"Walking on a Thin Line" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by Huey Lewis and the News | ||||
from the album Sports | ||||
B-side | "The Only One" | |||
Released | October 9, 1984 | |||
Recorded | 1983 | |||
Genre | Rock | |||
Length | 5:11 (album version) 4:01 (single version) | |||
Label | Chrysalis | |||
Songwriter(s) | Andre Pessis, Kevin Wells | |||
Producer(s) | Huey Lewis and the News | |||
Huey Lewis and the News singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Walking on a Thin Line" on YouTube |
"Walking On a Thin Line" is a song performed by Huey Lewis and the News, released in 1984 as the fifth and final single from their 1983 album, Sports .
Considered one of the band's more "serious" songs, "Walking on a Thin Line" was written by Andre Pessis and Kevin Wells (of Clover, then 5000 Volts). [1] [2] The Sacramento Bee thought the song was about a veteran's post-war stress. [3] However, the song is really about the thoughts of serving Vietnam War soldiers and veterans in the midst of the war. [2] [4]
In live performances, Lewis would often dedicate the song to the casualties of the war in Vietnam, [5] as well as the veterans. [6] During some live performances, ESPN personality Chris Berman, who is a fan of the band, has shown up as a surprise guest, singing the song with the band. [7] [8] Berman, who met the band at an ESPN tenth anniversary party, [8] when describing football highlights on NFL Live , would sometimes reference the chorus to the song. [9]
Reception for the song was very mixed. Christopher Connelly of Rolling Stone said that the song was "annoying", and added that, "wherein Lewis even sings 'desperation' just like Men at Work's Colin Hay. The tune's a semistomper but has lines about a Vietnam serviceman – 'I'm the boy next door/The one you find so easy to ignore/Is that what I was fighting for?' – that some claim equates military service with Getting the Girl." [10] Steve Morse of The Boston Globe thought that it was one of the band's more "serious" songs. [1] Morse also thought that it was an "unusual piece" and that it was a "funky ode to Vietnam veterans". [1] Robert Draper of the Austin Chronicle said that it showed that Lewis could show "signs of awareness." [11] The Arizona Daily Star said that the song showed the band's "modest abilities for rockin' out." [12] Billboard called it "more good-natured rock 'n' roll (angry lyrics notwithstanding)." [13] Cash Box said that "the vocals are powerful, and especially fine guitar playing also compliments this single." [14] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic calls the song one of the songs on the album that has "memorable hooks, driven home with economical precision by a tight bar band, who are given just enough polish to make them sound like superstars." [15]
In the United States, the song was the last single released from the album, Sports. It peaked at No. 18 on the Billboard Hot 100, [16] the only single from the album not to reach the top 10 on the chart. The song was a top 20 hit on the Top Rock Tracks chart, peaking at No. 16. In Australia, the single reached No. 70.
Chart (1984) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australian Kent Music Report | 70 |
US Billboard Hot 100 [16] | 18 |
US Top Rock Tracks ( Billboard ) [16] | 16 |
US Cash Box Top 100 [17] | 23 |
Huey Lewis and the News is an American rock band based in San Francisco, California. They had a run of hit singles during the 1980s and early 1990s, eventually achieving 19 top ten singles across the Billboard Hot 100, Adult Contemporary, and Mainstream Rock charts. Their sound draws upon earlier pop, rhythm & blues and doo-wop artists, and their own material has been labeled as blue-eyed soul, new wave, power pop, and roots rock.
Hugh Anthony Cregg III, known professionally as Huey Lewis, is an American singer, songwriter and actor.
Sports is the third album by American rock band Huey Lewis and the News, released on September 15, 1983, by Chrysalis Records. It reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200 on June 30, 1984, and ultimately charted for 160 weeks. Sports was ranked No. 2 on the Billboard year-end album chart for 1984 and spawned four top-ten hits on the Billboard Hot 100, with "Heart and Soul" and "The Heart of Rock & Roll" earning Grammy Award nominations. Sports also did very well internationally, where most of its singles charted in the top 40 in multiple countries. The album has been certified 7× Platinum by the RIAA.
"The Power of Love" is a 1985 single by Huey Lewis and the News, written for the soundtrack of the 1985 blockbuster film Back to the Future. The song became the band's first number-one hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and their second number-one hit on the U.S. Mainstream Rock chart. In the United Kingdom, it was released as a double-A side with "Do You Believe in Love," becoming the band's only top ten hit on the UK Singles Chart. The song is included alongside "Back in Time" on the film's soundtrack, and appears as a bonus track on international editions of the band's fourth studio album, Fore!
"Life in the Fast Lane" is a song written by Joe Walsh, Glenn Frey and Don Henley, and recorded by American rock band Eagles for the band's fifth studio album Hotel California (1976). It was the third single released from this album, and peaked at No. 11 on the Billboard Hot 100.
"Hip to Be Square" is a song by Huey Lewis and the News, written by Bill Gibson, Sean Hopper, and Huey Lewis, and released in 1986 as the second single from the multi-platinum album Fore!.
"If This Is It" is a song by American rock band Huey Lewis and the News. It was released as the fourth single from their number-one album Sports in 1983, and became their fifth top-ten and third consecutive number-six hit on the Billboard Hot 100. It also reached number five on the Adult Contemporary chart, and then became their first UK hit single, reaching number 39 on the UK Singles Chart. The song is written in 12
8 time signature.
"I Want a New Drug" is a song by American rock band Huey Lewis and the News from their third album Sports. It is its second single, following the top-ten hit "Heart and Soul" in January 1984. The single reached number six on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and topped the Dance Club Play chart. It is a love song wherein the word "drug" has an intentionally open-ended meaning for the listener's interpretation, and became one of the band's signature songs.
"Jacob's Ladder" is a 1986 song written by Bruce Hornsby and his brother John Hornsby and recorded by Huey Lewis and the News. The song spent one week at No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in 1987, becoming the band's third and final number-one hit.
"Stuck with You" is a song by American rock band Huey Lewis and the News, written by guitarist Chris Hayes and lead singer Huey Lewis. Released in 1986, it was the first single from the band's fourth album, Fore!. The song spent three weeks at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming the band's second number-one hit on the chart. Internationally, the song became the band's second top-20 hit in the United Kingdom, reaching number 12 on the UK Singles Chart, and peaked within the top 10 in Australia, Canada, Iceland, South Africa, and New Zealand.
"Run Through the Jungle" is a 1970 song by American rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival. It was released as a double A-side single with "Up Around The Bend" and on the album Cosmo's Factory.
"Borrowed Time" is a song written by Dennis DeYoung and Tommy Shaw that was first released on Styx's 1979 album Cornerstone and was also released as the third single from Cornerstone. It peaked at No. 64 on the U.S. chart in April 1980.
"Workin' for a Livin'" is a single by American rock band Huey Lewis and the News, released in 1982. Included on their 1982 album Picture This, the song peaked at number 20 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks charts, and number 41 on the Billboard Hot 100. A live version appears as a B-side to the single "The Heart of Rock & Roll".
"Perfect World" is a song performed by Huey Lewis and the News and released as the first single from the album Small World in late June 1988. The single peaked at number three on the US Billboard Hot 100 and #48 on the UK Singles Chart.
"Doing It All for My Baby" is a song performed by Huey Lewis and the News, released as a single from the album Fore! in 1987. The single peaked at number six on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 on September 19, 1987, becoming the fifth top-ten hit from the album and making the band the first group to have five top-ten Hot 100 singles from one album.
"Heart and Soul" is a song written by Mike Chapman and Nicky Chinn and made famous by Huey Lewis and the News. The song was first recorded by Exile in 1981 as the title track to their album Heart and Soul. Exile's single failed to crack the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at No. 102 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart. The song was also recorded by the BusBoys for their 1982 album American Worker.
"The Heart of Rock & Roll" is a song performed by Huey Lewis and the News, released as the third single from their 1983 album Sports in 1984. The single peaked at number six on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100.
"Come Back" is a song by the J. Geils Band, appearing on their 1980 album Love Stinks. "Come Back" was the first single from the album, and reached the US Top 40, peaking at No. 32 and remaining in the Top 40 for five weeks. It peaked at No. 19 for two weeks in Canada. It also made Billboard's Club Play Singles chart, peaking at No. 69. The song remains in the rotation of classic rock radio stations.
"Now or Never" is a song written by Yoko Ono that was first released on her 1973 album Approximately Infinite Universe. It was also the lead single off the album, backed by "Move on Fast." A remixed version of "Move on Fast" was later released as a single and reached #1 on the Billboard Dance Club Songs chart.
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: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) Cash Box magazine.