Chicago Top 40 Charts 1980-1990 [Paperback]

Ronald Smith (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 24, 2002

With the advent of retro music shows and eighties music formats, radio has clearly revived interest in that decade. Chicago Top 40 Charts 19801990 examines the Windy Citys top hits from that era by way of the weekly music surveys issued by radio stations WLS and WYTZ. Transition and change were the watchwords for radio and music in Chicago in the 1980s. Dance, heavy metal, alternative music and the advent of boy bands all changed the face of contemporary music, as it became the property of FM radio, leaving AM to talk. Meanwhile, the rise of cassettes and CDs as singles became less important and the loss of mom and pop record stores in favor of giant chains eventually resulted in the demise of the printed survey that previous generations had collected and cherished. This book documents that music and those charts one last time. Chicago Top 40 Charts 19801990 lists every song to reach the WLS and WYTZ surveys alphabetically by title and artist, with debut and peak dates, highest position reached and number of weeks on the charts. The top songs of each year and for the entire decade are ranked as well. For those who grew up listening to Chicago radio as well as for record collectors from anywhere, Chicago Top 40 Charts 1980-1990 will be a valued addition to their music reference libraries.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Ron Smith is a 30-year veteran of oldies radio as a disk jockey, program and music director. He served for more than eight years as Music Director of WJMK-FM, Oldies 104.3 in Chicago and was Senior Music Programmer of Internet Radio for RadioWave.com in the Windy City. Since 1995, he has delighted fans of 50s, 60s and 70s music with the Internet's premiere oldies Web site- www.oldiesmusic.com.He is also the author of Chicago Top 40 Charts 19601969 and Chicago Top 40 Charts 19701979. He resides in suburban Chicago with his vast music and book libraries.

Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: iUniverse (April 24, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0595226264
• ISBN-13: 978-0595226269
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #688,323 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Ron Smith has been involved in Oldies radio for nearly 40 years as a Disk Jockey, Program and Music Director, most recently as the Music Director and Evening DJ at Real Oldies 1690 in Chicago. He also served for more than eight years as Music Director of WJMK-FM, Oldies 104.3 in the Windy City. He was Senior Music Programmer of Internet Radio for Radiowave.com and created and hosted streaming channels for MusicNow.com, including the Net's only all-Elvis station. His '50s Hits and '60s Hits channels are currently enjoyed on Slacker.com. And, since 1995, he has delighted fans of '50s, '60s and '70s music with the Internet's premiere Oldies web site- www.oldiesmusic.com. Smith is the author of four reference books of Chicago music charts. He resides in suburban Chicago with his vast music and book libraries.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Third in a recommended set, August 10, 2002

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R. Riis "rriis" (NY) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Chicago Top 40 Charts 1980-1990 (Paperback)

Ron Smith's third volume in his highly-recommended set of Chicago chart books, following the 1960-1969 and 1970-1979 volumes. Again, though, I've given this must-have book four stars for one striking omission. Smith does identify every tune to reach Chicago's WLS weekly music survey through the end of the charts in mid-1990 by title and artist, along with the debut and peak dates, highest position reached and weeks on the survey, along with the top songs of each year and the entire decade. What is missing is a listing of the number ones week-by-week or at the very least some indication of how many weeks a given number one hit spent at the top. Still, this is an essential reference for those whose interest in the charts extends beyond merely the national Hot 100. Here's hoping that some other people with access to source material get the same idea and do similar works on some of the other regional markets.