This week in 1991, the Big Audio Dynamite II single “Rush” debuted on the US Billboard Hot 100 at #90 (September 21)
The song is a catchy, wonderful patchwork quilt of song samples, including the keyboard component of the Who's song "Baba O'Riley", the organ from the introduction to the Deep Purple song "Child in Time", a drum break from Tommy Roe's "Sweet Pea", drums and guitars from a break in Pigmeat Markham's "Here Comes the Judge", a line from the Sugarhill Gang's song "Rapper's Delight" where Big Bank Hank raps "a time to cry, a time to laugh", and a vocal sample from Fred Flange's song "You Keep Me Swingin'", where Peter Sellers talks about "rhythm and melody".
And it’s all tied together brilliantly by the creative genius of Mick Jones.
"Rush", from BAD’s LP “The Globe”, was a #1 hit on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart for four weeks in 1991, becoming the chart's most successful hit of 1991, and it also topped the Australian and New Zealand singles charts.
Click on the link below to watch the clip, which was a music video show favourite of the era:
This week in 1985, the Mr. Mister single “Broken Wings” debuted on the US Billboard Hot 100 at #84 (September 21)
The lead single from their second album “Welcome to the Real World” became the first of two consecutive #1 songs for the band on the US charts, the other being "Kyrie".
Outside of the US, “Broken Wings" was a hit all around the world, topping the charts in Canada, and peaking in the Top 10 in Australia, Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway, Ireland, Switzerland, the UK and Germany, and the Top 20 in Austria, New Zealand, Spain and Sweden.
Click on the link below to watch:
On this day in 1982, Prince released the single “1999” (September 24)
The dance track from the LP of the same name had a number of releases over the years.
The original release peaked at #44 in the US, #25 in the UK, #13 in the Netherlands, and was most successful in Australia at #2.
A re-release in 1983 saw it jump to #12 in the US, #9 in Canada, and #4 in New Zealand.
A 1985 UK release saw the song peak at #4.
Approaching the new millennium the song was again re-released as people around the world prepared to “party like it’s 1999”, which saw the party track peak at #47 in Australia, #40 in the US, #16 in the Netherlands, and #10 in the UK.
Yet another re-release following the death of Prince in 2016 saw the song peak at #49 in the UK, #32 in France, #28 in Australia, and #27 in the US.
Rolling Stone ranked "1999" number 215 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time…
Click on the link below to watch:
On this day in 1991, Nirvana released the LP “Nevermind” (September 24)
According to frontman Kurt Cobain, the songs of Nevermind were influenced by bands such as the Pixies, R.E.M., the Smithereens, and the Melvins.
He said he intended for the album to sound like a fusion of mainstream pop bands such as the Knack and the Bay City Rollers with heavier rock bands such as Black Flag and Black Sabbath.
The album cover, featuring a nude infant swimming toward a U.S. dollar bill on a fishhook, is one of the best-known album covers in American popular music, and was the subject of legal action by the baby on the cover (Spencer Elden) alleging he was “sexually exploited” by the picture.
The album has sold over 30 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time.
Among the most acclaimed albums in the history of music, in 2004 the Library of Congress added it to the National Recording Registry, which collects "culturally, historically or aesthetically important" sound recordings.
The groundbreaking album that brought grunge to the mainstream around the world made it to #1 on the US Billboard charts, and also topped the charts in Sweden, Portugal, Ireland, Greece, France, Finland, Canada, and Belgium.
It went to #2 in Australia, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, and Switzerland, and #3 in Denmark, the Netherlands, and Germany…
Click on the link below to watch “Lithium”:
Exactly forty years ago, on this day in 1983, the Pat Benatar single “Love Is A Battlefield” debuted on the US Billboard Hot 100 at #78 (September 24)
The song from the “Live from Earth” LP spent 5 weeks at #1 in Australia, and 4 weeks at #1 in the Netherlands, making it one of the biggest selling songs of the year in those countries.
It also went to #2 in Canada, #3 in Germany, #5 in the US, and #6 in New Zealand.
In 1984, the song won Benatar her fourth consecutive Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance, and the video was nominated for an MTV Video Music Award for Best Female Video.
The song was ranked at #30 in VH1's list of the 100 Greatest Songs of the 1980s…
Click on the link below to watch:
Exactly forty years ago, on this day in 1983, the Graham Parker single “Life Gets Better” debuted on the US Billboard Hot 100 at #96 (September 24)
This song is a hidden gem…
This Elvis Costello-ish track is off “The Real McCaw”, Parker’s third LP after jettisoning his long-time band The Rumour in 1980…
The song did best in Australia, peaking at #35.
Graham Parker & the Rumour had gained a following in Australia thanks to the support of community radio (4ZZZ, 3RRR), Sydney independent rock station Double Jay (2JJ) and the ABC's weekly music TV show Countdown, which gave the group nationwide exposure.
Parker appeared as a guest presenter on Countdown when he made his second Australian tour in late 1979.
“Life Gets Better” only climbed two places higher than its debut position in the US, peaking at #94.
Click on the link below to watch:
Exactly thirty-six years ago this month, Painters & Dockers released the single “Die Yuppie Die” (September 1987)
The follow-up single to “Nude School” by Australia’s loveable punk-infused power-pop shock rockers Painters & Dockers, absolutely smashed the 80s rise of the “yuppie” class (Young Urban Professionals), and peaked at #49 in the Australian charts.
It was later included on their Top 30 LP “Kiss My Art”…
The band are still going strong, having just re-jigged an old Dockers tune “Advance Australia Where?’’ to promote the YES campaign in the upcoming Australian referendum, recorded on the famed Abbey Road mixing desk, which is now installed at Museum of New and Old Art (MONA), Hobart where the band finished their 40th anniversary national tour.
Click on the link below to watch their classic “Die Yuppie Die”:
Exactly forty years ago, on this day in 1983, the Billy Joel single “Uptown Girl” debuted on the Australian charts at #70 (September 24)
The song from the album “An Innocent Man” remained at #3 for five consecutive weeks from November 12 to December 10, 1983.
It also reached #1 in the UK for five weeks, his only chart-topper in that country.
“Uptown Girl” also went to #1 in Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Ireland, #3 in Belgium and Norway, and was a Top 10 hit in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Denmark, and the Netherlands.
According to an interview with Howard Stern, Joel had originally titled the song "Uptown Girls", and it was conceived on an occasion when he was surrounded by Christie Brinkley, Whitney Houston, and his then-girlfriend Elle Macpherson.
Joel said that the song was inspired by the music of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, which sounds legit.
The classic video depicts Joel and his backup singers working as auto mechanics, when the uptown girl Christie Brinkley rocks up in a chauffeured Rolls-Royce, and the working boys then dance with her, before Joel and Brinkley ride off on a motorcycle.
Click on the link below to watch this iconic clip again:
The song is a catchy, wonderful patchwork quilt of song samples, including the keyboard component of the Who's song "Baba O'Riley", the organ from the introduction to the Deep Purple song "Child in Time", a drum break from Tommy Roe's "Sweet Pea", drums and guitars from a break in Pigmeat Markham's "Here Comes the Judge", a line from the Sugarhill Gang's song "Rapper's Delight" where Big Bank Hank raps "a time to cry, a time to laugh", and a vocal sample from Fred Flange's song "You Keep Me Swingin'", where Peter Sellers talks about "rhythm and melody".
And it’s all tied together brilliantly by the creative genius of Mick Jones.
"Rush", from BAD’s LP “The Globe”, was a #1 hit on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart for four weeks in 1991, becoming the chart's most successful hit of 1991, and it also topped the Australian and New Zealand singles charts.
Click on the link below to watch the clip, which was a music video show favourite of the era:
This week in 1985, the Mr. Mister single “Broken Wings” debuted on the US Billboard Hot 100 at #84 (September 21)
The lead single from their second album “Welcome to the Real World” became the first of two consecutive #1 songs for the band on the US charts, the other being "Kyrie".
Outside of the US, “Broken Wings" was a hit all around the world, topping the charts in Canada, and peaking in the Top 10 in Australia, Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway, Ireland, Switzerland, the UK and Germany, and the Top 20 in Austria, New Zealand, Spain and Sweden.
Click on the link below to watch:
On this day in 1982, Prince released the single “1999” (September 24)
The dance track from the LP of the same name had a number of releases over the years.
The original release peaked at #44 in the US, #25 in the UK, #13 in the Netherlands, and was most successful in Australia at #2.
A re-release in 1983 saw it jump to #12 in the US, #9 in Canada, and #4 in New Zealand.
A 1985 UK release saw the song peak at #4.
Approaching the new millennium the song was again re-released as people around the world prepared to “party like it’s 1999”, which saw the party track peak at #47 in Australia, #40 in the US, #16 in the Netherlands, and #10 in the UK.
Yet another re-release following the death of Prince in 2016 saw the song peak at #49 in the UK, #32 in France, #28 in Australia, and #27 in the US.
Rolling Stone ranked "1999" number 215 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time…
Click on the link below to watch:
On this day in 1991, Nirvana released the LP “Nevermind” (September 24)
According to frontman Kurt Cobain, the songs of Nevermind were influenced by bands such as the Pixies, R.E.M., the Smithereens, and the Melvins.
He said he intended for the album to sound like a fusion of mainstream pop bands such as the Knack and the Bay City Rollers with heavier rock bands such as Black Flag and Black Sabbath.
The album cover, featuring a nude infant swimming toward a U.S. dollar bill on a fishhook, is one of the best-known album covers in American popular music, and was the subject of legal action by the baby on the cover (Spencer Elden) alleging he was “sexually exploited” by the picture.
The album has sold over 30 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time.
Among the most acclaimed albums in the history of music, in 2004 the Library of Congress added it to the National Recording Registry, which collects "culturally, historically or aesthetically important" sound recordings.
The groundbreaking album that brought grunge to the mainstream around the world made it to #1 on the US Billboard charts, and also topped the charts in Sweden, Portugal, Ireland, Greece, France, Finland, Canada, and Belgium.
It went to #2 in Australia, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, and Switzerland, and #3 in Denmark, the Netherlands, and Germany…
Click on the link below to watch “Lithium”:
Exactly forty years ago, on this day in 1983, the Pat Benatar single “Love Is A Battlefield” debuted on the US Billboard Hot 100 at #78 (September 24)
The song from the “Live from Earth” LP spent 5 weeks at #1 in Australia, and 4 weeks at #1 in the Netherlands, making it one of the biggest selling songs of the year in those countries.
It also went to #2 in Canada, #3 in Germany, #5 in the US, and #6 in New Zealand.
In 1984, the song won Benatar her fourth consecutive Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance, and the video was nominated for an MTV Video Music Award for Best Female Video.
The song was ranked at #30 in VH1's list of the 100 Greatest Songs of the 1980s…
Click on the link below to watch:
Exactly forty years ago, on this day in 1983, the Graham Parker single “Life Gets Better” debuted on the US Billboard Hot 100 at #96 (September 24)
This song is a hidden gem…
This Elvis Costello-ish track is off “The Real McCaw”, Parker’s third LP after jettisoning his long-time band The Rumour in 1980…
The song did best in Australia, peaking at #35.
Graham Parker & the Rumour had gained a following in Australia thanks to the support of community radio (4ZZZ, 3RRR), Sydney independent rock station Double Jay (2JJ) and the ABC's weekly music TV show Countdown, which gave the group nationwide exposure.
Parker appeared as a guest presenter on Countdown when he made his second Australian tour in late 1979.
“Life Gets Better” only climbed two places higher than its debut position in the US, peaking at #94.
Click on the link below to watch:
Exactly thirty-six years ago this month, Painters & Dockers released the single “Die Yuppie Die” (September 1987)
The follow-up single to “Nude School” by Australia’s loveable punk-infused power-pop shock rockers Painters & Dockers, absolutely smashed the 80s rise of the “yuppie” class (Young Urban Professionals), and peaked at #49 in the Australian charts.
It was later included on their Top 30 LP “Kiss My Art”…
The band are still going strong, having just re-jigged an old Dockers tune “Advance Australia Where?’’ to promote the YES campaign in the upcoming Australian referendum, recorded on the famed Abbey Road mixing desk, which is now installed at Museum of New and Old Art (MONA), Hobart where the band finished their 40th anniversary national tour.
Click on the link below to watch their classic “Die Yuppie Die”:
Exactly forty years ago, on this day in 1983, the Billy Joel single “Uptown Girl” debuted on the Australian charts at #70 (September 24)
The song from the album “An Innocent Man” remained at #3 for five consecutive weeks from November 12 to December 10, 1983.
It also reached #1 in the UK for five weeks, his only chart-topper in that country.
“Uptown Girl” also went to #1 in Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Ireland, #3 in Belgium and Norway, and was a Top 10 hit in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Denmark, and the Netherlands.
According to an interview with Howard Stern, Joel had originally titled the song "Uptown Girls", and it was conceived on an occasion when he was surrounded by Christie Brinkley, Whitney Houston, and his then-girlfriend Elle Macpherson.
Joel said that the song was inspired by the music of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, which sounds legit.
The classic video depicts Joel and his backup singers working as auto mechanics, when the uptown girl Christie Brinkley rocks up in a chauffeured Rolls-Royce, and the working boys then dance with her, before Joel and Brinkley ride off on a motorcycle.
Click on the link below to watch this iconic clip again:
