This Week In 1983: April 1st
An ultra rare phenomena, all of the top ten songs stay in the same position they were in last week (actually the top 11). I did a little research and it had never happened before this and hasn’t happened since. In fact, if you run down the list, seven other songs occupy the same position they did last week. With that being said, not a lot of room for movement on the chart this week. Biggest drop? “Allentown” by Billy Joel slides down nine spots to #35. The biggest jump belongs to Laura Brannigan. Her song, “Solitaire” debuts on the chart at #33 up fifteen spots from it’s previous place. Quintessential 80’s song “Separate Ways” by Journey reaches it’s peak this week at #17. It’s also our highlight song of the week.
Song Story: “Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)” by Journey
Journey had to be dragged kicking and screaming into the video era. They knew MTV exposure was crucial for sales, but hated making the videos. With MTV being so new, the race was on to come up with new or unusual concepts for music videos. Journey made their mark with the first ever “air band” video. It’s no secret that the band absolutely hates this video. “I’m at a loss to explain that video,” said keyboardist Jonathan Cain. “I will never live down those air keyboards. No matter what else I’ve done in my career, sooner or later people find a way to ask me about the ‘Separate Ways’ video.
The song itself was written by Cain and lead singer Steve Perry while on tour. At the time, every member of the band with going through a painful divorce or breakup due to life on the road and both Cain and Perry were looking for a way to take something positive from all their situations. They wrote it one night in a hotel room, the band finished it out the next day at soundcheck and they inserted it into their set list that evening. “I think Steve mumbled his way through half the lyrics,” said Cain, “but the audience just came unglued.”
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