"Living on the Edge" by Jim Capaldi

Song#:  1582
Date:  08/27/1983
Debut:  89
Peak:  75
Weeks:  5
Genre:  Rock



Pop Bits:  After numerous solo albums and singles, former Traffic drummer Capaldi finally got his first legit US hit in 1983 with the #28 "That's Love" (#3 AC). It was the first single from his album Fierce Heart. This follow-up single wasn't able to catch on as well and it stopped a quarter of the way up the Pop chart. It would end up being Capaldi's final US chart single. He continued to release albums over the years, but nothing would do as well as Fierce Heart. Capaldi would later die of stomach cancer in 2005.

ReduxReview:  After the lovely "That's Love," Capaldi pushed out this more rock-oriented tune. It's pretty good, but I think it would have been even better if the rock was turned up more. He needed a real crunchy sound to fully sell this tune. There is definite potential here, but I almost feel like the production lets the song down a bit. Good song, meh arrangement and delivery.

ReduxRating:  6/10

Trivia:  Although "That's Love" would be his biggest US hit, in Capaldi's UK homeland he scored a Top 10 early on in his solo career. For his 1975 album Short Cut Draw Blood, Capaldi did a cover of the song "Love Hurts." It would reach #4 in the UK. The song would only spend one week on the US chart hitting #97. The US snub could have been partially due to the near-simultaneous release of Scottish rock band Nazareth's version. Coming on the heels of Capaldi's single, Nazarth's take would end up in the US Top 10 (#8) to become their biggest hit. "Love Hurts" was originally recorded in 1960 by The Everly Brothers, but it was not issued as a single. Then Roy Orbison covered the song the following year and it served as the b-side to his #1 hit "Running Scared." Capaldi's remake would be the first version of the song to reach the US Pop chart, followed quickly by the Nazareth cover.

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