Best of the Rest of the Top 40: 1973

Cafe Society
1

You may recall from the #1 poll series that 1973 was a big year for #1s, and indeed it was - after I eliminated them from the year-end top 40 list, I was left with only 18 songs. (“Monster Mash”, which was a #1 in 1962, also somehow made its way back to the top 40 this year.) I ended up going to #48 to fill in our list (because #41, “Give Me Love”, was also a #1), and almost all of these songs made #2 or #3 on the weekly charts.

What’s your favorite?

Previous polls: 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972

Best #1 single polls: 1955-56 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s All-time

2

Awfully slim pickings.

I went with Daniel for being a little less meh than the rest. It’s the 70s, after all.

Regards,
Shodan

3

I must disagree. there’s a lot of great stuff this year. I feel sorry for people that can’t appreciate John Denver. “Rocky Mountain High” is a great song and got my vote. Others I hope get votes:

Dobie Gray - “Drift Away”
The Sweet - “Little Willy”
Three Dog Night - “Shambala”
King Harvest - “Dancing In the Moonlight”
Seals and Crofts - “Diamond Girl”
The Doobie Brothers - “Long Train Runnin’”
Elton John - “Daniel”

A good year

4

Easy. If You Want Me to Stay is my favorite song.

If not favorite, then certainly top 5 with a bullet!

5

Steelers Wheel, no question.

6

And here we have the year in which my right arm developed great speed in going from steering wheel to radio station selection button.

I count a total of 5 that I would NOT immediately punch off.

By 1975, I had installed an 8-Track.

Just 10 years after the British Invasion, and top 40 is dregging up crap the likes of which had not been heard since about 1957.

How Much is the Doggie in the Window would have been preferable…

7

Gave my vote to The Spinners, second choice would have been Dr. John. Happy to see someone gave it a vote already.

8

I went with Daniel because it was a beautiful song. One of Elton’s finest.

Regards,

mascaroni

9

I went with “Dancin’ in the Moonlight;” something about the intro always makes me feel really happy. Stealer’s Wheel (I used to think that song was by Wings! :p) and Dr. John had my runners-up.

I was surprised to realize that I didn’t recognize many of the other ones…maybe their titles are just unfamiliar.

10

I went with Daniel as well, because it reminds my mother of her late brother.

11

Little Willy, Willy won’t … GO HOME!
But you can’t push Willy round, Willy won’t go!
Try tellin’ everybody but, oh no!
Little Willy, Willy won’t … GO HOME!

I paid list price for that album because it was only available at one record shop in DeKalb, IL. Intensely loud and intensely stoopid.

12

It reminds me of a good friend from my childhood who died in a motorcycle accident when he was 21.

Shodan, apologies for being a bit snarky.

13

Every song in the poll makes me want to projectile vomit. Then came Disco. I hated the 70’s, absolutely hated it.

14

It probably won’t get that many votes but I went with The Isley Brothers’ "That Lady". Ernie Isley’s guitar work on that song is what put it over the top for me. My runners up were “Shambala” and “Daniel”.

Paul Simon had two Top 5 records in 1973. Of those, only “Loves Me Like a Rock” made the cut for the year’s Top 40. The other one was “Kodachrome” which would’ve likely been my pick had it been on the list.

15

Right there with you.

16

I went with “Stuck in the Middle with You” and am glad to see it winning the poll so far. “Little Willy” is dead-ass last. “Drift Away” sucks and is boring as hell; I never understood how people seem to like it so much.

17

No problem, of course. I am too clueless to have noticed.

Regards,
Shodan

18

I am the second vote ;o)

19

It saddens me that so many of you don’t appreciate 70’s funk/soul… it’s some truly great stuff man, can you dig it?

Three songs are in contention:

The Isley Brothers - “That Lady”. Great guitar work, a great groove and just a cool song. As I made my way down this list, this was the song the others had to compare to.

Barry White - “I’m Gonna Love You Just A Little More Baby”. C’mon, it’s Barry FREAKIN’ White, the master of “Songs to Get Laid By” and “Man, I was so stoned when I laid this track but I still sounded like the coolest cat ever.” The world misses you, Barry.

Sly & the Family Stone - “If You Want Me To Stay”. A great song, it just missed out by a bit to the Isley’s for not being frenetic enough.

… and I’m going to vote for Barry White. He’s just so representative of his time and place that it would be a shame if he got 0 votes here.

That “Little Willy” song is just sad. I’d rather listen to Anne Murray’s greatest hits, vol. 1 and 2, then listen to that song once.

20

It does kick ass. Unfortunately I couldn’t vote for it because I’d never heard it before. I just don’t know how well I’d like it after hearing it repeatedly my whole life like so many of these other songs.