Song: Red, Red Wine (1968) Artist: Neil Diamond Album: Just For You (Bang) Writer: Neil Diamond In 1988 UB40, a group from Birmingham UK had a no. 1 hit with a song called Red, Red Wine, done in a reggae style (they were not the first, see below). Although UB40 has plenty of original material, their hit-making … Read more
It may be hard to believe, but No Doubt’s huge hit It’s My Life was recorded almost twenty years after the original. The song was written by Tim Friese-Greene and Mark Hollis and released in 1984 by Mark Hollis’ so-called synth-pop group Talk Talk. It reached no. 31 on the Billboard Hot 100 in May, … 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: 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
Song: Everything Is Beautiful (1970) Artist: Ray Stevens Album: Everything Is Beautiful (Barnaby) Writer: Ray Stevens I grew up listing to Ray Stevens comedy songs. I was so used to laughing so hard to Ray Stevens on the radio that I probably never realized that the song Everything is Beautiful was written and performed by Stevens. I … Read more
Song: Kung Fu Fighting Artist: Carl Douglas (1974) Album: Single w/ B-side, Gamblin Man (Pye / 20th Century Fox) Martial Arts mania was at its height in the 1970s and, due to Bruce Lee, kung fu was the biggest of all. I mean, everybody was kung fu fighting, and so goes the song. But did … Read more