Category Archives: song of the day

by

Song of the Day #5,906: ‘Jessie’s Girl (Live)’ – Rick Springfield

Top Ten Songs of the Summer
#2 – Rick Springfield – ‘Jessie’s Girl’ (1981)

The 80s are my favorite musical decade, so it’s no surprise that my top two Songs of the Summer are from that great era.

Rick Springfield’s 1981 hit ‘Jessie’s Girl’ was a slow builder, creeping up the Hot 100 until it finally reached #1 in August. That was enough to give it the Song of the Summer title over second place finisher ‘Better Davis Eyes.’ That Kim Carnes classic would have likely made my top five had it earned the crown, underscoring what a great time it was to be a music fan.

Continue reading →

by

Song of the Day #5,905: ‘Umbrella (Live)’ – Rihanna

Top Ten Songs of the Summer
#3 – Rihanna – ‘Umbrella’ (2007)

Rihanna’s ‘Umbrella’ is the song that popularized the concept of the Song of the Summer. Following this smash hit, which spent seven consecutive weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100, music writers and fans alike started speculating about which tune would claim the title each year.

So for kicking off this mad exercise, and also because it’s a great song, ‘Umbrella’ makes it to the top three.

Continue reading →

by

Song of the Day #5,904: ‘(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction (Live)’ – The Rolling Stones

Top Ten Songs of the Summer
#4 – The Rolling Stones – ‘(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction’ (1965)

Songs of the Summer tend not to be all-time classics. Remember, The Beatles never managed to earn the title. But my #4 is one of the rare iconic songs by a legendary artist to make the cut.

Buoyed by one of the greatest guitar riffs of all-time, The Rolling Stones’ ‘(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction’ gave the band their first U.S. #1, reaching the top spot in July of 1965 and spending a month there that summer.

Continue reading →

by

Song of the Day #5,903: ‘When Doves Cry (Live)’ – Prince

Top Ten Songs of the Summer
#5 – Prince – ‘When Doves Cry’ (1984)

The 80s is my favorite musical decade, so it follows that it’s also the decade that produced the best Songs of the Summer. Three of my top five SotS came from that great period.

1984 was a particularly good year. I’ll get to Prince in a second, but the runners-up that year included Bruce Springsteen’s ‘Dancing in the Dark,’ Billy Idol’s ‘Eyes Without a Face,’ Lionel Richie’s ‘Stuck On You,’ and Duran Duran’s ‘The Reflex.’ Also in the running were the two songs I blogged about yesterday, Tina Turner’s ‘What’s Love Got to Do With It’ and John Waite’s ‘Missing You.’

Continue reading →

by

Song of the Day #5,902: ‘Missing You’ – John Waite

Tina Turner had the #1 song the week of September 1, 1984, with ‘What’s Love Got to Do With It?‘ It was her first and only solo #1, and spent three weeks atop the Hot 100.

That week, the second spot was held by English singer-songwriter John Waite with his soft rock balled ‘Missing You.’ Waite would eventually replace Turner at #1, topping the chart for a single week. ‘Missing You’ was the only song in that great music year to spend only one week at #1.

Turner would cover this song 12 years later for her album Wildest Dreams.

Continue reading →