Tuesday, November 18, 2014

CAFFE` LATTE` TOP 2000 TRACKS

#106 LOVE REALLY HURTS WITHOUT YOU Billy Ocean
Leslie Charles was born in Trinidad in 1950. Migrating to the UK in his pre-teen years, he was performing in London venues before reaching adulthood. His debut single was issued in 1974 under the name Scorched Earth. It flopped, but the budding singer/ songwriter started using the name Billy Ocean the following year. His 1st album , issued in 1975, was self-titled and featured the catchy and soulful track "Love Really Hurts Without You".
The disco-flavoured song was co-written by Ocean (credited as 1 of the composers on the label under his birth name) with Ben Findon. The latter also took care of production. Released as a single the following year, Ocean finally tasted success. In Britain, the disc reached #2. It peaked at #3 on the Australian Top 40. In the USA, "Love Really Hurts..." climbed to #22.
Subsequent releases fared moderately well, particularly the 1977 hit "Red Light Spells Danger", which returned Ocean to the #2 position in the UK. By 1979, the singer's chart entries had diminished. 
This fallow period ended in 1984. Ocean hit back with "Caribbean Queen (No More Love on the Run)". The single took Ocean to the top of both the Pop and R&B charts in America. Follow-up single "Loverboy" peaked a #2 Stateside. "Suddenly" reached #4 in both Britain and the US in 1985. 
The following year brought even greater success for Ocean, via the global smash "When The Going Gets Tough, The Tough Get Going" from the hit film 'Jewel of the Nile'. The single climbed to #2 in America and topped the charts in Britain, Australia, Canada and the Netherlands. That disc was followed by another US Pop and R&B #1: "There'll Be Sad Songs (To Make You Cry)". Ocean achieved the same feat in 1987 with "Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car", which also reached #1 in Australia and Canada. 
Ocean's impressive chart run was over by the end of the Eighties. The performer has, however, continued recording new material. His most recent release was the album 'Here You Are' in 2013 and its feature track "Having A Party". Ocean also still performs live.
 
This is a list made up of the songs I enjoy the most, ranked in order of preference: the higher we go, the more I cherish them. Some were released as singles, others as album tracks. Some are obscure; others were worldwide hits or have universal appeal. They aren't always the most famous or popular, but simply a personal choice. I have excluded songs from the last few years in order to get a better idea of a song's lasting impression. I hope you find some new tracks to love, or re-discover some past favourites.
A new song from the Top 2000 is added each day, while another 2 are also included from positions 1501-2000 daily. Check back here every 12 hours for an update of the 2000.

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