This Week's Review -- August 18, 1979

This week marks the third anniversary of the reviews here on 70s Music Mayhem. What began as a way for me to bloviate about all things Seventies...has pretty much remained as it was for three years. But I've gotten to hear some great music one the way (and some not-so-great music). I'll keep the entries coming for as long as it's still fun for me, and here we go with the latest one.

There were eight debut singles in this week's Billboard magazine. Three went into the Top 40, but none of them rose any higher than #30. Several artists appear for the first time, but few of them were really new to the chart: Moon Martin was already on the Top 40 as a songwriter, while Fern Kinney and Brenda Russell had been around as backing vocalists. Louise Goffin brought a soild pedigree from her parents. Ashford & Simpson appear with their first Top 40 hit as artists, but weren't new to the chart at all as writers and producers. Deniece Williams and Peter Borwn show up with lesser-remembered hit that really deserved better, while Patti Smith prepared to say good-bye for a while.

Google Books has an archive of Billboard magazines, including the August 18, 1979 edition. The full Hot 100 list can be found on page 68. There's a large pull-out section focusing on the music of Texas and Oklahoma, which includes all genres. And yes, the fact that John Travolta was then filming a movie called "Urban Cowboy" at Gilley's was mentioned a couple of times. However, it is noted that Waylon Jennings was slated to appear in the movie as well, which didn't end up happening.

Moon Martin - "Rolene"

(Debuted #81, Peaked #30, 11 Weeks on chart)



Where the Billboard magazine linked above mentions the music of Texas and Oklahoma in it, it's only fitting to have a native lead off the debuts. Moon Martin was from Oklahoma and was a writer and studio musician before getting any success under his own name. Originally using his real name John Martin, he was nicknamed "Moon" by his friends after it was determined that many of his songs included the word in their lyrics. Just ahead of his own hits, Robert Palmer's adrenaline-blasted version of Martin's "Bad Case of Loving You (Doctor, Doctor)" established him in the minds of music fans.

Martin's first chart hit on his own was "Rolene," which was a minor Top 40 hit at a time when New Wave was rising and retro stylings were coming back into vogue after a period of Disco. Though Martin's material was well suited for this change, none of his remaining songs after "Rolene" charted in the Top 40 and he left the music business after 1982 for more than a decade.

Louise Goffin - "Remember (Walking In the Sand)" (Not Available on iTunes)

(Debuted #82, Peaked #43, 9 Weeks on chart)



Louise Goffin was the daughter of Gerry Goffin and Carole King, so it shouldn't have come as a surprise to any when she showed in interest in music. However, her work was stacked up against her mother's, which may not have been fair to her. After all, she was 16 years old at the time, and when King recorded Tapestry, she was in her late twenties and had been penning hit songs for a decade.

In retrospect, perhaps having a remake of an early 1960s tune wasn't a great idea, since the era was dominated with songs written by Goffin's famous parents. "Remember (Walking in the Sand)" wasn't one of them -- George "Shadow" Morton wrote it -- but the time period may have caused listeners to focus on it. It was a 1970s updating of The Shangri-La's original, without the overly dramatic effect but with a lot more guitar. And the attitude is intact, but that's to be expected from somebody so young.

Aerosmith also did a version of "Remember (Walking in the Sand)" later in 1979 year which is probably a lot better remembered, but Goffin did it first.


Fern Kinney - "Groove Me"

(Debuted #86, Peaked #54, 8 Weeks on chart)



"Groove Me" was the first Hot 100 chart single for Fern Kinney, who had been in The Poppies during the late 1960s with Dorothy Moore before that group split up. As part of that act, she and Moore became associated with King Floyd, who had the original hit version of the song. In fact, Kinney was one of the backing vocalists on that 1971 recording.

For her remake, Kinney went a similar direction that many artists did in 1979: she sang the song in a danceable style. The song was a comeback for her, as she had stepped away from the business for a few years to concentrate on being a wife and mother. She continued to record Disco-oriented songs, but since the timing really didn't work out, she returned to being a backing vocalist by 1983.

Ashford and Simpson - "Found a Cure"

(Debuted #87, Peaked #36, 13 Weeks on chart)



Although "Found a Cure" was the first Top 40 hit for Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson as performers, they had already placed dozens of songs on the Hot 100 as songwriters or producers and even sang as part of Quincy Jones' "Stuff Like That" in 1978. They had also been a presence on Billboard's R&B and Disco charts, so they were "new" to the pop charts in name only. By 1979, anybody who said they weren't aware of the duo's work really weren't paying attention.

Released at the end of the Disco era, "Found a Cure" does have a dance beat but gets credit from the artists' pop and R&B sensibilities. It went to #1 on the Disco chart along with the songs "Stay Free" and "Nobody Knows," supplanting Diana Ross' The Boss LP, which was also an Ashford & Simpson project.

Brenda Russell - "So Good, So Right"

(Debuted #88, Peaked #30, 17 Weeks on chart)



"So Good, So Right" was the first Top 40 hit for Brenda Russell, who was born in Brooklyn and raised in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. For much of the 1970s, she had been part of an act called Brenda & Brian, along with husband Bryan Russell. When they divorced, she went solo and came out with a self-titled LP in 1979. Despite containing one Top 40 song, her further singles received little attention even though songwriters tended to enjoy Russell's style. It would be another nine years before Russell would return to the pop Top 40 (ironically, in a duet with Joe Esposito, who also hadn't been in the Top 40 since 1979).

What is appealing about "So Good, So Right" is the way it still sounds fresh (at least to these ears) more than 30 years later. It doesn't sound as dated as many songs of the era do. Yes, there's an orchestra backing her up, but it's not a straight disco song; it straddles the line between what was later called adult R&B and pop. Take a listen to the song and see if it couldn't have been from a different era.

Deniece Williams - "I've Got The Next Dance" (Not Available on iTunes)

(Debuted #89, Peaked #73, 5 Weeks on chart)



"I've Got the Next Dance" really should have been a bigger hit than its #73 peak would indicate. While Disco was really beginning to suffer from a backlash as the Summer of '79 wore on, it unfairly affected some really good songs simply because they had a dance beat, and this was one of those. Deniece Williams wasn't an unknown at all in 1979; she had stepped out from backing Stevie Wonder a couple years before with a great Marice White-helmed LP and scored a #1 duet with Johnny Mathis called "Too Much, Too Little, Too Late" (reviewed here last year) in 1978.

The song was part of her LP When Love Comes Calling, which was produced by both David Foster and Ray Parker, Jr. The album was infused with slick L.A. session musicians and given a different vibe from the earlier material Williams had released, which may have hurt this song on the pop charts as well as the R&B survey, where it went to #26. On the Disco chart, it realized its full potential and went to #1.


The Patti Smith Group - "Frederick"

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



After being regarded as the "Godmother of Punk," Patti Smith made the decision to walk away from the music business as the 1970s turned into the 1980s, and even named her 1979 LP Wave to signify her imminent departure. Although it was given a pop-flavored sheen by producer Todd Rundgren, the record was littered with hints that Smith was ready for a new direction. "Frederick" was the track that led off the set, and was also Smith's last Hot 100 hit before she set sail.

"Frederick" was Fred "Sonic" Smith, a member of the group MC5 and the man she would soon marry. Interestingly, a woman who was lauded as a catalyst for change made the interesting decision to give up the trappings of the rock & roll lifestyle for the seemingly tame job of mother and housewife. Oddly, her decision seems like an easier one to me now than it did when I was younger. Of course, that probably is because I am now called "Daddy" by a daughter myself.

"Frederick" didn't do so well on the chart. That may be due to its musical similarity to Smith's 1978 hit "Because the Night" even though this one was penned by Smith herself (Bruce Springsteen wrote the other). It was different enough that it should have fared better as the Disco backlash was building...maybe Smith's reputation as a punk poet was also a factor. In any case, the song deserves another listen.

Peter Brown - "Crank It Up (Funk Town) (Part 1)"

(Debuted #93, Peaked #86, 6 Weeks on chart)



For a song subtitled "Funk Town," the music of "Crank It Up" really comes off as harder than you might expect it to, especially if you're only familiar with Peter Brown from "Do You Wanna Get Funky With Me" and "Dance With Me." The song anticipates the move of funk/disco to a more synthesized, electronic sound of the future, even as Brown himself didn't capitalize on the shift himself. When disco fell out of favor, his own records after the turn of the decade failed to chart on the Hot 100. However, he continued writing and performing into the new decade, scoring a #1 dance hit in 1984 called "They Only Come Out at Night" and writing Madonna's "Material Girl."

The version in the video above and in the MP3s here is the extended version. Those 12" versions proliferated during the era (and really never went away due to the rap, hip-hop and club genres in the 1980s), and while many were merely mixed to let the song be longer, "Crank it Up (Funk Town)" lets the groove stick around and really get into your ear.

This Week's Review -- June 9, 1979

There were only six songs debuting in the Billboard Hot 100 this week, which is a lot less than the slate most of the weeks I've been featuring here lately. Three of the songs made the Top 40 and one reached the Top 10. Despite the fact that the Disco backlash hadn't happened yet, it's worth noting that only one song can really be categorized as a dance number, and that is only here because it took two years to get released. In fact, two of the songs were #1 hits over on the country side, although one of them doesn't exactly fit the genre's regular format. Among the other songs, Carly Simon tries something a little different, Joe Jackson makes a notable introduction and Art Garfunkel lends his voice to a familiar song.

Over at Google Books, several past issues of Billboard are available to read through Online, including the June 9, 1979 edition. The full Hot 100 list appears on page 102. Some lawsuits were in the news: Tom Petty was being sued after his record company was sold, while Bread was trying to settle who got what when it came to royalties. An article on page 87 says that Waylon Jennings (one of this week's artists) would be involved in the making of the film Urban Cowboy within the next month. That didn't end up happening; I wonder what happened to that deal. Ironically, the venue used for that movie was Gilley's in Pasadena, and that would be mentioned on page 90. Finally, a large pull-out section celebrates what was then called "Black Music" despite the multi-faced genres that existed under that umbrella.

Elton John - "Mama Can't Buy You Love"

(Debuted #69, Peaked #9, 18 Weeks on chart)



Shortly after singing about "Philadelphia Freedom," Elton John set off in 1977 on recording an album with one of the architects of that city's distinctive sound, Thom Bell. It was a change for the singer, who has collaborated almost exclusively with lyricist Bernie Taupin up to that point. However, the sessions didn't go well and Elton left before an entire LP could be recorded. Two years later, three songs surfaced on an EP called The Thom Bell Sessions and its biggest hit in the U.S. was "Mama Can't But You Love."

The song was written by Leroy Bell and Casey James, who hit as artists with "Livin' it Up (Friday Night)" earlier in the year. While the project sounded promising and seemed like a great idea given Elton's obvious attraction toward Thom Bell's productions, it wasn't meant to be. That may have worked out for the best, as the Disco "backlash" soon affected the careers of many artists and John's sound evolved with the changing times.

Joe Jackson - "Is She Really Going Out With Him"

(Debuted #76, Peaked #21, 15 Weeks on chart)



"Pretty women out walking with gorillas down my street."

That's the first line of the song, and Joe Jackson sings it with all the disdain of a jilted ex-lover who sees his former beloved with a real douchebag. He doesn't stop there, as he unwinds a song that explores his detached disdain for what he's seeing with his own eyes with a lethally catchy hook on the chorus and a "middle eight" that points toward his interest in jazz and improvisation.

It's a track from Look Sharp!, which was Jackson's American debut. Though written with a poison pen, it's easy to get lost in the music behind the song without realizing that he's essentially throwing daggers with his lyrics. Jackson's music was originally lumped in with his English contemporaries Elvis Costello and Graham Parker simply out of its chronology; all three would definitely develop distinct (and strong) bodies of work, but Jackson wasn't as beholden to the "pub rock" scene as the others. In time, he'd develop his own interests that diverged wildly from rock, and from the others.

In a way, "Is She Really Going Out With Him" was too smart for what usually passes for hit radio. Sarcastic wit makes for cult status (which is definitely the case here), but few songs with this type of bite make it to #21. Especially from artists who've never had any hits before that.

Carly Simon - "Vengeance"

(Debuted #82, Peaked #48, 7 Weeks on chart)



"Vengeance" was a little harder than you might expect from a Carly Simon song. Taken from the LP Spy, it was an attempt to take Simon in a new direction at a time when others were falling on dance-oriented singles. While that might seem like a bold move, it misfired. The album sold poorly and effectively ended her time with Elektra, the record company that had issued all of her 1970s LPs.

Despite the seemingly "new" direction, the record still featured a sharply-written lyric that tended toward pop phrasing and a slick studio production. In other words, it might have rocked a little bit harder but it was still a Carly Simon record at its core.

Eddie Rabbitt - "Suspicions"

(Debuted #85, Peaked #12, 17 Weeks on chart)



"Suspicions" is one of the two #1 country songs that debuted on this week's pop chart, but it really doesn't sound like what most would think (in 1979) as a traditional country record. It features a smooth R&B rhythm and a pop sensibility. The lyrics are more in line with a country song -- the narrator is at the edge of paranoia because others are paying attention to his lady -- but it should be little surprise to anyone listening that it was a major crossover hit.

The lyrics are similar to Dr. Hook's "When You're in Love With a Beautiful Woman," which was on the charts at the same time. However, while you get the idea that Dr. Hook is winking while he's delivering the lines (credit the long list of Shel Silverstein songs they performed for that), the cadence here suggests something more sinister and the whispered lyrics make it sound like Rabbitt is sharing a very deep secret. I'm a fan of both songs, but it's the nuances in this song which makes me like this song more.

Art Garfunkel - "Since I Don't Have You"

(Debuted #88, Peaked #53, 9 Weeks on chart)



With "Since I Don't Have You," Art Garfunkel puts his considerable vocal talent to work on a remake of the 1958 Skyliners hit. While the orchestration of the song was lush (even for the standards of 1958), it was offset by a jazzier saxophone solo than the original would have featured. Garfunkel also handles the song as a truly "solo" effort, eschewing backing singers. By doing that, he avoided the effect that made the original so unique, with its interplay near the end between Jimmy Beaumont's falsetto and Janet Vogel's soprano. Instead, he renders the song as an adult-oriented tune. That's fine if you like adult-oriented laments, but the question remains about how much better it might have been as a duet.


While "Since I Don't Have You" failed to reach the pop Top 40, it was -- predictably -- a bigger hit on the adult contemporary chart, reaching #12. It was also able to reach the Top 40 in the U.K.

Waylon - "Amanda"

(Debuted #90, Peaked #54, 7 Weeks on chart)



"Amanda" wasn't a new song at all. It was written in 1973 by Bob MacDill and was a country hit for Don Williams that same year. It wasn't even a new song by Waylon Jennings,  either. He originally recorded it for his 1974 LP The Ramblin' Man but RCA declined to issue it as a single, probably because Williams' version as still "fresh" in the minds of country fans.

In 1979, the song was included in a Greatest Hits compilation by Jennings (which billed him by his first name only) and given its shot to succeed as a single. The original 1974 recording was used, but several overdubs were added to "sweeten" the sound and reflect on a new milestone in Jennings' life. A world-weary vocal where a man reflects on the hard road he's taken and the realization that the woman who's accompanied him on that trip likely deserved better, the song is delivered in a slow, deliberate cadence. In my younger days, I found it to be boring...but as I've traveled my own road and picked up experience, the vocal gains something I just didn't see back then.


"Amanda" would miss the pop Top 40, but was a #1 country hit. In fact, it was one of that year's biggest hits in the genre.

This Week's Review -- April 28, 1979

This week, I present the single longest list of songs I've yet attempted on this blog. Seventeen singles make up this list. Of those, eight made the Top 40 and five went into the Top 10. However, unlike some other weeks of 1979 I've written about, this slate actually has a nice variety of styles. Disco is certainly here, but so is a rather wide range of musical styles. It's a rather diverse list in an era that is often unfairly ridiculed for one particular sound.

There is a large archive of Billboard issues stretching back to 1944 at Google Books, including the April 28, 1979 edition. The full Hot 100 list can be found on page 96. An article beginning on page 1 tells about how WABC-AM in New York -- long the trend-setter as far as Top 40 radio stations went -- was being forced to change its image in the wake of the Disco juggernaut. That's something that was considered impossible just the previous year.



Kenny Rogers - "She Believes In Me"

(Debuted #61, Peaked #5, 16 Weeks on chart)



The words to "She Believes in Me" are familiar to any singer or songwriter. While the narrator in the song is busy coming home for a gig or getting up in the middle of the night to hone his craft, his lady is patiently waiting for him to get to bed. The wait isn't sexual in nature; it's just that his companionship has been diverted because of his need to ply his craft. Despite all the promises he's made that his ship will be arriving any day now, that the "big break" is sure to arrive soon, they're still in the process of arriving...someday.

As a writer, I've had plenty of those days, too. The sudden thought in the middle of the night that needs to be written down before it's forgotten and the look of my wife as she walked in to the room and sees I'm busy with one of my projects are quite familiar. That said, it's still a compulsion I do and it'll probably never go away. But the song is about the gratitude for her putting up with that madness.

"She Believes in Me" was Kenny Rogers' fifth #1 country song and its #5 peak tied "Lucille" for his best pop showing to date. The ride was just beginning for him, though, as he rode his hot streak into the next decade.

Sister Sledge - "We Are Family"

(Debuted #63, Peaked #2, 19 Weeks on chart)



Baseball fans of the era remember "We Are Family" as the theme song for the 1979 Pittsburgh Pirates. Under the leadership of Willie "Pops" Stargell, the team took an unlikely run into the playoffs and won the World Series over a heavily favored Baltimore Orioles team.

It was also one of the songs that Nile Rogers and Bernard Edwards crafted when they weren't busy as part of Chic. Although it comes across as a version of a Chic song with four female vocalists, their style was unique, and their success was undeniable. "We Are Family" is one of the songs that has lasted well into the next millenium as one of the few truly genre-defining records of the era. That isn't necessarily a bad thing, even if it does lend to a degree of overkill.

Rickie Lee Jones - "Chuck E.'s In Love"

(Debuted #65, Peaked #4, 15 Weeks on chart)



Rickie Lee Jones had a career breakthrough in 1979. She was relatively unknown, but was appearing on "Saturday Night Live," was making the cover of Rolling Stone and winning the Grammy for Best New Artist. There was even some attention given to her unique fashion sense. However, Jones eventually followed her own muse and gravitated more toward the jazz world rather than the safer pop styles. She has continued to follow the beat of her own drum ever since.

Though my young daughter might tell me it's really Chuck E Cheese, the "Chuck E." in the title is fellow singer/songwriter Chuck E. Weiss, who was a friend of Jones and her then-lover Tom Waits. Weiss had been a regular visitor at the place where the two lived in Los Angeles, and then just disappeared one day. When he finally called to tell Waits that he had moved to Denver with a woman. When Waits hung up the phone, he looked at Jones and explained, "Chuck E.'s in love." She loved the phrase and wrote a song around it.

Van Halen - "Dance The Night Away"

(Debuted #68, Peaked #15, 15 Weeks on chart)



Van Halen's debut was a phenomenal success, so the band's record company rushed them into the studio to produce more. As a result, their second LP Van Halen II sounded a lot like their first, since most of the songs had already existed in demo form from their early days or was part of their live set. The exception was "Dance the Night Away," the only cut on the album that was crafted from scratch during the recording sessions.

In concerts, frontman David Lee Roth said that "Dance the Night Away" was written about a woman the group became acquainted with during their days as a bar band. Accoriding to his account, she had gotten caught having sex in the back of a pickup truck while drunk and then ran from the police with her pants on backwards. The song doesn't feature a guitar solo; instead, Eddie Van Halen uses a riff of fret harmonics, showing off yet another tool in his "axe" arsenal.

And it should be noted that -- even though they stuck with their basic style -- any song with the word "dance" in its title was a hot commodity in 1979.

The Beach Boys - "Good Timin'"

(Debuted #76, Peaked #40, 10 Weeks on chart)



While The Beach Boys' legacy has established them as a 1960s band and they've often hearkened back to that era in their own music, you'd be forgiven for assuming that "Good Timin'" would be a remake of the 1960 Jimmy Jones hit before giving it a listen. However, it's an original composition by Brian and Carl Wilson.

Though it featured the band's signature vocal harmonies, "Good Timin'" really sounded like it was trying to remind listeners of their past glories. When it was recorded for the band's L.A. (Light Album) LP, Brian Wilson had descended back into his shell and returned to his position or writing music without performing on the records. Unfortunately for the band, 1960s retrospectives were simply being given a disco beat, so this song sounded like they were simply mailing it in.

It did return them to the pop Top 40 for the first time since 1976, but #40 would be as high as they would get. It would be two and a half years before they'd return.

Cheap Trick - "I Want You To Want Me"

(Debuted #78, Peaked #7, 19 Weeks on chart)



"I Want You to Want Me" was originally a single from Cheap Trick's second LP In Color. It was released as a single at the time, but never made the national charts in the U.S. However, it was a #1 hit in Japan and their success in that country led to a live concert at Budokan in 1978 that was recorded and released as an album itself. When the band performed "I Want You to Want Me" in front of the Tokyo crowd, they amped it up and gave an electric rendition, which helped the American public realize they were missing out on something the critics could see.

"I Want You to Want Me" was the band's first Top 10 single in the U.S. and broke their career open, though sharper-eared fans clued in on the when they released "Surrender" the year before.

Toto - "Georgy Porgy"

(Debuted #79, Peaked #48, 10 Weeks on chart)



When it was first released, Toto's self-titled debut was enjoyed by their fans and the subject of less-than-complimentary review by critics. Maybe the group's past as a group of studio musicians was an impediment in the critics' eyes, their ability to handle multiple musical styles with ease was seen as an asset to their fans. While the chart performance showed that both sides had some merit ("Hold the Line" was a big hit, but the other two charted singles missed the Top 40), but its safe to say that time has shown that time has proven Toto's value.  

"Georgy Porgy" was the third single from that album and featured a light jazz-inspired improvisational groove. Though written by David Paich, Steve Luthaker handles the lead and Cheryl Lynn inserts the lines from the "Georgy Porgy" nursery rhyme during the chorus. In fact, those lines hit me at the time; I was still young and when I heard the song on the radio (which was only once), I distinctly remember in my six-year old mind wondering what a nursery rhyme was doing playing on an adult radio station.

McFadden and Whitehead - "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now"

(Debuted #80, Peaked #13, 18 Weeks on chart)



Gene McFadden and John Whitehead are often seen as One-Hit Wonders because they only charted one single on the Hot 100 as performers. However, they had been songwriters before their hit, penning The O'Jays' "Back Stabbers" and Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes' "Bad Luck." In the case of "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now," the lyrics were crafted out of the writers' hopes for a prosperous future as a new decade approached.

As the years have passed, "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now" has become an anthem of sorts. That's probably natural, given the hopeful, forward-looking nature of the lyrics. Special versions of the song were recorded for the sports teams in the duo's native Philadelphia (the Phillies and Eagles in 1980, the 76ers in the 2000-'01 season), and boxer Larry Holmes used it as his theme song. It was also used in the film Boogie Nights during the New Year's Eve scene; ironically, just before things began to unravel for the people in that movie.

Sadly, neither McFadden or Whitehead are with us any longer. Whitehead was shot to death on a Philadelphia street in 2004 in what was called a case of mistaken identity, and McFadden lost a two-year battle with cancer in 2006.

The Kinks - "(Wish I Could Fly Like) Superman"

(Debuted #85, Peaked #41, 12 Weeks on chart)



Disco was ubiquitous by 1979, and a lot of established artists came to embrace the genre that might not have been likely to do so in...say, 1977. Paul McCartney or Rod Stewart might not have been such a surprise, KISS was signed to a label that was disco-heavy but The Rolling Stones and The Kinks were guitar-based acts whose roots went back too far to be interested, right? Well, if there's anything that can change a perspective, it's money; whether the money is sought by a band, their managers or their record company, it's still the reason they play.

The Kinks' entry into the Disco realm was "(Wish I Could Fly Like) Superman," which had a definite dance groove and synthesizer sound effects but didn't skimp on the guitars. Written by Ray Davies in response to the rising cost of living (expressed in all of the different types of bills piling up), it was part of the LP Low Budget, which was crafted around the concept. It was the band's highest-charting album of original material in the U.S. It also showed that a Disco tune could also rock.

The LP version of "(Wish I Could Fly Like) Superman" was three and a half minutes long, but was also available as an extended-length Disco mix (which is featured in the video above).

Raydio - "You Can't Change That"

(Debuted #86, Peaked #9, 22 Weeks on chart)



Ray Parker, Jr. was a teenaged guitar whiz, and being from Detroit opened a lot of doors to him. He was playing professionally while still in high school, then part of Stevie Wonder's touring band, and later a sideman in Barry White's Love Unlimited Orchestra, and was eager to get out and start his own unit eventually. When he did, he named the group Raydio and scored Top 10 hits with their first two Hot 100 singles.

"You Can't Change That" was the second of those hits. On the song, Parker swaps lines with Arnell Carmichael, who contributes the higher-pitched vocals. A song of devotion that sounds almost like a stalker's explanation of why he's following his victim around, it's a catchy tune that has its own charm despite the fact that it's disturbing when presented in a different light.

Like the 1978 single "Jack & Jill," it would chart in the pop Top 10 and R&B Top 5. It was also the band's first entry on the Adult Contemporary chart as well.

Hair (Original Soundtrack Recording)/Cheryl Barnes - "Easy To Be Hard" (Not Available on iTunes)

Debuted #87, Peaked #64, 7 Weeks on chart



A little warning here: if you click on the video above, it's a clip from the 1979 film Hair, and includes a word that many consider to be bad. So don't click on it if you have anybody around who'll be easily offended.

The movie adaptation of Hair was a little out of place by 1979. While the original play was a celebration of an emerging counterculture, the "tribe" of the movie was relegated to a band of misfits and outcasts. Given a bigger production budget, the makers decided to tinker with what worked on the stage. And they turned it into a morass that made me wish I could have the two hours back when it was over.

That said, the soundtrack probably holds up better when played as a record than it does on the screen even if it doesn't match the quality of the original stage show. The version of "Easy To Be Hard" is sung by Cheryl Barnes, an actress who was working as a hotel maid at the time she was cast in the role of Hud's ex-"old lady." The soulful take of the song ended up being her only chart single.


Exile - "How Could This Go Wrong" (Not Available on iTunes)

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



For their final Hot 100 entry, the group Exile actually gives a heavier disco spin than what they gave to their #1 single "Kiss You All Over." It didn't help them on the chart -- it fell out after peaking at its debut position -- but was a more upbeat tune for them.

In 1979, Jimmy Stokely left the group, forcing the band to look for a new singer. Les Taylor would replace him and shared the lead with fellow member J.P. Pennington. Thanks to Taylor's influences in Southern Rock, Exile continued their evolution and morphed into a country band. Actually, that's not entirely true; they had flirted with country in the past as a Kentucky-based band, and the general movement of country music to embrace a "poppier" sound made the transition easier. A couple of the band's songs would be recorded by the group Alabama ("Take Me Down" and "The Closer You Get") right when they were one of the hottest acts in the genre and the change was complete. The band scored 10 #1 country songs in the next decade.


Roxy Music - "Dance Away"

(Debuted #89, Peaked #44, 9 Weeks on chart)



I wish I could remember who it was. Recently, I watched an interview where the guest (an English lady) was talking about her musical influences, and described Roxy Music's sound as "dancing while sad." It was a perfect description for "Dance Away." I wish I had written down the info, because now I'm not sure if it was a recent interview or something off a vintage YouTube clip. This is what happens when you get older, readers...but I suppose that beats the alternative.

That said, "dancing while sad" doesn't mean that the song itself is sad; rather, it explains that dancing can be a release for the realities of life. For some, that was part of the allure of Disco. In fact, it isn't limited to that sound, it's true for anything that encouraged people to get out and cut a rug on the dance floor, from swing to the twist to electronica.

While only the second single by Roxy Music to chart in the U.S., it was a comeback of sorts for the band in the U.K., returning them to the Top10 there for the first time in more than three years.

The Fabulous Poodles - "Mirror Star" (Not Available on iTunes)

(Debuted #91, Peaked #81, 4 Weeks on chart)



The Fabulous Poodles started out simply as The Poodles, a British band fronted by Tony DeMeur. They were known for having a sense of humor in their lyrics (DeMeur was a stand-up comedian in the U.K. after the band split up) and were influenced by groups like The Kinks and The Who. That band's bass player John Entwistle produced their debut LP, and Muff Winwood took over for the record that included "Mirror Star."

In the U.S., their sound tended to get lumped in with the "New Wave" of artists then coming from the U.K. despite their undeniable 1960s rock roots. They broke up in 1980.

Witch Queen - "Bang A Gong"

(Debuted #94, Peaked #68, 6 Weeks on chart)



Once Disco became established by 1976, there was a rush of old songs set to the new beat. There were old pre-rock era songs ("Baby Face," "Cherchez Le Femme," "Chattanooga Choo Choo"), TV themes ("Disco Lucy") and even songs updated by the original artist (Frankie Avalon's "Venus," Esther Williams' "What a Diff'rence a Day Makes"). It was probably only a matter of time when the trend would reach early 70s rock as well.

As many music fans would recognize, "Bang a Gong" is a disco remake of the 1971 T-Rex hit. Although the song is given its original British title, Witch Queen was a band whose members included Canadian singer Heather Gauthier and producer Gino Soccio, with the Muscle Shoals rhythm section keeping time.

Liquid Gold - "My Baby's Baby"

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



Liquid Gold was a studio group put together by British producer Adrian Baker and featured Ray Knott and Ellie Hope in its lineup. They managed two hits in the U.S. (the other one, "What's She Got " charted in 1983), but enjoyed a handful of hits in their home country. Their biggest Stateside success was "My Baby's Baby," a song that is fairly true to its time but is still catchy. 

When disco fell from grace later in 1979, most acts associated with the genre were barely heard from again, especially those that were merely made up of studio musicians working under a producer's direction. "Disco," on the other hand, didn't really die out as much as it went "underground" and evolved into the dance/club music of the 1980s. And while Liquid Gold was part of that evolution in the U.K., they fizzled out about the time "What's She Got" was released.

Space - "My Love Is Music"

(Debuted #96, Peaked #60, 7 Weeks on chart)



Space's sound might seem like just another dance-based groove in the disco era, but it was more of an electronic sound than much disco was. Though "My Love is Music" is little more than faceless singers in front of a sped-up beat, the backing music is done by synthesizers instead of a string section. This direction would figure more prominently with dance music in the next decade, and Space's leader (Monaco-born Didier Marouani) would go on to become a pioneer in the burgeoning electronica scene. 

The confusion with disco would be understandable. It comes from the right timeframe, features a breakdown in the bridge, has a bass line that is undoubtedly influenced by what Bernard Edwards was laying down on Chic records and was released on Casablanca records. That said, it serves as a bridge between the decades, and points toward future trends.

This Week's Review -- February 17, 1979

By listening to all the songs in this week's list of Billboard singles, you'll have a pretty good idea of when they came out even if you don't recognize many of the songs at first. There were nine singles but only three reached the Top 40. Of those three, two rose into the Top 10 and one reached #1. In keeping with the dance craze of the time, six of the songs are Disco tunes. Not surprisingly, the three non-Disco songs are also the three that fared the poorest among the list. However, they are among the three most interesting as well (not necessarily the best, mind you, but the most interesting).

There are several back issues of Billboard magazine over at Google Books, including the February 17, 1979 edition. The full Hot 100 can be found on page 92. There's a little bit of history mentioned on page 1. Stephen Stills had just done the first-ever digital music session for a rock artist. Page 3 informs us that the Cultural Revolution didn't seem to prevent China from opening a Disco in Shanghai. Two pictures feature attempts at humor. One on page 59 shows Parliament head George Clinton visiting with a member of the "real" Parliament in London. A less subtle picture on page 40 (appropriately enough) has Ray Stevens getting a walker as a present for his 40th birthday. Finally, much of the issue is devoted to Epic Records and its 25th anniversary as a label.

Sarah Dash - "Sinner Man"

(Debuted #81, Peaked #71, 4 Weeks on chart)



While the records show that "Sinner Man" was Sarah Dash's first single to reach the Hot 100, she was no stranger to the chart. Before recording as a solo artist, she was one of the members of LaBelle (which were called The Bluebelles before 1971) and one of the voices on the million-selling "Lady Marmalade."

"Sinner Man" was a disco-fueled tune that definitely used Dash's voice as a tool. However, the song is more about the flash of its time than it is about Dash's voice, as it sounds like she's trying her best to sing above the rest of the musicians. It was the Disco era, and record companies were sometimes more interested in whether a song got the listeners out on the floor than whether it showcased the talent of the artist.

As a result, Sarah Dash would return to backing vocals in the 1980s, supporting The Rolling Stones as well as Keith Richards on his solo project. There were some additional attempts at solo material, but nothing ever really played out into a career like the one enjoyed by fellow LaBelle members Patti LaBelle and (to a lesser extent) Nona Hendryx.

The Jacksons - "Shake Your Body (Down To the Ground)"

(Debuted #82, Peaked #7, 22 Weeks on chart)



"Shake Your Body (Down To the Ground)" shows Michael Jackson just before he became a phenomenon. He was still known primarily for the work he did alongside his brothers than for his solo work, even though he'd scored a #1 hit with "Ben" and a pair of Top 10 singles on his own earlier in the decade. By the end of the year, his LP Off the Wall came out and began to change that perception.

After leaving Motown and moving over to Epic in a celebrated split that caused them to change their stage name, the former Jackson 5 specialized in funky dance songs. That was a natural progression, as they were already starting down that path while still at Motown ("Dancing Machine" was their last major hit there). "Shake Your Body (Down To the Ground)" was written by Michael and his younger brother Randy, and was inspired by an ad-libbed line Marvin Gaye had tossed out in "Got To Give it Up."

Running eight minutes long on the Destiny LP, it was cut down to under four minutes for the single in order to fit into radio playlists. A 12-inch version ran more than five minutes and featured a different mix of instruments. The brothers sang it in 2001 for a 30th Anniversary concert. It would be the last song they performed together before Michael's death.

Blondie - "Heart Of Glass"

(Debuted #84, Peaked #1, 21 Weeks on chart)



Blondie was noted for experimenting with a wide variety of different styles on their albums. It probably wasn't a surprise when their LP Parallel Lines contained a Disco tune, and it was probably less of a surprise that it would become their first charted hit. It would be the first of four #1 singles for the group in the U.S. and also reached the top of the charts in the U.K., Canada, Australia and several European countries.

At the time, Blondie was accused of "selling out" by many of its fans and veering from the New Wave scene it had such a big part in building. That said, the same fans should have realized they were always experimenting with different styles and should have known the spinner would land on "disco" eventually. The song was produced by Mike Chapman, who had plenty of experience behind the board for some of the most popular British Glitter Rock bands and gave it a high gloss. Maybe the slick sound didn't sit well with those fans who complained, or maybe it was the promotional video they filmed for it at Studio 54.

There were two versions of the song released, in order to better conform to accepted norms. The album version (which also appears in the video above) contains a line in the final verse that says "soon turned out to be a pain in the ass." Since that would have limited airplay in parts of the U.S. and on the BBC, the line was changed to "soon turned out to have a heart of glass" as a compromise.

Gary's Gang - "Keep On Dancin'"

(Debuted #85, Peaked #41, 10 Weeks on chart)



Gary's Gang was the name given to a project by two Queens, New York based men named Joseph Tucci and Gary Turnier. Actually, despite the band name, it was Tucci who sang and played most of the instruments. Turnier played the drums, but was the person who "bird-dogged" the record to potential labels and finally landed it with Sam Records in Long Island City.

"Keep On Dancin'" was a pure shot of Disco adrenaline. In a way, it was like a cheap knock-off of an energy drink: it does the job for right now if you want it, but you know it might not be so good when the effects wear off. That said, all the instrumental elements of a "typical" disco single are there (albeit it a more synthesized version than the strings that appeared on songs from artists that enjoyed better budgets), and they even make sure a whistle gets added to the mix. It was generic enough to just fall short of the Top 40.

Gino Vannelli - "Wheels Of Life"

(Debuted #86, Peaked #78, 5 Weeks on chart)



After getting a Top 10 hit with "I Just Wanna Stop," Gino Vannelli followed it up with another song from his Brother To Brother LP that was a lot more philosophical. It delved more into the idea of wanting to spend eternity with somebody, but the mention of a pending mortality looming at some point in the future (even though it is most likely a distant future) wasn't something that pop music fans were ready to embrace yet. Not when they were still in their 20s and 30s. As a result, "Wheels of Life" fell far short of the Top 40.

That said, it's one of those songs that I have grown to appreciate as time has passed. Honestly, I wasn't fond of it when I was much younger, as it seemed to drag on. However, it's grown on me. I haven't figured out whether it is a result of my maturity, or because I hear music differently than when I was teenager, or if my personal evolution has let me consider themes I hadn't wasted time with in my youth.

Queen - "Don't Stop Me Now"

(Debuted #87, Peaked #86, 4 Weeks on chart)



Every so often, Google uses a "Doodle" on its home page to honor a special day or pay tribute to a person from the past. Last September, they used the one below to celebrate what would have been Freddie Mercury's 65th birthday using "Don't Stop Me Now." The artwork was well-suited to the band and the performer it spotlighted:



"Don't Stop Me Now" features a soft piano accompaniment below Mercury's vocals, with just the rhythm section keeping time. However, Brian May's guitar is standing by, ready to give a frenetic solo once the song breaks out of its opening gait into a more expressive pace. In a way, Mercury and the boys are letting it be know they aren't going to be held back, and then demonstrate it. The band's signature harmonies are also included in the chorus.

It's a shame the song fizzled out so soon during its chart run, and an even bigger shame that it hasn't really found its place among Queen's best-remembered material.

Kate Bush - "The Man With The Child In His Eyes"

(Debuted #88, Peaked #85, 4 Weeks on chart)



Kate Bush's music is something of an acquired taste. During my college years, I got to see both sides of the equation...there were dedicated fans who listened intently and tried to decipher the message in the lyrics and those who listened more to the music and felt that her voice sounded like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. As I was in neither of those camps, I always saw her as that "weird girl" in school nobody admitted to liking but was sure to be a lot of fun you got her alone. And she's a redhead, which is one of my personal weaknesses when it comes to women.

Her first chart single in the U.S.was "The Man With the Child in His Eyes," a song that was included on her 1978 LP The Kick Inside but written when Bush was 14 and first recorded in 1975. Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour paid for the recording as a personal favor. The words are obtuse enough, but can be about an older man who is seeing a younger woman (probably not Gilmour, though, despite his involvement), or it can be a song about maturing, and others claim it is about masturbation.

In the days before MTV, there really wasn't any outlet for Bush's highly visual expression. Add to that the fact that she did little touring and the record label emphasized Bush's looks a lot more heavily than they did the fact that she was a singer/songwriter, and you get an artist whose influence really didn't amount to chart success. It would take six more years before Bush would break the Top 40 for the first (and only) time in the U.S.

Voyage - "Souvenirs"

(Debuted #89, Peaked #41, 9 Weeks on chart)



Voyage was often lumped in with many Eurodisco acts as little more than a faceless studio concoction behind a producer's vision, despite having a dedicated five-person lineup. Things like the Soul Train video above (no band to be seen, just a bunch of dancers "getting down") really didn't help matters. Their albums often borrowed different styles, giving the concept of a "voyage" around the world of music. "Souvenirs" came from their second LP Let's Fly, which continued that concept.

It ended up being the group's only Hot 100 entry, just missing the Top 40. It was, however, a #1 on the Disco chart as the lead track from Fly Away, where albums were included along with singles and 12-inch versions.

Instant Funk - "I Got My Mind Made Up (You Can Get It Girl)"

(Debuted #90, Peaked #20, 18 Weeks on chart)



Instant Funk shows up as a One-Hit wonder, which would be correct if you just look at the pop chart. However, the New Jersey-based group had a handful of R&B and dance hits from 1977-'83 and served as the backing band for several singers. In fact, they provided the accompaniment on Evelyn "Champagne" King's hit "Shame" just before "I Got My Mind Made Up (You Can Get it Girl)" was a hit.

While "I Got My Mind Made Up" might seem like yet another disco song with a gimmick -- a lady asking "Say what?" -- at intervals, it has managed to become a classic over the years. The song (which hit #1 on both the R&B and Disco surveys) has found its way into numerous remixes and Hip-Hop samples, which have given it a second life and a new audience.

This Week's Review -- October 27, 1979

There were six new singles debuting in this week's Billboard Hot 100, with three making the Top 40. Also, two of those would peak in 1980, both reaching the same #18 position. Although disco was considered to be dying at the time, it didn't stop two of the songs from charting. Another song is a funk classic that has provided an entire generation of hip hop and rap artists with samples. A former member of Poco shows up, as does a duo who would go on to become one of the biggest acts of the next decade. As for another duo, they would soon split, with one half moving on to country music.

Among the archive of past Billboard  issues over at Google Books is the October 27, 1979 edition. The full Hot 100 can be found on Page 92. An article on page 20 mentions that a group was fighting against an effort to get rid of the brass-lined doors at the Brill Building (It seems to have worked, as the doors are still there today). A sociologist on page 6 gives his dissertation about how the Disco juggernaut screwed up the music business.

England Dan & John Ford Coley - "What Can I Do With This Broken Heart"

(Debuted #78, Peaked #50, 6 Weeks on chart)



It's a shame that "What Can I Do With This Broken Heart" missed the Top 40. It's too good a song to be forgotten. Yes, it fits the overall format laid down in the duo's previous hits, but doesn't come across as derivative. Instead, it follows the path that the earlier hit "Love is the Answer" pointed out. However, the slight disco sheen in the background accompaniment may have detracted from the overall composition, but it was a solid song.

For all intents and purposes, this was the end of the line for the duo. There was one more low-charting single in the new decade and a movie soundtrack (Just Tell Me You Love Me) but that was quickly forgotten. By then, "England" Dan was recording as a solo artist and added his last name (Seals) to his record before dropping the "England" part altogether.

Isaac Hayes - "Don't Let Go"

(Debuted #81, Peaked #18, 20 Weeks on chart)



Nobody was going to tell Isaac Hayes that Disco was dead. In a way, it was ironic that an artist who was so influential in the early direction of disco wasn't able to enjoy many hit singles during the genre's heyday. Then, when he finally got the chance to show a wider audience the way he could lay down a dance groove, the sound was dropping from prominence.

Just as Hayes had done a decade earlier, he turned to a song from the past. "Don't Let Go" was a remake of the 1957 Roy Hamilton hit but had been given an extreme makeover. The words were the same, but delivered in a totally different style. Using his trademark smooth, low delivery that sound like he's trying to seduce, he lets his female backing chorus handle the song title in a breathy manner. It was his best shot at a disco hit, and was good enough to break through the barrier many listeners had set up against the genre by late 1979.

Funkadelic - "(Not Just) Knee Deep (Part 1)" (Not Available on iTunes)

(Debuted #82, Peaked #77, 4 Weeks on chart)



The YouTube video above contains the 15-minute version of "(Not Just) Knee Deep" from the LP Uncle Jam Wants You but the single version was edited down to fit on two sides of the record. The record's A-side was heavily abridged and clocked in at four and a half minutes. Although its pop chart life was short, it would rise to #1 on the R&B chart.

Featuring the regular P-Funk stars (George Clinton, Bootsy Collins, Michael Hampton, et. al.), the song also featured the talents of former Spinners singer Phillippe Wynn and ex-Ohio Players keyboard player "Junie" Morrison.

With its classic funk groove and distinctive vocals, "(Not Just) Knee Deep" has been sampled by several hip hop and rap artists over the years. The most obvious of these is De La Soul's "Me, Myself & I" from 1989, but the sample has found itself into the work of Tone Loc, LL Cool J, Snoop Dogg, MC Hammer, The Black Eyed Peas and Bobby Brown.

Cory Daye - "Pow Wow" (Not Available on iTunes)

(Debuted #84, Peaked #76, 3 Weeks on chart)



(Warning: there is a word written in the YouTube video above that can be considered offensive. If you're watching it at work or around kids, it might be a good idea to hide it as it plays.)

"Pow Wow" was the first hit for Cory Daye, but not her first time her voice graced a hit single. She was a former singer in Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band, where she was the voice behind "Cherchez La Femme." While "Pow Wow" was a solid and fun disco single that really needs to be heard if you're into the style, the backlash that sent disco underground as the 1970s came to an end also affected the song even more than the American Indian imagery of the tune (complete with war cries).

In the 1980s, Daye would sing backup for Kid Creole & the Cocoanuts, which was headed by former bandmates August Darnell and Coati Mundi.

Richie Furay - "I Still Have Dreams" (Not Available on iTunes)

(Debuted #85, Peaked #39, 10 Weeks on chart)

Richie Furay was a former member of Buffalo Springfield, Poco and The Souther Hillman Furay Band, and eventually moved toward Christian rock after his religious conversion in the mid 1970s. Despite the religious outlook of his personal life, he assured his label that his music would avoid the preachiness that often follows that new direction. One of those forward-looking and inspirational tunes was "I Still Have Dreams," which briefly returned him to the Top 40 one last time before devoting his time to his family and church.

"I Still Have Dreams" sounds like it could have fit right in on a Poco album. It shows the country-rock influence of the band's earlier records, mixed with a slicker late-70s production quality.

Daryl Hall and John Oates - "Wait For Me"

(Debuted #87, Peaked #18, 18 Weeks on chart)



After getting some attention in the mid 1970s with tunes such as "Sara Smile," "She's Gone" and "Rich Girl," Daryl Hall and John Oates went through a "down" period that seemed like a waning before their early 1980s resurgence that eclipsed everything they had done before it. In essence, the period was marked by the duo trying to find its sound, rather than simply coming up with more variations of their hits. In the end, it worked; but the years between 1977 and 1980 were rather lean hit-wise.

One other factor that helped their success was two "missing" pieces: guitarist G.E. Smith and bass player Tom "T-Bone" Wolk. I find it to be little coincidence that the duo's biggest hits came with those two musicians supporting them. Smith was already on board beginning with X-Static (the LP that includes "Wait For Me"), and Wolk was still a couple of years away.

"Wait For Me" was written by Daryl Hall, and while it brought them their first Top 40 hit of the new decade, their breakthrough would come much later in the year in the form of their next LP Voices.