Beat's So Lonely by Charlie Sexton

Album: Pictures For Pleasure (1985)

Charted: 17

License This Song

lyrics

Songfacts®:

Charlie Sexton was the lead guitarist for Joe Ely's band at the age of 13 and recorded his debut album when he was 16 years old. A few months later the now 17-year-old released "Beat's So Lonely" as a single. The song is about a woman who has found fame and fortune but learns that it's lonely at the top, as she can't get with the guy she really wants.
This was the only hit for Charlie Sexton, who became a highly regarded session guitarist and joined Bob Dylan's backing band for three years starting in 1999. Other artists he's worked with as a producer or musician include Marc Cohn, Matt Morris and Edie Brickell.
With an introduction that lasts 1:20 before the vocal comes in, the beat is rather lonely at the start of this song.
On April 5, 1986, this song placed at #17 on the Billboard Hot 100 on its 17th week on the chart, the same position it held the previous week and the week before that. Sexton was 17 years old at the time.
Sexton wrote this song with Keith Forsey, who produced the album. Forsey was also Billy Idol's producer around this time.
This plays during a party scene in the 1986 John Hughes movie Some Kind Of Wonderful, starring Eric Stoltz, Lea Thompson and Mary Stuart Masterson.

Comments: 6

Barry from Sauquoit, NyOn this day in 1986 {April 19th} Charlie Sexton performed "Beat's So Lonely" on the Dick Clark's ABC-TV Saturday-afternoon program, 'American Bandstand'...
At the time the song was at position #54 on Billboard's Hot Top 100 chart, four weeks earlier it had peaked at #17* {for three weeks} and it spent twenty weeks on the Top 100...
Charles Wayne Sexton will celebrate his 51st birthday this coming August 11th, 2019...
* https://top40weekly.com/1986-all-charts/ and https://www.billboard.com/charts/hot-100/1986-03-22
Italo from SpainI have the Beat's so lonely 7inch single. Unfortunately he came after Billy Idol and Forsey production is such a cool but strong too..trademark! Just check Don't you forget about me that Simple Minds played.
Dave from Wheaton, IlCharlie's vocal sounded very much like Billy Idol's, whom Keith Forsey also produced.
John from St. Paul, KsHe also sang "Cry Little Sister", the theme song to the movie " The Lost Boys"
Jim from Brunswick, MeThis is a great one hit wonder from the '80s. Too bad. Mr. Sexton deserved more hits than this 1 gem. I'd like to point out a mistake in the 2nd songfact. It was the April 5, 1986 chart (not May 4) that Mr. Sexton had all those 17s lined up (& he was 17 years old to boot).
Hugh from Kansas City, MoA decent song, but IMPRESSED is the gem track of this album.

see more comments

More Songfacts:

Don't Dream It's OverCrowded House

"Don't Dream It's Over" is the biggest hit for Crowded House, whose lead singer, Neil Finn, sang it on tour when he joined Fleetwood Mac. He wrote the song when he was feeling a bit lost as a way of urging himself on.

Oh WellFleetwood Mac

"Oh Well," from their 1960s Peter Green era, is the only Fleetwood Mac song played in concert in every decade they've been extant.

All ApologiesNirvana

When the Christian band DC Talk covered Nirvana's "All Apologies" at concerts, they would change the line "Everyone is gay" to "Jesus is the Way."

The Lion Sleeps TonightThe Tokens

"The Lion Sleeps Tonight" is an English version of a Zulu hunting song from the 1930s.

I Can See Clearly NowJohnny Nash

"I Can See Clearly Now" by Johnny Nash was the first reggae song to hit #1 in America on the Hot 100.

Don't Bring Me DownElectric Light Orchestra

Jeff Lynne sang the word "groose" in the chorus of "Don't Bring Me Down" as a nonsense placeholder, but left it in when he found out it means "greetings" in German ("gruss").