Yes, I know it ain't Christmastime. But it is virtually impossible to find a John Lennon song that hasn't done well on the music charts. The genius of John Lennon goes back to his tenure in the legendary Beatles, but his solo work took on a somewhat different direction. A man all about peace and justice, many will be surprised to hear that "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" never made a chart appearance, despite its omnipresence on every radio station each December. Many other artists have covered this terrific song, but only one group managed to get the song on the charts: The Fray took it to #50 in 2006. Ironically, this beloved pacifist was taken from us too early when he was shot in December, 1980 at the height of a successful comeback.
Led by the dreamy stoner dude, Evan Dando, Boston's The Lemonheads are an alternative rock band that tasted their 15 minutes of fame in the early nineties. After amassing a cult following since their formation in 1986, the band settled into a slacker acoustic rock niche that wrote artsy tunes that provided a reprieve from the gritty grunge of the '90s. The band scored some major airplay with their excellent LP, "It's A Shame About Ray," thanks to the title track (whose video featured Johnny Depp) and their cover of Simon and Garfunkel's "Mrs. Robinson." The '90s darling Juliana Hatfield played bass and sang on some of the tracks, too. The band followed these singles up with their 1993 record, "Come On Feel The Lemonheads," which yielded their only chart hit, "Into Your Arms." "Into Your Arms" embraced the #67 position in 1993. Despite some other strong potential hits on this record, such as "The Great Big No," the band pretty much soured after this flash of fame. "Confetti" comes from their landmark "It's A Shame About Ray" album. To this day, I am surprised this catchy song was not one to put them on the map sooner.
The Left Banke was a baroque pop band from Manhattan that made their debut on the charts in 1966 with the sweet classic, "Walk Away Renee," which hit #5 and became a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame song. Their follow-up, "Pretty Ballerina," also did well, landing at #15. Outside of a blip on the chart at #98 with "Desiree" in 1967, the band was never heard from again. Going through some of their other songs, I can understand why. While nothing is horrible, nothing particularly stands out. Perhaps they set too high a bar with the magical harmonies in "Walk Away Renee." There is one track, however, that I stumbled across that deserved chart action, the infectious "She May Call You Up Tonight." The band broke up in 1969 after releasing just two albums, although they did release an attempted comeback LP in 1986. Primary songwriter and pianist Michael Brown would later join a band called The Stories. He passed away in 2015.
Most know Tommy Lee as the theatrical drummer for glam band Motley Crue, but during their downtime he's put out a couple solo records. In 2005, he released his sophomore album, "Tommyland: The Ride," which accompanied his book of the same title and his reality TV show, Tommy Lee Goes To College. "Good Times" was the lead off track to this album, and also the theme song for his TV show. The tune gave Lee his one and only chart appearance, making at showing at #95 that year. It is a fun song to play with the top down, thanks to a killer chorus that was taken up a notch by Butch Walker (SouthGang, Marvelous 3). Other guests on this solid effort range from Chad Kroeger (Nickelback) to Nick Carter (Backstreet Boys) to Dave Navarro (Jane's Addiction, Red Hot Chili Peppers).
Laura Lee is hands-down one of the most underrated soul singers of her time. During the late 60s and early 70s, this gifted vocalist from Chicago was belting out some awesome tunes, many with lyrics to empower women. She only scored a single top 40 hit when "Women's Love Rights" landed at #36 in 1971. How songs like "Wedlock Is A Padlock," "Crumbs Off The Table," and "Rip Off" didn't soar into the top 10, I'll never understand.
It's a bit surprising that the Aussie radio star, Ben Lee, has never scored a hit on the US Top 100 music chart. This quirky and fun singer/songwriter got his start in a band called Noise Addict, and has released 11 solo records since their breakup in 1995. Lee came close to hitting the US chart in 2005 when his album "Awake Is The New Sleep" arrived, which spawned familiar tunes like "Catch My Disease" and "We're All In This Together." "American Television" is a perky tune from his excellent 2007 record called "Ripe." In addition to enjoying this upbeat song, see how many hit TV show references you can spot in the video.
European melodic rock band Last Autumn's Dream formed in 2002 and have cranked out over a dozen studio albums so far. Recalling the best of bands like Journey and Foreigner, Last Autumn's Dream puts a modern spin on what would otherwise be considered a dated musical genre. "Megalomania" is an anthem made of pure ear candy and comes from their 2011 album "Nine Lives."
