We haven't done chart critiques for awhile, let's start it up again!
AT40: The 80s - February 28, 2009:
Show Date: February 7, 1987:
Kind of weird that they selected a show so far removed from the actual date, but it works, as there are tons of great songs here! OK, first thing's first; here are the droppers (which I don't think Casey mentioned):
COMING AROUND AGAIN - CARLY SIMON (28) - Good song, shame to see it drop off.
FALLING IN LOVE (UH-OH) - MIAMI SOUND MACHINE (34) - I liked this song, but I can see why it didn't do quite as well as their previous hits.
ALL I WANTED - KANSAS (38) - Nice song, although I always thought it was a little incomplete. Could have used a verse near the end, after they sang the "All I wanted was to hold you, all I wanted was to touch you..." line a few times, or at least the chorus one more time. But a good song nevertheless.
EVERYBODY HAVE FUN TONIGHT - WANG CHUNG (39) - No big loss; this song was quite overplayed.
40: WITHOUT YOUR LOVE - TOTO (debut) - Good song, but definitely one of my least favorite songs by Toto.
39: CAUGHT UP IN THE RAPTURE – ANITA BAKER (debut) - Nice, mellow song. This one was underrated, as it didn't get any higher than #37 and didn't even hit the R&R chart.
38: NOTORIOUS – DURAN DURAN (24) - Not bad, but they've had better. I preferred their follow-up hit, the one-week wonder called "Skin Trade".
37: FACTS OF LIFE- JEFF LORBER FEATURING KARYN WHITE (debut) - Your typical late-80s dance song. Didn't appeal too much to me, but tolerable. The only Karyn White song I liked was her 1989 ballad "Superwoman".
36: LET’S WAIT AWHILE – JANET JACKSON (debut) - ah, the ode to virginity! A nice pleasant song, but why did they cut out the second verse?? You don't do that with a debut song!
35: MANDOLIN RAIN – BRUCE HORNSBY & THE RANGE (40) - Great song - definitely one of Bruce's best songs ever! And, darn it, they chopped this one down too!
EXTRA: HURTS SO GOOD – JOHN COUGAR MELLENCAMP - When Casey mentioned that Mellencamp's biggest hit was coming up, I felt sure they were going to play "Jack & Diane". But this song spent enough time on the Hot 100 to outdo that song. Anyway, this song is pretty good - I don't really like "Jack & Diane"
34: IS THIS LOVE - SURVIVOR (16) - Wow, what a big drop! I like this song. Sadly, it was their last chart hit (at least it hit the Top Ten)
33: BRAND NEW LOVER – DEAD OR ALIVE (37) - Another song that had its second verse cut. It was OK, but not my favorite song on the chart this week
32: I WANNA GO BACK – EDDIE MONEY (35) - Awesome song! But WHAT'S WITH ALL THESE CHOPPED DOWN SONGS IN HOUR 1?? They wouldn't have to had they excluded "Hurts So Good". It's not like you're not gonna hear it within an hour of the broadcast anyway. Oh well, that's life.
31: CAN’T HELP FALLING IN LOVE – COREY HART (36) - great rendition of the King's classic! Casey mentioned that Corey was only seven months old when the original was on the chart.
OPTIONAL EXTRA: NOTHING'S GONNA STOP US NOW - STARSHIP - This song was just on the verge of breaking into the Top 40, moving from 64 to 42. It was a good song, one of 1987's best number one songs.
30: WALK LIKE AN EGYPTIAN – THE BANGLES (19) - Definitely their worst, most overplayed song! If we're lucky, we'll occasionally hear "Manic Monday" on the radio.
29: VICTORY – KOOL & THE GANG (15) - OK song. Any girl who went to Boston Middle School during this school year is probably still burned out on this song, as for a whole grading period (six weeks), they did aerobics to this song everyday. Sure glad I didn't have to do that!
28: JIMMY LEE – ARETHA FRANKLIN (30) - Jimmy Lee, he took a pee, right on my knee - oh wait, that's not the same song. Anyway, this song was pretty good. Had a jazzy feel to it. I still prefer "Who's Zoomin' Who" and "Willing To Forgive"
LONG DISTANCE DEDICATION: HEAVEN - BRYAN ADAMS - Good song, glad he re-released it in 1985 (as it had originally been released from the 1984 movie "A Night In Heaven"). I'll bet he is too, as it went all the way to the top!
27: I’LL BE ALRIGHT WITHOUT YOU - JOURNEY (31) - Great song, one of their best ever! And it would be their last for nearly ten more years. And, yes, they chopped out the second verse. Why couldn't they have done that with the d**n Bangles song? I'll bet they play the full ending on "At This Moment" by Billy & The Beaters! Anyway, remember Michael Bolton's remake of Otis Redding's "Sittin' On The Dock Of The Bay"? The guitar solo in the bridge of that song sounded so much like the guitar solo at the end of this song.
26: RESPECT YOURSELF – BRUCE WILLIS (33) - Meh, not a very good song. Bruce was much better at acting. The Pointer Sisters were featured on backup on this song. They'd recently had a hit of their own called "Goldmine", which peaked at #33.
25: STAY THE NIGHT – BENJAMIN ORR (27) - This was a nice song. I'm surprised that it didn't get any higher than the twenties, as the radio station I listened to back then (U93 in South Bend) gave this one early action. Usually songs like that did well, but not this one.
24: (YOU GOTTA) FIGHT FOR YOUR RIGHT (TO PARTY) – THE BEASTIE BOYS (32) - Meh, kind of annoying, but I sure agreed with it back in the day.
23: TALK TO ME – CHICO DeBARGE (25) - I generally didn't like upbeat dance songs like this, but for some reason, I did like this. I especially like when he makes the phone call near the end and after several rings, screams, "PICK IT UP!!"
22: BIG TIME – PETER GABRIEL (26) - "Hi there!" Good song - much better than the two overplayed songs that preceded this song. Still, I like "Shock The Monkey" a little better.
21: SOMEWHERE OUT THERE (FROM ‘AN AMERICAN TAIL’) – LINDA RONSTADT & JAMES INGRAM (29) - Loved this song, like most of James' (and much of Linda's) songs.
20: THIS IS THE TIME – BILLY JOEL (18) - Great song, one of his best! (And yes, they cut the second verse! That's it, I'm writing my congressman...)
19: STOP TO LOVE – LUTHER VANDROSS (21)- One of my favorite songs by Luther! You don't hear this one much anymore, so it always takes me back to early 1987. (And surprise, surprise, they did NOT edit this song down!) When I first heard this song, I thought that "Give Me The Reason" had done a turnabout on the chart.
18: NOBODY’S FOOL - CINDERELLA (22) - Good power ballad. I liked their other Top 40 hits too.
17: YOU GOT IT ALL – THE JETS (20) - I love this song! Definitely their best song.
LDD: 19 – PAUL HARDCASTLE - Weird song. Sounds like something by Max Headroom.
16: CONTROL – JANET JACKSON (6) - No. Just no.
15: JACOB’S LADDER – HUEY LEWIS & THE NEWS (23) - Pretty good song. But it has to be one of the least-played #1 songs of the 1980s, as, outside of countdown shows, you never really hear this song on the radio.
14: LOVE YOU DOWN – READY FOR THE WORLD (17) - Good to hear a ballad from these guys after two upbeat songs. My favorite from them, needless to say.
13: SHAKE YOU DOWN – GREGORY ABBOTT (8) - Another former #1 song that you don't hear too often anymore. I like this one - the chord progressions sort of remind me of the Journey hit from earlier in the countdown.
12: BALLERINA GIRL – LIONEL RICHIE (14) - Wow, three ballads in a row. This one is a good one. Casey mentioned that the flipside, "Deep River Woman", which features Alabama, hit the Top Ten on the country chart. This song was gearing up to hit the Top Ten on the Pop chart, which it did the next week.
11: C’EST LA VIE – ROBBIE NEVIL (3) - Good song, like his other two follow-ups from the same year. Is it me, or does this song sample "Get Up And Boogie" by Silver Convention?
OPTIONAL EXTRA: DON'T DREAM IT'S OVER - CROWDED HOUSE - I liked this song, as well as the follow-up "Something So Strong" (which sounded a lot like this song sped up). It was spending a fourth week on the Hot 100, moving 59-52. It would peak at #2 in late April, held out of #1 by "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)" by Aretha Franklin & George Michael" (then "(I Just) Died In Your Arms" by Cutting Crew leapfrogged over it).
10: WE’RE READY - BOSTON (12) - Awesome song, one of their best. Glad this one became their fourth Top Ten hit.
9: WILL YOU STILL LOVE ME - CHICAGO (13) - Good song. This was their first hit with new lead singer Jason Scheff, replacing Peter Cetera, who was fired from the group for making a solo album (or something like that). But Peter had the last laugh when he had two #1 songs before Chicago's album was even released.
8: SOMEDAY - GLASS TIGER (7) - Good song
LDD: EVERY TIME YOU GO AWAY – PAUL YOUNG - Ouch @ the dedication story! I sure hope Michelle found the whereabouts of her friend. Anyway, as for the song, it's a good one, as overplayed as it is.
7: KEEP YOUR HANDS TO YOURSELF (11) – THE GEORGIA SATELLITES - It was OK; I'm not much for southern rock.
6: LAND OF CONFUSION - GENESIS (4) - Good song. My third favorite from "Invisible Touch" behind the title track and "In Too Deep".
5: TOUCH ME (I WANT YOUR BODY) – SAMANTHA FOX (10) - Good song, but I preferred her follow-up "Do Ya Do Ya (Wanna Please Me), which flopped. Note that Casey doesn't mention the title of this song at all in the intro, and in the outro, he doesn't mention the subtitle.
4: CHANGE OF HEART – CYNDI LAUPER (5) - Great song that is all but ignored on radio stations that seem to play nothing but songs from her first album. Did they cut out the second verse? You know it!
3: LIVIN’ ON A PRAYER – BON JOVI (9) - Meh, not one of my favorites from them at all. I prefer their slower songs.
2: AT THIS MOMENT – BILLY VERA & THE BEATERS (1) - I was right, they played the version with Billy milking the last line for all it's worth, and the crowd egging him on. Someone should have said, "OH, WOULD YOU JUST GET TO THE END OF THE SONG ALREADY?
!!!"
1: OPEN YOUR HEART - MADONNA (2) - Good song, another one that we don't hear very much anymore. This song put her in a tie with Diana Ross for the woman with the most number one singles (of course, she'd hold the record by herself in no time at all!)
!!!"
As for the song, it was quite bizarre but alright
