Classic rock, pop, and soul songs from the '60s, '70s, and '80s
Classic rock, pop, and soul songs from the '60s, '70s, and '80s
Your classic early ’80s earworm of the day is “Pulling Mussels (from the Shell)” by Squeeze. It was the first track on side one of their 1980 album, Argybargy. Released as a single in April of that year, it went to #44 on the UK Singles chart. Unfortunately, it didn’t chart at all in the U.S., although it did get…
Your classic song that you didn’t know Dusty Springfield sang vocals on of the day is “Ballad of a Well-Known Gun” by Elton John. This is an album track (side one, track one), not a single, from Elton’s 1971 album, Tumbleweed Connection. The album peaked at #5 on the Billboard 200 album chart and #2 on the UK Albums chart.…
Your classic Dusty Springfield comeback song of the day is “What Have I Done to Deserve This?” This track was released by Pet Shop Boys, with Dusty contributing guest vocals, in August of 1987. It was a big hit, going all the way to #2 on the Billboard Hot 100, #1 on Billboard’s Dance Club Songs chart, and #1 on…
Your long-lost folkie love song of the day is “Someday Soon.” It was written by legendary folk singer Ian Tyson (of Ian and Sylvia fame) and originally recorded by Ian and his wife Sylvia in 1964. The better-known recording was made by Judy Collins in 1968; that version went to #56 on the Billboard Hot 100 but had a lasting…
Your classic song written about a legendary painter of the day is “Vincent” by Don McLean. In case you’ve never heard it, the song is about the artist Vincent Van Gogh, and if you’ve never heard of him, that’s your loss. The song “Vincent” is a moving tribute to that troubled painter that captures the essence of Van Gogh’s work…
Your classic song about a songwriter but not written by that songwriter is “P.F. Sloan,” about the songwriter of the same name. The song itself was written by Sloan’s friend, fellow songwriter Jimmy Webb, and performed (in its best-known version) by the Association. Jimmy first released the song on his 1970 solo album, Words and Music; the Association then released…
Today’s classic song of the day is the truly classic “California Dreamin’,” by The Mamas & The Papas. This was the group’s first big hit, released in December of 1965. It went on to peak at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 the following year, sell more than a million copies, rank as the #10 song for all of 1966,…
Today’s classic song of the day is the classic protest song “Eve of Destruction,” by Barry McGuire. The song, released in July of 1965, shot all the way to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and hit the top ten in countries around the world. “Eve of Destruction” was written by prolific songwriter P.F. Sloan, and produced by Sloan and…
Your totally forgotten Girl Group song of the day is “The Sh-Down Down Song (You Better Leave Him Alone),” credited to “The Ginger-Snaps featuring Dandee Dawson.” The song was written and produced by the very prolific songwriting team of P.F. Sloan and Steve Barri for Dunhill Records. It was released in 1965 and went absolutely nowhere, which is a shame…
Your classic song that sounds an awful lot like another classic song of the day is “Let’s Live for Today” by the Grass Roots. It was released in May of 1967 and hit #8 on the Billboard Hot 100—and it bears a striking resemblance to the Drifters’ 1961 hit, “I Count the Tears.” The music for “Let’s Live for Today”…