English singer-songwriter Rick Astley gained worldwide fame in the 1980’s with multiple hits, including his signature song “Never Gonna Give You Up.” Rick has announced he’ll be releasing a brand new album, called “Are We There Yet?” in October.
The first taster of the upcoming album is a track that has a mid-American flavour with hints of Country and soft Rock. “Dippin My Feet” by Rick Astley is new this week on RadiJohan.
“Cold War Kids” are an American rock band from Long Beach, California who have just finished touring with “Tears For Fears” in the USA. Formed in 2004 they have released nine studio albums to date, the most recent being 2021’s “New Age Norms 3.” It is currently unclear if a new album is imminent but the band have released a brand new single called “Double Life.” According to frontman Nathan Willett:
“Musically, The Pretenders’ ‘The Wait’s’ lively bounce, swing, and edgy rock’n’roll riff influenced ‘Double Life.’ We all lead dual lives to some extent: one that reflects our authentic selves and another that feels uncomfortable or out of place in our surroundings. As a parent the last few years my attention is always divided. And for myself and my friends, we are in this life phase where the masculine & feminine roles in relationships are blurring – and dads I see are so much more maternal than in the generation we were raised – which is wonderful and scary but it’s ok.”
“Double Life” by Cold War Kids is new this week on RadiJohan.
It’s been about a decade since British band “The Struts” first appeared on the music scene. With songs including “Tattler Magazine”, “Low Key In Love” and “Somebody New” they certainly haven’t been strangers to RadiJohan in recent years.
Their latest single, Too Good at Raising Hell, “was written about the disenchantment I felt after having a little too much fun”, lead singer Luke Spiller stated. He continued:
“However, it still captures the essence of living an excessive life and all of the glorious moments that come along with it. It’s the perfect song to get the party started, and it’s a brilliant introduction of what’s to come. The track is still a lot of what The Struts are known for, but it’s a new sound everyone’s been waiting to hear from us.”
Too Good at Raising Hell by “The Struts” is new this week on RadiJohan.
| TW | LW | Artist | Title |
| 10 | 6 | Ana Nikolic & Nevena Brankovic | Wait On Love |
| 9 | 9 | Crazy Loop | Love Maria |
| 8 | 4 | Michael Thompson Band | The Love Goes On |
| 7 | New | The Smashing Pumpkins | Spellbinding |
| 6 | 8 | Robert Jon & The Wreck | West Coast Eyes |
| 5 | 7 | The Teskey Brothers | Remember The Time |
| 4 | 5 | Nothing But Thieves | Overcome |
| 3 | 3 | The Defiants | 19 Summertime |
| 2 | 2 | joan | superglue |
| 1 | 1 | Jason Aldean | Try That in a Small Town |
Watch this week’s Top 10 by clicking the play button below.
Angelina Jordan became a viral sensation when she auditioned for the 2014 season of Norway’s Got Talent, going on to win that competition at age 8, singing George Gershwin’s “Summertime.”
Angelina was born in Oslo, Norway, and began listening to classic American jazz artists when she was a very young child thanks to the influence of her grandmother. At five years old she discovered Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, and Louis Armstrong by combing jazz playlists on YouTube.
In January of 2020, Angelina appeared on the second season of America’s Got Talent: The Champions when she was 13 years old. Prior to her performance, Angelina told judge Heidi Klum that she had waited 10 years to sing for Simon Cowell. Even though Angelina did not win America’s Got Talent, it looks like she is well on her way to a successful music career.
Angelina is now 17 and has recently released a new original song. With tints of Amy Winehouse and Adele, “Love Don’t Let Me Go” shows off her powerful, husky voice and is new this week on RadiJohan.
| TW | LW | Artist | Title |
| 10 | 3 | DMA’s | Forever |
| 9 | 2 | Crazy Loop | Love Maria |
| 8 | 8 | Robert Jon & The Wreck | West Coast Eyes |
| 7 | 7 | The Teskey Brothers | Remember The Time |
| 6 | 6 | Ana Nikolic & Nevena Brankovic | Wait On Love |
| 5 | 9 | Nothing But Thieves | Overcome |
| 4 | 4 | Michael Thompson Band | The Love Goes On |
| 3 | 5 | The Defiants | 19 Summertime |
| 2 | 1 | joan | superglue |
| 1 | New | Jason Aldean | Try That in a Small Town |
Watch this week’s Top 10 by clicking the play button below.
“I Don’t Like Mondays” by “The Boomtown Rats” hit number 1 in the UK this week in 1979 for the first of four weeks. At a basic level, this song is often heard as lamenting the beginning of the working week. Some radio stations even play it every Monday at a certain time. However, the actual subject matter of the song is a real-life school shooting.
According to lead singer Bob Geldof, he wrote the song after reading about the shooting spree by 16-year-old Brenda Ann Spencer, who fired at children in a school playground at Grover Cleveland Elementary School in San Diego, California, on 29 January 1979, killing two adults and injuring eight children and one police officer. Spencer showed no remorse for her crime; her explanation for her actions was “I don’t like Mondays. This livens up the day.”
Spencer’s family tried to prevent the single from being released in the United States, but were unsuccessful. Geldof had originally intended the song as a B-side, but changed his mind after the song was well received by audiences on the Boomtown Rats’ US tour.
“I Don’t Like Mondays” was a number 1 in 32 Countries!
On July 25, 1980, AC/DC released “Back In Black,” their first album without the late Bon Scott as the lead singer. This album served as a heartfelt tribute to Scott, who tragically passed away five months prior due to alcohol poisoning after a drinking binge. Rather than disbanding, the remaining members of the band made the bold decision to carry on and enlisted Brian Johnson, formerly the vocalist for “Geordie.”
“Back In Black” went on to achieve unprecedented success both commercially and critically, cementing its position as one of the best-selling albums in the history of music. Sales estimates from around the world consistently place it second only to Michael Jackson’s iconic “Thriller.”
After Back in Black was released, AC/DC’s previous records “Highway to Hell,” “If You Want Blood You’ve Got It,” and “Let There Be Rock” all re-entered the British charts, which made them the first band since “The Beatles” to have four albums in the British Top 100 simultaneously.
| TW | LW | Artist | Title |
| 10 | 5 | Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds | Dead To The World |
| 9 | New | Nothing But Thieves | Overcome |
| 8 | 9 | Robert Jon & The Wreck | West Coast Eyes |
| 7 | 8 | The Teskey Brothers | Remember The Time |
| 6 | 7 | Ana Nikolic & Nevena Brankovic | Wait On Love |
| 5 | 6 | The Defiants | 19 Summertime |
| 4 | 4 | Michael Thompson Band | The Love Goes On |
| 3 | 3 | DMA’s | Forever |
| 2 | 2 | Crazy Loop | Love Maria |
| 1 | 1 | joan | superglue |
Watch this week’s Top 10 by clicking the play button below.
This week in 1984 “Two Tribes” by “Frankie Goes To Hollywood” was in the middle of a nine week stretch at number one in the UK. It would become the longest running number-one single in the UK of the 80’s. The song’s title derives from the line “two mighty warrior tribes went to war” from the movie Mad Max 2.
“Two Tribes” was released as an anti-war single during a tumultuous period characterized by the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union, along with their respective allies. In this context of heightened global apprehensions about nuclear warfare, the song struck a chord with listeners, resonating the collective fears and concerns of the time. Accordingly the song was a hit in many other countries as well and also topped the charts in Belgium, Greece, Ireland, The Netherlands, New Zealand and West-Germany.