Another one of our Songs We Love to Hate: Its Paper Lace with “The Night Chicago Died” from 1974. How true was the story about mobsters trying to gain control of the “Windy City?” Here’s more about the issues people had with the lyrics from the YouTube Description: From 1974. *LYRICS EXPLAINED… from an interview with songwriter Mitch Murray: “I’d like to start by thanking your contributors for so many…
Is there any song that possibly captures the 70’s better than “Rock the Boat” by the Hues Corporation (what an awful name for a band, by the way) back in 1974? It’s infectious disco beat and catchy lyrics took it to Number 1 in July of that year, and it seems to have become a radio staple ever since. Here’s more on the song from Wikipedia: “Rock the Boat” is…
While, I would admit that I was a fan of Jim Stafford back in the day, especially his hits like “Wildwood Weed” and “Spiders and Snakes.” But I can’t say I cared for “My Girl Bill” and I think it belongs on our list of Songs We Love to Hate. Here’s more on the song from Wikipedia: “My Girl Bill” is a 1974 hit song written and recorded by Jim…
It’s easy to remember this one: the song “Bad Company” by the band Bad Company, off their first album called, what else, Bad Company. It was released as the third single from their debut album in 1974, and although it did not chart in America it became one of the band’s most popular tunes and is often played on classic rock stations today. It was co-written by the group’s lead…
Another entry into our “Songs We Love to Hate” files: “Midnight at the Oasis” by Maria Muldaur in 1974. I remember hating this song at the time, and after listening to it again to create this post (you owe me one) my instincts at 15 were correct: this is an awful song with terrible lyrics that is actually sung well by Muldaur. She even gives it a go here in…
There’s not much to say about this video, other than it is a full album of mall Muzak from the 1970s. So, if you walked the malls in the 70s, you likely heard this in the background. It’s calming and slightly infuriating at the same time.
Another one of the songs we “Love to Hate!” This time it’s a song that went all the way to #1 on the US charts on 1974 for Helen Reddy. “Angie Baby”, off Reddy’s Free and Easy album, tells the story of a teen-aged girl who … well, no one is really quite sure what it’s about, but it sounds like she lures men into her room and then shrinks…
Fans will likely remember Robert Palmer for his 80s music videos for songs like “Addicted to Love” and “Simply Irresistible” which brought him huge mainstream music success. Less well known are songs like this trilogy, “Sailing Shoes/Hey Julia/Sneakin’ Sally Through the Alley” which show more a blues/soul version of his sound. Here’s more about this song(s) from Wikipedia: Sneakin’ Sally Through the Alley is the debut solo album by Robert…
This is the full, three song performance, by the Steve Miller Band live at the Midnight Special on January 24th, 1974 and includes The Joker, Sugar Babe, and the as yet unreleased (and somewhat unfinished) version of “Fly Like an Eagle” On this video, there is… 1) The Joker (from 1973’s “The Joker”) 2) Fly Like an Eagle (early version) (from 1976’s “Fly Like an Eagle”) 3) Sugar Babe (from…
I had intended to just find a great LIVE version of Sugarloaf’s quirky 1974 hit, “Don’t Call Us, We’ll Call You” but about all I could find was a recording of Sugarloaf’s album version (nice, but not the same as a LIVE performance) and surprisingly, a recording less than a year later of a bootleg tape of one of Van Halen’s early concerts also singing the song! Obviously David Lee…