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Song of the Day #6,509: ‘Blue Suede Shoes’ – Carl Perkins

Throwing back to the week of May 2, 1956, we find Elvis Presley holding on to the top spot with ‘Heartbreak Hotel‘ with Perry Como’s ‘Hot Diggity (Dog Ziggity Boom)‘ and Les Baxter’s ‘The Poor People of Paris‘ in the second and third spots.

At #4 was a song many associate with Presley but one that was written and recorded by Carl Perkins first: ‘Blue Suede Shoes.’ Presley’s version was recorded around the same time as Perkins’ but wasn’t released as a single until later in 1956 out of respect for the original (at the time, it was very common for multiple versions of a song to be released simultaneously).

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Song of the Day #6,508: ‘Elevation’ – Television

Concluding my look at the albums of 1977…

Another seminal debut album from 1977, Television’s Marquee Moon got me thinking about how the artists from this era were really bouncing off of each other in interesting ways.

Earlier this week, I heard so much Elvis Costello in The Jam’s first album, even though both artists debuted the same year. And in this album, I hear so much Talking Heads, whose debut album also came out in ’77.

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Song of the Day #6,507: ‘Blue Bayou’ – Linda Ronstadt

Continuing my look at the albums of 1977…

I’ve been considering a Linda Ronstadt deep dive for awhile now, and I’m finally ready to commit. Something about her eighth studio album, Simple Dreams, charmed me enough to send me back through the rest of her catalog. Stay tuned for the details in future weeks.

In the meantime, I’ll sing the praises of this album, the best-seller of Ronstadt’s career and, at the time, the second best-selling album by any woman (after Carole King’s Tapestry). It even knocked Rumours from the #1 spot after 29 straight weeks.

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Song of the Day #6,506: ‘In the City’ – The Jam

Continuing my look at the albums of 1977…

1977 was a great year for debuts. Here’s just a small sample of artists who dropped their first album that year: The Clash, 38 Special, Iggy Pop, George Thorogood, Talking Heads, Elvis Costello, The Sex Pistols, Steve Winwood, Teddy Pendergrass, Peter Gabriel, Eddie Money, Reba McEntire, and Cheap Trick.

Add to that list the English rock band The Jam, whose In the City kicked off a successful six-year run that produced 18 consecutive Top 40 singles in the UK.

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Song of the Day #6,505: ‘Little Queen’ – Heart

Continuing my look at the albums of 1977…

Prior to the Decades series, my knowledge of Heart was limited to the synth-pop of the band’s self-titled 1985 album, which featured the hits ‘These Dreams,’ ‘What About Love,’ and ‘Never.’

I was surprised by the band’s debut, 1976’s Dreamboat Annie, when I covered it as part of that year’s Decades roundup. I expected hard rock and got a much quieter, folksier album peppered with some heavy-hitters.

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