December 31, 2021 —– Chart #124
Happy New year Music Friends,
Today I have met my 2021 goal of delivering a new Chart of the Day every Friday for the entire year. We went from #71 at the first of January (Longer by Dan Fogelberg) to today’s 124th edition, On and On by Stephen Bishop released in 1977. It has been a fun journey taking you from #71 to #123 with a wide assortment of tunes and artists. I hope you have enjoyed the music and the stories, and that some of you learned to play a few of these songs. Today’s selection has a fun connection to one of the funniest movies in my library, Animal House. Let’s learn about the song and artist.
Earl Stephen Bishop (born November 14, 1951) is an American singer-songwriter, actor, and guitarist. His biggest hits include “On and On”, “It Might Be You” and “Save It for a Rainy Day”. He has appeared in and contributed musically to many motion pictures, including National Lampoon’s Animal House.
Bishop was born and raised in San Diego, California, and attended Will C. Crawford High School. Originally a clarinetist, he persuaded his brother to buy him a guitar after seeing the Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show. In 1967, he formed his first group, the Weeds, a British Invasion-styled band. After the Weeds folded, Bishop moved to Los Angeles in search of a solo recording contract. During a lean eight-year period, where he was rejected “by nearly every label and producer,” he continued to write songs, eventually landing a $50-a-week job with a publishing house.
Bishop’s break came when a friend, Leah Kunkel, gave Art Garfunkel one of Bishop’s demo tapes. Garfunkel chose two of his songs, “Looking for the Right One” and “The Same Old Tears on a New Background”, to record for the platinum album Breakaway. Via Garfunkel’s patronage, Bishop finally secured a recording contract with ABC Records in 1976.
Bishop’s first album, Careless, included two of his biggest hits. The first single released, “Save It for a Rainy Day”, introduced Bishop to the listening public and went to number 22 on the Billboard singles chart. The next single, Bishop’s highest charting to date, “On and On”, peaked at No. 11. The album itself rose to number 34 on the Billboard albums chart. Eric Clapton, Art Garfunkel and Chaka Khan all contributed their talents to the album.
Careless went gold, as did Bishop’s subsequent album Bish, released in 1978. Bish included one charting single, “Everybody Needs Love”, which made it to number 32. The album also includes a smooth classic called “A Fool At Heart” that features Chaka Khan and Natalie Cole on background vocals. Bishop’s third album, Red Cab to Manhattan, released in 1980, failed to chart and was his last released in North America for nine years.
Bishop has written and performed music for many motion pictures. In 1978, he contributed the original song “Dream Girl” and theme to National Lampoon’s Animal House, which he sang in falsetto. In 1980, Bishop contributed backing vocals to “This Must Be Love”, from Phil Collins’ debut solo album Face Value. Bishop’s next hit, charting at number 25 in 1982, was “It Might Be You”, the theme from the movie Tootsie, unusual in that it was not penned by Bishop. Written by Dave Grusin, Alan Bergman, and Marilyn Bergman, it was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song.
Bishop’s composition “Separate Lives”, sung by Phil Collins and Marilyn Martin, from the 1985 movie White Nights, was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song, losing to “Say You, Say Me” from the same film. Bishop wrote the song about his breakup with actress Karen Allen, who also appeared in Animal House. Bishop said: “I write much better when I’m heartbroken and sad or melancholy.”
Other movie music includes: “Somewhere in Between” (written and performed) from The China Syndrome (1979), “Your Precious Love” (performed with Yvonne Elliman) from Roadie (1980), “If Love Takes You Away” (written and performed) from Summer Lovers (1982), “Unfaithfully Yours (One Love)” (written and performed) from Unfaithfully Yours (1984), “Something New in My Life” (performed) from Micki & Maude (1984), “The Heart Is So Willing” (performed) from The Money Pit (1986), “All I Want” (performed) from All I Want for Christmas (1991), and “You Can Do Anything” (written and performed by Bishop and Jeff Jones) from Barney’s Great Adventure (1998). In addition, the original version of “Walkin’ on Air” (written and performed by Bishop) was featured in the 1986 film The Boy Who Could Fly.
In 1989, Bishop released the album Bowling in Paris with Phil Collins (co-producer on some songs), Eric Clapton and Sting contributing. The album included a revamped version of “Walkin’ on Air”, this time featuring drumming, production, and additional vocals from Collins. This version became a #13 hit on the Adult Contemporary chart. In 1987, the Norwegian swing/pop duo Bobbysocks! had recorded their own version of “Walking on Air” (as “Walkin’ on Air”) as the title track to their album Walkin’ on Air.
Bishop was among hundreds of artists whose material was destroyed in the 2008 Universal fire.
Stephen Bishop’s scene in Animal House (gotta see this): https://youtu.be/8V_hCqO6UQs
And the closing song of Animal House, written by Stephen Bishop (great video moments): https://youtu.be/hgfGQD8udKo
Happy new year and keep rockin’,
Stan