# Best #1 single of the year retrospective: 1973 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 24, 2014, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439 "2014-09-24T15:44:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2014, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439/41 "2014-09-25T13:45:51Z")
There are some very good songs on the list, but, really, “Superstition” was an easy choice. ---
**Author:** ![Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/les_espaces_du_sommeil/32/308_2.png) [@Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Les_Espaces_Du_Sommeil)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2014, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439/42 "2014-09-25T16:20:37Z")
**Roberta Flack** - _Killing Me Softly With His Song_ I could have voted for _Angie_, too (pretty much the only **Stones** song that I like) but **Roberta Flack** it is. ---
**Author:** ![Eddie\_F](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/22d042/32.png) [@Eddie\_F](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eddie_F)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2014, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439/43 "2014-09-25T16:58:24Z")
Went with the Silver Fox, because I know he won’t get that many damn votes, and this fact makes me quite sad. Almost went with (in descending order of greatness): “Superstition” “Midnight Train to Georgia” “Time in a Bottle” “Frankenstein” ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2014, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439/44 "2014-09-25T17:57:48Z")
I eagerly await the 1974 installment. ---
**Author:** ![chiroptera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@chiroptera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chiroptera)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2014, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439/45 "2014-09-25T20:22:33Z")
I was 15 in 1973, and while I realise that _Superstition_ is a much worthy contender, for this year I went with my “it still makes me happy and want to dance like I’m 15 again when I hear it” vote. Sir Elton John’s _Crocodile Rock_. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2014, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439/46 "2014-09-25T20:27:22Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > How the awful Crocodile Rock ever made it to #1 is one of the mysteries of music By 1973 it had been just shy of 20 years since rock & roll came into its own, so it was just far enough in the past for people in their 30s to be nostalgic about when rock was young and they had a gold Chevy and some old blue jeans and a dance they really thought would last. ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2014, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439/47 "2014-09-25T22:06:45Z")
> [@Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](#): > > **Roberta Flack** - _Killing Me Softly With His Song_ > > I could have voted for _Angie_, too (pretty much the only **Stones** song that I like) but **Roberta Flack** it is. Wow, I didn’t know I had a doppleganger. This is _exactly_ what I would have posted if **Les Espaces Du Sommeil** hadn’t beaten me to it. I’ll brave the scorn and say that back in '70’s, I loved The Carpenters, and still enjoy them. Karen Carpenter’s voice had a vulnerability that touched my then-adolescent soul. Listening to it now, their music sounds over-produced and over-glossy; but for all that, I think there was some real vocal talent underneath all the soft focus. A record producer once told me, “You can’t polish a turd.” ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2014, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439/48 "2014-09-25T22:18:34Z")
No need to apologize - Karen Carpenter had one of the best voices around. Now, Top of the World ain’t one of their best, but she was wonderful. Superstition - as mentioned in many other threads, he wrote it for Jeff Beck, but liked it so much he recorded it himself. And that 70’s clavinet funk tone for the riff holds up so damn well. Here’s Wonder and Beck playing it at the Rock Hall anniversary concert in Madison Square Garden: [- YouTube](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsRoXg5akks) ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2014, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439/49 "2014-09-25T23:00:43Z")
WHAT AN AWFUL YEAR! This is what caused me to start a thread asking if the '70s was the worst decade. However, it did have [The Pips.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=NRmCG3ZOpkc#t=173) ---
**Author:** ![Cognoscant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Cognoscant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cognoscant)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2014, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439/50 "2014-09-25T23:44:46Z")
Superstition could take a whole 70’s poll for me, really. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439/51 "2014-09-26T01:25:23Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > No need to apologize - Karen Carpenter had one of the best voices around. Now, Top of the World ain’t one of their best, but she was wonderful. > > Superstition - as mentioned in many other threads, he wrote it for Jeff Beck, but liked it so much he recorded it himself. And that 70’s clavinet funk tone for the riff holds up so damn well. > > Here’s Wonder and Beck playing it at the Rock Hall anniversary concert in Madison Square Garden: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsRoXg5akks](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsRoXg5akks) Even though this is awesome, I was a bit disappointed that it was _Jeff_ Beck to whom you were referring. Anyway, I gave my vote to George Harrison’s **Give me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)**. I’m a little surprised this one’s not doing much in the poll. mmm ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439/52 "2014-09-26T01:44:12Z")
“Superstition” was an easy choice, especially after reading the OP’s direction to vote for the “best song.” I’ve noticed that in some of your other song-year polls you have asked for the “best single” or some other wording. That figures in not only the song, but the performance, production, and many other factors, which for this year had me giving heavy consideration to “Tie a Yellow Ribbon,” which was a cultural phenomenon that cannot be underestimated. Even more than 40 years later, the symbol of a yellow ribbon is arguably as evocative as a smiley face or a peace sign was in the sixties. Hokey song, cheesy performance, record for the ages. I still went with “Superstition,” but on a technicality. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439/53 "2014-09-26T02:53:41Z")
Large sample of competitors, with some that you wonder how they got to number one and some weak showings from otherwise top acts. Still a transitional period. But OTOH there’s something like _Superstition_, blowing away everyone else. Respect and props due as well to Carly, Roberta, Marvin, Ringo and Jim. ---
**Author:** ![Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/les_espaces_du_sommeil/32/308_2.png) [@Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Les_Espaces_Du_Sommeil)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 8:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439/54 "2014-09-26T08:59:49Z")
It looks like _Superstition_ is clearly winning this poll and it’s not surprising: that riff is a killer. Inticate and with an amazing groove. But the problem for me is that the rest of the song doesn’t work so well. It _is_ very good but after that riff, it’s a bit of let-down. _Killing Me Softly With His Song_ works better as a whole IMHO. @ **Slow Moving Vehicle** 😉 . ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439/55 "2014-09-26T12:38:01Z")
It has to be _You’re So Vain_ because Carly Simon’s nipples on the album cover inspired me to ask a girl to dance, and she said Yes. (Although _Boys in the Trees_ was a better album overall.) Although the rest of the list suggests that music in the 70s was both a symptom of, and a reaction to, drug abuse. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![dba\_Fred](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c37758/32.png) [@dba\_Fred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dba_Fred)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439/56 "2014-09-26T16:18:21Z")
Motivated by a true-life event, I chose Charlie Rich’s _The Most Beautiful Girl_ - a bit after the song came out, my girlfriend decided I wasn’t boyfriend material (I wasn’t). Ringo Starr’s _Photograph_ also fit my teenage melancholy. There are songs I liked better in the year but those 2 take me back to a time & place. ---
**Author:** ![Chicagojeff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b19c9b/32.png) [@Chicagojeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chicagojeff)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439/57 "2014-09-26T17:27:33Z")
Youre so vain is a great song… though Im annoyed by the constant fluff about who its about 9Obviously Warren Beaty… come on son!!) Love Train… superstition are classics… had to go with Gladys… its the defining song of their career… and she sings the HELL outta that song. My parents wore it out… but even today I can hear her… She owned that song… ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439/58 "2014-09-26T22:02:32Z")
Not even a ghost of a contest this time. Steve Wonder’s “Superstition” is the greatest #1 hit of all time. Lots of good tunes this year, but they all fade to nothing before the awesomeness that is “Superstition.” ---
**Author:** ![tullsterx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@tullsterx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tullsterx)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2014, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439/59 "2014-09-30T15:13:50Z")
Damn, is something wrong with this poll. How can Superstition be SOOO far ahead. Anyway, I think Let’s Get It On is the most timeless classic in that list. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2014, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439/60 "2014-09-30T15:59:36Z")
> [@tullsterx](#): > > Damn, is something wrong with this poll. How can Superstition be SOOO far ahead. Yeah, makes me feel bad for not really liking it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1973/699439.md?page=4)