Rockin' Remnants is broadcast from WVBR-FM Ithaca. Check out our webpage, like us on Facebook, and tune in to 93.5 or stream the show every Saturday night from 6-9pm! (Or download the WVBR+ app now available for iOS and Android!)
Date: 10/22/16
Host: John Rudan
Feature: 1970
OPENING THEME: Good Old Rock ‘n’ Roll – Cat Mother & the All-Night Newsboys (1969, #29, produced by Jimi Hendrix)
Playlist
[songs in bold are from the spotlight date of DATE; yellow song titles are YouTube links; songs with * were requests; all chart information comes from the Billboard Top 100 (for chart dates before/during July 1958) or Billboard Hot 100 (for chart dates during/after Aug 1958) unless otherwise noted]
It's the Fall of 1970 tonight here on Remnants, and while the weather outside was cooling down, the sounds on the AM radio were hot as ever! This was one of the last great years of Top 40 radio, as many radio formats "merged" and new ones were created as time moved on through the 70's and 80's. On the Hot 100 tonight: The Jackson 5, The Kinks, Three Dog Night, Grand Funk Railroad, One Hundred Proof Aged In Soul among others, and chart debuts from Stevie Wonder, Eric Clapton, Smokey Robinson & The Miracles and Kenny Rogers And The First Edition. Tonight's 45 corner entries are unique single mixes of "Long, Long Time" by Linda Ronstadt and "Fresh Air" by Quicksilver, both on Capitol Records. And the cherry on top? One hour free bowling at Atlas Lanes in T-burg! Great stuff on a Saturday night...
6pm - 7pm
The Top 40 sounds of October 22, 1970
I'll Be There - Jackson Five - BB Hot 100 #1 (5 weeks)
Cracklin' Rosie - Neil Diamond - BB Hot 100 #2
Green-Eyed Lady - Sugarloaf - BB Hot 100 #3
Candida - Dawn - BB Hot 100 #6
Lola (mono 45 version) - Kinks - BB Hot 100 #12
- Ray Davies had to re-record the opening line, changing "Coca-Cola" to "cherry cola" because the BBC will not play songs with "product placement"
Express Yourself - Charles Wright & The Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band - BB Hot 100 #13
Out In The County - Three Dog Night - BB Hot 100 #15
Snowbird - Anne Murray - BB Hot 100 #16
Look What They've Done To My Song Ma - New Seekers - BB Hot 100 #17
Groovy Situation - Gene Chandler - BB Hot 100 #26
45 Corner
Long, Long Time - Linda Ronstadt
The first solo hit for Linda was on the Hot 100 this week at #25 and that is where it would peak. The 45 version is mono and runs 2:59 while the stereo LP version runs 4:12. This Capitol Records 45 is a Rockin' Remnants exclusive!
Somebody's Been Sleeping - 100 Proof Aged In Soul - BB Hot 100 #28
Lucretia MacEvil - Blood, Sweat & Tears - BB Hot 100 #33
7pm - 8pm
Birthday Calendar
October 16th - Bob Weir (Grateful Dead), 69
October 18th - Chuck Berry, 90
October 20th - Tom Petty, 63
October 21st - Steve Cropper
October 22nd - Bobby Fuller, 1942
"Maybellene", 1955; "Promised Land", 1965
- Basically the bookends of Chuck's hit singles from the 50's and 60's. Last year this week, I did a more comprehensive tribute to Chuck and you can check it out on the Rockin' Remnants Blog archive!
"Truckin'" (45 version), Grateful Dead, 1971
- The Dead's second Hot 100 entry peaked at #64. Featuring Bob Weir on lead vocals, this mono single version trims about 2 minutes from the LP version and adds some guitar overdubs not found on the LP version.
"What Are You Doing In My Life" - Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers, 1979
"Soul Man" - Sam & Dave, 1967
- The great Steve Cropper on guitar, while Sam Moore shouts "Play it, Steve!" for a guitar break; John Belushi did the same thing 12 years later...
"Let Her Dance" - Bobby Fuller Four, 1966
- Bobby was an up and coming star when he died under mysterious circumstances on 7/18/1966. Click here to read the story.
More great sounds from the 50's and 60's before we return to our chart date of October 22nd during the 70's Happy Hour!
"Remember (Walking In The Sand)" - The Shangri-Las, 1964
"Twist And Shout" - The Isley Brothers, 1962
- Check out the original version of the 60's classic from a NYC group called The Top Notes. Quite different from the many cover versions we've come to know and love!
"The 'In' Crowd" - Dobie Gray, 1965
"Morning Dew" - Lulu, 1968
- Rockin' Remnants trivia fact: Lulu was married to the late Maurice Gibb (Bee Gees) from 1969 to 1973.
"Young Love" - Sonny James, 1957
- This, with a competing version from Tab Hunter, spent a total of 7 weeks on the top of the singles chart!
"La Bamba" - Ritchie Valens, 1958
"Handy Man" - Jimmy Jones, 1960
- A mellow cover of this by James Taylor hit #4 in 1977, falling just short of Jimmy's version which peaked at #2.
"Splish Splash" - Bobby Darin, 1958
"Lawdy Miss Clawdy/Claudy" - The Buckinghams, 1967
This Lloyd Price composition appeared with 2 different spellings of the lady's last name in question!
"I Feel Good (I Feel Bad)" - The Lewis & Clarke Expedition, 1967
- "Lewis" was Michael Murphey ("Wildfire") and "Clarke" was Boomer Castleman ("Judy Mae")
"Teenage Failure" - Chad & Jeremy, 1966
- This British duo signed a big contract with Columbia in the mid 60's and never lived up to their previous hit-making potential; this humourous ditty Bubbled Under at #131 for one week.
"Chug-A-Lug" - Roger Miller, 1964
- One of my favorite artists from the 60's! Check out this video with a couple of special guest star chuggers...
"I'm Alive" - The Hollies, 1965
- The Hollies had many big hits in their native land before hitting the shores in America in 1966 ("Bus Stop"). This Bubbled Under at #103 for 4 weeks.
"Hey Baby" - Bruce Channel, 1962 (#1 for 3 weeks)
8pm - 9pm
70's Happy Hour, with a few 80's sprinkled in...
Chart debuts on the Hot 100 46 years ago on this date:
Heaven Help Us All - Stevie Wonder - #78, peaked at #9
After Midnight - Eric Clapton - #75, peaked at #18
The Tears Of A Clown - Smokey Robinson & The Miracles - #68, peaked at #1 (2 weeks)
Heed The Call - Kenny Rogers And The First Edition - #67, peaked at #33
We return to our chart date with one of the great "lost singles" of the 70's:
I Just Wanna Keep It Together - Paul Davis
The second charting single from the late Paul Davis peaked at Hot 100 #51, a travesty for such a well-crafted pop tune! How was this not a huge hit?
Click here, and judge for yourself...
Closer To Home (45 version) - Grand Funk Railroad
- At nearly 5:30, this was still a risky proposition for Top 40 radio in 1970, although this did peak at Hot 100 #22. Most radio listeners know, and like, the LP version, which runs almost 10 minutes.
Funk #49 - James Gang - BB Hot 100 #62, peaked at #59
45 Corner time once again!
Fresh Air - Quicksilver Messenger Service
- A unique version of this FM radio classic if there ever was one! Like the LP version, this is in stereo, a rarity for singles in the early 70,s, but unlike the LP version this fades at 3:20 (right in the middle of the great Nicky Hopkins piano solo) while the longer version runs 5:22. Like the Grand Funk song above, most people know and like the LP version much better, especially for the classic cold ending! This was on the Hot 100 on this date at #59 and peaked at #49.
That's all for our listen to our chart date! As we wind down this edition of Remnants, a few more 70's and a pair from the 80's. Stay tuned...
"Haven't Got Time For The Pain" - Carly Simon, 1974
"Every Which Way But Loose" - Eddie Rabbit, 1979
"Steppin' Out" - Joe Jackson, 1982
"Jungle Love" - The Time, 1984
CLOSING THEME: Sleepwalk – Santo & Johnny (1959, #1 for two weeks)
Congratulations to Michael from Enfield for winning an hour of free bowling at Atlas Bowl in Trumansburg!
Host Next Week (10/29/16): John Simon with a Spotlight on 1965 (and Halloween?)
Thanks for tuning in! You can listen to Rockin' Remnants every Saturday night from 6-9pm on WVBR (93.5 FM in Ithaca, NY) or at wvbr.com/listen.
