This Week's Review -- September 26, 1970

There were ten debuts in this week's Billboard Hot 100. Of these hits, three graced the Top 40 and one went into the Top 10. The hits include two stalwart radio hits, as well as one song that has been undeservedly forgotten. Digging a little deeper in the chart, several acts that are known for other hits appear, and Roger Cook/Roger Greenaway wrote two of the songs that appear here.

Several issues of Billboard are available at Google Books, including the September 26, 1970 edition. The full Hot 100 list can be found on page 76. On page 10, there's a neat little recap of Ted Wallerstein's 50 years in the recording business. Sadly, the artice was also an epitaph for him. Tha large "pull-out" section tells about the advent of the Cartridge TV that was expected to be all the rage in the 1970s (but wasn't) and all the differing formats being offered.

The Who - "See Me, Feel Me"

(Debuted #75, Peaked #12, 13 Weeks on chart)



Though "See Me, Fee Me" was part of the rock opera Tommy, it was never a separate track on the soundtrack LP. Instead, it was part of the larger song "We're No Gonna Take It." Enough has been written about Tommy so I'll focus on a memory from my youth.

My friend Reuben usually came up with inappropriate lyrics for songs, and most of them were the same type you'd expect from a 14-year old. Today, I can still "hear" some of those even when I know better. The same summer I played some tracks from the Woodstock soundtrack LP (which also included "See Me, Feel Me" in a medley with "Listening To You"), Reuben cut loose with the words "eat me." Yes, that broke up a group of teens...and I still hear his voice on that song to this day.  

Bread - "It Don't Matter To Me"

(Debuted #78, Peaked #10, 11 Weeks on chart)



I was once told by a friend that sometimes, if you want to get the girl, you can play the game of "he who cares the least." The idea...if she wants to go, let her go and avoid killing yourself to let her know you're distraught about it. She'll see that she isn't able to control you and will return to you in time. Personally, I don't know how effective that is, but it seems to be a prevailing mood for "It Don't Matter to Me."

However, in the single version of the song, the musical accompaniment is really laid back. It's the musical equivalent of saying, "Whatever, Baby. I'll leave the light on if you ever decide to come back around." Which is really walking a fine line between hopefulness and just giving up without a fight. The original LP track took a harder stance and was much faster, but the success of "Make It With You" led the band to re-record it in the same style and see whether Lightning struck twice.

"It Don't Matter to Me" was definitely a hit, but it also led the group's record company to avoid some of their rougher material when it came time to issue singles. So while that gave a boost to member David Gates -- who wrote nearly everything deemed "single worthy" -- it eventually led to the rift that broke up the band.

Wilson Pickett - "Engine Number 9"

(Debuted #83, Peaked #14, 13 Weeks on chart)



After recording most of his hits in the South (Memphis and Muscle Shoals), Wilson Pickett went to Philadelphia to record an LP in 1970. While that might sound like an odd pairing, it pointed the passing of the baton from the Southern Soul that flavored the 1960s to a city where many of the new hits would appear in the 1970s.

While Wilson Pickett in Philadelphia was undoubtedly done in Pickett's inimitable style, the song was written by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff. A song using the imagery of the train that would take him back home, it helped revitalize him enough to return to Muscle Shoals for one last hurrah. 

White Plains - "Lovin' You Baby" (Not available on iTunes)

(Debuted #86, Peaked #82, 2 Weeks on chart)



White Plains is the first of two groups in this week's review where the folowup hit was totally forgotten by almost everybody but the performers and maybe their families. It's also the first of two songs written by Roger Cook and Roger Greenaway. However, it's a great slice of bubblegum that really deserves a listen. Yes, it might be disposable pop, but that doesn't mean it's irredeemable.

White Plains was known as one of Tony Burrows' many projects, but this was no one-off rendition. Though Burrows was never really a member of the group (he only lent his voice in the band's first recording session), the group is remembered simply because of him. Burrows wasn't the lead singer of "Lovin' You Baby," but it's well worth a listen anyway.

Blue Mink - "Our World" 

(Debuted #90, Peaked #64, 6 Weeks on chart)



Blue Mink was a British group that boasted Roger Cook (the famed songwriter and the composer of the song I just reviewed) and New Jersey native Madeline Bell, a highly respected singer. The mulitracial group predictably used that worldview in its lyrics, and "Our World" is no exception; the song is filled with optimism that the new decade will bring about harmony among the people living in it. Even if it does sound like it could have been a beer commercial on TV.

Though "Our World" was Blue Mink's only U.S. hit, the group had 4 Top 10s in their native U.K. (interestingly, "Our World" wasn't one of them...it went to #17.)

Blues Image - "Gas Lamps And Clay" (Not Available on iTunes)

(Debuted #95, Peaked #81, 4 Weeks on chart)



"Gas Lamps and Clay" was Blues Image's followup to the hit "Ride Captain Ride" but lacked the quality that marked that hit. Instead of the story about the sailors on a ship on brotherhood, it was a meandering mess. It started out with a bluesy riff, but segued into a poppy "la la la" refrain. I'm not sure which the group was aspiring to...and neither did the record-buying public. It was the last hit the Tampa group who relcated to New York City ever had.

The members of the band would go on to other projects, including Mike Pinera who went to Iron Butterfly and Kurt Henry (his replacement) would join Steppenwolf. You'd think that with those kind of hard rock credits, "Gas Lamps and Clay" would be harder-edged than it is, but you'd be wrong.


Alive and Kicking - "Just Let It Come"

(Debuted #96, Peaked #69, 5 Weeks on chart)

The Brooklyn band Alive & Kicking's story is fairly well known by 1970s die-hards because of their Tommy James connection and the fact that future Brooklyn Dreams member (and Donna Summer's husband) Bruce Sudano was a member. However, anything the band released besides "Tighter, Tighter" has largely been forgotten.

"Just Let it Come" was the group's second hit single. However, it wasn't written or produced by Tommy James and the buying public largely ignored it. Instead of sounding it could have been another single with the Shondells on backup, it sounded like a harder version of The Righteous Brothers (complete with the dueling voices) with some light fuzz guitar.

Subsequent releases failed to garner any attention, and the group split in 1971. When they reunited later in the decade -- without Sudano -- they named themselves Alive N Kickin', perhaps to avoid any entanglements with former boss Morris Levy. 

Kool and the Gang - "Funky Man"

(Debuted #97, Peaked #87, 4 Weeks on chart)



In 1970, Kool & the Gang weren't yet the phenomena they would become. At the time, they were still a bunch of guys from New Jersey who were getting their sound together. The smoother material was well into the future, what band did during the early 1970s was explore the depth that they could groove.

"Funky Man" was a song that first appeared as a single, and was a song that worked its way into the band's concert repertoire. Originally a jazz/funk jam, in concert the tune was given new life. Through it and other songs, Kool and the Gang were able to evolve into the group that were hitting their stride as the 1970s progressed.

Faith, Hope and Charity - "Baby, Don't Take Your Love" (Not Available on iTunes)

(Debuted #98, Peaked #96, 2 Weeks on chart)



Faith, Hope and Charity was a Tampa-based group whose biggest success came later in the 1970s after Disco became a force in the music business. An earlier incarnation of the group included later members Al Bailey and Brenda Hillard, but also included Zulema Cusseaux, who left the band in 1971 and went on to some solo success. The band's fortune changed in 1970, when producer Van McCoy took them under his wing.

"Don't Take Your Love" was co-written and produced by McCoy and Joe Cobb, who gave it a great-sounding R&B groove. However, their sound was pretty generic for the time and the bouncy tune was off the pop chart after two weeks. It was a minor R&B hit, though, reaching #36 on that chart. If you're not familiar with it, click the video above and check it out. It has a classic groove that may have been "generic" in its time but is great today.

Engelbert Humperdinck - "Sweetheart"

(Debuted #99, Peaked #47, 11 Weeks on chart)



By the time "Sweetheart" became a hit, Engelbert Humperdinck was at a crossroads in his career. He wasn't conflicted about his singing; rather, he was being told by his management to de-emphasize his recordings and instead focus on performing and touring. His concerts were so profitable and his smooth delivery of his material was certain to draw legions of women who had the money to spend.

As a result, the song "Sweetheart" was pretty much what you'd expect from a Humperdinck tune: an adult contemporary confection, with the right lines and a show of his wide-throated vocal range. On top of that, an angelic-sounding female chorus backs him up, and a Hawaiian guitar makes an appearance in the middle.

The result: a truly middle of the road song, a lackluster showing on the pop chart but a huge AC hit. It went to #2 on that chart, and was the tenth straight Top Ten hit there. But, that was the target audience that was bringing him to the dance.

This Week's Review -- August 1, 1970

There were 12 Singles debuting in this week's Billboard Hot 100. Of these, five reached into the Top 40 and two went Top 10. The singles included the first solo hit by Tommy James, as well as the last by Mama Cass. Bobby Sherman's biggest hit is here, as is the next salvo by Blood, Sweat and Tears after their breakthrough. The "King" ships a surprising two-sider into the mix, Lou Rawls gives his spin to the same song he backed up in 1962, and Dave Mason gets by with a little help from his friends. An elementary school class records a song written by a teacher, and a group called Caboose shows up for the only hit it ever charted. Finally, Joe Simon and The Chairmen of the Board return to the charts with their own distinct "brand."

Over at Google Books is a large archive of Billboard issues, including the August 1, 1970 edition. The full Hot 100 list can be found on page 60. On page 18, an executive predicts that pre-recorded material could be profitable; he said that about Cartridge TV, but he was proven right a decade and a half later. However, progress doesn't please everybody. On page 1, jukebox operators complain that the expansion of the running time on singles is eating into their profit margin.

Rare Earth - "(I Know) I'm Losing You"

(Debuted #61, Peaked #7, 12 Weeks on chart)



On the LP Ecology, Rare Earth outperformed The Temptations on "(I Know) I'm Losing You." The 1966 original was given a more psychedelic sound and extended into a ten-minute jam. When it was released as a single, it was edited back down to a radio-friendly three minutes and charted at #7, which beat The Temptations by one point.

Ironically, at the time Rare Earth was remaking "(I Know) I'm Losing You" in a more psychedelic style, The Temptations were recording in the style as well and just might have done it differently if they'd recorded it in 1970.

Bobby Sherman - "Julie, Do Ya Love Me"

(Debuted #71, Peaked #5, 15 Weeks on chart)



Bobby Sherman's biggest hit of 1970s came after the cancellation of the TV show that propelled him to stardom, Here Come the Brides. While that was soon followed by the fading of the sheen on Sherman's pop star, it's worth mentioning that his acting gig led to a future job that helped far more people than his TV ratings or million-selling albums did.

In 1974, Sherman appeared on the show Emergency!, where he became interested in the methods that EMTs used. Soon, he retreated from public life and became one. Founding a volunteer EMT service, Sherman gave classes in first aid and CPR, eventually becoming a technical reserve officer in the Los Angeles police department, rising to the rank of captain. Say what you want about Bobby Sherman as an entertainer or a teen idol, but that's an amazing thing.

By the way...the screaming from girls in the video clip above was a standard feature of Sherman concerts. It's also something that contributed to the hearing loss he suffers to this day.  

Blood, Sweat, and Tears - "Hi-De-Ho"

(Debuted #72, Peaked #14, 8 Weeks on chart)



After the breakout success of their 1969 LP, Blood, Sweat and Tears had a monumental task with their next record. It was sure to sell well simply based on the afterburners from their previous set, but the group was saddled with an unrealistic expectation to move forward while making sure to bottle the spark they showed earlier. They did well, but took care not to veer too far from the course they set.

The first track on Blood, Sweat & Tears 3 was "Hi-De-Ho," a song written by Carole King and Gerry Goffin. It started off with the horns that made them famous before David Clayton-Thomas opens up with his vocal. There's a harmonica solo in the instrumental bridge and some solid keyboard playing to go with the horns, but critics blasted the group's reliance on outside material (even though that didn't seem to be such a problem before) at the expense of creating their own.

In short, it was too much of the same thing. Besides, Chicago showed up around the same time with their own formula (largely self-written, though) and relegated BST to the cutout racks fairly quickly.

Elvis Presley - "I've Lost You" b/w "The Next Step Is Love"

(Debuted #85, Peaked #32, 9 Weeks on chart)



Here's a video of the equally impressive B-side:



One of several two-sided Elvis chart singles of the 1970s, these two songs appeared on the soundtrack for the film That's the Way it Is. The recording of "I've Lost You" on the album (shown in the video above) is a live cut, but the hit was a studio cut. The B-Side, "The Next Step is Love," was the same studio recording on both formats.

"I've Lost You" is often attributed to the then-disintegrating marriage between Elvis and Priscilla Presley, which often makes people forget that he didn't write the song. Alan Blaikley and Ken Howard were the authors, and a version by Matthews' Southern Comfort appeared in 1969. The fact that Presley was so able to parallel the song with his personal life (the same way he did with "Suspicious Minds" and "Always On My Mind") just shows how well he was at interpreting the material of others.

"The Next Step is Love" was a lot more positive, as if Presley was hoping to convince himself that his marital problems would just go away with a little work. The song is a well-crafted piece of 1970s pop, something that he recorded solidly when he really tried. Together, the two sides of the single tell a story. On one side, an admission that life isn't always easy; on the other, a promise that it can get better.

Miss Abrams & the Strawberry Point School 3rd Grade Class - "Mill Valley"

(Debuted #92, Peaked #90, 3 Weeks on chart)




I could explain the story behind the song, but instead I'll point you to JB's The Hits Just Keep On Coming blog, because he discussed it a couple of years back. He did a great job at it, meaning that I couldn't possibly add anything new to what he said.

The short story for those who don't want to check out the link above...this is an actual elementary school class in Mill Valley, California, and they're being led by a teacher who also wrote the song. Rita Abrams was actually a kindergarten teacher when she wrote this serenade to the students' home town, but it was decided that a third grade class would be a better choice for the recording.

It didn't get high up the charts (and is a relic of the idealism of the era), but how awesome would it be to have that record and know that your voice is one of the ones on it? Although the children are about 50 years old now, there are likely some who have their own copy stashed away, a remnant of their short music career. I'm not being facetious by saying that...I think it would be great.

As for Rita Abrams, she left the teaching profession soon after the record to make more music. Though she never had any more national hits, she remained active in the business and is still living in Mill Valley, according to her Wikipedia page.

The Caboose - "Black Hands White Cotton" (Not Available on iTunes)

(Debuted #94, Peaked #79, 3 Weeks on chart)



The Caboose was a Memphis group, who were originally called The Butterscotch Caboose before shortening their name. Founded by brother and sister Walter and Patrice Ramsey, who stayed with the group as its membership changed. Eventually, Gary Johns was installed as the lead singer (originally, Patrice Ramsey held that spot) and their recording of "Black Hands White Cotton" got them signed with a Stax subsidiary. Unfortunately, the business aspect took over: the label fumbled the promotion before the band could capitalize.

As the title suggests, "Black Hands White Cotton" was a song about racial harmony, a very topical subject in 1970 that sounds dated today. Although the voices on the record were white, Johns' vocal is infused with some Southern soul and might sound like it was written for somebody else.

Dave Mason - "Only You Know And I Know"

(Debuted #95, Peaked #42, 10 Weeks on chart)



Dave Mason's first solo LP after his stints in Traffic was called Alone Together, a title that reflected the fact that he was recording solo, but also that he relied on a bunch of his musician friends including Delaney and Bonnie Bramlett (who also recorded the song in 1972), Leon Russell and Rita Coolidge.

There are so many guests on the record, the atmosphere of "Only You Know and I Know" comes off as a jam session recorded in a friend's living room. I realize it wasn't exactly that easy to record, but it sure sounds that way.

The Chairmen Of the Board - "Everything's Tuesday"

(Debuted #96, Peaked #38, 9 Weeks on chart)



A band known as The Chairmen of the Board is still in existence today and has legitimate links to the past, but the hitmaking unit was a trio fronted by the unique voice of General Johnson, who passed away in 2010. While he was one of four voices in the band and each was given a chance to solo, it was largely the material that Johnson performed that ended up as hit singles, including "Everything's Tuesday."

The "Tuesday" in the song refers to a woman, and Johnson is letting the whole world know how appreciative he is to have her in his life. The song is upbeat and the backing orchestration similarly uplifting. The song was written by the trio of Daphne Dumas, Ronald Dunbar and Edith Wayne, which means it may have actually been written by Holland/Dozier/Holland, who were still unable to use their real names due to litigation with Motown. It's also safe to say that the studio musicians were also "borrowed" from Motown's house band, who still weren't getting the recognition they deserved.

"Everything's Tuesday" was the band's third straight top 40 pop hit and also made the Top 20 of the R&B chart. In the U.K., it reached #12. The single's B-side was "Patches," a song that Johnson wrote which became a hit for Clarence Carter later that year.

Joe Simon - "Yours Love"

(Debuted #97, Peaked #78, 7 Weeks on chart)



Honestly, I've never really understood why Joe Simon's style has often been referred to as "country soul." I can see how his Southern phrasing and deep voice can give him the label, but he isn't Charley Pride, Al Downing or O.B. McClinton. The instrumentation on "Yours Love" is definitely rooted in soul and the backing vocals are firmly gospel-inspired, but maybe the association just proves my oft-stated opinion that soul and country are quite similar to each other. They share similar topics, come largely from the same part of the country and have common roots.

"Yours Love" was one of the flurry of songs Simon released in the wake of "The Chokin' Kind." It's a great performance, but like most of them, it fell short of its potential on both the pop and R&B charts. He would need another year and a collaboration with Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff to make listeners pay closer attention to his obvious talent.  

Tommy James - "Ball And Chain"

(Debuted #98, Peaked #57, 7 Weeks on chart)



After more than a half decade fronting the Shondells, Tommy James went his own way in 1970. His first solo hit was "Ball and Chain," a song that starts out sounding like it's definitely trying to distance itself from his former group. Using an acid-washed electric guitar lick, it served notice that this was no bubblegum-flavored single.

It also might have been an indication of what James felt like in dealing with his record company. See, he was signed to Roulette, owned by Mafia associate Morris Levy. James would write a book about the experience in 2010 (after the principal characters were all dead and unable to exact revenge on him), but the day-to-day life of dealing with an owner who paid him whenever it was convenient had to influence lines like "you can't climb that mountain carrying a ball and chain," at least subconsciously.

Mama Cass Elliot - "A Song That Never Comes"

(Debuted #99, Peaked #99, 2 Weeks on chart)

"A Song That Never Comes" was the final song "Mama" Cass Elliot took into the Hot 100 before her death. While The Mamas & Papas had broken up for good by 1970, they were still recording until 1971 due to contractual obligations, through the magic of studio wizardry whenever John Phillips knew a fellow member was passing through Los Angeles. So, Elliot wasn't quite a "former" member, but she had the most successful solo career when the band split apart. Despite that, her record company insisted she keep "Mama" in front of her name to keep the association with the group in the minds of consumers.

The oddly appropriately-titled song is a tune that features Elliot's big voice in a manner that evokes its own era. Beginning with her singing over a piano, an orchestra comes in a little later, followed by backing singers. In retrospect, it could have been performed by a number of other artists at the time. Perhaps the lack of originality on the track doomed it to peak at #99, right where it debuted.

Lou Rawls - "Bring It On Home"

(Debuted #100, Peaked #96, 5 Weeks on chart)



With "Bring it On Home," there may have been a slight sense of "deja vu" for Lou Rawls. The original version was recorded in 1962 by Sam Cooke, and Rawls appeared in the song as one of the uncredited background singers. Eight years later, he was in the spotlight, recording it himself.

Rawls performs in a Southern-fried style accompanied by a guitar, which was a little rougher than Cooke's smoother rendition. However, the song has become something of a standard, recorded dozens of times in several formats. It even hit #1 on the country chart when Mickey Gilley recorded it in 1976, but Rawls managed only a minor hit. It reached #96 pop and #45 on the R&B survey.

This Week's Review -- July 18, 1970

There were eleven new singles on the Billboard Hot 100 this week. Six of them eventually reached the Top 40, with two making the Top 10. Several songs expressed the renewed optimism that often accompanies a new decade, but one sounded like an outtake from the Kennedy administration. A Canadian songstress appears for the first time, and a British studio group perform a song after a more established group turned it down. A former drummer for Jimi Hendrix does his own take on a Neil Young song. Several R&B veterans appear on the list, as does a rocking Canadian group and a paean to the town of Tucson.

There is an archive of past Billboard magazines over at Google Books, including the July 18, 1970 edition. The full Hot 100 list can be found on page 70. An article on page 49 has a retiring jukebox executive sharing the experience of a 40-year career (which started in 1930) in the Chicago area, through war, a ban on recordings by the musician's union, several shortages brought about by a lack of supplies and a switch from 78 RPM records to 45s. Also, the charges that the Mafia ran the business. It's an interesting read.

James Brown - "Get Up I Feel Like Being Like A Sex Machine (Parts 1 and 2)"

(Debuted #72, Peaked #15, 9 Weeks on chart)



"Get Up (I Feel Like Being a Sex Machine)" -- sometimes merely shortened to "Sex Machine" -- is a classic James Brown tune today, but at the time it came out, it was notable because it put less emphasis on the brass section employed in many of his 1960s hits. Indicating a new direction for a new decade, the stars of this song are brothers Bootsy and Catfish Collins on bass and guitar, as well as fellow vocalist Bobby Byrd (who contributes the other "Get on up" to the words and is called upon by Brown during the song).

There have been a few versions of the song through the years. The original 1970 version was a live recording from his LP Sex Machine, which included a spoken intro between Brown and his band that doesn't appear in the video above. Brown recorded a disco-friendly song called "Sex Machine Parts I & II" in 1975 that is a song that references this and other JB tunes. It has been covered several times by other artists (including a Spitting Image episode that had a puppet of Luciano Pavarotti doing it), but there's no denying that is was a James Brown tune to begin with.

The Supremes - "Everybody's Got The Right To Love"

(Debuted #74, Peaked #21, 11 Weeks on chart)



The Supremes' post-Diana Ross era is a period that is sorely overlooked by many. That said, there's a lot of surprises to be found in their early 1970s catalog that might surprise fans who go back and check the music with a fresh perspective.

"Everybody's Got the Right to Love" was the second single of the Jean Terrell era, but it showcased all three members in the trio in a way that hadn't been done since the spotlight was shifted more onto Ross in the mid-1960s. In fact, the song opens with all three singing in harmony. Written by Lou Stallman and produced by Frank Wilson (both of whom were cogs in Motown's machine at the time), the song was one of many of the era to espouse a positive, socially-conscious message.

Anne Murray - "Snowbird"

(Debuted #86, Peaked #8, 16 Weeks on chart)



Around my former home in Florida, there is a name used to describe the Northerners who come down for the winter to enjoy the milder weather, but then go back north once it begins getting hot. That's funny when it's used as a derisive term, considering how many Northerners (myself included) made the state a full-time home. "Snowbirds" can be from the Midwest, the Northeast U.S., or Canadians. That said, how appropriate is it for a Canadian to sing a song called "Snowbird"?

Anne Murray was a former teacher from Nova Scotia, and "Snowbird" was the song that broke her career open. It was a Top 10 hit on both the pop and country charts, and topped the adult contemporary survey as well. It had a sound that was enjoyable to a wide audience, something that Murray could use to her benefit throughout her career. The lyrics of the song, which contrasts the ability to simply fly away like a bird with the way the heart causes a person to stay put, weren't Murray's, though. Instead, fellow Canadian Gene MacLellan (who also wrote "Put Your Hand in the Hand") penned it.

The Guess Who - "Hand Me Down World"

(Debuted #89, Peaked #17, 11 Weeks on chart)



While I'm discussing socially-conscious tunes and Canadian acts in the previous two singles, let's juxtapose the two for this one.  "Hand Me Down World" was a song that was brought to The Guess Who after guitarist Randy Bachman left. He was replaced by two guitarists, Greg Leskiw and Kurt Winter, and the tune was one that Winter had written and recorded with his previous group Brother.

Though the album's liner notes credit only Winter with penning the tune, he had composed it with the two other members of Brother, Bill Wallace and Vance Masters. I'm guessing the fact that Winter's name was listed alone on the Guess Who album was merely due to his membership in the group. Though it was written in the late 1960s, it was yet another song that expressed hope that the new decade would be better.

Clarence Carter - "Patches"

(Debuted #90, Peaked #4, 14 Weeks on chart)



"Patches" was the name of a song recorded by Dickey Lee in 1962, but this was a totally different story from the love-struck teen in Lee's song. This time around, the title character was a poor Alabama boy who was thrust into adulthood at a young age when his father passed away and had to take care of business in his place.

This "Patches" was written by General Johnson and originally recorded by Johnson's group The Chairmen of the Board. However, the blind singer Clarence Carter took it and made it his own. His expressive narration of the story makes you think he lived through it personally, while that backing vocals and accompanying instruments help push the drama along. While the original was relegated to a B-side, the cover version appeared and became a million-seller. It was a #4 pop hit, went to #2 on the R&B chart and also hit #2 in the U.K.

McKinley Travis - "Baby, Is There Something On Your Mind" (Not Available on iTunes)

(Debuted #93, Peaked #91, 2 Weeks on chart)



McKinley Travis was a West Coast-based singer who performed a great deal of material for Bobby Sanders, who was the writer and producer of "Baby, Is There Something On Your Mind." Travis seems to be poorly remembered, but his only 1970s pop hit showed an expressive range that should have translated to at least a successful followup.

On the other hand, "Baby, Is There Something On Your Mind" comes off as wonderfully "retro" with its Doo-Wop phrasing, saxophone backing, and guitar picking. There's also a string and brass section audible in the recording. While it sounds like it could have been issued ten years before, maybe the fact that the 1950s craze didn't kick off until a few years later kept this track relatively obscure.

Buddy Miles and the Freedom Express - "Down By the River"

(Debuted #94, Peaked #68, 7 Weeks on chart)



"Down By the River " was written by Neil Young, who admitted to being in a high fever and state of delirium at the time. The lyrics are about a man who's so enraged to discover that his woman has been unfaithful that he meets her by the river to shoot her. It's an interesting look into the mind of somebody who's bedridden and has probably been alone in thought since he can't do much else.

When Buddy Miles recorded the song for his LP Them Changes, he gave it a plain reading as if he was just going down to the river to catch some fish. On that record, Miles proved himself to be just as adept at translating the material of other writers as he was his own, which propelled the album onto the charts for a year. While it didn't make him a household name among pop stars, the former Hendrix associate and sometime Manavishnu Orchestra sideman made some heavy inroads among his fellow musicians for his expressive style.

Jim Campbell - "The Lights Of Tucson" (Not Available on iTunes)

(Debuted #97, Peaked #93, 2 Weeks on chart)



There isn't much at all to be found about Jim Campbell, so I'm assuming he was simply a local artist who recorded one song that was a regional hit because it mentions a city. An ode to life on the road, he also makes a mention about "like Bronson, my wheels are turnin'," a reference to that year's TV show Along Came Bronson starring Michael Parks.

The country/pop record is flavored with little touches of the region, like the slight Mariachi dispersed throughout the tune. As a song that extols how nice it would be to get back home, it did quite well in the West, especially around the Tucson area.

Christie - "Yellow River"

(Debuted #98, Peaked #23, 23 Weeks on chart)



I haven't really made it a secret here that I grew up during the 1980s and developed my interest in 1970s music as something of an antidote to the stuff that passed for Top 40 material during my high school years. I just don't mention it all that often, but here's an interesting personal story that shows the universal nature of music. I joined the U.S. Army straight out of high school. Shortly after my discharge in 1992 I picked up the CD Have a Nice Day: Super Hits of the 1970s, Vol. 4 and "Yellow River" was the very first song on it. As I first heard the lyrics of a soldier returning home, I knew I loved the song.

"Yellow River" was written by Jeff Christie, whose band took his name. However, it wasn't originally intended that way, as Christie wrote it for the group The Tremeloes. They recorded it, but when they decided to veer their sound away from pop music to something that seemed more "happening," Christie recorded his own vocals over the instrumental bed The Tremeloes laid down.

Though Christie was British and the song was written with a returning Civil War soldier in mind, "Yellow River" hit the ears of enough Americans -- some returning home from conflict themselves -- to become a hit. While the location of the river was never named, it reflected a longing for many to simply return to a place where it was quiet and familiar...much like I was hoping to find about the first time I heard it.

The Glass House - "I Can't Be You (You Can't Be Me)"

(Debuted #99, Peaked #95, 2 Weeks on chart )



Interesting that "I Can't Be You (You Can't Be Me)" debuted the same week as a tune by The Supremes. One of the members of The Glass House was Scherrie Payne, who later joined that group. Originally from Detroit, the band was assembled by Holland/Dozier/Holland for their Invictus label and enjoyed a handful of hits from 1969-'72. However, when the hits dried up, the group was disbanded.

This was the first of two runs for "I Can't Be You (You Can't Be Me)." It only reached #95 this time, but  a second run up the chart a month later pushed it a little higher. The Zodiac-inspired song with philosophical questions would be the last the group would score on the pop charts, though.

The Dells - "Long Lonely Nights"

(Debuted #100, Peaked #74, 4 Weeks on chart)

Though many songs that appear on this week's list of debut singles look toward the new decade, "Long Lonely Nights" sounds like a throwback to the pre-Beatles era. Of course, the Chicago-based Dells had been perfecting their craft since long before the Doo-Wop era, so the sound was natural for them. Backed by a string section, the members perform the song as if it were a classic R&B weeper, even inserting a low-register spoken line in the middle.

The dated sound -- though classic -- was likely a reason the song  stalled on the charts. It missed the pop Top 40, and only reached #27 on the R&B chart.

This Week's Review -- May 23, 1970

This week was another busy one, with 14 new songs (including a two-sided hit) making their debut on the Billboard Hot 100. Nine would reach the Top 40, with five making the Top 10 and two reaching #1. An end of an era was reached, as The Beatles called it a career. A new decade was beginning, and songs by The Temptations and War stretched the boundaries of what was "normal." On the other side of the coin, The Pipkins show up with a song targeted to kids that was seen as a novelty. Aretha Franklin gives us religion, as do Delaney & Bonnie. Two versions of the same song even appear.

Google Books has a large archive of Billboard issues, including the May 23, 1970 edition. The full Hot 100 list can be found on page 74. An article on page 1 announces an upcoming weekly radio show that will use the magazine's Top 40 as a basis. The show was set for distribution through Watermark Enterprises and Los Angeles-based DJ Casey Kasem was set to be the host. If you didn't know that would be the American Top 40 radio show, you must have missed out on the 1970s. Interestingly, the very first #1 record played on that show is among this week's debuts.

The Beatles - "The Long And Winding Road" b/w "For You Blue"

(Debuted #35, Peaked #1, 10 Weeks on chart)



Since this was a two-sided hit, here's a video of the often-forgotten B-side:



As "The Long and Winding Road" was beginning its climb up the chart, fans already knew that The Beatles had broken up. All four members recorded solo albums that year -- and all would be relatively successful during the early 1970s -- but fans held out hope that the band would get the itch to assemble in the studio once again when the hard feelings abated. Of course, we know that never happened, but it was a hope that many fans held onto until a fateful day in 1980.

While internal strife played a part in the band's dissolution, many of the tracks on the Let it Be LP hastened the decision, "The Long and Winding Road" in particular. The song was one of Paul McCartney's contributions to the album and was recorded as a simple ballad, but producer Phil Spector remixed it with a chorus and orchestra, which infuriated McCartney enough that it was one of the points he made in his letter that announced his desire to break up the band.

The B-side was "For You Blue," a song that George Harrison wrote as a 12-bar blues song. In fact, he even ad-libs "there go the 12-bar blues" during the song. It's been largely spared the overbearing Spector touch, so much that the two sides of the single seem to be from two entirely different bands.

When the dust settled, "The Long and Winding Road" was the last of 20 #1 singles in the U.S. for The Beatles in just over 6 years. While that seems an appropriate title for a group's final #1 song, it should be noted that the members were all still in their twenties at the time -- Ringo was the oldest and turned 30 that July -- so the long, winding roads were up ahead as the four musicians went along their own paths.

The Pipkins - "Gimme Dat Ding"

(Debuted #65, Peaked #9, 12 Weeks on chart)



"Gimme Dat Ding" is one of the four hit singles of 1970 that featured Tony Burrows on lead vocals but used a generic studio group name. In fact, it was one of three songs he sang for different acts on a single Top of the Pops program on the BBC, which might seem like a stunt but wasn't intended to be one. Burrows sings both the gravely "deep" voice and the high tenor on this quasi-novelty tune.

"Gimme Dat Ding" was co-written by Albert Hammond and Mike Hazelwood. Originally written as part of a British children's show that had a boy searching for parts to mend a grandfather clock, the "ding" in the title makes perfect sense in that context. However, that show wasn't aired in the U.S., so American listeners never had the chance to make that connection.

The Pipkins were a duo consisting of Burrows with Roger Greenaway, who had played together in a British band called The Kestrels in the 1960s. The group also consisted of Roger Cook, who wrote a number of hit records with Greenaway druing the era including the White Plains hit "My Baby Loves Lovin'," which Burrows also sang. It's never a bad thing to stay in touch with old mates.

Smokey Robinson & the Miracles - "Who's Gonna Take The Blame"

(Debuted #73, Peaked #46, 7 Weeks on chart)



The Miracles was Motown's first group, and their first act to sell a million records. They were led by William "Smokey" Robinson, who was also a songwriter for Motown and had as much of a hand in the label's success as anybody including owner Berry Gordy. While the 1960s were good to the label and the group, the road eventually wore on Smokey and caused a rift in his marraige. He was ready to move to a "desk" job and leave the touring to the younger guys. He was expected to quietly leave the group by 1970, which would have given "Who's Gonna Take the Blame" an ironic title. However, a quirk of fate gave the group a surprise hit later in the year with "The Tears of a Clown," which led him to stick it out for a couple more years.

"Who's Gonna Take the Blame" was written by Nikolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson and is a song about several times in life where the singer accepted the blame for bad things a girl did as they were growing up, and was forced to feel responsible when that girl grew up and went in a different direction. It was the band's first single to miss the Top 40 (not counting "Darling Dear," a B-side that charted separately), though it did make the Top10 R&B singles chart.

Aretha Franklin with the Dixie Flyers - "Spirit in the Dark"

(Debuted #74, Peaked #23, 8 Weeks on chart)



The album Spirit in the Dark was overlooked, as hard as it is to believe that any project of that era by her would ever have that label. At the time, it was her first Atlantic LP to miss the Top 20 on the pop albums chart (though it did reach #2 on the R&B chart) despite having two hit singles. However, time has been kind to the album, and most critics have given it a considerable bump among her output. In some ways, it pointed to the more disappointing chart fortunes Franklin experienced later in the decade, but it really didn't deserve it as much as the later efforts did.

The album's title song was written by Franklin herself, and showed the gospel influence she carried from her childhood. From the piano riff to the imagery to the call-and-response Aretha does with the backing chorus, all the hallmarks are there. Eventually, the song breaks out into jubilation, as if to swat any unbelievers with a Bible.

Sly and the Family Stone - "I Want To Take You Higher"

(Debuted #76, Peaked #38, 9 Weeks on chart)



A battle of competing versions of the same song broke out this week in 1970. Both went on to make the Top 40 (which was fitting, since both are good) but the original's inclusion was odd on the surface. It was recorded the previous year, was the B-side of Sly & the Family Stone's hit "Stand" and had been part of their Woodstock performance. Today, it's more common for a song to stick around like that, but in the fast-evolving musical world of 1969-'70 it was unheard of.

Yes, the Woodstock film had just been released in March 1970, but the song was used as a brief interlude during the band's set in the documentary. Instead, Epic records may have put it out simply because of the Ike & Tina Turner cover that competed with it, and because Sly Stone had entered one of his long periods where he wasn't producing any new music.

As part of the album Stand!, "I Want to Take You Higher" breaks from the "messages" that many of its songs stress. Instead, it's a celebration about the effect that music can have on a person (although, when Sly's own personal history is factored in, the "higher" in the title probably has a double meaning). It was one of the songs that used the different voices of the "Family Stone": Larry Graham's deep baritone is the most prominent, but Freddie and Rose Stone add vocals as well.

Ike and Tina Turner and the Ikettes - "I Want To Take You Higher"

(Debuted #78, Peaked #34, 18 Weeks on chart)



With two versions of "I Want to Take You Higher" entering the chart in the same week, there was a battle of the bands to see who got the most exposure. Normally, competing versions would beat each other up, but in this case both versions made it into the Top 40. However, that's just as far as both would go, with Ike & Tina Turner getting four places "higher" than the Sly Stone original. On that note, maybe the competition did weigh both versions down, since they definitely could have done better than they did.

Where Stone featured some of the other members of his "family," this was all about Tina Turner vocally. The rest of the voices merely serve as backup material.

The Temptations - "Ball Of Confusion (That's What the World Is Today)"

(Debuted #80, Peaked #3, 15 Weeks on chart)



"Psychedelic soul" was the name used to describe The Temptations' move away from the songs about love and loss they performed in the 1960s to the more socially-aware material they began doing as the decades changed. And it was apt; no only was there a sense of realism in their vocals, but the music behind the voices was grittier and hewn from rougher material. That's not to say they went away from the sweeter material (you just need to listen to 1971's "Just My Imagination" for proof of that), but they definitely steered into a different direction beginning with 1968's "Coud Nine."

"Ball of Confusion (That's What the World is Today)" is an example of the new direction, even if it stays with a general point of view in its lyrics. Writer/producer Norman Whitfield specifically avoided being specific after the band's version of "War" was blocked by Motown and he was forced to tone it down for Edwin Starr's version. At first, the group's members weren't certain they could handle the song, as a result of the often rapid-fire tempo of the words. However, the song did a great job of showcasing the members. The main lyrics were assigned to Paul Williams and Dennis Franklin, who was given the lines that needed to be delivered the quickest. Eddie Kendricks was assigned a tenor, which was rare at the tame but soon became his trademark. Finally, the bass "and the band played on" that ended each verse was handled superbly by Melvin Franklin.

Speaking of bass lines, Funk Brother Bob Babbitt kicks off an ominous groove to begin the song. That type of instrumental never comes before anything that carries a positive message.

Three Dog Night - "Mama Told Me (Not To Come)"

(Debuted #83, Peaked #1, 15 Weeks on chart)



Three Dog Night was one of the biggest acts of the late 1960s and early 1970s, and their reputation allowed them to choose songs from a wide array of talented songwriters. Randy Newman was the writer of "Mama Told Me (Not To Come)," a tune that was written in 1966 for Eric Burdon and the Animals. A tale by a naive outsider who's walked into a party only to find that it isn't exactly a "sock hop," the song is performed in an almost comical style by Cory Wells.


Kicking off with a distinctive Wurlitzer electric piano riff that sets the mood, "Mama Told Me (Not To Come)" became the group's first #1 single. In fact, it was the song sitting at #1 the same week as the first-ever week that Casey Kasem counted down the American Top 40 radio show. The song already had a timely vibe that heralded the fact that the 1960s were indeed over, but that cemented its place in history.

Delaney and Bonnie and Friends - "Free the People"

(Debuted #84, Peaked #75, 4 Weeks on chart)



Delaney and Bonnie Bramlett were heavily regarded by other musicians. In fact, Eric Clapton was fond enough of them that he would show up at several of their concerts to sit in because he was more interested in their material than he was with what his own group Blind Faith was doing. Dave Mason, George Harrison, Duane Allman and even Little Richard were known to stop by and play with the group in the studio.

"Free the People" was the final song on the duos third album From Delaney to Bonnie. Written by Barbara Keith, it had a message of brotherhood and a heavily religious feel. The fact that it starts with the hymn "Rock of Ages" sets that mood, and the lyrics continue, alluding to imagery of fire and seas, about salvation from The Devil, and even as the horn section begins to sound like it's blowing Gabriel's horn.

Ginger Baker's Air Force - "Man of Constant Sorrow" (Not Available on iTunes)

(Debuted #88, Peaked #85, 2 Weeks on chart)



Interestingly, this blog goes from one band that (inadvertently) contributed to Blind Faith's early demise to another that rose out of its ashes. After Eric Clapton went his own way, drummer Ginger Baker persuaded the other members Steve Winwood and Rick Grech to stay with him and form a new group whose influences were more diverse: blues, jazz, African rhythms, bluegrass, whatever their muse dictated. They ended up assembling a ten-piece group that also included Denny Laine, Chris Wood and Graham Bond, and recorded a live show at London's Royal Albert Hall that appeared as their first LP.

"Man of Constant Sorrow" is a traditional American fiddle song popularized in 1928 by fiddler Dick Burnett and was a staple of The Stanley Brother's act. When the Air Force recorded it, they kept the words and melody but improvised the arrangement for the live recording. Laine was the lead vocalist.

Movie fans might recognize the song (albeit in a faster, more bluegrass-inspired style) from the 2000 Coen Brothers' film O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Luther Ingram - "Ain't That Loving You (For More Reasons Than One)"

(Debuted #95, Peaked #45, 9 Weeks on chart)



Luther Ingram served as Isaac Hayes' opening act on tour for several years and used Hayes' studio musicians and backup singers in the studio, so it's only logical that Hayes would provide him with material from time to time. In the case of "Ain't That Loving You (For More Reasons Than One)," the song was written by Hayes and his long-time collaborator David Porter. It appeared as a Sam & Dave performance in 1967, with Hayes and Porter cutting it themselves in 1972.

Though Ingram's version fell just short of the pop Top 40, it became his first R&B Top 10 hit. Featuring the smooth horns and lush strings in the background, it was a fine vehicle for Ingram's vocal stylings.

The Flaming Ember - "Westbound #9"

(Debuted #97, Peaked #24, 14 Weeks on chart)



Detroit is best known as the home of Motown, but its influence in soul music extends well beyond that label's acts. When the songwriting team of Holland-Dozier-Holland wanted to have greater control over their work, they broke from Motown to form their own Hot Wax imprint. One of their acts was The Flaming Ember, a local five-man "blue-eyed soul" outfit.

"Westbound #9" was The Flaming Ember's biggest hit on the pop chart. Using the imagery of taking a train to leave the old hometown for a seemingly better place away from the charlatans and hypocrites, the song mirrored the way a lot of people were migrating to other areas. In fact, even Motown did the same thing, a year after this song was a hit.

Eric Burdon and War - "Spill The Wine"

(Debuted #99, Peaked #3, 21 Weeks on chart)



War's first hit was a collaboration with former Animal Eric Burdon. At the time, they were seen as just another backing band for Burdon (in fact, many of the members were recruited after backing NFL player Deacon Jones when he tried to start a second career as a soul singer), but Burdon eventually felt burned out and the band struck out on its own. Despite what may have been a major setback, they became a solid and innovative unit.

"Spill the Wine" would be a very notable introduction to the group, given the diversity of styles in the song's groove. Concocted inside the studio, the title came along after group member Lonnie Jordan reportedly spilled a bottle of wine on a recording console while enjoying a late-night recording session. Burdon thought that was pretty funny and penned some words around the theme as the session moved to another studio. The group members began coming up with their own improvisations, and the result was a unique record.

There are a few lines of Spanish in the song (supposedly from Burdon's then-girlfriend), which sound like they were inserted after the song was finished. Also, although Burdon wrote several lyrics, contractual issues did not allow him to take a songwriting credit.

Little Richard - "Freedom Blues"

(Debuted #100, Peaked #47, 9 Weeks on chart)



Though best known for his 1950s output, Little Richard was still recording and touring as the 1970s were getting underway. While remembered for giving up Rock & Roll for the ministry in the late 1950s, be returned to secular music in 1962. Though his sales weren't up to the same level of his earlier records, he continued performing and had many of his old hits brought back by a new generation of artists like The Beatles and introduced Jimi Hendrix as a backing guitarist in his band.

"Freedom Blues" was no look back at his 1950s glory. While nobody was going to ask Little Richard for his credentials, he was still dong his best to stay "with it" in the new decade rather that coasting by on his past glory. The result is a song that featured the familiar guitar licks of late 60s/early 70s Memphis soul even as it provided a saxophone solo and Richard's familiar "Whoo!" It may have missed the pop Top 40, but it was his best showing on the chart since 1958.