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 10th 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”
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 10th 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 sequel to "Caddyshack" without Dangerfield. You almost had to admire the suicidal chutzpah of the movie producers involved, or possibly the disastrous effect of the recreational substances they were taking. But at least they enabled Loggins to admirably step up to the plate and hit a home run again. I recently rediscovered "Nobody's Fool" after 25+ years, and I think I'm actually wearing out the MP3 code from all the replayings; it's SUCH an upbeat and infectious tune. Late-80's pop really gets a lot of flak for being overproduced and "commercial"-sounding, but I love the distinctive sound of that era -- the widespread use of Fairlight synth in particular. And it doesn't get more definitive than in this song.
ReplyDeleteThanks for checking in, Tom! You're right about the Fairlight Synth. Tears for Fears, Pet Shop Boys, Duran Duran, Art of Noise, Jan Hammer, Frankie Goes to Hollywood, and tons of other artists made the Fairlight sound a hallmark of 80s production.
ReplyDeleteI also hear criticism of 80s music as being too commercial, but I grew up during that era, and those songs connected with me then and still do now, in a way modern music never has.
And "Nobody's Fool" is simply a great song, and a very worthwhile selection to stand as Kenny's final major hit.
Kyle :^)