Valentine Kisses Top Ten: Kiss You All Over (#1)

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I guess today is Virginia’s day. I mean, it’s Valentine’s Day, and Valentine’s Day is for lovers. And Virginia is for lovers, too! (Aside: Virginia is a beautiful state.) So today the month-long list of songs with “kiss” in the title concludes with my favorite kisser. Pucker up, ‘cause here it is! #1: Kiss You All Over - Exile Here’s another band that’s been around a lot, lot longer than you’d think. They burst on the scene in 1978 with this killer song, that had enough to let people dance to it but was certainly no disco tune. However, the genesis of the band began in 1963 in Richmond, Kentucky (home of Eastern Kentucky University). Their first album was released in 1973. This came around in 1978 and was one of the few songs The Bee Gees didn’t write to hit #1 that year. (Seriously, between the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack and their little brother Andy Gibb, you couldn’t escape The Bee Gees if you tried!) After the success of this song Exile took a new route in the 80s when the lead singer on this song, Jimmy Stokley, left. (He died in 1985.) J.P. Pennington became the driving force in the band. Given that his dad was a Renfro Valley performer (Glenn Pennington), the 1980s Exile took a slightly more country turn. (Only slightly: remember the Huey Lewis & the News song, “Heart and Soul”? Exile originally did that.) This has been a favorite for a long time. It’s on my 100 favorites list. And it’s the perfect song to kiss this countdown goodbye with. Thanks for reading. Kiss You All Over Written by Mike Chapman and Nicky Chinn Recorded by Exile From Mixed Emotions, 1978 Til the night closes in: