It was a long journey through S, wouldn’t you say? Unfortunately, now that we’re through the largest letter of the alphabet, it’s kind of hitting me that we’re reaching the end soon. However, we’ve still got a couple of pretty big letters to go, starting with the tantalizing T. Here are more songs from the bottom three-fifths of the Billboard Hot 100 chart during the 1980s.
Talking Heads “This Must Be the Place (Naïve Melody)” — 1983, #62 (download) “And She Was” — 1985, #54 (download) “Once in a Lifetime [Live]” — 1986, #91 (download)
The Talking Heads were pretty awesome, weren’t they? Not only did they have some of the catchiest melodies of the decade (“This Must Be the Place”) but they were unique and kind of quirky at the same time. I mean, it’s impossible to forget the strange and yet wildly cool video for “Once in a Lifetime.”
“This Must Be the Place” comes from Speaking in Tongues, which gave them their only Top 10 hit in “Burning Down the House” (#9). “And She Was” was the second single from their 6th album, Little Creatures, and “Once in a Lifetime” came from their live album Stop Making Sense. Sense was released in 1984 and a couple singles charted in the UK before Little Creatures came out, and then two more singles were shipped to radio after that album’s run was complete. Amazingly, the studio version of “Once in a Lifetime” only bubbled under at #103.
After the surprising amount of love shown to Survivor last week, it’s time to pay your last respects to the letter S, as we’re finally going to get to move on to something new — but not until we squeeze every last bit of life from the 19th letter of the alphabet. Here are a few more tracks that failed to crack the Top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart during the 1980s.
Keith Sweat “Something Just Ain’t Right” — 1988, #79 (download) “Make It Last Forever” — 1988, #59 (download)
Keith Sweat’s 1987 album Make It Last Forever ends up going down (Aww yeeeah … —Ed.) as one of the best New Jack Swing records of the decade. It was the only record he made in the ’80s, though, so we only get a small taste of him here (Dave clearly has S on the brain. —Ed.). The big hit from the album was “I Want Her,” which went to #5. Both of the songs here are great examples of that era, but I’m shocked that Sweat didn’t sue Mariah Carey: his duet with Jacci McGhee, “Make It Last Forever,” absolutely sounds like the basis for her ’91 smash “Can’t Let Go.”
Phew! Two posts, 30-some records in, and hundreds of songs later, we’re still only at the year 1999 in the career of Prince, but the nice part about this section is that there’s probably a lot here that most people have either never heard or never even knew existed due to Internet-only releases or simply poor sales. This period is worth a shot, though, as there’s still some great material in the man’s blood.
The Vault … Old Friends 4 Sale (1999) The Vault is probably Prince’s weakest record, but it’s hard to blame him completely for this one. Part of the deal to get out of his Warner Bros. contract was that they could release an album of vault material when they wanted, and they chose to do this only a few months before Arista was planning on releasing his new record. Ten songs and only 40 minutes, with 25 of those minutes totally boring, leads to a complete throwaway. There’s a note on the record that says “intended 4 private use only,” which says a lot about these tracks. These weren’t the gems that supposedly exist in the vault, these were extras that Warner Brothers decided to throw out there in what seemed to simply be a move to steal his thunder before the new music came out — a “screw with us and we’ll screw with you” type of deal. The only nice part about the record was that most of the songs were not the tracks that had been bootlegged up to this point, so at least the majority of it was music that die-hards hadn’t yet heard.
Just when you thought it might be over, we get Survivor holding up the completion of the 19th letter of the alphabet. It’s the penultimate week of the letter S, as we take a look at the bottom feeders — songs that charted below #40 on the Billboard Hot 100 — of the glorious decade we call the ’80s.
Henry Lee Summer “Darlin’ Danielle Don’t” — 1988, #57 (download) “Hands on the Radio” — 1988, #85 (download)
Henry Lee Summer reminds me quite a bit of Eddie Money. Music and vocals decent, overall sound kind of generic but harmless. “Hands on the Radio” is the better of the two songs here, which were the second and third singles off his self-titled major-label debut (third album overall).
Summer’s run into some issues in the past few years: in 2006 he was drunk driving and crashed his car, and last May he was busted for possession of meth.
In part one of the Popdose Guide to Prince we took a look at the start of his career up through Graffiti Bridge in 1990. Tons of good music and only a tiny bit of “Eh, not so much.” Part two brings the New Power Generation into the fold and introduces some less-than-stellar material to the mix. Every album in this era of Prince’s career has its moments, though, and since quite a few of the albums here have been heard by die-hards only, I’d bet there’s a few unfamiliar tidbits and songs here as well. It’s not all Purple Rain and Sign o’ the Times any longer, making this section quite intriguing.
Diamonds and Pearls (1991) Diamonds and Pearls marks the beginning of a new era for Prince, the first point where an album is credited to Prince and the New Power Generation and the first time there’s a real hip-hop vibe in his songs. My 15-month-old son would tell you (if he could) that Diamonds and Pearls is the first album he really enjoys — every time rapper Tony M. appears, he bobs his head up and down and throws gangsta signs (well, okay, that may just be him indicating he has a poopy).
For me, it definitely is a style change for Prince, and even when you aren’t getting a hip-hop vibe, the pop songs are more straightforward and radio friendly than they ever had been before. Mixed in with that radio friendliness, however, is more naughty language than heard before, mostly from Tony but Prince gets in the mix as well. Most of the non-singles seem to get forgotten though, as the big three (“Cream,” “Diamonds and Pearls,” and “Gett Off”) still get a ton of airplay today. The latter of course contains one of the best lines Prince has ever recorded with “now move your big ass ‘round this way, so I can work on that zipper baby.” There’s also another funky rap track called “Jughead” that kind of gets lost at the end of the record but is worth the time to get to it. Overall, a pretty decent start to the New Power Generation.
Here are even more songs by artists whose names begin with the letter S, as we continue looking at singles that charted below #40 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the 1980s.
If you’ve been reading this series for a while you’d definitely think I’d be ripping into Babs about now. I really tried to, but everything I was writing seemed forced which made me realize that I don’t really have that many issues with her. I will never ever voluntarily pick up a Streisand record and I’m cursing myself for listening to all of these on my iPod as they are now most likely going to show up in shuffles more often, but it is what it is. I give her credit for trying to stay relevant with the times. She could record anything and her fans would stick by her, but her collaborations in the ‘80s were actually okay.
I’m a big Bee Gees fan, so I actually enjoy “Promises” which came off what goes down as a very good record, Guilty, written by Barry and Robin Gibb. “Left in the Dark” is clearly a Jim Steinman song and is just as good as the majority of his material and “Emotion” is actually semi-hip. Even “Memory” and “Somewhere” while no big favorites of mine are Barbra at what she does best.
Jamie Starr. Joey Coco. Alexander Nevermind. Christopher. Camille. The Artist Formerly Known as … And, simply, a symbol.
No matter what you call him, Prince Rogers Nelson is one of a kind. Whether you like funk, R&B, jazz, or straight-up, blistering rock ‘n’ roll, Prince has got something for you. There aren’t many artists in the history of music that have three, four, maybe five masterpieces in their collection like the Purple One does, nor are there many who crank out consistently good music at his pace. He’s certainly one of the most unique artists still making music today, so it’s about time he gets a Popdose guide, don’t you think? Over the course of a few posts we’ll talk about all his albums and a few side projects and maybe even introduce you to a song or two you haven’t heard before. Enjoy.
For You (1978) The world’s first real glimpse at the soon-to-be superstar shows an overzealous 19-year-old doing a bit too much too soon. Prince made it a point to list all the instruments he plays in the liner notes, and mind you, it’s all of them, with only a little help from others. There’s definitely some magic on the record that you can hear in his first hit song, “Soft and Wet,” but for the most part only real Prince enthusiasts need to go back this far. For You is certainly one of his most straightforward releases, but after decades of experimentation and unique sounds, going back to this album is almost boring. The final track, “I’m Yours,” is the only gem, featuring some blistering guitar solos.
Ssssssssssssstop the relentless surge of Bottom Feeders songs by artists whose names begin with the letter S, you say? Never! Here are more singles that charted below #40 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the 1980s.
Amii Stewart & Johnny Bristol “My Guy/My Girl” — 1980, #63 (download)
Better than Sister Sledge’s “My Guy” or Suave’s “My Girl,” which both charted in the ‘80s. Maybe it’s because we’re getting a two-for-one here? There are certainly better versions of this tune/these tunes, but Amii & Johnny’s is a keeper.
Dave Stewart & Barbara Gaskin “It’s My Party” — 1981, #72 (download)
For the longest time I just assumed this Dave Stewart was the Eurythmics guy, but it turns out he’s a prog keyboardist who’s probably most well known for being in the band Bruford, led by former King Crimson and Yes drummer Bill Bruford. Stewart released this as a one-off single with Gaskin, but then decided he liked working with her so much that he kept releasing singles with her until ’86, when they progressed to full-length albums. They’re still working together today.
I would have, too, after recording this. I can’t get enough of “It’s My Party,” from the keys sounding like old arcade games to the slow and eerie breakdown in the middle abruptly switching to the upbeat pop reminiscent of the original version. This to me is a great example of how you really remake a song: stay true to the original melody but add some originality to it.
It’s the final Bottom Feeders of 2009! We’ll end ‘09 and start ‘10 the same way — with more artists whose names begin with the letter S and songs that charted no higher than #41 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the 1980s.
Michael Stanley Band “Lover” — 1981, #68 (download) “Falling in Love Again” — 1981, #64 (download) “When I’m Holding You Tight” — 1982, #78 (download) “Take the Time” — 1982, #81 (download) “Someone Like You” — 1983, #75 (download)
To this day I don’t know if I’ve ever heard a Michael Stanley song on the radio in Pennsylvania. He was big in the midwest and had two Top 40 hits, so he certainly got national play for a bit, but maybe that didn’t include Philadelphia, where I grew up. Most of his stuff in the ‘80s was somewhere between Springsteen and Seger, but a track like “When I’m Holding You Tight” sounds more like Loverboy or .38 Special.
Starland Vocal Band “Loving You With My Eyes” — 1980, #71 (download)
Yikes. Checking in at #19 on my Bottom 80 Songs of the ‘80s list, this was the Starland Vocal Band’s final charting single. In a decade of sappy-ass songs, this takes the cake. How is loving you with my eyes an impossible high? I’d bet you there are 100 other ways I could get that high or higher. Thank God they at least had “Afternoon Delight” to fall back on.
It’s another week of artists whose names begin with the letter S, as we take a look at the ass end of the Billboard Hot 100 chart, i.e. songs that charted below #40, during the 1980s.
Neil and Tim Finn. Great songwriters, no doubt about it. But am I shocked that Split Enz didn’t have more than this one lonely hit? Not really. They were experimental and ahead of their time and clearly no record company thought that the material they released in their native New Zealand really translated well on U.S. soil as pretty much everything they released was either reworked or just sequenced differently for our ears. I think most of the readers here would think highly of the band but certainly Top 40 radio wasn’t quite hip enough back in the day to play them.
Rick Springfield “Taxi Dancing” — 1984, #59 (download)
My apologies to the Jack Wagner fans out there, but Rick Springfield is the best musician-actor of the decade. Rick had 17 songs hit the Hot 100 and only this lone single from the Hard to Hold soundtrack didn’t go Top 40 (rightfully so — it’s the worst of the singles). And of course, Rick Springfield has one of the iconic ‘80s songs in “Jessie’s Girl.”
The Best of Rick Springfield, from 1999, has 16 of those 17 hits (leaving off “Bruce,” the song released without his consent that’s about him being mistaken for Springsteen) and is right up there with my favorite Greatest Hits compilations of all time. Even if you think you aren’t that familiar with his music other than the mega hits, I’d bet after listening to the hits, you’d be shocked how many you know. And since his major hit making period started in 1981 and 1988’s Rock of Life album was his last for 11 years he’s essentially a true ‘80s artist.
The Talking Heads were pretty awesome, weren’t they? Not only did they have some of the catchiest melodies of the decade (“This Must Be the Place”) but they were unique and kind of quirky at the same time. I mean, it’s impossible to forget the strange and yet wildly cool video for “Once in a Lifetime.”
If you’ve been reading this series for a while you’d definitely think I’d be ripping into Babs about now. I really tried to, but everything I was writing seemed forced which made me realize that I don’t really have that many issues with her. I will never ever voluntarily pick up a Streisand record and I’m cursing myself for listening to all of these on my iPod as they are now most likely going to show up in shuffles more often, but it is what it is. I give her credit for trying to stay relevant with the times. She could record anything and her fans would stick by her, but her collaborations in the ‘80s were actually okay.
For the longest time I just assumed this Dave Stewart was the Eurythmics guy, but it turns out he’s a prog keyboardist who’s probably most well known for being in the band Bruford, led by former King Crimson and Yes drummer Bill Bruford. Stewart released this as a one-off single with Gaskin, but then decided he liked working with her so much that he kept releasing singles with her until ’86, when they progressed to full-length albums. They’re still working together today.
Michael Stanley Band
Split Enz
My apologies to the Jack Wagner fans out there, but Rick Springfield is the best musician-actor of the decade. Rick had 17 songs hit the Hot 100 and only this lone single from the Hard to Hold soundtrack didn’t go Top 40 (rightfully so — it’s the worst of the singles). And of course, Rick Springfield has one of the iconic ‘80s songs in “Jessie’s Girl.”
