Category / Music

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Fifty Years Of Music – 1977

Fifty years ago, I made my first appeared on the Earth.  In celebration, we are going to take a look at the year-end Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for each year of my life and see what songs resonated with me at the time and if they continue to do so to this day.

We continue our look back at the music of my lifetime with 1977, the year of my third birthday.  I still have no knowledge of these songs from their original release, given my age at the time.  Only twelve of the Hot 100 are familiar to me now, with only six of them appearing in my collection in one way or another.

#99: London Symphony Orchestra – Star Wars (Main Title)
iTunes stats: 26 plays

Led by John Williams, the London Symphony Orchestra performed one of the best-known movie themes of all time.

#94: Fleetwood Mac – Go Your Own Way
iTunes stats: N/A

The group’s first top-ten hit in the United States, it was ranked as the 120th greatest song of all time by Rolling Stone in 2010.

#90: Aerosmith – Walk This Way
iTunes stats: 26 plays

First discovered by my generation thanks to the 80s remake with Run-DMC, the original peaked at #10 in early 1977.

#58: Kansas – Carry On Wayward Son
iTunes stats: N/A

Written by guitarist Kerry Livgren, the song became the band’s first Top 40 hit, reaching No. 11 in early 1977, and has remained a staple of classic rock radio.

#53: Heart – Barracuda
iTunes stats: N/A

The song, which peaked at #11 in 1977, was named the 34th-best hard rock song of all time by VH1.

#52: Fleetwood Mac – Don’t Stop
iTunes stats: N/A

Used by Bill Clinton as the theme for his presidential campaign in 1992, the third single from the band’s Rumours album reached #3 in October 1977. 

#33: Commodores – Easy
iTunes stats: N/A

Written by group member Lionel Richie and released in March of 1977, the crossover hit topped the Hot Soul Singles chart in July and peaked at #4 on the Hot 100.

#28: Steve Miller Band – Fly Like an Eagle
iTunes stats: N/A

First performed in 1973, the song was finally released in December of 1976 and went to #2 Hot 100 in March.

#21: Bill Conti – Gonna Fly Now
iTunes stats: 16 plays

Nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song, the theme from Rocky hit #1 in 1977.

#19: Eagles – Hotel California
iTunes stats: 28 plays

Winner of the 1978 Grammy for Record of the Year, the song first entered the charts in late February of 1977 and reached the top for one week in May, becoming the band’s fourth #1 hit.

#14: Jimmy Buffet – Margaritaville
iTunes stats: 21 plays

Buffet’s highest charting single, the tune reached #8 on the Hot 100 char, #13 on the Hot Country Songs chart, and #1 on the Easy Listening chart.  It re-entered the charts in September of 2023 following Buffett’s death on September 1.

#12: ABBA – Dancing Queen
iTunes stats: 11 plays

ABBA’s only number one hit in the United States, the song also topped the charts in 17 other countries.

 

by admin

Fifty Years Of Music – 1976

Fifty years ago, I made my first appeared on the Earth.  In celebration, we are going to take a look at the year-end Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for each year of my life and see what songs resonated with me at the time and if they continue to do so to this day.

We continue our look back at the music of my lifetime with 1976, the year I turned two and featuring the birth of my sister.  Given my young age, I have no knowledge of these songs from their original release.  Only 17 of the Hot 100 are familiar to me now, with only seven of them appearing in my collection in one way or another.

#97: Rick Dees & His Cast of Idiots – Disco Duck
iTunes stats: N/A

Disc jockey Dees, who was working in Memphis at the time, wrote and recorded this novelty song that spent ten weeks in the top ten and peaked at #1 for one week in October of 1976.

#96: Kiss – Rock and Roll All Nite (Live)
iTunes stats: 19 plays

This live version of the band’s 1975 tune peaked at #12 in early 1976 and became the first of six of the band’s songs to crack the Top 20 during the decade.

#89: Peter Frampton – Baby, I Love Your Way (Live)
iTunes stats: N/A

The live version, released as a single from the massive hit Frampton Comes Alive!, topped out at #12.

#87: Thin Lizzy – The Boys Are Back in Town
iTunes stats: N/A

The 272nd best song of all time, per Rolling Stone’s 2021 edition of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, the tune reached #12 in the spring of 1976.

#85: Foghat – Slow Ride
iTunes stats: 20 plays

Named the 45th Best Hard Rock song of all time by VH1 in 2009, Foghat’s highest charting single peaked at #20 in the winter of 1976.

#64: Bay City Rollers – Saturday Night
iTunes stats: N/A

The song became the band’s only #1 hit in the US and the first Billboard #1 of the Bicentennial.

#58: John Sebastian – Welcome Back
iTunes stats: 37 plays

The theme song to Welcome Back, Kotter rocketed to #1 after just five weeks on the chart.

#51: Aerosmith – Dream On
iTunes stats: 21 plays

First released as a single in 1973, the album version was re-released in late 1975, joining the Hot 100 in January of 1976 and finally hitting #6 in April.

#45: KC and the Sunshine Band – That’s The Way (I Like It)
iTunes stats: 17 plays

The band’s second #1 hit, it spent two non-consecutive weeks at the top of the charts at the end of 1975.

#40: Eric Carmen – All By Myself
iTunes stats: 12 plays

The first single from Carmen’s debut solo album, it peaked at #2 and was certified gold in April of 1976.

#37: Gary Wright – Dream Weaver
iTunes stats: N/A Continue reading →

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Fifty Years Of Music – 1975

Fifty years ago, I made my first appeared on the Earth.  In celebration, we are going to take a look at the year-end Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for each year of my life and see what songs resonated with me at the time and if they continue to do so to this day.

We continue our look back at the music of my lifetime with 1975, the first full year of my life.  Given my first birthday took place in late-October, I have no knowledge of these songs from their original release.  Only fifteen of the Hot 100 are familiar to me now, with only six of them appearing in my collection in one way or another.

#98: Bachman-Turner Overdrive – You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet
iTunes stats: N/A

Released in September of 1974, the song peaked at #1 on the Hot 100 charts in just seven weeks.

#67: Joe Cocker – You Are So Beautiful
iTunes stats: N/A

Released in November of 1974, the track, originally performed by Billy Preston earlier that year, became Cocker’s highest-charting solo hit, peaking at #5 on the charts.

#65: KC and the Sunshine Band – Get Down Tonight
iTunes stats: 18 plays

The beginning of the disco influence on the charts, the song, released in February of 1975, became the band’s first of five #1 hits.

#61: Styx – Lady
iTunes stats: N/A

Originally released in 1973 on a small, local label, the song was re-issued in November of 1974 after the band moved to A&M Records and made it to #6 in March of 1975.

#49: Barry White – You’re The First, The Last, My Everything
iTunes stats: 14 plays

Originally written as a country song in the early 1950s, White re-worked the lyrics and turned it into a disco song, which became his fourth top ten hit.

#39: Harry Chapin – Cat’s In The Cradle
iTunes stats: N/A

Chapin’s only #1 song, it was nominated for the 1975 Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2011.

#36: Barry Manilow – Mandy
iTunes stats: 21 plays

Switching from the original name of Brandy, the song became Manilow’s first #1 hit on the Hot 100 and Easy Listening charts.

#24: War – Why Can’t We Be Friends?
iTunes stats: N/A

The song, which required eight credited songwriters for its highly repetitive lyrics, managed to top out at #6 on the Hot 100 chart in the summer of 1975.

#23: Labelle – Lady Marmalade
iTunes stats: N/A

The track, which I only became aware of due to the 2001 cover featured in Moulin Rouge!, hit the top of the charts for one week in the spring of 1975.

#22: Van McCoy and the Soul City Symphony – The Hustle
iTunes stats: N/A

A staple of weddings for the last 40-some odd years, the disco track hit #1 during the summer of 1975 and took home the Grammy for Best Pop Instrumental Performance.

#18: B.J. Thomas – (Hey Won’t You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song
iTunes stats: 26 plays

Winner of the 1976 Grammy award for Best Country Song, the song became Thomas’ second #1 single in April.

#15: Carl Douglas – Kung Fu Fighting
iTunes stats: 20 plays

Owing its initial popularity to dance clubs, the tune, which ranked #100 in VH1’s listing of the greatest one-hit wonders, was released in the US after topping the British charts in September of 1974.

#11: John Denver – Thank God I’m a Country Boy
iTunes stats: N/A

The live version of the song released as a single became one of six songs released in 1975 that topped both the Hot 100 and the Hot Country Singles charts.

#2: Glen Campbell – Rhinestone Cowboy
iTunes stats: 11 plays

A cover of a song Campbell had heard on the radio while on tour in Australia, his version spent two weeks atop the Hot 100 during the summer of 1975.

#1: Captain & Tennille – Love Will Keep Us Together
iTunes stats: N/A

Originally recorded by Neil Sedaka in 1973, the title track from the duo’s debut album spent four weeks at #1 in June and July of 1975.

by admin

50 Years Of Music – 1974

Fifty years ago, I made my first appeared on the Earth.  In celebration, we are going to take a look at the year-end Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for each year of my life and see what songs resonated with me at the time and if they continue to do so to this day.

We begin our look back at the music of my lifetime with 1974, the year of my birth.  Given my late-October birthday, I only was around for a little over two months, so I have no knowledge of these songs from their original release.  Only 17 of the Hot 100 are familiar to me now, with only seven of them appearing in my collection in one way or another.

#94: The First Class – Beach Baby
iTunes stats: 22 plays

The band’s sole hit, it peaked at #4 on the Hot 100 at the end of summer, just months before my birth.

#76: Eric Clapton – I Shot The Sheriff
iTunes stats: N/A

Originally written and released by Bob Marley in 1973, this cover provided Clapton with his sole US #1 single.

#72: Elton Jon – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
iTunes stats: N/A

Released in 1973, it was certified gold in January of 1974 and, in 2010, it was ranked #390 in Rolling Stone’s list of 500 greatest songs of all time.

#64: Golden Earring – Radar Love
iTunes stats: N/A

Considered “a rock masterpiece,” the song by the Dutch band peaked at #13 on the US singles chart.

#63: Bachman-Turner Overdrive – Takin’ Care Of Business
iTunes stats: 19 plays

Recorded in late 1973, the tune, originally conceived when Randy Bachman was still a member of The Guess Who, spent 20 weeks on the Billboard charts.

#56: Rufus & Chaka Khan – Tell Me Something Good
iTunes stats: N/A

Written by Stevie Wonder, the song has gained a second life in recent times at sports arenas thanks to the proliferation of replay reviews.

#44: Brownsville Station – Smokin’ In The Boys Room
iTunes stats: 12 plays

Peaking at #3 on the charts, the song is more well known in my world thanks to the 1985 cover by Motley Crue, their first Top 40 hit.

#40: Steve Miller Band – The Joker
iTunes stats: N/A

Released in October of 1973, the song reached the top of the US charts in early 1974.

#39: Carpenters – Top of the World
iTunes stats: 21 plays

Originally recorded for the band’s 1972 album, the song was re-recorded and released as a single following the success of a cover by country artist Lynn Anderson.

#37: Billy Preston – Nothing From Nothing
iTunes stats: 13 plays

The song, which found a second life on the Elf soundtrack, hit the top of the charts in October of 1974.

#28: Paul Anka – (You’re) Having My Baby
iTunes stats: N/A

Anka’s first #1 since the 50s, I’m more familiar with the version on Piranha Man’s album.

#22: Paul McCartney & Wings – Band on the Run
iTunes stats: N/A

Released as a single in April of 1974, the song became the third non-Beatles American chart-topping single for Paul McCartney.

#20: Blue Swede – Hooked On A Feeling
iTunes stats: 18 plays

This cover by the Swedish pop group reached #1 in 1974 and continues to be relevant today, thanks to its inclusion in Reservoir Dogs, Ally McBeal, and Guardians of the Galaxy.

#17: David Essex – Rock On
iTunes stats: 22 plays

Peaking at #5 on the US singles chart, I became familiar with the tune thanks to the 1989 cover by Michael Damian.

#12: Kool & The Gang – Jungle Boogie
iTunes stats: 10 plays

The tune peaked at #4 on the Hot 100 charts and #2 on the Hot Soul singles chart.

#9: Elton John – Bennie and the Jets
iTunes stats: N/A

The third Elton John track to make the year-end list, it is perhaps best known locally thanks to a cover version by the former Mrs. Ben Zobrist, which was used as Zobrist’s walk-up music while he was with the Cubs.

#1: Barbara Streisand – The Way We Were
iTunes stats: N/A

Debuting on the charts in late November, 1973, the sing eventually topped the charts twice in February of 1974, eventually spending 23 consecutive weeks on the Hot 100 chart.

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2023: The Year In Live Performances

2023 was a slow year for live performances.  I only managed to get to one concert and one exhibition, both since the start of November.

On April 10, 1994, while watching 120 Minutes in my dorm room late on a Sunday night, I saw the video for Liz Phair’s Never Said, the lead single from her debut album, for the first time.  Nearly 30 years later, she came to the Chicago Theatre for the 30th anniversary of the release of Exile in Guyville.

This was my third time seeing Phair perform live, and the first in nearly twenty years.  She’s become a more confident performer, finally getting over the stage fright that plagued her early career.  She performed every song from the album, many I haven’t heard in years, if not decades.  Overall, a good experience.  Here’s hoping to more live music in 2024.

In the waning days of 2023, the family headed into the city to the Exhibition Hub Art Center for Disney 100: The Exhibition.  To celebrate the 100th anniversary of what would become the Walt Disney Company, the company has opened its archives, showcasing more than 250 artifacts and works of art, costumes and props, and incredible memorabilia.  Unfortunately, Michael was unable to join us, but the rest of us took a trip through Disney’s past, including more recent additions like the Star Wars and Marvel universes.

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A Year Of Activities

For the first time in my 49 years, I managed to attend a ticketed event in every month of 2023. Let’s take a look back and see what I had going on this year.
The first quarter of the year is typically the quietest for me.  This year started strong, with a trip to Florida for the Citrus Bowl on January 2nd.  College basketball ruled the day in February, with my first trip to Bloomington, Indiana coming that first weekend.  The Big Ten Tournament rolled into the United Center in March, making me three for three to start out the year.

The second quarter brings the start of baseball season, which easily knocked out the next three months.  I added 19 games over these three months, which included the Orioles against the White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field in April, the Mets battling the Cubs at Wrigley Field in May, and my first-ever visit to T-Mobile Park in June to see the White Sox play the Mariners. Continue reading →

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All That Glitters Is Gold

Steve Harwell, the former lead singer for Smash Mouth, died Monday at the age of 56 due to chronic liver failure, just one day after entering hospice.  Harwell retired from the band in 2021 after cardiomyopathy and Wernicke encephalopathy led to him being intoxicated and threatening audience members during a performance at a beer and wine festival.  His drinking was known to be out of control following the death of his six-month old son in 2001 due to acute lymphocytic leukemia.

I saw Harwell, and Smash Mouth, perform in May of 2008 when they performed at the opening-night party for the JavaOne Conference.  I don’t recall much of their set, other than a multi-song set of Van Halen covers in the middle of their performance.

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Yet Another Mix Tape Monday Roundup

33 years ago, during my sophomore year of high school, I put together the first of what would eventually become a nearly 20 volume collection of mix tapes, containing my favorite songs that I had gathered either from the radio, a cassette tape, or (eventually) CD.  Today, we revisit those mix tapes for the fourth time and see how, or if, the soundtrack of my youth still resonates in today’s digital world and how much has changed over the past 3 years.

Last week, we finished up the last of the 20 volumes.  The 287 songs from 144 different bands or performers have been played an average of more than 22 times each, according to my iTunes stats, up from just under sixteen times four years ago. The lack of a commute over most of these four years has certainly made an impact, as the gains are considerably lower than they’ve been in the past.  Let’s take one final look back at the bands and songs that made up my youth.

Most Played Song

62 – Boyz II Men – It’s So Hard To Say Goodbye
62 – Tag Team – Whoomp! (There It Is)
54 – Snoop Dogg – What’s My Name?
51 – Veruca Salt – Seether
47 – Snoop Dogg – Gin And Juice
47 – Bell Biv Devoe – Poison

Least Played Song

7 – Bon Jovi – 99 In The Shade
8 – TLC – Get It Up
9 – Silk – Freak Me
9 – Shanice – Saving Forever For You
10 – Saigon Kick – Love Is On The Way
10 – Madonna – Vogue
10 – Def Leppard – Miss You In A Heartbeat
10 – Bon Jovi – Lay Your Hands On Me
10 – Edwyn Collins – A Girl Like You
10 – Warren G – Do You See

Most Played Song – Largest Total Increase

19 – Tag Team – Whoomp! (There It Is)
15 – Snoop Dogg – What’s My Name?
15 – Stone Temple Pilots – Creep
14 – Cranberries – Zombie
14 – Boyz II Men – It’s So Hard To Say Goodbye

Least Played Song – Smallest Total Increase

0 – Offspring – What Happened To You?
1 – Nelson – Love And Affection
1 – Bon Jovi – 99 In The Shade
2 – Ugly Kid Joe – Everything About You
2 – Soup Dragons – Divine Thing
2 – Weezer – Say It Ain’t So
2 – Bon Jovi – You Give Love A Bad Name
2 – Ugly Kid Joe – Busy Bee
2 – Genesis – I Can’t Dance
2 – Poison – Every Rose Has It’s Thorn
2 – Silk – Freak Me

Most Played Song – Largest Percentage Increase

175% – Liz Phair – Whip-Smart
166.67% – 4 Non Blondes – Spaceman
150% – Warren G – Do You See
137.5% – Aerosmith – Living On The Edge
133.33% – Radiohead – Stop Whispering

Least Played Song – Smallest Percentage Increase

0% – Offspring – What Happened To You?
9.09% – Nelson – Love And Affection
9.09% – Ugly Kid Joe – Everything About You
9.67% – Warrant – Cherry Pie
10% – Soup Dragons – Divine Thing

Most Represented Band

11 – Poison
10 – Aerosmith
10 – Pearl Jam
7 – Def Leppard
7 – Guns N’ Roses

Most Played Tape

Continue reading →

by admin

Yet Another Mix Tape Monday – Volume 20

33 years ago, during my sophomore year of high school, I put together the first of what would eventually become a nearly 20 volume collection of mix tapes, containing my favorite songs that I had gathered either from the radio, a cassette tape, or (eventually) CD.  Today, we revisit those mix tapes for the fourth time and see how, or if, the soundtrack of my youth still resonates in today’s digital world and how much has changed over the past four years.

At some point during the 1995-1996 school year, I noticed a slowdown in the tape players on my boombox.  It bothered me enough that I brought it in for repair multiple times, getting new heads installed, but nothing seemed to work.  Or, at least nothing made me feel like they worked and I, at least, still heard a lag.  On the plus side, I did manage to come home with a Blizzard of Oz cassette, which one of the techs must have used for testing it and left in the compartment when it was returned to me.  But, my frustration with the ongoing effort led to end for this series of tapes, with the last volume just barely stretching on to Side B.

We wrap up our look back with Volume 20, which stretches over late 1995 and the fall semester of the first of my two senior years of college, while I was living in Hilltop Apartments.

Side A

Smashing Pumpkins – Bullet With Butterfly Wings
iTunes stats: 22 plays, most recently on 7/13/2022

Winner of the 1997 Grammy award for Best Hard Rock Performance, the first single from the Pumpkins double album opus picked up only five new listens over the past four years.

Melissa Etheridge – Your Little Secret

The first single from Melissa Etheridge’s under-performing follow-up to her smash hit album continues to be missing from my collection.

Lisa Loeb – Do You Sleep
iTunes stats: 23 plays, most recently on 2/11/2020

The third single from Lisa Loeb’s major label debut, which peaked at #18 on the Billboard charts, was last heard prior to the global shutdown in March of 2020.

Goo Goo Dolls – Name
iTunes stats: 13 plays, most recently on 8/24/2022

A mere eleven play increase over the past decade for this breakthrough hit, which reached #5 on the Billboard charts.

Collective Soul – The World I Know
iTunes stats: 14 plays, most recently on 9/12/2022

The band’s highest charting single in Canada, it has picked up only five listens since mid-2018.

Edwyn Collins – A Girl Like You
iTunes stats: 10 plays, most recently on 7/8/2021

Featured on the Empire Records soundtrack, the song went years without being heard, but managed to pick up an additional five plays in the last four years.

Garbage – Queer
iTunes stats: 28 plays, most recently on 5/14/2021

Originally recorded off of Q101, the breakthrough hit, which led to nine concerts over the past 20 years added just five listens since 2019.

Side B

Continue reading →

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Yet Another Mix Tape Monday – Volume 19

33 years ago, during my sophomore year of high school, I put together the first of what would eventually become a nearly 20 volume collection of mix tapes, containing my favorite songs that I had gathered either from the radio, a cassette tape, or (eventually) CD.  Today, we revisit those mix tapes for the fourth time and see how, or if, the soundtrack of my youth still resonates in today’s digital world and how much has changed over the past four years.

I’ve done some crazy things over the years in an attempt to impress a girl that I liked.  One of the earliest was to buy tickets for a concert I really had no interest in attending just because my crush at the time liked the band’s one hit.  I had a couple things working against me: 1) she already had a boyfriend and 2) they were going to an earlier show on the tour and thus she saw the band the week before.  This is the story of I how I ended up at the Metro on the day after my 21st birthday watching Tripping Daisy with a couple hundred of my closest friends.

One of the upsides of a global pandemic and my subsequent move to remote work is that I don’t come across people  and thus no longer have any crushes to try and impress.  Saves me both time and money.

Volume 19 stretches from late summer 1995 and into the fall semester of the first of my two senior years of college.  Again, it mostly features what was considered alternative music, with Coolio interjecting some street flavor for good measure.

Side A

Tripping Daisy – I Got A Girl
iTunes stats: 14 plays, most recently on 12/10/2021

The one hit for Tripping Daisy, who I saw in concert the day after my 21st birthday, managed to make its way into my rotation a mere three times over the last four years.

Foo Fighters – This Is A Call
iTunes stats: 37 plays, most recently on 6/4/2021

Written a few months after the death of Kurt Cobain, the debut for Dave Grohl’s new venture earned eleven additional plays over these past four years.

Pearl Jam – Whipping
iTunes stats: 14 plays, most recently on 11/10/2022

Six new listens for the final appearance of Pearl Jam on these collections, which received plenty of airplay on Q101 despite not being officially released as a single.

Hootie and the Blowfish – Only Wanna Be With You
iTunes stats: 15 plays, most recently on 3/23/2022

Hootie’s ode to, among other things, the Miami Dolphins added seven new listens in the past four years.

Elastica – Stutter
iTunes stats: 12 plays, most recently on 5/20/2022

Originally released in November 1993, it was re-released the following year, made its way to radio in 1995, and doubled its listens over the past four years.

Cranberries – Ridiculous Thoughts
iTunes stats: 13 plays, most recently on 11/19/2019

Four listens for the latest from the Cranberries, though none since the world stopped thanks to COVID.

Green Day – J.A.R.
iTunes stats: 17 plays, most recently on 7/9/2022

Green Day’s contribution to the Angus soundtrack picked up a mere four listens over the past four years.

Alanis Morissette – Hand In My Pocket
iTunes stats: 21 plays, most recently on 11/20/2021

Hitting #4 on the Billboard charts, the second release from the juggernaut that was Jagged Little Pill added seven listens in the past four years.

Side B

Continue reading →