Hey Everybody! Welcome back to this week’s Top 40 Countdown! If you missed the previous songs, you can go back and check out songs 40-31, 30-21 and 20-11. When I began this week, I had no idea that this would be one of the best, if not THE best countdown I’ve covered so far. Let’s see if this streak continues today. Let’s Return to the week ending January 19, 1985, and wrap up the countdown.
We start the top 10 with one of the most iconic sax riffs of the ’80s. This is one of the few Wham! songs co-written by Andrew Ridgeley (the other member of Wham!, kids).
One of the most patriotic songs ever. Right President Reagan. Only if you consider a song about how Vietnam veterans were mistreated, to be patriotic. Oops.
One of my favorite Pat Benatar songs. It was the lead single off of her Tropico album and earned her a Grammy nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.
Madonna was at the top of her game here as one of the biggest ’80s icons.
Well that wraps up this week’s countdown. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I have. Until next time, Keep your feet on the ground, and keep reaching for the stars.
I know you really want to tell me good-bye
I know you really want to be your own girl
Baby you could never look me in the eye
Yeah you buckle with the weight of the words
Top 10 Protest or Socially Conscious Songs from the ‘80s
by Robert Mishou
I recently finished a wonderful Young Adult (YA) novel by Todd Hasak-Lowy entitled Me Being Me is Exactly the Same as You Being You. What I liked about this book wasn’t the story – it was fine, not outstanding, but fine. What I was captured with was the format of the narrative – it was told completely in a series of list. This very inventive story had characterization, setting, climax – everything, but it all had to be put together by the reader through lists! I loved it and found it a groundbreaking way to tell a story. More importantly, it has rekindled my love for lists. So, coming at you for the rest of 2016 will be a series of lists of my favorites from the ‘80s. This first list will be my top 10 favorite protest or socially conscious songs from the decade that does not get enough credit for being serious when times called for it.
There are those who find protest song tedious and there are those who seek protest songs and work to ‘feel’ the issue. I fall somewhere in between. I like protest songs and I use them as a springboard to learn more about the issue that the song is focused on. I do not seek out protest songs, but I do love the insight that most of them give on human life and the struggles we face. I have always loved looking for and understanding songs that have a clear socially conscious message. So as not to cull protests from you, ‘80s fans, here is my list.
Born in the U.S.A. by Bruce Springsteen
We all have our pet peeves. I am no different, so here is mine: it drives me absolutely bonkers when there is a patriotic celebration, like 4th of July fireworks, and I hear this song blasting from the speakers. Are we really that ignorant of lyrics and their meaning? Can the general public not understand tone? Born in the U.S.A is nowhere near a song that celebrates America’s heritage. In fact, it is quite the opposite. In this song, Springsteen sings about the poor treatment of America’s fighting men who have returned home from Vietnam. Despite the recent Veteran’s Day celebrations, we should not forget that not that long ago, many of those veterans returned home to very poor treatment. Springsteen writes:
Came back home to the refinery
Hiring man says, “Son, if it was up to me”
Went down to see my V.A. man
He said, “Son, don’t you understand”
No, they did not understand why the country they risked their lives to defend was not treating them in such an unwarranted way. Yes, despite being just a baby during this time, I do know of the public perception of the war in Vietnam, but Springsteen sees them all as excuses and his tone suggests that they are completely ridiculous. The Vietnam vet, who is the speaker in this song, ends by revealing his desperate situation:
Down in the shadow of the penitentiary
Out by the gas fires of the refinery
I’m ten years burning down the road
Got nowhere to run, ain’t go nowhere to go
All of this is framed with the sarcastic chorus, “Born in the U.S.A” – in essence, how can a man who fought for his country, who lost his brother in the same war, now not get a job now that the war is over? Please, for me, the next time you hear this song played for a patriotic celebration, turn to the person next to you and explain what the song is about.
Welcome back to another week of Top 40 music! I am so worn down by this election season. And now it’s time to celebrate the end of this disgusting chapter in U.S. politcs. And what better way to celebrate than to take a shower, and listen to some great music. And this is going to be a great week of music! We are Returning to the week ending November 10, 1984. This week we had just elected Ronald Reagan to his second term as president. I was only 14 at the time, but I don’t remember the campaign being so dirty back then. So let’s go there, and Return to the week ending November 10, 1984, and begin the countdown.
[Reminder: If you want to hear the song/watch the music video, you can click on the song title]
This was John Waite’s follow-up to “Missing You“, and was overshadowed. That is a shame because this is a pretty good song. It kind of sounds like a song Bryan Adams would do. A good mid-tempo rocker. Not a bad way to begin the countdown.
This song was the second single released from Bruce’s classic Born in the U.S.A. album. It was originally written for Donna Summer, but Jon Landau, Springsteen’s manager, thought the song was a potential hit. So he kept it for the upcoming Springsteen album.
This was the fourth single released off theCars’ classic Heartbeat City album. The video was directed by Andy Warhol. This song is part of the opening montage of the Return to the ’80s podcast.
There is not much denying which decade this song is from! This song was Dan “I Can Dream About You” Hartman’s last #1 dance tune. I wish dance music these days sounded like this!
I never heard of this song before. It sounds like Loverboy played on high speed. Sam Harris was the grand champion singer of Star Search in its premiere season in 1983.
After the band Styx melted down following the Kilroy Was Here album, Tommy Shaw struck out on his own for a while. This was his debut single, and what a way to start!
It didn’t take long for The Cars to make another appearance on this countdown! This was the third single released from Heartbeat City. This is a little different sounding Cars song. Not only is it a ballad, but instead of Ric Ocasek singing lead, the band’s bassist, Benjamin Orr sang lead. The music video was directed by actor Timothy Hutton. It is mainly known for featuring model Paulina Porizkova, who would later become Ric Ocasek’s wife.
This title track to Julian Lennon’s debut album was his first single released in the U.S. It may be a blessing and a curse that he looks and sounds like his legendary father.
This is one of my favorite Prince songs. Still can’t believe he’s gone. This song was the opening track on the Purple Rain soundtrack as well as the film.
What a great way to end today’s list of songs! This is one of my favorite Benatar tunes. This was the lead single off of her 1984 album Tropico. The song earned Benatar a Grammy nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance alongside Linda Ronstadt, Tina Turner, Madonna, and Whitney Houston (won by Whitney).
Well that wraps up today’s list of songs. Not a bad way to start the week, right? Is everybody else ready for this election season to end too? We’ll be back tomorrow to continue the countdown.
Hi Everybody! The long wait is finally over. Time for the newest installment of “Who’s the Boss?” I can’t believe that it’s been almost 4 months since the last one – Darkness on the Edge of Town. Today, we’ll take a listen to Springsteen’s follow-up album, The River. If you are new, or missed the previous “Who’s the Boss?” articles, you can go ahead and see what this is all about.
I had heard of The River before, but I had no idea that it was a double-album. Let’s go check it out.
Originally, Bruce Springsteen’s album, The River, was to be released in 1979 as a single album called The Ties That Bind. But, after writing the song, “The River”, Springsteen wanted to add even more darker material to the album. The album was released on October 17, 1980. I did not read up on any information on the album before I started listening to it. So, I was not expecting the amount of dark material on the album. There are many fun rock songs on the album, then takes a dark turn. According to Bruce Springsteen: Two Hearts – The Definitive Biography, 1972-2003, it was intentional to have a combination of fun and dark songs: “Rock and roll has always been this joy, this certain happiness that is in its way the most beautiful thing in life. But rock is also about hardness and coldness and being alone … I finally got to the place where I realized life had paradoxes, a lot of them, and you’ve got to live with them.”
Needless to say, this is a very interesting album. As always, you can click on the song title to listen to the song on YouTube.
Great start to the album. It’s a good, rockin’ song. No matter how down you are, and how much you want to get away, and be by yourself, you will always have the ties that bind you to your friends, family and community.
I’m already impressed with this album so far. This is another rockin’ song. It has that classic Bruce sound, with all instruments being heard, and some intense Bruce vocals.
Time to slow things down a bit, which means Emo Bruce is in the house! It’s lucky for us that he had music as an outlet for his daddy issues. In this song, Bruce has come to the realization that he and his father will never get along, so he’s going out on his own. This is a sad yet beautiful song. I’m really taking to these storytelling songs.
Ah, a very familiar song. I always liked this song. I first discovered Bruce Springsteen from his Born in the USA album. When the songs from that album got overplayed, this was a nice alternative for me.
I’m liking this song. It has the same type of beat as “Hungry Heart” – not a ballad, but not a flat-out rocker. The piano is well done. And of course, you can’t go wrong with a song that features a sax solo by the legendary Clarence Clemons.
This kind of starts off sounding like a Spanish type of song. This is a really nice ballad. While I am beginning to warm up to emo-Bruce, it is nice to hear him singing a slow song that doesn’t make you want to hang yourself.
We have arrived at the title track. This is another storytelling song, which means emo-Bruce is back. He knocked up Mary just after high school, and they have to get married, and begin their real life. This doesn’t sound like the same couple from the earlier song, “I Wanna Marry You.” This wedding here sounds depressing:
We went down to the courthouse
and the judge put it all to rest
No wedding day smiles no walk down the aisle
No flowers no wedding dress
This is another dark, storytelling song. And just like several of the dark songs I have heard so far, this one is about growing up too fast, and not having your dreams realized.
I was gonna be your Romeo you were gonna be my Juliet
These days you don’t wait on Romeo’s
You wait on that welfare check
Alright! Now we are back to some upbeat rock! I remember this song from the Live 1975-85 album. It is a great live song, but I am also loving this studio version.
Alright! We’re pulled out of the doldrums! This is a fun rockin’ song. Let me take this in. I see the title of the next song, so I’m sure this high won’t last too long.
Kurt Cobain and the whole grunge movement ain’t got nothin’ on Bruce, man! All I have to say about this song is:
Now they’d come so far and they’d waited so long
Just to end up caught in a dream where everything goes wrong
Where the dark of night holds back the light of the day
Will we close out the album with a fun rockin’ song, leaving us wanting more, or will we end with emo-Bruce. Here’s a hint:
An ambulance finally came and took him to Riverside
I watched as they drove him away
And I thought of a girlfriend or a young wife
And a state trooper knocking in the middle of the night
To say your baby died in a wreck on the highway
As depressing as these songs are, I really enjoy the storytelling.
– “Hungry Heart” was Springsteen’s first U.S. pop singles chart top ten hit single, reaching number five. When Bruce wrote the song, it was actually intended to be for The Ramones. However, manager/producer Jon Landau convinced Springsteen to keep the song for himself.
– According to BruceSpringsteen.net, it was announced on October 16, 2015 that Springsteen will celebrate the 35th anniversary of The River by releasing the long awaited box set titled The Ties That Bind: The River Collection on December 4, 2015. It will contain 52 tracks on 4 CDs with a wealth of unreleased material along with 4 hours of never-before-seen video on 3 DVDs or 2 Blu-Ray discs.
Final Thoughts
Even though it may seem like I was not enjoying the dark songs, I really loved this album! This may even be my favorite Springsteen album so far. The upbeat songs just flat-out rock, and the dark songs tell good, albeit depressing stories. It’s good to have a combination of the different styles. And Springsteen did this masterfully.
The next album will be one that most of us are familiar with. I’m sure you can pretty much guess what it is. There are some songs on it that are new for me, so I am looking forward to it. And it won’t take as long to post about it.
Let me know what you think of The River,and if you have any memories from it.
Hi Everybody! We are back with a new album for “Who’s the Boss?” If you are new, or missed the previous “Who’s the Boss?” articles, you can go ahead and see what this is all about. Kristin, from Rock Out Loud, had suggested that I start my Bruce Springsteen journey with the Live 1975/85 album. This was a stroke of genius on her part. A lot of songs from that album were also on the Born to Run album as well as today’s album, Darkness on the Edge of Town. I feel that if I had just jumped right into these studio albums first, I wouldn’t have appreciated the songs as much. Bruce’s storytelling and the emotions, that he poured into the live versions of these songs, got me warmed up and ready for the studio versions.
Now let’s get into the next album of the “Who’s the Boss?” series – Darkness on the Edge of Town.
Darkness on the Edge of Town was Bruce Springsteen’s fourth studio album. It was the follow-up to Bruce’s big breakthrough album, Born to Run. Darkness on the Edge of Town was released in 1978 – three years after Born to Run. It took so long because Springsteen got into a legal battle with his former manager and producer, Mike Appel. Without getting bogged down into too much detail, basically Springsteen was young and naive when he first signed on with Mike Appel. It turns out that Bruce was getting a raw deal on royalties, and he did not have the publishing rights to his own songs. While Bruce was getting out of that contract, he signed with a new producer, Jon Landau. Appel filed an injunction that prevented Bruce from entering a recording studio. The matter was finally settled out of court. To get more details about this, and to see the recording process of this album, I highly recommend watching the awesome documentary, The Promise: The Darkness On the Edge of Town Story – Bruce Springsteen.
Although this album did not have any high charting singles, it is one of Springsteen’s most beloved albums. It actually stayed on the charts for nearly two years and is certified triple-platinum.
So, let’s see what everybody is raving about. You can click on the song title to listen to the song/watch the video.
Love! I first heard this song on Live 1975/85. The music and vocals are great. So far, I really enjoy the songs where Bruce’s voice is at a deeper tone. And of course the lyrics are awesome. Here is a perfect example,
Talk about a dream
try to make it real
You wake up in the night
with a fear so real
Spend your life waiting
for a moment that just don’t come
Well, don’t waste your time waiting
I know this song from Live 1975/85. I like this song. It rocks. But, I prefer the live version. So far in this series, I kind of liked the live versions and the studio versions of songs equally. But, this is one of those instances that the live version is far superior.
Time to slow things down a bit. We have another winner here. The music itself really brings me back to the late ’70s. This is angsty Bruce, who I’m beginning to like more and more.
Here is another one that I discovered on Live 1975/85. I liked that performance, and I love this studio version as well. It is a great rocker. The drumming on this one is incredible.
Another song that is on Live 1975/85. If I started the series with this album, I would be bored with this song. But as I become more educated, I know to pay special close attention to the lyrics on these slow songs. Bruce really paints a picture in his storytelling.
Not to sound like a broken records, but this is another one that I first heard on Live 1975/85. This is another classic Bruce song with incredible lyrics.
Gonna be a twister to blow everything down
That ain’t got the faith to stand its ground
Blow away the dreams that tear you apart
Blow away the dreams that break your heart
Blow away the lies that leave you nothing but lost and brokenhearted
This is Bruce being Bruce, hammering into your head that he speaks for the working man. Putting my facetiousness aside, I do like this song. I’m finding that not too many people, if any, can tell a story in song better than Bruce.
This is a new one for me. I like this song a lot. It kind of feels like a Jackson Browne song. I love the sax solo and then how it goes into a guitar solo. I think this is my favorite of the songs that were new to me on this album.
This song became an instant classic to me. This song is always popping up in my heat, perhaps more than any other Springsteen tune. I can’t explain it other than it is a great song.
I have gotten all of these facts from 100.7 WZLX (a Boston classic rock station)
– The album cover was shot at the photographer’s home in New Jersey.
After doing photography for Patti Smith and notable early punk rockers, photographer Frank Stefanko was given the task of shooting the album cover and inner photos for Darkness. The two met through Patti as a mutual connection. Bruce drove down to Stefanko’s house in Haddonfield, New Jersey with just a change of clothes and shot both inside the house and on surrounding streets. The cover for Darkness was shot in Stefanko’s bedroom, while a photo from the same shoot was later used for The River.
– Bruce wrote 70+ songs for the album
According to Jimmy Iovine, Springsteen wrote at least 70 songs to be chosen for final inclusion on Darkness, and over 50 of them were at least partially recorded but not completed. Bruce ultimately wanted to retain the themes present in the album’s main tracks and avoid “singles” that may not have fit the narrative. But some of those songs eventually saw the light of day…
– Unreleased tracks like “Because the Night” were re-purposed or given to other artists
Springsteen’s compilation The Promise contains 21 unreleased tracks that were recorded mostly from 1976-1978, many of which from the Darkness sessions. Most notable is “Because the Night”, which Bruce gave to Patti Smith and became one of the latter’s signature songs.
– At least 16 songs remain unreleased
Despite the dozens of recordings that eventually saw release on the River or subsequent compilation albums, there are at least 16 known recordings that are circulating as bootlegs but have never been given an official release. These songs include “Preacher’s Daughter”, “Down By the River”, “Castaway”, “Cheap Thrills”, and “Blue Moon”.
Does anybody else like this album or have any memories you would like to share? And don’t forget, please check out my friends Steve and Kristin on the Rock Out Loud podcast. It is a lot of fun, and it is a great place to rock out and enjoy music that you may not hear on any other podcast.
Hi Everybody! We are back with a new album for “Who’s the Boss?” If you are new, or missed the previous “Who’s the Boss?” articles, you can go ahead and see what this is all about. The first assignment given to me by Kristin, from Rock Out Loud, was to listen to Live/1975–85. It turned out to be a 40 song project that had to be split up into three articles – Disc 1, Disc 2, and Disc 3. My next album is not as extensive as Live/1975–85, but it is just as awesome. We are talking about Bruce Springsteen’s big breakthrough album, Born to Run. Instead of a 40 song extravaganza, this album only has 9 songs. 9 awesome songs! For the last album, I gave my initial thoughts, and then gave my feelings about the songs after listening some more. For this album, I loved every song right from the beginning. So, my initial thoughts did not change for any of these songs, other than liking them more and more.
Born to Run was Bruce Springsteen’s third album, and was his big breakthrough. I had thought that this was his debut album, but Springsteen had released Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. and The Wild, the Innocent and the E Street Shuffle. Born to Run was released on August 25, 1975, and was a critical and commercial success. As of 2000, 6 million copies were sold. It would reach all the way to #3 on the Billboard charts. Bruce Springsteen has pretty much been a household name since this album was released. So, let’s go check this out, and see what all the craze is about. As with the previous posts, you can click on the song title to listen to it and/or watch the video.
I like this song (also first heard on Live 1975/85). If I didn’t hear this on the live album, I might not have liked this song as much. It sticks with you though.
Never heard of this song before. I’m really enjoying this one. Pretty cool, upbeat song. As usual, Clarence Clemons is awesome. I like Bruce’s voice in this song.
This is a song that I liked right away on the Live 1975/85 album. I like this studio version just as much. And ow, he really turns it up a notch towards the end!
Whoa, I really like this one! They are firing on all cylinders in this song. Every instrument plays a big part, and this is another song where I love Bruce’s voice. I don’t know any details about playing music, but maybe it’s a lower key or range that he sings in some of these songs that I really enjoy.
This is a little different from anything else I have heard from Bruce. It features a piano and trumpet. I think I will like this song more after a few more listens.
Holy crap! What an epic song! It is story that could be made into a movie. And the music is incredible. And the awesome sax and piano in the middle of the song reminds me of Billy Joel’s “Scenes From an Italian Restaurant”, which is a great thing! This song is over 9 minutes, which would probably explain why there are only 8 songs on the album. But, it doesn’t feel like 9 minutes. So, so good!
– The title from “Thunder Road” comes from the Robert Mitchum film Thunder Road. Springsteen declared that he was somehow inspired by the movie despite not having seen it. As he says: “I never saw the movie, I only saw the poster in the lobby of the theater.”
– While recording “Jungleland” the closing act of Born to Run, it took 16 hours to properly set up and record Clarence Clemons solo act. When Bruce told him how long it had been, Clarence was surprised. He had believed that only about 5 hours had gone by.
– A line from the song “Night” on Born to Run goes “the circuit’s lined and jammed with chromed invaders.” The Circuit is a nickname for the drive around Kingsley Street and Ocean Avenue in Asbury Park.
– Ernest “Boom” Carter doesn’t have the same name recognition as some other E Streeters, but even if you’re only a casual Bruce fan, you’ve heard his work. Carter’s only performance with Springsteen was his drum track on “Born to Run.” Carter’s successor to the drum throne, Max Weinberg, has said that he could never reproduce Carter’s drum parts in concert and eventually stopped trying.
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Hey Everybody! Welcome back to this week’s Top 40 Countdown! If you missed the previous songs, you can go back and check out songs 40-31, 30-21 and 20-11. When I began this week, I had no idea that this would be one of the best, if not THE best countdown I’ve covered so far. Let’s see if this streak continues today. Let’s Return to the week ending January 19, 1985, and wrap up the countdown.
” by Bruce Springsteen
(1988)
We all have our pet peeves. I am no different, so here is mine: it drives me absolutely bonkers when there is a patriotic celebration, like 4th of July fireworks, and I hear this song blasting from the speakers. Are we really that ignorant of lyrics and their meaning? Can the general public not understand tone? 
Welcome back to another week of Top 40 music! I am so worn down by this election season. And now it’s time to celebrate the end of this disgusting chapter in U.S. politcs. And what better way to celebrate than to take a shower, and listen to some great music. And this is going to be a great week of music! We are Returning to the week ending November 10, 1984. This week we had just elected Ronald Reagan to his second term as president. I was only 14 at the time, but I don’t remember the campaign being so dirty back then. So let’s go there, and Return to the week ending November 10, 1984, and begin the countdown.:format(jpeg):mode_rgb():quality(40)/discogs-images/R-6421435-1418805523-6570.jpeg.jpg?resize=120%2C120&ssl=1)
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I never heard of this song before. It sounds like Loverboy played on high speed. Sam Harris was the grand champion singer of Star Search in its premiere season in 1983.
It didn’t take long for The Cars to make another appearance on this countdown! This was the third single released from Heartbeat City. This is a little different sounding Cars song. Not only is it a ballad, but instead of Ric Ocasek singing lead, the band’s bassist, Benjamin Orr sang lead. The music video was directed by actor Timothy Hutton. It is mainly known for featuring model Paulina Porizkova, who would later become Ric Ocasek’s wife.
