Throwing back to the week of August 27, 1983, we find two songs dominating the top of the chart that basically occupied that space all summer — The Police’s ‘Every Breath You Take’ and Eurythmics’ ‘Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This).’
In the third spot was the second single from the Flashdance soundtrack. A couple of months earlier, the movie’s title track topped the charts, and now Michael Sembello’s ‘Maniac’ was on its way to the same accomplishment.
I’m closing out the week with another viral hit, this one refreshingly free of political baggage. Indeed, ‘Planet of the Bass’ has a more unifying idea: “World peace!”
This song started as a TikTok clip by comedian Kyle Gordon and “content creator” Audrey Trullinger, who embodied the characters DJ Crazy Times & Ms. Biljana Electronica for a short parody of a Eurodance song/video.
One of the more prominent critics of Jason Aldean’s ‘Try That in a Small Town’ was fellow country artist Jason Isbell, known for his brilliant songwriting chops, his outspoken leftist politics, and his Twitter clapback game.
Isbell opted to take a shot at Aldean for defending a song he didn’t even write. “Dare Aldean to write his next single himself. That’s what we try in my small town,” Isbell tweeted. Then, “Ok here ya go @Jason_Aldean I’m challenging you to write a song yourself. All alone. If you’re a recording artist, make some art. I want to hear it.” And, “Seriously how do you defend the content of a song you weren’t even in the room for? You just got it from your producer. If you’d been there when it was written, you’d be listed as a writer. We all know how this works.”
While we’re discussing problematic right-wing country songs that hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, let me shift the conversation to Jason Aldean’s ‘Try That in a Small Town.’ This song was released in May to little fanfare but stirred up controversy last month when its video dropped.
The lyrics condone vigilantism in the face of big city violence, with the opening verse targeting carjackings, battery, and armed robbery before moving on to the more benign insulting of police officers and flag burning. Apparently all of these infractions are equally worthy of homegrown justice in a small town.
Viral hit ‘Rich Men North of Richmond,’ yesterday’s Song of the Day, caught the attention of English singer-songwriter Billy Bragg, who apparently had the same reservations about the lyrics as most thoughtful people.
He did recognize the germ of truth at the heart of the song, however, and wrote his own tune in response, directing his anger at the titular rich men rather than the obese welfare recipients targeted by Anthony.
Meet Me In Montauk 