#1980-70: Leif Garrett, “Memorize Your Number”

By the time the ’80s rolled around it would seem Leif Garrett was ready to call it quits. Well, at least his fans did. He falls into the same category as Andy Gibb and Rex Smith: fairly successful solo artists that were pinned up on every schoolgirl’s bedroom wall in the late ’70s, only to be replaced in the early ’80s with those of Michael Jackson, Tom Cruise and Duran Duran.

Garrett appeared on the HOT 100 three times in the ’80s with this song peaking the highest (#60). Compare that to his three top 40 singles in the ’70s which includes his most successful “I Was Made for Dancing.”

These days I see Mr. Garrett on pretty much every “World’s Most Dangerous…” or “World’s Most Stupid…” home video countdown show.

Memorable lyric: “Before you move in with me and move out a year from now don’t forget that I told you it’s perfect, but you spoiled it somehow.”

#1980-69: John Cougar, “I Need a Lover”

To many ’80s music fans’ surprise John Cougar had a few hit singles prior to singing a little ditty about how good it hurts or about a guy named Jack and girlfriend Diane. He actually had three HOT 100 releases before then, and this one was the first of them all.

“I Need a Lover” has that classic John Cougar sound, and in the verses has some melodic hints of his future hit “Cherry Bomb” (see #1987-324) but with a more rock and roll sound. It was originally recorded for Cougar’s 1978 album A Biography but since the record was not made available in the states it did not have a chance to chart. The song did so good overseas (it was a #1 song in Australia!), it was placed on Cougar’s second album and made it to #28 in 1979. The song was on its way down the HOT 100 chart and sitting at #69 the first week of the new decade, so that becomes its official ’80s peak.

Cougar, who eventually took on his real surname of Mellencamp a few years later, has not only appeared on the HOT 100 as “John Cougar,” “John Cougar Mellencamp” and “John Mellencamp,” but also wet by “Johnny Cougar” on the aforementioned A Biography album.

Memorable lyric: “Well I’m not wiped out by this poolroom life I’m livin’. I’m gonna quit this job and go to school and head back home.”

#1980-68: Peter Brown, “Stargazer”

Not a bad song. Not a bad song at all. Just didn’t seem to catch on, peaking only at #59 in early 1980.

Brown had a little bit of chart success in the ’70s singing a few songs on his own, including the fairly popular “Do You Wanna Get Funky with Me?” but found massive success as one of the songwriters of Madonna’s “Material Girl” (see #1985-33).

Every time I hear this song I expect it to segue right into Gary Wright’s 1975 classic “Dream  Weaver.” Take a listen and you’ll understand.

Memorable lyric: “You gotta believe in something. You gotta have a dream. You gotta believe in someone and crazy as it seems you always believed in me.”

#1980-67: Dan Fogelberg, “Longer”

The man can write one heck of a song. Here’s a beautiful ballad about a man who has been in love with someone “longer than there have been fishes in the ocean” and will be forever.

It was such a simple message with a great melody and was known to many as “that song with the flugelhorn.” It was a staple on adult contemporary radio throughout the ’80s and ended up on pretty much every love song mix-tape I assembled.

A shout out to my chorus from Milton High School: this was one of the songs we would blare in the bus on the way back from off-site concerts and competitions.

“Longer” was Fogelberg’s first top 10 song, almost going all the way to the top, but ended up peaking at #2 in 1980. It was the most successful song of his career, and most successful of the twelve songs he placed in the HOT 100 in the ’80s.

Memorable lyric: “I’ll bring fire in the winters. You’ll send showers in the springs. We’ll fly through the falls and summers with love on our wings.”

#1980-66: Barry Manilow, “When I Needed You”

Here’s the second Barry Manilow song in the blog (see #1980-64) but certainly not the last.

Having worked for toy distributors when my family lived in the northeast, my dad moved the family down to Georgia in 1980 so that he could become an independent toys salesman and represent the entire southeast. He would travel to department stores and toy stores throughout the region to talk about and show them some of the newest toys coming out, and attempt to get them to buy the toys and sell them in their stores. Some times in the summer months I would be allowed to go on trips with him to Florida, Alabama and the Carolina states. He would tell me stories during the long trip rides.

One of those stories was this: Early in his career my dad had met Barry Manilow. Manilow was just a kid then, but my dad worked with or somehow knew Manilow’s mother and recalled seeing little Barry dancing around and singing. I always thought that it was neat that my dad had personally met a singer that I really liked. It was as close to meeting a superstar as I had ever gotten at that point in my life.

“When I Needed You” was another of Manilow’s lesser known hits. It reached #20 on the HOT 100, but was one of fifteen songs that he would end up placing in the chart in the ’80s.  I always liked this song. It reminded me of the theme song to Joanie Loves Chachi, the early ’80s spin-off from Happy Days, titled “You Look at Me.” “When I Wanted You” ends up in the same key as the T.V. theme song and has an almost identical melody line in the choruses. I went ahead and added the video of both songs below so you can hear for yourself…

Memorable lyric: “What was wrong and who was right? In the end you see the light ’cause you think a lot when you’re on your own.”

#1980-65: Pat Benatar, “Heartbreaker”

To this day I swear my high school math teacher was Pat Benatar: I recall thinking just that every day when I went to Ms. Apollo’s class.   I felt she looked just like the superstar singer and figured this “Apollo” moniker was just a ruse to keep the student body from finding out her true identity.  She knew I was a music student and shared with me that her husband was a guitarist. At least that’s the way I remember it. How fitting, seeing how Pat Benatar’s husband was her guitarist in the band. I loved my math classes. I could never get beyond Geometry but I loved my math classes.

Released in late 1979, “Heartbreaker” rose to #23 in early 1980. Her first HOT 100 entry, it is certainly one of her signature songs. The song was the beginning of an incredible ride for Benatar and ’80s music lovers. Benatar ended up with 17 HOT 100 hits in the ’80s with 15 of them reaching the top 40, so needless to say I’ll be talking more about her as the blog goes on.

Ms. Apollo if you’re out there, know that your secret’s safe with me.

Memorable lyric: “You’re the right kind of dreamer to release my inner fantasy. The invincible winner and you know that you were born to be. You’re a heartbreaker.”

#1980-64: Barry Manilow, “Ships”

Okay, I confess. I was, am, and will probably always be a Barry Manilow fan. I’m a sucker for a sappy ballad with a beautiful melody, lush harmonies and tear-jerking lyrics. And the key changes. Yes! The key changes!

Now don’t get me wrong. As a pre-teen in the ’70s that’s not all I listened to. I put my ears on a strict diet of Billy, Bee Gees and Barry. But since it wasn’t cool to like Mr. Manilow’s music (or the Bee Gees, come to think of it) I did my best to keep it on the down low. When the subject of what music I liked came up, I talked about the other piano man, Billy Joel.

Even though “Ships” peaked at #9 in late 1979, it seems to be one of Barry Manilow’s lesser known hits. (Let’s face it, you don’t hear this one on classic adult contemporary radio as much as “Mandy” and “This One’s for You.”) Nonetheless it charted high enough to become the #98 song of 1980.

I have this vivid memory of driving with my dad in his Lincoln Continental and listening to this song. It was on cassette, and I don’t recall if I owned the cassette or if he did. But either way I liked the fact that the song is about a father-son relationship. On the other hand I hated the fact that it talks about the two drifting apart.

We’ll be hearing from Manilow again real soon. Like in two more posts…

Memorable lyric: “And it seems you and I are like strangers a wide ways apart as we drift on through time. He said it’s harder now we’re far away; we only read you when you write.”