Charlie's 80s Blog

This Day In 80s Music, November 18th

On this day in 1983: R.E.M. made their first appearance outside the U.S. when they appeared on Channel 4 UK TV show The Tube. The following night they made their live UK debut when the played at Dingwall’s, London.

On this day in 1989: Bad English started their second week at #1 on the U.S. singles chart with ‘When I See You Smile.’

It was written by Diane Warren and was released in September 1989 as the second single taken from their self titled debut album which was released in June of 1989. The power ballad became the band’s only U.S. #1 hit when it peaked there for two weeks in November 1989.

In the video the band is performing on a stage, which contains close-up shots of its members. The footage was taken at one of their arena concerts. It shows Jonathan Cain’s distinctive synthesizer opening and moves into the soft initial vocal work of John Waite. The tempo picks up with Deen Castronovo’s drum work and Neal Schon’s trademark guitar during which Waite becomes more emphatic vocally; the song finishes with Waite’s soft vocals. The video was directed by Jonathan Cain.

Here is a look at the complete Top 20 on the U.S. singles chart from this day back in 1989:

1 1 WHEN I SEE YOU SMILE –•– Bad English – 10 (1)
2 4 BLAME IT ON THE RAIN –•– Milli Vanilli – 7 (2)
3 6 LOVE SHACK –•– The B-52’s – 12 (3)
4 5 (IT’S JUST) THE WAY THAT YOU LOVE ME –•– Paula Abdul – 14 (4)
5 2 LISTEN TO YOUR HEART –•– Roxette – 13 (1)
6 13 WE DIDN’T START THE FIRE –•– Billy Joel – 6 (6)
7 11 ANGELIA –•– Richard Marx – 7 (7)
8 9 DIDN’T I (BLOW YOUR MIND) –•– New Kids On The Block – 10 (8)
9 14 POISON –•– Alice Cooper – 9 (9)
10 16 BACK TO LIFE –•– Soul II Soul Featuring Caron Wheeler – 9 (10)

11 7 MISS YOU MUCH –•– Janet Jackson – 12 (1)
12 18 DON’T KNOW MUCH –•– Linda Ronstadt & Aaron Neville – 8 (12)
13 3 COVER GIRL –•– New Kids On The Block – 10 (2)
14 17 GET ON YOUR FEET –•– Gloria Estefan – 8 (14)
15 19 DON’T CLOSE YOUR EYES –•– Kix – 11 (15)
16 15 BUST A MOVE –•– Young M.C. – 17 (7)
17 8 SOWING THE SEEDS OF LOVE –•– Tears For Fears – 12 (2)
18 21 LEAVE A LIGHT ON –•– Belinda Carlisle – 8 (18)
19 10 ROCK WIT’CHA –•– Bobby Brown – 13 (7)
20 29 WITH EVERY BEAT OF MY HEART –•– Taylor Dayne – 5 (20)

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