Also, the first instance of the kiss-off "Hasta La Vista, Baby" I can think of, beating Wild Thing (1988) and Arnold (1991). If anyone else can think of an earlier mainstream instance of this phrase used like this, I'll stand corrected.
Wow, that's a pair of live albums nobody was asking for.
Cool Hand Loc was Tone's attempt at 'Gangsta Rap' and was devoid of any wild things or funky cold medinas. It was ignored by everyone.
The closest that comes to mind would be the keyboard hook from Susudio being so obviously ripped off from 1999 that I'm surprised Collins has never said that he was dreaming when he wrote it.
For validation of the J&L Hot Take, listen to Crash by Human League. Or rather, don't listen to it, it's embarassing.
The calculus could work if you give Marky the requisite scores:
Presence: 0/10 A Marky Mark Fathead on the wall would have more charisma
Rapping: -4/10 Wedding Singer Rapping Granny Ellen Dow was more hardcore
Lyrics: -4/10 "If you ain't in to win it then get the hell out" Then Marky Mark got the hell out.
Subtracting 8 from the total gives 9/30 or 3/10.
I guess I'm in the Dave camp, but I can appreciate some of the 'Van Hagar' era songs like "Dreams", "Summer Nights", "5150", "Finish What Ya Started", "Right Now", and "Runaround". And Sammy seems like a good guy to have to work with as opposed to Dave, who comes across as a majestic asshole.
Week 1: RTZ. Boston fans probably didn't realize that this would probably be the best Boston/Boston-adjacent music they would hear in the 90s (or any year after that), but it was.
Week 2: R.E.M. Get your pitchforks out now, but cloyingly annoying REM still beats out what's left of Week 2.
Runaround is a perfectly cromulent VH song; a standout on a very uneven FUCK album (honestly, all Van Halen albums are fuck albums). Killer intro, nice guitar work and harmonies throughout. Not borderline offensive like Poundcake or Black & Blue, or painfully banal like Why Can't This Be Love.
Here are two more Lange-produced songs that sound like Def Leppard is backing them up, one from Adams himself:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTfIr_euGTs
and one from former TNOCS punching-bag Starship:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGPgwTEJEgE
More than likely the BVs from these songs are all Lange.
Missing from Tom's #2s recap are the other two songs kept from the #1 spot by Adams.
The first stayed at #2 for two weeks after Jesus Jones, Rhythm Syndicate's "P.A.S.S.I.O.N."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IW1pPhaqgZ0
Then, between Amy Grant and Roxette came 70s throwback Lenny Kravitz with the Yogi Berra-esque "It Ain't Over 'Til It's Over"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TmENMZFUU_0
I can't follow you to this island. Simon's solo stuff (at least until the late 80s) always seemed lightweight compared to the S&G output. BOTW alone is enough for me to go S&G > Solo Paul.
I will say Solo Paul > Garfunkel & Oates, but only just.
I'm normally inclined to attribute any chart oddities to Billboard fuckery (WARDLAW!), but Cashbox shows the same trends. Also, while CB has 5 songs (We are the World, Say You Say Me, Faith, Another Day In Paradise, and Step By Step) in the 85-90 window pass 1 month, they're all only 5 week stays.
Oddly enough, Rush Rush only gets 3 weeks on Cashbox. the other two weeks go to Monday's #1 and "Right Here, Right Now" by Jesus Jones.
Since 1944, there have been only 9 years without a song holding the #1 spot on the Hot 100 for more than a month: 1965, 1974, 1975, and a range of 1985-1990. Today's #1 breaks the longest dry spell for 5+-week stays at the top that dates back to the first week of February 1985 ("I Wanna Know What Love Is").
What caused this? There's a natural ebb & flow to song popularity. The 50's had a lot more big #1 hits, but the 60s averaged 2.3/year. The 70s average dropped to 1.8 and the 80s were 1.6. This turned around in the 90s, but how much of that was due to Soundscan? Before you say 'All of it', remember that today's #1 and Wednesday's both hit before the Soundscan changes to the Hot 100 took effect.
I followed the charts fairly religiously (I certainly bought more Billboards than bibles), starting in the mid-80s, and I was quite excited when "Rush Rush" ended this seeming 1-month jinx.
This album had to grow on me as Temple Of Low Men is one of my all-time favorites. It finally did, and now rates just under that album for me. Italian Plastic kind of drags it down just a little here, but everything else is great.
I've always had a soft spot for Extreme, especially their first two albums (they get too self-important after that). Musically, they are very sound, especially the harmonies & Nuno's guitar. Lyrically, it seems like they are trying to say something other than "Let's Fuck" (except on MTW, which is essentially "Let's Fuck"). They don't always rise above ham-fisted, but at least they try.
I still put on Extreme II every once in a while. It still holds up, even if songs like MTW and "Lil' Jack Horny" are extremely dated.
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