Ten Favorite Song Songs: The Break-Up Song (#9)

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Home from the tournament! We lived up to our reputation as the "Rainmakers," as there was some heavy duty rain last night. Amazingly, we made it through the tournament without rain delays, the use of canoes or life jackets, or fishing gear. I played much better today, despite double-bogeying the first hole twice, and finished in third for a cash spot. While my body aches from all of that, here's the next song on my list of favorite songs with "song" in the title. #9: The Break-Up Song (They Don't Write 'Em) - Greg Kihn Band Ah, good ol' Beserkley Records. They had a motto: "Home of the Hits." Of course, they didn't have any hits. I remember Billboard chiding them for getting close with the Rubinoos when their cover of "I Think We're Alone Now" made a run for the top 40 (it fell short). Then along came the Greg Kihn Band. Known for great power pop and album titles with puns on Kihn's name in them (Next of Kihn, Citizen Kihn), they made Beserkley Records very big. Greg Kihn got popular at the right time: the rise in power pop, college radio, and MTV allowed Kihn's music to get out there. People liked it and bought it. His biggest hit was "Jeopardy," which was so big that Weird Al spoofed it as "I Lost on Jeopardy" (and Kihn proved his sense of humor by mimicking the last scene in his video in the Weird Al video!). But there was this song, a tongue-and-cheek look at break-up songs, with the chorus proclaiming, "they don't write 'em like that anymore," that marked Kihn's -- and, by extension, Beserkley's -- first venture into the top 40. It's a great, fun song. And your trivia: although not playing on this song, Joe Satriani was a member of the Greg Kihn Band. The Break-Up Song (They Don't Write 'Em) Written by Greg Kihn and Steve Wright Recorded by the Greg Kihn Band From RocKihnRoll, 1981 I wind up staring at an empty glass: