Eric Troy 
You probably know Alone as one of the most famous songs by Heart, and for good reason. But it was actually written and recorded by a little-known group called i-Ten in 1983. Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly, the founding members of the band, named after the interstate, ‘wrote the song as a power ballad’ for … Read more
Album: Yakety Yak (Atco) Song: Charlie Brown (1959) Artist: The Coasters Writers: Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller Charlie Brown, Charlie Brown He’s a clown, that Charlie Brown He’s gonna get caught Just you wait and see (Why’s everybody always pickin’ on me) The Coasters, often called ‘the clown princes of 1950’s rock,’ had a no. 2 … Read more
Song: You Don’t Have to Be a Star (1976) Artist: Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr. Album: I Hope WE Get to Love in Time (ABC) Writers: James Dean, John Glover You Don’t Have to Be a Star (To Be in My Show) was a number one hit for Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr. … Read more
Song: More Than a Feeling Artist: Boston Album: Boston Writer: Tom Scholz Boston’s first big hit came on their self-titled debut album in 1976. Actually, it’s a bit of a misleading question because the album was one of the best-selling rock debut albums of all time and had three hit singles, one after the other. … Read more
Song: Jackie Blue (1975) Artist: Ozark Mountain Daredevils Writers: Larry Lee and Steve Cash Album: It’ll Shine When It Shines (A&M) Ooh, Jackie Blue, Lives her life from inside of her room. If you look up OMD on Google, you’ll likely find Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, an English electronic group formed in the late 1070s. … Read more
Song: Wind Beneath My Wings (1989) Artists: Bette Midler Writers: Jeff Silbar and Larry Henley As songs featured in movie soundtracks go, Wind Beneath My Wings is a big deal. Played in the movie Beaches, it was a no. one hit in 1989 and won Grammy awards for both song of the Year and Record of the … Read more
Cracklin’ Rosie wasn’t Neil Diamond’s first hit, as a writer, that is. He first topped the charts with I’m a Believer by the Monkees. However, “Cracklin’ Rosie,” sometimes misspelled as Cracklin’ Rose, was one of the songs, if not the song, that made Neil Diamond a superstar. It reached number one October 10, 1970, spending 15 … Read more