Time Machine week 96

Well, today we cruise into 1967, and if you just came to this day through Google, you would believe that the entire world was wrapped around a dead cop and an arrested Black Panther leader in Oakland, following which everyone adjourned to Atlanta to watch the birth of Julia Roberts.  Which, when you consider the highlight from yesterday was a Catholic priest protesting the Vietnam War by pouring blood on draft cards, wasn't as bad as it could have been.  Me, I'm just starting Kindergarten right now, looking forward to Fridays when we got chocolate milk, wondering why my teacher, Mrs Leaders, wasn't hosting Concentration instead of Hugh Downs, and dreading gym class because they made us change shoes, and I always had to get some girl to tie my shoes since I hadn't quite figured it out yet.

And my, wasn't that most hated list last week a rousing success?  I now know I can't bash John Lennon or President Obama, and I must avoid playing Cat Stevens, Paul Anka, The Captain and Tenille,  and Olivia Newton-John, lol!  Anyway, this week on TM, the return of the How Low Can You Go List, the return of Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich, a fascinating (to me) report on double albums and their progeny, and the Two Door Cinema Club returns to the M10!  And, we're coming to you from Wednesday- just because the Indians are getting clobbered and I need an excuse to listen to Joe Buck bringing us the bad news...

So let's see whose sacred cow I slaughtered this week...

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And this week's Panel for your entertainment includes KQV Pittsburgh, CKLW Detroit, KUDL Kansas City, KHJ Los Angeles, KGB San Diego, WRKO Boston, KLWW Cedar Rapids, WERK Muncie IN, WBSP Pensacola, WSGN Birmingham, WLS Chicago, and WDLB Marshfield WI (pretty much throw a dart at Wisconsin and hit dead center).  I don't think Blogger particularly likes this group, because as I type, I look up one moment and ALL of the call letters have squiggly lines, and the next only KHB, the next everybody, the next WSGN...  I think they may be haunted for Holliween!  However, that's as close to a holiday salute as I am getting this week- mainly because I didn't think about it...


Anyway, the Panel had 25 different songs this week.  They included the low charter, The Last Word's Can't Stop Loving You at #91 on Cashbox, along with a tune that just missed the top 40 in September- Al Kent's You've Got To Pay The Price, and a very obscure #1 from Pensacola.  This was by one of TWO separate and unrelated bands in the area at the time with the oh-so-common name of the 13th Hour Glass.  The one we are concerned with had begun musical life as the Coventry Sextet, and are accused by the other group of stealing their name.  That other group never got anywhere, and the dispute became moot.  After charting locally with a song later charted by the Royal Guardsmen, they got the notice of some record exec who invited them to record a song- only thing was, when they got there, the exec used JUST lead singer  Tommy Turner and his own hand picked studio guys, even though the resulting record had the band's name to it.  This genius promoter wasn't so great at promoting his recorded music though, and the single went nowhere- along with another single he released under the 13th Hour Glass name, which actually had two OTHER local bands on it- King James and the Royals on the A side, and Soul-7 on the b-side!  In any event, the song that was #1 in Pensacola this week was called Indecision, and was actually a cover of the Buffalo Springfield tune Do I Have To Come Right Out And Say.  I tried to YouTube this lost gem, but the only 13HG videos are from a modern incarnation of one of the two bands- not sure which- and not the right song.

In the meantime, we have four songs- including that one- which got #1 votes but missed the Panel Four.  Those songs are Strawberry Alarm Clock's Incense And Peppermints (Detroit), Marvin and Tammy's Your Precious Love (Birmingham), and The Box Tops' The Letter (Chicago).

As the song that got no Panel love this week only tangentlly effects what is only tangentlly a 6D, that tune was the Buckinghams' Hey Baby (They're Playing Our Song), which was at #5.  And without further ado, the Panel Four:

A tie for fourth at no #1s and 12 points:  Sam and Dave's Soul Man, the national # 4, and Bobby Vinton's Please Love Me Forever, the national #14.

At #3, with no #1s and 17 points, the national # 2, the Young Rascals and How Can I Be Sure.

At #2, with the #1s of Boston and Los Angeles, the national ##9, Vicki Carr and It Must Be Him.

And- do the math, you know this is a rout- with 6 #1s and 39 points, the national top dog- stay tuned.


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The lone debut on the M10 this week is a debut from the Two Door Cinema Club- who had a #8 tune called Are We Ready? back in July- coming in up at #8.





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I've pretty much covered up my bubbling under notes with stats from last week's Oklahoma/Texas Tech football game, but I think I can parse out the results:

The Beach Boys were at #102 with Wild Honey;
Human Beinz were at #115 with Nobody But Me;
A recycled version of Del Shannon's Runaway was at #123;
Vanilla Fudge was at #129 with You Keep Me Hanging On;
and at the bottom (or at least at #134) was Linda Ronstadt's Stone Poneys with Different Drum!


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So looking at the Buckinghams for 6D material led me to producer James Guerico, and Guerico led me to his fabulous run at the start of Chicago's career.  And, as that career began with three double lps and on live box set, I began to wonder about the success of these 2-disc sets.  The only list of "best selling double lps" I found was on VH1, and while I question it's accuracy, it's still the best place to start.  off their list of 35, I found 23 Martin Era disc sets- including Fleetwood Mac's Tusk, which gets in on the technicality that it was released on December 5, 1979.  So I came up with, after a little digesting, a pair of lists:  the biggest Doubles of the ME, and the biggest singles FROM those sets.  Here, first, is the singles top ten:

Chicago charted 6 top tens off double lps.  The lowest on our list here was their #6 Call On Me from Chicago VII.

Todd Rundgren's Something/Anything? contributes Hello It's Me, which hit #5.

Chicago was here again with a #4 charter from Chicago II, 25 Or 6 To 4.

Two songs from these lps were #2 hits- Bob Dylan's Rainy Day Women #s 12 and 39 from Blonde On Blonde, which was the first rock double; and the title track to Elton John's Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.

And five #1 songs, in no particular order:

George Harrison's My Sweet Lord, from All Things Must Pass;
Elton John, again from Goodbye, with Bennie And The Jets;
TWO tracks from Stevie Wonder's Songs In The Key Of Life- Sir Duke and I Wish.
And Pink Floyd's Another Brick In The Wall, from (where else?) The Wall.

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At this point, I shall briefly hop out of the time stream for some sleep, followed by another day of grinding out my pay.  But don't worry!  I'll be back in a couple of linear seconds...

...and we're back!  Now, let's go out to William Wordsworth for a good word...

The ocean is a mighty harmonist. 

I'll go along with that!  So let's cross the ocean and...

Easy listening king "Mr Moonlight", Frankie Vaughn, at #10 this week with There Must Be A Way.

Procul Harem will enter the US charts in a couple weeks with Homburg.

The Herd, with 17-year-old lead singer Peter Frampton, are here with a song written by one Alan Blaikely called From The Underworld.

And those whacky boys, Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich, are at #7 with the unusually titled Zabadak!, which will climb to #52 here in February.  This song was also penned by Mr Blaikely.

This week's #3 in America is #6 in England- the Box Tops and The Letter.

The Move were in the UK top 5 5 times before Jeff Lynne joined and they evolved into ELO.  However, that success never translated in America, and they only grazed our charts once.  This song was not the one- Flowers In The Rain.

Another tune that didn't chart in the US until February- and charted a lot higher than the other one- was the Foundations with Baby Now That I Found You.

At #3 we have Stevie Winwood, Dave Mason and Traffic, with one of their first hits- not a charter here- called Hole In My Shoe.

This weeks' US #22, Engelbert Humperdinck and The Last Waltz.

And top of the pops, a song that was just a couple weeks from debuting here...

... the Bee Gees- in a less disco mode- with (The Lights Went Down In) Massachusetts!!!!!!!!!


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So what were the biggest double lps of the Martin Era?  A few of the ones that just missed included the Who's Quadrophenia, The Stones and Exile On Main Street, the Clash's London Calling, and the one I wore the grooves off of- ELO's Out Of The Blue.  If you are of a mind that Fleetwood Mac shouldn't get credit for Tusk, having been released at the end of the ME, then Consider Bob Dylan's Blonde On Blonde #10.  Otherwise:

10- Jimi Hendrix Experience, Electric Ladyland, which I give bonus points for coolest title;

9- Chicago Transit Authority, which is basically Chicago I;

8- The Who, Tommy;

7- The aforementioned Tusk;

6- George Harrison's All Things Must Pass;

5- Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Elton John;

4- Songs In The Key Of Life, Stevie Wonder;

3- Led Zeppelin, Physical Graffiti;

2- Beatles, "the White Album";

And to no one's real surprise, I'm sure...

So, are double lps a wise idea?  Doesn't much matter nowadays, but back then that was a lot more money and a lot of record flipping!  But look at it this way:  Chicago started out with three double lps (Chicago Transit Authority, #17 peak; Chicago, also known as Chicago II, #4; Chicago III, #2), and a box set, Chicago Live at Carnegie Hall, # 3.  Then they went to single lps and hit #1 with Chicago V, VI, VII, VIII, and IX.
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And with that, it's M10 time!

Benji Hughes slips to the last rung with Longshot.

Dent May falls face down into #9 with Face Down In The Gutter Of Your Love, a four notch slide in his 8th week.

You listened (!) to #8; 7 is last week's debut, Geowulf's Saltwater.

Tangerine moves up a pair with Wild At Heart.

Two songs this week just won't go away; one of those is the former #1 by The Explorers Club, Quietly, which moves back up a notch to #5.

Lucius takes their one week and runs, dropping to 4 with Pulling Teeth.

The other song caught in an updraft, having went 3-5-4-3 the last four weeks, is Shakes and Tranquilize in their 7th week.

Agnes Obel climbs the sky of Golden Green to #2, up one spot.

And the #1s?

M10 says..

...Dinosaur Jr and Love Is...!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And the Panel goes with...

Lulu's To Sir With Love!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


I have 1978 for next week's show- and getting close to having to re-generate some numbers!