Our Top 10 Mr. Mister Songs list presents 10 essential songs from a band that scored two number one singles in the 1980s. While the group was short lived having released only three albums during their initial run, their songs have continued to be played on radio and television for over thirty years. Mr. Mister was a band fueled by great musicianship, which is often overlooked because of their big 80s rock, pop, and techno sound. Many of the group members have gone on to have amazing musical careers, working with some of the best acts in rock history. The group was founded by musicians Richard Page, Steve George, Steve Farris, and Pat Mastelotto,
Mr. Mister’s first album, I Wear the Face, was released in 1984. A year later, they released their soon-to-be platinum-selling Welcome To The Real World, which was followed up with Go On. The band’s final album, which was recorded in 1989 but not released until 2010, was Pull. The band’s record company released more compilations over the years than the band had released studio albums.
# 10 – Healing Waters
We open our top Mr. Mister songs list with an excellent track entitled “Healing Waters.” This was one of those great singles that got away. Its so well written, it was probably too well written. The entire album suffered from a similar fate of just being done so well, it lacked a certain simplicity in melody and arrangement that made their previous album such a big hit. That’s not a bad thing, and it’s not a knock on Welcome To The Real World, which is such a superb album, it’s just the story of consumers sometimes just not accepting depth. The song was the third single from Mr. Mister’s third album, released in 1987, entitled Go On…
# 9 – Learning To Crawl
“Learning To Crawl” was the opening track to a Mr. Mister album the band recorded in 1989 but never saw the light of day until its official release entitled Pull in 2010. This is a fantastic piece of music that is moody, intense, and a whole lot of fun to listen to. The song was written by Richard Page, Steve George, John Lang, and Pat Mastelotto.
# 8 – Black/White
“Black/ White” was the opening track on the band’s 1985 Welcome To The Real World album. This was a perfect song. We are surprised that the record company never released this song as a single. It would have done well on the charts, just like the album’s other three singles. The band’s guitarist, Steve Ferris, lights it up on the track. Ferris is easily one of classic rock’s great guitarists who has gone unrecognized in classic rock history. The man has stepped in and played with many other classic rock acts, including groups such as Kiss, Ambrosia, Player, Spooky Tooth, and Whitesnake.
# 7 – Stand And Deliver
Pat Mastelotto’s drumming was an integral part of the band’s sound that often gets overlooked. Listen to the sound and groove of the drums at the beginning of the track when it’s mostly Pat. Don’t miss the killer guitar solo by Steve Farris, either. These guys could all play nicely. Additionally, the sound of the recording is phenomenal. So much new gear came out in the 80s that elevated the sound of these recordings that were being released on a relatively new musical format called the CD. It was fun buying these albums on CDs in the 80s. We were not used to hearing music that exploded out of the speakers like this stuff did in the 80s.
# 6 – Welcome To The Real World
Mr. Mister’s roaring song “Welcome To The Real World” was the title track to their grand 1985 album Welcome To The Real World and also served as the album’s closing track. I love the changes in the verse in this song. The song is just so well written. Richard Page’s falsetto at the end of the hook is captivating.
# 5 – Something Real
We present the band’s big-time charting songs at the halfway point on our top 10 Mr. Mister songs list. The band only had five songs break the Billboard Hot 100. The song represented at number five, entitled “Something Real,” served as the lead single to the band’s 1987 album Go On… The group faced a tough challenge, following up on an album that scored three top 10 hits and two number ones in Welcome To The Real World. The song “Something Real” peaked at number 29 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. It would be the group’s last charting song on the U.S. Billboard music charts.
# 4 – Hunters of the Night
At number four on our Top 10 Mr. Mister songs list is the rocking techno song “Hunters Of The Night.” The song was released on the band’s debut album entitled I Wear the Face. The album was released in 1984. The song “Hunters Of The Night” was the second single released from the album. However, it’s essential in the band’s history as it became the group’s first charting single. The song peaked at number fifty seven on the Billboard Hot 100. “Hunters Of The Night” was written by Richard Page, Steve George, John Lang, and George Ghiz.
# 3 – “Is It Love“
Mr. Mister’s “Is It Love” was the band’s third straight top 10 hit. The song was released on their landmark album Welcome To The Real World. “Is It Love” peaked at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1986. The song also became a top 20 hit in Canada. The song was written by Richard Page, Steve George, John Lang and Pat Mastelotto, We love the great drum work on this one by the legendary Pat Mastelotto. The great musician who is one of Mr. Mister’s founding members is one of rock’s unheralded players. Since 1994 Pat Mastelotto has been playing the drums in King Crimson. He has worked with so many great artists including Kenny Loggins, Eddie Money, Hall & Oates and so many more.
# 2 – Kyrie
Man, we could listen to Richard Page sing all day long. The man is easily one of the most underrated singers of the classic rock era. Listen to him sing this tune; it’s off the charts. The song “Kyrie,” was released on the Welcome To The Real World album in 1985. Mr. Mister scored their second straight number one song with the release of the single “Kyrie.” The song hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in December of 1985. It also hit number one on the Billboard Rock Charts and the U.S. Cash Box music charts. It also had great success outside of the U.S., hitting number one in Canada and Norway. “Kyrie” has also been placed in multiple hit television shows spanning decades, including the hit 80s television show Miami Vice and the 2010 mega Netflix hit Stranger Things.
# 1 – Broken Wings
There was no doubt over which Mr. Mister song we would choose for the number one spot on our top 10 Mr. Mister Songs list. With that great minor key synthesizer opening framed by that classic interment bass riff, Mr. Mister’s signature song, “Broken Wings,” became an instant 80s classic. The song was released in 1985 on the album Welcome to the Real World. It was released as the album’s lead single. “Broken Wings” would become one of the biggest hits of the 1980s. The song went all the way to the number one spot on the Billboard Hot 100. MTV placed the video in heavy rotation alongside Prince, Madonna, Michael Jackson, and Springsteen. The song received heavy airplay on FM radio. The single “Broken Wings” flew everywhere in 1985. The song “Broken Wings” was written by Richard Page, Steve George, and John Lang.
Read More: Pat Mastelotto Of Mr. Mister & King Crimson: The ClassicRockHistory.com Interview
Feature Photo at top of page: Photo: Mika Hiironniemi, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Updated June 9, 2024