Time Machine co-ordinates VICXLV649103071

 

Here's the news from October 30, 1971:

Duane Allman, founder and lead singer of the nationally prominent Macon based Allman Brothers Band, was killed last night when his motorcycle spun out of control.

Allman never regained consciousness from the accident and died at 8:40 p.m. at the Middle Georgia Medical Center.

The accident occurred at 5:44 p.m. as Allman was traveling west on Hillcrest Avenue through the Bartlett Avenue intersection according to investigating Bluecoat Officers Ray Gurganious and J. E. Lister.

Allman lost control of his motorcycle just after a truck driven by Charles Wertz had entered the intersection and turned north from Hillcrest onto Bartlett, police said.

In a statement to police, Wertz said, “After completing a half turn (onto Bartlett), I saw a motorcycle about 20 feet behind my truck. I slowed and heard a crush. I stopped and couldn’t tell whether the man on the motorcycle had hit me or not. “I saw a boy lying on the pavement with the cycle going as fast as it could, I walked over and shut it off.”

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Not a happy way to start things today on TM;  things rarely have been this year.  Perhaps we can get them a little cheerier with today's Time Machine, featuring Michael Jackso... uh-oh, what is it this time, Nardole?  

Well, sir, remember all that trouble we had with little Mary McGregor?

You mean the trouble caused when you took her from 1955 instead of 1977?

Yes, and how she somehow got loose in the Tardis?  So our solution to that was to build an anti-child device into the doorway.  It managed to thrust her back into her own time... at least, we hoped so...

Okay...

And then, the little Fleetwood Mac got in some months later due to... uh...

Due to that same error?

No, due to a clause in the contract.  And we forgot to shut it off in getting them.  Apparently we wired it to a faulty connection and it shorted a circuit.  And when we repaired the circuit, the feedback froze it in place.

And you never fixed it?

I, er, believe the switch for the device was shunted into a pocket dimension of 1955...and we haven't been back since.  However, since we were going to be back just after the turn of the year, I thought...

You thought we'd wait.  And your solution for this week's Panel is..?

Well, he'll be in in a moment...

Oh, I can't wait.  In the meantime though, let's get the first of two M10 debuts this week- and from that 1970 lp Half And Half, here's more Four Seasons at #10...

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All right, I know everybody's waiting to see who Nardole got as a guest instead of Michael Jackson to do the Panel.  Welcome everybody....

Good grief!  REGGIE Jackson!!??!

Hi!  What's up?

Gee, Reggie, you've always been a favorite player of mine (EDITORS NOTE:  Except when he played for the Yankees), but I didn't know you were much into music...

Yeah, I used to relax to upbeat stuff.  The O'Jays, the Four Tops, the Beach Boys...

Not so far from what we like!  So did Nardole fill you in?

Yeah, you have a list of songs from 1971 that hit #1 around the country, and you want me to guess the winner.

Well, not necessarily guess, but you can if you want.  I really just want you to introduce them...

Okay, give me the fact sheet and I'll get it going!

Well, normally, I...

Listen, man.  Don't go all Charlie Finley on me.  Just give the mike to the Straw That Stirs The Drink, and I'll handle it.

Now, we have a list of 22 songs from 67 stations, including one from the Netherlands who took Middle Of The Road's hit Soley Soley; three contenders from Australia- Dave Mills with Love Is A Beautiful Song, Drummond's Daddy Cool, and Olivia Newton-John's Banks Of The Ohio; And one for South Africa's #1, which I'm supposed to save for later.  Now, there are four contestants for the finals.  They are:

Cher's Gypsies, Tramps And Thieves.  I never get whether she's supposed to be a Gypsy or an Indian.  Kind of like a switch-pitcher.  I'm gonna say no to her.  But... she was at #5 this week on Cashbox, so we'll see.

Next, The Osmonds with Yo-Yo, at #2.  Since you wouldn't be able to get little Donny in here either, I'll bet you're hoping for a 'no'.

Third is Rod Stewart's Maggie May at #1.  Hard to bet against the big gun.  But, even I have my strikeouts, so we'll think about it.

Finally, we have Isaac Hayes and the Theme From Shaft, at #24 with a bullet.  That's some funky stuff there, but he's kind of behind in the standings.  I'm gonna have to bet the odds and go with Rod.  Back to you, Chris.  Say, you aren't related to that old Yankee second baseman, Billy Martin, are you?  He's done some fine work in Minneapolis and Detroit...

Uh, no, not really...

Too bad, I think he's going places.  I wouldn't mind playing for him...

(Chris gets a mental image....)

Uh, yeah, keep those good thoughts, and thanks for helping out!  

Next, a second debut at #9.  This band came to me from a friend's blog.  The leader is one Ron Keel, who had a small stint as frontman for Black Sabbath.  He moved on into Country metal, and became known as the Metal Cowboy.  He then took a job at a radio station in South Dakota, whose owner had several questionable business ventures (including currently trying to unload a racetrack so badly, that he offered to give the track to the winner of a race he was organizing- no takers.)  The owner also had, get this, a pawn shop/entertainment center, for which he pegged Ron to put together a house band, and so the Badlands House Band was formed.  Needless to say, this collapsed in one of many ruinous heaps by the guy, but the band was so tight, they got a contract under the name the Ron Keel Band.  And here they are with something that just missed the Cover Summer of 2020...

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You ever wonder who Ubu ("Sit Ubu, sit, good dog") productions was named after?  Well, founder Gary Goldberg named it after his Black Lab  named Ubu Roi...

Taken in front of the Louvre...

Ubu comes up because it produced Family Ties, and that 1980s or so TV show had it's theme sung by Johnny Mathis on male lead- except for year 1, when it was Danny Tufano.  Danny was once the lead singer for the Buckinghams, who had many great 60's hits including the #5 Mercy Mercy Mercy.  This song was a cover of a Cannonball Adderley instrumental which was an R&B #2 and pop #11 in 1967.  The back side was Willie Mitchell's Soul Serenade... and this is important because Willie Mitchell was the producer on this week's 6D victim, Al Green's Tired Of Being Alone, #6 without a Panel vote.

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Overseas, if you please:  At #1 around the world:

UK had the same song as we did, Maggie May- not often that happens!

Canada went with Donny Osmond's Go Away Little Girl, which was #12 here.

Australia, out of the three that made the Panel, chose ONJ and Banks Of The Ohio, #94 here.

New Zealand had a neat, but hard to type, ballad at the top, The Rumour with L'amour Est L'enfant de La Liberte. (Of course until they sell a giant size keyboard with much bigger keys, they're all hard to type for me...)

And South Africa had local band Charisma's version of Mammy Blue- a song that was on the Cashbox 100 in versions by the Pop Tops (#80) and James Darren (89).

And the big move belonged to Finalist Isaac Hayes, as Shaft went from 67-24, beating out John Lennon's Imagine with a move of 43.  Gee, John gets shafted yet again on TM!

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The remaining M10:

8- At 9 weeks, Saintseneca's In A Van falls at last 3 notches.

7- Acres Wild,who as we learned in last week's comments is NOT the band of the same name from Germany (and I KNEW better!) up 2 with Mirrorball Stars.

6- More from lack of room, Shilpa Ray and HHB slips a pair.

5- Bon Jovi up 2 with Beautiful Drug.

4- After 3 weeks, the Four Seasons relinquish the top, dropping 3 with the Any Day Now medley.

3- Yuno makes our big move, up 5 with No Going Back.

2- Nudging up one is Blue Oyster Cult with Tainted Blood.

And in a week that features songs from bands founded in 1983, 1967, even 1960, it's only appropriate that the new #1 comes from a band founded 50 years ago...

America with Remembering!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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So how did ol' Reg do?

Well, not so good... Maggie May gets you 7.4%.

The Osmonds net you 10.44%...

Isaac Hayes gets you 14.9%...

But yer winnah, with 34.3%...

Cher with Gypsies Tramps And Thieves!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You know, I'm through trying to guess if the guest for the show will actually make it!  But, God willing, I will be- in 1972!