I am 60 and any time l hear something great that came out before 1985 l am ecstatic! It sure is fun isn't it? If you have never heard Girls by Dwight Twilley, you might dig it too...l was reminded of that because he died a few weeks ago. And depending on how much of a music nerd you are, the lead singer on "The Rapper" by The Jaggerz was a young Donnie Ierace. 😮
I had almost forgotten about how great this song was. The Professor of Rock brought it back to my heart and playlist. If we could only go back to the 80’s. 💜
Musically, Donnie was obviously gifted. Unfortunately he was anti-telegenic. That, in my view, is the primary reason why his career fizzled before it had a chance to really start. If he had been a Tom Cruise look-alike, he would likely have sold one platinum record after another after another.
Not sure what you mean by anti- telegenic. He's not a bad looking guy, he was well dressed and presentable...he's not 300 pounds. Just curious why you believe that...
I named my beautiful girl after this song. She passed away just before her 18th birthday. Everytime i hear this song it takes me back to a happier time 💓 Rest In Peace my sweet baby girl.
How many times while driving did listening to this song give you an exhilarating feeling causing you to smoke the tires, get crossed up sideways drift around a corner, or simply just floor it on a straight away? That's the kind of stuff I think about when I listen to it.
Got that right. Will groups like the Stones, Who, Journey, Sir Paul McCartney, Van Halen, KISS, Aerosmith, Doobie Brothers and all the others ever have equals? Many are still touring. So many boy bands, other groups have come and gone. Who will remember them 25 years from now?
the most amazing thing to me is how experimental he was. he was a member of jaggerz in 1970 "the rapper" was their big hit. he was a member of wild cherry in 1975. their big hit was "play that funky music white boy." then in 1980 he comes up with donnie and the cruisers "ah leah." what a broad range. what a great talent! and he was still touring in 2015 at age 73 and still had the voice and owned the stage. we love you donnie.
Unless you grew up in the 80's you couldn't possibly understand how FANTASTIC it was.... I was born in the perfect year, 1965...... my formative years had the most amazing music... the 70's and 80's.... I never thought I'd be old enough to say this, but the kids these days have no idea how good 'we' had it.... also, no cell phones..... cruising, radio blasting, friends, being OUTDOORS...... I had the best childhood/adolescence ever, thank you God.
It really was magical... back then, you didn't have 24/7 access to your favorite music so you really appreciated it when you heard your favorite song on the radio, or if it was on Don Kirshner's rock concert on Saturday night, etc.... nowadays, kids have full access to anything they want, any time of day, which makes then less appreciative of it all, I think...
Not the majority. You just forget all the crap back then. There certainly was a ton of great music back then, but, let's get real. There was definitely no higher percentage of great music back then than any other decade. Tons of shit.
Professor of Rock (more like professor of Adult Contemporary) just ripped off your comment ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-89gjEV3u83w.html It's not enough that he has to present the song by making up a story of his childhood that clearly never happened, he has also has to steal comments.
@@milkcarton6654 i just watched his video on this song and it's literally what he said. I couldn't believe that he stealed that comment, really poor move.
@@milkcarton6654 I guess I should claim my part of the millions he earns through his 'telling long winded personal anecdotes about old pop songs' empire.
Donnie rocks!! Still!! A simple song to describe his insatiable love for her!! AND HE HITS THOSE HIGH NOTES!!!!!! MOST EXCELLENT!! MY band BEAUTY AND THE AUSSIE BEATS covers this song and I hit the high but Donnie does it best!! I love you man and love your rocking way!
When a dude who looks like everyone's dorky cousin at someone's Bar Mitzvah lets loose one of rock's most powerful primal screams ever: WHAAAAAAA LEAAAAAAHHH! WE'RE NEVER GONNA MAAAAKE IT, YEAAAAHHHH!!
Working at the door at Outlaws night club in Vancouver in the early 80's and when this one came on .. no room left on the dance floor .. awesome memories
+Cindy Wedel That was the good ol' days! Can't find record stores anymore....or CD stores for that matter. Those days were so simple and really good times! :) 80's music kicked ass!
Brings back alot of Great Memories. I graduated 🎓 in1980. Saw this on Hair Band on FB, don't think I'd call it a Hair Band. Decades have come and gone in my life span. But, the memories will always be! 💋 "Keep Rocking" What a Classic
I remember the first time I heard this song.. 1980, riding down some wooded, winding road on a Harley Davidson full dresser, blaring this song.. I was 18.. I'm 61 now, and it always takes me back to that warm summer evening..
I grew up in the 80's outside Philly and I don't ever remember hearing this song once. 40 years later I wet to Lancaster and sitting in a parking lot listening to 93.5 this came on. This song defines infectious. I wake up in the middle of the night.. ah Leah ...all day..can't believe I never heard it..I've played it at least 7 times today...masterpiece
I'm going to be 57 in a few weeks and 80's songs will never be bettered, this particular song for some reason has always made me feel that pure adventure is about to happen on the perfect summer day, better than the last. I'm now disabled and would fall off of a foot propelled scooter, but feel the urge to go hop on a BMX bike and do some gnarly tricks ^5
1980's by far had the best bands and songs of any decade. Soooo glad I got to experience it as it happened. Even back then we loved the music coming out. All the super bands were at their peak, Van Halen, Rush, Journey, Styx, Boston, Asia, David Bowie, Dire Straights, heart, Lover boy, Pat Benatar, The policeREM, 38 Special, Tom petty, ZZ Top and on and on and on. Such great memories!
The cell phone was invented in 1974. Not popular for use till the 1990’s. My friends dad had a big old brick cell phone in the mid eighties. He also worked for Southwestern Bell Telephone Co.
I heard this song on a local radio station about 14 years ago. I absolutely loved it and never found out who sang it. I heard it again about 6 years ago at about 75% of the song had already played and still didn't know who sang it. Well, October 5. 2022 I was at a pet store with my son and I thought I heard that Chorus Ah Leah. I ran to be near a speaker and I was excited that it was THAT elusive song. I listened to see what radio station played it, Google their play list and then looked it up by title on RU-vid. It was there that I was introduced to Donnie Iris. I have listened to this song so much since Wednesday. Run Riot by Def Leppard was my all time favorite song ever. On October 5th, 2022 it was relegated to 2nd by Ah! Leah! by Donnie Iris. I just can't stop listening to it. I grew up in the 80's and never heard this song before. I love it!!! Thank you Donnie Iris!!!!
..lol. ..Congrats on The Great Find ! 💎 Remember, you can always Google the main lyric portion of a song to discover it, also. 😉 ..and don't sleep on Donnie's "other" big rocker "Love Is Like a Rock"(1981) ! 👍👍 ... Enjoy the music !! 🤘 🍻
+joe suszko Right? It's incredible. I would pay this song and She's A Beauty by The Tubes all the time. Plus Sausalito Summer Nights. I don't know why but I think of these three songs together.
This song is special to me. Growing up I remember being upset because my name wasn't common enough to be in any songs, and with my sister being named Sarah, the most popular name at the time, I felt unspecial. My dad showed me this song and I fell in love with it. On top of it being about a girl named Leah, its also a really awesome song. It feels like a badass intro for me lol. To all the Leah's out there, this is our athem😎
MY MOST FAVORITE SONG EVER IN MY LIFE. I'm 59 now and remember when it came out. i could listen to this song on a 4 hour loop every day. Miss it so much, rest in peace 1980's. We will always remember you fondly.
This is one of the greatest songs ever recorded. Even by today's standards, the mastering is exquisite. I am 59 years of age, and I have to agree with Ms. Starks. I wouldn't trade the music and great times I've grown up with for anything in the world.
I have never heard this song or of Donnie Iris before tonight. I was shopping in Woolies and this incredible hook over the radio stopped me dead in the aisle. I shazamed it and my life changed. How tf have I slept on this track? I'm from that era!! EDIT: the reason this has me so stumped is that not only am I an avid music lover, I collect vinyl and some of my faves to collect are rock and pop compilations from the 80s and 90s. Not a single one of my records (I've been collecting solidly for about 26 years now) has this track or any Donnie Iris track. It's like a glitch in the Matrix. They changed something. They added Donnie Iris to our reality. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad they did, but this is a crazy head trip.
Same! Just happened to me today. I was born in 86’ but grew up on 80’s rock and I’ve heard this song back when I was a kid so when I heard it again I googled what I thought the lyrics were in order to find this song. Just bought it on iTunes!!!
SAME!! i am listening b watching 👀 this based ass song n video 4 the very FIRST TIME and am absolutely BLOWN AWAY-- and I 2 am from the same era!!!! this will be on repeat from now on FO SHO!!!
THIS IS ABOUT AS GOOD OF A LOW BUDGET ROCK SONG AS I'VE EVER HEARD ...LOVED IT SINCE THE DAY I HEARD IT ...I'M 57 SO THAT'S SAYING ALOT ...THIS SONG AND RECORDING IS MAGICAL . DONNY IS A GREAT SINGER . AND THE VOCAL OVER DUBS ARE SPECTACULAR ....
One of the most underrated Rock and Roll songs ever! Her creates incredible tension in this song and then there's that voice! It's an allll-ttime classic! Thank you Donnie Iris!
52 here. I just blasted this song on repeat all the way to work just this morning in my dodge charger. One hand of the wheel and the other on the shifter.
Many people say negative things about one hit wonders! But the reality is………… It is one more great song that we can appreciate! This song will stand the test of time!
Only thing is Donnie is not a one hit wonder. He was also in a group WILD CHERRY from Steubenville ohio. A song called PLAY THAT FUNKY MUSIC WHITE BOY. also the JAGGERS THE RAPPER he's been around.
I used to give my girl Leah a ride to school every day in my 74' Monte Carlo at the time this song came out. It was truly synchronicity for us. Those were the days. Lots of good memories. I miss every minute of it.
this is an awesome tune, but folks here are incorrect about the nerd thing, its actually buddy holly theme type video, the movement, look, and so forth he actually played with wild cherry before this vid who had a great tune as well, play that funky music, but he also had another hit so he Is not a one hit wonder, look it up, has something to do with rock, go figure, 80's was great, so these idiots with the nerd quotes don't know crap
Duane Anderson Exactly! It was fairly obvious he was "doing Holly" when this video came out. This is one of those great Rock songs written during the 80s, though, along with Aldo Nova's "Fantasy" and Red Rider's "Lunatic Fringe" (among others). . .
At 3:00 am I woke up and wanted to hear this song. When I play it, I always play it over and over again. I told myself I would only play it once. Here I am an hour later and it's still on repeat 😁
Just saw a video of him performing for his 80th birthday!! He looks & still sounds amazing at 80!!! Rock on Donny Iris!! Thanks for the great music & happy birthday!!
He's trying to say there were lots of great song sin the early eighties and Drew is full of shit, at least that's how I read it , and t would be true .
I could agree with you but then we'd both be wrong. Sure, there were a load of excellent songs from the early 1980s (notice, I did qualify it with "early '80s") but nevertheless, this indeed is one of the better ones. Of course there were other great ones as well, undoubtedly.
Yes. I contend that 1981 was the last year of the universally good music. After that, the sucky stuff quickly took over. By 1983 music was unrecognizably bad. The worst of that decade passed by 87 or so. Things turned around until the early 2000s. It hasn't been the same since.
One of my all time favorites, they played this song at the Omni before every concert in Atlanta. I"m 57 years old now, brings back visions of my youth, and this song cranked up. I love it!!!!!
The first time I heard this song, I was driving to work. I had to pull off the road and blast it until it was over. Then the DJ didn't back announce and I was glued to that radio for weeks before they played it again. Ah, the good old days!!
I love this song. I'm 52 and I blast this song 4 times a week since it came out. I sing along loud as I can. My voice sucks but I don't care. I belt this song out loud as hell, evertime I play. One of the best songs of the 80s.
My mother played this song on the way to grade school flag football game. It worked. We won the Northern California football championship as seniors in high school. Boo. Back then we had no state championship games. We were not in the top 10. 9-2 does not get a chance.
Amazing song. Love the vocals. God, I miss the 80s. What a decade in which to come of age. The music, the general attitude, the sex, the parties, the concerts...INCREDIBLE.
+Mcelyea Eileen Sadly those days are gone' no bands nowdays can match the talent of the 80's hair bands' I was in my early 20's during this time and loved every minute of it .
your dad and i think the same my oldest is named Leah , because of the song and was the one request i made of my wife when we married. That our first born daughter would be named Leah.
Doug in San Diego The general definition of One Hit Wonder in the US is making the Top 40 of the Hot 100 only once. Ah Leah definitely qualifies.... Jessie's Girl, not so much since Mr. Springthorpe had 5 Top 10s on the Hot 100. He had 17 Top 40 hits... Jessie's Girl wasn't even his first, he had a hit in 1971 with Speak to the Sky off his first album. It hit 14. Corey Hart had 7 Top 40 hits the US as well.
Doug in San Diego Yeah, Springfield was originally a musician. His manager wanted to expand into acting. Gotta admit, it worked. I had to look up some of those stats, but I knew RS had at least 4 hits (Jessie's Girl, I've Done Everything for You (a cover of a Sammy Hagar song)- Both off Working Class Dog, Don't Talk to Strangers and Affair of the Heart. All Top 10s). For Corey Hart, I didn't know all those hits but I certainly remember Never Surrender in addition to Sunglasses. Turns out Never Surrender made it higher on the US Charts than Sunglasses. An interesting side note, strictly speaking Jimi Hendrix is a One Hit Wonder. All Along the Watchtower went to 20 in 1968. The Grateful Dead could also be added to your list as their one and only Top 40 hit, Touch of Grey, went to #9 in 1987.
Joseph Dungee Who didn't! Right!!!! Today, I heard it on the radio for the 1st time in years and I was curious as to what the guy looked like who sang it...Wow, not what I was expecting. He looks more like a computer nerd (nothing wrong with that, I kind of lean in the nerdy camp myself!) when I was expecting more long haired rocker...that's what I get for stereotyping. Shame on me :) Anyhow, I replied to your comment because it summed my experience up so well!
Just watched a video of him doing this live last summer, 2021. The dude was 78 years old (79 now) and could still belt this out and move around the stage. Amazing!
Pittsburgh’s own Donnie Iris.. This Pittsburgh girl grew up on this song, Love is like a Rock and Do You Compute.. Loved it in the early 80’s and still listen to it now in 2020...
