(The Hit Hammer is where I'm reviewing each #1 song on the Billboard Hot 100. Starting from when the chart started in 1958 and eventually working my way to the present. To see my inspiration and more information about this blog, please CLICK HERE)
B.J. Thomas - "(Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song"
Hit Number 1: April 26, 1975
Stay at Number 1: 1 Week
"(Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song" is the longest title a #1 hit has ever had. Because of that, I'll just be referring to it as "Wrong Song." Anyway, "Wrong Song" came at an interesting time for B.J. Thomas' career, as well as for the pop charts. Thomas himself was interesting, because he was one of the few artists who was able to find success as a "crossover artist." These artists often performed genres of music that appealed to different fan bases, and in the case of Thomas, he was actually a country guy. But, for whatever reason, his country music appealed to so many pop music fans, so not everyone thinks of him this way. Hell, coming into this review I didn't think of Thomas as being "country," but after listening to "Wrong Song," as well as remembering "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head," his first #1 hit, it makes me think differently. These are very country sounding songs. Basically, B.J. Thomas was the Kenny Rogers before Kenny Rogers suddenly became a big time pop star himself. Some country artists suddenly become big pop stars, and for reasons that I can't quite figure out. (And of course, Kenny Rogers will eventually appear in this blog)
Another thing I can't figure out is why exactly country music has a hell of a time making its way over to the pop charts. The music can usually get there, but songs peak really low, like in the lower 40 of the Hot 100. I've talked about this pretty much every time I review a song that's close to country. It's a mystery to me. I used to live in Kansas, and if anyone reading this knows anything about Kansas (which I imagine a good amount of my readers do), country music is pretty big there. So I used to think outside of states like Kansas and Oklahoma, country music just didn't stick. But I was wrong. I now live in Minnesota, which some people might think is one of the least country states out there, but I still know several people here who love country music. So tell me why you hardly see country songs get into the top ten, let alone get to #1. It does happen from time to time, as we'll see as we continue along this #1 hits journey, but not often.
I went on that tangent because "Wrong Song," eh, nothing really stands out about it, and it's your typical country style song. A guy had broken up with his lover, and he now wants the radio to play all these depressing songs about love going south because he doesn't "want to cry all alone." It moves along in a mopey way, and Thomas sings the song with a genuine sorrow, and you really do kind of feel for the guy. But again, that's the cliché recipe for a country song. A lot of country songs are just flat out depressing. But while "Wrong Song" is a depressing song, and I don't get why out of all the country songs released in 1975 this was the one that became a huge hit, it still sticks with me. That melody is still pure sing-along stuff, and the instrumentation behind Thomas stays low, which allows Thomas to be the center of attention. And well, this is one of those songs to where that's the best approach. It's not some amazing country masterpiece, not quite like what we heard on, say, "The Most Beautiful Girl," but it works. This song will probably stay in my head for the rest of the day.
Thomas will not appear in this blog again, but he would really become big on the country charts in the years ahead, and I believe he was able to score a couple #1 hits on the country charts in the '80s, so you know what, good for him. Unfortunately, Thomas is no longer with us, and he died just last year of lung cancer. However, according to some of his tweets last year, he stayed in good spirits, and either he was just trying to make his fans feel better, or he legitimately thought he was going to beat cancer. Either way it's heartbreaking. I said it in the "Lovin' You" review and I'll say it again. Fuck cancer.
Okay, I'm gonna just go ahead and end this review now before it gets way too depressing.
GRADE: 7/10
IN POP CULTURE:
Speaking of Kenny Rogers, him and Dottie West did a cover version of "Wrong Song," and their version was produced by Larry Butler, one of the songwriters of the song. Here's the audio of their version:
(As I said earlier, Kenny Rogers will eventually appear in this blog, but Dottie West's highest-charting single on the Hot 100 was another collab with Rogers, this one called "What Are We Doin' in Love". It made it to #14 in 1981 and it's a 6)
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