April 26, 1975 Part Two

The other twenty.

20 - "Stand by Me," John Lennon
19 - "How Long," Ace
18 - "Killer Queen," Queen
17 - "It's a Miracle," Barry Manilow
16 - "The Bertha Butt Boogie, Part 1," The Jimmy Castor Bunch

Tje second half begins with John Lennon's last hit of the decade, a cover of the Ben E. King classic. This is from the covers album Rock n' Roll, which Lennon recorded to settle a lawsuit from a music publisher who asserted that "Come Together" borrowed too heavily from Chuck Berry's "You Can't Catch Me." This may be why John's copyright troubles are less famous than George's.

Then it's the only hit from Britain's Ace. This song wasn't about finding about a lover's betrayal; rather, it was written by singer Paul Carrack in response to learning that the band's bassist had been secretly working with other groups. Ace soon disbanded, but Carrack would have later successes guesting on the Squeeze hit "Tempted," singing for Genesis side project Mike + the Mechanics, and with the 1987 solo Top Ten "Don't Shed a Tear."

Next are Queen with their first American hit, a slinky rock number about a cultured, seductive woman of the world who may be some sort of spy or assassin (hence the "killer" part. No, I don't wanna try. Great song though.

Barry Manilow followed up his #1 debut "Mandy" with an uptempo, disco tinged tune about how having a lover to come home to after the ups and downs of the road is "a true blue spectacle." It's big, fun and cheesy. A different side of Barry, but still awesome nonetheless.

Closing this section are novelty funk band The Jimmy Castor Bunch, who had their ) second biggest hit (behind 1972's "Troglodyte (Cave Man),") with a song about how a uniquely-endowed lady started an earth-shaking dance craze. Dumb, funky fun, but hardly essential.

15 - "I Don't Like to Sleep Alone," Paul Anka
14 - "Jackie Blue," The Ozark Mountain Daredevils
13 - "L.O.V.E. (Love)," Al Green
12 - "Long Tall Glasses (I Can Dance)," Leo Sayer
11 - "Shining Star," Earth, Wind and Fire

This group opens with the man who wrote the theme to Johnny Carson's Tonight Show, singing about how he doesn't enjoy solitude while in the embrace of the sandman. A female voice that sounds like his frequent duet partner Odia Coates shows up a bit at the end. And Casey told a story about how Paul was on the same tour as Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and the Big Bopper that fateful night, but his manager stopped him from getting on the plane. That crash has come up more than I expected this week.

Next is the biggest hit by the Ozark Mountain Daredevils, a cool, grooving rocker accentuated by the singer's falsetto. Apparently, this song was originally written about a drug dealer friend of the band's, but their producer suggested it might have a better chance of being a hit if they made it about a girl and dropped the overt drug references. Good advice, as it turned out.

Then it's my old buddy Rev. Green, singing about his favorite subject. This may have been an early foreshadowing of his turn to gospel music, with lines like "Can't you see that salvation is freeing?" Or maybe it's just me. Anyway, another great one from a guy I always enjoy learning more about.

Then it's Leo Sayer's first American hit. Unlike his biggest hits, it's neither disco nor a ballad. Instead, it's a piano-driven, bluesy number about a starving drifter who comes across a lavish feast, only to be told that he can only eat if he can skillfully cut a rug. The man doesn't think he has sufficient rhythm to complete this task, but apparently the motivation of having his hunger sated brings out the Fred Astaire in him. Probably Leo's best song.

This section ends with Earth Wind and Fire's breakthrough, a #1 after two previous Top 40s that didn't get higher than #29. You probably know it, the uptempo motivational speech-turned-funk jam about how greatness is within you "no matter who you are." A little overplayed, but still classic.

And now, the ten that were bigger than the other thirty:

10 - "Walking in Rhythm," The Blackbyrds
These Howard University students return from last time, "thinkin' 'bout my baby, tryin' to move on." Slick, silky, smooooooth.

9 - "What am I Gonna Do With You," Barry White
Althoug Barry seems to be asking a question in the title, a listen to the lyrics reveals that he already knows the answer. because they have been engaged in coitus for several hours and are "still goin' strong." He plans to continue, even though he knows that afterward, he "won't be able to move." Musically, it's similar to a few of his earlier hits, but still, you can't deny The Man.

8 - "Emma," Hot Chocolate
The band named after a popular wintertime warmup return with their song about a lady whose dreams of fame end in tragedy. Yep, I like this one more every time I hear it.

7 - "Before the Next Teardrop Falls," Freddy Fender
We've covered the story of how Freddy's career was derailed in the early 60s by a pot bust, only to finally make it with this bilingual smash. Still, glad he got his due, eventually.

6 - "Chevy Van," Sammy Johns
Mr. Johns again, singing about sex in a large General Motors vehicle. I don't hate it, but let's just say if I never hear it again, "that's all right with me."

5 - "Supernatural Thing Part 1," Ben E. King
And 15 points higher than John Lennon's cover of his signature song is Ben E. himself, using his golden pipes to elevate an unspectacular funk track. The song's beneath him, but I don't begrudge him the success at all.

4 - "Lovin' You," Minnie Riperton
Here it is again. Just for fun, I tried to see what it would sound like if I tried to hit that famious high note. My preliminary description: hoarse seagull.

3 - "He Don't Love You (Like I Love You)," Tony Orlando and Dawn
This song was originally entitled "He Will Break Your Heart" when soul singer Jerry Butler took it to #7 in 1960. Tony O. and co. played it relatively straight as an R&B ballad, and were rewarded with a Number One and their last major chart success. Not one of my favorites of theirs, but hardly offensive to the ears.

2 - "Philadelphia Freedom," Elton John
One of the more famous guests at that wedding last Friday that attracted attention for some reason, with a smash inspired in part by tennis. No lower than Top 20 of the decade for me. I am intrigued, however, by what it would feel like to be zapped right between the eyes by "the whipoorwill of freedom."

And the song that reached more ears than all others this week 36 annums ago was...

1 - "(Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song," B.J. Thomas
Billy Joe's second and final charttopper, following "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head." This is "a real hurtin' song" to me, not in the sense that it's about heartbreak, but rather in the sense that I don't think very much of it. But I'm sure B.J doesn't care, so if you disagree with me, neither should you.

This week's NotCaseys were "Magic" by Pilot, "The Hustle" by Van McCoy, and "Love Will Keep Us Together" by The Captain and Tennille.

Toodles until next week. And for my fellow Canucks, should you be reading this on the 2nd and the polls are still open and you haven't voted yet, go do it. It'll make bitching about the government feel so much better.