A day late, but I made it.
Before we finish off 1980, let's nudge the clock back a year to April 28, 1979. For the first time, some stations in the Premier Radio syndicate were able to play all four hours of a 1979 show, so I'm going to cover stuff from tthei entire 40.
Blondie was on top with "Heart of Glass." The Top Ten also included "Knock on Wood," "I Will Survive," "Stumblin' In," and "In the Navy."..The first newbie I'll cover is #18 jaz,z guitarist George Benson's cover of LTD's hit "Love Ballad." I think I actually like this version better...Ex-Fleetwood Mac man Bob Welch is at #19 with his last hit, the serviceable disco-rocker, "Precious Love"...Philly soul duo (Leroy) Bell and (Casey) James had their only pop hit with the song at #22 this week, the smoothly grooving ode to weekends "Livin' it Up (Friday Night)"... The Allman Brothers Band scored their second Top 40 hit with the rollicking, lusty rave-up "Crazy Love," this week's #30....At 31, The Pointer Sisters are here with their gospel-flavored follow-up to "Fire," "Happiness." A forgotten gem...Canadian rockers April Wine are at #34 with their second American hit, the okay gambling-as-sex-metaphor number, "Roller"...And former Byrds Roger McGuinn, Gene Clark and Chris Hillman got together to form a group named after the three men's surnames, and the one hit they produced was the jaunty "Don't You Write Her Off," this week's #39...But this week, I've decided to shine the spotlight on two songs, the first being...
17 - "Blow Away," George Harrison
The Quiet Beatle's last American hit of the 70s was this sweet, gentle folk-pop tune about getting past the hard times in life. I single this song out because it played a role in getting me out of a long, dark period. Just hearing George sing "All I've got to be is, be happy" helped flip a switch within me that it was time to stop putting myself through pointless misery and get back to living. Yeah, music can be a powerful thing.
And my other spotlight shines on...
32 - "Roxanne," The Police
The first hit by the reggae-inspired New Wavers was this now-familiar number about a man trying to convince a prostitute to give up that life, imploring her not to "put on the red light." Sting was inspired to write this while observing the ladies of the evening who congregated in the seedy Paris hotel where the band was staying at the time. It wouldn't get any higher on the charts than this, but arguably, it's now their second most famous song. And deservedly so.
And now, back to '80
20 - "Think About Me," Fleetwood Mac
19 - "I Pledge My Love," Peaches and Herb
18 - "Hurt So Bad," Linda Ronstadt
17 - "Biggest Part of Me," Ambrosia
16 - "Off the Wall," Michael Jackson
The second half opens with Fleetwood Mac's third and final Tusk hit. It's your basic Mac pop-rock, with lyrics about a relationship sung by Christine McVie and Lindsey Buckingham. I didn't remember it, and my introduction to it was quite underwhelming.
Next is the last hit for Peaches and Herb, and the third of which that featured Peaches #3, Linda Greene. It's an unremarkable love ballad. This doesn't feel nearly as good as "Reunited."
Then it's Linda Ronstadt with what would be her last solo Top Ten, a sultry rock ballad about the pain of watching an old lover move on. Definitely one of her more impassioned performances, and it's definitely in my Top 3 among her hits.
The bland boys of California, Ambrosia, had their next-to-last hit with possibly the worst of the boring-ass love songs that made theTir name. If I could "make a wish," it'd be that these guys had never existed.
This section closes with the title track to Michael J.'s first blockbuster LP. Again, it pales a bit next to many of his other hits, but in that company, there's no shame in that.
15 - "Pilot of the Airwaves," Charlie Dore
14 - "Too Hot," Kool and the Gang
13 - "Don't Fall in Love With a Dreamer," Kenny Rogers and Kim Carnes
12 - "Hold On to My Love," Jimmy Ruffin
11 - "Working My Way Back to You/Forgive Me Girl," The Spinners
This bunch is led off by the only hit for British songstress Charlie Dore. It's a cool little midtempo pop ballad about a woman infatuated with a late-night radio DJ. Both the song and Dore's vocals remind me a great deal of Joni Mitchell, and that's a very good thing.
Kool and the Gang return from last time with their hit about a fairytale romance gone wrong. Still just okay to me.
Next are Kenny Rogers and Kim Carnes with their hit duet about the dangers of getting too serious with someone who isn't interested in commitment. I think that's it. Anyway, decent song, but still, Kim really didn't click for me until "Bette Davis Eyes."
Then it's Jimmy Ruffin, a former Motown artist best known for his 1966 Top Ten "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted." He had been hitless for over a decade when Bee Gee Robin Gibb wrote and produced an album for him which produced this solid soul song that put him back on the charts. And I will take this opportunity to wish Mr. Gibb the best as he battles cancer.
Rounding out this group are The Spinners with their returning medley. Again, this is a rarity: a Spinners song that I don't really care for. But I can forgive them.
Top ten, top ten, jiggity jog.
10 - "Sexy Eyes," Dr. Hook
The absolute worst of this band's horrible disco period. That these guys were the same ones who did those fabulous versions of Shel Silverstein songs boggles my mind. Shit.
9 - "You May be Right," Billy Joel
The piano man had his hardest rock hit to date with this stomping number about answering a lover's criticism of his erratic behavior by arguing that this behavior is exactly what she loves about him. Good fun, and solidly in my Top 5 of his.
8 - "I Can't Tell You Why," The Eagles
The mellow-rock superstars had their last Top Ten single with this slick ballad about not knowing how to leave someone. By the end of the year, these guys would figure that out. Still, gotta say I like this. Timothy B. Schmit took full adavantage of his chance to take the mic with a very good performance.
7 - "Fire Lake," Bob Seger
Speaking of Timothy B., he and fellow Eagles Don Henley and Glenn Frey provide backup vocals for the Styx of Detroit's countryish number about going out and living it up, damn the consequences. Very good, as Seger goes.
6 - "Lost in Love," Air Supply
The Aussie duo began their two-year run as an MOR juggernaut with this ballad about wanting to be a better person for the one you love. Honestly, it's probably my favorite non-"Making Love Out of Nothing at All" hit of theirs.
5 - "Special Lady," Ray, Goodman and Brown
Simple, smooth, solid. Great stuff.
4 - "With You I'm Born Again," Billy Preston and Syreeta Wright
The onetime Fifth Beatle had his last pop hit with this passionate duet with Wright, who had to that point been best known for her songwriting collaborations with Stevie Wonder. One of the decade's sexiest songs.
3 - "Another Brick in the Wall Part II," Pink Floyd
The Floyd at their commercial peak. The children's choir was a masterstroke.
2 - "Ride Like the Wind," Christopher Cross
The future ballad king had his first hit with this uptempo pop song about a man on the run from the law trying to "make it to the border of Mexico," Even with Michael McDonald's vocal cameos, I have to say, this was by far Cross' best work.
And topping the pop heap 32 years ago was...
1 - "Call Me," Blondie
This song began life as an instrumental track that Giorgio Moroder wanted Stevie Nicks to sing on to serve as the main theme to American Gigolo. When Nicks was unavailable, Moroder turned to Blondie's Deborah Harry, who added lyrics and a melody and then recorded it with her band with Moroder producing. The result is this icily seductive New Wave come-on that would top the American charts for six weeks. This cemented Harry as the turn of the decade's preeminent musical sex bomb.
This week's NotCaseys were The B-52s' "Rock Lobster," Paul McCartney and Wings' "Coming Up," Pat Benatar's "We Live for Love," and The Manhattans' "Shining Star." Casey opened the show with the previous week's top three (same as this weeks, except "Another Brick in the Wall" and "Ride Like the Wind" switched positions, later played three #1s from late 1978 ("You Don't Bring Me Flowers," "Le Freak," and "Too Much Heaven"), and also played Danny and the Juniors' "At the Hop" to answer a question about the highest-debuting single by a brand new act. And there were two LDDs. In the first, a woman dedicated Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" to the ex-boyvriend who helped her get off drugs. And later, another woman dedicated Paul Simon's "Mother and Child Reunion," to the daughter she gave up for adoption fourteen years earlier who she'd like to see again some day.
More of this for y'all's enjoyment coming very soon.
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