on radio playlists, but not much more.
Juice Newton is back from June with her cover of Merilee Rush's 1968 morning-after hit. It was wrtitten by Chip Taylor, who's Jon Voight's brother and, therefore, Angelina Jolie's uncle. Interesting.
Then it's Kool and the Gang, back from January with their party anthem. For me, it just tries too hard.
This group closes with Eric Clapton, who's apparently sick of the woman who's "playing around with my heart." I wonder if this one's about Patti Boyd too. I'm guessing not. Anyway, it's decent, chugging pop-rock, and better than a lot of his solo hits.
15 - "I Love a Rainy Night," Eddie Rabbitt
14 - "Morning Train (9 to 5)," Sheena Easton
13 - "Don't Stand So Close to Me," The Police
12 - "The Winner Takes it All," ABBA
11 - "While You See a Chance," Steve Winwood
This section is led off by Eddie Rabbitt and his afftection for evening showers. I don't share this, but still, this is fairly decent as early-80s country-pop goes.
Scottish lass Sheena Easton made her worldwide breakthrough with this #1 smash about a woman who waits patiently every day for her man to get off work so they can "play all night." It's catchy retro-pop with a kick, and its charm somewhat makes up for its retrograde gender politics. It's sexy, too, but in a much more wholesome way than Sheena would later get with "Strut" and "Sugar Walls."
Next are The Police with their second U.S. Top Ten, a menacing reggae-New Wave hybrid about a teacher trying to control the mutual sexual attraction between himself and a female student half his age. Effective pop drama, and to my knowledge, the only U.S. Top 40 hit to directly reference Vladimir Nabokov.
Then ABBA return with their almost operatic portrayal of the end of a relationship. It's like a four-minute soap opera, and more entertaining than most full-length ones.
This bunch is rounded out by the first solo hit for Steve Winwood, who had made his name in the 60s and 70s with The Spencer Davis Group, Blind Faith, and Traffic. It's catchy keyboard-rock about seizing the day, "because it's all on you." Good advice, but Steve, I'd rather not "fake it" when I finde romannce. But that's just me.
Top ten, you are cleared for takeoff.
10 - "What Kind of Fool," Barbra Streisand and Barry Gibb
Babs n' Barry had the second of their two duet hits with this ballad about guilt and regret at the end of a relationship. The two very much try to out-drama queen each other by the end of this. Barbra wins on my scorecard.
9 - "Kiss on My List," Daryl Hall and John Oates
After not being able to get back to the Top Ten in the four years following the #1 "Rich Girl," H&O made their triumphant return to the top spot with this sprightly pop tune about how great liplocking with one particular woman is. And thus began a four-year period when you couldn't get away from these guys on the radio. Which wasn't necessarily a bad thing.
8 - "Just the Two of Us," Grover Washington, Jr. with Bill Withers
Grover and Bill return from June with their romance-jazz smash. This was just made for wine and fireplaces.
7 - "9 to 5," Dolly Parton
Dolly's exuberant ode to workaday frustration. It was because of this that Sheena Easton had to change the main title of her hit to "Morning Train." in America. Both songs have their appeal, but I prefer this one.
6 - "Hello Again," Neil Diamond
And hello to you, Neil. And be honest, did you really think donning blackface and doing a sex scene with Lucie Arnaz was going to make you a movie star?
5 - "Crying," Don McLean
Stick to "American Pie," Donnie. You're out of your element taking on Roy.
4 - "Keep On Loving You," REO Speedwagon
The fire engine band's breakthough. I can't do what the song says, though, because I never loved it in the first place.
3 - "The Best of Times," Styx
A big ballad from the band named after the river that divides Earth from the Underworld in Greek mythology. Some advice: If you want to make your child truly invincible, dip him in twice, holding a different foot each time. No one told Achilles' mom that, and look what happened.
2 - "Woman," John Lennon
As the world still mourned him, John reminded us why we loved him in the first place with a simple, heart-on-sleeve love song. The man was a rare soul.
And the biggest hit in the U.S. of A. thirty years ago was...
1 - "Rapture," Blondie
The last of the New Wave legends' four #1 singles was this classic disco-rocker that went down in history as the first song to contain rap to top the American charts. After two verses sung in her best seductive coo, Deborah Harry, unknowingly laying the groundwork for Vanilla Ice and Eminem, starts rhyming a tale of a "man from Mars" who comes down to earth and begins eating things. He starts by consuming your head, then he goes on nightly rampages, first devouring automobiles ranging from Cadillacs to Subarus, than moving on to eating bars "where the people meet." But after deciding to no longer gorge on taverns and pubs that have televisions, the Martian returns to space and decides that his diet will from that point forward only consist of...guitars. Yes, of course this is this week's Uneasy Rider. It's wonderfully, fantastically weird. And I'm no rap connoisseur, but to my ears, Debbie had a fairly decent flow.
This week's NotCaseys were "I Love You" by the Climax Blues Band, "You Better You Bet" by The Who, "Watching the Wheels" by John Lennon, and "Bette Davis Eyes" by Kim Carnes. Casey led off the show by playing the previous week's #1, "Keep on Loving You," and during the show, he played three mid-60s charttoppers: the Supremes' "Come See About Me," the Beatles' "I Feel Fine," and Petula Clark's "Downtown." And there were two LDDs. First, a woman dedicated Gladys Knight and the Pips' "Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me," to the cousing who became her really close friend. And later, a man dedicated Billy Swan's "I Can Help" to the woman who helped him pass his CPR class.
And we're out. But next week, I'll be pulled back in.
20 - "A Little in Love," Cliff Richard
19 - "Hearts on Fire," Randy Meisner
18 - "Angel of the Morning," Juice Newton
17 - "Celebration," Kool and the Gang
16 - "I Can't Stand It," Eric Clapton
The second half begin with Cliff Richard's slab of blandness. He's kind of like the Elvis of England, you know. They kind of got the short end of that one, don't you think?
Next is Randy Meisner, formerly of both Poco and the Eagles, with his biggest solo hit. It's countryish pop-rock, not surprisingly. And it's about "achin' with desire." It filled space on radio playlists, but not much more.
Juice Newton is back from June with her cover of Merilee Rush's 1968 morning-after hit. It was wrtitten by Chip Taylor, who's Jon Voight's brother and, therefore, Angelina Jolie's uncle. Interesting.
Then it's Kool and the Gang, back from January with their party anthem. For me, it just tries too hard.
This group closes with Eric Clapton, who's apparently sick of the woman who's "playing around with my heart." I wonder if this one's about Patti Boyd too. I'm guessing not. Anyway, it's decent, chugging pop-rock, and better than a lot of his solo hits.
15 - "I Love a Rainy Night," Eddie Rabbitt
14 - "Morning Train (9 to 5)," Sheena Easton
13 - "Don't Stand So Close to Me," The Police
12 - "The Winner Takes it All," ABBA
11 - "While You See a Chance," Steve Winwood
This section is led off by Eddie Rabbitt and his afftection for evening showers. I don't share this, but still, this is fairly decent as early-80s country-pop goes.
Scottish lass Sheena Easton made her worldwide breakthrough with this #1 smash about a woman who waits patiently every day for her man to get off work so they can "play all night." It's catchy retro-pop with a kick, and its charm somewhat makes up for its retrograde gender politics. It's sexy, too, but in a much more wholesome way than Sheena would later get with "Strut" and "Sugar Walls."
Next are The Police with their second U.S. Top Ten, a menacing reggae-New Wave hybrid about a teacher trying to control the mutual sexual attraction between himself and a female student half his age. Effective pop drama, and to my knowledge, the only U.S. Top 40 hit to directly reference Vladimir Nabokov.
Then ABBA return with their almost operatic portrayal of the end of a relationship. It's like a four-minute soap opera, and more entertaining than most full-length ones.
This bunch is rounded out by the first solo hit for Steve Winwood, who had made his name in the 60s and 70s with The Spencer Davis Group, Blind Faith, and Traffic. It's catchy keyboard-rock about seizing the day, "because it's all on you." Good advice, but Steve, I'd rather not "fake it" when I finde romannce. But that's just me.
Top ten, you are cleared for takeoff.
10 - "What Kind of Fool," Barbra Streisand and Barry Gibb
Babs n' Barry had the second of their two duet hits with this ballad about guilt and regret at the end of a relationship. The two very much try to out-drama queen each other by the end of this. Barbra wins on my scorecard.
9 - "Kiss on My List," Daryl Hall and John Oates
After not being able to get back to the Top Ten in the four years following the #1 "Rich Girl," H&O made their triumphant return to the top spot with this sprightly pop tune about how great liplocking with one particular woman is. And thus began a four-year period when you couldn't get away from these guys on the radio. Which wasn't necessarily a bad thing.
8 - "Just the Two of Us," Grover Washington, Jr. with Bill Withers
Grover and Bill return from June with their romance-jazz smash. This was just made for wine and fireplaces.
7 - "9 to 5," Dolly Parton
Dolly's exuberant ode to workaday frustration. It was because of this that Sheena Easton had to change the main title of her hit to "Morning Train." in America. Both songs have their appeal, but I prefer this one.
6 - "Hello Again," Neil Diamond
And hello to you, Neil. And be honest, did you really think donning blackface and doing a sex scene with Lucie Arnaz was going to make you a movie star?
5 - "Crying," Don McLean
Stick to "American Pie," Donnie. You're out of your element taking on Roy.
4 - "Keep On Loving You," REO Speedwagon
The fire engine band's breakthough. I can't do what the song says, though, because I never loved it in the first place.
3 - "The Best of Times," Styx
A big ballad from the band named after the river that divides Earth from the Underworld in Greek mythology. Some advice: If you want to make your child truly invincible, dip him in twice, holding a different foot each time. No one told Achilles' mom that, and look what happened.
2 - "Woman," John Lennon
As the world still mourned him, John reminded us why we loved him in the first place with a simple, heart-on-sleeve love song. The man was a rare soul.
And the biggest hit in the U.S. of A. thirty years ago was...
1 - "Rapture," Blondie
The last of the New Wave legends' four #1 singles was this classic disco-rocker that went down in history as the first song to contain rap to top the American charts. After two verses sung in her best seductive coo, Deborah Harry, unknowingly laying the groundwork for Vanilla Ice and Eminem, starts rhyming a tale of a "man from Mars" who comes down to earth and begins eating things. He starts by consuming your head, then he goes on nightly rampages, first devouring automobiles ranging from Cadillacs to Subarus, than moving on to eating bars "where the people meet." But after deciding to no longer gorge on taverns and pubs that have televisions, the Martian returns to space and decides that his diet will from that point forward only consist of...guitars. Yes, of course this is this week's Uneasy Rider. It's wonderfully, fantastically weird. And I'm no rap connoisseur, but to my ears, Debbie had a fairly decent flow.
This week's NotCaseys were "I Love You" by the Climax Blues Band, "You Better You Bet" by The Who, "Watching the Wheels" by John Lennon, and "Bette Davis Eyes" by Kim Carnes. Casey led off the show by playing the previous week's #1, "Keep on Loving You," and during the show, he played three mid-60s charttoppers: the Supremes' "Come See About Me," the Beatles' "I Feel Fine," and Petula Clark's "Downtown." And there were two LDDs. First, a woman dedicated Gladys Knight and the Pips' "Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me," to the cousing who became her really close friend. And later, a man dedicated Billy Swan's "I Can Help" to the woman who helped him pass his CPR class.
And we're out. But next week, I'll be pulled back in.
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