Showing posts with label Commodores. Show all posts

Tuesday, May 24, 2022

Lionel Richie/Commodores: Top 50 Songs

Lionel Richie/Commodores

Top 50 Songs

Lionel Richie was born June 20, 1949 in Tuskegee, Alabama. As a freshman at Tuskegee Institute in 1968, he met the other members of what was to become the Commodores. The group signed with Motown in 1972 and became hugely successful on the pop and R&B charts.

In 1980, Richie penned “Lady” for Kenny Rogers and it was a huge crossover hit. The following year, “Endless Love,” his duet with Diana Ross, was even bigger. It paved the way for his solo career, which he launched in 1982.

Richie became one of chart history’s most successful crossover artists, landing #1 songs on the pop, R&B, adult contemporary charts and even the country chart (if you count “Lady”). His 1983 album, Can’t Slow Down, won the Grammy for Album of the Year. “Endless Love” is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Rock Era, 1954-1999.

Click here to see other acts’ best-of lists.

Spotify Podcast:

Check out the Dave’s Music Database podcast episode The Best of Lionel Richie based on this list. Premiere: May 24, 2022 at 7pm CST. New episodes based on Dave’s Music Database lists are posted every Tuesday at 7pm CST.

Awards (Lionel Richie):

Awards (Commodores):

Top 50 Songs

Dave’s Music Database lists are determined by song’s appearances on best-of lists as well as chart success, sales, radio airplay, streaming, and awards. Songs are solo hits by Richie unless marked otherwise. Songs which hit #1 on various charts are noted. (Click for codes to charts.)

DMDB Top 1%:

1. Endless Love (with Diana Ross, 1981) #1 US, #1 AC, #1 RB
2. We Are the World (written by Lionel Richie and Michael Jackson, recorded by U.S.A. for Africa) #1 US, #1 AC, #1 RB
3. Lady (written by Lionel Richie, recorded by Kenny Rogers, 1980) #1 US, #1 AC, #1 CW
4. All Night Long (All Night) (1983) #1 US, #1 AC, #1 RB
5. Three Times a Lady (Commodores, 1978) #1 US, #1 AC, #1 RB
6. Brick House (Commodores, 1977)
7. Say You Say Me (1985) #1 US, #1 AC, #1 RB
8. Hello (1984) #1 US, #1 AC, #1 RB

DMDB Top 2%:

9. Truly (1982) #1 US, #1 AC

DMDB Top 5%:

10. Easy (Commodores, 1977) #1 RB
11. Still (Commodores, 1979) #1 US, #1 RB
12. Sail On (Commodores, 1979)
13. Stuck on You (1984) #1 AC
14. You Are (1983) #1 AC

DMDB Top 10%:

15. Lady (You Bring Me Up) (Commodores, 1981)
16. Dancing on the Ceiling (1986)
17. Running with the Night (1983)
18. Night Shift (Commodores, 1985)
19. Penny Lover (1984) #1 AC
20. My Love (1983) #1 AC
21. Machine Gun (Commodores, 1974)
22. Love Will Conquer All (1986) #1 AC

DMDB Top 20%:

23. Oh No (Commodores, 1981)
24. Sweet Love (Commodores, 1975)
25. Just to Be Close to You (Commodores, 1976) #1 RB
26. Ballerina Girl (1986) #1 AC
27. Deep River Woman (with Alabama, 1986)
28. Do It to Me (1992) #1 RB
29. Se La (1986)
30. Don’t Wanna Lose You (1996)
31. Too Hot ta Trot (Commodores, 1977) #1 RB
32. Wonderland (Commodores, 1979)
33. Old-Fashion Love (Commodores, 1980)

Beyond the DMDB Top 20%:

34. Slippery When Wet (Commodores, 1975) #1 RB
35. Heroes (Commodores, 1980)
36. Fancy Dancer (Commodores, 1976)
37. Flying High (Commodores, 1978)
38. Only You (Commodores, 1983)
39. I Call It Love (2006)
40. Why You Wanna Try Me (Commodores, 1981)

41. Angel (2000)
42. My Destiny (1992)
43. I Feel Sanctified (Commodores, 1974)
44. This Is Your Life (Commodores, 1975)
45. Goin’ to the Bank (Commodores, 1986)
46. Animal Instinct (Commodores, 1985)
47. Janet (Commodores, 1985)
48. Painted Picture (Commodores, 1982)
49. Just for You (2004)
50. Zoom (Commodores, 1977)

Resources and Related Links:

DMDB Encyclopedia entry for Lionel Richie
DMDB Encyclopedia entry for Commodores
Dave’s Music Database: “Acts’ Profile Pages and Best-of Lists”

First posted 6/20/2017; updated 5/24/2022.

Friday, May 29, 2020

The Top 100 Songs by Singers/Songwriters

First posted 4/22/2020; updated 5/29/2020.

Singers & Songwriters:

Top 100 Songs, 1970-1979

The Singers and Songwriters compilations were a series of albums issued in the early 2000s by Time-Life. The U.S. series covered 445 songs over 19 volumes. The focus of the albums was on the singer-songwriter era of the 1970s. That meant most songs were written and performed by the same artist and most were released from 1970 to 1979 and fit most comfortably into the genre known as “soft rock” or “adult contemporary.”

To create this list, Dave’s Music Database took all 445 songs featured on the collections and ranked them according to their overall DMDB status. Non-‘70s songs were left off this list, but songs not necessarily recorded by the same artist who initially wrote them are included. A few other lists were also factored in to include some important songs not featured on any of the collections. Here are the results:

1. Elton John “Your Song” (1970)
2. Rod Stewart “Maggie May” (1971)
3. Don McLean “American Pie” (1971)
4. Carole King “It’s Too Late” (1971)
5. Carly Simon “You’re So Vain” (1972)
6. Harry Chapin “Cat’s in the Cradle” (1974)
7. Warren Zevon “Werewolves of London” (1978)
8. Janis Ian “At Seventeen” (1975)
9. Cat Stevens “Wild World” (1970)
10. John Lennon “Imagine” (1971)

11. George Harrison “My Sweet Lord” (1970)
12. Neil Young “Heart of Gold” (1972)
13. Elvis Costello “Alison” (1977)
14. David Bowie “Life on Mars?” (1973)
15. Jackson Brown “Running on Empty” (1978)
16. Gordon Lightfoot “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” (1976)
17. Eagles “New Kid in Town” (1976)
18. Lou Reed “Perfect Day” (1972)
19. Marvin Gaye “What’s Going On” (1971)
20. Janis Joplin “Me and Bobby McGee” (1971)

21. America “A Horse with No Name” (1971)
22. Harry Nilsson “Without You” (1971)
23. Elton John “Tiny Dancer” (1971)
24. Gerry Rafferty “Baker Street” (1978)
25. Elton John “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” (1973)
26. Roberta Flack “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” (1970)
27. Bill Withers “Lean on Me” (1972)
28. James Taylor “Fire and Rain” (1970)
29. Commodores “Three Times a Lady” (1978)
30. The Doobie Brothers “Black Water” (1974)

31. 10cc “I’m Not in Love” (1975)
32. Elton John “Daniel” (1972)
33. The Grateful Dead “Truckin’” (1970)
34. Gladys Knight & the Pips “Midnight Train to Georgia” (1973)
35. The Temptations “Just My Imagination Running Away with Me” (1971)
36. Elton John “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me” (1974)
37. Todd Rundgren “Hello It’s Me” (1972)
38. Stealers Wheel “Stuck in the Middle with You” (1973)
39. Marvin Gaye “Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology Song)” (1971)
40. The Doobie Brothers “What a Fool Believes” (1978)

41. Chicago “If You Leave Me Now” (1976)
42. The Doobie Brothers “Listen to the Music” (1972)
43. Daryl Hall & John Oates “She’s Gone” (1973)
44. Peter Frampton “Baby I Love Your Way” (1975)
45. Fleetwood Mac “You Make Loving Fun” (1977)
46. Eric Carmen “All by Myself” (1975)
47. Grateful Dead “Uncle John’s Band” (1970)
48. Commodores “Easy” (1977)
49. Dobie Gray “Drift Away” (1973)
50. Elton John “Someone Saved My Life Tonight” (1975)

51. Gary Wright “Dream Weaver” (1975)
52. Stephen Stills “Love the One You’re With” (1970)
53. America “Ventura Highway” (1972)
54. Todd Rundgren “I Saw the Light” (1972)
55. Three Dog Night “Mama Told Me Not to Come” (1970)
56. America “Sister Golden Hair” (1975)
57. Cat Stevens “Morning Has Broken” (1971)
58. Rick Nelson & the Stone Canyon Band “Garden Party” (1972)
59. Commodores “Still” (1979)
60. Elvin Bishop “Fooled Around and Fell in Love” (1976)

61. Fleetwood Mac “Say You Love Me” (1975)
62. Brook Benton “Rainy Night in Georgia” (1970)
63. Rod Stewart “You Wear It Well” (1972)
64. Commodores “Sail On” (1979)
65. Stephen Bishop “On and On” (1977)
66. Jefferson Starship “Miracles” (1975)
67. Grateful Dead “Sugar Magnolia” (1970)
68. Grateful Dead “Friend of the Devil” (1970)
69. Gary Wright “Love Is Alive” (1975)
70. Stevie Wonder “Superstition” (1972)

71. Paul Simon “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover” (1975)
72. Dolly Parton “Jolene” (1973)
73. Terry Jacks “Seasons in the Sun” (1974)
74. Dire Straits “Sultans of Swing” (1978)
75. Gilbert O’Sullivan “Alone Again (Naturally)” (1972)
76. Tony Orlando & Dawn “Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree” (1973)
77. Glen Campbell “Rhinestone Cowboy” (1975)
78. Jim Croce “Time in a Bottle” (1972)
79. Elton John & Kiki Dee “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” (1976)
80. Rod Stewart “Tonight’s the Night (Gonna Be Alright)” (1976)

81. Olivia Newton-John “I Honestly Love You” (1974)
82. Eric Clapton “I Shot the Sheriff” (1974)
83. Al Stewart “Year of the Cat” (1976)
84. Joe Cocker “You Are So Beautiful” (1974)
85. Johnny Nash “I Can See Clearly Now” (1972)
86. John Denver “Take Me Home, Country Roads” (1971)
87. Charlie Rich “The Most Beautiful Girl” (1973)
88. Starland Vocal Band “Afternoon Delight” (1976)
89. Linda Ronstadt “You’re No Good” (1974)
90. Captain & Tennille “Love Will Keep Us Together” (1975)

91. Christopher Cross “Sailing” (1979)
92. Rupert Holmes “Escape (The Pina Colada Song)” (1979)
93. Bill Withers “Ain’t No Sunshine” (1971)
94. Player “Baby Come Back” (1977)
95. Jim Croce “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown” (1973)
96. Blue Swede “Hooked on a Feeling” (1974)
97. Tony Orlando & Dawn “Knock Three Times” (1970)
98. John Denver “Sunshine on My Shoulders” (1971)
99. The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band “Mr. Bojangles” (1970)
100. Mary MacGregor “Torn Between Two Lovers” (1976)

Resources and Related Links:

Time Life Music
Wikipedia.org (2020). “Singers and Songwriters (Time Life Music)”

Saturday, August 12, 1978

Commodores hit #1 with “Three Times a Lady”

Three Times a Lady

Commodores

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

Released: June 8, 1978

First Charted: June 16, 1978

Peak: 1² US, 1⁴ CB, 1⁶ GR, 1⁵ HR, 1³ AC, 1² RB, 1⁵ UK, 1⁴ CN, 1⁵ AU, 1 DF (Click for codes to charts.)

Sales (in millions): -- US, 0.91 UK

Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 17.3 video, 82.19 streaming

Awards:

Click on award for more details.

About the Song:

It doesn’t get more successful than this. “Three Times a Lady,” the first #1 pop song for the Commodores, topped the Billboard Hot 100 as well as comparable U.S. pop charts Cashbox and Hit Records. It was also a #1 on Billboard’s R&B and adult contemporary charts. Internationally, it reached the pinnacle in the UK (where it was the biggest hit for Motown Records ^SF), Canada, Australia, Ireland, the Phillipines, and South Africa and reached the top 5 in 25 other countries. ^WK

Lionel Richie was a freshman at Tuskegee Institute in 1968 when he met his fellow bandmates who would become the Commodores. In 1971, they were signed ast the opening act for a tour for the Jackson Five. It would be two more years before they made their first recordings with Motown. One was an instrumental called “Machine Gun” which reached the top 10 on the R&B chart. In 1975, the Commodores hit #1 on the R&B chart with “Slippery When Wet,” which also reached the top 20 on the pop charts.

That song was written by guitarist Thomas McClary. However, Lionel Richie would soon become the breakout star of the group with more ballad-oriented fare through hits like “Sweet Love,” “Just to Be Close to You,” and “Easy.” All were top ten hits on the pop charts and the latter two reached #1 on the R&B chart.

Still, when Richie first wrote “Three Times a Lady” he wasn’t sure it was right for the Commodores. The song was inspired by the 37th anniversary party for Lionel Richie’s parents. His father toasted his mother, Alberta, saying, “She’s a great lady, she’s a great mother, and she’s a great friend.” ^WK Richie decided to pen a thank you to Brenda, his wife at the time. He envisioned the song, which he wrote as a waltz, being sung by Frank Sinatra. However, when he played it for James Carmichael, who was producing the Commodores, he insisted it be on their album. ^WK According to Richie, his neighbor said “if a man wanted to buy her a present, all he need do is buy her that record.” ^SF

Resources:

DMDB encyclopedia entry for Commodores
DMDB encyclopedia entry for Lionel Richie
^FB Fred Bronson (2003). The Billboard Book of Number One Hits (5th edition). Billboard Books: New York, NY. Page 487.
^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. Page 240.
^SF Songfacts
^WK Wikipedia

First posted 5/22/2022; last updated 12/26/2022.

Friday, August 26, 1977

Commodores “Brick House” charted