Pages

Wednesday, May 31, 2023

"We Can't Go Wrong" by The Cover Girls

Top 10 Alert!
Song#:  4136
Date:  12/09/1989
Debut:  73
Peak:  8
Weeks:  19
Genre:  Pop


Pop Bits:  The vocal trio's second album, We Can't Go Wrong, didn't get off to the best start. Its first single, "My Heart Skips a Beat," would be a #4 Dance hit, but that didn't really help its mainstream prospects with the song peaking just inside the Pop Top 40 (#38). With that freestyle track not able to gain a bigger audience, the trio's label decided to change tactics and push out this title track ballad. It ended up being the right choice with the single becoming the trio's first to crack the Pop Top 10. However, despite the song doing well, it didn't help sales of the album, which halted at a minor #108. A third single, "All That Glitters Isn't Gold," wasn't able to contribute much either with the song topping out at #18 Dance and #48 Pop. It seems the results left the trio looking for a new label.

ReduxReview:  With its big sing-a-long chorus that made it sound like a charity single of some sorts, this ballad is what broke the trio into the Pop Top 10. It was a little surprising as they were more known for their freestyle hits, but since those were not connecting on a larger scale outside of the dance clubs, this big ballad was given a shot and it paid off.

ReduxRating:  6/10

Trivia:  After things crumbled with Capitol Records, the trio caught a break and were tapped to record the track "Don't Stop Now" for the 1990 benefit album Music Speaks Louder Than Words that was put out by Epic Records. Epic decided to release the song as a single and it got a little attention reaching #8 Dance and #65 Pop. Its b-side, "Funky Boutique," started to pick up some airplay, so Epic released it as a one-off single. It would do slightly better getting to #55 Pop. With those results, Epic wanted more from the trio (who by that point had a lineup change) and decided to sign them on. A third album Here It Is would be ready by 1992 and a first single, "Wishing on a Star," would do well enough to become the trio's second Pop Top 10 hit (#9). It would also get to #7 Dance and #19 R&B. The track was a cover of a song originally recorded by Rose Royce in 1977 (#52 R&B). Yet despite The Cover Girls taking the song into the Pop Top 10, it seems that was not enough to spark any album sales and it would fail to chart. With those results, the trio were left off the Epic roster. Lineup changes would ensue and an indie LP in '96 titled Satisfy would fail to win an audience. Since that time, various iterations of The Cover Girls have continued to perform.

_________________________________________________________________________________

2 comments:

  1. Most interesting factoid from this post is the original "Wishing on a Star" wasn't that big a hit. That was a slow dance standard at many of the high school dances I remember!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, it is odd that they took the original and amped it up. I can't say it was better than the original, but it was interesting.

      Delete