# Best #1 single of the year retrospective: 1974 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 26, 2014, 9:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628 "2014-09-26T09:32:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**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, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628/41 "2014-09-26T16:25:37Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > As I hold this list up by its corner, so as not to get any on me… 😃 [QUOTE=njtt] I vote for the pompatus of love. [/QUOTE] I read that damn column, twice. What the hell is a “pompatus”? Does Cecil think “pompatus” sounds like “puppetutes”? It doesn’t. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![woodstockbirdybird](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/woodstockbirdybird/32/7905_2.png) [@woodstockbirdybird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/woodstockbirdybird)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628/42 "2014-09-26T16:35:16Z")
Wow, what a steaming pile 1974 was. Went with Stevie again, because it’s a good (as opposed to great) song, though still far ahead of about 95% of this list, which is thoroughly mediocre. ---
**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 26, 2014, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628/43 "2014-09-26T17:11:38Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > Ah, but now that we are here, can you see what I have been talking about? Isn’t it the most amazing year ever? I mean, you have to step back and really wonder: what the fuck was going on?? It’s vomitous. And I can’t believe I participated at the time - I liked many of these songs! Then again, I was 11 years old… ---
**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, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628/44 "2014-09-26T17:12:15Z")
“Rock you Baby” was co-written by KC… of later KC and the sunshine band. THe haunting melody and great falsetto of a guy who was a backup singer and happened to be in the studio at the right time. It’s along with Love Unlimited the precursor and beginning of the disco era. A genre defining song… still today its absolute perfection… setting a course away from soul… into something a little different. The song sold millions… ---
**Author:** ![woodstockbirdybird](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/woodstockbirdybird/32/7905_2.png) [@woodstockbirdybird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/woodstockbirdybird)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628/45 "2014-09-26T17:20:16Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > 😃 > > I read that damn column, twice. What the hell is a “pompatus”? Does Cecil think “pompatus” sounds like “puppetutes”? It doesn’t. > > Regards, > Shodan No, but apparently Steve Miller, who stole the word for the song, thought it sounded alike (or, more realistically, just approximated what he’d heard and came up with a totally separate word). ---
**Author:** ![Monstera\_deliciosa](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monstera_deliciosa/32/109_2.png) [@Monstera\_deliciosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monstera_deliciosa)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628/46 "2014-09-26T17:29:42Z")
Good og this is awful. Unlike many folks here, I loved many, if not most of the songs from the 1970-1973 lists. But this is just bad, bad, bad. I don’t even like Stevie’s entry, which is saying something. I voted for _Rock the Boat_, mainly because I still enjoy bopping along with it when my husband plays SiriusXM’s 70s on 7 in his car. Rock on with my bad self, indeed. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628/47 "2014-09-26T17:30:52Z")
> [@Maserschmidt](#): > > It’s vomitous. _Some people call me **Maserschmidt** Because I speak of the vomitous of love…_ ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628/48 "2014-09-26T17:35:30Z")
This list is a bit of a mystery, as I think there were decent songs that should have made it to #1, like Maria Muldaur’s sexy _Midnight At The Oasis_, with it’s great guitar work, the moody _Rock On_ by David Essex, _Please Come To Boston_ by Dave Loggins, The Hollies’ \*The Air That I Breathe, \*and Aretha’s _Until You Come Back To Me_. Every one of these songs was better than pretty much anything that made #1. Perhaps part of the reason the sappy stuff was so popular was that Vietnam essentially ended in 1973, Nixon was on his way out (gone by August), and the nation was so tired that it went into a stupor. ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628/49 "2014-09-26T17:37:13Z")
Every year has its good songs and bad songs. However, 1974 was different because, on the whole, the good songs were just tolerable and the bad songs were audio ipecac. Anyway, I ended up picking “Bennie and the Jets”. I initially considered “You Haven’t Done Nothing” – Stevie Wonder’s kiss-off to Tricky Dick – but it loses a bit when it’s removed from the context of 1974. Runners up were Barry White’s “I Can’t Get Enough of Your Love”, Clapton’s “I Shot the Sheriff”, and McCartney & Wings’ “Band on the Run”. ---
**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 26, 2014, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628/50 "2014-09-26T18:01:12Z")
> [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](#): > > _Some people call me **Maserschmidt** > Because I speak of the vomitous of love…_ lol. Now that’s stuck in my head. I’m having second thoughts about skipping over Billy Swan’s “I Can Help”. In an era of Beatles knockoffs, it’s actually one of the best, I think. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628/51 "2014-09-26T18:09:54Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > Oh yeah, baby! > > Such a bountiful harvest of amazingly silly songs! > Ultimately, I think I might go with **Hooked on a Feeling** - incredibly, profoundly stupid, but catchy and, with its comeback in Guardians of the Galaxy, has demonstrable staying power. > > But, oh wow - what an epically dumb year. Exactly what motivated me. An awesome year for pop and rock music. Bring it on, baby. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628/52 "2014-09-26T18:39:05Z")
Well, by 1974 I was strictly an FM listener, and for the second consecutive year I recognize very few of the songs. This thread has been great fun, and I’ll keep following it, but I probably won’t vote again. And now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll go get over myself. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Lacunae\_Matata](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8491ac/32.png) [@Lacunae\_Matata](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lacunae_Matata)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628/53 "2014-09-26T19:14:04Z")
What an extraordinarily mediocre year for music! I had to go with Barry White, because… Barry White. Plus, nothing on the entire list rises to the level of really great music. Some of it is undeniably beautiful, some is catchy, but none are great IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628/54 "2014-09-26T20:16:51Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > This list is a bit of a mystery, as I think there were decent songs that should have made it to #1, like Maria Muldaur’s sexy _Midnight At The Oasis_, with it’s great guitar work… Not just a great song, but from a [great album](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Muldaur_%28album%29) that mined the world of singer-songwriters for great tunes and tasty licks from every session player in town, including Amos Garrett’s guitar. David Nichtern wrote that song and another, and she covered Dolly Parton, Dr. John, Wendy Waldman, Dan Hicks, Kate McGarrigle, and a couple of old-timers. She, like Linda Ronstadt, led the pack of wonderful singers who interpreted others’ works. You know, sort of like Sinatra and that guy who is singing duets with Lady Gaga. That’s the softer sounds of the 70s we listened to and celebrated. No OOGA-CHOOGAs. ---
**Author:** ![Octarine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/22d042/32.png) [@Octarine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octarine)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628/55 "2014-09-26T20:42:26Z")
I will shout it from the mountaintops: “Band on the Run” is a fantastic song, at least among the top 10 post-Beatles songs any of the four did. It got my vote. I enjoy “Cat’s in the Cradle,” and “The Joker” has a _groove_. “Bennie and the Jets” is a bit long, sure, but it’s damn catchy. I refuse to be ashamed of my musical tastes. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Nema98](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/d2c977/32.png) [@Nema98](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nema98)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628/56 "2014-09-26T21:18:34Z")
The most number 1 hits of any year in Billboard Hot 100 history! I went with Billy Preston, but I do like the disco songs here and “Feel like Making Love” is the only Roberta Flack song I like. Seems like a blend of all the 70’s musical styles, from folk to rock to disco to ballads. ---
**Author:** ![Octarine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/22d042/32.png) [@Octarine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octarine)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628/57 "2014-09-26T21:55:08Z")
I have to admit, though, for reasons I can’t quite place, “Time in a Bottle” makes me want to break something. ---
**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, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628/58 "2014-09-26T22:18:58Z")
For me, it came down to a tie between “Dark Lady” and “Whatever Gets You Through the Night.” I cast my vote for “Dark Lady.” ---
**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, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628/59 "2014-09-26T22:32:06Z")
> [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > But I choose the one I loved most in 1974: “Dark Lady”. I had the vague idea it was about a witch and even then I dug the spooky shit. Dig it. Make a mixtape with it and “Black Magic Woman”… (In the actual 1974, I only listened to classical music and some jazz. The only radio station I tuned into was Cleveland’s WCLV 95.5 FM, the classical music station. They played the whole series of Leonard Bernstein’s Charles Eliot Norton lectures from Harvard, “The Unanswered Question,” plus they play the recording of the revival production of Scott Joplin’s opera _Treemonisha_. Good times.) ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2014, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628/60 "2014-09-26T22:34:58Z")
> [@TreacherousCretin](#): > > Well, by 1974 I was strictly an FM listener, and for the second consecutive year I recognize very few of the songs. > This thread has been great fun, and I’ll keep following it, but I probably won’t vote again. > > And now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll go get over myself. > 😃 Since you were an FM listener in 1974, were you mainly listening to album-oriented-rock? If so, what albums from that year did you think were any good? I ask this because the consensus among many rock critics that the general aura of suckiness that plagued Top 40 single releases that year spread over into rock albums as well. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1974/699628.md?page=4)