Time Machine week 76

We are come to June 3rd, 1971, and I SWORE that if there was ANYTHING else to highlight today, I would NOT mention the Cubs' Ken Holtzman no-hitting my Reds.

The play No Sex Please, We're British opened at the Strand in London.

The band Hot Tuna (think rump Jefferson Airplane) released Live From The Fillmore East.

Screw you, Ken Holtzman.

Welcome to this week's Time Machine, where we will find:  Two more M10 records fall this week; the Panel gives us 9 number ones and a tight race at the top; how we get from Juice Newton to Jesus; and a Panel pick makes the UK ten!  Batter up, let's have a swing at this!


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This week's Panel consists of:  WKNR Detroit, WGH Newport News, VA, WAPE Jacksonville (the "Big Ape"?), KAKC Tulsa, WDAK Columbus GA, WCFL Chicago, WEEX Easton PA, WDGY Minneapolis, KRUX Phoenix, KNUZ Houston (I woulda thought this was an all-news format), WCRV Washington NJ, and KCBQ San Diego.  This lot gave us 30 different songs, and nine different #1s- only two songs hit #1 multiple places.  The 5 that didn't get on the Panel 4 were: Eighth Day's She's Not Just Another Woman (Detroit), Beginning Of The End's Funky Nassau (J-ville), Donny Osmond's Sweet And Innocent (those real rockers in Chicago), Three Dog Night's Joy To The World (Easton), and The Raiders' Indian Reservation (Houston).  Detroit was the place to be for low charters- they had Five Man Electrical Band's Signs at #3, while it was at #70 (but climbing) nationally; and at their #5, they had an early Earth Wind And Fire tune called Love Is Life- which was three weeks away from charting nationally, and only got to #90 then!

Needless to say, a big crowd like this leaves the votes rather dispersed, but not enough to prevent a really close race at the top.  The Panel Four:

With 16 points and the #1 from Phoenix, Ringo Starr with It Don't Come Easy, the national #4.

With also 16 points, but 2 #1s (Washington and Tulsa), the national #9- the Carpenters and Rainy Days And Mondays.

With 27 points- one shy of the top- and three #1s (Newport News, Minneapolis, and San Diego), the Rolling Stones with the national runner up, Brown Sugar.

And the #1, with 28 points and a #1 from the Peach State (as well as the national top spot)... stay tuned.

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This week I struggled a little bit with the M10- until I finally got it right, and said, there, that's pretty good at that!  Anyway, we have one of two debuts at #10.  Sisters Jahan and Yasmine Youseff call themselves Krewella, and they are dynamite at #10 with their hit:






(Yes, Shady, I know, Beauty contest...)


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Juice Newton was always a favorite of mine as the 80's stretched into God-I-can't-stand-this-junk.  One of her best was Love's Been A Little Bit Hard On Me (#7, 1982).  It was written by one Gary Burr, who also spurred the 80's country comeback of Billy Joe Royal by penning his top ten country hit from 1985 Burned Like A Rocket.  Back in the day, BJR's main songwriter was Joe South, a household name in this household, who wrote Billy's hits Down In The Boondocks, I Knew You When, and Yo-Yo (which was a bigger hit for the Osmonds).  Another Joe South comp was Deep Purple's Hush, which was sung by original lead singer Rod Evans.  Evans was replaced by Ian Gillan (no relation to Karen Gillan, I checked), who was the most recognizable voice for Purple down the years.  He also was Jesus Christ on the lp Jesus Christ Superstar, and Andrew Lloyd Webber would have had him play the part in the movie, too, but he wanted £ 250,000- approximately 1100 times what Judas Iscariot got- and wanted the boys in the band to get paid without actually being in the film.  Obviously, Gillan's career as Savior was a bit shorter than the original.  Which brings us back to the sound track, and the song therein- Murray Head and Superstar- which sat at #8 this week and got no panel love.


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Jumping the gun a bit, I want to let you know that in the midst of last Friday's debauches, Spotify ran an ad that the 50th anniversary lp from the Monkees had been released.  Remembering how crappy That Was Then, This Is Now had been, I stepped cautiously to the virtual turntable.  I had no need to doubt, this record- called Good Times!- WILL be the lp of summer 2016.  A nice mix of reconstituted recordings that never made it to the stores, revamped and cleaned up, and brand new stuff written by some surprising faces, I ordered it on the spot and it rests in our car's CD player as we speak.  And one of those tunes is coming up in the M10!  More on that in a bit.

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In the spirit of that last announcement, let's hear from the late Davy Jones (who has a lead vocal on the new album, BTW):

Wherever I go, people still shout out: 'Hey, hey, we're The Monkees.' And I never tire of that. 


And you'll hear it here in a few minutes!  Until then...

10- East Of Eden was listed as a progressive band, but sounded a lot closer to Dexy's Midnight Runners with their instrumental at the ten-spot, Jig A Jig.  Not a charter here.

9- The King peaked here in April at #33 with this one, Rags To Riches.

8- Tony Christie was big in song and screen in the UK, and one of his hits was I Did What I Did For Maria.

7- McGuinness Flint, who charted here with a song on my shuffle, When I'm Dead And Gone, charted in the UK with the very similar Malt And Barley Blues.

6- Neil Diamond's I Am I Said, prolly the most profound song ever sung to a chair, had already peaked at #4 here last month.

5- The Panel #2, as well as the US #2- the Stones with Brown Sugar- along with the flip side duo of Bitch and Let It Rock.

4- Free, who you know from doing All Right Now, was at this spot with a song that didn't make it here (but should have IMHO), My Brother Jake.

3- A #9 R&B hit back in 1966 here, the Elgins get their second chance in England with Heaven Must Have Sent You.

2- I don't know which amazed me more- that R Dean Taylor's Indiana Wants Me was a hit in the UK, or that it was a bigger hit THERE (at #2) than it was here (#5 last November).

And the tops of the pops?

...an American #1 from January, Dawn and Knock Three Times!!!!!!!


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And now, the M10!

You've listened to #10 already (right?  RIGHT???) so we move to #9 where Strawberry Runners set another mark- largest drop from the top, falling to #9 with When We Were Good.  Of course, you'd expect a song in its 8th week on the ten to be about there...

M83 and Mai Lan move up a spot to #8 with Go!

However, the Jayhawks ignore them and stay at #7 for a second week with Lovers Of The Sun.

And now, the debut of MY first single from the Monkees new lp- a tune written by someone not unfamiliar with the top of the M10, Weezer's frontman Rivers Cuomo:





How. Cool. Was. That?

Dami Im moves up a three spot with Sound Of Silence.

The Ruth B. sandwich continues, with Superficial Love holding at 4, and 2 Poor Kids, leapfrogging her to go back to #3.

And still at #2, Telekinesis with Lean On Me.


And at #1?

M10 says...

....Tangerine with You'll Always Be Lonely!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Which is the record sixth different #1 in a row- and I wouldn't put money on that record being extended anytime soon....



And on the Panel?

...Honey Cone with Want Ads!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Next week it's back to -  1965!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Tune in then!