Tag Archives: Rick Astley

Artists, Music, Remember That Song?

Remember That Song – 2/1/22

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Can you name the artist and song:

Whenever blue teardrops are fallin’
And my emotional stability is leaving me
There is something I can do
I can get on the telephone and call you up, baby

Last Song: “She Wants To Dance With Me” by Rick Astley from Hold Me in Your Arms (1989)

Great job David (@daviddwwalke)!!!

There’s a girl I’ve been waiting to see
And I really get the feeling that she likes me
‘Cause she said so, but not in so many words
I’ve got to tell you what I’ve heard

If you’d like to get the song from Amazon, you can click on the album cover below:

Artists, Music, Remember That Song?

Remember That Song – 7/16/19

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Can you name the artist and song:*

You want a better kind of future
One that everyone could share
You’re not alone, we all could use it

*Whoever answers correctly will hear their name on the 80s at 8 radio show on WEDM this weekend at 8am and 8pm on Saturday and Sunday

Last Song: “Together Forever” by Rick Astley from the album Whenever You Need Somebody (1988)

Great job Jim (@JimVilk) and Adora (@Adora2000)!!!

So don’t stop me falling
It’s destiny calling
A power I just can’t deny

If you’d like to get this song from Amazon, click on the album cover below:

1989, Artists, Music, Top 40

Top 40 Songs This Week – February 11, 1989: Songs 10-1

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Welcome back to the conclusion of this week’s countdown! If you’d like to go back too check out the previous songs, you can check out songs 40-31, 30-21, and 20-11. It has been fun going back to this transitional part of my life. We may have been heading into the ’90s, but there are definitely some classic ’80s songs here. So, let’s Return to the week ending February 11, 1989, and wrap up this week’s countdown.

10. “Walking Away” by Information Society

The synth-pop group followed up their smash hit, “What’s on Your Mind (Pure Energy)” with another Top 10 hit. In that previous song, they had sampled Leonard Nimoy’s voice from the Star Trek episode “Errand of Mercy”. In this song, they sampled William Shatner as James T. Kirk saying “It is useless to resist us” from the Star Trek episode, “Mirror, Mirror”, and James Doohan as Scotty saying “Let’s Go See!” from the Star Trek episode, “Wolf in the Fold”. They did not have any other top 10 hits after this song. Maybe they needed to sample Doctor McCoy saying “I’m a doctor, not a ____”.

9. “She Wants to Dance With Me” by Rick Astley

Yes, Rick Astley had other songs besides “Never Gonna Give You Up” and “Together Forever”. Somebody better inform the ’80s radio stations and shows that are out there.

 

8. “I Wanna Have Some Fun” by Samantha Fox

My second ’80s crush of this countdown! This was the first song released from Samantha’s third album, I Wanna Have Some Fun. I always loved her music. And 16-18 year old me really appreciated that every one of her songs at that time were about sex or love…but mostly sex. Pretty much the pop version of the band Kiss.

7. “The Lover in Me” by Sheena Easton

This was one of Sheena Easton’s biggest hits in the U.S., peaking at #2. After having a strong run throughout the early ’80s, this would be her final Top 10 hit. This song was written by Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, Antonio “L.A.” Reid and Daryl Simmons, who were quite the powerhouse at that time.

6. “All This Time” by Tiffany

This awesome ballad would be Tiffany’s final Top 10 hit. I personally think she is very underrated. She has a very cool and unique voice, and puts a lot of emotion into her songs. And she is another ’80s artist who is still out there recording new music….most recently, 2018’s Pieces of Me.

5. “When the Children Cry” by White Lion

Speaking of unique voices, here is another awesome power ballad. White Lion had a really good run in the late ’80s/early ’90s before they called it quits.

 

 

4. “Born to Be My Baby” by Bon Jovi

2-3-4!!! Bon Jovi was not slowing down one bit at this time. This was the 2nd single released from the New Jersey album, and was the 2nd of 5 Top 10 songs from that album alone. That was the most top 10 hits for any hard rock album.

 

3. “Wild Thing” by Tone Lōc

Thanks Wikipedia for letting us know that the title is a reference to the phrase “doin’ the wild thing,” a euphemism for sex. Duh!!!! This song would peak at #2. It is a lot of fun. I do like rap with guitar and heavy drums. As usual, if a rap song has a great rock sound to it, that means it was stolen. In this case, it used an uncredited sample of Van Halen’s “Jamie’s Cryin'”. There was a lawsuit that was settled out of court.

2. “When I’m With You” by Sheriff


Great power ballad by the Canadian rock group, Sheriff. This song was released in 1983 with minor success. Then in November 1988, Brian Philips, Program Director at KDWB in Minneapolis, and WKTI in Milwaukee began playing the song, and eventually other radio stations nationally followed suit. The song shot up to number 1, which was four years after the band separated in 1985. Freddy Curci held the final note of the song for 19.4 seconds, making it the longest-held note for a male pop singer. Curci went on to form the supergroup Alias, and is still with them to this day.

1. “Straight Up” by Paula Abdul

This was the third song released from Paula Abdul’s Forever Your Girl album (after “Knocked Out” and “The Way That You Love Me”), but this is the one that shot her up to superstardom. This was the first week the song topped the charts, and would stay here for 3 weeks. She had a long string of hits in a short time after this. And the former Laker Girl already had a huge career as a choreographer in many, many music videos and blockbuster movies.

Well, that wraps up this week’s countdown. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I have. We’ll be heading back to the U.K. next time. Until then, Keep your feet on the ground, and keep reaching for the stars.

Artists, Music, Remember That Song?

Remember That Song – 2/7/19

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Can you name the artist and song:

Well I’m remonstrated
Outdated I really want to be over-rated
I’m a finder and I’m a keeper
I’m not a loser and I ain’t no weeper

Last Song: “Never Gonna Give You Up” by Rick Astley from the album Whenever You Need Somebody (1988)

Great job Legacy (@Adamcago), Karen (@dovey_karen), Jim (@JimVilk), Mark (@Mark_CCFC1927), and Cody (@bandit5160)!!!

A full commitment’s what I’m thinking of
You wouldn’t get this from any other guy

If you’d like to get this song from Amazon, you can click on the album cover below

Artists, Music, Remember That Song?

Remember That Song: 2/7/18

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Can you name the artist and song:

You had your time, you had the power
You’ve yet to have your finest hour

Last Song: “Together Forever” by Rick Astley from the album Whenever You Need Somebody (1987)

Great job Karen (@dovey_karen) and Andy (@Torahguy)!!!

It’s never changing
Can’t you hear me, I’m saying
I want you for the rest of my life

If you’d like to purchase this song from Amazon, click on the album cover below:

Artists, Music, Remember That Song?

Remember That Song: 2/7/17

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Can you name the artist and song:

In a dream you are here
You smile and hold me near
And in my heart I’ll pretend
That you are here again

Last Song: “Never Gonna Give You Up” by Rick Astley from the album Whenever You Need Somebody (1987)

Great job Old School 80s (@OldSchool80s) and Brent (@jonbrent13)!!!

We’ve known each other for so long
Your heart’s been aching but you’re too shy to say it
Inside we both know what’s been going on
We know the game and we’re gonna play it

1988, Artists, Music, Top 40

Top 40 Songs This Week – May 21, 1988: Songs 20-11

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Hi Everybody! Welcome back to this week’s countdown! If you missed the previous songs, you can go ahead and check out songs 40-31 and 30-21. In addition to more hits from this week in 1988, we have a Long Distance Dedication today! Now, let’s Return to the week ending May 21, 1988, and move on with the countdown.

 20. “My Girl” by Suave

This is a cover of The Temptation’s classic 1964 hit. This was Suave’s first and biggest hit. There’s a good reason why we haven’t heard much else from him. Suave, whose real name is Waymond Anderson, was sentenced to life in prison in 1993 for arson murder. He torched a crack house near the USC campus, which resulted in the death of a drug addict. He is still in prison. However, new information has been presented that he was in Jackson, Mississippi, visiting his sister the day of the murder. A minister in Jackson also said that he saw Suave in church that day. There were witnesses that implicated Suave, but they have since changed their stories saying that they were placed under duress by the police. This sounds like it could be a Dateline special.

19. “Where Do Broken Hearts Go” by Whitney Houston

This was the fourth single to be released from Whiteney’s second album, Whitney. Initially, Houston did not want to record the song. But, Arista Records CEO Clive Davis believed the song would go to number one if she recorded it, so she obliged. I suppose that Clive Davis did know what he was doing pre-American Idol.
“Where Do Broken Hearts Go” did indeed become a number one hit – Houston’s seventh consecutive one in the U.S.

18. “Circle in the Sand” by Belinda Carlisle

I love the Go-Go’s, and I love Belinda Carlisle’s solo work just the same. She has a unique voice. Fun fact: Thomas Dolby played the keyboard for this song.

17. “Make It Real” by The Jets

I enjoyed The Jets back in the day. This is a really good ballad. It would be the group’s fifth and final Top 10 hit.

16. “Dreaming” by Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark

OMD had that classic ’80s New Wave sound. This song was released as a single from their greatest hits album, and would be their last single before the band split up.

15. “Angel” by Aerosmith

As with all the other singles released from Aerosmith’s huge comeback album, this song was overplayed beyond belief. It is a good ballad that I would enjoy more if it wasn’t played so much.

14. “Together Forever” by Rick Astley

I feel like this is a continuation of “Never Gonna Give You Up“. The music sounds the same. And if he’s never gonna give, never gonna give, never gonna give you up [damn earworm!], then that means that you will be Together Forever. So, this all makes sense now – 27 years later! The songs ARE related!

13. “Pink Cadillac” by Natalie Cole

This is a Bruce Springsteen song that was originally released on the B-side of “Dancing in the Dark“. In 1988, Natalie Cole covered the song and ran away with it, making it a Top 10 single. I was never a big fan of this song. I also get confused between this song and Aretha Franklin’s “Freeway of Love.”

Long Distance Dedication

We have now arrived at a staple of American Top 40 – The Long Distance Dedication. Most of us have had childhood friends that we have long lost touch with – either because they moved away, or we moved away. Robert sent in a letter that most of us can relate to. He says,

Dear Casey,

Good friends are important to all of us – and I have two of the best. In 1981 I moved to Frankfurt, Germany with my military family. I was nervous: no friends, a new school AND a new country. I clearly remember my first day of seventh grade. I slowly walked to the bus stop and stood away from everyone. There was not a soul I knew. As the bus pulled up I reluctantly boarded and took a seat by myself. I kept my eyes forward – scared to say anything – until I heard a voice ask me if it was alright to sit next to me. I looked up, said “Yes” and my life was changed forever. I was too nervous to notice that someone else was standing away from the group and not talking – and now he was sitting next to me. His name was LeRoyce and he had just moved to Germany as well. We continued our conversation all the way to school. As fate would have it, we had a few classes together and we got to know each other even better. We spent hours together and I met his younger brother Marvin. The three of us became inseparable. We helped each other through the hard times of growing up. We survived junior high and high school together – never letting each other down. Naturally, high school ended and we were forced to go our separate ways and create our own lives. Unfortunately, after graduation we lost touch. It was not until 12 years later that I made a good attempt to locate LeRoyce and Marvin. I was successful! I found that they were both living in Louisville, Kentucky. I got a hold of them, booked a flight and our reunion was set. I cannot describe the absolute joy of being back together with my best friends. We had a great time and vowed to not let so much time pass between our get togethers. We now meet every summer, rotating between Louisville and my home in Nebraska. In fact, they will be here in July. One bond we have always shared was music. We spent countless hours listening to our favorite songs. One of those songs never fails to remind me of them every time I hear it. Casey, would you please play When Doves Cry by Prince for LeRoyce and Marvin – it was one of our favorite songs and it always reminds me of those great times we spent together. We still listen to it every time we reunite now.

OK, Robert. Here is your long distance dedication:

http://www.mojvideo.com/video-prince-when-doves-cry/63806cee6342494500af

That was “When Doves Cry”, the 1984 classic by Prince from the Purple Rain soundtrack.

Now, on with the countdown.

12. “Wishing Well” by Terence Trent D’Arby

I was never much of a fan of this song. Despite that fact, MTV and radio constantly played it. I don’t hate it as much now, but I’m still not a fan. “Wishing Well” was a #1 hit. It did take a while though, as it was on the charts for 17 weeks before topping the charts.

11. “Piano In the Dark” by Brenda Russell Featuring Joe Esposito

Well, this song gets my vote for song of the day. I loved this song when it came out, and I still do. “Piano in the Dark” was in heavy rotation as I was sorting mail at the post office. This would be Brenda Russell’s biggest hit, peaking at number 6 on the Hot 100. It also earned Russell two Grammy Award nominations in 1989, including one for Song of the Year.

That’s it for today. We will wrap up the countdown on Friday. As always, please let me know what you think of the countdown so far, and if you have any memories from 1988 that you’d like to share..