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Number One! I’ve always loved the sound of that.
It’s
such a catchy
term in our culture: the #1 movie or book, your best friend, your favorite restaurant
or store and of course, the ultimate, the #1 hit single! Ever since I can remember
I’ve been obsessed with music charts. On Sundays growing up in Joliet,
Illinois I would rush home after church to listen to Casey Kasem’s Top
40 on the radio, diligently writing down each hit in my composition notebook,
completely mesmerized
by the time we hit #1! There was also this awesome record store in town called
The Crow’s Nest that would have these free pink photocopied flyers of the
chart listings from the local radio station that I would collect obsessively.
I was hooked! So I thought I would share my obsession with the #1 hit singles
from my favorite decade, the 80’s, here with you at fredflare.com. Over
the next 11 weeks I’ll be reminiscing while presenting the best of the
best
of the decade of decadence. I’m sure you’ll see ones that you think
are missing – and it’s true, there are some great hits that will
be absent – but they just didn’t have the power needed to make it
all the way to #1. That’s what it takes to be a true chart topper! Enjoy!
XXOO Chris |
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1988
Where do I begin with 1988? Well, it was my "Felicity" freshman
year in architecture school at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). When
I first got my schedule my eyes nearly popped
out of my head. Classes began at
8:30am and studio ended at 6pm, but this is what I always wanted… right?
What sucked even more was that my parents made me commute to school from Joliet.
It was tough driving 1 1/2 hours each way every day and the speeding tickets
really started to pile up. My dad even had to hire a lawyer so I wouldn’t
loose my driver’s license! Anyway, one day on campus I ran into two girls
that went to my sister high school back at home, Theresa Prebeg and Lisa Babich.
They too were attending UIC and even had an apartment together in Chicago. The
three of us became new best friends and their apartment was my Chicago crash
pad. Now, I have to mention, my look had really evolved from my preppy early
years. With the help of the Sid & Nancy soundtrack, I really punked it out!
My look consisted of either black biker shorts or ripped-up jeans, t-shirts from
Wax Trax records, Madonna bracelets, combat boots, black leather jacket and tall
AquaNet hair. Theresa, Lisa and I soon became permanent fixtures at Medusa’s,
the infamous Chicago teen club. We went every Friday and Saturday night and especially
on Wednesdays when they had student ID discounts. We’d brood in our black
outfits, sip Oranginas and dance the night away to the likes of New Order, Anne
Clark, Nitzer Ebb, Ministry and S-Express. I really perfected my dance moves – those
beach party days were over! I was COOL now! Back at school, my grades suffered
a bit due to my busy social schedule. You know how freshman year is. You meet
so many new, exciting people and building models of Greek temples is the last
thing on your mind. But what I really wasn’t expecting was to meet my future
boyfriend, Eric Draper. He was a totally hot punk boy who sat in the upper seats
of the "Inner Circle" in the UIC Student Center. He too was an architecture
major by day/Medusa boy by night so I’d seen him around a lot. We ended
up in a class together and started
talking one day after weeks of playing the "eye game". Wow, my first
real crush on a boy that actually was reciprocated. After a couple of dates on
the dance floor it was official. We decided to be boyfriends. Oh, I was so into
him! We’d listen to Bananarama and Kate Bush for hours, ooggle over the
Obsession ads and rave about John Waters’ films. But deep down, I was nervous
my parents would find out I was dating a boy and totally freak! I tried for a
couple of months to go with the flow, but I just couldn’t take it anymore
so I broke up with him. I decided I’d better try and make my life easier
and date some girls. Eric, on the other hand, didn’t agree. So he wrote
me a tell-all love letter to win me back… that was intercepted by my mother.
So my new and exciting city life had some major setbacks. Oh well, it happens.
I went through all this family drama and I survived. I even got to live in the
dorms the next year, further loosening my parent’s grip on me. Sometimes
a huge disaster that you can’t imagine ever getting through can actually
work to your benefit. Go figure. I know I got "So Emotional" there
for a bit, but I’m gonna give it "One More Try" for "A Groovy
Kind Of Love", but this time without a "Father Figure". Ain’t
it great, ‘88!
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the #1's
A Groovy Kind Of Love - Phil Collins
Anything For You - Gloria Estefan & Miami Sound Machine
Baby, I Love Your Way - Will To Power
Bad Medicine - Bon Jovi
Dirty Diana - Michael Jackson
Don't Worry Be Happy - Bobby McFerrin
Every Rose Has Its Thorn – Poison
Father Figure - George Michael
Foolish Beat - Debbie Gibson
Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car - Billy Ocean
Got My Mind Set On You - George Harrison
Hold On To The Nights - Richard Marx
Kokomo - The Beach Boys
Look Away – Chicago
Love Bites - Def Leppard
Man In The Mirror - Michael Jackson
Monkey - George Michael
Need You Tonight – INXS
Never Gonna Give You Up - Rick Astley
One More Try - George Michael
Red Red Wine - UB40
Roll With It - Steve Winwood
Seasons Change – Exposé
So Emotional - Whitney Houston
Sweet Child O' Mine - Guns N' Roses
The Flame - Cheap Trick
Together Forever - Rick Astley
When I'm With You - Sheriff
Where Do Broken Hearts Go - Whitney Houston
Wild Wild West - The Escape Club
Wishing Well - Terence Trent D'Arby |
