Time Machine week 98

Today we pop up on Veterans Day, 1963.  John Kennedy and John-John lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns, while somewhere near Detroit, Gordie Howe celebrates breaking Maurice Richard's 11- year old lifetime goal-scoring record the night before;  and in Austria, we find out that the SS officer who arrested Anne Frank's family has been working as a Vienna police inspector- until  Simon Wiesenthal caught up to him.  He turned him in, and the police suspended him early in October- but it took until today, when the Communist Party newspaper found out and broke the story, that anyone else knew about it.

Maybe they shoulda sicked Gordie on him....

Anyway, welcome to Time Machine, as that 100th/400th anniversary looms ever closer.  This week, a new nation gets represented on the M10; a song in the UK 10 is one which has had a LOT of remakes- but never charted higher than 11 here; and it's kinda tough to have a How Low Can You Go list when there are so MANY of them plying their trade in the Panel list!  So keep your stick on the ice, and let's slide into this, shall we?

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Our lovely and vivacious Panel consists this week of:  WGH Newport News VA;  WCOL Columbus; WJET Erie PA; WGR Buffalo; WKNR Detroit; WSAI Cincinnati; KMEN San Bernardino;  KLIV San Jose; KFWB Los Angeles; WWHY (sounds like a stutter) Huntington WV, KDWB Minneapolis; and WABC New York.  They piled up 25 different songs, including 2 versions of Louie Louie- The Kingsmen's version, just starting its climb at 79, and a version by Paul Revere and the Raiders that Cashbox lumped in with it.  The low charter was fun to figure up:  Cincy's #4, Billy Stewart's Strange Feeling, had peaked at 79 2 weeks ago and fell off last week; the classic by the Murmaids, Popsicles And Icicles, wouldn't join the charts nationally till next week at #102 (but San Bernie had it at #2); and three songs in the bubbling under range were on the Panel's lists.  Dean and Jean, who were actually a couple of kids from Dayton named Brenda Lee Jones and Welton Young, were 123 nationally and #4 in Buffalo with Tra La La La Suzy;  The recently-passed Bobby Vee was at #131 nationally and #4 in VA with Never Love A Robin;  and the lowest was Teresa Brewer's He Understands Me, #5 in Columbus but #145 on CB.

Other than that, there weren't any songs I knew on the BU chart, but a lot of famous and soon to be famous names- Lou Rawls, Joan Baez ( who had We Shall Overcome at 136), Tony Orlando, and Ben E King to name a few.  But let's get on the high side of the chart, starting with the number one vote getters that missed the Panel Four:  the Temptations topped Buffalo with It's All Right; The aforementioned big hit version of Louie Louie in Detroit; The Beach Boys with Be True To Your School (which BTW I find much better without the cheerleaders, on the Endless Summer version) in San Bernie, and the also previously mentioned Popsicles And Icicles, which in addition to being #2 in San Bernie was #1 in San Jose.  And that Panel Four?

With 14 points and the #1 from Erie, Leslie Gore and She's A Fool, the national #11.

With 18 points and the # 1s from WV and Minneapolis, Nino Tempo and April Stevens with Deep Purple, the national #1 this week.

And keeping together two songs I've always associated with each other- with 21 points and the #1s of Columbus and Cincinnati (lotsa geographical stuff this week), the national #4, Dale and Grace with I'm Leaving It Up To You.

So here's your guessing game this week:  The Panel's top song is either the national #2 or 3.  It has 31 points and 3 #1 votes.  But is it the CB #2 Jimmy Gilmer and Sugar Shack, or the #3 Village Stompers with Washington Square?  The answer... coming later.  But you knew that.

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Our first of two M10 debuts, landing at #10, is an LA act called Empty Houses.  Lead singer Ali Shea brings us their tune Daydream:





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I'm going to dig into the UK ten early because I found some interesting factoids about this particular song (and I never got around to doing a 6D on the high charter with no Panel love, Ray Charles' Busted -appropriately enough- at #7).  That song started out as an Italian hit called Uno Dei Tanti (roughly One Of Many), and had English lyrics written by the famous team of Leiber-Stoller.  That song is called in English I (Who Have Nothing).  It first made our charts in our target year by one of those famous names I mentioned, Ben E King, who charted at #29 pop.  The next time it charted, in 1966, it was by Terry Knight and the Pack- Terry Knight being the infamous producer-manager of Grand Funk Railroad- and the Pack was built around GFR founders Mark Farner and Don Brewer!

In '69 a lost-and-forgotten singer named Linda Jones took it to 116; and the next year it would get charted twice.  Once was by a band called Liquid Smoke and they took it to #82; the other was the biggest hit version here, by Tom Jones, who peaked at #11.

 In 1972, it charted once by a band called Warhorse with an interesting backstory...

This is singer/actress Marsha Hunt, best known for being the mom of Mick Jagger's first child, Karis.  She had just put a band together to back her that included Nick Simper, a founding member of Deep Purple.  But, alas, that whole "mother of Mick's child" thing happened, so the assembled band  sans Marsha named themselves Warhorse, and they charted the song- so I am told, though I know not where nor how high.  Then in 1979's height of disco, the truly freaky Sylvester had a big dance hit with it, that peaked at #40.

American Idol winner Jordin Sparks hit with it in 2007 on her ep of songs she did on the show, peaking at #80 (of course this being a much different era of charting.) and Tom re-did it in 2010, and it hit #140.  As for the version on the UK chart, it was a non-charter here by Shirley Bassey, which sat at #8 this week.

And while she's our subject, let's have her say a few words to open the UK10:

I think men are afraid to be with a successful woman, because we are terribly strong, we know what we want and we are not fragile enough. 

And I'm guessing John Farrar's quote last week wouldn't have went over too well with HER, either!  So let's get on with the other nine...


10- One of the records we used to play as kids- generally at 78 rpm, because it was HUGELY funny- Trini Lopez and If I Had A Hammer.  It peaked at #3 here in September.

9- Also peaking here in September, this time at #6, the Crystals with Then He Kissed Me.

8- Weren't you paying attention?  Cheez...

7- Chuck Berry's Let It Rock, together with the flip of Memphis Tennessee, which had hit our charts back in February of 1960 (yes, 3 years ago and change), peaking at #64.

6- Our #6 in the USA- which got a grand total of one #3 vote from WABC- the Ronettes with Be My Baby.

5- The Tremeloes with one of their many big hits in the UK that never came here, Do You Love Me.

4- The Searchers with Sugar And Spice, which would climb to #44 in the US of A in June of 1964.

3- A two sided hit from Roy Orbison:  Blue Bayou (which was #37 this week here) and Mean Woman Blues (which sat at #12).

2- The Beatles with She Loves You, just a few months away from it's American debut- and was 5 weeks past a four-week run at the top, but 3 weeks away from a second, 2-week tour at the top.

And tops of the pops?

...Gerry and the Pacemakers, with a tune that would peak at #65 here way off in July of '65- You'll Never Walk Alone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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And since our two features were a bit of a mash this week, it's time for the M10!  Bring on the band for debut #2- and the song at #9....




Baywaves, believe it or not, is from the Spanish capital of Madrid!  They call their style "Hipnopop"- I call it more of the retro-psychedelia that I really like.

Lucius manages not only to hang on for a 7th week, but pulls Pulling Teeth back up to #8!

And in between the debuts and the "where the action is" top five, we have the sargasso sea of "same place as last week"- Tangerine's Wild At Heart at #7, and Geowulf's Saltwater at #6.

Dinosaur Jr slips from the top to #5 with Love Is, the two week #1.

Buffalo Springfield move up one spot to #4 with their 1966 tune Do I Have To Come Right Out And Say It.

Agnes Obel has Golden Green at #3 this week- putting it even in points with her #1 Familiar and ahead of it by one with 8 weeks on the chart!

Two Door Cinema Club must feel like gravity is losing it's hold, rising into the runner up slot with Lavender.

And the #1s?  M10 says...

...Radiation City with Come And Go- the sixth song to make #1 on their second week on the M10!

And who did you take at the Panel's #1?  I'll bet about all of you chose the right one...

... Jimmy Gilmer's Sugar Shack!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Well whattaya know?  My list of random years runs out next week with 1971!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Be here for the penultimate Time Machine !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!