Pulse Rankdown: 1979 Year-End Mainstream Rock (Finished)

[rowellfarm490]

Ellen Foley was a backup vocalist for Meat Loaf and also was an actress who co-starred on the sitcom Night Court. Her song here is a cover of the Rolling Stones song from 1966. "Mama Can't Buy You Love" was a #1 hit on the Adult Contemporary chart and also did well enough on the Hot 100 to make the 1979 year-end list.

"Love Is the Answer" made the year-end list as well and reached #1 on the AC chart too. This soft rock duo from Dallas, TX achieved this success with their take on the Utopia song from 1977. "Walking in the Rain" was notably covered by Grace Jones in 1981. Also included here is the debut single from the Canadian progressive rock band FM.

YE Rank	Artist - Song	Peak	Weeks	Audio	Hot 100
371	Ellen Foley - Stupid Girl	48	1	Link	-
277	Elton John - Mama Can't Buy You Love	41	6	Link	9
125	Emerson, Lake & Palmer - All I Want Is You	13	7	Link	-
210	Emerson, Lake & Palmer - The Gambler	20	3	Link	-
365	England Dan & John Ford Coley - Love Is the Answer	47	2	Link	10
116	Eric Clapton - Watch Out for Lucy	8	6	Link	40
106	Firefall - Goodbye, I Love You	17	9	Link	43
201	Firefall - Sweet and Sour	16	5	Link	-
304	Flash and the Pan - Walking in the Rain	26	1	Link	-
341	FM - Phasors on Stun	40	1	Link	-

[rowellfarm490]

This next set includes a boatload of covers: "Darlin'" was a cover of the country song by Poacher (1978). It was a #1 hit in Norway for the Scottish singer-songwriter and also reached the top 10 in the UK and Australia. "I'm Alive" was a cover of the 1965 song by the Hollies. George Benson gave his take on the R&B song by L.T.D. which originally featured Jeffrey Osbourne on lead vocals. And "It Wasn't Me" and "Nadine" were both covers of Chuck Berry songs.

YE Rank	Artist - Song	Peak	Weeks	Audio	Hot 100
206	Foghat - Boogie Motel	12	2	Link	-
117	Foghat - Somebody's Been Sleepin' In My Bed	10	6	Link	-
363	Frankie Miller - Darlin'	49	4	Link	-
299	Gamma - I'm Alive	44	6	Link	60
228	Gary Wright - I'm the One Who'll Be By Your Side	22	2	Link	-
202	Gary Wright - Keep Love In Your Soul	23	3	Link	-
224	George Benson - Love Ballad	41	7	Link	18
334	George Harrison - Love Comes to Everyone	37	1	Link	-
216	George Thorogood - In the Night Time	31	4	Link	-
293	George Thorogood & The Destroyers - It Wasn't Me	21	1	Link	-
346	George Thorogood & The Destroyers - Nadine	41	1	Link	-

[rowellfarm490]

These next 3 extras all made the Hot 100 year-end list for 1979. Up first is a song that went all the way to #1 on the Hot 100. It also reached the top of the Dance chart and peaked at #3 on the Soul chart. Summer won a Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance for this song which features a guitar solo from Jeff "Skunk" Baxter formerly of the Doobie Brothers and Steely Dan.

EXTRA


Hot Stuff
Donna Summer

Year-End Rank: 333 | Peak: #46 | Weeks: 4
Album: Bad Girls

Share your thoughts on this song below!

[rowellfarm490]

Here's another song that you can rank right now, this one being in the Billboard #1 Soul Songs of 1979 Rankdown, as it reached the top of the charts there. It was a top 10 hit on the Hot 100 where it peaked at #8.

EXTRA


September
Earth, Wind & Fire

Year-End Rank: 227 | Peak: #43 | Weeks: 11
Album: The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1

Share your thoughts on this song below!

[rowellfarm490]

Up next is the lead single from Earth, Wind & Fire's 9th album. Featuring backing vocals from the Emotions, this song performed better on the Hot 100 (#6 peak) but only managed to reach #2 on the Soul chart.

EXTRA


Boogie Wonderland
Earth, Wind & Fire with The Emotions

Year-End Rank: 370 | Peak: #48 | Weeks: 1
Album: I Am

Share your thoughts on this song below!

[rowellfarm490]

Today's final extra is the title track from Frank Zappa's 3 part rock opera. This track might be more familiar than the song that actually made this year's rankdown.

EXTRA


Joe's Garage
Frank Zappa

Year-End Rank: 376 | Peak: #50 | Weeks: 1
Album: Joe's Garage Act I

Share your thoughts on this song below!

[razorshark]

All 4 of these extras would have been great additions to this list.

[gonecountry]

Attachment Deleted

Interesting set of extras... FM - Phasors on Stun. Wow, interesting tune. That album made Rolling Stone's Top 50 Progressive Rock albums of all time. Also really enjoyed George Harrison's Love Comes to Everyone, for what it was - sweet and melodic, very representative of the time.

Album covers were just goofy in the late 70's.  The above was Gary Wright's

[gonecountry]

And one more cheesy album cover of the 70's from the last batch of songs.  You wonder if including the bulge on the album cover was an expectation?  As far as the two songs from ELP?  They weren't bad, I've heard better ELP songs...

Attachment Deleted

[rowellfarm490]

There are several more covers in this next set: Graham Parker covered the 1969 pop hit by the Jackson 5 "I Want You Back". And the Greg Kihn Band remade both Bruce Springsteen's "Rendezvous" along with the proto-punk song "Roadrunner" by the Modern Lovers. Also included here is a song from the Illinois-based band Head East who are best known for their song "Never Been Any Reason".

YE Rank	Artist - Song	Peak	Weeks	Audio	Hot 100
302	Gerry Rafferty - Home and Dry	44	5	Link	28
335	Graham Parker - I Want You Back	47	4	Link	-
281	Graham Parker - Mercury Poisoning	44	6	Link	-
271	Grateful Dead - I Need a Miracle	16	1	Link	-
353	Greg Kihn Band - Beside Myself	43	1	Link	-
181	Greg Kihn Band - Rendezvous	22	4	Link	-
192	Greg Kihn Band - Roadrunner	27	5	Link	-
296	Head East - Feelin' Is Right	34	2	Link	-
218	Heart - Cook With Fire	19	2	Link	-

[rowellfarm490]

Up next we have a pair of songs from the debut album of a founding member of the Outlaws and Blackhawk: Henry Paul. Horslips are an Irish Celtic rock band and both of their songs here are from their 8th album The Man Who Built America. "Just Another Night" was Ian Hunter's biggest Hot 100 hit. Ian Lloyd was the lead singer of the band Stories and all 3 of his songs here are from his sophomore album Goose Bumps. And "Gimme an Inch" is a cover of the 1976 Robert Palmer song.

YE Rank	Artist - Song	Peak	Weeks	Audio	Hot 100
347	Henry Paul Band - Crossfire	41	1	Link	-
220	Henry Paul Band - Grey Ghost	34	5	Link	-
322	Horslips - Loneliness	42	2	Link	-
251	Horslips - The Man Who Built America	36	3	Link	-
266	Ian Hunter - Bastard	36	3	Link	-
272	Ian Hunter - Just Another Night	16	1	Link	68
337	Ian Lloyd - Love Stealer	39	1	Link	-
360	Ian Lloyd - She Broke Your Heart	45	1	Link	-
305	Ian Lloyd - Slip Away	37	3	Link	50
254	Ian Matthews - Gimme an Inch	27	2	Link	67

[gonecountry]

Forgot how good of an album Heart's Dog and Butterfly was, really enjoyed "Cook with Fire", a great rocker that embodies 70's Heart. Both Graham Parker tunes were pretty enjoyable and had some good energy. Had never heard of Henry Paul Band, but "Grey Ghost" is going on a playlist. I have no clue how many drinks the guys in Horslips must have had to come up with their band name, but I found "The Man Who Built America" pretty unique and enjoyable. There sure were a lot of Ians in 1979. Slip Away (written by Ric Ocasek) was probably the best of the Ian songs.

[rowellfarm490]

I'm going to extend the deadline by a week to October 24th so you still have over 2 weeks left to submit for this.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Tags}Daryl the Beryl Red peacebone wheatsquares33 Doc Indie Party Rock American Idiot janinho lyhom craziaskowboi Beno Geometrical House Lannister Juanca Mirago newpower campbellssoup Alex1901 aerodynamite wrip thethirdcurry ccarter1023 DadJokes Gonza'90 BB🌕 tanooki

[Clode]

rowellfarm490 And so you suddenly just stopped tagging me and without explanation I see, You know I really don't appreciate being excluded from participation without any sort of explanation as to why you did just that, Yes I know that it has to do with my behavior but you could have offered an explanation or at the very least simply just mentioned that I am excluded from being able to submit. I mean at the end of the day you are the host of this Rankdown but I still see it as a slap in the face that you would suddenly remove me from the tags.

My mental health was not good during these past couple of weeks and I'm not bringing this up to justify my inappropriate behavior in any sort of way. I brought this up to acknowledge the fact that I wasn't in the right mindset when these incidents happened.   

[rowellfarm490]

I really try my hardest to keep the peace and avoid any drama so I felt the best thing to do, given the circumstances, was to take you off of the tag list. To be fair though I should have at least let you know why, so my apologies for that. I don't want any problems, hosting this rankdown is taking up all of my free time as it is.

[Troy]

I empathize with anyone who struggles with mental health, but behaviors have consequences…our host seems to be handling this without stirring things up publicly, and I support their approach

[rowellfarm490]

Back to some more extras. Here's another well-known song that made the 1979 Hot 100 year-end list. It's the title track from the British soul band's 4th studio album. The song peaked at #6 on the Hot 100 and was the group's second biggest hit.

EXTRA


Every 1's a Winner
Hot Chocolate

Year-End Rank: 232 | Peak: #44 | Weeks: 13
Album: Every 1's a Winner

Share your thoughts on this song below!

[rowellfarm490]

On the other hand, this next extra was the biggest hit for the London-based band fronted by Ian Dury. The song was a #1 hit in the UK and reached the top 3 in Australia, Ireland, and New Zealand.

EXTRA


Hit Me with Your Rhythm Stick
Ian Dury and the Blockheads

Year-End Rank: 323 | Peak: #44 | Weeks: 5
Album: Hit Me with Your Rhythm Stick (single)

Share your thoughts on this song below!

[rowellfarm490]

All 5 of James Taylor's songs here are from his 9th album Flag. "Day Tripper" is a cover of the Beatles song and "Up on the Roof" is his take on the Drifters R&B hit. We ranked "You're Only Lonely" in the Billboard 1980 rankdown (#73 finish) and it was also a #1 hit on the Adult Contemporary chart. "Light the Sky on Fire" was recorded for the Star Wars Holiday Special in 1978. Both of the Judas Priest songs are from their first live album Unleashed in the East and were recorded live in Tokyo at the Hell Bent for Leather Tour. "Diamonds and Rust" is a Joan Baez cover and "The Green Manalishi" is a cover of the blues rock song by Fleetwood Mac.

YE Rank	Artist - Song	Peak	Weeks	Audio	Hot 100
249	James Taylor - Brother Trucker	8	1	Link	-
212	James Taylor - Company Man	13	2	Link	-
196	James Taylor - Day Tripper	8	2	Link	-
248	James Taylor - Johnnie Comes Back	7	1	Link	-
141	James Taylor - Up on the Roof	14	9	Link	28
280	JD Souther - You're Only Lonely	42	6	Link	7
101	Jefferson Starship - Light the Sky on Fire	17	13	Link	66
177	Jethro Tull - Something's on the Move	8	3	Link	-
331	Joan Armatrading - Baby I	36	1	Link	-
229	Judas Priest - Diamonds and Rust (Live)	31	4	Link	-
325	Judas Priest - The Green Manalishi (With the Two Pronged Crown) (Live)	34	1	Link	-

[rowellfarm490]

Both of the Kansas songs in this set are from their first live album Two for the Show. All 3 of Karla Bonoff's songs are off of her 2nd album Restless Nights. "When You Walk in the Room" is a cover of the 1963 pop song by Jackie DeShannon. Kayak is a Dutch progressive rock band and their song here is from their 6th album Phantom of the Night. "It Hurts So Bad" was Kim Carnes first charting single on the Hot 100. And "Just One Look" is a cover of Doris Troy's R&B song (1963).

YE Rank	Artist - Song	Peak	Weeks	Audio	Hot 100
289	Kansas - Point of Know Return (Live)	37	3	Link	-
240	Kansas - The Wall (Live)	23	2	Link	-
326	Karla Bonoff - Baby Don't Go	34	1	Link	69
166	Karla Bonoff - Trouble Again	28	7	Link	-
215	Karla Bonoff - When You Walk in the Room	26	3	Link	-
132	Kayak - Keep the Change	17	8	Link	-
307	Kim Carnes - It Hurts So Bad	39	2	Link	56
239	Led Zeppelin - In the Evening	1	1	Link	-
319	Linda Ronstadt - Just One Look	33	1	Link	44

[razorshark]

Point Of Know Return would have easily been in my top 5. Amazing AMAZING song

[gonecountry]

Hot Chocolate and Ian Drury songs were both fun tunes, I had never heard the Ian Drury tune (another Ian!) before. The Kansas and Judas Priest tunes were great. One of Linda Ronstadt's finer tunes and Karla Bonoff has always been a strong vocalist IMO. I don't know what it is with Jefferson Starship, there is no middle ground with their music, I either really like their stuff or really dislike - this one was a dislike. The Joan Armatrading song was one of the more melodic songs I've heard of hers that have hit the charts. I could have done without hearing James Taylor's version of Daytripper. I'll go listen to Cheap Trick's version again...

[Troy]

Ian Dury is my 2nd favorite Ian (after Ian Curtis of course!)…with Ian Astbury (The Cult), Ian Brown (Stone Roses) & Ian McCulloch (Echo & Bunnymen) my contenders for bronze

the rest of the Ians are fairly worthless, although I’m sure Ian Anderson (Jetho Tull) will have his supporters

hey…maybe we need an Ian rankdown???

[Troy]

Oct 10, 2021 9:23:08 GMT -5 razorshark said:

Point Of Know Return would have easily been in my top 5. Amazing AMAZING song

and yet we get stuck ranking the crappy Kansas tunes

[singingrulebritannia]

Oct 11, 2021 16:42:58 GMT -5 Troy said:

Oct 10, 2021 9:23:08 GMT -5 razorshark said:

Point Of Know Return would have easily been in my top 5. Amazing AMAZING song

and yet we get stuck ranking the crappy Kansas tunes

The studio version will be ranked next year.

[rowellfarm490]

This next set features 3 songs from the debut album of the Brooklyn-born singer-songwriter Louise Goffin. There are also a pair of songs from the lone solo album of the Little Feat lead singer George Lowell. "Remember (Walking in the Sand)" is indeed a cover of the Shangri-Las song while "What Do You Want the Girl to Do" is a cover of the 1975 R&B song by Allen Toussaint. Also included here is a song from Melanie Safka, best known for her #1 hit "Brand New Key" (1972). And finally there's an extra from the solo debut album of the former Rolling Stones guitarist Mick Taylor.

YE Rank	Artist - Song	Peak	Weeks	Audio	Hot 100
342	Louise Goffin - Jimmy and the Tough Kids	40	1	Link	-
265	Louise Goffin - Kid Blue	37	3	Link	-
321	Louise Goffin - Remember (Walking in the Sand)	41	4	Link	43
286	Lowell George - Two Trains	29	2	Link	-
173	Lowell George - What Do You Want the Girl to Do	29	6	Link	-
162	Manfred Mann's Earth Band - Angels at My Gate	29	7	Link	-
301	Manfred Mann's Earth Band - Don't Kill It Carol	36	2	Link	-
124	McGuinn, Clark & Hillman - Surrender to Me	10	6	Link	-
368	Melanie - Running After Love	49	2	Link	-
372	Mick Taylor - Leather Jacket	48	1	Link	-

[rowellfarm490]

Mistress were a short-lived band from San Francisco that was made up of former members of the band Country Weather. "Four Strong Winds" is a cover of the 1961 folk tune by the Canadian duo Ian and Sylvia. Also featured here is a solo song from the frontman of Sweeney Todd: Nick Gilder.

YE Rank	Artist - Song	Peak	Weeks	Audio	Hot 100
348	Mistress - China Lake	41	1	Link	-
156	Molly Hatchet - Gator Country	31	9	Link	-
160	Molly Hatchet - Whiskey Man	7	3	Link	-
103	Neil Young - Four Strong Winds	15	10	Link	61
247	Neil Young & Crazy Horse - Welfare Mothers	5	1	Link	-
217	Nick Gilder - (You Really) Rock Me	41	10	Link	57
234	Nick Lowe - Switchboard Susan	22	4	Link	-
250	Nicolette Larson - Just In the Nick of Time	34	3	Link	-
291	Nicolette Larson - Rhumba Girl	36	3	Link	47
297	Nicolette Larson & Michael McDonald - Let Me Go, Love	36	2	Link	35

[gonecountry]

Wow, I had never heard of Lowell George, the lead singer of Little Feat for a decade from 1969 to 1979, but those two songs led me to look into his only solo album released mid 1979 which was released a couple months before he died of an overdose at 34. What I've heard so far, I really enjoy. Twenty Million Things is a really poignant song. Did you know Christopher Cross' "Ride Like the Wind" was dedicated to the memory of Lowell George?

Thanks rowellfarm490 for all these extras.  We are getting to the point where I know probably less than a 1/4 of these songs.  Finding some interesting discoveries

[razorshark]

Whiskey Man and Gator Country would have ended up high for me. Stupid radio not pushing Molly Hatchet. At least we got to rank Flirtin' With Disaster.

[Doc Indie Party Rock]

Time for a total rant here from a long time Kiss Army member.

I just realized that songs off Kiss's 'Dynasty' were completely glance over on Mainstream. I kept thinking I would eventually run into it as I was previewing songs of the list. Unless by some twist of fate it's on mainstream 1978 this seems like a complete diss by the U.S. rock format? The song in question is "I Was made For Lovin' You". The song was a global top 2 hit even nearly top 10 on Billboard Hot 100. To add further salt to the injury it seems this format was even playing straight out disco hits like Earth Wind and Fire? WTF? Not too mention Blondie's and Rod Stewart's most Disco- ish hits ever gor Rock radio play. Not dissing on those disco hits. If anything rock artists proved that rock acts made better disco hits that disco acts. The Kiss song would have fit like a glove on this RD. Kiss was right when they said the Rock format always kept them down for fear of scoring the crown song of the year. It's the one song missing to build my perfect 1979 Top 10. Even some of the rock 80's metal dissers gotta admit this rocks proper.