And now, we wrap up 1992.
20 - "People Everyday," Arrested Development
19 - "November Rain," Guns n' Roses
18 - "Come and Talk to Me," Jodeci
17 - "Keep on Walkin'," Ce Ce Peniston
16 - "I'd Die Without You," PM Dawn
The second half begins with Arrested Development, a hip-hop group that presented themselves as a more positive alternative to "gangsta rap." However, on this loping track that borrows the chorus from Sly and the Family Stone's "Everyday People," Speech, the group's leader, is forced to turn to violence when a thuggish group of individuals approach and begin physically harrassing his girlfriend. In spite of his pacifist appearance, however, Speech is able to beat them all down, and it takes "three or four cops" to halt his savage assault. A decent enough track, but nowhere near the classic that is "Tennessee."
Guns n' Roses are here with arguably their most ambitious song, an epic ballad that in its full version runs nearly nine minutes, features three guitar solos, a lush orchestral arrangement, and Axl Rose on piano as he sings of trying to keep a troubled relationship alive. Naturally, it was accompanied by a similarly elaborate video, which featured first a wedding between Axl and then-girlfriend Stephanie Seymour, an outdoor reception spoiled by a sudden downpour, and then a flash-forward to a funeral for Seymour. The whole enterprise was massive almost to the point of excess, but it worked. A genuinely great song.
Next is Jodeci, an R&B group formed by two sets of brothers: Cedric and Joel Hailey, and Donald and Dalvin DeGrate. They racked up nine Top Tens and four #1s on the soul chart, but their biggest pop hit, this okay midtempo number about wanting to get to know a lady better, only reached #11. They're not my thing, but the talent is pretty obvious.
Then it's Cecilia Veronica Peniston, who is probably best known for her first hit, the dance smash "Finally." Her second hit was this attitude-heavy strutter about a man who doesn't start treating her right until it's too late. I'd half-forgotten this, but it's pretty damn good.
This section is rounded out by PM Dawn, another hippieish hip-hop act, a duo consisting of New Jersey brothers Attrell and Jarrett Cordes, aka Prince Be and DJ Minutemix. Unlike their first two hits, which featured rap, this is a strictly-sung ballad. It's very pretty and heartfelt. Terrific stuff. And this is the week's second entry from the Boomerang soundtrack.
15 - "Life is a Highway," Tom Cochrane
14 - "I Wanna Love You," Jade
13 - "All I Want," Toad the Wet Sprocket
12 - "Do I Have to Say the Words," Bryan Adams
11 - "Forever Love," Color Me Badd
This group is led off by Canadian Tom Cochrane, who had spent the 80s having most of his success on album-rock radio with the band Red Rider (perhaps most famously with the song "Lunatic Fringe"). In the new decade, he went solo, and his first single was this earwormy boogie rocker about the possibilities of the open road. Nowadays it's probably better known in the version by Rascal Flatts from the movie Cars. I'm not happy about that. Partly because that version was so like the original (except its lack of backing vocals from the criminally underknown Molly Johnson) as to be pointless, and partly because I just don't like Rascal Flatts.
R&B girl group Jade had their first hit with this unremarkable song that contains the chorus "I wanna love you down." I'm not entirely sure what that means. The only thing I've been able deduce from other songs is that loving someone down seems to be a precusor for sexing someone up. Fascinating.
Next is Toad the Wet Sprocket, a Santa Barbara, California band who took their name from a fictional band mentioned in a Monty Python sketch. Their first, and biggest, pop hit was this jangly love song reminiscent of a poor man's R.E.M. Liked it at the time, but it's gotten dated.
Then it's Bryan Adams with another hit from the period where he reinvented himself as a raspy balladeer. It's a pleading power ballad, and I would say one of the best of a bad lot. But to me, pretty much anything he released after 1987 is to be avoided with extreme prejudice.
This section ends with Color Me Badd. This song just sucks. This group just sucks. To me, they're the worst boy band ever. The songs were flavorless, with the notable exception of the laughably bad "I Wanna Sex You Up." And they weren't all that great as singers. To me, "Badd" didn't do these guys justice. They should have been called something like "Color Me Horrendouss."
They say the Top Ten is a bad mutha...Shut your mouth!
10 - "She's Playing Hard to Get," Hi Five
The Texas soulsters had their last major pop hit with this jaunty tune about a girl who won't admit she's interested. Probably their best song, but I just don't have much else to say.on
9 - "The One," Elton John
Sir Elton's first Top Ten was this big ballad about finding real happiness after a lost period of "drunken nights in dark hotels." Maybe it doesn't quite rise to the level of his 70s classics, but it's still a solid piece of John/Taupin songcraft.
8 - "Move This," Technotronic featuring Ya Kid K
The third and last hit for this Belgian dance group didn't actually chart until three years after its parent album was released. It became popular after it was used in a Revlon cosmetics commercial. It sounds very similar to previous hits "Pump Up the Jam" and "Get Up!" with Congolese-born female rapper Ya Kid K telling you to "shake that body for me." Not at the moment, Ms. K.
7 - "Giving Him Something He Can Feel," En Vogue
The Funky Divas make their second appearance this week with this cover of a Curtis Mayfield song from the 1976 movie Sparkle. Aretha Franklin had the first hit version of it, and while that's a tough act to follow, these ladies do quite well with this retro-soul ballad. The movie was remade this year, and apparently Jordin Sparks does this on the soundtrack. She's an okay singer, but I doubt I'll bother checking her version out. My expectations are low.
6 - "Humpin' Around,"Bobby Brown
The biggest solo star to emerge from New Edition is here with the first single from his follow-up to the multi-platinum Don't Be Cruel. It's an energetic, keyboard-hook-powered chastising of a lover who doesn't trust him to be faithful. To be fair, though, I wouldn't either. This guy doesn't really have the greatest of reputations.
5 - "Sometimes Love Just Ain't Enough," Patty Smyth with Don Henley
Eight years after cracking the Top Ten with the band Scandal with "The Warrior," Smyth returned to the upper reaches of the charts with this ballad on which she and ex-Eagle Henley lament the fact that in spite of how much they care for each other, their relationship is doomed to fail. A solid, well-sung pop hit.
4 - "Please Don't Go," K.W.S.
This English dance band had their only major hit with this uptempo cover of KC and the Sunshine Band's last #1 hit. Not a great song originally, but at least you can dance to this version. A disposable hit.
3 - "Just Another Day," Jon Secada
This Cuban-born, Florida-raised singer got his first big break as a backup singer for Gloria Estefan, and eventually got his own record deal, the first major fruit of which was this midtempo ballad about how he can't make it alone. He has a nice voice, but the material is just bland.
2 - "Baby-Baby-Baby," TLC
These ladies make their second appearance with this cool little pop-soul number that tries to convince a man that even though his ladyfriend has unlimited romantic options, she is committed to loving him only. There's no Left Eye rap on this, but still, very good.
And on top in '92 was:
1 - "End of the Road," Boyz II Men
The third number from Boomerang on this week's list was this lush, retroish breakup ballad (complete with an old-school spoken-word bridge) that stayed at the top of the charts for a then-record 13 straight weeks. They would go on to have two other hits that would stay at the top even longer. This is an accomplishment that I think gets underplayed. In their day, these guys were huge.
The broadcast included a Sneak Peek of a future hit, "Someone to Hold," by Trey Lorenz, an R&B newcomer who had just duetted with Mariah Carey on a smash cover of the Jackson 5 hit "I'll Be There." There was a Long Distance Dedication (Cher and Peter Cetera's "After All") from a man to a woman he was getting a second chance at having a relationship with. And the highlights of the commercials included a promo for an upcoming TV-movie about the breakup of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, as well as two different ads for Teen Spirit (the most important deodorant in rock history), one of which promoted a contest where you could win a chance to appear on an episode of Saved by the Bell.
Don't have much to say about the three uncovered tracks from September 20, 1980. Dionne Warwick's inspirational ballad "No Night So Long" was at #26. "First Time Love," the second and last hit by James Taylor's soundalike brother Livingston, was at #38. And at 40, Elton John was present with the breakup ballad "Don't Ya Wanna Play This Game No More (Sartorial Eloquence)". All were decent enough, in their respective ways.
Next up, 1993.
Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Monday, September 24, 2012
September 26, 1992 Part One
This week we go back a mere 20 years to 1992. As the United States was in the final stages of an election campaign that would see Bill Clinton become President, these were the songs that were coming out of American radios.
40 - "Nothing Broken but My Heart," Celine Dion
39 - "Not Enough Time," INXS
38 - "Everybody's Free (To Feel Good)," Rozalla
37 - "Jump Around," House of Pain
36 - "Kickin' It," After 7
35 - "Give U My Heart," Babyface featuring Toni Braxton
34 - "Always the Last to Know," del Amitri
33 - "Constant Craving," k.d. lang
32 - "Restless Heart," Peter Cetera
31 - "What About Your Friends," TLC
We'll begin things with two Canadian ladies. Celine Dion, who had been racking up French-language hits in her native Quebec since 1981 (when she was all of twelve years old), was in the early stages of her English career when she released this slick ballad. It's typical of many of the hits she'd have in the future, in that she sings prettily, but I don't really feel a lot of emotion for her. But that seems to work for her, so good. And Albertan Kathryn Dawn Lang started out in the country genre, but her anti-meat activism alienated her from many in that industry. Then she turned in more of a cosmopolitan pop direction, and the result was Ingenue, her best-selling album, which also produced her only major American pop hit. It's a song about a non-specific desire, and that ambiguity provides intrigue and underscores the urgency. A terrific pop song, sung by one of the better voices to emerge during my lifetime.
Three other foreign acts are in this bunch. Australia's INXS had their last Top 40 hit with Michael Hutchence with this okay pop-rocker about there not being enough hours in the day to express one's love for their partner. In the lower echelon of their singles. Zambian dance diva Rozalla Miller had her biggest hit with her uplifting anthem about the universal right to happiness. Just good, positive music. And folky Scots del Amitri had their second American hit with this poppy semi-ballad about wondering how one's ex is doing. It's all right, but for me, the best thing they ever did was the 1989 U.K. hit "Nothing Ever Happens." Look it up.
Three American groups are here. Rappers House of Pain had by far their biggest hit with this, well, jumpy mumber that namechecks John McEnroe and includes threats and boasts and other rap staples. Not lyrically interesting, but irresistable dance fodder. R&Bers After 7 are here with an okay swinger about enjoying a woman's company in ways other than the obvious. A nice sentiment. And Atlanta female trio TLC had their third pop Top Ten with this fantastically swaggering bumper about how the people around you can change when you achieve success. The great thing about this is the distinctive contributions the three members make. T-Boz lends attitude to the verses, Left Eye throws down a sing-songy yet still potent rap, and Chilli adds her rich, different vocals on a part near the end. And they all come together on the choruses. All in all, a terrific song by probably my favorite R&B group of the 90s.
We close out this first group with a duet and a solo male. Babyface is here with an unremarkable New Jack Swinger that introduced the world to the then-unknown Toni Braxton. It came from the soundtrack of the Eddie Murphy movie Boomerang. We'll hear more from this soundtrack later. And Peter Cetera had his last pop hit with a tune that asks his lover not to leave. I bet she did, though. That voice would grate on you after a while.
30 - "Take This Heart," Richard Marx
29 - "Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad," Def Leppard
28 - "Would I Lie to You," Charles and Eddie
27 - "Rhythm is a Dancer," Snap!
26 - "When I Look Into Your Eyes," Firehouse
25 - "You Lied to Me," Cathy Dennis
24 - "The Best Things in Life are Free," Luther Vandross and Janet Jackson with special guests BBD and Ralph Tresvant
23 - "Jesus He Knows Me," Genesis
22 -"Free Your Mind," En Vogue
21 - "Stay," Shakespears Sister
Just two solo artists in this bunch. Richard Marx is here, soft-rocking his way through a track about how he won't give up on you. Myself, I had given up on him long before this. And Cathy Dennis had her last U.S. pop hit as a singer with this surprisingly peppy call-out of an untruthful boyfriend. Good for dancing. And I have to say, I like that she renewed her career writing songs for the next generation of pop stars. Even though youth is king, there are ways to stay relevant. This is something I'm dealing with first hand in my own life right now.
There are three rock bands in this group. Def Leppard had one of their biggest hits of the 90s with this blah power ballad. This cat had been completely domesticated and neutered by this time. But Firehouse is also here with a soggy acoustic mushlump that makes the Leps sound like Cannibal Corpse by comparison. If you ever get into a "worst band ever" conversation with me, Firehouse will surely come up early and often. And Genesis had one of their last U.S. Top 40s with this bouncy pop-rocker that takes on crooked and hypocritical television evangelists. Not exactly an original target, but one that continues to exist to this day. Not a great song by any means, but quite catchy. One of their better straight-pop moments.
Next we have two duos and what I will call a "duo-plus." Charles Pettigrew and Eddie Chacon got together in New York City, and the best-known fruit of their collaboration was this solid bit of retro-soul about honesty. In a landscape dominated by New Jack Swing, its old-school R&B charms stood out, and this week, that's enough to make it the Uneasy Rider. A duet between Janet Jackson and Luter Vandross would seem like a big enough event on its own, but producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis decided it needed something more, so they added four-fifths of New Edition in the form of Bell Biv DeVoe and Ralph Tresvant. The result is an overstuffed dance track whose message is undercut by that it was probably prohibitively expensive to record. Not one of the best moments for anyone involved. And Shakespears Sister, a collaboration between ex-Bananarama member Siobahn Fahey and American singer Marcella Detroit, had their only major American hit with this ballad that seems to be about posessiveness and protection and stuff. Hard to say really, but I enjoy the contrast between Detroit's sweet, almost maternal vocals and Fahey's sinister, sneering singing. This was one of my favorite songs of that entire year.
We finish the first half with two dance-pop groups. Germany's Snap! had their last American pop hit with this propulsive groover on which Turbo B declares he's "as serious as cancer" about the title concept. That's an interesting choice of similes, to say the least. Still, good song. And Oakland, California girl group En Vogue are here with their rock-guitar-enhanced number about prejudice. I don't know how many minds it actually freed, but I have to say it's my favorite song of theirs.
Oh, and the newbies from this week's 1973 show were a cool little Stevie Wonder-cowritten B.B. King track "To Know You is to Love You" and a limp MOR cover of Wilson Pickett's "In the Midnight Hour" by a group called Cross Country.
When I return: hip-hop hippies, the road of existence, and an obscure Monty Python reference.
40 - "Nothing Broken but My Heart," Celine Dion
39 - "Not Enough Time," INXS
38 - "Everybody's Free (To Feel Good)," Rozalla
37 - "Jump Around," House of Pain
36 - "Kickin' It," After 7
35 - "Give U My Heart," Babyface featuring Toni Braxton
34 - "Always the Last to Know," del Amitri
33 - "Constant Craving," k.d. lang
32 - "Restless Heart," Peter Cetera
31 - "What About Your Friends," TLC
We'll begin things with two Canadian ladies. Celine Dion, who had been racking up French-language hits in her native Quebec since 1981 (when she was all of twelve years old), was in the early stages of her English career when she released this slick ballad. It's typical of many of the hits she'd have in the future, in that she sings prettily, but I don't really feel a lot of emotion for her. But that seems to work for her, so good. And Albertan Kathryn Dawn Lang started out in the country genre, but her anti-meat activism alienated her from many in that industry. Then she turned in more of a cosmopolitan pop direction, and the result was Ingenue, her best-selling album, which also produced her only major American pop hit. It's a song about a non-specific desire, and that ambiguity provides intrigue and underscores the urgency. A terrific pop song, sung by one of the better voices to emerge during my lifetime.
Three other foreign acts are in this bunch. Australia's INXS had their last Top 40 hit with Michael Hutchence with this okay pop-rocker about there not being enough hours in the day to express one's love for their partner. In the lower echelon of their singles. Zambian dance diva Rozalla Miller had her biggest hit with her uplifting anthem about the universal right to happiness. Just good, positive music. And folky Scots del Amitri had their second American hit with this poppy semi-ballad about wondering how one's ex is doing. It's all right, but for me, the best thing they ever did was the 1989 U.K. hit "Nothing Ever Happens." Look it up.
Three American groups are here. Rappers House of Pain had by far their biggest hit with this, well, jumpy mumber that namechecks John McEnroe and includes threats and boasts and other rap staples. Not lyrically interesting, but irresistable dance fodder. R&Bers After 7 are here with an okay swinger about enjoying a woman's company in ways other than the obvious. A nice sentiment. And Atlanta female trio TLC had their third pop Top Ten with this fantastically swaggering bumper about how the people around you can change when you achieve success. The great thing about this is the distinctive contributions the three members make. T-Boz lends attitude to the verses, Left Eye throws down a sing-songy yet still potent rap, and Chilli adds her rich, different vocals on a part near the end. And they all come together on the choruses. All in all, a terrific song by probably my favorite R&B group of the 90s.
We close out this first group with a duet and a solo male. Babyface is here with an unremarkable New Jack Swinger that introduced the world to the then-unknown Toni Braxton. It came from the soundtrack of the Eddie Murphy movie Boomerang. We'll hear more from this soundtrack later. And Peter Cetera had his last pop hit with a tune that asks his lover not to leave. I bet she did, though. That voice would grate on you after a while.
30 - "Take This Heart," Richard Marx
29 - "Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad," Def Leppard
28 - "Would I Lie to You," Charles and Eddie
27 - "Rhythm is a Dancer," Snap!
26 - "When I Look Into Your Eyes," Firehouse
25 - "You Lied to Me," Cathy Dennis
24 - "The Best Things in Life are Free," Luther Vandross and Janet Jackson with special guests BBD and Ralph Tresvant
23 - "Jesus He Knows Me," Genesis
22 -"Free Your Mind," En Vogue
21 - "Stay," Shakespears Sister
Just two solo artists in this bunch. Richard Marx is here, soft-rocking his way through a track about how he won't give up on you. Myself, I had given up on him long before this. And Cathy Dennis had her last U.S. pop hit as a singer with this surprisingly peppy call-out of an untruthful boyfriend. Good for dancing. And I have to say, I like that she renewed her career writing songs for the next generation of pop stars. Even though youth is king, there are ways to stay relevant. This is something I'm dealing with first hand in my own life right now.
There are three rock bands in this group. Def Leppard had one of their biggest hits of the 90s with this blah power ballad. This cat had been completely domesticated and neutered by this time. But Firehouse is also here with a soggy acoustic mushlump that makes the Leps sound like Cannibal Corpse by comparison. If you ever get into a "worst band ever" conversation with me, Firehouse will surely come up early and often. And Genesis had one of their last U.S. Top 40s with this bouncy pop-rocker that takes on crooked and hypocritical television evangelists. Not exactly an original target, but one that continues to exist to this day. Not a great song by any means, but quite catchy. One of their better straight-pop moments.
Next we have two duos and what I will call a "duo-plus." Charles Pettigrew and Eddie Chacon got together in New York City, and the best-known fruit of their collaboration was this solid bit of retro-soul about honesty. In a landscape dominated by New Jack Swing, its old-school R&B charms stood out, and this week, that's enough to make it the Uneasy Rider. A duet between Janet Jackson and Luter Vandross would seem like a big enough event on its own, but producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis decided it needed something more, so they added four-fifths of New Edition in the form of Bell Biv DeVoe and Ralph Tresvant. The result is an overstuffed dance track whose message is undercut by that it was probably prohibitively expensive to record. Not one of the best moments for anyone involved. And Shakespears Sister, a collaboration between ex-Bananarama member Siobahn Fahey and American singer Marcella Detroit, had their only major American hit with this ballad that seems to be about posessiveness and protection and stuff. Hard to say really, but I enjoy the contrast between Detroit's sweet, almost maternal vocals and Fahey's sinister, sneering singing. This was one of my favorite songs of that entire year.
We finish the first half with two dance-pop groups. Germany's Snap! had their last American pop hit with this propulsive groover on which Turbo B declares he's "as serious as cancer" about the title concept. That's an interesting choice of similes, to say the least. Still, good song. And Oakland, California girl group En Vogue are here with their rock-guitar-enhanced number about prejudice. I don't know how many minds it actually freed, but I have to say it's my favorite song of theirs.
Oh, and the newbies from this week's 1973 show were a cool little Stevie Wonder-cowritten B.B. King track "To Know You is to Love You" and a limp MOR cover of Wilson Pickett's "In the Midnight Hour" by a group called Cross Country.
When I return: hip-hop hippies, the road of existence, and an obscure Monty Python reference.
Thursday, September 20, 2012
September 15, 1991 Part Two
Late again. Sorry.
Before we finish off '91, let's have a look at the only newbie from this week's '86 show.
40 - "Paranoimia," The Art of Noise with Max Headroom
The Art of Noise were an English electronic act best known for "Moments in Love" (a slow-dance staple at my high school), and their covers of Henry Mancini's "Peter Gunn Theme" and Prince's "Kiss" (with Tom Jones on vocals). On this, their first American hit, they teamed up with Max Headroom, a bizarre character that was portrayed as a computer-generated TV host but was really Canadian actor Matt Frewer in prosthetic makeup. The character had a brief run of fame as a talk-show host, the subject of a sci-fi series, and perhaps most infamously, the spokesperson for New Coke. Over a typically burbly Art of Noise track, Headroom, in his trademark skip-laden delivery, describes not being able to sleep. Just an odd song all around, but worth checking out, as an artifact of the time if for no other reason.
Okay, back to the main business.
20 - "Unforgettable," Natalie Cole and Nat King Cole
19 - "Something to Talk About," Bonnie Raitt
18 - "Every Heartbeat," Amy Grant
17 - "Emotions," Mariah Carey
16 - "Shiny Happy People," R.E.M.
The second half opens with Natalie Cole launching her second career of recording the kinds of jazz standards her father did by performing a duet with him on one of his signature hits, overcoming the minor obstacle of him being dead for 26 years. It was a successful move, and led to the song winning Song of the Year at the Grammys, which led to it's writer, then-76-year-old Irving Gordon, to give a speech railing against modern music ("It's...nice to have a song get accepted that you don't get a hernia when you sing it," was one of his more memorable lines). Anyway, it's a terrific song, and it was nice to hear Nat's smooth croon back on the radio, but still, the whole enterprise made me somewhat uneasy. So obviously, this is this week's Uneasy Rider.
Singer-guitarist Bonnie Raitt's father had been a Broadway star, and she had been a debendable presence on the rock scene throughout the 70s and 80s, but she had never quite cracked the mainstream until her 1989 album Nick of Time swept the Grammys. Two years later, she finally cracked the Top 40 with this bluesy jaunt about friendship turning into something more. A good song, enhanced by Raitt's effortlessly sexy vocals. Long-overdue validation.
Next is Amy Grant. As I've said before, I like her voice more than most of her material, and this is a good example. It's fluffy, lightweight adult-contemporary, but I stick with it because of the warmth coming from Amy's golden pipes.
Then it's Mariah Carey, who, one year after we encountered her just starting out, had already become one of the top stars in all of music. This, the title track from her second album, would become her fifth Number One. I don't think much of this one. Not much substance musically or lyrically (as I said last time, "emotions," is a vague, lazy term), and she goes way overboard on the ultra-high notes at the end. I'm not a fan of hers at all, but she does have much better stuff than this.
Closing out this fivesome are R.E.M with their fourth Top Ten, an unabashedly positive bit of jangle-rock euphoria. A little grating, but the backup vocals by Kate Pierson of The B-52s help it go down a little smoother. Still, not among my favorites of theirs.
15 - "Wind of Change," Scorpions
14 - "Now That We Found Love," Heavy D. and the Boyz
13 - "I Can't Wait Another Minute," Hi-Five
12 - "Love of a Lifetime," Firehouse
11 - "The Motown Song," Rod Stewart with The Temptations
This bunch is led off by the biggest American hit by German rockers Scorpions. It's a power ballad that celebrates the end of the Cold War. Earnest to the point of cheesiness. Why anyone these days would voluntatily listen to this over "Rock You Like a Hurricane" is beyond me.
Jamaican-born Dwight Arrington Myers and his rap crew are here with a track that takes the hook from a 1978 O'Jays song and adds a high-speed loverman rap. Definitely my favorite of Mr. D's, and it's a shame he died too young last November.
Next are Hi-Five, an R&B group from Waco, Texas, a town famous for Baylor University and infamous for the tragedy involving cult leader David Koresh. This is an unremarkable ballad about impatience. Nothing more to say.
Then it's Charlotte, North Carolina band Firehouse, one of the last hair-metal bands to make it big. Their biggest hit was this goopy, drippy power ballad. In one of their genre's last victories over the forces that would destroy it, Firehouse would win an American Music Award for Favorite Heavy Metal/Hard Rock New Artist over Alice in Chains and Nirvana. This is why no one respects the AMAs.
Last in this bunch are Rod Stewart and The Temptations with a retro-soul number about throwing a party soundtracked by the sounds of Berry Gordy's label. Mediocre MOR, but it was nice to have The Temps eke out one more hit.
Top Ten Style!
10 - "3 A.M. Eternal," The KLF
Brits Bill Drummond and Jimmy Cauty were responsible for some of the more interesting moments in the late-80s and early-90s dance music scene. They battled copyright infringement lawsuits for songs that heavily sampled ABBA and Whitney Houston, had a U.K. #1 with a track that combined "Rock and Roll Part II" with the theme from Doctor Who, and then had their biggest Stateside success with this beepy, spacey electronic number that features references to the group's strange mythology, which involved something called "The Justified Ancients of Mu Mu." A cool song even without those trappings, but so much more awesome with them. Later, they'd record a truly bizarre collaboration with country legend Tammy Wynette, and later still, they made a film in which they literally burned one million pounds strerling of the money they had earned in music. One of the odder careers in all of pop music.
9 - "Too Many Walls," Cathy Dennis
Dennis, from Norwich, England, first found success in 1989 with the house music group D-Mob, singing on their international hit "C'mon and Get My Love." She then went on to have three Top Ten solo hits in America, the last being this midtempo ballad about the trials and tribulations of love. Good stuff. Nowadays, she's a successful songwriter, penning such hits as Britney Spears' "Toxic" and Katy Perry's "I Kissed a Girl."
8 - "Crazy," Seal
Londoner Seal Henry Samuel had his first hit with this atmospheric dance-pop number about the necessity of insanity for our survival. Yeah, "Kiss From a Rose" was the bigger hit, but this is the one I choose to think of when I think of him. A fantastic song.
7 - "Time, Love and Tenderness," Michael Bolton
The Boltonator wails about what heals broken hearts. Awful. Some have speculated that Bolton was one of the targets of Irving Gordon's Grammy rant. If so, good for him.
6 - "Good Vibrations," Marky Mark and The Funky Bunch featuring Loleatta Holloway
Yes, before Mark Wahlberg became filmdom's most famous fictional porn star and made movies with foul-mouthed teddy bears, he followed his New Kid on the Block brother Donnie into music by becoming a rapper. Under a track that features house beats and piano and a chorus sampled from Holloway's disco classic "Love Sensation," Marky Mark raps about sweating, dancing, and not being on drugs. A #1 hit that he had to live down for his serious actor transition, but it holds up as fun cheese.
5 - "Things That Make You Go Hmmm...," C+C Music Factory featuring Freedom Williams
The dance music brainchild of producers David Cole and Robert Clivilles had their third and last pop Top Five with a song inspired by a catchphrase used by talk show host Arsenio Hall. On this song, rapper Williams tells tales of being tricked into cheating on his girl, having his best friend impregnate his wife, being lied to as a teenager about his first love's virginity, and then, for the ladies, a story about a wayward boyfriend. Dumb fun, and the only song of theirs that doesn't trigger a gag reflex on my part. Plus, it's nice to actually hear Zelma Davis sing, instead of lip-synching Martha Wash.
4 - "Motownphilly," Boyz II Men
This Philadelphia vocal group was discovered by Michael Bivins of New Edition and Bell Biv DeVoe fame, who signed them to his Motown-associated label and made them part of his "East Coast Family" with BBD and Atlanta kid group Another Bad Creation. Their first hit wras this fun, New Jack Swingy ode to the dreams they had in their hometown while singing on street corners and eating cheesesteaks. They would go on to have monster hits with loverman ballads, but for me, their best work came on this and their a capella version of "It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday."
3 - "(Everything I Do) I Do it for You," Bryan Adams
The Canadian star stayed at #1 for seven weeks with this nauseating ballad from the Kevin Costner film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. This was a big part of what made listening to pop radio that summer a frequently annoying experience.
2 - "I Adore Mi Amor," Color Me Badd
This quartet from Oklahoma City were the anti-Boyz II Men in that they were a harmony group but were absolutely terrible. Their first of two #1s was this crushingly bad ballad that proved that they could suck in two languages. At least you could laugh at "I Wanna Sex You Up." This is just depressing.
And at Number One in '91, we find
1 - "The Promise of a New Day," Paula Abdul
The dancer-turned-singer-turned-insane talent show judge had her sixth and last Number One with this dance-pop tune about the possiblities of the future. If only she knew...
Yes, I did get to listen to the actual AT40 again this week (thanks as always, Jimmy). There was a Long Distance Dedication involving Night Ranger's "Sister Christian," but there was a problem with the recording and I didn't get to hear the details. But on the plus side, there were commercials, including one for the Simpsons episode featuring Michael Jackson, one for the show Dinosaurs that created disturbing mental images of prehistoric puppet sex, and an awesome, Patrick Stewart-voiced spot for Pontiac. Most abundant!
Back soon for a look at 1992.
Before we finish off '91, let's have a look at the only newbie from this week's '86 show.
40 - "Paranoimia," The Art of Noise with Max Headroom
The Art of Noise were an English electronic act best known for "Moments in Love" (a slow-dance staple at my high school), and their covers of Henry Mancini's "Peter Gunn Theme" and Prince's "Kiss" (with Tom Jones on vocals). On this, their first American hit, they teamed up with Max Headroom, a bizarre character that was portrayed as a computer-generated TV host but was really Canadian actor Matt Frewer in prosthetic makeup. The character had a brief run of fame as a talk-show host, the subject of a sci-fi series, and perhaps most infamously, the spokesperson for New Coke. Over a typically burbly Art of Noise track, Headroom, in his trademark skip-laden delivery, describes not being able to sleep. Just an odd song all around, but worth checking out, as an artifact of the time if for no other reason.
Okay, back to the main business.
20 - "Unforgettable," Natalie Cole and Nat King Cole
19 - "Something to Talk About," Bonnie Raitt
18 - "Every Heartbeat," Amy Grant
17 - "Emotions," Mariah Carey
16 - "Shiny Happy People," R.E.M.
The second half opens with Natalie Cole launching her second career of recording the kinds of jazz standards her father did by performing a duet with him on one of his signature hits, overcoming the minor obstacle of him being dead for 26 years. It was a successful move, and led to the song winning Song of the Year at the Grammys, which led to it's writer, then-76-year-old Irving Gordon, to give a speech railing against modern music ("It's...nice to have a song get accepted that you don't get a hernia when you sing it," was one of his more memorable lines). Anyway, it's a terrific song, and it was nice to hear Nat's smooth croon back on the radio, but still, the whole enterprise made me somewhat uneasy. So obviously, this is this week's Uneasy Rider.
Singer-guitarist Bonnie Raitt's father had been a Broadway star, and she had been a debendable presence on the rock scene throughout the 70s and 80s, but she had never quite cracked the mainstream until her 1989 album Nick of Time swept the Grammys. Two years later, she finally cracked the Top 40 with this bluesy jaunt about friendship turning into something more. A good song, enhanced by Raitt's effortlessly sexy vocals. Long-overdue validation.
Next is Amy Grant. As I've said before, I like her voice more than most of her material, and this is a good example. It's fluffy, lightweight adult-contemporary, but I stick with it because of the warmth coming from Amy's golden pipes.
Then it's Mariah Carey, who, one year after we encountered her just starting out, had already become one of the top stars in all of music. This, the title track from her second album, would become her fifth Number One. I don't think much of this one. Not much substance musically or lyrically (as I said last time, "emotions," is a vague, lazy term), and she goes way overboard on the ultra-high notes at the end. I'm not a fan of hers at all, but she does have much better stuff than this.
Closing out this fivesome are R.E.M with their fourth Top Ten, an unabashedly positive bit of jangle-rock euphoria. A little grating, but the backup vocals by Kate Pierson of The B-52s help it go down a little smoother. Still, not among my favorites of theirs.
15 - "Wind of Change," Scorpions
14 - "Now That We Found Love," Heavy D. and the Boyz
13 - "I Can't Wait Another Minute," Hi-Five
12 - "Love of a Lifetime," Firehouse
11 - "The Motown Song," Rod Stewart with The Temptations
This bunch is led off by the biggest American hit by German rockers Scorpions. It's a power ballad that celebrates the end of the Cold War. Earnest to the point of cheesiness. Why anyone these days would voluntatily listen to this over "Rock You Like a Hurricane" is beyond me.
Jamaican-born Dwight Arrington Myers and his rap crew are here with a track that takes the hook from a 1978 O'Jays song and adds a high-speed loverman rap. Definitely my favorite of Mr. D's, and it's a shame he died too young last November.
Next are Hi-Five, an R&B group from Waco, Texas, a town famous for Baylor University and infamous for the tragedy involving cult leader David Koresh. This is an unremarkable ballad about impatience. Nothing more to say.
Then it's Charlotte, North Carolina band Firehouse, one of the last hair-metal bands to make it big. Their biggest hit was this goopy, drippy power ballad. In one of their genre's last victories over the forces that would destroy it, Firehouse would win an American Music Award for Favorite Heavy Metal/Hard Rock New Artist over Alice in Chains and Nirvana. This is why no one respects the AMAs.
Last in this bunch are Rod Stewart and The Temptations with a retro-soul number about throwing a party soundtracked by the sounds of Berry Gordy's label. Mediocre MOR, but it was nice to have The Temps eke out one more hit.
Top Ten Style!
10 - "3 A.M. Eternal," The KLF
Brits Bill Drummond and Jimmy Cauty were responsible for some of the more interesting moments in the late-80s and early-90s dance music scene. They battled copyright infringement lawsuits for songs that heavily sampled ABBA and Whitney Houston, had a U.K. #1 with a track that combined "Rock and Roll Part II" with the theme from Doctor Who, and then had their biggest Stateside success with this beepy, spacey electronic number that features references to the group's strange mythology, which involved something called "The Justified Ancients of Mu Mu." A cool song even without those trappings, but so much more awesome with them. Later, they'd record a truly bizarre collaboration with country legend Tammy Wynette, and later still, they made a film in which they literally burned one million pounds strerling of the money they had earned in music. One of the odder careers in all of pop music.
9 - "Too Many Walls," Cathy Dennis
Dennis, from Norwich, England, first found success in 1989 with the house music group D-Mob, singing on their international hit "C'mon and Get My Love." She then went on to have three Top Ten solo hits in America, the last being this midtempo ballad about the trials and tribulations of love. Good stuff. Nowadays, she's a successful songwriter, penning such hits as Britney Spears' "Toxic" and Katy Perry's "I Kissed a Girl."
8 - "Crazy," Seal
Londoner Seal Henry Samuel had his first hit with this atmospheric dance-pop number about the necessity of insanity for our survival. Yeah, "Kiss From a Rose" was the bigger hit, but this is the one I choose to think of when I think of him. A fantastic song.
7 - "Time, Love and Tenderness," Michael Bolton
The Boltonator wails about what heals broken hearts. Awful. Some have speculated that Bolton was one of the targets of Irving Gordon's Grammy rant. If so, good for him.
6 - "Good Vibrations," Marky Mark and The Funky Bunch featuring Loleatta Holloway
Yes, before Mark Wahlberg became filmdom's most famous fictional porn star and made movies with foul-mouthed teddy bears, he followed his New Kid on the Block brother Donnie into music by becoming a rapper. Under a track that features house beats and piano and a chorus sampled from Holloway's disco classic "Love Sensation," Marky Mark raps about sweating, dancing, and not being on drugs. A #1 hit that he had to live down for his serious actor transition, but it holds up as fun cheese.
5 - "Things That Make You Go Hmmm...," C+C Music Factory featuring Freedom Williams
The dance music brainchild of producers David Cole and Robert Clivilles had their third and last pop Top Five with a song inspired by a catchphrase used by talk show host Arsenio Hall. On this song, rapper Williams tells tales of being tricked into cheating on his girl, having his best friend impregnate his wife, being lied to as a teenager about his first love's virginity, and then, for the ladies, a story about a wayward boyfriend. Dumb fun, and the only song of theirs that doesn't trigger a gag reflex on my part. Plus, it's nice to actually hear Zelma Davis sing, instead of lip-synching Martha Wash.
4 - "Motownphilly," Boyz II Men
This Philadelphia vocal group was discovered by Michael Bivins of New Edition and Bell Biv DeVoe fame, who signed them to his Motown-associated label and made them part of his "East Coast Family" with BBD and Atlanta kid group Another Bad Creation. Their first hit wras this fun, New Jack Swingy ode to the dreams they had in their hometown while singing on street corners and eating cheesesteaks. They would go on to have monster hits with loverman ballads, but for me, their best work came on this and their a capella version of "It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday."
3 - "(Everything I Do) I Do it for You," Bryan Adams
The Canadian star stayed at #1 for seven weeks with this nauseating ballad from the Kevin Costner film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. This was a big part of what made listening to pop radio that summer a frequently annoying experience.
2 - "I Adore Mi Amor," Color Me Badd
This quartet from Oklahoma City were the anti-Boyz II Men in that they were a harmony group but were absolutely terrible. Their first of two #1s was this crushingly bad ballad that proved that they could suck in two languages. At least you could laugh at "I Wanna Sex You Up." This is just depressing.
And at Number One in '91, we find
1 - "The Promise of a New Day," Paula Abdul
The dancer-turned-singer-turned-insane talent show judge had her sixth and last Number One with this dance-pop tune about the possiblities of the future. If only she knew...
Yes, I did get to listen to the actual AT40 again this week (thanks as always, Jimmy). There was a Long Distance Dedication involving Night Ranger's "Sister Christian," but there was a problem with the recording and I didn't get to hear the details. But on the plus side, there were commercials, including one for the Simpsons episode featuring Michael Jackson, one for the show Dinosaurs that created disturbing mental images of prehistoric puppet sex, and an awesome, Patrick Stewart-voiced spot for Pontiac. Most abundant!
Back soon for a look at 1992.
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
September 15, 1991 Part One
Our journey forward continues, but before it does, let's quickly go back to September 15, 1979.
The Knack were at #1 with "My Sharona." Also in the Top Ten were "The Devil Went Down to Georgia," "Don't Bring Me Down," "Good Times," and "Sail On"...The first newcomer is at #18, in the form of "Driver's Seat," the only hit for the British band Sniff n' the Tears. A darkly compelling rocker that remains instantly recognizable...At #23 is Maureen "The Morning After" McGovern with her only other hit, "Different Worlds." It was a disco theme song to a short-lived sitcom, in this case, Angie. Well, it's better than "Makin' It," I'll give it that...Diana Ross had her last hit of the 70s with an okay disco record, "The Boss," this week's #25...Stephanie Mills is at #27 with her first pop hit, the lushly soulful "What Cha Gonna Do With My Lovin'"...Cheap Trick were at #38 with their second hit from their At Budokan live album, a hard-rock cover of the Fats Domino classic "Ain't That a Shame." It's good to hear a remake that brings something interesting to the table for a change...And at #40 is "Oh Well," a cover of the most famous song by the blues-rock incarnation of Fleetwood Mac by The Rockets, a band formed by two ex-members of Mitch Ryder's Detroit Wheels. It's okay. But this week, the spotlight falls upon...
35 - "Saturday Night," Herman Brood and His Wild Romance
Dutchman Brood was the epitome of the "sex, drugs and rock n' roll" lifestyle up until his suicide in 2001. He became somewhat of a legendary figure in his homeland, but in America, the only major impact he made was with this minor hit. It's a bluesy strut about seamy goings-on in the late evenings, delivered in a croaking rasp reminiscent of a more alert-sounding Tom Waits. I don't remember this at all, but I'm very glad I discovered it. A grimy gem.
Okay, now to the regular business. This week we're in 1991. The first of two palindrome years in my lifetime, and also the year the Soviet Union broke up. If those fifteen crazy republics couldn't make it work, who can? Anyway, as that summer came to a close, these were the hits in the country that won the Cold War.
40 - "Don't Want to Be a Fool," Luther Vandross
39 - "Real Real Real," Jesus Jones
38 - "The Real Love," Bob Seger
37 - "The One and Only," Chesney Hawkes
36 - "Pop Goes the Weasel," 3rd Bass
35 - "Temptation," Corina
34 - "The Truth," Tami Show
33 - "The Sound of Your Voice," .38 Special
32 - "Love...Thy Will Be Done," Martika
31 - "I'll Be There," The Escape Club
We'll start out with American male solo singers. Soul superstar Luther Vandross picked up his third pop Top Ten with this ballad about learning love's harsh lessons. His usual dependable effort. And Bob Seger had his final pop hit with this midtempo pop-rocker about finding true romance. Not his best work, but this is preferable to the overblown-ness of stuff like "Like a Rock."
Three British acts in this section. Jesus Jones were part of a wave of U.K. acts at the time that combined techno dance beats with rock, but they were the most successful in America, scoring two Top Five singles. This one, about honesty and authenticity, isn't as well-known these days as their first, the would-be anthem "Right Here, Right Now," but that lends it a freshness that makes it an easier listen. But still, not very far above average. Chesney Hawkes had his only major hit with this singalong rocker about asserting your individuality. Nothing groundbreaking, but hooky as hell, and a one-hit wonder I remember well. And after their hitting three years earlier with the fun dance-eockers "Wild Wild West" and "Shake for the Sheik," The Escape Club had their final American hit with this earnest ballad that's only made somewhat interesting by the possibility that it's being sung by the point of view of a ghost, implied by the line 'I may have died, but I've gone nowhere." A year later, that Patrick Swayze movie was still making its influence felt.
Then there are three American bands. Rap group 3rd Bass had their biggest pop hit with, ironically, a song that criticizes other rappers for having pop hits by rapping over previously popular songs. And of course, they perform their critique over a beat that heavily samples Peter Gabriel's "Sledgehammer." Hypocrisy, or clever meta-commentary? You be the judge. Tami Show were a Chicago group named after the Teen Age Music International Show, a 1964 concert film that featured performances by James Brown, The Rolling Stones, The Supremes, Marvin Gaye, Chuck Berry, and many other stars of the day. I have seen that film, and I must say that it's waaaay more interesting than this band's only hit. Acutually, it's not a bad little slice of female-fronted pop-rock, but still, not nearly as life-enriching as one second of James Brown's performance in that movie. See it if you can. And .38 Special had their last Top 40 hit with this meh soft-rocker about missing someone. They were just a commercial machine by this point, and this song was made to be disposable and easily forgotten. And it was.
We close with a couple of female singers. Corina Ayala had her only pop hit with a dance track about finding new love. I've never been much for Latin freestyle, but this is one of the better tracks I've heard in that genre. And Martika had her last hit with this sultry slow-burner, produced and co-written by Prince. The lyrics combine Prince's usual twin obsessions of lust and spirituality, and Martika gives a suitably smoky performance, far removed from the earnest teen tone of "Toy Soldiers." By far her best single.
30 - "My Name is Not Susan," Whitney Houston
29 - "Enter Sandman," Metallica
28 - "It Ain't Over 'Til It's Over," Lenny Kravitz
27 - "Summertime," DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince
26 - "Everybody Plays the Fool," Aaron Neville
25 - "Hole Hearted," Extreme
24 - "Fading Like a Flower (Every Time You Leave)," Roxette
23 - "Romantic," Karyn White
22 - "Do Anything," Natural Selection
21 - "It Hit Me Like a Hammer," Huey Lewis and the News
Two female solo singers open things for this section. Whitney Houston is here with her first solo single to miss the Top Ten, a dance-pop take on a similar theme to that of Jessi Colter's "I'm Not Lisa." I like the attitude she displays on this. And Karyn White had her biggest hit with this Jimmy Jam-Terry Lewis production about, well, getting amorous. Not my thing, but I appreciate the craftsmanship.
There are three rock bands in this bunch. Metallica's music, a sped-up, aggressive form of heavy metal known as "thrash," didn't invite mainstream acceptance, but they had still managed to reach multi-platinum status and even picked up a Top 40 hit in 1989 with "One." But in 1991, they hooked up with producer Bob Rock and released a self-titled LP also known as "The Black Album," and its somewhat more radio-friendly sound launched them into international superstardom. The first single, this dark examination of a child's nightmares, became their best-known song. The lyrics are awkward at points ("Liars" are equated in scariness to ferocious beasts and the horrors of war, and the only reason I can think of as to why this is is because they needed something to rhyme with "dragon's fire."), and singer James Hetfield's menacing growl sometimes crosses over into cartoonishness. But all in all, an effective blast of hard rock, made for head-banging. Boston's Extreme mixed hard rock and funk on many of their songs, but their two biggest hits were acoustic pop songs: the ballad "More Than Words" and this bouncy rave-up about a gap in one's life that only love can fill. A nice little song. But the less said about singer Gary Cherone's stint in Van Halen, the better. And Huey Lewis and company hit the 40 for the last time with this typical-for-them popper about a love that packs a wallop. Yeah, it was time for them to go.
Then we've got a couple of dudes. Lenny Kravitz was born into the entertainment industry, his parents being a television producer and the woman who played one half of the interracial neighbor couple on The Jeffersons. He, however, would turn to music, becoming known for putting his spin on genres from rock's past. Fittingly, his first hit is this lush recreation of 70s soul. I'm not sure about his falsetto on the choruses, but overall, a cool listen. Someone who does know a thing or two about falsettos is New Orleans soul veteran Aaron Neville, who returned to the 40 25 years after his 1966 classic "Tell it Like it Is," with this cover of a 1972 hit by The Main Ingredient. This version isn't distinct enough from the original to be at all necessary, but still, it was good having that voice back on the radio.
We'll finish off the first half with three duos. DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince had their biggest hit with this evocatively laid-back ode to the warmest of the seasons. Will Smith raps about girls, basketball, cars, barbecues, and other features of a Philadelphia summer. Easily his best musical moment. Swedes Marie Frederiksson and Per Gessle were already established stars in their home country when they decided to team up, and that collaboration resulted in four U.S. #1s and two #2s, the last of the latter being this power ballad about not being able to get over someone. It's fine, but I liked their uptempo stuff best. Especially "Joyride." And Minneapolis' Natural Selection had their first and biggest hit with a lustful strut that comes off as a pale imitation of fellow Twin Citian Prince. But it's not without it's charms.
Tomorrow (probably): The living and the dead duet, a respected veteran finally gets her pop-chart payoff, and a group that literally burned through the money it made during its heyday.
The Knack were at #1 with "My Sharona." Also in the Top Ten were "The Devil Went Down to Georgia," "Don't Bring Me Down," "Good Times," and "Sail On"...The first newcomer is at #18, in the form of "Driver's Seat," the only hit for the British band Sniff n' the Tears. A darkly compelling rocker that remains instantly recognizable...At #23 is Maureen "The Morning After" McGovern with her only other hit, "Different Worlds." It was a disco theme song to a short-lived sitcom, in this case, Angie. Well, it's better than "Makin' It," I'll give it that...Diana Ross had her last hit of the 70s with an okay disco record, "The Boss," this week's #25...Stephanie Mills is at #27 with her first pop hit, the lushly soulful "What Cha Gonna Do With My Lovin'"...Cheap Trick were at #38 with their second hit from their At Budokan live album, a hard-rock cover of the Fats Domino classic "Ain't That a Shame." It's good to hear a remake that brings something interesting to the table for a change...And at #40 is "Oh Well," a cover of the most famous song by the blues-rock incarnation of Fleetwood Mac by The Rockets, a band formed by two ex-members of Mitch Ryder's Detroit Wheels. It's okay. But this week, the spotlight falls upon...
35 - "Saturday Night," Herman Brood and His Wild Romance
Dutchman Brood was the epitome of the "sex, drugs and rock n' roll" lifestyle up until his suicide in 2001. He became somewhat of a legendary figure in his homeland, but in America, the only major impact he made was with this minor hit. It's a bluesy strut about seamy goings-on in the late evenings, delivered in a croaking rasp reminiscent of a more alert-sounding Tom Waits. I don't remember this at all, but I'm very glad I discovered it. A grimy gem.
Okay, now to the regular business. This week we're in 1991. The first of two palindrome years in my lifetime, and also the year the Soviet Union broke up. If those fifteen crazy republics couldn't make it work, who can? Anyway, as that summer came to a close, these were the hits in the country that won the Cold War.
40 - "Don't Want to Be a Fool," Luther Vandross
39 - "Real Real Real," Jesus Jones
38 - "The Real Love," Bob Seger
37 - "The One and Only," Chesney Hawkes
36 - "Pop Goes the Weasel," 3rd Bass
35 - "Temptation," Corina
34 - "The Truth," Tami Show
33 - "The Sound of Your Voice," .38 Special
32 - "Love...Thy Will Be Done," Martika
31 - "I'll Be There," The Escape Club
We'll start out with American male solo singers. Soul superstar Luther Vandross picked up his third pop Top Ten with this ballad about learning love's harsh lessons. His usual dependable effort. And Bob Seger had his final pop hit with this midtempo pop-rocker about finding true romance. Not his best work, but this is preferable to the overblown-ness of stuff like "Like a Rock."
Three British acts in this section. Jesus Jones were part of a wave of U.K. acts at the time that combined techno dance beats with rock, but they were the most successful in America, scoring two Top Five singles. This one, about honesty and authenticity, isn't as well-known these days as their first, the would-be anthem "Right Here, Right Now," but that lends it a freshness that makes it an easier listen. But still, not very far above average. Chesney Hawkes had his only major hit with this singalong rocker about asserting your individuality. Nothing groundbreaking, but hooky as hell, and a one-hit wonder I remember well. And after their hitting three years earlier with the fun dance-eockers "Wild Wild West" and "Shake for the Sheik," The Escape Club had their final American hit with this earnest ballad that's only made somewhat interesting by the possibility that it's being sung by the point of view of a ghost, implied by the line 'I may have died, but I've gone nowhere." A year later, that Patrick Swayze movie was still making its influence felt.
Then there are three American bands. Rap group 3rd Bass had their biggest pop hit with, ironically, a song that criticizes other rappers for having pop hits by rapping over previously popular songs. And of course, they perform their critique over a beat that heavily samples Peter Gabriel's "Sledgehammer." Hypocrisy, or clever meta-commentary? You be the judge. Tami Show were a Chicago group named after the Teen Age Music International Show, a 1964 concert film that featured performances by James Brown, The Rolling Stones, The Supremes, Marvin Gaye, Chuck Berry, and many other stars of the day. I have seen that film, and I must say that it's waaaay more interesting than this band's only hit. Acutually, it's not a bad little slice of female-fronted pop-rock, but still, not nearly as life-enriching as one second of James Brown's performance in that movie. See it if you can. And .38 Special had their last Top 40 hit with this meh soft-rocker about missing someone. They were just a commercial machine by this point, and this song was made to be disposable and easily forgotten. And it was.
We close with a couple of female singers. Corina Ayala had her only pop hit with a dance track about finding new love. I've never been much for Latin freestyle, but this is one of the better tracks I've heard in that genre. And Martika had her last hit with this sultry slow-burner, produced and co-written by Prince. The lyrics combine Prince's usual twin obsessions of lust and spirituality, and Martika gives a suitably smoky performance, far removed from the earnest teen tone of "Toy Soldiers." By far her best single.
30 - "My Name is Not Susan," Whitney Houston
29 - "Enter Sandman," Metallica
28 - "It Ain't Over 'Til It's Over," Lenny Kravitz
27 - "Summertime," DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince
26 - "Everybody Plays the Fool," Aaron Neville
25 - "Hole Hearted," Extreme
24 - "Fading Like a Flower (Every Time You Leave)," Roxette
23 - "Romantic," Karyn White
22 - "Do Anything," Natural Selection
21 - "It Hit Me Like a Hammer," Huey Lewis and the News
Two female solo singers open things for this section. Whitney Houston is here with her first solo single to miss the Top Ten, a dance-pop take on a similar theme to that of Jessi Colter's "I'm Not Lisa." I like the attitude she displays on this. And Karyn White had her biggest hit with this Jimmy Jam-Terry Lewis production about, well, getting amorous. Not my thing, but I appreciate the craftsmanship.
There are three rock bands in this bunch. Metallica's music, a sped-up, aggressive form of heavy metal known as "thrash," didn't invite mainstream acceptance, but they had still managed to reach multi-platinum status and even picked up a Top 40 hit in 1989 with "One." But in 1991, they hooked up with producer Bob Rock and released a self-titled LP also known as "The Black Album," and its somewhat more radio-friendly sound launched them into international superstardom. The first single, this dark examination of a child's nightmares, became their best-known song. The lyrics are awkward at points ("Liars" are equated in scariness to ferocious beasts and the horrors of war, and the only reason I can think of as to why this is is because they needed something to rhyme with "dragon's fire."), and singer James Hetfield's menacing growl sometimes crosses over into cartoonishness. But all in all, an effective blast of hard rock, made for head-banging. Boston's Extreme mixed hard rock and funk on many of their songs, but their two biggest hits were acoustic pop songs: the ballad "More Than Words" and this bouncy rave-up about a gap in one's life that only love can fill. A nice little song. But the less said about singer Gary Cherone's stint in Van Halen, the better. And Huey Lewis and company hit the 40 for the last time with this typical-for-them popper about a love that packs a wallop. Yeah, it was time for them to go.
Then we've got a couple of dudes. Lenny Kravitz was born into the entertainment industry, his parents being a television producer and the woman who played one half of the interracial neighbor couple on The Jeffersons. He, however, would turn to music, becoming known for putting his spin on genres from rock's past. Fittingly, his first hit is this lush recreation of 70s soul. I'm not sure about his falsetto on the choruses, but overall, a cool listen. Someone who does know a thing or two about falsettos is New Orleans soul veteran Aaron Neville, who returned to the 40 25 years after his 1966 classic "Tell it Like it Is," with this cover of a 1972 hit by The Main Ingredient. This version isn't distinct enough from the original to be at all necessary, but still, it was good having that voice back on the radio.
We'll finish off the first half with three duos. DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince had their biggest hit with this evocatively laid-back ode to the warmest of the seasons. Will Smith raps about girls, basketball, cars, barbecues, and other features of a Philadelphia summer. Easily his best musical moment. Swedes Marie Frederiksson and Per Gessle were already established stars in their home country when they decided to team up, and that collaboration resulted in four U.S. #1s and two #2s, the last of the latter being this power ballad about not being able to get over someone. It's fine, but I liked their uptempo stuff best. Especially "Joyride." And Minneapolis' Natural Selection had their first and biggest hit with a lustful strut that comes off as a pale imitation of fellow Twin Citian Prince. But it's not without it's charms.
Tomorrow (probably): The living and the dead duet, a respected veteran finally gets her pop-chart payoff, and a group that literally burned through the money it made during its heyday.
Thursday, September 13, 2012
September 8, 1990 Part Two
Yeah, I'm even later than I was last week. Things are getting busy in Gloveheadland. But here I am at last. But before we conclude this week's proceedings, let's take a quick jaunt back to September 10, 1983.
Michael Sembello's "Maniac" was at #1. The rest of the Top Ten included "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This), "The Safety Dance," "Puttin' on the Ritz," and "Total Eclipse of the Heart."...The first newcomer is the last pop Top 40 from jazzman George Benson, the smooth "Lady Love Me (One More Time)" at #30...Speaking of final pop hits, Juice Newton is here at #31 with her last Top 40, a flavorlessly synthy cover of a hit by The Zombies in 1965, gender-flipped as "Tell Him No"...Continuing with the theme are The Little River Band at #35 with their last American hit, the uncharacteristically decent dance-rocker "You're Driving Me Out of My Mind"...And at #40, we find Paul Anka with, you guessed it, his last Top 40 hit, the meh ballad "Hold Me Till The Morning Comes, featuring backup vocals by human sleeping pill Peter Cetera...But this week, my spotlight shines on...
32 - "Big Log," Robert Plant
The ex-Led Zeppelin frontman scored his first Top 40 solo hit with this bluesy ballad about the joys of travelling the open road. "My love is in league with the freeway," he sings. I have no idea what a log has to do with anything, but regardless, a nice tune to mellow out to.
And now, here's the rest of 1990.
20 - "My, My, My," Johnny Gill
19 - "Oh Girl," Paul Young
18 - "Can't Stop Falling Into Love," Cheap Trick
17 - "Something Happened on the Way to Heaven," Phil Collins
16 - "Love and Emotion," Stevie B.
The second half begins with Johnny Gill's second entry this week. This one is your basic let's-get-it-on loverman jam. It certainly seems like it would be effective.
Englishman Paul Young had his last U.S. Top Ten with a completely unnecessary cover of The Chi-Lites 1972 soul classic. He sings it fine and all, but there's no reason for it. Find your own song, Paul.
Next are Cheap Trick with their last Top 40, an unremarkable midtempo rocker about love and lust and stuff like that there. Bland and commercial, with none of the wit and swagger that made them great. Rinse this out of your ears by listening to "Surrender" ten times.
Then it's Phil Collins with the fourth Top Five smash from his album ...But Seriously. It's an upbeat, horn-heavy statement of purpose about wanting to do all one can to save a relationship. "How many times can I say I'm sorry?" Phil asks. "How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop?" I ask back for some reason. In both cases, the world may never know.
Closing out this quintet is Miamian Steven Bernard Hill with a boring Latin freestyle track on which he says of the title "It's the only thing that turns me on." Um, Stevie, love and emotion are two things, so you should have said "They're the only things that turn me on." And furthermore, "emotion" is a pretty vague term. Anger is an emotion. So is sadness. All I'm saying is, more specificity would have been nice.
15 - "Tic-Tac-Toe," Kyper
14 - "Jerk Out," The Time
13 - "Close to You," Maxi Priest
12 - "Vision of Love," Mariah Carey
11 - "Thieves in the Temple," Prince
Leading off this bunch is the only hit by Lousiana rapper Kyper. Over a beat that heavily employs samples from Yes' "Owner of a Lonely Heart," he compares his quest for sexual conquests to the centuries-old game involving X's and O's on a nine-square grid. I'm not sure exactly what makes the comparison relevant, but I do know that his go-to move of "pull(ing) out the portable car phone" would be much, much less effective 22 years later.
Minneapolis funksters The Time had their third and biggest pop hit with this Prince-written number about picking up women and being, well, a jerk about it. A bit of old-school funk among the New Jack Swing. A great, great song.
Next is the biggest hit by British soul-reggae artist Maxi Priest. It's just a simple love song over a sparse, Soul II Soul-ish beat, but that's all it needed to be to propel it to Number One. He had the pipes to deliver the goods. I also like his first hit, a pleasant reggae-lite cover of Cat Stevens' "Wild World."
Then it's the song that introduced the world to a then-unknown 20-year-old named Mariah Carey. Signed by Columbia Records (whose president, Tommy Mottola, she would later marry and divorce), much was expected of her, and the label paired her with top songwriters and producers for her debut album, and then spent over a million dollars promoting the record. The first fruit of this effort was this dramatic ballad about finding the love of one's dreams, and the investment was rewarded with a #1 single. The song itself still hold up as one of Carey's best, and while it does contain many of the vocal gymnastics that she became known for, it does not employ her "dog-whistle" high note. And that's a good thing. It wasn't necessary here.
Rounding out this section is Prince's first Top Ten hit of the 90s, the first single from the soundtrack of his flop sequel to the movie Purple Rain, Graffiti Bridge. It's about betrayal and personal strength and things like that, backed with solid funk-rock. Not among the man's best, but certainly a worthy hit.
These go to Ten. Top Ten.
10 - "Come Back to Me," Janet Jackson
Miss Jackson's tenth Top Ten was this pleading ballad. Uncomplicated, but solid. She was becoming the same sort of hit machine her brother was at his peak.
9 - "Epic," Faith No More
These San Franciscans were on more of the arty side of metal, but they did have one moment in the mainstream sun with this fantastic track on which singer Mike Patton raps the verses and sing-snarls the choruses over stomping hard rock. And the song's memorable ending, where it's stripped down to a simple piano line, seals the deal. What's it about? It doesn't matter. Or to put it another way "What is it? It's it!"
8 - "(Can't Live Without Your) Love and Affection," Nelson
Matthew and Gunnar Nelson, luxuriously blond-locked twin sons of fifties heartthrob Ricky Nelson, scored their first and biggest hit with this straightforwar.d pop-rocker that made their family the first ever three-generation charttoppers (Grandpa Ozzie began the legacy). Nothing groundbreaking, but very well-crafted.
7 - "Tonight," New Kids on the Block
The Boston boy band's ninth and final Top Ten is a fitting coda to their run at the top. It's a half-ballad, half-rock anthem about the group's already-loosening bond with their millions of fans. Contains vaguely-classical musical elements, references to their previous hits, and a line that seems to indicate that they consider girls not to be people. My favorite of theirs, based mainly on its relative strangeness.
6 - "Have You Seen Her," MC Hammer
The pop-rapper who became a superstar with the Rick James-biting "U Can't Touch This" followed that up with this week's second Chi-Lites cover. As purposeless as Paul Young's, but at least the Hammer contributes his own softly rapped lyrics which include pleas to famous friends like rapper Rob Base and the hosts of Yo! MTV Raps for assistance in locating his missing love. Still, justly forgotten.
5 - "If Wishes Came True," Sweet Sensation
This Bronx girl-groups last hit was their only #1. A boilerplate pop ballad, remarkable only for a line about "warm September rain" which reminds me of the parcipitation of another month and temperature mentioned in a much better song that would come out a year or so after this.
4 - "Unskinny Bop," Poison
These stalwart hair farmers coined a new sex euphemism on this dumb-fun boogie-rocker that contains the immortal line "Like gasoline you wanna pump me." Their best moment. Nothing more to say.
3 - "Do Me!" Bell Biv Devoe
The group composed of New Edition members Ricky Bell, Michael Bivins, and Ronnie DeVoe had their second Top Five hit with this lascivious New Jack Swinger that, appropriately for the changing times, includes a veiled advisement to use condoms, although unfortunately this is given during a rap that also seems to be about statuatory rape. All in all, their first hit, "Poison," is much better.
2 - "Release Me," Wilson Phillips
The combination of Beach Boy Brian Wilson's daughters Carnie and Wendy and Chynna Phillips, offspring of John and Michelle of The Mamas and the Papas, became huge superstars this year with their debut album. This, their second #1. is typical of their output: a catchy bit of MOR in the if-you-love-me-let-me-go vein. Not a big fan of this. I was more of a "Hold On" guy, and it was a kick to see them do that one at the end of Bridesmaids.
And at Number One 22 years ago we find...
1 - "Blaze of Glory," Jon Bon Jovi
The lead singer and namesake of New Jersey's pop-metal mainstays made a solo foray with this track from the Brat Pack Western Young Guns II. It's a power ballad with some vaguely countryish instrumentation and lyrics about sleeping outdoors and dying like a man. A decent little lighter-raiser, and a foreshadowing of the more blatant country move his band would make in the late noughties.
In the lone LDD, an adopted girl searching for her birth parents decicated Linda Ronstadt and James Ingram's "Somewhere Out There" to them
And at last, 1990 is in the books. Very soon, I will tackle a week in 1991. I hope to finish it much more promptly than I have these last two years. Will I? Watch this space.
Michael Sembello's "Maniac" was at #1. The rest of the Top Ten included "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This), "The Safety Dance," "Puttin' on the Ritz," and "Total Eclipse of the Heart."...The first newcomer is the last pop Top 40 from jazzman George Benson, the smooth "Lady Love Me (One More Time)" at #30...Speaking of final pop hits, Juice Newton is here at #31 with her last Top 40, a flavorlessly synthy cover of a hit by The Zombies in 1965, gender-flipped as "Tell Him No"...Continuing with the theme are The Little River Band at #35 with their last American hit, the uncharacteristically decent dance-rocker "You're Driving Me Out of My Mind"...And at #40, we find Paul Anka with, you guessed it, his last Top 40 hit, the meh ballad "Hold Me Till The Morning Comes, featuring backup vocals by human sleeping pill Peter Cetera...But this week, my spotlight shines on...
32 - "Big Log," Robert Plant
The ex-Led Zeppelin frontman scored his first Top 40 solo hit with this bluesy ballad about the joys of travelling the open road. "My love is in league with the freeway," he sings. I have no idea what a log has to do with anything, but regardless, a nice tune to mellow out to.
And now, here's the rest of 1990.
20 - "My, My, My," Johnny Gill
19 - "Oh Girl," Paul Young
18 - "Can't Stop Falling Into Love," Cheap Trick
17 - "Something Happened on the Way to Heaven," Phil Collins
16 - "Love and Emotion," Stevie B.
The second half begins with Johnny Gill's second entry this week. This one is your basic let's-get-it-on loverman jam. It certainly seems like it would be effective.
Englishman Paul Young had his last U.S. Top Ten with a completely unnecessary cover of The Chi-Lites 1972 soul classic. He sings it fine and all, but there's no reason for it. Find your own song, Paul.
Next are Cheap Trick with their last Top 40, an unremarkable midtempo rocker about love and lust and stuff like that there. Bland and commercial, with none of the wit and swagger that made them great. Rinse this out of your ears by listening to "Surrender" ten times.
Then it's Phil Collins with the fourth Top Five smash from his album ...But Seriously. It's an upbeat, horn-heavy statement of purpose about wanting to do all one can to save a relationship. "How many times can I say I'm sorry?" Phil asks. "How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop?" I ask back for some reason. In both cases, the world may never know.
Closing out this quintet is Miamian Steven Bernard Hill with a boring Latin freestyle track on which he says of the title "It's the only thing that turns me on." Um, Stevie, love and emotion are two things, so you should have said "They're the only things that turn me on." And furthermore, "emotion" is a pretty vague term. Anger is an emotion. So is sadness. All I'm saying is, more specificity would have been nice.
15 - "Tic-Tac-Toe," Kyper
14 - "Jerk Out," The Time
13 - "Close to You," Maxi Priest
12 - "Vision of Love," Mariah Carey
11 - "Thieves in the Temple," Prince
Leading off this bunch is the only hit by Lousiana rapper Kyper. Over a beat that heavily employs samples from Yes' "Owner of a Lonely Heart," he compares his quest for sexual conquests to the centuries-old game involving X's and O's on a nine-square grid. I'm not sure exactly what makes the comparison relevant, but I do know that his go-to move of "pull(ing) out the portable car phone" would be much, much less effective 22 years later.
Minneapolis funksters The Time had their third and biggest pop hit with this Prince-written number about picking up women and being, well, a jerk about it. A bit of old-school funk among the New Jack Swing. A great, great song.
Next is the biggest hit by British soul-reggae artist Maxi Priest. It's just a simple love song over a sparse, Soul II Soul-ish beat, but that's all it needed to be to propel it to Number One. He had the pipes to deliver the goods. I also like his first hit, a pleasant reggae-lite cover of Cat Stevens' "Wild World."
Then it's the song that introduced the world to a then-unknown 20-year-old named Mariah Carey. Signed by Columbia Records (whose president, Tommy Mottola, she would later marry and divorce), much was expected of her, and the label paired her with top songwriters and producers for her debut album, and then spent over a million dollars promoting the record. The first fruit of this effort was this dramatic ballad about finding the love of one's dreams, and the investment was rewarded with a #1 single. The song itself still hold up as one of Carey's best, and while it does contain many of the vocal gymnastics that she became known for, it does not employ her "dog-whistle" high note. And that's a good thing. It wasn't necessary here.
Rounding out this section is Prince's first Top Ten hit of the 90s, the first single from the soundtrack of his flop sequel to the movie Purple Rain, Graffiti Bridge. It's about betrayal and personal strength and things like that, backed with solid funk-rock. Not among the man's best, but certainly a worthy hit.
These go to Ten. Top Ten.
10 - "Come Back to Me," Janet Jackson
Miss Jackson's tenth Top Ten was this pleading ballad. Uncomplicated, but solid. She was becoming the same sort of hit machine her brother was at his peak.
9 - "Epic," Faith No More
These San Franciscans were on more of the arty side of metal, but they did have one moment in the mainstream sun with this fantastic track on which singer Mike Patton raps the verses and sing-snarls the choruses over stomping hard rock. And the song's memorable ending, where it's stripped down to a simple piano line, seals the deal. What's it about? It doesn't matter. Or to put it another way "What is it? It's it!"
8 - "(Can't Live Without Your) Love and Affection," Nelson
Matthew and Gunnar Nelson, luxuriously blond-locked twin sons of fifties heartthrob Ricky Nelson, scored their first and biggest hit with this straightforwar.d pop-rocker that made their family the first ever three-generation charttoppers (Grandpa Ozzie began the legacy). Nothing groundbreaking, but very well-crafted.
7 - "Tonight," New Kids on the Block
The Boston boy band's ninth and final Top Ten is a fitting coda to their run at the top. It's a half-ballad, half-rock anthem about the group's already-loosening bond with their millions of fans. Contains vaguely-classical musical elements, references to their previous hits, and a line that seems to indicate that they consider girls not to be people. My favorite of theirs, based mainly on its relative strangeness.
6 - "Have You Seen Her," MC Hammer
The pop-rapper who became a superstar with the Rick James-biting "U Can't Touch This" followed that up with this week's second Chi-Lites cover. As purposeless as Paul Young's, but at least the Hammer contributes his own softly rapped lyrics which include pleas to famous friends like rapper Rob Base and the hosts of Yo! MTV Raps for assistance in locating his missing love. Still, justly forgotten.
5 - "If Wishes Came True," Sweet Sensation
This Bronx girl-groups last hit was their only #1. A boilerplate pop ballad, remarkable only for a line about "warm September rain" which reminds me of the parcipitation of another month and temperature mentioned in a much better song that would come out a year or so after this.
4 - "Unskinny Bop," Poison
These stalwart hair farmers coined a new sex euphemism on this dumb-fun boogie-rocker that contains the immortal line "Like gasoline you wanna pump me." Their best moment. Nothing more to say.
3 - "Do Me!" Bell Biv Devoe
The group composed of New Edition members Ricky Bell, Michael Bivins, and Ronnie DeVoe had their second Top Five hit with this lascivious New Jack Swinger that, appropriately for the changing times, includes a veiled advisement to use condoms, although unfortunately this is given during a rap that also seems to be about statuatory rape. All in all, their first hit, "Poison," is much better.
2 - "Release Me," Wilson Phillips
The combination of Beach Boy Brian Wilson's daughters Carnie and Wendy and Chynna Phillips, offspring of John and Michelle of The Mamas and the Papas, became huge superstars this year with their debut album. This, their second #1. is typical of their output: a catchy bit of MOR in the if-you-love-me-let-me-go vein. Not a big fan of this. I was more of a "Hold On" guy, and it was a kick to see them do that one at the end of Bridesmaids.
And at Number One 22 years ago we find...
1 - "Blaze of Glory," Jon Bon Jovi
The lead singer and namesake of New Jersey's pop-metal mainstays made a solo foray with this track from the Brat Pack Western Young Guns II. It's a power ballad with some vaguely countryish instrumentation and lyrics about sleeping outdoors and dying like a man. A decent little lighter-raiser, and a foreshadowing of the more blatant country move his band would make in the late noughties.
In the lone LDD, an adopted girl searching for her birth parents decicated Linda Ronstadt and James Ingram's "Somewhere Out There" to them
And at last, 1990 is in the books. Very soon, I will tackle a week in 1991. I hope to finish it much more promptly than I have these last two years. Will I? Watch this space.
Sunday, September 9, 2012
September 8, 1990 Part One
This week, it's September 1990. In the news, Iraq's invasion of Kuwait was a month old, and the events that would lead to Operation Desert Storm were being set in motion. Myself, I was beginning my first year of university, which didn't work out so well, ahem. Anyway, these are the way the popular songs of the time ranked.
40 - "Giving You the Benefit," Pebbles
39 - "Rub You the Right Way," Johnny Gill
38 - "Crazy," The Boys
37 - "Unchained Melody," The Righteous Brothers
36 - "I Don't Have the Heart," James Ingram
35 - "This is the Right Time," Lisa Stansfield
34 - "Tell Me Something," Indecent Obsession
33 - "Dirty Cash," The Adventures of Stevie V
32 - "Could This Be Love," Seduction
31 - "Banned in the U.S.A.," Luke featuring 2 Live Crew
Okay, let's begin with female solo singers. Perri "Pebbles" Reid scored her third and final Top 5 with this dance strut about letting a lover have one more chance to prove his fidelity capabilites. I like the attitude she displays on this. And Englishwoman Lisa Stansfield picked up her third American hit with this okay dance track. Far, far below the classic that was her debut smash "All Around the World," but still, girl can sing.
Now to the solo men. Johnny Gill's debut album came out in 1983, but he had only minor success on his own. Four years later, however, he replaced Bobby Brown in New Edition, and that gave him a platform to relaunch his solo career. His first pop hit was ths snappy bit of New Jack Swing on which he boasts about his massage skills. I don't know if he actually does have "magic hands," but he sell this song well. And after only managing to chart on collaborations and duets, James Ingram finally had a solo hit with this ballad about how he's not good enough for a woman, even though she thinks he is. It's above-average for its kind, and it deserved to sneak its way up to #1.
Four American groups in this bunch. The boys of The Boys were the four Abdulsamad brothers of Carson, California, who ranged in age from 11 to 17 at the time of this, their second and last pop Top 40. It's okay pop/R&B about a girl who all of the brothers seem to have feelings for. Nothing much to say about it one way or the other. Pop duo The Righteous Brothers returned to the charts with their then-25-year-old recording of a song that had originally been a hit for Al Hibbler in 1955. It's unlikely comeback was driven by its use in the pottery wheel scene in the blockbuster movie Ghost. If you haven't seen it, you've probably at least seen it parodied. Anyway, it's a great vocal performance by Bobby Hatfield, and I like it a lot more now that I'm not hearing it constantly. The ladies of Seduction had their final pop hit with a ballad about a relationship that's too good to be true, blah blah blah. Playlist filler. And controversial Miami raunch-rappers 2 Live Crew had their second and last Top 40 hit with this response to their battles with would-be censors such as career scold Jack Thompson, conducted to the tune of Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the U.S.A." In addition to rapping, it includes clips of news broadcasts about the controversy, and ends with a spoken defence of free speech by Luther "Luke" Campbell. Not all that great as a song, but a fascinating artifact of its time, and the winner of this week's Uneasy Rider.
We close this section with groups from outside the U.S.A. Aussie popsters Indecent Obsession had their only American hit with this flavorless dance track. And their name sounds like the title of a bad late-night "erotic thriller." Nothing to hear here, folks. And the British dance collective led by producer Stevie Vincent scored their one U.S. Top 40 with this gritty house track about the lengths people will go to get money to buy drugs. It's actually aged pretty well. Solid song.
30 - "Policy of Truth," Depeche Mode
29 - "Everybody Everybody," Black Box
28 - "The Power," Snap!
27 - "King of Wishful Thinking," Go West
26 - "Romeo," Dino
25 - "Cradle of Love," Billy Idol
24 - "Can't Stop," After 7
23 - "Praying for Time," George Michael
22 - "Make You Sweat," Keith Sweat
21 - "Heart of Stone," Taylor Dayne
Our look at the next ten begins with British groups. Depeche Mode are here with the third hit from their American breakthrough Violator, a gothy dance tune about how honesty isn't always the best policy. I think it's my favorite song of theirs. Menacingly catchy. And the duo Go West had their biggest Stateside hit with this poppy tale of denial from the monster hit soundtrack from the monster hit movie Pretty Woman. Didn't care for the song, and I've never seen the movie. In fact, I haven't seen many Julia Roberts movies. She just grates on me.
Two European dance acts are in this batch. Italy's Black Box had their first U.S. Top Ten with this house whirlwind sung by ex-Weather Girl Martha Wash. However, because she was, shall we say, of a certain size, the group didn't credit her on the record, and a model lip-synched her in performances and videos. But later, Wash would successfully sue for credit and royalties on six Black Box tracks, as well as songs by C+C Music Factory (including the #1 "Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now),). Good to see that justice was done. And Germany's Snap! had the first of their two U.S. Top Fives with this good groover over which baritone rapper Turbo B boasts "I'm the lyrical Jesse James!" I'm not sure if he was, but this was one of my favorites from that summer, and it still holds up.
Then we have four American acts. A year after Dino scored hit first Top Ten, he scored his second, and last, with a silly, uninspired bit of hip-hop pop. Cliched and soulless, and the man's rapping makes Marky Mark sound like Chuck D. After 7, an R&B vocal group featuring two brothers of star producer Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, had their biggest hit with a nice midtempo love jam. I'm diggin' on it. It was probably inevitable that Keith Sweat would use his last name in a song title, and it happened on his second pop hit, a suitably lascivious sex jam. Persperriffic. And Taylor Dayne's string of seven straight Top Tens ended when her entry here, a midtempo ballad about how she doesn't buy her ex's stoic reaction to their breakup, stalled at #12. It was time for that run to end, in my opinion. She got about as much out of her career as she could.
I'll end the first half with two British guys. Billy Idol had his last major hit with this this lusty rocker that for some reason references Jerry Lee Lewis' marriage to his teenage cousin ("It burned like a ball on fire/When the rebel took a little child bride." This appeared on the soundtrack to the movie The Adventures of Ford Fairlane. Remember that? It was the movie that tried to launch comedian Andrew Dice Clay as a movie star. Didn't quite work out, did it? However, the same formula (a detective with an unusual specialty in a movie costarring Tone Loc) would make Jim Carrey a superstar four years later. I think that was the right result in both cases. And George Michael had his fifth American #1 with this earnest, heavily orchestrated rumination on injustice and greed. It's very much a downer, but the lyrics are genuinely affecting, and his performance is so passionate that you can't help but listen. Definitely his best song.
Within the next 24-48 hours: the X's and O's of male-female relations explained, the world's first introduction to a megadiva...and twins!
40 - "Giving You the Benefit," Pebbles
39 - "Rub You the Right Way," Johnny Gill
38 - "Crazy," The Boys
37 - "Unchained Melody," The Righteous Brothers
36 - "I Don't Have the Heart," James Ingram
35 - "This is the Right Time," Lisa Stansfield
34 - "Tell Me Something," Indecent Obsession
33 - "Dirty Cash," The Adventures of Stevie V
32 - "Could This Be Love," Seduction
31 - "Banned in the U.S.A.," Luke featuring 2 Live Crew
Okay, let's begin with female solo singers. Perri "Pebbles" Reid scored her third and final Top 5 with this dance strut about letting a lover have one more chance to prove his fidelity capabilites. I like the attitude she displays on this. And Englishwoman Lisa Stansfield picked up her third American hit with this okay dance track. Far, far below the classic that was her debut smash "All Around the World," but still, girl can sing.
Now to the solo men. Johnny Gill's debut album came out in 1983, but he had only minor success on his own. Four years later, however, he replaced Bobby Brown in New Edition, and that gave him a platform to relaunch his solo career. His first pop hit was ths snappy bit of New Jack Swing on which he boasts about his massage skills. I don't know if he actually does have "magic hands," but he sell this song well. And after only managing to chart on collaborations and duets, James Ingram finally had a solo hit with this ballad about how he's not good enough for a woman, even though she thinks he is. It's above-average for its kind, and it deserved to sneak its way up to #1.
Four American groups in this bunch. The boys of The Boys were the four Abdulsamad brothers of Carson, California, who ranged in age from 11 to 17 at the time of this, their second and last pop Top 40. It's okay pop/R&B about a girl who all of the brothers seem to have feelings for. Nothing much to say about it one way or the other. Pop duo The Righteous Brothers returned to the charts with their then-25-year-old recording of a song that had originally been a hit for Al Hibbler in 1955. It's unlikely comeback was driven by its use in the pottery wheel scene in the blockbuster movie Ghost. If you haven't seen it, you've probably at least seen it parodied. Anyway, it's a great vocal performance by Bobby Hatfield, and I like it a lot more now that I'm not hearing it constantly. The ladies of Seduction had their final pop hit with a ballad about a relationship that's too good to be true, blah blah blah. Playlist filler. And controversial Miami raunch-rappers 2 Live Crew had their second and last Top 40 hit with this response to their battles with would-be censors such as career scold Jack Thompson, conducted to the tune of Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the U.S.A." In addition to rapping, it includes clips of news broadcasts about the controversy, and ends with a spoken defence of free speech by Luther "Luke" Campbell. Not all that great as a song, but a fascinating artifact of its time, and the winner of this week's Uneasy Rider.
We close this section with groups from outside the U.S.A. Aussie popsters Indecent Obsession had their only American hit with this flavorless dance track. And their name sounds like the title of a bad late-night "erotic thriller." Nothing to hear here, folks. And the British dance collective led by producer Stevie Vincent scored their one U.S. Top 40 with this gritty house track about the lengths people will go to get money to buy drugs. It's actually aged pretty well. Solid song.
30 - "Policy of Truth," Depeche Mode
29 - "Everybody Everybody," Black Box
28 - "The Power," Snap!
27 - "King of Wishful Thinking," Go West
26 - "Romeo," Dino
25 - "Cradle of Love," Billy Idol
24 - "Can't Stop," After 7
23 - "Praying for Time," George Michael
22 - "Make You Sweat," Keith Sweat
21 - "Heart of Stone," Taylor Dayne
Our look at the next ten begins with British groups. Depeche Mode are here with the third hit from their American breakthrough Violator, a gothy dance tune about how honesty isn't always the best policy. I think it's my favorite song of theirs. Menacingly catchy. And the duo Go West had their biggest Stateside hit with this poppy tale of denial from the monster hit soundtrack from the monster hit movie Pretty Woman. Didn't care for the song, and I've never seen the movie. In fact, I haven't seen many Julia Roberts movies. She just grates on me.
Two European dance acts are in this batch. Italy's Black Box had their first U.S. Top Ten with this house whirlwind sung by ex-Weather Girl Martha Wash. However, because she was, shall we say, of a certain size, the group didn't credit her on the record, and a model lip-synched her in performances and videos. But later, Wash would successfully sue for credit and royalties on six Black Box tracks, as well as songs by C+C Music Factory (including the #1 "Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now),). Good to see that justice was done. And Germany's Snap! had the first of their two U.S. Top Fives with this good groover over which baritone rapper Turbo B boasts "I'm the lyrical Jesse James!" I'm not sure if he was, but this was one of my favorites from that summer, and it still holds up.
Then we have four American acts. A year after Dino scored hit first Top Ten, he scored his second, and last, with a silly, uninspired bit of hip-hop pop. Cliched and soulless, and the man's rapping makes Marky Mark sound like Chuck D. After 7, an R&B vocal group featuring two brothers of star producer Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, had their biggest hit with a nice midtempo love jam. I'm diggin' on it. It was probably inevitable that Keith Sweat would use his last name in a song title, and it happened on his second pop hit, a suitably lascivious sex jam. Persperriffic. And Taylor Dayne's string of seven straight Top Tens ended when her entry here, a midtempo ballad about how she doesn't buy her ex's stoic reaction to their breakup, stalled at #12. It was time for that run to end, in my opinion. She got about as much out of her career as she could.
I'll end the first half with two British guys. Billy Idol had his last major hit with this this lusty rocker that for some reason references Jerry Lee Lewis' marriage to his teenage cousin ("It burned like a ball on fire/When the rebel took a little child bride." This appeared on the soundtrack to the movie The Adventures of Ford Fairlane. Remember that? It was the movie that tried to launch comedian Andrew Dice Clay as a movie star. Didn't quite work out, did it? However, the same formula (a detective with an unusual specialty in a movie costarring Tone Loc) would make Jim Carrey a superstar four years later. I think that was the right result in both cases. And George Michael had his fifth American #1 with this earnest, heavily orchestrated rumination on injustice and greed. It's very much a downer, but the lyrics are genuinely affecting, and his performance is so passionate that you can't help but listen. Definitely his best song.
Within the next 24-48 hours: the X's and O's of male-female relations explained, the world's first introduction to a megadiva...and twins!
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
September 3, 1989 Part Two
Sorry about being a day late.
Before we finish our 1989 business, let's go back to September 5, 1981.
Diana Ross and Lionel Richie were on top with "Endless Love." The remainder of the sTop Ten included "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around, "Urgent," "Queen of Hearts," and "Jessie's Girl."...First newcomer we come across is at #20, "Feels So Right," the first pop hit by country band Alabama. Nice little mood-setting ballad...At #21 we find Ray Parker Jr.'s final hit with Raydio, an indistinct track about being reminded of a past love by "That Old Song."...Teen singer Stacy Lattisaw cracked the Top 40 for a second time with this week's #26, a cover of The Moments' 1970 heartbreak hit "Love on a Two-Way Street."...The #35 spot is held down by Brit Robbie Patton, who sounds somewhat like Rick Springfield on the okay pop-rocker "Don't Give it Up."...And Texas rockers Point Blank made their only pop impression by peaking at #39 with a midtempo bit of advice to a woman named "Nicole."...But this week, the 80s spotlight shines down upon...
34 - "It's Now or Never," John Schneider
Based on the 1898 Italian song "O Sole Mio," this was originally a #1 hit for Elvis in 1960. Twenty-one years later, who should bring it back to the charts but Bo Duke, scourge of Hazzard County Sherriff Rosco P. Coltrane. Schneider's hardly The King, but he does okay, and although he never hit the pop Top 40 again, he would have a decent country career, picking up four #1s. Yee-haw.
And now, wrapping up '89.
20 - "Cherish," Madonna
19 - "One," The Bee Gees
18 - "I Like It," Dino
17 - "Once Bitten, Twice Shy," Great White
16 - "Sacred Emotion," Donny Osmond
The second half opens with Madonna, whose string of hits continued with this sprightly, retroish pop ode to true love. Very good, and much better than that Association song. I never liked those guys, in case you haven't heard.
The eighties had been a rough decade for The Brothers Gibb. After dominating the latter half of the 70s, they'd only had two U.S. Top 40s, and neither had gotten higher than #24. But just as the decade was coming to a close, they scored an out-of-nowhere Top Ten with a light bit of danceable, romantic synthpop. It's a decent song, Barry's in fine voice, and I'm happy they managed a bit of a renaissance. But honestly, I prefer their 1987 U.K. #1 "You Win Again." I'm still puzzled as to why that didn't catch on on this side of the Atlantic.
Next is the first Top 40 hit by singer/DJ Dean Esposito. Not much interesting about it, just standard 1989 dance-pop. It was a Top Ten, though, so good for him, I guess.
Then it's Great White, who were on the less-glam side of hair metal (no makeup or heavy hairspray). Their only hit was this cover of a 1975 U.K. hit by Ian Hunter, a tale of debauchery on the road. It's a decent song, but unfortunately, it's been overshadowed by the 2003 concert they played at a Rhode Island nightclub that ended in a fire that killed 100 people. And yes, I do blame the band, at least partially. Was it that important to have pyro for a small club show? Honestly, I don't think anyone would have asked for their money back if they hadn't had any. My feeling is that they wanted it so they could feel like they were still the arena-fillers they used to be. Maybe I'm being harsh, but the least I can say is, it turned out to be a tragically terrible idea.
This section is closed out by none other than Donald Clark Osmond, who earlier in the year had scored his first pop hit in thirteen years with the dance trifle "Soldier of Love." His follow-up was this meh ballad about the strength of his love. I do have to say, however, that I like it better than "Soldier of Love." That was awful.
15 - "On Our Own," Bobby Brown
14 - "Keep On Movin'," Soul II Soul
13 - "18 and Life," Skid Row
12 - "Girl, I'm Gonna Miss You," Milli Vanilli
11 - "If I Could Turn Back Time," Cher
This group is led off by Bobby Brown's theme song to the sequel to the 1984 smash film Ghostbusters. I haven't seen it, and Brown's rapped plot summary doesn't make me anxious to do so anytime soon. Definitely not one of his better efforts. They probably should have brought back Ray Parker Jr. to infringe on another copyright.
Next are the British dance collective Soul II Soul with their first American hit, an insistent groover about keeping a postive attitude and going forward. Their second hit, "Back to Life," was bigger, but I like this one much better. It's just simpler and more soulful to me.
Then it's the first pop hit by hair band Skid Row, formed in New Jersey and fronted by Canadian Sebastian Bach. It's a cautionary power ballad about a teenage alcoholic who ends up accidentally shooting and killing one of his friends. For what it is, it's pretty good.
And now, the tale of Milli Vanilli. They were introduced to the world as Rob Pilatus and Fabrice Morvan, two German singers discovered by producer Frank Farian. Debuting in late 1988, they put together an impressive string of five U.S. Top Fives, including three #1s, the second of which being this mediocre pop ballad. Their success resulted in them winning the 1990 Best New Artist Grammy. But even during their run, there were suspicions that Pilatus and Morvan weren't the actual singers on their records, and in late 1990, it was revealed that the d"uo were just a front for other singers their producer didn't think were as marketable. What followed were lawsuits, a rescinding of the Grammy, an unsuccessful album sung by the duo under the name "Rob and Fab," and tragically, Pilatus' 1998 overdose death. One of the sadder and more bizarre tales from the music biz.
Rounding out this quintet is the biggest hit of Cher's late-80s power ballad comeback, an okay Diane Warren-penned song of regret most memorable for its video, which featured her performing clad in a much-too-see-through on a battleship, in front of hundreds of sailors and, most disturbingly, her 12-year-old son. No, I'm not going back to YouTube it. I saw more than enough of it back then.
Kick the Top Ten, G.
10 - "Friends," Jody Watley with Eric B. and Rakim
Watley's fifth Top Ten was this nice little dance number about deceptive allies, greatly enhanced by the countributions of a groundbreaking hip-hop duo. Still, when it comes to songs about this topic in this genre, I prefer TLC's "What About Your Friends."
9 - "The End of the Innocence," Don Henley
The ex-Eagle's last Top Ten was this bitter ballad, featuring co-writer Bruce Hornsby on piano, about the corruption of values and ethics in the era of Reagan (referred to as "this tired old man that we elected king.") Many people thought those were great days, but clearly, those two didn't. I wasn't a fan myself, either.
8 - "Shower Me with Your Love," Surface
The second pop hit by these New York R&Bers, who were co-founded by ex-Isley Brothers guitarist David Townsend, is a simple, gooey ballad. And no dirty jokes, please.
7 - "Secret Rendezvous," Karyn White
This soul divas third hit on her own was about a clandestine meeting with a lover that she expects will last quite a while and will be quite pleasant for both parties. Above average for its genre, and White is a much better rapper than the chick from Seduction.
6 - "Heaven," Warrant
These Hollywood metallers, fronted by an Ohio native born John Kennedy Oswald who later adopted the moniker Jani Lane, had their biggest hit with this well-remembered power ballad about how the right woman makes the struggles of life worthwhile. Didn't like it at the time, but nostalgia had given it a bit of a shine. Unfortunately, Lane died of alcohol poisioning just last year at age 47.
5 - "Angel Eyes," The Jeff Healey Band
This Toronto trio was fronted by Healey, who was blinded by cancer at the age of 1 but became a guitar virtuoso via the unorthodox technique of playing the instrument sitting down with it flat on his lap. The group's only American hit was this tender "how did you fall for a shlub like me" ballad written by singer-songwriter John Hiatt. Nowadays, the band is best remembered for being the entertainment at the bar in the Patrick Swayze film Road House. Sadly, Healey too is dead, felled by cancer in 2008.
4 - "Don't Wanna Lose You," Gloria Estefan
The first single credited to Estefan alone was this nondescript ballad elevated by her pleading performance. She's another one of those singers who's much better than most of the material she sings.
3 - "Hangin' Tough," New Kids on the Block
The Boston boy band's second #1 was this cheeseball of a fake hip-hop track on which the kids claim "We're rough!" No, you weren't. And that's why the tweens of 1989 loved you, the way the tweens of the day love One Direction. You put them in a trance with your funky song.
2 - "Right Here Waiting," Richard Marx
Terrible, maudlin shit by the Marxster. By this time, he had become just awful. Fingernails on a chalkboard to me. Coincidentally (or not), this was his most successful period.
And at #1 23 years ago sat the one and only...
1 - "Cold Hearted," Paula Abdul
After spending most of the decade as a Los Angeles Lakers cheerleader and then one of the hottest choreographers in Hollywood, Abdul launched a singing career with the album Forever Your Girl. The record didn't catch on immediately, but when it did, it became a multi-platinum monster that produced four chart-topping singles, the third of which was this strutting bit of advice to a woman that her man is a lying Lothario who's no good for her. "All the world's a candy store, he's been trick-or-treatin'," Abdul warns. Not a bad little dance-pop trifle. It's between this and "Straight Up" for the title of my favorite from the future "crazy judge" on American Idol.
No more NotCaseys (or NotShadoes, as the case may be). And there was only one LDD: A man (who turned out to be AT40 staffer Rob Durkee, using a different last name so as not to reveal any conflicts-of-interest), dedicated Dionne Warwick's "I'll Never Love This Way Again" to his late father, and all other fathers.
As for my thoughts on Shadoe Stevens, well, his style is much more flashy than Casey's (coining silly metaphors for the chart and doing stuff like referring to his listeners as "muchachos."). I found it jarring after all these weeks of the mighty Case, but I imagine that for its time, it worked. And he grew on me a bit by the end.
Next week: we flip the odometer to 1990.
Before we finish our 1989 business, let's go back to September 5, 1981.
Diana Ross and Lionel Richie were on top with "Endless Love." The remainder of the sTop Ten included "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around, "Urgent," "Queen of Hearts," and "Jessie's Girl."...First newcomer we come across is at #20, "Feels So Right," the first pop hit by country band Alabama. Nice little mood-setting ballad...At #21 we find Ray Parker Jr.'s final hit with Raydio, an indistinct track about being reminded of a past love by "That Old Song."...Teen singer Stacy Lattisaw cracked the Top 40 for a second time with this week's #26, a cover of The Moments' 1970 heartbreak hit "Love on a Two-Way Street."...The #35 spot is held down by Brit Robbie Patton, who sounds somewhat like Rick Springfield on the okay pop-rocker "Don't Give it Up."...And Texas rockers Point Blank made their only pop impression by peaking at #39 with a midtempo bit of advice to a woman named "Nicole."...But this week, the 80s spotlight shines down upon...
34 - "It's Now or Never," John Schneider
Based on the 1898 Italian song "O Sole Mio," this was originally a #1 hit for Elvis in 1960. Twenty-one years later, who should bring it back to the charts but Bo Duke, scourge of Hazzard County Sherriff Rosco P. Coltrane. Schneider's hardly The King, but he does okay, and although he never hit the pop Top 40 again, he would have a decent country career, picking up four #1s. Yee-haw.
And now, wrapping up '89.
20 - "Cherish," Madonna
19 - "One," The Bee Gees
18 - "I Like It," Dino
17 - "Once Bitten, Twice Shy," Great White
16 - "Sacred Emotion," Donny Osmond
The second half opens with Madonna, whose string of hits continued with this sprightly, retroish pop ode to true love. Very good, and much better than that Association song. I never liked those guys, in case you haven't heard.
The eighties had been a rough decade for The Brothers Gibb. After dominating the latter half of the 70s, they'd only had two U.S. Top 40s, and neither had gotten higher than #24. But just as the decade was coming to a close, they scored an out-of-nowhere Top Ten with a light bit of danceable, romantic synthpop. It's a decent song, Barry's in fine voice, and I'm happy they managed a bit of a renaissance. But honestly, I prefer their 1987 U.K. #1 "You Win Again." I'm still puzzled as to why that didn't catch on on this side of the Atlantic.
Next is the first Top 40 hit by singer/DJ Dean Esposito. Not much interesting about it, just standard 1989 dance-pop. It was a Top Ten, though, so good for him, I guess.
Then it's Great White, who were on the less-glam side of hair metal (no makeup or heavy hairspray). Their only hit was this cover of a 1975 U.K. hit by Ian Hunter, a tale of debauchery on the road. It's a decent song, but unfortunately, it's been overshadowed by the 2003 concert they played at a Rhode Island nightclub that ended in a fire that killed 100 people. And yes, I do blame the band, at least partially. Was it that important to have pyro for a small club show? Honestly, I don't think anyone would have asked for their money back if they hadn't had any. My feeling is that they wanted it so they could feel like they were still the arena-fillers they used to be. Maybe I'm being harsh, but the least I can say is, it turned out to be a tragically terrible idea.
This section is closed out by none other than Donald Clark Osmond, who earlier in the year had scored his first pop hit in thirteen years with the dance trifle "Soldier of Love." His follow-up was this meh ballad about the strength of his love. I do have to say, however, that I like it better than "Soldier of Love." That was awful.
15 - "On Our Own," Bobby Brown
14 - "Keep On Movin'," Soul II Soul
13 - "18 and Life," Skid Row
12 - "Girl, I'm Gonna Miss You," Milli Vanilli
11 - "If I Could Turn Back Time," Cher
This group is led off by Bobby Brown's theme song to the sequel to the 1984 smash film Ghostbusters. I haven't seen it, and Brown's rapped plot summary doesn't make me anxious to do so anytime soon. Definitely not one of his better efforts. They probably should have brought back Ray Parker Jr. to infringe on another copyright.
Next are the British dance collective Soul II Soul with their first American hit, an insistent groover about keeping a postive attitude and going forward. Their second hit, "Back to Life," was bigger, but I like this one much better. It's just simpler and more soulful to me.
Then it's the first pop hit by hair band Skid Row, formed in New Jersey and fronted by Canadian Sebastian Bach. It's a cautionary power ballad about a teenage alcoholic who ends up accidentally shooting and killing one of his friends. For what it is, it's pretty good.
And now, the tale of Milli Vanilli. They were introduced to the world as Rob Pilatus and Fabrice Morvan, two German singers discovered by producer Frank Farian. Debuting in late 1988, they put together an impressive string of five U.S. Top Fives, including three #1s, the second of which being this mediocre pop ballad. Their success resulted in them winning the 1990 Best New Artist Grammy. But even during their run, there were suspicions that Pilatus and Morvan weren't the actual singers on their records, and in late 1990, it was revealed that the d"uo were just a front for other singers their producer didn't think were as marketable. What followed were lawsuits, a rescinding of the Grammy, an unsuccessful album sung by the duo under the name "Rob and Fab," and tragically, Pilatus' 1998 overdose death. One of the sadder and more bizarre tales from the music biz.
Rounding out this quintet is the biggest hit of Cher's late-80s power ballad comeback, an okay Diane Warren-penned song of regret most memorable for its video, which featured her performing clad in a much-too-see-through on a battleship, in front of hundreds of sailors and, most disturbingly, her 12-year-old son. No, I'm not going back to YouTube it. I saw more than enough of it back then.
Kick the Top Ten, G.
10 - "Friends," Jody Watley with Eric B. and Rakim
Watley's fifth Top Ten was this nice little dance number about deceptive allies, greatly enhanced by the countributions of a groundbreaking hip-hop duo. Still, when it comes to songs about this topic in this genre, I prefer TLC's "What About Your Friends."
9 - "The End of the Innocence," Don Henley
The ex-Eagle's last Top Ten was this bitter ballad, featuring co-writer Bruce Hornsby on piano, about the corruption of values and ethics in the era of Reagan (referred to as "this tired old man that we elected king.") Many people thought those were great days, but clearly, those two didn't. I wasn't a fan myself, either.
8 - "Shower Me with Your Love," Surface
The second pop hit by these New York R&Bers, who were co-founded by ex-Isley Brothers guitarist David Townsend, is a simple, gooey ballad. And no dirty jokes, please.
7 - "Secret Rendezvous," Karyn White
This soul divas third hit on her own was about a clandestine meeting with a lover that she expects will last quite a while and will be quite pleasant for both parties. Above average for its genre, and White is a much better rapper than the chick from Seduction.
6 - "Heaven," Warrant
These Hollywood metallers, fronted by an Ohio native born John Kennedy Oswald who later adopted the moniker Jani Lane, had their biggest hit with this well-remembered power ballad about how the right woman makes the struggles of life worthwhile. Didn't like it at the time, but nostalgia had given it a bit of a shine. Unfortunately, Lane died of alcohol poisioning just last year at age 47.
5 - "Angel Eyes," The Jeff Healey Band
This Toronto trio was fronted by Healey, who was blinded by cancer at the age of 1 but became a guitar virtuoso via the unorthodox technique of playing the instrument sitting down with it flat on his lap. The group's only American hit was this tender "how did you fall for a shlub like me" ballad written by singer-songwriter John Hiatt. Nowadays, the band is best remembered for being the entertainment at the bar in the Patrick Swayze film Road House. Sadly, Healey too is dead, felled by cancer in 2008.
4 - "Don't Wanna Lose You," Gloria Estefan
The first single credited to Estefan alone was this nondescript ballad elevated by her pleading performance. She's another one of those singers who's much better than most of the material she sings.
3 - "Hangin' Tough," New Kids on the Block
The Boston boy band's second #1 was this cheeseball of a fake hip-hop track on which the kids claim "We're rough!" No, you weren't. And that's why the tweens of 1989 loved you, the way the tweens of the day love One Direction. You put them in a trance with your funky song.
2 - "Right Here Waiting," Richard Marx
Terrible, maudlin shit by the Marxster. By this time, he had become just awful. Fingernails on a chalkboard to me. Coincidentally (or not), this was his most successful period.
And at #1 23 years ago sat the one and only...
1 - "Cold Hearted," Paula Abdul
After spending most of the decade as a Los Angeles Lakers cheerleader and then one of the hottest choreographers in Hollywood, Abdul launched a singing career with the album Forever Your Girl. The record didn't catch on immediately, but when it did, it became a multi-platinum monster that produced four chart-topping singles, the third of which was this strutting bit of advice to a woman that her man is a lying Lothario who's no good for her. "All the world's a candy store, he's been trick-or-treatin'," Abdul warns. Not a bad little dance-pop trifle. It's between this and "Straight Up" for the title of my favorite from the future "crazy judge" on American Idol.
No more NotCaseys (or NotShadoes, as the case may be). And there was only one LDD: A man (who turned out to be AT40 staffer Rob Durkee, using a different last name so as not to reveal any conflicts-of-interest), dedicated Dionne Warwick's "I'll Never Love This Way Again" to his late father, and all other fathers.
As for my thoughts on Shadoe Stevens, well, his style is much more flashy than Casey's (coining silly metaphors for the chart and doing stuff like referring to his listeners as "muchachos."). I found it jarring after all these weeks of the mighty Case, but I imagine that for its time, it worked. And he grew on me a bit by the end.
Next week: we flip the odometer to 1990.
Sunday, September 2, 2012
September 3, 1989 Part One
Okay, welcome to the new era. But as I promised, I'm not going to leave the past completely behind. So before we go to 1989, let's make a stop at August 30, 1975.
KC and the Sunshine Band were on top with "Get Down Tonight." Other Top Ten highlights included "Rhinestone Cowboy," "Jive Talkin'," "At Seventeen," and "Why Can't We Be Friends."...First newbie shows up at 17, "Holdin' On to Yesterday," by MOR machine Ambrosia. The usual blandness...#22 is held down by Johnny Rivers' completely unnecessary cover of The Beach Boys' "Help Me Rhonda." My advice to Rhonda: don't...Cat Stevens' penultimate U.S. hit was the sweetly soulful "Two Fine People," found this week at #33...At #36 is the last of three minor pop hits by funksters New Birth, a cover of Jerry Butler's "Dream Merchant."...The final pop Top 40 for the legendary Temptations is at #37, a funky reminder not to hurl stones if one lives in a "Glasshouse."...And The Doobie Brothers scraped in at #40 with their last pre-Michael McDonald hit, the bluesy "Sweet Maxine."...But this week's 70s spotlight falls on...
21 - "Tush," ZZ Top
Pre-Eliminator, the biggest hit by these hirsute Texans was this immortal grinder about going downtown to, as the kids say "troll for booty." In a way, it's too bad MTV wasn't around yet when this came out. Now that could've been a video.
And now we enter the post-Casey AT40 universe. With some very welcome assistance, I acquired a copy of the original Shadoe Stevens broadcast. I'll comment on Mr. Stevens' style at some point as we go along, but for now, let's get into what really matters, the hits.
40 - "Partyman," Prince
39 - "When I Looked at Him," Exposé
38 - "If You Don't Know Me by Now," Simply Red
37 - "You're My One and Only (True Love)," Seduction
36 - "Hey Ladies," The Beastie Boys
35 - "Bust a Move," Young MC
34 - "Runnin' Down a Dream," Tom Petty
33 - "The Prisoner," Howard Jones
32 - "Toy Soldiers," Martika
31 - "Lovesong," The Cure
I'll begin with the male solo acts. First there's Prince with the second hit from his soundtrack album to Tim Burton's Batman film. It's a fairly decent funk track that features samples of Jack Nicholson's Joker dialoge from the movie. But amongst Prince's catalog, it's rather forgettable. Tom Petty's second single from his solo debut, Full Moon Fever, was this iconic, fuzz-guitar-driven rocker about driving down the road searching for adventure while singing along with Del Shannon. Perhaps it's been blunted a little by classic rock overplay, but still, an undeniably great track. And Howard Jones is here with an okay slice of synth-rock that seems to look at love as a game of cat-and-mouse. And it seems that Howard was the mouse. Interesting.
Two girl groups appear in this bunch. The times I've encountered Miami's Exposé in previous entries, I've found them not all that interesting. Now, here they are again with this ballad about falling in love, and I'm still not interested. But this was their sixth straight Top Ten, so someone must have liked what they heard. And New York's Seduction had their first hit with this standard bit of Latin freestyle that features one of the ladies rapping in the middle of it, comparing her and her man's romance to a French river, a statue in the Guggenheim Museum, and a Mike Tyson punch. Whichever one she was, she should have stuck to singing.
Two British groups are here. Manchester's Simply Red picked up their second and final U.S. charttopper with this cover of Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes' classic 1972 ballad. Mick Hucknall does okay, in his way, but let's face it, he's no Teddy Pendergrass. And West Sussex's goth-poppers The Cure had their second and biggest American hit with this atmospheric New Wave track that succinctly states how much better Robert Smith feels when he's with his lover. I definitely wouldn't say it's this band's best song, but it's charmingly affecting in its simplicity.
We close our look at this section with two rap classics and a song that would later be sampled by a prominent MC. The Beastie Boys had broken through two years earlier with the rowdy rap-rock of Licensed to Ill, but they decided to move in more sophisticated lyrical and musical directions on their next album, Paul's Boutique. The single that introduced that LP to the world was this jittery little number about picking up women which featured references to, among others, Vincent Van Gogh, game show host Chuck Woolery, and Japanese baseball star Sadaharu Oh. Both the single and album were commercial disappointments initially, but have gained in stature over the years, and set the stage for a career that probably lasted longer than it would have if they'd contined in the frat-rap direction. British-born, New York-raised Marvin Young, who had scored success behind-the-scenes earlier in the year as the co-writer of Tone Loc's hits "Wild Thing" and "Funky Cold Medina," made his own impression behind the mic with this memorable bit of motivation for shy men to approach women on beaches, in movie theatres, at weddings, and during other functions. I'm sure it's encouraged many a male wallflower not to "hang yourself with a celibate rope." Just brilliant. And Californian Marta Marrero, who had broken into show business as an extra in the 1982 film version of Annie (yeah,, I saw that in a theatre too), had her biggest success with this #1 ballad about the devastating effects of a friend's drug addiction. It's a pretty effective look at that situation, with evocative lyrics like "Only emptiness remains/It replaces all the pain." I like it better now then I did then. And fifteen years later, Eminem would sample it to great effect for his song "Like Toy Soldiers."
30 - "Don't Look Back," Fine Young Cannibals
29 - "It's Not Enough," Starship
28 - "Headed for a Heartbreak," Winger
27 - "Put Your Mouth on Me," Eddie Murphy
26 - "So Alive," Love and Rockets
25 - "Batdance," Prince
24 - "That's the Way," Katrina and the Waves
23 - "Soul Provider," Michael Bolton
22 - "Kisses on the Wind," Neneh Cherry
21 - "Talk it Over," Grayson Hugh
We begin with four British acts. Fine Young Cannibals were formed by two ex-members of early-80s ska stars The (English) Beat, and named after a 1960 Natalie Wood-Robert Wagner movie. They broke through in America this year with the back-to-back #1s "She Drives Me Crazy" and "Good Thing." Their third, and last, U.S. hit, this rocker about wanting to hit the road in search of better fortune, just missed the Top Ten, but I think it's my favorite of the three (though still behind their 1986 U.K. Top Ten "Johnny Come Home." And Roland Gift's voice is one that pop radio could have stood to have heard more from. Love and Rockets have a similar story in that they were formed by former members of a band that had already made somewhat of an impact (in this case, the goth-rockers Bauhaus), and were named after an existing pop-culture entity (an underground comic book). But they only had one American hit, and it was this strutting lust-rocker about a brown-haired, long-legged lady. Fine, fine stuff. Katrina and the Waves managed one more post-"Walking on Sunshine" hit with this bright-but-forgettable pop-rock confection on which Ms. Leskanich asks her lover to take things slow when being physically affectionate. A pleasant listen, but still a mere footnote. And Neneh Cherry, the Swedish-born stepdaughter of an American jazz musician who moved to London at 14, had her second and last U.S. Top 40 hit about an girl who attracted male attention at too young an age. I think that's it. It's a decent song, but nowhere near as good as her most famous hit, the fantastic hip-hop classic "Buffalo Stance." I firmly believe that the entire concept, style, and attitude of the Spice Girls was nicked from that song. But don't hold that against it.
Two American bands are here. Starship picked up their final hit with this typically uninspired midtempo ballad about commitment and shit. Good riddance. And hair metallists Winger had their second Top 40 with this middling power ballad about a breakup. They've been largely, and for the most part justly, forgotten, but they have been immortalized on the T-shirt worn by Beavis and Butt-head's frenemy Stewart. So they've got that going for them, which is nice.
We close this section by with four solo American men. Four years after his surprise smash "Party All the Time," Eddie Murphy cracked the charts one more time with a raunchy request set to mediocre New Jack Swing. His vocals are a bad Prince imitation, and at one point he actually refers to himself in the third person as "Mr. Murphy." Just awful. And in reference to the last time I mentioned him here, apparently he's trying to put together a Beverly Hills Cop TV series about the police career of Axel Foley's son. Meh, there have been worse ideas. Prince appears again, this time with the #1 hit from the album that accompanied 1989's film about a certain Dark Knight. It's a truly strange piece of music, combining several different funk raveups, interjections of "Batman!" seemingly inspired by the theme to the campy 60s TV show, and clips of dialogue from the movie that end with Jack Nicholson declaring "This town needs an enema!" Quite bizarre, even for Prince, and the easy choice for this week's Uneasy Rider. Michael Bolton scored his third Top 40 with a smooth ballad about wanting to give a lady the affection she requires. Actually, not too bad. He would go on to do much worse. Much, much, much worse. And Hartford-born Grayson Hugh had his biggest success with a blue-eyed soul ballad that seems to suggest that he and his lover can, and should, settle all their problems in the boudoir. I wonder if that worked. It might've. He has a nice voice.
Tomorrow: a band that caused a tragedy, another band that just made up one for a song, and two guys who would go from huge stars to punchlines within a year.
KC and the Sunshine Band were on top with "Get Down Tonight." Other Top Ten highlights included "Rhinestone Cowboy," "Jive Talkin'," "At Seventeen," and "Why Can't We Be Friends."...First newbie shows up at 17, "Holdin' On to Yesterday," by MOR machine Ambrosia. The usual blandness...#22 is held down by Johnny Rivers' completely unnecessary cover of The Beach Boys' "Help Me Rhonda." My advice to Rhonda: don't...Cat Stevens' penultimate U.S. hit was the sweetly soulful "Two Fine People," found this week at #33...At #36 is the last of three minor pop hits by funksters New Birth, a cover of Jerry Butler's "Dream Merchant."...The final pop Top 40 for the legendary Temptations is at #37, a funky reminder not to hurl stones if one lives in a "Glasshouse."...And The Doobie Brothers scraped in at #40 with their last pre-Michael McDonald hit, the bluesy "Sweet Maxine."...But this week's 70s spotlight falls on...
21 - "Tush," ZZ Top
Pre-Eliminator, the biggest hit by these hirsute Texans was this immortal grinder about going downtown to, as the kids say "troll for booty." In a way, it's too bad MTV wasn't around yet when this came out. Now that could've been a video.
And now we enter the post-Casey AT40 universe. With some very welcome assistance, I acquired a copy of the original Shadoe Stevens broadcast. I'll comment on Mr. Stevens' style at some point as we go along, but for now, let's get into what really matters, the hits.
40 - "Partyman," Prince
39 - "When I Looked at Him," Exposé
38 - "If You Don't Know Me by Now," Simply Red
37 - "You're My One and Only (True Love)," Seduction
36 - "Hey Ladies," The Beastie Boys
35 - "Bust a Move," Young MC
34 - "Runnin' Down a Dream," Tom Petty
33 - "The Prisoner," Howard Jones
32 - "Toy Soldiers," Martika
31 - "Lovesong," The Cure
I'll begin with the male solo acts. First there's Prince with the second hit from his soundtrack album to Tim Burton's Batman film. It's a fairly decent funk track that features samples of Jack Nicholson's Joker dialoge from the movie. But amongst Prince's catalog, it's rather forgettable. Tom Petty's second single from his solo debut, Full Moon Fever, was this iconic, fuzz-guitar-driven rocker about driving down the road searching for adventure while singing along with Del Shannon. Perhaps it's been blunted a little by classic rock overplay, but still, an undeniably great track. And Howard Jones is here with an okay slice of synth-rock that seems to look at love as a game of cat-and-mouse. And it seems that Howard was the mouse. Interesting.
Two girl groups appear in this bunch. The times I've encountered Miami's Exposé in previous entries, I've found them not all that interesting. Now, here they are again with this ballad about falling in love, and I'm still not interested. But this was their sixth straight Top Ten, so someone must have liked what they heard. And New York's Seduction had their first hit with this standard bit of Latin freestyle that features one of the ladies rapping in the middle of it, comparing her and her man's romance to a French river, a statue in the Guggenheim Museum, and a Mike Tyson punch. Whichever one she was, she should have stuck to singing.
Two British groups are here. Manchester's Simply Red picked up their second and final U.S. charttopper with this cover of Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes' classic 1972 ballad. Mick Hucknall does okay, in his way, but let's face it, he's no Teddy Pendergrass. And West Sussex's goth-poppers The Cure had their second and biggest American hit with this atmospheric New Wave track that succinctly states how much better Robert Smith feels when he's with his lover. I definitely wouldn't say it's this band's best song, but it's charmingly affecting in its simplicity.
We close our look at this section with two rap classics and a song that would later be sampled by a prominent MC. The Beastie Boys had broken through two years earlier with the rowdy rap-rock of Licensed to Ill, but they decided to move in more sophisticated lyrical and musical directions on their next album, Paul's Boutique. The single that introduced that LP to the world was this jittery little number about picking up women which featured references to, among others, Vincent Van Gogh, game show host Chuck Woolery, and Japanese baseball star Sadaharu Oh. Both the single and album were commercial disappointments initially, but have gained in stature over the years, and set the stage for a career that probably lasted longer than it would have if they'd contined in the frat-rap direction. British-born, New York-raised Marvin Young, who had scored success behind-the-scenes earlier in the year as the co-writer of Tone Loc's hits "Wild Thing" and "Funky Cold Medina," made his own impression behind the mic with this memorable bit of motivation for shy men to approach women on beaches, in movie theatres, at weddings, and during other functions. I'm sure it's encouraged many a male wallflower not to "hang yourself with a celibate rope." Just brilliant. And Californian Marta Marrero, who had broken into show business as an extra in the 1982 film version of Annie (yeah,, I saw that in a theatre too), had her biggest success with this #1 ballad about the devastating effects of a friend's drug addiction. It's a pretty effective look at that situation, with evocative lyrics like "Only emptiness remains/It replaces all the pain." I like it better now then I did then. And fifteen years later, Eminem would sample it to great effect for his song "Like Toy Soldiers."
30 - "Don't Look Back," Fine Young Cannibals
29 - "It's Not Enough," Starship
28 - "Headed for a Heartbreak," Winger
27 - "Put Your Mouth on Me," Eddie Murphy
26 - "So Alive," Love and Rockets
25 - "Batdance," Prince
24 - "That's the Way," Katrina and the Waves
23 - "Soul Provider," Michael Bolton
22 - "Kisses on the Wind," Neneh Cherry
21 - "Talk it Over," Grayson Hugh
We begin with four British acts. Fine Young Cannibals were formed by two ex-members of early-80s ska stars The (English) Beat, and named after a 1960 Natalie Wood-Robert Wagner movie. They broke through in America this year with the back-to-back #1s "She Drives Me Crazy" and "Good Thing." Their third, and last, U.S. hit, this rocker about wanting to hit the road in search of better fortune, just missed the Top Ten, but I think it's my favorite of the three (though still behind their 1986 U.K. Top Ten "Johnny Come Home." And Roland Gift's voice is one that pop radio could have stood to have heard more from. Love and Rockets have a similar story in that they were formed by former members of a band that had already made somewhat of an impact (in this case, the goth-rockers Bauhaus), and were named after an existing pop-culture entity (an underground comic book). But they only had one American hit, and it was this strutting lust-rocker about a brown-haired, long-legged lady. Fine, fine stuff. Katrina and the Waves managed one more post-"Walking on Sunshine" hit with this bright-but-forgettable pop-rock confection on which Ms. Leskanich asks her lover to take things slow when being physically affectionate. A pleasant listen, but still a mere footnote. And Neneh Cherry, the Swedish-born stepdaughter of an American jazz musician who moved to London at 14, had her second and last U.S. Top 40 hit about an girl who attracted male attention at too young an age. I think that's it. It's a decent song, but nowhere near as good as her most famous hit, the fantastic hip-hop classic "Buffalo Stance." I firmly believe that the entire concept, style, and attitude of the Spice Girls was nicked from that song. But don't hold that against it.
Two American bands are here. Starship picked up their final hit with this typically uninspired midtempo ballad about commitment and shit. Good riddance. And hair metallists Winger had their second Top 40 with this middling power ballad about a breakup. They've been largely, and for the most part justly, forgotten, but they have been immortalized on the T-shirt worn by Beavis and Butt-head's frenemy Stewart. So they've got that going for them, which is nice.
We close this section by with four solo American men. Four years after his surprise smash "Party All the Time," Eddie Murphy cracked the charts one more time with a raunchy request set to mediocre New Jack Swing. His vocals are a bad Prince imitation, and at one point he actually refers to himself in the third person as "Mr. Murphy." Just awful. And in reference to the last time I mentioned him here, apparently he's trying to put together a Beverly Hills Cop TV series about the police career of Axel Foley's son. Meh, there have been worse ideas. Prince appears again, this time with the #1 hit from the album that accompanied 1989's film about a certain Dark Knight. It's a truly strange piece of music, combining several different funk raveups, interjections of "Batman!" seemingly inspired by the theme to the campy 60s TV show, and clips of dialogue from the movie that end with Jack Nicholson declaring "This town needs an enema!" Quite bizarre, even for Prince, and the easy choice for this week's Uneasy Rider. Michael Bolton scored his third Top 40 with a smooth ballad about wanting to give a lady the affection she requires. Actually, not too bad. He would go on to do much worse. Much, much, much worse. And Hartford-born Grayson Hugh had his biggest success with a blue-eyed soul ballad that seems to suggest that he and his lover can, and should, settle all their problems in the boudoir. I wonder if that worked. It might've. He has a nice voice.
Tomorrow: a band that caused a tragedy, another band that just made up one for a song, and two guys who would go from huge stars to punchlines within a year.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)