January 9, 2021 - GJ - January #1 Records

Rockin’ Remnants

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Date:  January 9, 2021

Host:  Gregory James

Feature: January #1 Records 1955-1985

Birthday Calendar

January 3

Stephen Stills 76 years old  

John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin) 75 years old  

George Martin  (b. 1926  d. 2016)

January 4

Bill Isles (O’Jays co-founder and singer)  (b. 1941  d. 2019)  

January 5

Sam Phillips (founder of Sun Records)  (b. 1923  d. 2003)

Wilbert Harrison (b. 1929  d. 1994)  

January 6

Sandy Denny  (Fairport Convention)   (b. 1947  d. 1978) 

Doris Troy  (b. 1937  d. 2004)  

Nino Tempo  86 years old  

January 7

Kenny Loggins 73 years old  

Paul Revere Dick (Raiders keyboardist)  (b. 1938  d. 2014)  

January 8

Shirley Bassey 84 years old  

Little Anthony  80 years old  

Robby Krieger (Doors guitar) 75 years old 

David Bowie (b. 1947  d. 2016)  

Elvis Presley (b. 1935  d. 1977)   

January 9

Jimmy Page 77 years old  

Playlist

* 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 subsequent dates) unless otherwise noted

* a glossary of terms is below the playlist

Title    Artist    Year    Weeks at #1 (or peak position)

6:00-7:00

OPENING THEME: Good Old Rock n’ Roll—Cat Mother and the All Night Newsboys (1969, #29, produced by Jimi Hendrix)

Mr. Sandman    Chordettes 1955  (7 weeks)

Archie Bleyer, the founder of Cadence Records and the conductor on this track, is the voice of the Sandman.

I Feel Fine Beatles 1965  (3 weeks)

This track was one of the earliest uses of recorded guitar feedback in pop music.

Lucy in the Sky w/Diamonds    Elton John    1975  (2 weeks)

John Lennon provided backing vocals and guitar under the name of Dr. Winston O’Boogie.

Like a Virgin Madonna    1985 (6 weeks)

Madonna once posed the question, “How can you be like a virgin?”

Sixteen Tons Tennessee Ernie Ford    1956 (7 weeks)

This track also topped the C&W chart for ten weeks. 

The Sound of Silence   Simon and Garfunkel    1966  (2 non-consecutive weeks)

The original acoustic version of the song did not initially succeed, but eventually caught on with college students in Boston. Without consulting Simon and Garfunkel, producer Tom Wilson re-mixed the track with Al Gorgoni and Vinnie Bell on guitars, Bob Bushnell on bass and Bobby Gregg on drums.

Escape (The Piña Colada Song) Rupert Holmes  1980 (1 week)

The original lyric was “If you like Humphrey Bogart..”  Rupert Holmes, by his own account, does not drink piña coladas.

Saturday Night Bay City Rollers    1976 (1 week)

The Rollers were known as “the tartan teen sensations from Edinburgh.”

Singing the Blues Guy Mitchell 1957  (10 weeks)

Mitchell was also a film and television actor.

I’m a Believer Monkees   1967  (7 weeks)

This was the biggest selling record of 1967. Neil Diamond, who composed the song, played acoustic guitar on this track.

You Don’t Have to Be a Star     Marilyn McCoo/Billy Davis    1977  (1 week)

This Grammy-winning record spent six months on the Billboard charts. James Jamerson played bass.

Starting Over John Lennon 1981  (5 weeks)

This was Lennon’s first single released after he returned to recording music in 1975 (hence its title), and it was his last single released during his lifetime.

At the Hop Danny and the Juniors    1958  (5 weeks)

Dick Clark suggested that the lyrics be changed from “Let’s all do the bop” to “Let’s go to the hop.” Before payola became illegal, Dick Clark negotiated receiving half of the song’s earnings in exchange for playing the song on American Bandstand—and also possibly because he had contributed to the song’s lyrics.

Hello Goodbye Beatles   1968  (3 weeks)

The song’s coda was improvised during the recording session. The words have been transcribed as “Hela-heba-hello-ah.”

Physical Olivia Newton-John   1982  (9 weeks)

This song was originally offered to Tina Turner, who passed on it. The guitar solo is by Steve Lukather.

7:00-8:00

Rock & Roll Woman   Buffalo Springfield   1967  #44 

Lemon Song   Led Zeppelin 1969 DNC  

Love Train   O’Jays 1973     #1 

Let’s Work Together  Wilbert Harrison   1970 #32 

Most famous for “Kansas City,” multi-instrumentalist Wilbert Harrison wrote this song which was covered in the same year by Canned Heat, whose version peaked at #26

Just One Look   Doris Troy   1963  #10 H100,  #3 R&B  

Horace Ott on piano. Troy says the record was made as a demo, but Atlantic Records liked it so much, they released the demo as the finished product.

Who Knows Where the Time Goes?  Fairport Convention  1969    NR   

Composer Sandy Denny on vocals, Richard Thompson on guitar.

All Strung Out    April Stevens and Nino Tempo   1966  #26  

Nino and April are brother and sister, born in Niagara Falls.

What a Fool Believes   Kenny Loggins and Michael McDonald

They composed the song together and Loggins released a version before the Doobie Brothers did, but it lost out to the latter version.

Kicks    Paul Revere and the Raiders #4  1966 

Composer Barry Mann said the song was in reference to Gerry Goffin who was struggling with drug addiction at the time.

Light My Fire  Shirley Bassey     1970   NR

Check out the audience reaction to her smokin' performance.

Love Me Two Times      Doors 1968 #25  

Hurt So Bad    Little Anthony and the Imperials 1965   #10  

Suspicious Minds    Elvis Presley 1969    #1 

His last #1 record.

This Is Not America     David Bowie/ Pat Metheny Group  1985     #32 

Theme from the film “The Falcon and the Snowman.”

8:00-9:00

You’ll Never Walk Alone  Gerry and the Pacemakers    

Released in US in 1964, in 1965 reached #48. Gerry Marsden died on Sunday January 3, 2021 at the age of 78.  

*The Sun Ain’t Gonna Shine Anymore    Walker Brothers   1966    #13 

Requested by Scottie for Brooktondale Peggy and the Honey Hive Crew.

Smoke Gets In Your Eyes Platters  1959     (3 weeks)

While the song’s lyricist Otto Harbach liked the Platters’ version of the 1933 composition, the widow of composer Jerome Kern contemplated seeking a legal injunction to prevent the record’s release.

El Paso     Marty Robbins  1960 (2 weeks)

This record also reached #1 on the C&W chart and won a Grammy. Vocal harmonies are by Bobby Sykes and Jim Glaser and the Spanish guitar is by Grady Martin.

Maneater Hall and Oates    1983 (4 weeks)

John Oates claimed in an interview that the song was not originally about a woman but about New York City.

Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head  B.J. Thomas 1970 (3 weeks)

Too Much Heaven Bee Gees  1979 (2 weeks)

There are nine tracks of three-part harmonies for a total of 27 voices heard in the final mix. The horn accompaniment is by James Pankow, Walt Parazaider and Lee Loughnane of Chicago (the band).

Say, Say, Say Paul McCartney/Michael Jackson  1984 (6 weeks)

Most of the song’s lyrics are attributed to Michael Jackson. Paul McCartney played guitar, synthesizer, percussion and bass guitar. Chris Smith plays harmonica.

I Heard It Through the Grapevine   Marvin Gaye  1969  (7 weeks)

The song was recorded by Gaye in 1967, but not released as a single. The track was included on his LP “In the Groove” and disc jockeys began playing the album track which finally convinced Berry Gordy to release it as a single.

The Lion Sleeps Tonight Tokens    1962      (3 weeks)

The song was written by Solomon Linda, a Zulu singer, and originally recorded in 1939 for the Gallo Record Company in Johannesburg. The Tokens’ version was actually the B-side to a song called “Tina.”  Anita Darian sings the wordless soprano line. 

My Sweet Lord George Harrison 1971 (4 weeks)

This was the first #1 single by a former Beatle. Harrison’s slide guitar on the track became a hallmark of his technique. 

You’re So Vain Carly Simon 1973   (3 weeks)

Klaus Voorman plays the bass guitar intro. The second verse is about Warren Beatty. Simon has revealed the identities of the three men in the song to a few people, like Taylor Swift, Howard Stern and Dick Ebersol. She has yet to leave a voicemail at the Rockin’ Remnants Hotline.

There! I’ve Said It Again Bobby Vinton    1964  (4 weeks)

This was Vinton’s third #1 hit, and it was the last #1 Billboard hit before the Beatles first made it to #1 on February 1, 1964.

Time in a Bottle Jim Croce 1974 (2 weeks)

A sweet love song Croce wrote in 1970 for his newly pregnant wife Ingrid. The lyrics express something we are all living through right now:

“If I could save time in a bottle

The first thing that I’d like to do

Is to save every day till eternity passes away

Just to spend them with you.”

CLOSING THEME: Sleep Walk – Santo and Johnny (1959, #1 for two weeks)

Glossary of Terms:

dnc = did not chart

nr = not released as a single at the time

AC = Billboard’s chart for Adult Contemporary records

BB = Billboard Magazine, publisher of the Hot 100 and other charts

H100 = Billboard Hot 100

Bubbling Under = songs that were ranked but fell below the top 100

CW = Billboard’s chart for country and western records

R&B = Billboard’s chart of rhythm and blues records

RRHOF = Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

RS 500 = Rolling Stone Magazine’s ranking of the top 500 singles of all time.

Host January 16, 2021: Jan Hunsinger with a spotlight on Burt Bacharach.

Thanks for tuning in! You can listen to Rockin’ Remnants every Saturday night from 6-9 p.m. Eastern on WVBR (93.5 FM in Ithaca NY) or streaming on WVBR.com.

Thanks again to our sponsors Island Health & Fitness and Rasa Spa for their support every week!