#8 of 1977 (#406 in total) - "Lucille" by Kenny Rogers (#1 for 1 week - 18 June 1977) The UK single: The US single: 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.
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
Not much on the 'newies' front . . . Remix of their 1972 single . . . One of the first US London releases with a new label design as above . . .
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.
"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!
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
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.
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.
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.
Lucille zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz New entries zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz Meanwhile, here's one that didn't chart, but should have, as it's excellent: His aim was true......apparently.......
I don't know if this'll compute, but here's a label sheet layout for the initial US single release of that number: 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.
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
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
Favs... Week Ending 18 June 1977 1- NEW - 20 - Hot Chocolate - SO YOU WIN AGAIN 1 - NEW - 48 - John Miles - SLOW DOWN
Lucille - too run of the mill. For 1977 country I prefer David Allan Coe whose best LP's came out that time.
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. TBC at the "end of the year"..... I feel better for getting that off my chest.
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!
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
#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): The US single: 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.
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