Known for his sultry ballads and soft pop, Luther Vandross left behind a string of hits through the decades until his passing in 2005 at the age of 54. He began his chart career in 1981 when "Never Too Much" peaked at #33 and finished it with the beautiful "Dance With My Father," (co-written with Richard Marx) which reached #38 and won Grammys for Song of the Year and R&B Male Vocal in 2003. Vandross was no stranger to the Top 10 in the 90s, scoring hits like "Here And Now" (#6, another Grammy winner), "Power of Love/Love Power" (#4, another Grammy winner), "Don't Want To Be A Fool" (#9), "The Best Things In Life Are Free" (#10), and "Endless Love" (a duet with Mariah Carey that soared to #2). "I'll Let You Slide" shows the dance side of Vandross, in all of its 80s glory. It comes from his 1983 album, "Busy Body," which produced the Top 40 hit with Dionne Warwick, "How Many Times Can We Say Goodbye" (#27).
Led by Fee Waybill, The Tubes formed in San Francisco back in 1972 and started their run on the charts in 1976 when "Don't Touch Me There" landed at #61. After a short chart break, they came back in a big way in the early 80s. "Don't Want To Wait Anymore" peaked at #35 in 1981 and in 1983 they scored their biggest hit with "She's A Beauty," which soared to #10 and has become an 80s classic. "Beauty" was co-written with Steve Lukather (Toto). Despite this exposure to a larger audience, The Tubes could not sustain their luck on the charts. They had a few minor follow-ups with "Tip Of My Tongue" (#52), "The Monkey Time" (#68), and "Piece By Piece" (#87) before disappearing forever. Waybill continued in the biz playing and writing big hits for others, notably Richard Marx. "Talk To Ya Later," another tune co-written with Toto's Lukather, reaches back to 1981 and should have been their career launching single.
While similar to The Eagles in many respects, including personnel at times, Poco did not share the same success on the charts. They never cracked the top 10, but are known for popular tunes like "Crazy Love" (#17), "Heart Of The Night" (#20), "Under The Gun" (#48), and a come-back hit of sorts from 1989, "Call It Love" (#18). Poco began with Rusty Young and members of Buffalo Springfield, including Jim Messina, who would later team up with Kenny Loggins to achieve a string of hits as Loggins and Messina. Two musicians in Poco who later joined The Eagles were Randy Meisner and Timothy B. Schmit. The height of the band's popularity has in the late 70s, largely thanks to their album called "Legend." "Little Darlin'" is one of the gems tucked away on that strong record, buried beneath the big singles. The band's last chart appearance was in 1990, when "Nothin' To Hide," penned by Richard Marx, peaked at #39.
Granddaughter of the famed physicist Max Born, Olivia Newton-John would become famous for something "Physical" as well. She began her singing career in the early 70s, carving out a niche as a country and folk artist. Her first chart appearance was a cover of Bob Dylan's "If Not For You," which landed at #25 in 1971. Her talents were quickly noticed and by 1974 she won a Grammy for Country Female Vocal after "Let Me Be There" hit #6. While maintaining a hint of her country roots, Newton-John shifted towards soft rock in the mid-70s and became a superstar. Her heartfelt ballad, "I Honestly Love You," gave Newton-John her first #1 smash and earned her a couple more Grammys, this time for Record Of The Year and Pop Female Vocal. She followed this with another #1 classic, "Have You Ever Been Mellow." In the late 70s, she landed a breakout role in the musical film Grease, which led to more hits including the #1 duet with John Travolta, "You're The One That I Want." Her hot streak continued into the early 80s, with "Magic" staying at #1 for 4 weeks in 1980, followed by "Physical" in 1981, her biggest chart success yet. "Physical" stayed atop the chart for an astounding 10 weeks. A second film with Travolta, Two Of A Kind, generated her final top 10 hit when "Twist Of Fate" peaked at #5. A second track from the film, "Livin' In Desperate Times" reached #31. By 1985, Newton-John was finally running out of steam on the US charts. "Soul Kiss" became her final top 40 of the decade after peaking at #20. She appeared in the top 40 once more, though, when "The Grease Megamix" single reached #35 in 1996. Her accomplishments have made her the 10th most successful artist of the 70s, the 25th for the 80s, and #41 of all-time. Newton-John has sung tunes written by many big names, including the aforementioned Bob Dylan. Songwriter John Farrar wrote many of her hits, and she's collaborated with the likes of Richard Marx and Cliff Richard. Her hit "Xanadu," the title track to another film in which she was the star, went to #8 in 1980 and was written by Jeff Lynne and performed with E.L.O. One would think that a song written and performed with the great Elton John would be instant hit, but "The Rumour" somehow only made it to #62 in 1988.
Singer and songwriter Richard Marx is well-known for his string of monster hits in the late 80s and early 90s (the first solo artist ever to have his first 7 singles land in the top 5). But he'd been long working in the music business before his debut hit "Don't Mean Nothing" reached #3 in 1987 and after his final chart appearance in 1997 (when "At The Beginning," a duet with Donna Lewis featured in the movie Anastasia, topped out at #45). Marx had been singing commercial jingles since the age of 5 and then found himself singing backup vocals for the likes of Lionel Richie. Richie got a demo tape of some of Marx's original songs to Kenny Rogers, who ended up recording some ("Crazy" and "What About Me?"). After a few more years of hustling, Marx finally got a record deal of his own and recruited musicians from The Tubes (Fee Waybill) and Eagles (Joe Walsh, Randy Meisner) to play on his self-titled debut, which would sell nearly 4 million copies. If you're looking for a lost gem from this record, check out "Lonely Heart." His sophomore record, "Repeat Offender," did not prove to be a jinx, yielding five more top 15 singles for Marx. Underrated tunes from this effort include "Nothin' You Can Do About It" and "Waiting For The Sunrise." While it performed well, his third effort ("Rush Street") met with mixed reviews. Shuffling music styles like a deck of cards, this record contains the trademark rock and pop fans grew to love, but mixed in some blue-eyed soul and sultry tunes that foreshadowed his transformation into an adult contemporary balladeer. I'm not a big fan of this record, but "Take This Heart" (which landed at #20) and "Big Boy Now" are worth a spin. Marx's fourth record, "Paid Vacation," is one of my favorites and possibly his most underrated. It felt like a strong return to form, although its lead single was yet another ballad. But what a beautiful ballad it was: "Now And Forever" had gorgeous acoustic guitar, a heartfelt vocal, and sweeping orchestration that remind me of Bread. The song reached #7 in 1994 (remarkable since grunge was in full swing) and marked Marx's final showing in the top 10. "Heaven's Waiting" is a more upbeat acoustic-based rocker from this terrific record. Marx continues to release records every now and then and has obtained huge success as a songwriter for other artists - everyone from NSYNC to Kenny Loggins to Luther Vandross ("Dance With My Father" won Marx a songwriting Grammy).
Kenny Loggins is best known as king of 80s film soundtracks. They helped earn him a #1 hit for 3 weeks in 1984 with "Footloose," but also gave him "I'm Alright" (#7, theme from Caddyshack), "I'm Free" (#22, another one from Footloose), "Danger Zone" (#2) and "Playing With The Boys" (#60, both from Top Gun), "Double Or Nothing" (a duet with Gladys Knight from Rocky IV), "Meet Me Half Way" (#11, from Over The Top), and "Nobody's Fool" (#8, from Caddyshack II). Loggins would have one more soundtrack hit in 1997 from the movie One Fine Day with "For The First Time," which reached #60, was nominated for an Oscar, and became his last chart appearance to date. But films are not the only reason why Loggins is ranked the 30th most successful artist of the 80s. Loggins has an amazing voice with stunning range. He is a diverse singer/songwriter, writing songs for Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (including "House At Pooh Corner," #53 in 1971) and earning more chart achievements as Loggins and Messina in the early 70s. Through the years, Loggins has done everything from rock, pop, adult contemporary, blue-eyed soul, country, children's music, holiday music, and more. Several of his songs were written for his children. After going solo, he made a habit of working with lots of different people. His first big solo hit was actually a duet with Stevie Nicks: "Whenever I Call You Friend," co-written with Melissa Manchester, hit #5 in 1978. His longtime collaborator, Michael McDonald, co-wrote the song "This Is It," which went to #11 and earned Loggins a Grammy for Pop Male Vocal. Eddie Money contributed backing vocals on "I'm Alright" and Mickey Thomas did so for his 1988 ballad, "I'm Gonna Miss You," which stalled at #82. Richard Marx and Glen Phillips (Toad The Wet Sprocket) co-wrote and sang tunes on his 2003 release, "It's About Time." Finally, there is the famous anthem "Don't Fight It," his 1982 duet with Journey's Steve Perry, which hit #17. With his 13th album in 2007, Loggins seemed poised for a comeback. The title track to this excellent record, "How About Now" should have restored his presence on the charts, but it fell on deaf ears. Maybe if it were featured on a soundtrack...
