Top Ten Songs for Week of April 30, 1973: 'Tie a Yellow Ribbon 'Round the Old Oak Tree'

That's right, fifty years ago today.

1.  TIE A YELLOW RIBBON 'ROUND TNHE OLD OAK TREE--  Dawn

2.  THE NIGHT THE LIGHTS WENT OUT IN GEORGIA--  Vickie Lawrence

3.  THE CISCO KID--  War

4.  SING--  Carpenters

5.  LITTLE WILLY--  Sweet

6.  STUCK IN THE MIDDLE WITH YOU--  Steelers Wheel

7.  THE TWELFTH OF NEVER--  Donny Osmond

 8.  YOU ARE THE SUNSHINE OF MY LIFE--  Stevie Wonder

9.  MASTERPIECE--  Temptations

10.  AIN'T NO WOMAN LIKE THE ONE I GOT--  Four Tops

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DEBUTS

20.  THE RIGHT THING TO DO--   Carly Simon

23.  DANIEL--  Elton John

24.  THINKING OF YOU--  Loggins & Messina

25.  ARMED AND EXTREMELY DANGEROUS--   First Choice

26.  BLUE SUEDE SHOES--  Johnny Rivers

Name That Tune  (from the above songs):  "I Feel Like This Is The Beginning Though I've Loved You For A Million Years."  Answer below.  RoadDog

"You Are the Sunshine of My Life"

Movie Scratches 2023: Groundhog-- Brady--Plane-- 65

Movie Scratches--  Movies I saw in the theater in 2023.

5.  GROUNDHOG DAY--  2-5--  Woodstock--  $2--  There wasn't one today.  What if there is no tomorrow.  Nothing like seeing this great flick on the big screen and in a theatre that was actually in the movie.

6.  80 FOR BRADY--  2-10--  Super Brady fans  What those ol' gals got into?  Four lasses on the loose and their "particular" skills that avoided disaster.

7.  PLANE--  2-10--  All the action you could possibly want from a storm, lightning strike, jungle landing and those mean old rebels.

8.  65-   3-31--  Fox Lake--  $7--  Earth 65 million years ago was not a friendly place.  If the dinosaurs don't get you, that big ol' asteroid thing will.

--RoadDog

Movie Scratches 2023: Babylon-- M3gan-- Otto-- Avatar

Movie Scratches--  Movies I watched in the theater in 2023

1.  BABYLON--  Fox Lake--  1-9--  $6--  The rise and fall of Hollywood folks during the transition from silent to talkies.  The other side of "The Golden Age of Hollywood."  That was one bodacious party.

2.  M3GAN--  FOX LAKE--  1-20--  $6--  A lot prettier than Chuckie.  Not as funny, but every bit as dangerous.  Those creepy eyes.

3.  A MAN CALLED OTTO--  1-25--  $6--  You cried, you laughed.  Other than trying to die (and he wasn't very good at it).    I have had a similar experience when my wife of 49 years died in September.  This one should be up for an Academy Award.  (It wasn't.)

4.  AVATAR:  THE WAY OF WATER--  1-31--  $7--  Quite the epic and in 3D  Again, it is bad, meanie humans against the innocent and good Navee.  Loved the culture shock between the land dwellers and water folk.

--RoadDog

Top Ten Beach Music Songs for April 22, 2023: 'Tequila On Ice'

I love my Beach Music and listen a lot to 94.9 FM, WVCO, the Surf out of North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. the Center of the Beach Music Universe.  I'm listening to it right now.

These are the Top Ten Beach Music songs right now according to their listeners.  If you're looking for some really cool throwback kind of music, give it a listen.

1.  GOT IT RIGHT (THE FIRST TIME)--  Rick Strickland & Lesa Hudson

2.  OUGHT TO BE IN A SONG--  Pink Slips Band

3.  YOU'RE THE ONE FOR ME--  Rick Strickland

4.  GOT TO BE YOU--  Band of Oz

5.  THAT YOU HEAR IN A SONG--  Too Much Sylvia

6.  BREATHLESS--  Lesa Hudson

7.  HEY GIRL--  Scott Fine

8.  TEQUILA ON ICE-- Wayne Free

9.  I LOVE DOIN' NOTHING--  Starbuck

10.  TOP DOWN--  Nadia Lena  Shutkufski

GreatStuff--  RoadBeach

WLS Top Ten and Debuts for Week of April 23, 1973: 'Danny's Song'

That's right, 50 years ago.

1.  THE NIGHT THE LIGHTS WENT OUT IN GEORGIA--  Vickie Lawrence

2.  TIE A YELLOW RIBBON ROUND THE OLD OAK TREE--  Dawn

3.  THE CISCO KID--  War

4.  SING--  Carpenters

5.  LITTLE WILLIE--  Sweet

6.  AIN'T NO WOMAN LIKE THE ONE I GOT--  Four Tops

7.  DANNY'S SONG--  Anne Murray

8.  NEITHER ONE OF US WANTS TO BE THE FIRST TO SAY GOODBYE--  Gladys Knight & the Pips

9.  THE TWELFTH OF NEVER--  Donny Osmond

10.  STIR IT UP--  Johnny Nash

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DEBUTS

19.  DAISY A DAY--  Jud Strunk

22.  OUT OF THE QUESTION--  Gilbert O'Sullivan

23.  CHERRY CHERRY--  Neil Diamond  (Live from "Hot August Night".)

24.  PILLOW TALK--  Sylvia

25.  PINBALL WIZARD/SEE ME FEEL ME--  New Seekers

Name That Tune (from the above songs):  "Make It Simple To Last Your Whole Life Long."  Answer below.  --RoadDog

"Sing"

Music Deaths: Gordon, Cafferty, Levine and Kalb

**  ROBERT GORDON, 76

Died 18 October 2022

Singer (rockabilly)

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**  DAN CAFFERTY, 76

Died 8 November 2022

Singer with rock band Nazareth.  Had the big hit "Love Hurts" (#8-1976)

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**  KEITH LEVINE, 65

Died 11 November 2022

Guitar player, founding member of The Clash and Public Image Ltd.  

"Rock the Casbah"  (#8-1983)

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**  DANNY KALB, 80

Died 19 November 2022

Guitarist / vocalist with the Blues Project.

It's Record Store Day Today

Saturday, April 22.

Check out your local mom and pop record store today, especially if you haven't been for awhile.

Chicago's WDRV, the Drive is spotlighting vinyl albums today.

I will be going over to my favorite old record store, Vinyl Frontier Records in McHenry, Illinois, later today.  I will definitely buy a couple used vinyl records and some CDs.  (I don't know about you, but I'm glad to see albums back for sale at Wal-Mart, but not at the $25-$30 price.)

I'm listening to WXRT's Saturday Morning Flashback right now which is back to the year 1987.  It goes to noon CDST.  

I am also listening to the Beach Music Top 20 over the internet on WVCO, 94.8 FM, the Surf.  It goes to 11 am CDST.  The annual Spring SOS is going on in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, right now, so all the bands and shaggers are down there having a good old time.

Both stations stream.

--RecordDog

Music Deaths: Jeff Cook of Alabama

JEFF COOK, 73

Died 7 November 2022

Guitarist / fiddle player with country rock band Alabama.

A country supergroup that had 46 Top 40s between 1977 and 1994, including 32 #1s on the Country Charts.  

Some of their hits:

"Tennessee River"  (#1 1980)

"Mountain Music"  (#1-1982)

"Dixieland Delight)  (#1- 1983.

They even had five Top 40s on the Pop Charts.

Got their start at the Bowery in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, playing for tips.

Music Deaths in 2022: Jerry Lee Lewis

JERRY LEE LEWIS, 87

Died 28 October 2022

Singer / piano player (rock and roll / country)

One of the original rock and rollers, called "The Killer."  Cousin to country singer Mickey Gilley and TV evangelist Jimmy Swaggart.

"Whole Lot Of Shakin' Going On"  (#3-1957)

"Great Balls of Fire"  (2-1958)

"Breathless"  (#7-1958)

Every Blooming THing: Mid-April 2023

As we shiver around here today.  Last week, we had four days with sun and temps in the 80s and higher.  This morning, woke up to about an inch of snow on the ground, snow flurries in the morning and temps in the upper 30s.  Like they say, if you don't like the weather around Chicago right now, wait a little bit.

Grass is green and I was smiling Saturday when the lawn tractor started right away.  Trees are budding out.

The Bradford pear trees are blooming big time white.  I have three of them.  The crabapples are budding out.

Plenty of twigs and limbs still to be moved from the ice storm a short time ago (we lost electricity for 17 hours).

Right now the daffodils and hyacinths are blooming and I have a lot of them.

--RoadFlower

WLS Top Ten for Week of April 16, 1973: 'Little Willie'

Fifty years ago this week.

1.  THE NIGHT THE LIGHTS WENT OUT IN GEORGIA--  Vickie Lawrence

2.  AIN'T NO WOMAN LIKE THE ONE I GOT--  Four Tops

3.  TIE A YELLOW RIBBON ROUND THE OLD OAK TREE--  Dawn

4.  NEITHER ONE OF US WANTS TO BE THE FIRST TO SAY GOODBYE--  Gladys Knight & the Pips

5.  DANNY'S SONG--  Anne Murray

6.  SING--  Carpenters

7.  THE CISCO KID--  War

8.  LITTLE WILLIE--  Sweet

9.  BREAK UP TO MAKE UP--  Stylistics

10.  CALL ME (COME BACK HOME)--  Al Green

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DEBUTS

22.  WILDFLOWER--  Skylark

23.  REELING IN THE YEARS--  Steely Dan

23.  FRANKENSTEIN--  Edgar Winter Group

Name That Tune (from the above songs):  "He Drink Whiskey, Poncho Drink The Wine."  Answer below.  --RoadDog

"The Cisco Kid"

Music Deaths in 2022: Loretta Lynn

LORETTA LYNN, 90

Died 4 October.  Singer / songwriter (country).  "The Coal Miner's Daughter."  Had huge country career.  Between 1960 and 1993 had 63 Top 100 country singles.  Included in that were 11 No. 1s and 39 Top Tens.

Also sang with country star Conway Twitty and had five additional #1s and 13 more Top Tens.

Sang a lot of women songs like ""You Ain't Woman Enough", "Your Squaw Is On the Warpath", "One's on the Way" and "The Pill."

WLS Top 23 for Week of April 12, 1973-- Part 4: ''Tie a Yellow Ribbon 'Round the Old Oak Tree'

Fifty years ago is a real long time.  Right?

* Means the song was climbing the charts.  The number after the artist is how high the song got on the Billboard Hot 100 National Charts.

10,  BREAK UP TO MAKE UP--  Stylistics   #5    I'd forgotten about this one, but glad I was reminded.  A great belly-rubber.

9.  SING--  Carpenters    #3       Feeling down?  Listen to this song and let a smile be your guide.

8.  LOVE TRAIN--  O'Jays    #1

7.  DANNY'S SONG--  Anne Murray    #7

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I doubt that there has ever been six longer-titled songs in the Top Six at one time.  I started typing these three days ago.

6.  *TIE A YELLOW RIBBON 'ROUND THE OLD OAK TREE--  Dawn    #1

5.  ALSO SPRACH ZARATHISTRA--  Deodato     #2   Only Top 40.

4.  NEITHER ONE OF US (WANTS TO BE THE FIRST TO SAY GOODBYE)--  Gladys Knight & the Pips    #2

3.  KILLING ME SOFTLY WITH HIS SONG--  Roberta Flack    #1   for five weeks

2.  *AIN'T NO WOMAN LIKE THE ONE I GOT--  Four Tops    #4

1.  *THE NIGHT THE LIGHTS WENT OUT IN GEORGIA--  Vickie Lawrence   #1   Her only-ever Top 40.

Name That Tune (from the above songs):  "Strumming My Pain With His Fingers, Singing My Life With His Words."

"Killing Me Softly With His Song"

WLS Top 23 for Week of April 9, 1973-- Part 3: 'The Cisco Kid'

*  Means the song was climbing the charts.  The number after the artist is how high it got on the Biillboard Hot 100 National Charts.

15.  *LITTLE WILLIE--  Sweet      #3     Just hear it and try not to move.  Watch the video.  Hair that girls would kill for.  What was the guitarist at the end of the line wearing?  From England.

14.  MASTERPIECE--  Temptations      #7    The instrumentals.  Not one I was very familiar with.

13.  STIR IT UP--  Johnny Nash      #12     Essentially my introduction to reggae music though I didn't know what they called it at the time.   Johnny Nash had two Top 40s in 1958 and 1959, then not on charts again until 1968 with "Hold Me Tight"  #5.  Had #1 with "I Can See Clearly Now" in 1972.

12.  *THE CISCO KID--  War      #2     What a cool beat.    Latin funk-rock band from Long Beach, California.

11.  CALL ME (COME BACK HOME)--  Al Green       #10     Something about that voice with that music.  Wow!   In 1972 and 1973 had six straight Top Tens, including #1 "Let's Stay Together."

Name That Tune (from the above songs):  "It's Been A Long, Long Time  Since I had You On My Mind."  Answer below.  --RoadDog

"Stir It Up"

WLS Top 23 for Week of April 9, 1973-- Part 2: 'Last Song'

That's right, 50 years ago.

19.  *THE TWELFTH OF NEVER--  Donnie Osmond      #8     Watch the video.  That's Donnie with the Afro, not Michael.

18.  *YOU ARE THE SUNSHINE OF MY LIFE--  Stevie Wonder      #1     Could the guy be in love?   Born Steveland Morris in 1950.

17.  PEACEFUL--  Helen Reddy      #12     I hardly remember this song, but well worth a listen if you too don't remember it.  Came between two #1 songs:  "I Am Woman" and "Delta Dawn."

16.  LAST SONG--  Edward Bear       #3      That's Larry Evoy singing the song.   The group took its name from a character in Winnie the Pooh.

Name That Tune (from the above songs):  "That's Why I'll Always Be Around."  Answer below.  --RoadDog

"You Are the Sunshine of My Life"

WLS Top 23 for Week of April 9, 1973-- Part 1: 'Drift Away'

Fifty years ago today.  That's half a century.  I know where I was.  I was living with Liz's parents in Palatine, Illinois, and doing my student teaching at Maine West High School in Des Plaines, Illinois.  I was driving the ol' Ramblin' Wreck (1963 Rambler station wagon) back and forth.

As a matter of fact, one of the songs in this post especially takes me right back to those days.

* Means the song was climbing the charts.  The number after the artist is how high the song got on the Billboard National Hot 100 charts.

23.  SPACE ODDITY-- David Bowie       #15    Good ol' Ziggy Stardust personna singing about Major Tom's trip.  His first Top 40.

22.  *DRIFT AWAY--  Dobie Gray       #5      One of my all-time favorite songs.  I love the comment:  "Almost  sounds like  he is opening  his heart up and baring his soul."  True.

21.  *ONE MAN BAND--  Ronnie Dyson      #28      Full title includes "(Plays All Alone)"  I don't remember it, however.   Good song.  Follow up to his only other Top 40 which was "(If You Let Me Make Love to You Then) Why Can't I Touch You"  (#8-1970).

20.  *STUCK IN THE MIDDLE WITH YOU--  Stealers Wheel      #6    That's Gerry Rafferty singing.  You might know him better for "Baker Street."   Scottish band.  This is the song that takes me back to student teaching.

Name That Tune (from the above songs):  "Well I Don't Know Why I Came Here  Tonight.  I Got The Feeling That Something Ain't Right."  Answer below.  --RoadDog

"Stuck In the Middle With You"

Music Deaths in 2022: Lewis, Post, Coolio, Miller and Kerr

RAMSEY LEWIS, 87

Died 12 September.  Pianist /composer (jazz / jazz funk).

JIM POST, 82

Died 14 September.  Had a #10 hit in 1968 "Reach Out in the Darkness" as a member of Friend and Lover.

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COOLIO, 59

Died 28 September.  Rapper / singer who had the 1995 hit "Gangsta's Paradise."  

JODI MILLER, 80

Died 6 October.  Singer / country.  Had a big hit at #5 Country and #12 Pop in 1965 with "Queen of the House" an answer to Roger Miller's "King of the Road."  From 1965 to 1979 had 27 Top 100s in country and 5 Top Tens.

ANITA KERR, 94

Died 10 October.  Songer / arranger / composer.  Founder of Anita Kerr singers.

Anybody Care to Go Back to 1973? Three Hours of Music from Fifty Years Ago on Chicago's WXRT

If you're like me, 1973 was a very important year.  The first half was a college year at NIU (they're playing "Two Hangmen" by Mason Profitt right now at 9:09 AM) and then I graduated, got married, bought my first car and started my one and only job teaching.  You might say it was quite a year for me.

Anyway, right now, Chicago's WXRT, 93.1 FM is doing their weekly Saturday Morning Flashback to this year.  It streams, so check it out until noon, CDST.

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I also wrote down every song they played in my RoadDog's RoadLog Blog.  Check them out.

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Also, if you're into Beach Music, WVCO, the Surf 94.9 FM,  in South Carolina is having the Beach Music Top Twenty songs ftrom now until noon EDST.

Tomorrow, Terri Hemmert has her Breakfast With the Beatles show on WXRT from 8 to 10 AM and Bob Stroud does his Rock and Roll Roots show from 9 to noon CDST on Chicago's WDRV, 97.1 FM.  The show features music from the 1960s and 1970s.  All shows stream.

Lots of Great Music to Listen To.  --RoadMusic

Music Deaths in 2022: Allison, Foxx, John, Zeb and Till

I take these from the Hope I Die Before I Get Old site.

**  JERRY ALLISON, 82

Died 22 August.  Drummer with Buddy Holly and the Cricketts.  Want to talk about a Rock and Roll Pioneer!!

**  INEZZ FOXX, 84

Died 25 August.  Singer, worked in pop / soul duo with her brother Charlie Foxx.

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**  MABLE JOHN, 91

Died 25 August.  Vocalist (blues / gospel).  Worked with Ray Charles.

**  DRUMMIE ZEB, 62 

Died 2 September.  Drummer / vocalist with reggae band Aswad.

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**  JOHN TILL, 76

Died 4 September.  Guitarist and member of Janis Joplin's band.

Music Deaths in 2022: Musey, Dozier, Newton-John and Pitman

DAVID MUSEY, 73

Died 6 August 2022.  Multi-instrumentalist player with Firefall and the Marshall Tucker Band.

LAMONT DOZIER,  81

Died 8 August 2022.  Singer and member of the Motown writing team of Holland-Dozier-Holland team that brought us all that classic Motown music.

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OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN, 73

Died 8 August 2022.  Singer (pop), actress, notably for the 1978 musical film "Grease", co-starring John Travolta.  What can I say about her?  She was my second crush after Linda Ronstadt.

BILL PITMAN, 102

Died 11 August 2022.  Guitarist / session musician who played on many celebrated songs in the 1950s and 1960s.   Member of the Wrecking Crew.  Played on Beach Boys' "Pet Sounds" and Phil Spector's Wall of Sound.

Music Deaths in 2022: Jim Sohns of The Shadows of Knight 'Gloria'

JIM SOHNS, 75

Died 29 July 2022

Lead vocalist with the Chicagoland band The Shadows of Knight who had a hit song with "Gloria."

The four original members attendd Prospect High School in Mt. Prospect, Illinois, near where I attended  school at Palatine High School.  Became the house band at The Cellar in Arlington Heights, Illinois.

Recorded "Gloria" which had originally been done by British band Them which featured Van Morrison.  It received big airplay on Chicago's two main pop stations, WLS and WCFL and went national, climbing to #10  in 1966.  It was followed up with "Oh Yeah"  (#39-1966).

We saw Jim Sohns at the Taste of Antioch back a few years ago which was his first performance after a stroke that he had.

WLS Top 10 (and Debuts) for Week of April 2, 1973: 'Ain't No Woman (Like the One I Got)'

Just fifty years ago.  Seems like yesterday, doesn't it?

1.  ALSO SPRACH ZARATHUSTRA--  Deodato

2.  KILLING ME SOFTLY WITH HIS SONG--  Roberta Flack

3.  LOVE TRAIN--  O'Jays

4.  NEITHER ONE OF US (WANTS TO BE THE FIRST TO SAY GOODBYE)--  Gladys Knoght & the Pips

5.  AIN'T NO WOMAN (LIKE THE ONE I GOT)--  Four Tops

6.  DANNY'S SONG--  Anne Murray

7.  LAST SONG--  Edward Bear

8.  BREAK UP TO MAKE UP--  Stylistics

9.  SING--  Carpenters

10.  CALL ME (COME BACK HOME)--  Al Green

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DEBUTS

16.  LITTLE WILLIE--  Sweet

17.  PEACEFUL--  Helen Reddy

20.  YOU ARE THE SUNSHINE OF MY LIFE--  Stevie Wonder

21.  THE CISCO KID--  War

22.  SPACE ODDITY--  David Bowie

Name That Tune (from the above songs):  "Make It Simple To Last Your Whole Life Long."  Answer below.  --RoadDog

"Sing"

Music Deaths in 2022: Norman, Hart, Gooden and Durham

**  MONTY NORMAN, 94

Died 11 July 2022   Composer / singer, best known for writing the James Bond Theme.

**  WILLIAM "POOGIE" HART, 77

Died 14 July 2022   Singer with vocal group Delfonics.  Sang on group's big hits "La-La Means I Love You"  (#4-1968) and "Didn't I Blow Your Mind This Time"  (#10-1970)

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**  SAM GOODEN, 87

Died 4 August 2022  Singer (soul), original member of the Impressions.  Jerry Butler and Curtis Mayfield were members of this group.  Had 17 Top 40 songs 1958 to 1974, including "It's Alright" (#4-1963) and "Amen"  (#7-1965).

**  JUDITH DURHAM, 79

Died 5 August 2022   Lead singer with folk group The Seekers.  "I'll Never Find Another You"  (#4-1965), "A World of Our Own"  (#19-1965) and "Georgy Girl"  (#2-1967).

Music Deaths in 2022: Tuggle, Morgan, Charlton and Wade

**  BRETT TUGGLE, 70

Died 19 June 2022  Keyboardist, played with David Lee Roth and Fleetwood Mac.

**  TOMMY MORGAN, 89   

Died 23 June 2022    Harmonica player / prolific session musician (popular music / film / television)  Played harmonica on "Good Vibrations"-- Beach Boys, "Rainy Days and Mondays"--  Carpenters and "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother" by Hollies.

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**  MANNY CHARLTON, 80

Died 5 July 22   Guitarist with rock band Nazareth.  Played on big hits like "Love Hurts."

**  ADAM WADE, 87

Died 7 July 2022  Singer / actor  "Take Good Care of Her"  (#7-1961), ""The Writing on the Wall" (#5-1961) and "As If I Didn't Know"  (#10-1961)