Whereas 1973 seemed like the year when I really latched onto my own music tastes and Top 40 radio, 1974 was an odd duck of a year. I read somewhere that it’s considered by some as one of the worst years for popular music. There was an unusually large number of number one songs that year on the
Love The Recorders! You should make a full album of their stunning work!
I forgot how good the Grand Funk’s Locomotion is. (Also love the chick trying to get on stage and being hauled off by security!)
Very touched by your thinking that I brought light into your life. Yes, I’ve always been a bit of a cockeyed (pun intended) optimist and it makes me smile to know that it helped you. While I am familiar with a lot of these references, they are so beautifully expressed that they really show the depth of your feelings and put them a whole new perspective for me. ❤️❤️❤️
Interesting. I'm not familiar with Schwartz but I do remember some of that Nigel Olsson story. He then tried a solo career. I have two of his singles: Dancin' Shoes and Little Bit of Soap, although neither ended up making my Top Ten!
Another entertaining one, Dan! That audio tape of y'all singing is, at once, hilarious, but so cute...and, it doesn't matter that you're off-key.....I'd be stunned if you WEREN'T! And, again, the serendipity across decades that you had the wherewithal to even think about taping things (audio and video, then), but to hang onto it for lo these many decades, and the best part......you have the love and desire (and Substack.....hey!!!) to share it all with our bad selves!!
'74 songs (I was 19, and in my second year of college, this year at U of Houston, moving over from U. of N. Texas/Denton): I was Music Director at KUHF, the campus station at U of H, and had a daily 3-6pm shift (mostly MOR/easy listening). I'd played plenty o' Elton, but when "Bitch" came out, I asked our Station Mgr if I could play it. He said, "If you have to ask, it's probably not a good idea." My first real-life lesson in common sense. It was just too hard-rockin' a song, plus that word!
As for "Beach Baby," it was a favorite at the time. Even though it's a rather tacky, plastic Beach Boys attempt (we Brian/BB fans get touchy!), it's got an amazing story behind it (I discovered years later), and for what it is, it's quite a song and production, not gonna lie! It also features one of my all-time fave vocalists, Tony Burrows. If you're not familiar with him, I'll let you discover him on your own. An enviable and impressive career, no doubt!
Oh, man thanks! Love your radio station stories. For a while, that was my dream job. I can just imagine what people were thinking when "Bitch" was released as a single. Somehow it managed to break through, big time! It's funny because I was listening to some 1975 music yesterday and played Neil Sedaka's Bad Blood. I always knew EJ also sang on the song but hadn't really paid attention to all of the lyrics. At one point, they sing the line: "The bitch is in her smile." I wonder now if that line would have been allowed had EJ not already had his "Bitch" hit the year before!
EJ's track record accounts for a lot, no lie! Both generally, and in that one song of his! That would be a great question to ask Phil Cody, who (likely) wrote the lyrics to "Bad Blood," with Neil, I'm guessing, composing the music: Whether Cody included that word with Elton's song at all in his mind or not.
In looking at the session players for Neil's "Bad Blood," he not only recorded it the same year Stephen Michael Schwartz began recording his 2nd RCA album, but looks like Neil's sessions came right after....I only bring it up because these players were on both sessions:
Elton's recently-fired drummer, Nigel Olsson, and eventual 16-Grammy-winner, David Foster on keys. Foster provided that same service on Stephen's album, as well as serving as Musical Director, hiring the session players Stephen would need (as a 21-year-old, he had no idea how to contact all these folks....David could, and did)!
Exclusive in-studio photos of Foster, Olsson, baby-faced jazz guitarist, Lee Ritenour, and fellow recently-fired Elton bass player, Dee Murray, are included in Stephen's story of recording that album: https://bradkyle.substack.com/p/musical-storm-the-stephen-michael
Cats in the Cradle was big for me in 74 and still resonates. Interesting with such huge father flux to think of that song in the context of your life at that time. Irony. Sometimes we have one dad for most of our lives and we still don’t connect.
One last comment: I haven’t thought about the DeFranco Family in years, yet I read your post and their names all come back to me: Benito, Nino, Merlisa and Merlina, and the Tiger Beat heart throb: Tony! 🤣
Dark Lady ( I remember that cartoon version of the song!) and Sundown were in my list, too. I had different Elton John songs (Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road). Two Jim Croce songs (I’ll have to say I love you in a song, Time in a Bottle), Beach Baby (got to have a Summer Theme Song), Living For The City, Rock and Roll Heaven, and Please Come to Boston round out my list for ‘74.
I had a little problem coming up with 10 songs for this year. No surprise, actually, when choices include such (to use your term) “odd ducks” as: The Streak, Spiders & Snakes, The Night Chicago Died (one of the few Chicago-themed songs which didn’t make my list) Wildwood Weed, Seasons in The Sun, You’re Having My Baby (which might be THE number one CRINGIEST song ever), Midnight at the Oasis, Billy, Don’t be a Hero, and Sister Janet Mead’s version of The Lord’s Prayer! Yeah, 1974 was an odd duck year.
So much shift and change you experienced in your young life! Glad you had music and Frank to help you ride the waves, Dan!
Love The Recorders! You should make a full album of their stunning work!
I forgot how good the Grand Funk’s Locomotion is. (Also love the chick trying to get on stage and being hauled off by security!)
Very touched by your thinking that I brought light into your life. Yes, I’ve always been a bit of a cockeyed (pun intended) optimist and it makes me smile to know that it helped you. While I am familiar with a lot of these references, they are so beautifully expressed that they really show the depth of your feelings and put them a whole new perspective for me. ❤️❤️❤️
Interesting. I'm not familiar with Schwartz but I do remember some of that Nigel Olsson story. He then tried a solo career. I have two of his singles: Dancin' Shoes and Little Bit of Soap, although neither ended up making my Top Ten!
Another entertaining one, Dan! That audio tape of y'all singing is, at once, hilarious, but so cute...and, it doesn't matter that you're off-key.....I'd be stunned if you WEREN'T! And, again, the serendipity across decades that you had the wherewithal to even think about taping things (audio and video, then), but to hang onto it for lo these many decades, and the best part......you have the love and desire (and Substack.....hey!!!) to share it all with our bad selves!!
'74 songs (I was 19, and in my second year of college, this year at U of Houston, moving over from U. of N. Texas/Denton): I was Music Director at KUHF, the campus station at U of H, and had a daily 3-6pm shift (mostly MOR/easy listening). I'd played plenty o' Elton, but when "Bitch" came out, I asked our Station Mgr if I could play it. He said, "If you have to ask, it's probably not a good idea." My first real-life lesson in common sense. It was just too hard-rockin' a song, plus that word!
I tell that story here (plus, my meeting a pre-Perry Journey...and more): https://bradkyle.substack.com/p/behind-the-mic-a-personal-peek-into
As for "Beach Baby," it was a favorite at the time. Even though it's a rather tacky, plastic Beach Boys attempt (we Brian/BB fans get touchy!), it's got an amazing story behind it (I discovered years later), and for what it is, it's quite a song and production, not gonna lie! It also features one of my all-time fave vocalists, Tony Burrows. If you're not familiar with him, I'll let you discover him on your own. An enviable and impressive career, no doubt!
In fact, in here is where most, if not all, about Burrows you may need to know. I featured him rather extensively in this article about 5 songs: https://bradkyle.substack.com/p/grow-bigger-ears-2-the-audio-autopsy
Thanks again, Dan, for a simply riveting wander through your childhood in music!
Oh, man thanks! Love your radio station stories. For a while, that was my dream job. I can just imagine what people were thinking when "Bitch" was released as a single. Somehow it managed to break through, big time! It's funny because I was listening to some 1975 music yesterday and played Neil Sedaka's Bad Blood. I always knew EJ also sang on the song but hadn't really paid attention to all of the lyrics. At one point, they sing the line: "The bitch is in her smile." I wonder now if that line would have been allowed had EJ not already had his "Bitch" hit the year before!
EJ's track record accounts for a lot, no lie! Both generally, and in that one song of his! That would be a great question to ask Phil Cody, who (likely) wrote the lyrics to "Bad Blood," with Neil, I'm guessing, composing the music: Whether Cody included that word with Elton's song at all in his mind or not.
In looking at the session players for Neil's "Bad Blood," he not only recorded it the same year Stephen Michael Schwartz began recording his 2nd RCA album, but looks like Neil's sessions came right after....I only bring it up because these players were on both sessions:
Elton's recently-fired drummer, Nigel Olsson, and eventual 16-Grammy-winner, David Foster on keys. Foster provided that same service on Stephen's album, as well as serving as Musical Director, hiring the session players Stephen would need (as a 21-year-old, he had no idea how to contact all these folks....David could, and did)!
Exclusive in-studio photos of Foster, Olsson, baby-faced jazz guitarist, Lee Ritenour, and fellow recently-fired Elton bass player, Dee Murray, are included in Stephen's story of recording that album: https://bradkyle.substack.com/p/musical-storm-the-stephen-michael
Cats in the Cradle was big for me in 74 and still resonates. Interesting with such huge father flux to think of that song in the context of your life at that time. Irony. Sometimes we have one dad for most of our lives and we still don’t connect.
Good points. Yes, I liked that song at the time but it didn't resonate with me in the same respect as the others. Always good to hear though.
One last comment: I haven’t thought about the DeFranco Family in years, yet I read your post and their names all come back to me: Benito, Nino, Merlisa and Merlina, and the Tiger Beat heart throb: Tony! 🤣
Oh yeah! I was in the De Franco Family Fan Club! They're still around and have a Facebook page!
And ... now I have this stuck in my head:
🎵🎶Heartbeat! It's a love beat and a love beat is a good vibration🎶🎵
🎶🎵Heartbeat! It's a love beat and when we meet it's a good sensation🎶🎵
Listen to my heart pound! Listen to my love sound! Feel it gettin' stronger! Can't hold back any longer!
Dark Lady ( I remember that cartoon version of the song!) and Sundown were in my list, too. I had different Elton John songs (Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road). Two Jim Croce songs (I’ll have to say I love you in a song, Time in a Bottle), Beach Baby (got to have a Summer Theme Song), Living For The City, Rock and Roll Heaven, and Please Come to Boston round out my list for ‘74.
Those are great songs Bernie! I had them on 45s or albums! (Actually I STILL have them.)
I had a little problem coming up with 10 songs for this year. No surprise, actually, when choices include such (to use your term) “odd ducks” as: The Streak, Spiders & Snakes, The Night Chicago Died (one of the few Chicago-themed songs which didn’t make my list) Wildwood Weed, Seasons in The Sun, You’re Having My Baby (which might be THE number one CRINGIEST song ever), Midnight at the Oasis, Billy, Don’t be a Hero, and Sister Janet Mead’s version of The Lord’s Prayer! Yeah, 1974 was an odd duck year.
Right! Can you imagine The Lord's Prayer in the the Top Ten?! The others are pretty odd hits too!