Johnny: Look, spaghetti arms. This is my dance space. This is your dance space. I don’t go into yours, you don’t go into mine. You gotta hold the frame.
Patrick Swayze was born on this day in 1952. He would have turned 65. He passed away on September 14, 2009. R.I.P.
If you’d like to watch this movie through Amazon, click on the poster below:
Keep on walkin’ that road and I’ll follow
Keep on callin’ my name I’ll be there
And if a mirror should break it’s easy to take
Cause deep down I know that you care
Last Song: “She’s Like the Wind” by Patrick Swayze from the Dirty Dancing Soundtrack (1987)
Patrick Swayze would have turned 63 yesterday. R.I.P. Patrick.
“She’s Like the Wind” by Patrick Swayze (featuring Wendy Fraser)
Here is another actor jumping into the music fray. Patrick Swayze first became known in the movies after appearing in The Outsiders, then Red Dawn and Youngblood. In 1985, he had a leading role in the 1985 television miniseries North and South.
However, it was in 1987 that Swayze became a worldwide superstar when he starred as Johnny Castle in the movie Dirty Dancing. The film was supposed to be shown in theaters for one weekend only and then go straight to video, but it became a surprise hit and achieved massive international success. Not only was the film a smash hit, but the movie soundtrack became a huge commercial success. It spent 18 weeks at #1 on the Billboard 200 album sales charts, went on to sell 42 million copies worldwide and is one of the best-selling albums of all time.
One of the reasons the soundtrack was so successful was Swayze’s song, “She’s Like the Wind”. Swayze and Stacy Widelitz co-wrote the song in 1984, originally for the soundtrack of Grandview, U.S.A. and was meant to be about Jamie Lee Curtis’s character in the film. However, the song was not used in that film. Swayze went on to play the demo for the producers and director of Dirty Dancing, and they loved it. So the song was included in the movie, was released as a single, and was also an international success. In the U.S. is peaked at #3 on February 27, 1988.
Of course we know Patrick Swayze went on to star in several more movies including Road House, Ghost, and Point Break, in addition to being named People magazine’s “Sexiest Man Alive” in 1991.
Sadly, Swayze died on September 14, 2009, at age 57 from pancreatic cancer.
But, let’s Return to some happier times, and listen to Patrick Swayze’s smash hit, “She’s Like the Wind”:
10. Red Red Wine – UB40
9. Wild Wild West – The Escape Club
8. I Don’t Wanna Go On With You Like That – Elton John
7. Dirty Diana – Michael Jackson
6. Don’t Be Cruel – Cheap Trick
5. Pink Cadillac – Natalie Cole
4. A Groovy Kind of Love – Phil Collins
3. Don’t Worry, Be Happy – Bobby McFerrin
2. Wishing Well – Terence Trent d’Arby
1. Kokomo – Beach Boys
Ho-hum. Boring. You tell me which Pebbles song is better:
Alright, I’ll call it a draw!
9. Wishing Well – Terence Trent d’Arby
There’s a reason he was a one-hit wonder:
8. Hungry Eyes – Eric Carmen
7. She’s Like the Wind – Patrick Swayze
Didn’t Dirty Dancing take place in the ’60s? They should have kept only ’60s songs on the soundtrack. I loved Patrick Swayze the actor – but not the singer. It didn’t help that these songs seemed to play on an endless loop on MTV and on the radio.
Hungry Eyes
She’s Like the Wind
6. I Don’t Wanna Go On With You Like That – Elton John
Here he goes again. The legendary Elton John came out with another crappy ’80s song. So disappointing, and so overrated and overplayed.
5. Sweet Child O’ Mine – Guns N’ Roses
I loved ’80s rock, so you would think that this would be in my wheelhouse. But, this song just grated on me. I could not stand this song and “Welcome to the Jungle” – the 2 songs that they were best known for. Give me “Paradise City”, “Mr. Brownstone”, and later on, “November Rain” any day.
4. Pink Cadillac – Natalie Cole
I don’t like this song at all. I don’t like Bruce Springsteen’s version either. Every time this comes on, I confuse Natalie Cole with Patti LaBelle. At least this is better that that creepy, spine-tingling “duet” Cole did with her dead father.
3. A Groovy Kind of Love – Phil Collins
I may have liked this song the very first time I heard it. But after it was on the radio for the 50th time on the first day, I was already sick of it. And it kept coming on the radio and on MTV for what seemd like a few times an hour for at least a few months. It made me want to stay away from any electronic devices, or else I would go insane. Then “Two Hearts” came out, and made me long for this one.
2. Red Red Wine – UB40
Neil Diamond was a great songwriter. But, this was not one of his better songs, that’s for sure! I don’t know why it was remade, and I don’t understand why this was a hit. This is another song that comes on, and I can’t change the station fast enough.
1. Don’t Worry, Be Happy – Bobby McFerrin
How can I be happy when this crap comes on the radio!? Don’t tell me what to do, Bobby McFerrin! I was perfectly happy until this song came on and annoyed the crap out of me. Ooooooo! There’s no instruments. He makes all the sound effects with his mouth! Impressive! If I want that, I don’t have to subject myself to this dreck. I’ll just put on some Police Academy to watch Michael Winslow.
There were also some great hits that year:
10.Wait – White Lion
I loved White Lion when I first heard them. They set themselves apart from most of the rock bands at the time. The lead singer, Mike Tramp, had a unique voice, and Vito Bratta was an awesome guitarist.
9. Faith – George Michael
This is probably my favorite George Michael song. It is a nice simple song that has a great beat.
8. Heaven Is a Place On Earth – Belinda Carlisle
The Go-Go’s were great, but Belinda Carlisle did not have a shabby solo career. She was in her prime with this song. I love it.
Peter Cetera’s best known solo song was “Glory of Love”, but I really liked this one a lot. I always felt that this song was underrated.
6. Man In the Mirror – Michael Jackson
Great, inspiring song from the “King of Pop”. It proves that he could pull of a beautiful song just as well as a dance or pop song.
5. Could’ve Been – Tiffany
Tiffany is probably best known for her remakes of “I Think We’re Alone Now” and “Saw Him Standing There”. But, “Could’ve Been” was a great ballad that reached #1 on the U.S. charts. She showed great emotional depth in this song. Especially considering it was on her debut album.
4. Shake Your Love – Debbie Gibson
Even though my taste in music leaned more towards rock music, I really liked Debbie Gibson. Not only was she cute, but she was extremely talented. She could play piano, write her own songs, and had a great voice. This was a fun song.
3. Hold On to the Nights – Richard Marx
Richard Marx had some really good uptempo songs from his debut album.
But his first ballad from that album was a knockout. I still like it.
2. One Moment In Time – Whitney Houston
I wish Whitney could have this one moment in time back. An incredible song, and perfect for the 1988 Olympics, for which it was written for.
And kids this is what drugs do to you. You go from that incredible song to this:
1. Pour Some Sugar On Me – Def Leppard
A perfect rock anthem. This is a fun song, that really rocks, and is still popular today. With all the great smash hits that Def Leppard has, this is one of the best.
Return to the 80s 