Song#: 0837
Date: 12/05/1981
Debut: 92
Peak: 91
Weeks: 5
Genre: R&B
Pop Bits: Rufus began life in 1972 and the initial line-up featured a young singer named Chaka Khan. They hit big with their second album "Rags to Rufus," which featured the big #3 hit "Tell Me Something Good." More hits followed and thanks to the star power of Khan, the group began billing as Rufus featuring Chaka Khan. But later in the 70s the group was experiencing some internal issues including rumors that Khan was going solo. She confirmed that and issued a debut in 1978, which outsold the latest Rufus album. Her follow-ups continued to do well while Rufus' went on a decline. But contractual obligations forced her to work with the rest of Rufus for two more albums. She did, but obviously the sessions were tough and many times she recorded her part alone without the band. The last obligatory album was "Camouflage," which featured this minor pop entry. Although the song went to #8 at R&B, the album became their lowest peaking on the pop album chart since their debut in 1972. After one more album just by Rufus, the group called it quits. But not before issuing one final live album with Khan that supplied one more hit.
ReduxReview: I can kind of understand how this one tanked on the chart. It's a fairly bland ballad that is only improved by Khan's vocals. In fact, her vocals are almost too much for this tiny song to handle. It's like watching a thin, scrawny kid trying to hold a hundred pound weight above his head - unbalanced and on the verge of collapse.
ReduxRating: 5/10
Trivia: Rufus was originally formed by former members of the band The American Breed. That group had a #5 hit in 1967 with "Bend Me, Shape Me."
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Saturday, May 10, 2014
Friday, May 9, 2014
"You Could Have Been with Me" by Sheena Easton
Song#: 0836
Date: 11/28/1981
Debut: 78
Peak: 15
Weeks: 18
Genre: Pop, Adult Contemporary
Pop Bits: After scoring a #1 debut single ("Morning Train") and another Top 10 hit ("For Your Eyes Only", #4), the time came for her sophomore album. "You Could Have Been with Me" was similar in it's pop/AC sound as Easton's debut and this title-track ballad hit the Top 20 while reaching #6 at AC. While it wasn't a huge smash, it did well enough to get the album to gold status.
ReduxReview: This is a good-sized ballad for Easton. It's large enough for her vocals, but not too big that she gets swallowed by the song. Easton has a really good voice, but she doesn't have a huge diva voice. So songs like this were perfect for her. I've always liked it and thought it was a Top 10 contender.
ReduxRating: 7/10
Trivia: This song was written by New Zealand musician Lea Maalfrid. Her sights were set on being a performer and she worked both solo and with a prog-rock band called Ragnarok. After leaving the group, she had demos that made it all the way to some of Elton John's folks. An album was planned for John's Rocket Records, but while that was still in the air, a couple of her songs made it to Easton's producer (who had intended to produced Maalfrid's album as well). A couple of Maalfrid's songs got recorded by Easton including this one. At the time Maalfrid wasn't quite aware of who Easton was and told the publisher's receptionist that she didn't care that much about Easton recording her songs. The receptionist said - you will when you get the check. When Maalfird did get a check, she turned to full-time songwriting.
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Date: 11/28/1981
Debut: 78
Peak: 15
Weeks: 18
Genre: Pop, Adult Contemporary
Pop Bits: After scoring a #1 debut single ("Morning Train") and another Top 10 hit ("For Your Eyes Only", #4), the time came for her sophomore album. "You Could Have Been with Me" was similar in it's pop/AC sound as Easton's debut and this title-track ballad hit the Top 20 while reaching #6 at AC. While it wasn't a huge smash, it did well enough to get the album to gold status.
ReduxReview: This is a good-sized ballad for Easton. It's large enough for her vocals, but not too big that she gets swallowed by the song. Easton has a really good voice, but she doesn't have a huge diva voice. So songs like this were perfect for her. I've always liked it and thought it was a Top 10 contender.
ReduxRating: 7/10
Trivia: This song was written by New Zealand musician Lea Maalfrid. Her sights were set on being a performer and she worked both solo and with a prog-rock band called Ragnarok. After leaving the group, she had demos that made it all the way to some of Elton John's folks. An album was planned for John's Rocket Records, but while that was still in the air, a couple of her songs made it to Easton's producer (who had intended to produced Maalfrid's album as well). A couple of Maalfrid's songs got recorded by Easton including this one. At the time Maalfrid wasn't quite aware of who Easton was and told the publisher's receptionist that she didn't care that much about Easton recording her songs. The receptionist said - you will when you get the check. When Maalfird did get a check, she turned to full-time songwriting.
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Thursday, May 8, 2014
"Leader of the Band" by Dan Fogelberg
Top 10 Alert!
Song#: 0835 Date: 11/28/1981
Debut: 81
Peak: 9
Weeks: 20
Genre: Pop, Adult Contemporary
Pop Bits: Fogelberg's album "The Innocent Age" had already produced two Top 10 hits with "Same Old Lang Syne" (#9) and "Hard to Say" (#7), when this third single was issued. It followed the others right into the Top 10 becoming his fourth. The song also became his second #1 AC hit. Unfortunately, it would be his last pop Top 10.
ReduxReview: Get the tissues out! Many folks latched on to this quiet tribute/tearjerker applied the sentiment to their own situation. It oddly became a popular funeral choice. Hey - whatever gets a song heard and sold is good. Of course, I'm an ol' sentimental fool and a fan of Fogelberg (plus a major band geek), so I dearly loved this tune at the time. The song still sounds good, but I'm not sure if it has aged well. Or maybe I've just become more jaded and cynical over the years. I do like the song but I'm not lovin' it as much as I did back in the day.
ReduxRating: 7/10
Trivia: The song is famously a tribute to Fogelberg's father Lawrence Fogelberg. The elder was a musician who led big bands in his early days and then taught/conducted high school bands in Peoria, Illinois. On "The Innocent Age" album, this song is followed by a snippet of the UCLA band playing the "Washington Post March." The version they are playing was arranged by Lawrence Fogelberg. He passed away less than a year after this song was released.
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"My Kinda Lover" by Billy Squier
Song#: 0834
Date: 11/28/1981
Debut: 82
Peak: 45
Weeks: 10
Genre: Rock
Pop Bits: Squier's third single from his hit album "Don't Say No" couldn't quite reach the Top 40, but it continued to help boost sales of the LP. Long after all the singles were finished charting, the album continued to sell and remain on the album chart for over two years, eventually going 4x Platinum. It remains his best-selling album.
ReduxReview: During this time, pop radio was still resistant to rock (and to R&B/rap as well). Therefore, songs like this one, even though very popular, usually fared poorly on the pop chart. I think if Squier had come out a few years later when rock started to shake-up the pop chart (thanks in part to MTV's growth), all these early songs would have probably been Top 10 hits. But regardless of chart position, the songs have lasted a long time and they certainly helped to sell albums, which was the main goal anyway. While not as immediate as "The Stroke," this is another good tune from Squier.
ReduxRating: 7/10
Trivia: Although not issued as a single, another song from the album became a rock radio hit. "Lonely Is the Night" garnered enough airplay to reach #28 on the Mainstream Rock chart. It actually did a little better than "My Kind of Lover," which peaked at #31.
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Date: 11/28/1981
Debut: 82
Peak: 45
Weeks: 10
Genre: Rock
Pop Bits: Squier's third single from his hit album "Don't Say No" couldn't quite reach the Top 40, but it continued to help boost sales of the LP. Long after all the singles were finished charting, the album continued to sell and remain on the album chart for over two years, eventually going 4x Platinum. It remains his best-selling album.
ReduxReview: During this time, pop radio was still resistant to rock (and to R&B/rap as well). Therefore, songs like this one, even though very popular, usually fared poorly on the pop chart. I think if Squier had come out a few years later when rock started to shake-up the pop chart (thanks in part to MTV's growth), all these early songs would have probably been Top 10 hits. But regardless of chart position, the songs have lasted a long time and they certainly helped to sell albums, which was the main goal anyway. While not as immediate as "The Stroke," this is another good tune from Squier.
ReduxRating: 7/10
Trivia: Although not issued as a single, another song from the album became a rock radio hit. "Lonely Is the Night" garnered enough airplay to reach #28 on the Mainstream Rock chart. It actually did a little better than "My Kind of Lover," which peaked at #31.
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Wednesday, May 7, 2014
"Anyone Can See" by Irene Cara
Song#: 0833
Date: 11/28/1981
Debut: 90
Peak: 42
Weeks: 18
Genre: Pop
Pop Bits: Cara had been performing since she was a kid, but it was her appearance in the film "Fame" and its two hits, the #4 title-track and #19 "Out Here on My Own," that really pushed her into the spotlight. She was called upon to reprise her role as Coco from the movie for the TV series adaptation, but she turned it down wanting instead to pursue her music career. Her first post-"Fame" effort was the album "Anyone Can See" and this title-track became its first single. The ballad couldn't quite make it into the Top 40, however it lingered around the chart for 18 weeks - unusually long for a non-Top 40 entry.
ReduxReview: After the strong one-two punch of her singles from "Fame," I'd expect a knock-out single from Cara to keep the momentum going. This one is not it. It's just a standard pop/R&B ballad that is well-done, but is nothing special. Cara co-wrote a good chunk of her album and probably wanted one of her songs issued as a single, but this one wasn't the best choice.
ReduxRating: 4/10
Trivia: Although recognized by some as her debut LP, "Anyone Can See" was not her first album. As a young 10-year-old, Cara recorded a Spanish-language album called "Esta Es Irene." Released in 1968, it didn't reach the album chart.
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Date: 11/28/1981
Debut: 90
Peak: 42
Weeks: 18
Genre: Pop
Pop Bits: Cara had been performing since she was a kid, but it was her appearance in the film "Fame" and its two hits, the #4 title-track and #19 "Out Here on My Own," that really pushed her into the spotlight. She was called upon to reprise her role as Coco from the movie for the TV series adaptation, but she turned it down wanting instead to pursue her music career. Her first post-"Fame" effort was the album "Anyone Can See" and this title-track became its first single. The ballad couldn't quite make it into the Top 40, however it lingered around the chart for 18 weeks - unusually long for a non-Top 40 entry.
ReduxReview: After the strong one-two punch of her singles from "Fame," I'd expect a knock-out single from Cara to keep the momentum going. This one is not it. It's just a standard pop/R&B ballad that is well-done, but is nothing special. Cara co-wrote a good chunk of her album and probably wanted one of her songs issued as a single, but this one wasn't the best choice.
ReduxRating: 4/10
Trivia: Although recognized by some as her debut LP, "Anyone Can See" was not her first album. As a young 10-year-old, Cara recorded a Spanish-language album called "Esta Es Irene." Released in 1968, it didn't reach the album chart.
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"I'm Your Superman" by All Sport Band
Song#: 0832
Date: 11/28/1981
Debut: 94
Peak: 93
Weeks: 2
Genre: Soft Rock
Pop Bits: Pop music has many examples of non-artists assembling musical acts to fulfill their ideas (and wallets). Some end up successful while others tank. Tracy Coats, a sound engineer who worked on hit recordings like "Frampton Comes Alive," had an idea. After working with the The Village People on their live album, he thought that the concept might work with a rock band. So he chose a sports theme, advertised for musicians, secured investors, got a label interested and the All Sports Band was born. Each member donned a sports persona (boxer, football player, race car driver, etc.), wore an associated costume, and then worked together to write and record songs for a debut album. The self-titled LP was issued with this song being the first single. Despite a lot of promotion, including an "American Bandstand" appearance, the song tanked. A second single would do a bit better, but by that time it was pretty much apparent that the idea failed. Investors pulled up stakes as did the label and the All Sports Band was no more.
ReduxReview: After reading up on the band, I expected their first song would be some kind of rockin' tune, but it ended up being this power ballad and I just have to say...oh my. This single is so bad that it is almost great. The keyword though is "almost." The difference between bad-good and bad-awful is that with bad-good, you find yourself singing into a hair brush like you are on an arena stage. With bad-awful, you cringe. This one makes me cringe. The lyrics are not good and when paired with the over-baked vocals (including some unfortunate falsetto), it just crashes and burns. This was just not a good idea.
ReduxRating: 2/10
Trivia: After the group disbanded, most members went on to have successful careers in music. Most notably, Chuck Kentis (the racer) went on to play keyboards for Rod Stewart in 1988. He's been working with Stewart ever since eventually becoming Stewart's musical director. The two have also written songs together that have appeared on Stewart's albums.
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Date: 11/28/1981
Debut: 94
Peak: 93
Weeks: 2
Genre: Soft Rock
Pop Bits: Pop music has many examples of non-artists assembling musical acts to fulfill their ideas (and wallets). Some end up successful while others tank. Tracy Coats, a sound engineer who worked on hit recordings like "Frampton Comes Alive," had an idea. After working with the The Village People on their live album, he thought that the concept might work with a rock band. So he chose a sports theme, advertised for musicians, secured investors, got a label interested and the All Sports Band was born. Each member donned a sports persona (boxer, football player, race car driver, etc.), wore an associated costume, and then worked together to write and record songs for a debut album. The self-titled LP was issued with this song being the first single. Despite a lot of promotion, including an "American Bandstand" appearance, the song tanked. A second single would do a bit better, but by that time it was pretty much apparent that the idea failed. Investors pulled up stakes as did the label and the All Sports Band was no more.
ReduxReview: After reading up on the band, I expected their first song would be some kind of rockin' tune, but it ended up being this power ballad and I just have to say...oh my. This single is so bad that it is almost great. The keyword though is "almost." The difference between bad-good and bad-awful is that with bad-good, you find yourself singing into a hair brush like you are on an arena stage. With bad-awful, you cringe. This one makes me cringe. The lyrics are not good and when paired with the over-baked vocals (including some unfortunate falsetto), it just crashes and burns. This was just not a good idea.
ReduxRating: 2/10
Trivia: After the group disbanded, most members went on to have successful careers in music. Most notably, Chuck Kentis (the racer) went on to play keyboards for Rod Stewart in 1988. He's been working with Stewart ever since eventually becoming Stewart's musical director. The two have also written songs together that have appeared on Stewart's albums.
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Tuesday, May 6, 2014
"Better Things" by The Kinks
Song#: 0831
Date: 11/28/1981
Debut: 98
Peak: 92
Weeks: 8
Genre: Rock
Pop Bits: As with the first single from their album "Give the People What They Want," the #85 "Destroyer," this second single bumbled around the bottom of the chart for a while not making much impact at pop. However, it did good business at rock radio and reached #12 on the Mainstream Rock chart. In the UK, this was the first single from the album and it reached #46. It was the group's first single to reach the chart since 1972.
ReduxReview: I first became familiar with this song through a version by one of my favorite singer/songwriters, Dar Williams. She chose the song to close her 1997 album "End of the Summer." Although essentially a break-up song, it is cheerfully upbeat with an optimistic message. Williams does a great job covering the song, but I do have to give the edge to The Kinks' original. It's one of my favorites from their catalog.
ReduxRating: 7/10
Trivia: Much has been said about The Beatles' "Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)" being one of the first pop works to feature the sitar. However, The Kink's incorporated Middle Eastern raga sounds on their 1965 song "See My Friends," which pre-dates The Beatles' song. "See My Friends" was a hit in the UK and reached #10, but it didn't chart in the US. It's been said that The Beatles heard this song and the sitar-ish guitar inspired them to seek out the instrument and include it on "Norwegian Wood" a few months later.
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Date: 11/28/1981
Debut: 98
Peak: 92
Weeks: 8
Genre: Rock
Pop Bits: As with the first single from their album "Give the People What They Want," the #85 "Destroyer," this second single bumbled around the bottom of the chart for a while not making much impact at pop. However, it did good business at rock radio and reached #12 on the Mainstream Rock chart. In the UK, this was the first single from the album and it reached #46. It was the group's first single to reach the chart since 1972.
ReduxReview: I first became familiar with this song through a version by one of my favorite singer/songwriters, Dar Williams. She chose the song to close her 1997 album "End of the Summer." Although essentially a break-up song, it is cheerfully upbeat with an optimistic message. Williams does a great job covering the song, but I do have to give the edge to The Kinks' original. It's one of my favorites from their catalog.
ReduxRating: 7/10
Trivia: Much has been said about The Beatles' "Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)" being one of the first pop works to feature the sitar. However, The Kink's incorporated Middle Eastern raga sounds on their 1965 song "See My Friends," which pre-dates The Beatles' song. "See My Friends" was a hit in the UK and reached #10, but it didn't chart in the US. It's been said that The Beatles heard this song and the sitar-ish guitar inspired them to seek out the instrument and include it on "Norwegian Wood" a few months later.
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"Shake It Up" by The Cars
Top 10 Alert!
Song#: 0830 Date: 11/21/1981
Debut: 76
Peak: 4
Weeks: 22
Genre: Rock, New Wave
Pop Bits: The Cars took a bit of a hit with their experimental third album "Panorama." It only produced one minor chart entry with "Touch and Go" (#37) and it sold less than their previous discs. The band followed it up with "Shake It Up," a more focused effort that incorporated a straight-ahead pop sound. The change in style was welcomed by radio listeners as this title-track single became their first Top 10 hit.
ReduxReview: This was the first Cars song that I liked and today it is still my favorite of theirs. It's a blissfully silly party jam that is perky and fun. I was never a big fan of the group but this is their one song that I'll crank up if it comes on.
ReduxRating: 8/10
Trivia: Although the song first appeared on the "Shake It Up" album, it was written years before by member Ric Ocasek. They had tried a few attempts to record the song but it just was not coming together. Finally, they tossed out everything they had done previously and started the song again from scratch. This approach worked and it lead to their first Top 10 single.
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Monday, May 5, 2014
"She's Got a Way" by Billy Joel
Song#: 0829
Date: 11/21/1981
Debut: 79
Peak: 23
Weeks: 14
Genre: Pop
Pop Bits: Joel recycled songs from his early albums in a live setting for the LP "Songs in the Attic." The album's first single, "Say Goodbye to Hollywood," was a moderate success getting to #17. This second single wouldn't reach the Top 20, but it has had a longer life on AC radio than "Say Goodbye." This song first appeared as the opening track to Joel's debut album, "Cold Spring Harbor," in 1971.
ReduxReview: This is a nice "lost" song from Joel that he revived. It has become a lasting song thanks to numerous covers in piano bars across the world. Apparently Joel didn't like the song later on thinking it was too sappy and sentimental. But then decided that everyone writes those so why not enjoy it. I've always thought it was good song.
ReduxRating: 7/10
Trivia: Joel's debut album "Cold Spring Harbor" was basically a mess. Signed to the small Family Productions label, the original mastering of the album was done incorrectly. The mastering ran the tapes slightly faster which sped up the tempo of the songs. This affected Joel's voice as well and gave it a "chipmunk" quality. After hearing the album for the first time, it has been written that Joel grabbed the LP from the player and went outside and threw it into the street. The album was a failure on initial release and did not chart. Later, after Joel's many successes, Family Productions (via Columbia Records) re-mastered the album and altered some of the songs and reissued the LP in 1983. It still didn't catch on only reaching #158 on the album chart.
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Date: 11/21/1981
Debut: 79
Peak: 23
Weeks: 14
Genre: Pop
Pop Bits: Joel recycled songs from his early albums in a live setting for the LP "Songs in the Attic." The album's first single, "Say Goodbye to Hollywood," was a moderate success getting to #17. This second single wouldn't reach the Top 20, but it has had a longer life on AC radio than "Say Goodbye." This song first appeared as the opening track to Joel's debut album, "Cold Spring Harbor," in 1971.
ReduxReview: This is a nice "lost" song from Joel that he revived. It has become a lasting song thanks to numerous covers in piano bars across the world. Apparently Joel didn't like the song later on thinking it was too sappy and sentimental. But then decided that everyone writes those so why not enjoy it. I've always thought it was good song.
ReduxRating: 7/10
Trivia: Joel's debut album "Cold Spring Harbor" was basically a mess. Signed to the small Family Productions label, the original mastering of the album was done incorrectly. The mastering ran the tapes slightly faster which sped up the tempo of the songs. This affected Joel's voice as well and gave it a "chipmunk" quality. After hearing the album for the first time, it has been written that Joel grabbed the LP from the player and went outside and threw it into the street. The album was a failure on initial release and did not chart. Later, after Joel's many successes, Family Productions (via Columbia Records) re-mastered the album and altered some of the songs and reissued the LP in 1983. It still didn't catch on only reaching #158 on the album chart.
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"Let Me Love You Once" by Greg Lake
Song#: 0828
Date: 11/21/1981
Debut: 83
Peak: 48
Weeks: 10
Genre: Soft Rock
Pop Bits: Lake was an original member of the influential prog-rock band King Crimson, but he left after a couple years to co-form the super group Emerson, Lake and Palmer. That band's albums were all gold-level hits throughout the 70s despite the lack of any real singles chart action (their best being the #39 "From the Beginning" in 1972). They initially broke up in 1978 and after a couple years of working on other projects, Lake recorded his first solo album, which moved him towards mainstream rock. The self-titled LP featured this first single that got into the top half of the chart. It did well enough to boost the album which peaked at #62. Neither were major hits, but it allowed Lake to record a follow-up in 1983. This single would be Lake's last solo recording to reach the chart. He would go on to work again with ELP and an offshoot called Emerson, Lake & Powell, in addition to working with the popular rock band Asia.
ReduxReview: I am slightly familiar with this song in a version by Dusty Springfield (see below), but I'm just a bit shocked that Lake chose to cover this song. It's a solid MOR ballad but knowing Lake's history with ELP and their epic prog-rock songs, I'm having a hard time rectifying Lake and the song. It's almost the equivalent of Ozzy Osbourne covering "Don't Give Up on Us Baby." It doesn't quite make sense. I like the song, but not sure if I like Lake covering the tune. I'm a little mystified by it.
ReduxRating: 5/10
Trivia: Triple Shot! 1) This song was originally done by country artist Barbara Fairchild in 1976. She reached #22 on the country chart with the single. The following year, Dusty Sprinfield released the song as a single, but it did not chart. 2) In 1974, Lake co-wrote and recorded a solo song called "I Believe in Father Christmas." Released as a single in 1975, the song hit #2 on the UK chart and was even a blip on the US chart at #95. It has become kind of a standard in the UK and it has been covered/recorded by several other artists including U2. Lake has said he has been surprised at the song's popularity as it wasn't necessarily meant to be a Christmas song, but more of a commentary on the commercialization of Christmas and even the loss of innocence and belief as you get older. 3) The co-writer of this song is Steve Dorff. He is father of actor Stephen Dorff.
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Date: 11/21/1981
Debut: 83
Peak: 48
Weeks: 10
Genre: Soft Rock
Pop Bits: Lake was an original member of the influential prog-rock band King Crimson, but he left after a couple years to co-form the super group Emerson, Lake and Palmer. That band's albums were all gold-level hits throughout the 70s despite the lack of any real singles chart action (their best being the #39 "From the Beginning" in 1972). They initially broke up in 1978 and after a couple years of working on other projects, Lake recorded his first solo album, which moved him towards mainstream rock. The self-titled LP featured this first single that got into the top half of the chart. It did well enough to boost the album which peaked at #62. Neither were major hits, but it allowed Lake to record a follow-up in 1983. This single would be Lake's last solo recording to reach the chart. He would go on to work again with ELP and an offshoot called Emerson, Lake & Powell, in addition to working with the popular rock band Asia.
ReduxReview: I am slightly familiar with this song in a version by Dusty Springfield (see below), but I'm just a bit shocked that Lake chose to cover this song. It's a solid MOR ballad but knowing Lake's history with ELP and their epic prog-rock songs, I'm having a hard time rectifying Lake and the song. It's almost the equivalent of Ozzy Osbourne covering "Don't Give Up on Us Baby." It doesn't quite make sense. I like the song, but not sure if I like Lake covering the tune. I'm a little mystified by it.
ReduxRating: 5/10
Trivia: Triple Shot! 1) This song was originally done by country artist Barbara Fairchild in 1976. She reached #22 on the country chart with the single. The following year, Dusty Sprinfield released the song as a single, but it did not chart. 2) In 1974, Lake co-wrote and recorded a solo song called "I Believe in Father Christmas." Released as a single in 1975, the song hit #2 on the UK chart and was even a blip on the US chart at #95. It has become kind of a standard in the UK and it has been covered/recorded by several other artists including U2. Lake has said he has been surprised at the song's popularity as it wasn't necessarily meant to be a Christmas song, but more of a commentary on the commercialization of Christmas and even the loss of innocence and belief as you get older. 3) The co-writer of this song is Steve Dorff. He is father of actor Stephen Dorff.
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Sunday, May 4, 2014
"If I Were You" by Lulu
Song#: 0827
Date: 11/21/1981
Debut: 85
Peak: 44
Weeks: 11
Genre: Pop, Adult Contemporary
Pop Bits: Lulu had just reached the Top 20 for the first time since 1967 with "I Could Never Miss You (More Than I Do)" (#18). This follow-up single from her album "Lulu" almost cracked the Top 40. Unfortunately, it became here final pop entry. She issued another single from the album called "Who's Foolin' Who," but it failed to chart. However, that song got her a Grammy nomination for Best Rock Female Vocalist.
ReduxReview: I didn't like the original version of this (see below - I rated it a 3) and I have to say that besides enjoying Lulu's voice, the song still doesn't offer much. In addition to her voice, I think Lulu's version is also better because it is sung by a female. For me, it just works better as an AC tune with a woman singing. It's still not a great song, but I'll easily take Lulu's version over the other.
ReduxRating: 5/10
Trivia: This song was originally recorded by the group Toby Beau. Their version was issued as a single in 1980 and it reached #70 on the chart. With Lulu's version hitting the chart, this marks the first time a charting single in the 80s hit the chart again by another artist.
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Date: 11/21/1981
Debut: 85
Peak: 44
Weeks: 11
Genre: Pop, Adult Contemporary
Pop Bits: Lulu had just reached the Top 20 for the first time since 1967 with "I Could Never Miss You (More Than I Do)" (#18). This follow-up single from her album "Lulu" almost cracked the Top 40. Unfortunately, it became here final pop entry. She issued another single from the album called "Who's Foolin' Who," but it failed to chart. However, that song got her a Grammy nomination for Best Rock Female Vocalist.
ReduxReview: I didn't like the original version of this (see below - I rated it a 3) and I have to say that besides enjoying Lulu's voice, the song still doesn't offer much. In addition to her voice, I think Lulu's version is also better because it is sung by a female. For me, it just works better as an AC tune with a woman singing. It's still not a great song, but I'll easily take Lulu's version over the other.
ReduxRating: 5/10
Trivia: This song was originally recorded by the group Toby Beau. Their version was issued as a single in 1980 and it reached #70 on the chart. With Lulu's version hitting the chart, this marks the first time a charting single in the 80s hit the chart again by another artist.
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