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Song of the Day #6,405: ‘That’s What Friends Are For’ – Dionne Warwick & Friends

It’s a real cheesefest this weekend. Just when you thought it was safe to come back to the blog after yesterday’s Barry Manilow offering, I’m serving up a little ‘That’s What Friends Are For.’

The week of January 18, 1986, was the first of a four-week stint at #1 for this collaboration between Dionne Warwick, Elton John, Gladys Knight, and Stevie Wonder. Written by Burt Bacharach and Carole Bayer Sager, the song was originally recorded by Rod Stewart for the soundtrack of the 1982 film Night Shift.

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Song of the Day #6,404: ‘I Write the Songs’ – Barry Manilow

Throwing back to the week of January 17, 1976, we find Barry Manilow atop the Billboard Hot 100 with ‘I Write the Songs,’ which spent a single week at #1 after debuting on the chart a month and a half earlier.

Two other versions of this song were released in 1975 — one by Captain & Tennille on their album Love Will Keep Us Together, and another by David Cassidy for his album The Higher They Climb. Neither was released as a single.

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Song of the Day #6,403: ‘Little Atoms’ – Elvis Costello

Continuing a countdown of my favorite albums of 1996…

#6 – All This Useless Beauty – Elvis Costello

It’s a testament to the genius of Elvis Costello that this album, one I’m probably rank in the bottom half of his discography, is easily one of the best releases of its year.

All This Useless Beauty started as a project compiling Costello’s recordings of songs he’d written for other artists. About half of its final tracklist fits that description, including songs written for the likes of ‘Til Tuesday, Johnny Cash, Roger McGuinn, and June Tabor.

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Song of the Day #6,402: ‘Two Step’ – Dave Matthews Band

Continuing a countdown of my favorite albums of 1996…

#7 – Crash – Dave Matthews Band

The Dave Matthews Band isn’t particularly hip anymore. Though they released a studio album as recently as 2023, it’s been 16 years since their last Platinum effort. And while the band still plays packed live shows to a legion of die-hard fans, many of whom travel along with them, their mainstream appeal has dwindled.

But in the mid-90s, these guys were the shit. The one-two punch of 1994’s Under the Table and Dreaming and 1996’s Crash brought their unique brand of eclectic jazzy pop to the masses, selling more than 13 million copies combined.

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Song of the Day #6,401: ‘6th Avenue Heartache’ – The Wallflowers

Continuing a countdown of my favorite albums of 1996…

#8 – Bringing Down the Horse – The Wallflowers

The mid-90s was the greatest time for alt-rock bands with a pop sensibility and one of my favorites was The Wallflowers. The band got a lot of press because lead singer Jakob Dylan was Bob’s son, but their self-titled 1992 debut didn’t make much of a splash.

That changed with sophomore release Bringing Down the Horse, which went 4X Platinum and spawned radio hits in ‘6th Avenue Heartache,’ ‘One Headlight,’ and ‘The Difference.’ ‘One Headlight’ even won the band a pair of Grammys.

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