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 dance song of the day is “Save the Last Dance for Me” by the Drifters. Released in August of 1960, it spent three weeks at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was written by the legendary songwriting team of Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman and produced by the equally (if not more so) legendary Jerry Leiber and…
Our classic summer song of the day moves from “Up on the Roof” (yesterday’s classic song) to “Under the Boardwalk.” Like yesterday’s song, “Under the Boardwalk” was recorded by the Drifters; released in June of 1964, it rose to #4 on the Billboard Hot 100, one spot higher than their 1962 single. Unlike “Up on the Roof,” which was written…
Today’s classic summer-themed song of the day is “Up on the Roof” by the Drifters. This true classic was released in September of 1962 and hit #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 (and #4 on the R&B chart) early the next year. Rudy Lewis sang lead on the record, accompanied by fellow Drifters Tommy Evans, Gene Pearson, and Charlie Thomas.…
Continuing our overview of the career of songwriter Cynthia Weil, today’s classic song of the day is “Only in America” by Jay and the Americans. This one has a controversial history. “Only In America,” written in 1963, was the second collaboration between the teams of Barry Mann/Cynthia Weil and Jerry Leiber/Mike Stoller. That’s a good thing; their previous collaboration, “On…
Honoring the late Cynthia Weil, today’s classic song of the day is “On Broadway,” which was a hit for both the Drifters in 1963 and George Benson a decade and a half later. This was a unique collaboration between two legendary songwriting teams, Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil and Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller. Here’s how it went down—all at…
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”…