16/11/2023
I was listening to a tape today that I recorded in 1982, where I counted down my top 10 favorite pop hits of 1982, American Top 40 style, starting with #10. I was surprised by the first two songs on the countdown being at the bottom spots, while some songs after them were songs I now play much less often. There were more surprises on the list, which I'll mention after the list. I couldn't predict exactly what songs were on this list, except that I KNEW what the #1 song was, without a doubt -- I was *crazy* about that song in 1982!
Here's the sequence of what I heard in my Top 10 countdown:
10. Forget-me-nots - Patrice Rushen
9. I Want Candy - Bow Wow Wow
8. I Ran - A Flock Of Seagulls
7. Kids In America - Kim Wilde
6. It's Raining Again - Supertramp
5. Gloria - Laura Branigan
4. Vacation - The Go-Go's
3. The Look Of Love - ABC
2. Don't You Want Me - The Human League
1. Let It Whip - Dazz Band
Usually if I play a 7" single by A Flock Of Seagulls, I play "Space Age Love Song" (and its B-side-only "Windows"), so I was surprised that "I Ran" was on the list. But as I thought about it, I might not have gotten "Space Age Love Song" until early 1983. Not sure. But certainly, I play that song much more than "I Ran" and like it (and "Windows") significantly more.
I was *shocked" by #6. I introduced it as "My #6 song is by Supertramp" and I couldn't even imagine a song by Supertramp in 1982; I could only think of their Breakfast In America album that came out in 1979. I didn't even remember "It's Raining Again" until it started playing. Talk about dropping into obscurity (as far as my listening habits).
I am a BIG Kim Wilde fan, and her albums make regular appearances on my turntable or CD player, but her debut album, where "Kids In America" is from, is one I listen to less than her next three albums -- Select, Catch As Catch Can, and Teases And Dares. However, I do like her first album very much and still totally love the song "Kids In America."
Similarly, I listen to The Go-Go's quite a bit, but the album of theirs I listen to most often is 2001's God Bless The Go-Go's, the best album they ever did. I still enjoy their first three albums, though.
Now I'm going to make a list from the above songs: here is the frequency (roughly) of how often I listen to these songs these days:
1. Forget-me-nots - Patrice Rushen
2. I Want Candy - Bow Wow Wow
3. Kids In America - Kim Wilde
4. Vacation - The Go-Go's
5. The Look Of Love - ABC
6. Gloria - Laura Branigan
7. Let It Whip - Dazz Band
8. Don't You Want Me - The Human League
9. I Ran - A Flock Of Seagulls
10. (NEVER) It's Raining Again - Supertramp
"Forget-me-nots" is a song that has never completely disappeared from my music listening. I mean it's not like I play it frequently, but it never became dormant. Such a lovely smooth groove.
People who regularly read my posts know that in 2020 much of my record collection got damaged by flood/mold, and the amount I had insured only covered a fraction of what it would have cost to replace all my records, so I had to choose carefully what I would replace. Well, "I Want Candy" made the cut, and in a big way -- it cost me $14.77 to replace that 7" single, but I like the song well enough to pay that much to replace it. And it was only #9 on my list in 1982! I mentioned on the tape that it only made it to #66 on the Billboard singles chart. Yet despite it not even reaching the top 40 in 1982, I bet you know the song.
For "The Look Of Love," I have a 12" single with Parts 1-4. Part 1 is the radio version, part 2 instrumental. Part 3 is my favorite and the one I play far more than the radio version: It's a stripped down version where the drums are out front and very little of the strings and horns. The #5 frequency position on the list is actually Part 3, not the radio hit version, so if I forced my list to be the radio versions only, it would rank lower on the list.
The Human League album Dare, which "Don't You Want Me" came from, was a big album for me in 1982, but my favorite song on the album was "The Sound Of The Crowd." If I only play one Human League song, it's usually that one.
Though I don't get out "Let It Whip" as often as the ones above it on the list, when I do play it, I still greatly enjoy the song.
Can you think of any songs that you were crazy about when they were popular but now you almost never play them (compared to other songs of the time)? And can you think of any songs that you were not crazy about when they were popular but that you have continued to enjoy over the years, making them more important to you now than they were when they were popular?
