In November 1987, Two Tommy James Covers Went #1 Back-to-Back

Tommy James had a career that blasted off due to incredible luck. Years later he took the worst advice ever from a manager about a gig that has to be his biggest regret. And a year later did so many drugs he collapsed at a show and was pronounced dead.

From that first spark of good luck to being pronounced dunzo, Tommy James and the Shondells racked up twelve Top 40 hits, including five in the Hot 100's top ten.

One of his 23 Gold singles, "Crimson and Clover."

And best of all, when he was pronounced dead that night in 1970, he cheated death and rose. He also broke up the band and swore off going back into a recording studio.

But because he's Tommy James, when he went back into the studio later that year, now as a solo artist, he cranked out a song that went #4.

A decade later a testament to his ability as a songwriter, something incredible happened. Two very different artists, punk rock bad boy Billy Idol and suburban mall princess Tiffany covered two different Tommy James and the Shondells tunes that each went #1 in consecutive weeks.

On November 7th, 1987, 16 year-old Tiffany went to the top of the singles chart with "I Think We're Alone Now."

At #3 was Billy Idol with a different James tune, "Mony Mony." In between them was Madonna. Billy had a difficult path leaping both of those female singers.

But on November 21 it happened, the song inspired by a flashing billboard for Mutual of New York Insurance got the former frontman of Generation X his first and only #1 single.

Over his career Idol has performed "Mony Mony" 499 times, making it his 5th most played tune.

"I Think We're Alone Now" is Tiffany's most performed tune, at a little over 100 times. Tommy James and the Shondells did it 114 times, as far as our records state.

Tommy James is still out there rocking with the Shondells. A few days before Halloween they played the classic Golden Nugget hotel in Las Vegas.

They began their set with the hit he wrote a few months after he was pronounced dead, "Draggin the Line." They did the song Joan Jett had a hit from, "Crimson and Clover." They rocked his first hit that was discovered in a used record crate by a local dance promoter who started playing it and it took off, "Hanky Panky."

Tommy James and the Shondells in Maryland this September.

They gave the Vegas crowd "I Think We're Alone Now," acoustically and later electric.

And they performed "Mony Mony" twice. Why not? The man is 76 years old!

And he's probably still recovering from the terrible advice his manager once gave him, to not play Woodstock.

Tommy James and the Shondells have one more gig this year but several more scheduled for 2024. Tickets are available on his website. He also has a show on Sirius/XM's 60s Gold on Sundays called "Gettin' Together With Tommy James."

Speaking of Vegas, earlier this spring, Billy Idol became the first person to play Hoover Dam. Alongside him were Tony Kanal of No Doubt on bass; his longtime guitarist Steve Stevens; and another Steve, Jones, of the Sex Pistols on the other guitar.

A movie called Billy Idol: State Line was made of that private concert to 250 lucky fans, and, move over Taylor Swift, it hits theaters later this month. Get your tickets here.

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