When Things Go Wrong

Album: Robin Lane & The Chartbusters (1980)
Charted: 87
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • "When Things Go Wrong" is the most enduring song from Robin Lane & the Chartbusters, largely by virtue of its video being the eleventh music video ever shown on MTV. Robin Lane's career started when she sang on Neil Young's "Round And Round (It Won't Be Long)." She and the Chartbusters had two studio and one live album released under Warner Bros. from 1980–81.

    The band was almost universally lauded. Lane's voice and tight songwriting were top notch, and most people in the music press thought the Chartbusters would be successful, but the closest they got to busting the charts was with this song at #87. As with many talented bands, that never quite panned out, and the band broke up officially in 1983. They got together a few times in the years since, but it was for one-off reunion shows the like.
  • The song is about a loving relationship that has grown cold. In the tough times, the guy grows distant, and the girl grows frustrated.

    In a Songfacts interview with Robin Lane, she had little to say about it, offering only that she doesn't like the chorus. "It annoys me."
  • Robin Lane wrote this song with Joanne Cipolla, who was a member of the group Planet Street.
  • "When Things Go Wrong" grew out of an earlier Lane song titled "Never Enough." That song was covered by the Pousette-Dart Band on their 1979 album of the same name.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Lip-Synch Rebels

Lip-Synch RebelsSong Writing

What happens when Kurt Cobain, Iron Maiden and Johnny Lydon are told to lip-synch? Some hilarious "performances."

Boy Bands

Boy BandsFact or Fiction

From NKOTB to 1D, how well do you know your boy bands?

Brandi Carlile

Brandi CarlileSongwriter Interviews

As a 5-year-old, Brandi was writing lyrics to instrumental versions lullabies. She still puts her heart into her songs, including the one Elton John sings on.

Part of Their World: The Stories and Songs of 13 Disney Princesses

Part of Their World: The Stories and Songs of 13 Disney PrincessesSong Writing

From "Some Day My Prince Will Come" to "Let It Go" - how Disney princess songs (and the women who sing them) have evolved.

Dean Friedman - "Ariel"

Dean Friedman - "Ariel"They're Playing My Song

Dean's saga began with "Ariel," a song about falling in love with a Jewish girl from New Jersey.

Did They Really Sing In That Movie?

Did They Really Sing In That Movie?Fact or Fiction

Bradley Cooper, Michael J. Fox, Rami Malek, Reese Witherspoon, Gwyneth Paltrow and George Clooney: Which actors really sang in their movies?