"Nice Girls" by Eye to Eye

Song#:  1032
Date:  05/22/1982
Debut:  89
Peak:  37
Weeks:  13
Genre:  Soft Rock



Pop Bits:  Eye to Eye is a duo made up of Deborah Berg (US) and Julian Marshall (UK). Marshall met Berg at a dance performance where Berg sang instead of danced due to an injury. Soon after, Berg took off to the UK to write and record with Marshall. The pair issued a single called "Am I Normal?" which got the attention of Warner Bros. via Steely Dan producer Gary Katz. Signed to the label, Katz then produced the duo's self-titled debut. It was pretty much ignored in the UK, but this single gained some fans in the US and it peaked inside the pop Top 40.

ReduxReview:  For anyone out there that loves Steely Dan, you might want to check out Eye to Eye since they are similar in several ways. This single is probably the catchiest thing they have on the album and it is a good tune. Since I've never been a Steely Dan fan, the remainder of their album sounds a lot to me like Dan's artsy-fartsy cerebral jazz-pop. Don't get me wrong, Fagen and Becker are great musicians. I just don't like my pop music so...well...complicated. Eye to Eye are not as complex as Steely Dan, but they kind of play like Dan's UK cousin. Frankly, I wouldn't have pegged this for a Top 40 hit, but I'm glad it did well. It chugs along nicely and I like Berg's voice. She reminds me of Basia ("Time and Tide," #26, 1987).

ReduxRating:  6/10

Trivia:  Julian Marshall already had experienced some chart success before forming Eye to Eye. As a member of Marshall Hain (with Kit Hain), he reached #3 in the UK with 1978's "Dancing in the City." The song crossed over to the US was a minor entry peaking at #43. After that group dissolved, Marshall joined the Flying Lizards. Their 1979 version of "Money" (originally done by Barrett Strong in 1960 followed by The Beatles in 1963) hit #5 in the UK while getting to #50 in the US. (Side note - Kit Hain went on to write/co-write songs for major artists like Roger Daltrey, Cyndi Lauper, 'Til Tuesday, Heart, Chaka Khan, and Cher.)

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