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Song of the Day #6,338: ‘Look at Us Now (Honeycomb)’ – Daisy Jones & The Six

I’m intrigued by the idea of adapting a book about musicians to the big or small screen and having to write music that has only been described in words. The best recent example I have is the miniseries Daisy Jones & The Six.

The book of the same title, written by Taylor Jenkins Reid, tells the story of the struggles and successes of a 1970s band. The complicated relationship of the band’s leaders, played by Riley Keough and Sam Claflin in the series, was inspired by the romance of Stevie Nicks and Lindsay Buckingham during Fleetwood Mac’s heyday.

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Song of the Day #6,337: ‘Walk Hard’ – Dewey Cox

Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, released in 2007, probably should have ended all musical biopics. It’s a ruthless satire of then-recent hits Walk the Line and Ray that exposes every clich&e and tired trope of the genre.

And yet, Hollywood keeps churning them out. In just the past few years we’ve seen movies about Elvis, Bob Marley, Robbie Williams, Amy Winehouse, Bob Dylan, and Bruce Springsteen.

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Song of the Day #6,336: ‘U Know What’s Up’ – 4*TOWN

It’s 2002 in Toronto, and pre-teen girls everywhere are swooning to the sounds of Canadian boy band 4*TOWN. That’s the world as depicted in Pixar’s 2022 film Turning Red, one of the studio’s more successful recent efforts.

One of the things Turning Red does best is capture the look and sound of an early-00s boy band. They tapped two songwriters who were little kids in 2002, Billie Eilish and brother Finneas O’Connell, but the duo proved more than capable of channeling the era.

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Song of the Day #6,335: ‘Part-Time Lover’ – Stevie Wonder

Jan Hammer owned the #1 spot of the Billboard Hot 100 on the week of December 9, 1985, with the theme to Miami Vice. I covered that track during a week on TV theme songs that topped the chart.

At #2 that week, following a single week at the top spot, was Stevie Wonder’s ‘Part-Time Lover.’ This was the last of eight #1 hits for Wonder, and it is notable for being the first track to reach #1 on four different Billboard charts: Hot 100, dance, R&B, and adult contemporary.

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Song of the Day #6,334: ‘Island Girl’ – Elton John

Throwing back to the week of November 8, 1975, we find Elton John atop the Billboard Hot 100 with ‘Island Girl,’ the first single from his album Rock of the Westies.

This song has the distinction of being the only one of John’s nine U.S. #1 hits that I’ve never heard. Or at least I have no recollection of hearing it before learning it would be the subject of a Throwback Weekend post today.

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