Keepin' on.
20 - "Precious and Few," Climax
19 - "Day Dreaming," Aretha Franklin
18 - "Down by the Lazy River," The Osmonds
17 - "Roundabout," Yes
16 - "A Cowboy's Work is Never Done," Sonny and Cher
The name of the song at 20 could also describe one's moments on Earth, so I'm not going to waste any more on crap like that. A nothing song.
The exaxt opposite can be said about Aretha's entry here. She's a lot more laid back than usual. Not a lot of belting. And it works perfectly. Sultry and exuberant. Might be one of her best ever.
Then it's Utah's favorite sons trying to rock out while inviting you to what they say will be a wild crazy party. But being Mormons, than probably just meant that they were busting out the caffeinated coffee. Oooooh.
Next come one of the biggest groups of the progressive-rock movement with the biggest of their two pop hits of the decade. They had to shave off five minutes to get it on AM radio, but "Roundabout" keeps enough of its noodly charm to work at this length. A decade later, they made their big commercial move and went to #1 with the slick "Owner of a Lonely Heart." Which is a pretty good song for what it is, but it wasn't really Yes. This, unquestionably, is.
Wrapping up this section is the final Top Ten hit for Mr. and Mrs. Bono. It's a fun little number, but the whole lyrical theme of children playing cowboys is a little too reminiscent of the earlier, better Cher hit "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)."
15 - "Rock and Roll Lullaby," B.J. Thomas
14 - "Betcha By Golly Wow," The Stylistics
13 - "The Way of Love," Cher
12 - "Everything I Own," Bread
11 - "In the Rain," The Dramatics
This section kicks off with Billy Joe Thomas' sweet but sappy number about the tune his mother used to sing to him. Although having the mother be 16 when she had him was probably shocking to some at the time, so good on you, B.J.
Then it's the Stylistics with a song whose childish title doesn't seem to fit such a tender, soulful ballad, but damn if it doesn't work. This really was a good era for love songs.
Cher is here again, this time on her own with a song that isn't as well-remembered as some of her others. Probably because it's just a simple "love hurts" ballad instead of a three-minute melodrama like her best stuff. She sings this all right, but from Cher, I want sex and death and shame.
Bread return from two months ago, offering to renounce all their material possessions for you. Keep your stuff, guys. I'm not worth it. Take your "Baby I'm-a Want You"'s and "If"'s somewwhere else.
Last in this bunch are The Dramatics with a ballad that more than lives up to the group's name. The lyric doesn't break any new ground with its "I want to go out in the rain so no one can tell that I'm crying." theme, but the combination of echoey guitar, strings, and pained, impassioned vocals make this a classic. And where thunderstorm sound effects would probably come off as over-the-top on a lesser song, they fit in perfectly here. Fantastic heartbreak music.
And now the Top Ten, before which Casey asked his listeners to go out and vote, presumably in U.S. primary elections. But we've got an election of our own here in Canada next month, so I will join Casey in encouraging my countrypeople to exercise their democratic rights.
10 - "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face," Roberta Flack
One of the great voices of the decade had her first big hit with this cover of a song written by British folksinger Ewan MacColl. He apparently wasn't too fond of this version, but I sure am. Made for romance. But old Ewan gave the world the late Kirsty MacColl, so I've got no beef with him.
9 -"Rockin' Robin," Michael Jackson
I'm only speculating, but I wouldn't be surprised if Motown had Michael record this 1958 Bobby Day hit after seeing the success Donny Osmond was having redoing oldies. Not surprisingly, this one blows all of Donny's covers away. Better singer, better song, much better result.
8 - "Jungle Fever," The Chakachas
The biggest hit by this Belgian group sounds so much like music from a porno film that it was later used in Boogie Nights. Although it is disturbing how often the moaning woman who frequently pops up in this says the word "no." I imagine that this would be the biggest point of controversy if this came out today.
7 - "Without You," Nilsson
Harry's back with the big ballad that I often confuse with "All by Myself." This is much better, though.
6 - "I Gotcha," Joe Tex
This was the biggest hit for Joseph Arrington Jr. In it, he shoutily orders a woman to give him what she promised him. Right now. Yes, more questionable sexual politics. Tex sounds a lot like James Brown on this. Not surprisingly, the two didn't like each other, to the point where James once took a shot at Joe. He missed. That's how I like my gunplay between musical rivals. Inaccurate.
5 - "The Lion Sleeps Tonight," Robert John
Again, it's this guy covering an anglicized version of an African song. In a way, that's like doing "Tutti Frutti" and saying you're covering Pat Boone.
4 - "Mother and Child Reunion," Paul Simon
Garfunkel's ex had his first solo hit with this song that was apparently inspired by the death of a family dog. And the title comes from the name of a dish at a Chinese restaurant Simon once went to. The song comes by its reggae feel honestly, having been recorded with Jimmy Cliff's band. So Paul started his trend of borrowng sounds from around the world right off the bat.
3 - "Puppy Love," Donny Osmond
And here's Donny himself, doing a song that Paul Anka originally wrote about his relationship with then-girlfriend Annette Funicello. Donny tries, and I like the desperation on the "Someone help me please" parts, but the kid just didn't have much of a voice then. Justin Bieber may take a lot of shit, but I must admit that guy sings waaaay better than little Donald.
2 - "Heart of Gold," Neil Young
The biggest by far of Shakey's three Top 40s. This made it to #1, while the other two didn't even crack the top 30. Neil wasn't happy about this much mainstream success. Probably not surprising from a guy who was sued by a record label because the albums he made for them didn't sound enough like Neil Young. Ah, gotta love him.
And winning this week's popularity contest was...
1 - "A Horse with No Name," America
This song that sounded to many like a Neil Young record replaced "Heart of Gold" in the top spot and launched the band's career. Why the horse wasn't named despite the guy having nothing better to do in that desert is a mystery best left untouched. All I know is, Ned Flanders sang an alternate version of this after meeting a girl whom he knew had given him a fake name. She turned out to be a famous movie star. Way to go, Neddy.
The NotCaseys were Cat Stevens' "Morning Has Broken" and Jackson Browne's "Doctor My Eyes." Casey also played the #1 from ten years earlier, "Don't Break the Heart that Loves You" by Connie Stevens.
Back next week. Because I like it.
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