CAR-TUNES SATURDAY

CD SHOWCASE MEMORIES

5 songs from the 1st hour (7p-8p) of my 10/21/1995 college radio show [my parents & sister were in studio; they were at my college for the Sunday afternoon Manchester Symphony Orchestra Concert (I play the cello)]: Rod Stewart’s “Rhythm Of My Heart”, Southern Pacific’s “A Girl Like Emmylou”, The Forester Sisters’ “Lonely Alone”, Journey’s “I’ll Be Alright Without You” & Jo-El Sonnier’s “Tear-Stained Letter”. No time like the present, so figured I’d feature more than 2 songs if the show has artists I haven’t showcased yet. Also featured: interior of a Pontiac, photographed by OC,SHer JAY B at Twin Peaks in Austin TX….

#1 “Rhythm Of My Heart” | Rod Stewart
Originally written by Marc Jordan & John Capeck for Rene Shuman’s 1986 self-titled debut album, this song was recorded by Stewart for his 1991 album ‘Vagabond Heart’. Released as the album’s 1st single, this tune quickly climbed the charts, peaking at #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 & #13 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks charts. Internationally, this song claimed #1 in Canada & Ireland, while notching at #2 in Australia, #5 in Austria, #4 in Germany, #9 in Switzerland & #3 in England. Stewart’s version was used for the closing credits of the 1996 family movie ‘Loch Ness’ & in the 2000 movie ‘The Perfect Storm’.

#2 “A Girl Like Emmylou” | Southern Pacific
This song debuted 08/09/1986, spent 17 weeks on the country charts & peaked at #17. This Los Angeles CA band [Tim Goodman, John McFee, Kurt Howell, Stu Cook (of Creedence Clearwater Revival) & Keith Knudsen (of The Doobie Brothers)] had a brief career from mid 1985 to late 1990. This song was their 5th release; it was preceded by their 1st Top 10, 1986’s “Reno Bound” (#9). Their 2nd release was a duet with Emmylou Harris, 1985’s “Thing About You” (#14). Their best stretch of releases came a bit later with a stretch of 4: 1988’s “Midnight Highway” (#14), 1988’s “New Shade Of Blue” (#2, 2 weeks), 1988-9’s “Honey I Dare You” (#5) & 1989’s “Any Way The Wind Blows” (#4; from the movie ‘Pink Cadillac’ starring Clint Eastwood).

#3 “Lonely Alone” | The Forester Sisters
This song hit the airwaves 07/05/1986 & spent 24 weeks on the charts, 2 of those at its peak of #2. Perhaps my favorite song of theirs, it was relevant to me then & has resonated with me at different times of my life. This vocal group from Lookout Mountain GA consists of 3 sisters (Kathy, June & Kim) & had a brief career early 1985 to late 1992. This tune was sandwiched between 4 chart toppers, preceded by 1985’s “I Fell In Love Again Last Night”, 1985-6’s “Just In Case” & 1986’s “Mama’s Never Seen Those Eyes”, & followed by 1986’s “Too Much Is Not Enough” (duet with The Bellamy Brothers).

#4 “I’ll Be Alright Without You” | Journey
This song was released May 1986 from the band’s 9th studio album, ‘Raised On The Radio’. Written & composed by Jonathan Cain, Steve Perry & Neal Schon, the song peaked at #7 on the Adult Contemporary, #14 on the Billboard Hot 100 & #26 on the Mainstream Rock charts. From the tail end of the band’s original career, the song came after such favorites as 1981’s “Who’s Crying Now”, 1981’s “Don’t Stop Believin’”, 1982’s “Open Arms” & 1983’s “Faithfully” (perhaps my favorite song of theirs).

#5 Jo-El Sonnier | Tear-Stained Letter
A cover of Richard Thompson’s 1983-4 song, this single hit the airwaves 07/16/1988, spent 19 weeks on the country charts & peaked at #9. It was the follow-up release to Sonnier’s 1st Top 10, 1988’s “No More 1 More Time” (#7; my favorite song of his). This Rayne LA-native singer-songwriter-accordianist, once known as “The Cajun Valentino”, only had those 2 Top 10s during a career that spanned late 1975 to mid 1976 & late 1987 to mid 1990.