Pulse Rankdown: 1980 Year-End Mainstream Rock (complete)

[singingrulebritannia]

1 week and 2 days to submit.

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[Clode]

I'm realizing how silly it was for me to have pretty much revealed what my Top 2 Rock songs of the 1981 Year-End Mainstream Rock list were, To be fair it was the first Rankdown that I had participated in anyways. For now on though y'all better believe that I won't be revealing shit about what my Favorite songs of this Year-End Mainstream Rock list are, The only person that is of course going to know what my Favorite songs on this Year-End list are until the Week of the reveals is singingrulebritannia. 

[gonecountry]

Aug 20, 2021 8:49:51 GMT -5 Clode said:

I'm realizing how silly it was for me to have pretty much revealed what my Top 2 Rock songs of the 1981 Year-End Mainstream Rock list were, To be fair it was the first Rankdown that I had participated in anyways. For now on though y'all better believe that I won't be revealing s**t about what my Favorite songs of this Year-End Mainstream Rock list are, The only person that is of course going to know what my Favorite songs on this Year-End list are until the Week of the reveals is singingrulebritannia. 

Oh yeah, I never confess my top rankings for fear of creating some negative energy around the songs while the voting is open.  I will say my #1 choice feels way too obvious, but damn it remains a great song 40 years after it was released.  I do have two songs in my top 10 that I am sure are higher ranked (by far) than anyone else.  

Really looking forward to this one.

[thethirdcurry]

Aug 16, 2021 1:21:38 GMT -5 singingrulebritannia said:

I don't recognize much in this list of songs, besides maybe the Frank Zappa, Gary Numan, and Yes songs. If you find any of these songs especially noteworthy, feel free to sound off in the comments below.

Bram Tchaikovsky - Let's Dance

I must have overlooked this the last time I glanced over the list. Bram Tchaikovsky was a former member of the pub rock band The Motors, who had two hit singles in the UK back in 1978. While his solo career didn't find a lot of commercial success, his track "Girl of My Dreams" did get some decent traction on FM radio, and there's a chance it might appear in a later installment of these games. I wouldn't call them outright hidden gems, but his first two albums are definitely worth a listen if you're a fan of pub rock or power pop. "Let's Dance" happens to be one of my personal favorites:

[singingrulebritannia]

Time for me to post the next 41 extras. The extended title of the Jefferson Starship song ends with the parenthetical "(Climbing Tiger Mountain through the Sky)". The UFO song is a cover of a Junior Parker original made popular by Elvis Presley. "The Dirt Band" was the name Nitty Gritty Dirt Band went by for a few albums in the late 70s/early 80s, and this song peaked at #25 on the Hot 100. "On The Beach" comes from The Asbury Jukes' 5th album. And lastly, two more Tomcattin' and Flirtin' with Disaster tracks

year-end position	Song	Artist	video	Peak	Weeks	Streaming Rank
194	Freedom at Point Zero	Jefferson Starship	Link	2	2	143
196	Mystery Train	UFO	Link	23	4	152
199	Make a Little Magic	The Dirt Band	Link	19	4	68
200	On the Beach	Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes	Link	24	5	239
205	On the Run	Blackfoot	Link	10	3	120
206	It's All Over Now	Molly Hatchet	Link	18	3	89

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

I’ve never heard of Moon Martin but his “Bad News” is fabulous!!!

[singingrulebritannia]

In this set, every artist/band has multiple extras this year except for Roger McGuinn & Chris Hillman--on the subject, they were originally a trio, but friction between Gene Clark and the rest of the group came to a head right before the album with "One More Chance" was released. "Radio Sweetheart" was the b-side of 1977 single "Less Than Zero", and it was finally made available in America on the Taking Liberties compilation. You're going to see several tracks from Utopia, since Adventures in Utopia and Deface the Music both impacted this year. "Chasing the Crown" is the opener of, and one of the only Taupin-penned songs on, 21 at 33. And yet another Love Is a Sacrifice song

year-end position	Song	Artist	video	Peak	Weeks	Streaming Rank
188	Radio Sweetheart	Elvis Costello	Link	21	5	164
189	I Just Want to Touch You	Utopia	Link	27	6	183
190	Chasing the Crown	Elton John	Link	28	6	161
191	One More Chance	Roger McGuinn & Chris Hillman	Link	32	8	264
193	Restless Heart	Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes	Link	25	4	235

[singingrulebritannia]

the Fleetwood Mac alumnus's "Don't Rush the Good Things" is notable for eventually being covered by Tina Turner for the UK b-side of "What's Love Got To Do With It". Next up: the 6th song on Down on the Farm; the Live Rust version of the After the Gold Rush song; an Adventures in Utopia song; and a Bubbling Under-charting song from the Boston guitarist's only solo album

year-end position	Song	Artist	video	Peak	Weeks	Streaming Rank
182	Don't Rush the Good Things	Bob Welch	Link	30	8	263
183	Straight from the Heart	Little Feat	Link	12	3	158
185	When You Dance I Can Really Love (Live)	Neil Young & Crazy Horse	Link	12	4	112
186	Caravan	Utopia	Link	12	3	174
187	Dreams	Barry Goudreau	Link	19	5	140

[singingrulebritannia]

"Nine Tonight" was Bob Seger's contribution to the Urban Cowboy soundtrack; the following year, he used it for the title of a live album. The Tenement Steps lead single reached #78 on the Hot 100. "Relentless" is the first track on "Hold On"'s parent album. We will be seeing both April Wine and The Cars again in the extras, and "I Like to Rock" was a Hot 100 #86.

year-end position	Song	Artist	video	Peak	Weeks	Streaming Rank
176	Nine Tonight	Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band	Link	24	8	71
177	Love and Loneliness	The Motors	Link	31	3	181
179	Relentless	Kansas	Link	9	4	122
180	I Like to Rock	April Wine	Link	23	3	46
181	Gimme Some Slack	The Cars	Link	8	5	76

[singingrulebritannia]

Next up: a song from PB's 4th album; the first track on "What I Like About You"'s parent album; a Hot 100 #79; the lead single from The Hollies/CSNY member's third solo album; and a Hot 100 #67

year-end position	Song	Artist	video	Peak	Weeks	Streaming Rank
171	Rock 'n Roll Soldier	Point Blank	Link	22	5	253
172	When I Look In Your Eyes	The Romantics	Link	26	6	101
173	Real Love	The Cretones	Link	30	9	248
174	In the 80's	Graham Nash	Link	26	12	268
175	The Shape of Things to Come	The Headboys	Link	27	14	200

[singingrulebritannia]

continuing with: Utopia's biggest song (Hot 100 #27); a song from the Henry Paul Band's 2nd album; the semi-title track from the Small Faces keyboardist's first solo album; a Doors cover; and a Hot 100 top 20 that finished #48 in the Year-End pop rankdown.

year-end position	Song	Artist	video	Peak	Weeks	Streaming Rank
166	Set Me Free	Utopia	Link	19	7	119
167	Longshot	Henry Paul Band	Link	20	6	248
168	Little Troublemaker	Ian McLagan	Link	28	9	224
169	Roadhouse Blues	Mahogany Rush	Link	27	8	214
170	Wait for Me	Daryl Hall & John Oates	Link	24	14	43

[singingrulebritannia]

coming up on the home stretch: a US top 30 cover of Don Williams from the Just One Night live album; another Freedom At Point Zero song; a song that is actually not an Elvis Presley cover; a US #80; and the title track of Joan's sixth album

year-end position	Song	Artist	video	Peak	Weeks	Streaming Rank
159	Tulsa Time (Live)	Eric Clapton	Link	10	5	88
160	Rock Music	Jefferson Starship	Link	4	3	95
162	Mean Woman Blues	Barry Goudreau	Link	18	5	218
164	Over You	Roxy Music	Link	15	5	48
165	Me Myself I	Joan Armatrading	Link	32	12	60

[singingrulebritannia]

And finally: A #66 Hot 100 hit for an early Springsteen band member; the opening track of There & Back; a Bubbling Under #7; the second track on Clues; and the original version of the 1985 Aerosmith song.

year-end position	Song	Artist	video	Peak	Weeks	Streaming Rank
153	Brite Eyes	Robbin Thompson Band	Link	30	13	233
154	Star Cycle	Jeff Beck	Link	11	6	138
155	Badlands	The Dirt Band	Link	17	7	253
157	Sulky Girl	Robert Palmer	Link	16	5	133
158	Let the Music Do the Talking	The Joe Perry Project	Link	15	8	175

[gonecountry]

I'm loving quite a few of the extras. April Wine's "I Like To Rock" has long been one of my favorites and despite the low chart position in the US and Canada is arguably their signature song. The final verse of the song includes the main guitar riffs to the Beatles' "Day Tripper" and the Rolling Stones' "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" played simultaneously.

[singingrulebritannia]

6 days to submit.

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[Doc Indie Party Rock]

Just sent mine in. The first 38 songs on my list all made my year end countdowns for 1979 and some for 1980, but I dug about 70 of these songs.

[singingrulebritannia]

Final pre-reveal extras set go!
"Five Gears In Reverse" and "Danger" both appeared in the Alt rankdown as well (with the bottom 10 having been revealed so far, the former is eliminated and the latter is still in contention). "Love or Money" leads off Hagar's fifth solo album, and attracted the attention of John Kalodner who helped sign him to Geffen Records. "Say Hello" peaked at #4 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart. "All Us Boys" was the third and final single on Hydra, but did not crack any major charts.

year-end position	Song	Artist	video	Peak	Weeks	Streaming Rank
147	Rockin Heaven Down	Heart	Link	2	4	157
148	Five Gears in Reverse	Elvis Costello & The Attractions	Link	8	6	144
149	Love or Money	Sammy Hagar	Link	22	7	160
150	Danger	The Motels	Link	28	10	152
151	Say Hello	April Wine	Link	22	8	90
152	All Us Boys	Toto	Link	11	7	94

[singingrulebritannia]

Slick left Jefferson Starship for a couple years to record this solo album. Squier's first solo album also included "The Big Beat", a song that has stood the test of time through samples by Big Daddy Kane, Dizzee Rascal, Jay-Z, and Alicia Keys. "New Romance" peaked at 35 on the Hot 100

year-end position	Song	Artist	video	Peak	Weeks	Streaming Rank
141	Angel of Night	Grace Slick	Link	27	9	224
142	You Should Be High, Love	Billy Squier	Link	29	10	148
144	Rebel Rouser	Bob Welch	Link	27	11	224
145	Lettin' Go	UFO	Link	21	7	104
146	New Romance (It's a Mystery)	Spider	Link	26	9	229

[singingrulebritannia]

Moving on to: another Alt crossover; a Kansas side project that would foreshadow Walsh's exit from the band later in the year; a band that is debuting next year with "Do It or Die"; and a Kinks side project

year-end position	Song	Artist	video	Peak	Weeks	Streaming Rank
136	Talk of the Town	Pretenders	Link	25	8	56
137	Discount Dogs	The Joe Perry Project	Link	17	6	220
138	Schemer-Dreamer/That's All Right	Steve Walsh	Link	24	9	221
139	Cocaine Charlie	Atlanta Rhythm Section	Link	22	8	216
140	Nothin' More to Lose	Dave Davies	Link	26	8	244

[singingrulebritannia]

"Girl With The Hungry Eyes" was a Hot 100 #55. ZZ Top's Sam & Dave cover reached #34 on the same chart

year-end position	Song	Artist	video	Peak	Weeks	Streaming Rank
129	Girl With the Hungry Eyes	Jefferson Starship	Link	7	6	156
130	Face the Fire	Dan Fogelberg	Link	6	5	161
131	Flesh and Blood	Roxy Music	Link	12	7	77
134	Get Well Soon	Steve Forbert	Link	20	8	175
135	I Thank You	ZZ Top	Link	9	6	79

[singingrulebritannia]

"Marseilles" was originally released only in Australia on 1978's Face to Face--this album was re-released internationally in 1980 with tracks from the band's next album No Exit added, and under the name 'Angel City'. No More Dirty Deals was Johnny Van Zant's first release after the Skynyrd plane crash. "White Hot" was a Hot 100 #48.

year-end position	Song	Artist	video	Peak	Weeks	Streaming Rank
121	Marseilles	The Angels	Link	26	12	136
122	Only the Strong Survive	The Johnny Van Zant Band	Link	20	9	214
124	Stop Your Sobbing	Pretenders	Link	16	11	49
125	White Hot	Red Rider	Link	26	12	69
126	Prime Time	Rossington Collins Band	Link	4	5	168

[singingrulebritannia]

"You've Got What I Need" peaked at #76 in the US. "In America" was big enough to make the Hot 100 year-end list (#11 peak), and finished an abysmal #94 in the 1980 rankdown. "Stranger in My Home Town"'s peak on the big chart was #81.

year-end position	Song	Artist	video	Peak	Weeks	Streaming Rank
114	You've Got What I Need	Shooting Star	Link	21	11	195
115	Fox Chase	Blackfoot	Link	9	6	82
118	In America	The Charlie Daniels Band	Link	8	8	52
119	El Becko	Jeff Beck	Link	11	7	172
120	Stranger in My Home Town	Foghat	Link	21	11	142

[singingrulebritannia]

"Third Time Lucky (First Time I Was a Fool)" was one of Foghat's biggest hits at the time, hitting #23 on the Hot 100. On the same chart, "Come Back" reached #32 and "This Time" peaked at #27. Meanwhile, "I Can't Stand Up for Falling Down" made the Alt rankdown and was a UK top 5

year-end position	Song	Artist	video	Peak	Weeks	Streaming Rank
108	Third Time Lucky (First Time I Was a Fool)	Foghat	Link	20	10	100
109	Come Back	The J. Geils Band	Link	4	5	81
111	This Time	John Cougar	Link	17	14	86
112	Never Say Never	Styx	Link	4	6	129
113	I Can't Stand Up for Falling Down	Elvis Costello & The Attractions	Link	10	7	42

[singingrulebritannia]

And closing up tonight...
In terms of the Hot 100, "Why Me" got to #26 and "Midnight Rocks" was a #24.

year-end position	Song	Artist	video	Peak	Weeks	Streaming Rank
101	Rock Brigade	Def Leppard	Link	22	12	66
102	Why Me	Styx	Link	8	6	114
104	I Live for the Weekend	Triumph	Link	19	9	122
105	Midnight Rocks	Al Stewart	Link	12	9	116
107	The Road to Utopia	Utopia	Link	8	6	164

[singingrulebritannia]

A little under 4 days to submit.

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[Doc Indie Party Rock]

"Rock Brigade" would shake up my top 10 songs

[singingrulebritannia]

A little under 3 days to submit.

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[singingrulebritannia]

2 days to submit. Hoping that late period rush happens again like usual, but if you need an extra day or two, let me know. I can't delay too far into next week, though

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[singingrulebritannia]

Well, I received a request to extend the deadline until Tuesday or Wednesday of next week. Closing on Tuesday means revealing on Wednesday, and with my schedule, that would be a struggle, to put it lightly. So, Wednesday night due date it is. This mean you have 5 days to submit. Please use the time wisely; I'm not giving any more extensions.

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[wheatsquares33]

 
Thanks for the extension. I should be able to get mine in soon, I have the full list listened through, I just need to go back and do some relistens and actually sort the list, which I can probably get done on the plane/between flights Sunday. Will get mine in asap