Tryin' to get away, into the night

November 1987 must have been a very good month for Richie Cordell and Tommy James. Yesterday's song was James' "Mony Mony," co-written by Cordell and others, which went to #1 on the Billboard charts on November 27 But for the two previous weeks, the #1 tune was originally also penned by Cordell and recorded by James, in 1967: teen idol Tiffany's cover of "I Think We're Alone Now":

Unlike "Mony Mony," which is more or less a straight cover with different instrumentation, Tiffany transformed "I Think We're Alone Now" from sort of late-60s psychedelic surf tune into an infectious 80s dance single, which I think is superior. I've said a few times before that I have grown fond of a number of songs from the 1980s that I originally hated, and this is one of them. Wish I could say the same for the rest of Tiffany's songs. I will not, I repeat not be subjecting you to her wretched cover of the Beatles' "I Saw Her [er, Him] Standing There."