First of all, Happy 2014 everyone. And what better way to start a new year than by going back to late 1969. Shortly before the date of this chart, Apollo 12, the second manned mission to the moon, returned to Earth. Those guys kind of get a raw deal, if you think about it. Apollo 11 was the first to land on the moon, of course, so obviously Neil and Buzz got tons of adulation, And Apollo 13 nearly was a disaster, so those guys became heroes and had a movie made about them. But nobody ever talks about Apollo 12. I wonder if those guys feel slighted. Anyway, back on earth, there was music playing, and it went a little something like this:
40 - "Brand New Me," Dusty Springfield
Earlier in this year, Ms. Springfield released Dusty in Memphis, a gritty soul record that produced the classic "Son of a Preacher Man," and is widely considered a classic. For her next album, she took on a different style of soul, traveling to Philadelphia to record with the team of Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff. One of the results of this collaboration was this lush number about how a new lover has changed everything for the better. Pretty good, but it would be her last American solo hit. I'm glad The Pet Shop Boys managed to get that voice back on the radio eighteen years later.
39 - "Let a Man Come In and Do the Popcorn, Part One," James Brown
Apparently, there was a popular dance called "The Popcorn" during this year, and it inspired Brother James to use that word in the titles of five 1969 singles: "The Popcorn," "Mother Popcorn (You Got to Have a Mother for Me)," "Lowdown Popcorn," and parts one and two of this song. Basically, this one is your basic JB funk number about dancing and admiring a woman in "a brand new mini-dress." All I can say is, come right on in, James.
38 - "Evil Woman (Don't Play Your Games With Me)," Crow
These Minneapolis blues-rockers had their only hit with this horn-drenched number about denying the parentage of the title lady's child. Or, as they put it, "You will bear someone else's fertile seed." Thanks for clarifying. To me, it sounds kind of like a slightly darker Blood, Sweat and Tears, and apparently that darkness attracted Black Sabbath enough to make them record it for one of their firs singles. I might check that out sometime, but for now, this version's cool enough.
37 - "Midnight Cowboy," Ferrante and Teicher
Pianists Arthur Ferrante and Louis Teicher met as children while studying at New York's prestigious Julliard School of Music. They became friends, and eventually began performing together, recording dozens of albums between 1952 and 1988. Their commercial peak was the 60s, during which they scored four Top Ten versions of movie songs, the last being their take on John Barry's instrumental theme from the Jon Voight/Dustin Hoffman male-prostitution film that became the first X-rated movie to win the Best Picture Academy Award. It's a cool tune, these guys do fine with it, and the movie's awesome. Nothing more to sa...excuse me. Hey, you next door, quiet down, I'm typin' here!
36 - "Make Your Own Kind of Music," "Mama" Cass Elliot
Originally from the Baltimore/Washington D.C. area, the woman born Ellen Naomi Cohen would go to New York after high school where she would eventually sing with a couple of folk groups before winding up in the popular pop quartet The Mamas and The Papas. By 1969, however, the group's fortunes were waning, and although she remained with them until their 1971 breakup, Elliot began making solo records. Her second and last true solo Top 40 was this this gentle, beautiful folk-pop number about being yourself no matter what anyone else says. I think Mama Cass is fantastic, and one of the coolest and most talented people to come out of the 60s. And for the last time, she did not choke to death on a ham sandwich!
35 - "Groovy Grubworm," Harlow Wilcox and The Oakies
Oklahoma native Wilcox was primarily a session guitarist, but he did manage one hit of his own with this country-fried instrumental pickfest. Good for when you're in the mood for chugging, twangy music.
34 - "I Guess the Lord Must Be in New York City," Nilsson
The Brooklyn-born son of Swedish circus performers, Nilsson's first successes came as a songwriter, although his first couple of albums as a recording artist won him a couple of famous fans: John Lennon and Paul McCartney. In 1969, his recording of Fred Neil's "Everybody's Talkin'," was used prominently in Midnight Cowboy, and it then became his first major hit. But Nilsson himself had written his own song for that spot in the film, and although it wasn't used, this number about finding a place to belong in The Big Apple became his second Top 40 hit. Truth be told, it sounds quite a bit like "Everybody's Talkin'," and even though it's a nice song, I think the right choice was made.
33 - "Reuben James," Kenny Rogers and The First Edition
Kenny's first success came with this band that also included a few of his fellow castoffs from the clean-cut folk chorus The New Christy Minstrels. The band's fourth hit was this number about a black man who adopts an orphaned white child. Decent song, and a more accurate predictor of Rogers' country future than, say "Just Dropped In."
32 - "Heaven Knows," The Grass Roots
This group's last hit of the decade was this peppy pop love song. Nothing groundbreaking, and Creed had left by this time. But still worth a listen.
31 - "Up On Cripple Creek," The Band
This group of four Canadians and Arkansas native Levon Helm formed in 1960 as The Hawks, the backing band for Toronto-based American rockabilly singer Ronnie Hawkins. After leaving Hawkins in 1964, they would go on to back up Bob Dylan on tour and on record, and would eventually start recording their own songs under their famously minimalist moniker. The first, and biggest, of their mere two Top 40 hits was this rollicking blues rocker about a trucker's affection for Bessie, his Lake Charles, Louisiana-based lover. She definitely sounds like quite a woman. Love this song, and these guys had much more influence on music than their chart output would indicate.
30 - "These Eyes," Junior Walker and The All-Stars
Saxman Walker and co. picked up another hit with this cover of the American breakthrough of Canada's The Guess Who. They convey the hearbreak of the original well, but it's not really necessary. But I'm glad I heard it.
29 - "Friendship Train," Gladys Knight and The Pips
Gladys and the boys were about halfway through their Motown run when they hit with this conscious soul about how people need to come together to overcome the evil and corruption of the world. One of the earlier examples of what would be a major subgenre at the turn of the decade, and a very good one. Special recognition to the guitars and horns.
28 - "Is That All There Is," Peggy Lee
Another child of Scandinavian immigrants, Norma Egstrom moved to Los Angeles from North Dakota, where she was discovered by legendary bandleader Benny Goodman. She was a frequent presence on the pop charts during the 40s and 50s, but she hadn't had a major hit since "Fever" in 1958. But then, out of nowhere, she returned to the charts with what would become arguably her best known song. Written by Jerry Lieber and Mike Stoller, it features Lee, in her smoky rasp, delivering spoken-word reminiscences of watching her childhood home catch fire, seeing a circus, and falling in love for the first time, and describing how underwhelmed she was by the experiences. Then in the last verse, she anticipates the listener wondering if life has been so disappointing, why doesn't she just "end it all," and responds by saying that she knows that even death won't meet her expectations. But in the choruses, she declares that even though some of the highly anticipated milestones of life aren't all their cracked up to be, there is still joy to be found in drinking and dancing. Kind of old-fashioned for the time, but subversive and sassy enough to be cool and modern. A strange, wonderful song, and this week's Uneasy Rider.
27 - "Tracy," The Cuff Links
Originally, this was just a single recorded by singer Ron Dante with a group of studio musicians, then slapped with a band name on release. After it became a hit, there was a full album, and a touring band was put together, but not much happened after that. The song itself is flimsy fluff, and not all that memorable. But later on this chart, we will hear from Ron Dante again.
26 - "Mind, Body and Soul," The Flaming Ember
The first of three Top 40s by these Detroit soul-rockers was this decent midtempo love ballad. The singer sounds like a poor man's Levi Stubbs, which is nice. And that's about it.
25 - "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head," B.J. Thomas
Oklahoman Thomas had hit the top 40 five times since 1966 when he was given the opportunity (after both Ray Stevens and Bob Dylan reportedly turned it down) to record this Bacharach/David composition for the film Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid. It's a cool little pop song about staying positive in all kinds of literal and figurative weather. It went to #1 and won an Oscar. And it's easily my favorite thing B.J. ever did.
24 - "Eleanor Rigby," Aretha Franklin
Aretha cracked the Top 20 by taking the hit Beatles tale of loneliness to church. Goshdarn gospel goodness. You have to listen to this if you've never heard it. And if not, listen to it again.
23 - "Try a Little Kindness," Glen Campbell
During the first half of the 60s, Arkansas native Campbell was part of the legendary session band The Wrecking Crew, and was even a member of The Beach Boys for a brief period. But the second half of the decade was when he started having solo success on both the pop and country charts with songs like this call to be more helpful and less judgmental. He has better known songs from this period, but I think this one is pretty damn good as well.
22 - "Undun," The Guess Who
This Winnipeg group were known as Chad Allan and The Expressions until their record company released their 1965 single "Shakin' All Over" and credited it to "Guess Who?" in hopes that radio DJs might think it was by one of the popular British "beat groups" of the day. The song became a hit in both Canada and the U.S., and the band's new name stuck. Four years later, they returned to the American charts (without Chad Allan) with three Top 40 hits in 1969. The last of these was this jazzy number that guitarist Randy Bachman reportedly wrote about a girl who dropped acid during a party he was at and then fell into a coma because of it. Never knew that, but it makes sense ("When I found what she was headed for, it was too late."). It's just cool, well-written, wonderfully performed, and it has a flute solo! What more do you need?
21 - "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes," Crosby, Stills and Nash
David Crosby had left The Byrds and Stephen Stills was without a band after the breakup of Buffalo Springfield when the two started jamming and writing together in 1968. Later that year, Englishman Graham Nash left The Hollies to join them, and the trio was soon signed and recording an album. Their second hit was this folky number that Stills wrote about the dissolution of his relationship with Judy Collins. And as the title suggest, it's a multipart composition, one that lasts seven-and-a-half minutes in its full version. The single was shorter, of course, but I didn't bother tracking that version down. The song ought to be heard in its entirety, right up to the "Doo doo doo doo"s and Stills singing in Spanish for some reason.
In Part Two: sweetener, a football-based double entendre, and a song to taunt conquered opponents with.
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