"Radar Love" by White Lion

Song#:  4039

Date:  09/23/1989

Debut:  88

Peak:  59

Weeks:  13

Genre:  Hard Rock, Glam Metal

Pop Bits:  The band's first single from their third album Big Game, "Little Fighter," would do fine at Rock getting to #12, but it stalled a bit early on the Pop chart at #52. That was a bit of a disappointment since their previous album, Pride, spawned a pair of Pop Top 10 hits. To try and gain back momentum, this cover tune was issued out as the second single. It did little to help revive the album. It failed to make the Rock chart while stalling in the bottom half of the Pop chart. Still, the band's touring and popularity helped the album get to #19 and go gold. However, that was a far cry from the double-platinum status of Pride.

ReduxReview:  Pushing out a classic rock remake as a single wasn't a bad idea and their choice in doing this song was sound as well. It seemed like a no-brainer, but it didn't pay off for the band. I think the problem was that they really didn't do much to make the song their own, except perhaps make it louder. It was a capable cover, but there was nothing here that made it special. It just made you wanna go back and hear the original.

ReduxRating:  5/10

Trivia:  Double Shot!  1) This is a remake of a song originally recorded by the Dutch rock band Golden Earring. Their 1973 version would become their first hit in the US getting to #13. While the band would remain hugely popular back home, they mainly disappeared in the US until they were able to score their one and only Top 10 in 1983 with "Twilight Zone."   2) Like many other hair metal artists, White Lion succumbed to the new kids in town, the grunge bands. Their fourth album, 1991's Main Attraction, failed to spawn a significant single and peaked at a low #61. That result along with some internal struggles and the advent of grunge led to the demise of White Lion in '92. Over the years, lead singer Mike Tramp would revive the White Lion name and even record a couple of albums, but no other original member participated. Tramp would have some success with another band he formed called Freak of Nature. He would also step out for a solo career along the way. In his native country of Denmark, his solo albums would do well with five of them making the Top 20 in that country including 2014's Museum, which reached #3.

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"Hungry" by Winger

Song#:  4038

Date:  09/23/1989

Debut:  92

Peak:  85

Weeks:  6

Genre:  Hard Rock, Glam Metal

Pop Bits:  Winger scored a pair of Pop Top 30 hits from their self-titled debut album including the #19 power ballad "Headed for a Heartbreak." Both helped drive the album to #21 and make it a platinum seller. To try and keep some momentum going, this fourth single was issued out. It didn't fully catch fire stopping at #85 Pop and #34 Rock. Regardless, Winger's debut album was a solid success that made them new stars in hair metal.

ReduxReview:  The string section that starts out this song is an interesting add that gets your attention and it leads to a big arena rock chorus. However, the overall song just wasn't quite as memorable or mainstream as other glam metal songs climbing the charts. It was a good album track with an interesting mid section. As a single, it just wasn't going to do the job.

ReduxRating:  5/10

Trivia:  Winger would return in 1990 with their second album In the Heart of the Young. It would pretty much replicate the success of their debut reaching #15 and going platinum. The LP would spawn the band's biggest hit on the Pop chart, the #12 "Miles Away" (#14 Rock). Two other singles would just barely miss out on the Pop Top 40. By the time their third album, Pull, was ready in '93, grunge had set in and that did Winger no favors. The single "Down Incognito" would get to #15 Rock and that left the album stopping at #83. With that result, the band broke up. They would reunite in 2001 to record a new song for a hits package and then tour the following year. After another hiatus, they would get back together in 2006 and has since then toured and recorded a few album.

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"Cover Girl" by New Kids on the Block

Top 10 Alert!

Gold Record Alert!

Song#:  4037

Date:  09/16/1989

Debut:  62

Peak:  2

Weeks:  18

Genre:  Pop

Pop Bits:  Although the group's second album Hangin' Tough had already generated four Pop Top 10 hits including a pair of #1s, there were no signs of it slowing down. Therefore this fifth single was issued out. It was the right choice as the song took off and nearly topped the Pop chart. It would also do well enough to become the group's third gold single (they also earned a platinum single with the album's #1 title track). The hit would help sell more albums and by the end of '89 Hangin' Tough would reach the seven-million mark (7x platinum).

ReduxReview:  The Kids were so popular that their label chose to promote this single and "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind)," a track from their debut album, as the same time. Both songs would debut on the Pop chart in the same week. It was an unusual tactic and one that other artists/labels have tried to avoid due to the potential of over saturating the market and tiring out listeners. Yet the label decided to strike while the iron was hot and it ended up paying off with both singles going Top 10. I was definitely not a fan of "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind)" as it didn't suit the Kids. However, this track was more inline with what I would expect from a young pop boy band. It was bubblegum-y, cheezy, catchy ear candy loaded with enough saccharine to give you a headache. Their fans ate it up and gave the group another gold record. While in general I didn't really care for the tune, it was a good vehicle for the Kids even though it would mostly be forgotten not long after its chart run.

ReduxRating:  5/10

Trivia:  The lead vocals on this track were handled by Donnie Wahlberg. While Wahlberg would tour and record with NKOTB over the years, he pretty much changed his day job to acting. His first film appearance came with the 1996 crime drama Bullet. Wahlberg would appear in more movies and along the way branch out into TV. Two notable roles came his way. First as a patient of Bruce Willis' character in the 1999 hit psychological thriller The Sixth Sense. Then in the 2001 Emmy-winning miniseries Band of Brothers. Wahlberg would star in a couple of TV series that would last a season or less, but he finally landed a hit show in 2010 with CBS's Blue Bloods. He would portray Detective Danny Reagan and has stayed with the show since its debut. As of this posting date, the show is still running on CBS and is in its thirteenth season.

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"Didn't I (Blow Your Mind)" by New Kids on the Block

Top 10 Alert!

Song#:  4036

Date:  09/16/1989

Debut:  68

Peak:  8

Weeks:  19

Genre:  Pop

Pop Bits:  NKOTB mania was in full swing by this point in time following three Pop Top 10 hits including a pair of #1s including the platinum-selling "Hangin' Tough." Their album of the same name had already spent two weeks at #1 and had gone 4x platinum. Wanting to really capitalize on the group's popularity, their label, Columbia Records, decided to reach back to the group's debut and release this cover tune in order to re-promote that self-titled album, which had just recently gone gold. The ballad would do well hitting the Pop Top 10 while also making it to #12 AC and #34 R&B. The ploy worked well with the group's debut LP quickly going platinum and then double-platinum in January of '90.

ReduxReview:  This was just an awful idea from the get-go. These kids were just too young and inexperienced to handle a song like this. Not only that, they had nary an ounce of soulfulness between them. They were meant to do bubblegum/teen pop and not cover a mature soul classic. If their lack of ability wasn't enough, then there was the horrible production. It sounded so cheesy and stilted. Making matters even worse was the addition of an insipid spoken word part. Cover tunes can be a great marketing tool if done right (or even halfway okay), but it takes a special kind of talent to take a well-known hit and then just shit on it. I can't really blame the New Kids for this. You know they were guided and told what to do, so this lies squarely on producer Maurice Starr and whoever else was in charge of the group. Thanks to New Kids mania, this travesty went Top 10. Luckily, since then it has been forgotten. And should be. Yup, this one can join the exclusive zero club.

ReduxRating:  0/10

Trivia:  This is a remake of a Philly soul classic originally recorded by The Delfonics. Their version, titled "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time)," would be a #3 R&B/#10 Pop hit in 1970. The song would earn the group a Grammy for Best R&B Vocal Performance, Duo or Group. Written by producer Thom Bell and the group's lead singer William Hart, it would be The Delfonics' second and final song to reach the Pop Top 10 following 1968's #4 "La-La (Means I Love You)" (#2 R&B). While the song would be covered by many artists, thus far New Kids on the Block have been the only other artist to reach the Pop chart with a version.

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"When I See You Smile" by Bad English

#1 Alert!

Gold Record Alert!

Song#:  4035

Date:  09/16/1989

Debut:  72

Peak:  1 (2 weeks)

Weeks:  22

Genre:  Rock

Pop Bits:  This supergroup starring John Waite, Jonathan Cain, and Neal Schon kicked off their self-titled debut album with the #2 Rock hit "Forget Me Not." While the tune would get on the Pop chart, it stalled shy of the Top 40 at #45. Hoping to better that result, this power ballad was next up for release. It would become the band's mainstream breakthrough getting to #10 Rock and #11 AC while hitting #1 on the Pop chart for two weeks. The single would sell well enough to go gold. With that result, the album would peak at #21 and by the beginning of November it would go gold.

ReduxReview:  With the songwriting capabilities of the band's members, I'm pretty sure none of them said, "hey, let's go find a hit song for the album written by someone else!" It totally wreaks of label/A&R folks pushing the band to record a potential hit because they didn't hear one within the band's compositions. Bad English then opted to take on this Diane Warren power ballad and did their best to rock it up. The end result was a solid piece of commercial pop/rock that was bound to light up the charts. Lead singer John Waite sold it well and it became his biggest hit since his own #1, 1984's "Missing You." It would easily become the band's most recognizable tune and it is one that still gets a lot of airplay today.

ReduxRating:  8/10

Trivia:  This song was penned by Diane Warren. It was only one of two tracks on the Bad English album where a band member was not listed as a composer. Warren had been on a hot streak for the past couple of years earning #1 songs in '87 ("Nothings Gonna Stop Us Now" by Starship) and in '88 ("Look Away" by Chicago). While other songs she wrote did well in '89 she had yet to grab a #1 through the majority of the year. Then this Bad English track did the job making it three years in a row that Warren had penned a #1 Pop single.

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"Love's About to Change My Heart" by Donna Summer

Song#:  4034

Date:  09/16/1989

Debut:  89

Peak:  85

Weeks:  3

Genre:  Pop, Dance

Pop Bits:  Summer was able to score one last major comeback hit with "This Time I Know It's for Real," the first single from her Stock Aitken Waterman produced album Another Time and Place. It was her first Pop Top hit is six years. To follow it up, her US label, Atlantic Records, chose to go with this album-closing track. While it would do well at Dance reaching #3, the tune couldn't make any headway on the Pop chart and it stalled near the bottom after a minor three weeks. Without a second major hit to promote it, the album would peak at #53. A third single would not be released in the US. However, in the UK where "This Time I Know It's for Real" broke first, the LP would spawn six singles. Two would be Top 10 hits while this song would get to #20. The album would get to #17 and go gold.

ReduxReview:  In the UK, the second single from the album was "I Don't Wanna Get Hurt." The standard SAW track would do well getting to #7. Logic would dictate that it probably should have been the second single in the US. Instead, Atlantic decided to go with this throwback to Summer's disco days. Written by the SAW team, you can tell they catered it directly to Summer with the tune sounding like something that could have been on one of her 70s albums. I think it was the wrong move. People were finally letting Summer back in after the big disco backlash and this reminder of those times wasn't what was needed and indeed it tanked. The label may have been afraid of pushing too much of the SAW sound, but I think "I Don't Wanna Get Hurt" would have done better. Still, Summer was able to notch that comeback with the terrific "This Time I Know It's for Real."

ReduxRating:  5/10

Trivia:  Summer would return with another album for Atlantic in 1991. For Mistaken Identity, Summer would work with producer Keith Diamond, whose career really took off when he worked with Billy Ocean. It featured edgier tracks that included current sounds such as new jack swing. Its first single, "When Love Cries," would only get to #77 Pop/#18 R&B. A second single didn't do anything and that left the album not charting. Summer would move over to Mercury for a '94 holiday album along with an official release of her shelved '81 album I'm a Rainbow. She would not record a studio album again until 2008 when she released Crayons. While none of the LP's singles would make the Pop chart, three tracks would hit #1 on the Dance chart while another song would get to #30 at AC. That action helped the album get to #17, which was her best showing since '83. In 2010, Summer would release the stand-alone single "To Paris with Love." It would reach #1 at Dance and be her final charting singles prior to her death in 2012 from lung cancer. The following year she would be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

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