Elvis Presley's Jailhouse Rock, the first single from the soundtrack of the movie of the same name, reached #1 on Billboard Hot 100, October 21, 1957. The song was written Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, and was released in September. It remained at #1 for seven weeks.
Jailhouse Rock has been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
The soundtrack album from the movie Saturday Night Fever reached #1 on the Billboard 200 January 21, 1978 and stayed there for 24 weeks. It generated three singles from the Bee Gees and one from Yvonne Elliman. It is the second biggest-selling soundtrack of all time. It won the Grammy for Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group in 1979. It won an American Music Award for Favorite Soul/R&B album in 1979.
The album was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2004 and, in 2014, was added to the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry for being culturally significant.
One of Stevie Wonder's greatest hits and one of my favorite songs, I Just Called to Say I Love You reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 October 13, 1984 and remained there for three weeks. It topped the charts all over the world, giving Wonder his first ever #1 in the UK.
The song was featured on the soundtrack to The Woman In Red, a comedy starring Gene Wilder, Gilda Radner, and Kelly LeBrock. I Just Called to Say I Love You won both the Golden Globe and an Academy Award for Best Original Song.
Cash Box described it as "a tender and romantic love letter which captures the ever-present and Wonderous feeling of love and optimism." It doesn't get much better than this.
Lyrics:
No New Year's Day to celebrate No chocolate covered candy hearts to give away No first of spring, no song to sing In fact, here's just another ordinary day
No April rain, no flowers bloom No wedding Saturday within the month of June But what it is, is something true Made up of these three words that I must say to you
I just called to say I love you I just called to say how much I care I just called to say I love you And I mean it from the bottom of my heart
No summer's high, no warm July No harvest moon to light one tender August night No autumn breeze, no falling leaves Not even time for birds to fly to southern skies
No Libra sun, no Halloween No giving thanks to all the Christmas joy you bring But what it is, though old, so new To fill your heart like no three words could ever do
I just called to say I love you I just called to say how much I care, I do I just called to say I love you And I mean it from the bottom of my heart
I just called to say I love you I just called to say how much I care, I do I just called to say I love you And I mean it from the bottom of my heart
Grease, the title song for the movie Grease, reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, August 26, 1978 and stayed there for two weeks. Barry Gibb wrote the song and Frankie Valli performed it.
It was one of four original songs not part of the original musical, and it is the only one not performed by the cast. It reached double platinum status.
The Queen of Disco Donna Summer won two Grammys for her single Last Dance, February 15, 1979. She won Best R&B Vocal Performance, Female and Best R&B Song.
Last Dance was released on the soundtrack to the movie Thank God, It's Friday, which was released in July 1978.
This was the same night Billy Joel won Grammys for Record of the Year and Song of the Year for Just the Way You Are.
Everyone's favorite grouch, the Grinch, first aired December 18, 1966. Dr. Seuss' holiday staple How the Grinch Stole Christmas was first published in October 1957. Based on a 2007 online poll, the National Education Association named it one of its "Teachers' Top 100 Books for Children". In 2012, it ranked 61 among the Top 100 Picture Books in a survey by the School Library Journals.
After its debut, CBS aired How the Grinch Stole Christmas annually until 1988. Then it was aired on several different stations multiple times a season.
In 1968, Boris Karloff (voice of the Grinch) won a Grammy Award for the Best Children's Album
The dorky movie Xanadu was released the same month as its soundtrack in August 1980. The movie didn't fare well, but the soundtrack went double-platinum in both U.S and Canada. It was a collaboration between Electric Light Orchestra and Olivia Newton-John, released on MCA and Jet labels.
I like Olivia but I much prefer ELO's contributions to the album.
