Summer In Stereo #15

From the opening horn stab, "Grease" is more than the word. It is a delicious slice of late seventies disco/pop written by the master of the form, Barry Gibb. With guitar work from both Peter Frampton and Jay Graydon backing him, Frankie Valli sings the nonsensical lyrics in his natural voice rather than his money-making falsetto, and the results are shimmery, shiny, and Summery.

The first song HERC heard from Grease on WLS in the Spring of 1978 was "You're The One That I Want." The single started getting airtime around the time the double-disc soundtrack was released in April 1978. In spite of the song not being featured in the original play or perhaps because of this unfamiliarity, as the movie had yet to be released, the song topped the Hot 100 for the week ending June 10th, 1978, which coincided with the opening of the film in theaters. Written by Newton-John's longtime manager/producer John Farrar, "You're The One That I Want" sounds at once both nostalgic and au courant, each and every Summer HERC plays it.

In the Fall of 1978, HERC started seventh grade at a new school, a junior high school. Instead of walking to and from school every day as he had for the last three years, he now had to leave the house earlier, stand at the bus stop, and ride the bus to and from his new school. Shortly after school started in September of that year, "Greased Lightnin'", the fifth and final single from the soundtrack, was released and was an instant smash at the bus stop as the boys seemed to sing it just to annoy the girls. HERC likes the song a lot less these days, but still floats back to those bus stop sing-a-longs whenever it comes on. It invariably triggers the playing of the two songs above and sometimes, even a screening of Grease 2 every now and again.

HERC previously wrote extensively 
about the Grease soundtrack HERE