Time Machine week 60

Today might not be a good day for flying, since it's February 12, 1962- 3 months and 4 days before my own entrance into the world.  You see, we have an aerial lost-and-found today.  Found, British pilot Bill Lancaster.  A famous pilot whose fame had just got him acquitted of a murder charge- confusing prosecution, calm demeanor, a helpful girlfriend, all combined to convince the jury that his rival for said GF committed suicide, despite Lancaster admitting he left bogus suicide notes for him- had left on an attempt to break the England to South Africa speed record.  He got lost in the desert- so lost, rescuers looking for where he was SUPPOSED to be never found him- and today, almost 29 years later, his body was found.  Lost- a scenic flight from Christchurch to Milford Sound, New Zealand.  Despite the biggest search in Kiwi history, no trace of the Dragonfly ZK and its passengers- including honeymooners Elwin and Valerie Seville- was ever found.  A $4,000 reward for finding the wreckage is still active, and the flight raised the rumours of a NZ "Bermuda Triangle."

Have they tried milk cartons?

Welcome to Time Machine just slightly pre- Martin Era.  In celebration, we'll have the latest of my song lists- "My favorite songs from when I was in the womb"!  Also, this week the return of a grouping that hasn't recorded together in about 45 years- and sounds like they never skipped a beat!  In addition, we have 3 new debuts, three "lowest charting songs", one of the great routs in panel history, and Hubert H. Humphrey!  Strap in, they'll never find us!

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In the interests of spacing out videos, here we come with this week's first M10 debut- new ALVVAYS!!!!





Party Police debuts this week at #10, assuring Alvvays at least a few more to add to what is now an 11-week streak on the M10.

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And now, let's meet this week's panel!

The list includes WHK Cleveland, KYA San Francisco, WDRC Hartford, WFBC Greenville SC, WJET Erie, KILT Houston, KRLA Los Angeles, WOKY Milwaukee, WYSE Lakeland FL, WLS Chicago, WABC New York, and WKBW Buffalo.  This gang racked up 27 different songs, though the #1 votes were rather, shall we say, concentrated.  Two tunes got #1 love without making the Panel Four- Jimmy Dean's letter to Russia, Dear Ivan (Lakeland); and Don and Juan's What's Your Name (LA).

This week, I have kind of a three way "lowest charter" on the Panel picks.  The lowest charting song on the Cashbox charts THIS week that got Panel love was a ditty by a band called the Raging Storms, with a song called The Dribble Twist, which got #2 in Buffalo but was at #143 nationally.  The next one wouldn't get to #143 until NEXT week- Big Sambo and the House Wreckers, who were #4 on Houston with The Rains Came.  And finally, there's a tune that never charted at all- though Charlie Rich would take it to #1 country in 1974- sitting at #3 on that same Houston chart.  It was by Harlan Howard- the man that co-wrote I Fall To Pieces for Patsy Cline- and the tune is She Called Me Baby.


And the Panel Four?


With 12 measley points and the #1 of Houston (which is the only #1 vote left that the #1 song DIDN'T get), the nation's #19, Bruce Channel and Hey Baby.

With 14 points, Chubby Checker and the nation's #2 song, The Twist.

With 18 points, the nation's #5 song, Dion with The Wanderer.

And at #1, with a whopping 9 #1s and 49 points... stay tuned....

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So the Official Martin Era started the afternoon of May 16th, 1962, which means that the first 4 1/2 months of 1962 is "unofficial" Martin Era.  But by extension, you could say the ME started back in August 1961, when my father said, "Oops, CRAP!" for the last time.  And so, I looked up the tunes from my time in the womb, and here are my top 10 pre-birth hits:

10- You just saw it on the Panel Four- Chubby Checker doing The Twist.
9- The number one song this week in Los Angeles, Don and Juan's What's Your Name.
8- Gene Pitney takes the next spot with Town Without Pity.
7- Ray Charles hits the next spot with Hit The Road Jack.
6- Bobby Vee is here with Take Good Care Of My Baby.
5- Del Shannon comes next with Hat's Off To Larry.
4- The Shirelles are here with Soldier Boy.
3- Jimmy Dean makes another appearance this week with Big Bad John.
2- The Tokens take runner up with The Lion Sleeps Tonight.

And #1?  Wait a while- because this #1 is also the Panel #1!  And the Cashbox #1!

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Video #2 debuts on the M10 at #9.  It is a band who hasn't performed in this lineup since 1970's Santana III- which gives away the big secret!  From the upcoming lp Santana IV, the original lineup Santana!









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And now, a word from Her Majesty, Queen Victoria:


The important thing is not what they think of me, but what I think of them.


Them who?  Why, who else?

The UK top ten this week!

10- Bobby Darin here with a song at #28 this week in the States, called Multiplication.

9- The Everly Brothers, who were at #14 in the US of A, with Crying In The Rain.

8- Mr Acker Bilk got off to an earlier start in England, already top ten with Stranger on The Shore.  It will debut on the Cashbox charts on St Patty's Day.

7- Billy Fury came in here with I'd Never Find Another You- not to be confused with the Seekers I'll Never Find Another You.

6- A later start for Neil Sedaka's Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen, which was already dropping at #46 here.

5- Leon Van Dyke sings a song later made bigger by Dionne Warwick- Walk On By.  It was at 40 and dropping in the States.

4- Elvis Presley's Can't Help Falling In Love was climbing in both places, sitting at #7 in the US of A.

3- Eden Kane, who never did more than a "bubble under" on the American charts, was here with Forget Me Not.

2- Another late starter which was already in it's 25th week and falling at #68 in the US, Chubby Checker (boy, he gets around) with Let's Twist Again.

And at #1, eleven songs into that long top 30 streak we hit on last week, Cliff Richard with his third chart topper in the UK, a tune called The Young Ones.  He was still a few weeks from his first American chart, and about a year from making the top 40.

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Hubert Humphrey was another of the politicians trying to spice up their campaign by having a band go touring with them.  Nixon had Blood Sweat And Tears (and wiki claims it almost finished them on the charts), but the Happy Warrior had Tommy James and the Shondells-  a couple years before the Rock and Roll lifestyle nearly finished Tommy off.  Humphrey actually wrote the liner notes to the Crimson And Clover lp, which contained a song familiar to those of you who paid attention to the M10 year end top 50.  That song was Sugar On Sunday, which made the M50 by a band called the Clique.  They only had one other song that had any impact, a tune called I Hold Out My Hand.  This tune was in turn covered by Gayle McCormick and Smith in 1969.  Smith, of course, is best known for their hit cover of the Shirelles' Baby It's You- and that tune sat at #8 this week but got no panel love.


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And now, the M10!

You already know #s 10 and 9, so we start at #8, where Jana Kramer moves up two spots with her 3rd M10, Circles.  (Jana, BTW, has the next longest streak of being in the M10, with Boomerang and I Got The Boy combining for ten weeks.)

Next up, our third debut, from Boise, Idaho's Built To Spill- and my best lead in to this one is what I told Laurie last night:  "It amazes me that 50 years after we all sat getting stoned to Decade, we have grandkids out there still trying to sound like Neil Young and Crazy Horse."





Alvvays is also at #6, dropping 3 spots with Next Of Kin.

Brian Fallon climbs 3 to #5 with Nobody Wins.

Jack Wood, after two weeks at the top, slips to #4 with Born To Wander.

Quiet Hollers moves into third with Mont Blanc.

And a song that is constantly surprising me.  Didn't think it would make the chart, didn't think it would climb, and certainly didn't think it would be a heartbeat from the top.  Yet, here sits Brooke Annibale after another 3-notch climb in the runner up spot with Remind Me.

Three weeks ago, Jack Wood's Born To Wander became the oldest song to make #1 on the M10, passing the 1977 song Ridin' In My Car by NRBQ, which had been the oldest since week #2.  And here in M10's 25th week- it gets knocked to number three,

The number ones, please?

On the M10, the new second-oldest song to hit #1...

...Flo and Eddie with Keep It Warm!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And this week's Cashbox #1, this week's overwhelming Panel #1, and the top song from my time in the womb....

....Gene Chandler, The Duke Of Earl!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Next week we'll be hitting 1964- as well as the M10's first six months!  I'm sure there'll be cake or something, so don't miss it!



BREAKING NEWS!  BREAKING NEWS!  Mere hours later, we have completed the M10 Birthday Party, and it will post next Wednesday morning!  Don't miss out, lots of cool music, and maybe some cake...