On this day in 1973, the Elton John single "Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting" debuted on the US Billboard Hot 100 at #74 (August 4)
Another brilliant offering from the crack songwriting stable of Elton John and Bernie Taupin, it was released on John's best-selling album “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” (1973) and was the first single.
Songfacts reports that Taupin called it his "first attempt to write a rock and roll song that was totally English." Until then, most of his songwriting had focused on American culture.
It was inspired by his raucous teenage days and in particular, the fistfights in his local pub, the Aston Arms in Market Rasen.
It went to #7 in the UK, #12 in the US and Canada, #13 in Ireland, #20 in New Zealand, and #31 in Australia.
The fun, rock track was the only single by Elton John that failed to make the US Top 10 in the three-year, 13-hit period between May 1972 ("Rocket Man") and October 1975 ("Island Girl").
Despite only relatively modest success compared to many of his other hits, it remains one of Elton’s best-known songs and a staple of his live performances.
Click on the link below to watch a great live performance:
On this day in 1984, The Cars single “Drive” debuted on the US Billboard Hot 100 at #51 (August 4)
The keyboard-based ballad from the “Heartbeat City” LP was written by Ric Ocasek and sung by bass player Benjamin Orr, and ended up one of The Cars most successful songs.
It was the Cars' highest-charting US single (#3), and their second-highest charting UK single, the highest being "My Best Friend's Girl."
In the UK it reached #5 on its initial release, then was reissued one year later, and reached #4.
The royalties from its reissue were donated to the Band Aid Trust.
At the London Live Aid concert the song was famously used as the background music to a montage of clips depicting the Ethiopian famine, introduced by David Bowie.
The Cars played the song in their Live Aid set at JFK in Philadelphia as well.
The song was a worldwide hit, also peaking at #3 in Ireland and Switzerland, #4 in Germany, #5 in New Zealand, #6 in Canada, #8 in Austria, #9 in Norway, and #10 in Australia.
When Benjamin Orr passed away in 2000, "Drive" was played in his honor at a memorial service at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Click on the link below to watch the clip:
On this day in 1984, the Prince single “Let’s Go Crazy” debuted on the US Billboard Hot 100 at #45 (August 4)
The beginning of this song is one of the most famous spoken intros in pop history:
“Dearly beloved…..
We are gathered here today
To get through this thing called life…”
Prince delivers the famous “eulogy” to start the opening track on the “Purple Rain” LP, and the song that followed went on to become one of his most popular hits.
It went to #1 in the US, #2 in Canada, #7 in the UK, #10 in Australia, #11 in Belgium and the Netherlands, and #13 in New Zealand.
It also topped the two Billboard component charts, the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot Dance Club Play charts.
The album of course became Prince's first album to reach #1 on the Billboard 200, spending 24 consecutive weeks at the top.
With total sales standing at over 25 million copies worldwide, “Purple Rain” is one of the best-selling albums of all time.
Prince and the Revolution won Grammy Awards for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal and Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media, while Prince also won the Academy Award for Best Original Song Score for the film Purple Rain.
Click on the link below to watch “Let’s Go Crazy”:
This week in 1979, the Joe Jackson single “Is She Really Going Out With Him?” debuted on the UK Singles Chart at #66 (August 4)
The signature song from the brilliant Joe Jackson LP “Look Sharp!”…
Interestingly, the song that became one of the most iconic and memorable of the new wave era did not actually chart when it was initially released in 1978.
It was not until this re-release in 1979 that “Is She Really Going Out With Him?” took off, peaking at #8 in Ireland, #9 in Canada, #13 in the UK, #15 in Australia, #18 in New Zealand, and #21 in the US.
But even that doesn’t accurately represent how universally this song has been sung, played, danced to, loved, and respected over the years; the post-punk anthem with the instantly recognizable bass riff; a universal anthem for the romantically rejected.
An absolute classic…
On this day in 1983, Elvis Costello released the LP “Punch the Clock” (August 5)
Costello’s eighth LP produced his very first US Top 40 hit, the excellent “Every Day I Write The Book”, another classic Elvis number, with his trademark musical hooks and clever lyrics.
“Punch the Clock” was ranked as the #1 "Album of the Year" for 1983 by NME; and thirty years later the magazine ranked it at #345 in its list of "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time".
Click on the link below to watch the poignant “Shipbuilding” from the album, performed live:
Happy Birthday to Stiff Little Fingers founding guitarist Henry Cluney, who was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, this week back in 1957 (August 4)
Cluney was playing in a covers band Highway Star with future SLF members Jake Burns (vocals and guitar), and Brian Faloon (drums).
Short story is that their bass player left, Ali McMordie joined, Cluney hooked the band on punk, and they decided to call themselves Stiff Little Fingers, after The Vibrators' song from the album “Pure Mania”, (‘cos Highway Star is not a very punk band name).
Cluney’s urgent, aggressive playing, and perfectly in-your-face, harsh, jagged, wall-of-sound guitar went a long way to defining Stiff Little Fingers, and he was a regular songwriting contributor for the Belfast band’s first four albums.
Songs like the one minute gem “Here We Are Nowhere” from the brilliant “Inflammable Material” - a Henry Cluney special.
In 2013 he formed XSLF with former SLF bandmate Jim Reilly (drummer on the “Nobody’s Heroes”, “Go For It” and “Hanx!” LPs), and friend, Ave Tsarion.
And he’s still playing to this day…
Check out “Here We Are Nowhere” live:
This week in 1980 the Ramones single “Rock ‘n’ Roll High School” debuted on the Australian charts at #80 (August 4)
It was the title song to the cult classic film of the same name.
Executive Producer of the teen high school music-themed comedy movie Roger Corman originally wanted Cheap Trick or Todd Rundgren to play the band, but due to a conflict of schedules, he was forced to find an alternative, and Ramones became this cult classic’s focal point.
In addition to songs by Ramones, the soundtrack also featured “School’s Out” by Alice Cooper, and songs from Ritchie Valens, Todd Rundgren, Brian Eno, Eddie and the Hot Rods, Chuck Berry, Nick Lowe, and Devo.
The single did not chart in the US, but peaked at #5 in the Netherlands, #7 in Belgium, #41 in Australia, and #67 in the UK.
Click on the link below to watch:
This week in 1990, the Billy Idol single “Cradle of Love” peaked on the US Billboard Hot 100 at #2 (August 4)
The song featured in the film and on the soundtrack to the cult 1990 American action comedy film noir mystery movie “The Adventures of Ford Fairlane”.
"Cradle of Love" from his fourth studio album “Charmed Life” became Idol's last Top 10 hit in the United States, where it reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100.
It was also Idol's first and only #1 hit on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.
Elsewhere it reached #7 in Italy, #8 in Finland, #10 in Australia and Canada, #11 in Switzerland, #16 in New Zealand, #22 in Ireland, and #34 in the UK.
At the 1990 MTV Video Music Awards, the video was nominated for Best Male Video and Best Special Effects and won the award for Best Video from a Film.
Click on the link below to watch:
Another brilliant offering from the crack songwriting stable of Elton John and Bernie Taupin, it was released on John's best-selling album “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” (1973) and was the first single.
Songfacts reports that Taupin called it his "first attempt to write a rock and roll song that was totally English." Until then, most of his songwriting had focused on American culture.
It was inspired by his raucous teenage days and in particular, the fistfights in his local pub, the Aston Arms in Market Rasen.
It went to #7 in the UK, #12 in the US and Canada, #13 in Ireland, #20 in New Zealand, and #31 in Australia.
The fun, rock track was the only single by Elton John that failed to make the US Top 10 in the three-year, 13-hit period between May 1972 ("Rocket Man") and October 1975 ("Island Girl").
Despite only relatively modest success compared to many of his other hits, it remains one of Elton’s best-known songs and a staple of his live performances.
Click on the link below to watch a great live performance:
On this day in 1984, The Cars single “Drive” debuted on the US Billboard Hot 100 at #51 (August 4)
The keyboard-based ballad from the “Heartbeat City” LP was written by Ric Ocasek and sung by bass player Benjamin Orr, and ended up one of The Cars most successful songs.
It was the Cars' highest-charting US single (#3), and their second-highest charting UK single, the highest being "My Best Friend's Girl."
In the UK it reached #5 on its initial release, then was reissued one year later, and reached #4.
The royalties from its reissue were donated to the Band Aid Trust.
At the London Live Aid concert the song was famously used as the background music to a montage of clips depicting the Ethiopian famine, introduced by David Bowie.
The Cars played the song in their Live Aid set at JFK in Philadelphia as well.
The song was a worldwide hit, also peaking at #3 in Ireland and Switzerland, #4 in Germany, #5 in New Zealand, #6 in Canada, #8 in Austria, #9 in Norway, and #10 in Australia.
When Benjamin Orr passed away in 2000, "Drive" was played in his honor at a memorial service at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Click on the link below to watch the clip:
On this day in 1984, the Prince single “Let’s Go Crazy” debuted on the US Billboard Hot 100 at #45 (August 4)
The beginning of this song is one of the most famous spoken intros in pop history:
“Dearly beloved…..
We are gathered here today
To get through this thing called life…”
Prince delivers the famous “eulogy” to start the opening track on the “Purple Rain” LP, and the song that followed went on to become one of his most popular hits.
It went to #1 in the US, #2 in Canada, #7 in the UK, #10 in Australia, #11 in Belgium and the Netherlands, and #13 in New Zealand.
It also topped the two Billboard component charts, the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot Dance Club Play charts.
The album of course became Prince's first album to reach #1 on the Billboard 200, spending 24 consecutive weeks at the top.
With total sales standing at over 25 million copies worldwide, “Purple Rain” is one of the best-selling albums of all time.
Prince and the Revolution won Grammy Awards for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal and Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media, while Prince also won the Academy Award for Best Original Song Score for the film Purple Rain.
Click on the link below to watch “Let’s Go Crazy”:
This week in 1979, the Joe Jackson single “Is She Really Going Out With Him?” debuted on the UK Singles Chart at #66 (August 4)
The signature song from the brilliant Joe Jackson LP “Look Sharp!”…
Interestingly, the song that became one of the most iconic and memorable of the new wave era did not actually chart when it was initially released in 1978.
It was not until this re-release in 1979 that “Is She Really Going Out With Him?” took off, peaking at #8 in Ireland, #9 in Canada, #13 in the UK, #15 in Australia, #18 in New Zealand, and #21 in the US.
But even that doesn’t accurately represent how universally this song has been sung, played, danced to, loved, and respected over the years; the post-punk anthem with the instantly recognizable bass riff; a universal anthem for the romantically rejected.
An absolute classic…
On this day in 1983, Elvis Costello released the LP “Punch the Clock” (August 5)
Costello’s eighth LP produced his very first US Top 40 hit, the excellent “Every Day I Write The Book”, another classic Elvis number, with his trademark musical hooks and clever lyrics.
“Punch the Clock” was ranked as the #1 "Album of the Year" for 1983 by NME; and thirty years later the magazine ranked it at #345 in its list of "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time".
Click on the link below to watch the poignant “Shipbuilding” from the album, performed live:
Happy Birthday to Stiff Little Fingers founding guitarist Henry Cluney, who was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, this week back in 1957 (August 4)
Cluney was playing in a covers band Highway Star with future SLF members Jake Burns (vocals and guitar), and Brian Faloon (drums).
Short story is that their bass player left, Ali McMordie joined, Cluney hooked the band on punk, and they decided to call themselves Stiff Little Fingers, after The Vibrators' song from the album “Pure Mania”, (‘cos Highway Star is not a very punk band name).
Cluney’s urgent, aggressive playing, and perfectly in-your-face, harsh, jagged, wall-of-sound guitar went a long way to defining Stiff Little Fingers, and he was a regular songwriting contributor for the Belfast band’s first four albums.
Songs like the one minute gem “Here We Are Nowhere” from the brilliant “Inflammable Material” - a Henry Cluney special.
In 2013 he formed XSLF with former SLF bandmate Jim Reilly (drummer on the “Nobody’s Heroes”, “Go For It” and “Hanx!” LPs), and friend, Ave Tsarion.
And he’s still playing to this day…
Check out “Here We Are Nowhere” live:
This week in 1980 the Ramones single “Rock ‘n’ Roll High School” debuted on the Australian charts at #80 (August 4)
It was the title song to the cult classic film of the same name.
Executive Producer of the teen high school music-themed comedy movie Roger Corman originally wanted Cheap Trick or Todd Rundgren to play the band, but due to a conflict of schedules, he was forced to find an alternative, and Ramones became this cult classic’s focal point.
In addition to songs by Ramones, the soundtrack also featured “School’s Out” by Alice Cooper, and songs from Ritchie Valens, Todd Rundgren, Brian Eno, Eddie and the Hot Rods, Chuck Berry, Nick Lowe, and Devo.
The single did not chart in the US, but peaked at #5 in the Netherlands, #7 in Belgium, #41 in Australia, and #67 in the UK.
Click on the link below to watch:
This week in 1990, the Billy Idol single “Cradle of Love” peaked on the US Billboard Hot 100 at #2 (August 4)
The song featured in the film and on the soundtrack to the cult 1990 American action comedy film noir mystery movie “The Adventures of Ford Fairlane”.
"Cradle of Love" from his fourth studio album “Charmed Life” became Idol's last Top 10 hit in the United States, where it reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100.
It was also Idol's first and only #1 hit on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.
Elsewhere it reached #7 in Italy, #8 in Finland, #10 in Australia and Canada, #11 in Switzerland, #16 in New Zealand, #22 in Ireland, and #34 in the UK.
At the 1990 MTV Video Music Awards, the video was nominated for Best Male Video and Best Special Effects and won the award for Best Video from a Film.
Click on the link below to watch:
