The Songs Of The Summer: Episode #1: 1984

We’re very happy to present a Brand New tnocs.com Article Series from friend and Contributing Author Ozmoe! Starting with 1984, he’ll take us on a weekly sun-and-fun journey as we remember The Songs Of The Summer:

Get this: It’s barely June – and already Radio Insight reporter Sean Ross is handicapping what might be the summer song for 2022.

One concept most pop music lovers cherish seems to be the idea of designating the Most Memorable Song Of The Summer for each year.

In 2016, Justin Timberlake confidently (…maybe overconfidently?) announced in a video that his release Can’t Stop the Feeling would be the summer song of 2016. That claim spurred a reporter with Time magazine to note there were nine other contenders for the honor.

The same article referenced a piece by Forbes, noting that six songs Billboard had crowned “The Song of the Summer” since 2007 had been released before April.

This fact makes me wonder: What exactly is the criteria for being the Song Of The Summer? To my mind, it can’t be just chart performance in July through August, which Billboard uses.

It also shouldn’t be a song that references the season in its title, like Bryan Adams’ “Summer of ’69,” even though it peaked in August 1985. Since Adams was only 9 years old in 1969, some believe he picked the title year due to the suggestiveness of its last digits, a claim Adams hasn’t denied outright.

To me, what a summer song should really be is a hit that’s upbeat, easy enough to sing along with and catchy enough to make you want to sing along. And since Billboard didn’t officially declare a Song Of The Summer until recently, I think it’s our duty to retroactively decide what we think should be the winner of this title under this criteria.

Let’s start with a year near and dear to the hearts of TNOCS voters, 1984, which has one of the highest average scores for all the songs that made number one that year. Even so, none of those chart toppers seems to be a summer song under my definition.

For example, while Prince’s When Doves Fly is a classic, it seems too meditative to be a summer song. And then there are ones like Duran Duran’s The Reflex and Ray Parker Jr.’s Ghostbusters which seem too, well, let’s say, irritatingly repetitive to hold the distinction.

Instead, I nominate the following contenders for your consideration, listed chronologically based on their Billboard Hot 100 peak, which is listed after each:

• Huey Lewis and the News: The Heart of Rock & Roll
Number seven for four consecutive weeks in June 1984:
Beside a strong, punchy beat, this one namedropped several cities, including some for radio designed for special markets. It has a good mix of nostalgic and contemporary flavor from a group of musicians sounding like they’re having fun.

• Bruce Springsteen: Dancing in the Dark
Number two for four consecutive weeks in June and July 1984:
The emergence of The Boss as a pop powerhouse with this song was shocking, considering how he had only one top 10 hit previously (“Hungry Heart” in 1980). But when you hear this powerful number, you can understand why it hit. And there was also a lot of interest in a remix that did well on the dance chart at the time, too.

• The Pointer Sisters: Jump (For My Love)
Number three for two consecutive weeks in July 1984:
Speaking of dancing, this trio had compiled several pop hits but none as big as this one. It became a staple of nearly every gym workout class of the time as well. Opens with a bang and stays thumping till the fadeout for a peppy listening experience.

• ZZ Top: Legs
(number eight for two consecutive weeks in July 1984)—These guys had no top 10 hit previously. This song’s lyrics included a profanity that could have (and may have; I can’t remember for sure) gotten it banned by some stations. Despite all that, this hard-grooving number made the beard-loving band a national phenomenon, to the point where they even did The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, a TV series known for not showcasing rock acts.

• Rod Stewart: Infatuation
Number six for two consecutive weeks in July and August 1984:
One of the all-time biggest pop artists successfully merged his rocker and sexual personas with this song. It was helped by a great horn section punctuating a scintillating melody and video with an interesting storyline involving a swimming pool. That blonde definitely seemed to be having more fun here than compared with much of his later output, unfortunately.

• Elton John: Sad Songs (Say So Much)
Number five for one week in August 1984:
Another veteran star cranked out a tune that belied what its title said. Elton was in fine form vocally even if some thought this lacked the musical and lyrical sophistication he had with Bernie Taupin during the 1970s. Others might have turned it on more had Elton not agreed to sell the song for a commercial accompanying Sasson beauty products.

• Dan Hartman: I Can Dream About You
Number six for two consecutive weeks in August 1984:
The movie Streets of Fire was supposed to be a hit that summer. It wasn’t. Neither was its leadoff single, a typically bombastic Jim Steinman composition called Tonight is What It Means to Be Young. (Ugh, what a title).

What did click was this soulful bop, sung by a white guy who previously made the top 10 as part of The Edgar Winter Group with Frankenstein. And to complete all these incongruities, in the movie: Hartman’s vocals were nowhere to be found. Instead, Winston Ford sang the song and actor Stoney Jackson lip-synced it as a member of the Sorels (ugh, what a fictional group name).

Anyway, it holds up a lot better and deserved at least a nomination for the Best Song Oscar over that year’s eventual winner, Stevie Wonder’s sappy, I Just Called to Say I Love You.

So, what do you think? Vote for which one you like, or comment below on another one you think would be a better winner. And look for more entries like this in the next coming weeks, since summer’s here and the time is right!

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