When an album hits it big, it’s often due to the momentum from a high-charting lead single. On the other hand, when the first single released from an album fails to catch on, it’s hard for the album to overcome it.
The four albums and respective lead singles featured here defied that conventional wisdom. While each of these singles reached the Billboard Hot 100, none had the sort of popularity that would portend the level of success their albums wound up having.
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Note: The songs included here were lead singles in the U.S. but not necessarily in other countries. Peak position on the Billboard Hot 100 for each song is listed parenthetically.
Hall & Oates, “How Does It Feel to Be Back” (No. 30)
Hall & Oates’ ninth album, Voices, peaked at No. 17, went Platinum, and launched the duo into ‘80s superstardom. But “How Does It Feel to Be Back” from that album was their lowest-charting lead single since “Why Do Lovers (Break Each Other’s Heart)?” from Beauty on a Back Street, which peaked at No. 73 in 1977.
“How Does It Feel to Be Back” was the rare chart appearance featuring a John Oates lead vocal, although the second single from Voices, “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling,” was also an Oates vocal and charted even higher at No. 12. The Righteous Brothers remake built momentum for the album’s third and fourth singles, “Kiss on My List” (No. 1) and “You Make My Dreams” (No. 5), which began the duo’s string of Top 10 hits.
If not for the sheer volume of smashes that Hall & Oates released in the ‘80s, more of us might remember “How Does It Feel to Be Back.” Just like their most popular songs, it has a catchy melody, irresistible hooks, great production, and beautiful vocals.
Terence Trent D’Arby, “If You Let Me Stay” (No. 68)
D’Arby, now known as Sananda Maitreya, was one of the most celebrated new artists of the late ‘80s, earning a Grammy Award nomination for Best New Artist in 1988 and winning the Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance in 1989 for Introducing the Hardline According to Terence Trent D’Arby.
While that album reached No. 2 on the Billboard 200 and included the No. 1 hit “Wishing Well” and the Top 10 smash “Sign Your Name,” its leadoff single sputtered, missing the Top 40 altogether. While not as hooky as “Wishing Well,” it’s hard to imagine that “If You Let Me Stay” wouldn’t have had more success as a follow-up single, given D’Arby’s strong vocal performance and the song’s infectious groove.
Don Henley, “Johnny Can’t Read” (No. 42)
Henley’s solo career got off to a tepid start, believe it or not. The lead single from his debut solo album, I Can’t Stand Still, failed to make the Top 40, after the disbanded Eagles’ last 12 singles had reached that threshold. As “Johnny Can’t Read” started to make its descent down the Billboard Hot 100, Henley’s label, Asylum Records, released a second single, “Dirty Laundry.”
[RELATED: Don Henley’s Favorite Eagles Song May Not Be What You Think]
While Henley would go on to notch a total of five Top 10 singles as a solo artists, none, surprisingly, peaked higher than “Dirty Laundry,” which reached No. 3. Like “Laundry,” “Johnny Can’t Read” has a quirky organ-driven sound and offers social commentary in the lyrics. But Henley’s skewering of TV news coverage on “Dirty Laundry” would resonate more with listeners than his take on the failings of the educational system.
I Can’t Stand Still had the least chart success of any of Henley’s solo records over the years, reaching just No. 24 on the Billboard 200. It still likely outperformed the expectations set by “Johnny Can’t Read,” though, which didn’t stand out on Top 40 radio or on rock station playlists (No. 29 on Billboard’s U.S. Mainstream Rock chart).
Journey, “Just the Same Way” (No. 58)
If Infinity, released in 1978, represented a move toward a more radio-friendly sound for Journey, then the 1979 follow-up, Evolution, marked the end of that transition. Greg Rolie—the band’s original lead vocalist—took the lead on “Just the Same Way”’s verses and shared lead duties with Steve Perry on the choruses, but Perry handled all of the lead vocals on the rest of the album.
“Just the Same Way” suffered the same fate as each of Journey’s previous singles, missing the Top 40. But that changed with the album’s second single. “Lovin’, Touchin’, Squeezin’,” which went to No. 16. It would be the first of 18 Top 40 hits for the band. None of those subsequent singles would include Rolie as a lead vocalist, who made two more albums with Journey before embarking on a solo career. Evolution became Journey’s first Top 20 album—a distinction that didn’t seem likely given the lack of interest in the leadoff single.
Photo by Pete Cronin/Redferns