80’s LYRICS

As we head into the dog days of summer, we’re going to revisit a feature that we’ve often had many requests for more, more, more (thank you Andrea True).  Everybody knows the words to their favourite songs, but not everyone knows the song title.  The five lyric selections below were ALL from number 1 songs during the 1980’s.  How difficult can that be? Well, let’s see then, shall we...

QUESTIONS:

1.     This lyric came from a number one song in 1982: “We all know that people are the same where ever you go.  There is good and bad in everyone.  We learn to live.  We learn to give each other what we need to survive together alive”.  So what ‘80’s song are those lyrics from?  Bonus marks for knowing the singer or singers.    

2.     This 1985 number one came from a movie soundtrack: “I’ve been waitin’ for so long.  For something to arrive.  For love to come along.  Now our dreams are comin’ true.  Through the good times and the bad.  Yeah, I’ll be standing there by you”.  The co-writer of this hit is also the singer, and its success came at a ‘Heavenly’ time for this Canadian.  Can you name the song as well as the singer?  

3.     At the end of October in 1986, this song from a female singer with bright, colourful hair was number one for two weeks.  A portion of the lyrics are:  “In a world full of people.  You can lose sight of it all.  And the darkness inside you.  Can make you feel so small.”   Can you be ‘true’ to yourself and name the song and the artist who sang it?

4.     If you know your ‘80’s music, this one should be a snap.  It was number one for two weeks in July 1980.  Some of the lyrics are:  “Oh, it doesn’t matter what they say in the papers.  ‘Cause it’s always been the same old scene.  There’s a new band in town.  But you can’t get the sound from a story in a magazine...aimed at your average teen”.  This singer/songwriter had previously been an amateur boxer with 22 out of 28 wins.  It was his first number one hit, although it wouldn’t be his last – he had two more chart toppers during the 1980’s.  So, what’s the song already and who sang it?

5.     This number one song from 1987 had already been a Top five hit twenty years previously for a Midwestern U.S. group.  This time out, the singer was a 16 year old female who started out singing in malls.  A portion of the lyrics are: “Running just as fast as we can.  Holding on to one another’s hand.  Tryin’ to get away into the night.  And then you put your arms around me.  And we tumble to the ground.  And then you say...”  Can you name the singer and the name of the famous hit?

ANSWERS

1.  Sir Paul McCartney (although he wasn’t a ‘Sir’ yet) and Stevie Wonder are the two performers of this song.  Paul wrote the song “Ebony & Ivory” and it hit the top of the singles chart for the week of May 15, 1982 and remained there for 7 weeks.  It was replaced by “Don’t You Want Me” from the Human League for the week of July 3rd.

2.  Do you remember a 1983 movie called “A Night In Heaven”?  It starred Christopher Atkins (of “Blue Lagoon” with Brooke Shields).  The songs’ co-writers were Jim Vallance and Bryan Adams.  Adams wasn’t yet the superstar he would later become, but he was getting there.  He’d hit the Hot 100 singles chart previously with “Straight From the Heart” (# 10 in 1983); “Cuts Like A Knife” (# 15 in ‘83); “This Time” (# 24 in ’83); “Run To You” (# 6 in ’85) and “Somebody” (# 11 in ’85).  The song “Heaven” was written specifically for the movie and was Bryan’s first number one.  Adams would go on hit the top rung of the singles chart several more time with songs such as “(Everything I Do) I Do It For You” in 1991 from the movie “Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves”, “All For Love” with Rod Stewart and Sting in ’94 from the movie “The Three Muskateers” and “Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman” in ’95.  That one was featured in the Johnny Depp movie, “Don Juan de Marco.  

3.  Cyndi Lauper is the singer in question.  “True Colors” is the name of her number one hit from the last week in October and the first week of November in 1986.  For both of those weeks, the number two song was Tina Turner’s “Typical Male”.  That one never made number one.  “True Colors“ was replaced at the top of the charts by the group Boston with their hit, “Amanda”.  “True Colors” was Cyndi’s second, and so far, last number one.  Her previous numero uno was 1984’s “Time After Time”.  Cyndi first hit the charts in late ’83 with her signature song, “Girls Just Want To Have Fun” which made it as high as number two in March of ‘84.   

4.  “It’s Still Rock and Roll To Me” was Billy Joel’s first number one single.  1980 was the year.  His next number one was “Tell Her About It” in ‘83.  Then in ‘89, he hit the top of the charts again with “We Didn’t Start The Fire”.  “It’s Still Rock and Roll To Me” replaced Paul McCartney’s “Coming Up” as the top single for the week of July 19^th, 1980.  Billy stayed on top for two weeks and was knocked out of the top spot by Olivia Newton-John’s “Magic”.     

5.  The singer was Tiffany.  Her cover of Tommy James & The Shondells 1967 hit, “I Think We’re Alone Now” stayed in the number one spot for two weeks in November of ‘87.  Ironically it was replaced by another previous Tommy James hit, “Mony Mony”, only this was a live version by Billy Idol.   

“JUNE IS BUSTIN” OUT ALL OVER” 80’s EDITION (THE JULY VERSION)

We’re now officially into July, but this feature has been so popular that we’ll continue this month with a few more.  We’re still asking questions about number one songs but now, they happened in the month of July during the 1980’s.  ALL of these songs made it all the way to number 1, you most likely heard them on the radio hundreds of times, so you probably know the answers instantly.  OK, maybe not, but give it a shot anyway. 

QUESTIONS:

1.     This one-name musical dynamo was born in 1958 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.  During his teens, he taught himself how to play guitar, keyboards, drums and any other instrument within reach.  He signed a contract with Warner Brothers Records with a clause which stated that he would have creative control.  1979’s “For You” was his debut effort.  In his dreams, his rain is always purple and for a time (when he was in a major dispute with his record company), he refused to acknowledge his name and insisted on being called ‘The Artist Formerly Known as ______” or “The Artist” and insisted on using a non verbal symbol instead of his name.  The song we’re looking for was his first number one hit and lasted for 5 weeks at the top of the singles chart, but prior to that, he’d had several songs in the Top 10, including “Little Red Corvette” and “Delirious”, both in 1983.  You know this one, I know you do.  Who is the artist and what was his first number one? 

2.     This singer/songwriter was once a member of a Long Island rock group called The Hassles in the late 1960’s, then formed a power rock trio called Attila.  To help make ends meet, he became an amateur boxer (he won 22 of his 28 fights).  He released his first solo album, “Cold Spring Harbor” in 1972, but a dispute with his management led him to temporarily move to Los Angeles where he played piano in cocktail bars.  This number one hit single from 1980 was his first chart topper, although he would have two more after it.  In 1985, he married a famous supermodel, but they eventually divorced, although he did write a couple of hit songs about her.  This performer is a six time Grammy Award winner and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999.  [HINT]  That last sentence contains a clue to the song title we’re looking for.  Can you name this rock and roll legend and his 1980 number one hit? 

3.     The genesis of this group began in England and went through many changes and quite a few members until it was finally down to three.  The number one song we’re looking for hit the top of the charts on July 19^th, 1986.  It was toppled the following week by Peter Gabriel’s “Sledgehammer”.  Ironically, Gabriel had been this groups’ former lead singer.  Although this band hadn’t exactly been ‘invisible’ [HINT ALERT # 1] on the charts, this song was their first and only number one single.  Don’t shed any ‘tears’ [HINT ALERT # 2] if you can’t get it, but if you don’t, maybe it’s time to hang up your rock and roll shoes. 

4.     Every James Bond movie seemed to have a hit theme song dating all the way back to “Goldfinger” by Shirley Bassey which cracked the Top 10 in 1965.  Paul McCartney & Wings had a number 2 hit with “Live And Let Die” in 1973 as did Carly Simon matched in 1977 with “Nobody Does It Better”.  In 1981, Sheena Easton climbed to number 4 hit with “For Your Eyes Only”.  Nancy Sinatra (“You Only Live Twice” 1967), Rita Coolidge (“All Time High” 1983), Tom Jones (“Thunderball” 1966) and others have had minor hits, but only one James Bond theme has made it to number one and that’s the group whose name and hit song we’re looking for.  This group had their first number one in 1984, although they’d been on the Top 10 singles chart 4 previous times.  In July 1985, their James Bond theme was number one for two weeks before being pushed out of the top spot by the Paul Young hit, “Everytime You Go Away”.  This band was one of the most successful groups in the 1980’s, having sold more than 100 million records.  They took their name from a villain in the Jane Fonda movie “Barberella”.  Can you name the band and their number 1 hit James Bond theme? 

5.  This number one was the first single released from this superstar’s second album.  It was number one for two weeks, starting with the last week of June and remained on top for the first week of July 1987.  By this point in her career, this performer had already hit number one three times...first in 1985, then twice more the following year.  She had two more number one’s in ’87, including the song we’re looking for.  It had been written by a husband and wife songwriter/performing duo who called themselves Boy Meets Girl.  They had previously written “How Will I Know” and submitted “Waiting For A Star To Fall” as a followup, but the record company passed, so the duo recorded it themselves and were rewarded with a Top 5 hit a few years later.  This artist sadly has passed away, but was honoured this month with a tribute at the BET Awards.  Dance around your computer for a few minutes [HINT ALERT] and you’ll probably come up with the title of the song.  She sold over 170 million albums during her lifetime and her name should come easily.  Who is she and what was her 1987 number one?    

ANSWERS

1.  Prince Rogers Nelson is the artist name we needed.  His number one song for 3 weeks in July 1984 was “When Doves Cry”.   Two months later, Prince hit the top of the singles chart again with “Let’s Go Crazy”.  “When Doves Cry” by the way, was credited to Prince and The Revolution.  In 2000, he announced that he would be using the name Prince once again.

2.  Billy Joel is the cat of which we speak.  His 1980 number one hit during the month of July was “It’s Still Rock and Roll To Me” which first hit the top of the singles chart on July 19 where it remained for 2 weeks.  His second number one single, “”Tell Her About It”, came in 1983 with his third and final chart topper, “We Didn’t Start The Fire”, happening in 1989.  His marriage to supermodel Christie Brinkley lasted from 1985 until 1994.  They had one daughter named Alexa Ray.  In 1990, Billy’s song “The Downeaster Alexa” made it as far as number 57 on the singles chart.  Several years ago, Billy toured with Elton John as ‘piano men’.                                                                                                              

3.  The number one hit from 1986 was “Invisible Touch” from Genesis.  The three members of Genesis, Phil Collins, Mike Rutherford and Tony Banks all had separate solo careers at the time and besides former member Peter Gabriel’s “Sledgehammer” number one, Phil Collins solo hit       “Take Me Home” had made it to number seven around the same time.  Collins also produced the Howard Jones hit, “No One Is To Blame”, which climbed to number 4 two weeks before “Invisible Touch” hit number one.  Mike Rutherford’s other band, Mike & The Mechanics had “All I Need Is A Miracle” (number 5 in June of ‘86) and “Taken In” (highest chart position was number 32) on the singles chart at the same time.  Finally, former Genesis member Steve Hackett and his band GTR charted “When The Heart Rules The Mind”, which topped out at number 14.  

4.   It was Duran Duran who took “A View To A Kill” to number 1 in July of 1985.  The previous year, they’d had “The Reflex” top the charts for 2 weeks.  Their name came from the villainous character, Dr. Durand Durand (played by actor Milo O’Shea) in the 1973 film, “Barberella”.  “A View To A Kill” was Roger Moore’s final film as James Bond.    

    

5.  The late Whitney Houston had her first number one in 1987 in July.  The song was “I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me).  Husband and wife George Merrill and Shannon Rubicam wrote it.  Whitney hit the top of the charts again in late September with “Didn’t We Almost Have It All”.  Whitney’s career took a downward spiral for several years and just as she was making her comeback, she died on February 11, 2012 in Los Angeles.  Whitney Houston’s final film, “Sparkle” is due to be released next month.