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damontSo... when I was getting started with this My Past In Popular Music series, I needed to decide what to do first. For a number of reasons, but mostly because it was the 50th anniversary of the year, I decided to start with 1970.
In retrospect, maybe that wasn't the wisest choice.
I knew ahead of time that starting with a year like 1983 or even 1976 would make my task incredibly tough... but those are two of the years widely acknowledged as among the very best ever in pop music. Nobody talks about 1970 in the same almost-reverent terms. That's probably due to 1970 not having a lot of truly *excellent* songs; seriously, most of the truly great years have LOTS of GREAT songs. Still, once I looked at it, this task is arguably even tougher: out of the biggest hits of the year, what strikes me is the sheer volume of GOOD songs, and the relative lack of actual clunkers. (This doesn't hold up as the Seventies move along, trust me. We're only four years away from what has been described widely as one of the WORST years ever for pop music.) Hell, even 1976 had more BAD songs than 1970, if you ask me, though that is overcome by the sheer amount of really GREAT stuff the latter year had going for it.
Anyway, with the previously posted ground rules in mind, let's look at the first quarter of 1970: Billboard's weeks ending January 3rd through March 28th, 13 weeks total. It's popular with some YouTube critics to rank either the Top 20 songs for the immediately past quarter, or to pick a week near change of seasons and rank the Top 20 for that week. When doing my calculations for 1970, I worked out that sometimes there's very little difference between, say, number 20 and number 21. So it would be more fair to find a spot in the 20s where there was a DISTINCT gap in the points level. For the first quarter, that obvious gap was between numbers 26 and 27, so the top 26 it is! (NOTE: Within a tier, the songs are listed in no particular order.)
Jingle Jangle -- The Archies
This was The Archies' last Top 10 hit, and the songwriting was getting a bit threadbare by this time. Possibly the last "pure bubblegum" top ten hit as the bubblegum genre merged back into mainstream pop over the course of this year.
Without Love (There Is Nothing) -- Tom Jones
Tom Jones has basically one singing voice, and sometimes the producers get the backing arrangement to match up with it well. This is an example where they didn't get such a good match, and it gets overblown. Worse examples of overblown arrangements would come from other artists later in the year.
Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head -- B.J. Thomas
Academy Award winner for Best Song. Fun fact: the screenwriter for this song's movie Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is William Goldman, perhaps better known these days for The Princess Bride (both the book AND the movie script).
Hey There Lonely Girl -- Eddie Holman
Holman's falsetto isn't something I can listen to all that often. That aside, it's a fine R&B song.
Arizona -- Mark Lindsay
The lead singer for (Paul Revere and) The Raiders had a few solo hits. This might be his biggest. I might have considered ranking it higher if the lyrics made more sense. (50 years on and I still can't figure out how they go together.)
Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time) -- The Delfonics
The Delfonics were one of the early successes of the "Philly Soul" sound, being stalwarts on the R&B/soul charts from 1968 to 1974. Most of those hits made it to the lower reaches of the Hot 100, with a handful making the Top 40. This was their second and last Top 10 pop hit; it's a great example of the sound, and the production and performance are good, but the songwriting on this number is a little weaker than what some of their contemporaries would be recording in the early 1970s.
Oh Me Oh My (I’m A Fool For You Baby) -- Lulu
Lulu was, like many UK artists, far more successful at home than in the US. This was the third and last Billboard Top 40 hit for the singer and movie/TV personality. This is a well crafted late-60s Britpop song that, for UK audiences, represented a major shift from her previous UK hit and Eurovision winner "Boom Bang-a-bang", and this song didn't make the Top 40 there. US audiences (who had ignored "Boom Bang-a-bang") slowly warmed to this song after its late 1969 release, and despite not making the year-end 100, this was one of the few singles in the country to spend every week of the first quarter in the Hot 100, peaking at #22.
The Rapper -- The Jaggerz
This Pittsburgh rock band only made the Top 40 once as a band, with this Number 2 hit. It's a decent song and a warning to the ladies about men who try to fast-talk their way into your pants, and perhaps surprisingly for 1970, presented as a cautionary tale. Lead singer Dominic Ierace -- there's an Italian name for you -- scored some solo hits as Donnie Iris in the late 70s and early 80s, which actually get more airplay on classic rock stations nowadays than THIS song does.
Don’t Cry Daddy -- Elvis Presley
Country-ish tearjerker about a newly widowed man and his son. It's not the strongest songwriting, but the production makes up for it and is on point -- which I can't say for all Elvis singles of this era, as you'll see on a later-1970 list. For my money, his best single of this year was the next one -- "Kentucky Rain" -- which doesn't make any of the quarterly lists, much less the year-end 100.
Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin) -- Sly & the Family Stone
The group's "shoutout song" that gives quick references to their earlier hits. Good groove.
I Want You Back -- The Jackson 5
Bubblegum gets crossed with Motown and the result was the hottest new act of 1970, even though this single was released in late 1969. The first of four Number Ones for the group this year.
Venus -- Shocking Blue
I feel I must make one thing clear: This is NOT Bananarama! This is a Dutch group, one of many that promoters tried to make into big names in the USA, and like most such Dutch groups, ended up being known for just one song. This may actually be the best such example, at least from 1970, and is one of the rockingest songs on the Year-End 100. Don't be surprised if this ends up on my Best List for the year.
No Time -- The Guess Who
Originally from their Canned Wheat album, RCA got them to re-record the song to include on their next album and it turned into American Woman's lead single. One of two Guess Who songs to make the Year-End 100... and yet I like the songs that DIDN'T make the year-end list even better.
Rainy Night in Georgia -- Brook Benton
Best slow ballad of the quarter. The production and arrangement come together perfectly to highlight the voice of Benton, possibly the best R&B/pop crooner since Nat "King" Cole's death. It says something about Top 40 radio of the time that you could hear this song in the same set as any or all of the songs on this list, and that was perfectly fine and even expected.
Psychedelic Shack -- The Temptations
Possibly the first example that Motown was really ready to step WELL out of their comfort zone. This trend wasn't universal among Motown artists and had many rough patches but would see greater success later in 1970 and even more so in years to come. This is a terrific early example, where the Temps show they can grab at least a piece of the funky spirit of Sly and the Family Stone, though in this case the production might be a little too slick for the overall tone. (Not surprised since this was Motown, after all!)
I'll Never Fall in Love Again -- Dionne Warwick
If it was a Burt Bacharach / Hal David song in the late 1960s, chances are Dionne Warwick sang a hit version of it. This was a cover of a song originally from the musical Promises, Promises sung by characters Chuck Baxter (first played by Jerry Orbach) and Fran Kubelik (Jill O'Hara).
Walk A Mile In My Shoes -- Joe South and the Believers
One of a handful of "inspirational" songs to make the year-end 100 this year. Country with some gospel hints, the production and mix are really good, and the message is not over the top. I liked this one on repeated listening a great deal more than I did when I was young.
The Thrill Is Gone -- B.B. King
Of all the genres that really existed at this time, 1970's charts really had some of everything, which is part of what made this year so good. Straight-up blues in the Top 20! The production plays right into all of B.B.'s strengths.
He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother -- The Hollies
Not the only recording of this song to make the Hot 100 in 1970, but far and away the biggest and best-known. I honestly think that what keeps this from the Excellent Tier is the strings being just a bit too sweet. I don't want a truly rougher edge to this song, but just one that's a bit less polished and saccharine.
Whole Lotta Love -- Led Zeppelin
Speaking of rough edges, THIS is by far the hardest rock/blues song on this quarter's list, or for that matter the hardest to hit the Hot 100 all year. It's a damn shame it missed the year-end list due to its chart run straddling the 1969/70 line (peaking at number 5 in January). It deserves at least an Honorable Mention on my Best List when I get to publishing that.
Travelin' Band / Who’ll Stop The Rain -- Creedence Clearwater Revival
Yet another Number 2 double-sided hit for CCR, whose stellar 1969 would be followed by a 1970 that was just as good. "Down On The Corner" / "Fortunate Son" actually started the year in the Top 10 but owing to straddling the 1969/70 boundary would miss the year-end list for both years. This single would be the first of three CCR double-sideers that mde the 1970 year-end list. John Fogerty says "Who'll Stop The Rain" was about their experience at Woodstock.
Give Me Just a Little More Time -- Chairmen of the Board
After Holland-Dozier-Holland left Motown in 1967, they founded the Invictus and Hot Wax labels. This was the first big hit for Invictus and perhaps one of the best remembered songs from the label's history.
Ma Belle Amie -- The Tee-Set
The other Dutch group to make this quarterly list. Remembered in the USA only for this one song, but everything comes together just right on it.
Someday We’ll Be Together -- Diana Ross and the Supremes
Perhaps surprisingly, the only holdover from 1969 in the first quarterly top 20+. The last Number One of 1969. This was originally supposed to be a Jr. Walker and the All-Stars single, then diverted to be Diana's first solo single; the other two Supremes aren't on the recording, but Motown execs decided to make it the last DR&tS single and put it on the last pre-split album, and the group as a whole did perform it on their holiday tour, including as the final number of the "transition" concert in January 1970, after which Jean Terrell was introduced on stage as Diana's replacement in the group.
Evil Ways -- Santana
This might make the Best List for the year. Okay, at least half the songs in the Good Tier have a chance at the year-end best list. But this one has a better chance than most. Carlos & Company's chart success has been spotty over the decades but I'm glad he decided to stick with it, he's that good. This was their second single, off their very first album. If you've never checked out Santana's first three albums, you're really missing out. Some folks from this first incarnation went on to form Journey.
Bridge Over Troubled Water -- Simon & Garfunkel
Record Of The Year. Song Of The Year. For once the Grammys didn't make an obvious blunder.
So that's the first quarter. Cheers? Jeers? Disagreements? Put 'em down in the comments. Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for more about 1970.
In retrospect, maybe that wasn't the wisest choice.
I knew ahead of time that starting with a year like 1983 or even 1976 would make my task incredibly tough... but those are two of the years widely acknowledged as among the very best ever in pop music. Nobody talks about 1970 in the same almost-reverent terms. That's probably due to 1970 not having a lot of truly *excellent* songs; seriously, most of the truly great years have LOTS of GREAT songs. Still, once I looked at it, this task is arguably even tougher: out of the biggest hits of the year, what strikes me is the sheer volume of GOOD songs, and the relative lack of actual clunkers. (This doesn't hold up as the Seventies move along, trust me. We're only four years away from what has been described widely as one of the WORST years ever for pop music.) Hell, even 1976 had more BAD songs than 1970, if you ask me, though that is overcome by the sheer amount of really GREAT stuff the latter year had going for it.
Anyway, with the previously posted ground rules in mind, let's look at the first quarter of 1970: Billboard's weeks ending January 3rd through March 28th, 13 weeks total. It's popular with some YouTube critics to rank either the Top 20 songs for the immediately past quarter, or to pick a week near change of seasons and rank the Top 20 for that week. When doing my calculations for 1970, I worked out that sometimes there's very little difference between, say, number 20 and number 21. So it would be more fair to find a spot in the 20s where there was a DISTINCT gap in the points level. For the first quarter, that obvious gap was between numbers 26 and 27, so the top 26 it is! (NOTE: Within a tier, the songs are listed in no particular order.)
TERRIBLE TIER -- empty!
BAD TIER -- empty!
MEH TIER -- 2 songs
Jingle Jangle -- The Archies
This was The Archies' last Top 10 hit, and the songwriting was getting a bit threadbare by this time. Possibly the last "pure bubblegum" top ten hit as the bubblegum genre merged back into mainstream pop over the course of this year.
Without Love (There Is Nothing) -- Tom Jones
Tom Jones has basically one singing voice, and sometimes the producers get the backing arrangement to match up with it well. This is an example where they didn't get such a good match, and it gets overblown. Worse examples of overblown arrangements would come from other artists later in the year.
DECENT TIER -- 7 songs
Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head -- B.J. Thomas
Academy Award winner for Best Song. Fun fact: the screenwriter for this song's movie Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is William Goldman, perhaps better known these days for The Princess Bride (both the book AND the movie script).
Hey There Lonely Girl -- Eddie Holman
Holman's falsetto isn't something I can listen to all that often. That aside, it's a fine R&B song.
Arizona -- Mark Lindsay
The lead singer for (Paul Revere and) The Raiders had a few solo hits. This might be his biggest. I might have considered ranking it higher if the lyrics made more sense. (50 years on and I still can't figure out how they go together.)
Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time) -- The Delfonics
The Delfonics were one of the early successes of the "Philly Soul" sound, being stalwarts on the R&B/soul charts from 1968 to 1974. Most of those hits made it to the lower reaches of the Hot 100, with a handful making the Top 40. This was their second and last Top 10 pop hit; it's a great example of the sound, and the production and performance are good, but the songwriting on this number is a little weaker than what some of their contemporaries would be recording in the early 1970s.
Oh Me Oh My (I’m A Fool For You Baby) -- Lulu
Lulu was, like many UK artists, far more successful at home than in the US. This was the third and last Billboard Top 40 hit for the singer and movie/TV personality. This is a well crafted late-60s Britpop song that, for UK audiences, represented a major shift from her previous UK hit and Eurovision winner "Boom Bang-a-bang", and this song didn't make the Top 40 there. US audiences (who had ignored "Boom Bang-a-bang") slowly warmed to this song after its late 1969 release, and despite not making the year-end 100, this was one of the few singles in the country to spend every week of the first quarter in the Hot 100, peaking at #22.
The Rapper -- The Jaggerz
This Pittsburgh rock band only made the Top 40 once as a band, with this Number 2 hit. It's a decent song and a warning to the ladies about men who try to fast-talk their way into your pants, and perhaps surprisingly for 1970, presented as a cautionary tale. Lead singer Dominic Ierace -- there's an Italian name for you -- scored some solo hits as Donnie Iris in the late 70s and early 80s, which actually get more airplay on classic rock stations nowadays than THIS song does.
Don’t Cry Daddy -- Elvis Presley
Country-ish tearjerker about a newly widowed man and his son. It's not the strongest songwriting, but the production makes up for it and is on point -- which I can't say for all Elvis singles of this era, as you'll see on a later-1970 list. For my money, his best single of this year was the next one -- "Kentucky Rain" -- which doesn't make any of the quarterly lists, much less the year-end 100.
GOOD TIER -- 16 songs (!)
Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin) -- Sly & the Family Stone
The group's "shoutout song" that gives quick references to their earlier hits. Good groove.
I Want You Back -- The Jackson 5
Bubblegum gets crossed with Motown and the result was the hottest new act of 1970, even though this single was released in late 1969. The first of four Number Ones for the group this year.
Venus -- Shocking Blue
I feel I must make one thing clear: This is NOT Bananarama! This is a Dutch group, one of many that promoters tried to make into big names in the USA, and like most such Dutch groups, ended up being known for just one song. This may actually be the best such example, at least from 1970, and is one of the rockingest songs on the Year-End 100. Don't be surprised if this ends up on my Best List for the year.
No Time -- The Guess Who
Originally from their Canned Wheat album, RCA got them to re-record the song to include on their next album and it turned into American Woman's lead single. One of two Guess Who songs to make the Year-End 100... and yet I like the songs that DIDN'T make the year-end list even better.
Rainy Night in Georgia -- Brook Benton
Best slow ballad of the quarter. The production and arrangement come together perfectly to highlight the voice of Benton, possibly the best R&B/pop crooner since Nat "King" Cole's death. It says something about Top 40 radio of the time that you could hear this song in the same set as any or all of the songs on this list, and that was perfectly fine and even expected.
Psychedelic Shack -- The Temptations
Possibly the first example that Motown was really ready to step WELL out of their comfort zone. This trend wasn't universal among Motown artists and had many rough patches but would see greater success later in 1970 and even more so in years to come. This is a terrific early example, where the Temps show they can grab at least a piece of the funky spirit of Sly and the Family Stone, though in this case the production might be a little too slick for the overall tone. (Not surprised since this was Motown, after all!)
I'll Never Fall in Love Again -- Dionne Warwick
If it was a Burt Bacharach / Hal David song in the late 1960s, chances are Dionne Warwick sang a hit version of it. This was a cover of a song originally from the musical Promises, Promises sung by characters Chuck Baxter (first played by Jerry Orbach) and Fran Kubelik (Jill O'Hara).
Walk A Mile In My Shoes -- Joe South and the Believers
One of a handful of "inspirational" songs to make the year-end 100 this year. Country with some gospel hints, the production and mix are really good, and the message is not over the top. I liked this one on repeated listening a great deal more than I did when I was young.
The Thrill Is Gone -- B.B. King
Of all the genres that really existed at this time, 1970's charts really had some of everything, which is part of what made this year so good. Straight-up blues in the Top 20! The production plays right into all of B.B.'s strengths.
He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother -- The Hollies
Not the only recording of this song to make the Hot 100 in 1970, but far and away the biggest and best-known. I honestly think that what keeps this from the Excellent Tier is the strings being just a bit too sweet. I don't want a truly rougher edge to this song, but just one that's a bit less polished and saccharine.
Whole Lotta Love -- Led Zeppelin
Speaking of rough edges, THIS is by far the hardest rock/blues song on this quarter's list, or for that matter the hardest to hit the Hot 100 all year. It's a damn shame it missed the year-end list due to its chart run straddling the 1969/70 line (peaking at number 5 in January). It deserves at least an Honorable Mention on my Best List when I get to publishing that.
Travelin' Band / Who’ll Stop The Rain -- Creedence Clearwater Revival
Yet another Number 2 double-sided hit for CCR, whose stellar 1969 would be followed by a 1970 that was just as good. "Down On The Corner" / "Fortunate Son" actually started the year in the Top 10 but owing to straddling the 1969/70 boundary would miss the year-end list for both years. This single would be the first of three CCR double-sideers that mde the 1970 year-end list. John Fogerty says "Who'll Stop The Rain" was about their experience at Woodstock.
Give Me Just a Little More Time -- Chairmen of the Board
After Holland-Dozier-Holland left Motown in 1967, they founded the Invictus and Hot Wax labels. This was the first big hit for Invictus and perhaps one of the best remembered songs from the label's history.
Ma Belle Amie -- The Tee-Set
The other Dutch group to make this quarterly list. Remembered in the USA only for this one song, but everything comes together just right on it.
Someday We’ll Be Together -- Diana Ross and the Supremes
Perhaps surprisingly, the only holdover from 1969 in the first quarterly top 20+. The last Number One of 1969. This was originally supposed to be a Jr. Walker and the All-Stars single, then diverted to be Diana's first solo single; the other two Supremes aren't on the recording, but Motown execs decided to make it the last DR&tS single and put it on the last pre-split album, and the group as a whole did perform it on their holiday tour, including as the final number of the "transition" concert in January 1970, after which Jean Terrell was introduced on stage as Diana's replacement in the group.
Evil Ways -- Santana
This might make the Best List for the year. Okay, at least half the songs in the Good Tier have a chance at the year-end best list. But this one has a better chance than most. Carlos & Company's chart success has been spotty over the decades but I'm glad he decided to stick with it, he's that good. This was their second single, off their very first album. If you've never checked out Santana's first three albums, you're really missing out. Some folks from this first incarnation went on to form Journey.
EXCELLENT TIER -- 1 song
Bridge Over Troubled Water -- Simon & Garfunkel
Record Of The Year. Song Of The Year. For once the Grammys didn't make an obvious blunder.
So that's the first quarter. Cheers? Jeers? Disagreements? Put 'em down in the comments. Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for more about 1970.
no subject
Date: 2020-10-02 06:11 am (UTC)I was aware of "Venus" earlier than first quarter 1970, though. I remember it very clearly because it was my gateway song to dancing. I was an introverted upper elementary school kid in Nashville in academic year 1968-1969, and there was a local afternoon TV show that played pop music for dancing. That song used to be played every day. I would dance madly in front of the TV screen, grateful that my mother was at work and my father off at class so I could enjoy the music.