Tag / Reservoir Dogs

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.

by admin

Mix Tape Monday – Cool Tracks

After my tape deck crapped out in 1997, I was stuck listening to either the radio or full albums in whatever order the artist intended. That all changed in 2001, when the new-fangled MP3 technology got combined with my new CD burner.

In addition to the occasional series of CDs I had burned in order to keep abreast of new music, I had created a bunch of genre-specific mixes that could be used both in the car and at the gym. This week we will take a look at the first disc covering the world of 60s and 70s rock music. This CD was kind of a counterpart to the ballads disc we covered a few weeks back, with most of the songs coming from the same era but with a decidedly harder bent.  So, without further ado, I bring you Cool Tracks, volume 1.

Paul McCartney & Wings – Live And Let Die

Became the first James Bond theme song to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song.

iTunes stats: 6 plays, most recently on 3/19/2013

Blood Sweat & Tears – Spinning Wheel

Nominated for three Grammy Awards at the 1970 ceremony, it won for Best Instrumental Arrangement.

iTunes stats: 7 plays, most recently on 3/22/2013

Warren Zevon – Werewolves Of London

BBC Radio 2 listeners rated it as having the best opening line in a song.

iTunes stats: 6 plays, most recently on 7/5/2011

Chicago – 25 Or 6 To 4

The song was released as a single in June of 1970, climbing to number 4 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart.

iTunes stats: 1 play, on 6/17/2010

The Jimi Hendrix Experience – Purple Haze

Rolling Stone magazine placed the song at number 17 in their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time and also at number 2 on their list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time.

iTunes stats: 1 play, on 5/29/2009

Jefferson Airplane – Somebody To Love

Originally recorded by 1960s folk rock band The Great Society, featuring Grace Slick’s brother-in-law.

iTunes stats: 3 plays, most recently on 7/6/2011

Patti Smith – Because The Night

Originally recorded by Bruce Springsteen during sessions for his Darkness on the Edge of Town album, he was not satisfied with it so the song was passed to the Patti Smith Group, who were working in the studio next door.

iTunes stats: 4 plays, most recently on 11/9/2012

Ohio Players – Love Rollercoaster

Urban legend says that the scream heard in the background belonged to a woman being murdered at the studio.

iTunes stats: 2 plays, most recently on 3/24/2011

Five Man Electrical Band – Signs

The song was released during an era of social and political change, and its lyrics carry themes of intolerance and exclusion.

iTunes stats: 3 plays, most recently on 3/11/2013

Janis Joplin – Piece Of My Heart

Originally recorded by Erma Franklin in 1967 as a romantic love song.

iTunes stats: 4 plays, most recently on 12/27/2012

Continue reading →

by admin

Mix Tape Monday – January 2001

After my tape deck crapped out in 1997, I was stuck listening to either the radio or full albums in whatever order the artist intended.  That all changed in 2001, when the new-fangled MP3 technology got combined with my new CD burner.

The first CD I burned, in January of 2001, had multiple versions, and this is the one I kept for myself.  It contains a mix of current and old hits, along with some radio bits.  Of course, my song selection was limited at the time to the CDs and few MP3s I had on hand.

Offspring – Original Prankster

The latest hit from the Offspring kicked things off for this disc.

iTunes stats: 7 plays, most recently on 4/25/2011

Soul Coughing – Super Bon Bon

A minor hit from 1996 for the band from New York.

iTunes stats: 3 plays, most recently on 9/24/2012

Mexican Cheerleader – Our Party

This tune was included to introduce my friend Scott to some local punk music.  I don’t think it did much for him.

iTunes stats: 13 plays, most recently on 9/17/2011

Howard Stern Show Parody – Dancing In Their Sheets

There was a song parody contest on the Howard Stern Show in 2000 and this ode to racism was one of the finalists.

Crew Cuts – Sh-Boom

Seeing as how I just bought this song from the iTunes store last week, I have no idea where I had gotten it from nearly 12 years ago.

iTunes stats: 1 play, on 11/5/2012

Faith Hill – Breathe

Country’s cross-over into pop was big early in the century, and this was one of the bigger hits.

iTunes stats: 4 plays, most recently on 5/26/2012

The Corrs – Breathless

The lasses from Ireland had their first big American pop hit at the time.

iTunes stats: 6 plays, most recently on 11/9/2012

Continue reading →