Song#: 2380
Date: 07/06/1985
Debut: 66
Peak: 24
Weeks: 15
Genre: R&B
Pop Bits: Ocean's fifth album, Suddenly, was suddenly his big breakthrough thanks to three consecutive Top 10 Pop hits. After being a recording artist for nearly a decade, Ocean finally had a double-platinum seller. He tried to continue the streak of hits with this fourth single from the album, but the song just didn't have the same allure as the others and it stopped shy of the Pop Top 20. However, it was able to get inside the Top 10 at both R&B (#10) and AC (#5). It would be the last charting single from the album.
ReduxReview: This has a faint Luther Vandross feel to it. It's a nice tune, but it definitely wasn't as hooky or memorable as his previous hit singles. Frankly, I doubt Ocean or his label could have predicted that the album would need a fourth single, so they pretty much were stretching it here. However, it didn't do too bad overall with good showings at R&B and AC. In reality, they could have just stopped with the three main hits and skipped releasing this one.
ReduxRating: 5/10
Trivia: While Ocean was struggling to get his solo career off the ground, a few songs he co-wrote wound up being recorded by other artists. In 1980, Ocean released two singles from his album City Limit - "Are You Ready" and "Stay the Night." Neither one would reach the US charts, but both songs were picked up and recorded by LaToya Jackson. In 1981, Jackson would release "Stay the Night" as a single and it would get to #31 on the R&B chart. Another track from City Limit, "Who's Gonna Rock You," would get picked up by the Irish girl group The Nolans. They would issue it as a single in 1982 and get to #12 on the UK chart. It would not chart in the US.
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Saturday, April 21, 2018
Friday, April 20, 2018
"Cherish" by Kool & the Gang
Top 10 Alert!
Gold Record Alert!
Song#: 2379 Date: 07/06/1985
Debut: 70
Peak: 2
Weeks: 25
Genre: Adult Contemporary, Pop, R&B
Pop Bits: The Gang's sixteenth studio LP Emergency was certainly on fire. With two Pop Top 10 hits already in the bag, including the R&B #1 "Fresh," the album was already selling better than their previous two efforts. However, the band was not done yet. For a third single, they dropped this sentimental ballad. Over time, its popularity grew until it finally spent three weeks in the runner-up spot at Pop. The single also got to #1 at R&B for a week and #1 at AC where it stayed in that position for six weeks. It was a huge crossover hit for the band that pushed Emergency to double-platinum sales. It would be the biggest selling studio album of their career.
ReduxReview: I wasn't a big fan of "Fresh," so when this saccharine ditty came out, I wasn't having any part of it. I thought it was complete drivel. The lyrics were just so sappy and the single version's ocean and seagull sounds certainly didn't help. I always imagined that the seagulls were screaming "stop it, stop it!" Now, even though I really don't like this tune, I do appreciate the writing. The band tapped right into that formula that can make masses of people like a song - an easy, singable, catchy melody and chorus, along with simple chord changes that make it easy for folks to play. Add in wedding reception worthy lyrics and a hit was born. I still think it's sentimental claptrap, but it's hard to deny that the band hit a real crossover sweet spot with this one.
ReduxRating: 5/10
Trivia: This was one of only two songs that were successful enough at multiple formats to make three different year-end top singles charts for 1985. "Cherish" did well enough to come in at #17 for the year at Pop, #13 at R&B and #1 at AC. In addition to being the top charting song at AC for 1985, it would end up being the top charting AC song for the 1980s. The other song to reach all three year-end charts for 1985 was Whitney Houston's #1 hit "Saving All My Love for You." It finished at #5 for the year at R&B, #16 at AC, and #23 Pop.
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Thursday, April 19, 2018
"Life in One Day" by Howard Jones
Song#: 2378
Date: 07/06/1985
Debut: 72
Peak: 19
Weeks: 16
Genre: Synthpop
Pop Bits: Jones grabbed his first US Top 10 hit with the #5 "Things Can Only Get Better," a track from his second album Dream Into Action. For a follow-up, this song was chosen for release. It did fairly well getting inside the Pop Top 20 while reaching #16 at AC. It also made a showing on the Rock chart at #36. In the UK, this was the third single lifted from the album. It did about the same there getting to #14. The album would be a success on both sides of the pond going gold in the UK and platinum in the US.
ReduxReview: I've always thought this had a bit of a children's song feel to it with it's tin whistle-ish little melody and lyrical sentiment. I really didn't have much hope for this song as a single. I just didn't think US pop listeners would take to it, especially with lyrics like "gets the hereditary bone." So I was quite surprised when the tune found its way into the Top 20. I thought there were better candidates for single contention on the album, but somehow this one ended up working. It's a good song with solid production that secured Jones another hit.
ReduxRating: 7/10
Trivia: In the UK, the second single from the album was a track titled "Look Mama." It became Jones' sixth Top 10 UK hit reaching #10. The song was not issued as a single in the US. The beginning portion of the song features a woman and a young boy talking. That little conversation is a snippet of dialog from the 1974 Martin Scorsese film Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore. The voices belong to the characters Alice (Ellen Burstyn) and her son (Alfred Lutter). The well-received film would win Burstyn an Oscar for Best Actress. In 1976, the movie was adapted into the hit TV sitcom Alice that starred Linda Lavin. The show ran for nine seasons.
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Date: 07/06/1985
Debut: 72
Peak: 19
Weeks: 16
Genre: Synthpop
Pop Bits: Jones grabbed his first US Top 10 hit with the #5 "Things Can Only Get Better," a track from his second album Dream Into Action. For a follow-up, this song was chosen for release. It did fairly well getting inside the Pop Top 20 while reaching #16 at AC. It also made a showing on the Rock chart at #36. In the UK, this was the third single lifted from the album. It did about the same there getting to #14. The album would be a success on both sides of the pond going gold in the UK and platinum in the US.
ReduxReview: I've always thought this had a bit of a children's song feel to it with it's tin whistle-ish little melody and lyrical sentiment. I really didn't have much hope for this song as a single. I just didn't think US pop listeners would take to it, especially with lyrics like "gets the hereditary bone." So I was quite surprised when the tune found its way into the Top 20. I thought there were better candidates for single contention on the album, but somehow this one ended up working. It's a good song with solid production that secured Jones another hit.
ReduxRating: 7/10
Trivia: In the UK, the second single from the album was a track titled "Look Mama." It became Jones' sixth Top 10 UK hit reaching #10. The song was not issued as a single in the US. The beginning portion of the song features a woman and a young boy talking. That little conversation is a snippet of dialog from the 1974 Martin Scorsese film Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore. The voices belong to the characters Alice (Ellen Burstyn) and her son (Alfred Lutter). The well-received film would win Burstyn an Oscar for Best Actress. In 1976, the movie was adapted into the hit TV sitcom Alice that starred Linda Lavin. The show ran for nine seasons.
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Wednesday, April 18, 2018
"Lay It Down" by Ratt
Song#: 2377
Date: 07/06/1985
Debut: 86
Peak: 40
Weeks: 11
Genre: Hard Rock
Pop Bits: Ratt's debut LP Out of the Cellar was one of the biggest glam/hair metal albums of the 80s thanks to its #12 Pop/#4 Rock hit "Round and Round." They followed up that triple-platinum album with their next effort Invasion of Your Privacy. This first single kicked things off and it ended up doing well. It got to #11 at Rock while just making the Pop Top 40. The results were good enough to help push the album to #7. It would eventually sell over 2 million copies.
ReduxReview: "Round and Round" was a winner because of its hooky pop leanings. It was just irresistible hard rock ear candy. The band tries to go for it again with this track and they end up making another solid radio-friendly hit. It may not grab you as intensely as "Round," but it's a well-written and produced slab of chewy rock coated in a thin crunchy layer of pop. It really should have done better on the chart, but it did well enough to show that Ratt had the ability to follow-up their signature hit.
ReduxRating: 8/10
Trivia: In the video for this song, there is a little boy that is having a birthday party who makes a wish to be in a rock band and to get the girl. The boy was played by actor Whit Hertford. After his appearance in the video, Hertford would go on to make appearances in many TV shows and films including Jurassic Park, Glee, How I Met Your Mother, and Raising Hope. In the past few years, Hertford has turned his attention to directing plays, mainly with various London theater companies. Hertford is one of those actors where you may not know the name, but you know his face.
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Date: 07/06/1985
Debut: 86
Peak: 40
Weeks: 11
Genre: Hard Rock
Pop Bits: Ratt's debut LP Out of the Cellar was one of the biggest glam/hair metal albums of the 80s thanks to its #12 Pop/#4 Rock hit "Round and Round." They followed up that triple-platinum album with their next effort Invasion of Your Privacy. This first single kicked things off and it ended up doing well. It got to #11 at Rock while just making the Pop Top 40. The results were good enough to help push the album to #7. It would eventually sell over 2 million copies.
ReduxReview: "Round and Round" was a winner because of its hooky pop leanings. It was just irresistible hard rock ear candy. The band tries to go for it again with this track and they end up making another solid radio-friendly hit. It may not grab you as intensely as "Round," but it's a well-written and produced slab of chewy rock coated in a thin crunchy layer of pop. It really should have done better on the chart, but it did well enough to show that Ratt had the ability to follow-up their signature hit.
ReduxRating: 8/10
Trivia: In the video for this song, there is a little boy that is having a birthday party who makes a wish to be in a rock band and to get the girl. The boy was played by actor Whit Hertford. After his appearance in the video, Hertford would go on to make appearances in many TV shows and films including Jurassic Park, Glee, How I Met Your Mother, and Raising Hope. In the past few years, Hertford has turned his attention to directing plays, mainly with various London theater companies. Hertford is one of those actors where you may not know the name, but you know his face.
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Tuesday, April 17, 2018
"Bit By Bit (Theme from Fletch)" by Stephanie Mills
Song#: 2376
Date: 07/06/1985
Debut: 88
Peak: 78
Weeks: 6
Genre: Dance-Pop, R&B, Soundtrack
Pop Bits: After three albums for the troubled Casablanca Records label, Mills made a switch over to MCA. Her first effort for the label was this song that was slated to be the theme for the Chevy Chase comedy film Fletch. It was pushed out as a single, but it didn't attract a lot of folks. It stalled at #52 at R&B while circling the bottom of the Pop chart for a few weeks. It did best at Dance where it was able to reach #15. It may not have been the best start to her tenure at MCA, but over the next few years she would end up grabbing five #1 R&B hits for the label.
ReduxReview: With Harold Faltermeyer coming off of the success of Beverly Hills Cop and the Fletch movie doing well at the box office, it seemed like the soundtrack would have been a success as well, but it pretty much tanked. This urgent tune written by Faltermeyer and Franne Gold tried to capture the same audience that made Beverly Hills Cop soundtrack a massive success, but it just falls short. While it has a solid chorus, the production is just a bit too hyperactive and mechanical. There's no place for Mills to soar like Patti LaBelle did in her songs for BHC. I think the bones are here for a good pop song. It just needs a different arrangement and production.
ReduxRating: 5/10
Trivia: This song was used as the theme for the movie Fletch, which starred Chevy Chase. A soundtrack was issued out that featured this song plus others by Dan Hartman, John Farnham, The Fixx, and Harold Faltermeyer, who worked on the film's score as well. While Fletch was a solid hit at the time, it has since become a sort of cult movie with a significant following. Based on a a series of novels by Gregory Mcdonald, Chase was not the first choice to lead the film. Both Burt Reynolds and Mick Jagger were considered for the part. However, Mcdonald had approval and didn't like either choice. He then agreed to Chase, even though Mcdonald was not familiar with any of his work. The film was successful enough to spawn a sequel, 1989's Fletch Lives, however it did not do nearly as well as the original.
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Date: 07/06/1985
Debut: 88
Peak: 78
Weeks: 6
Genre: Dance-Pop, R&B, Soundtrack
Pop Bits: After three albums for the troubled Casablanca Records label, Mills made a switch over to MCA. Her first effort for the label was this song that was slated to be the theme for the Chevy Chase comedy film Fletch. It was pushed out as a single, but it didn't attract a lot of folks. It stalled at #52 at R&B while circling the bottom of the Pop chart for a few weeks. It did best at Dance where it was able to reach #15. It may not have been the best start to her tenure at MCA, but over the next few years she would end up grabbing five #1 R&B hits for the label.
ReduxReview: With Harold Faltermeyer coming off of the success of Beverly Hills Cop and the Fletch movie doing well at the box office, it seemed like the soundtrack would have been a success as well, but it pretty much tanked. This urgent tune written by Faltermeyer and Franne Gold tried to capture the same audience that made Beverly Hills Cop soundtrack a massive success, but it just falls short. While it has a solid chorus, the production is just a bit too hyperactive and mechanical. There's no place for Mills to soar like Patti LaBelle did in her songs for BHC. I think the bones are here for a good pop song. It just needs a different arrangement and production.
ReduxRating: 5/10
Trivia: This song was used as the theme for the movie Fletch, which starred Chevy Chase. A soundtrack was issued out that featured this song plus others by Dan Hartman, John Farnham, The Fixx, and Harold Faltermeyer, who worked on the film's score as well. While Fletch was a solid hit at the time, it has since become a sort of cult movie with a significant following. Based on a a series of novels by Gregory Mcdonald, Chase was not the first choice to lead the film. Both Burt Reynolds and Mick Jagger were considered for the part. However, Mcdonald had approval and didn't like either choice. He then agreed to Chase, even though Mcdonald was not familiar with any of his work. The film was successful enough to spawn a sequel, 1989's Fletch Lives, however it did not do nearly as well as the original.
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