Content tagged 'Single Stories'

Today we celebrate a single that might never have found its way into the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 if one of its two co-writers hadn’t convinced the other that its simplicity was worth pursuing. “Dance With Me” was the work of John Hall and Johanna Hall. She was a former journalist who’d followed her muse to become a lyricist, he was the guitarist and vocalist for Orleans, and at the time they were married and penning pop songs together. The specific origins of this track were discussed in 2016 by Seth Rudetsky, who interviewed Johanna on SiriusXM and then subsequently wrote about them i

51 years ago today, the Monkees entered the recording studio to lay down the track that would serve as their debut single. Written by Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart, “Last Train to Clarksville” was recorded at RCA Victor Studio B in Hollywood and released less than a month later, on August 16, if that gives you an idea how quickly things were moving for the group at the time. (Hey, that’s what happens when you’ve got the combined power of Don Kirshner and Screen Gems in your corner.) According to Hart, he had originally referenced Clarks dale in the lyrics, having recalled a town in northern Arizo

45 years ago today, the Eagles released the second single from their self-titled debut, a track which Elaine Benes would try and fail to make into “our song” in an episode of Seinfeld . “Witchy Woman” was written by Don Henley and Bernie Leadon, although Leadon had actually begun the writing process while he was still within the ranks of the Flying Burrito Brothers. Once he joined the Eagles, he and Henley finished the track, which was a pretty momentous occasion, as it was the only song on the album to feature a Henley writing credit. Later, Henley would say that the song “marked the beginnin

34 years ago today, Metallica released their debut single from their debut full-length album. Written by James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich and produced by Paul Curcio and Johny Zazula, “Whiplash” was – despite holding the lofty spot in Metallica’s history that we referenced in the first sentence – one of the last songs written for their KILL ‘EM ALL album. Recorded at Music America Studios in Rochester, New York, the song was ostensibly written about the feeling experienced when one is banging one’s head, which checks out when you look at the lyrics and their references to “thrashing all around”

47 years ago this month, Charles Wright and the Watts 103 rd Street Rhythm Band released the single that would prove to be their biggest hit on Billboard’s R&B Singles chart, which seems like as good a reason to spotlight the track in our Single Stories feature as any. Written and produced by Wright himself, “Express Yourself” was a song title that came about during a live performance of another Watts 103 rd Street Band classic: “Do Your Thing.” While performing the song at Texas A&M, Wright kept saying the words to the crowd, and in turn, the crowd followed his instructions, upping their volu

You already know that “I Got You Babe” was the song that turned Sonny & Cher into superstars, but the song’s success also turned one of the duo’s earlier unnoticed singles into their second big hit, one which actually found its success on the heels of a solo song by Sonny Bono. The story goes like this: in September 1964, Sonny and Cher released “Baby Don’t Go” as their debut single on Reprise Records, which became a hit locally in Los Angeles and found some additional airplay elsewhere on the west coast but failed to hit the Hot 100. In the summer of 1965, however, they found themselves at th

1974 was a “Tin Man” summer for America. Not for the country – although they seemed to like it well enough, based on its chart placing – but for the band. Written by Dewey Bunnell, “Tin Man” appeared on America’s fourth album, HOLIDAY, which was released in June 1974. Like the album as a whole, the song was produced by George Martin, who also tinkled the ivories on the track, and it was about the Tin Woodman in The Wizard of Oz …except when it wasn’t. As Bunnell told Wesley Hyatt in an interview for The Billboard Book of #1 Adult Contemporary Hits , “It’s sort of poetic license.” In An America

28 years ago today, Fine Young Cannibals released the third single from their second album, a song drawing from a decidedly different sonic template than the tracks that had preceded it on the charts. Written by Roland Gift and David Steele, “Don’t Look Back” stands apart from “She Drives Me Crazy” and “Good Thing” immediately, thanks to its jangly guitar riffs, which – to use a point of reference from the era in which it was originally released – sound straight out of the Mighty Lemon Drops’ playbook. The lyrics of the song aren’t nearly as upbeat as the music, however, with Gift singing abou

25 years ago this week, Stone Temple Pilots released their song “Wicked Garden” to radio, and although it was never actually released commercially as a single, it has nonetheless gone on to become one of the most well-known songs. With lyrics by Scott Weiland and music by Robert and Dean DeLeo, “Wicked Garden” dates back to 1990, appearing on the band’s original MIGHTY JOE YOUNG demo. The version which appeared on their debut full-length album, CORE, was produced by Brendan O’Brien and was – per the late Mr. Weiland – “a song about people allowing all their innocence and purity to be lost from

Remember that time Rod Stewart went disco? Sure you do! Boy, those were some good, sexy times, weren’t they? Well, now it’s time you learned the story behind the song that took our man Rod to the top of the singles charts on both sides of the Atlantic. Written by Stewart, Carmen Appice, and Duane Hitchings, “Da’ Ya’ Think I’m Sexy” was the first single from Stewart’s ninth solo album, BLONDES HAVE MORE FUN, and when it first emerged, it caused no end of consternation from a number of Stewart’s diehard fans, the ones who’d been following his career since he’d been singing blues-rock tracks in t