Twostepcublog

Hey gang, it's Friday, so time again for my top 100 tunes from the past week. Justin Timberlake takes over the top spot, while Macklemore & Ryan Lewis with Ray Dalton (pictured above) move up the top-10. Songs by Daft Punk, Robin Thicke, and Fitz & The Tantrums make the biggest jumps (moves of 10+ places highlighted in red ), while former big hits by Avicii, Atlas Genius, Kelly Clarkson, Chris Young, Lee Brice, Bruno Mars, and Charlie Wilson drop out. Lord, it's hot! and Happy Birthday Cori! This Week                Song/Artist (last week's position in parentheses) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Mirrors - Justin Timberlake (2) 2. Just Give Me A Reason - Pink f/Nate Ruess (1) 3. Next To Me - Emeli Sande (3) 4. Lego House - Ed Sheeran (6) 5. Troublemaker - Olly Murs f/Flo Rida (5) 6. Radioactive - Imagine Dragons (4) 7. When I Was Your Man - B...

Billy Joel - " An Innocent Man " from the album An Innocent Man (1983) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #10 (one week) Weeks in the top-40: 11 Today's Song of the Day is by singer/songwriter and piano man Billy Joel , whose 1983 retro-styled album An Innocent Man had already given him a #1 hit with " Tell Her About It " and a top-5 single with " Uptown Girl ". To follow those massive records up Billy released the title track, which had wall-of-sound /Springsteen-esque production by Phil Ramone  and Billy's best vocal performance in years... "An Innocent Man" became Joel's third and final top-10 single from the album in both the US and the UK, while topping the American adult contemporary (easy-listening) chart for a week in February of 1984. It also went all the way to #3 in Ireland. (Click below to see the rest of the post)

It's 80s throwback time, and this week I've got eight more forgotten nuggets from 1987, the year 19-year-old German Mathias Rust flies a plane into Russia and lands in Red Square, to be held for over a year... Crowded House - " World Where You Live " from the album Crowded House (1986) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #65 Songwriter: Neil Finn This nugget from the trio from Down Under was released before their American breakthrough "Don't Dream It's Over" in Australia. Why it didn't make the top-40 in the US is a crime. (Click below to see the rest of the post)

Hey gang, I'm back with seven more nuggets from the 70s, and this week I'm back to 1977, the year Star Wars opened in theaters (I saw it in Wildwood opening weekend)... The Emotions - " Best Of My Love " from the album Rejoice (1977) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #1  Songwriters: Albert McKay, Maurice White Earth, Wind, & Fire members gift the vocal trio with this absolute treasure of a jam that is so healing that it should be approved by the FDA. (Click below to see the rest of the post)

Shannon - " Let The Music Play " from the album Let The Music Play (1984) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #8 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 12 Today's Song of the Day is by the Washington DC singer Shannon (Greene), who after being discovered by producers Mark Liggett and Chris Barbosa, had the first big "freestyle" dance hit in 1984 with "Let The Music Play", written by Barbosa with Ed Chisholm. The record was notable for finally breaking the disco backlash of the early 80s and brought dance music back to radio in a big way... "Let The Music Play" not only went top-10 on the pop chart, but also topped Billboard 's Club Play dance chart, as stopped at #2 on the R&B format list. In Britain, where dance music wasn't as ostracized as was marginalized by ska and new wave, still managed to peak at #14. Shannon's eight-track album even made the top-40 on the albums chart, not bad for a dance record. It would be Shannon...

Hey folks, I'm back with this week's trip Down Under to check out the new songs making the official singles chart in Australia this week, as Robin Thicke charms a third week out of #1 with " Blurred Lines "... For the second consecutive week, a performance from this country's edition of The Voice not only places the highest debut but also enters in the top-10. This time it's Harrison Craig with his version of Elvis' "Can't Help Falling In Love" at #6. From Seal's "team", he was "saved" by the public vote... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

It's time to take another trip back to the 60s, and this week I'm back to 1967, the year Elvis and Priscilla Presley were married in Las Vegas. The Association - " Windy " from the album Insight Out (1967) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #1 Songwriter: Ruthann Friedman One of my absolute favorite childhood favorites. The original single's circular harmony riffs captivated me, along with the jarring "stormy eyes" in the middle of all that sunshine. (Click below to see the rest of the post)

The Pretenders - " Middle Of The Road " from the album Learning To Crawl (1984) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #19 (two weeks) Weeks in the Top-40: 9 Today's Song of the Day is by the alt-rock pioneers the Pretenders , led by Chrissie Hynde, who after losing two of her former members to overdose in the early 80s, regrouped with the stoic " Back On The Chain Gang ", which became the biggest hit in the group's career in 1983. They recorded a new full-length album for release in early 1984, when Chrissie gave birth to a son with the Kinks' Ray Davies. The next single from the set after "Back.." was a welcome return to their punkish roots with "Middle Of The Road", written by Hynde and produced by Chris Thomas, and featured new band members Robbie McIntosh and Malcolm Foster... "Middle Of The Road" became the band's third top-20 hit in February of 1984, while also going all the way to #2 on rock radio (up till then, t...

Welcome back to this week's trip to Germany to check out the songs making that country's official top-100 singles chart... This week's top-seller is the new winner of Germany's version of the Idol franchise, Deutschland sucht den Superstar , (" Germany Seeks The Superstar" ), and it's Swiss-born singer Beatrice Egli. Her first "winner's song", "Mein Herz" ("My Heart"), deposes Capital Cities from the top..(you can watch the entire video by clicking here )... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

Hey gang, it's time to cross the Atlantic again to check out the newest songs making their way on to the official French charts this week, as Daft Punk's " Get Lucky " hangs on for a fifth week on top... The single that almost dethroned the duo is a novelty record by French comedian Cartman. Recording under the moniker of Sebastien Patrick (a joke on the veteran singer Patrick Sebastian), his song "Quand il pète il troue son slip" ("When He Farts He Rips His Underpants"), yes, really, comes in at #2, the result of an internet campaign to knock Daft Punk from the top , thought of as "elitist" by those French outside of Paris.... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

Paul McCartney - " So Bad " from the album Pipes Of Peace (1983) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #23 (two weeks) Weeks in the Top-40: 8 Today's Song of the Day is by former Beatle Paul McCartney , who closed out 1983 with one of his high-profile duet with Michael Jackson, " Say Say Say ", that reigned on the pop chart for six weeks. For its followup, while in England he released the anti-war title track " Pipes Of Peace ", in America he went with the soft-rock ballad of "So Bad", featuring Ringo Starr on drums and Wings bandmate Denny Laine on guitar. Produced by longtime Beatles/solo collaborator George Martin, "So Bad" was written by Paul and spotlighted his still-awesome falsetto... "So Bad" stopped short of the top-20 on the pop chart in February of 1984, though it was a big hit on adult-contemporary (easy-listening) radio stations, peaking at #3 for three weeks in that format. Coincidentally, "Pipes Of Pea...

Rick James + "Friend" (Smokey Robinson) - " Ebony Eyes " from the album Cold Blooded (1983) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #4 3 This week's "Robbed Hit" is by the late funk master Rick James , who scored his fourth top-40 pop hit in 1983 with the title track to his seventh album Cold Blooded . After a second single " U Bring The Freak Out " that went top-20 on the R&B chart but missed the Hot 100, Rick released the most -Rick James song in his career. "Ebony Eyes", originally credited to James and "Friend" featured Motown monarch Smokey Robinson, and the ballad was accompanied by Rick's most over-the-top music video ever, an eight minute extravaganza that doesn't even start the music until almost three minutes in.... "Ebony Eyes", which reminds me more than a little like Heatwave's "Always And Forever", proved that Rick can carry a dramatic ballad, and reached the top-40 on the s...

I'm back with part two of this week's "album sweep" sampling the records making their first go on Billboard magazine's Top 200 Albums chart. You can check out part one by clicking here, and as before I've included links to buy anything you see if I can... Blasting in at #59 is the soundtrack to the second movie in the reboot of the Star Trek series. Star Trek: Into Darkness features music by Michael Giacchino, who has done a lot of TV work for series like Lost and Alias , and movie music from The Incredibles and the first Trek reboot's soundtrack , which peaked at #49 in 2009.. (Click below to see the rest of the post)

Robert Plant - " In The Mood " from the album The Principle Of Moments (1983) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #39 (two weeks) Weeks in the Top-40: 5 Today's Song of the Day is by Led Zeppelin's iconic rock singer Robert Plant , who had already had his first top-40 solo hit in 1983 with the first single from his sophomore album, " Big Log ". For the second release from the record, Plant released "In The Mood", a more atmospheric number with not much in the way of  lyrics, written by the singer with touring bandmates Robbie Blunt and Paul Martinez. Genesis' Phil Collins fills in on drums here as well... "In The Mood" became Plant's fourth top-10 rock hit, as well as spending over a month in the top-40 on the pop chart in January (It . In his native Britain, it was less successful, stalling out at #81. (It was also Up Tomorrow: Not really good, says Macca.

Hey gang, Sunday is coming to a close, and it's time to check out the songs making their way on to the official sales chart in Britain this week. After four weeks at #1, Daft Punk give up their title to the new top-seller of the week, and it's the first chart topper for musician and rapper Naughty Boy with "La La La". His last single " Wonder " featuring Emeli Sande reached #10 last year.The new track features vocals by Sam Smith, a Londoner who also sang on Disclosure's hit " Latch "... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

Hey folks, it's time to kick off the first half of this week's 'album sweep', sampling the records making their first appearance on Billboard magazine's Top 200 Album chart this week. As before, I've included links to buy anything you see if possible... The top-selling record of the week is by indie-rock group Vampire Weekend, who had appeared on Saturday Night Live the weekend before. Modern Vampires Of The City sold over 134,000 copies last week. It's their second #1 disc out of their three albums after Contra did the trick in 2010... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

Deborah Allen - " Baby I Lied " from the EP Cheat The Night (1983) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #26 (three weeks) Weeks in the Top-40: 7 Today's Song of the Day is by country singer Deborah Allen , a Memphis native that got her first break as a singer on Jim Stafford's variety show in the 70s. After that, a chance "audition" as a party singer got her a deal to record "duets" with unfinished track by the late Jim Reeves. Three of those "collaborations" made the top-10, with " Oh, How I Miss You Tonight " peaking at #6 in 1979. Finally able to record solo, she released "You (Make Me Wonder Why)" the following year, and it became her first solo hit, reaching #20. But it wasn't until 1983 when her big moment came with the song "Baby I Lied", written by Allen, her producer Rafe VonHoy, and songster Rory Michael Bourke (George Strait's "You Look So Good In Love").... "Baby I Lied...

Well gang it's time I finish up today's "chart sweeps" of the new songs making it on to the Billboard singles charts with the latest dance jams out there.... On the DJ-polled Hot Dance Club Songs chart, Christina Aguilera racks up another #1 hit with " Let There Be Love "... Returning after a six year break from the chart is Chaka Khan, who has the highest debut of the week at #40 with "It's Not Over" featuring Christian rap artist LeCrae. Chaka has topped the club list six times so far, the last being "Disrespectful" in 2007... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

It's time to roll out part four of today's five-part "chart sweeps" of the new music making the charts at Billboard magazine, and now I've got the latest on country radio... On the Hot Country Airplay chart, ex-modern rocker Darius Rucker scores his sixth #1 hit with " Wagon Wheel ".... Rocketing in at #30 is recent American Idol judge Keith Urban with his new single "Little Bit Of Everything", my " Country Pick of the Week "... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

We're at the "hump" of this week's "chart sweeps" sampling the songs making the charts in Billboard magazine, and this time it's the latest on R&B radio. On the main R&B/HipHop Airplay chart, rapper Wale holds for a fourth week at #1 with " Bad "... The top entry at #39 is child of destiny Kelly Rowland letting it all hang out with "Dirty Laundry", stark and frank song about both her jealousy of former bandmate Beyonce as well as her domestic abuse by an unnamed previous relationship... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

It's time for round two of today's "chart sweeps" of the latest music to reach the Billboard charts, and now I've got the newest on rock radio. On the aggregate Rock Airplay chart, Imagine Dragons rack up a twelfth week at #1 with " Radioactive "... The sole debut (I think, for the second week they haven't published the full chart) at #36 is metal group Five Finger Death Punch with "Lift Me Up" featuring metal god (and "out" musician) Rob Halford from Judas Priest... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

Hey gang, It's time to kick off today's five-part "chart sweeps" of the new songs reaching the singles charts in Billboard magazine, and as always I'll start off with the pop side of things... On the big chart, Billboard 's Hot 100, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis hang on for a third week at #1 with " Can't Hold Us " featuring Ray Dalton.... The top debut of the week belongs to soulful pop singer Bruno Mars, with the third official single from his sophomore album Unorthodox Jukebox. "Treasure", which is at at #71, sounds to me mighty similar to the vibe of Michael Jackson's "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)", no? (Click below to see the rest of the post)

Christopher Cross - " Think Of Laura " from the album Another Page (1983) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #9 (two weeks) Weeks in the Top-40: 11 Today's Song of the Day is by soft-rock cuddle-bear Christopher Cross , who had scored two top-40 hits in 1983 from his sophomore album, the upbeat " All Right " as well as the feisty (for him) " No Time For Talk ". Although the song was co-opted to be used on the hugely successful soap opera General Hospital as a "theme" for the love relationship between Luke and Laura, Cross actually wrote the song as a tribute to Laura Carter, a friend of Cross' girlfriend who was killed by a stray bullet  while riding in a car with her parents. It was produced delicately by Michael Omartian... "Think Of Laura" became Cross' final (so far) top-40 hit in February of 1984. He would have a couple more minor hits with a song from the 1984 Olympics (" A Chance For Heaven "). His last...

Hey gang, Friday is here, and it's time to post my top 100 tunes from the last week. Pink hangs on for a second week at #1, while Ed Sheeran (pictured above, on the left) climbs up the top-10. Former big hits by Cazzette and Taylor Swift drop off my list, while songs from Fall Out Boy, The Neighbourhood, and Nikki Williams make the biggest jumps (moves of 10+ places highlighted in red ). Happy Memorial Day weekend! This Week            Song/Artist (last week's position in parentheses) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Just Give A Reason - Pink f/Nate Ruess (1) 2. Mirrors - Justin Timberlake (3) 3. Next To Me - Emeli Sande (2) 4. Radioactive - Imagine Dragons (4) 5. Troublemaker - Olly Murs f/Flo Rida (7) 6. Lego House - Ed Sheeran (8) 7. When I Was Your Man - Bruno Mars (5) 8. Carry On - fun. (6) 9. Mama's Broken Heart - Miranda Lambert (9) 10. Can't Hold Us - Mackl...

Jump 'N The Saddle Band - " The Curly Shuffle " from the album Jump 'N The Saddle Band (1984) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #15 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 7 Today's Song of the Day is by the Chicago-based Jump 'N The Saddle Band , who somehow cashed in on the enduring popularity of the comedy troupe the Three Stooges. "The Curly Shuffle", which doesn't really explain what the "shuffle" is, but full of Curly's vocal tics to a swing beat on a song written by singer Peter Quinn... The novelty hit raced up the chart to the top-20 in January of 1984, but fell out of the top-40 after less than two months. After the release of the album chock full of covers and a stiffed sophomore effort, the band was only heard of in smalltown gigs..... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

Hey gang, I'm ready to take another trip back to the 80s, and this week it's back to 1986, the year Hands Across America , which was one of the big charity events of the 80s, attempted to string people from coast to coast (I do remember seeing Dionne Warwick on our leg)... Queen - " One Vision " from the album A Kind Of Magic (1986) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #61 Songwriters: John Deacon, Brian May, Freddie Mercury, Roger Taylor Fresh from their iconic set at Live Aid , Freddie and the boys concocted this anthem that should've been huge here in the States. I used to yell "Fried Chicken" in the car with them. (Click below to see the rest of the post)

I've got seven more nuggets from the 70s, and this week I'm back to 1976, the year Gerald Ford signed the Federal Election Campaign act. Starland Vocal Band - " Afternoon Delight " from the album Starland Vocal Band (1976) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #1 Songwriter: Bill Danoff The most white-bread song assumedly about doing the nasty ever sung, by these married-couple vocal quartet that even got their own show (with David Letterman even) from it. (Click below to see the rest of the post)

Naked Eyes - " When The Lights Go Out " from the album Naked Eyes (Burning Bridges) (1983) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #37 (two weeks) Weeks in the top-40: 3 Today's Song of the Day is by British electronic pop duo Naked Eyes , who scored two big hits already in 1983 with their cover of the Bacharach/Davis classic " (There's) Always Something There To Remind Me " and the dance-pop of " Promises Promises ". For their third single they released the understated song "When The Lights Go Out", written by the pair (singer Pete Byrne and keyboardist Rob Fisher) and produced by Tony Mansfield... "When The Lights Go Out" became the third top-40 hit from their debut album at the end of 1983. America was the only country the song had any real success in, but it's a forgotten charmer from the synth-laden early 80s... (This is the last single to peak in 1983 on my "Songs of the Day" - onward and upward!) Up tomor...

G'day mates, I've got the newest singles making the charts Down Under, as Robin Thicke takes on a second week on top with " Blurred Lines "... Australia's version of The Voice , which is huge there, aired on the 12th, 13th, and 14th of May, and like last week a basket of performances enter the chart.  This time Luke Kennedy of Ricky Martin's team is the big winner, as his version of "Time To Say Goodbye (Con Te Partiro)" not only "saved" him from elimination, but is the high debut at #9... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

It's happy hump day, and time to roll out a half-dozen more nuggets from the 60s, and this week I've got six from 1966, the year that two "pirate" radio stations are broadcast from a ship off England in international waters... New Vaudeville Band - " Winchester Cathedral " from the album Winchester Cathedral (1966) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #1 Songwriter: Geoff Stephens The British novelty act had a hit with a seemingly real church that as of this week would probably be holding gay weddings... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

The Fixx - " The Sign Of Fire " from the album Reach The Beach (1983) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #32 (two weeks) Weeks in the Top-40: 7 Today's Song of the Day is by the British new wave band the Fixx , who had their big American pop breakout album with Reach The Beach , which scored them two top-40 hits in 1983 - the minimalism mantra of " Saved By Zero " and the white-boy funk of " One Thing Leads To Another ". Their third single from the album, "The Sign Of Fire", was the first to feature their new bassist, Dan Brown... "The Sign Of Fire" became the band's fifth consecutive top-20 rock hit, as well as their third to reach the pop top-20 in January of 1984. The Reach The Beach album remains a go-to CD for me when I'm in a new-wavey mood. It's consistently great front to back. Up tomorrow: Some nude peepers have a blackout.

Now I'll cross over the border for my weekly German music chart recap, as American indie-pop due Capital Cities reigns for a second week with " Safe And Sound "... German R&B singer Xavier Naidoo has the big winner on the chart at his new single "Bie Meiner Seele" ("In My Soul") rockets in at #2. It's his eleventh top-10 single in this country - three of those have topped the chart, the latest being "Das hat die Welt noch nicht gesehen" in 2008....it's my " German Pick of the Week "... (Click below to see the rest of the post)