"Urgent" by Foreigner

Top 10 Alert!

Song#:  0661
Date:  07/04/1981
Debut:  51
Peak:  4
Weeks:  23
Genre:  Rock



Pop Bits:  Foreigner's previous album "Head Games" marked a slight decline for the group with singles from the album missing the Top 10. This first single from their follow-up album "4" brought them back to the Top 10 and it helped to propel the album to #1 - their first and only on the US chart. It would go on to sell over 7 million copies in the US making it the group's best-selling studio LP. It also got the group a Grammy nomination for Best Rock Vocal Group.

ReduxReview:  Around this time, there were three albums everyone had. Foreigner's "4," REO Speedwagon's "Hi-Infidelity," and (soon) Journey's "Escape." All with good reason. Foreigner had some great singles, but for me this one is the best. It's well written, sounds awesome (even today), and the sax solo is certainly one of the most memorable in rock. I like this track even more now that I did back in the day.

ReduxRating:  9/10

Trivia:  This song featured two other artist of note - one established, one soon-to-be. The sax solo was performed by Junior Walker. He and his group the All Stars were one of Motown's great R&B acts in the 60s and early 70s. Walker had 13 R&B Top 10s during that time and took two of them into the pop Top 10. Also playing synthesizers on the "4" album was Thomas Dolby. A session musician at the time, the money he earned from working on the album and tour dates with Foreigner helped to fund his first solo project that contained his his "She Blinded Me with Science" (#5, 1982).

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