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Post by pb on Aug 1, 2020 15:16:59 GMT -5
Is this the first OE not including the entire song? I'm almost certain it was the entire song that got played, minus the fade. It's a pretty short song, even for the early '60s--barely two minutes in length. Well, it fades to Casey's story during the first of two verses before the fade.
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Post by Hervard on Aug 1, 2020 15:49:56 GMT -5
Yeah, just about the whole song did play, but Casey talked over much of it - the intro, which was instrumental and they were still singing as he outro-ed the song.
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Post by mrjukebox on Aug 1, 2020 18:03:18 GMT -5
Before Larry Morgan played "Rocky" by Austin Roberts,he played a snippet of the "Scooby Doo" theme that Austin wrote-If I'm not mistaken,Casey did his Shaggy voice around the time that Austin's first hit "Something's Wrong With Me" reached the top forty-That was in the fall of 1972.
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Post by Hervard on Aug 7, 2020 13:07:18 GMT -5
American Top 40: The 70s - August 8, 2020 This week's presentation - August 6, 1977 Droppers: GOT TO GIVE IT UP - MARVIN GAYE (30) - I'm generally not a huge fan of Marvin Gaye, but for some reason, I like this one. Kind of a surprise, as this one has been compared to "Blurred Lines", which I hate with a passion. THEME FROM "ROCKY" - BILL CONTI (28) - This song actually charted twice in 1977 - besides this one, there was the Maynard Ferguson version, which I actually preferred over this one, which was a good song as well. 40: LIVIN’ IN THE LIFE – THE ISLEY BROTHERS (debut) - This was the first time I remember hearing this song, which was a "one-week wonder" on AT40, so that means it was heard only on this show, which was last featured back in 2009, before I began listening to American Top 40: The 70s on a regular basis. Anyway, this was the Isleys' typical upbeat R&B fare, which I'm not a huge fan of, although this one wasn't bad - just nothing I'd go out of my way to listen to. 39: DON’T WORRY BABY – B.J. THOMAS (debut) - I was surprised to hear that the Beach Boys only got as high as #24 with their version of this song, since it receives a lot of recurrent airplay. This song would peak at #17. I liked this one - there's a similarity between this and the theme from the TV show Growing Pains, which Thomas sang with Jennifer Warnes. 38: IT’S SAD TO BELONG – ENGLAND DAN & JOHN FORD COLEY (23) - A song about a guy who is bored with his marriage and meets someone that he feels is his soul mate. The lyric that doesn't make sense to me is how, if he had a time machine, he'd go back to the day he was born. How about just going back as far as the day you met the girl who you'd end up marrying? Anyway, I actually liked this song and felt this should have gotten higher than #21. 37: JET AIRLINER – THE STEVE MILLER BAND (21) - They had four songs that charted in 1977, and this was my second favorite of those songs. It was, however, my favorite release from Book Of Dreams. That obviously means that my favorite of their 1977 hits was the title track of their previous album, Fly Like An Eagle, which peaked at #2 back in March. 36: SLIDE - SLAVE (38) - The only Top 40 entry from this funk band from Dayton, Ohio. It was OK, but nothing exceptional. 35: CHRISTINE SIXTEEN - KISS (39) - This hard rock band from the Big Apple had a pretty decent year in 1977, with three Top 40 hits. This one wasn't bad, but I prefer their ballads over their upbeat songs. 34: STRAWBERRY LETTER 23 – THE BROTHERS JOHNSON (37) - This one wasn't quite my cup of tea, although it wasn't exactly "roof-raising R&B" music - it was actually somewhat mellow. I guess it just didn't do anything for me. 33: (REMEMBER THE DAYS OF THE) OLD SCHOOL YARD – CAT STEVENS (34) - Stevens had clearly already had his day in the sun back in the early half of the 1970s, so that would explain why this song didn't do as well as his earlier hits. That's too bad, as it was a great song, IMO. 32: ARIEL – DEAN FRIEDMAN (33) - This song appeared to be getting a second wind, as it had peaked at #26 several weeks before and had fallen out of the Top 40, but then, it returned to the chart. This was it for the song, however - it fell out the following week. The song did manage to snag a position on the year-ender (#87) due to its tenacity. 31: WAY DOWN – ELVIS PRESLEY (35) - This was pretty good, but I preferred his other 1977 hit, his rendition of the Frank Sinatra hit "My Way". 30: ON AND ON – STEPHEN BISHOP (32) - This was his second chart entry and easily my favorite of his two 1977 hits, as well as one of my favorites from him of all time. 29: FLOAT ON – THE FLOATERS (40) - This song inspired a Sesame Street segment that came out in early 1978. It featured a song called "Give Me Five", performed by Bob, Gordon, David and Luis. It featured each of them introducing themselves (like the Floaters group members did in this song) and then singing a verse. I actually preferred that version (since it was by people that I saw on TV regularly back in the day). This song was pretty good as well. 28: SWAYIN’ TO THE MUSIC (SLOW DANCIN’) – JOHNNY RIVERS (AND THE CRICKETS) (36) - This one wasn't bad - it definitely showed that Rivers had just as much hit potential in the late-70s as he did in the sixties (which was clearly his heyday). 27: BLACK BETTY – RAM JAM (31) - Meh, not a fan of this one. Way too repetitive and besides, I'm not really a fan of southern rock. OPTIONAL EXTRA: NOBODY DOES IT BETTER - CARLY SIMON - 1977 was definitely the year for movie songs! This one, from the James Bond movie The Spy Who Loved Me, was one of many songs held out of #1 by Debby Boone's eternal #1 hit (it did sneak in a week at #1 on the R&R chart, however). It is one of my favorite songs by Carly Simon, as well as one of my faves on this week's chart. 26: SMOKE FROM A DISTANT FIRE – THE SANFORD/TOWNSEND BAND (35) - Ah, the Hall & Oates soundalikes. However, they weren't anywhere near as successful; this was their only Hot 100 hit. But at least it was a Top Ten. I remember hearing this one back in the day, as well as on Sunny 101.5, which played it every once in awhile back in the early 1990s as a recurrent). 25: YOU’RE MY WORLD – HELEN REDDY (18) - This song reminds me a little of Joni James' 1955 hit "How Important Can It Be". The song is quite cheesy, like most of Reddy's songs, but still pretty good. 24: HOW MUCH LOVE – LEO SAYER (27) - The first two hits from Leo's Endless Flight album hit #1 and it looked like this one could do the same but, as a matter of fact, it didn't even hit the Top Ten. That's too bad, as it was my favorite song from the album. 23: GIVE A LITTLE BIT - SUPERTRAMP (25) - This was their very first Top 20 hit, peaking at #15 - far better than the remake by the Goo Goo Dolls (on the pop chart; that version of the song was a #1 Hot AC smash, a format that did not exist back in 1977). This was one of my favorite songs by Supertramp and I was delighted that they played the full version of the song (as they generally chopped out certain parts, mainly near the beginning and the end of the song). 22: TELEPHONE LINE – THE ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA (26) - They had four songs that charted in 1977, and this was my favorite of those songs. It turned out to be their biggest as well! 21: ANGEL IN YOUR ARMS - HOT (16) - A case where someone in a similar situation as "It's Sad To Belong" actually caved into temptation (instead of spending the rest of their life obsessing about what might have been, which IMO isn't much better). Anyway, this song had debuted on the chart way back in early April and was spending its 19th week on the chart. Since it was halfway up the chart, one might think it was a cinch to make it an even twenty the next week. Not so, as this was actually the song's last week in the survey. Anyway, I used to like this song, but I'm not a big fan of it anymore. 20: TELEPHONE MAN – MERI WILSON (24) - Let's just say that I'm glad that this goofy song's playing time was only two minutes long. 19: KNOWING ME, KNOWING YOU - ABBA (14) - Their second of two hits from 1977 ("The Name Of The Game" doesn't count, as it wasn't even heard on AT40 until 1978). Though I preferred "Dancing Queen", this one was a great song as well! 18: BARRACUDA - HEART (20) - A high point in the show for our friend JessieLou. This is a song that I used to think was just OK, but I've recently gotten to like it a lot recently. 17: HANDY MAN – JAMES TAYLOR (19) - I actually associate this more with 1978, since that’s when my Mom played his JT album a lot (plus, she was really good at playing this song on her guitar). Definitely one of his best and I prefer this over the original Jimmy Jones version by a fairly wide margin. 16: DON’T STOP – FLEETWOOD MAC (22) - The third of four hit singles from their Rumors album. Possibly my least favorite from the album as well, since it is so overplayed. My favorite single from the album would be their next one,. "You Make Lovin' Fun". 15: MARGARITAVILLE – JIMMY BUFFETT (8) - This song's not bad, but quite overplayed. I preferred other songs from him, such as "Cheeseburger In Paradise" and "Fins". 14: UNDERCOVER ANGEL – ALAN O’DAY (15) - Here's a former #1 song that didn't seem to be in a hurry to leave the chart, as it actually moved bacmk up a spot this week. This was O'Day's only charted hit of his own, but he did write several other big hits ("Angie Baby" by Helen Reddy, for instance). As for this song, well, I love it! Definitely one of the best #1 hits of 1977, IMO. OPTIONAL EXTRA: PAPER ROSES - MARIE OSMOND - Was this in the original broadcast of the show or lifted from a different show? Anyway, the story behind this song, which was a pretty good one, was that Marie was the youngest artist to hit #1 on the country chart - she had just turned 14 when it hit the top in November, 1973. 13: JUST A SONG BEFORE I GO – CROSBY, STILLS & NASH (17) - After being absent from the chart for nearly seven years, this was their comeback hit, and it turned out to be their biggest, peaking at #7 a month later. It was a great one - one of their all-time best hits, IMO. 12: LOOKS LIKE WE MADE IT – BARRY MANILOW (3) - This was his third and final #1 hit. No matter; he'd have many more big hits. This was by far my favorite of his #1 songs. 11: YOU MADE ME BELIEVE IN MAGIC – THE BAY CITY ROLLERS (12) - I was so obsessed with this song in the early 1990s. I called a lunchtime oldies program and requested this song, but they didn’t have it. I requested it so many times that they decided to finally order it. In May, 1992, I finally heard it for the first time since 1977. It’s my favorite song by the Rollers. 10: YOU AND ME – ALICE COOPER (11) - He was more famous for his loud, hard-rocking songs, but he had a few slow ones as well, which I preferred. My favorite song from him is "Only Women", but this one would be a close second - it's a great song! 9: WHATCHA GONNA DO – PABLO CRUISE (10) - This was their very first hit, and it became their biggest ever, peaking at #6 and lasting a half a year on the Hot 100! Very deservedly so, as it was a great song - one of their best IMO. 8: EASY – THE COMMODORES (13) - This was when their musical quality began to improve, as their first few hits were mediocre at best. This remains one of my favorite Commodores songs of all time! 7: (YOUR LOVE HAS LIFTED ME) HIGHER AND HIGHER – RITA COOLIDGE (9) - This was an interesting disco rendition of the Jackie Wilson classic. It is also my favorite version, and possibly my favorite of Rita Coolidge's six Top 40 hits (though I'm not sure I've ever heard her early 1980 hit "I'd Rather Leave While I'm In Love"). 6: DA DOO RON RON – SHAUN CASSIDY (5) - The first of three Top Ten hits for Shaun Cassidy, and the biggest, as it hit #1 six weeks before. Of the two charted versions of this song, I definitely prefer this one. 5: DO YOU WANNA MAKE LOVE – PETER McCANN (7) - Of course, I have mentioned how this song sounds a lot like "Goodbye Girl" by David Gates (and that I prefer the latter). Not much else to say about the song... 4: MY HEART BELONGS TO ME – BARBRA STREISAND (4) - This one was a guilty pleasure of mine, since many people I know consider this a snoozefest. That's why I like it; nice and mellow - has sort of a haunting sound to it. 3: BEST OF MY LOVE - THE EMOTIONS (6) - This song was on its way to #1, where it would spent five non-consecutive weeks. It was a great song! Mariah Carey apparently thought so as well, as the bass line for her song "Emotions" was very similar to this. OPTIONAL EXTRA: KEEP IT COMIN' LOVE - KC & THE SUNSHINE BAND - Their only Top Ten hit that did not go to #1 (it didn't miss by much, though; it peaked at #2 for three weeks, but couldn't quite get past Meco; then, when Debby Boone leapfrogged this song, of course, there was no hope). I never used to like this song very much, but now I think it's one of their best. 2: I’M IN YOU – PETER FRAMPTON (2) - He never quite matched the success of his Frampton Comes Alive album, but this song, the title cut from his sophomore album, was his most successful single, peaking at #2. It is definitely my favorite song from him. 1: I JUST WANT TO BE YOUR EVERYTHING – ANDY GIBB (1) - This song ended the revolving door of #1 songs, which had been going on steadily since June, and on and off througout 1977. This was the 24th #1 song of the year so far and, with about five months of the year to go, it looked like 1977 could challenge 1974 and 1975 for the year with most #1 songs (35 in all), but, in fact, there would only be four more songs that hit the top, since they would all spend multiple weeks at the top. Anyway, this was the song that kept Frampton from having his first Billboard #1. But that's all good, because this song was just as good, if not better.
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Post by Hervard on Aug 7, 2020 13:08:46 GMT -5
American Top 40: The 80s - August 8, 2020 This week's presentation - August 6, 1983 Droppers: SLIPPING AWAY - DAVE EDMUNDS (39) - The second of two Top 40 hits for Edmunds - not quite as successful as his cover of "I Hear You Knockin'" from 1971. I thought this was a good song and deserved a higher peak than #39. SALT IN MY TEARS - MARTIN BRILEY (36) - Didn't he sound a lot like Phil Collins? He was nowhere near as successful, however, as this was his only Top 40 hit and #36 was all the further it got. I thought it was a pretty decent song. I’M STILL STANDING – ELTON JOHN (30) - This song charted in sort of a low period in his career, during which he had seven singles in a row that missed the Top Ten (the dry spell would end in early 1984, when "I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues" peaked at #4. I myself thought this was a great song and should have been a Top Ten (like it was on the R&R chart). ALL THIS LOVE - DeBARGE (27) - The second hit for this R&B family act from the Motor City. I liked it better than their first Top 40 entry, "I Like It", but IMO, it's not quite as good as "Time Will Reveal", which charted at the end of 1983. I see a resemblance between this song and Beth Nielsen Chapman's "That's The Easy Part", the latter, from Chapman's 1990 self-titled album LW#2: ELECTRIC AVENUE – EDDY GRANT LW#1: EVERY BREATH YOU TAKE – THE POLICE 40: IT’S INEVITABLE - CHARLIE (debut) - This is the only week that this song was heard on AT40. Even though it would peak at #38 the following week, the song "Pieces Of Ice" was played instead - not sure it was a Billboard stat that was corrected at the last minute, and they forgot to notify AT40 (like the 3/12/77 show) or just a computer mistake. Whatever the case, I liked this song - I heard it on WLS and B96 from time to time in the summer of 1983. 39: STOP! IN THE NAME OF LOVE – THE HOLLIES (29) - This was an interesting remake of the Supremes hit - they changed the lyrics around a little, the most notably being in the chorus (where they changed the second "before you break my heart" to "before you tear it apart"). It was a great song, IMO, and I actually preferred this one over the Supremes version. 38: ALL TIME HIGH – RITA COOLIDGE (debut) - Given the fact that this song was #1 for four weeks on the Hot AC chart, I'm surprised that this song only got as high as #36 at Top 40 - must not have been promoted very well. Anyway, I liked most of Coolidge's hits, this one included. 37: DEAD GIVEAWAY - SHALAMAR (debut) - Their comeback hit after an absence of over three years. This is my second favorite of their four Top 40 hits, behind "Second Time Around". 36: FAKE FRIENDS – JOAN JETT & THE BLACKHEARTS (40) - This was from the top new act of 1982, mainly due to their monster debut hit, "I Love Rock And Roll". 35: DON’T CRY - ASIA (debut) - Their second Top Ten hit (third, if you go by the R&R charts, where "Only Time Will Tell" peaked at #5). This was my least favorite of their hits, but it was still a good one. 34: TOO SHY – KAJAGOOGOO (21) - I don't think I need to remind you how annoying I think this song is, do I? LDD: DOWN UNDER – MEN AT WORK - This fit the dedication, though I'm not a big fan of it in general. 33: THE BORDER - AMERICA (34) - Not one of their more successful hits, but I thought it was a good one - I remember hearing this on U93 back in the day pretty regularly. 32: THE SAFETY DANCE – MEN WITHOUT HATS (37) - Of course, AT40 usually played the single version of the song which I preferred, because it pretty much got straight to the point, without all the instrumental mumbo jumbo and the spelling of "Safety", as if we didn't know how to spell it. OPTIONAL EXTRA: HOLIDAY ROAD - LINDSEY BUCKINGHAM - This song never quite hit the Top 40, but was featured in several of the National Lamp00n Vacation films, so most people know this one. I used to hate this song, since it was an earworm (one day, it was going through my mind nonstop, no matter how I tried to shake it). Now I think it's pretty good, though I preferred a few others from him. 31: PIECES OF ICE – DIANA ROSS (33) - This is said song that got an extra week on AT40. I thought it was a good one, though I don't believe any stations around me ever played this one. 30: HUMAN TOUCH – RICK SPRINGFIELD (32) - Rick was known for melodically recycling his songs, and this was no exception, as it sounded a lot like his hit from earlier in the year, "Affair Of The Heart". Not one of my favorites from him, however. 29: TELL HER ABOUT IT – BILLY JOEL (38) - The first song from what could be Joel's most successful album ever (spawned six singles - only one of which didn't quite hit the Top 20). This was the biggest song from the album, hitting #1 in September. However, I was never a huge fan of this song. 28: AFTER THE FALL – JOURNEY (31) - Of the four singles from Frontiers, this is definitely the one that gets the least amount of recurrent airplay (though I haven't heard "Send Her My Love" much over the past few years outside of countdown shows). My second favorite from the album behind "Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)". 27: HUMAN NATURE - MICHAEL JACKSON (35) - Jackson was still cranking out hits from Thriller and this was the fifth. This one got as high as #7 on the Hot 100 and peaked in the runner-up position on R&R. Definitely one of my favorite of his Thriller songs. 26: BABY JANE – ROD STEWART (14) - Well, this was nowhere near as successful as his other "girl" hit (of course, that would be "Maggie May"). 25: LAWYERS IN LOVE – JACKSON BROWNE (28) - The title track of Browne's seventh album. I preferred it over the follow-up, "Tender Is The Night", but it's still not one of my favorites from him. 24: ROCK ‘N’ ROLL IS KING - ELO (24) - They were good in the 70s, but, IMO, not so much in the 1980s. Melodically, this was pretty much "Hold On Tight Pt. 2". 23: TAKE ME TO HEART - QUARTERFLASH (23) - They had three Top 40 hits, and this one would probably be my favorite. 22: PUTTIN’ ON THE RITZ - TACO (26) - The man is Dutch and he named himself after a Mexican food - go figure! Anyway, this song, originally a hit over years before, was updated so as not to sound out of place by 1983 standards. It was a good song. 21: SAVED BY ZERO – THE FIXX (22) - Their very first Top 40 hit, and possibly my favorite from them. Too bad it doesn't receive as much airplay as "One Thing Leads To Another". OPTIONAL EXTRA: (SHE'S) SEXY + 17 - THE STRAY CATS - For some reason, I was never a big fan of this song. Definitely my least favorite of their Top 40 hits. My favorite would be their next release, "I Won't Stand In Your Way". Too bad that song petered out at #35. 20: I’LL TUMBLE FOR YA – CULTURE CLUB (25) - aka "The Mexican Hat Dance Song". I liked this song when it first came out (I even bought the 45), then eventually, I hated it (gave it "No. Just No" status a few times, IIRC). Now I like it almost as much as I did during its chart run. 19: ROCK OF AGES – DEF LEPPARD (19) - The second of three Top 40 hits from Hysteria, none of which managed to hit the Top Ten, but the best was yet to come - their album Hysteria, which came out almost exactly four years later would spawn a host of big hits for them! As for my opinion of the song, it wasn't bad, but I preferred many others from them. 18: CHINA GIRL – DAVID BOWIE (20) - As we probably know all too well, my favorite songs from him were his two 1987 hits, but this one wasn't bad either. 17: 1999 - PRINCE (12) - A song that had three chart runs - one from 1982, this one, and the last one at the beginning of the year responsible for this song's name. Due to the overplay, I'm still burned out on it and it is actually one of my least favorite songs from him (not that I was crazy about it in the first place). 16: COME DANCING – THE KINKS (13) - This song had recently become their biggest hit ever for this band, who was more famous for their '60s and '70s hits. It had tied "Tired Of Waiting For You" for its peak of #6, weeks at the peak (2) and weeks in the Top Ten. "Tired", however, spent only eight weeks in the Top 40 and this song was in its eleventh week on the chart. It is also one of my favorite songs from them. 15: CUTS LIKE A KNIFE – BRYAN ADAMS (16) - The second hit, as well as the title track, from the album that put Adams on the map here in the States. It was OK, but definitely not his best. 14: HOT GIRLS IN LOVE - LOVERBOY (18) - Definitely a hot hit, as I heard this one all the time during that hot summer. Not so much anymore; pretty much all we hear anymore are their lower peaking songs like "Working For The Weekend" and "Turn Me Loose". I liked this song, but prefer a few others from them. 13: (KEEP FALLING) FASCINATION – THE HUMAN LEAGUE (17) - Definitely a group that's associated with the 80s, with their electronic, new wave sound. I preferred "Don't You Want Me" and their next hit after this one, "Mirror Man", but I like this song too. LDD: THREE TIMES A LADY - THE COMMODORES - This song became a very popular LDD song, as well as an ideal song for weddings and anniversaries. They played a longer version than usual, with the last chorus repeated several times near the end. 12: OUR HOUSE - MADNESS (10) - One of two hits from them, this one clearly being the best in the eyes of many, including yours truly. Indeed, an 80s mix show essential! 11: IT’S A MISTAKE – MEN AT WORK (15) - Well, they definitely had a great year, but their chart days were nearing the end. This would end up being their last Top Ten hit. It was my second favorite of theirs, behind "Overkill". OPTIONAL EXTRA: FAR FROM OVER - FRANK STALLONE - Older brother Sylvester was a big movie star and it looked like Frankie was starting a singing career. However, this ended up being his only Top 40 hit, but a great song it was! 10: WANNA BE STARTIN’ SOMETHING – MICHAEL JACKSON (7) - Well, he had definitely long since started a long string of hits, and it would not be finished anytime soon! This wasn't bad, but I found it sort of annoying - especially the album version, which seemed to go on and on. Fortunately, AT40 usually, if not always, played the single edit, which was nearly two minutes shorter. 9: STAND BACK – STEVIE NICKS (9) - She was still an active member of Fleetwood Mac, but also had a successful solo career going as well. This was the first of three hits from The Wild Heart. It was a good one, but sounds quite a lot like "Little Red Corvette... 8: NEVER GONNA LET YOU GO – SERGIO MENDES (4) - Today, this song would be billed as "Sergio Mendes featuring Joe Pizzulo & Leeza Miller". By this time in 1983, I'd had about enough of the song, as it was way overplayed. But now that I don't hear it as much, it's a great one - the synth bridge after the second chorus is awesome! 7: MANIAC – MICHAEL SEMBELLO (11) - One of two #1 hits from the movie Flashdance! I preferred the title track over this one. 6: ELECTRIC AVENUE – EDDY GRANT (2) - Well, this song was experiencing a power shortage this week, as, after spending the entire month of July at #2, it drops back this week. It was a good song - one that pops up on the oldies stations from time to time, but I generally hear it on the AT40 reruns. 5: FLASHDANCE…WHAT A FEELING – IRENE CARA (3) - The aforementioned title track to the Adrian Lyne-directed movie. A great song, though my sentiments were quite different back in the day, as this was even more overplayed than the Sergio Mendes song mentioned earlier. 4: IS THERE SOMETHING I SHOULD KNOW – DURAN DURAN (5) - Yes, there is something you should know - this song is royally annoying! I preferred many others by them, including their breakthrough hit here in the States, "Hungry Like The Wolf". 3: SHE WORKS HARD FOR THE MONEY – DONNA SUMMER (8) - To tell you the truth, I wasn't a huge fan of this one either. But it was a Top Five hit, so apparently lots of people did like it; I just wasn't one of them, that's all. OPTIONAL EXTRA: KISS THE BRIDE - ELTON JOHN - Ah, a song about going to the wedding of a former flame. But at least he's not feeling sorry for himself like Fred Knoblock in "Why Not Me". He's gonna do something about it, dammit! 2: SWEET DREAMS (ARE MADE OF THIS) – THE EURYTHMICS (6) - It has been said that they tacked on the subtitle so as not to confuse it with Air Supply's "Sweet Dreams" from the previous year. Whether or not this is true is not certain, but anyway, this was the first of ten Top 40 hits from them, and it was their biggest hit, hitting #1 a few weeks later. It wasn't bad, but quite overplayed. 1: EVERY BREATH YOU TAKE – THE POLICE (1) - And this was the most overplayed song of them all. It still is, too. I'm not sure how a song about stalking managed to spend two months at #1, but whatever. Coming up next week: We have a twofer - with shows that are only two years apart. The "A" offering is from August 14, 1982 (last played in 2012) with the "B" show being August 11, 1984 (which we hear roughly every four years, as the past three times it's been played was a leap year).
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Post by mrjukebox on Aug 9, 2020 6:10:07 GMT -5
In early 1978,Cheech & Chong released an amusing parody of "Float On" called "Bloat On".
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Post by mrjukebox on Aug 9, 2020 6:13:32 GMT -5
Wasn't the countdown from 8/6/83 part of the "AT40 Flashback" shows that aired in the early 2000's?
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Post by Hervard on Aug 9, 2020 7:30:46 GMT -5
Wasn't the countdown from 8/6/83 part of the "AT40 Flashback" shows that aired in the early 2000's? Yes it was - aired the weekend of August 4-5, 2001.
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Post by chrislc on Aug 12, 2020 21:40:21 GMT -5
>33: THE BORDER - AMERICA (34) - Not one of their more successful hits, but I thought it was a good one - I remember hearing this on U93 back in the day pretty regularly.< I wonder if, just possibly, Russ Ballard and Dewey Bunnell had ever heard the song Ride Like The Wind before they wrote that. Not sure why I would wonder that, but it's just a wild hunch I guess.
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Post by Hervard on Aug 14, 2020 12:57:13 GMT -5
American Top 40: The 70s - August 15, 2020
This week's presentation - August 18, 1979
Droppers: (which will be listed gradually) PEOPLE OF THE SOUTH WIND – KANSAS (23) – One of their lesser known hits, and one that I don't ever remember hearing – either the radio stations I listened to did not play it or it didn't make an impression on me back then. I thought it was pretty good, but I prefer several other songs from them. DO IT OR DIE – ATLANTA RHYTHM SECTION (33) – This was a great song – both melodically and lyrically – it definitely had a great message, especially for people who felt that they were at the end of their rope. I seem to remember that it was used as an LDD request several times. DOES YOUR MOTHER KNOW – ABBA (29) – This was Abba's first charted single that featured Björn Ulvaeus on lead vocals instead of Agnetha Faltskog and Frida. It was a pretty good song, but it doesn't hold a candle to "Dancing Queen" or "The Winner Takes It All". BOOGIE WONDERLAND – EARTH, WIND & FIRE (27) - A one-time team-up between these two acts. The song was OK, but I preferred most of EW+F's other material (and the only other song I've heard by the Emotions was "Best Of My Love" - yes, I preferred that one too). SHINE A LITTLE LOVE – ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA (17) - As their new song was burning up the chart way up in the Top 20, this song left the 40 FROM the Top 20. That's right; the song fell clean off the chart next week. What year does THAT remind you of? AIN’T NO STOPPIN’ US NOW – McFADDEN & WHITEHEAD (16) - OK, what's the deal here? Two songs dropped off the chart from inside the Top 20 this week, yet on our 1982 show this week, no songs fell out of the Top 40 from above #35! Methinks the two years got mixed up! But seriously, this was great Philly Soul music here! I remember this one quite well!
LW#3: THE MAIN EVENT - BARBRA STREISAND LW#2: GOOD TIMES - CHIC LW#1: BAD GIRLS - DONNA SUMMER 40: THE BOSS - DIANA ROSS (debut) - Casey mentioned that Diana Ross was the solo female with the most #1 songs, with four, so far. She had many more than that counting her hits with the Supremes! Anyway, I wasn't generally a big fan of her disco songs, but I actually liked this one (probably because it wasn't overplayed like some of her other songs). 39: GIRL OF MY DREAMS - BRAM TCHAIKOVSKY (debut) - There were quite a few one-week wonders on the chart this week and this British trio was one of them. I thought this was a great song - too bad it climbed only two spots higher. 38: YOU'RE GONNA MAKE ME LOVE SOMEBODY ELSE - THE JONES GIRLS (debut) - This was a one-week wonder here on American Top 40. It wasn't bad. 37: SAIL ON - THE COMMODORES (debut) - This one had sort of a country feel to it. It apparently worked, as the song hit the Top Five (and spent three weeks at #1 on the Radio & Records chart). This was definitely one of my favorite songs by the Commodores. LDD: YOU NEEDED ME - ANNE MURRAY - Seems to me that I heard this as a LDD on a recent show - must have been on the iHeartRadio station. EDIT: It actually was on a recent show - the July 9, 1983 "B" show from a few weeks back. Anyway, this song, from the year before, was Murray's first hit in over four years, but it was worth the wait, as this song made it all the way to the top. This was one of her all-time best, ranking right up there with her three 1979 Top 40 hits, as well as her two from 1980. Indeed, 1978-1980 was her heyday, especially on my Personal Top 30 chart. 36: DIFFERENT WORLDS - MAUREEN McGOVERN (40) - You could definitely tell that this was a TV show theme - from the somewhat short-lived TV show Angie. I liked this song a lot - sort of a combination of disco and MOR. 35: OH WELL - ROCKETS (39) - Decent cover of a song originally recorded by Fleetwood Mac during their early years. I vaguely remember hearing this one back in the day. 34: DRIVERS SEAT - SNIFF & THE TEARS (debut) - Hmm, I wonder how they came up with a band name like that? As for the song,The song wasn't bad, but nothing I'd go out of my way to listen to. ARCHIVE: FIRE - THE OHIO PLAYERS - Not a big fan of this song or them in general (though their other #1 hit, "Love Rollercoaster" wasn't bad). OPTIONAL EXTRA: HOLD ON - TRIUMPH - The first of two chart entries from this hard rock band from Canada. They were more of an album rock band than anything, as they only had two pop Top 40 hits, neither of which hit the Top 20. Both of them were really good songs, IMO - not sure if I prefer this or "Somebody's Out There". 33: CRUEL TO BE KIND - NICK LOWE (debut) - Here's another one I remember from back in the day! It was a good one. Glad they didn't cut out the second verse like they did several times during the song's chart run (including the following week). 32: BORN TO BE ALIVE - PATRICK HERNANDEZ (36) - Interesting that he has an Irish first name and a Spanish surname, yet he is French. This song, which had recently spent three weeks atop the disco chart, was so/so, but nothing special (though it remains a disco/dance staple today). 31: I WANT YOU TO WANT ME - CHEAP TRICK (14) - Now THIS is definitely one of the songs that I associate with the summer of 1979 the most! I heard it on the juke box at the beach house almost every time I went there. Too bad that beach has all but gone to pot. 30: A BAD CASE OF LOVING YOU - ROBERT PALMER (38) - Here's another song that I remember hearing all the time back in the day – and it still gets moderate airplay on oldies stations. This song is OK, but I'm generally not a huge Robert Palmer fan. 29: HIGHWAY SONG - BLACKFOOT (34) - This was your typical late-70s southern rock song. It was pretty decent, IMO. 28: I DO LOVE YOU - GQ (32) - As well as one-week wonders, there are also several two-hit wonders on this week's show. This R&B act was one of them and, while the first one was an upbeat disco song, this one was on the mellow side. It was a pretty good song, IMO. 27: ONE WAY OR ANOTHER - BLONDIE (24) - Meh, not a fan of this one - the way she says, “I’m gonna getcha, getcha, getcha, getcha” is just annoying and obnoxious sounding! 26: MORNING DANCE - SPYRO GYRA (30) - Casey mentioned that this was the only instrumental on the chart this week, but another song would join it the following week ("Rise" by Herb Alpert). I definitely preferred this song, a great jazz piece, with a definite Caribbean feel to it, with the congas and marimba. One of my favorite songs for all of 1979! 25: HEAVEN MUST HAVE SENT YOU - BONNIE POINTER (28) - She was a former member of the Pointer Sisters, but left the group the year before to pursue a solo career. This song, her only solo Top 40, was pretty good, but I generally preferred songs by the Pointer Sisters. She definitely sounded like a female Louis Armstrong near the end of this song! 24: HOT SUMMER NIGHTS - NIGHT (35) - The first of two Top 40 hits from this band from Los Angeles. I liked it, but I preferred the follow-up, which featured Chris Thompson on vocals. 23: LET'S GO - THE CARS (31) - I remember hearing this one at the beach every now and again back in the summer of 1979. It's a good song, but I generally preferred their 80s hits (mainly from Heartbeat City). ARCHIVE: YOU'RE NO GOOD - LINDA RONSTADT - This song was part of the longest revolving door of one-week #1 songs in Hot 100 history in early 1975. Ronstadt had two Top 40 hits a few years earlier, but this was the one that would get her chart career started proper, hitting #1 two weeks later. It was a great one! OPTIONAL EXTRA - SO GOOD, SO RIGHT - BRENDA RUSSELL - This song definitely had that autumn sound to it, didn't it? Anyway, I had never heard of Brenda Russell (needless to say, we're not related) until “Piano In The Dark” was released about eight years later. Both songs are great – I liked them about the same. 22: LONESOME LOSER - THE LITTLE RIVER BAND (25) - The second of three hits that they charted with in 1979. It wasn't bad, but it was my least favorite of those songs. My favorite, of course, was "Lady", which peaked at #10 earlier in the year. 21: IS SHE REALLY GOING OUT WITH HIM - JOE JACKSON (23) - This is one I remember from back in the day. Sugar Ray did a remake of this song back in 2003, but the original is definitely the best. 20: GOODBYE STRANGER - SUPERTRAMP (26) - I've seen that the single version of this song is the same as the album version, so they must have played a promo version of the song, as the instrumental lead-ins to the choruses are deleted, which would take away about 20 seconds from the song. Plus, the song fades out a little earlier. Anyway, this is probably my favorite single from the Breakfast In America album (though I feel that several other songs, such as "Lord Is It Mine" and "Just Another Nervous Wreck" should have been released as well - they sounded just as radio-friendly as any of the singles). 19: HOT STUFF - DONNA SUMMER (9) - Well, I guess people were finally getting tired of this song, which just come off of an incredible fourteen-week run in the Top Ten, three of those at #1, definitely living up to its title! This was my favorite of Summer's big hits in 1979! 18: GOLD - JOHN STEWART (5) - Here's one I remember quite well! This one featured Stevie Nicks & Lindsey Buckingham on background vocals - making an already great song even better! 17: SUSPICIONS - EDDIE RABBITT (22) - I was somewhat surprised to hear that this song hit #1 on the Country charts, as it is possibly Rabbitt's most un-country sounding song ever. It had more of a smooth jazz sound to it, but it was a great one, IMO. 16: I'LL NEVER LOVE THIS WAY AGAIN - DIONNE WARWICK (20) - This was her first hit in five years, but she had definitely improved with age, as I preferred most of her songs from this point on over her earlier hits. 15: MAKIN' IT - DAVID NAUGHTON (8) - This song was more of a gimmick than anything, IMO, but it was passable. 14: DON'T BRING ME DOWN - ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA (18) - With the chart momentum of this song (which was in only its third week in the Top 40), this song looked like a sure-fire #1, but, in fact, the song climbed only two spots higher. I liked the song back in the day, but quite overplayed. I preferred their other 1979 Top Ten, which is sadly ignored by radio anymore. LDD: TAKE A CHANCE ON ME - ABBA - This LDD was pretty short and to the point, about a girl who wanted any guy to ask her out instead of passing on her because she seems to dull. I think it goes without saying that this was a fitting song for the dedication! 13: LEAD ME ON - MAXINE NIGHTINGALE (15) - A true two-hit wonder here, as her only other Top 40 entry was "Right Back Where We Started From", a song I used to like, but now not quite as much, due to overplay. This is definitely my favorite song from her. ARCHIVE: PICK UP THE PIECES - AVERAGE WHITE BAND - The first and biggest hit by this Scottish group. This was a good one - had a hint of Philly soul in it. OPTIONAL EXTRA: SPOOKY - ATLANTA RHYTHM SECTION - This song was released at about the right time of year, as it peaked right around boo-time. Anyway, this was a good song, and, during the instrumental bridge, as well as the last verse, it sounded a lot like the original (since it was in the same key). Not sure if I prefer this one or the original by the Classics IV. 12: SAD EYES - ROBERT JOHN (13) - With all the baby steps this song was taking (though it had made a few large moves a few weeks earlier), who knew that it was going to go all the way to the top? This song would tie "Hot Child In The City" by Nick Gilder as the slowest climb to #1 - a total of 21 weeks each - a record that would stand for about two and a half years. Anyway, this is definitely my favorite of the two songs. 11: I WAS MADE FOR LOVIN' YOU - KISS (11) - Kiss had gone disco by this time and that didn't really work for them, as this was their only Top 40 single with a disco beat. I myself prefer their slow songs (as did the general Top 40 audience, as their two Top Ten singles were both ballads). 10: MAMA CAN'T BUY YOU LOVE - ELTON JOHN (12) - I'm surprised that we don't hear this song much anymore, given that it was a Top Ten hit around an era during which Top Ten songs from him were few and far between. I liked this one - one of his best late-70s hits. 9: YOU CAN'T CHANGE THAT - RAY PARKER & RAYDIO (10) - This song and their 1981 song "A Woman Needs Love" sounded very similar. I slightly prefer this one though (but both of them are great songs!) 8: THE DEVIL WENT DOWN TO GEORGIA - CHARLIE DANIELS BAND (21) - Did Casey announce this as the biggest jump of the week? Well, whatever the case, this was definitely their signature song (as well as most successful - it went platinum). It was a great song, but I preferred "Still In Saigon". 7: RING MY BELL - ANITA WARD (7) - I heard this one a few times at the local skating rink back in the day. It was OK, but nothing special. 6: WHEN YOU'RE IN LOVE WITH A BEAUTIFUL WOMAN - DR. HOOK (6) - As we all know, my favorite song from them was "Better Love Next Time", but this was a good one too - and it became one of their most successful hits. 5: AFTER THE LOVE HAS GONE - EARTH, WIND & FIRE (19) - Oh, so THAT'S why Casey didn't say that "Devil Went Down To Georgia" was the biggest mover - because that's not true. I would have never guessed that the fastest moving song was way up in the Top Five! Anyhoo, I used to like this song a lot, and still do a bit, but it has that kind of "rainy day" sound to it. I preferred many other songs from them, including "That's The Way Of The World" and "September". In the backsell, Casey said that this sounded like a sure-fire #1 song. Well, in terms of the Radio & Records chart, he was correct, as the song did top that chart a few weeks later. However, on the Billboard chart, the song fell a bit short, peaking at #2. 4: BAD GIRLS - DONNA SUMMER (1) - Donna Summer had been at #1 for eight of the past eleven weeks. This song had spent the past five of those at #1. She was indeed on fire! This was a good song. but, as I stated earlier in the show, I preferred "Hot Stuff". 3: THE MAIN EVENT/FIGHT - BARBRA STREISAND (3) - Interesting to hear an upbeat song by Streisand. I guess she was trying to get in on the disco craze, little knowing that it was beginning to burn out. In fact, around the time this song debuted is when an event instrumental in the death of disco happened - Chicago DJ Steve Dahl's infamous Disco Demolition. Anyway, of the two disco songs on which Streisand sang in 1979, this was the only one that I liked. OPTIONAL EXTRA: LOVIN', TOUCHIN', SQUEEZIN' - JOURNEY - Remember, they say "na" exactly 154 times in the song. Yes, there was a time that I was so bored that I actually counted them. 22 na's in each group, and there are seven groups of na's, so do the math from there. Anyway, the song, which was right outside the Top 40 (#42, to be exact) is a good one - one of my favorites from them. 2: MY SHARONA - THE KNACK (4) - This is the song that shut out "After The Love Has Gone" out of #1, since this spent six weeks on top - and became the top song of 1979 as a result. Due to overplay, both back in 1979 and today on oldies stations, I'm still burned out on this one. No, I much preferred "Good Girls Don't" (at least they played the single version of this, with the shorter instrumental break after the second chorus). 1: GOOD TIMES - CHIC (2) - They pulled double duty this week, as this was #1 on both the Top 40 AND the Soul chart. This one is kind of overplayed, but I do prefer it over "La Freak". But my favorite of their 1979 hits, as you probably know all too well, was "I Want Your Love"
Coming up next week: Well, with August 19, 1972 scheduled as the "A" show for next week, all years from 1970 through 1978 are now exhausted of new shows (well, except for the guest-hosted shows and the specials that are pretty much out of the question at this point). A pair of 1979 shows are all that are left and, oddly enough, they're on consecutive weeks, so we won't be hearing them both this year, though I should hope that we get one of them! Also, there are a handful of shows from the late 1970s whose first hours are yet to be heard on the series due to the shows only being available in three-hour form, chopping off Hour 1. This week's show, by the way, was one of those, so hopefully, we'll be hearing the complete versions of the remaining shows over the next few years. Anyway, the "B" show for next week is the August 26, 1978 show. Oddly enough, even though this is its sixth airing, we haven't heard it since 2015, so it's definitely ripe for a repeat.
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Post by Hervard on Aug 14, 2020 12:57:23 GMT -5
American Top 40: The 80s - August 15, 2020 This week's presentation - August 14, 1982 EARLY IN THE MORNING - THE GAP BAND (40) - Mainly an R&B act, they did have two crossover hits, both in 1982. They sounded very similar, so I'm not sure which of them I prefer, though neither of them are anything exceptional. STILL THEY RIDE - JOURNEY (39) - The fourth single from what is IMO one of their best albums ever, ESC4P3. Several other songs from the album were not released as singles, but were popular album cuts (i.e. "Stone In Love" and "Keep On Runnin'"). This song was by far my favorite song from the album. LOVE PLUS ONE - HAIRCUT ONE HUNDRED (37) - The only Top 40 hit by this British new wave band that reminded me a little of the Psychedelic Furs. The song was not bad, but nothing I'd go out of my way to listen to. CAUGHT UP IN YOU - .38 SPECIAL (35) - Definitely one of my absolute favorites from them! This was their first of two Top Ten hits (you thought they had more, didn't you?) Wait, that's it? No drops from inside the Top 20? Not even the Top 30?? Come on, this was 1982! What a drag! Oh well, now on with the countdown... LW#3: ABRACADABRA – THE STEVE MILLER BAND LW#2: HURTS SO GOOD – JOHN COUGAR LW#1: EYE OF THE TIGER - SURVIVOR 40: SOMEDAY, SOMEWAY – MARSHALL CRENSHAW (debut) - The only Top 40 hit for this Detroit native, but his only hit was indeed a great song - had a touch of rockabilly, which was in the process of making a brief comeback to pop music. 39: I REALLY DON’T NEED NO LIGHT – JEFFREY OSBORNE (debut) - fter being in the R&B funk band LTD for ten years (lead singer since 1976), Osbourne embarked on a solo career. This was his first Top 40 hit and, even though this was all the higher it got, there was more where that came from. This was a great song, IMO - had a smooth jazz feel to it. Still, I preferred “On The Wings Of Love”, which, of course, was the follow-up to this. 38: BLUE EYES – ELTON JOHN (debut) - One of two songs he charted with in 1982, both of them making the Top 20. Though I preferred the other song, "Empty Garden (Hey Hey Johnny)", this one was a good one too. 37: ROUTE 101 – HERB ALPERT (38) - Ah, here's he only artist at the time that hit #1 with both an instrumental and a vocal song. Not sure if that's happened since then, but somehow, I doubt it. Anyway, this, which was one of his instrumentals, was a pretty good song, though not quite as good as "Rise". 36: WHAT KIND OF FOOL AM I – RICK SPRINGFIELD (21) - Here's one of many songs that spent an unusually long time at a peak outside the Top Ten in 1982, partially due to the chart's arbitrary star/superstar rule, which, for the most part, made for an inaccurate chart. This just might hold the record for the longest peak ever for a song that never made the Top 20, as it had just recently spent six weeks at #21. This managed to hit the Top Ten on the R&R chart. It was a great song - one of Springfield's best songs, though I don't remember ever hearing it back in the day. 35: ONLY TIME WILL TELL - ASIA (debut) - Their second of two hits this band put into the Top 20 during 1982. It was also my favorite of the two (though the other song, "Heat Of The Moment", was a great one too). 34: HOT IN THE CITY – BILLY IDOL (36) - This song had two chart runs - it peaked at #23 in this one and, when it was re-released in 1987, it climbed to #48. I liked it, but preferred his other songs from the latter year (off of the Whiplash Smile album, that is). 33: YOUR IMAGINATION – DARYL HALL & JOHN OATES (34) - This was definitely one of their lesser known hits (as this is all the higher it climbed on the chart). I myself preferred most of their other hits, though this one wasn't bad either. 32: PAPERLATE - GENESIS (32) - For years, I thought this was a song about the delayed delivery of a newspaper, but in the past ten or so years, I learned the meaning of the title - it's the British equivalent of "Extra, Extra - Read all about it!". This song, one of several songs from them that uses the horn section from Earth Wind & Fire, was a good one, though not quite their best. OPTIONAL EXTRA: YOU CAN DO MAGIC - AMERICA - A comeback hit for them in two different ways - their first Top Ten hit since 1975, when "Sister Golden Hair" hit #1, and their first Top 40 since 1976, when they peaked at #23 with "Today's The Day". This one would hit #8 two months later. It was one of their best hits, IMO, and one I remember quite well back in the day! 31: I FOUND SOMEBODY – GLENN FREY (31) - Wow, lots of songs from the lower quadrant of the chart that never hit the Top 30! This was the first solo hit for one of the main lead singers of the recently disbanded Eagles. It was also one of his most underrated solo hits IMO - easily my favorite of his two 1982 chart hits. 30: DO I DO - STEVIE WONDER (20) - One of several songs on this week's chart that were sampled in future Top 40 hits, in this case, "Livin' It Up" by Cookie Monster - er, I mean Ja Rule. Of course, I preferred this song. LDD: WAITING FOR A GIRL LIKE YOU – FOREIGNER - Ah, good ol' Wf*gLY - the song was stuck in the runner-up position for the ten frustrating weeks. Due to the lyrical content of the song that kept it out of #1, the Foreigner song won out on the R&R chart, spending a total of six weeks on top. This song was good, but quite overplayed. It did fit the LDD well, however. 29: LOVE’S BEEN A LITTLE BIT HARD ON ME – JUICE NEWTON (18) - Of course, this was one of my favorite songs from her, as it was one of her 1982 hits. I preferred the other two, but this is still a great one nonetheless! 28: IF THE LOVE FITS WEAR IT – LESLIE PEARL (30) - For years, this lady from Pennsylvania had writing hits for many country and AC artists and then finally charted with a single hit of her own. It was a great song - one I've heard many times on my Barry Scott's Lost 45s CD. 27: JACK AND DIANE – JOHN COUGAR (33) - This is a song that I used to like back in the day before overplay pretty much did it in. I definitely preferred his other song in the countdown this week. 26: AND I’M TELLING YOU I’M NOT GOING – JENNIFER HOLLIDAY (29) - Sort of an operatic song here - definitely sounded out of place on this show. The song was OK, except for the parts near the end, where she growled the words instead of singing. 25: KIDS IN AMERICA – KIM WILDE (26) - This was the first of two Top 40 hits for Wilde. Her other hit, from five years later, was, of course, her biggest hit ever, hitting #1. This song was OK, but I preferred said #1, as well as her 1988 song "You Came", which just barely missed becoming her third Top 40 hit, peaking at #41. At least that song was a Top Ten dance hit, so it's all good. 24: WHO CAN IT BE NOW – MEN AT WORK (27) - This one, along with their other Business As Usual #1, "Down Under" are both way overplayed. Yet radio stations pretty much ignore any of the Cargo singles, which IMO are superior to the two #1s. 23: EYE IN THE SKY – THE ALAN PARSONS PROJECT (28) - Here is a song that was overplayed back in the day, but now, I seldom hear it outside of countdown shows anymore. Definitely one of my favorite songs from them. Many of the stations I listened to back then played the "Sirius" intro along with this song. 22: OUT OF WORK – GARY U.S. BONDS (23) - You can definitely tell that this one is a Springsteen song (the song even has Clarence Clemons wailing away on the sax). It's a great song, and one with a very timely message, what with the high unemployment rate nowadays. OPTIONAL EXTRA: HOLD ON - SANTANA - Carlos Santana had a decent chart career in the 70s and early 1980s. This was his final chart entry for quite some time and for years, many people thought his days of hitting the charts were over. Who knew that the best was yet to come, as he was immensely successful around the turn of this century, with many huge hits, especially at AC and Hot AC I liked a lot of those songs, as overplayed as they were, but they didn't hold a candle to this song - possibly my favorite Santana song of all time! 21: THINK I’M IN LOVE – EDDIE MONEY (24) - His first Top 40 hit in a little over three years. This was the first of two singles from his album No Control (the other one, "Shakin'" didn't quite make it into the Top 40). It was a good song, though I preferred several others from him (such as "Maybe I'm A Fool", "Endless Nights" and "After This Love Is Gone", among others. 20: AMERICAN MUSIC – THE POINTER SISTERS (25) - The Pointer Sisters seemed to have a 60s thing going in 1982, as two of their songs from that year sounded as though they were remakes of songs from the 1960s. I liked both songs, but preferred the other one, "Should I Do It". 19: PERSONALLY – KARLA BONOFF (19) - Here is a song that looked like it had peaked on two occasions, since it held at #22 for two weeks and at #20 for another two weeks. It was in its second week here at #19, which was all the higher it got, but its tenacity helped to place it at #93 for the entire year (according to American Top 40). It was a great song, as was the case with every song on her Wild Heart Of The Young album, which I bought back in the summer of 1994 after hearing the title track playing over a scene in The Wonder Years, and it obviously turned out to be a worthy purchase! 18: LOVE WILL TURN YOU AROUND – KENNY ROGERS (22) - This one was on its way to a peak of #13, a position it held for five weeks, which was somewhat unusual even by 1982 standards, before falling out of the Top 40 from that peak (which, on the other hand, was a very common occurrence for 1982). The song did manage to hit the Top Ten on the R&R chart, which is good, since this is one of my favorite songs from Kenny Rogers! 17: TAINTED LOVE – SOFT CELL (12) - Definitely one of the most overplayed songs of the 1980s. Of course, we all know that this song held the record for the longest consecutive run on the Hot 100 - in fact, I believe that the song has such a record for the pre-Soundscan era (remember - "What About Me" by Moving Pictures doesn't count, as that song had two chart-runs). 16: LET IT WHIP – THE DAZZ BAND (13) - This was a recent #1 song on the soul chart, and it didn't do half bad on the Hot 100, peaking at #5 a few weeks before. I wasn't a big fan of the song, however. 15: DON’T YOU WANT ME – THE HUMAN LEAGUE (10) - This is one of the songs I most associate with the summer of 1982, as that was when it was #1 and played a lot on the stations I listened to - a great song indeed! EXTRA: I CAN HELP – BILLY SWAN - The only Top 40 hit for this Missouri native, but what a hit it was, hitting #1 in late 1974. I wasn't a big fan of it - probably due to its repetitiveness (as well as the way he ran the words "I can help" together so fast). Interesting story behind it nevertheless. 14: LOVE IS IN CONTROL – DONNA SUMMER (16) - Here's a song that had an odd run on the chart, even by 1982 standards. A few weeks later, the song looked like it was peaking at #12, since it held there for three weeks, then it surprised everyone by moving up to #11 the following week, and then #10 the week after, before falling clean out of the Top 40, defying the "more than one week at its peak" rule. I'm wondering if they fudged around with the chart somewhat so this song wouldn't just miss the Top Ten. As for my opinion of this song, I wasn't a big fan of it - sounded a little like something the Jacksons would do - in fact, when I first heard this song, I thought that's who it was. 13: YOU SHOULD HEAR HOW SHE TALKS ABOUT YOU – MELISSA MANCHESTER (15) - She definitely nailed the fives with this song - aside from peaking at #5, it spent five weeks in the Top Ten, fifteen weeks in the Top 40, and 25 weeks on the Hot 100 - and, had one of her lower charters not made the Top 40, this would have been her fifth Top 40 hit. Anyway, this was a good song, although sounds a little like a note you’d find in a middle school girls’ notebook. 12: TAKE IT AWAY – PAUL McCARTNEY (14) - Earlier, I mentioned how I suspected that "Love Is In Control" was artificially moved up into the Top Ten. The fact that this song, which peaked at #10 for five weeks, dropped back only one spot might back that up. I'm thinking that, with the rule that was in place, it would have spend another week at #10. But who knows - that's just speculation and nothing more. Anyway, I really liked this song - one of my favorite of Sir Paul's solo hits. OPTIONAL EXTRA: I KEEP FORGETTIN' (EVERY TIME YOU'RE NEAR) - MICHAEL McDONALD - REGULATORS!!! Mount up! Well, at least that would be the song that, twelve years later, sampled this song, which was a great song and showed that Michael McDonald was good as a solo artist as well as lead singer of the Doobie Brothers, whom had disbanded earlier in the year. 11: ONLY THE LONELY – THE MOTELS (9) - The first of four Top 40 hits from this band from Los Angeles. I liked all four of those hits, my favorite being "Remember The Nights", from early 1984. This was their biggest hit overall, and the only one that gets any kind of recurrent airplay nowadays. 10: WASTED ON THE WAY – CROSBY, STILLS AND NASH (11) - I just heard their 1977 song "Just A Song Before I Go" on last week's 1977 show, now here's the follow-up to that song. This is likely my favorite song from them (though said 1977 hit would be a very close second - both are great songs). 9: VACATION – THE GO-GO’S (12) - I seem to recall that this was the first cassette single released in the States. Of their three 1982 hits, this would be my second favorite behind "Alex The Seal" "Our Lips Are Sealed". LDD: RAINY NIGHT IN GEORGIA – BROOK BENTON - He had a string of hits in the late 1950s and 1960s, and made a decent comeback in 1970s with this song, one of his most successful ever. I thought it was a good one - definitely fit the LDD like a glove. 8: ROSANNA - TOTO (6) - This song couldn't get any higher than #2, but it became their biggest hit overall (especially on the R&R chart, where it spent a month on top). It was a good song that still gets quite a lot of recurrent airplay. 7: KEEP THE FIRE BURNIN’ – REO SPEEDWAGON (8) - Their only upbeat song to make the Billboard Top Ten (as all of their other Top Ten hits were power ballads). I liked this song, but preferred their next release, "Sweet Time". 6: EVEN THE NIGHTS ARE BETTER – AIR SUPPLY (7) - This is the song that holds the somewhat undesirable record for the song that took the longest fall out of the Top 40. After this peaked at #5 a few weeks later, the song would fall from #6 to #42 (but you already knew that, right?) Anyway, this was one of their best songs, IMO. 5: HARD TO SAY I’M SORRY - CHICAGO (5) - Their comeback hit after over three years, but they more than made up for lost time with this song, which looked like it was going to peak here at #5, a position it held for four weeks, but it managed to rise above the competition and went all the way to #1 a few weeks later. As you probably know all too well, at one time, it was my favorite song in the world, but now, I'm pretty much burned out on the song (Az Yet's 1997 cover, which sounded much like the original, was instrumental in that), so much that I usually change the station when it comes on the radio. 4: HOLD ME – FLEETWOOD MAC (4) - Here's a song that set a record for the longest peak at #4 that, as far as I know, could still be standing today (though, of course, I stopped believing in the Hot 100 soon after 11/30/1991). It was one of my favorites from them back in the day, but I have since grown tired of the song (though it's good to hear it every now and again). 3: ABRACADABRA – THE STEVE MILLER BAND (3) - Back at #5 was a song that, by month's end, many people thought had peaked, as it spent four weeks there. For the same four weeks, this song held the #3 position. In fact, the entire Top Five was at a standstill for the entire month of August, but things began to move around a little as September rolled in. This song had just the magic that it needed to break away from the number three spot and became their third #1 song - I guess you could say it did a hat trick. OPTIONAL EXTRA: SHOULD I STAY OR SHOULD I GO - THE CLASH - This song did not hit the Top 40, but, due to its use in many TV commercials, it has received a significant amount of recurrent airplay on 80s stations. The song was sampled ten years later in the song "The Globe" by Big Audio Dynamite, a band that Clash guitarist Mick Jones formed in 1984 after being 86'ed by the band the year before. This song was OK, but I preferred their two songs that did make the Top 40. 2: HURTS SO GOOD – JOHN COUGAR (2) - This is the song whose drop from the runner-up position made the difference for the Top Five on Labor Day weekend as the songs had more leg room. As I said, I preferred this song over "Jack And Diane". Unlike that song, this one has held up quite well despite overplay (IMO, that is). 1: EYE OF THE TIGER - SURVIVOR (1) - This song held the most desirable place to be stuck for a whole month - the coveted top spot! In fact, this song had already been sitting at #1 when August rolled in and would spend a total of six weeks there. Moreover, the song would go on to become the second most popular song of 1982, behind "Physical" by Olivia Newton-John. It was a good song - has held up pretty well despite overplay. I do prefer a few others from them, though. Coming up next week: We'll be back to standalone shows, as the show from August 22, 1987 is on deck for next week!
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Post by Hervard on Aug 14, 2020 12:57:37 GMT -5
American Top 40: The 80s - August 15, 2020 This week's presentation - August 11, 1984 10-9-8 - FACE TO FACE (38) - I remember hearing this song on "Countdown America" back in 1984. It sounds sort of like a late-80s dance hit instead of something from the mid-80s. It’s pretty good. THE REFLEX - DURAN DURAN (35) - No big loss here! I tell you what, I liked many songs from them, but never really got into this one. 1984 just wasn't their best year, IMO (though I did like "New Moon On Monday" - by far my favorite of their songs that charted that year) ROMANCING THE STONE - EDDY GRANT (26) - His first Top 40 hit, "Electric Avenue", was one of the biggest hits of 1983, but this was all the higher that this song got. I preferred the first one, however, as overplayed as it was. This one wasn't bad, but nothing I'd go out of my way to hear. MAGIC - THE CARS (16) - The second of five singles from Heartbeat City, and my favorite of the five by a fair margin. Definitely released at the right time of year, as it had that summertime sound to it (I seem to remember the video was very summerlike as well). DOCTOR! DOCTOR! – THOMPSON TWINS (14) - Wait a minute - something is not kosher here. We had a show from 1982, a year known for huge drops out of the Top 40, and nothing fell out from above #35 the week before on that. Yet two of the other shows both had TWO songs falling out from inside the Top 20. What's up with that? Moreover, I think this song holds the post-1982 record for the longest fall out of the Top 40 on the Hot 100 (well, before late 1991, anyway). Anyway, the "twins" had just come off of their second and, as it turned out, most successful hit ever "Hold Me Now" and, though it didn't quite measure up to the success of that song, it did well on the chart, just barely missing the Top Ten. Both this song, as well as "Hold Me Now" are among my favorite songs by the band. LW#1: WHEN DOVES CRY - PRINCE 40: RIGHT BY YOUR SIDE – THE EURYTHMICS (debut) - Very interesting song from them - has sort of a Caribbean feel to it. A great song indeed! 39: MY, OH MY - SLADE (debut) - Wow, they sure changed pace with this song. After a fun, upbeat song, they went with a ballad this time. I liked it a lot and this is one of those cases that my mood at the time depends on what song I prefer. 38: ALMOST PARADISE…LOVE THEME FROM FOOTLOOSE – MIKE RENO AND ANN WILSON (18) - One of six hits from the Footloose soundtrack to hit the Top 40, as well as my second favorite of those hits, behind "Should've Known Better" "I'm Free". 37: CRUEL SUMMER - BANANARAMA (debut) - Of their three Top 40 hits, this one is right in the middle - I prefer it over their remake of the Shocking Blue's "Venus" but, of course, my favorite song from them is "I Heard A Rumour" 36: WHEN YOU CLOSE YOUR EYES – NIGHT RANGER (40) - They had a slew of great songs in the 80s. There is not a single Top 40 hit of theirs that I don't like - the only one that doesn't quite get "great song" status is their first Top 40 entry, "Don't Tell Me You Love Me", from early 1983. LDD: AGAINST ALL ODDS – PHIL COLLINS 35: LET’S GO CRAZY – PRINCE & THE REVOLUTION (debut) - As usual, they played the version with the shortened intro - in fact, I don't believe they ever played the full intro on AT40. Moreover, didn't they cut out one of the verses this week? Anyway, this definitely beats his other song on the chart this week. 34: DRIVE – THE CARS (debut) - They butchered this song as well, by cutting out the instrumental bridge and the last verse. They could have left it in by foregoing playing last week's #1 song. Oh well, it's not like this song was much better, as it was one of the songs I most associate with the beginning of my 7th grade year in middle school (aka "Hell On Earth"). Definitely my least favorite single from Heartbeat City. Such a shame that my favorite dropped out this week! 33: DYNAMITE – JERMAINE JACKSON (37) - I think we know all too well that I was not much for the two Jacksons hits from 1984, but such is not the case with Jermaine's two songs from that year, as those are among my favorites from him. 32: TURN TO YOU – GO-GO’S (32) - This one reminded me a little of "We Got The Beat", only it was nowhere near as annoying. It was a good song, IMO. OPTIONAL EXTRA: COVER ME - BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN - Someone on the boards mentioned that this song reminds them of Gary U.S. Bond's 1982 hit "Out Of Work", and I can definitely hear the resemblance. Of course, I'm sure that it's not a coincidence, as Springsteen was involved in both hits. This was the second of an incredible seven Top Ten hits from Springsteen's "Born In The USA" album (and possibly the most "obscure" one, as it doesn't get much recurrent airplay). I liked it, but preferred a few other songs from the album. 31: LEAVE A TENDER MOMENT ALONE – BILLY JOEL (39) - For awhile, this looked like it would be the final Top 40 hit from An Innocent Man, but Joel would surprise us in early 1985 with a sixth song. As for this song, it might have fallen into obscurity if not for the fact that it was a #1 AC song and received much airplay at that format. 30: ALL OF YOU – JULIO IGLESIAS & DIANA ROSS (36) - The second hit from Julio's album 1100 Bel Air Place album. I think it's a great song, though I know a few folks who consider it a "No. Just no" song (I guess I can see why, though). You might call this a guilty pleasure of mine! 29: ALIBIS – SERGIO MENDES (30) - This was definitely one of my favorite songs on the countdown this week! It looked like it might have peaked this week, but it did manage to get two spots higher, but that was about it, which I felt was a shame. I guess if you weren't Prince or Madonna, back in 1984, you were pretty much S.O.L. Oh well, this song did do well on my Personal Top 30 chart, peaking at #3 for four weeks, behind "I'm Free (Heaven Helps The Man)" and "No Way Out". 28: SELF CONTROL – LAURA BRANIGAN (21) - This was a song that, back in the day, I did not like at all, but now I think it's pretty decent. Still, I prefer a few others from her. EXTRA: RESPECT – ARETHA FRANKLIN 27: THE GLAMOROUS LIFE – SHEILA E (31) - The first Top 40 hit for this California native whose last name is Escoveto. It was so/so in my opinion, but not quite my cup of tea. I did like her next hit, "The Belle Of St. Mark". 26: I’M FREE (HEAVEN HELPS THE MAN) - KENNY LOGGINS (22) - Loggins had one of the biggest hits of 1984 with the title track to the Footloose soundtrack and was hoping to duplicate that success with this song, but, in fact, this song only got as high as #22, as Footloose mania began to fade away. That's too bad, as I actually preferred this one over his bigger Footloose hit. Definitely one of my favorite of Kenny's big movie hits. 25: THE WARRIOR – SCANDAL FEATURING PATTY SMYTH (33) - They hit the Hot 100 five times, but this was the only song of theirs that hit the Top 40. I liked it, but I preferred other songs from her such as "Goodbye To You" and "Love's Got A Line On You". 24: SEXY GIRL – GLENN FREY (25) - Following the break-up of the Eagles, Glenn had a decent solo career going, though he had yet to hit the Top Ten on his own. He would do that with his next hit, but this one did well too. It was a great song and sort of appropriate for me at the time, because the guy who moved into the house next door to me in the summer of 1984 had a daughter that I found quite attractive (only thing is, she didn't live with him). 23: LIGHTS OUT – PETER WOLF (28) - I liked this song, but preferred a few songs from his J. Geils Band, especially "Centerfold". This song was originally supposed to be entitled "Dancing In The Dark", but Wolf changed it to "Lights Out" so as not to confuse it with Springsteen's song. 22: ROCK ME TONIGHT – BILLY SQUIER (26) - Meh, this one wasn't exactly my favorite from Squier. I preferred songs like "In The Dark" and "Everybody Wants You". OPTIONAL EXTRA: GO INSANE - LINDSEY BUCKINGHAM - Of course, he took turns with Stevie Nicks and Christine McVie singing lead on songs by his band Fleetwood Mac, but he did have a few solo songs. This one was pretty good, though I did prefer "Trouble" (but I still liked this better than his earworm "Holiday Road", although I don't find that song quite as annoying as I used to). 21: SHE’S MINE – STEVE PERRY (24) - This one didn't quite measure up to the success of Perry's initial solo single "Oh Sherrie", which was too bad, because this was one of his best songs ever. Sounds somewhat like one of his other songs, possibly one with Journey, but I can’t think of which one right off the top of my head. 20: SHE BOP – CYNDI LAUPER (34) - Cyndi, you naughty girl! But seriously, this was a great song - not sure if I prefer this or "Girls Just Want To Have Fun". 19: IF THIS IS IT – HUEY LEWIS & THE NEWS (29) - Well, this definitely wasn't it, by any means, as he/they were one of the top acts of the entire decade. This was by far my favorite song from the Sports album. LDD: YOU LIGHT UP MY LIFE- DEBBY BOONE - Amazing that, with all the records this song set, that it was her sole Top 40 hit. This song was definitely a guilty pleasure of mine - as cheesy as it is, I just can't help but love the song! 18: JUMP (FOR MY LOVE) – THE POINTER SISTERS (13) - Ugh, I hated the title of this song. Sort of drives home the fact that many women treat their men like dogs. Anyway, I didn't like the song itself either. As I've made abundantly clear, their quality started going south in the mid-80s. 17: ROUND AND ROUND - RATT (19) - As big as hard rock bands were in the mid- and late 1980s, it's a surprise that Ratt only had two Top 40 hits, one of which barely made it. That was "Lay It Down", which would hit the Top 40 the following summer, at #40. I preferred that one, but this was a good one as well. 16: EYES WITHOUT A FACE – BILLY IDOL (11) - Be truthful now - how many of you, like me, thought he was asking the object of his affection to dinner or a movie? (as in "Hows About A Date"). Definitely a common misheard lyric. This was a good song, though my favorite song by him would probably be "Sweet Sixteen". 15: PANAMA – VAN HALEN (16) - The third song from their huge album whose title just might have been inspired by George Orwell But seriously, this would be my second favorite of their three Top 40 singles from the 1984 album, behind "I'll Wait". 14: LEGS – ZZ TOP (12) - They'd had several chart singles, but this one put them in the Top Ten and became their biggest hit. It was a pretty good song, but I preferred their Afterburner singles. 13: IF EVER YOU’RE IN MY ARMS AGAIN – PEABO BRYSON (14) - His first Top 40 entry was his duet with Roberta Flack, "Tonight I Celebrate My Love", which hit the Top 20 the previous fall. This song was his second and last Top 40 hit was on his own and it went on to hit the Top Ten (and did even better at AC radio, where it spent a month at #1). Definitely one of his best hits ever, IMO! 12: MISSING YOU – JOHN WAITE (23) - Very depressing song, partly because of the subject matter and partly because it was becoming popular at the beginning of Hell On Earth (see my comment for #34). I do sort of like the version that begins with the "Missing You" chants in the intro, but I'm not sure if AT40 ever played that one (which was strange, because it was the version that I usually heard on the radio). OPTIONAL EXTRA: THE LUCKY ONE - LAURA BRANIGAN - The follow-up to one of her biggest hits, "Self-Control". This was one of two songs that charted around this time that started off slow and then became upbeat (the other would be "There Goes My Baby" by Donna Summer, which charted a few weeks later). I liked this song, but slightly preferred said Donna Summer song. 11: BREAKIN ... THERE’S NO STOPPING US – OLLIE AND JERRY (9) - Breakdancing was indeed all the rage back in 1984! Two songs about it even made the Top 40, including the Irene Cara song that hit the Top Ten earlier in the year, as did this song. I liked this song a little better, but still, I wasn't too crazy about it or the movie it was from. My Dad and I had gone to see it earlier in the summer and both agreed that was two hours of our lives that we'd never get back, LOL! 10: SUNGLASSES AT NIGHT – COREY HART (17) - Something you might need to do if you lived at the North Pole in the summer. But seriously, this was the first Top 40 hit for this Montreal, Canada native, and one of his biggest. I like it, but I preferred most of his other hits. 9: INFATUATION – ROD STEWART (6) - This song has been compared to his Top Five hit from early 1981, "Passion", since both songs sound alike. I preferred the latter of the two songs - this one never really did much for me. 8: I CAN DREAM ABOUT YOU – DAN HARTMAN (10) - He'd hit #1 as a part of the Edgar Winter Group in 1973 with "Frankenstein", and returned to the Top Ten on his own with this song. It's another song I hated back in the day, but think it's a pretty good one now, but still, I preferred his next two hits "We Are The Young" and "Second Nature". 7: DANCING IN THE DARK – BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN (4) - This was the first of an incredible seven singles from Springsteen's album Born In The USA, all of which made the Top Ten. This one looked like it might hit #1, but Prince leapfrogged over him and, of course, that song spent multiple weeks on top. It did hit #1 in R&R and Cash Box, though, so that was good. I liked this song, but preferred a few others, including songs on Born In The USA. 6: STUCK ON YOU – LIONEL RICHIE (8) - This was his second county-flavored song (the first was his hit "Sail On" with the Commodores, which some of us heard this weekend on the August, 1979 "B" show). Not sure if that song ever crossed over to the Country chart, but this one sure did, peaking at #24. Very few songs had ever hit the Top 30 on three different Billboard singles charts. 5: SAD SONGS (SAY SO MUCH) – ELTON JOHN (7) - The first of three top 40 hits from Breaking Hearts, and the only Top Ten from that album, as well as my favorite of the three (though "Who Wears These Shoes" would be a close second). A good song indeed. 4: WHAT’S LOVE GOT TO DO WITH IT – TINA TURNER (5) - I tell you what, I disliked this song with a passion back in the day, but it's one of those songs that gets better with age. This song would become Turner's first #1 hit two weeks later. The song fell short on the R&R chart (two years later, the tables would be turned with her song "Typical Male", which fell short on the Hot 100). 3: STATE OF SHOCK – THE JACKSONS (3) - Meh, I never really liked this song. It was a good summertime hit, though. OPTIONAL EXTRA: HARD HABIT TO BREAK - CHICAGO - The first of two songs from the Chicago 17 album that hit #1 on R&R, but not Billboard. This was my favorite song from the 17 album by a fairly large margin. 2: WHEN DOVES CRY - PRINCE (1) - I really disliked this song during its chart run And guess what - I still dislike it even more. Not sure why, this one just didn't do much for me (though I did like his other Purple Rain singles). The good news, however, is that this song dropped out of the top spot. 1: GHOSTBUSTERS – RAY PARKER JR. (1) - This was the theme to one of the most successful movies of 1984. The scandal involving a lawsuit from Huey Lewis & The News is pretty much common knowledge. As for the song, it wasn't bad, but I preferred many other songs from him, both as a solo artist and with his band Raydio.
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Post by Hervard on Aug 21, 2020 12:44:55 GMT -5
American Top 40: The 70s - August 22, 2020
This week's presentation - August 26, 1978
Droppers: YOU'RE A PART OF ME - GENE COTTON W/ KIM CARNES (36) - This was the one that put Carnes on the map, but the best was yet to come for her. However, that was more than could be said for Gene Cotton, as he only had one more chart entry after this. Anyway, this song's OK, but I preferred other songs from both artists. BAKER STREET - GERRY RAFFERTY (33) - This song almost made it to #1 (in fact, it has been said that the original version of one of the charts at which this song was #2 (may have been the previous week) had this song at #1, but a last minute revision placed it at #2. Anyway, I used to really like this song, but overplay pretty much did it in. STAY - JACKSON BROWNE (20) - Interesting how Browne changed the lyrics around to be addressing his audience instead of a loved one, like in the original by Maurice Williams & The Zodiacs. As for the song, it's not bad, but I preferred "The Load Out", which some radio stations play right before this song, as that's how Browne usually does this song in his concerts. KING TUT - STEVE MARTIN (17) - Glad he didn't quit his acting job! Just saying! I'M NOT GONNA LET IT BOTHER ME TONIGHT - ATLANTA RHYTHM SECTION (14) - THREE songs dropping out of the AT40 chart from inside the Top 20?? I thought they did 1982 last week! But seriously, most of their songs were good, but this one was somewhat mediocre. Definitely nowhere near as good as "So In To You" or "Imaginary Lover".
40: SHADOW DANCIN' - ANDY GIBB (30) - With nineteen Top 40 weeks, seven of those at #1, it's no wonder that this song became the top song of 1978. The song wasn't bad, but it didn't hold a candle to his song that's coming up later in the show. 39: THE LOVE THEME FROM "THE EYES OF LAURA MARS" - BARBRA STREISAND (debut) - She was six weeks away from debuting with her whiny duet with Neil Diamond. This song peaked at #21, which was too bad, since I thought it was a great one - reminded me a little of "Wildflower" by Skylark. 38: RIGHT DOWN THE LINE - GERRY RAFFERTY (debut) - This was the second chart entry for this Scotland native, as well as his second highest charting song. Of the songs of his that I'm familiar with, this would be my favorite. 37: THINK IT OVER - CHERYL LADD (debut) - Ah, one of Charlie's Angels made the Top 40. Her voice reminded me a little of Olivia Newton-John, whose music style wasn't all that different, either. This song only got to #34 two weeks later, which I thought was a shame, as it was a great song! 36: DON'T LOOK BACK - BOSTON (debut) - This song was the highest debut on AT40 the week before and over the next two weeks, it would be the fastest mover. The song indeed like it might be their first #1 hit. Well, it didn't quite get that far, but it did become their highest-peaking song thus far, hitting #4. The song would hold that honor for eight years, until their successful comeback in 1986. I've somehow come to like this song better than I had previously (as I never cared for it). 35: GET OFF - FOXY (debut) - Not a huge fan of this one, since it's the roof-raising R&B that isn't quite my cup of tea (but you already know that, right?) 34: ROCK AND ROLL FANTASY - THE KINKS (37) - Their comeback Top 40 hit, after being absent from the chart since their Top Ten anthem "Lola". This song got as high as #30, but they'd be back about four and a half years later with what would become their biggest hit ever, "Come Dancing". As for this song, it was pretty good, but I preferred Bad Company's song of the same title from the following summer. 33: OH DARLIN' - ROBIN GIBB (40) - The first Top 40 hit from Gibb as a solo artist. This is one of the three Top 40 hits from the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band soundtrack (the first of two in the countdown this week). This one wasn't bad, but I preferred his other Top 40 hit from six years later, entitled "Boys Do Fall In Love". 32: JUST WHAT I NEEDED - THE CARS (34) - This song has aged quite well. Given all the airplay it receives on oldies and rock stations, I'm surprised that it didn't get any higher than #27. 31: WHENEVER I CALL YOU FRIEND - KENNY LOGGINS WITH STEVIE NICKS (39) - YES!! This is possibly my favorite song on this week's chart - definitely one of my favorites from both artists involved! 30: RIVERS OF BABYLON - BONEY M (31) - The third Top 40 hit that borrowed passages from the bible to use in their lyrics (in this case, Psalm 137). 29: CLOSE THE DOOR - TEDDY PENDERGRASS (32) - This was pretty much your typical old school R&B. It was pleasant, but nothing I'd go out of my way to listen to. 28: YOU NEEDED ME - ANNE MURRAY (35) - Murray's only #1 hit on the Hot 100. It was a rather slow climber - it wouldn't hit the top until three months later (ironically, the song it knocked out of the top spot held the record at the time for THE slowest climb to #1). As for my opinion of this song - well, it was during her heyday, which started with this song, so I liked it a lot - one of my all-time faves from her! OPTIONAL EXTRA: Interview with Desiree, the subject of the very first Long Distance Dedication. 27: HOLLYWOOD NIGHTS - BOB SEGER & THE SILVER BULLET BAND (38) - I don't recall this song from its chart run, but I definitely remember hearing it on the Stranger In Town album, which my Mom played all the time back in 1979. It's a pretty good song, but the only single from the album that I really liked was "Still The Same". There were several other songs on the album that I felt should have been released as singles. 26: MACHO MAN - VILLAGE PEOPLE (27) - Meh, not a big fan of this one. It's more tolerable than their next top 40 hit, though. 25: YOU - RITA COOLIDGE (25) - I noticed that this song's verses have a slightly similar melody as that of ELO's recent Top 40 hit "Mr. Blue Sky". Though not quite as good as her two 1977 Top Ten hits, it's still a great song nevertheless. 24: TWO TICKETS TO PARADISE - EDDIE MONEY (26) - As usual, they played a different version of this song than was usually heard on the radio (the single version, I would imagine). I remember hearing this one quite regularly back in the day. I liked it, but I preferred several others from the Money Man. 23: REMINISCING - THE LITTLE RIVER BAND (28) - The first of two Top Ten hits from their album Sleeper Catcher. It's a great one but, of course, I preferred "Lady". 22: STUFF LIKE THAT - QUINCY JONES (23) - The first of a handful of Top 40 hits for this musician from Chicago who almost always featured a guest vocalist (in this case, Ashford & Simpson & Chaka Khan). I preferred his more mellow material from the 80s - this song was nothing special - sounds like most of the disco material from the late-70s. 21: SUMMER NIGHTS - JOHN TRAVOLTA & OLIVIA NEWTON JOHN (29) - The second of two top 40 duets for the stars of the movie Grease. Of those two songs, it would be my favorite (though "You're The One That I Want" is a great one as well). 20: YOU AND I - RICK JAMES (22) - Meh, nothing special - sounds like most of the disco material from the late-70s, by a man who had the most success on the R&B chart. He did have a handful of Top 40 hits, though, and this was the most successful of them, peaking at #13. 19: LOVE IS IN THE AIR - JOHN PAUL YOUNG (24) - As we all know, I'm not a disco fan, but this song was actually a pretty good song - one I remember from back in the day. 18: LIFE'S BEEN GOOD - JOE WALSH (12) - Not sure why, but this song never really did anything for me. I wasn't a huge Joe Walsh fan anyway. They certainly butchered this one this week! 17: MY ANGEL BABY - TOBY BEAU (13) - It was a group, not a solo male, like many people thought (such was the case with Pablo Cruise, coming up in the Top Ten). The song was pretty good. 16: HOT CHILD IN THE CITY - NICK GILDER (21) - This was the song I was talking about earlier that set the record for the longest climb to #1 - a record it held by itself until a little less than a year later. It was a good song - had that summertime feel to it. Had Gilder known how long it was going to take to reach the top, I wonder if he would have released it several months earlier. 15: FOOL IF YOU THINK IT'S OVER - CHRIS REA (18) - Here's a good song I remember quite well. About ten years after he charted with this, he recorded a new version, which did not do justice to the original at all. He also had an AC hit in the summer of 1989, entitled "On The Beach". That is actually my favorite of the two songs, although this one was a good one as well. 14: COPACABANA (AT THE COPA) - BARRY MANILOW (8) - Definitely a departure from his usual ballad style. In fact, the rush release of this song while "Even Now" was still on its way up the chart caused the latter to tank (which wasn't really a bad thing, as "Even Now" wasn't one of his better hits anyway, IMO). This was a good one, although it was heavily edited this week. OPTIONAL EXTRA: Interview with James, the writer of the very first Long Distance Dedication. 13: GOT TO GET YOU INTO MY LIFE - EARTH, WIND & FIRE (19) - Of course, the best version of this one was the one by the Beatles (which we heard on last week's 1976 show), but this one was actually a good version too. 12: SHAME - EVELYN "CHAMPAGNE" KING (15) - Her first of four Top 40 hits. It's not bad, but my favorite song from her is "Love Come Down", which hit the Top 20 in the fall of 1982. 11: KISS YOU ALL OVER - EXILE (16) - 1978 was definitely a good year for producer Mike Chapman, as he had at least two songs that topped the chart that fall (back-to-back, nonetheless). This was the first of them. Of the two, I preferred the Nick Gilder song. 10: LAST DANCE - DONNA SUMMER (3) - I like this song, though it’s somehow kind of depressing - probably since I always associate this with the end of the summer and school starting again (since I heard it a lot when I was starting first grade - one of the toughest transitions ever!) 9: EVERLASTING LOVE - ANDY GIBB (10) - At first, this song looked like a probably number one song, thus continuing Gibb's #1 streak, but once it hit the Top Ten, it couldn't manage to climb more than one spot at a time and it ran out of gas at #5 about a month later, which still isn't bad. This would be a close second to "I Just Want To Be Your Everything" as my favorite song from Gibb. Too bad they edited this one down, by linking the first and second choruses together. 8: MAGNET AND STEEL - WALTER EGAN (9) - The second song on this week's chart to feature Stevie Nicks, who this song was said to be about, and was heard singing back-up on this song, which somehow, I associate more with the fall of 1978 instead of the summer (probably because that was when WLS played the song; it peaked on their survey in late October). I liked this song, but preferred Egan's "Fool Moon Fire", a mid-charter in 1983. 7: HOPELESSLY DEVOTED TO YOU - OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN (11) - As I've mentioned before, this was a special song between me and my ex-girlfriend, so it's been sort of hard to listen to, but you know what, we never really listened to it that often or even talked much about it, so I guess it's not as bad as it could have been, and I have been able to appreciate the natural beauty of this song more and more as the years have passed (especially since our paths crossed a little over four years ago and she and I actually had a brief conversation, letting me know that we were at least back on speaking terms again). 6: LOVE WILL FIND A WAY - PABLO CRUISE (7) - The second band on this week's chart whose name could be mistaken for a solo male. This was also the band's second (and, as it turned out, final) Top Ten hit. This was a great song, but I preferred their first Top Ten, "Whatcha Gonna Do", which charted exactly a year before. LDD: DESIREE - NEIL DIAMOND - Ah, this is that very first LDD. As for the song, it’s pretty good. 5: HOT-BLOODED - FOREIGNER (5) - Of course, this song's intro is very similar to the Pablo Cruise song back at #6. Of their three singles from Double Vision, this would be my least favorite, but it's a great song nevertheless. 4: BOOGIE OOGIE OOGIE - A TASTE OF HONEY (6) - This is one of my favorite disco songs. Glad that this one made it to #1! I always thought that the bridge of the song (where they sing 'Get down, Boogie Oogie Oogie x 3) would have worked great for the chorus. 3: MISS YOU - THE ROLLING STONES (4) - Meh, as you probably know all too well, I was not a big fan of this song by any means, but I liked their other disco song, which would hit the Top Five two years later. OPTIONAL EXTRA: WHO ARE YOU - THE WHO - What I really want to know is who is the person whose idea it was to include the falsetto for the chorus of this song? It is supremely annoying and negates any redeeming qualities the song might have. But that's just me; the song did hit the Top 20 and still gets a lot of recurrent airplay on classic rock stations today, so it's all good. I just don't care for the song, that's all. 2: THREE TIMES A LADY - THE COMMODORES (1) - Over on the R&R chart, this song was in the midst of a six-week run at #1. Here on the Hot 100, it would be #1 for two weeks (and spend the next four weeks in the runner-up position after falling out). I loved this song - so did a lot of other people, as it became a very popular LDD song (and was played at many wedding receptions as well). 1: GREASE - FRANKIE VALLI (2) - The title track to one of the biggest movie soundtracks ever was on its way to the top. It's OK, but I prefer several other songs from him, both solo and with the Four Seasons.
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Post by Hervard on Aug 21, 2020 12:45:06 GMT -5
American Top 40: The 80s - August 19, 2017
This week's presentation - August 22, 2017
Droppers: KISS HIM GOODBYE - THE NYLONS (34) - This song was a somewhat rare a cappella song (by late 80s standards anyway). But I liked it - about the same as the original, but in different ways, of course, as the music styles of both versions were very different. I'D STILL SAY YES - KLYMAXX (29) - I believe they were more of an R&B act, but they did have three Top 40 hits. This was my favorite of the three (though "Man Size Love" was a close second, especially when I'm in the mood for something upbeat). I WANNA DANCE WITH SOMEBODY (WHO LOVES ME) - WHITNEY HOUSTON (28) - Although by the time of the original airing of this show, I'd had it with this song, due to its overplay, I somehow came to like it shortly after its airplay waned and was glad it came out on top for the year on the R&R chart.
40: JUMP START – NATALIE COLE (debut) - This was her first Top 40 hit in seven years, as she battled cocaine and heroin addiction for the better part of the decade. Her comeback hit, which would peak at #13, was only the beginning, as she'd have several big hits over the next few years. This was a good song, but I preferred her ballads, with which she was generally most successful on the pop charts. 39: WOT’S IT TO YA – ROBBIE NEVIL (18) - Wow, this song sure fell hard this week! I guess people were getting annoyed with this shoutfest. I thought it was pretty good, though - I liked it and "Dominoes" about the same. 38: CARRIE - EUROPE (debut) - They didn't have a very long chart career, but 1987 was definitely their heyday, with three Top 40 hits, and this one was their biggest. It was also my favorite song by them - a great power ballad! 37: LOST IN EMOTION – LISA LISA AND CULT JAM (debut) - One of two number one songs from them, both in 1987. This was my favorite of the two, but it didn't hold a candle to "All Cried Out", which remains one of my favorite songs of all-time. 36: ONE HEARTBEAT – SMOKEY ROBINSON (40) - This was his second Top Ten during 1987. Not bad for a man who had been charting since the early-60s. I liked both songs about the same. 35: JAM TONIGHT – FREDDIE JACKSON (37) - Casey mentioned that this song was last week's #1 Soul song, by a man who was definitely no stranger to that #1 position - in all, he'd scored with an impressive ten number one Soul hits! Some of those crossed over to the Pop chart, like this one, which would peak at #32 the following week. It was a great song, IMO. 34: THE PLEASURE PRINCIPLE – JANET JACKSON (21) - Hey wow, back-to-back Jacksons! In addition to them, we have Michael Jackson later in the countdown. Casey mentioned the previous times (about four or five) when three artists sharing the same last name were in the countdown at the same time. Anyhoo, this was the sixth and last single from the Contol album. The first five were all Top Five hits, but this one missed the Top Ten. Her first wave of popularity was over, but the best, of course, was yet to come - her next album would yield eight Top Ten radio hits. This song wasn't bad, but I can see why this one didn't do as well as the other Control singles. 33: WHO FOUND WHO - JELLYBEAN f/ELISA FIORELLO (38) - The second of two hits with which John "Jellybean" Benitez had charted. This was my favorite of the two by a fair margin (as I wasn't a big fan of "Sidewalk Talk"). 32: SINCE YOU’VE BEEN GONE – THE OUTFIELD (33) - Interesting story about how band member Tony Lewis was mistaken for a boat thief, who had earlier been standing next to the phone booth where Lewis was making a call. As for the song, it was their third Top 40 hit and, of the five they had, their lowest peaking one, which I thought was a shame, as this was one of their best IMO - my second favorite song of theirs behind "All The Love In The World", from the previous summer. 31: I NEED LOVE – L.L. COOL J. (39) - This was possibly the first rap ballad ever to make the chart - certainly the first one that I ever heard. I thought it was a good one. OPTIONAL EXTRA: PAPER IN FIRE - JOHN COUGAR MELLENCAMP - The first of four singles released from The Lonesome Jubilee (though I could have sworn that "The Real Life" had been released as the second single, but they went with "Cherry Bomb" instead). In any case, I liked this song, but my favorite single from the album was "Check It Out", which charted in the early spring of 1988. 30: LIES – JONATHAN BUTLER (35) - Mainly a jazz artist, he managed to hit the Top 40 with this one hit, which was a great song - in fact, it was my #1 song of 1987, according to my Personal Top 30 charts. 29: ALONE - HEART (17) - This song had just recently spent three weeks at #1. It was their second #1 (meaning that each of the Wilson sisters had a turn at handling the lead vocals on a number one song). This was my favorite of the two hits and I found it sick and wrong that this one lost to the aforementioned Bangles hit as 1987's #1 song. But such is life. 28: MARY’S PRAYER – DANNY WILSON (33) - Interesting story of acts named after someone not in the group (as Danny Wilson was actually a character in a Frank Simatra movie called Meet Danny Wilson), unlike the situation in this week's 1978 show where there were two bands whose name could be mistaken for a person - in that case, they were not named after any particular person. This was their only Top 40 hit and IMO, it was a great one. 27: SEVEN WONDERS – FLEETWOOD MAC (19) - The second of five Tango In The Night singles, and definitely my favorite of the bunch. I generally prefer the songs with Stevie Nicks singing lead. 26: I HEARD A RUMOR – BANANARAMA (36) - Of course, we all know that, of their three Top 40 hits, this one is my favorite. We heard my second favorite on last week's 1984, but I don't think we'll be given a hat trick, as 1986 looks to be out of the question next week. More on that later. 25: TOUCH OF GREY – THE GRATEFUL DEAD (32) - This was their only Top 40 hit, but they were more of a album rock and concert band (although I don’t think that they usually performed this one at their shows). My brother was a Deadhead, so I've heard many songs from them, but this one remains my favorite. LDD: NEVER SURRENDER – COREY HART - I remember this LDD when this show originally ran in 1987 . I found it weird that the radio DJ spent all of his shift talking to his friend. Apparently his boss was either not around or very, very lenient. Anyway, this was a great song - one of my favorites from Corey Hart - and we just might be hearing this one on our next 1985 show - especially if they go with the infamous Dead Dog Dedication show, as it was still on the chart that week. 24: GIVE TO LIVE – SAMMY HAGAR (27) - He had taken over as lead singer of Van Halen the year before, but, as they were in between albums at the time, he put out an album (self-titled) that spawned one Top 40 hit. The song peaked at #23 on the Hot 100, but hit #1 on the album rock chart. Definitely one of his best solo hits ever, right up there with "Your Love Is Driving Me Crazy". 23: WIPEOUT – THE FAT BOYS w/THE BEACH BOYS (30) - We heard the Fat Boys’ awful remake of “The Twist” a few weeks ago (on a "B" show, that is) and now we get their almost as bad cover of “Wipe Out” this week. I prefer the original by the Surfaris, thank you very much - slowing down the tempo just to add lyrics pretty much defeats the whole purpose. 22: SHAKEDOWN – BOB SEGER (12) - A line in "Like A Rock" might have served as an omen, as it had indeed been twenty years that Seger had been charting before he hit #1. This song was OK, but definitely not his best, IMO. 21: RHYTHM IS GONNA GET YOU – GLORIA ESTEFAN AND MIAMI SOUND MACHINE (10) - This is one of those acts whose ballads I generally prefer over their upbeat songs (though "Bad Boys" and their next release after this, "Betcha Say That" were exceptions). This song was pretty good, but definitely far from being their best. OPTIONAL EXTRA: NEVER LET ME DOWN - DAVID BOWIE - Of course, we know all too well that this is one of his two songs that I like best. The other one was "Day-In, Day-Out" and this would be a case where my mood at the time depends on which of those I prefer - for the most part, it's a toss-up between the two. 20: HERE I GO AGAIN - WHITESNAKE (26) - Like Europe, they were another hard rock group that only charted four times. And 1987 was definitely their year, as their two biggest hits charted and peaked within the year. I believe they played the single version this week, which I slightly preferred over the album version. 19: DOING IT ALL FOR MY BABY – HUEY LEWIS AND THE NEWS (23) - I remember hoping that this would be his next release as "I Know What I Like" was heading down the chart, and then playing this song all the time - so much that I got tired of it and got to hoping that Huey decided to release "Forest For The Trees". Well, Huey and the band wanted to go with diversity on this album and, since that song sounded a lot like "Stuck With You", they opted not to put that one out. Actually, he usually released the "doo-wop" song from his albums, but since the one on Fore!, "Naturally", was a capella, they might have figured that one might not have hit potential, so they decided on this song as the final song from the album (since it was "semi-doo-wop"). Anyway, this was a good song, but definitely not one of my favorites from him. 18: WHEN SMOKEY SINGS - ABC (24) - I found it interesting that, everytime a song about a music artist was on the countdown, a song by the same artist was on the countdown as well. A few weeks later, both songs would be in the Top Ten at the same time. As for the song, it was pretty good - I think that the song's resemblance to "Tears Of A Clown" was intentional, since the bass line was exactly the same (after all, it was a tribute to the artist of that song). 17: LIVING IN A BOX – LIVING IN A BOX (22) - The seventh band to name themselves in one of their hits. It turned out to be their only Top 40 hit, however. This was one of at least three Top 40 hits in a twelve-year period that begin with the line "Woke up this morning..." (the others being by Peter Frampton and Bruce Springsteen). I always found that kind of interesting. As for the song, it was pretty good - reminds me of a guy from my home town who was famous for living in a cardboard box. 16: DIDN’T WE ALMOST HAVE IT ALL – WHITNEY HOUSTON (25) - aka "All At Once Pt 2". Only difference is, this song was actually released as a single and flew straight up to the top. It's a good song, but far from being her best. 15: BACK IN THE HIGH LIFE – STEVE WINWOOD (13) - This, of course, is the title track from his most successful singles album. It's pretty good, but I preferred a few others from him. Today, the song would be billed as Steve Winwood featuring James Taylor. EXTRA: SURFIN’ U.S.A. – THE BEACH BOYS - Since the Beach Boys were in the countdown this week, I always thought that this story, about surfing, could have been tied to that song, but there was also a story to go along with that song - about the Beach Boys' span of charted hits - not sure, as I wasn't playing much attention. 14: CROSS MY BROKEN HEART - THE JETS (8) - LOL, sounds kind of like they're singing "That's just f---ing hogwash". As for my opinion of this song, well, it's mediocre at best. As we probably know all too well, I prefer their ballads over their upbeat dance numbers like this. 13: LOVE POWER – DIONNE WARWICK & JEFFREY OSBORNE (15) - Today, this would be billed with Kenny G as a featured artist, since, as Casey said, that's who was playing the sax in the bridge (with a broken thumb, no less), making an already great song even better! 12: CAN’T WE TRY – DAN HILL WITH VONDA SHEPARD (20) - I remember being a little concerned at first when this song's chart run started somewhat slow, but it definitely made up for that baby step the following week, moving up ten spots and this week, as it moved up eight places. This song ended up hitting the Top Ten (the following week, in fact), as I had hoped. This is also the song that finally relieved Dan Hill of his one-hit wonder status - a great song indeed! 11: IT’S NOT OVER (‘TIL IT’S OVER) - STARSHIP (14) - Their second-to-last chart hit (and their final Top Ten). It was a good one, but I preferred several others from them, in all three incarnations. OPTIONAL EXTRA: IN MY DREAMS - REO SPEEDWAGON - About half of their Top 40 hits were ballads, and this is one of them. One of my favorites from them! 10: I JUST CAN’T STOP LOVING YOU – MICHAEL JACKSON (16) - The long-awaited new album by Michael Jackson (his first since Thriller) was poised for release on August 31 and its first single was burning up the chart, en route to #1. I liked this song, though it sure got way overplayed. 9: HEART AND SOUL – T’PAU (6) - One of several one-hit wonders on this week's show. I never particularly cared for this song, however. Interesting story about the other songs with the same title hit the charts, including two versions of the song that's become a very popular piano piece - in fact, I think it was the second one I learned to play on the piano (the first, of course, was Chopsticks). 8: ROCK STEADY – THE WHISPERS (11) - The biggest of their four Top 40 hits - as well as my favorite. 7: ONLY IN MY DREAMS – DEBBIE GIBSON (9) - The breakthrough hit for one of the biggest teen music stars from this era. It was a good song - my second favorite song from Out Of The Blue behind the #1 "Foolish Beat" (though I did rather like the title track as well). 6/LDD: I STILL HAVEN’T FOUND WHAT I’M LOOKING FOR – U2 (1) - This was the second of two #1 hits from The Joshua Tree, and my favorite of the two. This song has held up quite well despite overplay. As for the LDD, it was quite interesting. Almost the story of my life at the time (as well as many years beyond). 5: I WANT YOUR SEX – GEORGE MICHAEL (3) - Don't care for this one at all! If not for the lyrical content, this one might have become one of the biggest hits of the year - possibly even THE biggest. I might dislike "Walk Like An Egyptian", but I'd rather listen to that one than this. 4: DON’T MEAN NOTHING – RICHARD MARX (7) - The first of many hits for this man from the Windy City. It was a good one, but definitely not my favorite from him. 3: LUKA – SUZANNE VEGA (4) - Does the opening notes of this song remind anyone else of the Jetsons' doorbell? Well, anyway, there are only two songs by Vega that I've heard, and this would be my favorite (I remember being sick of hearing the "do do dodo do dododo..." refrains of "Tom's Diner" everytime I turned on the radio in late 1990/early 1991). That song, by the way, was also on Solitude Standing album, only it was a cappella and the "do do do" part didn't come until the very end. OPTIONAL EXTRA: CASANOVA - LEVERT - They were definitely more of a soul act than Pop, as this was their only Top 40 hit. It was pretty good, but I preferred Gerald's solo hit from 1994, "I'd Give Anything". 2: LA BAMBA – LOS LOBOS (5) - This was their first of at least three remakes of old Ritchie Valens songs (they did a version of "Donna", but I don't think it was ever released as a single). Anyway, this song was so/so, but way overplayed. I preferred their version of "Come On Let's Go" which we'll hopefully hear later on this year on the series. 1: WHO’S THAT GIRL – MADONNA (2) - This song put Madonna as the woman with the most solo #1 hits of the rock era, with six so far, and she wasn't done yet, thus putting her far out in front of Diana Ross, who was done hitting #1 at this point. As far as I know, Madonna might still be out in front, but I'm not sure, as I stopped believing in the Hot 100 soon after 1991. Anyway, this song was mediocre at best. One of my least favorite of her hits and possibly my least favorite of her #1s.
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Post by Hervard on Aug 28, 2020 13:04:44 GMT -5
American Top 40: The 70s - August 29, 2020 This week's presentation - August 28, 1976 Dropper: YOU'RE MY BEST FRIEND - QUEEN (39) - You know what, I can’t believe this song didn’t hit the Top Ten - it sure got a lot of airplay. Although that depends on the radio stations in your area. I listened to WLS a lot and that song peaked at #4 on their station’s playlist. I still hear this on oldies station every now and then, which is good, because this is one of my favorites from Queen. 40: TEDDY BEAR – RED SOVINE (debut) - Only a single debut this week. It sure didn't last long in the chart, as the song would fall out the following week. All I can say is I'm not surprised! 39: LAST CHILD - AEROSMITH (36) - Wow, kind of odd that this song moved down only three spots this week, especially after such a hard fall the previous week. Anyway, this was a good song, but I generally prefer their 80s and 90s hits. 38: GOT TO GET YOU INTO MY LIFE – THE BEATLES (23) - Here's one I remember quite well, since it was #1 on the station I listened to back in 1976 - WLS in Chicago, so I heard it all the time that summer. It was a great song! 37: SPRINGTIME MAMA – HENRY GROSS (37) - The second song by one of several artists connected to the "Dead Dog Dedication". I preferred his other song, but this wasn't bad either - reminded me a lot of the Beach Boys. 36: ONE LOVE IN MY LIFETIME – DIANA ROSS (40) - I assume that it's no coincidence that this sounded so much like her version of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough". This was a good song - much better than her previous hit "Love Hangover", but I preferred her other 1976 hit, "Theme From Mahogany". 35: YOUNG HEARTS RUN FREE – CANDI STATON (22) - The tenth and last (as well as biggest) hit for this American soul and gospel singer from Hanceville, Alabama. It was a pretty good song IMO. 34: MOONLIGHT FEELS RIGHT - STARBUCK (34) - Holy Smokes, Batman! This song took not one, but two big drops over the past few weeks, yet rests at #34 this week. A few suspicious chart moves this week indeed! Anyway, of their two Top 40 hits, this one would be my favorite. Can't in all honesty say that I've ever heard of any of the eight acts whose only chart hits peaked at #40, but it was indeed an interesting question - and even more interesting in that the lead-off song on the countdown would take the count of one-hit wonders that peaked at #40 to nine. 33: I CAN’T HEAR YOU NO MORE – HELEN REDDY (38) - Wow, kind of refreshing to hear a non-cheesy song from her. I don’t even mind the fact that this is disco. 32: I’M EASY – KEITH CARRADINE (18) - Meh, sounds more like second-rate Jim Croce. I used to like this song, but not much anymore. 31: STREET SINGIN’ – LADY FLASH (35) - The only hit for Barry Manilow's back-up singers. It was a good song but, of course, I preferred most of Barry's big hits. 30: AFTERNOON DELIGHT – STARLAND VOCAL BAND (17) - Ah, a song about engaging in a quickie with your significant other during your lunch break. This is another song I remember quite well (needless to say, I had no idea what it was really about, though). 29: GETAWAY – EARTH, WIND & FIRE (32) - Indeed, one of the biggest R&B acts of the 1970s! Though this wasn't quite as good as "That's The Way Of The World" and "September", it was still a good song nevertheless. 28: SHOWER THE PEOPLE – JAMES TAYLOR (31) - This is a song that has aged quite well - still sounds great 40 years later! OPTIONAL EXTRA: YOU ARE THE WOMAN - FIREFALL - This song took its sweet time to climb to the Top Ten, but I seem to recall that it fell like a rock soon after. Anyway, I liked this song, though I slightly preferred "Just Remember I Love You". 27: SHE’S GONE – HALL & OATES (33) - This was their second hit, and the best was definitely yet to come for this dynamic duo! This song was so/so, but definitely not their best. 26: TURN THE BEAT AROUND – VICKI SUE ROBINSON (10) - There definitely is not much difference between this and Gloria Estefan's cover 18 years later. That said, I don't know which version I prefer. 25: WHAM BAM (SHANG-A-LANG) - SILVER (29) - Track 11 on Volume 2 of Barry Scott Presents: Lost 45s of the 70's & 80's, a CD I've listened to many a time, so I've heard this song many times as a result. It's a good one! 24: IF YOU LEAVE ME NOW - CHICAGO (28) - This song was on its way to becoming their very first #1 song! Another great song that I remember from back in the day! 23: WHO’D SHE COO – THE OHIO PLAYERS (26) - Meh, I think we all know why I don't care much for this song... 22: STILL THE ONE - ORLEANS (27) - They had three Top 20 hits, and I really liked all three of them about the same, but this one would be my favorite by a thin margin over the other two. 21: A LITTLE BIT MORE – DR. HOOK (24) - Meh, this used to be one of my favorite songs from them, but for some reason, such is not the case anymore. Give me "Better Love Next Time" any day! 20: DEVIL WOMAN – CLIFF RICHARD (30) - After a more modest upward move of four spots last week, the song broke wide open this week, shooting ahead ten places. It's a good one, but I generally preferred his 80s hits. 19: WITH YOUR LOVE – JEFFERSON STARSHIP (25) - A high point in the show for JessieLou. This one sounded very much like their big hit "Miracles", from the year before. 18: ROCK AND ROLL MUSIC – THE BEACH BOYS (7) - This song definitely showed that, even though the sixties was clearly their decade, they still had it in the 70s! 17: HEAVEN MUST BE MISSING AN ANGEL (PART 1) - TAVARES (19) - While it's true that I'm no fan of R&B disco, I actually kind of liked this song. 16: LOWDOWN – BOZ SCAGGS (22) - He had a few low charters in the early-70s and a minor Top 40 hit earlier in 1976, but this is that song that really put him on the map. The song wasn't bad, but I preferred most of his other hits that charted after this. 15: LOVE IS ALIVE – GARY WRIGHT (15) - Another song that paused on its way down, and another one I remember from back in the day. It was easily my favorite of his two Top Ten hits. 14: SAY YOU LOVE ME – FLEETWOOD MAC (16) - Their self-titled album had been out for over a year and the following week, would hit #1 on the album chart, setting a record for the slowest climb to #1 on that chart. As for this song, I thought it was good, though I slightly preferred "Rhiannon". OPTIONAL EXTRA: ROCK'N ME - STEVE MILLER BAND - Here's a song that hit the top of the chart at the wrong time of year, as far as year-end chart placement was concerned. Because of the November-November time frame, the song didn't gain enough points in either 1976 or 1977 to rank on either year-end chart (this was one of the reasons that AT40 eventually began making their own year-enders that credited a song's entire chart life). I liked this song, but preferred their next hit, the title track from Fly Like An Eagle. 13: SUMMER - WAR (21) - Though summer was drawing to a close, that didn't stop this song from making a hefty leap this week. Oddly enough, this song would peak on the weekend of the autumnal equinox. 12: BABY I LOVE YOUR WAY – PETER FRAMPTON (14) - As Frampton Comes Alive was having an on-again, off-again relationship with the #1 spot on the album chart, the second single from it was maintaining a steady climb on the chart. The song was pretty good, but I preferred the two other singles from what would become the top album of the year. 11: KISS AND SAY GOODBYE – THE MANHATTANS (8) - This song would generally get a "No. Just no", but this week, they skipped over the spoken word part at the beginning, so it wasn't quite as bad, but still a depressing song. As we all know, I preferred "Shining Star". 10: THIS MASQUERADE – GEORGE BENSON (11) - A nice, mellow chill-out type song, as was his next release, the instrumental "Breezin'" which, to my pleasant surprise, was played on KKOL right after the broadcast of this show! It was cut off after the first minute or so, but at least I got to hear a piece of the song. 9: GET CLOSER – SEALS & CROFTS (9) - This song was in its second week of its "Top Ten Encore". This song was OK, but Jim Seals sounded like he had a runny nose in this song. 8: A FIFTH OF BEETHOVEN – WALTER MURPHY & THE BIG APPLE BAND (13) - LOL, I liked Casey's clever reference to this song being "one fifth of the 40 away from #1" (and they were moving up five spots to boot). Anyway, this was an interesting disco rendition of this well-known classical piece. 7: PLAY THAT FUNKY MUSIC – WILD CHERRY (12) - Ever since Vanilla Ice went and messed up this song in early 1991, I never was able to look at this song in the same light ever again! 6: (SHAKE, SHAKE, SHAKE) SHAKE YOUR BOOTY – K.C. & THE SUNSHINE BAND (6) - While I prefer a few others by them, this still is better than their 1979 whinefest "Please Don't Go". 5: I’D REALLY LOVE TO SEE YOU TONIGHT – ENGLAND DAN & JOHN FORD COLEY (5) - The brother of half of the duo back at #9 was en route to peaking at #2 with the first hit for him, along with his "sidekick". This was my favorite song from them. (Please, don’t even get me started on how Barry Manilow totally messed this song up about 20 years later with his dance remake...) 4: YOU’LL NEVER FIND ANOTHER LOVE LIKE MINE – LOU RAWLS (4) - This song would just miss hitting #1 two weeks later, which is a shame, since this was a great song! At least it did hit the Top Five and was Rawls' biggest hit ever. 3: LET ‘EM IN - WINGS (3) - One of the only songs I've ever heard that opens with a Westminster chime doorbell. As for the song, it is my favorite of Wings' two Top Five hits from 1976. I still preferred a few others from them. OPTIONAL EXTRA: (DON'T FEAR) THE REAPER - BLUE OYSTER CULT - A classic rock staple here. The one that radio usually plays features the instrumental bridge, but it was cut out in this song. 2: YOU SHOULD BE DANCING – THE BEE GEES (2) - It was beginning to look like this song was going to peak at #2, but they had just enough oomph to make it to #1 the following week. This song was pretty good, but I preferred their next hit "Love So Right". 1: DON’T GO BREAKING MY HEART – ELTON JOHN & KIKI DEE (1) - This song was in the midst of a then-unheard of seven-week stay atop the R&R chart, and they didn't do too shabby on the Hot 100 either, as this was their fourth week on top. As you might guess, this was another song I remember quite well from 1976 - I don't think I ever went a day without hearing it. But overplay did not tarnish this song at all, and it still sounds great today!
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