For the week ending October 20, 1973
Well, thanks to another 8 hours of mandatory Sat overtime at my main job (that's in addition to my usual 5-6 hrs at my bread-stocking job), I couldn't listen to the countdown until Sunday morning. So once again I'm typing my critique later than usual. But what a countdown it was; such a wide variety of songs!
40. Touch Me In The Morning/Diana Ross--The profound sadness inherent in a once-hot romance coming to an end is expressed no more dramatically and eloquently than in this breathtaking single.
39. You've Never Been This Far Before/Conway Twitty--This fine, well-produced country crossover, from what I've read, was very controversial at the time; many country stations banned it, including Nashville's WSM (home of the Grand Old Opry show). The most racy line was in the verse edited out of the countdown, which went "As my trembling fingers touch forbidden places". It's a line that would not bat an eye today, but in 1973, country DJ's and stations were far more conservative.
38. Brother Louis/The Stories--It has a wonderful message about acceptance towards interracial romance and marriage, but musically, it's only mediocre.
37. The Love I Lost/Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes--"Back Stabbers" notwithstanding, this is Philly Soul's glorious apex and Gamble & Huff's crowning achievement. They mesh the funky guitar and organ with the sweet strings and horns perfectly, and Teddy's soulful, sad shouting tug at the emotions forcefully. Even at the age of nine, I recognized this as the gorgeous yet gut-wrenching song that it is.
36. Let Me In/The Osmond Brothers--Man, this is probably the ultimate example of a song that has stayed in my memory all these years (my sisters owned and played the 45 single) but has been absolutely and totally forgotten by probably all radio stations everywhere. This weekend marked the first time in many years I had heard it. And it was even better than I remembered it.
The two verses sounded rather unique (I had forgotten how they sounded), and the rich harmonies in the choruses were just as stirring as I remember them. This song stands as perfect case-in-point as why I treasure listening to these AT40 countdowns, particularly the ones from the 70's.
35. Say, Has Anybody Seen My Sweet Gypsy Rose/Tony Orlando & Dawn--It's a cute, catchy sing-a-long story song that I loved back then and still do. I was a little too young and naive to understand the rather risque nature of the lyrics and of Gypsy Rose's new profession. (I actually thought "birthday clothes" were articles of clothing)
34. Get It Together/The Jackson 5--I was unfamiliar with this song. And, while it was OK, it paled in comparison to their earlier hits.
33. Jesse/Roberta Flack--I was similarly unfamiliar with this song. To me, it sounded like "The First Time I Ever..." Part Two. And it had that same comatose, yet haunting, quality about it.
32. Funky Stuff/Kool & The Gang--Mediocre, at best.
31. Top Of The World/The Carpenters--Although this has the same high-quality harmonies and crystal-clear vocals by Karen, somehow I have never been that crazy about this song. Maybe the countrified arrangement doesn't do the Carpenters justice, I don't know.
30. We May Never Pass This Way Again/Seals & Crofts--Another winner by this underrrated duo. Each polished, restrained verse is followed by that rousing, harmony-drenched chorus.
29. Photograph/Ringo Starr--A very lushly-produced, dramatic hit, one of Ringo's best post-Beatles songs.
28. Just You 'N' Me/Chicago--This lackluster single marked the beginning of the end of this group's glory years, where nearly everything they released was magnificent. Compared to such stellar songs as "Beginnings" and "Questions 67 & 68", this song has a downright dull, sterile arrangement.
27. Summer (The First Time)/Bobby Goldsboro--A certain poster will no doubt take issue with me on this critique, but here goes. I will concede, for starters, that it is a sweet and beautifully produced song and very well-written by one very underrated performer and songwriter. But the general story and subject matter, please! Even if one ignores the inconvenient fact that the woman is 31 and the boy is 17 (aka underage), I cannot deal with the overall message of the song: That a boy instantly becomes a man once he's had sex with a woman. There are thousands of "baby daddies" out there to prove that point absurd. I know I sometimes come across as prudish, but I think we can all agree that it takes so much more than losing one's virginity to make a boy a true man.
26. You're A Special Part Of Me/Marvin Gaye & Diana Ross--I forgot how this sounded, but I seem to remember enjoying it.
25. Hurts So Good/Millie Jackson--It's about as mediocre as a massive hit with the same title that came nine years later, though at least THIS song hasn't been played to death on the radio.
24. Delta Dawn/Helen Reddy--The song's brassy arrangement makes it slightly above-average.
23. Rocky Mountain Way/Joe Walsh--A somewhat enjoyable, energetic rocker.
22. I Got A Name/Jim Croce--A very touching, emotional, uplifting song, made also tragically ironic by the singer's unexpected death shortly after the song's release. Casey's tribute to Jim Croce was probably his finest posthumous tribute I'd ever heard him do.
21. Why Me/Kris Kristoffersen--Another touching, gut-wrenching song. It's refreshing to hear humble, spiritual songs like this in the Top 40.
20. Space Race/Billy Preston--The unique, sonic, funky arrangement is very intriguing and enjoyable.
19. My Maria/B. W. Stevenson--The verses are only so-so, but the harmonies in the chorus are rather stirring and beautiful.
18. China Grove/The Doobie Brothers--This densely-produced bundle of energy is definitely one of this group's better songs.
17. Free Ride/The Edgar Winter Group--Although it rocks out nicely, it lacks the intriguing gimmickry of their preceding hit "Frankenstein".
16. Knockin' On Heaven's Door/Bob Dylan--I can take it or leave it.
15. Basketball Jones featuring Tyrone Shoelaces/Cheech & Chong--I had problems with the TuneIn website at the beginning of the preceding song, so I had to go to the website of the actual radio station featured to continue listening. As a result, I only caught the rousing ending of this song, a hilarious parody of that gag-a-maggot piece of mush "Love Jones" by Brighter Side Of Darkness.
14. Loves Me Like A Rock/Paul Simon--It's a catchy, well-produced song, with fine vocals by the Dixie Hummingbirds, but it's not as great as his preceding hit, "Kodachrome", or the gorgeous hit by his former partner that follows it.
13. All I Know/Art Garfunkel--This stellar song could almost be called "Bridge Over Troubled Waters, Part Two". It has the same dramatic piano opening and sparse first verse and lush orchestral crescendo accompaning Art's powerful, crystal-clear wailing. One difference is that instead of the string climax of the earlier song, this song ends with the dramatic piano to provide a nice bookend effect. In all, this is one masterpiece of a song.
12. We're An American Band/Grand Funk--A fun, energetic rocker that chugs along nicely.
11. Yes, We Can Can/The Pointer Sisters--Despite some uplifting lyrics and a sound message about respecting women, it's as musically mediocre as most of their hits that followed this debut hit.
10. Paper Roses/Marie Osmond--I can take it or leave it. It doesn't hold a candle to the song earlier in the countdown by five of her older brothers.
9. Heartbeat--It's A Lovebeat/The Defranco Family--Although they were annoyingly cutesy and whiney--like the Osmonds on a bad day--this and their follow-up "Abra-Ca-Dabra" were still catchy and energetic enough to be somewhat enjoyable, I must confess.
8. Higher Ground/Stevie Wonder--It has that trademark Stevie Wonder funky groove. Enough said.
7. Keep On Truckin'/Eddie Kendricks--On the other hand, Stevie's funk doesn't quite measure up this week to this powerful collage of sonic funk and psychedelia. Not to knock Eddie, but the masterful arrangement almost makes his vocals seen inconsequential by comparison.
6. That Lady (Pt 1)/The Isley Brothers--Man, I think I'm about to OD on the funk (and to think George Clinton's mothership is no where to be found). Anyway, this is another splendidly funky soul classic, with stellar lead vocals, a sharp arrangement, and breathtaking guitar pyrotechnics by kid brother Ernie.
5. Midnight Train To Georgia/Gladys Knight & The Pips--It's OK, but it's been quite overplayed over the years.
4. Let's Get It On/Marvin Gaye--Ah yes, the undisputed love-making anthem of the rock era. Although I personally would choose lots of other songs over this as my love anthem, I cannot argue with the fact that probably many thousands of people under forty owe their existence on this earth to this song, if you know what I mean.
3. Ramblin' Man/The Allman Brothers Band--I cannot argue with the infectious energy of this song, my favorite by this band is the sad, haunting "Melissa".
2. Half-Breed/Cher--This embarrassingly cheesy story song has not stood the test of time very well and would be considered too politically incorrect to be a hit today.
1. Angie/The Rolling Stones--I can take it or leave it. The "World's Greatest Rock And Roll Band" needs to stick to rock and roll.
And my favorite song of the week (drum roll):
The Philly Soul magnus opus "The Love I Lost" (RIP Harold Melvin and Teddy Pendergrass)
Thank you for reading. Have a good night. I'm goin to bed.