"Nobody's Fool" by Kenny Loggins

Look out Dialophiles!!! FORRRRRRRRE!

Step into your best checkered pants, collect your clubs and tees, and fire up the golf cart! Tonight, the Dial is transmitting the final Top 10 hit from Mr. Kenny Loggins, a rockin’ track that doubled as the theme to the much maligned comedy sequel, “Caddyshack II”. But don’t hold that against Kenny, this is a great song in its own right! Crank it up for his forgotten former hit, “Nobody’s Fool”!

“I know you think I’m no match for you baby. You like making it rough on me don’t you? My, my, my… Back to the shack oh, oh yeah, nothing suits me better than that.”

Peaking at #8 on the Hot 100, NF holds the honors of being Loggins’ final top 10, AND final top 40 chart entry, ending a string of fourteen top 40 hits, many of which originated from movie soundtracks. Iconic smashes like “Danger Zone” (from “Top Gun”), “Meet Me Halfway” (the “Over the Top” theme), the title track from “Footloose”, along with its follow up single “I’m Free (Heaven Helps the Man)”, and the original Caddyshack’s “I’m Alright”, earned him the nickname “The King of the Soundtrack”.

NF additionally served double duty as the lead single from Loggins’ 1988 Back to Avalon LP, which also contained a reissue of the aforementioned #11 hit “Meet Me Halfway” from the prior year.

“If time has taught me anything, (you’ve) got to learn to be the ball… and I can’t keep from laughing at it all.”

As Kenny recorded the theme songs to both Caddyshack films, it’s interesting to explore the similarities between the two tracks.

Both Nobody’s Fool, and “I’m Alright” from the 1980 original feature simplified references to the plots of their respective films. “I’m Alright” is themed on Danny Noonan’s (Michael O’Keefe) devil-may-care attitude in the face of romantic and scholastic obstacles, and NF is loosely inspired by Jack Hartounian’s (Jackie Mason) attempt to best Robert Stack’s Bushwood president Chandler Young in a winner take all golfing contest, or at least the first stanza is. Additionally, both songs feature Ty Webb’s (Chevy Chase) “Be the Ball” reference.

In “I’m Alright”, Webb’s catchphrase is tucked in at the ad-libbed portion near the end of the song, and in “Nobody’s Fool” it shows up in the first bridge portion between the first verse and chorus.

A couple of differences to note: “I’m Alright” leans more toward hard rock, and has some cool vocal distortion effects on the Ted Knight and Cindy Morgan mimicking lyrics “get it up and get you a JAHHHHBB”, and “Oh, Cinderella Kid”. Caddyshack II’s theme possesses more of a straight forward, power pop/rock sound, and has no specialized vocal effects.

Both songs still stand up over time, as Loggins has expertly infused each track with driving beats, uplifting vibes, and lyrics about triumphing over obstacles no matter the odds.

I have an amusing memory to relate… I was riding home on the school bus in 10^th grade, listening to NF on my Walkman. Another guy one seat over asked what I was listening to. When I replied “Nobody’s Fool”, the other guy perked up a bit, and asked if it was Cinderella. You see, the glam metal band Cinderella also had a hit single entitled “Nobody’s Fool”, back in ‘86. When I told him I was listening to Kenny Loggins, he seemed disappointed and slipped back into his seat. Sorry to disappoint you, school bus guy… Kenny’s power pop rocker connected with me more than the glam metal you favored.

“You can turn up the heat, but I’m playing it cool… I know it’s hard to believe. I am nobody’s fool.”

I haven’t heard NF on the radio since it originally charted, however many of Loggins’ other hits still earn frequent airplay. It would be a shame if Kenny’s last top 10 hit is being ignored simply due to association with a less than successful film. At any rate, it certainly deserves to be rediscovered, and I hope this Dial entry will shine the spotlight again on Kenny’s rockin’ final top 40 entry.

“I’m going all the way (all the way)… Sooner or later gotta love somebody (I don’t care)… Don’t care how long it takes”

A RADIO DIAL EXTRA: Haim's "The Wire"

Given our strong retro leanings here at the Dial, it’s quite rare when a recent song grabs our attention. However, if a contemporary track causes us to groove, we’ll give it a shout out as a RADIO DIAL EXTRA !

Today, we take a quick listen to Haim’s “The Wire”. Upon hearing the opening drumbeats, I immediately thought somebody was covering The Eagles “Heartache Tonight”. In fact, I couldn’t help from mentally singing along using the Eagles’ lyrics… “Somebody’s gonna hurt someone… before the night is through…”

Once the song’s true lyrics regarding a woman’s fumbled breakup with her beau began, and the deliciously catchy chorus hit my ears, I knew I found that rare modern song that would lodge in my brain forever.

Haim (rhymes with “time”) comprises of the Haim sisters (lead vocalist Danielle, keyboardist Alana, and bassist Este), and drummer Dash Hutton, whose musical output is inspired by a veritable Generation X greatest hits playlist. Elements of Fleetwood Mac, The Clash, Prince, Wilson Phillips, and En Vogue can be heard through their 2013 debut LP “Days Are Gone”.

“The Wire” is their highest charting single so far, peaking at US Rock #25, and UK #16, though it amazingly did not cross over to the Hot 100. But give them time, these girls are just warming up! And who knows? Maybe years down the road, one of the “Radio Dial Kids” will take the blog over from Dad and put the Dial’s spotlight on Haim’s rockin’ track a second time, because by that time, it’ll be retro!

“Always keep your heart locked tight, don’t let your mind retire… But I just couldn’t take it, I tried hard not to fake it… But I fumbled it when I came down to the wire…”

"Where Are You Now" by Jimmy Harnen with Synch

Hey everyone! Consider tonight’s spotlighted song as a dedication to all the brokenhearted Dialophiles out there, who are currently dealing with a lost love, or honestly, have ever experienced this kind of sorrow. Tune in for a forgotten top 10 ballad from Synch, featuring lead vocalist Jimmy Harnen, “Where Are You Now?”

“All alone tonight, I’m calling out your name. Somewhere deep inside this part of you remains. Images of love take me back in time…”

Much like late ‘80s hits by Sheriff (“When I’m With You”), and UB40 (“Red Red Wine”), Synch’s sole top 40 hit charted lowly on its original release (#77 in 1986), then hit it big a few years later once an adventurous DJ starting spinning the song once more. Upon its reissue, WAYN rocketed past its earlier peak to land at US #10 in the summer of 1989, and was re-credited to ‘Jimmy Harnen with Synch’, effectively putting the name of the singer ahead of the collective band name.

Jimmy wisely tried to capitalize on this unexpected success by issuing a solo LP (1989’s “Can’t Fight the Midnight”), which featured a re-recorded version of WAYN, however, this LP stalled upon release and produced no hits, unfortunately derailing the momentum caused by Synch’s ballad revival.

Though Harnen’s voice never graced another top 40 single, he did okay for himself… he’s currently the president of Republic Nashville, a country music label that is the home to The Band Perry, Florida Georgia Line, and other country hit-makers.

“Going through my life without you by my side… You're the only thing that keeps going through my mind. And nothing that I do can take the place of you…”

Though I love ‘80s tunage, I have to confess that it’s hard for me to stomach most of the era’s ballads now. I attribute this to the fact that I didn’t experience my first romantic heartbreak until the ‘90s. So, when I initially heard songs like “At This Moment” by Billy Vera & The Beaters, or “Look Away” by Chicago, I certainly realized they were sad, but I didn’t connect with them emotionally when they were new. Once my own heartbreak was under my belt, and I revisited these songs, I understood and identified with the sad lyrics in a way that I hadn’t before. Simply put, the same ballads I used to gladly sing along with in the ‘80s, began to bum me out in the ‘90s, so I stopped listening to the majority of them.

That being said, Jimmy’s ballad still holds up quite nicely for me. Despite the track’s heartfelt and mournful lyrics, Harnen doesn’t SING the song in an overwrought, agonized manner. He’s past the initial shock of the heartbreak, and is finally resigned to the reality of his loss, even while the pining for his former love still lingers. Thus, WAYN possesses more maturity than your typical broken-hearted love ballad, which greatly contributes to its re-playability. It also helps that the instrumentation does not tug at the heartstrings in an outrageous way like say… most of Celine Dion’s output.

Give it a listen, and see if you don’t agree that Synch’s single deserved to have more of a lasting legacy, leading to more hit singles from Harnen, either with or without his bandmates Synch.

"Where are you now… Is someone there tonight, holding what was mine? Where are you now, you wonder where I am, are you really feeling fine?”