Cool Change – Little River Band | Top 40 Chart Performance, Story and Song Meaning

Chart Performance: Pop (#10); 1980

Story Behind The Song By Ed Osborne

Australia’s Little River Band was originally called Mississippi, however, criticism over the American name resulted in the sextet taking a name spotted on a signpost near Geelong, Victoria. With that settled, they set about making hit records.

1976’s It’s A Long Way There introduced them to Stateside fans, yet, the real breakthrough came the next year when Help Is On The Way cracked the Top 15. The smooth swing nostalgia of Reminiscing (#3; 1978) started a string of hits: Lady (#10) and Lonesome Loser (#6) in 1979, and Cool Change in 1980.

Still all was not well behind the scenes. Despite their tight harmonies on vinyl and on stage, the three main men in LRB had recorded and traveled separately for several years.

First Under The Wire, which included Cool Change, was the last album to feature singer Glenn Shorrock, and Cool Change was the last hit penned by LRB’s original lead. FUTW was also the last of four albums to feature “Skittles” the bulldog on the artwork.

This content and all Song Meaning articles were created and written by Top 40 Contributing Editor Ed Osborne. © 2024 Ed Osborne. All Rights Reserved. In addition to these song meaning articles, Ed has written our “Year in Music 1960s-1990s” articles.

Produced by:

  • John Boylan
  • Little River Band

Lyrics Written by:

  • Glenn Shorrock

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Ed Osborne

Hi. I got my first record at age two and never looked back, spending a decades-long career in radio and the music business. Even after years of reading about and listening to all types of music, I am still fascinated by it. Apart from that, I’m endlessly intrigued by art, nature, and the inner lives of people (and dogs).