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Post by mrjukebox on Dec 2, 2023 18:55:04 GMT -5
Hervard-I'm also glad the bridge of "Muskrat Love" was edited out-I find that part to be annoying.
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Post by mrjukebox on Dec 3, 2023 19:51:43 GMT -5
Hervard,the correct title of the Corey Hart song at #17 on 12/1/84 was "It Ain't Enough".
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Post by chrislc on Dec 4, 2023 14:30:47 GMT -5
The Rubberband Man always made me think of Rerun from What's Happening, and the way he danced. I was buying all the Spinners LPs back then. I bought this one as soon as it came out and heard The Rubberband Man even before it was on the radio. I thought it was stupid. So of course it went on to become just about their biggest hit. Of course! ![:)](//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/smiley.png) That 1973 LP was amazingly good. Then each LP slipped a little. You can sense the frustration of trying to maintain a level of quality listening to them in succession. But I guess that's probably true with most artists.
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Post by Hervard on Dec 8, 2023 16:20:05 GMT -5
American Top 40: The 70s - December 9, 2023
This week's presentation - December 6, 1975
Droppers: S.O.S. - ABBA (32) - A palindromic song title by a group whose name is also a palindrome - how about that? Anyway, this song wasn't bad, but definitely not one of my favorites from them (among my favorite Abba hits would be "Dancing Queen" and "The Winner Takes It All"). OPERATOR - MANHATTAN TRANSFER (22) - Their first of four Top 40 hits. This song was OK, but I prefer several others by them (including a few of their AC-only songs (i.e. “Mystery”).
40: VOLARE – AL MARTINO (debut) - The fourth version of this song to hit the chart. Originally done by Domenico Modugno, the song was covered by artists like Dean Martin and Bobby Rydell. This was actually a disco version of the song and, as weird as this may seem coming from someone not a big fan of disco, I actually preferred this version over the original. 39: LYIN’ EYES – THE EAGLES (39) - Wow, after a hard fall from #12 last week, the song actually rests at #39 for a second week. This is a great song, but I preferred the album version of the song - the single version seems way too chopped down. 38: BAD BLOOD – NEIL SEDAKA (29) - Today, this song would be billed as being by Neil Sedaka featuring Elton John (and, ironically, the featured artist was the one that would bump this song from the top). It was a good song - one of my favorite songs from Sedaka. Interesting that this was the first song by a solo act since the summer of 1974 to spend three weeks on top. 37: YOU SEXY THING – HOT CHOCOLATE (debut) - Meh, not a big fan of this song (but I do realize a lot of people were, as this was their biggest hit - it just never did anything for me, that's all). 36: BLUE EYES CRYIN’ IN THE RAIN – WILLIE NELSON (21) - This was Nelson's first Top 40 hit. It wasn't bad, but I preferred his 80s hits. 35: FULL OF FIRE – AL GREEN (40) - This one reminded me a little of Green's #1 song from exactly five years before, "Let's Stay Together". It was a good song. 34: ROCK AND ROLL ALL NIGHT (LIVE VERSION) - KISS (38) - They hit the Top 40 for the first time with the live version of a song that had briefly charted on the Hot 100 earlier in the year. This song was one of their best rockers, IMO. Poison did a good remake of this song back in 1987. 33: WALK AWAY FROM LOVE – DAVID RUFFIN (37) - Of course, we all know he was the lead singer of the Temptations in the mid to late 1960s. He started a solo career in 1969 and had two Top Tens, both peaking at #9. This was the second of those songs and I thought it wasn't bad, but I generally preferred Ruffin's hits with the Temptations. 32: MIRACLES – JEFFERSON STARSHIP (23) - Marty Balin had taken over as lead singer of JS at this point. This wasn't bad, but I preferred the two 1978 songs with him singing lead. 31: PART TIME LOVE – GLADYS KNIGHT & THE PIPS (35) - This definitely sounds like something Bread would record (as David Gates wrote it). This one was a great song - one of Knight's best songs - definitely underrated! 30: COUNTRY BOY (YOU GOT YOUR FEET IN L.A.) – GLEN CAMPBELL (34) - The follow-up to Campbell's biggest hit ever, "Rhinestone Cowboy". This song, which sounds a little like that one, just narrowly missed the Top Ten in early 1976. I like these two songs about the same. 29: FOR THE LOVE OF YOU – ISLEY BROTHERS (33) - This song is a decent slow jam, but I prefer Jordan Hill's hit of the same name, which charted on the AC charts circa 1996 and is one of the songs on my YouTube playlist entitled "Favorite Songs". 28: I ONLY HAVE EYES FOR YOU – ART GARFUNKEL (18) - A classic golden oldie that has been covered many times over! This is one of the best renditions of it that I've ever heard. 27: I’M ON FIRE – 5000 VOLTS (28) - The only hit for this British disco trio. It was OK, but nothing exceptional. I preferred Springsteen's 1985 hit of the same title by a fair margin. OPTIONAL EXTRA: LOVE TO LOVE YOU BABY - DONNA SUMMER - If I've said it once, I've said it a million times - a prolonged orgasm is NOT a song! 26: THE LAST GAME OF THE SEASON (A BLIND MAN IN THE BLEACHERS) – DAVID GEDDES (30) - Well, this is definitely not anywhere near as annoying as the whinefest that was "Run Joey Run". The song is a salute to high school football and focuses on a junior varsity football player (who rarely, if ever sees action in varsity games) and his father, a blind man who sits next to the press box, where the speaker is located so he can hear the game even if he can't see it. 25: TIMES OF YOUR LIFE – PAUL ANKA (36) - This song is a tad on the cheesy side, but it's still not bad - very mellow and relaxing. 24: HEAT WAVE – LINDA RONSTADT (14) - Oddly enough, this song actually moved up two spots the week before despite having already peaked. It turned out to be a fluke, however, as it was back on the downslide. This was one of my favorite Linda Ronstadt songs - great rendition of the old Martha & The Vandellas classic. 23: FEELINGS – MORRIS ALBERT (13) - This one used to get a "No. Just no", but, though it is indeed a very cheesy song, I've actually started liking it better over the past few years. 22: THIS WILL BE – NATALIE COLE (8) - It's impossible not to think of the eHarmony.com commercials when hearing the intro to this song. It's not bad, but I prefer many others from her. 21: WHO LOVES YOU – THE FOUR SEASONS (10) - Their comeback hit, and the last with Frankie Valli singing lead. It was a great song - one of their best, IMO. 20: SECRET LOVE – FREDDY FENDER (24) - You know, he might sound better if he sang an octave lower. If not for his grating voice, this would be a really good song. 19: THEME FROM “MAHOGANY” (DO YOU KNOW WHERE YOU’RE GOING TO) – DIANA ROSS (31) - This song skipped the 20s on its way up the chart, as well as during its descent. Not many songs like that. Anyway, this was by far my favorite of Ross' two #1 songs during 1976. 18: I LOVE MUSIC (PART 1) – THE O’JAYS (25) - This one wasn't bad, but rather repetitive. I preferred a few other songs by them, such as "Love Train" and "Use Ta Be My Girl". 17: I WANT’A DO SOMETHING FREAKY TO YOU – LEON HAYWOOD (20) - Meh, not really my cup of tea... 16: OUR DAY WILL COME – FRANKIE VALLI (19) - Wow, he was on the chart both as a solo artist and with his old band the Four Seasons! I liked both songs about the same. 15: EIGHTEEN WITH A BULLET – PETE WINGFIELD (15) - No. Just no. 14: VENUS AND MARS ROCK SHOW - WINGS (17) - One of five Top 40 songs they charted with in 1975 (including the double-sided "Junior's Farm/Sally G" as separate chart entries). It was OK, but my favorite of their 1975 hits was the number one "Listen To What The Man Said". OPTIONAL EXTRA: EVIL WOMAN - ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA - Their second Top 40 hit (and like the first, "Can't Get It Out Of My Head", it made the Top Ten). It was a good song, but I prefer a few others from them, including said first Top 40 hit. 13: I WRITE THE SONGS – BARRY MANILOW (27) - Wow, with a jump that big, it's no surprise this song made it all the way to #1! Though I generally like his songs, this one is actually one of my least favorites from him. It's passable, but nowhere near being his best. 12: LOVE ROLLERCOASTER – THE OHIO PLAYERS (16) - After making a monster jump of eighteen spots the week before, this song made a more modest move on this week's chart. I wasn't generally a fan of them, but this song wasn't too bad. 11: FOX ON THE RUN - SWEET (26) - While the other two songs in the Top 20 that made jumps larger than ten spots both made it to #1, the biggest move of them all didn't quite make it. The song did peak at #5, which isn't bad either. I liked this song - it was much better than their last hit, the annoying "Ballroom Blitz". 10: MY LITTLE TOWN – SIMON & GARFUNKEL (12) - Another act who was on the chart in two different configurations - we heard Garfunkel back at #28 with his rendition of "I Only Have Eyes For You" and here at #12 with his former singing partner, who was between singles at the time, so they just missed being on the chart as a duet and with separate chart singles. I liked this song, which appeared on both of their solo albums. 9: SATURDAY NIGHT – THE BAY CITY ROLLERS (11) - Meh, not a huge fan of this song, or them in general (though they did have a few songs that I did like). 8: NIGHTS ON BROADWAY – THE BEE GEES (9) - This one didn't have as much of a disco beat as "Jive Talkin'". Of those two songs, I preferred this one (as "Jive Talkin'" was way overplayed). Still, I prefer many other songs from them. 7: LOW RIDER - WAR (7) - Meh, not a huge fan of this song. 6: ISLAND GIRL – ELTON JOHN (3) - Seeing that this song was in its eighth week on the chart, it would be logical to assume it was on its way up at this point, but, in fact, it had actually already spent three weeks at #1. It's just that the song wasted absolutely no time hitting the top. 1975 was sure one of Elton's best years, as he had several big albums, two of which debuted at #1, as well as three number one hits (though only this song was from one of said albums (Rock Of The Westies)), and a Top Five hit from still a different album, Captain Fantastic & The Brown Dirt Cowboy), that year. EXTRA: THE NIGHT THEY DROVE OLD DIXIE DOWN – JOAN BAEZ - This song was used as the final Optional Extra. Surprisingly, this was her only Top Ten hit. It was a good one, but it doesn't hold a candle to the original by The Band. 5: THE WAY I WANT TO TOUCH YOU – THE CAPTAIN & TENNILLE (4) - I just noticed that this sounds like something Carole King would do (melodically, that is). While I do prefer it over the ad nauseum played "Love Will Keep Us Together" (not to mention the barf-inducing "Muskrat Love"), it's definitely not my favorite from them (that honor, of course, goes to "Do That To Me One More Time"). 4: LET’S DO IT AGAIN – THE STAPLE SINGERS (5) - Your typical mid-70s slow jam. It was pretty good, but nothing exceptional. 3: SKY HIGH - JIGSAW (6) - Often thought of as a one-hit wonder, they did actually have another minor Top 40 hit in 1976 called "Love Fire". I preferred this one, though - one of my favorite hits from 1975! 2: THAT’S THE WAY (I LIKE IT) – K.C. & THE SUNSHINE BAND (2) - This song wasted no time hitting #1, but dropped back the previous week to #2. But they weren't done yet - they would return to the top two weeks later. It's a good song. 1: FLY, ROBIN, FLY – SILVER CONVENTION (1) - To this day, I still haven't learned all the lyrics to this song Casey mentioned that this was the 34th number one song of the year, putting the year behind 1974 as the year with the most #1 songs, by three songs. Unfortunately, it didn't quite break the record, as there was only one new #1 song after this before the end of 1975. But, IIRC, 1975 still had the record for the most one-week #1 songs. I seem to remember Shadoe Stevens mentioning that as the answer to a question letter, though I don't remember what show it was.
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Post by Hervard on Dec 8, 2023 16:20:15 GMT -5
American Top 40: The 80s - December 9, 2023
This week's presentation - December 11, 1982
Droppers: I’M SO EXCITED – THE POINTER SISTERS (30) - Of course, this was the song's first chart run. This is all the higher it got on this run, but, of course, the song hit the Top Ten the second time around two years later. I loved the song at the time (and I still prefer it over all of their other post-1982 songs, but I prefer most of their earlier songs). PRESSURE – BILLY JOEL (20) - This was a great song, but I must say, the single version of this was way too butchered. I preferred the full album version, but, unfortunately, every station that plays this song goes with the single version. Oh well... SOUTHERN CROSS – CROSBY, STILLS AND NASH (18) - Most people I know preferred their earlier hits, but I'm the odd man out, as I preferred their most recent hits. This and "Wasted On The Way" are among my favorite songs by them. Don't get me wrong; I have nothing against their 60s/70s hits, but they just don't quite match up to their two 1982 hits. NOBODY - SYLVIA (15) - Classic case of a guy having an affair and playing it down when asked about it. This song reminded me of "Seven Year Ache" by Roseanne Cash, one of my favorite country crossover songs of the early 80s, as is this song.
LW#3: MICKEY – TONI BASIL LW#2: GLORIA – LAURA BRANIGAN LW#1: TRULY – LIONEL RICHIE 40: LOVE IN STORE – FLEETWOOD MAC (debut) - I didn't really like this song when it was charting, but now I kind of like it. This one and "Think About Me" are alike in so many ways. They're the third singles from their respective albums, both featured Christine McVie on lead vocals (and the songs sound somewhat similar, especially in the verses), and both hit #9 on R&R (and spent seven weeks on the chart), but only got to around the midpoint of the AT40 chart. Did I leave anything out? ![;)](//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/wink.png) 39: SHOCK THE MONKEY – PETER GABRIEL (39) - Many people probably thought this song was peaking this week, but the following week, it got a second wind and was on its way up again, en route to a #29 peak. The first Top 40 hit from this former member of Genesis (though with all the recurrent airplay that "Solsbury Hill" receives, it's a surprise that that song never hit the 40). Anyway, this was a great song - I prefer this song over his two overplayed 1986 hits by a wide margin. 38: LET’S GO DANCIN’ – KOOL & THE GANG (40) - Not quite their best hit, although it was pretty good. Had a very catchy refrain! 37: I DO – THE J. GEILS BAND (debut) - They really broke wide open in 1982, with two big Top Five hits. This song, originally recorded for their Monkey Island album in 1977, was the only Top 40 hit from their live album Showtime! The song was OK, but I preferred "Centerfold" by a sizeable margin. 36: WHAT ABOUT ME – MOVING PICTURES (37) - Like the Peter Gabriel song this week, it looked as though this song had peaked the week before, as it was stuck in the #37 position. However, the song was, in fact, far from being done - the song peaked eight spots higher. The funny thing is, it took two and a half months to reach that peak from its debut position of #37. The song's slow climb and tenure on the chart versus its peak leads me to believe that this song had sporadic airplay, but did well where played. The song was a good one, though I do remember that I disliked it during its chart run. 35: GOODY TWO SHOES – ADAM ANT (debut) - One of several rockabilly songs that charted around late 1982/early 1983. I liked this song, but preferred his 1995 hit "Wonderful", which had sort of an early-80s sound to it, making me wonder how it would have done had it charted around now instead of "Goody Two Shoes". 34: A PENNY FOR YOUR THOUGHTS - TAVARES (36) - This one was pretty good, although quite cheesy. A penny for your thoughts, a nickel for a kiss, a dime if you tell me that you love me. Hmm, I wonder what a quarter would get - a "view"? 33: EVERYBODY WANTS YOU – BILLY SQUIER (35) - He'd had two Top 40 hits the previous year and was back on the charts at the end of 1982 with his third Top 40 hit. I liked it - very likely my second favorite of his behind "In The Dark". 32: YOU GOT LUCKY – TOM PETTY & THE HEARTBREAKERS (38) - The first of two Top 40 singles from Petty's fifth album, Long After Dark. It was a good song (one I remember quite well from back in the day), but I preferred many others from him/them. 31: HEART TO HEART – KENNY LOGGINS (debut) - One of several early 1983 songs that hit the Top 3 on the R&R chart, but didn't quite hit the Top Ten on the R&R chart. This song would peak at #15. It's a great song - one of my favorite of Loggins' Top 40 hits, although the single version seems to be cut down too much. I seem to recall an AT40 where the album version was played - can anyone confirm? 30: ON THE WINGS OF LOVE – JEFFREY OSBORNE (32) - He'd sung lead for the R&B/Funk band LTD and had left the band a year earlier to pursue a solo career. This was his second Top 40 solo hit and was very possibly my favorite of his eight Top 40 hits (counting two duets). Too bad they cut out the second verse this week. ![:(](//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/sad.png) 29: HAND TO HOLD ON TO – JOHN COUGAR (33) - This was a landmark single for John - the last one without his real last name. On his next album, Uh-Huh, he added his real last name Mellencamp to his stage name (and eight years later, he'd drop the Cougar from his name completely). As for this song, it sounded like a watered-down version of "Hurts So Good". It was still not bad, though. LDD: BRIDGE OVER TROUBLED WATER – SIMON GARFUNKEL 28: BE MY LADY – JEFFERSON STARSHIP (29) - This was their first Top 40 hit after Grace Slick rejoined the band as a full member. It was a good song - nice steel guitar, which was used in a few of their other hits (such as “Runaway”). 27: THE OTHER GUY – THE LITTLE RIVER BAND (34) - They definitely had a pretty good run, but it was almost over; this was their final Top 20 hit. It was a good one, but I preferred their next hit, "We Two". 26: I.G.Y. (WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD) – DONALD FAIGEN (26) - *SIGH* Could someone please fix the freakin' censors on this board! Well, anyway, this was a good song - he sounded just as good solo as he did with Steely Dan. 25: BABY, COME TO ME – PATTI AUSTIN (31) - This song had peaked at #73 earlier in the year and any other time, that would be it, but because it was the theme song for Luke Spencer on the ABC soap opera General Hospital, the song was given a second chance, which it definitely made the most of, going all the way to #1. This is another song I disliked back in the day - at the very beginning, that is. It quickly became one of my favorite songs - (I know, because I checked it off on a WLS record survey as one of ten 45s that my Dad wanted to get me for my birthday - and indeed, it was among the stack that I got). 24: YOU CAN’T HURRY LOVE – PHIL COLLINS (28) - The first of two Supremes covers that charted during the 1983 chart year. The other one was "Stop! In The Name Of Love" by the Hollies, from that summer. I preferred that one, but this was a good one as well. 23: MISSING YOU – DAN FOGELBERG (23) - One of three songs by that title that charted within a two-year period (the others were by John Waite and Diana Ross). This would be my favorite of the trio (as the other two are somewhat depressing), but I still prefer many other songs by Fogelberg. 22: LOVE ME TOMORROW - CHICAGO (22) - This was the second of two Top 40 hits from the Chicago 16 album. Still, that was better than their 14th album, which yielded absolutely no Top 40 hits (the 15th album was a Greatest Hits album). This was my favorite song from Chicago 16 (since the first one is was overplayed). 21: YOU AND I – EDDIE RABBITT & CRYSTAL GAYLE (24) - A one-time duet from two of my favorite pop/country artists, and a great one at that - one of my favorite from both of them. 20: THE LOOK OF LOVE - ABC (21) - This wasn't their biggest hit, but it is the song that I hear most often on 80s stations (though their two Top Ten hits from later in the 80s also receive a fair amount of recurrent airplay). This would probably be my favorite song by ABC, 19: ROCK THE CASBAH – THE CLASH (25) - As I've mentioned before, there are actually two versions of this song - on the single version, I believe, the electronic sound effects heard in the third and fourth verses are somewhat muted, and the scream of "JIVE!!" is drawn out for several measures. I prefer the album version, which I believe is the version that AT40 generally plays. 18: AFRICA - TOTO (27) - One of several songs on this week's chart that I hated during its chart run, but now, I think it's a great one, though I do prefer a few others ("99" and "I'll Be Over You" are two examples). 17: HEARTLIGHT – NEIL DIAMOND (5) - This song, of course, was inspired by the summer blockbuster E.T. I loved that movie (and I will admit, I did cry at the end). As for the song, it's good, but far from being Diamond's best song. LDD: PAC-MAN FEVER - BUCKNER & GARCIA - This song did fit the LDD, since it was from a girl who did not know how at all to play Pac Man to a friend who taught her the concept of the game. Of course, I think I've mentioned numerous times that I drove my Dad and brother up the wall by playing this album ad nauseum. I'm surprised that my Dad didn't hide the record when I wasn't looking. As for the song, it was definitely my theme, as I was obsessed with Pac Man back in the day. 16: HEART ATTACK – OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN (16) - Despite its good-sized drop last week, this song actually defies the law of gravity and holds in place this week. (Yet a song right above it the week before falls clean out of the survey this week - go figure!), Anyway, this song had set the record for the biggest jump within the Top 40 (during the 1980s) about two months earlier, moving 39-13. The song didn't quite make it to #1, though; instead, it spent the entire month of November at #3. It was a great song, though not quite as good as "Make A Move On Me", which hit the Top Five the previous spring. 15: HEARTBREAKER – DIONNE WARWICK (17) - The Bee Gees wrote this one and you can hear Barry Gibb singing back-up on the chorus. Definitely a great song! 14: DOWN UNDER – MEN AT WORK (19) - Meh, this one was way overplayed, as well as the first hit from Business As Usual. Too bad the Cargo singles are all but ignored, since those were far superior, IMO. 13: SHADOWS OF THE NIGHT – PAT BENETAR (14) - Here's one I remember hearing all the time back in the late fall of 1982! It was one of my favorite songs, and still remains one of my favorite songs by Benatar! 12: UP WHERE WE BELONG – JOE C0CKER AND JENNIFER WARNES (6) - The first of two #1 movie duets for Warnes. Both of them hit #1 almost exactly five years apart. I liked both of them about the same, but I preferred yet another movie hit from Warnes - "Nights Are Forever", from the Twilight Zone movie soundtrack, from the following summer. Too bad that was an AC-only hit. OPTIONAL EXTRA: BACK ON THE CHAIN GANG - THE PRETENDERS - This was their second Top 40 hit and their first Top Ten. Possibly my favorite song from them (though "Brass In Pocket" might give this a run for its money). 11: IT’S RAINING AGAIN - SUPERTRAMP (13) - Despite their spectacular debut on the entire Hot 100 several weeks earlier, this song actually failed to crack the Top Ten - instead, it spent a month here at #11. I guess it was the long-awaited first hit from them in two years and then people decided they didn't really like the song after all. Perhaps it was that, or more people bought the album ...Famous Last Words than the single (as the song did peak at #2 on the R&R chart). Whatever the case, it was a great song according to me. Whenever this song came on, I'd turn it way up and sing along with it at the top of my lungs, driving my older brother nuts, LOL! 10: MUSCLES – DIANA ROSS (10) - This song would set the record for the longest stay at #10, where it held for six weeks (not sure if the record's been broken, but anything past 11/30/91 doesn't count). As for this song, it was mediocre at best - not one of my favorites from her by any means. 9: ROCK THIS TOWN – THE STRAY CATS (11) - As I mentioned earlier, the rockabilly music style made a comeback in the 80s and the Stray Cats were definitely instrumental in that. This was the first of four Top 40 hits from them. I preferred "Stray Cat Strut" and "I Won't Stand In Your Way". 8: SEXUAL HEALING – MARVIN GAYE (12) - I was never a huge Marvin Gaye fan, but this song was OK. Pretty interesting story about his switch from the Motown label to Columbia Records. 7: DIRTY LAUNDRY – DON HENLEY (9) - Henley's first Top 40 solo hit, and his biggest ever. I always liked the song, which was about the tabloidization of the news. 6: STEPPIN’ OUT – JOE JACKSON (7) - I don't like this song quite as much as I did back in the day, but it's still good. Still, I preferred his other Top 40 hits. 5: THE GIRL IS MINE – MICHAEL JACKSON & PAUL McCARTNEY (8) - Ah, this was the one that started it all off for Jackson's Thriller album - his biggest selling album of all time. It was also the first of two duets between Jackson and Paul McCartney. I preferred this one - a great song! 4: TRULY – LIONEL RICHIE (1) - As you probably know all too well, many people ask me why this is one of my favorite Lionel Richie songs ever, yet "Still", which sounds much like this, always gets (or used to get) a "No. Just no". The reason being is, while both songs are about undying love, the Commodores song is about a love affair coming to an end, while this song seems to be about a relationship that is going great and only getting better. Plus, this song was charting during a pretty good time in my life. 3: MANEATER – DARYL HALL & JOHN OATES (4) -This would become their biggest hit and, by its gigantic chart jump a few weeks back (36-12), it's no surprise. It's a good song, but I prefer many others from them. 2: GLORIA – LAURA BRANIGAN (2) - Wow - not too often when the oldest song on the survey is way up at #2! This was a really good song and it looked like it might give "Tainted Love" a run for its money in terms of longevity, but this song didn't quite match it - spent 36 weeks on the Hot 100, which was impressive nonetheless. 1: MICKEY – TONI BASIL (3) - Well, poor Laura Branigan was stuck at #2 while this song, a great cheerleading anthem, leapfrogged over it. This was another song I'd jam to back in the day.
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Post by mga707 on Dec 8, 2023 17:16:15 GMT -5
The Rubberband Man always made me think of Rerun from What's Happening, and the way he danced. I was buying all the Spinners LPs back then. I bought this one as soon as it came out and heard The Rubberband Man even before it was on the radio. I thought it was stupid. So of course it went on to become just about their biggest hit. Of course! ![:)](//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/smiley.png) That 1973 LP was amazingly good. Then each LP slipped a little. You can sense the frustration of trying to maintain a level of quality listening to them in succession. But I guess that's probably true with most artists. Wasn't a Spinners album buyer, but I did buy a LOT of their 45s. I put "Rubberband Man" up among my favorites, along with "It's a Shame", "One Of a Kind", "Mighty Love", "I'm Coming Home" (those last two should've both charted higher in '74 than 20 and 18), and the song everyone calls by only its parenthetical title, "They Just Can't Stop It the (Games People Play)". Yes, the fat guy with the giant rubber band is silly, but fun and a dance floor packer. Also, if anyone care, I never liked the '79-'80 Phillipe Wynne-less Spinners nor either of their 'medley' big hits. And in looking this up, just found a 'typo' in my Whitburn 'Top Pop Albums '55-'85' 'bible': The group's '76 LP that has "Rubberband Man' on it is incorrectly listed as "Happiness Is Being With the Detroit Spinners". Which was most likely its title in the UK, but in the US the 'Detroit' was omitted.
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Post by mrjukebox on Dec 9, 2023 19:23:44 GMT -5
My late wife was a huge fan of "General Hospital" & I remember she had the 45 of "Baby Come To Me".
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Post by mkarns on Dec 10, 2023 22:54:57 GMT -5
December 6, 1975:
Faves: Fly, Robin, Fly, Low Rider, Saturday Night, Fox On the Run, Heat Wave, I Love Music, This Will Be, You Sexy Thing, Rock'n'Roll All Nite, Miracles, Who Loves You, Love Rollercoaster Least: Times of Your Life, 18 With a Bullet, Feelings, Last Game of the Season, Gems: My Little Town, Venus & Mars Rock Show, Full of Fire, Walk Away From Love, For the Love of You, I'm On Fire Burned Out: I Write the Songs, Lyin' Eyes, That's the Way (I Like It)
December 11, 1982:
Faves: Gloria, Down Under, Sexual Healing, Africa, Heartbreaker, Heart Attack, You Got Lucky, The Look of Love, Shadows of the Night, Rock the Casbah, Dirty Laundry (even more relevant now than in the 80s) Least: Muscles, On the Wings of Love, Baby Come To Me, You and I Gems: Love In Store, Let's Go Dancin', IGY, It's Raining Again, Missing You, What About Me (recharted in 1989) Burned Out: Mickey, Maneater, Rock This Town, You Can't Hurry Love (better in the Supremes' original)
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Post by Hervard on Dec 17, 2023 7:21:57 GMT -5
American Top 40: The 80s - December 17, 2023
This week's presentation - December 13, 1980
DROPPERS: LET ME BE YOUR ANGEL - STACY LATTISAW (37) - Yawn! I guess it's a good thing that we didn't hear this song today, since it's cold and snowy outside! I just might have fallen asleep at my computer. LOVELY ONE - THE JACKSONS (35) - I've always found it interesting that the Jackson 5/Jacksons hit #1 with their first four hits and then never again. Anyway, this song was OK, but I generally preferred the Jackson 5 era (which might sound odd coming from me, given that I'm not a fan of early-70s shows).
LW#3: ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST - QUEEN LW#2: MORE THAN I CAN SAY - LEO SAYER LW#1: LADY - KENNY ROGERS 40: NEVER KNEW LOVE LIKE THIS BEFORE - STEPHANIE MILLS (33) - With a hefty drop last week, it looked like this song would drop out of the countdown this week, but it managed to hang in there for another week. This is pretty much the only song of hers that I know (since she was chiefly an R&B artist). It's a great song - one that I occasionally hear on oldies-based AC stations. 39: WITHOUT YOUR LOVE - ROGER DALTREY (20) - This song, on the other hand, took a large drop as well, and DID fall out the next week (it and the Stephanie Mills song were actually the only two droppers the following week). Anyhoo, the lead singer of the Who tried it on his own, and did quite well, peaking at #20 with his only solo hit. Even though this song was done nationally, it was gearing up to chart on the WLS survey, hitting the chart shortly after the new year and climbing to #37 in early March. 38: TOGETHER - TIERRA (debut) - Pretty much your run-of-the-mill early 80's R&B slow jam. I liked it. 37: HE'S SO SHY - POINTER SISTERS (26) - Like the Stephanie Mills song, this song was in its sixteenth and final week in the Top 40, having peaked at #3 two months earlier. It was a great song - one of my favorites from the Pointers! QUESTION FROM LISTENER ABOUT POSTHUMOUS #1 SONGS (ORIGINAL DISC) - Not used in the version of the show heard, in light of John Lennon's death - but quite ironic how it was originally planned on this show, recorded before Lennon was shot. 36: THE WANDERER - DONNA SUMMER (13) - Wow! What a hard fall there - I'd be willing to bet it was the biggest drop of the week. Yet, the following week, the song actually managed to stay in the survey, dropping only a single spot. Anyway, I liked this song, which, for years, I thought was a slightly modified version of the Dion classic, until someone on the boards corrected me. 35: HEY NINETEEN - STEELY DAN (debut) - One of their last big hits before going their separate ways in 1981. It's a good song, but I preferred many of their 1970s hits, particularly the ones on the Aja album. 34: GIRLS CAN GET IT - DR. HOOK (36) - Well, it's no "Better Love Next Time", but still a good one nevertheless. 33: DREAMING - CLIFF RICHARD (10) - Well, I guess Donna Summer tied with Cliff Richard for the week's biggest dropper. Anyway, this was a good song, but I preferred a few other songs from Cliff Richard. My favorite one would probably be his version of "Little Town", a Christmas song. 32: I LOVE A RAINY NIGHT - EDDIE RABBIT (40) - This song was on its way to becoming Rabbitt's biggest hit ever, spending a pair of weeks at #1 in February, 1981. I liked it, along with many of his other hits. ARCHIVE: IT'S MY PARTY - LESLIE GORE - This song always reminds me of the movie Problem Child, when Junior wreaks havoc on Lucy's birthday party (one of my favorite scenes, since it served her right, what with the way she was acting). OPTIONAL EXTRA: MISS SUN - BOZ SCAGGS - He seemed to be on a roll at this point, having had three hits in 1980, though this song would be his last Top 40 hit for seven more years. This was one of his better hits, IMO - had a laid back smooth jazz sound. 31: TIME IS TIME - ANDY GIBB (38) - This song kicked off the Top 100 of 1981 countdown. It was a good one, but I preferred many of his earlier hits. 30: ONE STEP CLOSER - DOOBIE BROTHERS (34) - Generally, their songs from 1975 on featured Michael McDonald on lead vocals, but on this one, he and Patrick Simmons shared the vocals. It was a great song - I loved the sax work in the song. 29: I MADE IT THROUGH THE RAIN - BARRY MANILOW (39) - It seems that more often than not, this song had the second verse cut when played on AT40. This time, however, the song was left intact, which is good, because it's a great song. 28: SUDDENLY - OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN & CLIFF RICHARD (30) - Great song! Possibly my favorite of Olivia's Xanadu singles (though I liked all three about the same). 27: THIS TIME - JOHN COUGAR (27) - This song had sort of a sixties feel to it. It was a good one, but not quite his best. 26: I BELIEVE IN YOU - DON WILLIAMS (29) - He was chiefly a country artist, but he did have one pop crossover hit. This one is a guilty pleasure of mine! LDD: TO SIR WITH LOVE - LULU - The cheese factor was indeed present here, but the song fit the dedication quite well, as it was from a teenager to a former teacher of hers that helped her get her life back on track. 25: CELEBRATION - KOOL & THE GANG (28) - I remember this song quite well - aside from radio airplay, it got a lot of play on juke boxes, such as the one at Pizza Hut, a place that my dad would take my brother and me to every Sunday for dinner. 24: PASSION - ROD STEWART (31) - I've mentioned that Rick Springfield seemed to have pairs of songs that sound alike. Rod Stewart has a few of those as well - this one's "counterpart" would be his summer, 1984 hit "Infatuation". I prefer this one, however. 23: SEQUEL - HARRY CHAPIN (25) - "Taxi Part 2". I preferred the first song, but this one was a good one as well. ARCHIVE: SUKIYAKI - KYU SAKAMOTO - This was actually played as the second Optional Extra. It was so/so, but my favorite version of this song was 4PM's Top Ten hit from 1994. 22: DEEP INSIDE MY HEART - RANDY MEISNER (22) - One of three solo hits by former Eagles member Meisner. I preferred the other two, but this one, which featured Kim Carnes singing back-up, was good too. 21: THEME FROM "THE DUKES OF HAZZARD" - WAYLON JENNINGS (24) - My brother used to watch this show every single week it was on. I'd watch it with him sometimes, so I recognized this song quite well. 20: THE TIDE IS HIGH - BLONDIE (32) - Casey mentioned that this was the week's biggest mover in both the intro and backsell, but never said its previous week's position or how many spots it moved up. Anyway, this was sort of an unusual sound for Blondie, with its reggae beat. It wasn't bad, but it definitely wasn't my favorite by them. 19: EVERYBODY'S GOTTA LEARN SOMETIME - THE KORGIS (21) - I love this song - very eerie sounding, like walking through a graveyard on a foggy night! 18: IT'S MY TURN - DIANA ROSS (23) - Now this by far was my favorite of her two songs on the chart this week. It's a great one - very theatrical sounding. 17: WHIP IT - DEVO (17) - This song was on its way down, but it didn't seem to be any kind of a hurry to leave the chart. I was never a huge fan of this one. But it is indeed ideal for an 80s mix show. 16: DE DO DO DO DE DA DA DA - THE POLICE (19) - Don't like this one - if this was all that someone had to say to me, I'd be out the door. I actually prefer their grossly overplayed 1983 hit over this one. 15: NEVER BE THE SAME - CHRISTOPHER CROSS (15) - One of two songs by Christopher Cross that hit the Top Three on R&R, yet only reached Top 20 status on the Hot 100. The other one was "All Right", which charted in early 1983. And, you know what, both songs sound a little alike. But I'm sure that's only coincidence. Anyway, I liked this song a lot - for a song with such a depressing subject matter, it's unusually upbeat. 14: I'M COMING OUT - DIANA ROSS (9) - Meh, I was never a fan of this song. Easily my least favorite of her three late 1980 hits. EXTRA: OH HOLY NIGHT - NAT KING COLE - I always liked the story about how this song was sung to bring temporary peace in the middle of a war. 13: TELL IT LIKE IT IS - HEART (18) - A great cover of what, at the time, was Aaron Neville's only Top 40 hit (he has since had several more). Not sure which of the two versions I prefer. 12: YOU'VE LOST THAT LOVIN FEELING - DARYL HALL & JOHN OATES (12) - They really worked on this one to make it sound like the original by the Righteous Brothers, didn't they? I actually preferred this one, because it doesn't sound as dated as the original. ARCHIVE: EASIER SAID THAN DONE - ESSEX - Nothing I'd go out my way to listen to. OPTIONAL EXTRA: YOU SHOOK ME ALL NIGHT LONG - AC/DC - Obviously selected in the light of the recent death of band member Malcolm Young, but I'm not sure why they didn't go with their upcoming hit "Back In Black", which would debut on the Hot 100 the following week. Probably because that song was replaced back in October when it was an Optional Extra by a Tom Petty hit. Anyway, I was never a huge AC/DC fan, since they were a little loud (plus the lead singer sounds like Gilbert Gottfried), but I actually liked this song - possibly my favorite song from them 11: EVERY WOMAN IN THE WORLD - AIR SUPPLY (16) - They were really on a roll at this point - it was their third hit, and would hit the Top Five like the first two (and the next four). 10: HIT ME WITH YOUR BEST SHOT - PAT BENATAR (11) - Her first Top Ten hit, and her signature song. I liked it, despite its overplay. 9: GUILTY - BARBRA STREISAND & BARRY GIBB (14) - Their first of two duets that charted in the 1980-1981 period. I much preferred the other song, "What Kind Of Fool", which also hit the Top Ten, the following spring, but this one was good nonetheless. 8: WOMAN IN LOVE - BARBRA STREISAND (4) - The Bee Gees also had a hand in this song, which was definitely one of the biggest hits of 1980, and one I remember quite well! It's my second favorite of her three Top 40 hits from Guilty, behind "What Kind Of Fool". 7: HUNGRY HEART - BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN (8) - This was Springsteen's very first Top Ten, just like Pat Benatar. It's one of my favorite songs from him - even better than my favorites from Born In The USA. 6: LOVE ON THE ROCKS - NEIL DIAMOND (7) - Casey mentioned how he had three number one songs up to this point. This song looked like it could become his third, but it just barely missed, though it did manage to beat John Lennon to the top on the R&R chart which is good, because it was a great song. 5: MASTER BLASTER - STEVIE WONDER (5) - This song sounded a lot like something that the late Bob Marley would do. I like it, but prefer many others from Wonder. LDD: LOOK WHAT YOU'VE DONE TO ME - BOZ SCAGGS - This song had just recently fallen off the survey. Like the Stacy Lattisaw song back at #32, this one had that dark rainy day sound to it. I preferred most of his other songs, though this one is still a good one and very fitting for the LDD. CASEY'S JOHN LENNON TRIBUTE - Very touching. I'm sure that this brought many people to tears, especially in the show's first run, just days after Lennon had died. 4: (JUST) LIKE STARTING OVER - JOHN LENNON (6) - This song would hit #1 two weeks later, but we wouldn't hear it announce as the #1 song until two weeks after it first topped the chart, since the Top 100 of 1980 was broadcast over its first two weeks at #1. It was a great song - the first of four posthumous Top Ten hits by John Lennon, and my favorite of the four (BTW, I listed this as posthumous, as it peaked after Lennon's death, though technically, it was not, as it did begin its chart climb when he was still alive. 3: ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST - QUEEN (3) - For the upcoming year-end chart, this song was shortchanged - had its full chart run been considered, it would be way up in the Top Five - possibly even #1. Not that I'm complaining, since I'm not a huge fan of this song - another song that was played on the Pizza Hut juke box all the time. At least they edited this song, so it's all good. 2: MORE THAN I CAN SAY - LEO SAYER (2) - This song was in its second week at #1, hoping to overtake the #1 spot, which would indeed be vacated two weeks later by its current occupant, but Lennon would leapfrog over this song at that time. I liked this song - even better than the original by Bobby Vee. 1: LADY - KENNY ROGERS (1) - This was the song's fifth of six weeks at the top. Since the song peaked past the cutoff date for the 1980 YE show, it had been deferred to 1981, it looked to be in a great position to snag the top spot of that year, but who knew that two other songs had even stronger staying power at the top. As for this song, I guess you could call it a guilty pleasure, since I liked it a lot.
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Post by Hervard on Dec 21, 2023 18:30:19 GMT -5
American Top 40: The 70s - December 23, 2023
This week's presentation - December 22, 1979
LW#3: PLEASE DON'T GO - K.C. & THE SUNSHINE BAND LW#2: STILL - THE COMMODORES LW#1: BABE - STYX 40: ROTATION - HERB ALPERT (debut) - With this song, Alpert became the artist with the most instrumentals to hit the Top 40. I generally like smooth jazz instrumentals, so I think this was a good one, though I prefer a few others by Alpert. 39: I STILL HAVE DREAMS - RICHIE FURAY (39) - The man who formed the supergroups Buffalo Springfield and Poco managed to have a solo hit of his own, although this was all the higher it got. It was a pretty good song, IMO. 38: TRAIN, TRAIN - BLACKFOOT (debut) - The last time this show was played, it was only the last three hours. As was usually the case when they ran a three-hour version of one that was originally four, they picked out four songs from the first hour as Optional Extras, and this was one of them. It was pretty good, but nothing exceptional, IMO. 37: BROKEN HEARTED ME - ANNE MURRAY (24) - Even though this song's chart run was mainly in 1979 (and its Top 40 run didn't even last into 1980), this one, along with many others that peaked in late 1979, ranked on the 1980 year-ender - in fact, it was the song that kicked it off. Anyway, this was one of my favorite Anne Murray songs of all-time, including her two other 1979 hits. 36: YES, I'M READY - TERI DE SARIO w/K.C. (debut) - A guilty pleasure, as some people I know hated this one. I liked it - much better than his whinefest that started off the year at #1. The bad news is, that one is still yet to come. 35: SARA - FLEETWOOD MAC (debut) - This one spent a single week on top of the R&R chart in late January, 1980, but since Tusk was such a big album, and the first new album from them in two years, most fans were buying the album (many putting it on their Christmas lists, I'm sure) and the singles did not sell quite as well. As I've said before, this was by far my favorite song from Tusk, as well as one of my favorite Fleetwood Mac songs of all time. 34: DÉJÀ VU - DIONNE WARWICK (38) - She'd recently made a comeback after an absence of nearly five years and, with this song, proved that it wasn't a fluke. I preferred said comeback hit, but this was very close behind, as it was a great one as well. 33: I NEED A LOVER - JOHN COUGAR (28) - There are several acts who started their chart career in 1979, but clearly had the most chart success in the 1980s. By 1982, John was knocking them dead, with two of the biggest hits of that year. This song was pretty good, though - I'm kind of surprised this one didn't peak higher. ARCHIVES: IF YOU LEAVE ME NOW - CHICAGO - Now here's one I heard at least once a day back in the fall of 1976! But I don't think I ever got tired of it. Has a very haunting melody to it (so I guess it was fitting that it was #1 on Halloween weekend). OPTIONAL EXTRA: HEARTBREAKER - PAT BENATAR - This was her first smash and, if only it had debuted on the Hot 100 a week or two later, that would have qualified her as one of the top newcomers of the 1980s (I still think that's a big nitpick, but I digress...) Anyway, this song wasn't bad, but is one of my least favorite songs from her. 32: POP MUZIK - M (25) - Yes, I know that I'm n the minority here - but I'm sorry; this song just doesn't do anything for me. 31: CHIQUITITA - ABBA (35) - Definitely one of Sweden's most successful acts. I thought that this song deserved a higher peak than #29, since it was one of their best, IMO. 30: THIRD TIME LUCKY - FOGHAT (33) - I was never a huge fan of them, but this one was actually a great one! 29: SHIPS - BARRY MANILOW (17) - Interesting how this song, written by Ian Hunter, depicted the reunion between Barry and his father, who came back into his life after thirty years. Like most of Manilow's hits, I thought this was a great one - my favorite of his two 1979 hits. 28: DON'T LET GO - ISAAC HAYES (32) - Ah, the voice of Chef on South Park. I'm not a big fan of his music, however, although this one wasn't too bad. 27: D@MNED IF I DO - THE ALAN PARSONS PROJECT (29) - Another act, like John Cougar, that didn't have much chart success in the 1970s, but improved in the 80s. This was their very first Top 30 hit, but they would hit the Top 20 in 1981 and then had their first and only Top Ten hit the following year. I preferred most of their 80s songs, but this was a good one as well. 26: WAIT FOR ME - DARYL HALL & JOHN OATES (30) - They were making another attempt at riding high on the charts - and this actually did quite well, being their first hit to peak above #20 since "Rich Girl" nearly three years before, but they would really hit pay dirt in 1981, with three Top Five hits, two of those being big #1s. This one was actually a really good one - I vaguely remember it from back in the day, but I don't think the stations I listened to played it very often. 25: DON'T DO ME LIKE THAT - TOM PETTY & THE HEARTBREAKERS (31) - They definitely were most successful in the 80s, where this song carried over into - up to now, their only hit was "Breakdown" - and that only song got to #40. This song would end up being their biggest hit (by themselves) for almost exactly ten years - until "Free Fallin'" outpeaked it by three spots (still, their biggest hit ever was "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around", on which they teamed up with Stevie Nicks). 24: HALF THE WAY - CRYSTAL GAYLE (15) - This song went a little further than its title, peaking at #15 the week before. It's a good song, like most of the songs I've heard from her, including Country and AC only hits. LDD: THREE TIMES A LADY - THE COMMODORES - The song spent two weeks atop the Hot 100 (and spent four weeks at #2 after falling out) - all of which they spent at #1 on R&R, for a total of six weeks there. 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). 23: I WANNA BE YOUR LOVER - PRINCE (27) - Prince's success was almost exclusively in the 80s (and beyond) - he was climbing the charts with this one at the end of 1979, but peaked in 1980 - and then, of course, we all know what happened as of 1983 - he became one of the biggest artists of the 1980s and was successful in the 1990s as well. This song wasn't bad, but I preferred many others from him. ARCHIVES: ROCKIN' 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 (I believe that 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. OPTIONAL EXTRA: 99 - TOTO - Something you might be asked to repeat when getting a respiratory examination. As for the song, it is one of my favorite songs by Toto - a great one indeed! 22: COWARD OF THE COUNTY - KENNY ROGERS (26) - Ah, the story about Tommy (aka "Yellow") putting the Gatlin Boys in their place. I definitely preferred this over Rogers' song that dropped out of the survey the week before. 21: THIS IS IT - KENNY LOGGINS (23) - This song ranked at #30 on the Top 100 of 1980, an unusually high position for a song that had missed the Top Ten, but its chart longevity (16 weeks in the Top 40) helped it achieve its position. The song wasn't bad, but I preferred many others from him, including most of his movie hits. 20: HEARTACHE TONIGHT - THE EAGLES (9) - This was the first of three singles from their sixth studio album The Long Run. I wasn't a huge fan of the song, though, since it was too loud and obnoxious sounding. Definitely my least favorite of their chart toppers. 19: I WANT YOU TONIGHT - PABLO CRUISE (21) - I liked most of their Top 40 hits, including this song, which, this week, became the third of the band's four Top 20 hits. 18: JANE - JEFFERSON STARSHIP (20) - This was their first Top 40 hit with Mickey Thomas singing lead after Marty Balin had left the band. It was a good one, but I preferred many of their others. 17: THE LONG RUN - THE EAGLES (19) - This song makes a more modest move this week, compared to its 14-spot leap the week before. It looked like they could chalk up another #1 hit - and, on the R&R, this actually did make it to the top, but it peaked at #8 on the Hot 100 (which is still good). I preferred this song over "Heartache Tonight", but my favorite single from the Long Run album is the LP cut "The Sad Cafe". 16: BETTER LOVE NEXT TIME - DR. HOOK (18) - Like "This Is It", this song also placed respectably high on the 1980 year-ender for a song that didn't make it to the Top Ten, coming in at #53. And, I think we all know it's my all-time favorite song from them. 15: CRUSIN' - SMOKEY ROBINSON (22) - This one sounds very dated, even for 1980, but not bad. Still, I preferred the Huey Lewis/Gwyneth Paltrow cover from 2000. 14: HEAD GAMES - FOREIGNER (16) - The title track from one of their album that wasn't quite as successful as many of their others, in terms of singles (as neither of the two Top 40 hits from this album hit the Top Ten). No matter; their next album would make up for that, with two Top Ten hits, including the infamous Wf*gLY, which spent ten weeks in the runner-up position. Anyway, this was a great song - by far my favorite of the two Head Games hits. 13: WE DON'T TALK ANYMORE - CLIFF RICHARD (14) - He was definitely much more successful over in England, his home country, but he did have a decent amount of success here in the states, with nine Top 40 hits, three of which hit the Top Ten, including this one, which just might have been his most successful - pointwise, that is (it peaked a spot lower than "Devil Woman", but spent two more weeks in the Top 40. I liked most of his hits (that I've heard), this one included. 12: COOL CHANGE - LITTLE RIVER BAND (13) - They were really on a roll, with the fourth of six Top Ten hits in a row. Of those, this is possibly my third favorite from LRB, behind "Lady" and "Take It Easy On Me". ARCHIVES: TONIGHT'S THE NIGHT - ROD STEWART - This song wasted absolutely no time hitting #1 and eventually surpassed "Silly Love Songs" as the longest-running #1 song of 1976. Since it charted so late in the year, however, it was deferred to 1977's list, on which it was in the runner-up position, behind Andy Gibb. Anyway, this was a great song! One of his best. His Top Five hit from early 1990, “Downtown Train” sounds a lot like this one. OPTIONAL EXTRA: DAYDREAM BELIEVER - ANNE MURRAY - This was one of my favorite songs by the Monkees and I actually preferred Murray's cover over that one, so that shows how much I liked it! Indeed, 1978-1980 was Murray's best era, IMO! 11: ROCK WITH YOU - MICHAEL JACKSON (12) - It definitely looked like Michael had himself a second #1 in a row with this - and indeed, that did happen, as this spent a month at #1 shortly after the new year. This one used to be mediocre IMO, but now I think it's a great one - my second favorite hit from Off The Wall behind "She's Out Of My Life". 10: TAKE THE LONG WAY HOME - SUPERTRAMP (10) - I liked pretty much the whole Breakfast In America album, except for one or two songs. This was one of the better ones, IMO. 9: LADIES NIGHT - KOOL & THE GANG (11) - Of course, my favorite Kool & The Gang song was about two months away from charting, but this one wasn't bad either. 8: NO MORE TEARS - BARBRA STEISAND & DONNA SUMMER (6) - This one-time duet between two very popular singers at the time did exactly what many thought it would, and that was to go all the way to the top! I used to hate this song with a passion, but now, I don't mind it quite as much. Still, I could take it or leave it. 7: YOU'RE ONLY LONELY - J.D. SOUTHER (7) - This was his only solo Top 40 hit (his other entry was his duet with James Taylor, a little over a year later). Anyway, that's too bad, because both songs were great. I preferred this one. 6: DO THAT TO ME ONE MORE TIME - THE CAPTAIN & TENNILLE (8) - Of course, this is my all-time favorite from them, as you probably know all too well! Though it spent but a single week at #1, its longevity in the Top Ten, Top 40, and the Hot 100 helped to place it at #3 on the year-end chart, and deservedly so! 5: STILL - THE COMMODORES (2) - This song had hit #1 a month before, and didn't seem to be in any hurry to head down the chart, as it stuck around in the Top Ten for nearly two months after it was at #1, I used to dislike this song due to how depressing it was, but now I think it's a pretty good song. Still (no pun intended), I preferred their other fall, 1979 hit. 4: SEND ONE YOUR LOVE - STEVIE WONDER (5) - The first of two hits from Wonder's album Journey Through The Secret Life Of Plants, and the only one to make the Top 40 (I guess he mainly concentrated on album sales instead of singles for this one). I liked this song a lot - has sort of a hypnotic effect to it. 3: BABE - STYX (1) - Since they were from Chicago, they got tons of airplay on WLS, so I heard this song many, many times back in the day, and the song hasn't lost its luster at all. One of my favorites from them! OPTIONAL EXTRA: CRAZY LITTLE THING CALLED LOVE - QUEEN - Queen showed their rockabilly side with this song. It was a good song - easily my favorite of their two #1 songs in 1980! In fact, it is probably the last of Queen's Top 40 hits that I liked. 2: PLEASE DON'T GO - K.C. & THE SUNSHINE BAND (3) - UGH, who could blame her for leaving, what with this whinefest. I'd run for the hills, daring not to look back! 1: ESCAPE - RUPERT HOLMES (4) - One of two of his two Top Ten hits. Of course, I preferred the other one, but this one wasn't too bad. Has sort of a cheese factor, but it's not as bad as the other pina colada song from the guy in the hat.
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Post by Hervard on Dec 21, 2023 18:46:15 GMT -5
American Top 40: The 80s - December 23, 2023
This week's presentation - December 20, 1986
FOOLISH PRIDE - DARYL HALL (35) - Well, his first solo hit made the Top Ten, but the second one certainly did not equal it's success, which was a shame, as it was a great song. I'LL BE OVER YOU - TOTO (33) - This song just barely missed hitting the Top Ten, peaking at #11 a month before. Too bad, as it's one of Toto's all-time best hits, IMO (at least it managed to snag itself on the Top 100 of 1986, which was run just two weeks later). TAKE ME HOME TONIGHT - EDDIE MONEY (29) - I like many of the Money Man's songs, but this definitely isn't one of them. Possibly my least favorite song from him. In other words, no big loss. (FOREVER) LIVE AND DIE - ORCHESTRAL MANOEUVRES IN THE DARK (25) - Anyone ever notice the similarity between this and "What Have I Done To Deserve This" by the Pet Shop Boys? Well, anyway, I thought this was a pretty good song, but I preferred "So In Love" and "Dreaming". LW#3: HIP TO BE SQUARE - HUEY LEWIS & THE NEWS LW#2: WALK LIKE AN EGYPTIAN - THE BANGLES LW#1: THE WAY IT IS - BRUCE HORNSBY & THE RANGE
Wow, last week's Top Three? This is the 1986 show, correct? ![;)](//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/wink.png)
40: KEEP YOUR HANDS TO YOURSELF - THE GEORGIA SATELLITES (debut) - How many times did you hear your teacher saying this when you were in elementary school? Anyway, I'm not a huge fan of southern rock, but this one wasn't too bad. 39: TRUE LOVE - MADONNA (22) - The title track from an album that spawned four Top Five hits (not counting "Live To Tell", which had pretty much run its course on the chart by the time True Blue was released). This was my favorite song from the album. 38: TWO PEOPLE - TINA TURNER (debut) - Not one of her more successful hits. I myself think this one was pretty underrated. It did fare somewhat better at AC radio, peaking at #12. 37: THIS IS THE TIME - BILLY JOEL (debut) - His third and final Top 40 hit from The Bridge. It was by far my favorite of the three. It seems that more often than not, they cut out the second verse, but this week, they left the song intact, which was cool, as it is a great song! 36: WILD WILD LIFE - TALKING HEADS (27) - Of course, we all know how much I LOVED their first Top 40 hit of the 1980s! This one was a good one, though - not sure if I prefer this or "And She Was". 35: AMANDA - BOSTON (24) - Their random comeback was indeed worthwhile, as they doubled their number of Top Ten hits as a result. They'd had two up to the release of Third Stage, which gave them two more, including this one, which, of course, was their biggest hit ever! 34: FOR TONIGHT - NANCY MARTINEZ (37) - This was pretty much your typical mid-80s dance hit. This song never hit the R&R chart, but as I recall, it got pretty decent airplay on B96 which, at the time, was evolving towards a Rhythmic Top 40 station. I thought it was a pretty decent song. 33: GOLDMINE - THE POINTER SISTERS (36) - Interesting that they beat the record of the female act charting over the longest span of time, a record that the Supremes held for ten years. They'd had a chart career span of 12 years and eight months, but this week, the Pointer Sisters pulled into first place, with an even 13 years since their first hit "Yes We Can Can". As for the song, it was OK, but nothing exceptional. OPTIONAL EXTRA (YOU GOTTA) FIGHT FOR YOUR RIGHT (TO PARTY) - THE BEASTIE BOYS - I'm not a huge fan of this song, though I could certainly relate to it back in the day, as I was fifteen years old. They seemed to butcher this song mercilessly. 32: CHANGE OF HEART - CYNDI LAUPER (40) - Given how big a hit this was, I'm surprised that it receives absolutely no recurrent airplay anymore. Honestly; the last time I heard this outside of countdown shows was during its chart run. Too bad, as it was a great song! 31: TOUCH ME - SAMANTHA FOX (debut) - I wasn't generally a huge fan of hers, but I did like this one, as well as her next release "Do Ya Do Ya (Wanna Please Me)", which only got as high as #87. 30: FALLING IN LOVE - MIAMI SOUND MACHINE (39) - This song was quite underrated, IMO. But I guess I can kind of see why this song wasn’t one of their more successful songs. Several people I know were annoyed (or even sort of embarrassed) by the “Uh-oh, uh-oh” chorus. I liked the song, though. LDD: MORNING - AL JARREAU - This song was dedicated to Mister Rogers, who had his own show for children for many years - and yes, I admit that I did watch it back in the day! As for the song, it was a pleasant, laid-back feel-good type of song. I always thought it was funny that he was greeting the radio and his Cheerios - reminds me how kids say "Good Night" to everything in the room as a stalling tactic. 29: YOU BE ILLIN' - RUN D.M.C. (31) - They were a one-hit wonder on the R&R chart, but they did have a second hit on AT40, obviously fueled mainly by sales. This was a funny song - imagine, going into KFC and ordering McDonald’s food (and when was the last time a Big Mac and an order of small fries cost only a quarter?). 28: COMING AROUND AGAIN - CARLY SIMON (34) - I heard this song quite a lot in early 1987 (mainly because of its airplay on AC stations - none of the Top 40 stations in my area played this one very often). It was a great song! 27: OPEN YOUR HEART - MADONNA (38) - Back when this song was charting, it was kinda just there, but it's one of those songs that gets better with age. 30 years later, it's a great song! 26: HUMAN - HUMAN LEAGUE (16) - Their second of two #1 hits. Of course, my favorite was their first one, "Don't You Want Me", from four years before. 25: ALL I WANTED - KANSAS (30) - Their first hit since the summer of 1982, and didn't they have their original lead singer back on this one? Anyway, this was a good song, though as I’ve said before, it seems a little incomplete. 24: LOVE WILL CONQUER ALL - LIONEL RICHIE (11) - This song sounded very much like his song "Love Will Find A Way", an album cut from Can't Slow Down. I liked both songs, which were great ones, about the same. 23: WORD UP - CAMEO (12) - Western whistling in a dance hit? Well, apparently it worked, as it was a big hit. I wasn't a big fan of it, however. OPTIONAL EXTRA: SOMEWHERE OUT THERE - LINDA RONSTADT & JAMES INGRAM - This song was from the animated film An American Tail. I remember singing this song with the LPHS mixed choir as part of our spring concert in my sophomore year. It was a great song that I never got tired of and, IIRC, it became a very popular LDD requests. 22: AT THIS MOMENT - BILLY VERA & THE BEATERS (32) - - Meh-tasticness best describes this song. I didn't like this very much and what irked me is that, while many cool songs were whittled down on the Top 100 of 1987, they played this song in full, even the stinkin' ending where he was really milking it for all it was worth. I don't see why the freak everyone was cheering him on at the end. They should have had Carl Winslow (from Family Matters) there so he could have bellered, "OH WOULD YOU JUST GET TO THE END OF THE SONG? ?!!!!!!" 21: SOMEDAY - GLASS TIGER (28) - They only had a handful of Top 40 hits, but I liked them all including the mid-charters "I Will Be There" and "I'm Still Searching". This is possibly my least favorite of all their hits, but it's still pretty good. 20: THE FUTURE'S SO BRIGHT I GOTTA WEAR SHADES - TIMBUK 3 (26) - Heh - if you say so... 19: LOVE IS FOREVER - BILLY OCEAN (23) - One of his tender love ballads, and a great one at that! One of my all-time faves from Mr. Ocean! 18: VICTORY - KOOL & THE GANG (21) - I heard that the students at Boston Middle School did aerobics to this song in late 1986. I'll betcha they'd had it with this song by the time that unit was over with! The song's OK IMO, but my favorite song from the Forever album was "Special Way", which was a Top Ten AC hit a year later. 17: YOU KNOW I LOVE YOU….DON'T YOU - HOWARD JONES (19) - This is definitely one of his songs that gets the least amount of recurrent airplay. I thought it was pretty good, though not quite his best. 16: LAND OF CONFUSION - GENESIS (20) - This song is pretty good. They don't play it very much anymore ("Throwing It All Away" and "In Too Deep" are the only two songs from this that radio plays, although I do occasionally hear the title track, which is my fave. And here's a big surprise - they actually left the song intact, instead of cutting the second verse like they usually do. 15: IS THIS LOVE - SURVIVOR (18) - This would wind up being their final Top 40 hit. I liked it, but preferred many others from them, including at least two that didn't quite make the Top 40 ("Summer Nights" and "Caught In The Game") 14: YOU GIVE LOVE A BAD NAME - BON JOVI (6) - This song is not bad, but I prefer a fair amount of other songs from them, including a few solo hits by band leader Jon Bon Jovi. Kind of odd that this song hit #1 on the Hot 100, considering it didn't even hit the Top Five in R&R. While this was a common occurrence in the early-1980s, it didn't happen very often by the mid-part of the decade. 13: CONTROL - JANET JACKSON (17) - Meh, I was never a fan of this song. I preferred most of her other singles. 12: DON'T GET ME WRONG - THE PRETENDERS (13) - Their first Top 40 hit in about two and a half years. I liked this one, but preferred several others from them. OPTIONAL EXTRA: LOVE YOU DOWN - READY FOR THE WORLD - Their third Top 40 hit, and their second Top Ten. I remember this one starting off the Top 100 of 1987 countdown. This was my favorite song from them by a fair margin. 11: WAR (LIVE) - BRICE SPRINGSTEEN & THE E STREET BAND (15) - Nowadays, albums debuting at #1 are pretty much the norm, but back when the charts were figured the old-fashioned way, it was quite rare. This was the lead single from only the fourth album to start off at the top. As for the song, it was OK, but one of my least favorite Springsteen songs, though it does have a good message. 10: THE NEXT TIME I FALL - PETER CETERA w/AMY GRANT (4) - As Cetera's former band Chicago was gearing up to hit the chart, Cetera himself was on his way down. But he had already outdone the band, as he'd already had two #1s while they would only have one post-Cetera #1. Anyway, this was a pretty good song, but I preferred his first #1. 9: STAND BY ME - BEN E. KING (10) - Interesting that seven versions of this song hit the charts. My favorite of them would probably be the country remake by Mickey Gilley. But this version was a good one as well. LDD: MOTHER AND CHILD REUNION - PAUL SIMON - Wow, what a LDD! The song was a perfect fit. 8: C'EST LA VIE - ROBBIE NEVIL (14) - His first Top 40 hit. It was a good one, though I preferred his two follow-ups (this one was a little overplayed). 7: HIP TO BE SQUARE - HUEY LEWIS & THE NEWS (3) - The second hit from his album Fore! Possibly my least favorite of the singles from that album - not sure, it just never did anything for me. 6: TO BE A LOVER - BILLY IDOL (7) - A song that I could take it or leave. I do remember it had a rather weird chart run on R&R, especially during the latter part. 5: SHAKE YOU DOWN - GREGORY ABBOTT (9) - Here's one of several one-hit wonders on this week's chart - this one hit #1, yet doesn't get much in the way of recurrent airplay. 4: NOTORIOUS - DURAN DURAN (8) - Their only big hit from the album of the same name, which showed that Duran Duran had pretty much already had their day in the sun (although they did make a decent comeback in 1993). 3: EVERYBODY HAVE FUN TONIGHT - WANG CHUNG (5) - This song was the #1 song on the corresponding R&R chart, but did not quite make it on the Hot 100 (This week's #1 was too strong for it). . I used to think this song was mediocre, but I've learned to like it a little better over the past few years. OPTIONAL EXTRA: BALLERINA GIRL - LIONEL RICHIE - The 45 of this song did double duty - as this song hit the Top Ten on the Hot 100 while the flipside, "Deep River Woman", which Lionel sang with Alabama, hit #10 on the Country Singles chart. This was my favorite of the two songs, but said flipside was pretty good as well. 2: THE WAY IT IS - BRUCE HORNSBY & THE RANGE (1) - They had a handful of chart hits and this was their biggest. It's a great song - still sounds just as fresh today as it did back in 1986! 1: WALK LIKE AN EGYPTIAN - THE BANGLES (2) - I think we all know how much I detest this song, right? Too bad it had to go and become the #1 song of 1987.
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Post by Hervard on Jan 2, 2024 14:41:29 GMT -5
Sorry I'm late with this - here is the link to the page with my chart critiques for the year-end shows from the latter half of the 1970s through the 1980s. It starts with the third past on the page. Enjoy! ![:)](//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/smiley.png)
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Post by Hervard on Jan 19, 2024 14:33:15 GMT -5
And I'm back again, after an absence of over two weeks, playing catch-up. Here are the two shows from last week, after the fact:
American Top 40: The 80s - January 13, 2024
This week's presentation - January 14, 1978
40: TOO HOT TO TROT - THE COMMODORES (debut) - I have pointed out that their music began to improve with 1977's "Easy", but I still wasn't much for their funk/soul hits, like this one. I prefer their more "laid-back" songs. 39: YOU'RE MY SOUL AND INSPIRATION - DONNY & MARIE (39) - Of course, this was a cover of the Righteous Brothers second #1 hit. 38: AS - STEVIE WONDER (re-entry) - Casey said that this song "re-debuted" on AT40. It seemed to have peaked at #39 about a week earlier, then got a second wind and managed two more weeks in the Top 40, reaching a new peak of #36. It was a great song IMO, but I have a feeling that the fact that most fans had Wonder's year-old album Songs In The Key Of Life, so there was no need to buy the single or request it on the radio. I still feel it was underrated. 37: LONG, LONG WAY FROM HOME - FOREIGNER (debut) - Third Single Syndrome definitely applied here, as this song only got as high as #20, after the first two songs from their self-titled album hit the Top Ten. I actually preferred said first two hits - this one was kinda just there. 36: PEG - STEELY DAN (40) - They did an odd hack job with this song, by cutting out the second verse (or the second half of the first verse, if that's what you'd call it) and the first chorus. Anyway, this was one of my favorite songs from them of all time! 35: MY WAY - ELVIS PRESLEY (22) - A great rendition of the Frank Sinatra classic! This was my favorite of the ones I've heard (though the only other one I've heard, other than the two listed here, is the one from Kermit The Frog, and even that one had different lyrics and a slightly different melody - it was called "This Frog"). 34: WHAT'S YOUR NAME - LYNYRD SKYNYRD (38) - A great classic rock group here! This one, as well as most of their others, gets tons of recurrent airplay on classic rock stations today. This was one of my favorites from them. 33: GIRL'S SCHOOL - WINGS (34) - The first of four Top 40 songs during 1978 (and the only of those not featured on their London Town album - I believe it was a non-album track). The song was OK, but I preferred a few others from them, including their next release "With A Little Luck" which, of course, became one of their biggest hits ever. EXTRA: MIDNIGHT BLUE - MELISSA MANCHESTER - Interesting story about how she managed to join an elite group of nine students to take a music course taught by Paul Simon. She got a successful recording career out of it, too, including this song - one of her best! 32: NATIVE NEW YORKER - ODYSSEY (33) - This was their only Top 40 hit. The song was OK, but nothing exceptional - sounded a little like the Bee Gees. 31: EMOTION - SAMANTHA SANG (37) - Now THIS song sounded a lot like a Bee Gees song, but there's good reason for that, as they're prominently heard singing on the backing vocals. That was definitely instrumental in how well this song did, hitting the Top Five at the same time that two of the Bee Gees' own song, as well as an Andy Gibb hit. This was a good song IMO. 30: IT'S SO EASY - LINDA RONSTADT (15) - Ronstadt had been competing with herself on the chart with two hits - one upbeat song and one ballad (the disparity may have been instrumental in how well they did on the chart). This was the former of the two and, though I did prefer her other song (coming up a little later on), this was a great one as well! 29: POINT OF NO RETURN - KANSAS (30) - I’m surprised that this song didn’t get any higher than #28, as I heard it all the time back in the day (mainly on WLS). Perhaps it was one of those songs that received sporadic airplay and did well where played. Whatever the case, this was a great song IMO and one I definitely associate with early 1978. 28: DON'T LET ME BE MISUNDERSTOOD - SANTA ESMERELDA (33) - An interesting disco rendition of the classic by the Animals. Coincidentally, both songs peaked at #15 on the Hot 100. OPTIONAL EXTRA: THE WAY YOU DO THE THINGS YOU DO - RITA COOLIDGE - Like Foreigner's hit earlier in the show, this song was an example of Third Single Syndrome - peaked at #20 after two Top Ten hits from her Anytime...Anywhere album. 27: GETTIN' READY FOR LOVE - DIANA ROSS (27) - Here's a song that I don’t remember ever hearing (though I'm sure I did at least once, since the show from the week before with the song on it was featured back in 2011. It’s a good one and surprisingly, it’s doesn’t have the disco beat of most of her upbeat songs. 26: DESIREE - NEIL DIAMOND (29) - This may not been one of his biggest hits, but it holds the distinction of being the very first Long Distance Dedication song on AT40. It was a pretty good song. 25: DON'T IT MAKE MY BROWN EYES BLUE - CRYSTAL GAYLE (16) - One of four country crossover hits from her (yes, I thought she had more as well!) I liked all four songs about the same - all of them are great songs IMO. 24: THE WAY I FEEL TONIGHT - THE BAY CITY ROLLERS (24) - They went with a slow song this time around. Reminded me a little of "Without You" by Harry Nilsson. It wasn't bad, but nothing exceptional. 23: DANCE DANCE DANCE - CHIC (26) - Meh, not a fan of this one, mostly since it is quite repetitive. I preferred other songs from them, especially "I Want Your Love" from the following year. 22: SOMETIMES WHEN WE TOUCH - DAN HILL (25) - After a gigantic chart jump the week before (40-25), this song makes a more modest move this week. Hill seemed destined to be a one-hit wonder, a title he held for nearly ten years, but the day was saved in the late summer of 1987, when his duet with Vonda Shepard "Can't We Try" came along and broke the curse. I preferred that song, as well as a few other Dan Hill songs, over this one, but it still is a good one. 21: I GO CRAZY - PAUL DAVIS (21) - This song just would not give up. On many occasions, it appeared to have peaked, but it just kept inching up the chart all the way to its peak of #7, which it reached in its 30th week on the Hot 100. Unsurprisingly, the song would end up breaking the record for the longest run on the chart - an even 40 weeks! I liked this, but preferred several others by him. 20: (LOVE IS) THICKER THAN WATER - ANDY GIBB (23) - The first of three #1 songs in a row for Gibb. It wasn't quite as good as "I Just Want To Be Your Everything", but I prefer it over "Shadow Dancing". 19: SERPENTINE FIRE - EARTH, WIND & FIRE (19) - An L.A.-based act that had quite a few hits during the 70s (though they didn't hit the Top 40 until 1974). This was a pretty good song, but not quite their best (I don't think I need to remind you that my two faves from them are "That's The Way Of The World" and "September", do I?) 18: TURN TO STONE - ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA (20) - They also had a ton of hits in the 1970s, including this one, which peaked at #13 (but made it all the way to #5 on the R&R charts). This is one I remember quite well from back in the day, though for some reason, I associated it more with summer than winter. It is one of my favorite songs from them 17: STAYIN' ALIVE - THE BEE GEES (30) - It's definitely no surprise that the biggest jump of the week was by the Bee Gees, as they were on a roll at this point. This one was on its way to #1, where it would stay for four weeks (and then would spend six non-consecutive weeks in the runner-up spot). This was my second favorite song from the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack behind their other song on the chart this week). 16: JUST THE WAY YOU ARE - BILLY JOEL (18) - The first of four releases from one of his best singles albums ever. I liked all four of the songs and, though "She's Always A Woman" was my favorite of those, the others, including this one, were great as well. Did they ever play the full album version of the song during its chart run? (I'm fairly sure I remember them playing that one as a LDD one time). 15: SHORT PEOPLE - RANDY NEWMAN (17) - Despite its small chart move this week, the song would break wide open the following week, jumping into the Top Five, and peaking at #2 the week after that. Of course, it's pretty common knowledge that this song's meaning was misinterpreted, until the bridge. I thought it was a great song. 14: RUNAROUND SUE - LEIF GARRETT (14) - He had charted the previous fall with a cover version of the Beach Boys' "Surfin' USA" and returned to the chart a few weeks back with another remake, this one, an old Dion classic. Of course, the original was the best version, but I also liked this version of the song. OPTIONAL EXTRA: THUNDER ISLAND - JAY FERGUSON - The first of two Top 40 hits by this man from the San Ferdinando Valley. I'm sure I've heard his other hit, "Shakedown Cruise" before, but wtf did it sound like again? This was a good song that I vaguely remember hearing back in the day. 13: BLUE BAYOU - LINDA RONSTADT (3) - Like usual, this song was edited down, jumping from the first verse straight to the second verse. But when you try to squeeze 13 or 14 songs into an hour, unless you plan on running no commercials, a few songs have to be shortened. But anyway, as stated earlier, this is my favorite of her two songs on this week's chart. 12: YOU CAN'T TURN ME OFF (IN THE MIDDLE OF TURNING ME ON) - HIGH ENERGY (12) - This one reminds me a little of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" by Diana Ross. It was a pretty good song - pretty much your typical 70s R&B slow jam. 11: YOU LIGHT UP MY LIFE - DEBBY BOONE (6) - 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! 10: WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS - QUEEN (13) - By now, many radio stations were playing "We Will Rock You" with this one. In fact, I'm fairly sure every radio station I listened to were playing both songs and never one or the other. Of course, I prefer this one - one of my all-time favorites by Queen! 9: COME SAIL AWAY - STYX (11) - This song appeared to have peaked here at #9, holding at that position the following week, but it did manage to climb just one more spot the week after that. Of course, the single version of this song was cut down more than necessary, IMO. Of all three versions I've heard, I like the one that's about four minutes long; the only thing cut from that part is the bridge, with the weird spacey sound effects 8: SENTIMENTAL LADY - BOB WELCH (8) - Lindsey Buckingham and Christine McVie of Fleetwood Mac, for whom Welch was the former guitarist, are heard singing back-up on his first solo hit. It was a great song IMO. 7: HEY DEANIE - SHAUN CASSIDY (10) - The third of four Top 40 hits from this singer/actor from L.A. I liked it, but preferred his first two hits, both of which hit the Top Ten, as well as this song) 6: SLIP SLIDIN' AWAY - PAUL SIMON (7) - This song would become his fifth Top Ten solo single (yes, I thought he'd had more than that up to this point as well). His next Top 40 solo entry would be "Late In The Evening", in 1980. I liked both songs about the same, but preferred a few others from him. 5: BACK IN LOVE AGAIN - L.T.D. (4) - This would become the biggest of their three Top 40 hits, peaking at #4 in December. It wasn't bad, but I generally preferred lead singer Jeffrey Osbourne's solo hits. 4: YOU'RE IN MY HEART- ROD STEWART (9) - This song would become his second #1 on R&R, but it didn't quite make it on the Hot 100 (basically, if you weren't the Bee Gees or at least on the RSO label in the first half of 1978, you were pretty much S.O.L. Anyway, this was a great song - one of my favorites both back in the day and now. As is usually the case, they edited this one, jumping from the first verse to the second chorus. Truly, a four-hour show was called for a few years before it finally became a reality, which, of course, was later on in the year. 3: HERE YOU COME AGAIN - DOLLY PARTON (5) - Chiefly a country act, Parton did have a few crossover hits and this was the first of them. It's definitely one of my favorite songs from her. OPTIONAL EXTRA: THE NAME OF THE GAME - ABBA - I really liked many songs from Abba, but this wasn't one of them. One of my least favorite songs from them. 2: HOW DEEP IS YOUR LOVE - THE BEE GEES (1) - This song had just spent the last three weeks at #1 (though only one of them was counted down by Casey, since the Top 100 of 1977 was being run over the last two weeks of 1977, which happened to be the first two weeks of this song's reign. No matter; the song was in no hurry to go anywhere; in fact, it would still be in the Top Ten when March rolled around! This song held the record for the longest top ten run for fourteen years! 1: BABY COME BACK - PLAYER (1) - This was pretty much the only song for the first few months of 1978 not connected with the Gibb family or the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack that managed to hit #1. They played a slightly longer version of this song than usual, with longer instrumental breaks. I assume that was the album version.
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Post by Hervard on Jan 19, 2024 14:36:48 GMT -5
American Top 40: The 80s - January 13, 2024
This week's presentation - January 17, 1987
Droppers: YOU BE ILLIN' - RUN DMC (35) - They were a one-hit wonder on the R&R chart, but they did have a second hit on AT40, obviously fueled mainly by sales. This was a funny song - imagine, going into KFC and ordering McDonald’s food (and when was the last time a Big Mac and an order of small fries cost only a quarter?). YOU GIVE LOVE A BAD NAME - BON JOVI (29) - This song is not bad, but I prefer a fair amount of other songs from them, including a few solo hits by band leader Jon Bon Jovi. Kind of odd that this song hit #1 on the Hot 100, considering it didn't even hit the Top Five in R&R. While this was a common occurrence in the early-1980s, it didn't happen very often by the mid-part of the decade. HIP TO BE SQUARE - HUEY LEWIS & THE NEWS (26) - The second hit from his album Fore! Possibly my least favorite of the singles from that album - not sure, it just never did anything for me. YOU KNOW I LOVE YOU...DON'T YOU - HOWARD JONES (19) - This is definitely one of his songs that gets the least amount of recurrent airplay. I thought it was pretty good, though not quite his best.
LW#2: NOTORIOUS – DURAN DURAN LW#1: WALK LIKE AN EGYPTIAN – THE BANGLES 40: JACOB’S LADDER – HUEY LEWIS & THE NEWS (debut) - Casey mentioned that this song debuted on the entire Hot 100 the week before. It debuted on the R&R chart the previous week (well, actually a few weeks before, but that chart was used for the countdown shows (Rick Dees and Dave Sholin) the week of January 10). I guess they decided to hold off on its commercial single release until after the New Year. Anyway, my opinion of the song - it’s pretty good, but far from his best. One of the #1 songs of the 1980s that gets the least amount of airplay. 39: THE NEXT TIME I FALL – PETER CETERA WITH AMY GRANT (25) - As Cetera's former band Chicago was climbing the chart with their latest hit, Cetera himself was on his way down. But he had already outdone the band, as he'd already had two #1s while they would only have one post-Cetera #1. Anyway, this was a pretty good song, but I preferred his first #1. 38: FOR TONIGHT – NANCY MARTINEZ (32) - This was pretty much your typical mid-80s dance hit. This song never hit the R&R chart, but as I recall, it got pretty decent airplay on B96 which, at the time, was evolving towards a Rhythmic Top 40 station. I thought it was a pretty decent song. 37: STAY THE NIGHT – BENJAMIN ORR (debut) - For years, I never knew that the guy who sang this song was the lead singer on "Drive". I like this song much better, though, since it's not depressing like "Drive". 36: THE FUTURE’S SO BRIGHT, I GOTTA WEAR SHADES – TIMBUK 3 (20) - Heh - if you say so... EXTRA: BILLIE JEAN – MICHAEL JACKSON - Wow, they must have had a lot of time to fill this week if they had time to play last week’s top two and an extra. Unless they decided to edit down certain songs - probably good ones. Actually, this song itself was edited down rather heavily. The story to tie in with this song was how Thriller was the first album to generated seven Top 40 hits (several other albums have since tied the record, including an album that spawned eight radio singles - by none other than Michael's sister Janet). Anyway, this song was a good one. We’ll definitely be hearing it again later on this year - possibly on the next 1983 show, as it debuted in late January. 35: TO BE A LOVER – BILLY IDOL (18) - Meh, I could take it or leave it. I much preferred the next two releases from Whiplash Smile. 34: TALK TO ME – CHICO DEBARGE (37) - I liked "Who's Johnny" by El DeBarge a little better than this. But this one is a great song as well. I liked the phone call in the bridge, where he kept getting more and more anxious and then screamed, "PICK IT UP!" 33: NOBODY’S FOOL - CINDERELLA (debut) - Their very first Top 40 hit. I liked it; the guitar solo in the bridge was awesome! 32: YOU GOT IT ALL – THE JETS (debut) - After releasing two upbeat dance numbers for their first two hits (including their Top 40 miss "Private Number"), they slowed the tempo down for this one. As stated before, I prefer their ballads. Not too crazy about their uptempo stuff (although "Rocket 2 U" is pretty good). OPTIONAL EXTRA: DON'T DREAM IT'S OVER - CROWDED HOUSE - Two members of the band Split Enz helped to form this duo, who had two Top 40 hits, both in 1987. I thought both were great songs, though I preferred their follow-up, "Something So Strong", which sounded sort of like a more upbeat version of this song. 31: STOP TO LOVE – LUTHER VANDROSS (36) - The week that this song debuted on AT40, since it sounded so much like his last hit, "Give Me The Reason", I thought that maybe that song, which had run out of gas at #57 three months before, had been re-released - I even had the song listed as such. It wasn't until I saw the Hot 100 posted at the record store later that week that I discovered my mistake. As for this song, it was a great one - one of my favorite songs by Vandross! 30: TWO PEOPLE – TINA TURNER (30) - Not one of her more successful hits. I myself think this one was pretty underrated. It did fare somewhat better at AC radio, peaking at #12. 29: LOVE YOU DOWN – READY FOR THE WORLD (38) - Like the Jets, their first two singles were upbeat, but they went with a ballad for their third hit. It apparently worked, as this song hit the Top Ten. It was also my favorite song from them! 28: THIS IS THE TIME – BILLY JOEL (33) - His third and final Top 40 hit from The Bridge. It was by far my favorite of the three. It seems that more often than not, they cut out the second verse, such was the case this week. Yet they had time to play an abbreviated version of "Billie Jean" in Hour 1. Whatever... 27: BALLERINA GIRL – LIONEL RICHIE (40) - One of four Top 20 hits from Dancing On The Ceiling. My favorite from that album was "Love Will Conquer All", but this would be a close second. 26: WILL YOU STILL LOVE ME – CHICAGO (34) - This was the Chicago song I was talking about earlier - their very first Top 40 entry after Cetera had left the band. On this song, Jason Scheff sang lead, assisted by Bill Champlin, who would later take over as their main lead singer. As for this song, it was a great one - among my favorite post-Cetera songs from them. 25: FALLING IN LOVE (UH-OH) – MIAMI SOUND MACHINE (28) - This song was quite underrated, IMO. But I guess I can kind of see why this song wasn’t one of their more successful songs. Several people I know were annoyed (or even sort of embarrassed) by the “Uh-oh, uh-oh” chorus. I liked the song, though. LDD: NEVER SURRENDER – COREY HART - A somewhat rare case in which an artist's biggest hit is also my favorite from them. The melody is great and the message is very inspirational and was appropriate for the story presented in the LDD. 24: DON’T GET ME WRONG – THE PRETENDERS (14) - Their first Top 40 hit in about two and a half years. I liked this one, but preferred several others from them, including "Brass In Pocket" and "Back On The Chain Gang". 23: WE’RE READY - BOSTON (31) - Their random comeback was indeed worthwhile, as they doubled their number of Top Ten hits as a result. They'd had two up to the release of Third Stage, which gave them two more, including this one, which is one of my favorites from Boston! 22: LIVIN’ ON A PRAYER – BON JOVI (39) - As the first Slippery When Wet single dropped out of the survey this week, the second, on the other hand, takes the biggest leap of the week. Anyhoo, I realize that this song was a huge #1 hit and all, but it just never really did anything for me. I preferred "Never Say Goodbye", which was starting to receive sporadic radio airplay about now, but was never released as a single. OPTIONAL EXTRA: BIG TIME - PETER GABRIEL - The first two singles from the So album are quite overplayed (especially "Sledgehammer"), but this one you hardly hear anymore. Perhaps that's why it's my favorite song from the album. 21: COMING AROUND AGAIN – CARLY SIMON (24) - I heard this song quite a lot in early 1987 (mainly because of its airplay on AC stations - none of the Top 40 stations in my area played this one very often). It was a great song! 20: KEEP YOUR HANDS TO YOURSELF – THE GEORGIA SATELLITES (27) - How many times did you hear your teacher or mother saying this? Anyway, I'm not a huge fan of southern rock, but this one wasn't too bad. 19: ALL I WANTED - KANSAS (22) - Their first hit since the summer of 1982, and didn't they have their original lead singer back on this one? A little hard to tell, since it sounds so much like John Elefante, who was their lead singer during Steve Walsh's five year hiatus Anyway, this was a good song, though as I’ve said before, it seems a little incomplete. . 18: STAND BY ME – BEN E. KING (12) - Interesting that King was the first artist to hit the Top Ten in four different decades. In fact, he may have been the only one who did it in the '50s through the '80s. This song was obviously heavily fueled by sales, as it had dropped out of the R&R chart this week, though I have a feeling it was right outside the Top 40. Anyway, of the versions of this song that I've heard, my favorite would be the country remake by Mickey Gilley, from the summer of 1980. But this version was a good one as well. 17: LOVE IS FOREVER – BILLY OCEAN (16) - Wow, there are Billys all over the countdown (as Casey mentioned at the open of the show) and this week, there’s one for each hour. This was one of Ocean's tender love ballads, and a great one at that! One of my all-time faves from Mr. Ocean! 16: TOUCH ME (I WANT YOUR BODY) – SAMANTHA FOX (23) - I wasn't generally a huge fan of hers, but I did like this one, as well as her next release "Do Ya Do Ya (Wanna Please Me)", which only got as high as #87 15: THE WAY IT IS - BRUCE HORNSBY & THE RANGE (7) - They had a handful of chart hits and this was their biggest. It's a great song - still sounds just as fresh today as it did back in 1986! 14: WAR – BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN & THE E STREET BAND (8) - Nowadays, albums debuting at #1 are pretty much the norm, but back when the charts were figured the old-fashioned way, it was quite rare. This was only the fourth album to start off at the top. As for the song, it was OK, but one of my least favorite Springsteen songs, though it does have a good message. This was another song, like "Stand By Me", in which sales outweighed airplay (as this song moved 17-35 on the corresponding R&R chart). 13: CHANGE OF HEART – CYNDI LAUPER (21) - Given how big a hit this was, I'm surprised that it receives absolutely no recurrent airplay anymore. Honestly; the last time I heard this outside of countdown shows was during its chart run. Such a shame, as this was one of my favorite songs from her. LDD: SUDDENLY – BILLY OCEAN - Since this was the wedding song of the author and his bride-to-be, it fit the LDD like a glove. It is also one of my favorite Billy Ocean songs. 12: SOMEDAY – GLASS TIGER (17) - They only had a handful of Top 40 hits, but I liked them all including the mid-charters "I Will Be There" and "I'm Still Searching". This is possibly my least favorite of all their hits, but it's still pretty good. 11: VICTORY – KOOL & THE GANG (13) - I heard that the students at Boston Middle School did aerobics to this song in late 1986. I'll betcha they'd had it with this song by the time that unit was over with! OPTIONAL EXTRA: BRAND NEW LOVER - DEAD OR ALIVE - This one wasn't bad, but nothing I'd go out of my way to listen to either. 10: EVERYBODY HAVE FUN TONIGHT – WANG CHUNG (4) - If you have your mind in the gutter, you just might come up with a few misheard lyrics for this song. This one was overplayed, but it's one of those "fine wine" type songs - gets better with age. 9: IS THIS LOVE - SURVIVOR (10) - This would wind up being their final Top 40 hit. I liked it, but preferred many others from them (including at least two that didn't quite make the Top 40). 8: LAND OF CONFUSION - GENESIS (11) - This song is pretty good. They don't play it very much anymore ("Throwing It All Away" and "In Too Deep" are the only two songs from this that radio plays, although I do occasionally hear the title track, which is my faves. IIRC, they played this song intact instead of cutting the second verse as they seemed to do more often than not. 7: OPEN YOUR HEART - MADONNA (15) - Back when this song was charting, it was kinda just there, but it's one of those songs that gets better with age. 30 years later, it's a great song! 6: CONTROL – JANET JACKSON (6) - Meh, I was never a fan of this song. I preferred most of her other singles. 5: AT THIS MOMENT – BILLY VERA & THE BEATERS (9) - Meh-tasticness best describes this song. I didn't like this very much and what irked me is that, while many cool songs were whittled down on the Top 100 of 1987, they played this song in full, even the stinkin' ending where he was really milking it for all it was worth. I don't see why the freak everyone was cheering him on at the end. They should have had Carl Winslow (from Family Matters) there so he could have bellered, "OH WOULD YOU JUST GET TO THE END OF THE SONG? ?!!!!!!" LDD: ENDLESS LOVE – LIONEL RICHIE & DIANA ROSS - This song was from a girl to her big sister, who would soon be moving out on their own. Their parent's marriage was falling apart, causing stress between the two. 4: WALK LIKE AN EGYPTIAN – THE BANGLES (1) - I think we all know how much I detest this song, right? At least the song was dropping out of the top spot (and, over on the R&R chart, it was taking the longest fall out of the top spot in a single week, dropping to #11)! 3: NOTORIOUS – DURAN DURAN (2) - Their only big hit from the album of the same name, which showed that Duran Duran had pretty much already had their day in the sun (although they did make a decent comeback in 1993). OPTIONAL EXTRA: I WANNA GO BACK - EDDIE MONEY - This was one of those songs in there were custom versions made, replacing "the radio" with the name of a radio station. I heard two of those, both using Chicago stations WLS and Z95. A great song - one of my favorite Eddie Money songs ever! 2: C’EST LA VIE – ROBBIE NEVIL (5) - Wow, it looked like this song was about to sail into the #1 spot the following week. However, Billy Vera leapfrogged over him. Nevil's first Top 40 hit, it was a good one IMO, though I preferred his two follow-ups (this one was a little overplayed). 1: SHAKE YOU DOWN – GREGORY ABBOTT (3) - Possibly THE most obscure #1 song of 1987 (though "Jacob's Ladder" would give it a run for its money). It was a good song - a typical late-80s slow jam.
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Post by Hervard on Jan 19, 2024 14:39:00 GMT -5
American Top 40: The 80s - The 70s - January 20, 2024
This week's presentation - January 20, 1979
DROPPERS: I WILL BE IN LOVE WITH YOU - LIVINGSTON TAYLOR (30) - The Taylors are obviously a very musical family! James, of course, is the most successful, but Livingston also had moderate success, with two Top 40 hits (as well as a few AC-only hits). This was a great one! INSTANT REPLAY - DAN HARTMAN (29) - He was a one-hit wonder, for about five years, but he had a decent comeback, with a Top Ten hit, and two more mid-charters. I preferred said mid-charters over this one. TIME PASSAGES - AL STEWART (25) - The previous week, this song had actually reversed course, moving back up a notch. This week, it took a hard fall to #62 - what year does THAT remind you of? Anyway, I loved this song; I would often hear this on WHFB in early 1993 - one time, while I was playing Back To The Future 2 & 3 on my NES, which I found somewhat appropriate, given all the time travel and passages to the different streets in the game - just a random thought - now back to the countdown. BICYCLE RACE - QUEEN (24) - While not quite as good as other songs from them like "Bohemian Rhapsody" and "We Are The Champions", this one was pretty good nonetheless. I LOVE THE NIGHT LIVE (DISCO ROUND) - ALICIA BRIDGES (23) - Wow, kind of a hard fall there! But it had been on for over a half a year, so I guess many stations were dropping it from their playlists at the same time. It is definitely one of my favorite disco songs of all time!
40: HEAVEN KNOWS - DONNA SUMMER w/BROOKLYN DREAMS(debut) - As I've said before, "Love Never Felt So Good" by Justin Timberlake & Michael Jackson reminded me of this song, which was possibly my favorite of Donna Summer's many 1979 hits. 39: YOU TOOK THE WORDS RIGHT OUT OF MY MOUTH - MEAT LOAF (debut) - A one-week wonder here, as this song dropped out of the 40 the following week. Such a shame, as this was a great song - almost as good as "Two Out Of Three Ain't Bad". 38: ONE LAST KISS - J. GEILS BAND (debut) - Wow, this was definitely a different music style than they had in the 80s - more of a pop sound than AOR. I thought this was a great song - too bad it didn't get any higher than #35. 37: BLUE MORNING, BLUE DAY - FOREIGNER (debut) - The third and final single from Double Vision, as well as my favorite of the three (although the other two were great as well!) 36: BABY I'M BURNIN' - DOLLY PARTON (40) - She was primarily a country artist, as we all know, but she did have seven pop hits. This one was pretty good, but I preferred most of her other hits, including a few AC-only hits. 35: I WILL SURVIVE - GLORIA GAYNOR (debut) - This anthem for abused women was on its way to becoming one of the biggest hits of 1979. This one used to be so/so, but now is one of my favorite disco hits ever! 34: LOVE DON'T LIVE HERE ANYMORE - ROSE ROYCE (39) - This one was your typical 70's mid-tempo ballad. It was OK, but quite repetitive. 33: SHATTERED - THE ROLLING STONES (37) - I'm actually more familiar with Steve Dahl's parody of this one, called "Skylab". This song is okies, but I prefer many others from them. 32: HOME AND DRY - GERRY RAFFERTY (35) - His third of five Top 40 hits. I like this and "Right Down The Line" about the same. 31: A MAN I'LL NEVER BE - BOSTON (31) - They were done hitting it big for nearly eight years at this point (in fact, this was their final Top 40 hit until that very successful 80s comeback. This song sounds like it was edited, but I think I know why... ARCHIVE: AMERICAN PIE - DON McLEAN - ...and that is this song. As Casey mentioned, it was the #1 song with the longest playing time, beating "Hey Jude" by the Beatles by over a minute. I believe they generally played a shortened version of the song (a few verses and the chorus repeated to the fade-out), but Casey actually opted to play the entire song. This is a true classic and I'm glad that it was the top song of the week (for a third week) the very day I was born! ![:)](//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/smiley.png) OPTIONAL EXTRA: DANCIN' SHOES - NIGEL OLSSON - With such a title, one would expect an upbeat, disco song, but this one is a slow dance song. I liked it. 30: TAKE ME TO THE RIVER - TALKING HEADS (34) - This one isn't quite as good as "And She Was", but it's worlds better than their annoyance from 1983 (come on, you know the title!) 29: DON'T CRY OUT LOUD - MELISSA MANCHESTER (33) - This was her second of three Top Ten hits, and it just barely made it - the week after it peaked at #10, it took a hard fall to #29. I'm glad it made the Top Ten, as it's a great one - possibly my all-time favorite song from her! 28: THE GAMBLER - KENNY ROGERS (32) - Given that this song peaked at #16, it's a surprise that this one actually ranked on the Top 50 of 1979. (Yes, I know very well that's nothing compared to Kris Kardashian's 1973 hit). Anyway, this song's pretty good, but definitely not his best. I especially don't like that blessed Geico ad using this song that used to run every single commercial break. LDD: READY TO TAKE A CHANCE AGAIN - BARRY MANILOW - I'll have to take a listen to the LDD again before I post my comment. 27: NO TELL LOVER - CHICAGO (38) - This one sounded a lot like their older hits, with the horn section heard on many of those hits. This one was a good one, but definitely not their best. 26: PLEASE COME HOME FOR CHRISTMAS - EAGLES (18) - Sounds a little out of place to be hearing this in mid-January, but that's OK; definitely a great song! 25: HOW YOU GONNA SEE ME NOW - ALICE COOPER (12) - One of his slower numbers that I generally prefer over his heavy metal songs. Still, it doesn't hold a candle to "Only Women Bleed". 24: DON'T HOLD BACK - CHANSON (26) - Though I'm not a big disco fan, this one wasn't too bad. 23: GOT TO BE REAL - CHERYL LYNN (36) - After a modest, four-spot move last week (on an unusually slow chart), this song breaks wide open this week, making the biggest move of the week. This bass line in this song reminds me a little of "Best Of My Love" by The Emotions. Ironically, both songs' bass lines were used in two different Top 40 hits from 1991. This one was sampled, but I don't think that Mariah Carey sampled "Best Of My Love" for her song "Emotions", since it was a tad different. Anyway, I preferred this song over "I'll Do 4 U" by Father MC, which, of course, was the song that sampled this song's bass line 22: (OUR LOVE) DON'T THROW IT ALL AWAY - ANDY GIBB (9) - A song originally sung by the Bee Gees (who sing back-up on this song) for the Saturday Night Fever sessions, but not chosen for the soundtrack. I liked this song, but preferred a few others from Andy, such as "I Just Want To Be Your Everything" and "An Everlasting Love", the latter of which was inadvertently played in place of this song on the countdown two weeks before. 21: SOUL MAN - THE BLUES BROTHERS - John Belushi and Dan Ackroyd's rendition of the Sam & Dave classic from the sixties. Most famous for their acting, they had a few charted hits. This song wasn't bad, but my favorite of their cover versions was, by far, "Gimme Some Lovin'", from the following summer. ARCHIVE: LET'S STAY TOGETHER - AL GREEN - I'm not generally a big fan of his, but I actually thought this song was pretty good. Tina Turner did a decent remake of this song as her comeback hit in 1984. OPTIONAL EXTRA: SHAKE YOUR GROOVE THING - PEACHES & HERB - Speaking of comeback hits, this was a good example of one, as this duo had charted several times in the late-60s, and the best was yet to come. This song hit the Top Five, and the follow-up, which is my favorite from them, went all the way to the top! 20: SHARING THE NIGHT TOGETHER - DR. HOOK (6) - This song was pretty good, but it doesn't hold a candle to "Better Love Next Time". 19: SHAKE IT - IAN MATTHEWS (21) - This song had the MOR sound that would become more commonplace in the early-80s, shortly after the death of disco. I liked this song - I vaguely remember hearing this one back in the day. 18: I WAS MADE FOR DANCING - LEIF GARRETT (20) - This was his first original song to hit the Top 40, and it apparently worked, as this was his first Top Ten. 17: SOMEWHERE IN THE NIGHT - BARRY MANILOW (27) - This song, originally recorded by Helen Reddy three years prior, was on its way to becoming Manilow's eighth Top Ten hit. I like it a lot; sadly, it doesn't get much in the way of recurrent airplay. 16: NEW YORK GROOVE - ACE FREHLEY (17) - I heard somewhere that he has a brother who's an author, whose all time best-seller is "The Yellow River". As for this song, it was so/so, but nothing special. EXTRA: WRECK OF THE EDMUND FITZGERALD - GORDON LIGHTFOOT - Wow, two songs with long playing times played as extras. Then again, since the show had recently grown to a four-hour format, there was plenty of excess time. Anyway, this was apparently one of Casey's favorite songs, as was his oft-told story of how Lake Superior had two other major shipwrecks on the same day, November 11. Mental note: Stay away from Lake Superior on Veteran's Day. 15: LOTTA LOVE - NICOLETTE LARSON (16) - A great song from someone who, sadly, passed away at the end of 1997 ![:(](//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/sad.png) 14: FIRE - THE POINTER SISTERS (19) - After an absence of more than three years, they came back in a major way, with one of their biggest hits ever. One of my favorites from them as well! 13: WE'VE GOT TONIGHT - BOB SEGER & THE SILVER BULLET BAND (13) - The third of four Top 40 hits from the Stranger In Town album. The only of those that I really liked was "Still The Same". 12: SEPTEMBER - EARTH, WIND & FIRE (14) - Their fourth Top Ten hit, and one of their best ever! This one still gets a decent amount of recurrent airplay on oldies stations. 11: EVERY 1'S A WINNER - HOT CHOCOLATE (15) - Meh, not a big fan of this one, or them in general. ARCHIVE: WITHOUT YOU - NILSSON - This one wasn't bad, but rather schmaltzy. I preferred Mariah Carey's cover from early 1994, though even that one isn't something I'd go out of my way to listen to. OPTIONAL EXTRA: WHAT YOU WON'T DO FOR LOVE - BOBBY CALDWELL - Larry made a slight faux pas in the intro to this song - he said that Go West would have a minor hit with this song eleven years later. It was actually in 1993, which was fourteen years later, when Go West's cover charted. Eleven years later is when Go West would have their biggest hit ever, "King Of Wishful Thinking". Anyway, this was Caldwell's only Top 40 hit, but he had a handful of other AC and smooth jazz hits. I liked both versions of this song, but slightly preferred this one. 10: DO 'YA THINK I'M SEXY - ROD STEWART (22) - This song just missed being the biggest moving song for three weeks in a row, as this song fell a spot short to Cheryl Lynn's "Got To Be Real" this week. No matter; it would still be a big #1 hit. This song was OK, but certainly not Stewart's best. I still haven't forgiven it for beating out "What A Fool Believes" for the top song of 1979 on the R&R year-ender ![>:(](//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/angry.png) 9: PROMISES - ERIC CLAPTON (10) - For some reason, I have just never been a fan of this song at all. 8: A LITTLE MORE LOVE - OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN (11) - She indeed had a great year in 1978 and 1979 was pretty good to her as well, as she had, with two Top 40 hits. This was the biggest of them, peaking at #3 in February, and deservedly so, as this was a great song! LDD: MY WAY - ELVIS PRESLEY - This song was in reply to a recent LDD, from someone who had to say goodbye to a friend who moved away, like this LDD was about. Does anyone know on which show the LDD in question was played? Well, anyway, this was a great rendition of the Frank Sinatra classic! This was my favorite of the ones I've heard (though the only other one I've heard, other than the two listed here, is the one from Kermit The Frog, and even that one had different lyrics and a slightly different melody - it was called "This Frog") 7: OOH BABY BABY - LINDA RONSTADT (8) - One of many covers that Linda charted with, in this case, the classic by the Miracles. It was pretty good - I liked both versions about the same. 6: YOU DON'T BRING ME FLOWERS - BARBRA STREISAND & NEIL DIAMOND (4) - Sorry, honey, but the next door neighbors told me to keep out of their yard. 5: HOLD THE LINE - TOTO (5) - Their very first Top 40 hit. It was pretty good, but definitely not their best. EXTRA: SUPERSTAR - THE CARPENTERS - Definitely one of the top acts of the 1970s, especially in the early half of the decade. This song was OK, but one of my least favorite songs from them. 4: Y.M.C.A. - THE VILLAGE PEOPLE (7) - I realize that I've been way too harsh with this song in my past commentaries - to tell the truth, I actually used to like this song, but it's just that the goofy dance to this song, with everyone forming the letters, has been run into the ground, big time. Before that, it used to be a decent song, but after every single dance or wedding reception I've gone to over the past 25 or so years felt that they couldn't possibly go without playing this song, that dimmed my fascination for this song. I realize that there are still many people who like the song and really, more power to them (after all, as I said, I used to be one of them), but I could definitely go for the rest of my life without hearing this song. 3: MY LIFE - BILLY JOEL (3) - Definitely my favorite single from 52nd Street - by a fairly wide margin, as well as one of my favorites from him of all-time. As usual, they played the single version, which I never cared for. The way they edited it for the 45 made it sound so abrupt. OPTIONAL: YOU NEED A WOMAN TONIGHT - THE CAPTAIN & TENNILLE - This was definitely a curveball extra, as it was a one-week wonder on AT40 (peaking at #40 the following week). The song wasn't bad, but it was no "Do That To Me One More Time". 2: TOO MUCH HEAVEN - THE BEE GEES (1) - I liked most of their slow songs (from 1975 on, that is), but this is possibly my least favorite of them. Not sure; I just have never gotten into this song. 1: LE FREAK - CHIC (2) - And back into the #1 spot it goes! This was the first song to hit #1 three times in a single chart run. And everytime it hit #1, it would spend a week longer at the top than the last time. With a grand total of six weeks on top, this was the biggest disco hit of all time, according to AT40's Top 40 Disco Songs countdown the following summer. I was never a big fan of the song, but it is tolerable.
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