Huey Lewis & the News’ Sports hit #1

First posted 5/30/2008; updated 11/26/2020.

Sports Huey Lewis & the News

Released: September 15, 1983 Peak: 11 US, 23 UK, 3 CN, 22 AU Sales (in millions): 7.0 US, 0.1 UK, 10.6 world (includes US and UK) Genre: mainstream pop rock

Tracks: Song Title (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. The Heart of Rock and Roll (3/17/84, 6 US, 49 UK, 5 AR) Heart and Soul (9/10/83, 8 US, 61 UK, 1 AR) Bad Is Bad I Want a New Drug (10/22/83, 6 US, 7 AR, sales: 1.0 m) Walking on a Thin Line (2/18/84, 18 US, 16 AR) Finally Found a Home (9/15/84, 41 AR) If This Is It (7/21/84, 6 US, 39 UK, 3 AR, 5 AC) You Crack Me Up Honky Tonk Blues Total Running Time: 37:46 The Players: Huey Lewis (vocals, harmonica) Mario Cipollina (bass) Johnny Colla (guitar, saxophone, backing vocals) Bill Gibson (drums, percussion, backing vocals) Chris Hayes (guitar, backing vocals) Sean Hopper (keyboards, backing vocals)

Rating: 4.044 out of 5.00 (average of 23 ratings) Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Album: In today’s musical landscape, if an album doesn’t debut at #1, its chances of ever reaching that peak are slim. Albums don’t “climb” the charts. They operate more like movies – their first week out of the gate is their biggest and they decline from there. In the ‘80s, however, starting at the top was a rarity. Bruce Springsteen’s live box set did the trick in 1986 – the first album in a decade to do so. Before that albums had to prove themselves first. Huey Lewis & the News definitely fell into that category. They released Sports in the autumn of 1983. It was the group’s third album following their 1980 self-titled debut, which didn’t even chart, and 1982’s Picture This, which achieved gold status on the strength of the top ten single “Do You Believe in Love.” The minor hits “Hope You Love Me Like You Say You Do” and “Working for a Living” followed. “Picture This found Huey Lewis and the News developing a signature sound, but they truly came into their own on their third album, Sports.” STE “The record holds together better than its predecessors because it has a clear, professional production, but the real key is the songs. Where their previous albums were cluttered with generic filler, nearly every song on Sports has a huge hook. And even if the News aren’t bothered by breaking new ground, there’s no denying that the craftmanship on Sports is pretty infectious. There’s a reason why well over half of the album…were huge American hit singles – they have instantly memorable hooks, driven home with economical precision by a tight bar band, who are given just enough polish to make them sound like superstars. And that’s just what Sports made them.” STE With the lead single (Heart and Soul) from Sports, Huey & Co. found themselves in the top 10 again, reaching #8. The next single, I Want a New Drug, did even better, reaching #6. The song generated controversy because of the drug reference although anyone listening to the lyrics would know the “drug of choice” was love, not some illegal narcotic. The band was also sued by Ray Parker. Jr., who accused them of plagiarizing his 1984 hit “Ghostbusters.” The case was settled out of court for an undisclosed sum. WK It wasn’t until the third single, Heart of Rock and Roll (which Blender magazine ranked #6 on its list of the “50 Worst Songs Ever”) WK was spending its fourth week at #6 before Sports finally climbed to the top rung. It was only for one week, but it had such longevity that it placed at #2 on Billboard’s year-end album chart, after Michael Jackson’s Thriller. WK A fourth single – If This It – also found itself just outside the top 5. More than a year after the release of the album, Walking on a Thin Line was released as a fifth single, peaking at #18. All five singles proved their crossover worth as well by hitting the rock charts. The group was embraced by MTV because of their fun videos. Lewis had an easy air about him; he was an everyman who was funny, self-deprecating, and likable. It was no accident that the album cover depicted the band hanging out at a sports bar. These weren’t just the kind of guys who people wanted to hang out with; this felt like the local bar band which drew crowds week after week because they guaranteed a fun evening. Notes: In 1999, an expanded edition of the album added live versions of “The Heart of Rock and Roll,” “Walking on a Thin Line,” “If This Is It,” “Heart and Soul,” and “I Want a New Drug.”

Resources and Related Links: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Huey Lewis & the News STE Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide WK All Music Guide

Bruce Springsteen charted with the single “Born in the U.S.A.”

Born in the U.S.A. Bruce Springsteen

Writer(s): Bruce Springsteen (see lyrics here) Released: October 30, 1984 First Charted: June 23, 1984 Peak: 9 US, 8 CB, 12 GR, 10 RR, 8 AR, 5 UK, 11 CN, 2 AU, 1 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 3.0 US, 0.2 UK, 3.34 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 101.54 video, 372.18 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: “Born in the U.S.A.” is a poignant commentary on the mistreatment of Vietnam veterans after returning home from the war. Two scholars wrote in the journal American Quarterly about how the song’s exploration of “the effect of blind nationalism upon the working class.” WK The song was often misunderstood as “a proud patriotic battle cry” SS by those “who heard the anthemic chorus but not the bitter verses.” WK The most famous misinterpretation of the song came from then-President Ronald Reagan. While running for a second term, he gave a speech about the hope one could find in the songs of Bruce Springsteen. WK Springsteen wrote the song in 1981 under the title “Vietnam,” SF inspired by Born on the Fourth of July, a memoir by Vietnam vet and antiwar activist Ron Kovic. SS When Paul Schrader sent him a script for a movie called Born in the U.S.A. “about a rock band struggling with life and religion” SF Springsteen changed the title of the song. The film – starring Michael J. Fox and Joan Jett – didn’t get released until 1987. Springsteen had already used the “Born in the U.S.A.” song by then, but wrote a new title song for the retitled movie – Light of Day. During the home recordings for his Nebraska album in 1982, he recorded a rough, acoustic demo of the song. However, it was decided that the song didn’t fit the rest of the material and that its melody didn’t match its lyrics. An electric version was recorded with the E Street Band that featured Springsteen’s “voice…raw, angry, worn right down to the bone” SS alongside “Roy Bittan’s martial synthesizer and Max Weinberg’s explosive drums.” DM It became the title cut for 1984’s Born in the U.S.A., WK the album where “Springsteen translated his skill with personal, raw, folk-inspired material into ful-title, electric rock & roll.” TC The song hit the mainstream rock chart soon after the album’s release, but wasn’t officially released as a single until October. By that time, Springsteen had already hit the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 with “Dancing in the Dark” and “Cover Me.” “Born in the U.S.A.” became the third of the album’s seven top 10 hits. Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Bruce Springsteen TC Toby Creswell (2005). 1001 Songs: The Great Songs of All Time. Thunder’s Mouth Press: New York, NY. Pages 471-2. DM Dave Marsh (1989). The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made. New American Library: New York, NY. Pages 92-3. SF Songfacts SS Steve Sullivan (2013). Encyclopedia of Great Popular Song Recordings (Volumes I & II). Scarecrow Press: Lanham, Maryland. Page 335. TB Thunder Bay Press (2006). Singles: Six Decades of Hot Hits & Classic Cuts. Outline Press Ltd.: San Diego, CA. Page 214. WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 11/28/2020; last updated 4/2/2023.

Cyndi Lauper hit #1 with “Time after Time”

Time After Time Cyndi Lauper

Writer(s): Rob Hyman, Cyndi Lauper (see lyrics here) Released: January 27, 1984 First Charted: March 24, 1984 Peak: 12 US, 11 CB, 13 RR, 13 AC, 10 AR, 1 CO, 3 UK, 13 CN, 6 AU, 3 DF (Click for codes to singles charts.) Sales (in millions): 1.5 US, 0.85 UK, 2.45 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 2.0 radio, 433.44 video, 409.07 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: Cyndi Lauper won the Grammy for Best New Artist in 1985. She landed the big four nominations that year – the others being for Album of the Year (She’s So Unusual), Record of the Year (“Girls Just Want to Have Fun”), and Song of the Year (“Time After Time”). “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” introduced the world to the quirky singer who Newsweek called “a new-wave Gracie Allen.” FB It was an “ebullient song that…branded her in the eyes of some as a clever novelty who would fade after one hit.” FB It was her second single, the “poignant ‘Time After Time,’” FB which made it clear that Lauper was an artist to be enjoyed and taken seriously. Slant magazine’s Sal Cinquemani said it may be “Lauper’s greatest moment.” WK Lauper’s producer, Rick Chertoff, was friends with the Philadelphia-based band the Hooters. He brought them in as Lauper’s backup band and, when he insisted the album needed one more song, tapped the band’s Rob Hyman to help Lauper write it. Both songwriters were struggling with their romantic relationships, but managed to craft what has been considered one of the best love songs of all time. WK Hyman said, “it’s a deceptively simple song. The verses are just a little repeating three-note motif – almost like a nursery rhyme…The mood of the lyrics came from both of us…We realized it wasn’t such a bouncy song, but it was a little more bittersweet and a little deeper in its feeling…so the music started to change.” SF Nerve said “Lauper’s most enduring masterpiece hits at the very essence of commitment…she captures real romance in the most simple and straightforward of lines.” WK Blogcritics’ Pam Avoledo speculated that in the song, Lauper views herself as “a difficult person, unworthy of love. She runs away and shuts people out. However, her devoted boyfriend who loves her unconditionally is willing to help her through anything. The relationship is given depth. The couple’s intimacy and history is apparent. They’ve been together for a long time. They love and have seen each through every tough part of their life.” WK Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Cyndi Lauper FB Fred Bronson (2003). The Billboard Book of Number One Hits (5th edition). Billboard Books: New York, NY. Page 589. SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 2/2/2021; last updated 10/28/2022.