Friday, November 21, 1980

REO Speedwagon’s Hi Infidelity was released: November 21, 1980

Originally posted November 21, 2011.

“If you need proof why arena rock was giant, this is it.” ^STE REO Speedwagon could arguably be credited with bringing arena rock to its pinnacle. They “had been slogging it out in the arenas of the U.S.” ^STE for nearly a decade, “building up a sizeable audience because they could deliver live.” ^STE This was much the same story for the band’s peers like Styx, Journey, and Foreigner. The difference is that all those bands had landed a couple top ten albums. The highest REO ever previously reached was #29.

Then, in 1981, all four bands topped the album charts. However, REO got their first “with this incredibly mainstream collection of power ballads and economic hard rock.” ^RO They did it with a fifteen-week chart-topper which sold more than 9 million copies in the U.S. This was “a record that not just summarized their strengths, but captured everything that was good about arena rock. This is the sound of the stadiums in that netherworld between giants like Zeppelin and MTV’s slick, video-ready anthems.” ^STE

“The band’s strongest attribute is its inconspicuous nature. You never see it coming. Kevin Cronin has a serviceable voice and Gary Richrath is a solid if unspectacular lead player” ^RO “but there’s a real urgency to the songs and the performances.” ^STE Keep on Loving You set “the pattern for the power ballads that would take many a hard rock band to the top of the charts throughout the ‘80s.” ^RO That song “and the surging Take It on the Run…define their era.” ^STE There’s also “the Bo Diddley-inspired opener, Don’t Let Him Go” ^STE and other radio-friendly songs like “the sun-kissed ‘60s homage In Your Letter, and Tough Guys.” ^STE

“What’s really great about these songs is not just the sheen of professionalism that makes them addictive to listen to, but there’s a real strain of pathos that runs through these songs – the album’s title isn't just a clever pun, but a description of the tortured romantic relationships that populate this record’s songs. This is really arena rock’s Blood on the Tracks, albeit by a group of guys instead of a singular vision, but that makes it more affecting, as well as a killer slice of ear candy.” ^STE

Awards:

Resources and Related Links:

the DMDB page for Hi Infidelity
REO Speedwagon’s DMDB Encyclopedia entry
^STE Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
^RO Rob O’Connor, Amazon.com
^WK Wikipedia

Saturday, November 15, 1980

Kenny Rogers topped the pop charts with “Lady”

Lady

Kenny Rogers

Writer(s): Lionel Richie (see lyrics here)

Released: September 29, 1980

First Charted: September 26, 1980

Peak: 1⁶ US, 1⁴ CB, 1⁵ HR, 1⁵ RR, 1⁴ AC, 1¹ CW, 12 UK, 2 CN, 16 AU, 1 DF (Click for codes to singles charts.)

Sales (in millions): 1.0 US, -- UK, 16.0 world (includes US + UK)

Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 2.0 radio, 93.1 video, 63.33 streaming

Awards:

Click on award for more details.

About the Song:

In 1980, Kenny Rogers was the biggest draw in country music. To capitalize on his status – and a year which had already seen three top five hits on the country charts – his record label wanted a Greatest Hits package to ring in the Christmas season. Rogers had just ended his five-year relationship with producer Larry Butler and was seeking new blood to spark his creativity.

He turned to Lionel Richie, who wasn’t yet the solo superstar he was to become within a few years. At the time, he still fronted the Motown group The Commodores. Like Rogers, Richie had experienced major crossover success. The 1978 hit “Three Times a Lady” had topped the pop, R&B, adult contemporary, and UK charts. The country-tinged “Easy” (1977) was a hit on all four formats as well.

The pair of songs caught Rogers’ attention. Rogers contacted Motown founder Berry Gordy about working with the Commodores. Because of a motorcycle accident to drummer Walter Orange, the group had delayed a concert tour and Richie and Co. had time on their hands. Lionel flew to Las Vegas to meet with Rogers. Richie played demos of “Lady” and “Goin’ Back to Alabama”, songs he’d written two years earlier. ^FB Rogers cut both in an 8 ½ hour session; the former included some lyrical tweaking to reference Rogers’ relationship with his wife. ^TR As Rogers said, “The idea was that Lionel would come from R&B and I’d come from country, and we’d meet somewhere in the middle.” ^FB

The song became Rogers’ fourth million-selling single and his first #1 on the pop charts. ^BB It was also the biggest pop song of 1980 ^WHC and the first song of the decade to hit all four of the major Billboard charts (pop, country, adult contemporary, R&B). ^FB It hit #1 on the first three of those.

Resources:

^BB Billboard (9/08). “All-Time Hot 100”
^FB Fred Bronson (2003). The Billboard Book of Number One Hits (5th edition). Billboard Books: New York, NY. Page 533.
^TR Tom Roland (1991). The Billboard Book of Number One Country Hits. Billboard Books: New York, NY. Page 272.
^WHC Joel Whitburn (1999). A Century of Pop Music. Menomonee Falls, WI; Record Research, Inc. Page 109.

Tuesday, November 11, 1980

Aerosmith released their first greatest hits package

First posted 4/11/2008; updated 9/7/2020.

Greatest Hits

Aerosmith

Buy Here:

Recorded: 1972-1979

Released: November 11, 1980

Peak: 53 US, -- UK, -- CN, -- AU

Sales (in millions): 10.0 US, -- UK, 14.0 world (includes US and UK)

Genre: classic rock

Tracks: (Click for codes to singles charts.)

Dream On (10/20/73, #6 US)
Same Old Song and Dance
Sweet Emotion (6/14/75, #36 US, #24 UK, #36 AR)
Walk This Way (11/20/76, #10 US)
Last Child (6/12/76, #21 US)
Back in the Saddle (4/9/77, #38 US)
Draw the Line (10/22/77, #42 US)
Kings and Queens (3/11/78, #70 US)
Come Together (8/5/78, #23 US)
Remember Walking in the Sand (1/12/80, #67 US)

Total Running Time: 37:15

The Players:

Steven Tyler (vocals, keyboards, harmonica, percussion)
Joe Perry (guitar)
Brad Whitford (rhythm guitar)
Tom Hamilton (bass)
Joey Kramer (drums, percussion)

Rating:

4.214 out of 5.00 (average of 12 ratings)

Awards:

About the Album:

“Aerosmith’s Greatest Hits remains one of the most popular and enduring best-of collections by any rock band…but when it was issued in 1980, the band had just about reached its nadir. With original guitarist Joe Perry gone (and Brad Whitford soon to follow), Aerosmith had turned into a directionless, time-consuming ghost of its former self.” ^GP

“Since there would be a three-year gap between 1979’s Night in the Ruts and 1982’s Rock in a Hard Place, Greatest Hits was assembled, more or less, to fill the void and buy the band some time. Of the ten songs here, nine “are bona fide classics.” ^GP

The band’s first album is represented with Dream On, a song which initially peaked at #59 on the Billboard Hot 100 when released in 1973. However, the song became a top-ten hit when it was rereleased after the band’s success with Toys in the Attic in 1975.

Same Old Song and Dance is the only song from Get Your Wings. Instead of the album version, the single version is used. It was edited by nearly a minute and has an alternate lyric with the line “You shady lookin’ loser, you played with my gun” substituted for the original “Gotcha with the cocaine, found with your gun.” ^WK

Toys in the Attic featured two classics from Aerosmith – Sweet Emotion and Walk This Way. The former was the band’s first top 40 hit while the latter would land the band in the top ten – twice. When originally released as the second single from Toys, “Walk This Way” didn’t chart. However, like “Dream On,” it resurfaced and became a top ten hit after the Rocks album was released in 1976. The song hit the top ten again in 1986 when rap group Run-D.M.C. remade the song with guest stars Steven Tyler and Joe Perry from Aerosmith.

The Rocks album is represented by Last Child and Back in the Saddle. Both were top 40 hits. A third single, “Home Tonight,” hit the Hot 100, but isn’t included on this compilation.

Draw the Line and Kings and Queens were both originally on the Draw the Line album. Both songs hit the Hot 100, but failed to go top 40.

Next up is the band’s “venomous cover of the Beatles’ Come Together, previously only available as a single and on the soundtrack to the 1978 movie Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.” ^GP

“The only poor selection is the forgettable Remember Walking in the Sand,” ^GP a cover of the Shangri-La’s top five hit from 1964.

“For the casual fan, Greatest Hits will do the job.” ^GP However, with the album clocking in at only 37 and a half minutes, many Aerosmith classics are not included, such as…their cover of ‘Train Kept a Rollin’” ^GP or “Big Ten Inch Record.”

Notes: A 1997 reissue added “Mama Kin,” “Seasons of Wither,” “Big Ten Inch Record,” “Lightning Strikes,” “Chip Away the Stone,” “One Way Street,” and a remix of “Sweet Emotion.”

Resources and Related Links:

Saturday, November 8, 1980

Willie Nelson “On the Road Again” hit #1 on the country chart