It’s been a full five months since I last did an installment of ‘What the Kids are Listening To,’ the series in which I cover the songs currently topping the Billboard Hot 100.
Back in May, Ella Langley’s ‘Choosin’ Texas’ had been at #1 for seven weeks, a record for a woman country artist. After that, of course, it held on to the top spot for 24 total weeks, besting Mariah Carey’s ‘All I Want for Christmas is You‘ to become the longest-running #1 hit in Billboard history.
Cyndi Lauper held the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 the week of October 25, 1986, with ‘True Colors,’ the title track of her sophomore album. This was Lauper’s second #1 hit, following 1984’s ‘Time After Time,’ and her last.
The song was written by Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly, a prolific songwriting duo who had tremendous success penning #1 hits for women artists. They were also responsible for Madonna’s ‘Like a Virgin,’ Heart’s ‘Alone,’ Whitney Houston’s ‘So Emotional,’ and The Bangles’ ‘Eternal Flame.’
Throwing back to the week of October 24, 1975, we find a trio of repeats atop the Billboard Hot 100: Chicago’s ‘If You Leave Me Now,’ Rick Dees’ ‘Disco Duck,’ and The Steve Miller Band’s ‘Rock’n Me.’
That brings us to #4 and Canadian singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot’s ‘The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald,’ a folk rock song that ultimately peaked at #2 for two weeks in November. This was Lightfoot’s second-highest charting song, after his sole #1 hit, 1974’s ‘Sundown.’
The final inductee from the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2010 is The Stooges, the proto-punk band fronted by Iggy Pop. The Stooges were first eligible for Hall inclusion in 1995 and were nominated eight times before making it in.
Iggy Pop has been eligible as a solo artist since 2003 and as the “Godfather of Punk” has a decent case for getting in twice, but it seems the Hall is (so far) content with recognizing him through for his groundbreaking work with The Stooges.
Our next member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2010 is reggae pioneer Jimmy Cliff. Eligible since 1988, Cliff was nominated for the first time in 2010, the year of his induction.
Cliff was the second Jamaican to enter the Rock Hall, following Bob Marley in 1994. Three more countrymen and women have been inducted since, but Marley and Cliff remain the only reggae artists recognized by the Hall.
