Saturday, September 7, 2013

"Time Out of Mind" by Steely Dan

Song#:  0531
Date:  03/14/1981
Debut:  70
Peak:  22
Weeks:  11
Genre:  Pop, Soft Rock, Jazz-Rock



Pop Bits:  Following the #10 success of "Hey Nineteen," Steely Dan issued this second single from their "Gaucho" album. It was a trouble-plagued recording that brought an end to the partnership of Donald Fagen and Walter Becker. They would reunite two decades later to release a studio LP, but "Gaucho" was an end of an era for the duo. This single would also be their last to reach the chart. Fagen would continue on with a successful solo career while Becker withdrew from the music scene for a while and then returned to work on projects including producing Fagen's 1993 album "Kamakiriad."

ReduxReview:  Well, this ain't no "Hey Nineteen," but it is okay. I don't remember it at all and I had to listen to it a few times to kind of get into it. I'm not going to remember this song past this moment in time, so I guess I'll enjoy it a bit now before it drifts right out of memory. Again, Steely Dan not among my faves - I refer to them as the group that makes pop music far more complicated that it needs to be. But I do appreciate their musicianship and their perfectionism in the recording process.

ReduxRating:  5/10

Trivia:  Double Shot!  1) The guitar solo on the song was done by Dire Straits' Mark Knopfler.  2) Steely Dan's first reunion studio record, 2000's "Two Against Nature," bucked the odds and ended up winning four Grammy's including a surprise win for Album of the Year.

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Friday, September 6, 2013

"Me (Without You)" by Andy Gibb

Song#:  0530
Date:  03/14/1981
Debut:  72
Peak:  40
Weeks:  8
Genre:  Pop



Pop Bits:  The cobbled together "Andy Gibb's Greatest Hits" album was issued by RSO to fulfill Gibb's contract with them. Then, they let him go. His drug addiction and other issues were just too much for the label and Gibb was left without a recording contract. This second single from the collection was written by Gibb and it became his final Top 40 chart song.

ReduxReview:  Gibb's song is pretty dark and fits with where he was in life it seems. It's a pretty sad song and probably appropriate that it was his last Top 40 song. It is a mournful ballad and he sounds quite good on it. But I'm not so sure a big, dark ballad was what folks expected from him.

ReduxRating:  6/10

Trivia:  While still in Australia, the 19-year-old Gibb married Kim Reeder, who was 18. They moved to US and a year later Reeder was pregnant. But she went back to Australia and gave birth to their daughter Peta there and divorced Gibb.

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Thursday, September 5, 2013

"Lonely Together" by Barry Manilow

Song#:  0529
Date:  03/14/1981
Debut:  79
Peak:  45
Weeks:  10
Genre:  Pop, Adult Contemporary



Pop Bits:  Manilow just had what would be his last Top 10 hit with "I Made It Through the Rain" (#10) when this second single from his "Barry" album was issued. In addition to the album missing the Top 10, this single became Manilow's first chart song to not reach the Top 40 (although it did get to #7 AC). It seemed to signal the inevitable decline in popularity of one of the 70s top recording artists.

ReduxReview:  Sticking with the ballad format he established, this one is okay but doesn't come close to his best hits. It's a big quiet for Manilow. Although there is a key change, there isn't any massive ending to it like a good chunk of his hit ballads. And it kind of slightly borders on country crossover. I don't think this was a good single choice. A bit of a snoozer.

ReduxRating:  4/10

Trivia:  Manilow's popularity in the US didn't translate to the UK until around this time. Prior to this he had only five chart singles there with the best effort being "Mandy" at #11. But then another song from the "Barry" album, "Bermuda Triangle," ended up hitting #15 and it started a string of chart entries that lasted over his next few album.

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"Right Away" by Hawks

Song#:  0528
Date:  03/14/1981
Debut:  81
Peak:  63
Weeks:  7
Genre:  Pop, Soft Rock

Right Away by The Hawks on Grooveshark

Pop Bits:  Talk about a small town band, here is one from the tiny town of Otho, Iowa (which is about 90 miles outside of Des Moines and has a population of around 500). The band was hastily formed when demos that Frank Weiwel did got some attention at both Columbia and Capitol. The labels wanted to see the band performer, but the problem was there wasn't one. So Weiwel quickly got one assembled and scheduled performances. Columbia liked what they saw and signed the band. Their self-titled debut featured this minor chart entry, but as with a lot of other bands signed at the time it was two-and-out when their second album "30 Seconds Over Otho" failed to do any business. The group self-released a third album, but called it quits after that.

ReduxReview:  This is a nice tune, but I'm not sure if the chorus is really strong enough to have pushed it any further on the chart. Portions of the song sound similar to a few other bands at the time, but yet it all sounds original. It's an interesting listen.

ReduxRating:  6/10

Trivia:  Double Shot!  1) The group got their name by forming the word Hawks buy using the first letter of each band members last name.  2) The group was inducted into the Iowa Rock n Roll Music Association hall of fame in 2007.

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Wednesday, September 4, 2013

"Limelight" by Rush

Song#:  0527
Date:  03/14/1981
Debut:  83
Peak:  55
Weeks:  9
Genre:  Prog Rock



Pop Bits:  Continuing with the more rock radio-friendly fare established on their previous album "Permanent Waves," Rush upped the ante with what would become their best-selling album, "Moving Pictures." This first single was about the difficulty in dealing with fame and all that comes with it including the intrusion into personal lives. Although the group was already famous, the LP would push them towards superstardom, which probably made the lyrical meaning to this song seem even more relevant.

ReduxReview:  Even though terrific for rock radio and accessible (for prog rock), it's still nothing that would be a standard on pop radio. So it is both good and a bit surprising that the song made it almost halfway up the chart. The opening guitar lick is great and memorable and the rest of the song is darn good. A solid entry for Rush.

ReduxRating:  7/10

Trivia:  On "Moving Pictures," Rush included the instrumental "YYZ," which received a Grammy nomination for Best Rock Instrumental Performance. The title refers to the three-letter airport code for the Toronto airport. The Morse Code equivalent of the airport code is played at the beginning of the song.

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"96 Tears" by Garland Jeffreys

Song#:  0526
Date:  03/14/1981
Debut:  86
Peak:  66
Weeks:  7
Genre:  Rock



Pop Bits:  Hitting on genres like rock, soul, and blues, New Yorker Jeffreys wrote songs both personal and political with race being the focus of some of his earlier songs and performances. His 1973 self-titled debut solo album didn't make any waves, but when he moved to A&M and issued "Ghost Writer" in 1977, folks started to pay attention including Rolling Stone which named him the year's Best New Artist. Although he didn't have chart hits and the albums were not best-sellers, he cranked out three more LPs for A&M before moving over to Epic and releasing 1981's "Escape Artist." Finally, he got a bit of commercial reception when this first single got onto the chart. The recognition was short-lived and it ended up being his only song to reach the chart.

ReduxReview:  It is odd that an artist who is known for their songwriting gets on the chart with a remake (see below). But it's not the first time that has happened. With some assistance from some E Streeters and Lou Reed, this is a pretty crunchy version. There is nothing really original offered here, but it sounds good and meaty. (If you want a really hot remake of this song, check out Aretha Franklin's soul version.)

ReduxRating:  6/10

Trivia:  Double Shot!  1) This is a remake of the 1966 #1 hit by ? and the Mysterians.  2) After his debut album came out, Jeffreys released a one-off singled called "Wild in the Streets" that was arranged by Dr. John. Although it didn't hit the chart, it was an underground hit and it eventually found it's way on his second album "Ghost Writer." It has been considered his most popular song. (It is pretty great, so look it up and give it a listen.)

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Tuesday, September 3, 2013

"I Loved 'Em Every One" by T.G. Sheppard

Song#:  0525
Date:  03/14/1981
Debut:  87
Peak:  37
Weeks:  14
Genre:  Country



Pop Bits:  Sheppard had little success breaking in as an artist in the mid-60s and changed to working behind the scenes in promotions and other industry work. Later in 1972 he stumbled upon a song called "Devil in a Bottle" and shopped it around. No one was biting and he believed in the song, so Sheppard recorded it himself. It got released in 1974 and shot to the top of the chart. It would be the first of twenty-one #1 country hits for him. While he did well in the 70s, it would be the early 80s that would produce his greatest chart hits. This song from his album "I Love 'Em All" would be his highest peaking pop chart entry.

ReduxReview:  Well, this song seems to say the guy got around with a lot of ladies - both one nighters and beyond. It's kind of an eerie song, especially with that strange guitar lick that kicks in after the chorus and repeats at the end. Very odd, but kind of makes this memorable. It took me a few listens, but I like this tune. I can't say that I like Sheppard's voice, but the haggard weariness of it fits this song well.

ReduxRating:  6/10

Trivia:  When Sheppard was struggling in the early days as an artist, he went by the name Brian Stacy. His 1966 single "High School Days" wasn't a national hit, but it did well in the South and won him opening slots on dates with The Beach Boys and others.

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"Memories" by Tierra

Song#:  0524
Date:  03/14/1981
Debut:  90
Peak:  62
Weeks:  8
Genre:  R&B



Pop Bits:  Tierra's first chart entry, a remake of The Intruders 1967 entry "Together," got them some national attention when it peaked at #18. The second single from their "City Nights" album didn't do as well, but it was able to stay on the charts for a few weeks.

ReduxReview:  Although their singles were more R&B based, the group had Latin roots and they did show that off on album tracks. This song has a Latin rhythm feel, but keeps pretty close to pop/R&B like their first single. It's a nice tune, but sounds a bit old-fashioned to me.

ReduxRating:  5/10

Trivia:  Even though their sound leaned towards R&B, the group is credited with making inroads on the charts for other Latin artists. At the time, they received awards for Best R&B Vocal Group including from Billboard. They also performed at Carnegie Hall.

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Monday, September 2, 2013

"Sweetheart" by Franke & the Knockouts

Top 10 Alert!
Song#:  0523
Date:  03/07/1981
Debut:  77
Peak:  10
Weeks:  19
Genre:  Pop, Rock



Pop Bits:  Headed by lead singer/songwriter Franke Previte, this Jersey group got a break when they were signed to Millennium Records in 1981. This first single just squeaked into the Top 10 setting up solid sales for their self-titled LP, which peaked at #31.

ReduxReview:  At first this kind of starts out like a lost McDonald-era Doobie Brothers tune, but then it develops into a song far better than anything the Doobies were releasing at the time - and more towards Hall & Oates territory. With it's big, memorable chorus, this song is really hard to resist. And Previte sings the crap out of it too. Although I could do without the dated keyboard solo, this is a terrific debut song.

ReduxRating:  8/10

Trivia:  Previte and John DeNicola were co-writers of two big late-80s songs. Originally recorded by Franke & the Knockouts but not released, both "Hungry Eyes" (#4, by Eric Carmen) and "(I've Had) The Time of My Life" (#1, by Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes) ended up on the massive 1987 soundtrack to the film "Dirty Dancing," with the latter song winning an Oscar for Previte and DeNicola for Best Song. The original Knockouts versions of the songs eventually appeared on a compilation album by the group.

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"Running Scared" by The Fools

Song#:  0522
Date:  03/07/1981
Debut:  81
Peak:  50
Weeks:  7
Genre:  Rock



Pop Bits:  This Boston band found themselves on the chart briefly in 1980 with "It's a Night for Beautiful Girls" (#67) from their debut album "Sold Out." It was enough to get their label EMI to front another album and they issued "Heavy Mental." This first single performed a bit better, but it wasn't good enough for EMI and the label dropped the band. They remained popular in New England and songs from their self-released third album "World Dance Party" were radio hits including a remake of Manfred Mann's "Do Wah Diddy."

ReduxReview:  The Fools just basically put out a faithful rock band rendition of the song. It is a good reminder to listen to the original (see below), but other than that, they didn't really add anything to the song. I admit that with a song so specific in rhythm it may be a hard tune to mess with, but there has to be something to make it fresh and that is kind of missing here. Still, an awesome song.

ReduxRating:  5/10

Trivia:  This song was originally a #1 song in 1961 by Roy Orbison. Co-written by Orbison, it was his first #1 pop song. It is also notable for its flip side "Love Hurts." Although it didn't hit the charts in the US, the flip side was a hit in Australia and marks the first chart appearance anywhere for the song. In the US, the song's first chart appearance was by former Traffic member Jim Capaldi who barely got it on the chart in 1975 (#97). Of course, the most famous version would be Nazareth's #8 hit the following year.

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Sunday, September 1, 2013

"Sukiyaki" by A Taste of Honey

Top 10 Alert!
Gold Record Alert!
Song#:  0521
Date:  03/07/1981
Debut:  83
Peak:  3
Weeks:  24
Genre:  Pop, R&B, Adult Contemporary



Pop Bits:  This LA group floated around the club scene and did USO tours before finally landing a contract with Capitol Records. The two woman/two man group hit huge immediately with their classic disco song "Boogie Oogie Oogie" (#1, 1978), which secured them the Grammy for Best New Artist (beating out nominees like Elvis Costello, The Cars, and Toto). Unfortunately, things quickly cooled for the group and their next album couldn't maintain the momentum. As 1980 came in, the group pared down to just the two ladies and they released the album "Twice As Sweet." Initially, the platter couldn't muster up a hit, but then this ballad was issued and it got them back near the top of the chart (and #1 R&B).

ReduxReview:  I thought it was a brilliant idea to take the mid-tempo original (see below) and turn it into this lovely ballad. The arrangement evokes the original's origins and makes it sound fresh. I still think it sounds great doesn't really scream the 80s. It's not a song you hear often these days and I think it kind of got lost along the way. It's too bad because it is quite a nice song.

ReduxRating:  8/10

Trivia:  This is a remake of Kyu Sakamoto's #1 hit in 1963. That original version, sung in Japanese, still remains the only Japanese language song to hit #1. The real title of the song is "Ue O Muite Aruko," but for English speaking countries it was changed to "Sukiyaki" because it was catchy and a Japanese word most folks had heard. However, the word has nothing to do with the song lyrics (especially since sukiyaki is a Japanese food entree). The Taste of Honey version is not a translation of the original song either, but new lyrics written by group member Janice Johnson.

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