song of the day – “Abracadabra” | STEVE MILLER BAND | 1982.

Waiting for the real Colin Hay to begin, Rockland, Maine, 8.16.2017. He was, of course, fantastic and soulful.

Hey everyone!  Thanks so much for being patient with me, as I’ve taken an unexpected (but quite enjoyable) absence from the bloggy thing since the end of July.  There’s been work stuff, home stuff, I had a fun time attending concerts featuring Blondie, the 80s Retro Futura Tour (including Howard Jones, Modern English, Men Without Hats, Paul Young, Katrina of Katrina And The Waves, and The English Beat!), and most recently, seeing the wonderful Colin Hay in beautiful Rockland, Maine. 

I’ve also been spending a lot of quality time with the incredible and awesome Hope, my superfriend, sassy radio co-host and writing hero, which included a swim in the cold Atlantic Ocean here in Maine that changed me forever.  There’s a lot more to say, and I will, in a post coming soon that will be about Hope and that swim in the ocean and much more!  And Hope comes up again later in this post, so stay tuned!!

That’s the absolutely lovely HopeyT and me, Kettle Cove State Park, Cape Elizabeth, Maine, 9.2.2017!

When I started my tribute to my radio hero, Casey Kasem, back on June 1, school was in session and Summer was weeks away.  Well, it’s now September 9, 2017, school is back in session and Fall is less than two weeks away.  I’ve had fun bringing you this tribute to Casey (who passed away in June 2014 at the age of 82), and wanted to make sure (1) you all didn’t think I would hold out on the Number One song of this tribute, and (2) that I get this in ASAFP, because what’s a Top 40 countdown without a Number One song?

Much like AMERICAN TOP 40, this post will be full of nerdy chart facts and then some, but first, I wanted to recap the songs I’ve posted in this series so far.  These songs (which include five (real) one-hit wonders of the 80s), are ranked at the positions they peaked at on the BILLBOARD Hot 100 (with peak year), and though they do not represent a definitive Top 40 list for me, but I love all of them, and hope you’ve enjoyed reading about them!

40. CLONES (WE’RE ALL) – ALICE COOPER (1980)

39. SLIPPING AWAY – DAVE EDMUNDS (1983)

38. PROMISES IN THE DARK – PAT BENATAR (1981)

37. WHISPER TO A SCREAM (BIRDS FLY) – ICICLE WORKS (1984; (real) one-hit wonder of the 80s)

36. SOMETIMES A FANTASY – BILLY JOEL (1980)

35. FAKE FRIENDS – JOAN JETT & THE BLACKHEARTS (1983)

34. ME MYSELF AND I – DE LA SOUL (1989)

33. PRIDE (IN THE NAME OF LOVE) – U2 (1984)

32. VALLEY GIRL – FRANK & MOON ZAPPA (1982)

31. (GHOST) RIDERS IN THE SKY – THE OUTLAWS (1981)

30. LIES – THOMPSON TWINS (1983)

29. TURN UP THE RADIO – AUTOGRAPH (1985; (real) one-hit wonder of the 80s)

28. POINT OF NO RETURN – NU SHOOZ (1986)

27. THE RIGHT THING – SIMPLY RED (1987)

26. NOT JUST ANOTHER GIRL – IVAN NEVILLE (1988)

25. TAKE ME WITH YOU – PRINCE & THE REVOLUTION featuring APOLLONIA (1985)

24. ONE WAY OR ANOTHER – BLONDIE (1979)

23. YOU CAN CALL ME AL – PAUL SIMON (1986 / 1987)

22. AIN’T NOBODY – RUFUS & CHAKA KHAN (1983)

21. FOOL IN THE RAIN – LED ZEPPELIN (1980)

20. OUR LIPS ARE SEALED – THE GO-GO’S (1982)

19. PUSH IT – SALT-N-PEPA (1988)

18. LET ME TICKLE YOUR FANCY – JERMAINE JACKSON with DEVO (1982)

17. YOU ARE THE GIRL – THE CARS (1987)

16. HOLIDAY – MADONNA (1984)

15. ONE OF THE LIVING – TINA TURNER (1985)

14. DIGGING YOUR SCENE – THE BLOW MONKEYS (1986; (real) one-hit wonder of the 80s)

13. TARZAN BOY – BALTIMORA (1986)

12. WHAT’S GOING ON – CYNDI LAUPER (1987)

11. EDGE OF SEVENTEEN – STEVEIE NICKS (1982)

10. RELAX – FRANKIE GOES TO HOLLYWOOD (1985)

09. THE ONE I LOVE – R.E.M. (1987)

08. LET THE MUSIC PLAY – SHANNON (1984)

07. WHAT I AM – EDIE BRICKELL & NEW BOHEMIANS (1989)

06. INFATUATION – ROD STEWART (1984)

05. WANNA BE STARTIN’ SOMETHIN’ – MICHAEL JACKSON (1983)

04. HEART AND SOUL – T’PAU (1987; (real) one-hit wonder of the 80s)

03. LOVE SHACK – THE B-52’S (1989)

02. DANCING IN THE DARK – BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN (1984)

Throughout this series, I’ve been mentioned how many songs peaked at each position between 1979 and 1989.  It’s only fitting that songs which reached No. 1 would have the highest number of songs hitting the apex of the BILLBOARD Hot 100.  For this post, I am only counting the songs that reached No. 1 between January 1980 and December 1989, and for that 80s time period, 232 songs went all the way to No. 1.  Let’s get nerdy now (if you’re not already there), with some chart feats about No. 1 songs during the 80s and the BILLBOARD Hot 100:

• FOUR (REAL) ONE-HIT WONDERS reached No. 1 during the 80s – Bobby McFerrin (“Don’t Worry, Be Happy”), the second-chance single, “When I’m With You” by Sheriff, Jan Hammer’s “Miami Vice Theme,” and Vangelis (“Chariots Of Fire (Titles)”), though the composer did reach the chart separately twice in the early 80s as part of the duo Jon & Vangelis, with Jon Anderson of Yes.

• MOST WEEKS SPENT AT NO. 1 IN THE 80s (27); MOST NO. 1 SONGS FROM ONE ALBUM (5); MOST NO. 1 SONGS IN THE 80s (9) – Michael Jackson.  The King Of Pop reached No. 1 in the 80s with “Rock With You” (1980; 4 weeks at No. 1), “Billie Jean” (1983; 7 weeks), “Beat It” (1983; 3 weeks), “Say Say Say,” with Paul McCartney (1983 / 1984; 6 weeks), “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You,” with Siedah Garrett (1987; 1 week), “Bad” (1987; 2 weeks), “The Way You Make Me Feel” (1988; 1 week), “Man In The Mirror” (1988; 2 weeks); “Dirty Diana” (1988; 1 week).

• MOST NO. 1 SONGS IN THE 80s (if you’re NOT Michael Jackson): Madonna (7), Phil Collins (7 solo hits), Whitney Houston (7), George Michael (6 solo hits, which includes “Careless Whisper”), Daryl Hall & John Oates (5), Lionel Richie (5).

• NO. 1 WITH MOST WEEKS SPENT ON THE HOT 100 – 40 – “Red Red Wine” – UB40. It spent 25 weeks on the Hot 100, including a week at No. 1 in 1988, and had charted for 15 weeks in its first chart run in 1984.

• MOST CONFIGURATIONS AT NO. 1 – PAUL McCARTNEY, with Wings (“Coming Up (Live At Glasgow),” 1980), with Stevie Wonder (“Ebony And Ivory,” 1982), and with Michael Jackson (“Say Say Say,” 1983 / 1984).

• NO. 1 WITH MOST WEEKS SPENT IN THE TOP 10 OF THE HOT 100 (15) – “Physical – OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN (1981 / 1982), and “Eye Of The Tiger” – SURVIVOR (1982).  SUPER NERDY FUN FACT: the song which spent the most weeks in the Top 10 in the 80s didn’t even reach No. 1 – “Hurts So Good” by John Mellencamp spent 16 weeks in the Top 10, with four of those weeks in the runner-up spot.

• MOST WEEKS SPENT AT NO. 1 IN THE 80s (10) – “Physical” by Olivia Newton-John (1981 / 1982).  While it’s more commonplace on the Hot 100 these days, the biggest song of the 1980s would be the only song to spend at least 10 weeks at No. 1 on the chart for next 10 years.  In 1992, Boyz II Men spent a then-record 13 weeks at No. 1 with “End Of The Road.”  Two No. 1 songs later, Whitney Houston would break that record with “I Will Always Love You,” which spent its 14th and final week on top in late February 1993.  The current record is 16 weeks at No. 1.

In the most recent tabulation of the Greatest Of All Time Hot 100 songs for BILLBOARD’s legendary singles chart, many songs from the 80s were represented, and are currently ranked as follows:

08. “Physical” – OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN (1981 / 1982; 10 weeks at No. 1)

15. “Bette Davis Eyes” – KIM CARNES (1981; 9 weeks)

16. “Endless Love” – DIANA ROSS & LIONEL RICHIE (1981; 9 weeks)

24. “Eye Of The Tiger” – SURVIVOR (1982; 6 weeks)

29. “Every Breath You Take” – THE POLICE (1983; 8 weeks)

31. “Flashdance…What A Feeling” – IRENE CARA (1983; 6 weeks)

40. “Another One Bites The Dust” – QUEEN (1980; 3 weeks)

41. “Say Say Say” – PAUL McCARTNEY & MICHAEL JACKSON (1983 / 1984; 6 weeks)

54. “Call Me” – BLONDIE (1980; 6 weeks)

57. “Lady” – KENNY ROGERS (1980; 6 weeks)

63. “Centerfold” – THE J. GEILS BAND (1982; 6 weeks)

64. “(Just Like) Starting Over” – JOHN LENNON (1980 / 1981; 5 weeks)

68. “I Love Rock ’N Roll” – JOAN JETT & THE BLACKHEARTS (1982; 7 weeks)

73. “Ebony And Ivory” – PAUL McCARTNEY & STEVIE WONDER (1982; 7 weeks)

75. “That’s What Friends Are For” – DIONNE & FRIENDS (1986; 4 weeks)

77. “Upside Down” – DIANA ROSS (1980; 4 weeks)

83. “Billie Jean” – MICHAEL JACKSON (1983; 7 weeks)

86. “Abracadabra” – THE STEVE MILLER BAND (1982; 2 weeks)

89. “Say You, Say Me” – LIONEL RICHIE (1985 / 1986; 4 weeks)

91. “All Night Long (All Night)” – LIONEL RICHIE (1983; 4 weeks)

95. “Waiting For A Girl Like You” – FOREIGNER (1981 / 1982; 10 weeks at No. 2; still tied for a record for spending the most weeks peaked at No. 2 on the Hot 100)

98. “Hurts So Good” – JOHN MELLENCAMP (1982; 4 weeks at No. 2)

So, for now, the 80s represent more than a fifth of the greatest hits to grace the BILLBOARD HOT 100.  Pretty damn cool.  I know it won’t always be like that, and I always wonder why some huge hits like Prince’s “When Doves Cry” (No. 1 for 1984) or Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick In The Wall” (No. 2 for 1980) aren’t up there, but songs these days tend to stay atop the Hot 100 (and the chart as a whole) a lot longer than they did back in the day, but honestly, I’m grateful for the songs that are still there. 

When I was preparing for this hefty blog post (prolly my second-longest, save for the Prince tribute post in April 2016), I was going through the list of No. 1 songs, and there are some songs I’ve already featured as a “song of the day” (Tears For Fears’ “Everybody Wants To Rule The World” comes to mind, and has often as of late), and there are many others I love. 

But, I concede that there are some real stinkers in there, too: Will To Power’s awful covers medley of “Baby, I Love Your Way” and “Freebird” (subtitled “Freebaby,” which is just heinous)?!  How in THE HELL did that get to go to No. 1 and “I Don’t Want Your Love” by Duran Duran stops at No. 4, and U2’s “Desire” stops at No. 3?!  For the love of all things holy!  And though I admit enjoying the movie MANNEQUIN, “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” by Starship?!  Are you kidding me?!  Even Grace Slick denounced that piece of shit.  While the go-to “worst song of the 80s” award is usually 1985’s “We Built This City,” I can tolerate that way more over “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now.”  Yes, I’m THAT guy.

If I was going for my absolute favorite No. 1 song of the 80s, there’s no competition.  It’s “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” by Simple Minds.  It’s also my all-time favorite song.  But it’s a post I want to save for another time.  So, I thought it would be fun to bring in Hope, my writing hero, who, unlike yours truly, doesn’t obsess and write about nerdy chart facts or Top 40 hits, let alone ones that hit No. 1.  I thought it would be cool to have her choose the song for this post.

On August 11, 2017, Hope was kind enough to send me her list of her picks for No. 1 songs from the 80s, many of which have been already mentioned in this post!  One of those songs, and a song that is almost universally loved (like “Let’s Dance” by David Bowie, “Time After Time” by Cyndi Lauper, or the aforementioned Tears For Fears, Prince and Simple Minds gems) is “Abracadabra” by The Steve Miller Band.

Hope had included “Abracadabra” under the category of “Situational” No. 1 songs.  For Hope, “Abracadabra” was popular during the Summer after her high school graduation (“the glamorous Summer in The Hamptons!”), and she loves the line, “black panties with an angel’s face.”  Who wouldn’t love that line?!  It’s awesome (much like Hope herself)!

Milwaukee, Wisconsin native Steve Miller formed his Psychedelic Rock / Blues Rock band in San Francisco back in 1966.  Since his first two albums were released in 1968, through to his 1988 Jazz album, BORN 2 B BLUE, Steve Miller had been on Capitol Records, and he had some huge albums in the 70s. 

After 1981’s CIRCLE OF LOVE album (with the sweet Top 40 hit and criminally-forgotten gem, “Heart Like A Wheel”) failed to become his fourth consecutive platinum album here in America (though it was certified Gold), Steve was undeterred, got to work, and released the ABRACADABRA album in mid-June 1982.

Of the album, ROLLING STONE said, “The essence of good magic is deception, and with the release of this album, Steve Miller has earned the right to twirl his wand and shout, ‘Abracadabra!’”

Well, Steve thought so too, but Capitol wasn’t so sure.  The song inspired by Diana Ross (whom Steve met on a Pop music TV show in the 60s) told THE HOWARD STERN SHOW in 2016 that Capitol Records didn’t see a hit with the song “Abracadabra”:

“Capitol didn’t believe in [“Abracadabra”] and didn’t want to release it.  I had a different deal with Phonogram in Europe.  When it came out in Europe, I cancelled my American tour because it was Number One everywhere in the world, except the States.”  Once again, the record label got it wrong.

Well, after seeing the success of “Abracadabra” overseas, Capitol gave in and released it in the U.S., a month before the ABRACADABRA album was released.  “Abracadabra” debuted on the BILLBOARD Hot 100 in late May 1982 at No. 75, and took just four weeks to debut within the Top 40. 

The next few weeks were a steady climb, and by late July 1982, “Abracadabra” had become Steve Miller’s first Top 10 hit in five years, to the month.  With John Mellencamp’s “Hurts So Good” camped out at No. 2, and Survivor’s “Eye Of The Tiger” camped out at No. 1, “Abracadabra” was stuck at No. 3 for four weeks before it could work its magic on reaching No. 1. 

In early September 1982, after 15 weeks on the chart, “Abracadabra” finally hit No. 1 on the BILLBOARD Hot 100, giving Steve Miller his third No. 1 U.S. single overall, and his first No. 1 single since 1976’s “Rock’n Me” spent a week on top.  The No. 1 run of “Abracadabra” was just as quick as “Rock’n Me,” and his first No. 1 song, 1974’s “The Joker,” which also spent a lone week at No. 1.

The Steve Miller Band, 1982.

The following week, Chicago’s “Hard To Say I’m Sorry” snuck into the No. 1 position when no one was looking and stayed there for two weeks.  “Abracadabra” dropped to No. 3 (behind previous No. 1, “Eye Of The Tiger”).  But, in a magical chart feat, “Abracadabra” moved back up to No. 2 the next week, and by the end of September, “Abracadabra” reclaimed the No. 1 spot for one more week, before John Mellencamp’s little ditty about “Jack And Diane” started its four-week run at No. 1.  “Abracadabra” stayed on the Hot 100 until mid-Novemer 1982, and left the chart after nearly half a year.  It finished the year at No. 9 here in America. 

Around the globe, “Abracadabra” worked its magic on the singles charts of many countries, reaching No. 1 in Switzerland (six weeks), Sweden (four weeks), Australia and Canada (two weeks), and Austria, No. 2 in the U.K., Germany and Ireland, No. 4 in Norway, No. 8 in New Zealand, and No. 26 in the Netherlands.

“Abracadabra” was the last song The Steve Miller Band placed inside of the Top 40 of the BILLBOARD Hot 100, though they charted several more times through 1993, including the brilliant but oddly-underrated “I Want To Make The World Turn Around” from 1986.

Steve Miller continues to tour today, and in 2016, he was inducted as a solo artist into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, where he had some not so nice things to say about the whole thing, calling the Hall a “private boys’ club full of fucking gangsters and crooks,” and vowing to make it better. 

The Steve Miller Band, 2015.

He suggested taking the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame nominating committee, replace every one of them and start over.  I hope it works out, because Devo, from Akron, Ohio (less than an hour south of Cleveland, where the Hall is based), should have been inducted years ago, much like the incomparable Cyndi Lauper, who has taken on Blues, Standards, Folk, Dance and Country music in the past 15 years, not to mention writing a book, winning a Tony Award and co-founding the True Colors Fund, which works to end homelessness among LGBT youth, and even testified before Maine Senator Susan Collins in 2015 about this very subject. 

This photo of Steve at the 2016 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction ceremony speaks volumes, and not favorably for the Hall…

As for me and Hope and many others for “Abracadabra,” it’s one of those infectious songs that deserved to go to No. 1, and 35 years later, it still holds up.  At least the five-minute, eleven-second album version.  When the single was released, I bought it, but was instantly pissed it wasn’t the long version!  Sure, it’s only a minute and change difference, but if you hear the single version vs. the album version, you can tell the single version is a bit sped up, and the kick-ass instrumental that closes out the rest of the song isn’t there.  That’s even why I chose the video link below.  It’s not a link to the actual video, but to the album version.  You know, all these years later, I’m still impressed that sped up, edited single version got the song to No. 1.  Maybe that was magic too.

Speaking of magic, Hope inspired me recently to start training for a 5K using the Couch To 5K app (C25K); we’re both training for it, and finishing Week 5 of 8 this weekend!  Hope and I haven’t run a proper 5K in our adult lives, and the last time I ran the equivalent of a 5K was in high school during Cross Country, where I lettered my senior year.  Holy cats, that was 33 years ago! 

Post-run workout, 9.7.2017! (With a kick-ass playlist by DJ HopeyT to keep me going!)

But, you know what?  Maybe it’s not magic after all that’s got us training for our first 5K ever – and in our early 50s!  Maybe you just need to believe.  Just like Steve Miller believed he had a hit with “Abracadabra,” even as his longtime record label disagreed – and he was right!  It’s one of THE BEST songs of the 80s and of all-time.  And I believe getting through this 5K (and other aspects of my life) will happen with belief over magic, though I have to say, when it happens, it will feel pretty damn magical and then some…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKCV8gzSlYw

song of the day – “Love Shack” | THE B-52’s | 1989.

On June 15, 2014, Casey Kasem, host of the longtime countdown program, AMERICAN TOP 40, passed away at the age of 82.  From my first blog post (and prolly some more inbetween then and now), I explained how, in 1979, I was a geeky, lanky and somewhat lost 12-year-old living in Central Maine, had a few friends and not a lot of interest in much of anything, but at some point early that year, I discovered AMERICAN TOP 40, and was glued to it every weekend.  Not only could I hear the 40 biggest songs in the country every week, but also Casey’s cool trivia and facts about the songs and the artists, a trait I treasure to this day.  For me, the show was No. 1 with a bullet.  And still is (thanks to the re-airing of broadcasts of AT40 on iHeart Radio).

In honor of my radio hero, Casey Kasem, for the entire month of June (and now through July), I will be highlighting a song each day (some days will have two songs!) that peaked in the Top 40 of the BILLBOARD Hot 100 (including five (real) one-hit wonders of the 80s), and with every blog post, just like on AMERICAN TOP 40, the hits will get bigger with each post.  On June 1, 2017, I featured a song that peaked at No. 40.  Sometime here in July, I’ll feature a “song of the day” that went all the way to No. 1. 

As Casey used to say on AT40, “And on we go!”

Casey Kasem used to also say, “As the numbers get smaller, the hits get bigger.”  And so does the number of songs that reached these “smaller” positions.  Between 1979 and 1989, more than 110 songs peaked at No. 3, and many artists stayed there more than once, including Bobby Brown, El DeBarge (solo and with DeBarge), Duran Duran, Genesis, The Jets, Billy Joel, Cyndi Lauper, Huey Lewis & The News, Richard Marx, Olivia Newton-John, The Pointer Sisters, The Police (Sting also had a No. 3 solo hit), Kenny Rogers, Barbra Streisand, Styx, Wham! and Donna Summer.  Chicago reached the No. 3 positions four times between 1979 and 1989.

1988 was a popular year for No. 3 hits, when 17 songs reached that position, including songs by Taylor Dayne, Samantha Fox, Debbie Gibson, the “comeback” hit for Hall & Oates (“Everything Your Heart Desires”), Breathe, Anita Baker, Information Society, INXS, U2 and (real) one-hit wonder Patrick Swayze (from DIRTY DANCING). 

No. 3 hits also included the first solo by David Lee Roth (his cover of The Beach Boys’ “California Girls”), as well as the first Van Halen hit without him, “Why Can’t This Be Love.”  There were also big No. 3 hits for Simple Minds, Belinda Carlisle, The Cars, Neneh Cherry, Charlie Daniels Band, Chris de Burgh, Earth, Wind & Fire, Corey Hart, Don Henley, Chaka Khan, Love & Rockets, Men At Work, Men Without Hats, Nu Shooz, Stevie Nicks with Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, The S.O.S. Band, The Stray Cats, Tears For Fears, Thompson Twins, Madonna and the last Top 40 hit for the late, great Marvin Gaye (“Sexual Healing”).

Love was a constant theme among the No. 3 hits, and was featured in the title of 15 songs, and implied in many others.  One of the 15 hits with the “Love” connection (sorry, couldn’t be helped) was one of two No. 3 hits in a row for The B-52’s – “Love Shack.”

One of the 80s’ biggest success stories – some would say one of the biggest comebacks – belonged to Athens, GA’s New Wave / Alt-Rock / Alt-Dance legends, The B-52’s.  By 1989, The B-52’s had already released four albums and two EPs, and had reached the BILLBOARD Hot 100 three times – “Rock Lobster” (No. 56, 1980), “Private Idaho” (No. 74, 1980) and “Legal Tender” (No. 81, 1983). 

The B-52’s started recorded their fourth album – BOUNCING OFF THE SATELLITES – in July 1985.  At that time, the band was comprised of vocalist Fred Schneider, vocalist and keyboardist Kate Pierson, vocalist and percussionist Cindy Wilson, lead guitarist Ricky Wilson (Cindy’s brother), and drummer / rhythm guitarist and keyboardist Keith Strickland.  This had been the lineup since the band’s formation in 1976.

During the recording of BOUNCING OFF THE SATELLITES, it was discovered that Ricky Wilson was suffering from AIDS.  None of the rest of The B-52’s (except for Keith Strickland) had known about it.  In an interview, Kate Pierson had said that Ricky Wilson kept his illness a secret from the rest of the band because he “did not want anyone to worry about him or fuss about him.” 

On October 12, 1985, while still in the recording process of BOUNCING OFF THE SATELLITES, Ricky Wilson died of AIDS at the heartbreakingly young age of 32 years old.

After Ricky’s death, drummer Keith Strickland learned how to play guitar in Ricky’s own style and switched from drummer to lead guitarist.  The band hired session musicians to help out as well, including the album’s producer, Tony Mansfield (who had also worked with Naked Eyes, Captain Sensible, a-ha and After The Fire).

Devastated beyond belief at the loss of Ricky Wilson, The B-52’s released BOUNCING OFF THE SATELLITES on September 8, 1986, with no fanfare and no tour, though they did make a music video for my favorite song on the album, “Girl From Ipanema Goes To Greenland.”

Cindy Wilson went into a deep depression following her brother’s death, Keith Strickland spent some time at Woodstock, NY, while Fred Schneider and Kate Pierson remained in New York City.  They all felt at that moment The B-52’s couldn’t continue without Ricky Wilson.

But, in time, Keith Strickland began composing songs again, and after playing some of the new music he had worked on to the rest of the band, they agreed to try and start writing together again.  The result was COSMIC THING, the biggest album the band would ever have.

COSMIC THING’s production was smartly split up between Don Was (of Was (Not Was) fame) and Nile Rodgers.  It worked and then some, and the album’s first single, “Channel Z,” was not well-received anywhere except College and Modern Rock radio, who embraced it right away.  “Channel Z” would spend three weeks at No. 1 on BILLBOARD’s Modern Rock chart in August 1989.

“Channel Z” was also the B-side of the album’s second single, “Love Shack,” which was released a week in advance of COSMIC THING in late June 1989.  It took a month and a half to reach BILLBOARD’s Hot 100 chart and become the band’s fourth single to reach the chart. 

“Love Shack” debuted on the Hot 100 in early September 1989 at No. 84.  Within three weeks, “Love Shack” had already surpassed the peak of every B-52’s single which had reached the chart.  By the end of September 1989, it was the first Top 40 hit the band had in its U.S. homeland.

In early November 1989, The B-52’s landed their first Top 10 hit, with “Love Shack.”  That was also the week I saw them perform for the first time, when they came to the University of Maine at Orono and almost literally brought the roof of the venue down with their show.  They were amazing.  I would see them again on the COSMIC THING tour in 1990 at The Ballpark in Old Orchard Beach, Maine.

“Love Shack” would go on to spend a couple of weeks at No. 3 in November 1989, and just before Xmas 1989, it was certified Gold.  Follow-up single “Roam” debuted on the last Hot 100 of 1989, when “Love Shack” was still in the Top 30.  And, in late January 1990, “Roam” debuted within the Top 40 the last week “Love Shack” spent in the Top 40.  (“Roam” would also reach No. 3 and was certified Gold as well.)

A total of 27 weeks was spent on the Hot 100 for “Love Shack,” one week more than half a year.  It was that lengthy time on the chart which saw it finish on the year-end BILLBOARD charts two years in a row.  Pretty impressive.  It also reached (with “Channel Z”) No. 7 on BILLBOARD’s Dance chart, spent four weeks at No. 1 on BILLBOARD’s Modern Rock chart, and received two MTV Video Music Awards, for Best Group Video and Best Art Direction.

NERDY FUN FACT: “Love Shack” was produced by Don Was, and the inspiration for the song was this cabin around Athens, GA, which had a tin roof, and where the band conceived their first hit, “Rock Lobster.”  Kate Pierson even lived in the cabin back in the 70s (it burned down in 2004).  Prolly the most famous line in the song, where Cindy Wilson exclaims, “Tin roof…rusted,” was actually an outtake that was added to the song later on.

Around the globe, lots of love was felt for “Love Shack,” and it spent eight weeks at No. 1 in Australia, four weeks at No. 1 in New Zealand, a week at No. 1 in Ireland, plus it reached No. 2 in the U.K., and the Top 20 in Belgium and the Netherlands.

In a 2002 interview with ROLLING STONE (which named “Love Shack” as the Best Single of 1989), Fred Schneider spoke of the album’s success: “We thought it would be good, but we didn’t know how good.  We don’t really set out saying, ‘Oh, this is going to be commercial,’ or ‘This is going to be this or that.’  We just wanted good songs, and we thought the songs were really good.  We were pretty shocked, because we didn’t expect it to go that big.  The success of it brings problems because it’s really hard to do tours.  I’m not one to want to go tour at all, but to do eighteen months is like torture.  You just get offers that are really good and you’re going to New Zealand and Australia and all over Europe, and it’s pretty exciting.  It all went way beyond what you’d think.”

After COSMIC THING, The B-52’s continued to record and chart for a few more years, including a fun cover of the TV theme song, “(Meet) The Flintstones” (from the 1994 FLINTSTONES movie starring John Goodman).  It snuck onto the Top 40 for one week in early June 1994.

Apart from recording (as The BC-52’s) for Fred, Wilma, Barney and Betty (and a couple of popular compilations), the band took a lengthy hiatus, and in March 2008, released FUNPLEX, their first album in nearly 16 years.  It was worth the wait. 

In October 2011, they released a CD and a DVD of a live concert from earlier that year, WITH THE WILD CROWD! LIVE IN ATHENS, GA.  To borrow from a line out of FERRIS BUELLER’S DAY OFF, “It is so choice.  If you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up.”  Seriously, it’s that good.  One of the best live performances I’ve ever seen on the small screen, from one of the bands with two of the best live performances I’ve seen in person.

Though the band hasn’t released a solo album since 2008’s FUNPLEX, The B-52’s continue to tour and perform 50-60 shows a year (minus Keith Strickland, who is still with the band, but who stopped performing live with them in 2012).  Sadly, I missed them this Summer, when they came to Hampton Beach, New Hampshire (where I saw Billy Idol in 2014), and when they performed with the Boston Pops.  That must have been incredible!  Prolly the only Pops show where you can’t control people from dancing on their seats, in the aisles and everywhere!

I gotta be honest, after years of playing it at wedding receptions, “Love Shack” is not my favorite B-52’s song.  But, if you were in a jam and tried to get people out onto the dance floor, that was THE go-to song, and people loved it, and loved dancing to it.  Though it’s not my favorite from the band, I do love the song to death, and I’m so glad it finally got The B-52’s the recognition they deserved after so many years of struggling despite putting out great music, and with the terrible loss they suffered when they lost Ricky Wilson. 

Both COSMIC THING and “Love Shack” are a testament to Ricky’s memory, and I’m so proud to call The B-52’s one of my all-time favorite bands, even if it took me awhile to get there.  They are a heluva lot of fun to listen to and dance to, play on the radio and see perform live, which I hope to do again sometime soon…

“Hop in my Chrysler, it’s as big as a whale and it’s about to set sail / I got me a car, like, it seats about 20 / So come on and bring your jukebox money…  The Love Shack is a little old place where we can get together / Love Shack, ba-by….”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9SOryJvTAGs

song of the day #2 – “Holiday” | MADONNA | 1984.

On June 15, 2014, Casey Kasem, host of the longtime countdown program, AMERICAN TOP 40, passed away at the age of 82.  From my first blog post (and prolly some more inbetween then and now), I explained how, in 1979, I was a geeky, lanky and somewhat lost 12-year-old living in Central Maine, had a few friends and not a lot of interest in much of anything, but at some point early that year, I discovered AMERICAN TOP 40, and was glued to it every weekend.  Not only could I hear the 40 biggest songs in the country every week, but also Casey’s cool trivia and facts about the songs and the artists, a trait I treasure to this day.  For me, the show was No. 1 with a bullet.  And still is (thanks to the re-airing of broadcasts of AT40 on iHeart Radio).

In honor of my radio hero, Casey Kasem, for the entire month of June (and now through July), I will be highlighting a song each day (some days will have two songs!) that peaked in the Top 40 of the BILLBOARD Hot 100 (including five (real) one-hit wonders of the 80s), and with every blog post, just like on AMERICAN TOP 40, the hits will get bigger with each post.  On June 1, 2017, I featured a song that peaked at No. 40.  Sometime here in July, I’ll feature a “song of the day” that went all the way to No. 1. 

As Casey used to say on AT40, “And on we go!”

Well, it’s Independence Day here in the U.S. of A. (Happy 241st Birthday America!), and it’s pretty quiet here today in the Central Maine town of Winslow (where I write this).  For the first time in 26 years, there’s no Independence Day parade here (my folks’ house is on the parade route), and no fireworks either (my folks’ house is across the street from where they’d normally be set off, in nearby Fort Halifax Park).  The damn town didn’t even put up the flags on the telephone poles.  I know they have their reasons for not doing the events this year, but I think they could have at least put the flags on the poles for a few weeks leading up to today. 

O well.  My sister and her family are here from Pennsylvania, and there’s still lots of family in the area, so we all got together for lunch earlier, and my brother was headed to the store to buy fireworks.  We’ll see how that goes.  Here’s of the favorite pics I took at 2016’s fireworks display (keep in mind I ordinarily don’t take normal fireworks photos; I tend to go for the alt-shots).  I called this shot “80s album cover fireworks.”

It’s also 47 years to the day when the inaugural AMERICAN TOP 40 broadcast was aired.  Happy Anniversary AT40!  That original broadcast (using the BILLBOARD Hot 100 chart dated July 4, 1970) included hits from artists who would continue to have hits in the 80s, like Stevie Wonder, Joe Cocker, Aretha Franklin, The Moody Blues and Chicago, had Rock And Roll royalty on the chart, like Three Dog Night, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Simon & Garfunkel, Sly & The Family Stone, and it had “The Long And Winding Road” by The Beatles.  The No. 1 song that week? “The Love You Save” by The Jackson 5.

Between 1979 and 1989, more than 40 songs reached No. 16 on BILLBOARD’s Hot 100 chart (the chart AT40 used in from 1970 through 1988, when Casey left AT40), and featured several songs by women (I told you’d they’d be back!), including songs by Quarterflash, Pointer Sisters, Sade, Katrina & The Waves (yes, they actually did had more than one hit!), Roberta Flack, and two from both Aretha Franklin and Stevie Nicks.

Songs that reached No. 16 also included four awesome (real) one-hit wonders Bob & Doug McKenzie (“Take Off”), Godley & Creme (“Cry”), Double (“The Captain Of Her Heart”) and French singer Patrick Hernandez (“Born To Be Alive,” which spent 15 weeks at No. 1 in his homeland of France).

Other notable No. 16 hits are Wang Chung’s “Dance Hall Days,” “Dreaming” by Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark, Electric Light Orchestra’s “I’m Alive” (from XANADU), “Renegade” by Styx, “Rock Of Ages” by Def Leppard, “Synchronicity II” by The Police, “Russians” by Sting, “Super Freak” by Rick James, Duran Duran’s “Save A Prayer” (a song released a few years too late to be a bigger hit here in America), and Madonna’s first single to reach both the Hot 100 and the Top 40, “Holiday.”

Hard to believe, but in the beginning, Madonna signed on for only two 12” singles with Sire Records.  I think she was just playing it smart.  Her first single, “Everybody,” was released in early October 1982, when she was 24 years old.  Though it was a No. 3 hit on BILLBOARD’s Dance chart (a double-A-sided 12” single with “Burning Up”), “Everybody” just missed the BILLBOARD Hot 100, stopping at No. 107.

Though “Everybody” failed to reach the Hot 100, both Sire co-founder Seymour Stein and Madonna were convinced something big was going to happen; maybe not right away, but soon.  They were right.

A happy day (“holiday?”) for Madonna and Sire Records co-founder, Seymour Stein…

Sire released Madonna’s self-titled debut album in late July 1983, and the first single from the album, “Holiday,” was released in early September 1983.  It was produced by her then-boyfriend and future longtime collaborator and remixer, John “Jellybean” Benitez, which would prove to be an incredibly brilliant move.

“Holiday” debuted on the BILLBOARD Hot 100 a couple of days before Halloween 1983 at No. 88.  Songs by Alabama, Linda Ronstadt and The Stray Cats all debuted higher that week, but “Holiday” would outlast them all.

By early December 1983, Madonna’s first Hot 100 hit became her first Top 40 hit, making a steady climb up the chart until stopping at No. 16 for two weeks in January / February 1984. 

Around the globe, “Holiday” enjoyed a nice chart run, and reached the Top 10 in the U.K., Australia, Belgium, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and even reached No. 25 on BILLBOARD’s R&B chart.

“Holiday” was still on the chart in March 1984 when her follow-up single, “Borderline,” debuted on the Hot 100.  That would go on to become her first Top 10 hit, reaching No. 10 and spending 30 weeks on the chart.  Then, “Lucky Star” would go on to reach No. 4 in late October 1984, and the rest, as they say, is history. 

Dick Clark interviewing Madonna on AMERICAN BANDSTAND, 1.14.1984.

Patrick Hernandez and Madonna on the beach in France…

Madonna famously performed “Holiday” on AMERICAN BANDSTAND in mid-January 1984 (video link below; for now anyway), a couple of weeks before “Holiday” peaked at No. 16.  In the post-song interview, she told Dick Clark how she went to Paris because of “Born To Be Alive” by Patrick Hernandez (another aforementioned member of the No. 16 chart club), and Patrick offered Madonna the opportunity to be a backup singer and dancer on his tour.

In that same January 14, 1984 interview, Dick Clark asked, “We are a couple of weeks into the New Year.  What do you hope will happen, not only in 1984 but the rest of your professional life?  What are your dreams?”  Madonna did not hesitate when she replied, “To rule the world.”  And, by the end of 1984, she did just that.  “Like A Virgin” ruled the Hot 100 and BILLBOARD’s Dance chart, and would rule the Pop charts in Australia, Canada and Japan, and would reach the Top 10 in at least 12 other countries. 

QUIRKY CHART FACT: In regards to Madonna’s comment about ruling the world, in the Spring of 1985, Tears For Fears nearly ruled Madonna’s chart world with their huge hit, “Everybody Wants To Rule The World,” which was No. 1 three songs after her No. 1 hit, “Crazy For You.”  (And, when the year-end chart for 1985 was tabulated, “Crazy For You” was ranked No. 9, and “Everybody Wants To Rule The World” was ranked No. 8.  But, admittedly, 1985 belonged to Madonna on the Pop charts and then some all over the world.)

There have been a number of covers of “Holiday” over the years, including one by Sheffield, England Synthpoppers Heaven 17, who covered it in 1999.  A couple of years after the Madonna original, a Dutch Rap duo called MC Miker G & DJ Sven took the backing music of “Holiday” and created a rap over it, calling it (appropriately enough) “Holiday Rap” (which also borrows from Cliff Richard’s 1963 U.K. hit, “Summer Holiday”).

“Holiday Rap” was a huge hit in Europe, topping the charts in the Netherlands, France, Germany and Switzerland, and reaching the Top 10 in the U.K., Australia, Norway and Sweden.

Everyone who knows me knows that Cyndi Lauper is my all-time favorite recording artist, and has been for a long time.  Back in the 80s, though, Madonna did rule my Pop music world.  I have pretty much every 80s 12” single, every album, and even a VHS of “The Virgin Tour.”

I don’t know when it was, but there was a time back in the 90s (maybe upon my move to Portland, Maine in 1994) when Cyndi became my favorite female recording artist over Madonna.  I still loved Madonna’s work, but Cyndi impressed me, even more so in the past 15 years (and not just because Cyndi was kind enough to be my first big interview on my STUCK IN THE 80s radio show). 

Since 2002, Cyndi Lauper has released an album of Standards, an Acoustic album, a Dance record, BILLBOARD’s No. 1 Blues album of 2010 (and near-Grammy Winner for Best Traditional Blues album; MEMPHIS BLUES), plus she’s had a reality TV show with her husband and young son, written an autobiography, wrote the score to the musical, KINKY BOOTS (for which she won a Tony Award), and last year, released an album of old Country standards.  Her version of Patsy Cline’s “I Fall To Pieces” still gives me goosebumps, it’s so damn good.  Most importantly, in 2008, Cyndi co-founded the True Colors Fund, a non-profit charity meant to educate folks about LGBT issues and to end LGBT youth homelessness.  How is it Cyndi’s not in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame yet?!

Cyndi Lauper celebrating the meeting of her friend, Tony…

In comparison, the last Madonna album I truly loved is now 12 years old (the amazing CONFESSIONS ON A DANCE FLOOR from 2005, which stayed in my car for an entire year).  But, irregardless, Madonna (who turns 59 in August 2017) continues to do things on her terms, which has been a covenant of sorts for her since her music career began 35 years ago, and you’ve got to respect that.  I certainly do, even if I’m not so much digging the music as of late. 

I know “Holiday” isn’t about Independence Day, or any particular holiday, but today, it felt right to share, and yes, I am taking some time to celebrate.  You should too.  May the 4th (of July) be with you…

“If we took a holiday yeah / Took some time to celebrate / Just one day out of life / It would be so nice…”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbSTzlzoUi4

 

song of the day – “Our Lips Are Sealed” | THE GO-GO’s | 1981 / 1982.

On June 15, 2014, Casey Kasem, host of the longtime countdown program, AMERICAN TOP 40, passed away at the age of 82.  From my first blog post (and prolly some more inbetween then and now), I explained how, in 1979, I was a geeky, lanky and somewhat lost 12-year-old living in Central Maine, had a few friends and not a lot of interest in much of anything, but at some point early that year, I discovered AMERICAN TOP 40, and was glued to it every weekend.  Not only could I hear the 40 biggest songs in the country every week, but also Casey’s cool trivia and facts about the songs and the artists, a trait I treasure to this day.  For me, the show was No. 1 with a bullet.  And still is (thanks to the re-airing of broadcasts of AT40 on iHeart Radio).

You know, time is a funny thing, not just for hit singles, but for life too.  For the month of June 2017, in honor of my radio hero, Casey Kasem, I’ve been highlighting songs that peaked in the Top 40 of the BILLBOARD Hot 100 (including some (real) one-hit wonders of the 80s), and with every blog post, just like on AMERICAN TOP 40, the hits have been getting bigger with each post.  On June 1, 2017, I featured a song that peaked at No. 40. 

My goal was to feature a “song of the day” on June 30 (today) that went all the way to No. 1.  Well, life happens.  I wanted to do 40 posts in 30 days, but during the last half of the month, it got crazy busy for yours truly, visiting with dear friends I hadn’t seen in awhile, including a kick-ass concert in Boston with Tears For Fears and Daryl Hall & John Oates, guesting on a couple of radio shows, plus work stuff, family stuff, home stuff, and more of each…

Anyhoo, long story longer, I promised a countdown and a proper tribute to Casey Kasem on the bloggy thing here, and I humbly apologize for the delay, but I’m going to proudly honor my tribute to Casey, and keep going through July until we count down all the way to No. 1! 

So, as Casey used to say on AT40, “And on we go!”

In Los Angeles in 1978, four young female Punk Rock upstarts from the area – including vocalist Belinda Carlisle and guitarist and vocalist Jane Wiedlin – got together and formed a band called The Go-Go’s. 

The Go-Go’s played on the same bills as bands like revered L.A. Punk bands Fear and X and others.  Later in 1978, vocalist and lead guitarist Charlotte Caffey joined the band, and in the Summer of 1979, Gina Schock signed on as the drummer. 

By the time they recorded a five-song demo in late 1979, The Go-Go’s went from a Punk Rock sound to a more Power Pop sound.  In 1980, they got a huge break by touring with Madness in Los Angeles and in England, spending half the year on tour over in England.  A demo version of “We Got The Beat” (released on Stiff Records) ended up being a minor hit in the U.K., and gave The Go-Go’s their first bout with fame.

In December 1980, guitarist Kathy Valentine came aboard as the band’s bassist, and thus became the final member of the quintet, or rather, the future history-making lineup of The Go-Go’s. 

Four months later, in April 1981, the band signed on with I.R.S. Records.  Within three months, they recorded and released their debut album, BEAUTY AND THE BEAT.  It was not an instant smash here in America.  In England and Europe, however, the New Wave / Power Pop appeal of BEAUTY AND THE BEAT was definitely a hit.

The first single from BEAUTY AND THE BEAT (and the album’s opening track), “Our Lips Are Sealed” (co-written by Jane Wiedlin and Terry Hall, singer for The Specials and Fun Boy Three), was released in mid-June 1981, a few weeks in advance of the album.

“Our Lips Are Sealed” took a couple of months to reach on the BILLBOARD Hot 100, debuting in late August 1981, and coming in as the lowest-debuting song on the Hot 100 that week (No. 90).  About two months into its chart run, “Our Lips Are Sealed” squeaked onto the Top 40 (at No. 40), having lost its “chart bullet” (representing strength in airplay and sales) for two consecutive weeks.

It inched up “bullet-less” to No. 39 the following week, and regained its bullet in week No. 11 on the Hot 100.  A couple of weeks before Xmas 1981, lips and ears and wallets of fans were no longer sealed, as both the single “Our Lips Are Sealed” and parent album, BEAUTY AND THE BEAT, picked up momentum.  “Our Lips Are Sealed” spent a couple of weeks at No. 20 in December 1981, and was still in the Top 40 by mid-January 1982.

In late January 1982, “We Got The Beat,” the second single from BEAUTY AND THE BEAT, was the highest-debuting song of the week, coming in at No. 79.  Within three short weeks, “We Got The Beat” was already at No. 31 on the Hot 100, on its way to a No. 2 peak for three weeks in April 1982.  That also helped bring the BEAUTY AND THE BEAT album to No. 1 on BILLBOARD’s album chart for six weeks in March and April 1982.

As for the debut single, “Our Lips Are Sealed,” it left the BILLBOARD Hot 100 in late March 1982 and spent a more-than-impressive 30 weeks on the chart.  Wanna be even more impressed?  “Our Lips Are Sealed” spent four more weeks on the chart than the biggest song of the 80s, Olivia Newton-John’s “Physical” (which was the No. 1 song at the time “Our Lips Are Sealed” peaked on the Hot 100).

1982 was certainly the year for The Go-Go’s, who placed three singles among the Top 100 songs in the U.S. that year.  “We Got The Beat” ranked at No. 25 for 1982, and “Vacation,” the title song from their second album, a No. 8 hit, and the first-ever cassette single (then a novelty item), was ranked at No. 87 for the year. 

The unusually long chart run for “Our Lips Are Sealed” (even though it stopped at No. 20) placed it at No. 63 for the year, higher than many songs that were Top 10 hits, including “Don’t Stop Believin’” by Journey, “I Ran (So Far Away)” by A Flock Of Seagulls, and even the gorgeous No. 3 hit by The Police, “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic.”

“Our Lips Are Sealed” wasn’t just a big hit on the BILLBOARD Hot 100.  It also reached No. 10 on BILLBOARD’s Dance chart and No. 15 on BILLBOARD’s Rock chart.  Around the globe, “Our Lips Are Sealed” enjoyed success in Australia (No. 2), Canada (No. 4), Sweden (No. 14) and New Zealand (No. 23).  Oddly enough, in the U.K., where the band had its first success, it stopped at No. 47, though it would reappear a couple of years later.

In 1983, Fun Boy Three released their own version (as it was co-written by FB3 singer Terry Hall), from the album, WAITING, which was produced by Talking Heads’ David Byrne.  This version ended up being a big hit in both the U.K. and Ireland, reaching Nos. 7 and 13, respectively.

The Go-Go’s broke up in 1985, and Belinda Carlisle and Jane Wiedlin went on to successful solo careers in the second half of the 80s and early 90s.  The band got back together a couple of times in the 90s, and 2001, Belinda, Jane, Charlotte, Gina and Kathy reunited and released GOD BLESS THE GO-GO’S, their first studio album together since 1984’s TALK SHOW.

Though the band has already had their “farewell” tour, the legacy of The Go-Go’s lives on.  BEAUTY AND THE BEAT was once described as one of “the cornerstone albums of American New Wave” and 35 years later remains as the first and THE ONLY all-female band to reach No. 1 on BILLBOARD’s album chart.

I love “We Got The Beat,” and I am so glad it brought deserved huge success to The Go-Go’s, but I’ve always found myself more partial to “Our Lips Are Sealed,” which is two minutes and 44 seconds of simple and pure New Wave / Pop perfection.

“It doesn’t matter what they say / In the jealous games people play / Our lips are sealed / Pay no mind to what they say / It doesn’t matter anyway / Our lips are sealed…”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3kQlzOi27M

song of the day – “All Around The World” | LISA STANSFIELD | 1989 / 1990.

In mid-October 1989, Pop music in America didn’t know which direction it was going in.  Take the Top 10 of the BILLBOARD Hot 100 chart for October 14, 1989 for example.  You had 80s Pop mainstays Janet Jackson and Madonna leading the pack (“Miss You Much” and “Cherish,” respectively), the future great Grammy taker-awayers, Milli Vanilli (“Girl I’m Gonna Miss You”), a rare big American hit for The Cure (“Love Song”), the last big hit for the Rolling Stones (“Mixed Emotions”), Tears For Fears channeling The Beatles (“Sowing The Seeds Of Love”), rapper Young M.C. with the first (and last) big hit of his own (“Bust A Move”), Hollywood, CA Glam Metal band Warrant (“Heaven”), another big Pop hit for Sweden’s Roxette (“Listen To Your Heart”) and the first Pop single for R&B singer, songwriter and future mega-producer, Babyface (“It’s No Crime”).

Meanwhile, over in the U.K., Disco, which saw its peak ten years earlier, was mounting a sort of comeback.  Sure, there were Disco influences in the 80s – you heard it in the music of Madonna, Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie, Irene Cara, Queen and Pet Shop Boys, to name a few (Pet Shop Boys even named several of their early remixes as the “Disco Mix”).

In September 1989, Italian Eurohouse band Black Box started a six-week run at No. 1 on the U.K. singles chart with “Ride On Time,” and ended up being the biggest U.K. single of 1989.  Black Box would go on to have big global hits in the early 90s, scoring a couple of Top 10 hits in the U.S. with “Everybody Everybody” and “Strike It Up.”

During the last week of Black Box’s reign on the U.K. singles chart, Manchester, England native Lisa Stansfield released – that same week in mid-October 1989 mentioned at the beginning of the blog post – the second single from her then-forthcoming album, AFFECTION – “All Around The World.”

Lisa Stansfield had tried out a solo career back in the early 80s, and released a number of singles, including a 1983 song called “Listen To Your Heart” (no relation to the Roxette song from 1989). 

After a brief first try at a solo career, Lisa joined the short-lived trio, Blue Zone, which was a combination of Pop, Dance and Blue-Eyed Soul.  Their only album, 1988’s BIG THING, well, wasn’t.  It did, however, give Blue Zone (known as Blue Zone UK in the U.S.) one hit on the BILLBOARD Hot 100, with the song “Jackie,” featured in the 1987 film, SUMMER SCHOOL, starring Mark Harmon and Kirstie Alley.  “Jackie” reached No. 54 on the Hot 100.

It was not until Lisa’s first collaboration with producer and remixer Coldcut in the Spring of 1989 that gave her a big U.K. hit.  The song was “People Hold On,” from Coldcut’s debut album, WHAT’S THAT NOISE?.  Lisa sang and co-wrote the song, and it reached No. 11 on the U.K. singles chart and No. 6 on BILLBOARD’s Dance chart.  It also had Top 40 success in some countries around the globe.

After “People Hold On” was a hit on both sides of the Atlantic, Arista Records signed Lisa on as a solo artist.  Her first successful solo single, “This Is The Right Time,” was released in late July 1989 (it was released as her third single in the U.S. a year later).

“This Is The Right Time” (produced by Coldcut) was a success, reaching No. 13 on the U.K. singles chart, and would go on to fare well in Austria, Canada, Germany, the BILLBOARD Hot 100 (where it reached No. 21), and the BILLBOARD Dance chart, where it spent a week on top in mid-October 1990.

A month before the mid-November 1989 release of Lisa’s debut solo album, AFFECTION, her second U.K. solo single was released – “All Around The World.”  And this one WOULD take her all around the world. 

Almost immediately, critics and music fans were hooked.  ROLLING STONE critic Amy Linden gave the AFFECTION album four out of five stars, saying “the way her voice slinks around the line ‘so-oo sad’ in ‘All Around The World’ show[s] that this is someone who knows her roots even if they aren’t really hers.”

The sound of “All Around The World” was inspired by the late, great R&B legend, Barry White (who would sing, with Lisa, on a version of the song in 1992), and it paid off.  Ten years after the peak of Disco, Lisa Stansfield brought the genre back for four-and-a-half minutes and then some all around the world.

The single “All Around The World” was a massive hit nearly everywhere it landed.  It spent two weeks at No. 1 in the U.K. in November 1989, and from there, it reached No. 1 in Austria (six weeks), Belgium, Canada (five weeks), Holland (four weeks), Norway, Spain, and two weeks at No. 1 on both of BILLBOARD’s R&B and Dance charts, where it finished 1990 at Nos. 6 and 3, respectively, for the year.

Over here in the U.S., “All Around The World” was released in mid-January 1990, three months after its U.K. release, and the news of its success, well, all around the world was good news to American radio stations and record stores.  “All Around The World” debuted on the BILLBOARD Hot 100 just a couple of weeks later, in early February 1990. 

A couple of months later, it had reached No. 3, and certainly had the momentum to reach No. 1, but it got stuck in a few tight chart weeks, and it stayed at No. 3 for three weeks.  The competition for No. 1 was so tight, in fact, in those three weeks, there were three different No. 1 songs, the last of which was “Nothing Compares 2 U,” the Prince-composed gem of a cover by Sinéad O’Connor. 

As it turns out, “All Around The World” really did have the momentum of being a No. 1 song here in America.  When BILLBOARD tallied up the top Hot 100 songs of 1990, “All Around The World” beat out the first two songs that did go to No. 1 (and prevented Lisa from going to there), not to mention it beat out several other No. 1 songs that year too.

Though some would prolly classify it more as an R&B or Dance song than a Disco song, I think “All Around The World” had a real big hand in reinvigorating the Disco genre for awhile in the early 1990s, or at least inspiring other artists and / or songs to include that “Disco” influence. 

One of THE BEST songs to dance to evah, Deee-Lite’s “Groove Is In The Heart” (released during the Summer of 1990), would certainly fit into that category.  Maybe even U2’s “Lemon” (1993), the Pet Shop Boys remix of Blur’s “Girls & Boys” (1994) and the brilliant “Justified & Ancient” by The KLF and Tammy Wynette (1991) would fit into that category as well.

In 1991, Lisa Stansfield was nominated for two Grammy Awards, including Best New Artist and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, losing out to Mariah Carey in both categories.  For the British equivalent of the Grammy Awards, the BRIT Awards, Lisa won Best British Newcomer in 1990 and Best British Female in 1991.

After “All Around The World” (and not counting her vocal contribution to 1989’s “Do They Know It’s Christmas II”), Lisa Stansfield would go on to have 13 more Top 40 U.K. hits, six of those which reached the Top 10.  And she did okay over here in the U.S. for awhile.  Most recently, she released her seventh solo studio album, appropriately titled, SEVEN, in early 2014.  It was her highest-charting U.K. album in 17 years.  That same year, she also released her fourth compilation, and her second and third remix albums back-to-back.

Between 1999 and 2013, Lisa Stansfield appeared in five films, and in 1998, she married her second husband – her longtime friend, engineer, mixer, co-writer and co-producer, Ian Devaney.  They were married in a small ceremony in New York City.

Hard to imagine at one time I didn’t even like Lisa Stansfield or “All Around The World.”  It took me about five years, around my second year living in Portland, but I finally saw and heard what folks were raving about back in 1990.  And, once I learned this song was actually a U.K. hit in 1989, you can bet I played this song often on my little 80s radio show, STUCK IN THE 80s.  And, why wouldn’t I? 

Sure, somewhere in there, “All Around The World” is a melancholy song with some hope (“I can’t find my baby / I don’t know when, I don’t know why / Why he’s gone away / And I don’t know where he can be, my baby / But I’m gonna find him…”).  And it did what it set out to do – go all around the world, but also, it helped incorporate and reintroduce a genre that had pretty much been declared dead a decade before, and at a time where Grunge was about to take off, that’s a pretty impressive feat and then some for a song that almost sounds like it could have come out of 1977…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVuuatjHGnY

song of the day – “Shout” | TEARS FOR FEARS | 1985.

This post is dedicated to my discontent with Ticketmaster, the memories of how easy and fun it used to be to get tickets to shows, and my love for Tears For Fears and this song.  #TearsForFears #HallAndOates #TDGarden #TicketmasterFAIL

Earlier this week, presale tickets went on sale for the highly anticipated Daryl Hall & John Oates / Tears For Fears show at Boston’s famed TD Garden for June 2017.  First, presale tickets went on sale for folks who have some sort of special membership or an American Express card.  Then there’s the general presale the day before the general public can get tickets, so if you have special presale codes from folks like Pandora or Ticketmaster themselves, you have a (small) chance to get good seats before the everyone else does.

I remember years ago, living in Portland, Maine – even just a few years before the Interweb became popular – when you could wait in line hours before the box office opens to be guaranteed a good seat at a show.  There wasn’t all of this presale bullshit or special VIP package nonsense costing one’s paycheck.  You could buy a ticket for $20 or $30 and have a great time.  For the “big” shows, most of the general admission seats are gone.  It’s all reserved seating, which in most cases, is a good thing (I left tenth-row RESERVED seats of a 2004 David Byrne show at Portland’s State Theatre because people started going crazy when he began singing Talking Heads songs, and everyone migrated to the front.  Did you really think I really wanted to leave a David Byrne show early?!  Of course not!  He was amazing to watch.  Well, after some asshat spilled beer on me, I was done.  Reserved seats are reserved for a reason, asshole.

Thank God for acts like The English Beat, who still have accessible prices for their shows, and their shows are always fun and memorable.  Club shows like that remind me of the concerts from the old days.  Mostly general admission, a great time and you’ll even have enough $$ to get a T-shirt or some swag.

I recently reconnected with my old friend Travis after way too long, and he was going to pay for our tickets to see Daryl Hall & John Oates and Tears For Fears.  When the general presale tix went on sale yesterday (3.9.2017), I was ready.  But I couldn’t get tix at the level we wanted.  The special presales before mysteriously snatched all those seats up?!  Not likely. 

Unlike getting tickets to see Cyndi Lauper in Bangor, Maine in July 2017, where I could pick my own seats, the only option I had was “Best Available” for each category.  And the seats offered were terrible.  Nothing close.  And this was the presale!  When my friend Shawn in NYC and I saw Duran Duran and Chic in Brooklyn in April 2016, I was able to get 16th row seats NON-PRESALE!  Granted, I spent a little more $$ for that, but it’s New York, at least twice the size of Boston! 

Fiction can be fun!

When HopeyT and I saw Peter Gabriel and Sting in Worcester, MA in July 2016, I bought those tickets – the most $$ I’ve ever spent on a show – five months in advance!  And they were THE WORST seats I’ve ever had for a show.  I complained to Ticketmaster and the DCU Center in Worcester, but to no avail.  Ticketmaster seemed to care at first (like today), but nothing ever came out of it, not that I expected it to.  WTF is it with Ticketmaster and Massachusetts shows?!

When the presale option for Hall & Oates / Tears For Fears show in Boston didn’t pan out, I was ready at noon today (3.10.2017) for the general public tix.  The option we wanted wasn’t an option, and I ordered tickets for us for a section we didn’t want, but didn’t want to miss out on the show either.  Had all of the information entered in on Ticketmaster’s website, hit “enter” to reserve the seats, and all that popped up was the next screen was not a confirmation of seats, but of gibberish, which looked somewhat like an error message.  The credit card and transaction did not go through.  When I went back to get similar seats, they were gone.  When I kept trying, the Ticketmaster site stopped working altogether.  I later learned that site was down.  When the site was up and running again, all they had left were balcony seats.  We were more than willing to pay extra for good seats, and they were gone. 

Sometimes I wish I could relay to Ticketmaster and the powers that be who organized these shows that I’m not just a huge fan of Daryl Hall & John Oates and Tears For Fears, that I’m also someone who hosted a little 80s radio show in Portland, Maine for almost 21 years, and 80s music is not only my passion, it’s a way of life for me, and it keeps me young.  The music of Hall & Oates AND Tears For Fears proudly made ALOT of appearances on STUCK IN THE 80s over the years, and will again once the show is back.  I was so looking forward to seeing this concert.  But, I’m not going to get balcony seats when I had reserved better ones just because Ticketmaster wants me to conform to their douchebaggery, elitist ways. 

I’m not a rich man.  I don’t get to see shows all the time.  It’s been great for the last several years, where I have been able to see some folks perform that I didn’t get to for whatever reason back in the 80s.  And I don’t think people should have to pay hundreds or thousands of dollars just to see two of their favorite 80s acts from the third row.  It’s not right.

If you’re still reading, thanks very much for letting me vent.  And now on to a much better subject…

Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith formed Tears For Fears in Bath, England in 1981, and released a brilliant debut album in 1983 called THE HURTING.  But, it wasn’t until two years later when they were picked up on my music radar, with “Everybody Wants To Rule The World,” from their also-brilliant second album, SONGS FROM THE BIG CHAIR.

“Everybody Wants To Rule The World” was enjoying its second and final week at No. 1 on the BILLBOARD Hot 100 in mid-June 1985 when the second single from SONGS FROM THE BIG CHAIR, “Shout,” debuted on the chart at No. 66. 

In other parts of the globe, “Mothers Talk” was the first single released from the album (in August 1984; a U.S. remix was released in April 1986).  “Shout” was originally released in the U.K. around Thanksgiving 1984, well in advance of its U.S. release.  It was one of the biggest singles of the year, spending the first three weeks of August 1985 at No. 1 on the BILLBOARD Hot 100.  It also spent two weeks at No. 1 on BILLBOARD’s Dance chart, reached No. 6 on BILLBOARD’s Rock chart, and even peaked at No. 56 on BILLBOARD’s R&B chart.

“Shout,” with its strong lead vocals by Roland Orzabal, impressive guitar solo and keyboards, and that infectious pounding drum of producer Chris Hughes, was not only one of the biggest singles in America in 1985, it was one of THE biggest global hits of the year, and of the decade.  “Shout” reached No. 1 in Australia, Belgium, Canada, Germany, Holland, New Zealand and Switzerland, No. 2 in Italy and South Africa, No. 4 in the U.K., No. 5 in Ireland and Norway, No. 6 in Austria, and high singles chart rankings in France and Sweden too.  It was a massive hit just about everywhere on the planet.

Roland Orzabal once said of “Shout” years after its release: “A lot of people think that ‘Shout’ is just another song about primal scream theory, continuing the themes of the first album.  It is actually more concerned with political protest.  It came out in 1984 when a lot of people were still worried about the aftermath of The Cold War and it was basically an encouragement to protest.”

Curt Smith added to that sentiment: “It concerns protest inasmuch as it encourages people not to do things without actually questioning them.  People act without thinking because that’s just the way things go in society.  So it’s a general song, about the way the public accepts any old grief which is thrown at them.”

As I lament (and protest, I suppose) tonight about the more-than-disappointing assjackery shenanigans of Ticketmaster, I couldn’t think of a better song to choose to highlight today than this kick-ass gem that will make me shout forever…

“Shout, Shout, Let it all out / These are the things I can do without / Come on, I’m talking to you, Come on…”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bfdUWOsWJss

song of the day – “I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do)” | DARYL HALL & JOHN OATES | 1982.

This week, I heard the big announcement that 70s and 80s hitmakers Daryl Hall & John Oates were teaming up with 80s and 90s hitmakers Tears For Fears on a three-month tour of the U.S. and Canada starting in May!  They’ll be making their way to Boston’s famed TD Garden in late June 2017.  Some have said the tour lineup combining the different acts is a bit odd, and maybe it is, but it’s a show I’d love to see, considering I never saw either one perform in their 80s heyday. 

This tour announcement got me thinking of one song in particular from Daryl Hall & John Oates (based out of NYC by way of Philadelphia), with a lot of history to it – “I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do),” from their 1981 Platinum-selling album, PRIVATE EYES.

After a recording session for the album, Daryl Hall started playing a bass line on a Korg organ, which was recorded.  Daryl Hall and John Oates worked on the guitar portion of the song, and then Daryl worked with longtime girlfriend, Sara Allen, on the lyrics. 

For many years, the lyrics were oft-misinterpreted as being about a relationship.  In a 2014 interview about the song, John Oates confirmed that the song was not about a relationship, but rather about the music business: “That song is really about not being pushed around by big labels, managers, and agents and being told what to do, and being true to yourself creatively.”

“I Can’t Go For That” was the second single released from PRIVATE EYES, following the release of the album’s popular title track, which was in its second and final week at No. 1 on the BILLBOARD Hot 100 in mid-November 1981 when “I Can’t Go For That” debuted on the chart at No. 59.

The following week, Olivia Newton-John’s monster hit, “Physical,” took over the top spot and did not relinquish it for 10 weeks.  It ended up being the biggest single of the 80s and on BILLBOARD’s most-recent update on their “Greatest Of All Time” Hot 100 singles, “Physical ranked at No. 8.

While ONJ was enjoying life at the top of the Hot 100, the week after “Private Eyes” fell from No. 2, Foreigner’s “Waiting For A Girl Like You” moved in right behind her.  And stayed.  And stayed.  By the last chart of 1981, “I Can’t Go For That” had climbed to No. 4, while Foreigner had already spent five weeks at No. 2, and ONJ had been at No. 1 for six weeks.

Daryl Hall & John Oates were stuck at No. 4 for five weeks with “I Can’t Go For That,” while Foreigner had waited nine weeks at No. 2 for Olivia Newton-John to drop from No. 1.  Well, the next week, January 30, 1982, after 10 weeks on top, Olivia did fall from No. 1 to No. 4.  Good news for Foreigner, right?  Not so much.  After five weeks at No. 4, Hall & Oates leap-frogged over Foreigner’s “Waiting For A Girl Like You” to spend its lone week at No. 1, and in the process, Daryl & John sandwiched No. 1 singles around Olivia’s “Physical.”  Foreigner spent 10 weeks at No. 2, a record that still holds 35 years later.

Here’s another rare chart feat for Daryl Hall & John Oates and “I Can’t Go For That” – the week they spent at No. 1 on the BILLBOARD Hot 100, they also spent a week at No. 1 on the BILLBOARD R&B chart, almost unheard of for a white act.  Of the event, Daryl Hall said, “I’m the head soul brother in the U.S.  Where to now?”

Well, more hit singles on the Hot 100, for starters.  “I Can’t Go For That” was the duo’s fourth U.S. No. 1 hit, and they would go on to have two more, “Maneater” and “Out Of Touch.”  With 29 Top 40 hits between 1976 and 1989 – 16 of those Top 10 hits, and a total of six No. 1’s – Daryl Hall & John Oates eclipsed The Everly Brothers as the biggest duo in BILLBOARD chart history.  They’ve been inducted into the Songwriters Hall Of Fame, the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, and just last year (September 2016), they finally got a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame.

Around the globe, fans did go for “I Can’t Go For That,” spending three weeks at No. 2 in Canada, and reaching No. 5 in New Zealand, No. 8 in the U.K., No. 10 in Sweden, and No. 13 in both Australia and Holland.  It also spent a week at No. 1 on BILLBOARD’s Dance chart, the first of three songs for them to do so.

One more piece of history for “I Can’t Go For That” – during the recording of the “We Are The World” charity single, released this week in 1985 (March 7), and of which Daryl Hall and John Oates were a part of, Michael Jackson (who co-wrote “We Are The World” with Lionel Richie), pulled Daryl Hall aside and said, “I hope you don’t mind, but I stole ‘Billie Jean’ from you,” referring to the fact he pilfered the bass line of “I Can’t Go For That” and incorporated it into the bass line for “Billie Jean.”  Of that, Daryl told him, “It’s all right, man, I just ripped the base line off, so can you!”  I’d be curious to find out where Daryl got his bass line from.  If anyone knows, let me know!

I’ve loved this song as long as I can remember.  And I’ve been a Daryl Hall & John  Oates fan as long as I can remember.  And, if the chance arises that I can see them  AND Tears For Fears perform in the same show together after all these years of enjoying their music, well, simply put…I CAN go for that (yes can do)!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccenFp_3kq8

song of the day – “Ashes To Ashes” | DAVID BOWIE | 1980.

As I write this, it was about eight hours from now a year ago when I learned of the sad passing of one of my music heroes, David Bowie.  I had the TV on to help me sleep, and the news of his death woke me up from a deep sleep.  Later that day, I posted my first-ever blog post. 

My very fresh Bowie tattoo, 4.13.16.

 Three months and two days after learning of David’s passing, his face and his words (“We could be heroes just for one day”) became my first-ever tattoo – at age 49.  If you had asked me on January 1, 2016, if I would ever get a tattoo, I would have told you no.  Turns out that David Bowie had more influence on my life than I had expected or known. 

As my Mom pointed out to me earlier today, David passed away on the same day of the birthday of my late grandfather, Thurman Berry (my Mom’s dad).  My Grampy Berry died in 2002 and would have been 97 a year ago today.  I miss them both.

A photo taken during the 80s at the Seawall Picnic Area (part of Acadia National Park), that’s my late grandfather, Thurman Berry, showing no fear in letting the seagull eat right out of his hand. 

Seems like the appeal and influence of David Bowie was bigger than others had expected too.  His brilliant album, BLACKSTAR, released on his 69th birthday and just two days before his death, became David’s first No. 1 album here in the U.S., and reached No. 1 in at least a whopping (and deserved) 22 other countries. 

With vinyl records making a sweet comeback, the vinyl version of BLACKSTAR was the second-biggest selling physical record album of 2016 here in America, and just missed out on being the biggest vinyl album of the year by only a couple thousand records.  That vinyl version of BLACKSTAR also had a special gift left by Mr. Bowie himself. 

Four months after David’s death, it was discovered that, in certain conditions (like leaving the album jacket out in the sun), the black star ended up revealing an image of a galaxy.  So, the Starman leaves us a galaxy of stars by way of one BLACKSTAR.  Brilliant, much like David himself.

Sadly, David’s wasn’t the only heavy-hitting celebrity death of 2016.  There would be many, many more, continuing later that week with another cool, classy and gifted 69-year-old Brit, Alan Rickman, and the list went on and on throughout the year, including Prince on April 21st, George Michael on Xmas Day, and Carrie Fisher and her mom, Debbie Reynolds, one day apart in the last week of the year.

I’ve had David’s music on my iPod for an entire year.  Usually at some point, I switch out all the songs on the iPod for different ones, and I’ve done that to an extent, but not with David’s music.  I kinda still think he’s here, you know?  Another loss in 2016 – this one more personal – my parents had to say goodbye to their 13-year-old Shih Tzu, Bandit, a week before Xmas.  I feel like he’s still around too.

2016 was a cruel year to be a music and pop culture fan, but it also made me think about my own life and my own future, you know?  I turn 50 in about a month and I’m often told I look like I’m in my 30s.  I’ll take it.  But, I also have to remember to not take my youthful looks for granted, to remind myself that I’m not in my 30s, to take care of myself, and to live life to the fullest, or at the very least, try, because you never know when it’ll be gone.

Not to sound too morbid, but when it’s my time, I do not wish to be buried, but instead, cremated.  Being born in Bar Harbor, Maine, I’ve always had a strong connection to the ocean, and I want a third of my ashes scattered in the ocean and at the Seawall Picnic Area (part of Acadia National Park here in Maine), my favorite spot in the whole world, and a third scattered in the ocean and at Kettle Cove in Cape Elizabeth, my second favorite spot in Maine. 

Kettle Cove, Cape Elizabeth, Maine, Xmas Day 2016 (photo courtesy of yours truly).

My reasoning for being cremated over being buried?  Well, instead of some gravestone marker with my name and dates of birth and death on it, my family and friends can just go to the Atlantic Ocean and I’ll be there, whether you’re in Maine, Jersey, Florida or Ireland.  It won’t be depressing, but lovely and therapeutic I think.  Go to the ocean and say HI.  I may or may not respond, but I’ll always be there.  I can’t tell you how excited I get to spend some time near the ocean, and it’s always lovely and therapeutic to me.

As for the other third of my ashes, I’d read somewhere years ago that you can take your cremated ashes and somehow have them incorporated into the making of a record album.  It’s not cheap, I don’t know if they would need all the ashes and I don’t know if I could ever afford that when the time comes (hopefully not for awhile!), but with music being such an integral part of most of my life, it’s not only downright cool, but feels right.  I could say something nerdy or funny on the record and you could play a couple of my favorite tunes.

With it being the first anniversary of the passing of David Bowie from one universe to another, and talk about death and ashes, his brilliant 1980 gem, “Ashes To Ashes” seems appropriate as my FOREVER YOUNG “song of the day” today.

“Ashes To Ashes” was the first single from David Bowie’s 14th studio album (and his last for RCA), SCARY MONSTERS (AND SUPER CREEPS) (or SCARY MONSTERS for short), and released a month in advance of the album.

The lyrics of the song revisit the character of Major Tom, introduced in Bowie’s first global hit, 1969’s “Space Oddity.”  In a 1980 interview, David described “Ashes To Ashes” as “very much a 1980s nursery rhyme.  I think 1980s nursery rhymes will have a lot to do with the 1880s/1890s nursery rhymes which are all rather horrid and had little boys with their ears being cut off and stuff like that.”  For him personally, David would later say that with the song, he was “wrapping up the seventies really, [which] seemed a good enough epitaph for it.”

The music video for “Ashes To Ashes” cost over $500,000 to make, which, at the time, was the most expensive video ever made, and remains as one of the most expensive videos ever.  Keep in mind this was a year before MTV debuted.

But, the video was popular and seemed to work.  “Ashes To Ashes” debuted at No. 4 on the U.K. singles chart and reached No. 1 a week later, his fastest-selling single to that point.  It spent two weeks at No. 1, was certified Silver, and was his second U.K. No. 1 single, following a 1975 reissue of “Space Oddity.”  Around the globe, it reached the Top 10 in Australia, Austria, Germany, Ireland, New Zealand, Norway and Sweden, and the Top 20 in at least four other countries.

“Ashes To Ashes” has seen a plethora of cover versions over the years, many of them since the year 2000.  My favorite cover version of “Ashes To Ashes” is a 1992 version by Tears For Fears.  To celebrate 40 years of the NEW MUSIC EXPRESS (NME) publication, a three-disc charity set called RUBY TRAX was released, containing 40 covers of (mostly) No. 1 U.K. hits by popular artists of the time. 

The Tears For Fears cover of this song is so good, the first time I heard it (many years after its release), I didn’t realize it was Tears For Fears until the first line of the second verse.  Even now, it takes me a moment to distinguish the cover from the original.

David Bowie, photographed by Anton Corbijn in 1980.

With a piece of trivia that still stuns me to this day, “Ashes To Ashes” just missed reaching the BILLBOARD Hot 100 (peaking at No. 101).  I guess I’ll never understand why this incredible song didn’t find an audience here.  Maybe that’s another reason why David left RCA.  Hard to say all these years later. 

What I can say with some amount of certainty is that I considered myself as a big fan of David Bowie while he was alive, but with his death, something changed inside of me.  Some of it I’m still trying to figure out.  It’s all positive, though, and that’s the only way I can describe how I feel now without looking up what I wrote a year ago. 

As I know I’ve previously said in this forum, and I’m not sorry for repeating it here, I was lucky enough to be on the same planet as David Bowie for nearly 50 years, and that’s pretty damn cool…still.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMThz7eQ6K0

song of the day – “Everybody Wants To Rule The World” | TEARS FOR FEARS | 1985.

The other night, I was at a get-together in South Portland, Maine, at the home of my friend Melissa, and there was a conversation going about The British (music) Invasion.  I chimed in and said, “Which one?”  They were talking about the one in the mid-1960s, while I was referring to the one in the mid-1980s.  When questioned about the 80s British Invasion, I then tried to remember all the big British hits in the U.S. during 1985, and had a huge gaping brain cramp.  So, I’ll properly answer that question here.

I’ve prolly said on the bloggy thing here that the New Wave era here in America started and ended with The Human League.  Their big 1982 hit, “Don’t You Want Me” spent three weeks at No. 1 on the BILLBOARD Hot 100 in July 1982, and for the next four years, New Wave artists were prominent on the Hot 100 singles chart.  In November 1986, their hit, “Human,” reached No. 1 on the Hot 100, and was replaced the following week by “You Give Love A Bad Name” by Bon Jovi.  I’ve also prolly said here (half-jokingly) that Bon Jovi killed New Wave.

Another interesting thing about The Human League’s two bookend reigns at No. 1 on the Hot 100 – not only did New Wave come into play (pun intended) during this time – with the tremendous help of MTV – it was also the time of the Second British (music) Invasion. 

On the BILLBOARD Hot 100 dated July 16th, 1983, British music acts shattered the record established in 1965, where 14 songs by British recording artists were in the American Top 40 at the same time.  On this July 1983 chart, HALF of the Top 40 were songs by British artists, and of those 20, seven of the Top 10 singles that week were by Brits: “Time (Clock Of The Heart)” – Culture Club (No. 10), “Is There Something I Should Know” – Duran Duran (once called The Fab Five; No. 9), “Our House” – Madness (No. 8), “Too Shy” – Kajagoogoo (No. 7), “Come Dancing” (The Kinks, who were part of the original British Invasion; No. 6), “Electric Avenue” – Eddy Grant (a Londoner from Guyana, which was known as British Guiana at the time of his birth in 1948; No. 2), and “Every Breath You Take” – The Police (for the second of eight weeks at No. 1).

In April 1984, 40 of the singles on the Hot 100 were by British acts, and on the Hot 100 chart dated May 25, 1985 (the year of the height of the Second British Invasion), a record EIGHT of the Top 10 singles that week were by Brits: “Things Can Only Get Better” – Howard Jones (No. 10), “Some Like It Hot” – The Power Station (No. 9), “Suddenly” – Billy Ocean (of British origin; No. 8), “One Night In Bangkok” – Murray Head (No. 7), “Smooth Operator” – Sade (No. 5), “Everybody Wants To Rule The World” – Tears For Fears (No. 3), “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” – Simple Minds (No. 2), and “Everything She Wants” – Wham! (No. 1).

For three months between May 18, 1985 and August 17, 1985, and starting with “Don’t You (Forget About Me),” songs by acts from Britain would rule the U.S. music world for all but two weeks – the aforementioned “Everything She Wants” and “Everybody Wants To Rule The World,” plus “Sussudio” by Phil Collins, “A View To A Kill” by Duran Duran, Paul Young’s cover of the Daryl Hall song, “Everytime You Go Away,” and “Shout” by Tears For Fears.

When Bon Jovi claimed their first No. 1 song on the Hot 100 in late November 1986, and in the process signaling the end of the reign of New Wave and the Second British Invasion, the No. 1 songs for the better part of the rest of the 80s were dominated by Glam Metal and Dance acts, though in 1988, many songs by Brits did manage to reach No. 1 on the Hot 100.

One of the British acts who had a banner year in 1985 – in the U.S. and all over the globe – was Bath, England’s Tears For Fears.  Led by Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith, Tears For Fears had been around since 1981, but despite a brilliant debut album (THE HURTING), they hadn’t been able to break through to the U.S. market until the success of “Everybody Wants To Rule The World,” their third single from their second album, SONGS FROM THE BIG CHAIR.

“Everybody Wants To Rule The World” (with vocals by Curt Smith) was the first single released here in the U.S., and for awhile in the Spring and Summer of 1985, Tears For Fears did rule the world with their incredible hit.  It spent a couple of weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100 in June 1985, as well as reaching No. 1 on BILLBOARD’s Dance chart for two weeks.  The love for this song was felt through many different genres, and it reached No. 2 on BILLBOARD’s Rock and Adult Contemporary charts – no easy feat.  Here in America, it rightfully ranked at No. 7 for all of 1985.

Around the globe, it reached No. 1 in Canada and New Zealand, and the Top 10 in the U.K., Australia, Belgium, Holland and Ireland.  A year later, Roland and Curt returned to the Top 10 of the U.K. and Ireland charts with a rework of their big hit, titled “Everybody Wants To RUN The World,” in support of Sport Aid, which was a sports-themed offshoot campaign of Live Aid, to aid in the effort to help the famine problem in Africa.  The highlight of this campaign was the Race Against Time, a 10K fun run simultaneously held in 89 countries.  $37 million was raised for Live Aid and UNICEF.

For many years, Roland Orzabal kept performing under the Tears For Fears name while Curt Smith had left the band, but they have been together again since 2000, released an album in 2004 (EVERYBODY LOVES A HAPPY ENDING) and are currently on the last dates of their rescheduled U.S. and Canada tour. 

Though overall Tears For Fears may not be the household name they were in 1985, it’s great to see them still together and so wonderful to hear their songs like “Everybody Wants To Rule The World” on the radio.  It’s one of those songs I have always loved from the start and a song I always love driving to.  One of the lyrics of the song goes, “Nothing ever lasts forever.”  Clearly, Roland and Curt aren’t referring to their own song, as this song will live on in radio eternity, and as I’ll love this song forever…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ST86JM1RPl0

(real) one-hit wonder of the week – “Axel F” | HAROLD FALTERMEYER | 1985.

Between late 1979 and the end of 1989, there were nearly 500 (real) one-hit wonders of the 80s that reached the BILLBOARD Hot 100 just one time, a list that includes Soft Cell, Gary Numan, Timbuk 3, The Church, Bronski Beat, Nik Kershaw, The Buggles, The Waitresses, Ultravox and two different bands named The Silencers.  Once a week, I’ll highlight a (real) one-hit wonder for you.

Released in December 1984, the critically-acclaimed film BEVERLY HILLS COP not only shot Eddie Murphy into superstardom, the action comedy was one of the biggest films of the 1980s, and for nearly 20 years, it was the biggest R-rated film of all-time (today, it’s ranked at No. 7). 

BEVERLY HILLS COP was even nominated for an Academy Award (Best Original Screenplay), two Golden Globe Awards, and won a Grammy Award for Best Soundtrack Score Album.  Thirteen people shared that Grammy Award, including Keith Forsey (Billy Idol, THE BREAKFAST CLUB score) and a Munich, Germany-born musician, composer and producer – Harold Faltermeyer.

Harold Faltermeyer has scored nearly 20 films, including BEVERLY HILLS COP II, FLETCH, THE RUNNING MAN, THIEF OF HEARTS and TOP GUN (both with Giorgio Moroder), and contributed to several more, including MIDNIGHT EXPRESS and AMERICAN GIGOLO (again, with Giorgio Moroder).  But, Harold Faltermeyer didn’t get his start in films.  Over the years, he’s worked as a songwriter, producer, arranger, musician and remixer for artists like The Sylvers, Janis Ian, Sparks, Laura Branigan, Billy Idol, Pet Shop Boys and Bonnie Tyler. 

What started as a 1978 trip to Los Angeles to help Giorgio Moroder with the MIDNIGHT EXPRESS soundtrack turned into a 10-year collaboration between Giorgio Moroder and Harold Faltermeyer.  In 1979, Harold was involved with Giorgio on the making of BAD GIRLS, the double album by the Queen of Disco, Donna Summer.  Harold co-wrote five songs on the the album, including the first single, “Hot Stuff.” 

“Hot Stuff” was a massive hit that spent 3 weeks at No. 1 on the BILLBOARD Hot 100 and 14 weeks in the Top 10.  For 4 of those weeks, “Hot Stuff” and 5-week No. 1 “Bad Girls” (which Harold Faltermeyer arranged) were in the Top 3 simultaneously.

In 1984 and 1985, Harold got his big break with the BEVERLY HILLS COP soundtrack.  In addition to scoring the film, Harold also co-wrote (with Keith Forsey) Glenn Frey’s hit from the film, “The Heat Is On” (which spent a week at No. 2 on the Hot 100 in March 1985) and “Axel F,” the Synthpop instrumental theme from the film.

Sticking bananas in the tailpipe of an unmarked police vehicle – the inspiration behind the instrumental “Axel F.”

Originally referred to by Harold Faltermeyer as “the banana theme” (“You’re not gonna fall for the banana in the tailpipe?!”), “Axel F” (short for Eddie Murphy’s character, Axel Foley) was a huge hit in its own right, spending three weeks at No. 3 on the Hot 100 in June 1985 (held out of the top spot by two big No. 1 songs – “Everything She Wants” by Wham! and “Everybody Wants To Rule The World” by Tears For Fears).

Around the globe, “Axel F” was a huge hit, reaching No. 1 in Holland and Ireland, and the Top 10 in the U.K., Austria, Belgium, Canada, Germany, New Zealand and Switzerland, plus No. 1 on BILLBOARD’s Dance chart AND Adult Contemporary chart (no easy feat), and No. 13 on the R&B chart.

In 2005, “Axel F” became a massive hit again, this time in the form of a novelty song by Crazy Frog (also known as the “Crazy Frog Song” – some of my youngest nieces enjoyed that version, God help me).  Somehow, this version was even bigger than the original, reaching No. 1 in 11 countries, while here in the U.S., it stopped (thankfully) at No. 50.

Most recently, Harold Faltermeyer scored – at the request of one of my all-time favorite directors, Kevin Smith – the 2010 film, COP OUT, starring Bruce Willis and Tracy Morgan.

Though “Axel F” was Harold only American hit, he did reach No. 1 on the Hot 100 one more time as a writer, on Bob Seger’s “Shakedown” (from BEVERLY HILLS COP II; co-written with Bob Seger and Keith Forsey).  It was nominated for an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award.

Now 63, Harold Faltermeyer’s been pretty quiet for the past several years, but to me, he’ll always be a hit-writing, film-scoring, Synthpop pioneer, and the lone hit under his own name lives on for eternity through one of THE best films ever, by way of a banana…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qx2gvHjNhQ0