Finishing up.
20 - "(Blame It) On the Pony Express," Johnny Johnson and The Bandwagon
Though American, Johnson and company had most of their success in the U.K., where their uptempo R&B made them popular among devotees of "Northern Soul." This is a solid groover that uses Western imagery to express a desire to let a faraway lover know how he feels. The sound is somewhere between the slickness of Motown and the grit of Stax. This is where much of the Northern Soul I've heard seems to fall. Anyway, this is catchy, danceable, and just plain great.
19 - "I Hear You Knocking," Dave Edmunds
Edmunds hit big on both sides of the Atlantic with this grooving, bluesy Smiley Lewis cover. Two months earlier, it had been the U.K Christmas #1, which is kind of a big deal. I will have more on that in an entry coming up very, very soon.
18 - "Cracklin' Rosie," Neil Diamond
The Diamond dog hit #3 in Britain with his rollicking rave-up about wine. It went all the way to the top in the U.S. I can only come to one conclusion: Americans like alcohol more than Britons. This is unimpeachable scientific proof of that.
17 - "She's a Lady," Tom Jones
The Welsh Wonder's gritty tribute to femininity was a Top Five smash in the states, but only got to #13 in the Home Countries. This time, U.K., you got it wrong.
16 - "When I'm Dead and Gone," McGuinness Flint
McGuinness was Tom, a onetime Manfred Mann guitarist. Flint was Hughie, an ex-drummer with blues/rock training ground John Mayall's Bluesbreakers. The first and biggest hit for the band they formed together was this jaunty song about a guy living life to the fullest who doesn't want to be mourned when he passes on. Soundwise, it reminds me of the Faces' "Ooh La La," only not as good
.
15 - "Black Skin Blue Eyed Boys," The Equals
This racially integrated five-piece from North London hit #1 in 1968 with "Baby, Come Back." They would have two more UK Top Tens, the last of which being this funk-soul number which envisions a future where the races have mixed to the point where "the world will be half-breed." This, their logic follows, will put an end to war. I'm not sure how solid that premise is, but it's a decent song. And one of their guitarists was Eddy Grant, the man who would later rock us all down to "Electric Avenue."
14 - "You Don't Have to Say You Love Me," Elvis Presley
This English version of a 1965 Italian hit was a Number One for Dusty Springfield in '66, then the King took it to the Top Ten here five years later. Elvis' version sounds a little overwrought to these ears, but still, not bad.
13 - "Your Song," Elton John
The song that launched Sir Elton on both sides of the pond. A standard now, but still affecting. Has there been a more romantic line written than "How wonderful life is while you're in the world"? I'm not sure there has.
12 - "Candida,"Dawn
Tony O. and co. went top ten in both the States and the Kingdom with their debut. Again, I find the whole "go out with me because a fortune teller told me we'll get married and have kids" angle a little off, but it's a fun little song.
11 - "You're Ready Now," Frankie Valli
This Seasonless Valli track was recorded in 1966, but was adopted by the Northern Soul scene at this time. It's about a girl who used to be considered too young to date, but is now sufficiently grown up. That's a little creepy. And this song just annoys me.
10 - "I'll Be There," The Jackson Five
A #1 at home, and a Top Five here. Simply one of the great love ballads ever. Slow dance heaven.
9 - "Resurrection Shuffle," Ashton, Gardner & Dyke
This London trio's biggest hit was this propulsive number about letting it all hang out and such. Reminds me of a more forceful Blood, Sweat and Tears. I like it. Kind of a shame that both it and a Tom Jones version only scraped into the 40 in the States.
8 - "Apeman," The Kinks
The follow-up to "Lola" was this calypso-tinged number in which Ray Davies longs to escape the complexity and confusion of the modern world and go back to nature. One of my favorites from them. Fun fact: on the album version, Ray sings "the air pollution is a-foggin' up my eyes," but it really sounds like "fuckin'" instead of "foggin'." So much so that he had to go back and pronounce the word more clearly for the single version. Between that and having to change "Coca-Cola" to "cherry cola" on "Lola" for the BBC, radio censorship was a major pain for the band at this time.
7 - "Ride a White Swan," T. Rex
They were originally a folk duo called Tyrannosaurus Rex, but then singer Marc Bolan shortened the name, swapped out Steve Took for Mickey Finn, and went more electric and pop. The result was a string of eight straight Top 2 singles, beginning with this snappy, buzzy tune whose lyrics contain reference to witchcraft and druids. Because they weren't nearly as big on these shores, it took me a while to hear much beyond "Get It On," but when I did, it became clear to me that Bolan was one of the great all-around rock stars of all time. And this is one of my favorites.
6 - "Amazing Grace," Judy Collins
This stunning a capella take on the classic hymn was a bigger hit here. This time, the Brits got it right. I think I'm going to be agreeing with them more often than not. But we'll see.
5 - "No Matter What," Badfinger
Fantastic power pop that was Top Ten on both charts. Ooooh girl, I want you...to listen to this. It'll make you smile. It can't not.
4 - "Grandad," Clive Dunn
Dunn was an actor who'd been working since the 30s, but it was in 1968 when he achieved his greatest fame when he starred in the World War II sitcom Dad's Army. At the height of the show's popularity, he recorded this novelty about an old man reminiscing about his youth, bringing up memories of "motorcars," "phonographs," and Charlie Chaplin. And for extra schmaltz, the chorus is a children's choir singing angelically about how "lovely" their Grandad is. High grade sap, but it worked. It was #1 for three weeks, holding "Ride a White Swan" out of the top spot. Later, the man who cowrote it, Herbie Flowers, would join T. Rex himself. He's also the man performed the iconic bassline of Lou Reed's "Walk on the Wild Side." Anyway, when you add it all up, I have no choice but to name this my first ever UK Uneasy Rider.
3 - "Stoned Love," The Supremes
This soulful peace plea was the biggest post-Ross hit for this trio on both sides of the pond. And it stands up well alongside their previous hits.
2 - "Pushbike Song," The Mixtures
This Australian pop band got their big break at home when a dispute between Aussie radio stations and the major labels led to an airplay ban of many British artists. As a result, this band's indie-label cover of Mungo Jerry's "In the Summertime." went to #1 Their follow-up. this jaunty, skiffle-y trifle about pursuing an attractive lady on a bicycle, was another charttopper Down Under, and made it big here as well. Inconsequential and disposable.
And the most popular song in the United Kingdom on the day your humble writer was born was...
1 - "My Sweet Lord," George Harrison
Yep, the Quiet Beatle topped the charts on both sides of the Atlantic with his gospel-pop prayer to know and understand a divine Creator. Yes, he got successfully sued because it was judged to have been too close to the Chiffons' "He's So Fine." And no, I don't care, it's still great, still relevant, and still meaningful to me.
So there's one down. I was planning on doing this in chronological order, but I decided that for the season's sake, I would jump ahead and find a Christmas chart that struck my fancy. So next time, we'll only be going back a mere 25 years to 1987. See you there very soon.
