Best Of My Love b/w A Feeling Is by The Emotions (1977)
A huge hit for The Emotions, Best Of My Love was written by Maurice White and Al McKay of Earth, Wind & Fire. The song reached Number 1 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the Billboard R&B charts in 1977, as well as the top 5 in the U.K. and Canada.
Originally a gospel group called the Hutchinson Sunbeams, they switched to R&B and signed with the Volt imprint of Stax Records in the late sixties, recording several hits for the label. They moved to Columbia Records when Stax closed in 1975.
Best Of My Love won a Grammy in 1977 for the best R&B performance by a duo or group with vocals. Several members of Earth, Wind & Fire played on the track.
A big crossover hit (Number 1 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Hot Soul Singles charts, as well as Number 3 on the National Disco Action Top 30), Car Wash was the title track to Rose Royce’s first album, itself a movie soundtrack. Written and arranged by Norman Whitfield, an ex-Motown producer.
There’s a video for the song that’s tons of fun and captures the mood of the era. Check it out.
Superstition b/w Superwoman (Where Were You When I Needed You) by Stevie Wonder (1972)
A huge hit for Stevie Wonder, Superstition reached Number 1 in the U.S. and Number 11 in the U.K. It was the first single off of Wonder’s album Talking Book, which itself got to Number 3 on the U.S. charts.
Wonder wrote the song with Jeff Beck. The story is that Beck was in the studio, naturally to play guitar, but he sat at the drum kit and started playing a simple rhythm. Wonder told him to keep playing, and he improvised most of the keyboard parts on the spot. Such an incredible talent.
"Introducing..." and the self-titled album are so good. And while I like about half of "Church of Rock-n-Roll" no other #FoxyShazam output compares to these two early releases.
Trouble b/w Mary Lee Jones by Lindsey Buckingham (1981)
The first of four singles off Buckingham’s debut solo album, ‘Law and Order’, Trouble reached Number 9 on the U.S. charts and Number 31 in the U.K. The album reached Number 32. It was produced by Buckingham and Richard Dashut, who also produced several Fleetwood Mac albums.
The single (and the album as a whole) were recorded in Buckingham’s home studio, similar to most of the tracks on Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Tusk’, which had been a commercial flop (and a giant disappointment for me as a fan).
Mick Fleetwood provided most of the drum track, though it’s a four second section which is looped continuously.
The video is quite fun and features Fleetwood, Bob Welch and others in addition to Buckingham. It was played regularly on MTV in 1981 and 1982.
I’ve found no mention of who did the backing vocals on Trouble. They sound very reminiscent of the backing vocals you’d often hear on Fleetwood Mac songs, which I always thought were done by Christine McVie and Buckingham. McVie is credited with backing vocals on another of the album’s tracks.
The cover photo was done by George Hurrell, in the style he used when photographing the actor and Olympic swimmer Johnny Weissmuller decades earlier. To achieve the look, Hurrell had Weissmuller put baby oil on his face, shoulders and torso. I assume that he had Buckingham do the same.
Hit Me with Your Best Shot b/w
Prisoner Of Love by Pat Benatar (1980)
The second single released off of her second album Crimes Of Passion and written by Eddie Schwartz, Hit Me With Your Best Shot reached number 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the States, and became a Top 10 track in Canada. Selling over a million copies, it was certified Gold by the RIAA in the States and Silver in the U.K.
Schwartz commented that he wrote it after attending a pillow punching therapy session in Toronto. Benatar no longer performs the song, as a protest against the gun violence epidemic in the United States.