I started this thread over on Greasy Lake and it's one I really enjoyed so I'll revive it here. I have a very soft spot for all those great 70s and early 80s AM radio hits; the songs we used to hear on the radio on weekend drives, the music that dominated my radio listening during my childhood. Every once in a while, I get nostalgic and spend a morning or evening just listening to a lot of old AM God, many of them one-hit wonders. For this thread, I'll try to post something about the song that I never knew before.
This was a huge backseat favorite on our weekend drives and my brothers and I always sang along. I have all of Spirit's records, but this is the only Jay Ferguson album I've got. I didn't know until today that Joe Walsh played guitar on the record.
Listening to Billboards top 100 of 1970 ... only took me 51 years to really hear this ....Organ and Handclaps ...i'm in
Not their biggest hit ... But i still enjoy this one
I'll take the early 70's for 500 Alex
I had a teacher who used to play them in the classroom on rainy days when we ate lunch inside.
Here's another duo/band that should have had more chart success. With Quiver they had some great musicians like Tim renwick.
Side note, I had the honour of introducing the Sutherland Brothers & Quiver at a univerity gig back in the 70s when I was a local DJ.
I sway between thinking this is great and profound, or pretentious and overblown. Usually dependent on alcohol consumption levels.
I have a vivid memory with this song, one of my earliest. I was 6 or 7 years old, playing with some toy while my mum did the ironing and this song came on. Absolute musical sunshine, just one of the most gorgeous melodies I've ever heard. Yes, I now know this is a cover... but listening to the Loggins Messina version just doesn't hit me the way this admittedly more saccharine take does. (I guess an emotionally connected memory will do that).
Sort of in line with what's been going on above. Smokie were quite big here in Aus also, regular feature of 70's am radio from what I recall.
This is a band I love. So many great pop hits, check out a greatest hits if you don't have much by them. They didn't have the chart success in the US that they deserved. Everywhere else though, they were huge and Chris Norman, former lead singer still regularly tours.
Meri Wilson. Sadly died in a car crash but she's remembered for this.
A couple of quirky ones from the late 70s. First, Carole Bayer Sager. This was a big hit but it wasn't at all representative of her work. She only released 3 studio albums but all are excellent, particularly her collaboration with her (then) husband Burt Bacharach - Sometimes Late At Night.
This was the first Little River Band song I was aware of. I became a serious fan of the original Little River Band. Very underrated group.
I vividly remember a backseat argument the first time we heard this one. My brother Gary insisted it was Rod Stewart. I insisted it was a woman. My mom insisted she would "pull this car over right now and smack you both."
Bonnie Tyler is a woman. Fuck off, Gary.
I knew Buckingham and Nicks contributed to this classic, but I only found out today that Nicks was the inspiration for the song. Further proof that everyone's been in love with Stevie Nicks, including myself.
I always felt the Climax Blues Band and this one were twins sounding.
A minor hit in the UK charts but a big radio hit at the time.
Good stuff. A couple in there I didn't remember.
Love this one...
His other hit was bigger, but doesn't it sound more than a little bit like The Doobie Brothers' What A Fool Believes? Read today that Michael McDonald's publisher took legal action, but McDonald didn't himself accuse Dupree of stealing from his song.
Last one 4 now.
Lonely Boy was probably my favorite radio hit in 1977 and I still listen to Andrew Gold. Something I learned today is Linda Ronstadt performed backing vocals, returning the favor for Gold, who used to sing for her.
One of my mom's favorites. I didn't know that the song was offered to Ray Stevens, then Bob Dylan before B.J. Thomas recorded it.