Songoftheday 5/29/12 - We walked the loneliest mile, we smile without any style...

The Motels - "Only The Lonely"
from the album All Four One (1982)
Billboard Hot 100 peak: #9 (four weeks)
weeks in the top-40: 15

Today's Song of the Day is by the California-based alt-rock band the Motels. Starting out in the early 70s but revamped in 1978, the band, fronted by singer Martha Davis, originally had bigger success overseas, with "Total Control" making the top-5 in Australia and the top-20 in France.

But it wasn't until their third released album (their third LP was rejected by their record company), All Four One, that the group broke through in the US. The smooth yet dark "Only The Lonely" became their first top-10 hit here, and sent their album into the top-40.

The album would also feature a cover of the creepy Carole King song "He Hit Me (It Felt Like A Kiss)", and the whole LP was sort of a recap of Davis' relationship ending with former guitarist Tim McGovern. The group would go on to have three more top-40 hits, including the peak-matching "Suddenly Last Summer",before Davis left for a brief solo stint in the late 80s. She reformed the Motels with completely new musicians in the late 90's, and also has been performing jazz and children's music.

Up tomorrow: two legendary African-American adult-contemporary vocal performers team up for one's last top-40 hit so far.