Retro Groove Radio

“Bette Davis Eyes” is one of the defining pop songs of the ‘80s, yet its origins reach further back than most fans realize. Co-written by Jackie DeShannon and Donna Weiss, the track was initially recorded in a 1920s jazz style by DeShannon for her 1975 album *New Arrangement*. DeShannon was inspired by the 1942 Bette Davis film *Now, Voyager*, and though the song was a unique effort, it didn’t gain much traction—until Donna Weiss submitted the demo to Kim Carnes. It was with Carnes’ signature rasp and the innovative production by Val Garay that “Bette Davis Eyes” found its true identity. Garay made a bold move: instead of seeking pristine studio drums, he had his assistant buy the cheapest drum set they could find. Paired with the futuristic sounds of the Sequential Circuits Prophet-5 synthesizer, they created a sonic palette that perfectly captured the edgy, new wave mood of the early ‘80s. Carnes, along with her band and keyboardist Bill Cuomo, reshaped the song into the brooding, synth-driven anthem that topped the U.S. charts for nine weeks. Despite this monumental success, it didn’t claim the title of the year’s biggest hit—that honor went to Olivia Newton-John’s “Physical,” which held the top spot for ten weeks. Nevertheless, “Bette Davis Eyes” earned its place in pop culture history, winning the Grammy for Record of the Year in 1981 and becoming the third-best-selling single of the decade in America. The song’s success was undeniable, and Bette Davis herself adored the song. She famously wrote to Carnes and the songwriters, thanking them for making her “a part of modern history.” Davis’s granddaughter even found her grandmother “cool” for having a hit song written about her, cementing the legendary actress’s place in the pop culture of a new generation. Kim Carnes had a few other hits, including “Invisible Hands” and “I Pretend,” and she later contributed to the all-star charity single “We Are The

Foreigner guitarist Mick Jones wrote this song. In a Songfacts interview, he said: “’I Want To Know What Love Is’ started off on more of a personal level. I’d been through a lot of relationships that eventually failed, and still searching for something that could really endure. And that sort of took a life of its own as well. It became more of a universal feeling. I adjusted that during the recording of it, and ended up putting a gospel choir on it. And you know, realized suddenly that I’d written almost a spiritual song, almost a gospel song. Sometimes, you feel like you had nothing to do with it, really. You’re just putting it down on paper, or coming up with a melody that will bring the meaning of the song out, bring the emotion out in the song.” The New Jersey Mass Choir was brought in to sing the backing vocals, becoming the first gospel choir to appear on a #1 pop hit. Mick Jones knew he wanted a choir on the song and found the New Jersey Mass Choir through a bit of serendipity: they had the same lawyer. According to Jones, the choir’s first attempts to sing their part in the studio didn’t have the magic, but then they gathered in a circle, said the Lord’s Prayer, and nailed it on the next take. Foreigner recorded for Atlantic Records, and their 1981 album 4 spent more weeks at #1 than any album released by the label. Ahmet Ertegun, who was the head of Atlantic, cried when he first heard this song. Mick Jones explains: I took him aside and I said, ‘I have a song to play you, Ahmet.’ I took him into the studio, and we just sat there in two chairs, and I put the song on. Halfway through I looked over and indeed, there were tears coming out of his eyes. I thought, Whoa, this is a major moment for me. I’ve been able to impress this man who has heard some of the best, and produced some of the best music in the world. And here he is, and I’ve reached him emotionally. By the end of the song we were both in tears. Wonderful moments li

The Doobie Brothers’ first hit, “Listen To The Music” was written by the band’s lead vocalist, Tom Johnston, who also played guitar on the track. He told Songfacts how it came together: “It was all based around this somewhat Utopian view of the world. The idea was that music would lift man up to a higher plane, and that world leaders, if they were able to sit down on some big grassy knoll where the sun was shining and hear music - such as the type I was playing - would figure out that everybody had more in common than they had not in common, and it was certainly not worth getting in such a bad state of affairs about. Everybody in the world would therefore benefit from this point of view. Just basically that music would make everything better. And of course I’ve since kind of realized it doesn’t work that way.” Johnston wrote many classic Doobie Brothers songs, including “China Grove” and “Long Train Runnin’.” This, however, was the only time he produced a guitar lick that he knew would become a hit. Says Johnston: “I was sitting in my bedroom in San Jose. I was doing what I always do, I had been up playing guitar for hours. It was like 2 or 3 in the morning. I had the opening riff to it, and I think I figured out all of the chord changes as well. I called Teddy (producer Ted Templeman), woke him up, and played it for him over the phone, and he was less than enthusiastic. (laughing) I think it was because I woke him up. But he said, ‘Well, yeah, it might be pretty good. Needs a couple of changes.’ But we didn’t ever change anything. It stayed the way it was, the way I had it. The chord changes and everything we made are the same.

The band wrote this during a visit to Moscow in 1989. The previous year, they became the first hard-rock band to play in Russia, and they returned to play the Moscow Music Peace Festival. At this show, they were inspired by the sight of thousands of Russians cheering them on even though they were a German band. In a Songfacts interview with Scorpions guitarist Rudolf Schenker, he called this song, “A kind of message soundtrack to the world’s most peaceful revolution on earth.” Lead singer Klaus Meine told NME about the concert that inspired this song: “Everyone was there: the Red Army, journalists, musicians from Germany, from America, from Russia-the whole world on one boat. It was like a vision; everyone was talking the same language. It was a very positive vibe. That night was the basic inspiration for Wind Of Change.” The opening lyric for the song is “I follow the Moskva.” That line is a reference to the Moskva River, which passes through Moscow. On one of the days leading up to the festival, Scorpions manager Doc McGhee decided to get a boat trip together to have a BBQ. This was no easy task in that part of the world at that time, and he later said that arranging the boat trip was as monumental as putting the concert together. While floating down the Moskva and witnessing the decades-old cultural and political (and sometimes literal) barriers falling apart, Meine started whistling the melody for “Wind of Change.” The song started to coalesce in his mind. Meine wrote the song by thinking of the words and whistling the melody, so he thought that whistling was the logical way to open the song. The record company staunchly opposed the idea and resisted opening with a whistle, especially because the Scorpions were known as a savage hard rock group - they wanted a heavy guitar intro instead. The band tried it the record company’s way, but it just wasn’t working. They finally decided to go with the whistling intro in tandem with a clean gu

Who is “Jack Flash”? His name is Jack Dyer, and he was Keith Richards’ gardener. Richards explained to Rolling Stone in 2010: “The lyrics came from a gray dawn at Redlands. Mick and I had been up all night, it was raining outside, and there was the sound of these boots near the window, belonging to my gardener, Jack Dyer. It woke Mick up. He said, ‘What’s that?’ I said, ‘Oh, that’s Jack. That’s jumping Jack. Bill Wyman wrote some of this song, but it was still credited only to Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, which Wyman was never happy about. He explained: “We got to the studio early once and... in fact I think it was a rehearsal studio, I don’t think it was a recording studio. And there was just myself, Brian and Charlie - the Stones NEVER arrive at the same time, you know - and Mick and Keith hadn’t come. And I was just messing about and I just sat down at the piano and started doing this riff, da-daw, da-da-daw, da-da-daw, and then Brian played a bit of guitar and Charlie was doing a rhythm. We were just messing with it for 20 minutes, just filling in time, and Mick and Keith came in and we stopped and they said, ‘Hey, that sounded really good, carry on, what is it? And then the next day we recorded it. Mick wrote great lyrics to it and it turned out to be a really good single.” As Richards explained in Rolling Stone, he’s very proud of his guitar part in this song. “When you get a riff like ‘Flash,’ you get a great feeling of elation, a wicked glee,” he said. “I can hear the whole band take off behind me every time I play ‘Flash’ - there’s this extra sort of turbo overdrive. You jump on the riff and it plays you. Levitation is probably the closest analogy to what I feel.”

Written by Tom Scholz, “More Than a Feeling” is about a man who wakes up feeling down, listens to music, and reminisces about his past with ‘Marianne’. Scholz described the song as a fantasy that resonates with many who have lost someone important, with music triggering memories. Inspired by the emotional tone of the Left Banke’s 1967 song “Walk Away Renee,” Scholz worked on the song for five years in his basement studio. Scholz played all instruments on “More Than a Feeling” except for drums, which were played by Sib Hashian. Most of Boston’s debut album, including “More Than a Feeling,” was recorded in Scholz’s basement with equipment funded by his Polaroid job earnings. Scholz took a leave of absence from Polaroid to complete the album but returned to work after its release, uncertain about the album’s success due to the disco trend. Hearing “More Than a Feeling” on the radio boosted his confidence, leading him to quit his job. “More Than a Feeling” was Boston’s first single and became an unexpected hit. The band’s rapid rise was surprising, especially for a debut album mostly recorded in a basement. The song’s polished and radio-friendly sound led to significant airplay and propelled the band into the rock scene. Boston’s debut album became one of the best-selling albums of all time.

This was written by Los Angeles-based songwriter/producer David Crawford at a time when Candi Staton was being forced to endure an abusive marriage to her third husband, Tyrone Davis’ former promoter. This song about marital grief was inspired by the stories that Candi told him about her difficult life with her husband. Candi Staton recalls: “We would sit down and I would tell him the horrors I was going through in the marriage I was trying to get out of. I would bring David incidents, and little did I know he was making mental notes and writing all that stuff down.” Despite having many songs, Crawford believed “Young Hearts Run Free” had hit potential. “David poured all this into writing Young Hearts Run Free. He had a lot of great songs, but said they were album cuts, not hits. But when he came up with Young Hearts Run Free, I instantly loved it. I heard the music first, then he sang it to me once and gave me the lyric sheet. Then I sang it in one take. I pleaded with him to let me do it again and he said: “You can, but I’ve got it.” As an artist, the first take contains the raw emotion. The hurt in my voice is real. I was singing my life.” The success of the song empowered Candi to leave her toxic relationship and seek refuge with her mother. “After the song was a hit, I was smart enough to gradually get rid of the guy and run free to my mum’s house. I often wonder if he’s still alive. The last I heard, somebody told me he was preaching.”

This song is a collaboration between the renowned jazz saxophone player Grover Washington, Jr. and the mighty soul singer Bill Withers. Washington crossed over in the ‘70s with a cover of “Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)” and an original song called “Mister Magic,” both instrumentals. For “Just The Two Of Us,” he brought in Withers to sing and to add lyrics - Withers was known for his hits “Lean On Me” and “Ain’t No Sunshine.” In a Songfacts interview with Withers, he explained: “I’m a little snobbish about words, so they sent me this song and said, ‘We want to do this with Grover, would you consider singing it?’ I said, ‘Yeah, if you’ll let me go in and try to dress these words up a little bit.’ Everybody that knows me is kind of used to me that way. I probably threw in the stuff like the crystal raindrops. The ‘Just The Two Of Us’ thing was already written. It was trying to put a tuxedo on it. I didn’t like what was said leading up to ‘Just The Two Of Us.’” When Withers went in to record his vocals, it was the first time he met Washington. They were rarely together when they recorded the song, and they never got to know each other very well (Washington died of a heart attack in 1999 at 56). Withers admired Washington because Grover did the first cover version of any song he’d written - an instrumental version of “Ain’t No Sunshine” that appeared on his first album. Since then, hundreds of artists have covered Withers’ songs. This appeared on Grover Washington, Jr.’s album and was initially credited just to him. Later pressings of the single made it clear that Withers was the vocalist. Now, however, a new generation has discovered the song on TikTok, using its mellow grooves to express themselves. Some are using it to highlight their make-up styles, others are scoring skateboard tricks, and some are simply vibing. But everyone can agree - it only gets better with time.

The Doors’ 1967 self-titled album made a strong impact with hits like “Light My Fire,” “People Are Strange,” and “Love Me Two Times,” selling 4 million copies in America. Despite this success, their debut single “Break on Through (To the Other Side)” didn’t chart high initially but became a revered concert staple. The Doors didn’t have a bass player, so their keyboard player Ray Manzarek created most of the low-end sounds. On this track, he borrowed the bass notes from the Ray Charles song “What’d I Say.” Robby Krieger’s guitar melody was inspired by the Paul Butterfield Blues Band of “Shake Your Money Maker,” which was released on the group’s debut album in 1965. Krieger was a huge fan of Butterfield, and found himself emulating the riff when they were working on “Break On Through.” In 1967, Jim Morrison did an interview with Hit Parader magazine where he said that he wrote this song while crossing canals in Venice. “I was walking over a bridge,” he said. “I guess it’s one girl, a girl I knew at the time.” In The Doors box set, Ray Manzarek said this was the last song they played live. It was during the Isle of the Wight Festival in the summer of 1970. The festival occurred while Morrison was on trial in Miami faced with charges of indecent exposure, and the band got a special five days of recess to be in England and get back to US. “This was to be the first gig of an European tour just as Miami was to be the first gig of a 20-city US tour. We never got beyond the first date of either one,” said Ray. Over time, the song gained popularity, accumulating 305 million Spotify plays and appearing in various films, TV shows, and videos. The Doors released six studio albums, with four reaching the Top 5, including “Waiting for the Sun,” which hit No. 1 in America. Despite its initial lack of success, “Break on Through” became a hit over time, symbolizing The Doors’ enduring impact on music.

Tom Jones, aged 80, spoke with the Daily Express, revealing he will no longer sing his hit song “She’s A Lady” during performances. Released in 1971, “She’s A Lady” was one of his best-selling hits. Jones explained that certain lyrics in the song, such as “She always knows her place,” do not align with contemporary values and thus, the song “doesn’t sit right anymore.” Despite its popularity, Jones feels that “She’s A Lady” is not suitable for today’s audience. Paul Anka, in his 2013 autobiography “My Way: An Autobiography,” recounted writing the song “She’s a Lady” for Tom Jones. Anka described the writing process as putting himself in Jones’ shoes, adopting a “Method actor” approach to capture Jones’ persona. He admitted that the song’s tone was brash and politically incorrect but felt it suited Jones’ image. Despite its success, Anka personally disliked “She’s a Lady,” considering it too chauvinistic for his taste. Anka wrote the song during a TWA flight from London to New York, completing the lyrics swiftly, followed by the melody in about an hour and a half. “She’s a Lady” peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, making it Jones’ highest-charting single in the United States, and remained on the chart for 14 weeks.

Kiki Dee explained in the book 1000 UK #1 Hits by Jon Kutner & Spencer Leigh, “Both Elton and I were big fans of those duets on Motown by the likes of Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell and as there hadn’t been any around for a bit, we thought we’d do one ourselves.” Elton recorded his part in Toronto, then the tape was sent to London where Kiki Dee recorded her vocal. Producer Gus Dudgeon recalls, “I was with Elton in Canada and he actually sang about three quarters of the song and gave Kiki about four lines. I said, “Hang on a minute, is this supposed to be a duet or a guest appearance? Elton replied, ‘A duet.’ Then you’ve got to give her at least 50% of the song.” After Elton recorded his part in Toronto, the tapes were sent to London and when Kiki got them she remembered, “Elton had recorded the song abroad and also did my vocals in a high-pitched voice which was quite funny, so I knew which lines to sing.” This was the second-biggest-selling record of 1976 in both the UK and US, it was a huge international success, topping the charts in a number of countries, including France, Italy, Australia and Canada. Bernie Taupin recalled the genesis of this song in his 2023 autobiography Scattershot: Life, Music, Elton, and Me): “I was in Barbados one evening in 1976 when Elton called from Toronto to play me a backing track he’d just cut with the band. Half cut myself by this point, the afternoon’s poolside cocktails having muddied my brainwaves, I listened and took note. Elton was in need of a lyric that could be done as a duet. I told him I would give it a shot, hung up, and stuck my head in the ice bucket. In 10 minutes, I’d thrown something together that was simplistic without being overly trite, and that is how ‘Don’t Go Breaking My Heart’ came about.”

“Island in the Sun” was not originally planned to be on the album, but producer Ric Ocasek fought for its inclusion. It was a successful radio single and perhaps the band’s biggest hit ever outside of the United States, reaching No. 31 in the UK and No. 17 in France. Weezer started recording this on January 1, 2001 at Cello Studios in Los Angeles, which used to be a part of Western Studios, where Frank Sinatra, The Mamas And The Papas and The Beach Boys all recorded. Sometime in April 2001, someone stole a copy of the master tapes and leaked the album on the Internet in unfinished form. Two different videos were made for this song. One shows the band playing at a Mexican wedding, and the other, more popular version shows the band cavorting with different wild animals. This version was directed by Spike Jonze.