*#21] FUNKY WORM by The Ohio Players
LW #24 / 11 wks / 94-92-79-70-66-59-47-39-26-24-21 / second Hot 100 single & first Top 40 hit for the R&B-Funk band that formed in Dayton, Ohio, in ‘59
#22] NEITHER ONE OF US (Wants To Be The First To Say Goodbye) by Gladys Knight & the Pips
LW #12 / Peak - #2 [2 wks] / Top 10 - 6 wks / Top 20 - 9 wks / Top 40 - 12 wks / Hot 100 - 15th wk '[of 16] / 86-62-54-40-31-20-16-8-4-3-2-2-6-12-22-43 / written by Jim Weatherly & produced by Joe Porter, who also produced O.C. Smith, Thelma Houston, Rare Earth and others / title song of the group’s ninth album & seventh released on Motown’s Soul label; the album came out in March ‘73, shortly after Knight & the Pips had signed a new contract with Buddah Records in February; after contract renewal negotiations with Motown failed, the group had been released from the label in January / Gladys Knight would later say that the group, which had hits before signing with the label in ‘66, was treated as a second tier act by Motown with all of the best songs going to Diana Ross & the Supremes, Marvin Gaye and The Temptations; the Soul label was used by Motown for R&B-oriented groups, and the Pips were finally able to broaden their demographic by recording Kris Kristofferson’s HELP ME MAKE IT THROUGH THE NIGHT [#33 Pop / #13 Soul] in ‘72 / nevertheless, NEITHER ONE OF US [#9 Top 200 / #1 - 2 wks Soul] in April ‘73 was their biggest album, to date, & the title song was their second biggest single* [#2 - 2 wks Pop / #1 - 4 wks Soul] and #1 on the Cashbox [sales only] chart for 4/7/73 / *[Their biggest hit, I HEARD IT THROUGH THE GRAPEVINE, spent three weeks at #2 on the Pop chart in December ‘67 & six weeks at #1 on the Soul chart in December ‘67 & early January ‘68]
the group enjoyed the freedom that they were allowed on the album by producer Porter; he had found their current hit song and Knight & the Pips did their own vocal arrangements for NEITHER ONE OF US; with the Pips’ backing vocals already recorded, Gladys nailed the lead vocal in one take - but after leaving MoWest Studio in Los Angeles to return to Detroit, they all decided to re-record their vocals / on the strength of their last contracted album for the Soul label & its hit single and another huge hit on Buddah later in ‘73, Motown would put out three more albums of previously unreleased material by Gladys Knight & the Pips - ALL I NEED IS TIME [#70 Top 200 / 14 Soul] in ‘73, KNIGHT TIME [#139 Top 200 / #29 Soul] in ‘74 & A LITTLE KNIGHT MUSIC [#164 Top 200 / #32 Soul] in ‘75, along with two more singles in ‘73 & one in ‘74
NEITHER ONE OF US (Wants To Be The First To Say Goodbye), kept from reaching #1 on the Pop chart by Vicki Lawrence’s THE NIGHT THE LIGHTS WENT OUT IN GEORGIA, was the first of 13 songs written by 30-year-old Jim Weatherly to be recorded by Gladys Knight & the Pips / six of the former University of Mississippi quarterback’s songs became chart singles for the group and two more were Top 3 Pop & Soul hits / their current hit was first recorded by the Country singer for his debut solo album, WEATHERLY, in ‘72; the album also included two future Pips songs, which would become better known with slightly different titles & lyrics - “Between His Goodbye And My Hello” and “Midnight Plane To Houston”
other cover versions of NEITHER ONE OF US (Wants To Be The First To Say Goodbye): Indian singer Asha Puthli for her second album, first charting single for Australian singer Linda George [#13 Australia], and Country singer Bob Luman’s fourth Top 10 Country hit [#7 US / #17 Canada] - all in ‘73; Country singer Ray Price in ‘75, saxophonist David Sanborn in ‘82 & Country singer Linda Davis in ‘95; Hall & Oates on their 17th studio album, OUR KIND OF SOUL, in ‘04 & Filipina-Jamaican singer-dancer Jaya on her 11th album, ALL SOULED OUT, in ‘11; “sampled” by R&B singer Angie Stone in the song "No More Rain (In This Cloud)" in ‘99 and the chorus was “sampled” by German DJ & producer DJ Klose on “Pick Up” in ‘18 / NEITHER ONE OF US (Wants To Be The First To Say Goodbye) by Gladys Knight & the Pips peaked at #15 on Billboard’s Easy Listening chart; and was a Top 10 hit in France [#9] and Top 20 in Italy [#15] & Canada [#16] and #31 in the UK / Gladys Knight & the Pips won a Grammy Award - their second - for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group for NEITHER ONE OF US (Wants To Be The First To Say Goodbye) in ‘74; earlier in the evening, the longstanding vocal group picked up its first Grammy for another Weatherly song in the R&B category
NEITHER ONE OF US (Wants To Be The First To Say Goodbye)
It's sad to think
We're not gonna make it
And it's gotten to the point
Where we just can't fake it
For some ungodly reason
We just won't let it die (let it die)
I guess neither one of us (neither one of us)
Wants to be the first to say goodbye
I keep wondering (wondering)
What I'm gonna do without you (do without you)
And I guess you must be
Wondering that same thing too
So we go on, go on together
Living a lie (living a lie)
Because neither one of us (neither one of us)
Wants to be the first to say goodbye
Oh-oh-oh, every time I find the nerve
Every time I find the nerve to say I'm leaving (leaving)
Old memories, those old memories
Get in my way (my way, my way)
Oh-oh-oh, Lord knows it's only me
Oh, He knows it's only me that I'm deceiving
Ooh, ooh, ooh, when it comes to saying goodbye
That's a simple word that I just cannot say
There can be no way, there can be no way (be no way)
This can have a happy ending (happy ending)
No, no, so we just go on (we go on)
Hurting and pretending
And, and convincing ourselves
To give it just one more try (one more try)
Because neither one of us (neither one of us)
Ooh, ooh, wants to be the first to say
Neither one of us (neither one of us)
Wants to be the first to say
Ooh, neither one of us (neither one of us)
Wants to be the first to say
"Farewell, my love"
Goodbye (goodbye)
*#23] HOCUS POCUS by Focus
LW #27 / 10 wks / 98-93-83-79-63-55-45-39-27-23 / first US single for the Dutch four-man Progressive Rock band, which formed in Amsterdam in ‘69
#24] STIR IT UP by Johnny Nash
LW #13 / Peak - #12 [1 wk] / Top 20 - wks / Top 40 - wks / Hot 100 - 13th wk [of 14] / 84-50-44-36-30-27-24-19-16-13-12-13-24-49 / written by Bob Marley and first recorded by Marley & the Wailing Wailers / recorded & produced by Johnny Nash in ‘72 for his album I CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW [#23 Top 200 / #10 Soul / #29 Australia / #39 UK] / the album included two other songs written by Bob Marley [GUAVA JELLY & COMMA COMMA] and one co-written by Marley & Nash [YOU POURED SUGAR ON ME] / Nash, who had been introduced to the Jamaican music scene by Bob Marley & his band in ‘66-‘67 had signed Marley, band members Bunny Wailer, Peter Tosh and Bob’s wife, Rita Marley, to songwriting contracts for his company, Cayman Music, for $50 [Jamaican] per week / Marley & the band had previously released STIR IT UP in ‘67 - one of the band’s 89 non-album singles released in the island country from ‘62 to ‘72; also re-recorded for The Wailers’ fifth studio album, CATCH A FIRE, released on Tuff Gong & Island Records in April ‘73 / STIR IT UP was Bob Marley’s first song that was a hit outside of Jamaica & the royalties from it and his other songs on the Nash album & B-sides allowed Marley to start his Tuff Gong label & gave him the ability to expand his audience to the UK and beyond
Johnny Nash had three straight UK Top 10 Rock Steady-Reggae hits in the late ‘60s before the Marley song broke the string - HOLD ME TIGHT [#5 - 3 wks] in Sept/Oct ‘68, YOU GOT SOUL [#6 - 1 wk] in February & CUPID [#6 - 1 wk] in May ‘69 / ten months before it was released in the US, STIR IT UP was the first single from the I CAN SEE CLEARLY album in the UK & Ireland, where it peaked at #13 in both countries [UK: 50-43-24-19-13-15-14-18-25-29-33-49] / I CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW peaked at #5 [1 wk] on 22/7/72 in the UK; a third single from the album, THERE ARE MORE QUESTIONS THAN ANSWERS, written by Nash, b/w Marley’s GUAVA JELLY, was also a Top 10 UK hit, peaking at #9 [1 wk] on 28/10/72
STIR IT UP was also recorded by Australian Blues-Rock band The Black Sorrows [#58 Australia / #9 Iceland / #20 New Zealand / #53 Germany] in ‘93-’94 and by Trinidadian-German Eurodance artist Haddaway for THE ALBUM [called HADDAWAY in the US] in ‘94 / the Nash “45” of STIR IT UP reached #11 on the Cashbox [sales only] chart for 4/28/73 & #6 on Billboard’s Easy Listening chart; #7 on Canada’s RPM Top 100 & #4 on the RPM EL chart; and #48 in Australia
STIR IT UP
Stir it up, little darling
Stir it up, oh yeah, yeah
Stir it up, little darling
It's been a long, long time
Since I had you on my mind
Now you are here, it's so very clear
There's so much we could do, just me and you, come on
Stir it up, little darling
Stir it up, oh yeah, yeah
Stir it up, little darling
I'll push the wood, light the fire
Oh, I'll satisfy your heart's desire
I will stir it every, every minute
All you have to do, girl, is keep it in it
Stir it up, little darling
Stir it up, oh oh oh yeah
Stir it up, little darling
I said I'll push the wood, light the fire
Oh, I'll satisfy your heart's desire
Girl, I'll stir it every, every minute
All you have to do is keep it in it
Stir it up, oh yeah
Stir it up, little darling
Stir it up, little darling
Stir it up (yeah, yeah) little darling
I said stir it up, little darling
Baby, stir it up, yeah
Babe, stir it up
*#25] THE RIGHT THING TO DO by Carly Simon
LW #30 / 6 wks / 70-60-43-38-30-25 / follow-up single to Simon’s #1 hit from early January was her fifth chart single & fourth Top 40 hit, following THAT’S THE WAY I’VE ALWAYS HEARD IT SHOULD BE [#10 - 2 wks] in July ‘71, ANTICIPATION [#13 - 2 wks] in February ‘72 and YOU’RE SO VAIN [#1 - 3 wks] in January ‘73; her third single, LEGEND IN YOUR OWN TIME, had only gotten as high as #50 for a week in May ‘72
*#26] MY LOVE by Paul McCartney & Wings
LW #36 / 4 wks / 73-62-36-26 / 2nd Biggest Jump Inside the Top 40 & 5th Biggest Jump on the Hot 100 - 10 positions / sixth post-Beatles single for McCartney and the first to be listed as Paul McCartney & Wings - all six were Top 40 hits: Paul McCartney - ANOTHER DAY // OH WOMAN OH WHY [#5 - 2 wks] in April ‘71; Paul & Linda McCartney - UNCLE ALBERT / ADMIRAL HALSEY [#1 - 1 wk / Gold] in early September ‘71; Wings - GIVE IRELAND BACK TO THE IRISH [#21 - 2 wks] in April, MARY HAD A LITTLE LAMB // LITTLE WOMAN LOVE [#28 - 1 wk] in late July & HI, HI, HI [#10 - 1 wk] in early February ‘73
*#27] THINKING OF YOU by Loggins & Messina
LW #32 / 6 wks / 79-62-53-42-32-27 / the duo’s fourth Hot 100 single & second Top 40 hit followed YOUR MAMA DON’T DANCE [#4 - 1 wk / Gold] in late January ‘73
#28] HALLELUJAH DAY by The Jackson 5
LW #29 / Peak - #28 [1 wk] / Top 40 - 4 wks / Hot 100 - 8th wk [of 10] / 85-62-52-43-34-31-29-28-53-58 / written by Freddie Perren* & Christine Yarian and produced by Perren / *[Freddie Perren was one of the four songwriters & producers known as The Corporation, who were responsible for all of the Jackson 5’s early hits] / the second single released from J5’s seventh studio album, SKYWRITER [#44 US / #41 Australia / #60 Canada], their least successful album to date / two more singles from the album were released in the UK - the title song reached #25 in ‘73 & THE BOOGIE MAN [planned as a US single but not released] peaked at #58 in ‘74 / HALLELUJAH DAY - the group’s 12th Hot 100 single in three & a half years - had the dubious distinction of being the group's first single not to reach the Pop Top 20; on the Cashbox [sales only] chart, it nearly did, peaking at #21 on the 4/28/73 chart; #31 in Australia & #20 in the UK
on Billboard’s Soul chart, J5’s current “45” was their lowest charting single, to date, but stretched their string of consecutive Top 10 hits to 12: 1970 - I WANT YOU BACK - #1 [4 wks] in January, ABC #1 [4 wks] in April, THE LOVE YOU SAVE #1 [6 wks] in June/July & I’LL BE THERE #1 [6 wks] in Oct/Nov; 1971 - MAMA’S PEARL - #2, NEVER CAN SAY GOODBYE - #1 [3 wks] in May, MAYBE TOMORROW - #3 & SUGAR DADDY - #3; 1972 - LITTLE BITTY PRETTY ONE - #8, LOOKIN’ THROUGH THE WINDOWS - #5 & CORNER OF THE SKY - #9; 1973 - HALLELUJAH DAY - #10
The Jackson Five’s dozen Top 40 Pop hits: 1970 - I WANT YOU BACK - #1 [1 wk] in late January, ABC #1 [2 wks] in Apr/May, THE LOVE YOU SAVE #1 [2 wks] in June/July & I’LL BE THERE #1 [5 wks] in Oct/Nov; 1971 - MAMA’S PEARL - #2 [2 wks] in Feb/Mar, NEVER CAN SAY GOODBYE - #2 [3 wks] in May & MAYBE TOMORROW - #20 [1 wk] in August; 1972 - SUGAR DADDY - #10 [2 wks] in late January, LITTLE BITTY PRETTY ONE - #13 [2 wks] in May/June, LOOKIN’ THROUGH THE WINDOWS - #16 [2 wks] in Aug/Sept & CORNER OF THE SKY - #18 [2 wks] in December; 1973 - HALLELUJAH DAY - #28 [1 wk] in early May
#29] PINBALL WIZARD / SEE ME, FEEL ME by The New Seekers
LW #31 / Peak - #29 [1 wk] / Top 40 - 4 wks / Hot 100 - 11th wk [of 13] / 87-78-70-62-54-48-45-37-33-31-29-45-56 / the medley’s songs originated in The Who’s Rock Opera TOMMY & were written by group leader & guitarist Pete Townshend / the double album was recorded from 19 September ‘68 to 7 March ‘69 and released by The Who on 17 May ‘69 / PINBALL WIZARD is the third song on Side 3, while SEE ME, FEEL ME / LISTENING TO YOU is part of the final track, WE’RE NOT GONNA TAKE IT / the British band’s fourth studio album was a Top 10 hit around the world [#4 US / 2x Platinum / #8 Australia / #6 Canada / #5 Netherlands / #2 UK / Gold] / The Who released PINBALL WIZARD - one of the last songs recorded for the album - as a single in March ‘69 & it became a worldwide hit [Top 10 in four countries - #4 in the UK, #6 in Canada & South Africa, #8 in New Zealand; Top 20 in four countries - #12 in the Netherlands, #14 in Ireland, #15 in Switzerland & #19 in the US; and Top 40 in two countries - #25 in West Germany & #32 in Finland] / The Who performed a powerful rendition of SEE ME, FEEL ME / LISTENING TO YOU at the Woodstock Festival in August ‘69; the performance was included in the film of the three day cultural event, which came out in March ‘70; the single SEE ME, FEEL ME was released in the US in September ‘70 by Decca Records & peaked at #12 / since its release as an album in early ‘69, Pete Townshend’s masterwork has been adapted for the stage as both a ballet in ‘70 and a Broadway Musical, which ran from ‘93 to ‘95, and as a popular film directed by Ken Russell in ‘75; the film’s cast included Ann-Margaret, Oliver Reed, Elton John, Tina Turner, Eric Clapton, Arthur Brown & Jack Nicholson / Stevie Wonder was Townshend’s first choice to play the “local lad” who performs PINBALL WIZARD - but the role went to Elton John, who played the part wearing absurdly high platform boots*; unlike other songs on the soundtrack, which were recorded with a band put together by Townshend, Elton & his backing band [Davey Johnstone - guitar, Dee Murray - bass & Nigel Olsson - drums], recorded the song with Elton’s piano prominently featured & had a longer, different arrangement than the original; although the song was only released as a “promo” single in the US, it came out at the height of Elton’s popularity, following ten Top 10 hits in less than three years, including the recent #1s LUCY IN THE SKY WITH DIAMONDS & PHILADELPHIA FREEDOM, and was in heavy rotation for months on many radio stations in the US & Canada; released as a single outside of North America, it reached #7 in the UK & #13 in Ireland; PINBALL WIZARD was included on Elton John’s GREATEST HITS VOLUME II in ‘77
*[At a Sotheby's auction of Elton John items in early September ‘88, his famous Doc Martins - 4ft 6.5-inch fiberglass lace-up platform boots w/metal calipers to allow movement - were sold for a record £11,000 to their maker, Stephen Briggs / his family firm in Northampton, England, manufactured the world-famous brand under license / Briggs was prepared to bid up to £15,000 for the iconic boots worn by Elton in the film version of TOMMY]
PINBALL WIZARD
Ever since I was a young boy
I've played the silver ball
From Soho down to Brighton
I must have played 'em all
But I ain't seen nothing like him
In any amusement hall
That deaf, dumb and blind kid
Sure plays a mean pinball
He stands like a statue
Becomes part of the machine
Feeling all the bumpers
Always playing clean
He plays by intuition
The digit counters fall
That deaf, dumb and blind kid
Sure plays a mean pinball
He's a pinball wizard
There has got to be a twist
A pinball wizard's
Got such a supple wrist
How do you think he does it? I don't know
What makes him so good?
Ain't got no distractions
Can't hear no buzzers and bells
Don't see no lights a-flashin'
Plays by sense of smell
Always gets a replay
Never seen him fall
That deaf, dumb and blind kid
Sure plays a mean pinball
I thought I was
The Bally table king
But I just handed
My pinball crown to him
Even on my favorite table
He can beat my best
His disciples lead him in
And he just does the rest
He's got crazy flipper fingers
Never seen him fall
That deaf, dumb and blind kid
Sure plays a mean pinball
SEE ME, FEEL ME / LISTENING TO YOU
See Me
Feel Me
Touch Me
Heal Me
See Me
Feel Me
Touch Me
Heal Me
See Me
Feel Me
Touch Me
Heal Me
See Me
Feel Me
Touch Me
Heal Me
Listening to you, I get the music
Gazing at you, I get the heat
Following you, I climb the mountain
I get excitement at your feet
Right behind you, I see the millions
On you, I see the glory
From you, I get opinions
From you, I get the story
Listening to you, I get the music
Gazing at you, I get the heat
Following you, I climb the mountain
I get excitement at your feet
Right behind you, I see the millions
On you, I see the glory
From you, I get opinions
From you, I get the story
PINBALL WIZARD / SEE ME, FEEL ME was the only single released from The New Seekers’ tenth album [since January ‘70] called NOW in the UK [#47] and PINBALL WIZARDS [#190] in the US / the track, produced by Michael Lloyd, had a heavier sound than most of the Folk-Pop group’s usual repertoire; Marty Kristian [his last album with the group] & Peter Doyle shared lead vocals on the song, which Pete Townshend congratulated the group on / the medley was a Top 10 hit in New Zealand [#2] & the Netherlands [#9] and a Top 20 hit in three countries - #16 in Australia & the UK and #20 in Ireland; in Canada, the song peaked one position higher [#28] than in the US; on the Cashbox [sales only] chart, PINBALL WIZARD / SEE ME, FEEL ME rose to #21 on the 5/5/73 chart & it topped out at #34 on Billboard’s Easy Listening chart
PINBALL WIZARD / SEE ME, FEEL ME was the group’s ninth & final single on the Hot 100 and their third Top 40 hit, following LOOK WHAT THEY’VE DONE TO MY SONG MA [#14 - 1 wk] in late October ‘70 & I’D LIKE TO TEACH THE WORLD TO SING [#7 - 2 wks / Gold] in January ‘72 / YOU WON’T FIND ANOTHER FOOL LIKE ME was a #1 hit in the UK & Ireland in late ‘73 & a Top 10 hit in three other countries - but did not chart on the Hot 100; on Billboard’s Easy Listening chart, it reached #18 - their final appearance on any Billboard singles chart / the group charted another Top 10 hit & several other Top 40 singles in the UK & Ireland through ‘78
*#30] STEAMROLLER BLUES // FOOL by Elvis Presley
LW #44 / 4 wks / 80-60-44-30 / Highest Debut in the Top 40 / 2nd Biggest Jump Into the Top 40 & 2nd Biggest Jump on the Hot 100 - TIE [2] - 14 positions / Presley’s 131st & 132nd songs on the Hot 100 and his 94th Top 40 hit
*#31] CHERRY CHERRY (from “Hot August Night”) by Neil Diamond
LW #35 / Peak - #31 [2 wks] / Top 40 - 4 wks / Hot 100 - 8th wk [of 10] / 84-64-56-49-42-36-35-31-31-51 / the last of 12 tracks on Neil Diamond’s first album, THE FEEL OF NEIL DIAMOND, released on Bang Records in mid-August ‘66; the album also included the Ritchie Valens hit LA BAMBA [#22] in ‘59, NEW ORLEANS [#6] by Gary U.S. Bonds in ‘60 and three songs that were big hits in ‘66: The Mamas & the Papa’s MONDAY, MONDAY [#1 - 3 wks] in May and The Cyrkle’s RED RUBBER BALL [#2 - 1 wk] & Tommy James & the Shondell’s HANKY PANKY [#1 - 2 wks] - both in July; the album also contained seven songs written by Diamond - his first single, SOLITARY MAN [#55 - 2 wks in July ‘66 / #21 - 1 wk in September ‘70], and it’s B-side DO IT [#36 - 2 wks in December ‘70] and his third single, I GOT THE FEELIN’ (Oh No No) [#16 - 1 wk in December ‘66] - listed as OH NO NO on the album / CHERRY CHERRY was Diamond’s second “45” & first Top 10 hit, peaking at #6 [1 wk] in mid-October ‘66 / the song was first released on a live album on GOLD: RECORDED LIVE AT THE TROUBADOR [#10 US / 2x Platinum / #34 Australia / #2 Canada / #23 UK / Silver] on Uni Records in late August ‘70, after being recorded just five weeks earlier
CHERRY CHERRY
Baby loves me, yes, yes she does
Ah, the girl's outta sight, yeah
Says she loves me, yes, yes she does
Mmm, gonna show me tonight, yeah
Hey, she got the way to move me, Cherry
(She got the way to groove me)
(She got the way to move me)
Cherry, baby
(She got the way to groove me)
All right
Tell your mama, girl, I can't stay long
We got things we gotta catch up on
Mmm, you know, you know what I'm sayin'
Can't stand still while the music is playin'
Hey, all right
Y'ain't got no right, no, no you don't
Ah, to be so exciting
Won't need bright lights, no, no we won't
Gonna make our own lightning
Hey, she got the way to move me, Cherry
(She got the way to groove me)
Cherry, baby
(She got the way to move me) Uh huh
(She got the way to groove me)
No, we won't tell a soul where we gone to
Girl, we do whatever we want to
Ah, I love the way that you do me
Cherry, babe, you really get to me
Hey, she got the way to move me, Cherry
(She got the way to groove me)
Cherry baby
All right
(She got the way to groove me) Cherry
(She got the way to grove me) Yeah, see
Neil Diamond’s second live album, HOT AUGUST NIGHT, was an even greater success in spite of being a double album: [#5 US / 2x Platinum / #1 Australia / 10x Platinum / #3 Canada / #13 Netherlands / Platinum / #1 New Zealand / 2x Platinum / #21 UK / Gold] / recorded on August 24, 1972 - one of Diamond’s ten sold-out concerts that month at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles, and released on MCA* Records three & a half months later on December 9th / HOT AUGUST NIGHT, produced by Tom Catalano, includes 22 songs on its four sides - over 90 minutes of music, including many of Diamond’s biggest hits along with several popular B-sides & album tracks: Side one - PROLOGUE, CRUNCHY GRANOLA SUITE, DONE TOO SOON, SOLITARY MAN, CHERRY CHERRY & SWEET CAROLINE; Side two - PORCUPINE PIE, YOU’RE SO SWEET, RED RED WINE, SOGGY PRETZELS, AND THE GRASS WON’T PAY NO MIND, SHILO & GIRL, YOU’LL BE A WOMAN SOON; Side three - PLAY ME, CANTA LIBRE, MORNINGSIDE, SONG SUNG BLUE & CRACKLIN’ ROSIE; Side four - HOLLY HOLY, I AM…I SAID, SOOLAIMON / BROTHER LOVE’S TRAVELLING SALVATION SHOW / on the Cashbox [sales only] chart, CHERRY CHERRY b/w MORNINGSIDE peaked at #24 on the 5/12/73 chart & reached the Top 20 [#19] on Billboard's Easy Listening chart; #40 on Canada’s RPM Top 100 & #44 on the RPM EL chart and #52 in Australia
*[Diamond’s doublle live album was the first album put out by newly formed MCA Records - Music Corporation of America, which was a merger of three labels - Uni Records, Kapp Records & Decca Records; MCA Inc was a talent agency & TV production company, which was forced to give up its talent agency when it purchased New York-based Decca Records in ‘62; Decca owned Coral Records & Brunswick Records and American Decca also owned Universal Pictures; MCA made Universal Pictures into one of the top film studios, formed Uni Records in ‘66 and purchased Kapp Records in ‘67, placing it under the management of Uni; MCA Records eventually became a part of the Universal Music Group, also known as UMG]
in Australia, HOT AUGUST NIGHT is one of the bestselling albums of all time with estimates of total sales ranging from more than 700,000 units [10x Platinum] to over a million by the mid-’90s; it entered the album chart in late ‘72 and was still in the Top 20 in ‘76; tied for fifth most weeks at #1 on the ARIA Album chart with 29 weeks in ‘73 & ‘74; Diamond’s double disc was the #1 Album of ‘73 & the #3 Album of ‘74; the long-lived album reached the Top 10 again in ‘82 and had another chart run in ‘91- ‘92, when it got as high as #21 / at the time of the album’s release, Lester Bangs wrote in his Rolling Stone magazine review: "[a] fine presentation of the entire spectrum" of Diamond's work, praising the music as "great, pretentious, goofy pop" with a melodramatic, "hymn-like feeling"; a retrospective review on the AllMusic website: "the ultimate Neil Diamond record ... shows Diamond, the icon, in full glory." / HOT AUGUST NIGHT was released on two compact discs in ‘00 with three additional songs added to the end of disc one: WALK ON WATER, KENTUCKY WOMAN & STONES / the 40th Anniversary Deluxe Edition in ‘12 included those three songs plus three more - GITCHY GOOMY, Randy Newman’s I THINK IT’S GOING TO RAIN TODAY & MODERN DAY VERSION OF LOVE, along with musician introductions at the end of disc one; all of the other songs were written by Diamond / since ‘72, Neil Diamond has also released LOVE AT THE GREEK in ‘77 and a trio of “sequel” live albums - HOT AUGUST NIGHT II in ‘87, HOT AUGUST NIGHT / NYC in ‘09 and HOT AUGUST NIGHT III in ‘18
*#32] PLAYGROUND IN MY MIND by Clint Holmes
LW #43 / 7 wks / 83-74-68-56-49-43-32 / 2nd Highest Debut in the Top 40 / 3rd Biggest Jump Into the Top 40 & 4th Biggest Jump on the Hot 100 - TIE [5] - 11 positions / first chart single for the soon-to-be 27-year-old singer
*#33] I’M DOING FINE NOW by New York City
LW #38 / 10 wks / 96-86-80-67-58-51-47-41-38-33 / first chart single for the four-man Soul quartet from New York City
#34] ARMED AND EXTREMELY DANGEROUS by First Choice
LW #37 / 9 wks / 97-95-81-72-61-52-43-37-34 / first chart single for the soulful trio of young ladies from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
*#35] LEAVING ME by The Independents
LW #40 / 5 wks / 87-66-45-40-35 / second Hot 100 single & first Top 40 hit for the one-woman, three-man Chicago Soul group
*#36] IT SURE TOOK A LONG, LONG TIME by Lobo
LW #45 / 5 wks / 85-64-53-45-36 / 3rd Debut in the Top 40 / his seventh single on the Hot 100 & fourth to reach the Top 40; it followed three Top 10 hits - ME AND YOU AND A DOG NAMED BOO [#5 - 2 wks] in May ‘71, I’D LOVE YOU TO WANT ME [#2 - 2 wks / Gold] in November ‘72 and DON’T EXPECT ME TO BE YOUR FRIEND [#8 - 2 wks] in February ‘73
*#37] I’M GONNA LOVE YOU JUST A LITTLE BIT MORE BABY by Barry White
LW #57 / 4 wks / 90-72-57-37 / 4th Debut in the Top 40 / Biggest Jump Into the Top 40 & Biggest Jump on the Hot 100 - TIE [3] - 20 positions / first Hot 100 single for the 28-year-old Soul singer-songwriter-keyboardist-producer-arranger, born in Galveston, Texas
#38] I CAN UNDERSTAND IT by New Birth
LW #41 / 7 wks / 89-86-78-59-46-41-38 / 5th Debut in the Top 40 / second Hot 100 single & first Top 40 hit for the six-person R&B group connected to the backing group known as The Nite-Liters
#39] DANNY’S SONG by Anne Murray
LW #18 / Peak - #7 [1 wk] / Top 10 - 6 wks / Top 20 - 9 wks / Top 40 - 13 wks / Hot 100 - 18 wks / 83-77-68-60-49-40-35-26-19-15-10-8-8-8-7-9-18-39 / Murray’s fifth song on the Hot 100 was her second Top 40/Top 10 hit, which finally bested the Peak Position of SNOWBIRD in its fifth of six weeks in the Top 10 / title song of Murray’s seventh album, which was produced by Brian Ahern, and released by Capitol Records in May ‘73 / the album’s ten tracks were written by ten different songwriters - side A was recorded in the studio and included the title track [Kenny Loggins], KILLING ME SOFTLY WITH HIS SONG [Charles Fox & Norman Gimbel], HE THINKS I STILL CARE [Dickie Lee], LET SUNSHINE HAVE ITS DAY [Robbie McNeill] & I’LL BE HOME [Randy Newman], while side B, recorded live at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, Canada, included WHAT ABOUT ME [Scott McKenzie], I KNOW [Barbara George], EASE YOUR PAIN [Hoyt Axton], ONE DAY I WALK [Bruce Cockburn] & PUT YOUR HAND IN THE HAND [Gene MacLellan] / DANNY’S SONG, the album, reached #39 on the Top 200 chart, #4 on Billboard’s Country chart & #5 in Canada, where it was awarded a Gold disc / DANNY’S SONG, the single, peaked at #6 on the Cashbox [sales only] chart for 4/14/73, #1 on Billboard's Easy Listening chart for two weeks in March [her second EL #1, following SNOWBIRD, in ‘70] & #10 on Billboard’s Country chart; in Murray’s native Canada, the song topped all three RPM charts - Pop [2 wks in March] - her second #1, Country [1 wk in January] - her sixth #1 & EL [1 wk in February] - her sixth #1 / Anne Murray received a Grammy nomination for DANNY’S SONG for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance in ‘74
DANNY’S SONG was written by Kenny Loggins while he was a senior in high school in ‘66, as a gift for his brother on the birth of his first son, Colin / the song was first recorded by Gator Creek, which included Loggins & future session musician Mike Deasy, for the band’s only album on Mercury Records in ‘70 / Loggins next recorded it with Jim Messina on their debut album SITTIN’ IN, released on Columbia Records in November ‘71; as the B-side of NOBODY BUT YOU [#86], it received some airplay in June ‘72 / on TV: actress Martha Plimpton [as Virginia Chance] sings the song as a lullaby to her granddaughter on the pilot episode of RAISING HOPE in ‘10 and Me First & the Gimme Gimmes’ Punk version from ‘97 plays over the episode’s closing credits; Kenny Loggins performed his song at Virginia’s wedding in the series finale in ‘14; performed on the fifth season of GLEE in ‘13-‘14 and performed twice by The Swon Brothers on Season 4 of THE VOICE in ‘13 [#66 Pop / #16 Country / #53 Canada] / also recorded by Nicki Bluhm & The Gramblers in ‘08, Tift Merritt, Beccy Cole, and Canadian Jazz singer Janice Shepherd - all in ‘10, and Marianne Nowottny & Her All American Band in ‘18; “sampled” by Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist John Frusciante as producer for Rap group Black Knights on "Never Let Go" in ‘14, Frusciante also played part of DANNY’S SONG at two dates on the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ world tour in ‘22-‘23
Anne Murray’s cover version is in a different key than the original and leaves out two of Loggins’ verses / the song was even more special for Murray several years after recording DANNY’S SONG, following the birth of her first child; in a later interview she said, "Whenever I was singing that song, it was very meaningful." / Anne Murray recorded the song a second time with Martina McBride as the first track on DUETS: FRIENDS & LEGENDS in ‘07, which had her sharing vocals on many of her past hits with Dusty Springfield, Emmylou Harris, Nelly Furtado, Celtic Woman, Carole King, Olivia Newton-John, k.d. lang, Shania Twain, Shelby Lynne, Amy Grant, the Indigo Girls, Sarah Brightman, Celine Dion and others
DANNY’S SONG
People smile and tell me I'm the lucky one
And we've just begun, I think I'm gonna have a son
He will be like you and me, as free as a dove
Conceived in love, the sun is gonna shine above
And even though we ain't got money
I'm so in love with ya honey
Everything brings a chain of love
And in the morning when I rise
Brings a tear of joy to my eyes
And tell me everything's gonna be all right
Love a guy who holds the world in a paper cup
Drink it up, love him and he'll bring you luck
And if ya find he helps your mind, better take him home
Yeah 'n don't you live alone, try to earn what lovers own
And even though we ain't got money
I'm so in love with ya honey
Everything brings a chain of love
And in the morning when I rise
Brings a tear of joy to my eyes
And tell me everything's gonna be all right
And even though we ain't got money
I'm so in love with ya honey
Everything brings a chain of love
And in the morning when I rise
Brings a tear of joy to my eyes
And tell me everything's gonna be all right
Kenny Loggins’ original lyrics for DANNY’S SONG with two additional verses:
People smile and tell me I'm the lucky one
And we've just begun
Think I'm gonna have a son
He will be like she and me, as free as a dove
Conceived in love
Sun is gonna shine above
And even though we ain't got money
I'm so in love with you, honey
And everything will bring a chain of love, oh, oh, oh
In the mornin', when I rise
You bring a tear of joy to my eyes
And tell me everything is gonna be alright
Seems as though, a month ago, I was Beta-Chi
Never got high
Oh, was a sorry guy
Now, I smile and face the girl that shares my name, yeah
Now I'm through with the game
This boy'll never be the same
And even though we ain't got money
I'm so in love with you, honey
And everything will bring a chain of love, oh, oh, oh
In the morning, when I rise
You bring a tear of joy to my eyes
And tell me everything is gonna be alright
Pisces, Virgo rising is a very good sign
Strong and kind
And the little boy is mine
Now I see a family where once was none
Now we've just begun
Yeah, we're gonna fly to the sun
And even though we ain't got money
I'm so in love with you, honey
And everything will bring a chain of love, oh, oh, oh
And in the morning, when I rise
You bring a tear of joy to my eyes
And tell me everything is gonna be alright
Love the girl who holds the world in a paper cup
Drink it up
Love her and she'll bring you luck
And if you find she helps your mind
Better take her home, home, yeah
Don't you live alone
Try to earn what lovers own
And even though we ain't got money
I'm so in love with you, honey
And everything will bring a chain of love, oh, oh, oh
In the morning, when I rise
You bring a tear of joy to my eyes
And tell me everything is gonna be alright
#40] BLUE SUEDE SHOES by Johnny Rivers
LW #42 / 6th Debut in the Top 40 / Peak - #38 [1 wk] / Top 40 - 2 wks / Hot 100 - 8th wk [of 10] / 90-75-62-56-49-47-42-40-38-53 / Johnny Rivers recorded BLUE SUEDE SHOES as the title song of his ninth album [#212], released on United Artists Records in ‘73 / the album also included cover versions of Neil Diamond’s SOLITARY MAN [#55 in ‘66 / #21 in ‘70] & other earlier songs - The McCoys’ HANG ON SLOOPY [#1 in ‘65], The Byrds’ I’LL FEEL A WHOLE LOT BETTER [#103] - the B-side of the band’s second single in ‘65, WILLIE AND THE HAND JIVE [#9 in ‘58] by the Johnny Otis Show, and Jimmy Smith’s GOT MY MOJO WORKING [#51 in ‘66] / BLUE SUEDE SHOES [2:48] b/w Rivers’ STORIES TO A CHILD [3:10] was produced by Johnny Rivers and was his 25th Hot 100 single, dating to late May ‘64, and his 15th Top 40 hit
BLUE SUEDE SHOES was written by Carl Perkins & first recorded by him in December ‘55; stories of the origins of the song differ: Johnny Cash recalled suggesting to Perkins that he write a song about blue suede shoes from a story told to Cash, when both were touring with Elvis Presley & other Sun Records artists as part of the Louisiana Hayride, earlier in ‘55; Carl Perkins recalled playing a dance in early December ‘55, where he heard a dancer scolding his dance partner - "Uh-uh, don't step on my suedes!" - and being more concerned about his shoes than the pretty girl he was dancing with / Perkins wrote the song on his Les Paul guitar based on the English children’s rhyme “One for the money” with the opening lyrics "Well, it's one for the money ... Two for the show ... Three to get ready ... Now go, man, go!" - Sun Records owner Sam Philips suggested the change to "Now go, cat, go!" / Perkins wrote the song on December 17th, scribbling down the lyrics & “Blue Swade” on a piece of paper; two days later, he recorded the song, and it was released in early ‘56 as catalog number “Sun 234” b/w another of Perkins' songs HONEY DON’T / BLUE SUEDE SHOES took off in Cleveland - but initially it was the B-side that was more popular in Memphis & other cities, before the A-side overtook it / by February 11th, BLUE SUEDE SHOES reached #2 in Memphis & went to #1 the following week, where it stayed for the next three months / a Song Hits review from 2/18/56: "Perkins has come up with some wax here that has hit the national retail chart in almost record time. Interestingly enough, the disk has a measure of appeal for pop and r&b customers." / BLUE SUEDE SHOES debuted on the Billboard chart on 3/3/56 and peaked at #2, for the first of two weeks, on the 5/19/56 chart, spending 11 weeks in the Top 10, 17 weeks in the Top 40, and a total of 21 weeks on the Best Sellers chart; at one point, Sun Records was shipping out 20,000 copies of the “45” per day / Perkins was the first Country artist to have a #3 hit on the R&B chart [3/17/56] and appeared that night on the ABC-TV program OZARK JUBILEE / the following week, Perkins & his band were in a serious auto accident while traveling to New York City to appear on THE PERRY COMO SHOW on March 24th, and both Carl Perkins & his brother were hospitalized; they were recuperating as his first big hit climbed to #1 on many regional Pop, Country and R&B charts; Perkins: "I was a poor farm boy, and with 'Shoes' I felt I had a chance, but suddenly there I was in the hospital." / BLUE SUEDE SHOES was the first Sun Records single to sell one million copies, reaching that plateau in mid-April ‘56, and it was the first #1 Country hit to cross over to both the Pop and R&B charts
Perkins’ biggest hit was held out of #1 by his former Sun Records labelmate Elvis Presley - now recording for RCA Records, who went to #1 with HEARTBREAK HOTEL on 4/28, staying on top of the Pop chart for eight straight weeks / Presley reluctantly agreed to record his friend’s song - but didn’t want it out as a single until after Perkins’ song was off the charts; RCA abided by his wishes on the “45” - not releasing it until early September [along with several other songs from his debut album], but they did put it out as an EP with TUTTI FRUTTI, I GOT A WOMAN & JUST BECAUSE, which debuted on 4/7/56, peaking at #20 on 4/28 & spending 12 weeks on the chart; a double EP with BLUE SUEDE SHOES & seven other songs was also issued; although it never charted, Presley’s 7” single of BLUE SUEDE SHOES b/w TUTTI FRUTTI finally received a Gold Record 43 years later in ‘99 / BLUE SUEDE SHOES was the opening track on Presley’s debut RCA album ELVIS PRESLEY, which was released in late March ‘56, & was the first Rock & Roll album to reach #1 on Billboard’s album chart, where it stayed for 10 weeks, selling more than a million copies / playing on the track were The Blue Moon Boys - guitarist Scotty Moore w/a pair of solos, double bass player Bill Black & drummer D.J. Fontana; Moore: "We just went in there and started playing, just winged it. Just followed however Elvis felt. Elvis wasn't really thinking at that time that it was going to make money for Carl; he was doing it as more of a tribute type thing. Of course, Carl was glad he did. It really helped as his record started going down." / Elvis performed the song on four TV shows in the spring of ‘56, beginning with two appearances on STAGE SHOW in March, THE MILTON BERLE SHOW in early April, and dressed in formal attire with blue suede shoes on THE STEVE ALLEN SHOW on July 1st / Carl Perkins never came close to attaining the level of success that Elvis Presley achieved and became known more as a songwriter than a performer / Perkins on Elvis: "[He] had everything. He had the looks, the moves, the manager, and the talent. And he didn't look like Mr. Ed, like a lot of us did. Elvis was hitting them with sideburns, flashy clothes, and no ring on the finger. I had three kids."
numerous artists have recorded BLUE SUEDE SHOES, including John Lennon & the Plastic Ono Band on LIVE PEACE IN TORONTO 1969, released on Apple Records in December ‘69 / The Beatles also recorded its B-side, HONEY DON’T, in October ‘65 for BEATLES FOR SALE - released in the US on BEATLES ‘65 in December ‘65; the first of two live BBC versions of HONEY DON’T was released nearly 30 years after they were recorded - LIVE AT THE BBC [w/John Lennon on lead vocals] in ‘94 and ON AIR - LIVE AT THE BBC VOLUME 2 [w/Ringo Starr on lead vocals] in ‘13 / Carl Perkins’ songs MATCHBOX & HONEY DON’T - both recorded by The Beatles - have also been recorded or performed live by all four of the former bandmates as solo artists; Ringo Starr performed the latter song at the memorial Concert for George at the Royal Albert Hall in London in ‘02
Sun Records owner Sam Philips retained the rights to BLUE SUEDE SHOES, although the song was represented by the Hill & Range music publishing house of New York, as part of his deal with RCA Records when he sold Elvis Presley’s recording contract to the much larger record label / Carl Perkins finally gained control of BLUE SUEDE SHOES and the other songs he wrote while recording for Sun in ‘77; he died at the age of 65 in ‘98 / Paul McCartney’s MPL Communications purchased all of Perkins’ song catalog in ‘03 / BLUE SUEDE SHOES is one of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s 500 Songs That Shaped Rock & Roll; one of National Public Radio's NPR 100 - the 100 most influential American recordings of the 20th century; inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in ‘99; on Rolling Stone magazine’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list twice in ‘04 - Carl Perkins’ original at #95 and Elvis Presley’s cover at #423; and included in the National Recording Register of the Library of Congress in ‘06 as one of the songs that is "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."
BLUE SUEDE SHOES: A ROCKABILLY SESSION was recorded live in London in October ‘85 & broadcast on the BBC in early ‘86 and in the US on Cinemax later that year; joining Carl Perkins & his backing band to celebrate the 30th anniversary of his iconic hit were Eric Clapton, George Harrison, Ringo Star, Dave Edmunds [musical director], Roseanne Cash and ‘80s Rockabilly trio Phantom, Rocker & Slick; BLUE SUEDE SHOES was the last song performed in the 16 song set & also the first of two encores
BLUE SUEDE SHOES
Well, it's one for the money, two for the show
Three to get ready, now go cat go
But don't you, step on my blue suede shoes
You can do anything but lay off of my blue suede shoes
But you can knock me down, step on my face
Slander my name all over the place
And do anything that you want to do
But uh uh honey lay off of my shoes
And don't you step on my blue suede shoes
You can do anything but lay off of my blue suede shoes
Oh let's go cat!
But you can burn my house, steal my car
Drink my liquor from an old fruit jar
Do anything that you want to do
But uh uh honey lay off of them shoes
And don't you, step on my blue suede shoes
You can do anything but lay off of my blue suede shoes
Rock!
Well it's one for the money, two for the show
Three to get ready, now go cat go
But don't you, step on my blue suede shoes
You can do anything but lay off of my blue suede shoes
Well it's blue, blue, blue suede shoes
Blue, blue, blue suede shoes yeah
Blue, blue, blue suede shoes baby
Blue, blue, blue suede shoes
You can do anything but lay off of my blue suede shoes
>J>