#119: Love My Way by the Psychedelic Furs
City: Ottawa, ON
Radio Station: CFRA
Peak Month: April 1983
Peak Position in Ottawa ~ #7
Peak position in Vancouver ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #44
Peak Position on New Zealand Singles chart ~ #9
YouTube: “Love My Way”
Lyrics: “Love My Way”
Richard Butler was born in Surrey, England, in 1956. Butler started art school in London with the idea of becoming a painter. After graduation, he worked in a silk-screen print shop but got the idea to form a band. Timothy “Tim” Butler is the younger brother of Richard, and was born in 1958. Richard Butler formed the band in 1977 with his brother Tim. They were joined by guitarist John Ashton who was born in London in 1957. Vince Ely joined the band as a drummer in the classic Psychedelic Furs lineup in 1979, as did Ashton.
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#33: I’m a Tiger by Lulu
City: Fredericton, NB
Radio Station: CFNB
Peak Month: February 1969
Peak Position in Fredericton: #8
Peak position in Vancouver ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #51
YouTube: “I’m A Tiger”
Lyrics: “I’m A Tiger”
Born in 1948 as Marie McDonald McLaughlin Lawrie, Lulu is a singer and actress from Scotland. In a 2015 interview with the Telegraph in the UK, she said “I’ve been one of the luckiest people but I’ve been thrown from pillar to post, emotionally. I’ve dealt with demons, sadness … anxiety, anxiety, anxiety. I wasn’t happy. I don’t want people to really see me, I don’t want you to see my pain, I don’t want to have to tell you about the angst and craziness going on in my head. And I was trained to do that, as a very young girl. I’ve always tried not to be vulnerable. I’m fine, that’s what I always say. I’m fine. Let me tell you what my brother says FINE means? F—ing Incapable of Normal Expression!” She told reported Neil McCormick that her emotional roller coaster ride stems from her childhood.
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#128: Train In Vain by the Clash
City: Ottawa, ON
Radio Station: CFGO
Peak Month: May 1980
Peak Position in Ottawa ~ #4
Peak position in Vancouver ~ #6
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #23
YouTube: “Train In Vain”
Lyrics: “Train In Vain”
The Clash is a band that formed in London (UK) in 1976. John Graham Mellor “Joe Strummer” was born in 1952 in Ankara, Turkey. He began attending a boarding school in London, England, in 1962. He told a reporter years later, “[A]t the age of nine I had to say good-bye to them because they went abroad to Africa or something. I went to boarding school and only saw them once a year after that – the Government paid for me to see my parents once a year. I was left on my own, and went to this school where thick rich people sent their thick rich kids. Another perk of my father’s job – it was a job with a lot of perks – all the fees were paid by the Government.” His brother, David, who also attended the boarding school committed suicide in 1970. This deeply impacted John Mellor. By this time he had been going by the moniker Woody Mellor, with “Woody” a tribute to his hero Woody Guthrie. He was part of a band called the 101ers. By 1975 he took the stage name Joe Strummer.
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#3: Changes by David Bowie
City: Winnipeg, MB
Radio Station: CFRW
Peak Month: February-March 1975
Peak Position in Winnipeg ~ #1
Peak position in Vancouver ~ #33
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #41
Peak Position on Sweden Singles chart ~ #4
YouTube: “Changes”
Lyrics: “Changes”
David Robert Jones was born in 1947 in Brixton, a suburb in the southern part of London, UK. From an early age he demonstrated talent as a singer and especially through dance and movement. When he was nine years old his father brought home some 45’s by Elvis Presley, Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers, Fats Domino and others. When David Jones heard Little Richard sing “Tutti Frutti” he later said in an interview that he “heard God.” Growing up, David learned to play the recorder, ukulele, piano and baritone saxophone. In 1962, at the age of 15 he formed a band named the Konrads. In 1964 he formed a band named David Jones and the King Bees. They appeared on the variety show Ready Steady Go! to sing their debut single, “Liza Jane”. Jones briefly moved on to join the Mannish Boys before being the front man for Davy Jones and The Lower Third. They released a single in 1965 titled “You’ve Got A Habit Of Leaving”. Due to the growing popularity of another English recording artist named Davy Jones (who went on to become lead singer for The Monkees), David Robert Jones decided to change his professional name to David Bowie. He chose his surname after a 19th Century American pioneer named James Bowie who invented the Bowie knife.
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#146: Rebel Rebel by David Bowie
City: Ottawa, ON
Radio Station: CFGO
Peak Month: September 1974
Peak Position in Ottawa ~ #8
Peak position in Vancouver ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #64
Peak Position on Irish Singles chart ~ #2
Peak Position on UK Singles chart ~ #5
Peak Position on Belgian Singles chart ~ #6
Peak Position on Australian Singles chart ~#6
Peak Position on French Singles chart ~ #7
Peak Position on Finnish Singles chart ~ #7
Peak Position on Dutch Singles chart ~ #8
YouTube: “Rebel Rebel”
Lyrics: “Rebel Rebel”
David Robert Jones was born in 1947 in Brixton, a suburb in the southern part of London, UK. From an early age he demonstrated talent as a singer and especially through dance and movement. When he was nine years old his father brought home some 45’s by Elvis Presley, Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers, Fats Domino and others. When David Jones heard Little Richard sing “Tutti Frutti” he later said in an interview that he “heard God.” Growing up, David learned to play the recorder, ukulele, piano and baritone saxophone. In 1962, at the age of 15 he formed a band named the Konrads. In 1964 he formed a band named David Jones and the King Bees. They appeared on the variety show Ready Steady Go! to sing their debut single, “Liza Jane”. Jones briefly moved on to join the Mannish Boys before being the front man for Davy Jones and The Lower Third. They released a single in 1965 titled “You’ve Got A Habit Of Leaving”. Due to the growing popularity of another English recording artist named Davy Jones (who went on to become lead singer for The Monkees), David Robert Jones decided to change his professional name to David Bowie. He chose his surname after a 19th Century American pioneer named James Bowie who invented the Bowie knife.
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#166: Everyday I Write The Book by Elvis Costello
City: Ottawa, ON
Radio Station: CFRA
Peak Month: November 1983
Peak Position in Ottawa ~ #6
Peak position in Vancouver ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #36
YouTube: “Everyday I Write The Book”
Lyrics: “Everyday I Write The Book”
Declan Patrick MacManus was born in London, England, in 1954. He learned to play guitar at age 14. In 1972, he got a job as a computer operator at the Midland Bank data centre in Merseyside. That year he also joined the folk group Rusty. He began to go by the name Declan Costello as his musician father had once gone by Ross Costello on a record he made. In 1973, Declan Costello contributed vocals for the R. White “Secret Lemonade Drinker” commercial. That year Costello formed a pub band called Flip City. In 1975, he began to go by the name D.P. Costello, and in 1976 began performing solo.
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#171: Enola Gay by Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark
City: Ottawa, ON
Radio Station: CFRA
Peak Month: May 1981
Peak Position in Ottawa ~ #9
Peak position in Vancouver ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Italian Singles chart ~ #1
Peak Position on Portuguese Singles chart ~ #1
Peak Position on Spanish Singles chart ~ #1
Peak Position on Swiss Singles chart ~ #2
Peak Position on French Singles chart ~ #6
YouTube: “Enola Gay”
Lyrics: “Enola Gay”
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD) is a band that formed in 1978 in the Liverpool suburb of Wirral, UK. The bands’ co-founder, George Andrew “Andy” McCluskey, was born in 1959 in the town of Heswall on The Wirral peninsula. In primary school McCluskey met Paul Humphreys. The two teamed up in their teens to play in the bands Hitlerz Underpantz, VCL XI and the Id. The latter was a synth-pop band that also included future OMD member Malcolm Holmes. Paul David Humphreys was born in 1960 Merseyside. He was influenced by Kraftwerk and Brian Eno. Malcolm Holmes was born in a suburb of Merseyside in The Wirral in 1960. When the Id was founded in 1977, Holmes became the band’s drummer. He joined OMD in 1980. Martin Cooper was born in 1958 and joined OMD in 1980.
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#5: Baby Jane by Rod Stewart
City: Montreal, PQ
Radio Station: CKGM
Peak Month: September 1983
Peak Position in Montreal ~ #2
Peak position in Vancouver ~ #5
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #14
Peak Position on Belgian Singles chart ~ #1
Peak Position on Irish Singles chart ~ #1
Peak Position on South African Singles chart ~ #1
Peak Position on Spanish Singles chart ~ #1
Peak Position on UK Singles chart ~ #1
Peak Position on West German Singles chart ~ #1
YouTube: “Baby Jane”
Lyrics: “Baby Jane”
Roderick David Stewart was born in London, England, in 1945. In 1956 he got introduced to rock ‘n roll when he saw Bill Haley and His Comets in concert, and heard Little Richard’s “The Girl Can’t Help It”. He was given a guitar by his dad in 1959, and he learned to play the Kingston Trio’s “A Worried Man”. He quit school at age 15 and worked as a newspaper boy. He auditioned with Joe Meek in 1961, but didn’t get a record deal. By 1963 he was part of an R&B band called The Dimensions. In 1965 he teamed up with Long John Baldry, Julie Driscoll and Brian Auger to form a blues band called Steampacket. This lasted another year. Eventually, Stewart became part of the Jeff Beck Group in 1967. When that band broke up in the fall of ’68, Rod Stewart got invited to join the reformed Small Faces, who were now just called Faces.
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#7: C’est La Vie ~ Greg Lake
City: Montreal, PQ
Radio Station: CKGM
Peak Month: September 1977
Peak Position in Montreal ~ #1
Peak position in Vancouver ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #91
Peak Position on South African Singles chart ~ #14
YouTube: “C’est La Vie”
Lyrics: “C’est La Vie”
Greg Lake was born in 1947 in Parkstone, Dorset, England. Lake started to play guitar in 1959 when he was twelve. In 1963-64 Lake was a dockworker in Poole, England. At the age of 17 he decided to become a full-time musician. Greg Lake was a member of Unit 4 (not to be confused with Unit 4 +2), the Time Checks and The Shame. Then, he formed King Crimson with childhood buddy, Robert Fripp, in the winter of 1968. King Crimson made their breakthrough as an opening act for the Rolling Stones at a concert in Hyde Park for over 500,000 concert goers in July 1969.
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#8: I.O.U. by Freeez
City: Montreal, PQ
Radio Station: CKGM
Peak Month: September 1983
Peak Position in Montreal ~ #1
Peak position in Vancouver ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Billboard Hot Dance/Disco Club Play ~ #1
Peak Position on Iceland Singles Chart ~ #1
YouTube: “I.O.U.”
Lyrics: “I.O.U.”
John Rocca was born in London, UK, in 1960. In 1980, while he was still 19-years-old, Rocca formed the jazz-funk-dance band Freeez. Other members of the band included Jean-Paul “Bluey” Maunick (born in 1957 in Mauritius), Maunick had formed the band Incognito in 1979 when Rocca invited him to join Freeez. As well, there was Andy Stennett (keyboards), Peter Maas (bass guitar) and Paul Morgan (drums). In 1980, the band released “Keep in Touch” which peaked at #49 in the UK Pop singles chart.
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