Post by Hervard on Sept 10, 2021 12:43:19 GMT -5
American Top 40: The 70s - September 11, 2021
This weeks presentation - September 10, 1977
Droppers:
YOU AND ME - ALICE COOPER (37) - As we all know, I preferred his power ballads over his loud rockers. This is possibly my second favorite song from him, behind "Only Women".
DO YOU WANNA MAKE LOVE - PETER McCANN (36) - I wonder if David Gates was inspired by this song for "Goodbye Girl", since they both sound very similar. Anyway, this is ordinarily the type of song that I'd really like (and I believe at one time I did), but now I think it's just a little too cheesy for my taste.
TELEPHONE MAN - MERI WILSON (28) - This one was a little goofy - I wouldn't like to hear it on a daily basis.
I'M IN YOU - PETER FRAMPTON (22) - He never quite matched the success of his Frampton Comes Alive album, but this song, from his sophomore album, of the same title, was his most successful single, peaking at #2. It is definitely my favorite song from him.
40: I BELIEVE YOU – DOROTHY MOORE (debut) - This was her second hit - sounded a little like "Misty Blue", only I liked this one a lot better.
39: YOU MADE ME BELIEVE IN MAGIC – THE BAY CITY ROLLERS (33) - After a hard drop from #10, this song moved down a little more slowly, holding in place last week and dropping six spots this week. This was this Scottish boyband's third and final Top Ten hit (in fact, after this, they'd have one last Top 40 hit before fading into obscurity). Anyway, this is about the only song by them that I like.
38: CAT SCRATCH FEVER – TED NUGENT (debut) - A classic rock staple here! I was never a huge fan of the song, however. Not sure - it was just a little loud for me, I guess. I did like Chicago DJ Steve Dahl’s parody of this, “Hump Day Fever”.
EXTRA: CAT’S IN THE CRADLE – HARRY CHAPIN - This song was played as the first Optional Extra. It was a great father/son tale that became a popular Long Distance Dedication request.
37: WHATCHA GONNA DO – PABLO CRUISE (14) - The first of several great songs by Pablo Cruise (which, of course, is a band, not a solo male). This one peaked at #3 on my Personal Top 30 chart in September 1977. I actually like this one a little better; "Cool Love" made it to #1 on my chart due to a lack of good songs (IMO, mind you) in the fall of 1981. In 1977, however, there were plenty of great ones. BTW, this song was edited big time this week.
36: DAYTIME FRIENDS – KENNY ROGERS (debut) - He had his first solo hit earlier that year, and it was one of his biggest hits, peaking at #5. This song didn't do quite as well (only got as high as #28), but the best was yet to come for him. It was a pretty good song, but far from being his best IMO.
35: THE GREATEST LOVE OF ALL – GEORGE BENSON (39) - This was a really nice song, though I preferred Whitney Houston's remake of this - but that's because I heard that version first (and more often). I have a feeling that I'd prefer George's version if I'd heard it during its chart run, but, in fact, I do not ever remember hearing it on the radio.
34: BLACK BETTY – RAM JAM (18) - I'm not a big fan of Southern Rock, so this song didn't really do anything for me.
33: SIGNED, SEALED, AND DELIVERED – PETER FRAMPTON (debut) - Frampton replaced himself this week, as this song debuts as his former hit dropped out. His current album, I'm In You, didn't quite live up to the success of Frampton Comes Alive (one of the most popular live albums of all time), but it did spawn two Top 20 hits. The title track, of course, was my favorite, but this was not bad either.
32: HARD ROCK CAFÉ – CAROLE KING (34) - Her popularity had peaked during the first half of the 1970s, but she indeed had a few last gasps in the late-70s. This was her second-to-last Top 40 hit. It was a good one.
31: SO YOU WIN AGAIN – HOT CHOCOLATE (32) - I was never a huge fan of them, but this one actually was not too bad.
30: JUNGLE LOVE – THE STEVE MILLER BAND (38) - The second single from Book Of Dreams and one of four songs that he charted with in 1977. This was pretty good, but my least favorite of his 1977 singles.
29: I FEEL LOVE – DONNA SUMMER (40) - I liked many of her disco hits, but this sure wasn't one of them - way too repetitive. Basically the same three sentences sung over and over and over again.
28: IT WAS ALMOST LIKE A SONG – RONNIE MILSAP (31) - I wonder if anyone thought this was the new song by Barry Manilow when they first heard the opening piano notes, as it definitely sounded like something Manilow would sing. Unsurprisingly, I thought this was a great song.
27: GIVE A LITTLE BIT - SUPERTRAMP (15) - This was their very first Top 20 hit. The song peaked at #15 over the past few weeks, but it did far better than the remake by the Goo Goo Dolls (on the pop chart; that version of the song was a #1 Hot AC smash, a format that did not exist back in 1977). This was one of my favorite songs by Superman.
26: EDGE OF THE UNIVERSE – THE BEE GEES (26) - Their final song before their biggest wave of popularity ever - this song was pretty good, but not quite their best.
25: CHRISTINE SIXTEEN - KISS (25) - One of three songs with which they charted during 1977. It was pretty good, but I preferred their ballads (as well as "Hard Luck Woman" from earlier in the year).
24: WAY DOWN – ELVIS PRESLEY (35) - This song had indeed been on its “way down” and had actually fallen out of the Top 40. But shortly after Elvis had died, the song came back to the Top 40 and looked like it might be heading for the Top Ten. However, it only got as high as #18 two weeks later.
23: NOBODY DOES IT BETTER – CARLY SIMON (29) - Another big jump - and like the Heatwave song, this would peak at #2. This is definitely one of my favorite songs by Carly Simon (Chris Thompson's song "If You Remember Me" from two years later reminds me of this song).
22: BOOGIE NIGHTS - HEATWAVE (30) - With a jump like that, this was definitely Top Ten bound. Part 2 of this song ("The Groove Line") would chart the following year and would also hit the Top Ten. Both songs were so/so IMO, but my favorite song from them was the one that charted between those two songs, "Always And Forever", one of the most popular love songs of all time.
21: HOW MUCH LOVE – LEO SAYER (17) - A true example of "Third Single Syndrome". After two #1 hits from Endless Flight, this was all the higher this song got. Too bad, as it was my favorite of his three EF singles.
20: DON’T WORRY BABY – B.J. THOMAS (24) - Kind of a surprise that the Beach Boys only got as high as #24 with their version of this song, since it receives a lot of recurrent airplay. This song would peak at #17. I liked this one a lot.
19: THAT’S ROCK ‘N’ ROLL – SHAUN CASSIDY (23) - Ah, the teen idol of the late-70s. I remember a girl who was in kindergarten with me had a huge crush on him. I liked most of his music - this and Da Doo Ron Ron are probably my two favorites from him.
18: STAR WARS TITLE THEME - MECO (27) - This song was on its way to #1 - in fact, it would get there three short weeks later, thus breaking up ongoing battle for the top spot between Andy Gibb and the Emotions.
17: SWAYIN’ TO THE MUSIC (SLOW DANCIN’) – JOHNNY RIVERS (20) - Of course, the crickets (the creatures, not the band) help him out in the first verse of this song. It wasn't bad, but I preferred a few others from him (i.e. "Summer Rain", "Secret Agent Man")
16: ON AND ON – STEPHEN BISHOP (19) - This was his biggest hit up to this point, and it would end up being his biggest hit ever; just barely missed the Top Ten, which I thought was a shame, as it was my favorite song from him. A small consolation - it did hit the Top Ten on the R&R chart, peaking at #8. Anyway, this was another song that was edited (which was pretty dumb IMO, as the song's not that long to begin with.
15: KEEP IT COMIN’ LOVE – K.C. & THE SUNSHINE BAND (21) - Their only Top Ten hit that did not go to #1 (it didn't miss by much, though; it peaked at #2 for three weeks, but couldn't quite get past Meco; then, when Debby Boone leapfrogged this song, of course, there was no hope). I never used to like this song very much, but now I think it's one of their best.
14: COLD AS ICE - FOREIGNER (16) - Their second hit - and there was a lot more where that came from! This would probably be my favorite of their two Top Ten hits from 1977 (though "Feels Like The First Time" was also a great one!)
OPTIONAL EXTRA: YOU LIGHT UP MY LIFE - DEBBY BOONE - THE ULTIMATE GUILTY PLEASURE HERE!! This song was on its way to becoming the longest running #1 song of the 1970s! A great song indeed!
13: BARRACUDA - HEART (11) - A high point in the show for our friend JessieLou. This is a song that I used to think was just OK, but I've recently gotten to like it a lot recently.
12: JUST A SONG BEFORE I GO – CROSBY, STILLS & NASH (7) - They had been hitting the chart for nearly ten years but, oddly enough, this was their very first Top Ten hit. I preferred their later hits myself, including this one.
11: STAR WARS (MAIN TITLE) – LONDON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA (13) - Of course, we already know that this song, the original Star Wars theme, is my favorite of the two versions of it on the chart this week.
10: SMOKE FROM A DISTANT FIRE – SANFORD-TOWNSEND BAND (12) - Ah, the Hall & Oates soundalikes. However, they weren't anywhere near as successful; this was their only Hot 100 hit. But at least it was a Top Ten. I remember hearing this one back in the day, as well as on Sunny 101.5, which played it every once in awhile about 30 years ago as a recurrent.
9: TELEPHONE LINE – ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA (10) - This song had a rather slow climb up the charts; debuted in early July and peaked at #7 the last week of September (two weeks later). It was a great one; indeed one of my favorites from them.
8: STRAWBERRY LETTER #23 – THE BROTHERS JOHNSON (9) - This one was indeed a popular song (after all, it did hit gold status). However, it just wasn't quite my cup of tea.
7: EASY – THE COMMODORES (4) - This song spent nearly the entire summer climbing the chart, peaking at #4 in late August. It was a great song - definitely when the Commodores' musical quality began noticeably improving IMO.
6: DON’T STOP – FLEETWOOD MAC (8) - The third Top Ten song from what would become the top album of 1977. I used to like it, but overplay changed it.
5: FLOAT ON – THE FLOATERS (6) - This song inspired a Sesame Street segment that came out in early 1978. It featured a song called "Give Me Five", performed by Bob, Gordon, David and Luis. It featured each of them introducing themselves (like the Floaters group members did in this song) and then singing a verse. I actually preferred that version (since it was by people that I saw on TV regularly back in the day). This song was pretty good as well.
4: HANDY MAN – JAMES TAYLOR (4) - Both husband and wife were on the chart at the same time. We heard Carly Simon back at #23, and her then-husband was sitting at his peak of #4 with this great song. My mom used to be able to play this song on her guitar, so I remember it quite well.
3: I JUST WANT TO BE YOUR EVERYTHING – ANDY GIBB (2) - This song appeared to be on its way down the chart, but then it decided that three weeks weren't quite enough and made an encore appearance at the top. It went on to become AT40's #1 song of 1977.
OPTIONAL EXTRA: JUST REMEMBER I LOVE YOU - FIREFALL - They only had one Top Ten hit ("You Are The Woman" from the year before), but two of their songs just barely missed. This was one of those songs, and it is one of my favorite songs by Firefall.
2: (YOUR LOVE HAS LIFTED ME) HIGHER AND HIGHER – RITA COOLIDGE (3) - This was her first big hit - couldn't quite break up the fight for the top spot between Andy Gibb and the Emotions, but still managed to sneak in a week at #2. This was definitely my favorite version of this song that I've heard.
1: BEST OF MY LOVE – THE EMOTIONS (1) - Casey pretty much spilled the beans about the number one song earlier in the show by saying that it was the longest running chart topper so far this year, with four weeks so far (and, though it fell out of #1 the following week, it was not done yet). Anyway, I really liked this song - I definitely preferred it over the Eagles' former #1 song of the same title, since that one was a melancholy song about a dying relationship while the Emotions song was a fun, upbeat song about a love affair that was strong and flourishing.
This weeks presentation - September 10, 1977
Droppers:
YOU AND ME - ALICE COOPER (37) - As we all know, I preferred his power ballads over his loud rockers. This is possibly my second favorite song from him, behind "Only Women".
DO YOU WANNA MAKE LOVE - PETER McCANN (36) - I wonder if David Gates was inspired by this song for "Goodbye Girl", since they both sound very similar. Anyway, this is ordinarily the type of song that I'd really like (and I believe at one time I did), but now I think it's just a little too cheesy for my taste.
TELEPHONE MAN - MERI WILSON (28) - This one was a little goofy - I wouldn't like to hear it on a daily basis.
I'M IN YOU - PETER FRAMPTON (22) - He never quite matched the success of his Frampton Comes Alive album, but this song, from his sophomore album, of the same title, was his most successful single, peaking at #2. It is definitely my favorite song from him.
40: I BELIEVE YOU – DOROTHY MOORE (debut) - This was her second hit - sounded a little like "Misty Blue", only I liked this one a lot better.
39: YOU MADE ME BELIEVE IN MAGIC – THE BAY CITY ROLLERS (33) - After a hard drop from #10, this song moved down a little more slowly, holding in place last week and dropping six spots this week. This was this Scottish boyband's third and final Top Ten hit (in fact, after this, they'd have one last Top 40 hit before fading into obscurity). Anyway, this is about the only song by them that I like.
38: CAT SCRATCH FEVER – TED NUGENT (debut) - A classic rock staple here! I was never a huge fan of the song, however. Not sure - it was just a little loud for me, I guess. I did like Chicago DJ Steve Dahl’s parody of this, “Hump Day Fever”.
EXTRA: CAT’S IN THE CRADLE – HARRY CHAPIN - This song was played as the first Optional Extra. It was a great father/son tale that became a popular Long Distance Dedication request.
37: WHATCHA GONNA DO – PABLO CRUISE (14) - The first of several great songs by Pablo Cruise (which, of course, is a band, not a solo male). This one peaked at #3 on my Personal Top 30 chart in September 1977. I actually like this one a little better; "Cool Love" made it to #1 on my chart due to a lack of good songs (IMO, mind you) in the fall of 1981. In 1977, however, there were plenty of great ones. BTW, this song was edited big time this week.
36: DAYTIME FRIENDS – KENNY ROGERS (debut) - He had his first solo hit earlier that year, and it was one of his biggest hits, peaking at #5. This song didn't do quite as well (only got as high as #28), but the best was yet to come for him. It was a pretty good song, but far from being his best IMO.
35: THE GREATEST LOVE OF ALL – GEORGE BENSON (39) - This was a really nice song, though I preferred Whitney Houston's remake of this - but that's because I heard that version first (and more often). I have a feeling that I'd prefer George's version if I'd heard it during its chart run, but, in fact, I do not ever remember hearing it on the radio.
34: BLACK BETTY – RAM JAM (18) - I'm not a big fan of Southern Rock, so this song didn't really do anything for me.
33: SIGNED, SEALED, AND DELIVERED – PETER FRAMPTON (debut) - Frampton replaced himself this week, as this song debuts as his former hit dropped out. His current album, I'm In You, didn't quite live up to the success of Frampton Comes Alive (one of the most popular live albums of all time), but it did spawn two Top 20 hits. The title track, of course, was my favorite, but this was not bad either.
32: HARD ROCK CAFÉ – CAROLE KING (34) - Her popularity had peaked during the first half of the 1970s, but she indeed had a few last gasps in the late-70s. This was her second-to-last Top 40 hit. It was a good one.
31: SO YOU WIN AGAIN – HOT CHOCOLATE (32) - I was never a huge fan of them, but this one actually was not too bad.
30: JUNGLE LOVE – THE STEVE MILLER BAND (38) - The second single from Book Of Dreams and one of four songs that he charted with in 1977. This was pretty good, but my least favorite of his 1977 singles.
29: I FEEL LOVE – DONNA SUMMER (40) - I liked many of her disco hits, but this sure wasn't one of them - way too repetitive. Basically the same three sentences sung over and over and over again.
28: IT WAS ALMOST LIKE A SONG – RONNIE MILSAP (31) - I wonder if anyone thought this was the new song by Barry Manilow when they first heard the opening piano notes, as it definitely sounded like something Manilow would sing. Unsurprisingly, I thought this was a great song.
27: GIVE A LITTLE BIT - SUPERTRAMP (15) - This was their very first Top 20 hit. The song peaked at #15 over the past few weeks, but it did far better than the remake by the Goo Goo Dolls (on the pop chart; that version of the song was a #1 Hot AC smash, a format that did not exist back in 1977). This was one of my favorite songs by Superman.
26: EDGE OF THE UNIVERSE – THE BEE GEES (26) - Their final song before their biggest wave of popularity ever - this song was pretty good, but not quite their best.
25: CHRISTINE SIXTEEN - KISS (25) - One of three songs with which they charted during 1977. It was pretty good, but I preferred their ballads (as well as "Hard Luck Woman" from earlier in the year).
24: WAY DOWN – ELVIS PRESLEY (35) - This song had indeed been on its “way down” and had actually fallen out of the Top 40. But shortly after Elvis had died, the song came back to the Top 40 and looked like it might be heading for the Top Ten. However, it only got as high as #18 two weeks later.
23: NOBODY DOES IT BETTER – CARLY SIMON (29) - Another big jump - and like the Heatwave song, this would peak at #2. This is definitely one of my favorite songs by Carly Simon (Chris Thompson's song "If You Remember Me" from two years later reminds me of this song).
22: BOOGIE NIGHTS - HEATWAVE (30) - With a jump like that, this was definitely Top Ten bound. Part 2 of this song ("The Groove Line") would chart the following year and would also hit the Top Ten. Both songs were so/so IMO, but my favorite song from them was the one that charted between those two songs, "Always And Forever", one of the most popular love songs of all time.
21: HOW MUCH LOVE – LEO SAYER (17) - A true example of "Third Single Syndrome". After two #1 hits from Endless Flight, this was all the higher this song got. Too bad, as it was my favorite of his three EF singles.
20: DON’T WORRY BABY – B.J. THOMAS (24) - Kind of a surprise that the Beach Boys only got as high as #24 with their version of this song, since it receives a lot of recurrent airplay. This song would peak at #17. I liked this one a lot.
19: THAT’S ROCK ‘N’ ROLL – SHAUN CASSIDY (23) - Ah, the teen idol of the late-70s. I remember a girl who was in kindergarten with me had a huge crush on him. I liked most of his music - this and Da Doo Ron Ron are probably my two favorites from him.
18: STAR WARS TITLE THEME - MECO (27) - This song was on its way to #1 - in fact, it would get there three short weeks later, thus breaking up ongoing battle for the top spot between Andy Gibb and the Emotions.
17: SWAYIN’ TO THE MUSIC (SLOW DANCIN’) – JOHNNY RIVERS (20) - Of course, the crickets (the creatures, not the band) help him out in the first verse of this song. It wasn't bad, but I preferred a few others from him (i.e. "Summer Rain", "Secret Agent Man")
16: ON AND ON – STEPHEN BISHOP (19) - This was his biggest hit up to this point, and it would end up being his biggest hit ever; just barely missed the Top Ten, which I thought was a shame, as it was my favorite song from him. A small consolation - it did hit the Top Ten on the R&R chart, peaking at #8. Anyway, this was another song that was edited (which was pretty dumb IMO, as the song's not that long to begin with.
15: KEEP IT COMIN’ LOVE – K.C. & THE SUNSHINE BAND (21) - Their only Top Ten hit that did not go to #1 (it didn't miss by much, though; it peaked at #2 for three weeks, but couldn't quite get past Meco; then, when Debby Boone leapfrogged this song, of course, there was no hope). I never used to like this song very much, but now I think it's one of their best.
14: COLD AS ICE - FOREIGNER (16) - Their second hit - and there was a lot more where that came from! This would probably be my favorite of their two Top Ten hits from 1977 (though "Feels Like The First Time" was also a great one!)
OPTIONAL EXTRA: YOU LIGHT UP MY LIFE - DEBBY BOONE - THE ULTIMATE GUILTY PLEASURE HERE!! This song was on its way to becoming the longest running #1 song of the 1970s! A great song indeed!
13: BARRACUDA - HEART (11) - A high point in the show for our friend JessieLou. This is a song that I used to think was just OK, but I've recently gotten to like it a lot recently.
12: JUST A SONG BEFORE I GO – CROSBY, STILLS & NASH (7) - They had been hitting the chart for nearly ten years but, oddly enough, this was their very first Top Ten hit. I preferred their later hits myself, including this one.
11: STAR WARS (MAIN TITLE) – LONDON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA (13) - Of course, we already know that this song, the original Star Wars theme, is my favorite of the two versions of it on the chart this week.
10: SMOKE FROM A DISTANT FIRE – SANFORD-TOWNSEND BAND (12) - Ah, the Hall & Oates soundalikes. However, they weren't anywhere near as successful; this was their only Hot 100 hit. But at least it was a Top Ten. I remember hearing this one back in the day, as well as on Sunny 101.5, which played it every once in awhile about 30 years ago as a recurrent.
9: TELEPHONE LINE – ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA (10) - This song had a rather slow climb up the charts; debuted in early July and peaked at #7 the last week of September (two weeks later). It was a great one; indeed one of my favorites from them.
8: STRAWBERRY LETTER #23 – THE BROTHERS JOHNSON (9) - This one was indeed a popular song (after all, it did hit gold status). However, it just wasn't quite my cup of tea.
7: EASY – THE COMMODORES (4) - This song spent nearly the entire summer climbing the chart, peaking at #4 in late August. It was a great song - definitely when the Commodores' musical quality began noticeably improving IMO.
6: DON’T STOP – FLEETWOOD MAC (8) - The third Top Ten song from what would become the top album of 1977. I used to like it, but overplay changed it.
5: FLOAT ON – THE FLOATERS (6) - This song inspired a Sesame Street segment that came out in early 1978. It featured a song called "Give Me Five", performed by Bob, Gordon, David and Luis. It featured each of them introducing themselves (like the Floaters group members did in this song) and then singing a verse. I actually preferred that version (since it was by people that I saw on TV regularly back in the day). This song was pretty good as well.
4: HANDY MAN – JAMES TAYLOR (4) - Both husband and wife were on the chart at the same time. We heard Carly Simon back at #23, and her then-husband was sitting at his peak of #4 with this great song. My mom used to be able to play this song on her guitar, so I remember it quite well.
3: I JUST WANT TO BE YOUR EVERYTHING – ANDY GIBB (2) - This song appeared to be on its way down the chart, but then it decided that three weeks weren't quite enough and made an encore appearance at the top. It went on to become AT40's #1 song of 1977.
OPTIONAL EXTRA: JUST REMEMBER I LOVE YOU - FIREFALL - They only had one Top Ten hit ("You Are The Woman" from the year before), but two of their songs just barely missed. This was one of those songs, and it is one of my favorite songs by Firefall.
2: (YOUR LOVE HAS LIFTED ME) HIGHER AND HIGHER – RITA COOLIDGE (3) - This was her first big hit - couldn't quite break up the fight for the top spot between Andy Gibb and the Emotions, but still managed to sneak in a week at #2. This was definitely my favorite version of this song that I've heard.
1: BEST OF MY LOVE – THE EMOTIONS (1) - Casey pretty much spilled the beans about the number one song earlier in the show by saying that it was the longest running chart topper so far this year, with four weeks so far (and, though it fell out of #1 the following week, it was not done yet). Anyway, I really liked this song - I definitely preferred it over the Eagles' former #1 song of the same title, since that one was a melancholy song about a dying relationship while the Emotions song was a fun, upbeat song about a love affair that was strong and flourishing.