KHJ Thirty - September 29, 1971

Issue #326 - Rod Stewart reaches the survey summit with “Maggie May,” the first of three No. 1’s he would have on the KHJ survey. The other two were “Tonight’s the Night” (1976) and “Do Ya Think I’m Sexy” (1979).

KHJ Thirty No. 326 - Jerry Butler   KHJ Thirty No. 326 - September 29, 1971

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

"One Tin Soldier" would have a good run here, but it would come back even bigger in 1973 with the rerelease of "Billy Jack."

Ray Randolph said...

It's hard to tell on the photo but Donny Osmond is sitting on a bag of Purina Monkey Chow. Is there any animal Purina didn't make a "chow" for?

Songwriters Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter had a little streak going around this time. They've got "One Tin Soldier" and "Two Divided by Love" on this survey. "Don't Pull You Love" fell off the survey a little while back.

Other KHJ charters of theirs included "It's A Cryin' Shame" by Gayle McCormick, "Keeper of the Castle" and "Ain't No Woman (Like The One I've Got)" by the Four Tops, and "It Only Takes a Minute" by Tavares. Then they just sort of disappeared.

Bruce said...

Steve,

I thought "Billy Jack" eas released in 1971. Wasn't it? I remember what grade I was in and all of the hubbub about it. Maybe it had a bigger re-release in 1973, that might be it.

Great song though. I remember singing it around the campfire in Church "youth" camp.

Anonymous said...

I just learned something, thanks to Ray. I had no idea the same guys wrote all of those early '70s songs.

Bruce, you are correct. "Billy Jack" came out in 1971 and then was rereleased two years later. Coven's "One Tin Soldier" charted both times, but what's interesting is that the second time it hit, it was huge in SoCal, topping KHJ's Thirty for several weeks. Yet nationally it got to only No. 79 that second time (the first time, it got to 26 nationally). I have no explanation for this. Maybe "Billy Jack" was bigger in SoCal on the rerelease. Oddly enough, just this morning I heard the Original Caste's original version of "One Tin Soldier," from 1969. It's still sung by a woman but in a softer vocal. The production also is simpler.

Anonymous said...

Potter and Lambert were so big at this time, Ray, they even composed the theme/jingle for ABC-TV's new season campaign, "This Is The Place To Be".

Ray Randolph said...

That's interesting, Paul. I guess Jerry Reed was correct in that "when you're hot, you're hot." It's a shame they didn't last longer as they wrote some great stuff.

Anonymous said...

And Ray, here are the lyrics....


Where can you get away
After the longest day
Touch a star for free
So easily

Something is in the air
Pull up an easy chair
Leave that turn down day
Come fly away

A smile
Can be seconds away from a tear
An adventure waiting right here
We'll turn it on for you

Come this September
This is the place to be
Hey, there, remember
This is the place to be
With ABC