Franke and the Knockouts "Sweetheart"

Franke and the Knockouts are responsible for the 1981 song "Sweetheart", but also for most of the radio hits from the Dirty Dancing Soundtrack. Lead singer Franke Previte (who sounds like he could be the lead singer of Toto) co-wrote both "Hungry Eyes" and "(I've Had) The Time of My Life" which later became hits for Eric Carmen and Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes, respectfully.

Eric Carmen "Hungry Eyes"

Renowned chef Wolfgang Puck made his way down the long hallway that separated the two radio stations' studios. Upon Puck's passing our station, the host of the morning show I produced waved. Puck stopped, backed up and entered our studio. The three of us scrambled to say hello and also to let him know that he was at the wrong studio. He didn't seem to mind, but the Marketing Director of our sister station did. He kept making a face that said, "Don't talk to him!". Without thinking, I blurted out: "I love your canned soups! The minestrone is my favorite!!". A few moments later after Puck left, the show's co-host turned to me and let out a huge laugh.

"You meet one of the biggest celebrity chefs of all time and all you can say is...". Laughter took over and she gasped for air to replay my conversation with Puck. "All you can say is: 'I love your canned soup'?!?!?!"

"Was that bad?" I honestly questioned.

More laughter from the room.

To this day, I still buy cans of Wolfgang Puck's soup both as penance and because they're damn good!

Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes "(I've Had) The Time of My Life"

All teenage boys dream of their girlfriends doing a "dirty" dance for them. In my case, it wasn't at all what I expected. For weeks, my high school girlfriend, Missy, practiced a dance for her final high school choir concert. During said concert, all seniors had the opportunity to do something of their choosing. Missy told me she planned to do something from the Dirty Dancing Soundtrack. Since I had never seen the movie, I assumed she'd sing and dance to one of the movie's songs. When the curtain went up, she and her dance partner (who happened to be her ex-boyfriend) re-enacted the famous dirty dancing scene from the 1987 movie. A few seconds into the performance, Missy's cousin whispered into my ear, "Are you gonna be alright?". I jealously watched as the two of them did a damn good job up there. There were twirls, jumps, short skirts, and lots of touching. At the end, I wasn't sure how to feel. I swallowed hard and congratulated Missy while silently wondering if there was anything going on with her dance partner/ex-boyfriend. A while later, he announced he was gay.

Eric Carmen - "Make Me Lose Control"

If you were named Jennifer and alive during the late-80s, someone likely serenaded you to the song "Make Me Lose Control".  This #1 hit would be the last from Eric Carmen at a time when his other hit, "Hungry Eyes", was still getting massive airplay on the radio.  '

"Make Me Lose Control" is unique because most people:
A. Do not remember it
B. Believe the title is "Turn the Radio Up"
C. Think that it was on the "Dirty Dancing" soundtrack
D. Wish that when they were dating a girl named "Jennifer" that they had phoned in this request to their local radio station

Patrick Swayze - "She's Like The Wind"

Most 80's movies featured soundtracks loaded with radio-ready pop songs, and the "Dirty Dancing" soundtrack was no exception.  It spawned three big hits during the summer of 1987 including a song from Patrick Swayze, one of the movie's lead characters.  Swayze originally wrote "She's Like The Wind" for the 1984 movie "Grandview, USA", but it was never used.  He dusted off the song and presented it to the "Dirty Dancing" producers who liked it and included it in their film's soundtrack.  The song shot to #1 on the Adult Contemporary charts and received increased airplay following Swayze's 2009 death.