Time Machine co-ordinates VIXCI53842666

Welcome to April 26th, 1966.  Just yesterday, "TASS, the official Soviet news agency, reported that Asmar Salakhova of the Armenian SSR was the oldest woman in the world at the supposed age of 153 years old. Mrs. Salkhova claimed that she had been born in 1812, that she had been forced to go into exile at the age of 65 after an invasion in 1877, and that after 62 years away, when she was 137, "her dream came true" of returning home in 1949. "

Sorry about the poor quality of the photo, but it was taken in 1860 but it was either this or I would have had to have signed up for a free trial, and if you know me, that wasn't going to happen.  Ms Salakhova virtually disappears at this point- no further info was ever forthcoming.  So was it for real?  Could be- the Caucasus is known for extremely long-lived people.  And really, on a list of "longevity myths", she only came in 36th.  But, I remember in my first copy of the Guinness Book, the Russians were to have claimed to have invented both beer and baseball, so you tell me.


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Welcome to this week's Time Machine, with a visit from Peter Noone a bit later on, a semi-live 6D, the two new debuts on the M10 I promised last week, and almost nobody gets sued!

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First off, let's do the "semi-live" 6D!  This means, "I actually did do the research prior to typing (but not by much) and was too lazy to take notes"!  So let us start out with the question, "Who was Patricia Querubin?"  Well, she was a little Philly girl better known as Pat Kirby, and she was a jazz vocalist who landed a job on Steve Allen's Tonight Show, even made an album- but at the age of 20, apparently chose marriage and retired.  She might be most famous for being "the spoken word girl" in the Four Lads' big hit Moments To Remember in 1955 ( "A drive-in movie/Where we'd go/And somehow never watched the show").  The Lads come into our picture because of the various songs like this one were covered a decade or so later by the Vogues.  One of the bigger Lads hits that the Vogues charted was the two-sided single with No, Not Much, the b-side and bigger hit at a peak of 34 on Billboard.  The A-side was a song called Woman Helping Man, charted at #47, and was written by one Mark Charron.  Unlike most of these trips, Mark isn't one who made a BIG dent in the music line, but he did write several songs on BJ Thomas's first lp, I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry.  However, he did not write the title cut, originally done by Hank Williams Sr (who may or may not have written this song, either).  But BJ recorded it with his band, the Triumphs, and it was at #9 this week without a panel vote.


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Last week, I told you that my quest for psychedelia led me to 2 songs that very well could be on the M10 this week.  And they both are!  This first one at #10, while far from what I'd put under the psychedelic umbrella, is pretty good.  First recorded as a Japan-only bonus track on the 2012 lp Zoom, it got a bit more prominence when it featured on the soundtrack for the 2014 movie about Abscam, American Hustle.  At #10, here's ELO:





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And now, we want to welcome back for his second turn at the Panel picks, Mr Peter Noone of Herman's Hermits!  Nice to see you again, Peter!

Good to be here, mate!

So we are in the 113th week of the POTM elections, and your band is one of just 13 acts to win multiple times- and one of only four to win twice with the same song!

Really?  I must be in some good company, yes?

Well... the other three songs to hit twice are the Monkees' I'm A Believer, Barry Manilow's Mandy, and Mary McGregor's Torn Between Two Lovers... So depends a lot on taste.

But still, puts us in an elite grouping...

Sure does, and a bit later I'll be adding on just how elite a group.  But for now, you have 22 contestants from 91 stations...

Hey... if memory serves, I had 22 contestants the LAST time...

Yes you did, and I checked on that- only 6 of them made both lists, so we're cool!

Of course, now you can't tell anyone who the repeaters are...

Not till the end, anyway.  But that doesn't stop you from kicking off with the one hit wonders!

Right-o!  So the one vote brigade contains: Tommy Roe's Sweet Pea at Cashbox's #144 this week- one of THREE sub-100 songs on the list.

In fact, the next one is our world-famous #101 song this week- The Standells with Dirty Water.  Looks like Philadelphia tops Boston this week...

Oh, this was one of the repeaters- Australian act Bobby and Laurie with Hitchhiker...

And from Radio Hilversham, off the coast of Holland at sea, we have the Kinks and the delightful Dedicated Follower Of Fashion, still a month out from being on your charts.

From Radio London, we have the Alan Price Set with Put A Spell On You, which was actually #9 on the homeland's official charts, but never fit in over here.

Hmm... this is an odd note...

Sure is, Peter!  For what I believe to be the first time, a song has gotten a Panel vote two weeks running- which means 53 weeks apart!  And again amazingly, not a big chart smash.  Last week, Van Morrison's Them got a vote for Gloria, and they do so again THIS week- probably because the remake and much bigger hit by the Shadows Of Knight was in the top 20.

Finally, we have a fine song by the Isley Brothers, This Old Heart Of Mine, at #26, and Nancy Sinatra with These Boots Are Made For Walkin' at #57.

Okay, and here is the "also receiving votes" list:

The Shades Of Blue are at #127 with the R&B song Oh How Happy (You Have Made Me); they have two votes, as do:

SSGT Barry Sadler's The Ballad Of The Green Berets.  One might think this was just a Yank thing, but one vote was from South Africa, and the charts back home have it at #25!  Here, he's at #13.

The Outsiders' Time Won't Let Me is at #6...

..and the 2s finish with the Beach Boys and Sloop John B at #7.

Then, with three votes each, we have Percy Sledge's When A Man Loves A Woman at #35...

And I might note here, Percy won it all the last time you were here, Peter- and that he won this week's big mover, with a 40-notch jump from #75!

My!  Then we have the Loving Spoonful with Daydream at #11, Johnny Rivers and Secret Agent Man at #4, Bobby Dylan's Rainy Day Women #s 12 and 35 at #37, and the Righteous Brothers with Soul And Inspiration at - wait for it- NUMBER ONE...

And that means that you won't have much to go on on the Final Group!  In fact, it wasn't much of a battle yet again, with the winner outpolling the four other contenders combined!  Let 'em have it, good man...

Indeed!  Choose my successor from the Rascals' Good Lovin' at #3, The Mamas and Papas with Monday Monday at #8, Paul Revere and the Raiders with Kicks at #5, Our own Leaning On A Lampost at #10, and Cher with Bang Bang, My Baby Shot Me Down at #2!

All top tens, but no #1!  Good luck, everybody, and one we go...

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Once before, I did a stat story on our POTMs, and I want to give a bit of an update, along with another way of looking at the list.  The Beatles claimed their 6th trip to the podium not long ago, and that easily leads the field for appearances.  Four others have made it 3 times, Elvis, the Stones, the Everly Brothers, and Barry Manilow with his amazing two-weeks-in-a-row performance last year.  The Hermits become one of 8 acts with 2 trips.  But what was the biggest hit on the POTM podium? Well, last time I did it by weeks at #1, which gave us a pretty 50s/early60s-centric list.  So I decided to do it a different way.  So after the other debut- and in place of the stat pack that got denuded of its two big guns in the Panel reveal- I'll give you the biggest POTMs by worldwide sales!  But first...


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Another first for TM:  When Lucius hit like a hammer with Eventually, the video clearly said, "Tame Impala cover".  I had, for some reason, never listened to the original, until they came up as a modern psychedelic band.  So I listened, and I fell in love again!  So this will be the first time a song makes the M10 twice by two different artists!  At #8...






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So here for your entertainment, direct from wikipedia, the top ten worldwide biggest selling POTM winning songs!  And it was a tight one- the last song was the last one on the wiki list!


10- The Tornadoes, Telstar, 5 M sales

9- Tommy James and the Shondells, Crimson And Clover, 5 M

8- Elvis Presley, Don't Be Cruel, 6 M

7- Tony Orlando and Dawn, Knock Three Times, 6 M

6- Jackson Five, I Want You Back, 6 M

5- Beatles, Can't Buy Me Love, 7 M

4- Venus, Shocking Blue, 8 M

3- Monkees, I'm A Believer, 10 M

2- Kyu Sakamoto, Sukiyaki, 13 M

And the all time biggest seller of the Panel winners?

Bill Haley and his Comets, Rock Around The Clock, with 25 Million records sold!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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The remaining M10: 

This was a rough group to pick from- a lot of songs I would have put higher if we had more numbers between 1 and 10!  As we don't, Criminal Hygiene ends up one spot higher at #9 with Hardly News.

And Alkonost and the Dig swap places- the Russians dropping to 7 with Tanets Tsveten'ya, and the Dig up to 6 with Moonlight Baby.

The stunner was Lily and Madeline, being dropped from 1 to 5 with Can't Help The Way I Feel.  Sorry ladies, but I can't help... you know...

Also slipping down was two-time #1 Idlewild's Dream Variations, 2 spots to #4.

J Mascis avoids the slaughter and holds at 3 with See You At The Movies.

Mara Connor climbs a pair to #2 with No Fun...


And the new top dog, after a 5-to-1 climb...

...Maybird and Don't Keep Me Around!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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And the Panel? 

Well, Cher and the Hermits only net you 4.4%...

The Raiders, a mere 5.5%...

And the Rascals, only 7.7%...


But the winner, with 27.4 %....

The Mamas and the Papas with Monday Monday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


And you can bet I'll be enjoying next week with Michelle Phillips... oh, and Cass Elliot, too... and 1967!!!!


PS:  The repeaters?  Good Lovin', Monday Monday, Sweet Pea, Hitchhiker, Rainy Day Women, and Sloop John B.  See you next time!