Never heard this one before. Sounds sort of garage rock in the beginning until the strings swoop in and give it more of an R&B vibe. I concur that Imagine should have hit the top but like others have opined, some of the lyrics may have been interpreted as being anti-religion. Probably brought back the brouhaha from '66 when he suggested the Beatles were more popular than Jesus but we've already been down this road haven't we? I do recall when David Archuleta performed it on American Idol. Randy asked him why he chose to sing the second verse and he claimed those particular lyrics meant more to him. Being a good Mormon, he wasn't about to sing that line about heaven but he skirted the issue.
The film also spawned what would become the theme of a long-running TV soap opera that began in 1973. As I think it was a later #1, I'll stop the description at that.
Religious types have been long known to alter the words of secular songs to fit their purpose. No big deal. But, we really shouldn't get into this too much because the moderators will break out their editing razor blades. Well, you see, that's true for YOU. I was able to get KBBC FM during the daytime, and I was much further away from Phoenix than you.
Ah, just when things start to get political, Ms. Safka rolls along with our first (but by no means last) double entendre laden #1 of the year. Melanie intrigues me, but I still haven't found my way into her work. "Brand New Key" is far from representative of her music, and she was purportedly so unhappy of being typecast by it's massive success that she briefly retired.
Melanie was huge in Australia. Even Alexander Beetle was a major hit here. The New Seekers covered her Look What They've Done to My Song, Ma and Melanie said "Look what they've done to my song, ma"
Judging from past comments on this thread, there's gonna be a lot of hate for this one. I liked it well enough, just thought of it as another juvenile, sing-song-y type of record that appeals to mass audiences. I liked the subversiveness of the performance versus the vague sexual innuendos. I do, though, prefer the follow-up Ring The Living Bell.
Another earliest memory of mine, and a song I adored as a kid. I can see how it could be polarizing, but you've gotta admire a quirky stream of double-entendres like this. Seems like a very unusual song from the perspective of 2017, but in an era of Mungo Jerry ("In The Summertime") and The Stampeders ("Sweet City Woman") it actually blended right in. That stoned hippies in macrame vests era was about to come to a rapid close, though.
I'm not a big fan of Melanie, but I absolutely love Brand New Key. Nobody else that I knew could stand it except for one friend, who was head over heels in love with her. I never understood the raciness of the lyrics until I was a few years older (maybe 1975, 1976?) but I played the heck out of this 45.
This was the first single to be issued in the U.S. on Neighborhood Records (single #NRA-4201) which was set up by her and manager/hubby Peter Schekeryk. And though not mentioned on the label, the arranger for this was Roger Kellaway (the co-writer of the closing theme to the TV series All In The Family). Oddly, in Canada this was put out on her old label, Buddah; this is why, in the US Buddah singles discography, there is no BDA 267. This song and her cover of The Rolling Stones' "Ruby Tuesday" both made the list of the fifty worst rock and roll singles of all time (at #33 and #32, respectively) in the book The Worst Rock & Roll Records Of All Time. The book noted that she never had another Top 30 hit after this, and closed with this note: The other oddity? The A side was mono - while the B side was stereo. Go figure. I don't know - somehow this would have been a perfect fit for "Fresh" radio stations if it were to come out today. Content-wise, there's stuff much worse out today (for reasons I obviously won't get to) than when Ms. Safka put this out. I say this more for the lyrical content than musically, though it did have a vibe akin to the two you mentioned. And point of disclosure: I have this 45, a CBS Pitman pressing. That should tell you what I think of it . . .
I can take or leave Brand New Key. Peace Will Come was a much better song that didn't get anywhere near no. 1.
You know... until today, I had no idea Melanie had written or recorded that. I actually like the New Seekers' version of it, and it is the only one I've ever known. I've always loved them anyway.
The Neighborhood label is one of the most beautiful ever made. "Brand New Key" is...well, I wouldn't call it beautiful, but it is cute. Can't believe that got to #1 and "Lay Down" only got to #10, though!
Brand New Key is another song I never heard on '70s radio, either early on when others controlled what stations I heard, or later when I had control. It's an OK song, but like others here, I could take it or leave it. I did see Melanie perform at the "A Day in the Garden" concert at the Bethel NY site of the original Woodstock festival, on Saturday, August 15, 1998. In 1998, there was no performing arts center; at the bottom of the hill, they had put up a temporary stage. I do not remember her playing "Brand New Key" during that set, although she played almost anything else I knew she had done. The other performers that day were Donovan, Lou Reed, Joni Mitchell, and Pete Townshend. I don't remember if Melanie or Donovan performed first, but the last three performers (in order) were Reed, Mitchell, and Townshend.