AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Bongos

Artist:The Bongos

Song:Numbers with Wings

Album:Numbers with Wings/Beat Hotel

The New Wave band The Bongos had the potential to be successful with singles like Numbers with Wings in 1983. They were even on a major label. But that forced them to put pressure on themselves to get that big hit single and they split up in 1987. They were from Hoboken, NJ and came out of the New York City arts scene. The leader of The Bongos was Richard Barone. He was lead singer, guitarist and wrote all the songs. The other members were Rob Norris on bass and Frank Giannini on drums. Guitarist James Mastro joined later. The Bongos played New York clubs. A demo got them a record deal with the British label Fetish Records. The Bongos mixed new wave with dance beats. So that created dance club success. A 1981 cover of T. Rex's Mambo Sun reached #22 on the Billboard Dance chart. They toured opening for The B-52s and then Barone and Mastro recorded an acoustic album. The turning point for The Bongos came when they signed with RCA Records in 1983 and released the EP and single Numbers with Wings. Though the single never charted, MTV played the music video and it was nominated for Best Direction at the 1984 MTV Video Music Awards. At that time, there may still have been radio station bias against playing songs that were popular on MTV. The Bongos went on a year long tour and then released the 1985 album Beat Hotel. The album was produced by recording engineer John Jansen. The album got positive reviews. But I guess RCA was hoping for a big hit single and they didn't get it. The Bongos had a cult following. But that probably wasn't going to be enough to sustain constant touring. The Bongos left RCA for Island and were recording the album Phantom Train in The Bahamas when they decided to split up. There was too much pressure. Razor & Tie released the album Beat Hotel and the EP Numbers with Wings on one CD and it is available. Barone has had a pretty good solo career and continues to record and tour. He published his memoir in 2007. James Mastro owns a guitar shop in Hoboken and tours with the reformed Mott the Hoople. The Bongos have reformed occasionally to play live. But they aren't planning to record again. RCA did release a live album in 2025. Here's the video for Numbers with Wings by The Bongos.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Olivia Newton-John

Artist:Olivia Newton-John f/Cliff Richard

Song:Suddenly

Album:Olivia's Greatest Hits Vol. 2: Deluxe Edition

Olivia Newton-John's 1980 single Suddenly was a much bigger deal in England than here because it featured Cliff Richard who at one time was the British Elvis. He still appears on British TV. Suddenly is from the 1980 film Xanadu. It's on the soundtrack album. But it's also on comps by both artists. After Olivia's debut film Grease made her a potential movie star, the films Xanadu (1980) and Two of a Kind (1983) were so bad that her potential was killed. Olivia concentrated more on music. The soundtrack album for Xanadu was very successful. The album was certified 2XPlatinum and the singles Magic and Xanadu were big hits. Half of the soundtrack album was produced by Jeff Lynne and Electric Light Orchestra. The other half was written and produced by Olivia's usual producer John Farrar. Along with Cliff Richard, Olivia also recorded with The Tubes and Gene Kelly. Farrar pitched the song as a duet and he suggested Richard to record it. Suddenly reached #20 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #15 on the British Singles chart. Suddenly is available on this comp which was originally released by MCA in 1982. EMI released a very similar comp in 1983 with the same cover. So you need to watch out when you are shopping for this. This Deluxe Edition which has four bonus tracks was released in 2023 by Primary Wave who owns Olivia's catalog. Olivia sold it to them in 2020. As most should know, Olivia had cancer and died on Aug. 8, 2022 at age 73. Here's the video of Suddenly by Olivia Newton-John featuring Cliff Richard from Olivia's ABC TV special Hollywood Nights that aired before the Oscar broadcast on Apr. 14, 1980. 

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Seduction

Artist:Seduction

Song:(You're My One and Only) True Love

Album:Nothing Matters Without Love

Seduction was a girl group that scored four chart hits from their 1989 album Nothing Matters Without Love. (You're My One and Only) True Love was not their biggest hit but their first hit. The guys behind Seduction were Robert Clivilles and David Cole who went on to be C+C Music Factory. The idea for Seduction was to create a freestyle act similar to Expose using New York studio singers. Nobody was supposed to know who was singing. The single Seduction was released in 1988. The singer on the record was A&M Records Black Music A&R Director Carol Cooper. When the single got dance club play, Clivilles, Cole and Cooper decided to turn it into a group called Seduction on A&M. But first, they had to hire singers. Meanwhile, Cole recorded the song True Love with Martha Wash of Weather Girls. It was released as a single but Martha was not credited. Cole tried to alter her voice so no one would know it was Martha. When the single became a hit, they knew they needed to hire singers. They were April Harris, Michelle Visage and Idalis DeLeon. April was the only one was was really a singer. She was Cole's sister's best friend. So he could have hired her previously. Cole did a remix with the three singing backup for Martha's vocals. The single reached #23 on the Billboard Hot 100. The rest of the album Nothing Matters Without Love featured vocals by the three girls. Why couldn't Cole wait? You know what they say. Strike while the iron is hot. Martha sued and it was settled out of court. Seduction's biggest hit was the single Two to Make it Right which reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. This album is available on CD. Of course C+C went on to have more trouble when the C+C Music Factory single Gonna Make You Sweat used uncredited Martha Wash vocals and she sued them again. As for the girls, April reformed Seduction and released a 2005 album. She owns the business Keeping You Sweet. Michelle is part of RuPaul's Drag Race and has appeared on various TV shows related to that. Idaris has worked as a TV host for Access Hollywood and Extra. And she has done acting mostly on TV. Here's the video for (You're My One and Only) True Love by Seduction. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-MoKenStef

Artist:MoKenStef

Song:He's Mine

Album:Azz Izz

The 1995 single He's Mine was a top ten hit for the R&B girl group MoKenStef. It turned out to be their only chart single as they only recorded one album. So MoKenStef is officially a one hit wonder. MoKenStef is from Los Angeles. Kenya Hadley and Stefanie Sinclair were cheerleaders at Morningside High School in Inglewood. They were also dancers and they needed a third member for their hip hop dance crew. Monifa Bethune Auditioned successfully. They started dancing on stage and in music videos by rappers AMG and Big Daddy Kane. They wanted to try singing and they discovered that Monifa is a really good singer. One day they visited AMG at the office of Outburst Records. Outburst owners Greg Jesse and Anthony Lewis were listening in the next room. And when Monifa started singing, that got their attention and got the girls a record deal. They decided to call themselves MoKenStef which is a blend of their names. It doesn't exactly roll off the tongue. After success with the rapper Domino, Outburst got a distribution deal with DefJam. The album Azz Izz was released in 1995 and the single He's Mine reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #2 on the R&B Singles chart. The main feature of the song was Monifa's lead vocal. It doesn't look like the rest of the album was as good as He's Mine as follow up singles did poorly. MoKenStef wrote most of the songs with producer Marquis "Hami" Dair. He had previously worked with Klymaxx leader Joyce Irby. He's Mine sampled Prince and Roger Troutman so they got a songwriting credit. This album is available as a digital download. By the end of 1995, Outburst closed and DefJam wasn't going to sign MoKenStef to a new contract. They tried to release a few more things but nothing worked and MoKenStef split up in 2000. It looks like they all retired from the music business. They reunited in 2014 and they still have an Instagram page. I'm surprised Monifa didn't try to get a solo record deal because she has a great voice. Here's the video for He's Mine by MoKenStef. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Kevin Spacey

Artist:Kevin Spacey

Song:Beyond the Sea

Album:Beyond the Sea: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Though he is now a Hollywood outcast due to 2017 sexual assault allegations, Kevin Spacey was a big star before that. Probably his most audacious achievement was writing, producing and starring in the 2004 Bobby Darin biopic Beyond the Sea. He also did his own singing. A Bobby Darin biopic had been in development hell since 1986. So getting it done was Spacey's big achievement. He was born Kevin Spacey Fowler July 26, 1959 in East Orange, NJ. but he grew up in Southern California. His father was a neo Nazi who was abusive to Spacey and his brother. Spacey kept a low profile to avoid beatings. At Chatsworth High School, Spacey starred in a production of The Sound of Music with Mare Winningham. They were named co-valedictorians. After trying standup comedy, Spacey moved to New York to attend Juilliard's drama school. After two years, he decided to try Broadway. He appeared in the 1986 production of Long Day's Journey into Night Starring Jack Lemmon who became Spacey's mentor. After appearing in a couple of Mike Nichols films Heartbeat (1986) and Working Girl (1988), he appeared on several TV shows, most notably as arms dealer Mel Profitt in the 1988 series Wiseguy. Then Spacey won a Tony for the 1991 production of Neil Simon's Lost in Yonkers. That got him larger roles in films like David Mamet's 1992 film adaptation of his play Glengarry Glen Ross. But the film that made Spacey a movie star was as Verbal Kint in Bryan Singer's 1995 film The Usual Suspects. Spacey won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar. That was when Spacey went after the role of Bobby Darin. Barry Levinson was the first to take a crack at Darin in 1986. Levinson was supposed to direct. Warner Bros. optioned the Bobby Darin book Dream Lovers. James Toback was brought in to write the script and Levinson was still supposed to direct. That's when Spacey offered to play Darin. Levinson thought he was too old and planned to cast Johnny Depp. Levinson decided to pass on the film in favor of Liberty Heights (1999). Then Dick Clark Productions announced they were producing with Dodd Darin and producer Arthur Friedman and that they were working on the film. Spacey acquired the rights from Warners. And ultimately he rewrote the original Lewis Colick script himself. Spacey's decision to do his own singing was controversial because he wasn't a singer though he had sung on stage. He did train with Roger Kellaway who had worked with Darin. Not surprisingly, Beyond the Sea got mixed reviews and was a box office bomb. I'm sure even now, Spacey considers Beyond the Sea his greatest achievement. The soundtrack album was produced by Phil Ramone. It has all of Spacey's performances and is available on CD. Spacey continued to appear in films like Horrible Bosses and TV shows like House of Cards. Then Spacey was accused of sexual assault in 2017. This killed his career because he's still in exile and appears in European productions. But remember Spacey denied everything and was never convicted of a crime. I doubt he can revive his career. But Beyond the Sea is probably worth a look. Here's the video for Beyond the Sea by Kevin Spacey. 

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Craig Mack

Artist:Craig Mack

Song:Flava in Ya Ear

Album:FHM Presents...Bar Culture 2

Rapper Craig Mack scored a top ten hit with his 1994 single Flava in Ya Ear. Another one of his songs charted so technically he is not a one hit wonder. Also, it was the very first hit single on Bad Boy Records. He was born May 10, 1970 in Brooklyn, NY. But he grew up in the Long Island town of Brentwood. He started rapping as a teen as MC EZ and released the single Get Retarded in 1988. Then he started touring with hip hop group EPMD. After they split up, Mack met Sean "Puffy" Combs who was just starting Bad Boy Records. Combs liked Mack enough to sign him to a record deal. Mack recorded Flava in Ya Ear. The song really became popular because of the remix featuring Notorious B.I.G., Rampage, LL Cool J and Busta Rhymes. Combs also appeared and the singing is by Keisha Spivey of the girl group Total. The single reached #9 on the Billboard Hot 100. The single was produced by Osten "Easy Mo Bee" Harvey. He had already worked with Notorious B.I.G. and 2Pac. Osten produced half of the album Project: Funk Da World and Mack wrote and produced the other half. The album was certified Gold. You can get Flava in Ya Ear on this 2CD various artists comp. Mack was supposed to record a second album Operation: Get Down in 1995. Mack wasn't happy that he didn't get more promotional support from Bad Boy. Combs froze Mack's contract so he couldn't sign with Death Row Records like he wanted. The album was released by Scotti Brothers in 1997. Not surprisingly, the album didn't sell and Mack's career was basically over. In 2012, Mack joined the Overcomer Ministry in South Carolina. He released a 2017 album on his own label. Mack had HIV/AIDS and refused treatment. He died on Mar. 12, 2018 at age 47. Here's the video for Flavor in Ya Ear by Craig Mack.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Chicago

Artist:Chicago

Song:If You Leave Me Now

Album:The Very Best of Chicago: Only the Beginning

The 1976 single If You Leave Me Now was the first #1 hit for the band Chicago. Their biggest hit before that was the 1973 single Saturday in the Park. Most of Chicago were studying jazz at DePaul University. So they wanted to be a jazz rock band similar to Blood, Sweat & Tears (BS&T). But like BS&T, Chicago was starting to fade in the mid 70s. Chicago started to fade too and they decided to soften their sound. By that time, they had released eight albums since 1969. And all of them were 2LP sets. They were so tired that Chicago IX was a greatest hits album. The singers for Chicago were Terry Kath, Robert Lamm and Peter Cetera. Cetera turned out to be the key guy as he wrote and sang If You Leave Me Now. It topped the charts in 1976. It was a much softer pop sound than Chicago had previously done. Kath played the guitar solo. The album Chicago X was certified 2XPlatinum. If You Leave Me Now won two Grammys. Chicago had never won a Grammy. So though fans of the original Chicago may not have liked the change, lots of folks really liked it and the success continued until Cetera was replaced by Bill Champlin in 1985. After that, Chicago wasn't as successful but Cetera had a significant solo career. The other significant events were the 1978 death of Terry Kath and the split with producer James William Guercio. Kath was replaced by Donnie Dacus who was in the musical Hair. Guercio quit the music business and became a full time rancher. After that, Chicago worked with producers like Phil Ramone and Tom Dowd. And they moved from Columbia to Warner Bros. in 1982. This 2CD comp covers the Columbia years. As I said, Chicago wasn't as successful after Cetera left. But they're still around. Original members Robert Lamm, James Pankow and Lee Loughnane are still there. But now they are a nostalgia act. There is even a documentary about Chicago's Longevity. Chicago's latest album was released in 2022 on BMG. Here's Chicago performing If You Leave Me Now on the German TV show Disco 1976.