Songs that didn't chart on the Hot 100
 

I was just wondering why the following singles didn't chart on the Hot 100:

~ 'Long Way to Go' 1989 - The follow up single to 'Rooms on Fire' which peaked at #16 on
the Hot 100 earlier on in '89. 'Long Way to Go' reached #60 on
the UK singles chart but only ever reached #11 on the US 'Album
Rock Tracks' chart. That's strange to have a very successful first
single that reached the Top 20 and then have the follow up single
not even make the Top 100. :shrug:

~ 'Two Kinds of Love' 1989 - The third single, I believe, from 'The Other Side of the Mirror'
which was a collaboration with Bruce Hornsby. A catchy song
which failed to chart on any chart, including the Hot 100. Not
really sure why because I think it's more commercial than 'Long
Way to Go' but obviously wasn't very popular. :shrug:

~ 'Whole Lotta Trouble' 1989 - The fourth single, I believe, from TOSOTM which featured a
music video filmed at a concert on the TOSOTM tour. The
single also earned Stevie a Grammy nomination for 'Rock
Vocal Performance' in 1991 but surprisingly never graced the
Hot 100. The single did however reach #62 on the UK singles
chart. After the music video and the Grammy nomination,
why didn't it hit any charts? :shrug:

~ 'Blue Denim' 1994 - The second single from the commercial flop 'Street Angel' which was
the follow up single to 'Maybe Love Will Change Your Mind' which
reached #57 on the Hot 100 and is Stevie's last Hot 100 single to date.
'Blue Denim' is a very catchy song and arguably should've been the
first single off the album. The commercial failure of 'Street Angel'
could be held responsible for the lack of success for 'Blue Denim' but
shouldn't a catchy single with an accompanying video chart on some
chart? :shrug:

~ 'Every Day' 2001 - The first single off 'Trouble in Shangri-La', the album that reignited
Stevie's solo career and returned her to the Top 5 since 'The Wild Heart'
in 1983. So why did 'Every Day' only chart at #17 on the 'Adult
Contemporary' chart, to where most of Stevie's songs of the 21st century
reside. Some could argue that it wasn't the right choice for the first
single, and I agree, but still it should've charted somewhere on the Hot
100, shouldn't it? :shrug:

~ 'Planets of the Universe' 2001 - The second and best, in my opinion, single off 'Trouble in
Shangri-La'. The single did reach #1 on the 'Hot Dance Club
Play' chart and earned Stevie yet another 'Rock Vocal
Performance' Grammy nomination, So why didn't it chart
on the Hot 100? :shrug:

~ 'Sorcerer' 2001 - The third and final single off 'Trouble in Shangri-La' which was a
collaboration with Sheryl Crow who helped produce the album. The
reason I included this single is because even though it was the third single
off the album, it had a very good accompanying music video, as did 'Every
Day', but this one featured Sheryl who was at that time extremely
successful and popular, so why did it only reach #21 on the 'Adult
Contemporary' chart? :shrug:

~ 'Secret Love' 2011 - The first single off 'In Your Dreams' which featured a good music video
and is very catchy. Though it did make the Top 20 on the 'Adult
Contemporary', and only just, I feel as though it should've done better.
Though I know it's virtually impossible for an artist in their sixties to
reach the Hot 100, I feel as though it should've at least made the 'Adult
Pop Songs' or 'Rock Digital' chart. I do think however that this single
contributed to 'In Your Dreams' entering the album charts at #6 with a
very respectable 52,000 copies sold but I think the choice for the
second single, 'For What it's Worth' really ruined the album's sales as
within six weeks the album was out of the Top 100. I think if
'Moonlight' had been chosen as the second single, then the album
would've sold quite a bit more as it also had a good accompanying
video.

There are probably a few other contenders that I've missed including some possible 'Hot 100 should've beens' from FM. What I have noticed though is that Stevie's singles have really affected the sales and reception of her albums.
'Bella Donna' had 4 Top 40 singles, with 2 Top 10's which is why it stayed within the Top 40 for nearly a year.
'The Wild Heart' had 3 Top 40 singles with her Top 5 'Stand Back' being arguably her most successful single. This is why the album spent more than six months within the Top 40.
'Rock a Little' had 2 Top 40 singles with 'Talk To Me' being her highest charting solo single (Stop Draggin' My Heart Around reached #3 but was with Tom Petty) and also featured 'Has Anyone Ever Written Anything For You' which reached #60 the following year and was the reason for the album's longevity. Even though the album only reached #12, the perfect choices for singles and the fact that they were spread out over practically a year, meant that the album stayed within the Top 20 for three months.
'The Other Side of the Mirror' only had 1 Top 100 single which was 'Rooms on Fire' which charted as high as #16. This was the reason that the album reached the Top 10 but soon began to fall as there was no successful follow up single, unlike her three previous albums. Because of this TOSOTM spent four months within the Top 100, much less than her previous albums.
'Street Angel' only had 'Maybe Love Will Change Your Mind' which charted at a disappointing #57 and due to the fact that there was no successful follow up single, within ten weeks the album disappeared from the Billboard 200 altogether.
'Trouble in Shangri-La' didn't have any Hot 100 entries but due to Stevie's popularity, the album was successful anyway. From this point on, singles didn't really affect Stevie's albums as much as they did in the 80's.
'In Your Dreams' had 'Secret Love' but like TISL, Stevie's popularity made sure that it made the #6 position but I think the second single choice DID affect sales of the album as it plummeted shortly after debuting within the Top 10.

So Stevie and Dave. Make sure you get the singles and the order of them right for the upcoming album as I want to see it sell well and last on the Billboard 200!!!

If any of you guys have any views on my findings and Stevie chart stuff, please post!!! ;)

None of the ones you mentioned are surprises to me. I think If I were You, If You Ever Did Believe, Sleeping Angel and Italian Summer are better examples.

I can understand 'If You Ever Did Believe', but the others you mentioned weren't actually singles......

If I were you should have been a single

The answer is easy - radio play...they didn't get any. The reason? Ageism.

I agree. ;)

Two Kinds of Love was actually the second single off TOSOTM in the US.Long Way to Go was never a single here but as the rock airplay chart indicates it did get quite a bit of airplay on FM rock stations at the time.

I second that. :nod:

dunno about the others but Two Kinds of Love… while I like the music, the lyrics kinda don't make batsh*t sense. "two kinds of love/one for the way you walk/one for the way you love me" Wtf? It's just so nonsensical- to me,anyway. And even lines like "I talked to my famous friend last night" can be weirdly off-putting. And it's not rock and roll. It's pretty lame adult contemporary-- not the image of Stevie Nicks. I know some people love it, and it's by far not her worst song, but it just really misses the mark. IMHO.

Whole Lotta Trouble-- another one where the lyrics do it in. I actually sorta like this one, and really want to like it more but can't. I love the idea of it-- I always saw it as kind of her reveling in being a rock star and having her way with men-- "He says when will I see you/she says 'I don't think tomorrow baby" and "you're not my friend/you're not my love/and this is something/that we really don't discuss" "when I want something/I get it" and that she could be a whole lotta trouble for a man.

But it gets bogged down in freaking lazily repetitive lyrics-- especially the live version where she sings
"would you change your mind/at the very last second/I think you should stop for a second/and think for a second"

Even on the recorded version she sings "well you must have had a dream/and you remember it/til the dream followed through/to the end of the dream/and the dream came true". Really? You need to say dream 4 times in a row??

Sloppy songwriting.

I too am puzzled by the fact that they chose "Every Day" as the first single for TISL. I like the video and the song is okay, I guess...but I would have chosen something else. The title track for example ~ that would have been a great lead single. I was happy that both "Planets" and "Sorcerer" were chosen as singles. You really couldn't go wrong with those two. "Fall From Grace" would have also made a great single, IMO. :)

Sadly I have to agree with you. Stevie has some shining moments in her lyrics, but she has a lot of peculiar lyrics that really reveal her limitations. Or is it just being lazy?

The thing is, she can make perfect sense of questionable lines, even if the rest of the world can't. I recall her explaining the lyric in Two Kinds of Love, saying that "One for the way you walk" meant something about walking away from someone in a sexy way...I can't really recall exactly what she said, but it made perfect sense to her.

I think there is a weakness in her lyrics because she doesn't self edit. Writers can be oblique and still be effective at communicating a thought, but Stevie isn't the most nimble writer. and can be so self-absorbed that the connection she is trying make between her and the listener is lost.

I've just come to accept that she's so weird and true to herself, she transcends common logic.

Hahaha! Right? And she's STILL doing it! Case in point - "You May Be The One" on her last album...

And then there was the kiss
Right out there in the universe
How did that happen
No, it could not have been worse
You forgot yourself
It could not have been worse

Could we not have written another line and picked a word to rhyme with "worse", Miss Nicks?

Maybe sloppy writing but I always loved those lyrics, especially the "dream" repetition. Together with the crazy-house blare of horns, it all sort of makes a package. A weird, loopy kind of package - a feeling of being on the verge of collapse.

I think for most of her post 1996-singles, it has to do with her record company's PR campaign (or lack thereof) and Billboard's revised chart policy. "If you ever did believe" was only released as a promo track and obviously did not get enough airplay to chart. "Every day", if I remember correctly, was released only to AC radio, while "Planets" was the track supposed to target the Pop charts (no idea why it didn't chart). It was not unusual in those years to have two first singles off a CD to appeal to different audiences simultaneously. Although I realize that this doesn't explain why "Planets" and, later, "Sorcerer" didn't make a bigger impact and, above all, why "Planets" didn't get a video.

No - she had to emphasize. :nod: Did you know this is speculated to be about a real-life moment, where, during The Dance tour, Lindsey just walked up and layed one right on her. Right out there in the Universe.

Man, I love that song. My favorite from In Your Dreams

I agree with this. Love Changes was rumored to be the first single when the original press releases were coming out. I think either this or TISL would have made great first singles.

The problem I have with many of the singles choices from Stevie's albums since Rock A Little are that they are often such mundane selections. Every Day? Love Changes? I like Love Changes well enough, but as a single? Snoozefest. They've been trying to repeat the success of Talk To Me, and it's not going to work, because Talk To me was in another era, where Stevie still had clout with DJs who would play her stuff just because it was hers.

If you exclude the rabid hardcore fan base, like us, you are left with a radio listener who has a general expectation of what Stevie Nicks is supposed to sound like. Stevie Nicks is a little witchy, a little ethereal, a little mysterious, a little bit angry and often scorned. It's the same expectation that casual fans have when they go to a concert. It's the reason Stevie always plays the same stuff - she knows what these people expect, and she caters to them because they outnumber us. Her biggest hits reflect these things - Dreams, Rhiannon, Gypsy, Edge of Seventeen, Stand Back, Rooms On Fire -

Stevie's singles should reflect this expectation. Every Day was an awful choice for a single, because it doesn't fit the geneal public's perception of what Stevie Nicks should sound like. Love Changes would have been just as bad in that regard. Had the time and money for a video been spent on Planets of the Universe instead of Every Day, I'm betting the chart successes would have been much greater for that song. It hit number 1 on the dance charts - a cool video would have carried the song much further. I actually heard Sorcerer played many times here in Denver on KBCO. I never heard Every Day, anywhere except the grocery store years later. Both Planets and Sorcerer fit that Stevie Nicks mold that casual fans expect her songs to fit.

It's no wonder that Two Kinds of Love was a flop. Two kinds of this-doesn't-sound-like-Stevie-Nicks-to-me is more like it. Long Way to Go might have done better, but was a Europe-only single. Stupid choices were made; failure did follow. Ooh My Love might have been an even better choice, but pickings were slim on The Other Side of the Mirror.

Maybe Love. Duh - doomed to fail. The whole Street Angel album, as much as I love it, flopped because there are no stereotypical Stevie Nicks songs there. Again, I mean stereotypical in the mind of a casual fan. Casual fans make chart successes. Hardcore fans do not. We are too few. The closest you get on Street Angel is the title track, or Love Is Like A River, but it was ruined in the studio. Both would have been every bit the radio flop that Blue Denim was, had they been released the way they were.

Secret Love? Why?!!?!? The first single from In Your Dreams should have been Moonlight, and it should have had a KILLER video guest staring Mr. Dreamy Eyes Pattinson instead of the documentary montage we got later on. Moonlight is the stereotype of a successful Stevie Nicks tune. It's got scorned love, it's got mystery, it's got that witchy vibe, it's got ethereal qualities. It also has great vocals - some of the best she's done since 1983.

If there are to be singles from 24 Karat Gold, they need to be songs that fit the expectations of casual fans and radio. They need to be interesting, and they need to be catchy. None of this arm-chair-therapist Stevie stuff that belongs on the old-folks stations like Maybe Love and Every Day.

Lastly, they need videos - no matter what your opinion of videos and the function they serve, I'll offer this up - it is generally accepted that Lady Gaga's Artpop was a flop because there were no videos ready at release, and by the time she did one, it was too little too late. Stevie needs to bite the bullet and make good videos. Another example - as the quality of Madonna's videos have declined, so have her album sales and radio chart sucesses. Videos matter. They offer a visual representation of music to a generation that is obsessed with appearances. People *do* watch them. New fans are made with videos. Videos sell records. That's what they're for, but even a great video can't help a bad song. The video for Every Day was -OK- but the song itself was a terrible choice for a single. It would have been like using Gate and Garden as the lead single for The Wild Heart, or I Sing for The Things as the lead single from Rock A Little.

I think TISL would have made an excellent first single choice...that song has a lot of power and she wrote it, unlike Every Day.

To add to the list, Reconsider Me was released as the first and perhaps only single to support the Enchanted Box Set. To my knowledge it never charted.

TISL is the only song from that album that really made an impact on me. It's like one of her hits to me. I crave it every once in awhile. It has a killer chorus and is totally unique. That song stood my test of time.

mine too!

though there was also that kiss he planted on her (head) during a band interview ….

I love TISL… it has an epic quality, like the song Bella Donna did. And I love that it opens the album, like BD as well.

it is pretty fabulous, isn't it? great lyrics, strong vocal, good production. That song has it all. I think when I do another Stevie solo playlist it will start with TISL.

Great post! I agree with most of what you said, especially the video bit. I think there was a time after the hey days of MTV/VH1 when videos weren't as important, say in the 90's but I do agree that their importance has returned and returned in a big way, thanks to YouTube. Stevie needs to up her game in the video department. Secret Love was fair but not great. The video for Moonlight is terrible. The song is a slow builder but that video is going a mile a minute. It totally takes away from the song, instead of enchancing it. Those rapid fire shots and crazy effects do nothing for the song. And Stevie is in the same outfit in the whole video. No.

And since you brought up Gaga, wasn't the video for Applause out before the album was? I do remember waiting for the second video, for G.U.Y., which is a fairly catchy song but that video was just a mess.

Everyday was the only possible POP single from TISL. The song TISL should have been released to rock and alternative radio. It could of gotten a lot of airplay in those formats. Love Changes was a real snoozer. That song would not have made a good single at all.

With or without a video Planets would not have charted on the HOT100. It was turned into a powerful, muscular song that works but it lost its beauty in the process. They made the right choice with alternative radio.

I just don't agree. Many strange and un-formulaic songs have charted well over the years from various artists. Everyday is bland and unmemorable.

Total agree on both accounts. TISL would have been a great single.

Songs can cross over - Planets wasn't released to dance format radio, and yet charted to number one on dance charts. Off topic, but consider this - nearly every one of Madonna's first couple dozen singles charted on the R&B charts - from Everybody all the way to Take A Bow, and yet she was squarely a pop artist. Back to Planets, I don't agree that a video wouldn't have helped, but who knows? The opportunity is lost. I just believe that more is more in situations like this. Release it to A/C, release it to Alternative, and make a video - why settle for less and hope you succeed, especially when you're lumped into the 'comeback" category like Stevie was at the time? In the world of marketing, more is almost always more.

'Everyday' is a pleasant, innocuous song, akin to wall paper/elevator music. The record executives, in all their high-mighty marketing insight, likely convinced or pressured Stevie into recording the song and releasing it as the lead single, reasoning that it would appeal to the banal masses.

Under obligation, she had to promote and perform it on TV show appearances. It was destined to be a "one-tour-only" song. I don't hate the song at all. It just doesn't have much impact -- it's more corporate rock than genuine Stevie.

I can't believe that 'Love Changes" was even in consideration to be a single. That song is definitely a bonafide album track, just like 'Unconditional Love' was.

You guys keep forgetting that Planets was remixed and changed into a dance song and that's how it became a dance hit.

Stevie did not have song that was promotable for the HOT 100 besides Everyday. I f she she would of searched for good material she probably would have many great songs offered to her. Too Far From Texas was A good song but her vocal is God-awful. She ruined it.

TISL petered out because of the quality of the album. She ruined a golden comeback opportunity.

I'm not surprised Two Kinds of Love flopped, it's an insipid, cheesy and forgettable ballad that features a sax solo from Kenny G. It doesn't even sound like a Stevie Nicks song, it sounds like something a post-Beaches Bette Midler would have sung (no offense against her, I'm a big fan). The Other Side of the Mirror doesn't really contain many songs that were destined to be hits, most of it is forgettable and weak. Ooh My Love would have made a nice single, it's a billion times better than TKOL.

I can understand why Every Day was released as a single, it's in the same style as a lot of that faceless and straight forward female guitar pop/rock that was selling well at the time, i.e. Jewel, Michelle Branch and Sheryl Crow.

I totally agree with all of this. :p

I agree about "Ooh My Love", it had the WilsonPhillips type vibe that was to take over the charts at that time.

Ageism
 

American pop radio is marketed toward young people and has long ignored older acts (especially women). In the 90s, it was at least occasionally possible for a 50-plus woman to hit the top 40 (Cher's "Believe," Aretha's "A Rose Is Still a Rose," or Tina's "I Don't Really Want to Fight"). Stevie's live "Landslide" with the Mac made it as far as 51 in '98, I believe.

Even Madonna's hot streak had dried up by the time she hit her mid-40s, no matter how good she still looked. "Hung Up" made the top 10 based mostly on iTunes sales, while "4 Minutes" owed its radio play to being a full-fledged duet with Justin T., and "Gimme All Your Lovin" had a Super-Bowl tie-in with the powerful Clear Channel Radio network in order to hit the top 10 for a brief moment.

Of course, Stevie's hit streak drying up in her early '40s had a lot to do with quality:

"Two Kinds of Love" (Grade C+): On the plus side, Bruce Hornsby and some tuneful sections. On the negative, Kenny G. And that line about her "famous friend" who just doesn't know how she does it has always annoyed me with its narcissism. I'm still surprised this didn't at least chart. There was way worse crap overplayed in 1989. Maybe the record company dropped the ball.

"Whole Lotta Trouble" (Grade B-): Prefer the album version with the horns. If I recall correctly, they were conspicuously absent from the cassette single I bought. Is that right?

"Sometimes It's a Bitch" (Grade C-): Klonopin addiction is a bitch (especially when you continually absolve yourself from any personal responsibility for it). This enjoyed a solitary week on the Hot 100. I'm sure Bon Jovi did his best (which is rarely ever enough), given that Stevie essentially recorded this against her will.

"Maybe Love Will Change Your Mind" (Grade C-): Another Sandy Stewart number. It's one week of Hot 100 action was probably more than this bland song deserved.

"Blue Denim" (Grade B): A fairly catchy tune with a mostly decent vocal should have been the first single selection from Street Angel. It could have probably gotten some rock radio play. The line "So I'm going away for a little while to remember how to feel" gains power from the fact that she'd enter rehab not long after recording it. She sounds half-awake already.

"Reconsider Me" (Grade B+): This actually did get a single release. Another one she didn't write, but this time a fairly strong song with a surprisingly good vocal from the RAL-era (probably from early in the sessions, given Iovine's involvement). But what's the point of even inviting Don Henley in the recording booth if you're just going to bury him in the mix?

"If You Ever Did Believe" (Grade B): I like this one fine. Sheryl did a good job producing at least a few Stevie songs.

"Every Day" (Grade C-): Bland beyond belief. My boss at the time (a casual Stevie fan) asked me, "Stevie didn't write that one did she?" "How do you know?," I responded. "Because it makes sense," she said. I laughed. Stevie Nicks classics rarely make sense.

"Planets of the Universe" (Grade B, album version; Grade A-, long version): This one needed a video, and the missing verse only heard on the full version featured on the max-single. It's ironic that the most popular dance mix of this song was built around the "You won't forget!" line from the long version. So when I started hearing that remix in the gay clubs, the song seemed barely recognizable. Then I heard the long version and understood.

"Sorcerer" (Grade B+): Maybe this should have been the first single from TISL. I likey.

"Crash" (Grade D): Didn't this have a promotional single release? I don't absolutely hate DMB. But this makes me question Stevie's taste level.

"Secret Love" (Grade B): Honestly, the best bet Stevie had of making a strong impact on the AC chart.

"For What It's Worth" (Grade B+): A good song. Respectable placement on the AC chart.

Please forgive me if I left out any Stevie songs or if you disagree strongly with my assessments. It would be a boring world if we all had the same taste.

So basically any song Stevie didn't write get a c- or less while God-awful songs,(more like choruses) such as Blue Denim or Two kinds of Love, fair much better.

'Maybe Love Will Change Your Mind' and 'Sometimes it's a Bitch' spent more than one week on the Hot 100, that's for sure. :nod:

They did give the Warren Zevon song Reconsider Me a B+ but then he was a much more accomplished songwriter than John Shanks,Sandy Stewart or even Jon Bon Jovi

Everyday is a much better song than Blue Denim or Two kinds of Love. Those songs were bland attempts at commercialism. She came up with decent choruses but failed to build songs around them. Stevie also gave terrible vocal performances on Maybe Love Will Change Your Mind and Sometimes It's a Bitch and horrible, horrible, horrible performances on Cry Wolf, Dockland and Too Far From Texas - all really good songs.

I wouldn't call Blue Denim "God-awful." Perhaps, a little pedestrian, though. Michele

I really wish they would have released "Moonlight" as a third single for consideration on the Hot A/C charts. I think it would have done a hell of a lot better than "Secret Love" or "FWIW". I think Warners really dropped the ball on that one. Maybe they only decided to give her 2 singles that time around to see how sales would go in their promotion of the album, and when sales weren't what they expected, they decided to call it quits and not worry about anymore promotion with a third single.

Ironic because I think "Moonlight" as a single would have helped sales, tremendously. It's got the essence of "Classic Stevie Nicks" written all over it. Boo, Warners!!!

Plus (for selfish reasons) I would have loved to have seen it as a promo single with a nice "witchy" cover that I could have added to my collection. :nod:

I totally agree. :nod: This should've been the second or first single from 'In Your Dreams' as I think that it's the best song on the album. It's definitely the most commercial which is why I'm surprised that it wasn't released as a single. :shrug:

Chart Longevity
 

I used to follow the Billboard chart weekly, and I remember when "Sometimes It's a Bitch" debuted at number 56 on the Hot 100. The next week it was GONE. Poof! All the record store orders were done and the fans who were going to buy had bought it, I guess. I sure never heard it on Top 40 radio, but it placed much higher on the Mainstream Rock chart

I just found an online source confirming that the same thing happened with "Maybe Love Will Change Your Mind" (debuting at 57 in July 1994). It's Hot 100 run was a solitary week. It probably lasted longer on some other charts like AC.

I guess I am partial to songs written by Stevie. She tends to sound more invested in singing them than an outside contribution requested by a producer or a record exec. There are notable exceptions, of course.

I know the dude that wrote "Everyday" and a little of the story behind it. He was working at the time with John Shanks, who had already done a bang-up job on the killer title track to TISL and would go on to produce "Planets," a song that had perplexed Lindsey by his own admission (the album version is flat-out beautiful). Shanks brought "Everyday" to the table since execs (in the words of the great Tom Petty) said "I don't hear a single..." and there you have it. In fact, the song was never even rerecorded musically from the demo of the guy that wrote it; they just removed his vocal and Stevie sang over the track.

Not only does it not fit the Stevie vibe, I don't believe it fits the album as a whole in spite of many of the tracks coming from the same producer. Hard to imagine this, but the iTunes store didn't exist when TISL was released, and even though singles hadn't been a "thing" in the consumer consciousness in at least half a decade, record companies were still in the process of turning the Titanic back in those days and the old ways prevailed. I too would argue that "Planets" would have been an ideal first single, especially coming off the resurgence Stevie had with "Landslide" and "Silver Springs" and the expectation for her style in the marketplace that others in the thread have mentioned. But execs aren't fans, are they?