Legend’s 80s Classic GOT RIPPED Off… Then He GOT SUED for Talking About It? | Professor Of Rock
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- Опубліковано 20 сер 2024
- THIS BAR band came out of nowhere in the eighties to take over radio… Huey Lewis and the News stole the spotlight... Especially in what may have been music's most competitive year…1984 where they snuck in for 1 week to take #1 with their album Sports when Prince, Van Halen Michael Jackson, and Duran Duran were battling it out up next this legendary artist tells the story of I Want a New Drug, a song he wrote in just minutes… he was driving and had the song..he quickly pulled over and ran into an office and screamed for a pen and paper and wrote it in about 90s seconds, then later it was part of a huge lawsuit when the film Ghostbusters asked him to write a song for their soundtrack and when he had to decline they allegedly asked another artist to write a song with a similar sound… The story is coming up next.
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Hey Music Junkies, Professor of Rock, always here to celebrate the greatest artists and songs of all time. If you love the history of music straight from the artists who created them, you’ll want to be a full-time part of this channel by subscribing below and make sure to hit the bell so you always get our daily features Also check out more content at our page on patreon to become an insider. It’s time for another episode of our series revelations where featured artists reveal rare stories about their greatest songs.
On this installment of Revelations, we have one of the coolest guys in the industry who shook the 80s by its foundations. He had two massive albums back to back as well as eleven top-ten hits including 3 that went all the way to #1. I’m talking about the only news source I trust… Huey Lewis and the news. It started with Do You Believe in Love which hit #7 in 1982 and then he rocked 1984 with his multiplatinum mega record Sports… With the huge hits Heart and Soul, the Heart of Rock and Roll, and today’s feature… I Want a New Drug.
This is a song that he wrote in about 90s seconds… He rushed into an office after it came to him in the car and begged for a pen and paper. He’ll tell you the rest. However one of the biggest parts of the story of this #1 hit that Weird Al parodied so brilliantly is the story of what happened after I Want a New Drug… Huey is barred from talking about it. But as a matter of what we do know…
In 1984, the comedy Ghostbusters hit theaters and blew up our culture like few movies before it… It was the biggest blockbuster of one of the greatest summer movie extravaganzas ever….And its theme song by Ray Parker Jr. ruled radio hitting #1. Only thing is, that it sounded a lot like the second single from Huey LEwi’s album Sports. I Want A New Drug. So this has been a very touchy subject in the past so I’ll tread lightly… According to some legends, several artists were approached by the Ghostbuster people to create a theme song that would have the word Ghostbusters in the chorus or title. I’ve heard several people say that Huey Lewis, Glenn Frey, and Lindsay Buckingham were all offered to do it and all three declined… So they offered it to Ray Parker Jr. Who was coming off some great hits of his own. RayParker Jr. said yes. - Розваги
Poll: What is your pick for the greatest song and album of one of music's greatest years...1984?
My favorite was Born In The USA, Bruce Springsteen.
Song- In the Name of Love from U2 Unforgettable Fire.
Album--The Cars: _Heartbeat City_
Song--Prince: "When Doves Cry"
Not a single, but I just love "Burn for You" by INXS... And their album, The Swing
Album RATT Out of the cellar
Song Van Halen Jump
Tina Turner- Private Dancer -What's Love got to do with it- was a tremendous come back
The Cars - Heartbeat City has great hits- You might think, Drive etc.
Van Halen- 1984
Prince- Purple Rain
There are so many, these are just from memory...
I graduated high school in 1984. Just before graduating, Huey Lewis and the News did a concert at Six Flags Over Texas for “senior day”. I lived in Oklahoma, about 3 hours away from where the concert would be. Guess what I did? I had my own “senior ditch day”. It turns out my future wife and I shared that concert together. We were not dating at the time, but it wouldn’t be long after, we were dating and then engaged and married. We will celebrate 38 years of marriage this year. That’s the power of love!
Here’s to many more! Cheers 🍻
This is awesome
SO Exciting to hear such a Romantic Story💏 My Husband and I were dating in 1981 and Huey Lewis and the News put on a Concert at Six Flags Great America, Gurnee, IL🎢 We had Season Passes for Years⏳ The night of the Concert we had been at the park ALL DAY🥳 My 'Boyfriend' was exhausted and I wasn't able to convince him to stay for the concert😥 It has been a regretful joke in our marriage every time we hear Any Huey Lewis song🎶 I'm Sure the Concert was AWESOME!🎤
This is fabulous!
I too graduated in 84, saw them New Years Eve 84 in Oakland, CA. As a Bay Area resident, I was introduced to their music during the 'Picture This' album and their involvement in charity work when Huey Lewis and the News played at the March of Dimes fundraiser in Oakland 1983. Sadly, I did not attend that concert, but heard it was great.
Huey Lewis and his band are just classy guys all the way around. Treat fans amazingly well. They were fantastic musicians and just good guys before, during and after their success! They deserve all the success they obtained throughout the years. Huey is a legend!
I wholeheartedly agree.
Huey seems so loyal to the band willing to share limelight, many other artists could learn from that
He's one of the nicest guys in the game.
...kept his original Band too, FOREVER....loyal Guy, ain't he!?
Yeah, this means you Billy Joel
He’s awesome. Love him.
I saw him several times. His band is one of the few that I can actually name most of the members. Guitarist, Chris Hayes’s sister Bonnie was also a SF Bay Area fav.
Sports is a great album. My parents bought the album & I played walking on a thin line over & over.
My son bought a 88 Mustang GT about 10 years ago they was a cassette left in it. He put in & the power of love came on . He cranked it up and grinned real big. Thanks, Adam
Walking on a Thin Line IS such a classiC! Good call!
"Bad is Bad" is another overlooked gem.
What better song to define a DeLorean?
@@67nearmint Cool is the rule.
@Kerry Higgins right?
I've seen Huey 5x in concert and loved him every time!! His music is three soundtrack of my 20's. I met my husband, and our first date was a Huey Lewis and the News concert. We fell in love and hearing Huey just brings those feelings of falling in love back like it was yesterday. We've been together for almost 40 years now and Huey was a big part of that. Just gives me the feels!
Wish he could still play!
Congratulations on 40 years! I've seen them the same amount of times and camped out to meet them while at university for the Fore! Tour. I am a sax player, so meeting Huey Lewis was big for me. Johnny Colla is one my favorite horn players.
We could say Huey brought you two together. 💕
Than's AWESOME!!!! Congrats!
When you recount Huey's hits, there are far more mentioned than I realized he has... Love his swanky style of bar band bliss!
Bar band bliss! yes!
So true and he knew it. Halfway through a concert I attended in 2005, he said “So many hits, so little time!”
@@ProfessorofRock Set that to the tune of Sweet's Ballroom Blitz!
His #1 priority: fun!
Huey really comes across as just a genuinely nice and friendly guy. Like he would be so fun to spend a warm, sunny afternoon at a patio bar with friends, drinking pitcher beer, telling jokes and having conversation. Just a real mensch.
A cool thing about the '80s was a band like Huey Lewis and the News with a really unique sound could rise to the top alongside of totally different styles of pop like Prince or Whitney Houston or Falco. It was such a great decade to be a young music nerd in! I think MTV had something to do with that, it was like everyone in the country was tuned into one radio station and we all heard genres that we normally wouldn't seek out. Too bad that's gone.
Definitely, acts like Sade, Basia, and Anita Baker sharing the charts with Van Halen, Cinderella and Motley Crüe. Incredibly pluralistic era!
This sort of thing had been prevalent
in the early to mid '70s. Say, in 1973.
you could turn on a Top 40 station
& you might hear (in the same set, even)
Barbra Streisand, The Allman Bros.,
The Jackson 5, various TV & movie themes,
novelty hits, one-hit wonders, you name it.
In the late '70s, this was mostly
pushed aside, while disco, "classic rock"
& softer pop became dominant.
Towards the end of the '70s
& into the first years of the '80s, ,
things began returning to a sort of
"anything goes" approach.
So, MTV didn't start it.
In fact, ultimately, it was
the MTV/video/image
as prerequisite mentality
that destroyed the possibility
of mainstream musical variety
as a standard of pop culture.
It's very much a shame.
In theory, it sounded like
an incredible idea, but the novelty
factor wore off quickly
& the result was institutional
restriction against experimental,
bold or risk-taking attitudes
by those in charge of the music industry.
That had always been
a presence, of course, but it was
taken much further than it ever had been
because of the MTV generation.
It just didn't seem all that obvious
at first, when the possibilities
were still fresh & more open to suggestion.
@@laustcawz2089 Yes, I am more an 80s kid but listening on XM to the Americas Top 40 from the 70s its remarkable how many of the hits were all over the place. I'm not sure you can put too much blame on MTV for the current state of things though. In the 70s there were variety shows that everyone watched, the 60s had Ed Sullivan, there were always some common points of reference that most of the pop culture was turning which created shared reference points. But that pretty much died in the 90s.
@@carnacthemagnificent2498
The increasing dominance
of computers & technology
in music (especially popular music)
has certainly made listening choices
more of an individual thing, as the '90s
have continued into the 21st century,
but, even before that was happening,
MTV & its prominence in the culture
was already making genre & visual
identity more of a fixed phenomenon.
I haven't had the chance to listen to
satellite radio, but I know of it.
Even with the variety it may have,
so much of the popular music
of the '70s has become obscure,
forgotten &/or rare/tough to find
& genres (at least in the earlier parts
of the decade) were much more fluid.
This was not always so apparent from
the songs that were at the top (or even
near the top) of the charts. Sometimes,
it required becoming familiar with
the top 20, the whole top 40, or even
the whole "Hot 100".
How many of the following have you heard?
"Which Way You Goin', Billy?"--
The Poppy Family
"Gimme Dat Ding"--The Pipkins
"Kiss An Angel Good Mornin'"--
Charley Pride
"Tubular Bells"--Mike Oldfield
"Hocus Pocus"--Focus
"Stoned Out Of My Mind"--The Chi-Lites
"How Do You Do?"--Mouth & MacNeal
"Who Do You Think You Are?"--
Bo Donaldson & The Heywoods
"The Candy Man"--Sammy Davis, Jr.
"The Entertainer"--Marvin Hamlisch
"Thunder & Lightning"--Chi Coltrane
"Steppin' Out, I'm Gonna Boogie Tonight"--
Tony Orlando & Dawn
"Goodbye To Love"--Carpenters
"Shaving Cream"--Benny Bell
"Eres Tu"--Mocedades
"Hooked On A Feeling"--Blue Swede
"Poetry Man"--Phoebe Snow
...& for the very early '80s--
"Rapture"--Blondie
"Take A Little Rhythm"--Ali Thomson
"Shaddap You Face"--Joe Dolce
"Pac-Man Fever"--Buckner & Garcia
"Midnight Blue"--
Charlie Skarbek/Louise Tucker
"Axel F"--Harold Faltermeyer
"Steppin' Out"--Joe Jackson
"Theme From 'Hill Street Blues'"--
Mike Post
"The Curly Shuffle"--Jump'N'The Saddle Band
"Xanadu"--Electric Light Orchestra
w. Olivia Newton-John
Just a few random examples
that come to mind.
Video Killed the Radio Star
Back in the day, I would've never admitted to my friends that I liked Huey Lewis because I was deep into new wave at the time. But, damn...those songs were GREAT back then and they remain so to this day.
It’s fair since they put their hands on new wave a bit.
We all love and remember what a huge impact these artists and bands had on our lives. However lets not forget the people like Adam who bring the stories that the artists share to life before they are lost forever to the print era. Each episode of Professor of Rock is a testament that we all had it right when we fell in love with all of these songs.
80s were just full of so much iconic music, very intense for a lot of artists to try and outdo themselves, and many did! Cheers for the anecdotes.
Thanks RC32!
@@ProfessorofRock Always man!
A lot of artists had to change their musical styles in the 80s.
And from every genre of music known to man!!! It was a very magical time for music, never to be repeated again!!!
I've always loved Huey Lewis and the News ever since I heard Power of Love. After hearing that one song, I bought all the cassette tapes I could find of their songs at the time. I've always thought that it would be cool to sit down and have a coffee and conversation with him and just have a few laughs because he seems like such a laid-back kind of guy. All these years later, I still get his songs playing in my head every now and then, and I jump on UA-cam and play them out for a while. His songs are timeless.
He’s so nice. That was me during COVID.
In 1984 I was 19 years old and had just gone on active duty with the US Navy. I had always been a progressive rock, metal and punk guy. Huey Lewis was always one of those guilty pleasures. The News of the day was always infectious and never ceased to make me feel upbeat and good. It was sort of like jamming to The Monkeys while wearing your Black Sabbath shirt.
I was 25 in 1984. I went to a business conference in 2001 in Vegas. We had a dinner in a huge banquet hall. There had to be a couple thousand people sitting there and there was a band afterwards. It was Huey Lewis and the News! About 50 of us, including my wife and I went and stood literally at the base of the stage and rocked out! It felt like the band was impressed with our enthusiasm. Best concert I every attended and still can't believe to this day that more people didn't get up in front of that stage and experience it up close. Fantastic night!
Have always loved these guys. Incredible musicianship. How are they not in the HOF??
For my tastes, there's not a cooler cat in the 80's than Huey Lewis. Dude is a legend; an everyman who never grew above his raisings. Just a gem of a human being.
I was 16 when this song hit the airwaves, and even I knew it wasn't about actual drugs. I'm always frustrated with record labels, when I hear stories about them not wanting to release a song like this; they assume people are complete idiots and don't think for themselves! (Ok...as I wrote that, I realized that there are a few, and they're usually the loudest. 😣)
Saw Huey at a bar called The Stone Pony in Asbury Park NJ back in the late 70s or early 80s before he got signed. I remember saying to friends when he took the stage:
"Whos this old guy"? (Huey looked older than he actually was) He blew us all away with his unexpected performance.
One of my favorite bands ever. They have so many great songs, the one featured today is one of the best. I listen to "heart and soul" every day..lol. Love these guys. Thanks, Professor!!
I was born in 1980, and the first time I ever felt like I was getting older was when the Oldies station played a song from the Sports album. It was the first album I ever "owned"; my mom heard The Heart of Rock and Roll on the radio and thought I'd enjoy the song because of all the city names, but little 4/5 year old me really loved the whole album. I was 26 I think when "If This Is It" came on that Oldies station, and I haven't gotten any younger since.
It happens to the best of us brother! I remember when I first heard them call some of my favorite 70s rock "classic" (or worse- "oldies"!) LOL.
We just gotta roll with it I guess
Great video, thanks Adam and Huey. And of course it's another egregious snub that Huey and the News aren't in the so-called Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Just think, they could sing the original lyrics about the "heart of rock and roll" being in Cleveland. Though maybe they shouldn't, since the so-called R&R HoF is not fulfilling the intended mission.
He's absolutely right about the CHR radio format. HL&N sometimes get a bad rap because they were so successful but those guys were great songwriters and played catchy, melodic music. Another group that deserves the R&R HOF.
Even Sinatra isn’t in the RRHOF yet! 😳
LOVE THIS! Soooo many memories come flooding back. Huey Lewis and the News were one of my favorite bands back in the 80s. I thought their music was fun and easy to listen and dance to and made me happy. So cool to hear the stories about this song and to see him again!! I miss their music and wish they'd release some new stuff!! Anyways great vid and thanks for all the details.
LOVE Huey! He is a WAY under-appreciated vocalist, and artist in general. I have yet to hear anyone who can cover his vocals for more than a song or two. What a powerhouse!
Have gone to a couple of Huey Lewis and The News concerts...always a great show. His interaction with the crowd is genuine. They were the 1980s for me. Glad he is back on road. So many great hits...and others that keep the day going! The groups acapella songs are fantastic as well. Thanks for the memories Prof and Huey!!!
He's a legend!
Yes. Saw Huey and the News in a club with maybe 300 people.
Band was smoking hot
Huey a great frontman
A top ten concert
He’s very entertaining.
same here small club maybe 200 plus early 90s huey funny stories banter with audience great band entertaining show looking back glad i saw the band in a smaller venue we were kind of surprised they came there probably an in between show but band seemed to have a good time just a bare bones sound system no frills
Huey Lewis is one of the greatest. When I was in college I made a clay mation video/ Stop motion picture with the music do you believe in love as the focus. I wrote to Mr. Lewis and asked him if he would like to attend the college festival. I actually won a few awards and it was played on several tv shows. Huey actually wrote me back a week prior to the event and said, sorry Steve, but currently on tour. Wish I could be there for your film debut. Best wishes. Huey Lewis.
Hey, he didn't have to respond to me, but obviously he cares for his fans and it meant so much to me that he did. I saw him a few years later in concert with my brother after Power of Love came out, Huey Lewis and the band were the best. Great memories. Thank you professor of Rock for doing what you do, keeping the music alive.
Fore! was my first introduction to Huey Lewis and the News and boy did it make a lasting impression on me. I can remember signing along on road trips with my mother and brother. The music produced by this band will stay with me forever. I remember I was going to a SF Giants game with my older cousin and as we were walking to the Public House for some beers a group of 5 or 6 people walked past us. I didn't notice anything but my cousin asked me, "Do you know who that is? That's Huey Lewis!". There was nothing about him that said "I'm a Rock Star!", just a regular guy doing what he loves. Now I must go on a journey listening to the wonderful music given to us by Huey Lewis and the News.
Huey is the best. I still listen all the time. The videos were awesome! Even took my kids to see Huey and the News for their first concert experience.
There is no question that the songs were related, it’s actually not uncommon. It’s quite common for a director to use music that has already been published. They use it to convey the feeling they want to a composer, so both consciously and subconsciously such similarities are bound to occur.
While I’m sure Ray’s feeling were hurt because of something said by Huey Lewis, but what about Lewis and his bands feeling back in the eighties, and their pocketbook.
Huey Lewis and the band put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into creating their unique sound. Just because he didn’t want to work with the producers of Ghostbusters, that doesn’t give them the right to steal his sound.
He was paid a small amount just because it was cheaper than going to court. Even though they would have won. Sometimes the American justice system sucks.
Just like in the Music Industry, somewhere after the eighties, we allowed the lawyers and accountants to take over. The music industry has suffered because of it. Can someone please tell me where the tombstone is, I would like to lay flowers at it’s feet.
PS. “Exact sources I found on the internet”. Sorry, that just made me laugh. Lol
Sorry. I had to!
@@ProfessorofRock no issues, it had to be used. It would have been a crime not to. Lol
Some library music tracks I've heard are 75%-80% identical to famous songs, just with a few things changed round. I see why it exists but I don't like it. But I think Ray would have been under a lot of time pressure, so lose the gig or get sued? I can see both sides.
Sampling is a similar incidence of this happening in popular music.
@1:54 The opening line for _Do You Believe in Love,_ (1981) And the opening line for ELO's _Sweet Talkin' Woman._ (1978)
*I was walkin',* *I was searchin',*
*Down a one-way street,* *On a one-way street.*
*Just a lookin',* *I was hopin,'*
*For someone to meet.* *For a chance to meet.*
I know what Huey was listening to on the radio that day.
Huey is all American 80s youthful memories for me. I WANT A NEW DRUG just starts awesome memories for me when like Huey said " radio was king ". Absolutely nothing beats the 80s. Thank you Professor of rock for your enthusiasm about great music.
Interesting backstory. The two songs are remarkably similar, part of which may be due the musical trends in '84, but there are similar cases out there that resulted in notable copyright infringement awards (“Blurred Lines”, for example). Bottom line: two great songs that gave us great memories. Nice job of navigating the legal aspects of the situation, Adam!
It's that perfect bar band bliss! Thanks Robster!
Ghostbusters was an obvious lift of Huey. Not even close.
It isn’t even the first time this happened! George Harrison got into the same legal pool with My Sweet Lord and He’s So Fine.
@@xxlilly_playsxxkiz9980 And John Fogerty got sued for "plagierizing" himself on "The Old Man Down The Road" and "Run Through The Jungle."
@@JDrumUK Which was totally absurd.
Big thanks to my Gen X'er dad for introducing his music to me from a young age. Huey has been one of my favorites since I was a kid in the early 2000s.
Huey Lewis and The News are my favorite good-time rock and roll band of the 1980's. I first discovered their music when I heard their 1982 top 10 hit "Do You Believe In Love." In 1984, they released their great Sports album. Definitely one of my favorite 80's albums. It is filled with so many great songs. They continued to have success for the rest of the decade. Love their music. They are another artist who should be in The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.
Sports is a blockbuster smash.
Huey Lewis the Man, the Talent, the Legend! He alongside his band truly defined the happiest days of my life thanks to their amazing music. My thanks to him and his band. You really hit me like a hammer!!
Saw them in concert iMarch 31st 1987 at Hara arena in Dayton, Oh. Robert Cray was a great opening act. Played for 2/12 hours. Amazing concert. Truly one of the best I ever attended.
Huey Lewis and the news sports will forever be a favorite album from my growing up and to compete with Michael Jackson, the police, and Bruce Springsteen and come out on top is such a remarkable feat
Duran Duran, Tina Turner, Van Halen, Prince, et al.
Love this group. Their 2020 album still hits like their older albums. Shame he has hear loss and quite sadly affects some of his vocals. Huey is still kicking it's butt though 👍
I literally introduced New Drug to a co-worker this week. We were talking about Weird Al and my younger co-worker was familiar with Ghostbusters, but had never heard New Drug. I played it for him and the first thing he said was, "Wow."
He was blown away by the similarity.
In the 80’s every bar big or small had a band playing…Huey And the News just felt like a local bar band when they performed, like they would sit with you during a break and have a beer! I read an interview back then where he said it’s very lonely at the top. They seemed very humble.
Sure, the basslines are really similar, but I feel like there is enough difference between the two songs that it wasn't a copy. Even Michael Jackson said that he cribbed the bassline from 'Billie Jean' from Hall & Oates 'I Can't Go For That'. 'Stairway To Heaven' stole the opening riff from another band as well.
The reason this particular situation became such an issue is because it was tied to a big movie. I grew up when both these songs came out, and I didn't know they were associated until I heard the story many years later. Kudos to Ray Parker Jr for taking the specific instructions the label/movie people gave him and coming up with basically exactly what they wanted.
As much as I love Huey Lewis & the News, I personally like Ghostbusters slightly more than I Want A New Drug, though they're both good songs. I think situations like this are worse when a very well known artist/band takes from a relatively unknown artist/band. Neither Ray or Huey are struggling these days. It was kind of overblown, but it makes for an interesting story.
Lep did NOT lift that I tried from Spirit .
Page played 5 or 6 songs from different eras with similar riffs.
He won.
Now Whole Lott Love was lifted and they gave writing creds to Willie Dixon .
Some others tunes were new renditions of old blues guys from the 50s and 60s.
Ray Parker ,Jr. was an LA session player right up there with Steve lukather .
They sat side by side on many a musical recording .
Luke himself has said this Ghostbusters was not Rays usual gig, it was a side gig.
He was a much sought after session guitarist.
The 80’s was such a wonderful time for fantastic music. And I’m so glad I was a teenager durning that time. Going to concerts, going to the record store and buying the latest and greatest albums. Listening to Casey Kasem’s countdown and dedication every week. Even watching American Bandstand on Saturday if I wasn’t at work. Such a fun time to be alive. And unlike today when you can just take your phone and Google or Bing anything you would like to know. Back then you did listen to radio and their shows. Watched whatever you could on TV. Like MTV, Bandstand, Wolf Man Jack and the Midnight Special Show. Any show you could to see bands playing and giving interviews, I would watch. And anything I could read that told about a band I was interested in, I read it. Yes, those were mighty fine days indeed. And I remember Huey Lewis and the News and the Ray Parker Jr. controversy. Fun fact: I went to high school with the girl in the Ghost Busters video, Cindy Harrell.
Cool interview Professor.
❤️💜💚
I’ll never forget them on the old show Fridays. They played and at the end of Workin For Living he said I’m Huey Lewis and for the first time anywhere you just heard the news! Saw them every time they played in our area. Saw them at least 6 times. They were so good live.
Growing up in the early 80s Huey was your soundtrack. New Drug, Power of Love, Hip to be Square, Heart of Rock and Roll, Huey & The News will always be living rent free in my head
Same!
I can't hear "Hip to be Square" without picturing Christian Bale axe murdering a dude in his apartment! LoL!
So many great songs.
If you listen to the making of the “Ghostbusters” song told by Ray Parker himself you will get an idea of what happened. Ray has told the story multiple times and each time it’s a bit different each time. That’s usually a dead giveaway that something’s up. Either way we have been blessed with some of history’s greatest music from some of the greatest artists.
I’ve seen it.
Where could I even possibly begin to reflect on Huey and the band in 1983-1984. My freshman year of college in Connecticut was spent listening to, dancing to and loving "Sports". All six of the hits over the course of the next year were the anthem of my freshman year of college. My college dorm room mate Karl and I played "Sports" so many times I can't even begin to recount them. I started dating my girlfriend (now wife) in early 1984 and I went to my very first concert in the summer of 1984. We saw Huey and the boys in Hartford in August. It was the first and probably the most memorable concert I've experienced. I've followed Huey for four decades now and I feel so much emotion for him and the band and how his hearing challenges have impacted the band's later years. I have the most respect for Huey and the boys and for the rest of my life These gentleman will be front and center when I fondly look back at my first years in college...and in life. Rock on Huey !
It's an album that definitely MOVED the needle... Still does.
It’s disheartening to hear that his ears are getting bad.
I was in high school from 81-85 and a fellow ASB officer and I taped an announcement to be played on the campus radio station. We get done with the announcement and at the end, completely unplanned, I say, “And now back to more music with Huey Lewis and the News!
To my great delight, the powers that be at the station turned on Huey and the band right after. My friend and I had a good laugh.
I still have a copy of the cassette.
When he’s talking about trying to get on radio, that’s the stuff that tears so many bands apart. There’s usually always a few members who don’t want to do what they feel is compromising or “bending the knee” to the commercial teat and it fractures the band. Having a band that can get in the same page on direction is why so few bands became big. So many people join bands just so they can play and rarely last long when they get comfortable to start bitching or not digging what they are playing….lol
So sad that he's lost his hearing. If you're reading this stay strong. We love you.
I was a big Huey Lewis & The News fan back in 1980’s, and when Ghostbusters came on the radio, I immediately screamed in my car, “that dude is ripping of “I Want A New Drug”!” ‘Nuff Said.
As far as the controversy goes, I have to say, as a trained musician, that the similarities between the two songs are very striking, especially the bass line. The mention of I Want A New Drug being used as backing music in the film being given to Ray Parker Jr says to me that there is a good possibility of unintentional plagiarism in this case.
Right. I do not think he did it on purpose.
Yeah, I think it's almost impossible to tell someone, 'Hey write a theme song with the feel of this song...' and NOT get something that is at least semi-plagiarized
I agree there are definite similarities, Ghostbusters does seem to be inspired by I Want A New Drug but that's what happens if you ask for a song in the same style. It's also where it enters that grey area. There's no way to definitely say whether it was inspired by (which is fine) or ripped off (which isn't fine). The question I've always asked is, would Ray Parker Jr lower himself to create that rip off? I don't think he would. The execs would for sure but they didn't write Ghostbusters.
Whatever the case, both are fantastic songs and Huey is always great to listen to. Cheers Adam.
Good take on the matter Elwaves.
Factor in the time pressure. It seems that Ray was pushed to come up with something quickly.
@@80ssynthfan48 Yeah but that doesn't prove anything one way or the other. Plenty of songs have been written very quickly, as this channel and this very video have shown. 🙂
Ray’s a nice guy. He wouldn’t do that to spite Huey deliberately.
@@xxlilly_playsxxkiz9980 My thinking exactly.
I saw Huey Lewis playing harmonica with Thin Lizzy in the late 70’s. (Not opening for but touring with as their harmonica player)
I played this song on a jukebox at an Italian restaurant and my dad lost his 5h!t! No matter how I tried to explain it wasn't about drugs, the madder he got. 40 years later, he still the same! 80s, Bay Area and Huey Lewis and the News.
Not a bad year in music. Thanks for another great video!
You bet!
....what didja SAY!?? ...NO OTHER YEAR, measures up to 1984 in it's greatness...still......
For me 1984 was the year of Prince. So ,album is Purple Rain. My song is Let's Go Crazy, which showcased Prince as the monster on the guitar that he was.
Prince rocked 84 like no other.
Such a great song!
Prince had the #1 song of 1984, When Doves Cry.
I thought once upon the 80's that the songs were VERY close. Now that I'm older, yeah, the Ghostbusters theme was a "hey, let's make a song just like this". They didn't have all of the media back then that fans could catch the "similarities". It was a copy & the perpetrator didn't get caught...
I was fortunate to be at a Huey Lewis corporate gig with a bunch of software and control engineers. It was a terrific performance. I was disappointed, however, when he did not sing “It’s Hip to be Square” in a room with a thousand nerds. I was up front and Huey was wearing the coolest shoes, ever. Great memory.
Two songs from the debut album of Huey Lewis and the News were made b-sides of the first two singles from their album Fore!.
"Now Here's You" is a hidden gem on their debut album.
You know your Huey Lewis and the News!
I never knew those were earlier songs.
@1:54 The opening line for _Do You Believe in Love,_ (1981) And the opening line for ELO's _Sweet Talkin' Woman._ (1978)
*I was walkin',* *I was searchin',*
*Down a one-way street,* *On a one-way street.*
*Just a lookin',* *I was hopin,'*
*For someone to meet.* *For a chance to meet.*
I know what Huey was listening to on the radio that day.
Huey Lewis & The News was my band in the 80s, and probably still my all-time favorite. "Heart & Soul" was my anthem. First time I heard it was watching the video on MTV.
I agree. Kameron! Heart and Soul is my favorite too!
Singalong classic.
I had flown to work in California for a few weeks. First in San Fran and then on down to LA. While in San Fran my CA friends offered to drive over to Mill Valley to the Deuce Club, known also as the 2 AM Club. It was after midnight and it was obvious that the Deuce was the local watering hole for bands after finishing their gigs. As I walked up to the bar, I immediately saw the Sports album just like you see it on the album cover itself. Totally blown away I turned around and leaned against the bar with my Jack Daniels. Within minutes I was approached by a local who informed me that his brother was The famous Joe Walsh. I think he said his name was Peter. Never knew whether to believe him but insisted on sharing how great the family was. LOL
At that point, I created my introductory line when asked... Hey I'm Rick Hunter and I'm just a farm boy from Holly Springs NC (just outside of Mayberry NC).
That night the line 'I'm not in Kansas anymore took root.
And of course the album still sits on my mantle. Thank you Adam for another great story.
Bought "Sports" when I moved to my first duty station in the Air Force, and played that album, yes vinyl, continuously on my Panasonic all in one stereo. Loved it!
I had the Sports album as well as his next album Fore! Huey Lewis was one the few artists that my parents even liked back in the 80s. New Drug and Ghostbusters do sound similar due to the bass riff, but to me, that's where the similarities end. I saw him 10 years ago and he was still great as was in the 80s.
Two monster albums!
The melody in some parts, but yeah, that’s just inspiration.
Huey is one of the coolest dudes in music, the everyman that made it and still seems as humble as ever. Do You Believe in Love,Workin' for A Livin', Jacobs Ladder...... he is honestly like Steve Miller. So many hits you can't even think of them all..... My personal favorites are If This Is It and Hip To Be Square, I took that literally in the early 80's when it became kind of cool to be clean and sober.... it happened in the right time of my life to keep me steered (somewhat) straight...If I'm honest I Want a New Drug is not high (no pun intended) on my Huey list.
I agree 1000%
Really liked If This is It my favorite of Huey's was Stuck With You. I'd forgotten just how many hits he had. Also the man that "discovered" Bruce Hornsby
...I knew....KNEW...."Hip..." was gonna be a classic....it took some time, but we MUST give Christian Bale a nod.....
My favorite song by them is Heart and Soul.
In every single interview I see with Huey Lewis, he comes across as a class act. The News were one of my favorite bands growing up and I've gotten back in to listening to them again now. What a great band.
One of the most intelligent bands ever, in my opinion! They knew how to play, write, and produce a string of hits and popular songs across different styles. Of course they aren't the only ones who have done that, but they knew exactly when to quit, and somehow, that seemed to increase their popularity! Genius!
Their early work was a little too new wave for my tastes, but when _Sports_ came out in '83, I think they really came into their own, commercially and artistically. The whole album has a clear, crisp sound, and a new sheen of consummate professionalism that really gives the songs a big boost. He's been compared to Elvis Costello, but I think Huey has a far more bitter, cynical sense of humor.
In '87, Huey released this, _Fore_ , their most accomplished album. I think their undisputed masterpiece is "Hip to be Square," a song so catchy, most people probably don't listen to the lyrics. But they should, because it's not just about the pleasures of conformity, and the importance of trends, it's also a personal statement about the band itself.
HEY PAUL!!!
Sports was the dividing line!
American Psycho
@@Muzikman-bo8lm Yep!
Sports was their magnum opus. Hip to Be Square is such a fun song. There isn’t one part of the song that I am unfamiliar with.
@@xxlilly_playsxxkiz9980 What I wrote was a quote from _American Psycho_.
Check out similar songs such as "Soul Finger" and "Pop Muzik" that came out before this two.
Yes, the very first time I heard "I Want a New Drug" I thought, this is "Pop Muzik" by M.
I don't know... I'll go re listen.
Both sound way ahead of their time.
I was in college and driving in my two tone underpowered Ford Must when “I want a new drug” came on and over my crappy AM radio I thought it was “I want a new truck”. Told my girlfriend and when we watched it on Friday Night Videos, we laughed and laughed. And of course, from then on she would sing “I want a new truck” every time it came on.
1984 is probably the most inclusive year for music since the early 70's, with pop rock, Brit Pop, R&B, a nascent Hip Hop scene, Hard Rock and Heavy Metal and crossover country all sharing spots on the Hot 100. Since then radio (or whatever serves as radio these days) has become increasingly segmented so audiences are not encouraged to listen beyond what they already know. Innovative music is still being made, you just have to actively dig for it.
Huey Lewis?
He doesn't look like a rock star. He looks a guy my dad plays golf with. 🙂
So true. And just as nice as that guy!
He’s both. Which is a great thing!
I discovered I Want A New Drug in a backward sense. I was walking in a Wall to Wall Sound and Video, and saw a “Weird” album cover. I bought it immediately. It was Dare to Be Stupid. I played that cassette until I wore it out. I Want A New Duck was so strange to me, but I loved the feel. It made me look for the original, and I have been a fan of Huey Lewis and the News ever since. I still find myself singing the Al version over top the original from time to time.
Amazing. I was just talking about this last night. Next morning the Professor has a story on it!
March 4, 2016 Huey Lewis and The News came to Puerto Rico along with opening act Loverboy. Wow, amazing experience. This was my bucket list since I was a little boy. One time I went to a sort of a small Heavy Metal fest wearing a black t-shirt with the now classic HL&TN logo and everyone (and I mean everyone) was like “Yeah man, Huey ROCKS!” or affirming by their expressions that they love his music. Still got that shirt and every time is the same reaction wherever I go. Thanks for this interview.
Last time I saw Hewey Lewis, SRV made a surprise visit!
It was a friggin awesome jam I will never forget!
A few days later SRV was gone.😢🎵R.I.P.🎵
Watched a few minutes of the episode and just after hearing a snipit of "I want a new drug", I walked away for a moment. Started to hear "Ghostbusters" in my head. Told me volumes.
Oh wow that saxophone at the 12:50 mark also sounds like the Ghostbusters song right when he says "I Ain't Afraid Of No Ghost"
Huey Lewis is a class act and always stayed true to his roots while keeping in step with the production values of the day. No doubt IMO that GB was lifted from IWAND. Was fortunate to see them play a post Mets game show @Citifield a number of years back, my kids really dug them.
Huey truly rocked my college years. Still one of my goto favorites. Great interview.
Loved "I Want A New Drug" from the very first time i heard it. From that day on, i was a fan of the band. When i first heard "Ghost Busters" i thought why does this sound so familiar, then the penny dropped. A great band Huey Lewis & The News are and still love their songs to this day.
The first time I ever heard/saw HL&TN, was on Pop Clips. They played a video for the song called “Sooner Or Later (Some of my Lies are True).” This was, to me, a perfect American New Wave song. And I remembered them later when I heard “do You Believe In Love” years later. And in concert? Unmatched. Huey is, as my friend said, nothing but cool.
I can recall a school dance, we had a live band who played Ghostbusters and without skipping a beat they were playing I Want a New Drug. Then they slid between the two songs for about 10 minutes. When done one of the band said off the mic, best two songs written by Huey Lewis we know. 😂
Thank you for this video. I've been a fan of Huey Lewis and the News for ages, and we were lucky enough to catch them at a local Casino some time ago. They were fabulous. We'd love to see them again, but Huey Lewis has Meniere's Disease and no longer performs. A tough loss but at least we have their recordings. I've got their Live at 25 DVD the day it came out. Maybe there'll be a new Blu-ray soon.
I caught Huey Lewis and the News live in August of 1982 just after their second album Picture This (my favorite Huey Lewis and the News album, by the way) was released. They opened up for Loverboy and blew Loverboy away!
I knew right away this band was going to go places.
When it comes to music, anything is going to sound like anything eventually. Look at all the Chuck Berry's guitar influence that opens up every Chuck Berry Song. In classical music which I love, there are so many pieces in so many different classical material that is somehow identical to other pieces in classical music and how that ever worked out without mass communications back then, I'll never know but there was a lot of copying going on and classical music and it was just a matter of time till 1 composer just simply heard another composers piece of music and was inspired or influenced and took a little bit of this and took a little bit of that and put that together with this or that and then the next thing you know it's a hundred years later and something else is added and then two hundred years later something else is added and you get to hear it all on the Looney Tunes and Bugs Bunny shows.
Yes indeed I do believe without any doubt that the Ghostbusters theme does have an exact "feel" as I want a new Drug. Look how many times Led Zeppelin has been sued. Mainly, Zeppelin's only fault was just simply not including the original songwriters and the credits. I'm glad to see that they finally won over the group Spirit when Zeppelin were sued a few years ago for stealing a song by Spirit that was from the 1960s. What you're going to sue Led Zeppelin now in 2004 for a song that was released in 1968?
Like I said it's eventually going to happen, songs eventually you're going to bump into each other so to speak like so many other things because everything is influence from everything else before it and it's just going to be heard over and over throughout the course of time.
When I first heard this song as a teen, I thought it was, "I want a new TRUCK." lol 😂 Sang it that way for almost a year.
Back in the mid 80's, HL&tN played a charity game of softball against the Boston University alumni team at BU. I may not have had the $ to see them in concert, but that game was a great time and I was thrilled to attend. Great memory!
I saw Huey Lewis & the news in concert. They put on one hell of a show I will never forget. 3 enchore songs. This was in Jacksonville in 84 maybe 85. The opener was Stevie Ray Vaughn. Vaughn actually got booed of the stage as he was so drunk, we thought he was going to pass out or falk off the stage. Huey Lewis & the new made up for it Big Time by playing close to 3 hrs. with the mentioned 3 enchores. I will never forget that concert, ever. They put on one hell of a show.
I’m glad we didn’t have the Internet back then. We just enjoyed the music. The majority of us were not paying much attention to magazines that might’ve been talking about this.
Both huge songs. Both songs were so much fun! If we’d had the Internet we might have ended up picking sides between the songs. For those of us music listeners. I’m glad that never happened❤
For anyone who's interested,
Huey is part of the huge ensemble cast
of the 1993 film "Short Cuts".
The cast also includes
Frances McDormand, Jack Lemmon,
Jennifer Jason Leigh, Lyle Lovett,
Lily Tomlin, Robert Downey, Jr.,
Julianne Moore, Tim Robbins,
Andie MacDowell & Fred Ward,
among many others.
Huey Lewis and the News is one of my favourite bands. They remained grounded to their music, never let fame get to their heads, never truly let trends define their music (quite the opposite actually, as I noticed a resurgence of sorts in rootsy bar bands after Sports and Fore! came out), and have been music icons for decades now. If there ever was a guy I'd give ANYTHING to get harmonica lessons from it's Mr. Lewis.
I saw Huey Lewis in concert in Rome in 1987 and LOVED HIM!!!
We've seen Huey Twice...once in the 80's, and once just a few years ago...They still got it for sure.
My first thoughts when I heard the Ghostbusters theme was that it sounded very identical to I Want A New Drug.
One of my biggest regrets is not seeing them live. I had tickets but the concert got cancelled. Sports is still one of my favourite and most played albums to this day. Great episode Prof.
I was on a run with some of my friends and played I want a new drug. One of them asked me why I was playing Ghostbusters in the summer. Just shows that they do sound similar.
Huey Lewis “cool”?!?
Sam Kinnison said it best: “It’s hip to be square only in a world where it’s cool to be named ‘Huey’!”
Tom Petty said it best that there are only so many chords and so many ways to put notes together. It is finite, not infinite so inevitably some songs might sound similar to the other
I'm so glad I found this channel, you're AWESOME, and love your interviews and history of classic rock songs. This is definitely a highlight of my day. Keep up the good work.
I think it was 1984 or 1985, the local radio station was giving away tickets to the newest Huey Lewis and the News concert. My brother was laying in bed when they announced they would give a pair of tickets if you were a specific numbered caller so he picked up the phone and dialed. He won the tickets but he had until 5pm to get to the station to pick up the tickets as the concert was that night. So I got roped into driving him all the way to Los Angeles so he could get those tickets (he was only 15 and didn’t yet have his drivers license). I was expecting to go to the concert with him but, instead, he took my dad. 😟 He did buy me a t-shirt, though, which I proudly wore for the next 3 years.