Little Red Corvette by Prince was released on February 9, 1983, with All the Critics Love U in New York as the B side. It was a single from Prince’s fifth studio album 1999. Continue reading
pop music
80s Song of the Day: Father Figure by George Michael
Father Figure by George Michael was released January 2, 1988. The 7″ release in the United States featured an instrumental version of the song as the B side. The song was the fourth single from Michael’s debut studio album, Faith, following the breakup of Wham! in 1986. Continue reading
80s Song of the Day: Only in My Dreams by Debbie Gibson
Only in My Dreams by Debbie Gibson was released on December 16, 1986, with Only in My Dreams (Dub) as the B side. It was Gibson’s debut single. It later appeared on her debut album Out of the Blue, released on August 18, 1987.
The song reached No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the summer of 1987. It peaked at No. 11 on the UK Singles chart.
80s Song of the Day: Last Christmas by Wham!
Last Christmas by Wham! was released on December 10, 1984, on a double-A side with the single Everything She Wants, from the Make It Big album. Two years after its release as a single, Last Christmas appeared on two Wham! album releases – The Final, a compilation album released in the United Kingdom; and Music from the Edge of Heaven, considered the duo’s third studio album, released in North America and Japan.
In the United Kingdom, Last Christmas reached No. 2 on the UK Singles chart, behind Band Aid’s Do They Know It’s Christmas? to which George Michael contributed vocals. Wham! donated all of their Last Christmas/Everything She Wants royalties to famine in Ethiopia, which sales of Do They Know It’s Christmas? benefited as well.
Last Christmas is the biggest selling single in UK chart history not to reach No. 1.
80s Song of the Day: Straight Up by Paula Abdul
Straight Up By Paula Abdul was released November 22, 1988, with Cold Hearted as the B side. It was a single from Abdul’s debut album Forever Your Girl. Before launching her singing career, Abdul was a cheerleader and dancer for the Los Angeles Lakers and choreographed several popular music videos for artists like Janet Jackson, Debbie Gibson, and Duran Duran.
Straight Up was a No. 1 hit in the United States and the best-selling single of 1989. A huge hit internationally, the song also went to No. 1 in Norway and Canada and was a Top 5 hit in several other countries, including the United Kingdom, Belgium, Sweden, and Switzerland.
The music video was directed by now famous movie director David Fincher (Seven, Fight Club, The Social Network) and featured comedian Arsenio Hall, whose talk show had premiered a few weeks prior to the video shoot. The video went on to win four 1989 MTV Video Music Awards, including for Best Female Video, Best Dance, Best Choreography, and Best Editing.
80s Song of the Day: You Got It (The Right Stuff) by New Kids on the Block
You Got It (The Right Stuff) by New Kids on the Block was released November 7, 1988, with a remix of the song as the B side. It was the second single from the group’s second album Hangin’ Tough, after the ballad Please Don’t Go Girl.
The song reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart. A Spanish version of the song, Autentica, peaked at No. 11 on the Spain Singles Chart.
In a 2014 interview with the Manchester Evening News, Donnie Wahlberg, who shares lead vocals on the song with Jordan Knight, gave his thoughts on the song: Continue reading
80s Song of the Day: We Belong by Pat Benatar
We Belong by Pat Benatar was released on October 16, 1984, with Suburban King as the B side. It was the lead single from Benatar’s sixth studio album Tropico.
The song reached No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 22 on the UK Singles Chart.
80s Song of the Day: You Keep Me Hangin’ On by Kim Wilde
You Keep Me Hangin’ On by Kim Wilde was released on October 13, 1986, with Loving You as the B side. A cover of the Supremes’ 1966 No. 1 hit, the song was the second single from the studio album Another Step and the first single from the album to be released worldwide.
The song was Wilde’s most successful song in the United States, reaching No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was also a No. 1 hit in Canada and Australia. It reached No. 2 in Wilde’s native Britain.
80s Song of the Day: Out of Touch by Hall & Oates
Reaching out for something to hold
Looking for a love where the climate is cold
Manic moves and drowsy dreams
Or living in the middle between the two extremes
Out of Touch by Hall & Oates was released on October 4, 1984, with Cold, Dark and Yesterday as the B side. It was the lead single from their album Big Bam Boom.
Out of Touch, Hall & Oates’ last Billboard Hot 100 No. 1, topped the chart for two weeks. It was the duo’s fourteenth consecutive top 40 hit since 1980. Continue reading
80s Song of the Day: Say Say Say by Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson
You never ever worry and you never shed a tear
You’re saying that my love ain’t real
Just look at my face, these tears ain’t drying
Say Say Say by Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson was released on October 3, 1983, with Ode to a Koala Bear as the B side. It was a single from McCartney’s album Pipes of Peace.
The song became Jackson’s seventh Top 10 hit inside a year. It was a No. 1 hit in the United States, Canada, Norway, Sweden, and several other countries. It reached No. 2 in the United Kingdom. Continue reading
Eighties Grooves 