Song#: 2932
Date: 11/15/1986
Debut: 96
Peak: 65
Weeks: 10
Genre: Pop
Pop Bits: Paul Young broke through in a big way in the US with his second album The Secrets of Association. The gold-selling album featured his remake of the Hall & Oates tune "Everytime You Go Away," which reached #1. Young co-wrote five tracks for that album and so for his next effort, Between Two Fires, he upped it to eight. That total included this first single. It debuted low on the chart and then never really took off. It stopped far short of the Top 40. It did just slightly better at Rock getting to #43. Further singles failed to reach any chart and that pretty much doomed the album. It halted at #77 and disappeared soon after. It was a major disappointment following the success of The Secrets of Association. The LP did better in his UK homeland where it got to #4 and went platinum. Three singles would reach the chart there, but only the lead single "Wonderland" would get anywhere hitting #24.
ReduxReview: Up to this point, Young had six singles that made it on the US Pop chart. All were cover tunes except the #56 "Everything Must Change," which Young co-wrote. I think he got to the point where he wanted his own music be the focus instead of the remakes and so he loaded up the next album with more of his compositions. While that was fine, the problem then became that he had to write at least one song with hit potential. Unfortunately, he didn't accomplish that. I'm assuming this track was considered the one with the most commercial appeal from the album. If that was the case, his label should have sent him back to the studio to try again. This was a snoozer that had a painfully light blue-eyed soul shuffle and a forgettable chorus. It was a very weak single choice and the chart peak reflected that. It didn't do any better in the UK getting to #56. As a singer, Young is excellent and does well with cover tunes. When it comes to writing his own songs, he's a bit limited. I tried to listen to the full album, but bailed halfway through because I was just bored. It's not that the tunes are bad, they just weren't good enough to keep my attention. He would rebound with two more cover songs (see below), but trying to push himself out to the masses as a hit songwriter was the costly mistake he made with this album.
ReduxRating: 3/10
Trivia: Although this would be Young's last single to reach the Pop chart in the 80s, he would have two more entries in the 90s. His next album, Other Voices, contained Young's remake of "Oh Girl," a song originally recorded by The Chi-Lites in 1972. Their version made it to #1 on both the Pop and R&B charts. Young's cover became an unexpected hit in the US and got to #8 Pop and #1 AC. Despite the hit, the album didn't sell and it stalled at a minor #142. It would be his last album to chart in the US. Later in 1992, Young contributed the track "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted" to the soundtrack of the hit film Fried Green Tomatoes. That song was originally a hit for Jimmy Ruffin in 1966. Ruffin's version reached #7 Pop and #6 R&B. Young's remake got to #22 Pop and #1 AC. It would be his last charting single in the US.
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