Chart Critiques

[dukelightning]

I'm not surprised you don't remember "Sunflower". That's a followup to a #1 hit. 1977 must have the record for this in the 70s and 80s. There were 11 followup hits to #1 hits that failed to get higher than #35 and the #1 song this week has a followup that is also one of the 11 such hits. I remember "Minimum Love" as you do too.

[chrislc]

>40: BOOGIE NIGHTS - HEATWAVE (debut) - This was their first Top 40 hit, and it was Top Ten bound. Part 2 of this song ("The Groove Line") would chart the following year and would also hit the Top Ten.<

Then in 1980 Michael Jackson took over with Part 3 and the Brothers Johnson wrapped it up with Part 4. Or maybe Part 5 from George Benson?

I'd say Mr. Temperton drove that thing into the ground - but it was a pretty darn good thing!

[Hervard]

American Top 40: The 80s - September 7, 2024

This week's presentation - September 15, 1979

LW#3: AFTER THE LOVE HAS GONE - EARTH, WIND & FIRE
LW#2: GOOD TIMES - CHIC
LW#1: MY SHARONA - THE KNACK
40: OH WELL - THE ROCKETS (30) - Originally recorded by Fleetwood Mac in the late 1960s, this song saw chart action ten years later as recorded by this Detroit rock band. It was pretty good, but nothing exceptional.
39: DIM ALL THE LIGHTS - DONNA SUMMER (debut) - This song held the record for almost a year for the Top Ten song containing the longest held note (it would be eclipsed in August, 1980, when "All Out Of Love" by Air Supply hit the Top Ten).
38: AIN'T THAT A SHAME - CHEAP TRICK (debut) - Anyone ever notice how the beginning of this song is exactly the same as their first Hot 100 hit "Surrender"? This, of course, was a remake of the Fats Domino classic from the 1950s. It was an interesting rendition of the song and I actually slightly preferred it over the original.
37: DEPENDIN' ON YOU - THE DOOBIE BROTHERS (debut) - Definitely a case of Third Single Syndrome. After two Top 20 hits, this song petered out at #25. The song was pretty good, but nowhere near as good as "What A Fool Believes".
36: WHERE WERE YOU WHEN I WAS FALLING IN LOVE - LOBO (40) - He was more famous for his early 70s hits, but he did have a short-lived comeback with this song, which was a good one.
35: SATURDAY NIGHT - HERMAN BROOD & HIS WILD ROMANCE (35) - A one-hit wonder from Holland. The song was pretty good IMO.
34: MORNING DANCE - SPYRO GYRA (33) - This was the first of the two instrumentals on this week's chart. I preferred this one - a great song with sort of a Caribbean flavor, with the congas and marimba. That said, it was a surprise to find that they were formed in Buffalo, New York!
LDD: CAN'T SMILE WITHOUT YOU - BARRY MANILOW - What my grandma said when I hid her dentures. But seriously, this was a great song! Another one of my personal faves from the good ol' days that has indeed stood the test of time.
33: WHEN YOU'RE IN LOVE WITH A BEAUTIFUL WOMAN - DR. HOOK (27) - As we all know, my favorite song from them was "Better Love Next Time", but this was a good one too - and it became one of their most successful hits.
ARCHIVES: SHINING STAR - EARTH, WIND & FIRE - This song was their very first and only #1 hit. A great song indeed, though I preferred "That's The Way Of The World", from the same year, meaning that 1975 was definitely one of their best years, IMO.
OPTIONAL EXTRA: RAINBOW CONNECTION - KERMIT THE FROG - From the Muppet Movie, which remains my favorite of their movies (though somewhat by default, as the only other one I saw was "The Great Muppet Caper", and even that one was ruined by a screaming kid throughout much of the first half an hour - as after he finally calmed the hell down, I was too agitated to enjoy the rest of the movie, due to the stupidity of the parents just sitting there letting him carry on instead of taking him outside until he calmed down). Anyway, I remember this song both from its movie, as well as choir class, where this was usually part of our spring concerts. It was a pretty good song.
32: GET IT RIGHT NEXT TIME - GERRY RAFFERTY (36) - Well, this was indeed better than the overplayed "Baker Street", but not quite as good as "Right Down The Line".
31: BAD GIRLS - DONNA SUMMER (11) - A hot summer disco song here, getting ready to fall out of the chart as fall would set in the following week, but what a great run it had, with five weeks at #1. Although I preferred "Hot Stuff", which had dropped off the chart two weeks before, this was a good one as well.
30: SPOOKY - ATLANTA RHYTHM SECTION (39) - Appropriate song, given that boo-time was coming up in a little over a month. Anyway, this was a good song, and, during the instrumental bridge, as well as the last verse, it sounded a lot like the original (since it was in the same key). Not sure if I prefer this one or the original by the Classics IV.
29: SUSPICIONS - EDDIE RABBITT (13) - Possibly Rabbitt's most un-country sounding song ever. It had more of a smooth jazz sound to it, but that didn't stop it from topping the Hot Country Singles chart a few weeks later. A great song, IMO.
28: DON'T STOP 'TIL YOU GET ENOUGH - MICHAEL JACKSON (32) - His first of four Top Ten hits from Off The Wall. Not a big fan of this one at all - easily my least favorite song from the album! At least they edited this song down somewhat.
EXTRA: YOU MAKE ME FEEL LIKE DANCIN' - LEO SAYER - The story to tie in with this song was about Leo's gig in commercial art, which led to him having a nervous breakdown due to how overwhelming the workload was after two years. As he recovered, he started writing poems, short storiesm and then songs as therapy and the rest, of course, is history. As for this song - well, as we all know, it was my favorite of his two #1 songs. I was pleasantly surprised that they played the long version of the song, which, as far as I know, they never had before.
27: WHAT CHA GONNA DO WITH MY LOVIN' - STEPHANIE MILLS (31) - This one sounded a little like something that George Benson should have done (his trademark scat singing would definitely fit).
26: LOVIN', TOUCHIN', SQUEEZIN' - JOURNEY (29) - Remember, they say "na" exactly 154 times in the song. Yes, there was a time that I was so bored that I actually counted them. 22 na's in each group, and there are seven groups of na's, so do the math from there (although they generally faded the song before the end - right after the end of the fifth group of "na's" this week). Anyway, the song is a good one - one of my favorites from them.
25: THE BOSS - DIANA ROSS (28) - No surprise that this was the top disco song in the country, as Ross was indeed a hot artist in that genre. I wasn't generally a big fan of her disco songs, but I actually liked this one (probably because it wasn't overplayed like some of her other songs).
24: HOT SUMMER NIGHTS - NIGHT (18) - Actually, there weren't many of those in 1979, as, here in the Great Lakes area, it was a relatively mild summer, with only two days on which it hit 90 degrees (although I did go to the beach quite a lot that summer). Anyway, this was the first of two hits from this L.A. band. It was a good one, but I preferred the follow-up, which featured Chris Thompson on lead vocals.
23: DIFFERENT WORLDS - MAUREEN McGOVERN (25) - You could definitely tell that this was a TV show theme - from the somewhat short-lived TV show Angie. I liked this song - possibly my favorite song from her.
ARCHIVES: BEFORE THE NEXT TEARDROP FALLS - FREDDY FENDER - Meh, not one of the best #1 hits of 1975 at all. It's hard to believe that this song made it to #1, as dated as it sounds, even for 1975.
22: I DO LOVE YOU - G.Q. (22) - The second of two Top 40 hits, both in 1979, from this soul group from the Bronx. Their first hit was a dance/disco song and this one was more mellow. I preferred this song of the two.
21: CRUEL TO BE KIND - NICK LOWE (24) - Here's another one I remember from back in the day! It was a good one. Glad they didn't cut out the second verse like they did several times during the song's chart run.
20: BORN TO BE ALIVE - PATRICK HERNANDEZ (23) - Disco was definitely declining noticeably and this one might have made the Top Ten otherwise, but it still gets a decent amount of recurrent airplay. The song wasn't bad, but nothing exceptional.
19: POP MUZIK - M (26) - Robin Scott tied the band Q for the act with the shortest name - and you sure can't get much shorter than one letter! Anyway, I think that we all know that I'm not a big fan of this song. But many people here do like it and really, more power to you. It just doesn't do anything for me.
18: DRIVER'S SEAT - SNIFF 'N' THE TEARS (20) - Hmm, I wonder how they came up with a band name like that? As for the song, it wasn't bad, but nothing I'd go out of my way to listen to.
17: BAD CASE OF LOVIN' YOU (DOCTOR, DOCTOR) - ROBERT PALMER (19) - Given how much this song is played on oldies stations today, it's a surprise that this song never hit the Top Ten (though it did peak at #7 on R&R). The song's not bad, but I've never been a huge fan of Robert Palmer (though I did like his two Top 40 remakes).
16: HEAVEN MUST HAVE SENT YOU - BONNIE POINTER (17) - She was a former member of the Pointer Sisters, but left the group the year before to pursue a solo career. This song, her only solo Top 40, was pretty good, but I generally preferred songs by the Pointer Sisters.
LDD: THAT LADY - THE ISLEY BROTHERS
15: GOODBYE STRANGER - SUPERTRAMP (15) - The second of three Top 20 hits from Supertramp's multi-million selling album Breakfast In America. It was actually about this time back in '79 that I bought this album (at a discount store known as T G & Y), so I heard this song all the time back then, mainly on said album.
14: LET'S GO - THE CARS (14) - I remember hearing this one at the beach every now and again back in the summer of 1979. It's a good song, but I generally preferred their 80s hits (mainly from Heartbeat City).
13: MAMA CAN'T BUY YOU LOVE - ELTON JOHN (11) - I'm surprised that we don't hear this song much anymore, given that it was a Top Ten hit. I liked this one - one of his best late-70s hits.
ARCHIVES: THANK GOD I'M A COUNTRY BOY - JOHN DENVER -
OPTIONAL EXTRA:
12: RISE - HERB ALPERT (16) - This song was definitely living up to it's name, as it kept on rising up the chart. Instrumental songs weren't quite as popular as they were earlier in the decade, but there were still a few that hit the charts - two of them in this week's Top 40. This was the biggest instrumental to chart in 1979, hitting #1 in October. I was glad, as this was one of my favorites from Alpert.
11: THE MAIN EVENT/FIGHT - BARBRA STREISAND (8) - Interesting to hear an upbeat song by Streisand (though this was the only one that I liked - I think you all know that I did not like her duet with Donna Summer from later that year).
10: SAIL ON - THE COMMODORES (12) - This one had sort of a country feel to it. It apparently worked, as it was burning up the charts, looking like it might be their second #1. It didn't quite make it, but it did hit the Top Five (and also managed to top the R&R chart for three weeks). They did manage to grab their second #1 hit later in 1979 (with "Still"). I preferred this song by a wide margin - definitely one of my favorite songs by the Commodores.
9: GOOD TIMES - CHIC (2) - This one is kind of overplayed, but I do prefer it over "La Freak". But my favorite of their 1979 hits, as you probably know all too well, was "I Want Your Love".
8: I'LL NEVER LOVE THIS WAY AGAIN - DIONNE WARWICK (9) - A member of a very musical family and, at the time, she was the most successful on the charts, but little did anyone know that Warwick's first cousin would come along six years later to give her a run for her money. As for the song, it's a great one - one of my favorites from her.
7: LONESOME LOSER - THE LITTLE RIVER BAND (10) - Here's one I remember hearing a lot during the fall of 1979. It was pretty good, but I preferred LRB's two other 1979 hits by a fairly wide margin.
6: SAD EYES - ROBERT JOHN (7) - With all the baby steps this song was taking (though it had made a few large moves a few weeks earlier), who knew that it was going to go all the way to the top? This song would tie "Hot Child In The City" by Nick Gilder as the slowest climb to #1 - a total of 21 weeks each - a record that would stand for about two and a half years. Anyway, this is definitely my favorite of the two songs.
5: LEAD ME ON - MAXINE NIGHTINGALE (6) - A true two-hit wonder here, as her only other song was "Right Back Where We Started From", a song I used to like, but now not quite as much, due to overplay. This is definitely my favorite song from her.
4: DON'T BRING ME DOWN - THE ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA (4) - With the OM chart momentum of this song, this song looked like a sure-fire #1, but, in fact, this was where the song peaked. That was enough to make it their biggest hit (peak-wise, that is; "Telephone Line" might have had a few more points since it had three more weeks in the Top 40 despite peaking as many spots lower). I liked the song back in the day, but quite overplayed. I preferred their other 1979 Top Ten, which is sadly ignored by radio anymore.
3: THE DEVIL WENT DOWN TO GEORGIA - CHARLIE DANIELS BAND (5) - Definitely their signature hit. It's a good one, but my favorite song from them is "Still In Saigon".
OPTIONAL EXTRA: FINS - JIMMY BUFFETT - Of course, we just recently lost Mr. Buffett. I was thinking that this song replaced whatever the last OE in the 2012 broadcast of this show was, but, coincidentally, this song was that OE - possibly his most underrated song ever! This was such a great song, IMO and it's a shame that this song only got as high as #35. It fared much better on my Personal Top 30, where it was the biggest song of all of 1979. It still sounds as fresh as it did nearly 40 years ago - I even have it on one of my YouTube playlists!
2: AFTER THE LOVE HAS GONE - EARTH, WIND & FIRE (3) - One of their most successful hits ever - in fact, according to the R&R chart, it was their most successful, as it was #1 there. The song did well on the Hot 100 as well, peaking at #2. This used to be one of my favorite songs, but now, I find it mediocre.
1: MY SHARONA - THE KNACK (1) - This song was in its second of six weeks at #1. Despite the fact that this song was played ad nauseum in 1979, I actually didn't really get tired of it, but somehow, a few years ago, I somehow decided that I'd tired of it many years before and didn't even know it. I preferred "Good Girls Don't", which charted a few weeks later. Thankfully, they played the single version of the song, with the shorter instrumental bridge.

[Hervard]

American Top 40: The 80s - September 7, 2024

This week's presentation - September 1, 1984

Droppers:
MY OH MY - SLADE (37) - Wow, they sure changed pace with this song. After a fun, upbeat song, they went with a ballad this time. I liked it a lot and this is one of those cases that my mood at the time depends on what song I prefer.
BREAKIN...THERE'S NO STOPPIN' US - OLLIE & JERRY (34) - I remember in the summer of 1984, my Dad and I actually went to see this movie, just for the sole purpose of going to the movies. Neither of us found it very appealing. The song wasn't bad, but it wasn't quite my cup of tea.
SHE'S MINE - STEVE PERRY (30) - This one didn't quite measure up to the success of Perry's initial solo single "Oh Sherrie", which was too bad, because this was one of his best songs ever.
INFATUATION - ROD STEWART (24) - aka "Passion" part 2. I was never a huge fan of this song - one of my least favorites from him.

LW#2: WHAT’S LOVE GOT TO DO WITH IT – TINA TURNER
LW#1: GHOSTBUSTERS – RAY PARKER JR.
40: LUCKY STAR - MADONNA (debut) - The third and final single from her first album, as she was gearing up to release Like A Virgin, which would turn out to be even more successful. This song was OK, but definitely not one of my favorites from her.
39: ONLY WHEN YOU LEAVE - SPANDAU BALLET (debut) - This was their third chart hit as well - the only thing is, this was from their second album and the first two were from their first. This song, which reminded me a lot of one of those songs ("Gold") was pretty good, but I slightly preferred "True".
38: TWO SIDES OF LOVE - SAMMY HAGAR (38) - There has been an ongoing discussion in the 80s thread about songs logging multiple weeks at their peak position. This is one that spent three weeks at its debut position as well as its peak. This was my third favorite of his hits, behind "Give To Live" and "Your Love Is Driving Me Crazy". A great song indeed - shame that it petered out at #38.
37: THERE GOES MY BABY - DONNA SUMMER (debut) - One of several songs by Summer that starts off with a slow tempo and then picks up a little ways into the song. This one was actually one of my favorites from her (though I remember disliking it during its chart run).
36: 17 - RICK JAMES (36) - Another song in the 30s logging three weeks at its peak. I don't remember hearing this song back in the day, since it didn't chart on Countdown America and, even though it did make an appearance on the WLS station survey, I never heard them play it. Anyway, considering the type of music it was, this song was actually pretty good, though nothing exceptional.
35: GO INSANE - LINDSAY BUCKINGHAM (40) - I personally preferred his early 1982 hit, "Trouble", but I'll tell you what, this song is nowhere near as annoying as "Holiday Road". That song can tend to stick in my mind!
34: THE LUCKY ONE - LAURA BRANIGAN (39) - The follow-up to one of her biggest hits, "Self-Control". Like "There Goes My Baby", this song starts off as a ballad and then becomes upbeat. I like this song, but slightly preferred the Donna Summer song.
33: I JUST CALLED TO SAY I LOVE YOU - STEVIE WONDER (debut) - My favorite version of this song was the one where he used a voice alternator as he repeated part of the first verse. Not sure if AT40 ever played that one, but I do remember hearing it on his AC version of his show in early 1995 when he played it as an extra or LDD. Either way, it was a good song and one that would end up putting him in second place for solo artist with the most #1s (of course, Elvis Presley was comfortably in the lead).
32: PANAMA - VAN HALEN (23) - The third song from their huge album whose title just might have been inspired by George Orwell But seriously, this would be my second favorite of their three Top 40 singles from the 1984 album, behind "I'll Wait".
OPTIONAL EXTRA: STRUT - SHEENA EASTON - This is a song that I hated back in the day. Now, I think it's pretty good, though I generally prefer her earlier hits (save for "Morning Train").
31: RIGHT BY YOUR SIDE - EURYTHMICS (33) - Very interesting song from them - has sort of a Caribbean feel to it. A great song indeed!
30: TORTURE - THE JACKSONS (35) - Their second song to chart in 1984. Though I definitely prefer this over their other song (which, unfortuntely, is coming up in the countdown), I preferred their early-70s songs.
29: DANCING IN THE DARK - BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN (19) - The second single from Born In The USA was on its way up the chart. We'll hear it later this hour, but right now, we have the song that started it all off. If not for that d@mn Prince song, this would have been his first #1 (it did, however, sneak in a week at #1 on R&R, before Prince topped that chart).
LDD: BELIEVE IT OR NOT – JOEY SCARBURY - Indeed one of the most successful TV show themes of all time, as well as one of my favorites!
28: HARD HABIT TO BREAK - CHICAGO (32) - The first of two songs from the Chicago 17 album that hit #1 on R&R, but not Billboard. This was my favorite song from the 17 album by a fairly large margin. Too bad they cut out the second verse
27: LEAVE A TENDER MOMENT ALONE - BILLY JOEL (27) - For awhile, this looked like it would be the final Top 40 hit from An Innocent Man, but Joel would surprise us in early 1985 with a sixth song. As for this song, it might have fallen into obscurity if not for the fact that it was a #1 AC song and received much airplay at that format.
26: WE'RE NOT GONNA TAKE IT - TWISTED SISTER (31) - This song reminded me a little of "Cum On Feel The Noize" by Quiet Riot. I liked this one a lot.
25: SAD SONGS (SAY SO MUCH) - ELTON JOHN (14) - The first hit from his Breaking Hearts album - the only Top Ten (although he did make the Top Ten on R&R with "Who Wears These Shoes"). I liked both songs about the same (and I also liked "In Neon").
24: SEXY GIRL - GLENN FREY (20) - I could really relate to this song, as the guy who lived next door to me when this song was out had a daughter about my age who I had the hots for.
23: WHEN YOU CLOSE YOUR EYES - NIGHT RANGER (28) - They had a slew of great songs in the 80s. There is not a single Top 40 hit of theirs that I don't like - the only one that doesn't quite get "great song" status is their first Top 40 entry, "Don't Tell Me You Love Me", from early 1983.
22: COVER ME - BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN (29) - The second of an incredible seven Top Ten hits from Springsteen's "Born In The USA" album. I liked it, but preferred a few other songs from the album.
OPTIONAL EXTRA: ON THE DARK SIDE - JOHN CAFFERTY & THE BEAVER BROWN BAND - A song I remember from both of its chart runs (as, when it was credited to Eddie & The Cruisers the year before, B96 played it in medium rotation). It was a good one, though I preferred "Tough All Over", which charted in the spring of 1985.
21: CRUEL SUMMER - BANANARAMA (26) - We heard their biggest hit ever, the #1 "Venus" on last week's show and this week, we heard their first hit - and we also heard "I Heard A Rumour" on a recent 1987 show IIRC. That, of course, was my favorite song from them - but you already know that, right?
20: DYNAMITE - JERMAINE JACKSON (24) - Well, I may not have been much for the two Jacksons hits from 1984, but such is not the case with Jermaine's 2 songs from that year, as those are among my favorites from him.
19: ALL OF YOU - JULIO IGLESIAS & DIANA ROSS (22) - The second hit from Julio's album 1100 Bel Air Place album. I think it's a great song, though I know a few folks who consider it a "No. Just no" song (I guess I can see why, though). You might call this a guilty pleasure of mine!
18: STATE OF SHOCK - THE JACKSONS (7) - Ugh, here's that other Jacksons hit. As we know all too well, I'm not a fan.
17: ROCK ME TONIGHT - BILLY SQUIER (17) - And this one wasn't exactly my favorite from Squier. I preferred songs like "In The Dark" and "Everybody Wants You".
16: THE GLAMOROUS LIFE - SHEILA E (21) - The first Top 40 hit for this California native whose last name is Escoveto. It was so/so in my opinion, but not quite my cup of tea. I did like her next hit, "The Belle Of St. Mark".
15: ROUND AND ROUND - RATT (12) - Their first of two Top 40 hits (and the second just barely made it, almost exactly a year later). I liked this, but preferred said second song (which, of course, was "Lay It Down", which was heard on the series two weeks ago).
14: DRIVE – THE CARS (18) - This song is kind of depressing for me due to personal problems I was going through around this time, including being in seventh grade (aka "Hell On Earth"). Definitely my least favorite song from Heartbeat City.
13: LIGHTS OUT - PETER WOLF (15) - Going into this song, Casey mentioned the name of a singer with an animal name that he forgot last week when reading off a list of such artists, also in the intro to this song. I liked this song - one of his best both solo and with the J. Geils Band.
12: I CAN DREAM ABOUT YOU – DAN HARTMAN (6) - Here's one that I never used to like, but now, I think it's not bad. I still prefer his next two singles.
11: THE WARRIOR - SCANDAL FEATURING PARRY SMYTH (13) - They had many songs that I've heard, though this was their only Top 40 hit. I preferred other songs from Scandal, such as "Goodbye To You" and "Love's Got A Line On You".
OPTIONAL EXTRA: SOME GUYS HAVE ALL THE LUCK - ROD STEWART - The story of my life here! The song itself is a good one.
10: IF EVER YOU'RE IN MY ARMS AGAIN - PEABO BRYSON (10) - One of my favorite R&B singers. I have several of his albums, though I'm not sure I have the one containing this song, which is surprising, considering it's one of my favorites from him of all time.
9: IF THIS IT - HUEY LEWIS & THE NEWS (11) - Well, this definitely wasn't it, by any means, as he/they were one of the top acts of the entire decade. Anyone notice how this sounds somewhat like a doo-wop version of "Don't Do Me Like That" by Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers? Perhaps that's why it's such a good song, as both songs are among my favorites from their respective artists. This was also by far my favorite song from the Sports album.
8: LET'S GO CRAZY - PRINCE & THE REVOLUTION (16) - As usual, they played the version with the shortened intro. This is my third favorite song from the Purple Rain soundtrack, behind the title cut and "Take Me With U".
7: SUNGLASSES AT NIGHT - COREY HART (8) - Something you might need to do if you lived at the North Pole in the summer. As for the song, it's good, but I prefer several others from him.
6: SHE BOP - CYNDI LAUPER (9) - Cyndi, you naughty girl! But I did like this song - definitely my favorite upbeat song from She's So Unusual and my second favorite from the album, behind her hit that followed this one up in October.
LDD: HEARTLIGHT – NEIL DIAMOND - This sort of fit the dedication, from a teacher to her younger brother, who was about the same age as the students she taught, so he could fill her in in the interests of her students. He also lived in the same neighborhood as New York Yankees catcher Thurmond Munson, who was rather like a father figure to him and encouraged him to be the best baseball player that he could be.
5: WHEN DOVES CRY - PRINCE (4) - As his latest hit was gearing up to hit #1, this song was slowly gliding down the chart, having recently spent five weeks at the top. As we all know, I'm not a fan of this song at all.
4: GHOSTBUSTERS - RAY PARKER JR. (1) - Mr. Parker kept the top of the chart ghost-free for the past three weeks, but this week, he steps down to give someone else a chance. This song wasn't bad, but quite overplayed. I preferred several of his other songs, both solo and with Raydio.
3: STUCK ON YOU - LIONEL RICHIE (3) - This song was #1 on the R&R chart this same week. It never quite made it to #1 on AT40, however. Anyway, we heard both of his country-flavored hits on both AT40 shows this week - on the 1979 show, there was "Sail On" (also an R&R #1 hit), and now, we have the song that, I believe, peaked at #24 on the country chart. A great song!
OPTIONAL EXTRA: I'M SO EXCITED - THE POINTER SISTERS - Of course, this song was originally released in 1982 and peaked at #30. The decision to re-release it proved to be worthwhile, as it hit the Top Ten. Anyway, despite the slight teenybopper air to this song, I actually thought this song was pretty good.
2: MISSING YOU - JOHN WAITE (5) - Another song I find somewhat depressing, like "Drive" by the Cars. I do rather like the version of the song where you can hear John chanting "Missing You" at the beginning of the song, but AT40 tended to play the other version, without the chants.
1: WHAT'S LOVE GOT TO DO WITH IT - TINA TURNER (2) - With this song, Tina Turner broke the record for the artist for the longest wait for her first #1 hit (after first hitting the chart, that is). Her first Top 40 hit, "A Fool In Love", recorded with her then-husband Ike, peaked at #27 im 1960, and she'd had a single Top Ten hit, but no #1's. She had a long, 24-year wait, but after her comeback on her own, she turned out to be bigger than ever, as her second solo hit went to #1. She'd have to wait another two years for her first R&R #1, "Typical Male" (which, of course, didn't top the Hot 100, as I mentioned on last week's 1986 show). Anyway, though this isn't my favorite Tina Turner song, I have come to like it a lot better than I did back in the day.

[dukelightning]

You evidently thought that "If You Remember Me" was the second hit for Night but it's actually a Chris Thompson solo hit. "Don't Bring Me Down" as trekkielo knows all too well is at its peak position on this show. Another missed peak is "After the Love is Gone". It's also at its peak position(not #3). Not as big of a fan of that one I see but you have gone the other way on their hit that did peak at #3..."Let's Groove". Didn't like it but now you do. Same for "Rise"? I thought that along with the #1 hits in 1979 by Michael Jackson, M, Commodores and Streisand/Summer were not among your favorites.

[Hervard]

Sept 6, 2024 13:29:28 GMT -5 dukelightning said:

You evidently thought that "If You Remember Me" was the second hit for Night but it's actually a Chris Thompson solo hit. "Don't Bring Me Down" as trekkielo knows all too well is at its peak position on this show. Another missed peak is "After the Love is Gone". It's also at its peak position(not #3). Not as big of a fan of that one I see but you have gone the other way on their hit that did peak at #3..."Let's Groove". Didn't like it but now you do. Same for "Rise"? I thought that along with the #1 hits in 1979 by Michael Jackson, M, Commodores and Streisand/Summer were not among your favorites.

No, I actually always did rather like "Rise". I also corrected the goofs that you noted, except that "If You Remember Me" was credited to Chris Thompson & Night (although the first pressings of the record did credit Chris Thompson, without Night).

[dukelightning]

Sept 6, 2024 16:51:41 GMT -5 Hervard said:

Sept 6, 2024 13:29:28 GMT -5 dukelightning said:

You evidently thought that "If You Remember Me" was the second hit for Night but it's actually a Chris Thompson solo hit. "Don't Bring Me Down" as trekkielo knows all too well is at its peak position on this show. Another missed peak is "After the Love is Gone". It's also at its peak position(not #3). Not as big of a fan of that one I see but you have gone the other way on their hit that did peak at #3..."Let's Groove". Didn't like it but now you do. Same for "Rise"? I thought that along with the #1 hits in 1979 by Michael Jackson, M, Commodores and Streisand/Summer were not among your favorites.

No, I actually always did rather like "Rise". I also corrected the goofs that you noted, except that "If You Remember Me" was credited to Chris Thompson & Night (although the first pressings of the record did credit Chris Thompson, without Night).

I seem to remember that about If you now that I think about it. Now I'm wondering if Casey ever said Chris Thompson and Night.

[Hervard]

Sept 6, 2024 13:29:28 GMT -5 dukelightning said:

I thought that "Rise", along with the #1 hits in 1979 by Michael Jackson, M, Commodores and Streisand/Summer were not among your favorites.

That was what I liked so much about the R&R chart. Note that each of the four songs I disliked failed to hit #1 on the R&R chart. "Rise" did make it on that chart, but then again, so did "Heartache Tonight", which was actually another song I disliked (I always thought that song was obnoxious sounding and would rather listen to some of the disliked BB #1s). What's more, the song held at #1 for a month. But "Sail On" by the Commodores, another song I liked, hit #1 for three weeks. There were also many songs that hit #1 during the summer that I liked, while the Hot 100 seemed to favor Donna Summer (which I guess makes sense, given that it was her namesake season).

[dukelightning]

Sept 7, 2024 9:11:21 GMT -5 Hervard said:

Sept 6, 2024 13:29:28 GMT -5 dukelightning said:

I thought that "Rise", along with the #1 hits in 1979 by Michael Jackson, M, Commodores and Streisand/Summer were not among your favorites.

That was what I liked so much about the R&R chart. Note that each of the four songs I disliked failed to hit #1 on the R&R chart. "Rise" did make it on that chart, but then again, so did "Heartache Tonight", which was actually another song I disliked (I always thought that song was obnoxious sounding and would rather listen to some of the disliked BB #1s). What's more, the song held at #1 for a month. But "Sail On" by the Commodores, another song I liked, hit #1 for three weeks. There were also many songs that hit #1 during the summer that I liked, while the Hot 100 seemed to favor Donna Summer (which I guess makes sense, given that it was her namesake season).

Wow that means you disliked every #1 song from November 1979 and 4 in a row which I am.guessing is the longest such streak during the period of time of these critiques.

[mrjukebox]

"On The Dark Side" is the quintessential homage to Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band.

[mrjukebox]

Hervard,the lead singer of Scandal was Patty Smyth not Parry Smyth.

[Hervard]

American Top 40: The 70s - September 14, 2024

This week's presentation - September 13, 1975

40: GIVE IT WHAT YOU GOT – B.T. EXPRESS (40) - Meh, this one was way too repetitive, but very representative of the disco music of this era. That said, I'm surprised that this song didn't get any higher than #40.
39: YOUR LOVE – GRAHAM CENTRAL STATION (debut) - The only Top 40 hit from this San Francisco band headed up by former Sly & The Family Stone bass player Larry Graham. I had only heard this song before (on the 9/20/75 show - the only other one besides this one that it was on - and it was a pretty good one. I do, however, prefer Graham's solo hit "One In A Million You", which hit the Top Ten five years later (and was heard on this week's 1980 show as it entered the Top Ten).
38: DO IT ANY WAY YOU WANNA – PEOPLES CHOICE (debut) - This one was quite repetitive. Not a fan of it at all.
37: THEME FROM “JAWS” – JOHN WILLIAMS (debut) - This song was battling it out with Dickie Goodman's' novelty song from the movie, as both songs debuted on the chart this week. The latter, however, was clearly winning. I liked both songs about the same - in different ways, of course.
36: CAROLINA IN THE PINES – MICHAEL MURPHY (debut) - One of two Top 40 hits for Murphey in 1975. Previously, I had preferred "Wildfire", but I have come to like this song a lot better than in the past. Either way, both are great songs!
35: LADY BLUE – LEON RUSSELL (debut) - I remember Leon most from the Bangla Desh benefit album from earlier in the decade, on which he sang a few songs. As for this song, it was a great one - nice and mellow.
34: MIRACLES – JEFFERSON STARSHIP (debut) - Marty Balin had taken over as lead singer at this point. This wasn't bad, but I preferred the two 1978 songs with him singing lead.
33: SOMEONE SAVED MY LIFE TONIGHT – ELTON JOHN (18) - This was one of my all-time faves from him! Sort of a bittersweet listen anymore, as it was a special song between myself and a girl I used to date. No, not because she found someone else, but she died in a car wreck back in 1999.
32: BRAZIL – THE RITCHIE FAMILY (37) - This was an interesting remake of the big band classic from the 1940s with Philly music incorporated into it.
31: MR. JAWS – DICKIE GOODMAN (debut) - This is the parody I mentioned back at #37 - one of Goodman's famous break-in type songs that became his trademark. This song used brief clips of about a dozen songs from 1975, most of them from earlier in the year, to "answer" comedic questions posed by voice actors. It was a good song, but I'd probably get tired of it if I heard the song over and over again (such was the case with the general public, as this song kind of came and went, which was somewhat typical of novelty songs like this).
30: GONE AT LAST – PAUL SIMON & PHOEBE SNOW (35) - With the fast beat and the Dixie Hummingbirds singing along, this sounds like an upbeat gospel choir tune. It's a great, energetic song!
29: ONE OF THESE NIGHTS – THE EAGLES (10) - This is the song that spent the most weeks in the Top Ten during 1975 - ten weeks in all. Oddly enough, only one of those weeks were spent at #1. Anyway, of their two #1's during 1975, this was my favorite.
28: ROCKY – AUSTIN ROBERTS (35) - This song was pretty cheesy, but still a good song.
27: IT ONLY TAKES A MINUTE - TAVARES (31) - Well, as they say, third time's a charm, as this was their third hit and their first (and only) Top Ten. It was actually pretty good, considering I'm not generally a big fan of this kind of music.
OPTIONAL EXTRA: WHO LOVES YOU - FOUR SEASONS - This song, which would hit the Top 40 the following week, was their comeback hit, and the last with Frankie Valli singing lead. It was a great song - one of their best, IMO.
26: HOW LONG (BETCHA’ GOT A CHICK ON THE SIDE) – THE POINTER SISTERS (29) - Meh, I preferred Ace's Top Ten hit of the same title from earlier in the year. That is all.
25: (THEY JUST CAN'T STOP IT) GAMES PEOPLE PLAY – THE SPINNERS (34) - Definitely one of the top acts of the decade! This is one of their best songs, IMO!
24: THE PROUD ONE – THE OSMONDS (27) - This song reminds me a little of "Someday At Christmas" by Stevie Wonder. It was a good song, though I prefer a few others from them (Donny and Marie duets included).
23: DAISY JANE - AMERICA (24) - I've mentioned how much "Let's Wait Awhile" by Janet Jackson and "Heart Hotels" remind me of this song, and there is a third song but, for the life of me, I can't remember which one. Anyway, this is my second favorite of their three 1975 hits, behind "Sister Goldenhair". A fairly close second, I might add, because I really like the song.
22: FEELINGS – MORRIS ALBERT (26) - This cheese factor indeed abounds in this song, but I've actually learned to like it better than I used to (a few years back, it always got "No. Just no" status, but not anymore).
21: BLACK SUPERMAN/MUHAMMAD ALI – JOHNNY WAKELIN & THE KINSHASA BAND (22) - One of several one-hit wonders on this week's chart. The song was not bad, but nothing I'd go out of my way to listen to. R.I.P. to the subject of this song
20: I BELIEVE THERE’S NOTHING STRONGER THAN OUR LOVE – PAUL ANKA & ODIA COATES (23) - His fourth and final single with Odia Coates. It was pretty good, but I preferred his 1983 hit "Hold Me 'Til The Morning Comes", which was another team-up, with Peter Cetera, only he didn't receive label credit.
19: DANCE WITH ME - ORLEANS (25) - Their very first of three Top 40 hits by this band from the Big Apple. I liked all three of their songs about the same - all three were great!
18: SOLITARE – THE CARPENTERS (21) - They had been charting for five years and were still going strong, with two Top Ten hits so far in 1975 and it looked like this one might follow suit, but it ran out of gas at #17. It was a great song, but I preferred their last hit before this one, "Only Yesterday".
17: AIN’T NO WAY TO TREAT A LADY – HELEN REDDY (28) - Like most of her songs, the cheese factor is definitely present, but compared to several of her more cringe-worthy songs, this one was actually a good song.
16: HOW SWEET IT IS (TO BE LOVED BY YOU ) – JAMES TAYLOR (5) - I still hear this one from time to time on oldies stations - it is indeed a great one - very upbeat and positive sounding.
15: JIVE TALKIN’ - THE BEE GEES (6) - Ah, their very first disco song, a style which they quickly became more famous for than ballads. This song wasn't bad, but I preferred most of their other disco songs.
14: THIRD RATE ROMANCE – THE AMAZING RHYTHM ACES (16) - This song, the sole Top 40 entry for this Memphis band, had sort of a country rock sound to it. It was a great song, IMO.
OPTIONAL EXTRA: BAD BLOOD - NEIL SEDAKA - Today, this song would be billed as being by Neil Sedaka featuring Elton John, as he is pretty clearly heard singing back-up. This was a good one - one of my favorite songs from Sedaka.
13: THAT’S THE WAY OF THE WORLD – EARTH, WIND & FIRE (13) - Their second hit of the year and by far the best - as well as one of my favorites from them of all time! Anyone ever notice the similarity between this song and "It Ain't Over 'Til It's Over" by Lenny Kravitz?
12: BALLROOM BLITZ - SWEET (14) - Sorry, but I'm not a fan of this one at all.
11: FEEL LIKE MAKIN’ LOVE – BAD COMPANY (12) - One of two Top Ten hits from this English band formed in London two years before. It was a good one, IMO - still receives recurrent airplay today on oldies and classic rock stations.
10: WASTED DAYS & WASTED NIGHTS – FREDDY FENDER (11) - Meh, I didn't care much for this one - his voice was kind of annoying (I do, however, prefer this over his first hit, "Before The Next Teardrop Falls".
9: RUN JOEY RUN – DAVID GEDDES (19) - This song wouldn't be so bad if not for the whiny voice singing at the beginning of each verse.
8: I’M SORRY – JOHN DENVER (15) - This song was definitely on its way to #1, especially with its impressive debut two weeks before. I liked this song, as well as the flipside, "Calypso", which also started receiving airplay later on down the line.
7: COULD IT BE MAGIC – BARRY MANILOW (9) - His third of many big hits. Based on the melody of Chopin's Prelude In C Minor. This was by far my favorite of his three 1975 hits
6: FIGHT THE POWER (PART 1) – THE ISLEY BROTHERS (8) - I got knocked on the ground/With all this bullsh*t going down" At least that was what was heard on the first two weeks that this song was on the countdown! Even though this one was the roof-raising R&B music that I generally hate, this one was actually not bad.
5: FAME – DAVID BOWIE (7) - The song wasn't bad, but quite overplayed IMO. I don't think that I need to remind y'all that my favorite songs from him are his two songs from 1987, do I?
4: GET DOWN TONIGHT – K.C. & THE SUNSHINE BAND (3) - Well, this song wasted absolutely no time hitting #1, and it fell just as fast, spending nine weeks in the Top 40, an unusually short term for a #1 song. Its run on the R&R chart was much longer, where it spent nine weeks in the Top TEN!
3: AT SEVENTEEN – JANIS IAN (4) - I know several people who dislike this song, due to the "cheese factor", but I actually thought it was a great one - I guess you could call it a guilty pleasure!
OPTIONAL EXTRA: LYIN' EYES - THE EAGLES - They certainly butchered this one pretty good (then again, the single version is already heavily edited - since the album version is six and a half minutes long - pretty much a no-no by mid-70s standards, especially for AT40). Anyway, this was a great song - one of my favorites from them!
2: FALLIN’ IN LOVE – HAMILTON, JOE FRANK & REYNOLDS (2) - Great song. Much better than the two remakes from the 1990s by La Bouche - especially the first one, which I remember hearing on an urban station in the summer of 1995.
1: RHINESTONE COWBOY – GLEN CAMPBELL (1) - This was on its way to becoming one of the biggest songs of the entire year, and worthily so, as it was one of Campbell's best. This was the fourth country crossover to hit #1 in 1975, tying a record first set back in 1957. In fact, if "I'm Sorry" would count as a country crossover, then 1975 would hold the record by itself. (To my best of knowledge, that record just might still stand today).

[Hervard]

American Top 40: The 70s - September 14, 2024

This week's presentation - September 16, 1978

Droppers:
STEPPIN' IN A SLIDE ZONE - THE MOODY BLUES (39) - Not one of their more successful hits, as #39 was all the further it got. This wasn't bad, but definitely not their best. I generally prefer their 80s hits over their ones from the 70s.
THINK IT OVER - CHERYL LADD (34) - Ah, one of Charlie's Angels made the Top 40. Her voice reminded me a little of Olivia Newton-John, whose music style wasn't all that different, either. This song only got to #34 the week before, which I thought was a shame, as it was a great song!

40: PARADISE BY THE DASHBOARD LIGHT - MEAT LOAF (debut) - This one was kinda weird - pretty much several different songs in one. I preferred his other 1978 hit.
39: MY ANGEL BABY - TOBY BEAU (27) - It was a group, not a solo male, like many people thought (such was the case with Pablo Cruise, coming up a little later in the show). The song was pretty good - one I vaguely remember from back in the day.
38: TWO TICKETS TO PARADISE - EDDIE MONEY (22) - As usual, they played a different version of this song than was usually heard on the radio (the single version, I would imagine). I remember hearing this one quite regularly back in the day. I liked it, but I preferred several others from the Money Man.
37: LOVE WILL FIND A WAY - PABLO CRUISE (21) - Here is that band I mentioned earlier. I remember this song quite well from back in the day. A great song, though I slightly preferred "What'cha Gonna Do", from the previous summer.
36: 5-7-0-5 - CITY BOY (40) - They apparently chose to omit the prefix from the number, to spare people who happened to have such a number all the nuisance calls. Anyway, this song wasn't anything I'd go out of my way to listen to.
35: WHO ARE YOU - THE WHO (debut) - What I really want to know is who is the person whose idea it was to include the falsetto for the chorus of this song? It is supremely annoying and negates any redeeming qualities the song might have. But that's just me; the song did hit the Top 20 and still gets a lot of recurrent airplay on classic rock stations today, so it's all good. I just don't care for the song, that's all.
34: TALKING IN YOUR SLEEP - CRYSTAL GAYLE (38) - Ah, one of the signs that your man might be cheating! Crystal Gayle, like her ister Loretta Lynn, was mainly a country artist, but she did have a handful of songs that crossed over to the Pop charts (while Loretta had nary a one). This was my favorite of the four that hit the Top 40 - a great song indeed!
33: I LOVE THE NIGHT LIFE - ALICIA BRIDGES (37) - As we all know, I'm not a big disco fan, but this one is an exception - in fact, it is one of my favorite songs on this week's chart. There's just something about it that I really like. It sure got a lot of mileage on the charts - debuted the week before but wouldn't peak until Christmastime!
32: YOU NEVER DONE IT LIKE THAT - THE CAPTAIN & TENNILLE (36) - Of course, love didn't keep them together and they got divorced several years back. As for this song, it definitely wasn't their best, but it's still better than the barf-inducing "Muskrat Love" (which I imagine we'll hear on a fall, 1976 show in the next month or so).
31: SHE'S ALWAYS A WOMAN - BILLY JOEL (35) - The final release from The Stranger, possibly Joel's best album ever, IMO. This was possibly my favorite of them, but it would be in a horse race, as all four singles from that album were great, IMO.
30: ROCK & ROLL FANTASY - KINKS (31) - Their comeback Top 40 hit, after being absent from the chart since their Top Ten anthem "Lola". This song got as high as #30 the following week, but they'd be back about four and a half years later with what would become their biggest hit ever, "Come Dancing". As for this song, it was pretty good, but I preferred Bad Company's song of the same title from the following summer.
29: COME TOGETHER - AEROSMITH (33) - A remake of a Beatles classic, and it doesn't sound much different than the original. Because of that, I like both versions about the same.
28: GET OFF - FOXY (32) - Not a huge fan of this one, since it's the roof-raising R&B of which I'm not a huge fan.
OPTIONAL EXTRA: DOUBLE VISION - FOREIGNER - The second single from the album of the same title. This song is in a horse race with "Blue Morning, Blue Day" as my favorite song from the album.
27: JUST WHAT I NEEDED - THE CARS (28) - This song has aged quite well. Given all the recurrent airplay it receives on oldies and rock stations, I'm surprised that it peaked so low (peaked right here at #27).
26: BACK IN THE USA - LINDA RONSTADT (30) - Just as Elvis Presley was the king of Rock & Roll, Ronstadt was the queen of covers. This was originally done by Chuck Berry, back in the late 1950s. With such a strong debut the week before, this song had already bested that song's peak of #37.
25: CLOSE THE DOOR - TEDDY PENDERGRASS (26) - This was pretty much your typical old school R&B. It was pleasant, but nothing I'd go out of my way to listen to.
24: RIGHT DOWN THE LINE - GERRY RAFFERTY (29) - Pretty slow chart this week, as this was the biggest mover of the week.
This was Rafferty's second chart entry, as well as his second highest charting song. Of the songs of his that I'm familiar with, this would be my favorite.
23: LOVE THEME FROM "THE EYES OF LAURA MARS" - BARBRA STREISAND (25) - She was about two months away from debuting with her whiny duet with Neil Diamond. This song had a promising start (moving ahead ten spots the week before), but it quickly ran out of gas at #21, which was a shame, since I thought it was a great one - reminded me a little of "Wildflower" by Skylark.
22: MAGNET AND STEEL - WALTER EGAN (20) - One of two songs on this week's chart to feature Stevie Nicks, who this song was said to be about. She was also heard singing back-up on this song, which somehow, I associate more with the fall of 1978 instead of the summer (probably because that was when WLS played the song; it peaked on their survey in late October). I liked this song, but preferred Egan's "Fool Moon Fire", a mid-charter in 1983.
21: OH DARLIN' - ROBIN GIBB (24) - The first Top 40 hit from Gibb as a solo artist. This is one of the three Top 40 hits from the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band soundtrack in the countdown this week. This one wasn't bad, but I preferred his other Top 40 hit from six years later, entitled "Boys Do Fall In Love".
20: MISS YOU - THE ROLLING STONES (15) - Meh, as you probably know all too well, I was not a big fan of this song by any means, but I liked their other disco song, which would hit the Top Five two years later.
19: WHENEVER I CALL YOU 'FRIEND' - KENNY LOGGINS w/STEVIE NICKS (23) - YES!! This is possibly my favorite song on this week's chart - definitely one of my favorites from both artists involved!
18: GREASE - FRANKI VALLI (6) - The title track to one of the biggest movie soundtracks ever was dropping out of the top spot - another sign that "Grease Fever" was wearing off. Though I still prefer the other charted songs from Grease, I've actually found myself liking the song a little better than I did previously.
LDD: SOMETIMES WHAN WE TOUCH - DAN HILL - This man 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.
17: HOLLYWOOD NIGHTS - BOB SEGER (19) - I don't remember this song from its chart run as much as I do hearing it on the Stranger In Town album, which my Mom played all the time back in 1979. It's a pretty good song, but the only single from the album that I really liked was "Still The Same". There were several other songs on the album that I felt should have been released as singles.
16: YOU NEEDED ME - ANNE MURRAY (18) - Murray's only #1 hit on the Hot 100. It was a rather slow climber - it wouldn't hit the top until three months later (ironically, the song it knocked out of the top spot held the record at the time for THE slowest climb to #1). As for my opinion of this song - well, it was during her heyday, which started with this song, so I liked it a lot - one of my all-time faves from her!
15: REMINISCING - THE LITTLE RIVER BAND (17) - The first of two Top Ten hits from their album Sleeper Catcher. It's a great one but, of course, I preferred "Lady". As usual, this song was mercilessly butchered.
OPTIONAL EXTRA: HOW MUCH I FEEL - AMBROSIA - This was their first of two Top Ten hits, and both of them are my favorites from them - not sure which one I prefer, but both of them are great songs!
14: YOU AND I - RICK JAMES (16) - Meh, nothing special - sounds like most of the disco material from the late-70s, by a man who had the most success on the R&B chart. He did have a handful of Top 40 hits, though, and this was the most successful of them, peaking at #13.
13: LOVE IS IN THE AIR - JOHN PAUL YOUNG (14) - As we all know, I'm not a disco fan, but this song was actually a pretty good song - one I remember from back in the day.
12: FOOL IF YOU THINK IT'S OVER - CHRIS REA (13) - Here's another song I remember quite well. About ten years after he charted with this, he recorded a new version, which did not do justice to the original at all. He also had an AC hit in the summer of 1989, entitled "On The Beach". That is actually my favorite of the two songs, although this one was a good one as well.
11: HOT CHILD IN THE CITY - NICK GILDER (11) - This song, of course, set the record for the longest climb to #1 - a record it held by itself until a little less than a year later. It was a good song - had that summertime feel to it. Had Gilder known how long it was going to take to reach the top, I wonder if he would have released it several months earlier.
10: SHAME - EVELYN "CHAMPAGNE" KING (9) - Her first of four Top 40 hits. It's not bad, but my favorite song from her is "Love Come Down", which we'll hopefully hear on the next show from 1982, when it hit the Top 20.
9: GOT TO GET YOU INTO MY LIFE - EARTH, WIND & FIRE (10) - The last of three songs from the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band soundtrack on this week's chart. It was also the most successful, peaking at #9 this very week. This was an interesting rendition of the Beatles classic. Of course the original was the best, but this one was pretty good too.
8: DON'T LOOK BACK - BOSTON (12) - This song was really burning up the chart, looking like it might be their first #1 hit. Well, it didn't quite get that far, but it did become their highest-peaking song thus far, hitting #4. The song would hold that honor for eight years, until their successful comeback in 1986. I've somehow come to like this song better than I had previously (as I never cared for it).
7: SUMMER NIGHTS - JOHN TRAVOLTA & OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN (8) - The second of two top 40 duets for the stars of the movie Grease. Of those two songs, it would be my favorite (though "You're The One That I Want" is a great one as well). I seem to remember that Casey predicted that this song would perhaps hit #1 like their first duet, but, in fact, this song would peak only three spots higher. Indeed, "Grease Fever" was starting to burn out!
6: AN EVERLASTING LOVE - ANDY GIBB (7) - Another song that Casey said could be a future #1, as Gibb's previous three hits topped the chart, but this song, like the above song, would peak at #5. Too bad, as it was one of my favorite songs from Gibb. But it was a Top Five hit, so that's cool. Casey mentioned that Gibb had set the record for most weeks at #1 for a solo artist, with 13 weeks and mentioned that he could further extend his record. Of course, that did not happen, as the song with which he had set the record, "Shadow Dancing" was his final chart topper.
5: KISS YOU ALL OVER - EXILE (5) - 1978 was definitely a good year for producer Mike Chapman, as he had at least two songs that topped the chart that fall (back-to-back, nonetheless). This was the first of them. Of the two, I preferred the Nick Gilder song. This song was pretty good, too, but after the situation in the movie "Happy Gilmore" involving this song, I've never been able to look at this song in the same light ever again.
4: HOPELESSLY DEVOTED TO YOU - OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN (4) - As I've mentioned before, this was a special song between me and my ex-girlfriend, so it's been sort of hard to listen to, but you know what, we never really listened to it that often or even talked much about it, so I guess it's not as bad as it could have been, and I have been able to appreciate the natural beauty of this song more and more as the years have passed (especially since our paths crossed a few years back and she and I actually had a brief conversation, letting me know that we were at least back on speaking terms again).
3: HOT BLOODED - FOREIGNER (3) - Of course, this song's intro is very similar to the Pablo Cruise song back at #21. Of their three singles from Double Vision, this would be my least favorite, but it's a great song nevertheless. I remember that this was also my older brother's favorite song back in the day.
OPTIONAL EXTRA: READY TO TAKE A CHANCE AGAIN - Well, he indeed took a chance earlier in the year with an upbeat song, which proved to be worthwhile, as it hit the Top Ten. This time around, he returned to his usual ballad style with a song that came close to hitting the Top Ten, but only got as high as #11. Such a shame, as it's a great song - one of his best 70s hits.
2: THREE TIMES A LADY - THE COMMODORES (2) - On the corresponding R&R chart, this song was spending a sixth week at #1, and was trying hard to get back into the top spot on the Hot 100, where it had recently spent a pair of weeks, but the song at #1, which had leapfrogged over this song two weeks before, was just too tough for it. I loved this song - so did a lot of other people, as it became a very popular LDD song (and was played at many wedding receptions as well).
1: BOOGIE OOGIE OOGIE - A TASTE OF HONEY (1) - This is another one of my favorite disco songs. Glad that this one made it to #1! I always thought that the bridge of the song (where they sing 'Get down, Boogie Oogie Oogie x 3) would have worked great for the chorus. Too bad they cut out the second verse and skipped right to said bridge (which Casey talked over most of as he was outro-ing the song). You don't do that with a #1 song!

[Hervard]

American Top 40 - The 80s - September 14, 2024

This week's presentation - September 20, 1980

Dropper:
HEY THERE LONELY GIRL - ROBERT JOHN (31) - Oddly enough, this song, the only one that falls off the survey this week, was on its way up the week before while several other descending songs that were lower on the chart managed to hang on. This song receives virtually no airplay anymore, but I don’t consider it obscure because of the original by Eddie Holman from early 1970, which many people are familiar with. I thought this was a pretty good remake, although I prefer the original.

LW#3: EMOTIONAL RESCUE - ROLLING STONES
LW#2: ALL OUT OF LOVE - AIR SUPPLY
LW#1: UPSIDE DOWN - DIANA ROSS
40: DON'T YA WANNA PLAY THIS GAME NO MORE - ELTON JOHN (debut) - Here’s something rare - an AT40 with only a single debut. This was only the third time in AT40 history that had happened - the other two were in August, 1976 (“Teddy Bear” by Red Sovine) and May, 1978 (“Tumbling Dice” by Linda Ronstadt). Neither of those songs lasted very long on the charts, nor did this one - climbed to #39 the following week and dropped out. As for my opinion of this song, it’s not bad, but far from being his best.
39: OLD FASHION LOVE - THE COMMODORES (37) - Stevie Wonder's "I Ain't Gonna Stand For It" reminded me a lot of this song. I liked both songs, but preferred this one. With its seventeen-notch drop the week before, it would be a logical assumption that this was the song that dropped out, especially for one who didn't have this week's chart, but instead, it dropped to #39.
38: FIRST TIME LOVE - LIVINGSTON TAYLOR (39) - It’s pretty easy to tell that this man is related to James Taylor (they’re brothers), since he sounds like him and it’s the same style of music. This was a good song, IMO.
37: MORE LOVE - KIM CARNES (36) - Another song that people listening to the show without the chart with them may have thought dropped off if the Commodores managed to hold on, especially after taking a huge, 22-spot drop the previous week. Carnes had the duet with Kenny Rogers back in the spring, now she was on the chart with her first big solo hit. Of course, the best was yet to come. Not sure if I prefer this song or "Bette Davis Eyes" - I think it's one of those cases where it depends on my mood.
36: WHO'LL BE THE FIRST TONIGHT - LARSEN-FEITEN BAND (40) - I sorta feel sorry for one of the guys in the band, Howard "Buzzy" Fieten, as he probably became the butt of many jokes due to his last name (especially after gym class). As for the song, it was a good one - typical early-80s MOR music. This turned out to be their only Top 40 hit.
35: IT'S STILL ROCK AND ROLL TO ME - BILLY JOEL (34) - The other song that took a huge fall the week before (down 19), and that many people might have thought was the dropper, after finding out the Commodores and Kim Carnes still managed to hang on. Instead, it slammed on the brakes (and was even still on the following week). Anyhoo, I like this song better than I used to, but still, it is my least favorite of the four singles from Glass Houses, one of Joel's best albums IMO.
34: YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO KEEP YOUR LOVE FOR ME - JERMAINE JACKSON (35) - One of three songs by Jermaine that did not hit the R&R chart. This one was understandable, as it only got as high as #34 on this chart (and the R&R chart was a Top 30 chart then), but the other two must have been big sellers, as one hit the Top 20 and the other one even was a Top Ten hit on the Hot 100. As for this song, I liked it - a pleasant slow jam.
33: HOW DOES IT FEEL TO BE BACK - DARYL HALL & JOHN OATES (30) - Not one of their more successful hits by any means - in fact, this was all the further that this song got. The song was OK, but definitely not one of my favorites from them.
ARCHIVE: WOODEN HEART - JOE DOWELL - Here's one of those #1 songs that must not have gotten much recurrent airplay, as I don't remember ever hearing this on the oldies stations, even when they were playing songs from the 50s and 60s. It was a pretty good song, IMO.
OPTIONAL EXTRA: ON THE ROAD AGAIN - WILLIE NELSON - I'm generally not a huge fan of his, but I actually thought this was a great song!
32: HOW DO I SURVIVE - AMY HOLLAND (38) - Written by Doobie Brother Michael McDonald, this song sounds a little like something Donna Summer might do. It's a great one - somewhat underrated IMO.
31: LET MY LOVE OPEN THE DOOR - PETE TOWNSEND (24) - This one and one of the Who's songs, "You Better You Bet" sound very much alike but, oddly enough, it was a different member of the Who that sang lead on that one. I liked both songs about the same.
30: BOULEVARD - JACKSON BROWNE (19) - Browne's first Top 40 hit in two years - and a great one it is - one I remember quite well from back in the day. I always thought the title was "Nobody, Nobody" until a few years later.
LDD: IF - BREAD - I never used to like this song, because when I heard it, it could stick in my head all day and drive me nuts. But now I just love it. It fit the dedication as well.
29: TAKE YOUR TIME (DO IT RIGHT) - S.O.S. BAND (22) - This was the S.O.S. Band's only Top 40 hit (although I imagine they had others on the R&B and dance charts). This song wasn't bad, but nothing exceptional.
28: INTO THE NIGHT - BENNY MARDONES (11) - I don't remember this song at all from 1980, but I definitely remember it from 1989, when it returned to the charts - I heard it on AT40 and then ended up buying the single later on that summer. I played it quite a lot and ended up getting tired of the song. It's pretty good now, but I preferred several songs on his self-titled album which came out in 1989 (and included an updated version of "Into The Night") - these include "How Could You Love Me" and "I'll Be Good To You".
27: MAGIC - OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN (13) - Ah, good ol’ Olivia Yewton John (as the daughter of one of my former co-workers called her when she was little). Anyway, up to now, this was her longest-running #1, at four weeks, as her other #1 songs spent no longer than two weeks on top. Of course, we know that, the following year, she spent ten weeks on top, dwarfing the weeks on chart total of this song, which was a great one IMO, though I prefer a few others from her.
26: NO NIGHT SO LONG - DIONNE WARWICK (32) - I liked most of her Top 40 hits in the 70s and 80s, this one definitely included.
25: WOMAN IN LOVE - BARBRA STREISAND (33) - The first of three Top Ten singles from Streisand's Guilty album, and the only solo one. The other two were duets with Barry Gibb, who also co-wrote, produced, and played guitar on this song, which became one of Streisand's biggest hits ever, spending three weeks at #1 later in the fall.
24: LOOK WHAT YOU'VE DONE TO ME - BOZ SCAGGS (29) - His first few singles were upbeat, but throughout 1980, he slowed down the tempo. His last hit before this one, "Jojo" was a little more mellow, with a touch of smooth jazz, but he went with a ballad this time. It was a good song, though, with that dark, rainy day sound to it, it's not one I'd like to hear on such a day. Fortunately, today was bright and sunny out, so it was a pretty good listen.
23: JESSE - CARLY SIMON (25) - A song about an old flame who comes back and wins back her heart, despite her best attempts to resist. It's a great song - one that I regularly played on the jukebox at Pizza Hut.
ARCHIVE: MICHAEL - THE HIGHWAYMEN - This song, not in the previous broadcasts of this episode, was deferred to Optional Extra status. I remember singing this song in music class back in elementary school from time to time, which would embarrass the kid named Michael in the class.
OPTIONAL EXTRA: DREAMER - SUPERTRAMP - The studio version of this song was a popular album cut from Crime Of The Century, but it was the live version of the song that finally got it on the chart. It was a great one - I preferred it over the studio version.
22: NEVER KNEW LOVE LIKE THIS BEFORE - STEPHANIE MILLS (26) - This one still pops up on Lite Rock stations every now and again. It was Mills' only Top Ten hit, but a great one it was!
21: SOMEONE THAT I USED TO LOVE - NATALIE COLE (23) - I always thought that this sounded like something from a Broadway musical. It was a good song, and it would be her last hit until the late-80s, as she battled drug addiction for the next few years. I'm glad that she overcame it, as she had many great hits in the 80s and early 90s. Cole's comeback hit, "Jump Start" was heard on this week's "A" show, from 9/19/1987.
20: HE'S SO SHY - POINTER SISTERS (27) - This was one of their biggest hits, as well as one of my all-time faves from them!
19: DON'T ASK ME WHY - BILLY JOEL (21) - This song sounded a little different from his other Glass Houses singles; it has that sort of folk rock that appeared on his earlier albums. But it was a great one - my favorite song from the album.
18: HOT ROD HEARTS - ROBBIE DUPREE (20) - Of course, I liked both of his Top Ten hits, though I slightly prefer "Steal Away". Is the back-up singer on this the same one that sings back-up on "Steal Away"?
17: REAL LOVE - DOOBIE BROTHERS (28) - Hard to believe that, as many songs as they had, this was only their fourth Top Ten hit. It was indeed a good one, though not quite as good as some of their others, like “Black Water” and “What A Fool Believes”, both #1 BB songs. “Real Love” would also be a #1 hit - on R&R, anyway. On Billboard, it managed to climb up to #5.
16: ALL OVER THE WORLD - ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA (18) - One of three of their hit songs from Xanadu (and one of two on this week's chart). I preferred the title track over this song, but this one was good as well.
15: SAILING - CHRISTOPHER CROSS (5) - Try closing your eyes with this song on and you’ll feel like you’re out on the water! This song had recently spent a week at #1, the first of two #1 songs for Cross.
14: YOU'LL ACCOMP'NY ME - BOB SEGER (16) - Although this was my least favorite of Seger's three Top 40 hits from Against The Wind, it's a great song nonetheless.
13: YOU'RE THE ONLY WOMAN - AMBROSIA (14) - Though I preferred "Biggest Part Of Me" and "How Much I Feel", this one was a great one also.
12: XANADU - OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN (17) - This was a great song, and my favorite song from the movie of the same title.
ARCHIVE: TAKE GOOD CARE OF MY BABY - BOBBY VEE - I remember this song being used in a Johnson's Baby Shampoo commercial about 30 years ago. An OK song, but nothing I’d go out of my way to hear.
OPTIONAL EXTRA: WHIP IT - DEVO - Meh, this one wasn't my cup of tea. I slightly preferred their cover of "Workin' In The Coal Mine", which charted exactly a year later.
11: I'M ALRIGHT - KENNY LOGGINS (12) - After a huge, fifteen spot move the week before, this song makes a more modest move this week, up one. I remember seeing this movie (Caddyshack) back in the day! The gopher that had been terrorizing the golf course was dancing to this song at the end. A great song!
10: EMOTIONAL RESCUE - ROLLING STONES (3) - Ah, my former supervisor's "favorite" song. Another guilty pleasure (as many people I know, other than said former supervisor, dislike the song, due to Jagger's falsetto singing).
9: ONE IN A MILLION YOU - LARRY GRAHAM (15) - Even though I know what one of our regular posters here thinks of this song, I like this song - your typical early-80s slow jam. I guess you could call it another guilty pleasure!
LDD: NIGHTS ARE FOREVER WITHOUT YOU - ENGLAND DAN & JOHN FORD COLEY - Wow, the first LDD was from a drummer to his wife and this one was from a wife to her drummer. It had to be rigged! Well, whatever the case, this was a great song, like most songs from the duo.
8: DRIVING MY LIFE AWAY - EDDIE RABBIT (10) - This was his biggest hit to date, but his next one would go all the way to the top. Both were great songs!
7: LATE IN THE EVENING - PAUL SIMON (7) - Love the salsa beat of this song! Quite a departure from his usual style.
6: GIVE ME THE NIGHT - GEORGE BENSON (6) - Definitely one of the best jazz artists around. Like many of his songs, this one contains his trademark scat singing. I like it, but prefer a few others from him.
5: LOOKING FOR LOVE - JOHNNY LEE (8) - This was spending its third and final week at #1 on the Country chart this week. Another guilty pleasure of mine, though I never used to like this song. I guess it's one of those songs that gets better with age!
4: FAME - IRENE CARA (4) - Here's a song that got to be a theme song twice - first as the theme from the movie of the same title in 1980, and then again as the theme from the TV show called Fame, which ran for about five seasons, starting in 1982. The song wasn't bad, but one of my least favorite songs from Cara. I preferred her other Fame single, which would hit the Top 40 a few weeks later.
3: ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST - QUEEN (9) - *GROIN* Why did this song have to take such a big jump? Two weeks later, it was #1. As we all know, I'm not a big fan of this one. I prefer their other #1 song, from earlier in the year. Don't get me wrong; I actually used to like the song, but after hearing it a million times, both on the radio and every single juke box I came across back in the day, it got a quite old.
OPTIONAL EXTRA: YOU SHOOK ME ALL NIGHT LONG - AC/DC - i wasn't a huge fan of them, 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.
2: ALL OUT OF LOVE - AIR SUPPLY (2) - One of my least favorite Air Supply songs, although I must like it better than I used to, as it no longer gets "No. Just no" status (actually, I seldom use that comment anymore).
1: UPSIDE DOWN - DIANA ROSS (1) - This was her only song on the chart this week, but a few months later, she'd be pulling a hat trick - her next single, "I'm Coming Out" hit the chart three weeks later, and in mid-November, another song from her, "It's My Turn", debuted, while this song was still on the charts. Of those three, "It's My Turn" would be my favorite, and this was my second favorite.

[Hervard]

American Top 40: The 80s - September 14, 2024

This week's presentation - September 19, 1987

Droppers:
GIVE TO LIVE - SAMMY HAGAR (39) - He had taken over as lead singer of Van Halen the year before, but, as they were in between albums at the time, he put out an album (self-titled) that spawned one Top 40 hit. The song peaked at #23 on the Hot 100, but hit #1 on the album rock chart. Definitely one of his best solo hits ever, right up there with "Your Love Is Driving Me Crazy".
MAKING LOVE IN THE RAIN - HERB ALPERT f/LISA KEITH (38) - Well, Alpert's comeback was indeed short-lived, as he only had two hits. I have a feeling that the fact that Janet Jackson was one of the lead vocalists on "Diamonds" was largely instrumental in how well it did. This song, on the other hand, ran out of gas at #35. It was OK, but I prefer other songs from both artists.
I STILL HAVEN'T FOUND WHAT I'M LOOKING FOR - U2 (35) - This was the second of two #1 hits from The Joshua Tree, and my favorite of the two. This song has held up quite well despite overplay.
LIES - JONATHAN BUTLER (32) - Mainly a jazz artist, he managed to hit the Top 40 with this one hit, which was a great song - in fact, it was my #1 song of 1987, according to my Personal Top 30 charts.

40: BAD - MICHAEL JACKSON (debut) - His first single from Bad, "I Just Can't Stop Loving You", was still on its way up the chart when the title track was released as a single (needless to say, that affected its performance on the chart). This song would perform a hat trick of #1 songs by Jackson that only contained three letters (there were only two others). He definitely wasn't like Bryan Adams, who would become known for his long song titles a few years later. As for this song, it was a good one, but, like the first Bad release, it sure had a short chart run!
39: IN MY DREAMS - REO SPEEDWAGON (debut) - About half of REO's Top 40 hits were ballads, and this is one of them, with a slightly different style than the others, as it wasn't really a power ballad - the only electric guitar work was in the instrumental break. Anyway, this was one of my favorites from them! Glad they played this song intact (as I seem to remember this one was edited more often than not).
38: HEART AND SOUL - T'PAU (30) - One of several one-hit wonders on this week's show. I never particularly cared for this song, however.
37: SOMETHING REAL (INSIDE ME/INSIDE YOU) - MISTER MISTER (debut) - They were definitely a has-been at this point. Their Welcome To The Real album generated two #1 hits, as well as a Top Ten, but their follow-up album, Go On, didn't fare nearly as well. This was the only single from that album, and it barely touched the Top 30. Too bad, as it was my favorite song from them.
36: IT'S NOT OVER ('TIL IT'S OVER) - STARSHIP (24) - Their second-to-last chart hit (and their final Top Ten). It was a good one, but I preferred several others from them, in all three incarnations.
35: VICTIM OF LOVE - BRYAN ADAMS (40) - The third and final single from Into The Fire, and the last time Adams would hit the charts until four years later, when he came back bigger than ever. I felt this song was way underrated - it should have been a Top Ten like “Heat Of The Night”.
LDD: WHEN THE GOING GETS TOUGH, THE TOUGH GET GOING - BILLY OCEAN - A very interesting LDD story! I sure hope that the victims hurt in the tractor explosion recovered! As for the song, it was a good one and fitting for the LDD.
34: LUKA - SUZANNE VEGA (26) - Does the opening notes of this song remind anyone else of the Jetsons' doorbell? Well, anyway, there are only two songs by Vega that I've heard, and this would be my favorite (I remember being sick of hearing the "do do dodo do dododo..." refrains of "Tom's Diner" everytime I turned on the radio in late 1990/early 1991). That song, by the way, was also on Solitude Standing album, only it was a cappella and the "do do do" part didn't come until the very end.
33: CAUSING A COMMOTION - MADONNA (debut) - This song almost hit #1, but instead, was stuck at #2 for three weeks, while the two Tommy James remakes leapfrogged over her. While I'm glad that the two songs made chart history, I preferred this song by a fair margin (and an even wider margin over her other song on the chart this week).
32: I WANT YOUR SEX - GEORGE MICHAEL (29) - Don't care for this one at all! If not for the lyrical content, this one might have become one of the biggest hits of the year - possibly even THE biggest. I might dislike "Walk Like An Egyptian", but I'd rather listen to that one than this.
OPTIONAL EXTRA: THE ONE I LOVE - R.E.M. - This one had a little hint of folk music to it. It wasn't bad, but I preferred most of their 90s hits.
31: YOU ARE THE GIRL - THE CARS (36) - They were definitely big back in the late '70s (their two 1978 hits seem to get more recurrent airplay than any of their others) and first half of the 80s (Heartbeat City was indeed a smash album, with five Top 40 hits), but they began losing their momentum soon after. This was their last Top 40 hit. I wasn't a huge fan of it, however - I preferred most of their other Top 40 hits.
30: FAKE - ALEXANDER O'NEAL (35) - A Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis production, it was O'Neal's only solo Top 40 hit (and his most successful song on the Soul charts, hitting #1 back in July). This song was OK, but nothing exceptional IMO, since it sounds so much like most of the other late-80s R&B dance songs.
29: LITTLE LIES - FLEETWOOD MAC (37) - At this point, all three of Fleetwood Mac's lead singers each had a Top 40 single from Tango In The Night featuring them on lead vocals. It was Christine McVie's turn with this song (although Stevie and Lindsey were clearly heard singing in the chorus). For some reason, I never liked this song - it was my least favorite song from "Tango In The Night". My favorite was the one that preceded it, "Seven Wonders", which was a Top 20 hit in August.
28: NEVER LET ME DOWN - DAVID BOWIE (34) - Of course, we know all too well that this is one of his two songs that I like best. The other one was "Day-In, Day-Out" and this would be a case where my mood at the time depends on which of those I prefer - for the most part, it's a toss-up between the two.
27: MARY'S PRAYER - DANNY WILSON (25) - By looking at the artist name, one would think it was a solo artist, but in fact, it was a band, and nobody in it was named Danny Wilson (their name was inspired by the title of a Frank Sinatra film called Meet Danny Wilson). This was their only Top 40 hit and IMO, it was a great one.
26: LOVE POWER - DIONNE WARWICK & JEFFREY OSBORNE (15) - Today, this would be billed with Kenny G as a featured artist, since that's who was playing the sax in the bridge (with a broken thumb, no less), making an already great song even better!
25: LET ME BE THE ONE - EXPOSE (31) - They definitely had a bang-up year on the charts, with three Top Ten singles (and a fourth at the very end that would become their first #1 early the following year).
24: ROCK STEADY - THE WHISPERS (18) - The biggest of their four Top 40 hits - as well as my favorite.
23: DON'T MEAN NOTHING - RICHARD MARX (12) - The first of many hits for this man from the Windy City. It was a good one, but definitely not my favorite from him.
22: CASANOVA - LeVERT (28) - Like Alexander O'Neal, they were chiefly a soul act, and had a single Top 40 hit. I liked this song, but preferred Gerald Levert's solo hit "I'd Do Anything", which charted in 1994.
21: JUMP START - NATALIE COLE (27) - This was her first Top 40 hit in seven years, as she battled cocaine and heroin addiction for the better part of the decade. Her comeback hit, which would peak at #13, was only the beginning, as she'd have several big hits over the next few years. This was a good song, but I preferred her ballads, with which she was generally most successful on the pop charts.
OPTIONAL EXTRA: MONY MONY (LIVE) - BILLY IDOL - One of two Tommy James & The Shondells covers that rode up the chart side by side. They debuted the same week, hit the Top Ten the same week, and came so close to dropping off the same week as well. They were #1 back-to-back as well. It was my favorite of the two - especially the live version.
20: WHO'S THAT GIRL - MADONNA (9) - This song had recently put Madonna as the woman with the most solo #1 hits of the rock era, with six so far, and she wasn't done yet, thus putting her far out in front of Diana Ross, who was done hitting #1 at this point. As far as I know, Madonna might still be out in front, but I'm not sure, as I stopped believing in the Hot 100 soon after 1991. Anyway, this song was mediocre at best. One of my least favorite of her hits and possibly my least favorite of her #1s.
19: PAPER IN FIRE - JOHN COUGAR MELLENCAMP (23) - The first of four singles released from The Lonesome Jubilee (though I could have sworn that "The Real Life" had been released as the second single, but they went with "Cherry Bomb" instead). In any case, I liked this song, but my favorite single from the album was "Check It Out", which charted in the early spring of 1988.
18: WHO WILL YOU RUN TO - HEART (22) - Even though they had gone the pop way, they revisited their classic rock side with this song, and it apparently worked, as the song went Top Ten. I liked it - one of my favorite of their upbeat songs.
17: ONE HEARTBEAT - SMOKEY ROBINSON (23) - This was his second Top Ten during 1987. Not bad for a man who had been charting since the early-60s. I liked both songs about the same.
16: WHO FOUND WHO - JELLYBEAN f/ELISA FIORELLO (19) - The second of two hits with which John "Jellybean" Benitez had charted. This was my favorite of the two by a fair margin (as I wasn't a big fan of "Sidewalk Talk").
15: U GOT THE LOOK - PRINCE (20) - Even though Sheena didn't have official label credit, she certainly deserved it, as she was clearly heard singing back-up. I generally didn't like this type of upbeat R&B music, but there was just something about this song that I really liked.
14: I NEED LOVE - L.L. COOL J (14) - This was possibly the first rap ballad ever to make the chart - certainly the first one that I ever heard. I thought it was a good one.
13: ONLY IN MY DREAMS - DEBBIE GIBSON (5) - The breakthrough hit for one of the biggest teen music stars from this era. It was a good song - my second favorite song from Out Of The Blue behind the #1 "Foolish Beat" (though I did rather like the title track as well).
12: WIPEOUT - THE FAT BOYS AND THE BEACH BOYS (13) - This frankly unnecessary remake was clearly fueled by sales more than airplay, as it was peaking at #20 on the R&R chart, but practically hit the Top Ten on the Hot 100. I prefer the original of this song by the Surfaris, and wasn't a fan of this one at all - slowing down the tempo just to add lyrics pretty much defeats the whole purpose.
11: CARRIE - EUROPE (17) - They didn't have a very long chart career, but 1987 was definitely their heyday, with three Top 40 hits (and a fourth the following year), and this one was their biggest. It was also my favorite song by them - a great power ballad, which would hit #1 on R&R a few weeks later while it peaked at #3 on BB - the only diversity between #1 songs during 1987.
10: TOUCH OF GREY - THE GRATEFUL DEAD (11) - This was their only Top 40 hit, but they were more of a album rock and concert band (although I don’t think that they always performed this one at their shows). My brother was a Deadhead, so I've heard many songs from them, but this one remains my favorite.
OPTIONAL EXTRA: I THINK WE'RE ALONE NOW - TIFFANY - This, of course, was the other Tommy James song that I mentioned back at the second OE. I wasn't a big fan of this remake. This was likely my least favorite of her Top 40 hits. Her new song, "Could've Been", which started to get early action on B96 about a month later, was far better, IMO.
9: LOST IN EMOTION - LISA LISA AND CULT JAM (16) - One of two number one songs from them, both in 1987. This was my favorite of the two, but it didn't hold a candle to "All Cried Out", which remains one of my favorite songs of all-time.
8: I HEARD A RUMOUR - BANANARAMA (10) - One of two hits from the movie Disorderlies on this week's chart (the other one was that lame duck back at #12). Of course, we all know that, of their three Top 40 hits, this one is my favorite (and we heard my least favorite, their cover of "Venus" on last week's 1986 show, but we won't be given a hat trick, as next week's show is from 1985, a year after their debut hit "Cruel Summer".
7: CAN'T WE TRY - DAN HILL W/ VONDA SHEPARD (6) - This song, which relieved Hill of his one-hit wonder status, a title he held for nearly a decade. This song didn't get quite as high as his first hit, "Sometimes When We Touch", but it did hit the Top Ten, which I didn't think it would at first, given its initial slow start at the beginning of its chart run. Glad that it made it, as it was a great song!
6: DOING IT ALL FOR MY BABY - HUEY LEWIS & THE NEWS (7) - I remember hoping that this would be his next release as "I Know What I Like" was heading down the chart, and then playing this song all the time - so much that I got tired of it and got to hoping that Huey decided to release "Forest For The Trees". Well, what I forgot was that Huey always released the doo wop type song that appeared on each of his albums. This was a good song, but definitely not one of my favorites from him.
5: WHEN SMOKEY SINGS - ABC (8) - I found it interesting that, every time a song about a music artist was on the countdown, a song by the same artist was on the countdown as well. A few weeks later, both songs would be in the Top Ten at the same time - a chart first. As for the song, it was pretty good - I think that the song's resemblance to "Tears Of A Clown" was intentional, since the bass line was exactly the same (after all, it was a tribute to the artist of that song).
4: HERE I GO AGAIN - WHITESNAKE (4) - Like Europe, they were another hard rock group that only charted four times. And 1987 was definitely their year, as their two biggest hits charted and peaked within the year. I believe they played the single version this week, which I slightly preferred over the album version.
LDD: I WANNA GO BACK - EDDIE MONEY - This song seemed to be generally edited during its chart run, but, since there were nine countdown songs in the final hour, I was thinking maybe, just maybe, they would play the song intact - which they did, which was good, since this is one of my favorite songs from the Money Man. It fit the dedication as well.
3: LA BAMBA - LOS LOBOS (1) - This was their first of at least three remakes of old Ritchie Valens songs (they did a version of "Donna", but I don't think it was ever released as a single). Anyway, this song was so/so, but way overplayed. I preferred their version of "Come On Let's Go" which we'll hopefully hear later on this year on the series.
OPTIONAL EXTRA: WHERE THE STREETS HAVE NO NAME - U2 - The third and final Top 40 single from their monster album The Joshua Tree (the fourth, "In God's Country" just barely missed). This was my favorite song from the album, most likely since it wasn't overplayed like the two that preceded it (though, as I mentioned earlier, overplay didn't tarnish "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For").
2: DIDN'T WE ALMOST HAVE IT ALL - WHITNEY HOUSTON (3) - aka "All At Once Pt 2". Only difference is, this song was actually released as a single and flew straight up to the top. It's a good song, but far from being her best. The following week, when the song hit #1, it put her into a tie (with whom, I don't remember) as the woman with the most #1 hits, and was just one away from Madonna. Of course, she ended up beating that in 1988 with "Greatest Love Of All". I assume that she and Madonna battled it out, along with Mariah Carey, for the next few years.
1: I JUST CAN'T STOP LOVING YOU - MICHAEL JACKSON (2) - Wow, he bookended the countdown this week! As I said earlier, this song might have spent more time at #1 had it not been for the rush-release of the title track from Bad, but it did sneak in a week at #1. I liked this song, though it sure got way overplayed. I liked the medley Casey played of the ten #1 hits that Michael had sung on up to the present. Of course, over the next few years, he'd have many more.