Already almost 20 songs down!
#85: "Take My Heart (You Can Have It If You Want It)" by Kool & The Gang
For those who don't know who this band is, they were a jazz/funk/R&B/soul band formed in the mid 60's. They are still around, although with line-up changes. I've heard two songs by them: "Jungle Boogie" and "Celebration". I don't think there is a person around who hasn't heard "Celebration", though.
Music opens with an R&B feel. The music is a combination of drums, synth, and piano. It gives the song a fairly mellow feel, flowing fairly easily and comfortably. It's definitely from the 80's, though. Vocally, the lead has a very good voice for soul as well as R&B. He puts a fair bit of emotion in his voice, and while he does have range, he saves the high notes for the right moment.
The lyrics are nothing special. The title of the song pretty much sums up what it is about. The only real "twist" is that the male vocalist is the one saying "You can have it if you want it,", while a backing female choir is saying "take my heart", giving the song a bit more of a "mutual attraction" feel to it.
This song was pretty enjoyable, if you like R&B songs. The music is almost too mellow at times, setting the mood without really exciting the listener. That said, the vocalist is solid, and the harmonies work quite well, while the lyrics do their job of getting the song's emotion across without mixing the message up. It's not the best R&B song I've heard, nor the most exciting, but it does its job competently.
#84: "Make A Move On Me" by Olivia Newton-John
I'm not very familiar with her singing career, but I have seen Grease. She was by far the better singer of the two leads.
The music is decent in this song. The main instrument is a synthesizer, which gives the song an 80's dance vibe. That said, the bridge between the chorus and verse has a pretty nice bass line, giving those parts a different feel than other 80's dance pop. Vocally, Olivia Newton-John doesn't really do much different than a lot of other 80's female solo artists. She has a nice enough voice, and is having fun, but she just comes off as a bit generic.
This song is essentially all the male love songs, done from the female's point of view. She's been won over by his wooing ways, and is basically saying "take me, I'm yours".
This song doesn't really do a lot to stand out from the other 80's dance songs. It has a nice beat to it, and Olivia Newton-John is clearly having a good time vocally, but the lyrics are pretty shallow, and there's just not a whole lot to the song. As a dance song, though, you could do worse. I'd also rather listen to her than John Travolta sing.
#83: "Any Day Now" by Ronnie Milsap
Ronnie Milsap is a country artist. I've reviewed his songs a few times before for my 1981 list, and I liked his songs back then well enough.
Music starts up with a nice pleasant piano line. It's not anything special, but it does give the song a bit of a heartwarming feel to it, which is all you can really ask for in a piano track. Vocally, Ronnie Milsap has a pretty good voice for an upbeat piano song like this. He doesn't show a lot of pitch range, but he has a fair bit of power in his voice, and knows how to use it.
The lyrics are...not nearly as upbeat as the music and vocal tone would have you expect. Basically, the singer is expressing that he loves a girl...but knows that any day now, she will find another man and leave him, and there is nothing he can do about it.
The lyrics could be a bit corny or cheesy in the wrong hands, but here, they are almost depressing. They are made a lot more believable through Ronnie Milsap's vocals. He puts a fair bit of emotion into his voice, and you really believe that he is going through everything you'd expect him to go through given the story in the lyrics. Add in some strangely upbeat piano, and you have a fairly solid song. It sounds different from most other country songs I've heard, but he pulls it off a lot better than Kenny Rogers.
#82: "Get Down On It" by Kool And The Gang
Repeat artist! Please...don't let this be a sex song.
Music is R&B, but with a lot more of a funk influence, unlike the last KaTG song. It opens with a solid bass line, soon being joined by a synth line and some nice guitar. Vocally, on the other hand, the singer doesn't sound quite as good as he did in "Take My Heart". He sounds like he is in a pretty good dance song, but when he is capable of putting a lot of emotion in his voice, lacking it is disappointing.
Luckily for me, this is not a sex song. This is, instead, a club song, encouraging someone to get down on the dance floor. Why? Because if you don't get on the dance floor and enjoy yourself, how can you know how good you are at dancing?
Despite the comparative shortcomings of the vocals, this song was a lot more enjoyable for me than "Take My Heart". The sometimes boring music has been replaced by a very good beat, one that is great for a bit of 80's dancing, and the lyrics are somewhat more thoughtful than you'd expect from a dance song, encouraging people to do what they want to do without worrying about whether they feel like they are good at it. So go on, get down on it.
#81: "I Keep Forgettin' (Every Time You're Near)" by Michael McDonald
Michael McDonald got his career started by singing back-up vocals for Steely Dan. He joined the Doobie Brothers for a few years, writing several hits and winning a Song of the Year Grammy (along with co-writer Kenny Loggins) for "What A Fool Believes", before branching off into a solo career. By the way, this song is actually a duet with his sisters Kathy and Maureen. Wait, if there are three artists, is that a triet?
The music is pretty decent. It has a pretty nice R&B guitar line going on, along with a decent bass line. It gives it a bit of a soul vibe, and holds your interest. The vocals...are not my thing. It sounds like he has both cotton balls in his mouth, and no control over his pitch. He has a decent range, but it slides all over the place. His sisters sound quite a bit better, but are delegated to backing vocals.
This is a post-breakup song. The singer apparently still is in love with the person, and keeps forgetting that they aren't in love any more whenever they get close to each other. In other words, this song is pretty much the opposite of "let's just be friends", in that this guy cannot be friend-zoned happily.
If you can get past the vocals, this song is pretty enjoyable. The music is pretty nice, and gives the song a solid soul vibe, while the lyrics, cheesy as they may be, accurately paint a portrait of a guy who is not over a break up, and can't even be close to his ex without thinking of the past. But those vocals...they are hard to get past. This is a guy who was probably better off in the back. With his microphone turned off.
Well, that list was...all right, I guess. Sort of.
Previously: #90-86 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.857279-1982-Billboard-Top-100-90-86]
Next: #80-76 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.857862-1982-Billboard-Top-100-80-76]
#85: "Take My Heart (You Can Have It If You Want It)" by Kool & The Gang
For those who don't know who this band is, they were a jazz/funk/R&B/soul band formed in the mid 60's. They are still around, although with line-up changes. I've heard two songs by them: "Jungle Boogie" and "Celebration". I don't think there is a person around who hasn't heard "Celebration", though.
Music opens with an R&B feel. The music is a combination of drums, synth, and piano. It gives the song a fairly mellow feel, flowing fairly easily and comfortably. It's definitely from the 80's, though. Vocally, the lead has a very good voice for soul as well as R&B. He puts a fair bit of emotion in his voice, and while he does have range, he saves the high notes for the right moment.
The lyrics are nothing special. The title of the song pretty much sums up what it is about. The only real "twist" is that the male vocalist is the one saying "You can have it if you want it,", while a backing female choir is saying "take my heart", giving the song a bit more of a "mutual attraction" feel to it.
This song was pretty enjoyable, if you like R&B songs. The music is almost too mellow at times, setting the mood without really exciting the listener. That said, the vocalist is solid, and the harmonies work quite well, while the lyrics do their job of getting the song's emotion across without mixing the message up. It's not the best R&B song I've heard, nor the most exciting, but it does its job competently.
#84: "Make A Move On Me" by Olivia Newton-John
I'm not very familiar with her singing career, but I have seen Grease. She was by far the better singer of the two leads.
The music is decent in this song. The main instrument is a synthesizer, which gives the song an 80's dance vibe. That said, the bridge between the chorus and verse has a pretty nice bass line, giving those parts a different feel than other 80's dance pop. Vocally, Olivia Newton-John doesn't really do much different than a lot of other 80's female solo artists. She has a nice enough voice, and is having fun, but she just comes off as a bit generic.
This song is essentially all the male love songs, done from the female's point of view. She's been won over by his wooing ways, and is basically saying "take me, I'm yours".
This song doesn't really do a lot to stand out from the other 80's dance songs. It has a nice beat to it, and Olivia Newton-John is clearly having a good time vocally, but the lyrics are pretty shallow, and there's just not a whole lot to the song. As a dance song, though, you could do worse. I'd also rather listen to her than John Travolta sing.
#83: "Any Day Now" by Ronnie Milsap
Ronnie Milsap is a country artist. I've reviewed his songs a few times before for my 1981 list, and I liked his songs back then well enough.
Music starts up with a nice pleasant piano line. It's not anything special, but it does give the song a bit of a heartwarming feel to it, which is all you can really ask for in a piano track. Vocally, Ronnie Milsap has a pretty good voice for an upbeat piano song like this. He doesn't show a lot of pitch range, but he has a fair bit of power in his voice, and knows how to use it.
The lyrics are...not nearly as upbeat as the music and vocal tone would have you expect. Basically, the singer is expressing that he loves a girl...but knows that any day now, she will find another man and leave him, and there is nothing he can do about it.
The lyrics could be a bit corny or cheesy in the wrong hands, but here, they are almost depressing. They are made a lot more believable through Ronnie Milsap's vocals. He puts a fair bit of emotion into his voice, and you really believe that he is going through everything you'd expect him to go through given the story in the lyrics. Add in some strangely upbeat piano, and you have a fairly solid song. It sounds different from most other country songs I've heard, but he pulls it off a lot better than Kenny Rogers.
#82: "Get Down On It" by Kool And The Gang
Repeat artist! Please...don't let this be a sex song.
Music is R&B, but with a lot more of a funk influence, unlike the last KaTG song. It opens with a solid bass line, soon being joined by a synth line and some nice guitar. Vocally, on the other hand, the singer doesn't sound quite as good as he did in "Take My Heart". He sounds like he is in a pretty good dance song, but when he is capable of putting a lot of emotion in his voice, lacking it is disappointing.
Luckily for me, this is not a sex song. This is, instead, a club song, encouraging someone to get down on the dance floor. Why? Because if you don't get on the dance floor and enjoy yourself, how can you know how good you are at dancing?
Despite the comparative shortcomings of the vocals, this song was a lot more enjoyable for me than "Take My Heart". The sometimes boring music has been replaced by a very good beat, one that is great for a bit of 80's dancing, and the lyrics are somewhat more thoughtful than you'd expect from a dance song, encouraging people to do what they want to do without worrying about whether they feel like they are good at it. So go on, get down on it.
#81: "I Keep Forgettin' (Every Time You're Near)" by Michael McDonald
Michael McDonald got his career started by singing back-up vocals for Steely Dan. He joined the Doobie Brothers for a few years, writing several hits and winning a Song of the Year Grammy (along with co-writer Kenny Loggins) for "What A Fool Believes", before branching off into a solo career. By the way, this song is actually a duet with his sisters Kathy and Maureen. Wait, if there are three artists, is that a triet?
The music is pretty decent. It has a pretty nice R&B guitar line going on, along with a decent bass line. It gives it a bit of a soul vibe, and holds your interest. The vocals...are not my thing. It sounds like he has both cotton balls in his mouth, and no control over his pitch. He has a decent range, but it slides all over the place. His sisters sound quite a bit better, but are delegated to backing vocals.
This is a post-breakup song. The singer apparently still is in love with the person, and keeps forgetting that they aren't in love any more whenever they get close to each other. In other words, this song is pretty much the opposite of "let's just be friends", in that this guy cannot be friend-zoned happily.
If you can get past the vocals, this song is pretty enjoyable. The music is pretty nice, and gives the song a solid soul vibe, while the lyrics, cheesy as they may be, accurately paint a portrait of a guy who is not over a break up, and can't even be close to his ex without thinking of the past. But those vocals...they are hard to get past. This is a guy who was probably better off in the back. With his microphone turned off.
Well, that list was...all right, I guess. Sort of.
Previously: #90-86 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.857279-1982-Billboard-Top-100-90-86]
Next: #80-76 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.857862-1982-Billboard-Top-100-80-76]