Welcome back to this week’s Countdown! Today’s songs bring me back to a great time. Well, I suppose any week of ’80s music brings us back to a great time.
If you want to listen to this great music, you can click on the song title to get the YouTube video, and you can click on the album cover to get the song on Amazon.
New, let’s return to the week ending November 8, 1986, and continue the countdown on, One, Two, One, Two, Three, Four!
We begin today’s list with the second single released from Billy Joel’s album, The Bridge, which happens to be my favorite Billy Joel album. This is a fun video featuring several cameos, including Ringo Starr, Paul McCartney and Joel’s then wife Christie Brinkley who is holding their baby daughter Alexa. The song would peak at #10.
Yet another smash hit by Genesis. This was the second single released from the classic Invisible Touch album. This song would reach #4 on the Hot 100 chart, and #1 on Billboard’s Adult Contemporary chart.
There were a lot of big fads in the ’80s. Yesterday, I had mentioned our love of ’50s and ’60s culture. There was also a big wave of Australia that hit the U.S. And of course, we had famous actors trying their hand in singing. Most were successful. There was Bruce Willis, Eddie Murphy, Jack Wagner, and of course Miami Vice’s Don Johnson. This was a huge hit for Johnson, hitting the Top 10, landing at #5.
I fell in love with this Canadian rock band in 1983 when I saw them perform at the US Festival. This would turn out to be one of my favorite songs by them. It was their most successful single in the U.S. landing at #27.
I don’t remember this song at all. Yet, it was a #20 hit, and came off of Steve Winwood’s huge album, Back in the High Life. It was the second single released from the album, right between “Higher Love” and “Back in the High Life Again“. For some reason, I blocked it out. Maybe my brain can only hold so much information. Now that I’m familiar with this song, another song probably dropped out of my head.
Here’s another song I never heard of! What’s going on?!? Just kidding. If you have never heard of this song, you must have lived under a rock. This was the third single released off of the Bangles Different Light album. It as released in September 1986, and would hit number in December for four weeks, going into 1987. It would be the #1 song from 1987. This is the first song by an all-female group playing their own instruments to top the Billboard singles chart.
Three years after Frontiers, Journey finally released a new studio album, called Raised On Radio. Steve Smith was replaced on drums by Larry Londin, and this is the only Journey album without bassist Ross Valory. As anybody who has watched American Idol knows, Randy Jackson played bass for Journey, and he won’t let you forget it. Even though Journey was a mess at this point, I still loved this album. This was the third single released, and it peaked at #17.
This is a fun song by the British new wave group. It has become Wang Chung’s signature song. It would reach #2 on the chart, being held out of the top spot by “Walk Like an Egyptian”.
This was Billy Idol’s lead single from his Whiplash Smile album. This was originally a soul ballad from 1968, by William Bell, called “I Forgot to Be Your Lover“. This song would be Billy Idol’s 2nd Top 10 hit, peaking at #6.
I got so tired of both “Satisfaction” and “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” by The Rolling Stones that if I hear either of them ever again, it would be too soon. However, Aretha makes this song so awesome! I cannot get enough of anything by Aretha Franklin. This song is perfect for her. It also features Ronnie Wood and Keith Richards on guitars, and Aretha on paino. This version of the song was used for the Whoopi Goldberg film Jumpin’ Jack Flash.
What a way to go out! What do you think of the countdown so far this week? Come back tomorrow as we continue this week’s countdown.
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