Saturday, September 3, 2016

"Here Comes the Rain Again" by Eurythmics

Top 10 Alert!
Rated 10 Alert!
Song#:  1772
Date:  01/28/1984
Debut:  53
Peak:  4
Weeks:  20
Genre:  Synthpop



Pop Bits:  By the time Eurythmics had broken wide in the US with their #1 smash "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)," singles from their same-titled album had been exhausted in the UK. So by the summer of '83, the duo was ready to issue some new material in the UK to preview their upcoming album Touch. Two singles were issues in the latter half of the year and both went Top 10. By the time a third single was ready to go, the US had caught up and were ready for new tunes, so this song was issued on both shores. It reached #8 in the UK while getting to #4 in the US. The US would still have to play catch up with a couple of singles, but this one got the ball rolling and it help to get their album to #7.

ReduxReview:  I think this marks the first time that I've given a 10 to two songs in a row (this one and yesterday's post of "Footloose"). Oh, how I love '84! Once an artist breaks through like Eurythmics did with "Sweet Dreams," it's a crap shoot on whether or not they have something else to offer. Many can't parlay their one hit into a career, but luckily this duo did thanks to this brilliant piece of orchestral synthpop. The dark, gothic tune was exactly what they needed to hit the Top 10 again and prove they were not a one-hit wonder. I fell for this haunting song from the get-go and continued to be captivated by Annie Lennox's voice. Their Touch album even surpassed the excellent Sweet Dreams in quality and quickly became a lasting favorite of mine. I was lucky enough to see them live the summer of '84 and they did not disappoint. "Sweet Dreams" was their true classic, but for me this has always been my personal favorite of theirs.

ReduxRating10/10

Trivia:  The use of a real string section over synthpop wasn't necessarily a new idea, but it proved to be very effective and memorable on this song. The string arrangement came courtesy of composer/conductor/arranger Michael Kamen. Although Kamen initially began working with ballet music, he moved over to film scoring in the mid-70s. This led to work in pop and rock music including Pink Floyd's classic The Wall. Along the way, Kamen was nominated for two Academy Awards in the Best Original Song category. First in 1992 for "Everything I Do (I Do It for You)" (by Bryan Adams) and then in 1996 for another Adams song "Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman." He didn't win, but the latter one garnered him a Grammy award. Kamen unexpectedly died of a heart attack in 2003 at the age of 55.

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