Classic rock, pop, and soul songs from yesterday and today
Classic rock, pop, and soul songs from yesterday and today
Today’s classic song of the day with a lady’s name in the title is “Joanne” by Michael Nesmith and the First National Band. Released as a single in July of 1970, this was Nesmith’s first and only solo Top Forty hit, peaking at #21 on the Billboard Hot 100, #17 on the Cash Box Top 100, and #6 on Billboard’s…
Continuing our week of songs with ladies names in the title, today’s classic song of the day is “Roxanne” by the Police. It was released as the band’s first single in April of 1978, in advance of their debut album, Outlandos d’Amour and went absolutely nowhere. Re-released in 1979, it rose to #32 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #12…
Continuing our week with songs that feature a lady’s name in the title, what better classic song of the day than Toto’s “Rosanna?” Released in late March of 1982, this was one of the group’s most successful singles, peaking at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and winning the Grammy Award for Record of the Year. “Rosanna” was written by…
Our second classic song with a girl’s name in the title of the day this week is “Clair” by Gilbert O’Sullivan. This pleasant ditty was released as a single in October of 1972 and eventually rose to #2 on the Billboard Hot 100, #3 on the Cash Box Top 100, and #1 on Billboard’s Adult Contemporary chart. “Clair,” written by…
This week we’re looking at songs with a woman’s name in the title, so today’s classic song of the day is “Alison” by Elvis Costello. Mr. Costello included the track on his 1977 debut album, My Aim is True and released the song as a single that same year. Unfortunately, it didn’t chart. Fortunately, it still got a lot of…
Today’s classic song of the day is one of the top songs of the modern era, period. It’s “Will You Love Me Tomorrow,” written by Carole King (music) and Gerry Goffin (words). It was a hit in 1960 for the girl group the Shirelles, reaching #1 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the Cash Box Top 100. It was…
Last week I wrote about the song “Boogie Oogie Oogie” by a group called A Taste of Honey, and how they won the Grammy for Best New Artist in 1979 over more deserving acts like The Cars, Elvis Costello, Toto, and Chris Rea. In my write-up I called Rea, like A Taste of Honey, a one-hit wonder. Some readers took…
Today’s classic song of the day is one of my favorite Steely Dan tunes, “Kid Charlemagne.” This one was the lead track (side one, track one) of the Dan’s 1976 album, The Royal Scam. Released as a single, “Kid Charlemagne” only reached #82 on the Billboard Hot 100. As a classic album track, it’s had a lasting influence that exceeds…
Just as you can’t talk disco without Donna Summer (yesterday’s classic song of the day, “Hot Stuff“), you also can’t talk disco without the Bee Gees. Unfortunately, I’m not a huge disco-era Bee Gees fan—except for this one tune. The brothers Gibb released “Nights on Broadway in September 1975 and it shot to #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and…