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torcan
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| Posted: 18 December 2006 at 10:01am | IP Logged
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It didn't chart on Billboard, but I've always wondered about this song and don't know where else to ask about it.
Following Men At Work's two No. 1 singles "Who Can it Be Now" and "Down Under" in 1982-83, a song called "Be Good Johnny" was played a lot on the radio. There was a Canadian 45 of the song but I've never seen a US one. I'm wondering, since it was played on the radio a lot back then (I heard it on Buffalo stations and also stations in California when I visited there at the time), I'm wondering if there ever was a promo single for the song, or did radio just play it from the album seeing it was a hit in other countries?
Anyone know?
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Paul Haney
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| Posted: 18 December 2006 at 12:24pm | IP Logged
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If memory serves, there was a promo 12" single issued on Columbia 1608. It had "Be Good Johnny" on both sides. I don't recall ever seeing a U.S. 45. Hopefully Jim can confirm this info.
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jimct
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| Posted: 18 December 2006 at 12:32pm | IP Logged
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Torcan, that is one fantastic observation on your part!! You are absolutely correct as to the impact of "Be Good Johnny." We got a promo 12" single on it, as Columbia AS 1608, which contained the (3:34) LP version on both sides. There is only ONE reason why it was not released as a 45 in the U.S., as the follow-up to "Down Under." Turns out, Men At Work's U.S. breakthrough LP, "Business As Usual", had already been a hit in their native Australia, WELL before it ever made it big in the U.S. As a result, their next LP had already long been finished, and was 100% ready for immediate U.S. release. And Columbia had a major marketing campaign all set up and ready for the launch of Men At Work's new "Cargo" LP. "Down Under" stayed on the charts for 25 weeks, peaking at #1 BB in early 1983. The label was EXTREMELY anxious to move the radio focus onto both the new LP and its lead single, "Overkill." They even sent us interview discs by the band, for some sort of "World Premiere Weekend," the last week of March '83, IIRC. The label was pulling out all the stops here - that debut album had made them a fortune! But, at least at our station, "Down Under" was showing very little "burn" (people weren't getting tired of hearing it.) Back then, the labels were always trying to "hurry" radio off the established hits, and move us on to the next "project". (This is why today's biggest hits are characterized by longer "current" chart runs - spin-based data correctly reflects that radio still plays the established/recent hits FAR more/longer than the labels want us to. We in radio believe doing so is simply in OUR best interests, and will get us higher ratings. This practice has actually ALWAYS been the case, but back when we compiled/reported to the trade magazines by producing numerical "surveys",(until '94 or so), usually going from #1 to #30 each week, the labels would always encourage us to "drop" their on-the-way-down-hit off the list, and add/move up their new single.) We would do it as a favor for them, but we also would continue to play these "re-currents" (brand new oldies) on-air frequently. Now, if "Down Under" stiffed out Top 40, or if it was a quickie-up-and-down chart hit, Columbia would've then had the time to officially release "Be Good Johnny" as a 45, before the new LP's "launching." But none of that happened, however. We did play "Be Good Johnny" at our station, for 8-10 weeks, in medium rotation, from around Mid-Jan to late March of '83, and I know many other stations did the same. We also charted it, but there was no way for Billboard to represent it; there was no 45 or commercial 12" issued for it. And although "Overkill" became a #3 BB hit, as did their follow-up 45, "It's A Mistake" (actually a #6 BB hit), they both currently reside in total oldies oblivion - has anyone ever heard either, even a single time, on the radio since they were current hits?
A final note: Sire was in the exact same predicament about 18 months later. Madonna's debut LP had produced the hits "Holiday" (#16 BB), and "Borderline" (#10 BB). It is now August of 1984, and the "Like A Virgin" LP is finished, and ready for release. One problem: her "Lucky Star" video was currently just about the #1 video on MTV, (by the way, the same thing was true for "Be Good Johnny", back around 2/83!) Radio was adamant in its demand that Sire issue "Lucky Star" as a third single - everyone acknowledged it would be a sure-fire smash for her. That was NOT Sire's original plan at all, but it proved too good for them to pass up. So, unlike Columbia, Sire changed their plans, accomodated radio, put out "Lucky Star" as a 45, and pushed back the "Like A Virgin" LP (with the title track as the lead single) launch by 10 weeks, until Nov. 1984. "Lucky Star" proved to be her biggest hit to date (#4 BB). "Like A Virgin" then debuted, on 11/17/84, and spent 6 weeks at #1 in Billboard. Hope this helps you, Torcan.
Sorry to have repeated some of your details, Paul. Was workin' on this mega-post while you snuck your reply in - hope I haven't angered your boss any by citing a few BB peak positions. :) All the best, Mr. Haney!
Edited by jimct on 18 December 2006 at 12:39pm
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Paul Haney
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| Posted: 18 December 2006 at 1:52pm | IP Logged
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No problem, Jim. Your post brought back a lot of memories from those days. Too bad "Be Good Johnny" never got all the recognition it deserved (although it did go as high as #3 on the Rock Tracks chart).
I do occasionally hear "It's A Mistake" on our local "Flashback Friday" station, but NEVER ONCE have they played "Overkill".
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eric_a
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| Posted: 18 December 2006 at 2:45pm | IP Logged
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Paul Haney wrote:
No problem, Jim. Your post brought back a lot of memories from those days. Too bad "Be Good Johnny" never got all the recognition it deserved (although it did go as high as #3 on the Rock Tracks chart).
I do occasionally hear "It's A Mistake" on our local "Flashback Friday" station, but NEVER ONCE have they played "Overkill". |
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We play "Overkill" as 80s gold, and play "It's A Mistake" topically, probably once a year, when our Rewind show spotlights '83.
On a sidenote, Colin Hay made an appearance on Scrubs a few months ago, walking around the hospital strumming "Overkill".
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torcan
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| Posted: 19 December 2006 at 10:11am | IP Logged
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jimct wrote:
Back then, the labels were always trying to "hurry" radio off the established hits, and move us on to the next "project". (This is why today's biggest hits are characterized by longer "current" chart runs - spin-based data correctly reflects that radio still plays the established/recent hits FAR more/longer than the labels want us to.
A final note: Sire was in the exact same predicament about 18 months later. Radio was adamant in its demand that Sire issue "Lucky Star" as a third single - everyone acknowledged it would be a sure-fire smash for her. That was NOT Sire's original plan at all, but it proved too good for them to pass up. So, unlike Columbia, Sire changed their plans, accomodated radio, put out "Lucky Star" as a 45, and pushed back the "Like A Virgin" LP (with the title track as the lead single) launch by 10 weeks, until Nov. 1984.
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Thanks jimct for the information. I'd love to hear more stories like that :)
I always thought it would be great to work in radio around that time. I did work in radio for a short period in the late '80s, but everything was pretty well automated at that station.
I certainly have noticed that about longer chart runs. In the '80s, it was rare for a song to spend much more than 26 weeks on the Hot 100, but today, runs of 40 or more weeks are quite common. I always found it odd that a song could sometimes take 18-20 weeks to reach its peak position, and then fall down and completely off in about 5-6 weeks after that. It seems that radio play had a lot more influence on the Hot 100 back then than sales did.
Re. Columbia's strategy with "Overkill" - I guess it worked because the single debuted at No. 28 - one of the highest debuts of the '80s. Both Men at Work albums were in the top 10 simulataniously for a few weeks.
Re. Madonna - again, the strategy worked. Her first album didn't crack the Billboard Top 10 until Sept 1984, almost a year after first charting. I doubt it would have soared that high had "Lucky Star" not been a hit at the time. When "Like a Virgin" was released, it soared to the Top 10 in just its second week and spent over 100 weeks on the chart.
That was back in the days when record companies actually released physical singles...
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edtop40
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| Posted: 19 December 2006 at 10:22am | IP Logged
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as always, fascinating info, guys....
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Topic: Be Good Johnny promo single?
