Pat Benatar “Heartbreaker” released

Heartbreaker Pat Benatar

Writer(s): Geoff Gill, Cliff Wade (see lyrics here) Released: October 26, 1979 First Charted: December 15, 1979 Peak: 23 BB, 19 CB, 16 GR, 19 HR, 20 RR, 3 CL, 30 MR, 16 CN, 34 AU, 2 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 20.3 video, 92.03 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: Rock singer Pat Benatar was born Patricia Mae Andrzejewski in 1953 in New York, New York. She became interested in theater and singing in elementary school. She became a trained opera intending to attend Julliard, but she went to Stony Brook University instead. At 19, she dropped out to marry Dennis Benatar, her high school sweetheart. He served in the Army from 1973-75. During that time, she recorded “Day Gig,” her debut single. After he was discharged from the Army, the couple moved to New York so she could pursue a singing career. They didn’t work out as a couple, divorcing in 1978, but her career was just beginning. Her debut album, In the Heat of the Night, was released in August 1979. The lead single was a cover of John Mellencamp’s “I Need a Lover,” followed by “If You Think You Know How to Love Me,” originally a #3 UK for the British rock band Smokie. Neither single dented the Billboard Hot 100, but the album’s third single, “Heartbreaker,” proved to be Benatar’s breakthrough reaching #23. The song was first recorded in 1978 by an English singer named Jenny Darren. Benatar adjusted some of the lyrics which originally contained “English expressions and colloquialisms that would be foreign to the American ear.” SF Benatar’s version became a staple on classic rock radio. Resources: SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 2/14/2024.

Little River Band charted with “Cool Change”

Cool Change Little River Band

This post has been moved here.

50 years ago: “Tip Toe Through the Tulips” hit #1

Tip Toe Through the Tulips Nick Lucas

Writer(s): Joe Burke (music), Al Dubin (words) (see lyrics here) First Charted: September 28, 1929 Peak: 110 US, 18 GA, 112 SM (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 1.0 (sheet music) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 0.31 video, 0.54 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: Nick Lucas and Winnie Lightner starred in the 1929 movie musical Gold Diggers of Broadway, which featured five songs written by Joe Burke and Al Dubin and performed by Lucas. One was “Tip Toe Through the Tulips.” He was outside of a house singing to a girl inside, asking “for her pardon if he kisses her in the moonlit garden.” TY2 Lucas reprised the song later in the show as a dance routine with girls dressed as tulips. SM Lucas was formerly a banjo player with the Russo-Rio Rito band. Nicknamed “The Singing Troubador,” he became “a national favorite in the late 20s” PM because of his “easygoing vocal and guitar style.” PM He charted 26 songs from 1925 to 1931, reaching the top 10 nineteen times. His only chart-topper, however, was his recorded version of “Tulips” in 1929. PM That same year, Jean Goldkette (#5), Johnny Marvin (#11), and Roy Fox (#18) all released charting versions. PM In 1930, the song was used in “Sinkin’ in the Bathtub,” the first Looney Tunes cartoon short. WK The song also showed up in the movies Confidential Agent (1945), Painting the Clouds with Sunshine (1951), The Pink Panther Strikes Again (1976), and Insidious (2010). It is also mentioned in the 1997 book Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. One of the more unusual versions surfaced in 1968. Singer and ukulele player Tiny Tim performed the song on the sketch comedy show Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In WK in a “high-pitched falsetto rendition.” SF It was released as a single and became a #17 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Nick Lucas DJ David Jasen (2002). A Century of American Popular Music: 2000 Best-Loved and Remembered Songs (1899-1999). Routledge: Taylor & Francis, Inc. Page 197. SM Sharon Mawer Charts (1900-1968) SF Songfacts TY2 Don Tyler (2007). Hit Songs, 1900-1955. McFarland & Company, Inc.: Jefferson, North Carolina. Page 167. PM Joel Whitburn (1986). Pop Memories 1890-1954. Record Research, Inc: Menomonee Falls, WI. Pages 283 and 597. WK Wikipedia First posted 3/16/2023.

Michael Jackson “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough” hit #1

Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough Michael Jackson

Writer(s): Michael Jackson (see lyrics here) Released: July 10, 1979 First Charted: July 28, 1979 Peak: 11 US, 11 CB, 2 GR, 11 HR, 5 RR, 15 RB, 3 UK, 3 CN, 13 AU, 7 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 5.0 US, 1.81 UK, 6.88 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 413.43 video, 368.37 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: Michael Jackson became a star fronting his brothers in the Jackson 5 before he’d even hit puberty. The group sent four songs to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 in 1969 and ’70. While still generating hits with his brothers, Michael also launched a solo career in 1971 and hit #1 on his own the next year with “Ben,” “a lovely ballad about a killer rat from a B-movie.” SG It would be seven years before he topped the chart again. In 1975, Michael and his brothers bolted from Motown and signed with Epic Records. They weren’t as big as before, but still managed top-10 hits with 1976’s “Enjoy Yourself” and 1979’s “Shake Your Body Down to the Ground.” In 1979, Michael would also release Off the Wall, his first post-Motown solo effort. It showcased him “as a young man liberated” SG by getting some say for the first time over the songs and arrangements. The album “introduced the chic, Quincy Jones-produced sound that would soon see him dubbed the King of Pop.” TB The album’s lead single, “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough,” was “a perfect song,” SG “an absolute miracle of pop music.” SG Jackson recorded a demo with his brother Randy playing piano. It “shows that he knew exactly what he wanted from the song. The jangling, cowbell-laden rhythm, distinctive bass and guitar licks, and Jackson’s newly developed falsetto are all there; the only extra ingredient he needed was Jones’ polished, spacious, production sheen.” TB The song is “about the ecstasy of losing yourself in something greater than you, of giving yourself over” SG – maybe that’s dancing, maybe that’s sex, maybe it’s something else. Jackson said “It’s about forces and the power of love.” FB Not yet 21, Michael is “still the same little joy-bursting kid from ‘I Want You Back,’ finding new textures in his own voice and discovering new wonders.” SG He was still a few years from becoming the most famous person on the planet, at which point “even on his most ebullient songs, he sounded paranoid and trapped.” SG Here Jackson sings “in an airy falsetto, letting the music push his voice all around.” SG “The instruments all seem to be dancing with each other: the rolling and pulsing bass, the euphoric bursts of horn, the diving strings, the layers upon layers of percussion.” SG “He understands the beat.” SG “It says a whole lot that Michael Jackson was able to use disco as a springboard into planet-dominating stardom even at the moment when the planet was getting sick of disco.” SG Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Michael Jackson FB Fred Bronson (2003). The Billboard Book of Number One Hits (5th edition). Billboard Books: New York, NY. Page 511. DM Dave Marsh (1989). The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made. New American Library: New York, NY. Pages 317-8. SG Stereogum (2/21/2020). “The Number Ones” by Tom Breihan TB Thunder Bay Press (2006). Singles: Six Decades of Hot Hits & Classic Cuts. Outline Press Ltd.: San Diego, CA. Page 183. WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 4/20/2023.

Styx charted with Cornerstone

Cornerstone Styx

Charted: October 13, 1979 Peak: 2 US, 36 UK, 11 CN, 21 AU, 13 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): 2.0 US Genre: classic arena rock

Tracks: Click on a song titled for more details. Lights [4:38] Why Me [3:54] Babe [4:25] Never Say Never [3:08] Boat on the River [3:10] Borrowed Time [4:58] First Time [4:24] Eddie [4:15] Love in the Midnight [5:25] Total Running Time: 38:17 The Players: Dennis DeYoung (vocals, keyboards) Tommy Shaw (vocals, guitar) James “J.Y.” Young (guitar, vocals) Chuck Panozzo (bass) John Panozzo (drums)

Rating: 3.584 out of 5.00 (average of 23 ratings) Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

Another Hit Styx hit the big time with 1977’s The Grand Illusion when it went top 10 and multi-platinum on the strength of two top-40 hits. 1978’s Pieces of Eight replicated the feat, setting high expectations for 1979’s Cornerstone. Commercially, the album kept pace with its predecessors’ accomplishments. In fact, it became their highest-charting album to date, landing at #2. Styx was even named America’s favorite band in a 1979 Gallup poll. AZ “Cornerstone is Styx at their most accessible and melodic,” AZ emphasizing their “pop sound more than the progressive rock influences that dominated their first eight studio albums.” WK “The songs aren’t as tight or assertive as their last few albums” AM and the album “tends to sound a tad weaker than one would expect.” AM A Rift in the Band The lead single, “Babe,” took Styx to the top of the charts but the song “irked longtime fans with its MOR sweetness” UCR and showed “the first fragmenting of the group’s collective artistic vision” WK eventually leading to their breakup after 1983’s Kilroy Was Here. Tommy Shaw threatened to leave the band and Dennis DeYoung was even briefly fired, although he returned to the fold before word got to the press or the public. WK The Songs Here’s a breakdown of each of the individual songs.

Lights Styx

Writer(s): Dennis DeYoung, Tommy Shaw Released: May 1980 as a single (UK), Cornerstone (1979) Peak: 41 CL, 6 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 1.93 streaming About the Song: Lights, “the album’s vibrant lead track,” SW “implement[s] silky harmonies and welcoming choruses” AM and showcased Tommy Shaw’s songwriting and vocals. The song was eventually released in the UK as a single but didn’t chart. Frankly, it seems an obvious choice as a single and would have been a better choice than “Why Me” or “Borrowed Time.” It’s hard not imagine it being a top-20 hit had it been released as the follow-up to “Babe.” An argument could even be made that, coming off Shaw’s success with singles from the previous album, it would have been a good fit as the lead-off single.

Why Me Styx

Writer(s): Dennis DeYoung Released: 12/15/1979 as a single, Cornerstone (1979) Peak: 26 BB, 19 CB, 18 HR, 12 RR< 9 CL, 10 CN, 7 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 1.04 streaming About the Song: Why Me, another DeYoung-penned tune, was released as the second single. The more upbeat tune showcased the band’s experimentation with new sounds, such as horns, as did Borrowed Time. AZ

Babe Styx

Writer(s): Dennis DeYoung (see lyrics here) Released: September 1979 as a single, Cornerstone (1979), Caught in the Act (live, 1984), Classics (compilation, 1987) Peak: 12 BB, 13 CB, 12 HR, 13 RR, 9 AC, 1 CL, 6 UK, 16 CN, 3 AU, 1 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): 1.0 US, 0.25 UK, 1.25 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 20.0 video, 136.62 streaming

Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Song: The album was propelled by Babe, Styx’s only #1 hit and “one of the best rock ballads ever.” AM Dennis DeYoung wrote the song as a birthday present to his wife Suzanne, thanking her for her patience with his life on the road. WK It “is a smooth, keyboard-pampered love song that finally credited Dennis De Young's textured vocals.” AM It is “perhaps the prototypical I-love-you-but-I-just-gotta-go power ballad,” AZ which would “endear itself to a generation of prom-goers” AZ in the same vein as their “1975 slow-dance classic ‘Lady.’” AZ In the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, arguably the four pillars of what has become known as “arena rock” or “corporate rock” found themselves in similar positions. Foreigner, Journey, REO Speedwagon, and Styx all emerged in the 1970s as staples on album rock radio. The four also shared another commonality – their greatest commercial successes came because of power ballads. These slower love songs evoked eye-rolling amongst some die-hard fans who considered such fare schmaltzy and selling out, but gave the bands even greater followings. Styx singer and keyboardist Dennis DeYoung said, “According to some people, you’re either a rock and roll band, or you’re not. And anybody who plays ballads was looked down upon by the radio establishment.” FB REO Speedwagon topped the Billboard Hot 100 with “Keep on Loving You” in 1981, Foreigner’s “Waiting for a Girl Like You” spent a whopping 10 weeks in the runner-up slot in 1981 and ’82, and Journey nabbed six weeks at #2 in 1982. Before any of those three, however, Styx paved the way with their 1979 #1 hit “Babe.” DeYoung wrote the song for his wife Suzanne as a birthday present. The couple met in 1964 and married in 1970. As he said, “Being on the road…puts a strain on a relationship…I wanted to tell her how much I missed her when I was gone.” FB In the 2014 concert video Dennis DeYoung and the Music of Styx Live in Los Angeles, he joked that he hoped it would get him out of buying her jewelry, but it didn’t work. It wasn’t intended as a Styx song; he recorded “Babe” as a demo with Styx drummer John Panozzo and bassist Chuck Panozzo, singing all the harmonies himself. When the band decided to put it on their Cornerstone album, they overdubbed a Tommy Shaw guitar solo in the middle section. WK Suzanne herself said she thought the song was as good as, if not better, than “Lady,” the band’s first top-ten hit. FB When the record company heard the song, they echoed her feelings and pushed for releasing it as a single. SF Their instinct proved correct; not only was it the band’s only #1 in the U.S., but their only top 40 hit in the UK, where it reached #6. It was also a chart-topper in Canada and South Africa.

Never Say Never Styx

Writer(s): Tommy Shaw Released: Cornerstone (1979) Peak: 31 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 0.51 streaming About the Song: There’s nothing particularly memorable or adventurous about this rocker from Tommy Shaw. His definite highlights on the Cornerstone album are “Lights” and “Boat on the River.”

Boat on the River Styx

Writer(s): Tommy Shaw Released: 3/16/1980 as a single (UK), Cornerstone (1979) Peak: 5 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 35.43 streaming About the Song: Tommy Shaw had burst to the forefront in a big way on the band’s previous album, Pieces of Eight, with two top-40 hits in the way of “Blue Collar Man” and “Renegade.” He sadly didn’t experience the same success on Cornerstone with Dennis DeYoung re-exerting his balladry skills on the #1 hit “Babe” and the follow-up single “Why Me.” Shaw, however, did helm two of the album’s best cuts in “Boat on the River” and “Lights.” The former added mandolin and accordion to the mix. Meanwhile bassist Chuck Panozzo played a bowed, stand-up double bass. He said, “It was something I hadn’t done before in the studio…Some people were skeptical about it, but that wasn’t going to stop me from trying it. I thought it was the right thing to do for the song, and I think it worked out perfectly.” SW It was released as a single in the UK and, according to StyxWorld.com, is “the band’s biggest hit internationally, having topped the charts in Switzerland and reaching the top 5 in countries like Germany, Austria, and the Netherlands.” SW It is also “the band’s most-covered track, with many of those covers having been done in languages other than English,” SW again, according to StyxWorld.com. Tommy Shaw said, “It still amazes me how much impact that song has had on people over the years, and how far and wide it has reached all over the globe.” SW

Borrowed Time Styx

Writer(s): Dennis DeYoung, Tommy Shaw Released: 3/29/1980 as a single (US), Cornerstone (1979) Peak: 64 BB, 74 CB, 63, HR, 33 CL, 76 CN, 7 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 1.60 streaming About the Song: This is one of the more rock-oriented tunes on the album. It was released as the third single.

First Time Styx

Writer(s): Dennis DeYoung Released: Cornerstone (1979) Peak: 8 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 4.55 streaming About the Song: Initially, First Time was intended as the second single, but Tommy Shaw was concerned about the band alienating its fan base by releasing two ballads in a row. WK

Eddie Styx

Writer(s): James Young Released: Cornerstone (1979) Peak: 31 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 0.39 streaming About the Song: This James Young rocker offers a warning to Ted Kennedy not to run for President for fear that he’ll suffer the same fate as his murdered brothers. It was a weird topic for a song.

Love in the Midnight Styx

Writer(s): Tommy Shaw Released: Cornerstone (1979) Peak: 38 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 0.55 streaming About the Song: Tommy Shaw wraps up the Cornerstone album with this fairly forgettable rocker.

Resources/References: AM AllMusic.com review by Mike DeGagne AZ Amazon review by Daniel Durchholz FB Fred Bronson (2003). The Billboard Book of Number One Hits (5th edition). Billboard Books: New York, NY. Page 517. UCR UltimateClassicRock.com (5/9/2016). “Styx Albums Ranked Worst to Best” SF Songfacts page for “Babe” SW StyxWorld.com (10/19/2019). “Cornerstone Turns 40 Today!” WK Wikipedia page for Cornerstone WK Wikipedia page for “Babe” Related DMDB Pages: First posted 3/24/2008; last updated 8/12/2025.