Black Velvet by Alannah Myles was released in the United States on December 17, 1989, with If You Want To as the B side. It was a single from the Canadian singer’s self-titled debut album.
The song, about Elvis Presley, was a No. 1 hit for two weeks on the Billboard Hot 100. It reached No. 2 on the UK Singles chart and No. 10 in Myles’ native Canada.
Myles won a Grammy award for Best Female Rock Performance for Black Velvet.
My Hometown by Bruce Springsteen was released November 21, 1985, with Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town as the B side. My Hometown, about Springsteen’s experiences growing up in Freehold, New Jersey, was a single from the album Born in the U.S.A. The B side was a live recording from a December 12, 1975, Springsteen concert on Long Island, New York. Springsteen’s version of the popular Christmas song was previously released in 1981 on a children’s album In Harmony 2.
My Hometown reached No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100, making it the seventh and last Top 10 single from Born in the U.S.A. — a record for the most top 10 singles from an album that stands today, tied with Michael Jackson’s Thriller and Janet Jackson’s Rhythm Nation 1814. In the United Kingdom, My Hometown reached No. 9 on the UK Singles chart.
The music video featured a live performance of the song from a concert on the Born in the U.S.A. tour.
This 7″ picture disc for I Want to Know What Love Is was released in the UK in 1984.
I Want to Know What Love Is by Foreigner
was released November 13, 1984, with Street Thunder (Marathon Theme) as the B side. It was the lead single from the band’s fifth studio album Agent Provocateur.
The song, which featured backing vocals from the New Jersey Mass Choir and keyboard work by Thompson Twins frontman Tom Bailey, was a worldwide success. It reached No. 1 in several countries including the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia.
I Want to Know What Love Is was written by Foreigner guitarist Mick Jones. Check out this 2013 interview with Classic Rock magazine where he talks about the making of the song:
“I always worked late at night, when everybody left and the phone stopped ringing. ‘I Want To Know What Love Is’ came up at three in the morning sometime in 1984. I don’t know where it came from. I consider it a gift that was sent through me. I think there was something bigger than me behind it. I’d say it was probably written entirely by a higher force.”
Shake It Up by The Cars was released November 9, 1981, with Cruiser as the B side. It was the first single from the band’s album of the same name.
The song was The Cars’ highest charting Billboard hit at the time, peaking at No. 4 in early 1982. In 1984, the single Drive would climb a notch higher to No. 3. Continue reading
Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic by The Police was released on November 2, 1981, with Flexible Strategies as the B side. The song was a single from the band’s fourth studio album Ghost in the Machine, although it dates back to a demo recorded in 1977.
The song was a No. 1 hit in the United Kingdom. In the United States, it reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100. Continue reading
Livin’ on a Prayer by Bon Jovi was released on October 31, 1986, with Wild in the Streets as the B side. It was the second single from the band’s multi-platinum album Slippery When Wet.
The song – about a fictional working class couple, Tommy and Gina – spent four weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and two weeks at No. 1 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. In the United Kingdom, it peaked at No. 4 on the UK Singles Chart. Continue reading
Born in the U.S.A. by Bruce Springsteen was released on October 30, 1984, with Shut Out the Light as the B side. A single from the album of the same name, the song discussed the effects of the Vietnam War on Americans and the treatment of Vietnam veterans upon their return home.
The song peaked at No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was the third of seven Top 10 singles released from the Born in the U.S.A. album. The album ties Michael Jackson’s Thriller and Janet Jackson’s Rhythm Nation 1814 for the most Top 10 singles from one album.
The Boys of Summer by Don Henley was released on October 29, 1984, with A Month of Sundays as the B side. It was the first single from Henley’s album Building the Perfect Beast.
The song reached No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 1 on the Top Rock Tracks chart. In the United Kingdom, it peaked at No. 12 on the UK Singles Chart.
Henley won a Grammy for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance for the song.
Free Fallin’ by Tom Petty was released on October 27, 1989. The 7 ” U.S. release featured Down the Line as the B side. It was a single from Petty’s solo debut album Full Moon Fever.
The song peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100. Continue reading
You Got Lucky by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers was released October 22, 1982, with Between Two Worlds as the B side. It was the first single from the band’s fifth album Long After Dark.
The song, propelled by the success of its Mad Max-esque post-apocalyptic music video, reached No. 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 1 on the Billboard Top Tracks charts.
Eighties Grooves 