(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)
Barbra Streisand - "Evergreen (Love Theme from A Star Is Born)"
Hit Number 1: March 5, 1977
Stay at Number 1: 3 Weeks
Before Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper had their own success with A Star Is Born, there was an original movie starring Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson in 1976. Like I always do with songs from movies in this blog, I'm not going to get into the plot and what happens throughout the movie (I'm not trying to spoil anything here for anyone) but the main jist is that Streisand is an unknown singer who falls in love with Kristofferson's character, an already-established rock star. Of course, Streisand and Kristofferson were two of the biggest entertainers at that time, so it's no surprise that A Star Is Born would go on to be one of the biggest box office smashes of the year. It's also no surprise that the main love theme from the movie would become one of the highest-selling singles of 1977. But this is Barbra Streisand we're talking about here. So you can expect a lot of gloop, slow-sleepy music, and an impressive, albeit over-dramatized vocal performance. As far as "Evergreen" goes, it's 3 for 3.
Paul Williams (not to be confused with the Temptations member) wrote all of the music for the movie, including the songs for both Kristofferson and Streisand. Williams had worked with artists like the Carpenters and Three Dog Night in the past, so it wasn't like this was some nobody who agreed to write the songs for the movie. He did get a little bit of help from Streisand, who composed parts of the song, and is probably a big reason why the song sounds the way it does. Williams would admit to being a little bit nervous about writing songs for both Streisand and Kristofferson, but obviously everything worked out in the end, with the movie achieving the box office success that it did, and "Evergreen" becoming this wicked smash hit that nobody could've possibly predicted. "Evergreen" would win the "Triple Crown" as Williams put it, winning the Oscar, the Grammy and the Golden Globe.
"Evergreen" would make history in some fashion, as it made Streisand the first female music composer to win the Academy Award for Best Original Song, alongside Williams. So, while that's pretty nice to see, there is one thing I find unfortunate about this whole situation: "Evergreen" is an incredibly boring song, and one that I have a very hard time getting the whole way through. If you're one of those ballad fans that love singers belting out a tune over slow, sleepy strings, then you'd be a big fan of this. Streisand does what she always does; reaching for big notes and hitting all of them, even though there's not always a need for it. I've come to the conclusion that she was the Mariah Carey of her day. She can sing, and sing well, and there isn't any doubt about it. But she shows off her voice way too much to the point of being obnoxious. In her previous #1 hit, "The Way We Were," she sang it beautifully, and reached for big notes at the right time, not trying too hard, letting it all happen naturally. It was just a boring song for me. "Evergreen" is not only boring, but Streisand begins to be too much for me about halfway through. I can't listen to the whole thing very often.
Apart from Streisand, there's really nothing to speak of instrumentally. There's a soft, fluttery piano riff being played under Streisand's vocals, as well as strings that play the same part. Admittedly, it does create a somewhat pretty song, it's just not my kind of pretty song. The vocals are too dramatic, the piano riff is too sleepy, and the strings are so silent and unimportant they might as well not be there at all. I guess if "Evergreen" was a more emotional song like "The Way We Were" Streisand's dramatic performance might seem more appropriate. But it's... not. It's your typical love song that you'd expect from a lovey dovey musical like A Star Is Born. There's nothing to this song that excites me in the slightest.
On that note, Streisand will appear in this blog again. But she'd still have yet to ditch the boring love ballads.
GRADE: 2/10
JUST MISSED:
Steve Miller Band's spacey, mystic-sounding "Fly Like an Eagle" peaked at #2 behind "Evergreen." It's a 9.
10 ALERT!!!:
Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band's real-life story song banger "Night Moves" peaked at #4 behind "Evergreen." It felt the lightning, and waits on the thunder. It's a 10.
(Bob Seger will eventually appear in this blog)
ANOTHER 10 ALERT!!!:
Al Stewart's virtuosic yacht-rock song "Year of the Cat" peaked at #8 behind "Evergreen." It comes in incense and patchouli. It's a 10.
IN POP CULTURE:
A minor YouTube singer named Julia Marson covered "Evergreen" on her channel a couple years ago. In her description, she says how this is one of her favorite songs of all time. Clearly we have different opinions, but her cover is pretty good, I gotta say. Dare I say it might be better than Streisand's. Enough rambling here's her video:
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