We nearly had a Stevie Wonder two-fer this weekend, as the #1 song the week of October 27, 1984, was his ‘I Just Called to Say I Love You.’
But I featured that insipid track a week ago, so it’s just one Stevie Wonder song (a much better one) this weekend. Still, it’s impressive that Wonder was able to hold the #1 spot on the same week a decade apart.
At #2 that week was Billy Ocean’s ‘Caribbean Queen (No More Love On The Run),’ on its way to a two-week stint in the top spot. Ocean took home the Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for the song, making him the first British artist to win that award. Ocean was born in Trinidad and Tobago 12 years before it was freed from British rule.
In case you’re wondering why a song called ‘Caribbean Queen’ by a man born in the Caribbean doesn’t evoke the region musically or lyrically, that’s because the track started its life as ‘European Queen‘ in the UK. That version didn’t do very well, and neither did ‘African Queen‘ on that continent.
But the same song reworked as ‘Caribbean Queen’ and released in the U.S. became a chart-topping hit.
She’s simply awesome
Ooh
[Verse 1]
She dashed by me in painted on jeans
And all heads turned ’cause she was the dream
In the blink of an eye I knew her number and her name, yeah
She said I was the tiger she wanted to tame
[Chorus]
Caribbean Queen
Now we’re sharing the same dream
And our hearts they beat as one
No more love on the run
[Verse 2]
I lose my cool when she steps in the room
And I get so excited just from her perfume
Electric eyes that you can’t ignore
And passion burns you like never before
[Verse 3]
I was in search of a good time
Just running my game
Love was the furthest
Furthest from my mind
[Chorus]
Caribbean Queen (can’t give her up)
Now we’re sharing the same dream (don’t wanna stop)
And our hearts they beat as one
No more love on the run
I love ya, I need ya
[Chorus]
Caribbean Queen (can’t give her up)
Now we’re sharing the same dream (don’t wanna stop)
And our hearts they beat as one
No more love on the run
[Chorus]
Caribbean Queen
Now we’re sharing the same dream
And our hearts they beat as one
No more love on the run
[Chorus]
Caribbean Queen
Now we’re sharing the same dream
And our hearts they beat as one
No more love on the run
[Outro]
She is the queen
My Caribbean Queen
I said she dashed by me in painted jeans…
Meet Me In Montauk 
Billy Ocean certainly had his 15 minutes of fame and then faded away.
I always loved this song and recently heard it on the series Bad Monkey