Songoftheday 11/21/13 - Do you remember when we met, that's the day I knew you were my pet...

The Honeydrippers - "Sea Of Love"
from the album The Honeydrippers, Volume One (1984)
Billboard Hot 100 peak: #3 (one week)
Weeks in the Top-40: 14

Today's Song of the Day is by the Led Zeppelin side-project the Honeydrippers, which singer Robert Plant put together to record more traditional rock and pop music. Including Zep bandmate Jimmy Page as well as guitarist Jeff Beck, and Chic leader Nile Rodgers. Atlantic label head Ahmet Ertegun got them together to record his favorite 50s tunes, and they studio "supergroup" released a five-cut EP in September of 1984. The original first single was supposed to be the raucous rockabilly of "Rockin' At Midnight", but instead radio grabbed on to the "B" side, a remake of the Phil Phillips hit from 1959, "Sea Of Love". Phillips, who wrote the song with co-producer George Khoury, was a bridge between orchestral pop and the burgeoning doo-wop movement, and in return topped the R&B chart and went to #2 on the Hot 100..

The Honeydrippers poured even more orchestral lushness into the record, and made it even more like a neo-trad-pop than the soul tune it started out as...

"Sea Of Love" reached the top-3 on the American pop chart in January of 1985, while naturally topping the adult-contemporary (or "easy listening") format as well. Due to the cred of its players the song even made the rock radio chart at #11. Internationally, "Sea Of Love" went to #1 in neighboring Canada, but surprisingly stalled at #56 on the British charts (home of Page and Plant). But it would be bigger than any other single by either Led Zep or Plant solo.

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The Honeydrippers weren't the only ones to remake "Sea Of Love" into a top 40 hit; veteran Del Shannon went to #33 with his version in 1981...

While Phillips' version was climbing the American pop chart, Englishman Marty Wilde (father of Kim) took his version to #3 in the UK...

Alt-rock giant Tom Waits recorded a take of the song for the film of the same name in 1989...

More than 25 years later, Cat Power would also cover the song for the film Juno...

Lastly, here's the Honeydrippers themselves on a rare appearance on a German variety show..

Up tomorrow: Five Boston boys tell you you need to simma down...