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Post by brownjb81 on Jul 3, 2015 15:41:37 GMT -5
We all know that American Top 40 premiered on the weekend of July 4, 1970. Why was the 4th of July weekend picked as the start date of American Top 40?
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Post by Deleted on Jul 3, 2015 19:11:48 GMT -5
I'm going to guess something to do with that's when they got everything up, running, and knew they could get the show produced. I assume it could also have to do with the title "American" in the name and perhaps they waited an extra week or two in order to launch that particular weekend, but I'm thinking it was more a business related decision with production, new quarter starting, or something else like that.
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Post by mkarns on Jul 3, 2015 21:29:43 GMT -5
I'm going to guess something to do with that's when they got everything up, running, and knew they could get the show produced. I assume it could also have to do with the title "American" in the name and perhaps they waited an extra week or two in order to launch that particular weekend, but I'm thinking it was more a business related decision with production, new quarter starting, or something else like that. That makes sense; they probably had all the funding, technology (by 1970 standards), schedules cleared, etc. to do so then, and if there were a few weekends they could choose from to start, the patriotic symbolism of that date must have been appealing. What I don't quite understand is why they used the Billboard chart for the week after it was aired, and continued to do so for 10 months. |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 4, 2015 6:36:08 GMT -5
Me either other than the ability say "find out who tops the billboard chart before you can even buy it."
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Post by dukelightning on Jul 4, 2015 6:45:15 GMT -5
Yes that's it. They wanted AT40 to present the new Billboard chart before anyone could buy the magazine. There of course was no internet and the magazine was not on newsstands until Monday or Tuesday after the weekend that AT40 was broadcast.
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Post by mrjukebox on Jul 4, 2015 8:49:24 GMT -5
It was forty years ago this week that I had the opportunity to hear the initial show from 7/4/70-You could tell that "AT40" was a smash hit from the start.
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Post by jmack19 on Jul 4, 2015 10:09:58 GMT -5
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Post by mkarns on Jul 4, 2015 10:27:46 GMT -5
Though I'm not sure about this: According to most histories, the show only was heard on 7 stations its first weekend. Of those listed, only Boston, San Bernardino, San Diego, and Honolulu were among the first seven from other sources (including Rob Durkee's book) that I've read. Washington DC, Las Vegas, and Tucson stations played it that week but weren't mentioned in the Billboard article. |
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Post by dukelightning on Jul 4, 2015 11:15:30 GMT -5
That is indeed incorrect. Casey on many occasions while answering questions over the years about the who, what, and when of AT40's beginning said that it was 7 stations at the start. Albany did not become an AT40 market until 1971. I was living there then but did not catch it until 1973 on WTRY. (WABY had broadcast it in 1971 for a few months).
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Post by brownjb81 on Jul 6, 2015 17:25:39 GMT -5
The biggest aspect of the American Top 40's first show from July 4, 1970 was that AT40 used the Billboard Hot 100 from July 11, 1970. They used the Hot 100 chart from a week later. It would've been interesting if AT40 had chosen to count down the Top 40 from the Hot 100 chart from July 4, 1970. Here are the songs that were in the Top 40 on the Hot 100 during the week of July 4, 1970:
40: I Want To Take You Higher--Sly & The Family Stone
39: Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I'm Yours)--Stevie Wonder
38: Hey, Mister Sun--Bobby Sherman
37: Go Back--Crabby Appleton
36: Mississippi--John Phillips
35: Cecilia--Simon & Garfunkel
34: Westbound #9--The Flaming Ember
33: The Letter--Joe Cocker
32: Save The Country--The 5th Dimension
31: Spirit In The Dark--Aretha Franklin
30: Teach Your Children--Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
29: Are You Ready?--Pacific Gas & Electric
28: Check Out Your Mind--The Impressions
27: Make Me Smile--Chicago
26: Up Around The Bend--Creedence Clearwater Revival
25: Sugar, Sugar--Wilson Pickett
24: It's All In The Game--The 4 Tops
23: Mississippi Queen--Mountain
22: Everything Is Beautiful--Ray Stevens
21: Question--The Moody Blues
20: Tighter, Tighter--Alive & Kicking
19: Love Land--Charles Wright & The Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band
18: O-O-H Child--The 5 Stairsteps
17: A Song Of Joy--Miguel Rios
16: Love On A Two Way Street--The Moments
15: My Baby Loves Lovin'--White Plains
14: (They Long To Be) Close To You--The Carpenters
13: United We Stand--The Brotherhood Of Man
12: Gimme Dat Ding--The Pipkins
11: Which Way You Goin' Billy--The Poppy Family
10: Get Ready--Rare Earth
9: The Wonder Of You--Elvis Presley
8: Lay Down (Candles In The Rain)--Melanie
7: Band Of Gold--Freda Payne
6: Ride Captain Ride--Blues Image
5: Hitchin' A Ride--Vanity Fare
4: The Long And Winding Road--The Beatles
3: Ball Of Confusion (That's What The World Is Today)--The Temptations
2: Mama Told Me (Not To Come)--Three Dog Night
1: The Love You Save--The Jackson 5
6 songs that were in the Top 40 on July 4, 1970 weren't in the 40 a week later, meaning that there were 6 debuts in the 40 the week of July 11, 1970.
If AT40 had decided to use the Top 40 from the Hot 100 from July 4, 1970 instead of July 11, 1970, then "I Want To Take You Higher" would've been the first song counted down on AT40's first show and "The Love You Save" would've been No. 1 on AT40's first show.
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Post by pb on Jul 6, 2015 17:58:11 GMT -5
CSNY had the distinction of having two songs in the countdown in the first episode, but would have lost that if this countdown had been used.
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Post by countdownmike on Jul 6, 2015 19:51:06 GMT -5
Although a lot of acts would follow, thanks to hot albums at chart-time, it's great that on the first show broadcast there was an act that had two songs on the chart with one song being an incidental release. Ohio, of course, was not on the hit Deja Vu album, but a single-only release in response to the Kent State shootings. I know of some folks who bought Deja Vu thinking Ohio was on it...due to the timing of the releases.
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