"The Stroke" by Billy Squier

Song#:  0602
Date:  05/16/1981
Debut:  84
Peak:  17
Weeks:  20
Genre:  Rock, Arena Rock



Pop Bits:  Squier's first album, "The Tale of the Tape," kind of sunk without a trace, but his solo career kicked into high gear with this first single from his next LP "Don't Say No." It raced to #3 on the Mainstream Rock chart and crossed over to pop for his first Top 20 hit. The album reached #5 and eventually became a triple-platinum seller.

ReduxReview:  What a great single. It's has great guitar licks all over the place, a hot chorus, and the production is excellent - and it still sounds awesome. We played the heck out of this song back in the day. It was rather kick-ass.

ReduxRating:  9/10

Trivia:  When this song first came out, the general assumption was that the song was about masturbation. But that is not really the case. It deals with Squier's meeting with some record execs before he started his solo career.

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