Top 10 Pablo Cruise Songs

Photo: F. J. Jasinski, MYi2U™ / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)

Our Top 10 Pablo Cruise Songs looks back at a 1970s band that had a couple of significant hits in the 70s that defined adult contemporary rock. Pablo Cruise was just one of those bands you associated with summer like you did the Beach Boys, Chicago, and, to some extent, The Mamas and The Papas. The band had their two biggest hit singles released a summer apart in 1977 and 1978 on the albums A Place In The Sun in 1977 and Worlds Away in 1978.

Pablo Cruise released seven albums throughout their career. Their first album was released in 1975, entitled Pablo Cruise. The band’s lineup on their first record consisted of David Jenkins, Steve Price, Bud Cockrell, and Cory Lerios. That lineup would release the band’s first three albums, Pablo Cruise, Lifeline, and A Place In The Sun. On the band’s fourth album, Bruce Day replaced Bud Cockrell on bass. The group would release three more albums after Worlds Away, including Part of the Game, Reflector, and Out Of Our Hands.

Our top 10 Pablo Cruise songs list presents ten of our favorite Pablo Cruise songs. A good majority of them were released on their two spectacular albums released in 1977 and 1978. However, we have included songs from many of the band’s other albums to show the band’s music and career progress.

# 10 – Raging Fire

We open our top 10 Pablo Cruise Songs list with the song “Raging Fire.” While we always preferred the up-tempo Pablo Cruise songs over their ballads, they did have some great moments on some of their albums that were filled with sweet-sounding mid-tempo ballads. The harmonies on the track “Raging Fire” echo The Eagles just a bit on this one. The song was released on the band’s breakthrough album, A Place In The Sun.

# 9 – Worlds Away

Pablo Cruise released two blockbuster albums in a row in the late 1970s. The album Worlds Away was the follow-up record to their hit album A Place In The Sun. These two albums elevated the band’s status as hit makers and artists. In the ninth spot on our top 10 Pablo Cruise songs list, we present the title track from the Worlds Away album. This is a great one.

# 8 – I Want You Tonight

It’s incredible how many rock bands went disco in the late 1970s looking to cash in on the craze that swept the world. Pablo Cruise was no exception. Some bands did it better than others, depending on their original style. Pablo Cruise already had an R&B dance feel to some of their songs, so this was not a stretch compared to when bands like Kiss and Queen went the disco route for an album. The single “I Want You Tonight,” was released in 1979 on the album Part of the Game.

# 7 – Zero To Sixty In Five

If you were a loyal Pablo Cruise fan in the 1970s or have ever seen the band live, then you would agree that besides the band’s great vocals harmonies, this was a group of musicians that could play their butts off. We can think of no better way to argue that fact than by presenting this great instrumental entitled “Zero To Sixty In Five.” The song was released on the band’s album Lifeline. The album was released in 1976. It was the group’s second record.

# 6 – Island Woman

Continuing with our top 10 Pablo Cruise songs list, we turn to the band’s first album, Pablo Cruise. The album was released in 1975. “Island Woman” was the album’s opening track. The song was written by David Batteau, David Jenkins, and Cory Lerios. The song opens with that great Pablo Cruise rhythm piano comp that welcomes the band’s great vocal sound and introduces the world to the sound of Pablo Cruise. The song was released as a single but just missed breaking the Billboard Top 100. Still, it was an excellent start for the band that would break into the Billboard Top 100 not too far in the future. There is some excellent guitar playing on this track!

# 4 – Cool Love

With the release of the single “Cool Love,” the band’s commercial success that they had enjoyed with the A Place In The Sun. and Worlds Away albums would begin to fade away. “Cool Love” would become the band’s last top 20 single in the United States. It peaked at number thirteen on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. The song was released on the album Reflector. The record was released in 1981.

# 3 – I Go To Rio

If there is one song that always got the audiences up and dancing at Pablo Cruise concerts, it is the excellent track “I Go To Rio.” The song was released on the Worlds Away album. The song was written and originally recorded by Peter Allen. “I Go To Rio” was the third single released from the Worlds Away album.

# 2 – Love Will Find A Way

As we close in on the number spot on our top 10 Pablo Cruise songs list, we turn to the follow-up single and album, A Place in the Sun. The song “Love Will Find A Way” was a strong follow-up for the band and kept them at the top of the charts again. The album Worlds Away was an even more substantial effort than A Place in the Sun. Every song on the record was great. “Love Will Find A Way” served as the lead single from the album.

The song reached the number six position on the Billboard Hot 100 during the summer of 78, matching the success of “Whatcha Gonna Do,” released in 1977. Along with Walter Egan’s “Magnet and Steel” and Toby Beau’s “Angel Baby,” “Love Will Find Away” was one of the most popular songs on the radio that summer.

# 2 – Whatcha Gonna Do?

The Pablo Cruise single “Whatcha Gonna Do” was the band’s breakout single that made them a household name in 1977.”Whatcha Gonna Do” would become the biggest hit of the band’s career. The song hit number six on the Billboard Hot 100, making it the band’s only top 10 U.S. hit. “Love Will Find A Way” would reach the top 10 the following year. The song did even better in Canada, hitting number one in 1977. I guess they dream of the hot sun in the land of the cold. “Whatcha Gonna Do” was released on the album A Place In The Sun. The song was written by David Jenkins and Cory Lerios

# 1 – A Place In The Sun

The great Pablo Cruise song “A Place In The Sun” was the title track to their 1976 album A Place In The Sun. Bud Cockrell and Cory Lerios wrote the song. While the band had bigger hits than this, the song has become the group’s signature song among the band’s most loyal fans. This is probably the highlight of the group’s concerts. We have always loved this one. It has a classic chorus as if it’s been around forever. We just had to place this at number one.