Classic rock, pop, and soul songs from the '60s, '70s, and '80s
Classic rock, pop, and soul songs from the '60s, '70s, and '80s
Believe it or not, this is the 1000th post here on the Classic Song of the Day blog. I started this blog back on February 18, 2023, with a post all about composer Burt Bacharach, who had recently passed away. Over the next 999 posts I’ve covered songs both popular and relatively unknown, mostly from the ’60s and ’70s but…
For today’s classic song of the day we return to Swinging London in the mid-60s and another terrific tune by Brit songbird Petula Clark. The song is “I Know a Place” and, when it was released in March of 1965, it went all the way to #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #17 on the UK charts. Like most…
I’m happy to present today’s classic song of the day, “Happy.” No, not the 2013 tune by Pharrell Williams, from the Despicable Me soundtrack. This “Happy” was a single back in 1967 that was a minor hit for two different groups at more or less the same time. Radio play and record sales were much different back in the ’60s.…
This evening I’m sitting in (on drums) with some friends in a band playing a Halloween-themed house party. The band is kind of an outlaw/trad country thing, but they’re throwing in some “black” songs to fit the Halloween vibe. One of the songs they’re playing is the one I’ve chosen for today’s classic song of the day, the Rolling Stones’…
Today’s classic song of the day is a legendary piece of psychedelic rock from equally legendary songwriter Todd Rundgren. The song is “Open My Eyes” and it was recorded by his first group, Nazz, in 1968. The single failed to crack the Billboard Hot 100 but gained attention and influence when it was featured on the iconic 1972 garage rock…
The Association had a lot of big hits back in the mid-to-late ’60s, but their biggest was today’s classic song of the day, “Cherish.” This single, released in August of 1966, went to #1 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Cash Box Top 100. It was also a #1 hit in Canada. “Cherish” was written by group member Terry…
“Needles and Pins” is today’s classic song of the day. It was first recorded by Jackie DeShannon, with producers Jack Nitzsche and Sonny Bono creating a Phil Spector-like Wall of Sound backing. Released as a single in April of 1963, Jackie’s version of “Needles and Pins” only made it to #83 on the Billboard Hot 100, although it went all…
“Easy to Be Hard” is today’s classic song of the day. It comes to us from the musical Hair and the group Three Dog Night. Hair was a big deal. When it opened in 1967, it was the first so-called “rock musical” and led the way for other more modern takes on the traditional Broadway musical. It reflected the times,…
When you were younger, did you ever have to choose between two equally appealing girls? (Or, if you’re a girl, two equally attractive guys?) I never had the good fortune to be in that situation, but apparently John Sebastian was, and he wrote today’s classic song of the day about it. As the lyrics so neatly put it: Sometimes there’s…