80s0n8 Big 40 Countdown Schedule

[sadchild]

This was a rough one for me. A lot of songs I'd never heard before... but wish I still hadn't! Quite painful to the eardrums, really.

Good 5 (pat, petty, petty, mac, queen)
Okay 10
Bad 25

40. I CAN'T HELP MYSELF - BONNIE POINTER

Never knew there was a fourth sister.

39. LET ME GO, LOVE - NICOLETTE LARSON

Two bad vocalists. Owch.

38. SPECIAL LADY - RAY, GOODMAN, & BROWN

Great intro, the rest bleh.

37. GIVE IT ALL YOU GOT - CHUCK MANGIONE

Kenny G's jazzy uncle?

32. WE DON'T TALK ANYMORE - CLIFF RICHARD

Been kinda hooked on this song lately, since deciding to cover "Devil Woman".

31. I WANNA BE YOUR LOVER - PRINCE

No es bueno anything pre-1999 (the album, not the year)

21. FOOL IN THE RAIN - LED ZEPPELIN

Don't like the upbeat middle part, the rest is good.

20. THE SECOND TIME AROUND - SHALAMAR

Got that same descending "BOOooooo" note that "Ring My Bell" also overplays.

18. ANOTHER BRICK IN THE WALL - PINK FLOYD

I love this album, but hearing any of the songs individually is kinda meh (except for "Run Like Hell" - that one's good on its own).

4. CRUSIN' - SMOKEY ROBINSON

Odd when a top 5 song from the 80s plays and I've never heard it before.

3. COWARD OF THE COUNTY - KENNY ROGERS

Love a good story song. This is a good story.

#85 Romantics "What I Like About You"

Best song on the Hot 100 this week, hands down.

#99 Aerosmith "Remember (Walking In The Sand)"

First rock record I bought.

Won't make the Top 40*
#68 Rod Stewart "I Don't Want To Talk About It"
#85 Romantics "What I Like About You"
#95 Robert Palmer "Can We Still Be Friends"
#96 Robert John "Lonely Eyes"
#99 Aerosmith "Remember (Walking In The Sand)"

(*not a complete list because billboard.com is still broken)

 

[HecticArt]

#85 Romantics "What I Like About You"

Best song on the Hot 100 this week, hands down.

I've never seen a cover band play it correctly. Ever.
(Including my own.)

 

[sadchild]

@HecticArt Interesting! On the surface, it seems such an easy song to jam. I wonder what the catch is?

 

[semipenguin]

21. FOOL IN THE RAIN - LED ZEPPELIN

Don't like the upbeat middle part, the rest is good.

Short backstory: My favorite group until 1986 was Journey. That quickly changed after Raised on Radio came out. I soon discovered Led Zeppelin and their catalog.

I read the book Hammer of the Gods, a fantastic read. The author talks about how back in 1979, Jimmy Page had basically checked out. He was no longer the main influence in the band and John Paul Jones had stepped up to take that position.

Fool in the Rain was JPJ’s.

Fool in the Rain - Wikipedia

4. CRUSIN' - SMOKEY ROBINSON

Odd when a top 5 song from the 80s plays and I've never heard it before.

I remember this song as a kid, but never thought much of it until it was covered by Huey Lewis and Gwyneth Paltrow for the film Duets.

Here’s a horrible clip from that movie, where the music doesn’t even sync up with the picture

 

[HecticArt]

@HecticArt Interesting! On the surface, it seems such an easy song to jam. I wonder what the catch is?

Half of everyone in bar bands just plays straight E, A, & D in the open position. (It might as well be R.O.C.K. In The USA, or a half a dozen other classic rock tunes.) The ones that are closer to the chords that the Romantics play, still don't get the rhythm right. There's a choppy punk snap to the chord changes that people never get right. I'm in the later group. I played it wrong since 1980-whatever-it-was, by the time I bothered to pay attention to what it really sounds like, it was too late. I still don't get all of the chop in the right places. After all of these years, it doesn't hold my attention enough to polish.

 

[sadchild]

@HecticArt I think I know what you're talking about. There are a lot of songs that have subtle things in it that need to be done right to really play it correctly.

Not trying to toot my own horn here, but a lot of the riffs I write, when played by whoever the other guitarist in my band is at the time (there have been 5 since 2008), are missing little things that give the riff character. Like a brief pause in playing at an exact split-second. Or how many times you strum a chord with the right hand, 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x (the song "The Blood" by The Cure is a perfect example of this). Or when a riff doesn't start exactly on (or end exactly on) a beat. Or a chord that is played by first starting two frets below it and very quickly sliding up into that chord.

Listening to "What I Like About You" right now, I hear a lot of those little idiosyncrasies of exactly when the left hand slides up to the next chord, or back down (and it's not on a defined beat). Or doing a triple strum on a chord - beginning BEFORE the beat - so that the third strum lands on the 'one'. And those are the things that give a song its uniqueness and its character!

 

[HecticArt]

Amen. That's the stuff.
We've all got our own character that feels right to play.
The guy from the Romantics has got his own thing going on for sure.
It's not sophisticated or difficult, it's just him.

 

[Aaron]

1989

40. THE LAST MILE – CINDERELLA
39. SHE DRIVES ME CRAZY – FINE YOUNG CANNIBALS
38. CRYIN’ – VIXEN
37. SUPERWOMAN - KARYN WHITE
36. THE WAY YOU LOVE ME - KARYN WHITE
35. MORE THAN YOU KNOW - MARTIKA
34. ALL THIS TIME - TIFFANY
33. YOU GOT IT – ROY ORBISON
32. STAND – R.E.M.
31. THE LOOK – ROXETTE
30. WALK THE DINOSAUR - WAS (NOT WAS)
29. THE LOVE IN YOUR EYES - EDDIE MONEY
28. ALL SHE WANTS IS - DURAN DURAN
27. JUST BECAUSE - ANITA BAKER
26. ETERNAL FLAME – BANGLES
25. DREAMIN’ - VANESSA WILLIAMS
24. YOU’RE NOT ALONE – CHICAGO
23. WHEN THE CHILDREN CRY - WHITE LION
22. I BEG YOUR PARDON – KON KAN
21. ANGEL OF HARLEM - U2
20. I WANNA HAVE SOME FUN - SAMANTHA FOXX
19. DON’T TELL ME LIES – BREATHE
18. MY HEART CAN’T TELL YOU NO – ROD STEWART
17. GIRL YOU KNOW IT’S TRUE – MILLI VANILLI
16. WHEN I'M WITH YOU - SHERIFF
15. A LITTLE RESPECT – ERASURE
14. PARADISE CITY – GUNS ‘N ROSES
13. DIAL MY HEART - THE BOYS
12. RONI – BOBBY BROWN
11. SURRENDER TO ME – ANN WILSON & ROBIN ZANDER
10. WALKING AWAY - INFORMATION SOCIETY
9. THE LIVING YEARS – MIKE & THE MECHANICS
8. WHAT I AM - EDIE BRICKELL & NEW BOHEMIANS
7. YOU GOT IT (THE RIGHT STUFF) - NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK
6. SHE WANTS TO DANCE WITH ME - RICK ASTLEY
5. BORN TO BE MY BABY - BON JOVI
4. THE LOVER IN ME - SHEENA EASTON
3. WILD THING - TONE LOC
2. LOST IN YOUR EYES – DEBBIE GIBSON
1. STRAIGHT UP - PAULA ABDUL

 

[IdRatherBeSkiing]

I usually skip 1988 and 1989 countdowns. Glad I did this one too. Below are the only songs I like:

39. SHE DRIVES ME CRAZY – FINE YOUNG CANNIBALS
33. YOU GOT IT – ROY ORBISON
32. STAND – R.E.M.
21. ANGEL OF HARLEM - U2
14. PARADISE CITY – GUNS ‘N ROSES
9. THE LIVING YEARS – MIKE & THE MECHANICS
3. WILD THING - TONE LOC

A good chunk I actively dislike and the rest I am indifferent too.

 

[sadchild]

Good 9
Ok 13
Bad 18

40. THE LAST MILE – CINDERELLA

Asked my son what he thought of this singer's voice. He said "How about NO!"

39. SHE DRIVES ME CRAZY – FINE YOUNG CANNIBALS

Asked my son what he thought of this singer's voice. He simply said, "NO!"

37. SUPERWOMAN - KARYN WHITE
36. THE WAY YOU LOVE ME - KARYN WHITE
13. DIAL MY HEART - THE BOYS
12. RONI – BOBBY BROWN

"And you can new jack swiiiing on my nuts!" - Ice Cube

30. WALK THE DINOSAUR - WAS (NOT WAS)
19. DON’T TELL ME LIES – BREATHE

Guilty pleasures

28. ALL SHE WANTS IS - DURAN DURAN

"Spend your money on the corner, now. You know you've gotta save some for the shoeshine boy." Why the shoeshine boy?

27. JUST BECAUSE - ANITA BAKER
25. DREAMIN’ - VANESSA WILLIAMS

Forgot these existed. Can't say I've missed them though.

20. I WANNA HAVE SOME FUN - SAMANTHA FOXX

Nina: "...famous for two big things" lol

9. THE LIVING YEARS – MIKE & THE MECHANICS

I like the verse lyrics, but could do without the gospel chorus.

8. WHAT I AM - EDIE BRICKELL & NEW BOHEMIANS

I've always hated this song. Especially the lyrics.

Won't make the top 40 (very incomplete list)
#61 Huey Lewis & The News "Give Me The Keys (And I'll Drive You Crazy)"
#71 Camouflage "The Great Commandment"
#72 Timelords "Doctorin' The Tardis"
#90 Fleetwood Mac "As Long As You Follow"
#98 Survivor "Across The Miles"

 

[HecticArt]

40. THE LAST MILE – CINDERELLA

I could never get into his voice either. It sounds too forced.

8. WHAT I AM - EDIE BRICKELL & NEW BOHEMIANS

I've always loved this one. It's just so quirky and odd.

#72 Timelords "Doctorin' The Tardis"

I'm surprised it made it this far up the charts. I love the KLF.

 

[semipenguin]

40. THE LAST MILE – CINDERELLA

Asked my son what he thought of this singer's voice. He said "How about NO!"

Classic Grumpy Cat

 

[sadchild]

@semipenguin LOL yeah at 12 years old, my boy is heavy into the memes. Every other thing he says is from one.

@HecticArt I do like Edie's "Circle Of Friends" a lot. Fantastic song! But I just can't get into that quirky-oddness of "What I Am". Philosophy is the talk on a cereal box? Religion is the smile on a dog? I know what I know if you know what I mean? Are you what you are or what? It just doesn't communicate to me. It also gets on my nerves the way she sings 'Shove me in the shallow water'.

 

[HecticArt]

It's all good. My sense of humor has always been a bit off anyway.

I heard her say (I think on David Letterman) that she was watching New Bohemians play in a club somewhere and was sitting in the audience drinking Jack Daniels. At some point she got up on stage and started singing, and that's what came out.

It may be folklore, or her recognition about how goofy the lyrics are.
I like the way she sings "water..." It's kind of like how Cindy Lauper is the only person to make the word "fun" have two syllables.

 

[Wolf]

They must have heard us- posted early this week :bluecool:

Week of March 15, 1988

1. Rick Astley – “Never Gonna Give You Upâ€

Wolf's favorite song at #1!

My first post in this thread and you got that right!

 

[sadchild]

@HecticArt That's the thing about doing something odd/quirky/brave, some will like it some won't. Take "Gangnam Style" - millions loved it, I hated it. But then Beck's "Loser" has lyrics that are even more absurd...

Don’t believe everything that you breathe
You get a parking violation and a maggot on your sleeve
So shave your face with some mace in the dark
Saving all your food stamps and burning down the trailer park

...and I love it. I respect the fact she went for something strange and had a huge hit with it. But it just rubs me the wrong way.

Oh and I forgot to mention that even though I'm not into "Doctorin' The Tardis", I was big into KLF during 'The White Room'. Especially "Justified & Ancient (Tammy Stands By The Jams)". I'd just listened to KLF last week in fact! Though I thought they were pretty stupid to burn that big pile of money.

 

[HecticArt]

Agreed. A lot of the KLF lyrics hit me as stupid as burning that cash, but I dug the groove they had.
KLF, Prodigy, and some of those guys added a great rock twist to electronic music back in the day.

 

[Aaron]

1983

40. DON'T TELL ME YOU LOVE ME - NIGHT RANGER
39. MAKE LOVE STAY - DAN FOGELBERG
38. TIED UP - OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN
37. LITTLE TOO LATE - PAT BENATAR
36. POISON ARROW - ABC
35. I'M ALIVE - NEIL DIAMOND
34. JEOPARDY - THE GREG KIHN BAND
33. THE WOMAN IN ME - DONNA SUMMER
32. MY KIND OF LADY - SUPERTRAMP
31. DER KOMMISSAR - AFTER THE FIRE
30. DREAMIN' IS EASY - STEEL BREEZE
29. YOU CAN'T HURRY LOVE - PHIL COLLINS
28. I'VE GOT A ROCK 'N ROLL HEART - ERIC CLAPTON
27. AFRICA - TOTO
26. ON THE LOOSE - SAGA
25. COME ON EILEEN - DEXY'S MIDNIGHT RUNNERS
24. HEART TO HEART - KENNY LOGGINS
23. GOODY TWO SHOES - ADAM ANT
22. I KNOW THERE'S SOMETHING GOING ON - FRIDA
21. FALL IN LOVE WITH ME - EARTH, WIND, AND FIRE
20. MR. ROBOTO - STYX
19. BREAKING US IN TWO - JOE JACKSON
18. ONE ON ONE - DARYL HALL & JOHN OATES
17. ALLENTOWN - BILLY JOEL
16. TWILIGHT ZONE - GOLDEN EARRING
15. SEPARATE WAYS (WORLDS APART) - JOURNEY
14. DOWN UNDER - MEN AT WORK
13. YOUR LOVE IS DRIVING ME CRAZY - SAMMY HAGAR
12. ALL RIGHT - CHRISTOPHER CROSS
11. YOU ARE - LIONEL RICHIE
10. PASS THE DUTCHIE - MUSICAL YOUTH
9. BACK ON THE CHAIN GANG - PRETENDERS
8. WE'VE GOT TONIGHT - KENNY ROGERS AND SHEENA EASTON
7. YOU AND I - EDDIE RABBITT AND CRYSTAL GAYLE
6. BABY, COME TO ME - PATTI AUSTIN AND JAMES INGRAM
5. HUNGRY LIKE THE WOLF - DURAN DURAN
4. DO YOU REALLY WANT TO HURT ME - CULTURE CLUB
3. STRAY CAT STRUT - STRAY CATS
2. SHAME ON THE MOON - BOB SEGER AND THE SILVER BULLET BAND
1. BILLIE JEAN - MICHAEL JACKSON

 

[sadchild]

If this week's avatar theme is "extinct sirius/xm channels", please pretend I changed mine to "Movin EZ". I miss that channel. Played the best old fogie music of all time.

Good 18
Ok 6
Bad 16

39. MAKE LOVE STAY - DAN FOGELBERG
35. I'M ALIVE - NEIL DIAMOND

Haven't heard these since 83. I'd be okay with this being the last time.

36. POISON ARROW - ABC

In 1990, a friend of mine said he was a big ABC fan, but had never heard this song or "Look Of Love". I was in awe. How could a self-proclaimed ABC fan not know those two songs??

33. THE WOMAN IN ME - DONNA SUMMER

Holy have a list of big names helping you on an album (that then had only moderate success)

32. MY KIND OF LADY - SUPERTRAMP

29. YOU CAN'T HURRY LOVE - PHIL COLLINS

Even as a 12 year old, I thought this was uber-cheesy. My opinion hasn't changed.

22. I KNOW THERE'S SOMETHING GOING ON - FRIDA
12. ALL RIGHT - CHRISTOPHER CROSS

Guilty pleasures.

11. YOU ARE - LIONEL RICHIE

10. PASS THE DUTCHIE - MUSICAL YOUTH

Recently, I dug deep into the story behind this song and posted it all in its song bio on genius.com. I also annotated some of the lyrics, explaining what they mean (like 'it a go bun' and 'make me wind up me waist'). I've known the song since '82 and wanted to finally understand it better.

Musical Youth – Pass the Dutchie Lyrics | Genius Lyrics

9. BACK ON THE CHAIN GANG - PRETENDERS

Hoo! ... Ha! ... Hoo! ... Ha!

8. WE'VE GOT TONIGHT - KENNY ROGERS AND SHEENA EASTON
7. YOU AND I - EDDIE RABBITT AND CRYSTAL GAYLE
6. BABY, COME TO ME - PATTI AUSTIN AND JAMES INGRAM

Three sleepers in a row

5. HUNGRY LIKE THE WOLF - DURAN DURAN
3. STRAY CAT STRUT - STRAY CATS

I had a friend (a rather odd duck) who - at every school dance in 8th grade - would stand on the bleachers and yell "BOOOOO!!!!!!! BOOOOOO!!!!!" whenever a Stray Cats or Duran Duran song played, throughout the entirety of the song.

Won't make the top 40*
#46 Weather Girls "It's Raining Men"
#48 Don Henley "I Can't Stand Still"
#51 Ric Ocasek "Something To Grab For"
#57 Clash "Should I Stay Or Should I Go"
#58 Janet Jackson "Come Give Your Love to Me"
#67 J Geils Band "Land of a Thousand Dances"
#72 Randy Newman & Paul Simon "The Blues"
#73 Psychedelic Furs "Love My Way"
#79 Berlin "Sex (I'm A)"
#87 Billy Squier "She's A Runner"
#92 Missing Persons "Windows"
#94 Donald Fagen "New Frontier"

* a somewhat more complete list than lately. I spent a little time doing some double-checking here and there.

 

[IdRatherBeSkiing]

sadchild you like more this week than you dislike. A rarity.


Sent from my iPhone6S using Tapatalk