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Post by djjoe1960 on Apr 13, 2019 14:23:43 GMT -5
Most songs that are played on 'oldies' or 'classic hits' stations are generally former Top 10 hits--but a few songs didn't make that plateau in their initial chart run but are very popular today.
I'll kick this off with a couple of obvious examples--
In the Air Tonight-Phil Collins (reached #19 in 1981)
Piano Man-Billy Joel (peaked at #25 in 1974).
One more of my favorites that charted pretty low is Billy Ocean's first hit--Love Really Hurts Without You (made it to #22 in 1976).
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Post by mga707 on Apr 13, 2019 15:20:04 GMT -5
Should be 'Their', not 'There'. Language police!
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Post by mga707 on Apr 13, 2019 15:21:30 GMT -5
I think the most-played example of this phenomenon has to be Elton John's "Tiny Dancer", which only reached #41 in it's 1972 single release.
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Post by slf on Apr 13, 2019 15:33:02 GMT -5
Oh, I could give so many examples, but one that seems to stand out more than others in my mind: "Get Ready" by the Temptations. It has always gotten a ton of airplay on oldies stations and deservedly so; it's one of the catchiest, most energetic singles ever to come out of Motown Records. Yet, amazingly, it only peaked at #29 on the Hot 100 (although it did top the R&B chart). It was written by Smokey Robinson, as were several previous Temptations hits. Supposedly, as a result of its disappointing showing on the Hot 100, Berry Gordy Jr. canned Smokey as main songwriter for the group and replaced him with Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong. This duo would give the Tempts many years' worth of big hits.
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Post by retrodaddy on Apr 13, 2019 15:42:52 GMT -5
Pat Benatar's Heartbreaker gets regular play on South Florida classic hits and classic rock stations, but her other hits get very little play at all. Heartbreaker peaked at #23.
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Post by djjoe1960 on Apr 13, 2019 21:31:18 GMT -5
Should be 'Their', not 'There'. Language police! Sorry! Can you let me off with a warning this time?
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Post by mga707 on Apr 13, 2019 22:03:24 GMT -5
Should be 'Their', not 'There'. Language police! Sorry! Can you let me off with a warning this time? OK, but make sure it doesn't happen again.
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Post by mga707 on Apr 13, 2019 22:05:01 GMT -5
Oh, I could give so many examples, but one that seems to stand out more than others in my mind: "Get Ready" by the Temptations. It has always gotten a ton of airplay on oldies stations and deservedly so; it's one of the catchiest, most energetic singles ever to come out of Motown Records. Yet, amazingly, it only peaked at #29 on the Hot 100 (although it did top the R&B chart). It was written by Smokey Robinson, as were several previous Temptations hits. Supposedly, as a result of its disappointing showing on the Hot 100, Berry Gordy Jr. canned Smokey as main songwriter for the group and replaced him with Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong. This duo would give the Tempts many years' worth of big hits. Great example. Had forgotten that the song didn't become a big pop chart hit until Rare Earth remade it four year later.
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Post by at40nut on Apr 14, 2019 0:43:45 GMT -5
Look no further than the wacky charts of 1982. Queen and David Bowie's "Under Pressure" only reached #29, yet "Body Language" reached #11 and hardly ever played. I play that 45 to test the bass levels in my power amp connected to my stereo.
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Post by 80sat40fan on Apr 14, 2019 3:00:44 GMT -5
There are many classic rock songs that would fall in this category. I found an article from the website fivethiryeight from 2014 which listed the top 15 most played classic rock songs. Included on the list: * "Crazy On You" by Heart and "You Shook Me All Night Long" by AC/DC which both peaked at #35 * "Sweet Emotion" by Aerosmith which peaked at #36 * "Peace Of Mind" by Boston which peaked at #38 * These songs didn't even make the Top 40: "Sharp Dressed Man" by ZZ Top, "Wheel In The Sky" by Journey, and "Tom Sawyer" by Rush.
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Post by johnnywest on Apr 14, 2019 11:53:50 GMT -5
What I Like About You - The Romantics
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Post by pb on Apr 14, 2019 15:04:22 GMT -5
What I Like About You - The Romantics Others from that era: Once In A Lifetime - Talking Heads Tempted - Squeeze
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Post by mkarns on Apr 14, 2019 16:23:04 GMT -5
Look no further than the wacky charts of 1982. Queen and David Bowie's "Under Pressure" only reached #29, yet "Body Language" reached #11 and hardly ever played. I play that 45 to test the bass levels in my power amp connected to my stereo. Talking about 1982 and bass levels got me thinking of the Gap Band’s “You Dropped a Bomb On Me”, a perennial dance floor fave that only peaked at #31 (for five weeks!). Their 1981 “Burn Rubber” also gets a lot of recurrent play but never made the top 40 (though it did hit #1 soul.) And speaking of early 80s dance/soul hits, one might reasonably suppose Rick James’ “Super Freak” and “Give It To Me Baby” peaked higher than #16 and #40. Maybe it’s a law of physics (for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction) kicking in: after overdoing disco in the late 70s, pop radio shortchanged danceable music in the early 80s.
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Post by retrodaddy on Apr 14, 2019 23:48:38 GMT -5
I Melt With You by Modern English has long been a favorite on classic hits and new wave stations despite only reaching #79 on the Hot 100.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 15, 2019 11:29:34 GMT -5
Peaceful Easy Feeling by The Eagles #22 Margaritaville by Jimmy Buffet #8 1999 by Prince #12
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