Play Meter

MUSIC PROGRAMMING
..___ By Pat Matthews
You pays yo' money and
takes yo' chances this season
Well , Christmas is just about here .
Everybody's doing their last minute
shopping and looking forward to a
New Year . Mus1cally , it should be an
interesting one - economically , a
gambler's paradise . Here's hoping
you and yours have a safe , happy
1980 blessed with the joys that music
can bring .
SEND ONE YOUR LOVE - Stevie
Wonder - Tamla T 54303F
This is definitely one tailor-made
for the season . It also happens to be
Stevie Wonder's first recording effort
in three years . The song is from the
LP "Stevie Wonder's Journey
Through The Secret Life Of Plants ;"
and if that sounds a bit strange , one
"listen" to this tender ballad will
prove that the magic and genius is
still there . "Send One Your Love"
has all the elements that have made
Stevie Wonder the widely successful
singer-composer-producer he is . If
you rearrange the words just a little ,
you 'll find my Christmas gift sugges-
tion : "Send Your Love One" ... the
title of the record . 10 out of 10 or I'll
eat the mistletoe .
YOU'RE GONNA LOVE YOUR-
SELF IN THE MORNING - Charlie
Rich - United Artists UA-X13525-Y
A nei1r symphonic opening ushers
in the golden tones of the silver fox
on what must be his 400th record .
Like a fine wine , his music gets better
with age. Basically , the record is just
that - simple . But , the strings add a
new dimension and just the right
touch. It may not cross over into
Pop , but should do extremely well in
Country and Easy Listening. 8 out of
10.
HEAD GAMES - Foreigner- Atlan -
tic 3633
Now it's time to get into some rock
n' roll. The record promoter told me
this was supposed to be the initial
single release from the LP of the
same name , but was saved and
"Dirty White Boy" was chosen
instead . The latter has done well
despite objectionable subject matter
and now it's time for the ambiguity of
this one . Mick Jones and company
rocks on for three plus minutes and
gets a 9 out of 10 from this corner.
Peter Asher (of. .. & Gordon and
Linda Ronstadt producing fame) .
She also possesses one of few
remaining gutsy female voices . This
one's a mid-tempo rocker which is
sung , arranged , produced and play-
ed in a winning style . This could be
Bonnie Raitt's first commercial suc-
cess . I don 't particularly like the fade
at the end , but who's perfect? 7 out
of 10 at least .
VIDEO KILLED THE RADIO
Star- The Buggies-Island IS 49114
From the absurd to the ridiculous ,
it's another Buggies record . You see ,
a record is not to be confused with a
song . A song is something you can
sing along with once you learn the
words. A record is just something
you enjoy listening to . "Video" is just
that and is full of all sorts of
production room techniques. It does
have a melody , unlike , let's say ,
"Revolution 9" by the Beatles . More
people than you think will like this
one. 7 out of 10 is a safe bet.
CHIQUITITA - Abba - Atlantic
3629
What have we got here? A
Spanish influenced tune sung by
Swedes from an album entitled
"Voulez-Vous ," that's what! To
emphasize the internationality of it
all , there's even a Spanish version .
The one I'm listening to now is the
English version which makes it easy
to understand why this should be one
of Abba 's biggest in quite sometime .
It's already been a smash in England .
Great vocals as always with some
fine keyboard work . Should go
places. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ... 8 out of
10.
IT'S DIFFERENT FOR GIRLS - Joe
Jackson - A&M 2186 S
The title is an understatement -
the record is a positive statement for
the career of Joe Jackson . Sounding
more like Elvis Costello this time ,
Jackson has released a whole new
album , from which this is culled . I
think the sign of a true artist is never
to be content to sit still while the
record company pulls single after
single , ad nauseum , from an LP ,
which is exactly what Joe Jackson
does . The song is good and that's
that. 9 out of 10 or better .
YOU'RE GONNA GET WHAT'S
COMING - Bonnie Raitt - Warner
Brothers WBS 49116
What more could a singer ask for?
She's got a song written by Robert
Palmer and a record produced by
SHOOTING STAR - Dollar- Car-
rere (Atlantic) CAR 7208
The only way you could get your
hands on this record not too long ago
was to purchase the import. Now
Atlantic , which knows a good thing
when they hear it , has bought the
American rights to this heretofore
unknown French group . The song is
a bold step as far as rigid production
and musical techniques are concern-
ed . Since it was the import that
"turned people on ," so to speak , it
was the disco dee-jays who first
heard this little foreign treasure . So , if
you frequent upper class disco
establishments , you may have heard
it . If you don't , you're in for a treat. 9
out of 10 in America . .. already gold
in a handful of European countries .