When Casey First Called an Artist a Superstar

[bobbo428]

I was always curious as to when Casey would start calling a certain artist a superstar (or a certain group a "supergroup). You know that they had truly arrived when Casey started calling them a super-act. Here are some examples I can think of right away:

--He called Peter Frampton a superstar and Boston a supergroup by June 1977.
--I waited a long time for Casey to refer to Donna Summer as a superstar rather than a mere star. He referred to Donna as a superstar on Nov. 1, 1980, when "The Wanderer" was soaring up the chart. Of course, he may have referred to Donna as a superstar on a prior show that I had missed (1978-80).
--In June 1987, Casey said something along the lines that Whitney Houston was moving from stardom to superstardom as her smash "I Want to Dance with Somebody" reached #1.

A lot of you are more knowledgeable about the countdowns than I am and can probably pinpoint exactly when Casey referred to someone as a superstar for the first time.

[mga707]

Oct 14, 2014 23:18:43 GMT -5 bobbo428 said:

I was always curious as to when Casey would start calling a certain artist a superstar (or a certain group a "supergroup). You know that they had truly arrived when Casey started calling them a super-act. Here are some examples I can think of right away:

--He called Peter Frampton a superstar and Boston a supergroup by June 1977.
--I waited a long time for Casey to refer to Donna Summer as a superstar rather than a mere star. He referred to Donna as a superstar on Nov. 1, 1980, when "The Wanderer" was soaring up the chart. Of course, he may have referred to Donna as a superstar on a prior show that I had missed (1978-80).
--In June 1987, Casey said something along the lines that Whitney Houston was moving from stardom to superstardom as her smash "I Want to Dance with Somebody" reached #1.

A lot of you are more knowledgeable about the countdowns than I am and can probably pinpoint exactly when Casey referred to someone as a superstar for the first time.

I'd be curious as to whether he referred to The Temptations as a 'superstar' act in late 1971 when their song "Superstar" was in the 40. We've got a '71 show coming up in a week or two (hopefully) so maybe we'll hear it then.
I don't think he would have called The Carpenters by that term since they had not been around long enough. It was unusual that both acts had different songs with the same title on the chart at that same time, and just a few months after a third song called "Superstar" had charted (by Murray Head).

[bobbo428]

I see what you mean--the Carpenters had had five top-five hits by this time in 1971, so they were a borderline super-duo. I'd say that Casey started calling them superstars around this week in 1973. BTW, the Carpenters have a song debuting on this week's 1970s presentation. It was the show that I listened to right after I found out that the Mets had lost Game 7 of the World Series to the Oakland A's.

[mga707]

Oct 15, 2014 15:04:51 GMT -5 bobbo428 said:

I see what you mean--the Carpenters had had five top-five hits by this time in 1971, so they were a borderline super-duo. I'd say that Casey started calling them superstars around this week in 1973. BTW, the Carpenters have a song debuting on this week's 1970s presentation. It was the show that I listened to right after I found out that the Mets had lost Game 7 of the World Series to the Oakland A's.

Yep, "Top Of the World". I'm curious to hear which of the two distinctly different versions is played.

[trekkielo]

"This is Casey on AT40 in Hollywood, and now we're up to the busiest Top 40 act in the countdown. This act has hit The Top 40 more times than any other in the past year. A 12 month period that's been very busy for such super names as Donna Summer, Michael Jackson, Kenny Rogers, The Commodores and Linda Ronstadt. They've all hit and they've hit big. But none has hit as often as this particular British supergroup. Just to give you an idea of how regularly this group has hit The 40 you have to understand that Michael Jackson, The Commodores, Kenny Rogers and Donna Summer have all placed 4 big hits in The Top 40 in the past year. But this 7-man supergroup has hit The Top 40 in the past 12 months a remarkable 6 times. And they've done it with Don't Bring Me Down, Confusion, Last Train to London, I'm Alive, All Over the World and this week they debuted in The 40 teaming up with Olivia Newton-John in the song called Xanadu. All these within the past 12 months. Who else could it be but the amazing Electric Light Orchestra and this week 1 of the 2 current hits by ELO is in our countdown at #23, here's, All Over the World..." - Casey Kasem's American Top 40 - The 80's from August 30th, 1980 

[bobbo428]

I remember hearing this on the original broadcast back in 1980 (but had forgotten the exact wording in the 34 years since!) It was a mere 36 hours before I was to leave for my freshman year of college--I was excirted but really nervous as well. "All Over the World" had that big, anticipatory sound that I associate with college beginning. It was to August 1980 what Assembled Multitude's "Overture from Tommy" was to August 1970--both songs had similar vibes.

[trekkielo]

Oct 17, 2014 16:47:16 GMT -5 bobbo428 said:

I remember hearing this on the original broadcast back in 1980 (but had forgotten the exact wording in the 34 years since!) It was a mere 36 hours before I was to leave for my freshman year of college--I was excirted but really nervous as well. "All Over the World" had that big, anticipatory sound that I associate with college beginning. It was to August 1980 what Assembled Multitude's "Overture from Tommy" was to August 1970--both songs had similar vibes.

Yeah, when Premiere repeated their rebroadcast of it for the 2nd time in 2011, that's how I found out about this nice little ELO tidbit!

[tarobe]

Casey first called an artist a superstar on the very first program aired July 4, 1970. In hour 3 he outroed the extra "Spinning Wheel" by saying "An oldie, 'Spinning Wheel,' Blood, Sweat and Tears. Coming up in the number 9 spot on American Top 40, a superstar!" After a commercial, he played "The Wonder of You" by Elvis Presley.

[bobbo428]

Of course, Elvis was a superstar merely a few months after his first pop hit, in 1956! Calling Elvis a superstar in 1970 was like declaring that July was warmer than January in the North. A new category, megastar or living legend, was needed by then. I believe that Casey started calling Michael Jackson a megastar by 1983-84. Madonna probably qualified for megastar status by the late 1990s. Going by sheer Hot 100 dominance, I'd say Mariah Carey would qualify as a megastar, though many other people would say she was/is merely a "superstar."

[pb]

In the first episode Casey also called the Beatles "the group of the century."

Interesting that according to the OP Casey called Boston a supergroup when they had only one album and a few singles (but I guess the album sales merited it).

[trekkielo]

Oct 19, 2014 15:56:06 GMT -5 pb said:

Interesting that according to the OP Casey called Boston a supergroup when they had only one album and a few singles (but I guess the album sales merited it).

Same thing goes for Peter Frampton who was also mentioned by the OP right before Boston.

[chrislc]

Oct 19, 2014 12:33:35 GMT -5 tarobe said:

Casey first called an artist a superstar on the very first program aired July 4, 1970. In hour 3 he outroed the extra "Spinning Wheel" by saying "An oldie, 'Spinning Wheel,' Blood, Sweat and Tears. Coming up in the number 9 spot on American Top 40, a superstar!" After a commercial, he played "The Wonder of You" by Elvis Presley.

It seems odd to think of a song that charted only a little over a year earlier as an "oldie". I know some of the Oldies But Goodies LPs had come out by then, but they were 50s songs, at least for the most part.

There is sometimes kind of a dismissiveness the way Casey introduces and backsells those oldies on his early shows. I wonder if he liked playing them, or if he thought of them as nothing more than necessary filler. Oh well at least they weren't LDD.

[mga707]

It seems odd to think of a song that charted only a little over a year earlier as an "oldie". I know some of the Oldies But Goodies LPs had come out by then, but they were 50s songs, at least for the most part.

I remember when the Top 40 station I usually listened to when I was a kid (990 KTKT) would run 'Good Ol' Rock'N'Roll Weekends' in which they would feature 'oldies' from the pre-British Invasion era, 1955-63.
This was in the 1969-70 timeframe, when many of those songs were not even a decade old!
Similarily, when "American Graffiti" was released in the fall of 1973, it looked back at a distant era as well: 1962--only 11 years prior! And yet it seemed like a different time.

There is sometimes kind of a dismissiveness the way Casey introduces and backsells those oldies on his early shows. I wonder if he liked playing them, or if he thought of them as nothing more than necessary filler. Oh well at least they weren't LDD.

Agree totally with that!

[tarobe]

It's a relative thing. In 1975 Dion's "Runaround Sue" was an oldie (and, of course, still is). But a song like Thomas Dolby's "She Blinded Me with Science" doesn't seem like an oldie to me, even though its 32 years old. [That's equivalent to a record like, say, "Paper Doll" by the Mills Brothers in 1975.]
Why is that? I believe it has to do with the fact that I was twelve in 1975. Dion was before my time. But I was 19 in 1982, and remember well the music from that year.

[chrislc]

Oct 15, 2014 15:04:51 GMT -5 bobbo428 said:

I see what you mean--the Carpenters had had five top-five hits by this time in 1971, so they were a borderline super-duo. I'd say that Casey started calling them superstars around this week in 1973. BTW, the Carpenters have a song debuting on this week's 1970s presentation. It was the show that I listened to right after I found out that the Mets had lost Game 7 of the World Series to the Oakland A's.

Was it "I Believe You" for Tug McGraw?

Or "Only Yesterday (Yogi should have started Stone)"?

Maybe "There's A Kind Of Hush" all over Flushing?

"It's Going To Take Some Time (13 years)"?

"Merry Christmas, Ron Darling"?