How long has this been going on. [Archive]

Swish

08-02-2010, 02:17 PM

I was waiting in my orthopedist's office today and got a smile on my face when I heard the opening bass notes to that great song by 'Ace' from way back in 1974. Paul Carrack, who went wrote and sang the song, is better known for his later work with Roxy Music, Squeeze (he sang the huge hit 'Tempted') and Mike + The Mechanics. But I think this is just one great song, despite the fact that it was over played on AM, and later on FM, radio, and I can enjoy it without feeling guilty, which is a bonus. Great lyrics, vocals, and a guitar solo that is creative and unique without dominating the song. It just fit perfectly.

What other songs can you rattle off that hit the top of the charts, not necessarily # 1, but would fit the bill as a real quality song? The aforementioned 'Tempted' would certainly fit into this category.

Swishdaddy

3LB

08-02-2010, 02:56 PM

Swish

08-03-2010, 03:26 AM

you mean that blue-eyed soul thing?

well, skipping the obvious (H&O)

Couldn't Get It Right - Climax Blues Band
My Girl (gone so long) - Chilliwack
I'm Not In Love - 10CC (also overplayed)
Hypnotised - Fleetwood Mac (Bob Welch)
Don't Dream Its Over - Crowded House
Call It Love - Poco (have I gone too far?)

I'll give you most of those, but 'Call It Love'? I also didn't care much for the Chilliwack song either. It sounds like a typical, disposable pop garbage tune to me. I liked the band, but not this song. Contrived lyrics...I don't know man.

Thanks a heap to everyone who contributed.:ihih:

Slosh

08-03-2010, 04:04 AM

Finely crafted pop song or guilty pleasure? This one seems to have been a minor regional hit. Too bad for the rest of the world.

Ah! Leah! (http://dl.dropbox.com/u/2956428/01%20Ah%21%20Leah%21.flac)

Swish

08-03-2010, 06:15 AM

Finely crafted pop song or guilty pleasure? This one seems to have been a minor regional hit. Too bad for the rest of the world.

Ah! Leah! (http://dl.dropbox.com/u/2956428/01%20Ah%21%20Leah%21.flac)

Regional hit? I don't know. It was a top 20 on Billboard, so I'm not sure how that would be called only regional, but perhaps you're right. A friend of mine loved that song.

I probably mentioned before that I met Donnie at a golf outing in the Pittsburgh area about 12 years ago. What was really funny was I took a wrong turn on the way to the course and passed 'Ah Leah Drive', a private road that I figured must lead to his house, knowing that he was from this area. I mentioned it when I met him and he chuckled and confirmed it was indeed the road to his house.

Did you know he wrote 'The Rapper' when he was in the Jaggerz? He was also in Wild Cherry for a few years before going solo and releasing his first record with Ah Leah in 1980.

bobsticks

08-03-2010, 08:12 AM

...I pulled up this out of curiosity: http://www.onehitwondercentral.com/top100.cfm

I remember rather liking the David & David song as well as Big Country. Undoubtedly you'll agree that "Rapper's Delight" must surely have been the most influential overall. I'm sure Swish has his copy.

Slosh

08-03-2010, 08:33 AM

Regional hit? I don't know. It was a top 20 on Billboard, so I'm not sure how that would be called only regional, but perhaps you're right. A friend of mine loved that song.
It was a regional hit until MCA picked up the album. My memory might be a bit hazy on this, after all, I was only 12 at the time. :)

3LB

08-03-2010, 10:06 AM

Finch Platte

08-03-2010, 12:25 PM

When did Carrack sing for Roxy Music??? :crazy:

fp (never heard of such a thing)

bobsticks

08-03-2010, 12:52 PM

When did Carrack sing for Roxy Music??? :crazy:

fp (never heard of such a thing)

As per Wiki~In 1977 Ace disbanded, and Carrack began working as a backing musician for Frankie Miller. Subsequently, he was a member of Roxy Music, playing keyboards on their 1979 reunion album Manifesto. Carrack would also play on the next two Roxy Music albums, but as a session musician, not a band member.

...didn't know it myself.

Smokey

08-03-2010, 01:14 PM

When did Carrack sing for Roxy Music??? :crazy:

I think Carrack was more of a guess keyboard player (on Manifesto album) than a singer in Roxy Music group.

Finch Platte

08-03-2010, 02:52 PM

I think Carrack was more of a guess keyboard player (on Manifesto album) than a singer in Roxy Music group.

You mean he guessed what notes he was playing?

haaa haaa haaaa I crack myself up.

Swish

08-03-2010, 04:11 PM

....Year of the Cat from Al Stewart. That was back in 1976, my senior year of high school, and they played the s<a>hit out of it, but what a great song.

Swish

08-03-2010, 04:14 PM

Ah!Leah! was all over radio back in the day, and I grew up in Tennessee.

since there doesn't seem to be any specific motif or criteria

5 Days in May - Blue Rodeo
Last Goodbye - Jeff Buckley
Imminence Front - The Who
Thru With The Two-step - Robert Plant
Blue Sky Mine - Midnight Oil
Sunshine - Francis Dunnery
Burnin Sky - Bad Co
Mad World - Micheal Andrews
Turn To Stone - Joe Walsh
Lunatic Fringe - Red Rider
Crazy - Seal
Angel, Won't You Call Me - The Decemberists

Some good songs dude, but I'm not so sure any were huge hits, or am I just a crazy lunatic? I remember 'Beds Are Burning' was a bit of a hit by Midnight Oil, but not Blue Sky Mine. I could be wrong, but that's such a rare occurrence that I would have to say you're wrong. :biggrin5:

bobsticks

08-03-2010, 04:43 PM

....Year of the Cat from Al Stewart. That was back in 1976, my senior year of high school, and they played the s<a>hit out of it, but what a great song.

Yup yup...but I feel no guilt over liking "Time Passages" as well...

ForeverAutumn

08-03-2010, 04:46 PM

....Year of the Cat from Al Stewart. That was back in 1976, my senior year of high school, and they played the s<a>hit out of it, but what a great song.

In general, Al Stewart is one of the greatest songwriters of our time. Totally under-rated and ignored.

ForeverAutumn

08-03-2010, 05:00 PM

Some good songs dude, but I'm not so sure any were huge hits, or am I just a crazy lunatic? I remember 'Beds Are Burning' was a bit of a hit by Midnight Oil, but not Blue Sky Mine. I could be wrong, but that's such a rare occurrence that I would have to say you're wrong. :biggrin5:

So I was just scanning a Wiki article and Blue Sky Mine was numero uno on the charts, in the US, for one week the week of March 17, 1990. I gotta figure it had to work its way up and then back down, so it was probably charted for a few weeks anyway.

John Mellencamp - Cherry Bomb. Just a fun, well-written pop song.
Queensryche - Silent Lucidity
Dire Straits - Sultans of Swing. Totally overplayed but a great, great song!

Stone

08-03-2010, 05:19 PM

My god, if it weren't for a brief mention of Midnight Oil and Big Country, I'd think this was the old home thread about AM hits.

Smokey

08-03-2010, 06:22 PM

You mean he guessed what notes he was playing?

haaa haaa haaaa I crack myself up.

Count that as the one that got away :)

Speaking of AM hits, how about Captain & Tennille's "Do That to Me One More Time". That song seem to come on every time I rode to high school in the morning.

Swish

08-04-2010, 04:55 AM

Yup yup...but I feel no guilt over liking "Time Passages" as well...

I always thought it was kind of...wimpy. Guess that's why you like it. :prrr:

Swish

08-04-2010, 04:57 AM

My god, if it weren't for a brief mention of Midnight Oil and Big Country, I'd think this was the old home thread about AM hits.

That was my point actually. So many AM hits were crap, but these are the exceptions.

Swish

08-04-2010, 05:02 AM

So I was just scanning a Wiki article and Blue Sky Mine was numero uno on the charts, in the US, for one week the week of March 17, 1990. I gotta figure it had to work its way up and then back down, so it was probably charted for a few weeks anyway.

John Mellencamp - Cherry Bomb. Just a fun, well-written pop song.
Queensryche - Silent Lucidity
Dire Straits - Sultans of Swing. Totally overplayed but a great, great song!

Smart a<a>ss! That was during a time when I listened to very little radio, and I have to say I can't remember hearing that in an elevator or while shopping, like so many other AM/FM hits. Oh well.

Funny story; when I moved back to PA from NJ in the early 80s, I used to harass my office staff about the music they liked. Crap like Chicago (Peter Cetera-era. Yuck!) and other top 40 garbage. I played Midnight Oil's 'Beds Are Burning' and they all trashed it. About a year or so later, it ends up a hit, and they were all saying what a great song it was! I reminded them that they trashed it all those months ago and my point was proven; I didn't need a DJ on a top 40 station dictating my musical tastes.

Slosh

08-04-2010, 05:04 AM

since there doesn't seem to be any specific motif or criteria
Seems to me there is.

ForeverAutumn

08-04-2010, 05:23 AM

I'm hungry.

ForeverAutumn

08-04-2010, 05:30 AM

Smart a<a>ss!

I wasn't trying to be a smart a<a>ss. I wasn't on a mission to prove you wrong or anything, I just came across the information honestly. I didn't know that it was a hit either.

3-LockBox

08-04-2010, 05:40 AM

I will admit that not everythingon my list would have been a hit, but I remember it getting some love, perhaps only on a local level. Robert Plant's Big Love might make more sense. My Mad World selection might make more sense if I had the right guy - Gary Jules. or Tears For Fears version if you like...

Speaking of which, I ignored some acts just because I was going more for the few hit wonders. Tears For Fears, John Mellencamp, ELO and XTC would certainly have a top ten of their own.

Yes Bobstyx, I have much love for David&David - great CD. David Baerwald (the singer) has a few other albums in the '90s that are worth searching for.

But I did think of a couple more songs:

So In Love - OMD (just a superbly crafted song even if it is kinda, you know...)
Strawberry Letter 23 - Brothers Johnson (pssst...its about strawberry letter 22)
Sunshine Superman - Donovan
Watching The Detectives - Elvis Costello
Is She Really Going Out With Him? - Joe Jackson
Brass In Pocket - The Pretenders
More Than This - Roxie Music
All Those Years Ago - George Harrison
Walk On The Wild Side - Lou Reed (one of the darkest, seediest songs to have ever made it to the charts; overplayed, but in the right mood, still conjures magic)

Swish

08-04-2010, 05:43 AM

ForeverAutumn

08-04-2010, 07:49 AM

Okay then, here are a couple more:

Manfred Mann's version of Blinded by the Light
Jackson Browne - The Load Out/Stay (okay, maybe not the "Stay" part).

Stone

08-04-2010, 10:05 AM

Manfred Mann's version of Blinded by the Light

Alright, that's a quality tune.

And if it hasn't been mentioned already, I say:

The Looking Glass - "Brandy"

Swish

08-04-2010, 11:19 AM

Alright, that's a quality tune.

And if it hasn't been mentioned already, I say:

The Looking Glass - "Brandy"

Nice call Stone.

3LB

08-04-2010, 02:21 PM

...like you didn't know this was coming

brace yerself

One Of These Nights
Tequila Sunrise
I Can't Tell You Why
New Kid In Town

oh yeah... I went there

Swish

08-04-2010, 06:34 PM

...like you didn't know this was coming

brace yerself

One Of These Nights
Tequila Sunrise
I Can't Tell You Why
New Kid In Town

oh yeah... I went there

You just destroyed my thread and I'll never forgive you.

Snowbunny

08-05-2010, 10:01 AM

My Girl (gone so long) - Chilliwack

EARWORM ALERT!!!

Geez, 3LB you need to put a warning up if your going to mention THAT song. Here in British Columbia it is played on local radio at least once a day!

Was it popular outside of Canada?

Snowie

ForeverAutumn

08-05-2010, 10:24 AM

I heard it this morning. LOL!

Snowbunny

08-05-2010, 10:41 AM

Yup yup...but I feel no guilt over liking "Time Passages" as well...

I love those songs. They just never seem dated. But I always forget about Al Stewart. Did he any albums worth getting, or was he a bit of a two-hit wonder?

I once borrowed my mom's car to drive to Vancouver and the only "cassette" was Jim Croce - Photographs and Memories, and I listened to non-stop without getting sick of it. That guy wrote some real tearjerkers.

Time in a Bottle
One Less Set of Footsteps
and the classic missed opportunity song - Operator!

Swish

08-05-2010, 10:44 AM

Alan Parsons - I Wouldn't Want to be Like You

Snowbunny

08-05-2010, 10:50 AM

Nice call Stone.

Okay, I'm looking for the secret wink and nod in yous guys post.

That was such a CHICK song! The guys I grew up with hated it, yet it was always requested for the slow dance! :smilewinkgrin:

ForeverAutumn

08-05-2010, 10:59 AM

Alan Parsons - I Wouldn't Want to be Like You

Who the f*ck are you and what did you do with my friend Swish? :sosp:

Snowbunny

08-05-2010, 11:48 AM

Sir Duke - Stevie Wonder

Have I bastardized this thread? Am I still on topic?

Its taking me forever to read all the replies in this thread!

Am I the only one working today???

Swish

08-05-2010, 11:57 AM

Okay, I'm looking for the secret wink and nod in yous guys post.

That was such a CHICK song! The guys I grew up with hated it, yet it was always requested for the slow dance! :smilewinkgrin:

Well, maybe a little, but lots of my friends liked that one. I think the band was 'Looking Glass'. Yeah, that's it.

3LB

08-05-2010, 12:50 PM

I'm w/ you Snowy...

I knew I was firing across the bow with my Eagles blast, but yeah, just when ya think ya know somebody

I'm still waiting for the Dancing In The Moonlight post ;)

Swish

08-05-2010, 01:03 PM

Sir Duke - Stevie Wonder

Have I bastardized this thread? Am I still on topic?

Its taking me forever to read all the replies in this thread!

Am I the only one working today???

...I would submit 'Higher Ground' and 'Living for the City' before 'Sir Duke', but not too shabby there.

Swish

08-05-2010, 05:35 PM

I'm still waiting for the Dancing In The Moonlight post ;)

That and maybe 'I'm Easy', 'Afternoon Delight', and that ultra-stupid Pina Colada song...If you like pina coladas...

Shoot me now please.

bobsticks

08-09-2010, 03:48 PM

I always thought it was kind of...wimpy. Guess that's why you like it. :prrr:

Seriously? You're gonna roll like that on me and then come up with The Alan Parson's Project and The Looking Glass?

Really...I hope some sailor calls you a fine girl and whisks you away to New Jersey. :ciappa:

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A hex upon your house you foul codger...

Swish

08-10-2010, 06:51 AM

Seriously? You're gonna roll like that on me and then come up with The Alan Parson's Project and The Looking Glass?

Really...I hope some sailor calls you a fine girl and whisks you away to New Jersey. :ciappa:

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A hex upon your house you foul codger...

...when you consider it was a 'hit' on the radio. Can't believe you didn't like that one and instead opted for the wimpy Time Passages. :confused5:

Worf101

08-10-2010, 07:29 AM

I don't "get" this thread. Are we basically talking about surprisingly good pop songs from unlikely places? If so I can play. Back to the OP's point "How Long" was a great song by basically a one hit wonder. There's lots of those.... but not as many as I'd like.

"500 Miles"
"Rainy Night in Georgia"
"Patches"
"Smiling Faces"
"Express Yourself"
"Thin Line Between Love and Hate"

Lots of these types of songs.... Lots. Some would say that "Patches" is a joke of a song but if you'd seen my Uncles, most of whom'd lived through the Great Depression and fought in WWII and were sharecroppers sons, break down in tears listening to this tune, you'd think differently.

Worf

3LB

08-10-2010, 09:17 AM

The Commodores last hurrah, sans Lionnel Ritchie, was a good song. The Nightshift is quite a timeless song in that its immediately recognizable as a sentimental homage, but ultimately evoking conversation by those who maybe aren't familiar with those names mentioned in the song, i.e. names that still desrve mentioning.

Snowbunny

08-11-2010, 02:04 PM

Last night I was at our local Music in the Park and a singer-songerwriter duo from Saskatchewan performed a great rendition of Mary Robbins - Devil Woman.

That was a great song which I never hear on the radio. Of course, I don't know if it ever hit the charts at all in it's day. Robbins seems to be one of those under-rated songwriters.

Snowie