Smorgasbord Blog Magazine – Music Column – The Breakfast Show with William Price King and Sally Cronin – Chart Hits 1983 Part Two – Spandau Ballet, Michael Jackson, Bonnie Tyler, The Eurythmics

Each week William and I select two top hits from the charts in the US and UK starting with 1960 for two weeks followed by 1961 etc..through to 1985. We will also include some of the notable events in those years for the up and coming stars who were centre stage at the time. We are now in the 1980s.

Welcome to our show and we are excited to share decades of music with you in 2021. Here is my second selection of top 1983 hits which I hope you will enjoy.

News Event:  July 21st Thunder storm cuts short Diana Ross’ free concert in NY’s Central Park

Spandau Ballet  –  True 

“True” was a worldwide hit, peaking at #1 in the UK Singles Chart and staying there for four weeks, becoming the sixth-biggest-selling single of the year, and reaching the top ten in many countries around the world. “True” was Spandau Ballet’s biggest hit and their only top ten hit in the US, peaking at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and topping the Adult Contemporary chart for one week. It received a BMI award as one of the most played songs in US history, with four million airplays.

News Event: August 21st Jerry Herman’s musical “La Cage aux Folles”, based Jean Poiret’s French play of the same name , opens at Palace Theater, NYC; runs for 1761 performances, wins 6 Tony Awards

Michael Jackson  –  Billie Jean 

“Billie Jean” was the second single from the album “Thriller” (the best selling album of all time), written by Michael Jackson, which he produced with Quincy Jones. He earned eight Grammys for the album “Thriller” including Record Of The Year (for “Beat It”), Album Of The Year and Producer Of The Year (Non-Classical), all of which Jackson shared with Quincy Jones, while grabbing trophies in the Pop, R&B, and Rock fields. In a list compiled by Rolling Stone and MTV in 2000, the song was ranked as the sixth greatest pop song since 1963. In 2004, Rolling Stone placed it at #58 on its list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time and it was inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll.

News Event: September 22nd The Everly Brothers reunite after 10 years apart in concert at the Royal Albert Hall, London

Now time for my second picks from 1983 and I hope you will enjoy my selection.

Bonnie Tyler – Total Eclipse of the Heart

“Total Eclipse of the Heart” is a song recorded by Welsh singer Bonnie Tyler. It was written and produced by Jim Steinman, and released on Tyler’s fifth studio album, Faster Than the Speed of Night (1983). The song was released as a single by Columbia Records in 1983.
The song became Tyler’s biggest career hit, topping the UK Singles Chart, and becoming the fifth-best-selling single in 1983 in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the single spent four weeks at the top of the charts. The song was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. Worldwide, the single has sales in excess of 6 million copies. Bonnie Tyler

News Event: November 17th Film “Yentl” produced, directed and starring Barbra Streisand and Mandy Patinkin premieres, based on play and story by Isaac Bashevis Singer

The Eurythmics – Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)

“Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)” is a song by the British new wave music duo Eurythmics. The song is the title track of their album of the same name and was released as the fourth and final single from the album in early 1983. The song became their breakthrough hit, establishing the duo worldwide. Its music video helped to propel the song to number 2 on the UK Singles Chart and number 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100. It was the first single released by Eurythmics in the US.  Eurythmics

Additional sources: On This Day – Music – Hits of the 70s: Playback FM – Wikipedia

Your Hosts for The Breakfast Show

William Price King is an American jazz singer, crooner, and composer.

His interest in music began at an early age when he studied piano and clarinet in high school. At Morehouse College in Atlanta where he grew up, he sang in the Glee Club and studied classical music. After graduation he went off to the Yale School of Music where he earned a Masters degree. From there he journeyed to New York where he created a jazz trio ‘Au Naturel’ which performed in some of the hottest venues in Manhattan including gigs on Broadway and the famous ‘Rainbow Room.’ These gigs opened doors for performances in Montreal and a European tour.

While touring Europe he met a lovely French lady, Jeanne Maïstre, who, a year later became his wife. King left the group ‘Au Naturel’ and settled in the south of France where he started a new life on the French Riviera, opening his own music school – the “Price King Ecole Internationale de Chant.” He has had the pleasure over the years of seeing many of his students excel as singers on a professional level, and some going on to become national celebrities. He continues to coach young singers today, in his spare time.

Blog– IMPROVISATION – William Price King on Tumblr – Buy William’s music: William Price King iTunes – Facebook – William Price King – Twitter – @wpkofficial
Regular Venue – Cave Wilson

Sally Cronin is an author, blogger and broadcaster who enjoyed four years as part of the team on Onda Cero International’s English speaking morning show in Marbella and then for two years as a presenter on Expressfm the local radio station in Portsmouth. She co-presented two ‘Drive Time’ shows a week with Adrian Knight, hosted the live Thursday Afternoon Show and The Sunday Morning Show guests including musicians and authors. Following this she became Station Director for a local internet television station for two years, producing and presenting the daily news segment, outside broadcasts and co-presenting the Adrian and Sally chat show live on Friday evenings.

She and her husband David have now returned to Ireland where they live on the Wexford Coast where she blogs and continues to write books.

Books :Amazon US – And: Amazon UK – More reviews: Goodreads – blog: Smorgasbord Blog Magazine Twitter: @sgc58 – Facebook: Sally Cronin – LinkedIn: Sally Cronin

Next week 1984 Part One. We hope you will tune in.. as always we love to hear from you.. thanks William and Sally.