Musical Monday - Lady by Kenny Rogers

#1 on the Billboard Hot 100: November 15, 1980 through December 20, 1980.

#1 on the Cash Box Top 100: November 15, 1980 through November 29, 1980 and the week of December 20, 1980.

#1 on the U.K. Chart: Never.

I remember seeing an interview with Lionel Ritchie in which he recounted that when he initially presented the song Lady to Kenny Rogers as something that should be on the singer's album, he had not written any of the lyrics side from the initial instance of "Lady", followed by the melody. Apparently Rogers was so taken with it that he immediately agreed to record the song despite its very unfinished state. This story may not be entirely accurate, as Ritchie had apparently tried to get the Commodores to record the song before he offered it to Rogers - there are so many contradictory anecdotes in the music industry that the real story is often difficult to identify, and this may be one of those times. In any event, Rogers' decision to record the song turned out to be a good one, as it became the best selling single of his career and absolutely dominated the charts in late 1980. I remember that this song was inescapable - in the last couple months of 1980 you were going to hear it once or twice a day whether you wanted to or not. The song also launched Ritchie's career as a songwriter for other artists, as well as his own career as a solo artist.

I think one of the odd things about this song is just how narcissistic the lyrics are, especially for what is ostensibly a love song. The opening line has the singer telling the object of his affection what he is to her. Then the song segues into the singer telling his lady what she can do for him, and what he needs from her, and on and on. Time and again, the song focuses on the wants, needs, and actions of the singer, which makes it seem like a pretty one-sided kind of love story.

Previous Musical Monday: The Tide Is High by Blondie

Subsequent Musical Monday: Super Trouper by ABBA

Previous #1 on the Billboard Hot 100: Woman in Love by Barbra Streisand

Subsequent #1 on the Billboard Hot 100: (Just like) Starting Over by John Lennon

Previous #1 on the Cash Box Top 100: Woman in Love by Barbra Streisand

Subsequent #1 on the Cash Box Top 100: Master Blaster (Jammin') by Stevie Wonder

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

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