Keep Reaching for the Stars: American Top 40, 50 years ago

Since there's been so much talk on the Helen Reddy thread about this, let me start a (hopefully) continuing look back at the charts, starting with 50 years ago today -- Oct. 3, 1970 -- plus hopefully a YouTube lost hit of the week.

TW LW TITLE –•– Artist (Label)-Weeks on Chart (Peak To Date)

1 1 AIN’T NO MOUNTAIN HIGH ENOUGH –•– Diana Ross (Motown)-9 (3 weeks at #1) (1)
2 3 LOOKIN’ OUT MY BACK DOOR / LONG AS I CAN SEE THE LIGHT –•– Creedence Clearwater Revival (Fantasy)-9 (2)
3 7 CANDIDA –•– Dawn (Bell)-11 (3)
4 6 CRACKLIN’ ROSIE –•– Neil Diamond (Uni)-7 (4)
5 5 JULIE, DO YA LOVE ME –•– Bobby Sherman (Metromedia)-10 (5)
6 19 I’LL BE THERE –•– Jackson 5 (Motown)-3 (6)
7 9 (I Know) I’M LOSING YOU –•– Rare Earth (Rare Earth)-10 (7)
8 8 SNOWBIRD –•– Anne Murray (Capitol)-12 (8)
9 2 WAR –•– Edwin Starr (Gordy)-13 (1)
10 13 ALL RIGHT NOW –•– Free (A&M)-8 (10)

11 4 PATCHES –•– Clarence Carter (Atlantic)-12 (4)
12 12 GROOVY SITUATION –•– Gene Chandler (Mercury)-13 (12)
13 11 DON’T PLAY THAT SONG (You Lied) –•– Aretha Franklin with the Dixie Flyers (Atlantic)-9 (11)
14 25 EXPRESS YOURSELF –•– Charles Wright and the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band (Warner Brothers)-8 (14)
15 24 IT’S A SHAME –•– The Spinners (V.I.P.)-11 (15)
16 18 GREEN-EYED LADY –•– Sugarloaf (Liberty)-8 (16)
17 10 25 OR 6 TO 4 –•– Chicago (Columbia)-11 (4)
18 42 WE’VE ONLY JUST BEGUN –•– The Carpenters (A&M)-4 (18)
19 14 I (Who Have Nothing) –•– Tom Jones (Parrot)-7 (14)
20 39 STILL WATER (Love) –•– The Four Tops (Motown)-6 (20)

21 23 JOANNE –•– Michael Nesmith and the First National Band (RCA)-9 (21)
22 22 NEANDERTHAL MAN –•– Hotlegs (Capitol)-7 (22)

Hotlegs was a British threesome (supposedly named after a receptionist who wore short pants) that had much more success later on as 10CC and Godley and Creme. Eric Stewart, Kevin Godley and Lol Creme with this minimalist, strange and repetitive one-hit wonder.

23 26 INDIANA WANTS ME –•– R. Dean Taylor (Rare Earth)-5 (23)
24 30 OUT IN THE COUNTRY –•– Three Dog Night (Dunhill)-6 (24)
25 33 LOOK WHAT THEY’VE DONE TO MY SONG MA –•– The New Seekers (Elektra)-5 (25)
26 27 LONG LONG TIME –•– Linda Ronstadt (Capitol)-8 (26)
27 31 CLOSER TO HOME –•– Grand Funk Railroad (Capitol)-8 (27)
28 29 LOLA –•– The Kinks (Reprise)-6 (28)
29 16 RUBBER DUCKIE –•– Ernie (Jim Henson) (Columbia)-8 (16)
30 40 FIRE AND RAIN –•– James Taylor (Warner Brothers)-4 (30)

31 17 (They Long To Be) CLOSE TO YOU –•– The Carpenters (A&M)-16 (1)
32 37 IT’S ONLY MAKE BELIEVE –•– Glen Campbell (Capitol)-5 (32)
33 35 THAT’S WHERE I WENT WRONG –•– The Poppy Family Featuring Susan Jacks (London)-9 (33)
34 38 EL CONDOR PASA –•– Simon and Garfunkel (Columbia)-4 (34)
35 15 IN THE SUMMERTIME –•– Mungo Jerry (Janus)-13 (3)
36 21 SPILL THE WINE –•– Eric Burdon and War (MGM)-20 (3)
37 43 SOMEBODY’S BEEN SLEEPING –•– 100 Proof (Aged In Soul) (Hot Wax)-5 (37)
38 20 MAKE IT WITH YOU –•– Bread (Elektra)-17 (1)
39 50 DO WHAT YOU WANNA DO –•– Five Flights Up (T-A)-7 (39)
40 44 STAND BY YOUR MAN –•– Candi Staton (Fame)-6 (40)

THIS WEEK’S DROPS

41 28 SOLITARY MAN –•– Neil Diamond (Bang)-23 (21)
45 32 PEACE WILL COME (According To Plan) –•– Melanie (Buddah)-7 (32)

POWER PLAYS

42 46 I STAND ACCUSED –•– Isaac Hayes (Enterprise)-6 (42)
43 58 DEEPER AND DEEPER –•– Freda Payne (Invictus)-4 (43)
44 45 IF I DIDN’T CARE –•– The Moments (Stang)-7 (44)
46 49 SUNDAY MORNING COMING DOWN –•– Johnny Cash (Columbia)-6 (46)
47 59 OUR HOUSE –•– Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young (Atlantic)-3 (47)
48 47 SOUL SHAKE / FREE THE PEOPLE –•– Delaney and Bonnie and Friends (Atco)-12 (43)
49 57 WE CAN MAKE MUSIC –•– Tommy Roe (ABC)-4 (49)
50 51 AS THE YEARS GO BY –•– Mashmakhan (Epic)-7 (50)

NEW THIS WEEK

62 — LUCRETIA MAC EVIL –•– Blood, Sweat and Tears (Columbia)-1 (62)
63 — SUPER BAD (Parts 1 and 2) –•– James Brown (King)-1 (63)
70 — UGENA ZA ULIMWENGU (Unite the World) –•– The Temptations (Gordy)-1 (70)
81 — MAKE IT EASY ON YOURSELF –•– Dionne Warwick (Scepter)-1 (81)
88 — FRESH AIR –•– Quicksilver Messenger Service (Capitol)-1 (88)
89 — WOODSTOCK –•– The Assembled Multitude (Atlantic)-1 (89)

This was an "easy listening" instrumental version of the Joni Mitchell song from the previous year, at least the fourth version to hit the charts (Mitchell herself; Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young; and Mathews Southern Comfort.)

90 — IF YOU WERE MINE –•– Ray Charles (ABC / TRC)-1 (90)
92 — PART TIME LOVE –•– Ann Peebles (Hi)-1 (92)
93 — YOU BETTER THINK TWICE –•– Poco (Epic)-1 (93)
95 — SO CLOSE –•– Jake Holmes (Polydor)-1 (95)
97 — LET ME BACK IN –•– Tyrone Davis (Dakar)-1 (97)
98 — DAY IS DONE –•– Brooklyn Bridge (Buddah)-1 (98)
99 — 5-10-15-20 (25-30 Years Of Love) –•– The Presidents (Sussex)-1 (99)
100 — GOT TO BELIEVE IN LOVE –•– Robin McNamara (Steed)-1 (100)

 

There is a lot to unpack there. Biggest to me is that Nesmith broke the top 40 post monkees. I knew he did stuff, but never it gained any traction outside of critical acclaim.

And Neanderthal Man....sounds a little like the early t-Rex stuff.

 

Absolutely love "Sunday Morning Coming Down," but didn't know Johnny Cash sang it. I thought it started with Kris Kristofferson, but turns out he did write it. The version I listen to is from Shawn Mullins

 

About a quarter of those are bedrock staples when you think of music from that period. Solid percentage for a given week in time.
Not to sound like a get off my lawn guy, but as a whole, music today doesn't hold a candle.

 

"Indiana Wants Me" and (especially) "D.O.A." were two bizarre radio hits back then ...

 

The notable one to me was "Rubber Ducky" at 29. I remember hearing that song when watching "Sesame Street" as a toddler, but I never realized it actually charted.

 

Not particulary relevent, but I got in trouble as a teenager when I aired the Rick Dees' countdown disks out of order.

 

Mungo Jerry!

 

I'm honestly not sure what this says, but I was 3 years old when this was the top 40 and I could sing along to eight of the top 10 if they came on the radio right now. I'm not sure there are eight songs that have been top 10 hits over the past decade that I could sing along to.

It's tempting to chalk that up to modern hit music sucking, but I suspect it really says a lot about how differently we experience music these days. I'm listening to music constantly. I haven't listened to a terrestrial radio station in 25 years.

 

"Ain't No Mountain High Enough" was the highlight of Diana Ross' solo career. While the Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell version of the track was good, the reworking by Ashford and Simpson to make a little more grandiose and majestic paid off. Big.

 

I listen to one station. I am a high school teacher and literally drive to school every morning listening to the same songs on the same station that I did three decades ago. It's awesome.