What is it about nice people that attract total idiots?Nice people are martyrs. Idiots are evangelists.

SOCK IT TO ME BABY!!!

Saturday, May 26, 2012

The great eighties countdown week five

Just as our fallen warriors never stopped in their final devotion to us, the countdown will not stop, either!  So enjoy your hot dog or brat, pop open a PBR, and come dancing with me once again...

220- Jane Says, Jane's Addiction, #6 Alternative, 1988.  I used to sing this to a former quality lady at work who got mad when a former engineer named Sergio was rumoured to be her boyfriend.  "Dat's sexual harrassment!" she would retort in her German accent.

219- Come Back, J. Geils Band, #32, 1980. Not a big fan of these guys, but loved the singles from Love Stinks- which means they'll be back at least once more.

218- I Keep Forgetting, Michael McDonald, #4, 1982. Michael didn't last long after leaving the Doobies, and the other day at Red Lobster I saw why.  He was doing a cover of Stevie Wonder's For Once In My Life that was so spot on, I said to myself, "All he needs now is the harmonica." Seconds later, a harmonica riff that could have been "sampled" from the original kicks in, and I said, "At least he wasn't wearing the black glasses.  Was he?"

Sorry, my first attempt at besmirching a picture with Paint.


217- Overkill, Men At Work, #5, 1983.  Second time in the countdown for these boys, and my favorite.

216- Attitude Adjustment, Hank Williams, Jr., #5 country, 1984.  If you thought he wasn't PC after last year's Monday Night Football fiasco, you never knew him BEFORE MNF.

215- I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down, Paul Young, #13, 1985.  I love the "Push, push" part.  That's where I sing along.

214-  Mary's Prayer, Danny Wilson, #6, 1987.  A band and not a person.
 So if I say save me save me
Be the light in my eyes
And if I say ten Hail Mary's
Leave a light on heaven for me

Blessed is the one who shares
The power and your beauty,
Mary Blessed is the millionaire
Who shares your wedding day

So when you find somebody to give
Think of me and celebrate
I made such a big mistake
When I was Mary's Prayer...



213- No Easy Way Out, Robert Tepper, #22, 1986.  From the Rocky IV soundtrack.

212- Shock The Monkey, Peter Gabriel, #29, #1 Mainstream Rock.  Second of three from Mr. Gabriel.

211-  Venus, Bananarama, #1, 1986.  The cover of Shocking Blue's 1970 hit, and a damn good job.

210- Holding Back The Years,  Simply Red,  #1, 1986.  Released the year before, it didn't chart here and only made #51 in the UK.  In the '86 re-release, it hit #2 in the UK and #1 here.  What a difference a year makes.

209- Through The Years, Kenny Rogers, #13, #5 country, 1982. Fell in love with this when it became Jo and Tony's theme song on Search For Tomorrow.

208- Super Freak, Rick James, #16, #3 R&B, 1981.  Another song that had more legs after the chart run than during.



207- Do You Believe In Love, Huey Lewis And The News, #7, 1982.  This was the song of springtime 1982.  I can still smell the air, full of the scent of melting snow.

206- Stand Or Fall, The Fixx, #76, #7 Mainstream, 1982.  The first of their songs to make a US impact, and the second of 4 on our countdown.

205- Even The Losers, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 1980, unreleased.  From the great lp Damn The Torpedoes.  Another personal theme song.

204- Games People Play, Alan Parsons Project, #16, 1980.  From another great lp, The Turn Of A Friendly Card.  I was listening to CKLW at the time, and it played there for two months before the stations here picked it up.

203- Let's Dance, David Bowie, #1, 1983.  And yet again, another big hit lp, with a ton of singles, one of which we'll hit later on.

202- The Party's Over (Hopelessly In Love), Journey, #34, #2 Mainstream.  When Journey rocked, they rocked! One more by them coming up.


                                                                                                                 
201- Come Go With Me, The Beach Boys, #18, 1981.  The eighties were a desert for the boys, and this was their biggest hit since 1976's Rock And Roll Music and until they covered Wipe Out with the Fat Boys in 1987.

That's it for this week.  How was that brat?  Have a great weekend and enjoy the race.

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