I've referred to Sandy Owen's "The Island Groove" as a well-played piano piece on this blog before. I first heard it during KCLC's smooth jazz days 29 years ago. For nearly three decades, I've been wondering, whose piano playing does this resemble? I know there's at least one song in which the piano playing in the chorus resembles "The Island Groove." Just recently, it struck me. The song it reminds me of is today's persistent earworm. It's a hit from 1977, and it's...
..."Lonely Boy" by Andrew Gold. It's played only once in a great while on the radio these days, and its lyrics are unusual for a pop hit. Offhand, I think it's the only hit song I know of in which a child is put off by the attention his parents are lavishing on his baby sister. In less capable hands, the song could never have been a hit. Gold makes it work, however. The song comes together impressively, thanks to a strong piano part, which Gold plays with crashing force, excellent lead guitar playing from Waddy Wachtel, and Gold's full-throated conviction on the vocals. Until a few days ago, it was a song I hadn't thought about in many years, but Owen's "The Island Groove" triggered it out of the blue. I've been thinking about it ever since then and wishing I'd written that piano part. That has to be a blast to pound out in concert, regardless of how many times you've played it. It's odd how the connection between one song and another sometimes springs to mind immediately, and other times, over one-third of your projected life span goes by before you think of it.
