Song#: 2974
Date: 12/27/1986
Debut: 96
Peak: 67
Weeks: 11
Genre: R&B, Dance-Pop
Pop Bits: This UK sibling group's second album, Silk & Steel, would prove to be their biggest hit at home reaching #1 and going 4x platinum thanks to five Top 10 hits. It made them major stars and in 1987 they would win the Brit Award for Best British Group. Stateside, the album didn't make much of an impression. It's first single, "Can't Wait Another Minute," would go Top 10 at R&B (#7) and Dance (#5), but it just barely missed out on the Pop Top 40 (#41). This next single didn't fare as well. It got to #13 R&B and #26 Dance while stalling in the bottom half of the Pop chart. A third single, "Are You Man Enough," only made the R&B chart at #15. The singles didn't promote the album all that well and it stopped at #80 Pop and #22 R&B. This song would be the group's last to reach the US Pop chart. It was a far cry from the success they were having at home. However, their follow-up albums failed to generate any Top 10's in the UK while in the US they could only manage three R&B Top 40 singles. Their decent from stardom was nearly as quick as their assent and after a couple of label changes and other issues, the group called it a day in 1995.
ReduxReview: This was actually the fourth single from the album in the UK. It was a follow-up to what would end up being their biggest hit at home, the #2 "Rain or Shine." It's odd that "Rain or Shine" wasn't pushed out as a single in the US. It was a charming mid-tempo track that I think might have done better than this dance-pop track. But I guess the label thought that in the age of Madonna, this one had a better chance of catching on. Like a chunk of their singles, this is a solid, yet unremarkable, tune. It's a fun listen and has a nice hook, but it just doesn't stick around your head for long.
ReduxRating: 6/10
Trivia: Double Shot! 1) Having a major hit album in the UK gave the five Pearson siblings and their manager/dad Buster access to a lot of money. Their lifestyle nearly became as famous as their music. They bought a big mansion that housed a recording studio that they had built. They had fresh looks from top clothing designers and drove around in expensive sports cars. But kind of like what would happen to MC Hammer here in the States, their excessive spending and lack of hits led to them filing for bankruptcy and moving out of their lavish mansion near the end of the decade. 2) Five Star ended up in an infamous live British TV moment. The group was being featured in a segment of the Saturday morning magazine-style show called Going Live! They were there to promote their 1989 single "With Every Heartbeat" from their Greatest Hits album. The portion of the show that they appeared was one where fans could call in and ask a question. Somehow, a kid named Eliot Fletcher was able to get through and when the host asked if he had a question, Fletcher responded by saying "I'd like to ask Five Star why are you so fucking crap?" The call was cut off and the host continued on in a calm manner saying "thanks very much Eliot" and then asking the next caller if they had "a sensible question." The group was caught off guard and it made for a very awkward live TV moment. Flash forward to 2019 when a Twitter post that included a video of the incident started making the rounds. Five Star member Doris Pearson saw it and responded by saying she wanted to meet Fletcher. Not long after, a Twitter account that supposedly belonged to Fletcher responded by saying "Hi Doris. Thank you and sorry." Doris appreciated the tweeted apology and even invited Fletcher out for a "fucking crap night out." Fletcher declined. Although the family was stunned and taken aback at the time of the incident, Doris said she now thinks it is quite funny.
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