Bryan Adams - "I'll Always Be Right There"

If memory serves me right, Bryan Adams' "I'll Always Be Right There" was one of those songs that made me immediately change the radio station when I heard it.  As I write Growing Up Adult Contemporary, I make it a point to listen to each song while I write each post.  Admittedly, I'm not as irritated by the song as I was during the summer of 1996 when the ballad took root on Adult Contemporary radio stations.  My apologies, Bryan.

Todd Rundgren - "I Saw The Light"

A few weeks ago, Growing Up Adult Contemporary passed the 700 post mark.  In all of those posts of Adult Contemporary gems, there had never been a song from anyone named Todd (despite the fact someone named Todd authors this blog).  Today, we break that streak.  For quite a while, I mistook Todd Rundgren's "I Saw The Light" as a Genesis song--not because of Rundgren's voice, but because the melody sounded very late-70s/early-80s Genesis-ish.  From one Todd to another, my apologies.

Richard Marx "Endless Summer Nights"

We've already learned that Adult Contemporary music from the 1980s loved their saxophone solos (just take a quick listen to the bridge of Richard Marx's "Endless Summer Nights"). Well, what else can we gather from Growing Up Adult Contemporary? Quite simply: don't talk shit about Richard Marx. A few years ago, a blogger referred to Marx's music as "shameless". It's something that internet writers and trolls do all the time (heck, if Rod Stewart read this blog he'd have some words for me). But, in the case, Richard didn't take this criticism lightly. He actually contacted the writer and asked him if he had the balls to meet him and say it to his face. Seeing it as an opportunity to take a non-story into a big story, the writer actually met with Marx and the two hashed things out. In the exchange (chronicled here), Marx claims that his music is "huuuuge at Walgreens" (the underlying theme of Growing Up Adult Contemporary). Definitely read the article and then try to answer the question: who is the hero and who is the villain in this bizarre tale.

Jude Cole - "Tell The Truth"

Chances are you've never heard the name Jude Cole, yet he's been in the background of one of the more successful rock bands from the 2000s.  Jude serves as manager, producer, and co-writer of Lifehouse.  Prior to that, he found success in the early-1990s as a solo artist.  "Tell the Truth" was one such hit from 1993.