"Johnny Can't Read" | ||||
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Single by Don Henley | ||||
from the album I Can't Stand Still | ||||
B-side | "Long Way Home" | |||
Released | August 3, 1982 | |||
Recorded | 1982 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 3:24 | |||
Label | Asylum | |||
Songwriter(s) | ||||
Producer(s) | Danny Kortchmar | |||
Don Henley singles chronology | ||||
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"Johnny Can't Read" is the first solo single released by American rock singer Don Henley, included on his debut solo studio album I Can't Stand Still (1982). His then partner, former actress Maren Jensen, performs backing vocals.
It reached #33 in Cashbox magazine and charted at #42 on Billboard 's Hot 100 chart. The accompanying music video was very popular on MTV.[ citation needed ]
The song focuses upon reading illiteracy. The song also reflects Henley's respect for reading and his reading background. As he stated in the book Heaven Is Under Our Feet (1991),
"I began to read when I was five. My dad sometimes read me the 'Funny Papers' on Sundays and my mother, a college graduate and former schoolteacher, read to me almost every day from books. As I grew, she made sure that there was always reading material in the house that was suited to my age and ability."
As for his respect for reading, he stated, "American Literature, like the air we breathe, belongs--or should belong--to everybody."
Cashbox called it "a wry rockin’ romp about the woefully inadequate education most kids receive, [that] doesn’t point the guitar at anyone in particular but considers the possible results of a frustrating situation." [1]
Chart (1982) | Peak position |
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Australian (Kent Music Report) | 49 [2] |
US Billboard Hot 100 [3] | 42 |
US Cashbox Top 100 | 33 [4] |
US Mainstream Rock ( Billboard ) [5] | 29 |
Maren Kawehilani Jensen is an American former model and actress, best known for portraying Lieutenant Athena in the 1978–79 television series Battlestar Galactica. Jensen also made guest appearances in several US television series, such as The Love Boat and Fantasy Island.
I Can't Stand Still is the debut solo studio album by American musician Don Henley, drummer and co-lead vocalist for the Eagles. It was released in August 1982 by Asylum Records. Henley, Danny Kortchmar and Greg Ladanyi produced the album. I Can't Stand Still achieved gold status, and peaked at No. 24 on the Billboard 200 and at the same position on the UK Albums Chart. Three singles were released from the album, including the hit "Dirty Laundry", which peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and became Henley's best-selling single. The title track "I Can't Stand Still" reached No. 48 and the track "Johnny Can't Read" reached No. 42 on the charts.
Building the Perfect Beast is the second solo studio album by American rock singer Don Henley, released on November 19, 1984, by Geffen Records. A commercial and critical success, it is generally regarded as the culmination of the smoother, more adult-oriented sound of Henley's solo work.
"I Can't Tell You Why" is a song by the American rock band Eagles that appeared on their 1979 album The Long Run. It was written by band members Timothy B. Schmit, Glenn Frey and Don Henley. Recorded in March 1978, it was the first song finished for the album and the first Eagles song to feature Schmit on lead vocals. Released as a single in February 1980, it became a Billboard top 10 hit in April, reaching number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 and number three on the Adult Contemporary chart. It was the group's last top ten hit on the Billboard Hot 100.
"Best of My Love" is a song written by Don Henley, Glenn Frey, and J. D. Souther. It was originally recorded by the Eagles, and included on their 1974 album On the Border. The song was released as the third single from the album, and it became the band's first Billboard Hot 100 number 1 single in March 1975. The song also topped the easy listening chart for one week a month earlier. Billboard ranked it as the number 12 song for 1975.
"One of These Nights" is a song written by Don Henley and Glenn Frey and recorded by the American rock band Eagles. The title track from their 1975 One of These Nights album, the song became their second single to top the Billboard Hot 100 chart after "Best of My Love" and also helped propel the album to number one. The single version was shortened from the album version of the song, removing most of the song's intro and most of its fade-out, as well. Henley is lead vocalist on the verses, while Randy Meisner sings high harmony on the refrain. The song features a guitar solo by Don Felder that is "composed of blues-based licks and sustained string bends using an unusually meaty distortion tone."
"New Kid in Town" is a song by the Eagles from their 1976 studio album Hotel California. It was written by Don Henley, Glenn Frey and J.D. Souther. Released as the first single from the album, the song reached number one in the U.S. and number 20 in the UK. The single version has an earlier fade-out than the album version. Frey sings the lead vocals, with Henley providing the main harmony vocals. Randy Meisner plays the guitarrón mexicano, Don Felder plays electric guitars, and Joe Walsh plays the electric piano and organ parts. The song won the Grammy Award for Best Vocal Arrangement for Two or More Voices.
"Dirty Laundry" is a song written by Don Henley and Danny Kortchmar, from Henley's debut solo studio album I Can't Stand Still, (1982). The song hit number 1 on the Billboard Top Album Tracks chart in October 1982, prior to being issued as a 45 rpm single. Lyrically, the song describes mass media sensationalism.
"Heartache Tonight" is a song written by Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Bob Seger and J. D. Souther, recorded by the Eagles and features Glenn Frey on lead vocals. The track was included on their album The Long Run and released as a single in 1979. It reached No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in November of that year and was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America representing one million copies sold. It was the Eagles' final chart-topping song on the Hot 100.
"Lyin' Eyes" is a song written by Don Henley and Glenn Frey and recorded in 1975 by the American rock band Eagles, with Frey singing lead vocals. It was the second single from their album One of These Nights, reaching No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and No. 8 on the Billboard Country chart. It remained their only top 40 country hit until "How Long" in 2007–2008.
"Take It to the Limit" is a song by the Eagles from their fourth album One of These Nights from which it was issued as the third single on November 15, 1975. It reached No. 4 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and was also the Eagles' greatest success to that point in the UK, going to No. 12 on the charts. Billboard ranked it as the No. 25 song for 1976.
"Tequila Sunrise" is a song from 1973, written by Don Henley and Glenn Frey, and recorded by the Eagles. It was the first single from the band's second album, Desperado. It peaked at number 64 on the Billboard Hot 100.
"Witchy Woman" is a song written by Don Henley and Bernie Leadon, and recorded by the American rock band Eagles. Released as the second single from the band's debut album Eagles, it reached No. 9 on the Billboard pop singles chart.
"Sunset Grill" is a song by American rock musician Don Henley from his second solo studio album Building the Perfect Beast (1984). The song peaked at number 7 on the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart in January 1985. Released as the fourth single from the album in August 1985, it peaked at number 22 on the Billboard Hot 100 in October 1985.
"The Long Run" is a song written by Don Henley and Glenn Frey and recorded by the Eagles. The sound of the song is viewed as a tribute to the Stax / Memphis rhythm and blues sound. It was the title track of their album The Long Run and was released as a single in November 1979. It reached No. 8 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in early 1980. It was the second of three singles released from The Long Run album, preceded by "Heartache Tonight," which reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in November 1979, and followed by "I Can't Tell You Why," which also reached No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100, in the spring of 1980.
"I Just Want to Be Your Everything" is a song recorded by Andy Gibb, initially released in April 1977 as the first single from his debut album Flowing Rivers. It reached number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks, starting on the week ending 30 July 1977, and again for the week ending 17 September 1977. It was Gibb's first single released in the United Kingdom and United States. His previous single, "Words and Music" was only released in Australia. It is ranked number 26 on Billboard's 55th anniversary All Time Top 100.
"Rikki Don't Lose That Number" is a single released in 1974 by rock/jazz rock group Steely Dan and the opening track of their third album Pretzel Logic. It was the most successful single of the group's career, peaking at number 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the summer of 1974.
You're Lookin' at Country is the eighteenth solo studio album by American country music singer-songwriter Loretta Lynn. It was released on September 20, 1971, by Decca Records.
"Never My Love" is a pop standard written by American siblings Don and Dick Addrisi, and best known from a hit 1967 recording by the Association. The Addrisi Brothers had two Top 40 hits as recording artists, but their biggest success as songwriters was "Never My Love". Recorded by dozens of notable artists in the decades since, in 1999 the music publishing rights organization Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) announced it was the second most-played song on radio and television of the 20th century in the U.S.
"Saw a New Morning" is the 1973 single released by the Bee Gees. It was also the group's first single released on Robert Stigwood's newly created records label RSO Records. The Bee Gees moved to Los Angeles in 1972 to record the album Life in a Tin Can which was a new direction for the group, who had been recording in England since 1967. The B-side, "My Life Has Been a Song" features lead vocal by Robin Gibb as well as Barry Gibb.