Greg Lake of Emerson Lake and Palmer released his only solo song during the Christmas season of 1975.
Upon listening to the song, without really listening to the lyrics, this song written Greg Lake (Emerson, Lake and Palmer) and writing partner Peter Sinfield, it sounds like a nice little Christmas song. But it’s really a protest song against the commercialization of Christmas. It still makes my favorite list.
In 1977 Bing Crosby was the old crooner from the 1930s and 1940s. He was more well known then for his annual Christmas Specials and his recording of White Christmas, as well as his old films, when on September 11th he and 30 year old glam rocker David Bowie recorded this song for Bing’s 1977 Christmas Special.
The song was originally just to be a duet of the Little Drummer Boy, but Bowie was not a fan of the song and requested to sing something else. Buz Kohan, Larry Grossman and Ian Fraser quickly wrote the song Peace on Earth and created an arrangement for the two songs.
This song was one of the last recordings of Bing crosby, who died of a heart attack after completing a round of golf on October 14th. The Christmas Special would be shown a month after his death.
The song didn’t really become popular until it was released as a Christmas single in 1982.
In July of 1973 Grand Funk Railroad released their 7th album We’re An American Band. This was also the first of three Albums where the group was simply call Grand Funk. The first single released from the album was the title song We’re An American Band.
The song was their first Number 1 single. It was written by Don Brewer and produced by Todd Rundgren and brought the group to the larger, pop audience. Prior to this the group was more Heavy Rock, the term Heavy Metal was not used until the 1980s.
Many of Grand Funk Railroad songs were sung by Mark Farner, but this one was sung by Brewer, the group drummer.
In the first pressing, all the copies of the 45 RPM records were pressed on gold vinyl.
The decade of the seventies were full of songs featuring the voice of Karen Carpenter. While her brother Richard was playing the keyboards, Karen was a drummer.
This clip features many performances of her playing the drums. And as you can see from the huge smiles on her face as she’s playing she looks as if she was more comfortable with the sticks in her hand than with a microphone.
She was another of the artists of the 70’s that left us too soon. But she’ll be forever remembered.
The Carpenters are one of many great artist of the 70’s that for some reason have not been elected into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
The clip of this song is not from the 70’s but was made later. Not sure when.
Anyway it was the spring of 1974, near the end of the Streaking craze when Ray Stevens reached the top of the Charts with this song. It also hit Number 3 on the Billboard Country chart.
It was also an international hit reaching Number 1 on the UK Charts.
The song was Stevens most popular and was his 2nd number 1. While many of the songs that Stevens recorded were comedy/novelty songs his other Number 1 was the 1970 hit Everything is Beautiful.
The song was written by Bobby Russell. Russell was a popular songwriter in the late 60’s and early 70’s having written the hits Little Green Apples and Honey. He also wrote and recorded a a song about the everyday man having a normal Saturday titled Saturday Morning Confusion.
The song was offered to Cher, but her husband Sonny Bono turned the song down. Vicki Lawrence, one of the regulars on the Carol Brunett Show was married to Russell. She recorded a demo of the song and her version was finally release. The song plus the ones she recorded for an album of the same name were her only recorded songs.
The song reached Number 1 on the Pop charts, but barely charted on the country charts, although it was an obvious country song.
A movie based loosely on the song was made in 1981 and starred Mark Hamill and Kristy McNichol with the title song sung by Tanya Tucker.
10 years later Country Singer Reba McIntyre’s version reached the top of the country charts. The clip is not from the 70s but the 90s when Reba appeared on a Talk Show hosted by Vicki Lawrence.
Two clips of Edwin Starr singing his 1970 war protest song War. One is from the 70’s. Not sure when the second one is from, but it’s obviously must later than the first.
The song was written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong. It was Edwin Starr’s most successful song as well as the most successful anti-war song. It reached the number 1 spot in 1970.
The song was also recorded by the Temptations, although their version was slightly less intense that Starr’s. Motown was debating whether or not to release that version as a single when Starr volunteered to re-record the song. Motown had been afraid that it could hurt the Temptation’s career.
Starr’s version was more in a James Brown inspired Soul-Shout and the song instead of hurting his career gave him a successful one.
In 1985 Bruce Springsteen began adding the song to his sets and it was recorded as part of the Live/1975-85. He released his live version as a single and once again it was a big seller, reaching Number 8 on the charts.
“War, what is it good for? Absolutely nothin’!” The line is just as meaningful in 2008 as it was in 1970. It’s surprising that someone hasn’t re-recorded it. At least the Starr and the Springsteen versions are still being played.
At the end of the 1970’s Disco may have begun to fade, but it was still very popular in 1979. The Number 6 top song of the decade was one that turned into an anthem for women. I Will Survive by Gloria Gaynor.
Donna Summer was the Queen of Disco and 1979 was one of her greatest year. Her song Hot Stuff comes in at Number 5.
Peaches and Herb had been around since 1967. While Herb was always Herb Fame (born Herbert Feemster) there has been five different Peaches. Peaches from 1977 until 1983 was Linda Greene. Reunited was their biggest song together and was the 4th best song of 1979.
If it hadn’t been for Elton John, Rod Stewart may have been the top act of the ’70’s having a number of tops songs during the decade. 1979 was no different with his disco inspired song Do Ya Think I’m Sexy at Number 3.
Donna Summer had two of the top songs of 1979 with Bad Girls as the second best song of the year.
During the decade of the ’70’s there were a number of acts that had big debut songs and were called the new coming of the Beatles. The Knack hit the scene running but they never were able to match the success of their first release, which also was the Top song of 1979, My Sharona.
Originally appeared on 6ThingsToConsider.com
Norman Whitfield, a Motown producer and composer, died on September 16, 2008. He will always be remembered as one of the principal creators of psychedelic soul.
Some of Whitfield’s hit songs were I Heard It through the Grapevine, Ain’t Too Proud to Beg, Cloud Nine, War, Papa Was a Rolling Stone, Smiling Faces Sometimes and Car Wash. Many of his hits were written with lyrical collaborator Barrett Strong. In 2004 he and Strong were inducted to the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame.
Whitfield was born on May 12, 1940 in Harlem. He moved to Detroit with his family in his late teens. At 19 he hung around Motown’s Hitsville U.S.A. offices looking for a job finally winning one in their quality control department.
He soon became one of the songwriters with one of his first big hits being Ain’t to Proud to Beg by the Temptations.
In 1967 Gladys Knight and the Pips recorded and released the Whitfield/Strong penned song I Heard it Through the Grapevine. It became Motown’s best-selling single to that point. A year later Marvin Gaye released his version which became an even bigger seller and was Motown’s biggest single of the 1960’s.
While Norman Whitfield has left us, his songs will live forever.
In 1977 Emerson, Lake and Palmer would release their album Works Volume 1. The album was divided into four parts, each recorded on a side of the 4 record set. Each section highlighted a member of the band.
On side 4, the Band’s side, they recorded two tracks. Fanfare for the Common Man, a classical piece written in 1942 by Aaron Copeland was the first track.
Keith Emerson was a admirer of Aaron Copeland, and this wasn’t the first song of his that they recorded. Hoedown was on their 1972 album Trilogy.
Emerson, Lake and Palmer’s arrangement of Fanfare for the Common Man was used as the opening theme song for CBS Sports Spectacular.
By 1976 Johnny Cash had already been performing for 20 years and for many of those years he was at the top of the Charts.
it was in 1976 that he did the story song One Piece at a Time. It’s the story of an auto assembly line worker built a car with one stolen piece sneaked out of the factory. The song was composed by Wayne Kemp.
There was a car built for the song by Bruce Fitzpatrick, owner of Abernathy Auto Parts and Hilltop Auto Salvage in Nashville, TN. He had all the different models of Cadillacs mentioned in the song when it was released, and built a Cadillac using the song as a model.
The song reach the Number 1 spot on the County charts on May 29, 1976.