#1 on the Billboard Hot 100: November 6, 1982 through November 20, 1982.
#1 on the Cash Box Top 100: November 6, 1982 through November 20, 1982
#1 on the U.K. Chart: Never.Before there was Top Gun, there was An Officer and A Gentleman to fulfill all your fantasies about joining the Navy to fly jets and romance the hot woman who falls for you for no real discernible reason. In both of the stories, an iconoclastic guy heads for navy training and has to learn to turn his incredible talents away from attempts at self-aggrandizement and instead work for the benefit of the team as a whole. Along the way, they find romance with women who become interested in them after some of the clumsiest and most unconvincing wooing scenes ever put on film. The two movies even share the death of the main character's best friend to serve as a pivotal event in the narrative.
Okay, all that aside, the reality is that an Officer and a Gentleman is a much better story and a much better film than Top Gun. The real point here is that the association with the movie is part of what launched this song to the top spot on the charts in 1982, although it is a good enough song that it might have gotten there without the boost. This song's success does, however, continue to demonstrate the heavy influence that filmed media has upon popular music. I still haven't decided if that has any larger significance other than the fact that being associated with a popular film or television show appears to be a big help in getting a song to sell a lot of copies, but maybe some cultural point will reveal itself as I continue to work through the top songs of the 1980s.
On a final note, apparently Deborah Winger hated the movie An Officer and a Gentleman, and didn't like her costar Richard Gere either.You'd never know that from what is on screen, which is a fair testament to her acting talent.
Previous Musical Monday: Who Can It be Now? by Men at Work
Subsequent Musical Monday: I Don't Wanna Dance by Eddy Grant
Previous #1 on the Billboard Hot 100: Who Can It be Now? by Men at Work
Subsequent #1 on the Billboard Hot 100: Truly by Lionel Richie
Previous #1 on the Cash Box Top 100: Who Can It be Now? by Men at Work
Subsequent #1 on the Cash Box Top 100: Gloria by Laura Branigan
List of #1 Singles from the Billboard Hot 100 for 1980-1989
List of #1 Singles from the Cash Box Top 100 for 1980-1989
List of #1 Singles on the U.K. Chart for 1980-1989
Joe Cocker Jennifer Warnes 1980s Project Musical Monday Home
No comments:
Post a Comment