Not me so much. W.B. is the real label geek! I just admire the looks of them. Again, a lot of money and time went into creating labels. It's one reason I really don't like buying new vinyl. There's no fun in the labels because they usually have dull artwork. I like record company logos. In the 80s, there was even less fun with CD because they were all generic and plain. Sure, you didn't even see the label as it spun, but, still...I even used to pay close attention to cassette labels. Again, CBS has the best looking ones, IMO. I will say that the band Chicago had some of the most interesting LP labels in the 70s. Pink Floyd and Paul McCartney/Wings on the Columbia label, too. My idea of a well-made and pressed label is that it's clean with no ink blotches, perfectly centered, and no off-tint. The fonts are well-chosen, and the label isn't cluttered with tons of info. I generally like the song titles aligned to the left.
I Am Woman was kept from #1 in Australia by Ben. Ironic??? 1. (1) BEN Michael Jackson 11 1 2. (2) I AM WOMAN Helen Reddy 5 2 3. (15) YOU'RE SO VAIN Carly Simon 3 3 4. (3) NIGHTS IN WHITE SATIN The Moody Blues 5 3 5. (7) I'D LOVE YOU TO WANT ME Lobo 4 5 6. (4) YOU'RE A LADY Peter Skellern 9 2 7. (5) MOULDY OLD DOUGH Lieutenant Pigeon 7 3 8. (9) CROCODILE ROCK Elton John 5 8 9. (6) HAPPY CHRISTMAS (WAR IS OVER) John Lennon And Yoko Ono 4 6 10. (10) I'VE GOT TO HAVE YOU Carly Simon 8 10 Chart from 17/2/73
Seeing "You're So Vain" right after "I Am Woman" reminds me - I got into an argument with my uncle when I was about 6 or 7 over whether "You're So Vain" was by Carly Simon or Helen Reddy (I thought it was Reddy).
Another thing about I am Woman - The lyrics say, "I am woman, hear me ROAR" but they might as well have said "hear me squeak feebly from under the floorboards" because her voice was so lacking in power and ability to actually ROAR. Now had Mama Cass done the song, the result might have been different ...
Actually, I suspect that's why the song was as big a hit as it was. Reddy's performance is actually kind of sly and sympathetic. If it had been more bombastic it might have come across as completely over the top and somewhat laughable.
Heard "I Am Woman" a lot at the time, but I don't remember hearing it that much over the last 35 years or so.
Yeah, like many songs from this era, they appear dated (apparently) & aren't played much. And entirely forgettable To name a few:' -The Morning After- Maureen McGovern -Ben (ugh) -The Night The Lights Went Out in Georgia -Dark Lady (originally I listed Half Breed) -Delta Dawn -Kung Fu Fighting -Billy Don't be a Hero -The Night Chicago Died -Disco Duck (yuck) It seems there were far more odd songs like these during this period (1970-76) than in the earlier decade (though there was some drek then too).
This was a huge #1 hit, and I remember it from the time as well, but it had largely vanished from oldies radio by the '80s.
Obviously a great performance, but when I was a kid I hated this song, it seemed to go on forever. Now I can appreciate it more.
Something of a return to form because I like Me and Mrs. Jones. I'm not really a huge fan of that mellow early '70s soul style but this song, If You Don't Know Me by Now by Harold Melvin and the Bluenotes and Stone in Love With You by the Stylistics are all topnotch examples of it.
Good song.I remember this would be common on oldies stations.Now we really don't have a real oldies station.
I loved this one right off the bat. It fit the time and really ramped up the Gamble/Huff juggernaut that was steadily gaining steam; filling in the hole left by Motown's temporary abdication of the R&B throne in '72. This record was also one of the earliest instances I can remember of buying singles released in differing lengths. I bought the song almost immediately on release and was dismayed to find it was a truncated version from the one I usually heard on the dial. I figured I'd have to buy the LP to get the full length but not too long after, discovered another single with the full running time of nearly 5 minutes.
M&MJ also continued the practice of couching controversy in a pretty package. Ostensibly a love ballad with the twist that the couple are in an affair. There was some moral clucking at the time but it didn't prevent this from hitting big.
Awww yeah, "Me and Mrs. Jones". It's superb in performance and orchestration, but the thing that takes it to the next level is that otherworldly reverb it's immersed in. Not to mention the thing that got everyone's attention - the orchestra building up and up only to suddenly STOP for Mr. Paul to belt out that immortal "Meeeee aaaaand Mrs!". What always gets me is after the third time it happens, the strings do this sighing thing leading into the long outro. The album it comes from, 360 Degrees of Billy Paul is an interesting listen. It contains jazzed up versions of recent hits "It's Too Late", "Let's Stay Together" and "Your Song" - and this standout track,:
It's certainly one measure of the diversity of the top 40 at the time that this knocked "I Am Woman" off the top! What a bizarre dichotomy. Great performance, though, and impressive that it was such a big hit at a time when adultery was still fairly taboo. (Plenty of blues and folk songs had tackled the issue by this time, but they weren't hits on the pop chart.)
