3/14/85 Top 20 Countdown
Every Saturday I make a playlist of the Top 20 Countdown from this week in 1985.
In hindsight the success of REO Speedwagon feels like something that was a symptom of a hangover of the macho ‘70s, but not only did they knock one of the most ubiqoutous songs in history out of the top spot last week, they manage to hang onto that spot for a second week. Which is to say maybe there was something to the idea of tough, “sensitive” rockers that history still hasn’t quite figured out.
The big jumps this week come from Madonna (“Material Girl”) and Phil Collins (“One More Night), but Duran Duran and a solo Mick Jagger making their presence known in the bottom of the charts so there’s a LOT of starpower that’s gonna be going on in the next few weeks.
Speaking of macho: Survivor enters the charts at #14 this week with a song that a year later could easily be a Bon Jovi song, proving that maybe macho never dies, it just gets louder.
