Spend an hour remembering some of the most popular jazz of 1981 as listed on the Top 50 Jazz Albums chart in the August 8, 1981 issue of Billboard magazine.
Playlist:
#48: “Dream of Dreams” by Joe Sample, from the #48 album of the week, Voices in the Rain. The album was Sample’s fifth “solo” release (and his first on MCA), but he had help from fellow Crusaders Stix Hooper and Wilton Felder. The album debuted on the jazz chart in February of 1981, peaked at #2 in March, and would hang around through the end of August.
| Billboard Album Charts: |
Peak |
Weeks |
| Jazz |
2 |
30 |
| Billboard 200 |
65 |
20 |
| R&B |
29 |
15 |
| 1981 Jazz Year End |
20 |
|
#43: “Fate” by Chaka Khan, from the #43 album of the week, What Cha’ Gonna Do for Me. This album spent only 8 weeks on the jazz chart during the months of July and August, 1981, peaking at #35 on July 11. The album is more R&B than jazz, but Khan was supported on this track by several prominent jazz session musicians, including guitarist Hiram Bullock and Richard Tee on Clavinet.
| Billboard Album Charts: |
Peak |
Weeks |
| Jazz |
35 |
8 |
| Billboard 200 |
17 |
18 |
| R&B |
3 |
23 |
#39: “Matinee Idol” by Yellowjackets, from the #39 album of the week, Yellowjackets. The lead track from the group’s debut album. This track was released as a 12″ single with the following review blurb on the cover in caps:
“THE YELLOWJACKETS’ ALBUM RANKS AS ONE OF THE FINEST, MOST RADIO-ACCESSIBLE JAZZ-ROCK OFFERINGS OF THE YEAR. GUT REACTION TO THE YELLOWJACKETS PARALLELS THE POWER OF THE CRUSADERS (the good ol’ Crusaders with Larry Carlton, etc.). FEATURED MUSICIANS INCLUDE RUSSELL FERRANTE ON KEYBOARDS, ROBBEN FORD ON GUITAR. A DIGITAL RECORDING, PRODUCED BY TOMMY LiPUMA, YELLOWJACKETS FLOATS LIKE A BUTTERFLY, STINGS LIKE A BEE, AND SOUNDS LIKE A HORNETS’ NEST OF HONEY-DIPPED JAZZ/ROCK. AN EXTREMELY FINE RECORD.”
The week marked the album’s debut on the jazz chart, it would go on to peak at #18 on October 10.
| Billboard Album Charts: |
Peak |
Weeks |
| Jazz |
18 |
23 |
| Billboard 200 |
201 |
– |
#33: “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes” by Earl Klugh from the #33 album, Late Night Guitar. This track lead of the album with Klugh simply playing the 1933 Jerome Kern standard alone on his acoustic guitar. The album, Klugh’s seventh as a solo artist, received a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Instrumental Performance, losing to Larry Carlton & Mike Post for “The Theme from Hill Street Blues.” The album had debuted on the chart in December 1980, peaked at #4 in February 1981, and was seven weeks away from ending its 39 week chart run on this August 8 chart.
| Billboard Album Charts: |
Peak |
Weeks |
| Jazz |
4 |
39 |
| Billboard 200 |
98 |
23 |
| R&B |
40 |
18 |
| 1981 Jazz Year End |
6 |
|
#31: “Every Day (I Thank You)” by Pat Metheny from the #31 album, 80/81. The album features Pat Metheny (leader, guitars), Dewey Redman (tenor saxophone), Charlie Haden (bass), Michael Brecker (tenor saxophone), and Jack DeJohnette (drums). For the record, Brecker plays sax on this particular cut, which took up most of side 4 of this double album set. The album had debuted on the jazz charts way back on November 1, 1980.
| Billboard Album Charts: |
Peak |
Weeks |
| Jazz |
4 |
44 |
| Billboard 200 |
89 |
14 |
| 1981 Jazz Year End |
5 |
|
#18: “Bread Sandwiches” by Bernard Wright from the #18 album, ‘Nard. The son of singer Roberta Flack, keyboardist Wright hailed from Jamaica, Queens along with other funk-jazzers Tom Browne and Lenny White. This album, released when Wright was only 18, had only a few instrumental tracks, including this one from side two. Released on the fledgling GRP label, this album was produced by label founders Dave Grusin & Larry Rosen. Wright’s only appearance on the jazz charts, this one debuted on April 11, peaked May 9, and slipped off the chart September 12.
| Billboard Album Charts: |
Peak |
Weeks |
| Jazz |
7 |
22 |
| Billboard 200 |
116 |
14 |
| R&B |
23 |
24 |
| 1981 Jazz Year End |
36 |
|
#13: “Mountain Dance” by Dave Grusin from the #13 album, Mountain Dance. Grusin was doing it all back in ’81, from film scoring to producing to label management to collaborating to recording his own stuff. This is the title track to his second GRP album, his most successful as a solo act, and can still be heard on smooth jazz radio formats to this day. The album first hit the jazz chart in mid-March, peaked in May, and would hang around the charts until mid-November.
| Billboard Album Charts: |
Peak |
Weeks |
| Jazz |
3 |
36 |
| Billboard 200 |
74 |
18 |
| 1981 Jazz Year End |
8 |
|
#9: “Gettin’ Up” by Tom Scott from the #9 album, Apple Juice. A live album, recorded in New York City, featuring Scott backed up by the members of Stuff, plus a few other recognizable session musician names: Eric Gale (electric and acoustic guitar), Hugh McCracken (electric guitar), Richard Tee (keyboards), Marcus Miller (bass), Ralph MacDonald (percussion), and Steve Gadd (drums). On this track, which leads off side two of the album, Scott is featured on the newfangled Lyricon electronic wind instrument (EWI) as well as his usual tenor. At #9 on this particular chart, it would peak two weeks later at #7 and stay on the chart until February 13, 1982.
| Billboard Album Charts: |
Peak |
Weeks |
| Jazz |
7 |
31 |
| Billboard 200 |
123 |
11 |
| 1981 Jazz Year End |
33 |
|
#6: “Is It You?” by Lee Ritenour from the #6 album, RIT. A pop release from a long-time jazzer/session ace, this album did surprisingly well, spurred along by this song. “Is It You?” with vocals by Eric Tagg, was a Top 40 single, hitting #15 not only on the pop chart but also the Adult Contemporary chart. It is also notable for its video receiving considerable airplay during the first few days of air in August, 1981 (it was the 44th, 108th, and 148th video aired). Ritenour would re-record this song for his 2005 release, Overtime, featuring vocalists Grady Harrell and Kenya Hathaway. The RIT album debuted on the jazz chart on May 9, 1981 and hung around the top ten for almost 6 months.
| Billboard Album Charts: |
Peak |
Weeks |
| Jazz |
4 |
40 |
| Billboard 200 |
26 |
23 |
| R&B |
20 |
20 |
| 1981 Jazz Year End |
9 |
|
#4: “Let’s Just Say Goodbye” by David Sanborn from the #4 album, Voyeur. The lead track to Sanborn’s first #1 jazz album. The album, which stayed on the jazz chart for over a year, featured many recognizable names, including Marcus Miller, Hiram Bullock, Steve Gadd, and Buzzy Feiten. Sanborn’s previous album, Hideaway, occupies the 27 spot on this chart in its 76th week. The Voyeur album had held the #1 spot position two weeks prior to this date, but ultimately spent a total of 30 weeks in the top ten.
| Billboard Album Charts: |
Peak |
Weeks |
| Jazz |
1 |
53 |
| Billboard 200 |
45 |
22 |
| R&B |
18 |
21 |
| 1981 Jazz Year End |
4 |
|
#1: “Winelight” by Grover Washington, Jr. from the #1 album, Winelight. A huge crossover hit, this was by far Washington’s most successful album. And all the usual suspects are here: Ralph MacDonald, Marcus Miller, Steve Gadd, Eric Gale, and Richard Tee. This album spent over three years on the jazz chart, including an incredible 31 weeks in the #1 spot. Not only was this the #1 jazz album of 1981, it was also the #18 jazz album of 1982 and the #47 jazz album of 1983.
| Billboard Album Charts: |
Peak |
Weeks |
| Jazz |
1 |
183 |
| Billboard 200 |
5 |
52 |
| R&B |
2 |
49 |
| 1981 Jazz Year End |
1 |
|
