Affair of the Heart by Rick Springfield was released October 10, 1983, with Like Father, Like Son as the B side. It was the lead single from the album Living in Oz.
The song peaked at No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100, the fourth of Springfield’s five Top 10 hits. In 1984, it was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance.
Workin’ hard to get my fill
Everybody wants a thrill
Payin’ anything to roll the dice
Just one more time
Don’t Stop Believin’ by Journey was released on October 6, 1981, with Natural Thing as the B side. It was a single from the band’s seventh studio album Escape.
The song reached No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 and sold over a million copies in vinyl. It has re-entered the charts in recent years, notable in 2007 after its use in the last scene of the series finale of The Sopranos. In 2009, it reached No. 6 in the United Kingdom, after failing to break the Top 40 there on its original release. Continue reading
We didn’t start the fire
It was always burning
Since the world’s been turning
We Didn’t Start the Fire by Billy Joel was released on September 27, 1989, with House of Blue Light as the B side. A single from the album Storm Front, it includes references to more than 100 headline events from 1949, the year of Joel’s birth, to 1989 when the song was recorded.
The song reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Record of the Year. It was a No. 2 hit in Canada and Australia. Continue reading
I never wanted to be your weekend lover
I only wanted to be some kind of friend
Baby I could never steal you from another
It´s such a shame our friendship had to end
Purple Rain by Prince and the Revolution was released on September 26, 1984, with God as the B side. It was the third single from the soundtrack album for the movie of the same name.
The song was recorded during a benefit concert for the Minnesota Dance Theatre at the First Avenue nightclub in Minneapolis on August 3, 1983. The performance was guitarist Wendy Melvoin’s live debut with The Revolution, at the age of 19. Continue reading
Your moves are so raw
I’ve got to let you know
I’ve got to let you know
You’re one of my kind
Need You Tonight by INXS was released on September 23, 1987, with I’m Coming (Home) as the B side. It was the first worldwide release from the album Kick.
The song was the band’s only No. 1 hit in the United States. In the United Kingdom, it only reached No. 58 on the UK Singles Chart when it was originally released; after it was re-released there in November 1988, it went all the way to No. 2. Continue reading
Her friends are so jealous
You know how bad girls get
Sometimes it’s not so easy
To be the teacher’s pet
Don’t Stand So Close to Me by The Police was released in the United Kingdom on September 19, 1980, with Friends as the B side. The song, about an affair between a teacher and a student, was the lead single from the band’s third album Zenyatta Mondatta.
In the United Kingdom, the song reached No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart and was the biggest selling single of 1980. In the United States, it reached No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. Continue reading
Sometimes I want to give up
Want to give in
I want to quit the fight
And then I see you baby
And everything’s alright
When I See You Smile by rock super-group Bad English was released on September 16, 1989, with Rockin’ Horse as the B side. It was the second single from the band’s self-titled debut album.
Formed in 1987, Bad English included Journey members Neal Schon and Jonathan Cain, former Babys bandmates John Waite and Ricky Phillips, and drummer Dean Castronova. When I See You Smile was their first and only No. 1 hit in the United States, where it spent two weeks at the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100. It also reached No. 1 on the Canada Top Singles chart. Continue reading
Years go by I’m lookin’ through a girly magazine
And there’s my homeroom angel on the pages inbetween
Centerfold by The J. Geils Band was released on September 13, 1981, with Rage in the Cage as the B side. It was the first single released from the album Freeze Frame.
The song spent six weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It reached No. 3 on the UK Singles Chart, the first and only major hit for the band in the United Kingdom. Continue reading
I get the feelin’ you’re tryin’ to tell me;
Is there somethin’ that I should know?
What excuse are you tryin’ to sell me?
Should I be readin’ stop or go?
I don’t know
No Reply At All by Genesis was released September 9, 1981. Some versions featured Naminanu as the B side; others featured Dodo. It was the first single released in the United States from the album Abacab.
The song spent 18 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at No. 29. It went all the way to No. 2 on the U.S. Mainstream Rock chart. Continue reading
Lightning strikes, maybe once, maybe twice
Oh, and it lights up the night
And you see your gypsy
You see your gypsy
Gypsy by Fleetwood Mac was released September 4, 1982, with Cool Water as the B side. It was the second single from the album Mirage. Written by Stevie Nicks, she has said that the song is about her life with bandmate Lindsey Buckingham before Fleetwood Mac. Continue reading
Eighties Grooves 