Songoftheday 12/20/17 - People are talkin' talkin' 'bout people I hear them whisper you won't believe it, They think we're lovers kept under covers I just ignore it but they keep saying...
from the album Luck Of The Draw (1991)
Billboard Hot 100 peak: #5 (one week)
Weeks in the Top-40: 15
Today's song of the day comes from blues-rock legend Bonnie Raitt, who came from an unusual background for a blues artist; the daughter of a Broadway stage legend, John Raitt (Oklahoma!, Carousel), she was born in Burbank, a suburb of California not really known for its hard-luck tales. A radical college student, it was a chance gig in New York that caused critics to spread the word about her live performances, and from that she was signed to a record deal. Bonnie released her self-titled debut record in 1971, which was warmly received but didn't sell much. Her second effort, Give It Up, put her on the Billboard albums chart for the first time (#138). She continued to release albums until her break in 1977, when the record Sweet Forgiveness spun off her first minor hit single with a cover of Del Shannon's 60s classic "Runaway", which reached #57 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart. The album also was her first to reach the Albums top-40 at #25. With that success, she scored a big-time renegotiation of her contract with Warner Brothers. However, her next record, The Glow, wasn't as warmly received, despite another minor pop hit in "You're Gonna Get What's Coming" (#73). Two years later, Raitt had a third top-40 album with Green Light, which had a single that reached the new Mainstream Rock radio chart, "Keep This Heart In Mind". Despite that, she was dropped by Warners right after recording a follow-up album, which ended up being put out re-recorded as Nine Lives in 1986, with "No Way To Treat A Lady" climbing to #15 on the Mainstream Rock list. But even though that would be her third Grammy-nominated track, by then her sound was watered down by trying for a mainstream sound as well as her fight with drugs and alcohol.
Cleaning herself up in 1987, Bonnie eventually got together with Don Was, member of Was (Not Was) and go-to producer for Americana-style rock in those days, and recorded her tenth album Nick Of Time. The first single from the set, "Thing Called Love", sported a video with Dennis Quaid, and peaked at #11 on the Mainstream Rock radio chart (her career best showing on that list). That was followed by the softer lite-reggae of "Have A Heart", which just missed the pop top-40 at #49, made it all the way to #3 on Billboard's Adult Contemporary (or easy listening) radio format. A third offering, the title track "Nick Of Time", was a minor pop hit at #92 and another top ten AC hit at #10, but by that time she had dominated the Grammy Awards, winning four trophies including Album of the Year and both Rock and Pop Female Vocal Performances. So while she didn't have a "top-40" pop hit per se, the Nick Of Time album went to #1 after the Awards and sold over five million copies.
In 1991, Raitt released her next album, Luck Of The Draw, again with Don Was, and following the same musical path set by Nick Of Time. The first single, "Something To Talk About", was a simple by the books blues-rock number with no fancy bells and whistles. Written by Shirley Eikhard, it was originally intended for Canadian snowbird Anne Murray. Was (Not Was) singers Sweet Pea Atkinson and Sir Harry Bowens sing backup on the record and in the video...
"Something To Talk About" became Bonnie's first and biggest top-40 pop hit, reaching the top-five in October of 1991. The song also climbed to #5 on Billboard's Adult Contemporary radio chart, and hit #12 on their Mainstream Rock list. Internationally, the single went to #3 in Canada, and hit the top-40 in New Zealand (#33). It would be nominated for Record of the Year at the 1992 Grammys, losing to Natalie Cole's "Unforgettable", but she did nab the trophy there for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for the single.
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Here's Bonnie live in concert performing "Something To Talk About"....
...and live at the Hard Rock Cafe ringing in the New Year for 1992...
and finally, Bonnie and the band on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno...
Up tomorrow: Highly sought after song doctor has a hit of his own.
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