Pat Benatar’s Get Nervous released

First posted 9/20/2020.

Get Nervous Pat Benatar

Released: October 29, 1982 Peak: 4 US, 73 UK, 16 CN, 15 AU Sales (in millions): 1.0 US, -- UK, 1.2 world (includes US and UK) Genre: classic rock

Tracks: Song Title (Writers) [time] (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. Shadows of the Night (D.L. Byron) [4:20] (9/21/82, 13 US, 3 AR, 50 UK, 12 CN, 32 AU) Looking for a Stranger (Franne Golde, Peter McIan) [3:24] (4/23/83, 39 US, 4 AR) Anxiety (Get Nervous) (Neil Giraldo, Billy Steinberg) [3:42] Fight It Out (Giraldo, Steinberg) [3:56] The Victim (Giraldo, Steinberg) [4:43] Little Too Late (Alex Call) [4:06] (1/19/83, 20 US, 38 AR) I’ll Do It (Giraldo, Benatar) [4:09] I Want Out (Giraldo, Steinberg) [3:43] Tell It to Her (Roger Bruno, Ellen Schwartz) [3:44] Silent Partner (Giraldo, Myron Grombacher) [3:45] Total Running Time: 39:07

Rating: 3.966 out of 5.00 (average of 5 ratings) Awards:

About the Album: Benatar’s fourth album was her third to reach the top 5 of the Billboard album chart. Like its predecessors, it was supported by two top-40 singles and sold a million copies. Something was different, however. Benatar was tired of being stereotyped as a hard rocker, often saying interviews that she “preferred new wave's melodic keyboards over hard rock and metal's crunching guitars.” AMG It didn’t mean she abandoned rock. Indeed, “songs like like Anxiety (Get Nervous), The Victim, and Silent Partners are intense, forceful jewels that rock aggressively.” AMG However, Get Nervous was overall “the most melodic album she’d done since In the Heat of the Night.” AMG “The album’s pop elements and strong emphasis on melody leave no doubt that the last thing on Benatar’s mind was recording another Crimes of Passion.” AMG To that end, lead single Shadows of the Night showcased a more pop-oriented, new wave sound than previous guitar-driven songs. The song was written by D.L. Byron for the 1980 film Times Square, but rejected for lack of commercialism. Helen Schneider released it as a single in 1981 and Rachel Sweet recorded it that same year for her …And Then He Kissed Me album. Benatar’s version was a top 20 hit which won her a third Grammy for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance. The album’s second single, Little Too Late, was also a top-20 hit with a more new-wave feel. The song was penned by Alex Call, who’d previously co-written Tommy Tutone’s 1981 top-5 hit “867-5309/Jenny.” He also wrote the 1988 song “Perfect World,” a #3 song for Huey Lewis & the News.

Resources and Related Links: Pat Benatar’s DMDB Encyclopedia entry AMG All Music Guide review by Alex Henderson WK Wikipedia

Prince 1999 released

1999 Prince

Released: October 27, 1982 Peak: 7 US, 4 RB, 28 UK, 23 CN, 35 AU Sales (in millions): 4.32 US, 0.3 UK, 6.08 world (includes US and UK) Genre: R&B/funk/pop

Tracks: Song Title (Writers) [time] (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. 1999 (9/24/82, 12 US, 14 CB, 12 RR, 33 A40, 4 RB, 15 CO, 2 UK, 6 CN, 2 AU) Little Red Corvette (2/9/83, 6 US, 6 CB, 5 RR, 11 RB, 17 AR, 2 UK, 5 CN, 8 AU) Delirious (8/7/83, 8 US, 9 CB, 7 RR, 18 RB, 27 CN) Let’s Pretend We’re Married (11/23/83, 52 US, 46 CB, 55 RB) D.M.S.R. Automatic Something in the Water Does Not Compute Free Lady Cab Driver All the Critics Love U in New York International Lover Total Running Time: 70:33

Rating: 4.368 out of 5.00 (average of 22 ratings) Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Album: “With Dirty Mind, Prince had established a wild fusion of funk, rock, new wave, and soul that signaled he was an original, maverick talent, but it failed to win him a large audience. After delivering the sound-alike album, Controversy, Prince revamped his sound and delivered the double album 1999. Where his earlier albums had been a fusion of organic and electronic sounds, 1999 was constructed almost entirely on synthesizers by Prince himself. Naturally, the effect was slightly more mechanical and robotic than his previous work and strongly recalled the electro-funk experiments of several underground funk and hip-hop artists at the time. Prince had also constructed an album dominated by computer funk, but he didn’t simply rely on the extended instrumental grooves to carry the album – he didn’t have to when his songwriting was improving by leaps and bounds.” AMG “The first side of the record contained all of the hit singles, and, unsurprisingly, they were the ones that contained the least amount of electronics. 1999 parties to the apocalypse with a P-Funk groove much tighter than anything George Clinton ever did, Little Red Corvette is pure pop, and Delirious takes rockabilly riffs into the computer age.” AMG “After that opening salvo, all the rules go out the window – Let’s Pretend We’re Married is a salacious extended lust letter, Free is an elegiac anthem, All the Critics Love U in New York is a vicious attack at hipsters, and Lady Cab Driver, with its notorious bridge, is the culmination of all of his sexual fantasies. Sure, Prince stretches out a bit too much over the course of 1999, but the result is a stunning display of raw talent, not wallowing indulgence.” AMG Notes: The album was reissued in 2019. A 5-CD set included previously unreleased tracks, single edits and remixes, and a live 1982 show from Detroit.

Resources and Related Links: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Prince AMG All Music Guide review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine Other Related DMDB Pages: First posted 3/23/2008; last updated 8/22/2021.

Culture Club “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me” hit #1 in UK

Do You Really Want to Hurt Me Culture Club

Writer(s): Roy Hay, Boy George, Mikey Craig, Jon Moss (see lyrics here) Released: September 6, 1982 First Charted: September 18, 1982 Peak: 2 US, 11 CB, 12 RR, 8 AC, 39 RB, 21 AR, 1 CO, 13 UK, 12 CN, 16 AU, 4 DF (Click for codes to singles charts.) Sales (in millions): -- US, 0.88 UK, 6.5 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 117.91 video, 112.03 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: The new wave/pop band Culture Club formed in London, England, in 1981. Lead singer Boy George’s flamboyant, androgynous style first caught the attention of Sex Pistols’ manager Malcolm McLaren, who wanted him to replace the lead singer of Bow Wow Wow. Boy George, however, broke away from the group to form Culture Club. KL The group released two singles, “White Boy” and “I’m Afraid of Me” but neither made any impact. However, they hit gold with “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me.” Boy George, who was dating the band’s drummer Jon Moss at the time, said the song “was about all the guys I dated at that time in my life.” WK That included the band’s drummer, Jon Moss, who he dated for about six years but they kept their relationship hidden from the public. SF Boy George originally opposed releasing it as a single, saying “it was too personal and wasn’t a dance record.” KL However, the song caught on after the group appeared on the UK music show Top of the Pops. Shakin’ Stevens pulled out and Culture Club was asked the night before to fill in. WK Boy George’s look (a “white nightie with dreads wrapped in colourful ribbons and a face caked in make up”) SF and sexual ambiguity made newspaper headlines. The song soared up the UK charts (and hit #1 in 23 countries overall). SF All Music Guide’s Jose F. Promis described it as “a simple masterpiece, resonating with an ache that harked back to the classic torch songs of yesteryear.” WK The song also caught on in the United States, where it reached #2, held out of the top spot by Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean.” The group’s debut album, Kissing to Be Clever, reached #5 in the UK and #14 in the United States, where it achieved platinum status. The album produced three more top-10 hits in the U.S. Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Culture Club KL Jon Kutner and Spencer Leigh (2005). 1000 UK Number One Hits: The Stories Behind Every Number One Single Since 1952. London, Great Britain: Omnibus Press. Pages 284-5. SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia First posted 10/1/2022.

 

Rush “Subdivisions” released

Subdivisions Rush

Writer(s): Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, Neil Peart (see lyrics here) Released: October 22, 1982 First Charted: September 25, 1982 Peak: 8 AR, 53 UK, 36 CN, 2 DF (Click for codes to singles charts.) Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 22.8 video, -- streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: After pulling off their only top-40 hit with “New World Man,” the lead single from Signals, Rush went right back to familiar territory. “Subdivisions” was released as the second single from the album but failed to dent the Billboard Hot 100. The song did reach the top 10 on the album rock chart. In fact, it hit that chart a month before it was released as a single. Rush would place 42 songs on that chart with 20 of them reaching the top 10. The number would have been even more impressive had the chart existed prior to 1981. Lyrically, the song explores “how narrow-minded and judgmental people can get when they are confined to certain groups.” SF It deals with “the pressure to adopt certain lifestyles,” WK specifically for teenagers “dealing with a ‘cool’ culture and a comfortable yet oppressively mundane suburban existence in housing divisions. Anyone who does not obey social expectations is regarded ias an outcast; the lyrics flatly describe a choice of ‘conform or be cast out.’” WK Drummer and lyricist Neil Peart said it is “an exploration of the background from which all of us (and probably most of our audience) have sprung.” SF This was a turning point for Peart as Rush lyrics had typically been based in fantasy. He said, “I didn’t believe yet that I could put something real into a song…’Subdivisions happened to be an anthem for a lot of people who grew up under those circumstances, and from then on, I realized what I most wanted to put in a song was human experience.” SF Musically, Peart said, “It was an important step for us, the first song written that was keyboard-based. The upside of that: people don’t realize is that it made Alex and I the rhythm section. So the first time he and I tuned in to each other's parts was when Geddy was playing keyboards. It was a great new way for us to relate.” WK Peart is the one who says the title of the song during the chorus although the video portrays guitarist Alex Lifeson saying it. The video interspersed shots of the band playing live with images of suburbs in Scarborough, Ontario, and high school scenes shot at L’Amoreauex Collegiate Institute in the same area. WK The lead character was played by Dave Glover, a student there. WK Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Rush SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 7/28/2022.

Michael Jackson’s “The Girl Is Mine” begins his Thriller reign

The Girl Is Mine Michael Jackson & Paul McCartney

Writer(s): Michael Jackson (see lyrics here) Released: October 18, 1982 First Charted: November 5, 1982 Peak: 2 US, 3 CB, 4 RR, 14 AC, 13 RB, 8 UK, 8 CN, 4 AU (Click for codes to singles charts.) Sales (in millions): 1.3 US, -- UK, 1.96 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 1.0 radio, 19.2 video, -- streaming

About the Song: As Michael Jackson was about to become the King of Pop, Paul McCartney was wrapping up one of his most successful years as a solo artist. He had a #1 album in 1982 with Tug of War and the biggest #1 single of his solo career with “Ebony and Ivory,” a duet with Stevie Wonder. Jackson had a lot to live up to himself – his 1979 Off the Wall album had produced four top-ten hits, two of which went to #1. A collaboration between Jackson and McCartney, “arguably the two most successful pop musicians of all time” SG with more than 40 #1 hits between them, was as close as the pop world could get to guaranteed gold. The two had crossed paths before. When they first met, McCartney told Jackson he’d written the song “Girlfriend” for him. Paul recorded it for his 1978 album London Town and then Michael put it on his Off the Wall album. SF Then on Christmas Day, 1980, Jackson called McCartney about working together. The next autumn, Jackson flew to England and the pair worked on a song McCartney had already started called “Say, Say, Say.” They met up again at McCartney’s Arizona ranch to start work on a song Jackson had written called “The Girl Is Mine.” SF Then Paul came to Los Angeles in April 1982, where they finished both songs as well as a third called “The Man.” That and “Say, Say, Say” ended up on McCartney’s 1983 Pipes of Peace album, but “The Girl Is Mine” would see its release on Jackson’s Thriller. It is “a soft, breezy quasi-soul track” SG in which Michael and Paul “get into a good-natured argument over some girl, never quite selling the idea that they could ever be plausible romantic rivals.” SG It’s a “relatively weak first single” SG but it couldn’t miss, considering the “implicit blessing from one of the previous generation’s heroes.” SG According to Songfacts.com, it was released first because it would guarantee airplay and radio stations would have leapt on the song anyway if it wasn’t released first. SF The song hit #2, setting up Jackson to take over the world. By the time his Thriller album ran its course, it generated an unprecedented seven top-10 hits and became the best-selling album of all time. Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Michael Jackson DMDB page for “Say, Say, Say” SF Songfacts SG Stereogum (8/3/2020). “The Number Ones” by Tom Breihan WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 6/25/2022.

Marvin Gaye charted with “Sexual Healing”

Sexual Healing Marvin Gaye

Writer(s): Marvin Gaye, David Ritz, Odell Brown (see lyrics here) First Charted: October 16, 1982 Peak: 3 US, 5 CB, 7 GR, 6 RR, 34 AC, 110 RB, 4 UK, 12 CN, 4 AU, 4 DF (Click for codes to singles charts.) Sales (in millions): 2.5 US, 0.65 UK, 3.2 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 1.0 radio, 190.5 video, 307.72 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: Marvin Gaye’s life was at a crossroads in 1982. He was coming off a second divorce, owed money to the IRS, was fighting depression, and dealing with a cocaine addiction. He’d also jumped ship from Motown, his label for more than two decades, after they released his In Our Lifetime album without his approval. He’d signed a lucrative recording contract with CBS Records, but was suffering from writer’s block. Gaye’s biographer, David Ritz, visited him while he was in exile in Brussels. After seeing the singer’s pornographic magazine collection and the shape Gaye was in, Ritz suggested Gaye needed sexual healing. SJ The story has been disputed by some. Marvin’s brother, Frankie, says Ritz didn’t actually use that phrase, that Marvin came up with it. In 2012, Gordon Banks, another musician who worked on the song, told The Atlantic that Gaye and Ritz had actually been discussing Gaye’s intrigue with Amsterdam’s red light district. WK Ritz was eventually given a songwriting credit after suing Gaye for $15 million, although the case was dropped in 1983 because of insufficient evidence. WK In any event, the phrase sparked something in Gaye. He’d been listening to a reggae-style beat which Odell Brown, one of his sidemen, had created. They’d recorded an instrumental in October 1981 WK and now Gaye he had a lyrical concept to go with it. Thanks to the“simply structured, gently erotic” RY song, Gaye’s career was “properly revived” RY when both it and parent album Midnight Love reached the top 10 on the Billboard charts. The song “typifies everything about Marvin Gaye’s music – soulful, smooth and sensuous, with a slight hint of sadness.” LW It was Columbia Records’ biggest hit of the decade. LW Sadly, Gaye’s “undeniably grooving ode to getting down” TB would also be Gaye’s last taste of such widespread success and acclaim. On April 1, 1984, Gaye was staying at his parents’ house. He intervened in a fight between his parents and his father, with whom he’d always had a strained relationship, fatally shot him. Gaye died a day shy of his 45th birthday. Resources: LW Alan Lewens (2001). Popular Song – Soundtrack of the Century. Billboard Books: New York, NY. Page 153. RS500 Rolling Stone (12/04). “The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time” RY Thomas Ryan (1996). American Hit Radio: A History of Popular Singles From 1955 to the Present. Prima Publishing: Rocklin, CA. Pages 520-1. SJ Bob Shannon and John Javna (1986). Behind the Hits: Inside Stories of Classic Pop and Rock and Roll. New York, NY; Warner Brothers, Inc. Page 126. TB Thunder Bay Press (2006). Singles: Six Decades of Hot Hits & Classic Cuts. Outline Press Ltd.: San Diego, CA. Page 201. WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 12/4/2021; last updated 11/23/2022.