"Brass in Pocket" by The Pretenders

Rated 10 Alert!

Song#:  0047
Date:  02/16/1980
Debut:  92
Peak:  14
Weeks:  22
Genre:  Pop, Rock



Pop Bits:  Although an Ohio native, Chrissie Hynde formed the Pretenders in London in 1978. Their self-titled debut album is often on lists of the best albums in rock history and features this classic song that put them on the map. It was a #1 hit in the UK and has been a rock radio staple ever since.

ReduxReview:  I knew of this song back in the day but I don't think I really heard it for some reason - very odd since I was deep into the Pretenders' "Learning to Crawl" album around that time. This is a weird way to latch onto a song, but I remember watching "The Tracey Ullman Show" mid-80s and she did a sketch where she was outside a pizza joint and she started flirting and dancing with a guy in the parking lot. I can't remember much else about it, but I definitely remember that the song they did their dance to was "Brass in Pocket." For whatever reason, that song just clicked with me and it quickly became my favorite Pretenders song. If that opening guitar line going dat-dat-dat-dahh and Hynde singing "I got brass...in pocket" doesn't grab you, then I don't know what will. Smooth, jammy, hooky, and sexy as hell, this is one brilliant pop song. Enough to give it my first 10 rating of the decade.

ReduxRating:  10/10

Trivia:  Double Shot! 1) The "brass" in the title is a reference to money, so brass in pocket is essentially saying I've got some money on me. 2) This was the seventh video played the day MTV hit the air in 1981.

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"Baby Talks Dirty" by The Knack

Song#:  0046
Date:  02/09/1980
Debut:  73
Peak:  38
Weeks:  8
Genre:  Rock, New Wave



Pop Bits:  Many artists over the years catch fire quickly and then slowly fizzle out, but probably the poster child for flash and burnout would be The Knack. They hit it huge out the gate with their #1 (for 5 weeks) debut album "Get the Knack" and #1 single (for 6 weeks) "My Sharona." At the time it was the fastest selling debut album in the US since 1964's "Meet the Beatles." This instant success usually has its share of backlash and The Knack practically got bludgeoned to death. There was talk of them being Beatles rip-offs, lyric content controversies, and accusations of being arrogant. A "Knuke the Knack" campaign even started. It was a heavy toll to pay for their success and the group basically imploded in 1982 after their third album. They are perceived as a one-hit wonder, but they did have a #11 follow-up with "Good Girls Don't" plus some middling chart entries like this first single from their second album.

ReduxReview:  Let's get real here. Even if the backlash didn't happen, The Knack probably would have lost popularity anyway. This song is basically a retread of "My Sharona" gone very wrong. Overall The Knack were just a fun retro-rock band with new wave attitude, but that can only carry you so far, as they found out. Although meant to be fun (and maybe funny), this song borders on self-parody and I don't think folks got the joke - at least I certainly didn't.

ReduxRating:  2/10

Trivia:  Lead singer Doug Fieger's brother is Michigan attorney Geoffrey Fieger who is best known as the defense attorney for Dr. Jack Kevorkian.

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"And the Beat Goes On" by The Whispers

Gold Record Alert!

Song#:  0045
Date:  02/09/1980
Debut:  79
Peak:  19
Weeks:  15
Genre: R&B, Dance



Pop Bits: The Whispers are an L.A. vocal group that had some consistent success throughout the 70s on the R&B chart. They barely scraped the pop charts during that time, but they finally found success with this #1 R&B and dance hit. Most likely due to its crossover success on the dance chart, this is one of the rare records that reached gold status without hitting the pop Top 10. Although charting since 1970, The Whispers would find their best success in their second decade.

ReduxReview:  Well, I have to admit I was looking forward to an R&B remake of the Sonny & Cher hit. Alas, it is not. But it does have a good groove and is a solid dance tune. It's still a little on the bland but I can definitely cut a rug with this one.

ReduxRating:  6/10

Trivia:  Double Shot!  1) Although they began charting songs in 1970, the group has been together since 1964. 2) Will Smith used a sample of "And the Beat Goes On" for his single "Miami" in 1998.

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"Lost In Love" by Air Supply

Top 10 Alert!

Song#:  0044
Date:  02/09/1980
Debut:  81
Peak:  3
Weeks: 23
Genre: Pop, Soft Rock



Pop Bits:  Here is the song that started a winning streak of seven Top 10 hits in a row for these mellow Australians. Although they had some success in their native country, the group was not getting a footing in other regions. They got a big break when Arista's Clive Davis heard "Lost In Love" and signed them. The resulting album and title track finally broke them in the States and the group was off and running with a series of major hits.

ReduxReview:  I totally remember riding the school bus and hearing this song. The girls loved it. The guys - not so much. I remember one burnout saying during the song "someone needs to cut off their air supply," which I thought was hilarious. But I had to keep my chuckles to myself as I was a nerd and didn't want to draw unwanted attention. Anyway, at the time I was a fan of good ol' AC easy pop and was a devout supporter of the Captain & Tennille and the Carpenters. But this Air Supply song just didn't do it for me. I thought it was too dreamy and whiny. A few hits later I got on board the Supply train for a smooth and easy ride. I like this song much better now, but it is still not one of my top faves of theirs.

ReduxRating:  6/10

Trivia:  The original version of "Lost In Love" was a 5+ minute song recorded for their album "Life Support." This version peaked at #13 in Australia. Clive Davis had the song remixed to a shorter version and then released it worldwide on Arista.

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"Even It Up" by Heart

Song#:  0043
Date:  02/09/1980
Debut:  82
Peak:  33
Weeks:  12
Genre:  Rock



Pop Bits:  Heart was on a roll in the 70s with four platinum albums out of the gate. But the 80s began with label problems, producer issues, and changes within the band. Their first album of the 80s was "Bebe le Strange" and it signaled a definite decline only reaching gold status. Although they continued to put some songs on the chart like "Even It Up," this began a low period in the band's history. A drastic change would take place mid-decade that would push them to superstardom, but for the early 80s they were struggling with their musical identity and losing ground quickly.

ReduxReview:  Oh how I loves me the Wilson sisters! Even though they slumped at the beginning of the decade, they still put out some quality songs. This straight-forward rock and roll jam is a highlight off of the mixed bag "Bebe le Strange" and it showed they still had some gas left in the tank. Tower of Power (see below) are a bit lost in the mix unfortunately, but overall I think it is a quality song in the Heart catalog.

ReduxRating:  7/10

Trivia:  The horn section heard on this song is from the famous Tower of Power R&B/Funk group. TOP provided backup a slew of top recording artists like Elton John, Bonnie Raitt, Rod Stewart, and Aerosmith.

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