Classic rock, pop, and soul songs from the '60s, '70s, and '80s
Classic rock, pop, and soul songs from the '60s, '70s, and '80s
Today’s classic early ’80s song of the day is “Cool Night” by Paul Davis. Released late in 1981, it peaked early the next year at #11 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #2 on Billboard’s Adult Contemporary chart. The late ’70s/early ’80s were an interesting time, musically. You had a conflux of different genres and styles, all hitting the charts…
Today’s classic song from the early ’80s is Bruce Springsteen’s “Hungry Heart.” Released as a single in October of 1980, it shot to #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #6 on the Cash Box Top 100. Springsteen initially wrote “Hungry Heart” for the Ramones but decided to keep it for himself. Here’s how the Boss remembers it: “I saw…
Today’s classic early ’80s song of the day is “She Blinded Me with Science” by Thomas Dolby. This one, released in October of 1982, rose to #5 on the Billboard Hot 100, #4 on the Cash Box Top 100, and #3 on Billboard’s Hot Dance Club Play chart. “She Blinded Me with Science” was written by Mr. Dolby, along with…
Today’s classic early ’80s song of the day is “We Got the Beat” by the Go-Go’s. Released in January of 1982, it went to #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and established the group as the real deal. “We Got the Beat” was written by Charlotte Caffey, the band’s lead guitarist. It was inspired by the Miracles’ 1965 Motown hit,…
Today’s classic song from the late ’70s of the day is “Heart of Glass” by Blondie. Released in January of 1979, this danceable little number went to #1 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Cash Box Top 100. (Surprisingly for a dance tune, it only hit #58 on Billboard’s Disco chart.) It was also a number-one hit in Australia,…
This week we’re fast forwarding slightly to the late 1970s and very early 1980s and some of the best tracks from that era. With that in mind, today’s classic song of the day is “Stop Your Sobbing” by the Pretenders. Released as a single in January of 1979, this track peaked at #65 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #34…
Frequent readers of this blog know that I occasionally like to highlight obscure 1960s R&B singles that never made it big on the charts but were later somewhat revived by England’s Northern Soul scene. Today’s classic song of the day is one such obscure tune, “Do It” by Pat Powdrill. This track, released in 1966 on the equally obscure Downey…
Today’s classic song of the day is another horn rock (or jazz-rock) classic, “25 or 6 to 4” by Chicago. This one was off their second album, the first after shortening their name from Chicago Transit Authority; released in June of 1970, it hit #4 on the Billboard Hot 100. “25 or 6 to 4” was written by the band’s…
Today’s classic horn rock (or, if you prefer, jazz-rock) song of the day is “You’ve Made Me So Very Happy” by Blood, Sweat & Tears. This was their mainstream breakthrough single; released in March of 1969, it shot all the way to #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. Blood, Sweat & Tears was formed two years earlier by singer/keyboardist Al…
Yesterday’s classic song of the day was “Lotta Love” by the late Nicolette Larson. Today’s classic song of the day features a duet with Ms. Larson on the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s hit, “Make a Little Magic.” This single was released during the summer of 1980 and rose to #25 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #77 on Billboard’s Hot…