"Some Guys Have All the Luck" is a song written by Jeff Fortgang. It has been a top 40 hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 twice, as the original by the Persuaders in 1973 reaching No. 39. In 1982, it was covered by

Robert Palmer Robert Allen Palmer (19 January 1949 – 26 September 2003) was an English singer and songwriter. He was known for his powerful and soulful voice, sartorial elegance and stylistic explorations, combining soul, funk, jazz, rock, pop, regga ...

, which was a hit in the UK peaking at No. 16. Then it was recorded by

Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British singer and songwriter. Known for his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling music artists of all time, having sold ...

in 1984 when it hit No. 10 in the U.S. and No. 32 on the Adult Contemporary chart.

Background

Fortgang wrote many songs during his three years in the

music industry The music industry are individuals and organizations that earn money by Songwriter, writing songs and musical compositions, creating and selling Sound recording and reproduction, recorded music and sheet music, presenting live music, concerts, ...

after graduating Yale in 1971. While Fortgang eventually released a solo album in 2013, titled ''All the Music in the World'', consisting of the demos he had created in the 1970s, "Some Guys Have All the Luck" was not one of the tracks.

Original Persuaders version

The single was released from the Persuaders' album, ''Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me''. It was their last top 40 hit in the United States, peaking at No. 7 on the R&B chart and No. 39 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in December 1973.

Chart history

Robert Palmer version

In 1982, English singer

released a version of the song as a single from his live/studio album '' Maybe It's Live''. It reached No. 16 on the UK Singles Chart. Palmer's version has a significantly altered melody and lyrics in comparison to other versions of the song. Palmer told Max Bell in 1989:

I was working with
Moon Martin John David "Moon" Martin (October 31, 1945 – May 11, 2020) was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. Early years Born in Altus, Oklahoma, United States, he was originally a rockabilly artist as a member of the Oklahoma-based band The ...
when I wrote "Some Guys". I played it to him and a few days later he said he'd just heard someone singing it in the studio across the road, which seemed impossible since I hadn't finished it myself! What happened was that I must have heard it subliminally, I think it was on Australian radio, and just hadn't realised. The only thing I remembered was the title line.

Reception

Upon its release, Ian Birch of ''

Smash Hits ''Smash Hits'' was a British music magazine aimed at young adults, originally published by EMAP. It ran from 1978 to 2006, and, after initially appearing monthly, was issued fortnightly during most of that time. The name survived as a brand ...

'' described Palmer's version as "a great combination of limb-loosening rhythm and immediate melody" and predicted the song would reach the UK top 5. Sandy Robertson, writing for '' Sounds'', noted Palmer's usual "

white soul Blue-eyed soul (also called white soul) is rhythm and blues (R&B) and soul music performed by White people, white artists. The term was coined in the mid-1960s, to describe white artists whose sound was similar to that of the predominantly black ...

" style, though here he "persists in dabbling in a kind of ersatz demented electro-Phillybuster style". She continued, "Nicely spastic beat tempered with frantic outbursts and a Beatley catch, decorated with gilt-edged explosions. Classy, if not classic."

Ian Penman Ian Penman (born 1959) is a British writer, music journalist and critic. He began his career as a writer for the ''New Musical Express'' in 1977, later contributing to various publications including '' Uncut'', '' Sight & Sound'', ''The Wire'' ...

of ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' believed it to be "merely average" as "whatever it's all about gets buried under a variety of vain vocal mannerisms", while "a dozen rhythms battl against one another for foreground space and no real rush, all just sludge". Sunie of ''

Record Mirror ''Record Mirror'' was a British weekly music newspaper published between 1954 and 1991, aimed at pop fans and record collectors. Launched two years after ''New Musical Express'', it never attained the circulation of its rival. The first UK Album ...

'' wrote: "Palmer goes pop – straighter pop, leaving his blue-eyed soul days behind, but finding nothing as substantial as the '' Clues''-period singles to replace them." In the US, ''

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'' considered it "one of Palmer's most enticing singles" since " Every Kinda People". They also noted the "offbeat rhythm" and "eccentric arrangement". ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' commented: "This cover paints yet another picture of the ever-changing Palmer. Here he plays a jumpy electronic popper".

Chart history

Rod Stewart version

British rock singer

released a cover over a decade after the original Persuaders version, released as the second single from his 1984 album ''

Camouflage Camouflage is the use of any combination of materials, coloration, or illumination for concealment, either by making animals or objects hard to see, or by disguising them as something else. Examples include the leopard's spotted coat, the b ...

''. The most successful version to date, in Stewart's native country the single climbed to No. 15 on the UK Singles Chart. In the United States, the single peaked at No. 10 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in October 1984, while on the US ''Cash Box'' Top 100, the single peaked at No. 16 in that same month. Stewart's version incorporated a vocal refrain from " Ain't Got No Home" by

Clarence "Frogman" Henry Clarence Henry II (March 19, 1937 – April 7, 2024), known as Clarence "Frogman" Henry, was an American rhythm and blues singer and pianist, best known for his hits " Ain't Got No Home" (1956) and "(I Don't Know Why) But I Do" (1961). Life a ...

. Stewart began using the Palmer-style arrangement in live concerts in 2003 after Palmer's death as a tribute, with live female backup vocalists and a horn player wearing identical dresses, similar to Palmer's signature music videos.

Track listings

7-inch single # Some Guys Have All the Luck (7" edit) - 4:03 12-inch single # Some Guys Have All the Luck (LP version) - 4:36 # Some Guys Have All the Luck (extended version) - 6:32

Chart history

Other notable cover versions

*The Shakers recorded it for their debut album ''Yankee Reggae'' (Elektra, 1976) and released the song as a single. *Reggae artist Junior Tucker recorded a version released by

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in Jamaica by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in 1959, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, another ...

in 1980. Critic

Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and later became a ...

wrote that the teenage Junior Tucker's "sweetly devastated" version was a "must-hear," and comparing it to Robert Palmer's later recording, he wrote that Tucker "owned" the song the way

Sonic Youth Sonic Youth were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1981. Founding members Kim Gordon (bass, vocals, guitar), Thurston Moore (lead guitar, vocals) and Lee Ranaldo (rhythm guitar, vocals) remained together for the entire history of ...

Kim Gordon Kim Althea Gordon (born April 28, 1953) is an American musician, singer and songwriter best known as the bassist, guitarist, and vocalist of alternative rock band Sonic Youth. Born in Rochester, New York, she was raised in Los Angeles, Califor ...

owned " Addicted to Love." *

Louise Mandrell Thelma Louise Mandrell (born July 13, 1954) is an American country music music artist (occupation), singer. She is the younger sister of fellow country singer Barbara Mandrell, and older sister of musician Irlene Mandrell. Louise had a successfu ...

recorded a country version of the song in 1985, altering the lyrics to the female perspective and changing the title to "Some Girls Have All the Luck". Mandrell's version peaked at No. 22 on the ''Billboard''

Hot Country Singles Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data along with digital sales and streaming. ...

chart in 1986. A music video was filmed for the song. *

Maxi Priest Max Alfred Elliott (born 10 June 1961), known by his stage name Maxi Priest, is a British reggae vocalist of Jamaican descent. He is best known for singing reggae music with an Contemporary R&B, R&B influence, otherwise known as reggae fusion. ...

recorded it on his album '' Maxi'' in 1987. His version peaked at No. 12 on the UK Singles Chart.

References

{{Authority control 1973 songs 1973 singles 1982 singles 1984 singles 1986 singles Robert Palmer (singer) songs The Persuaders (R&B group) songs Maxi Priest songs Rod Stewart songs Louise Mandrell songs Atco Records singles Island Records singles Warner Records singles Songs about luck