Song#: 3191
Date: 07/11/1987
Debut: 66
Peak: 12
Weeks: 14
Genre: R&B, Adult Contemporary
Pop Bits: Warwick's 1985 album Friends was a gold-selling #12 hit mainly thanks to the Grammy-winning #1 charity single "That's What Friends Are For." The album helped to repair and reignite her working relationship with Burt Bacharach, who (along with Hal David) wrote and produced many of her earlier hits. This time around Bacharach was working with his wife Carole Bayer Sager and they wrote/produced half of Warwick's Friends album. The trio then decided to continue their work together on Warwick's next LP Reservations for Two. Bacharach and Sager would contribute three songs to the album including this first single. The duet with Jeffrey Osborne hit all the right notes at AC and it easily topped that chart. It also got to #5 at R&B while just missing out on the Pop Top 10. While it was a solid hit, it didn't necessarily translate to sales of the album, which topped out at #32 R&B/#56 Pop. Unfortunately, it would prove to be Warwick's last single to make the Pop Top 40 and last album to crack the Pop Top 100. Oddly, this song would also be Osborne's last to hit the Pop Top 40.
ReduxReview: Even though I liked this song when it came out, I was quite surprised it did so well on the Pop chart. It was a sophisticated track that was perfect for AC radio, but I didn't think it was current or "hip" enough to lure in younger listeners at pop radio. Let's face it; Bacharach wrote hits in the 50s, Warwick had her big streak of hits in the 60s, and Osborne's music attracted a more mature crowd. How the heck were they gonna get airtime next to Madonna and Bon Jovi? But sometimes a good song is a good song and if it was meant to be, it will break through. This one has a lot of latter-day Bacharach touches with the odd phrasing and added measures, but he always seemed to make it work. I always kind of chuckled at the first line of this song, "Saw s psychic in L.A.," because only a couple years later Warwick would be hawking the Psychic Friends Network. I'm guessing Bacharach/Bayer Sager wrote that line with Warwick in mind since Warwick had been seeking advice/readings from psychics and astrologists since at least the early 70s.
ReduxRating: 7/10
Trivia: While not necessarily a concept album, several tracks on Warwick's Reservations for Two did feature a second vocalist. In addition to Jeffrey Osborne on this single, Warwick recorded tracks with Kashif, Smokey Robinson, Howard Hewitt, and June Pointer. There would be three singles released from the album and all three were duet tracks. Also on the album was the song "No One in the World." Warwick had originally recorded the track for her 1985 album Finder of Lost Loves. Although it was the lead off track on the LP, it was not issued out as a single. The following year the song was picked up by Anita Baker. She recorded it for her LP Rapture. Perhaps seeing that Baker's album was shaping up to be a major hit, Warwick chose to include her version of the song on Reservations for Two. Whether or not she had intentions of trying to release it as a single is unknown, but she was beaten to the punch anyway by Baker who released it in August of '87. It would #5 R&B/#9 AC/#44 Pop.
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Saturday, July 11, 2020
Friday, July 10, 2020
"Wipeout!" by The Fat Boys and The Beach Boys
Song#: 3190
Date: 07/11/1987
Debut: 72
Peak: 12
Weeks: 19
Genre: Rap
Pop Bits: This trio of Prince Markie Dee (Mark Morales), Kook Rock-Ski (Damon Wimbley), and Buff Love (Darren Robinson) first got together while attending the same junior high school in Brooklyn. Calling themselves The Disco 3, the trio sharpened their skills for a couple of years before entering into a big Coca-Cola-sponsored hip hop talent contest. The finals were held at Radio City Music Hall and The Disco 3 became the winners. The contest organizer ended up managing the teens and later on due to their physical statures renamed them The Fat Boys. The guys got hooked up with rapper Kurtis Blow who ended up producing their 1984 self-titled debut album. It ended up being a gold-selling success that got to #6 R&B/#48 Pop. A follow-up album, The Fat Boys Are Back, would be another gold record, but their third disc Big & Beautiful wasn't quite as well-received. Their manager thought the group could break through in a bigger way like Run-D.M.C. and came up with an idea to push them into the mainstream. He took a cue from Run-D.M.C.'s collaborative effort with Aerosmith, "Walk This Way," and got the Boys in the studio with the legendary Beach Boys. The two groups settled on doing a vocal version of the old instrumental hit "Wipe Out." It would be included on The Fat Boys' fourth album, Crushin'. The LP's first single, "Falling in Love," became their biggest entry at R&B to-date hitting #16. It was then that they decided to unleash their "Wipeout!" collaboration. It quickly became their first (and only) R&B Top 10 (#10). The tune then crossed over to the Pop chart where it nearly made the Top 10. The album would make it to #4 R&B/#8 Pop and reach platinum level sales. The hit was the major breakthrough the trio was looking for.
ReduxReview: The Fat Boys were influential and always had a bit of a comedic side to their work, as did a lot of early hip hop artists. But at a time when other rappers were raising the stakes with stronger, more potent material, it seemed the Fat Boys got left behind and started to get tagged as a novelty rap act, thanks in part to this track and the Disorderlies film (see below). On the good side, they ended up with a big hit that brought them other opportunities. On the bad side, they got stuck repeating the formula, which pigeonholed them even further. Frankly, I hated this track when it came out. It was a goofy mashup of old school rap with an old school rock group (who's career was clinging to life at the time) on an old school surf song. I thought it was messy and unnecessary. I think perhaps they thought it would be a natural extension of "Walk This Way," but the problem was that Run-D.M.C.'s track was such a strong, inspired piece of work that it made this one seem like a parody. While others thought this was just a fun little lark to party to, I nearly considered it a step back for rap.
ReduxRating: 2/10
Trivia: Double Shot! 1) The basis for this song was the 1963 instrumental hit "Wipe Out" by The Surfaris. Their original version got to #2 on the Pop chart. The tune became popular again in 1966 and returned to the Pop chart where it got to #16. 2) Earlier in '87, The Fat Boys were hired on to star in a screwball comedy called Disorderlies, which would co-starred Oscar and Tony nominated actor Ralph Bellamy. The Boys had previously appeared in a couple of films, but this was the first one where they had the lead roles. Also hired in for a cameo appearance was The Beach Boys. It was on the set of the movie that The Fat Boys' manager introduced them to the other legendary Boys and planted the idea of a collaboration. The movie would be released in August of '87 and would be a modest hit.
_________________________________________________________________________________
Date: 07/11/1987
Debut: 72
Peak: 12
Weeks: 19
Genre: Rap
Pop Bits: This trio of Prince Markie Dee (Mark Morales), Kook Rock-Ski (Damon Wimbley), and Buff Love (Darren Robinson) first got together while attending the same junior high school in Brooklyn. Calling themselves The Disco 3, the trio sharpened their skills for a couple of years before entering into a big Coca-Cola-sponsored hip hop talent contest. The finals were held at Radio City Music Hall and The Disco 3 became the winners. The contest organizer ended up managing the teens and later on due to their physical statures renamed them The Fat Boys. The guys got hooked up with rapper Kurtis Blow who ended up producing their 1984 self-titled debut album. It ended up being a gold-selling success that got to #6 R&B/#48 Pop. A follow-up album, The Fat Boys Are Back, would be another gold record, but their third disc Big & Beautiful wasn't quite as well-received. Their manager thought the group could break through in a bigger way like Run-D.M.C. and came up with an idea to push them into the mainstream. He took a cue from Run-D.M.C.'s collaborative effort with Aerosmith, "Walk This Way," and got the Boys in the studio with the legendary Beach Boys. The two groups settled on doing a vocal version of the old instrumental hit "Wipe Out." It would be included on The Fat Boys' fourth album, Crushin'. The LP's first single, "Falling in Love," became their biggest entry at R&B to-date hitting #16. It was then that they decided to unleash their "Wipeout!" collaboration. It quickly became their first (and only) R&B Top 10 (#10). The tune then crossed over to the Pop chart where it nearly made the Top 10. The album would make it to #4 R&B/#8 Pop and reach platinum level sales. The hit was the major breakthrough the trio was looking for.
ReduxReview: The Fat Boys were influential and always had a bit of a comedic side to their work, as did a lot of early hip hop artists. But at a time when other rappers were raising the stakes with stronger, more potent material, it seemed the Fat Boys got left behind and started to get tagged as a novelty rap act, thanks in part to this track and the Disorderlies film (see below). On the good side, they ended up with a big hit that brought them other opportunities. On the bad side, they got stuck repeating the formula, which pigeonholed them even further. Frankly, I hated this track when it came out. It was a goofy mashup of old school rap with an old school rock group (who's career was clinging to life at the time) on an old school surf song. I thought it was messy and unnecessary. I think perhaps they thought it would be a natural extension of "Walk This Way," but the problem was that Run-D.M.C.'s track was such a strong, inspired piece of work that it made this one seem like a parody. While others thought this was just a fun little lark to party to, I nearly considered it a step back for rap.
ReduxRating: 2/10
Trivia: Double Shot! 1) The basis for this song was the 1963 instrumental hit "Wipe Out" by The Surfaris. Their original version got to #2 on the Pop chart. The tune became popular again in 1966 and returned to the Pop chart where it got to #16. 2) Earlier in '87, The Fat Boys were hired on to star in a screwball comedy called Disorderlies, which would co-starred Oscar and Tony nominated actor Ralph Bellamy. The Boys had previously appeared in a couple of films, but this was the first one where they had the lead roles. Also hired in for a cameo appearance was The Beach Boys. It was on the set of the movie that The Fat Boys' manager introduced them to the other legendary Boys and planted the idea of a collaboration. The movie would be released in August of '87 and would be a modest hit.
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Thursday, July 9, 2020
"Who Found Who" by Jellybean
Song#: 3189
Date: 07/11/1987
Debut: 73
Peak: 16
Weeks: 15
Genre: Dance-Pop
Pop Bits: Producer/remixer John Benitez, aka Jellybean, scored a Pop Top 20 hit in 1985 with "Sidewalk Talk" (#18 Pop/#1 Dance), a song written by his former girlfriend Madonna. It was featured on his 1984 debut album Wotupski!?! Three years after that debut, Jellybean moved from EMI America to Chrysalis Records and recorded his follow-up effort Just Visiting This Planet. This first single got things kicked off and the results were similar to his previous hit. It got inside the Pop Top 20 while reaching #3 at Dance. It was a good hit, but it didn't do much to spur sales of the album, which peaked at a low #101.
ReduxReview: Jellybean didn't expand his sound too much here. He was still treading the Madonna dance-pop waters with this track. It was an okay song that was well produced, but it was really Fiorillo's vocals (see below) that helped it along. The album was kind of strange in that Jellybean did a lot behind the scenes production-wise, but didn't sing any lead vocals and only co-wrote one song. However, other more famous musicians have done the same thing (Quincy Jones' 1982 Grammy-winning The Dude, for one). I would have thought that he might have at least wrote more tunes, but it seemed he just wanted to direct and not really be the star, even though he got top billing. This song was a medium-sized hit that for the most part has since been forgotten.
ReduxRating: 5/10
Trivia: Jellybean was mainly known as a producer and remixer. While he could carry a tune and would occasionally sing background vocals, Jellybean chose to not take the lead vocal role on his tracks. He brought in other more capable vocalists to head up his tunes. For his Just Visiting This Planet album, Jellybean had three singers perform the tracks; Adele Bertei, Steven Dante, and Elisa Fiorillo, who sang the lead on "Who Found Who." Fiorillo's career got kicked off when she won the Junior Vocalist category of the talent competition TV show Star Search in 1985. She later signed with Chrysalis Records and recorded the song "Jackie" for the soundtrack to the Mark Harmon comedy flick Summer School, which got the attention of Jellybean. In addition to performing on his album, Fiorillo would issue out her own debut LP in 1987 that would spawn two Pop chart singles.
_________________________________________________________________________________
Date: 07/11/1987
Debut: 73
Peak: 16
Weeks: 15
Genre: Dance-Pop
Pop Bits: Producer/remixer John Benitez, aka Jellybean, scored a Pop Top 20 hit in 1985 with "Sidewalk Talk" (#18 Pop/#1 Dance), a song written by his former girlfriend Madonna. It was featured on his 1984 debut album Wotupski!?! Three years after that debut, Jellybean moved from EMI America to Chrysalis Records and recorded his follow-up effort Just Visiting This Planet. This first single got things kicked off and the results were similar to his previous hit. It got inside the Pop Top 20 while reaching #3 at Dance. It was a good hit, but it didn't do much to spur sales of the album, which peaked at a low #101.
ReduxReview: Jellybean didn't expand his sound too much here. He was still treading the Madonna dance-pop waters with this track. It was an okay song that was well produced, but it was really Fiorillo's vocals (see below) that helped it along. The album was kind of strange in that Jellybean did a lot behind the scenes production-wise, but didn't sing any lead vocals and only co-wrote one song. However, other more famous musicians have done the same thing (Quincy Jones' 1982 Grammy-winning The Dude, for one). I would have thought that he might have at least wrote more tunes, but it seemed he just wanted to direct and not really be the star, even though he got top billing. This song was a medium-sized hit that for the most part has since been forgotten.
ReduxRating: 5/10
Trivia: Jellybean was mainly known as a producer and remixer. While he could carry a tune and would occasionally sing background vocals, Jellybean chose to not take the lead vocal role on his tracks. He brought in other more capable vocalists to head up his tunes. For his Just Visiting This Planet album, Jellybean had three singers perform the tracks; Adele Bertei, Steven Dante, and Elisa Fiorillo, who sang the lead on "Who Found Who." Fiorillo's career got kicked off when she won the Junior Vocalist category of the talent competition TV show Star Search in 1985. She later signed with Chrysalis Records and recorded the song "Jackie" for the soundtrack to the Mark Harmon comedy flick Summer School, which got the attention of Jellybean. In addition to performing on his album, Fiorillo would issue out her own debut LP in 1987 that would spawn two Pop chart singles.
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Wednesday, July 8, 2020
"I'm Bad" by LL Cool J
Song#: 3188
Date: 07/11/1987
Debut: 89
Peak: 84
Weeks: 4
Genre: Rap
Pop Bits: Hailing from Queens, New York, James Todd Smith started rapping around the age of nine. His skills grew over the years and with the support and help of his mom and grandparents he had enough equipment and knowledge to start writing and producing his own demos. Still just sixteen years old, Smith began sending out his tapes to various record companies. One of them, the newly formed Def Jam, bit and decided to give the young artist a chance. Label co-founder Rick Rubin would produce a single for Smith titled "I Need a Beat." It was released in 1984 under Smith's new moniker LL Cool J. While the record didn't chart, it did sell a lot of copies and helped to establish the new label. Work then began on a full album. Released in 1985, the Rubin-produced Radio, would be a significant hit that boasted two R&B Top 20 hits. The LP would get to #6 R&B/#46 Pop and would go gold a few months after its release (eventually it would be a platinum seller). LL Cool J was now a star and there was definite anticipation for his next album. Bigger and Deffer would be an even bigger success and this first single kicked things off. It would be LL Cool J's first R&B Top 10 (#4) and first to cross over to the Pop chart where it spent a short month. It also got to #23 at Dance. The hit helped sell albums, but it would be his next single that would push the record and LL Cool J's career to new heights.
ReduxReview: The opening of this track was pretty great with the sample (see below) and police radio voice. It led to a jammin' rap section that was driven mainly by a bass line and bangin' drum sound. LL Cool J then put his ego out there for everyone to view. The first line said it all, "No rapper can rap quite like I can." The track was full of bravado with no apologies and that's the way it should have been. He knew it, felt it, and had to let everyone know. His performance was confident and I totally believed him. While it may not have been as mainstream as tracks by Run-D.M.C. and the Beastie Boys, it was a solid introduction to J's world for those who hadn't yet discovered him.
ReduxRating: 7/10
Trivia: Double Shot! 1) Smith's moniker, LL Cool J, came about when he was sixteen. Smith had initially thought about J-Ski, but then realized that there were several other rappers that included"ski" in their names and that some of those artists were involved with the cocaine world. Not wanting that association, he then thought that "cool" was a word that would always be around, so he added his first name and came up with Cool James, but then reduced it to just Cool J. He then asked his friend and fellow rapper Playboy Mikey D what he though about the new name. Mikey D thought it was a good start, but that it needed something else. He suggested Ladies Love Cool J. Smith liked that, but it was a bit long so he chose to go by the simpler LL Cool J. 2) This track contains a sample from the 1976 #1 instrumental hit "Theme from S.W.A.T." by Rhythm Heritage. The tune was written by Barry DeVorzon and performed by his studio orchestra for the opening of the ABC-TV crime drama show S.W.A.T. starring Steve Forrest. The show would debut in 1975, but would only last two seasons. The theme song, however, became popular and a studio group formed by producer Steve Barri and producer/keyboardist Michael Omartian decided to put a disco spin on the theme. Released as by Rhythm Heritage, the instrumental became a gold-selling #1. They followed it up with another TV show song, the #20 "Barretta's Theme (Keep Your Eye on the Sparrow)." The studio group would release four albums between '76 and '79. When disco died, so did Rhythm Heritage.
_________________________________________________________________________________
Date: 07/11/1987
Debut: 89
Peak: 84
Weeks: 4
Genre: Rap
Pop Bits: Hailing from Queens, New York, James Todd Smith started rapping around the age of nine. His skills grew over the years and with the support and help of his mom and grandparents he had enough equipment and knowledge to start writing and producing his own demos. Still just sixteen years old, Smith began sending out his tapes to various record companies. One of them, the newly formed Def Jam, bit and decided to give the young artist a chance. Label co-founder Rick Rubin would produce a single for Smith titled "I Need a Beat." It was released in 1984 under Smith's new moniker LL Cool J. While the record didn't chart, it did sell a lot of copies and helped to establish the new label. Work then began on a full album. Released in 1985, the Rubin-produced Radio, would be a significant hit that boasted two R&B Top 20 hits. The LP would get to #6 R&B/#46 Pop and would go gold a few months after its release (eventually it would be a platinum seller). LL Cool J was now a star and there was definite anticipation for his next album. Bigger and Deffer would be an even bigger success and this first single kicked things off. It would be LL Cool J's first R&B Top 10 (#4) and first to cross over to the Pop chart where it spent a short month. It also got to #23 at Dance. The hit helped sell albums, but it would be his next single that would push the record and LL Cool J's career to new heights.
ReduxReview: The opening of this track was pretty great with the sample (see below) and police radio voice. It led to a jammin' rap section that was driven mainly by a bass line and bangin' drum sound. LL Cool J then put his ego out there for everyone to view. The first line said it all, "No rapper can rap quite like I can." The track was full of bravado with no apologies and that's the way it should have been. He knew it, felt it, and had to let everyone know. His performance was confident and I totally believed him. While it may not have been as mainstream as tracks by Run-D.M.C. and the Beastie Boys, it was a solid introduction to J's world for those who hadn't yet discovered him.
ReduxRating: 7/10
Trivia: Double Shot! 1) Smith's moniker, LL Cool J, came about when he was sixteen. Smith had initially thought about J-Ski, but then realized that there were several other rappers that included"ski" in their names and that some of those artists were involved with the cocaine world. Not wanting that association, he then thought that "cool" was a word that would always be around, so he added his first name and came up with Cool James, but then reduced it to just Cool J. He then asked his friend and fellow rapper Playboy Mikey D what he though about the new name. Mikey D thought it was a good start, but that it needed something else. He suggested Ladies Love Cool J. Smith liked that, but it was a bit long so he chose to go by the simpler LL Cool J. 2) This track contains a sample from the 1976 #1 instrumental hit "Theme from S.W.A.T." by Rhythm Heritage. The tune was written by Barry DeVorzon and performed by his studio orchestra for the opening of the ABC-TV crime drama show S.W.A.T. starring Steve Forrest. The show would debut in 1975, but would only last two seasons. The theme song, however, became popular and a studio group formed by producer Steve Barri and producer/keyboardist Michael Omartian decided to put a disco spin on the theme. Released as by Rhythm Heritage, the instrumental became a gold-selling #1. They followed it up with another TV show song, the #20 "Barretta's Theme (Keep Your Eye on the Sparrow)." The studio group would release four albums between '76 and '79. When disco died, so did Rhythm Heritage.
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Tuesday, July 7, 2020
"Kiss and Tell" by Breakfast Club
Song#: 3187
Date: 07/11/1987
Debut: 93
Peak: 48
Weeks: 9
Genre: Synthpop
Pop Bits: This band with a bit of Madonna history attached to it made their own mark with the #7 Pop/#7 Dance hit "Right on Track." It was taken from their self-titled debut album as was this next single. The mid-tempo track showed a different side of the band and while it did well in a few markets, overall it just barely cracked the Pop Top 50. A third single, "Never Be the Same," would do well at Dance reaching #8 while a fourth track, "Expressway to Your Heart" got to #30 Dance. Neither would make the Pop chart. The album was a modest seller that topped out at #43. Unfortunately, the band wouldn't make the US charts again.
ReduxReview: This is a nice track, but it just wasn't quite strong enough to break wider. It's one of those songs that is lovely when you are listening to it, but then you forget about it quickly after it's done. Without that memorability factor, the track had a hard time on the chart and died about halfway up. Although they were able to score another Dance hit, in general the album just didn't have a track as pop radio ready as "Right on Track."
ReduxRating: 5/10
Trivia: Following the singles from their debut album, the band recorded a one-off track for the teen comedy flick License to Drive. They recorded a version of The Beatles' 1965 song "Drive My Car." The tune was featured on the soundtrack album and released as a single, but it did not chart. Still, with a Top 10 hit and a decent selling album, the band's label, MCA, gave the green light for a second album. With a new member on board, Randy Jackson (of American Idol fame), the band set out to record a new LP. It was completed, but for some reason it ended up getting shelved. Not long after that, the band split up. Years later in 2016, some tracks from the abandoned second album were revisited and digitally released on an EP titled Percolate.
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Date: 07/11/1987
Debut: 93
Peak: 48
Weeks: 9
Genre: Synthpop
Pop Bits: This band with a bit of Madonna history attached to it made their own mark with the #7 Pop/#7 Dance hit "Right on Track." It was taken from their self-titled debut album as was this next single. The mid-tempo track showed a different side of the band and while it did well in a few markets, overall it just barely cracked the Pop Top 50. A third single, "Never Be the Same," would do well at Dance reaching #8 while a fourth track, "Expressway to Your Heart" got to #30 Dance. Neither would make the Pop chart. The album was a modest seller that topped out at #43. Unfortunately, the band wouldn't make the US charts again.
ReduxReview: This is a nice track, but it just wasn't quite strong enough to break wider. It's one of those songs that is lovely when you are listening to it, but then you forget about it quickly after it's done. Without that memorability factor, the track had a hard time on the chart and died about halfway up. Although they were able to score another Dance hit, in general the album just didn't have a track as pop radio ready as "Right on Track."
ReduxRating: 5/10
Trivia: Following the singles from their debut album, the band recorded a one-off track for the teen comedy flick License to Drive. They recorded a version of The Beatles' 1965 song "Drive My Car." The tune was featured on the soundtrack album and released as a single, but it did not chart. Still, with a Top 10 hit and a decent selling album, the band's label, MCA, gave the green light for a second album. With a new member on board, Randy Jackson (of American Idol fame), the band set out to record a new LP. It was completed, but for some reason it ended up getting shelved. Not long after that, the band split up. Years later in 2016, some tracks from the abandoned second album were revisited and digitally released on an EP titled Percolate.
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Monday, July 6, 2020
"Niagara Falls" by Chicago
Song#: 3186
Date: 07/11/1987
Debut: 94
Peak: 91
Weeks: 3
Genre: Soft Rock
Pop Bits: The band's Chicago 18 album got off to a shaky start, but then two power ballad singles made the Pop Top 20 with "Will You Still Love Me" making it to #3 (#2 AC). It seemed that audiences liked to tune in to the band's now-signature power ballads while ignoring their upbeat tracks and that trend continued with this fourth single from the album. This mid-tempo album opener tanked early on and quickly dropped off the chart. It even failed to make the AC chart. Still, by this point the album had reached platinum level sales thanks to the previous two hits. While that was definitely good news and demonstrated that Chicago could survive without lead singer/songwriter Peter Cetera, it was a sharp drop from their six-million selling previous album.
ReduxReview: I think the band should have thrown in the towel on the album after the third single, but I'm sure their label wanted to see if they could eke out some more album sales and chose to push this track out. It was a mistake. The song was an interesting album opener that had a strained chorus, an oddball center section, and some weird production/arrangement touches going on, yet it was something that should have never even been considered for a single. There was just no way this was going to be a hit. It was too messy and had zero pop radio appeal. Between this and the LP's first single ("25 or 6 to 4"), Chicago was definitely having issues. Luckily, they still were able to pull a couple of hits from the album, but overall it wasn't pretty.
ReduxRating: 2/10
Trivia: Keyboardist Robert Lamm was a founding member of Chicago and wrote several of their hits and took a turn at lead vocals on a few of their earlier tracks. Lamm was still writing the occasional tune for the band during their 80s hit making years and two of his newer tunes showed up on Chicago 18. He also co-wrote a third track titled "When Will the World Be Like Lovers?" The song was recorded by the band, but in the end it was left off of the album. In 1993, Lamm would re-record the tune for his 1995 solo album Life Is Good in My Neighborhood. It was Lamm's second solo effort. His first one came in 1974 with Skinny Boy. He would record the occasional solo album while retaining his position in Chicago. None of his album would reach the Pop chart, but in 2008 his album The Bossa Project did get to #47 on the Jazz chart. The Chicago version of "When Will the World" was never officially released on any of their albums, but it has shown up online (and frankly, it would have made a far better single than "Niagara Falls," so kind of a poor choice to keep it off the LP).
_________________________________________________________________________________
Date: 07/11/1987
Debut: 94
Peak: 91
Weeks: 3
Genre: Soft Rock
Pop Bits: The band's Chicago 18 album got off to a shaky start, but then two power ballad singles made the Pop Top 20 with "Will You Still Love Me" making it to #3 (#2 AC). It seemed that audiences liked to tune in to the band's now-signature power ballads while ignoring their upbeat tracks and that trend continued with this fourth single from the album. This mid-tempo album opener tanked early on and quickly dropped off the chart. It even failed to make the AC chart. Still, by this point the album had reached platinum level sales thanks to the previous two hits. While that was definitely good news and demonstrated that Chicago could survive without lead singer/songwriter Peter Cetera, it was a sharp drop from their six-million selling previous album.
ReduxReview: I think the band should have thrown in the towel on the album after the third single, but I'm sure their label wanted to see if they could eke out some more album sales and chose to push this track out. It was a mistake. The song was an interesting album opener that had a strained chorus, an oddball center section, and some weird production/arrangement touches going on, yet it was something that should have never even been considered for a single. There was just no way this was going to be a hit. It was too messy and had zero pop radio appeal. Between this and the LP's first single ("25 or 6 to 4"), Chicago was definitely having issues. Luckily, they still were able to pull a couple of hits from the album, but overall it wasn't pretty.
ReduxRating: 2/10
Trivia: Keyboardist Robert Lamm was a founding member of Chicago and wrote several of their hits and took a turn at lead vocals on a few of their earlier tracks. Lamm was still writing the occasional tune for the band during their 80s hit making years and two of his newer tunes showed up on Chicago 18. He also co-wrote a third track titled "When Will the World Be Like Lovers?" The song was recorded by the band, but in the end it was left off of the album. In 1993, Lamm would re-record the tune for his 1995 solo album Life Is Good in My Neighborhood. It was Lamm's second solo effort. His first one came in 1974 with Skinny Boy. He would record the occasional solo album while retaining his position in Chicago. None of his album would reach the Pop chart, but in 2008 his album The Bossa Project did get to #47 on the Jazz chart. The Chicago version of "When Will the World" was never officially released on any of their albums, but it has shown up online (and frankly, it would have made a far better single than "Niagara Falls," so kind of a poor choice to keep it off the LP).
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Sunday, July 5, 2020
"Shy Boys" by Ana
Song#: 3185
Date: 07/11/1987
Debut: 96
Peak: 94
Weeks: 3
Genre: Dance-Pop
Pop Bits: Cuban-born Ana Rodríguez began her singing career at a young age after her family moved to Miami. By the time she was ten years old, she had signed on with Parc Records, a new offshoot label of CBS. After three years of mentoring and developing Rodríguez's skills and career, she entered the studio with producers Frank Wildhorn and Karl Richardson (of Bee Gees fame). With her name reduced to the singular Ana, Rodríguez recorded her self-titled debut album. Wildhorn, who would later compose music for Broadway musicals like Jekyll & Hyde and The Civil War, co-wrote nearly all the songs including this first single. The tune made some strides on the Dance chart getting to #23, but it fizzled quickly at Pop after a few short weeks. The album would fail to chart.
ReduxReview: I never heard of Ana or this song and I wasn't expecting much knowing that she was just 13 years old. Young teen singers usually get stuck with juvenile sounding pop tunes with little production value. So I was a little shocked when I listened to the tune. The first thing I noticed was that the production was really good. I should have known that since Karl Richardson was on board. Then there was Ana's voice, which sounded far better and more mature than I expected. The dance-pop tune was pretty catch as well. The whole thing sounded like a mashup of Janet Jackson and Teena Maria. I'm quite surprised this didn't do better. I'm not sure if it was a lack of promotion or something else, but folks dropped the ball and missed out on this one. Sadly she got the short shrift again with the lead single from her second album (see below). It also should have done much better. She had the voice and was working with great people behind the scenes, but I guess it just wasn't meant to be for her.
ReduxRating: 7/10
Trivia: Despite the results of this song (although her album did well in Japan), Parc Records gave Ana a second shot and in 1990 she released her second album Body Language. Maurice Starr, who was having great success at the time with New Kids on the Block, stepped in as producer and wrote four songs. Thanks to his New Kids connection, he brought in Jordan Knight to perform on a duet track. Also on board was teenage sensation Debbie Gibson who wrote and produced two tracks. With all the star power on board, it seemed like the album was bound to do well. Unfortunately, the first single, "Got to Tell Me Something," stopped at #66 on the Pop chart and further singles failed to do anything. That left the album dangling at a very minor #191. With those results, Ana's teenage recording career came to an end. More than a decade later, Ana returned with a new album. This time it was a Spanish language effort titled Tentación. For the 2003 LP, she changed her name to Mia.
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Date: 07/11/1987
Debut: 96
Peak: 94
Weeks: 3
Genre: Dance-Pop
Pop Bits: Cuban-born Ana Rodríguez began her singing career at a young age after her family moved to Miami. By the time she was ten years old, she had signed on with Parc Records, a new offshoot label of CBS. After three years of mentoring and developing Rodríguez's skills and career, she entered the studio with producers Frank Wildhorn and Karl Richardson (of Bee Gees fame). With her name reduced to the singular Ana, Rodríguez recorded her self-titled debut album. Wildhorn, who would later compose music for Broadway musicals like Jekyll & Hyde and The Civil War, co-wrote nearly all the songs including this first single. The tune made some strides on the Dance chart getting to #23, but it fizzled quickly at Pop after a few short weeks. The album would fail to chart.
ReduxReview: I never heard of Ana or this song and I wasn't expecting much knowing that she was just 13 years old. Young teen singers usually get stuck with juvenile sounding pop tunes with little production value. So I was a little shocked when I listened to the tune. The first thing I noticed was that the production was really good. I should have known that since Karl Richardson was on board. Then there was Ana's voice, which sounded far better and more mature than I expected. The dance-pop tune was pretty catch as well. The whole thing sounded like a mashup of Janet Jackson and Teena Maria. I'm quite surprised this didn't do better. I'm not sure if it was a lack of promotion or something else, but folks dropped the ball and missed out on this one. Sadly she got the short shrift again with the lead single from her second album (see below). It also should have done much better. She had the voice and was working with great people behind the scenes, but I guess it just wasn't meant to be for her.
ReduxRating: 7/10
Trivia: Despite the results of this song (although her album did well in Japan), Parc Records gave Ana a second shot and in 1990 she released her second album Body Language. Maurice Starr, who was having great success at the time with New Kids on the Block, stepped in as producer and wrote four songs. Thanks to his New Kids connection, he brought in Jordan Knight to perform on a duet track. Also on board was teenage sensation Debbie Gibson who wrote and produced two tracks. With all the star power on board, it seemed like the album was bound to do well. Unfortunately, the first single, "Got to Tell Me Something," stopped at #66 on the Pop chart and further singles failed to do anything. That left the album dangling at a very minor #191. With those results, Ana's teenage recording career came to an end. More than a decade later, Ana returned with a new album. This time it was a Spanish language effort titled Tentación. For the 2003 LP, she changed her name to Mia.
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