Today In Oldies 12/27/2010

Golden Hits Radio & GHR-2's Everything Oldies.....our stockings are stuffed with Oldies news! 

• An 80's R&B music legend (and Rick James protege) passes away over the weekend
• So does the bassist for another band big in the 80's
• A formal pardon for Jim Morrison in Florida doesn't satisfy the surviving members of The Doors
• Which late music superstar provided inspiration for Oprah?
• Two legends will show up at Daryl Hall's house for New Year's Eve
• Which 60's superstar will be a busy man in 2011?
• The British Elvis will do Motown for his next album

The Gift of Music

This week, Everything Oldies will spotlight hit songs written by one music superstar and performed by another.  In some cases, the writer of the song had the artist in mind when putting pen to paper, and in others, they had someone else in mind when the song was written and were advised to keep it for themselves.  In any case, the artist made it his (or her) own and fully realized the writer's vision. 

Today, we take a look at three songs by a guy with a strong track record of writing songs that became timeless classics for other artists throughout the 70's and 80's...........Bruce Springsteen.

• The first single from Bruce Springsteen's debut album "Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J." was a flop for The Boss himself, but his trash turned out to be treasure in 1977 for someone else, providing him with his only taste of life at the top of the charts as a singer or songwriter.  It also provides one of the most commonly misheard and misquoted lyrics in pop music history.  Officially, the line reads "revved up like a deuce/another runner in the night".  Springsteen's false start as a star became Manfred Mann's first chart hit in 9 years, and it remains a classic today........

• Originally written for Elvis Presley, who died before shortly after a demo was sent to him by Springsteen, this song was first recorded by a friend of Bruce's, Robert Gordon.  Springsteen himself was tangled in a legal battle at the time this was written and couldn't record his own songs, although a live version can be found on his "Live 1975-85" box set and on his recently released CD of outtakes from his 1979 album "Darkness On The Edge Of Town" called "The Promise".  The Pointer Sisters made it a smash, taking it to #2 in 1979.......

• Just as The Ramones were becoming stars on the punk rock scene in the late 70's, lead singer Joey Ramone met Bruce Springsteen and asked him to write a song for them.  The song he came up with explored a typical Springsteen theme at the time.....wanderlust.  This one had a twist, however, with the main "character" in the song ultimately longing for a stable life.  Upon hearing a demo for the first time, Springsteen's manager, Jon Landau, advised him to keep it for himself.  He did, and the result was his first Top 5 pop hit as an artist in 1981.....

Golden Hits Radio and GHR-2's Burning Question of the Day

Although Dick Clark has become synonymous with New Year's Eve on ABC, a different network originated his New Year's Rockin' Eve TV special in 1972.  On which network did it first appear on December 31, 1972, and which band received star billing in the title that first season? 

Check back tomorrow @ Everything Oldies for the answer, and leave a comment here with your best guess! 

Wednesday's Burning Question (and Answer) of the Day

Did The Beatles ever officially release a Christmas song?

Answer: Yes, but it was 28 years after it was originally recorded and released to fan club members only.  "Christmas Time (Is Here Again)" was recorded in 1967 and offered via the Beatles' fan club.  It did not become available to the general public until its inclusion as the B-side of the 1995 single "Free As A Bird" from the first "Beatles Anthology".