Every UK #1 Single of the 1970's Discussion Thread (REVISITED)

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by W.B., Mar 30, 2020.

  1. W.B.

    W.B. The Collector's Collector Thread Starter

    Location:
    New York, NY, USA
    #8 of 1977 (#406 in total) - "Lucille" by Kenny Rogers
    (#1 for 1 week - 18 June 1977)

    The UK single:
    [​IMG]
    The US single:
    [​IMG]
    Wikipedia entry - could get no higher than #2 on NME chart and #3 in Melody Maker; in U.S., was his first big solo hit, reaching #5 in Billboard, #6 in Cash Box, #7 in Record World and #12 in Radio & Records.
     
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  2. W.B.

    W.B. The Collector's Collector Thread Starter

    Location:
    New York, NY, USA
    Week Ending 18 June 1977

    08 - 03 - 01 - Kenny Rogers - LUCILLE
    09 - 01 - 02 - Rod Stewart - I DON'T WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT / FIRST CUT IS THE DEEPEST
    03 - 06 - 03 - The Jacksons - SHOW YOU THE WAY TO GO
    03 - 02 - 04 - Sex Pistols - GOD SAVE THE QUEEN
    11 - 04 - 05 - Barbra Streisand - LOVE THEME FROM "A STAR IS BORN" (EVERGREEN)
    04 - 07 - 06 - Carole Bayer Sager - YOU'RE MOVING OUT TODAY
    04 - 10 - 07 - The Muppets - HALFWAY DOWN THE STAIRS
    05 - 13 - 08 - Electric Light Orchestra - TELEPHONE LINE
    09 - 05 - 09 - Joe Tex - AIN'T GONNA BUMP NO MORE (WITH NO BIG FAT WOMAN)
    11 - 08 - 10 - Van McCoy - THE SHUFFLE
    10 - 09 - 11 - 10CC - GOOD MORNING JUDGE
    07 - 11 - 12 - Marvin Gaye - GOT TO GIVE IT UP
    06 - 14 - 13 - Boz Scaggs - LIDO SHUFFLE
    04 - 21 - 14 - Gladys Knight And The Pips - BABY DON'T CHANGE YOUR MIND
    07 - 17 - 15 - Heatwave - TOO HOT TO HANDLE / SLIP YOUR DISC TO THIS
    04 - 22 - 16 - Genesis - SPOT THE PIGEON (EP)
    03 - 25 - 17 - Emerson, Lake And Palmer - FANFARE FOR THE COMMON MAN
    05 - 12 - 18 - Rock Follies Of '77 (Julie Covington, Rula Lenska, Charlotte Cornwell And Sue Jones-Davies) - O.K.?
    05 - 23 - 19 - The Stranglers - PEACHES
    1 - NEW - 20 - Hot Chocolate - SO YOU WIN AGAIN
    03 - 29 - 21 - Queen - GOOD OLD FASHIONED LOVERBOY
    03 - 26 - 22 - Bo Kirkland And Ruth Davis - YOU'RE GONNA GET NEXT TO ME
    02 - 33 - 23 - Olivia Newton-John - SAM
    06 - 15 - 24 - Bryan Ferry - TOKYO JOE
    10 - 24 - 25 - Eagles - HOTEL CALIFORNIA
    06 - 16 - 26 - The Trammps - DISCO INFERNO
    02 - 32 - 27 - Alessi - OH, LORI
    04 - 30 - 28 - Honky - JOIN THE PARTY
    03 - 27 - 29 - Frankie Miller - BE GOOD TO YOURSELF
    03 - 38 - 30 - George Benson - NATURE BOY
    03 - 45 - 31 - Tony Etoria - I CAN PROVE IT
    04 - 34 - 32 - The Manhattan Transfer - DON'T LET GO
    05 - 31 - 33 - Ramones - SHEENA IS A PUNK ROCKER
    08 - 18 - 34 - Blue - GONNA CAPTURE YOUR HEART
    04 - 19 - 35 - The Liverpool Football Team - WE CAN DO IT
    08 - 20 - 36 - Piero Umiliani - MAH-NA, MAH-NA
    02 - 49 - 37 - Elton John / Kiki Dee - BITE YOUR LIP (GET UP AND DANCE) / CHICAGO
    02 - 47 - 38 - Jesse Green - COME WITH ME
    05 - 39 - 39 - Trinidad Oil Company - THE CALENDAR SONG (JANUARY, FEBRUARY, MARCH, APRIL, MAY)
    03 - 44 - 40 - Liverpool Express - DREAMIN'
    03 - 41 - 41 - Faces - FACES (EP)
    06 - 36 - 42 - Tina Charles - RENDEZVOUS
    04 - 42 - 43 - Marie Myriam - L'OISEAU ET L'ENFANT
    02 - 46 - 44 - Archie Bell And The Drells - EVERYBODY HAVE A GOOD TIME
    1 - NEW - 45 - Four Seasons - RHAPSODY
    1 - NEW - 46 - T-Connection - DO WHAT YOU WANNA DO
    1 - NEW - 47 - Detroit Emeralds - FEEL THE NEED
    1 - NEW - 48 - John Miles - SLOW DOWN
    02 - 50 - 49 - Dr. Feelgood - SNEAKIN' SUSPICION
    1 - NEW - 50 - Demis Roussos - KYRILA
     
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  3. W.B.

    W.B. The Collector's Collector Thread Starter

    Location:
    New York, NY, USA
    Now for those which would grace my collection . . .
     
  4. W.B.

    W.B. The Collector's Collector Thread Starter

    Location:
    New York, NY, USA
    Not much on the 'newies' front . . .
    [​IMG]
    Remix of their 1972 single . . .
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
    One of the first US London releases with a new label design as above . . .
     
  5. W.B.

    W.B. The Collector's Collector Thread Starter

    Location:
    New York, NY, USA
    I'd neglected to mention that this was the first US ELO single to be certified gold . . .
     
  6. bob60

    bob60 Forum Resident

    Location:
    London UK
    I meant from the previous year of course..:)
     
  7. W.B.

    W.B. The Collector's Collector Thread Starter

    Location:
    New York, NY, USA
    I didn't follow the signs . . . but "Lucille" turns out to have been #2 in both NME and Melody Maker, not just the former. Bobbed up and down the latter, apparently, cut off by the likes of Rod Stewart and the next "official" Number One coming up.
     
  8. sotosound

    sotosound Forum Resident

    "Telephone Line" starts with a nod to The Easybeats and their single "Hello How Are You".

    The Detroit Emeralds re-issue had a different - and over-embellished - lead vocal, and was also sped up. A 12" single was also released but all it had was the same version as the 7", i.e. not an extended remix or anything. Disappointing all round and not as good as the original IMO. Some younger people will have heard the 1977 remix first, however, and their view might be the opposite.

    "Slowdown"?? Sounds like a work to rule, which the track definitely wasn't.

    "Four hundred children had a cr*p in the field." is what some people allegedly heard Kenny Rogers sing.

    The 12" single of "Do What You Wanna Do" is great and saw a lot of action on my disco console. The long bongo-driven break in the middle is classic and irresistibly danceable, and it was always a challenge for me as a DJ to know exactly when it was going to finish since it had a cold finish and I didn't want to leave anyone standing waiting for the next track to begin.

    In relation to "You're Moving Out Today", no-one has mentioned Bette Midler as yet? So I'll do it. Bette Middler. There! I've done it!

    And a shout out for Bo Kirkland and Ruth Davis. "You're Gonna Get Next To Me" is a classy, soulful mid-tempo song that tells a great little love story and that's great to sway to as well. Lovely stuff!
     
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  9. Mulderre

    Mulderre 60s and 70s Music Lover

    Country had a fantastic 1976, but their 1977 wasn't being so great. Not much activity in the charts... except for this one. Kenny's voice, one of those characteristic voice, isn't quite singing; but the overall effect gives the chills. For the song itself? Well, country by numbers: the pedal guitar, the ryhthm (one that you can imagine while drinking whiskey in Oklahoma), the typical Country lyrics... a sedate number to recover from the Pistols/Stewart showdown.

    3'5/5
     
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  10. Mulderre

    Mulderre 60s and 70s Music Lover

    Five new entries, and two of them which were kind of amazing.

    Demis Roussos - As summer was nearing, Demis is back with a summer-related theme: it's one of those MOR songs that he was accustomed to do, but this will take us to deserted beaches and relaxed paradises. His last UK chart hit, and one that almost got to the Top 30.

    John Miles - One of the hits of this month is another face of Miles. After the rock sound of Highfly and the opus of Music, he embraces the funky sound with what is one of his best hits. A great song which is not very remembered, but is a great groove.

    Detroit Emeralds - Originally a mega hit in 1973, this time Tom Moulton enters into the equation: change a big the title, give it a disco beat and you have a sure winner. And that's what we had here: a great classic of soul transformed into disco. The result is not that bad, but better stick to the original.

    T-Connection - What about this? Only 5 new entries this week, but this another of those funky songs which gets you in your mind after listening just once. All the way from the Bahamas, the guitar intro is just enough to tell you that this is a great song: the rest is as good as it gets. Nice first hit.

    Four Seasons - A Rhapsody indeed. One of their lesser known hits, it's pop with a touch of electronic music and then... a bit of rock and roll and the harmonies are back again! Perhaps not in the same category as their previous hits, but it can be liked by the casual listener.
     
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  11. Mulderre

    Mulderre 60s and 70s Music Lover

    The week Rogers was at number one, there were two new singles that didn't make the charts at all. First, an American from Tennessee called Gene Cotton with Me And The Elephant.

     
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  12. Mulderre

    Mulderre 60s and 70s Music Lover

    And the other one was the Foster Brothers with a song called Count Me Out.

     
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  13. sotosound

    sotosound Forum Resident

    I'll always remember "Me And The Elephant". :)

    I quite like "Rhapsody" but I've always found it a bit too simply arranged, stilted and ponderous when it should have had a more sophisticated and interesting feel.
     
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  14. Alf.

    Alf. Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    Lucille zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz New entries zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

    Meanwhile, here's one that didn't chart, but should have, as it's excellent:

    [​IMG]

    His aim was true......apparently.......
     
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  15. W.B.

    W.B. The Collector's Collector Thread Starter

    Location:
    New York, NY, USA
    I don't know if this'll compute, but here's a label sheet layout for the initial US single release of that number:
    [​IMG]
    And if you can't see it from here, click on the link below:
    ELVIS COSTELLO "Alison" 1977 Orig. RECORD LABEL SLICKS | #32038076

    As Mr. Costello's discography will unfold as we progress with this look, I am holding off on showing a label sheet of his that's in my collection until the proper time.
     
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  16. John54

    John54 Senior Member

    Location:
    Burlington, ON
    Long day yesterday, so I'm behind ...

    Ramones: piledrivin', rockin' song (the punk debate continues apace) that sounds like certain garagey late-'50s or early-'60s guitar-based tracks but with lead vocals reminiscent of the Beach Boys

    Stranglers: one solid guitar-bass-drums-and-keyboards groove, with vocal style quite possibly learned from the example set by John Lydon

    ELO: slow ballad that's fairly mundane but does feature spot-on harmonies with strong Bee Gees overtones

    Mr. Big: there are several soft passages with ooh-ooh-ooh backing vocals, and several rousingly produced passages that if strung together would have probably made a pretty good pop song

    Trini: pleasant, moderately quick calpyso track

    Teddy: (i) pleasant mellow soul more or less in the style of his band Harold Melvin and the Bluenotes. A pretty good addition to the oeuvre

    Follies: rockin' pop track that would sound better if done in a first-rate British Invasion style rather than a second-rate decade-later clone attempt. The lyrics can be interpreted as a direct reference of the naughty naughty naughty sort, or perhaps no interpretation is even necessary

    Simon: pop medley with oddly soft, reverby vocals and very nice strings and maybe even a harp. The slowed-down All My Loving is a nice surprise (though only maybe one-tenth of the song) but the whole thing is very pleasant

    Alice: decent pop track with arrangement having dramatic flourishes and / or style

    'pool: spirited pop / rock track with massed vocals, that seems to owe a lot to punk. Presumably the song is about the pending FA Cup Final which they ultimately lost 2-1 to Man U so they couldn't actually do it as claimed, but they had just won the league which is more important so they could brush it off

    Muppets: ballad, intended to have emotional impact but with dubious results, sung by Kermit the Frog with piano backing

    Gladys: pleasant pop / soul track that's a bit of a departure from their usual ballads

    Genesis: three extra tracks from the Wind and Wuthering sessions: (i) Match of the Day, a sprightly short track about football ("Oi! Are you deaf, Ref?") (ii) Pigeons, also in the three-minute range, with its mid-range guitar drone, (iii) Inside and Out, slower, about as long as the other two combined, the first two-thirds very pretty and in the Your Own Special Way vicinity

    Honky: middling disco / funk

    Carole: middling, fairly quick pop with affected, little-girl lead vocals and low spoken words, that reminds of a couple of Leo Sayer tracks

    Marie: breezy pop with near a cappella verses and fairly quick, MOR choruses, all in French of course

    Transfer: jittery, funky cover of a song written in '58 by the same guy who wrote Shake Rattle and Roll, and already covered numerous times by this time

    Pistols: aaand it's really on now, if Anarchy in the UK hadn't set the cat among the pigeons, God Save the Queen surely would have. Since everybody already knows the song, let me just say that I do enjoy listening to Lydon's singing with attitude and him rolling his r's

    Jacksons: decent, well-constructed song, and their video dance moves are well-choreographed but that just serves to distract from what should be the real focus, i. e. the song

    Queen: decent pop / rock track with stompin' beat, plenty of piano, their usual nice harmonies and Brian May's trademark lead guitar tones

    Frankie: slowish song that best fits in "classic rock" genre, and sounds closest to Stay With Me by Rod & the Faces

    George: light but percussive soul, inevitably with jazzy chords

    Faces: re-releases of (speaking of which) Stay With Me from '74, Cindy Incidentally from '73, Memphis from '71 and You Can Make Me Dance Sing Or Anything from '76. I didn't listen to the EP but the last track showed up here a year ago and is excellent, don't be put off by the long and unwieldy title

    Bo & Ruth: light, somewhat funky soul with distracting speak-singing vocal "chant" as well as the regular lead vocals

    Tony: decent, typical '70s soul track, again with female vocals "chanting" in the background but not as distracting

    ELP: derived from a 20th-century classical work, a longish instrumental's single edit which I think tries to sound more important than it really is

    Express: mid-paced, fairly light pop whose bridge is more enjoyable than the otherwise rather mundane song. Nicely appropriate floating-off-into-space ending though

    Alessi: light jazzy pop

    Olivia: ballad in 6/8 time with piano base, typical feature of light verses and somewhat heavier choruses

    Archie: energetic R & B groove, I dare say good for dancing but not really high on true musical merits

    Jesse: attractive mid-paced soul groove

    Elton & Kiki: third consecutive six-minute song here, even more energetic than Archie above but same trailing comment applies

    Doc: medium-slow, swampy rock with a groove like Dave Edmunds' I Hear You Knocking and active vocalizing

    Single of the Week: split between Simon May, We'll Gather Lilacs / All My Loving, and Jesse Green, Come With Me. Backup from Genesis, Teddy Pendergrass, Gladys Knight and Queen, not to mention the Ramones and the Sex Pistols if that's your bag
     
    Last edited: Aug 3, 2020
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  17. John54

    John54 Senior Member

    Location:
    Burlington, ON
    Hot Choc: pleasant soulful track that further demonstrates their ability to create a good song in a non-standard style

    Seasons: passable harmony pop but not as tight or interesting as much of their boatload of classics in the '60s

    T-Conn: disco from the Bahamas, with a couple of extended percussive jam sessions in the midst. I'm afraid I can't say I'm fussed over this one

    Emeralds: discofied re-recording of a song from a few years earlier, it's alright

    John: fast-paced R & B / funk that almost reminds of James Brown (but I'm not a fan of him, or of it)

    Demis: medium-slow, lushly though not necessarily formulaically arranged track with his usual slightly off-putting high-register vocals

    Single of the Week: split between Hot Chocolate, So You Win Again and Demis Roussos, Kyrila. Only six tracks so you can't expect wonders
     
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  18. Kenny Rogers - LUCILLE
    I can listen to this now...but not as a 14 year old back then.
    2/5
     
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  19. Favs...
    Week Ending 18 June 1977
    1- NEW - 20 - Hot Chocolate - SO YOU WIN AGAIN
    1 - NEW - 48 - John Miles - SLOW DOWN
     
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  20. Silksashbash

    Silksashbash Forum Resident

    Location:
    Finland
    Lucille - too run of the mill. For 1977 country I prefer David Allan Coe whose best LP's came out that time.
     
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  21. Randoms

    Randoms Aerie Faerie Nonsense

    Location:
    UK
    And at number two, a song called God Save The Queen by the Sex Pistols..... Like many I was glued to the radio for the chart count down. :yikes:

    TBC at the "end of the year"..... :ignore:

    I feel better for getting that off my chest. :D
     
  22. Randoms

    Randoms Aerie Faerie Nonsense

    Location:
    UK
    Kenny Rogers - Lucille

    Didn't / don't mind it, liked / like Kenny's voice, but in '77 I simply wasn't listening to Kenny (or much Rod), but Dr Feelgood, Eddie And The Hot Rods, Ramones, Sex Pistols, The Jam and The Stranglers on repeat!
     
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  23. Randoms

    Randoms Aerie Faerie Nonsense

    Location:
    UK
    My Favs too.

    I don't play the John Miles comp too often, but am always impressed and enjoy it when I do.

    John Miles - Slow Down

     
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  24. W.B.

    W.B. The Collector's Collector Thread Starter

    Location:
    New York, NY, USA
    #9 of 1977 (#407 in total) - "Show You The Way To Go" by The Jacksons
    (#1 for 1 week - 25 June 1977)

    The UK single (both paper label and Plasticr-p):
    [​IMG] [​IMG]
    The US single:
    [​IMG]
    Wikipedia entry - also NME #437 and Melody Maker #379 (both 2 weeks - 25 June-02 July 1977), their only UK Number One as such; in U.S., it wasn't so hot, only going so high as #28 in Billboard, #45 in Cash Box, and #35 in Record World.
     
  25. W.B.

    W.B. The Collector's Collector Thread Starter

    Location:
    New York, NY, USA
    Week Ending 25 June 1977

    04 - 03 - 01 - The Jacksons - SHOW YOU THE WAY TO GO
    09 - 01 - 02 - Kenny Rogers - LUCILLE
    02 - 20 - 03 - Hot Chocolate - SO YOU WIN AGAIN
    12 - 05 - 04 - Barbra Streisand - LOVE THEME FROM "A STAR IS BORN" (EVERGREEN)
    10 - 02 - 05 - Rod Stewart - I DON'T WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT / FIRST CUT IS THE DEEPEST
    05 - 06 - 06 - Carole Bayer Sager - YOU'RE MOVING OUT TODAY
    05 - 14 - 07 - Gladys Knight And The Pips - BABY DON'T CHANGE YOUR MIND
    04 - 17 - 08 - Emerson, Lake And Palmer - FANFARE FOR THE COMMON MAN
    04 - 04 - 09 - Sex Pistols - GOD SAVE THE QUEEN
    06 - 08 - 10 - Electric Light Orchestra - TELEPHONE LINE
    05 - 07 - 11 - The Muppets - HALFWAY DOWN THE STAIRS
    03 - 23 - 12 - Olivia Newton-John - SAM
    10 - 09 - 13 - Joe Tex - AIN'T GONNA BUMP NO MORE (WITH NO BIG FAT WOMAN)
    08 - 12 - 14 - Marvin Gaye - GOT TO GIVE IT UP
    12 - 10 - 15 - Van McCoy - THE SHUFFLE
    06 - 19 - 16 - The Stranglers - PEACHES
    07 - 13 - 17 - Boz Scaggs - LIDO SHUFFLE
    08 - 15 - 18 - Heatwave - TOO HOT TO HANDLE / SLIP YOUR DISC TO THIS
    11 - 11 - 19 - 10CC - GOOD MORNING JUDGE
    04 - 22 - 20 - Bo Kirkland And Ruth Davis - YOU'RE GONNA GET NEXT TO ME
    05 - 16 - 21 - Genesis - SPOT THE PIGEON (EP)
    03 - 27 - 22 - Alessi - OH, LORI
    06 - 18 - 23 - Rock Follies Of '77 (Julie Covington, Rula Lenska, Charlotte Cornwell And Sue Jones-Davies) - O.K.?
    04 - 21 - 24 - Queen - GOOD OLD FASHIONED LOVERBOY
    02 - 46 - 25 - T-Connection - DO WHAT YOU WANNA DO
    04 - 30 - 26 - George Benson - NATURE BOY
    04 - 29 - 27 - Frankie Miller - BE GOOD TO YOURSELF
    03 - 37 - 28 - Elton John / Kiki Dee - BITE YOUR LIP (GET UP AND DANCE) / CHICAGO
    04 - 31 - 29 - Tony Etoria - I CAN PROVE IT
    02 - 47 - 30 - Detroit Emeralds - FEEL THE NEED
    07 - 24 - 31 - Bryan Ferry - TOKYO JOE
    03 - 38 - 32 - Jesse Green - COME WITH ME
    02 - 50 - 33 - Demis Roussos - KYRILA
    05 - 32 - 34 - The Manhattan Transfer - DON'T LET GO
    05 - 28 - 35 - Honky - JOIN THE PARTY
    07 - 26 - 36 - The Trammps - DISCO INFERNO
    02 - 45 - 37 - Four Seasons - RHAPSODY
    1 - NEW - 38 - Boney M - MA BAKER
    06 - 33 - 39 - Ramones - SHEENA IS A PUNK ROCKER
    02 - 48 - 40 - John Miles - SLOW DOWN
    1 - NEW - 41 - Bob Marley And The Wailers - EXODUS
    1 - NEW - 42 - Andy Gibb - I JUST WANNA BE YOUR EVERYTHING
    03 - 44 - 43 - Archie Bell And The Drells - EVERYBODY HAVE A GOOD TIME
    1 - NEW - 44 - Garnett Mimms And Truckin' Company - WHAT IT IS
    1 - NEW - 45 - The Wurzels - FARMER BILL'S COWMAN (I WAS KAISER BILL'S BATMAN)
    04 - 40 - 46 - Liverpool Express - DREAMIN'
    03 - 49 - 47 - Dr. Feelgood - SNEAKIN' SUSPICION
    1 - NEW - 48 - Supertramp - GIVE A LITTLE BIT
    1 - NEW - 49 - Rita Coolidge - WE'RE ALL ALONE
    1 - NEW - 50 - Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers - ANYTHING THAT'S ROCK 'N' ROLL
     
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