It seems as if nearly everyone has a single year that stands out as the one the produced their favorite songs. Or maybe I should say a year that produced more of their favorite songs than any other. For me that year was 1971. It was the year that I became a teenager and listened [...]
When Tito Puente composed Oye Como Va in 1963 it was considered Latin Jazz. Carlos Santana turned it into Latin Rock when he included the song on his group’s 2nd album Abraxas. The song was their second single release from the album, the album was number 1 on the album charts in October and November [...]
Eric Burdon was one of many that arrived in the United States during the British invasion of 1964. He was the lead singer of the Animals, later called Eric Burton and the Animals and later with a new band of musicians as Eric Burton and the New Animals. By the end of the decade he [...]
Chic may have began as a black rock band, but they became an act that helped define the Disco Era. In 1978 they recorded what would become the most popular disco song of the era. The signature line, ‘Aaaaahh, freak out!’ came because the writers Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards couldn’t use their original idea [...]
By 1974 the Jackson 5 had not only added their younger brother Randy to the group, but were also on a downturn in the music industry. Before Dancing Machine their last top 10 hit was in 1972 with Sugar Daddy. Part of this was that Motown wasn’t sure in what direction they wanted the act [...]
It was June of 1972. The group Alice Cooper had released a few albums, but they were still seen more of a novelty act based on the guy who decided to change his name to Alice Cooper. Other than I’m Eighteen, released in early 1971 they had seen little action on the charts. That changed [...]
Even though Bob Seger had been recording since 1969 until 1976 he was mostly known as a Regional artist out of Michigan. Things began to change in 1976. First there was his Live Bullet album with his Silver Bullet Band. At the end of 1976 they released the album Night Moves which featured the single [...]
The song For All We Know was written by Fred Karlin, Jimmy Griffin, Robb Royer and was featured in the film Lovers and Other Strangers. Karlan composed the music. Griffin and Royer supplied the the lyrics first using the names Arthur James and Robb Wilson. Robb Royer and Jimmy Griffin were both members of the [...]
Deep Purple’s Album Machine Head is one of the first albums that is considered as Heavy Metal. The album’s most familiar song is Smoke On The Water, but another popular song from the Album is Highway Star. Highway Star opens the album as the first song on side 1 and was written, as were all [...]
From the Donny and Marie Show. The Osmonds seem to have been born to entertain. Over 50 years ago brothers Alan, Wayne, Merrill and Jay began performing together as a young barbershop Quartet. They appeared in Disneyland as well as on the Andy Williams show in the 1960s. By the beginning of the 1970s the [...]
Many artists of the 1970s were influenced by the Beatles. By the beginning of 1970 they were no longer performing as a group, but they sure should be seen as part of the decade of the 70s. The rooftop concert was held on January 30, 1969. This was their last public performance together as a [...]
During the Early 1970s cartoon producers Rankin/Bass produced a series of saturday morning cartoon featuring two of the popular music groups. Both of these groups featured brothers. The Jackson Five and The Osmonds. The Jackson 5ive series debuted on September 11, 1971 with the last episode showing on September 1, 1973 on ABC. Season 1 [...]
When Styx released their 7th Album, The Grand Illusion, their third on A&M records, they were still a relatively little known band. Previous to Come Sail Away, the first single released from the album, their biggest single was Lady from their Styx II originally released in 1972 on Wooden Nickel Records with the single released [...]
The brother and sister duo The Carpenters recorded this song in 1970 early in their career. When they release their Christmas Portrait album in 1978, they recorded a newer version of the song. The only difference between the versions is that in 1978. Karen Carpenter requested to rerecord the song since in 1970 she felt [...]