August 4, 1985

This week, we go back to the summer I started high school.  And on the day this countdown first aired, future American Idol runner-up Crystal Bowersox was born.  And that's actually relevant to this chart, in a way that you'll find out if you keep reading.

Yes, it's another week with few noobs, so once again here's 40-11, new stuff in bold.

40 - "I Wonder if I Take You Home," Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam with Full Force
39 - "Smokin' in the Boys' Room," Motley Crue
38 - "Not Enough Love in the World," Don Henley
37 - "Freedom," Wham!
36 - "Pop Life," Prince and the Revolution
35 - "Life in One Day," Howard Jones
34 - "Dare Me," The Pointer Sisters
33 - "Find a Way," Amy Grant
32 - "Mystery Lady," Billy Ocean
31 - "Cherish," Kool and the Gang
30 - "Invincible," Pat Benatar
29 - "Don't Lose My Number," Phil Collins
28 - "Would I Lie to You," Eurythmics
27 - "State of the Heart," Rick Springfield
26 - "You're Only Human (Second Wind)," Billy Joel
25 - "Just as I Am," Air Supply
24 - "The Search is Over," Survivor
23 - "Voices Carry," 'Til Tuesday
22 - "Sussudio," Phil Collins
21 - "Rock Me Tonight (For Old Times' Sake)," Freddie Jackson
20 - "We Don't Need Another Hero (Thunderdome)," Tina Turner
19 - "19," Paul Hardcastle
18 - "St. Elmo's Fire (Man in Motion)," John Parr
17 - "What About Love," Heart
16 - "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)," Dead or Alive
15 - "Summer of  '69," Bryan Adams
14 - "Raspberry Beret," Prince
13 - "People are People," Depeche Mode
12 - "Freeway of Love," Aretha Franklin
11 - "A View to a Kill," Duran Duran

Six new tracks.  Well, better than last week.

First we have Don Henley with an R&Bish number about a failing relationship.  Not one of his bigger hits, but a nice little tune, well performed.  Can't say much more than that.

Georgia-born, Nashville-raised Amy Grant had become one of the biggest stars in Christian music, and was now making a bid for mainstream crossover success with this peppy, synth-heavy tune about the redeeming power of love.  The only overtly religious lyrics are in the bridge, but they're not distractingly out of place.  A mildly catchy song, and as I've said before, I enjoy Amy's voice much more than most of the songs she sings.  There's just a warmth to it.

Next is one of Rick Springfield's last hits, a bland little midtempo ballad.  Nothing interesting or exciting about it at all.  He was winding down.

Then it's the first hit by soul singer Freddie Jackson, a song about wanting to "get together" with a former flame.  "I really miss the way you squeeze and moan," he croons.  Above-average loverman material.

British musician and producer Paul Hardcastle had his only American pop hit with this odd track that plays clips from a documentary about the Vietnam war over stuttery synth/dance beats and instrumentation.  "In World War II, the average age of the combat soldier was 26," a narrator intones.  "In Vietnam, it was 19."  Later, we are told of the after effects suffered by those soldiers, and it is concluded that "Eight to ten years after coming home, almost eight hundred thousand men are still fighting the Vietnam War."  It's strangely haunting, but also kind of disconcerting to think that people actually danced to this in clubs.  And perhaps even more strangely, it was the profits from this song that helped launch the career of Hardcastle's manager Simon Fuller, who would name his company 19 Productions and give the world the Spice Girls and American Idol.  All in all, a very unusual pop singer, and therefore the clear winner of this week's Uneasy Rider.

Rounding out the new meat are England's Depeche Mode with their first U.S. hit, a catchy plea for peace, love and understanding.  Not lyrically groundbreaking, but undeniably earwormy.  Their next single would be about BDSM sex.  Not surprisingly, it didn't do as well in America.  But they would be back.

I like a good Top Ten early in the morning.

10 - "Who's Holding Donna Now," DeBarge
I don't know, but I have a question of my own:  Did El DeBarge ever find it funny that his name meant "The DeBarge" in Spanish.  Because I do.

9 - "Bang a Gong (Get it On)," The Power Station
This combo of two Duranies, the drummer from Chic, and Robert Palmer had their second and last U.S. Top Ten with this beat-heavy cover of a T. Rex classic.  While I've grown to like the original better, this version still has charms of his own.  Robert Palmer's vocals are grimy in a more sophisticated way than Marc Bolan's.

8 - "Sentimental Street," Night Ranger
"Sister Christian"'s plain younger sister.  It doesn't even come close to "motorin'."

7 - "The Power of Love," Huey Lewis and the News
Don't you just love how in Back to the Future, Marty and his band start playing this song for a teacher played by none other than Huey Lewis himself, and Huey absolutely hates it?  Well, don't you?  Irony, people!

6 - "Never Surrender," Corey Hart
I never did, Corey.  This song has always sucked to me.

5 - "Glory Days," Bruce Springsteen
According to this song, any meeting involving Bruce and an old friend from high school involves "a few drinks."  I would hope he at least buys one round on these occasions.

4 - "You Give Good Love," Whitney Houston
And Whitney gave good voice.  That's all I have to say.

3 - "If You Love Somebody Set Them Free," Sting
The anti-"Every Breath You Take."  And better advice than the comedy-punks in The Dead Milkmen offered five years later on their song "If You Love Somebody, Set Them on Fire."

2 - "Everytime You Go Away," Paul Young
It was a big hit.  It's okay.

And topping the charts 26 years ago was...

1 - "Shout," Tears for Fears
"These are the things I can do without," Roland Orzabal sings.  You know what I could have done without?  A cover version by that band Disturbed.  Man, I hate that guy's voice.  And they should have left "Land of Confusion" alone too.

This week's NotCaseys were "Back in Time" by Huey Lewis and the News, "Cry" by Godley and Creme, "Take On Me," by A-ha, and "I Got You Babe" by UB40 and Chrissie Hynde.  And there were two LDDs.  In the first, a teenage girl dedicated Limahl's "The Neverending Story" to the older brother she looks up to.  And later, an Air Force sergeant stationed overseas dedicated Journey's "Faithfully" to his wife.  That seemed to happen a lot.

Tomorrow, or soon:  I've neglected the 70s for the last couple weeks, so I'm going to a do a brief wrap-up of the uncovered tunes from those charts.  Should be fun.