Classic rock, pop, and soul songs from the '60s, '70s, and '80s
Classic rock, pop, and soul songs from the '60s, '70s, and '80s
Today’s classic Jimmy Webb song of the day is perhaps his most famous. “MacArthur Park” was a hit twice, first for Richard Harris in 1968 and ten years later, in a discofied version, for Donna Summer. Jimmy Webb wrote “MacArthur Park” as a reflection on the end of his short but sweet love affair with a girl named Suzy Horton.…
This week’s final classic early ’70s song of the day is “Oh Babe, What Would You Say?” by Hurricane Smith. This one-hit wonder was released in July of 1972 and peaked at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100, #2 on Billboard’s Adult Contemporary chart, and #1 on the Cash Box Top 100. It also hit #4 on the UK chart.…
Today’s classic early ’70s song of the day is “Gypsy Woman.” It was originally a hit for the Impressions in 1961 and an even bigger hit for Brian Hyland in 1970. Curtis Mayfield wrote “Gypsy Woman” when he was barely a teenager and his group the Impressions released it as a single in October of 1961. The Impressions’ version of…
Today’s classic early ’70s one-hit wonder song of the day is “Go Back” by Crabby Appleton. This single, released in April of 1970, peaked at #36 on the Billboard Hot 100. Critics have described “Go Back” as proto power pop with a psychedelic twinge. Okay, that’s not wrong. The song was written by the band’s singer, Michael Fennelly. It was…
Top forty radio in the early 1970s was host to a slew of one-hit wonders. Case in point, today’s classic early ’70s song of the day, “Sweet Mary” by a group called Wadsworth Mansion. The single, released in October of 1970, peaked at #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #5 on the Cash Box Top 100. The song was…
Today’s classic early ’70s song of the day is “Yellow River” by Christie. This one was released in April of 1970 and peaked at #23 on the Billboard Hot 100. It did considerably better in the group’s native England, where it went all the way to #1 on the UK Singles Chart. Christie was the name of the group fronted…
Today’s early ’70s song of the day is “Montego Bay” by Bobby Bloom. Released as a single in September of 1970, this one peaked at #8 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #6 on the Cash Box Top 100. Bobby Bloom wrote “Montego Bay” with ace songwriter Jeff Barry. Mr. Barry is famous as half of a songwriting duo with…
From last week’s look at the early ’80s we jump back a decade to the early ’70s, and today’s classic early ’70s song of the day is “No Matter What” by Badfinger. This single was released in October of 1970 and hit #8 on the Billboard Hot 100. It did even better in the band’s native England, peaking at #5…
Today’s classic song from the late ’70s of the day is “Heart of Glass” by Blondie. Released in January of 1979, this danceable little number went to #1 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Cash Box Top 100. (Surprisingly for a dance tune, it only hit #58 on Billboard’s Disco chart.) It was also a number-one hit in Australia,…