Welcome back to this week’s countdown. If you missed the previous posts, you can go back and check out songs 40-31 and 30-21. Today we have an interesting list of songs. The list includes two of the most overplayed songs of the ’80s. But the rest of the songs more than make up for it. So, let’s Return to the week ending August 16, 1986, and continue the countdown.

20. “Words Get In the Way” by Miami Sound Machine featuring Gloria Estefan

This is a nice ballad. It was a change of pace for The Miami Sound Machine, which had just scored with the hits “Conga” and “Bad Boy“. “Words Get In the Way” set the path for Gloria Estefan to become a successful adult contemporary artist.

19. “All the Love in the World” by The Outfield

This song does not get the airplay that it deserves.

18. “Baby Love” by Regina

I had forgotten about this song, but remembered it as soon as I heard it. This sounds just like a Madonna song. There’s no truth to the rumor that Regina was heard saying, “Sometimes I sing and dance around the house in my underwear. Doesn’t make me Madonna. Never will.”

17. “Suzanne” by Journey

A lot of people were disappointed with Journey’s Raised On Radio album. I love that album, and this is one of my favorite songs from it.

16. “Danger Zone” by Kenny Loggins

And here is overplayed song #1. I love Kenny Loggins, and I liked this song a lot when it came out. It just got played too much. I still like listening to it once in a while.

15. “Friends and Lovers” by Gloria Loring & Carl Anderson

I always loved this duet. Gloria Loring had been married to Alan Thicke, and is the mother of Robin Thicke. She and Alan had composed the theme songs for Diff’rent Strokes and The Facts of Life. She actually sang The Facts of Life theme song. Carl Anderson was best known for playing Judas in the film and stage versions of Jesus Christ Superstar.

Beginning in 1980, Loring played Liz Chandler on my mom’s favorite soap opera – Days of Our Lives. She was a singer on the show, so she performed several songs. One of them was “Friends and Lovers”. This song became the theme music for the couple Shane Donovan (played by Charles Shaughnessy, best known as Maxwell Sheffield on The Nanny) and Kim Brady. The song was so popular that it was released as a single and became a hit.

14. “You Should Be Mine (The Woo Woo Song)” by Jeffrey Osborne

Jeffrey Osborne rules!! I might be a little biased though. He is from my home state of Rhode Island. I do love his voice, and this is a really good song. “The Woo Woo Song” is in the title because his little daughter did not know the exact title, she identified the song saying “Daddy, sing “The Woo Woo Song!” So he nicknamed the song, “The Woo Woo Song”.
Jeffrey Osborne is still active in the community as he just hosted his annual celebrity golf tournament for charity, which just happened to be this week.

13. “Sledgehammer” by Peter Gabriel

Ugh!!! I’m going to take a sledgehammer to my head if I hear this overplayed, overrated song ever ag…

12. “Sweet Freedom” by Michael McDonald

Whew, I came to just in time! I never cared much for Michael McDonald back in the day (I am warming up to all of his music now though), but I could never get enough of this song. It didn’t hurt that it was featured in the awesome Billy Crystal/Gregory Hines movie Running Scared. I may have liked this one regardless.

11. “Love Touch” by Rod Stewart

OK, I just realized that I do not have any Rod Stewart on my iPod. What the hell!?! I’ve loved every one of his songs that we have covered in all of these countdowns. I need to rectify this situation quick. This is a really good song from the Robert Redford/Debra Winger romantic comedy, Legal Eagles.

Wow, is it me or did that go by fast! We are already done with today’s songs. We’ll be back tomorrow to wrap up the countdown. There are going to be some more great songs. Ugh, and one that I really can’t stand. But, I’m probably in the minority. So, please come back and enjoy the music of the ’80s!

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