Casey Kasem American Top 40

[Gazoo]

Unlike Mike, I hate the early 70s music to a point where if I want to take a nap, I would put on this period's light rock music. However, I would love to hear the very first American Top 40. I hope somebody broadcast the first show during 4th of July weekend.

It was broadcast last summer, right?

[RGMike]

Bloodrock was a shitty rock band that did a horrible death song called "D.O.A." about the last painful thoughts during and after a plane crash.

No need for me to take note of the "Jody" thing; that was rejected and I've dropped the topic.

Nothing "mighty" about Mike Curb, though I did get smatterings of applause when I sang "The Candy Man" at a gay karaoke bar in D.C. last weekend.

Wow, somebody's wearing the crankypants!

Obviously, my "mighty" Mike Curb comment was ironic -- he was a classic hypocritical Repug.

We got a July 1970 show last year, but not the very first one.

ETA: TANC, I just started listening to one of those "Marshmallow Dimension" podcasts at WNYU.org, and one of the songs on this show (from 2/23/09) is ...  Bloodrock, "I'm a Dier Not A Lover" (!)

[RGMike]

This WNYU "marshmallow" thing is great, music-wise (lots of obscurities, plus new psych/garage type stuff (just like Little Steven's show). But the heavy echo-effect thing the jock ("Baron Saturday") is using for his backannounce segments is way cheezy.

[RGMike]

This WNYU "marshmallow" thing is great, music-wise (lots of obscurities, plus new psych/garage type stuff (just like Little Steven's show). But the heavy echo-effect thing the jock ("Baron Saturday") is using for his backannounce segments is way cheezy.

Well, I loved this show, musically -- but there's not much in the way of context from the host (compared to, say Little Steven, who contexualizes constantly). Which is no small thing, considering how obscure most of the music is. And as i said, the echo-chamber delivery is annoyingly hokey. Kudos on playing Diamanda Galas with John Paul Jones (!)

But Gaz will be pleased to hear that they played Free Design's "A Leaf Has Veins", from the Kites Are Fun LP.

[Tinka Cat]

This WNYU "marshmallow" thing is great, music-wise (lots of obscurities, plus new psych/garage type stuff (just like Little Steven's show). But the heavy echo-effect thing the jock ("Baron Saturday") is using for his backannounce segments is way cheezy.

Well, I loved this show, musically -- but there's not much in the way of context from the host (compared to, say Little Steven, who contexualizes constantly). Which is no small thing, considering how obscure most of the music is. And as i said, the echo-chamber delivery is annoyingly hokey. Kudos on playing Diamanda Galas with John Paul Jones (!)

But Gaz will be pleased to hear that they played Free Design's "A Leaf Has Veins", from the Kites Are Fun LP.

yesh, not much musical edu-ma-catin' going on here.  I noticed a couple warpy sounds coming from the podcast (I listened to the same one you did, with Free Design and Diamanda),   I'm hoping they're actually vinyl-induced.

[Gazoo]

Shucks: just missed a chance to hear "Remember Me" again; it and 6 other songs drop out this week.

[Gazoo]

OTOH, this was one of only two weeks in the Top 40 for the Four Tops' "Just Seven Numbers (Can Straighten Out My Life)."  It's no Rooms of Gloom, but it'll do.

[Gazoo]

Obviously, my "mighty" Mike Curb comment was ironic -- he was a classic hypocritical Repug.

Wow.  "Burning Bridges" is undoubtedly the OMGWTFLOL of the week.

[Gazoo]

Gladys crushes me when she sings "Still, you beg her to love you," with that aching husk of hers.  BOS.

[Gazoo]

Holy shit!  I don't think I'd ever heard Andy Williams' vocal take on Love Story, "Where Do I Begin": I had no idea he was capable of singing with this much feeling.  Clearly he was paying attention to what Elvis was doing with ballads at this point?

[Gazoo]

BOS2 to the Grass Roots' "Temptation Eyes," validating Grace Slick's assertion that the piano is a percussion instrument.

[Gazoo]

Proxy of the Princess for Jerry Reed in the Top 10 with "Amos Moses."  Love that laugh of his.

[Tinka Cat]

got here late, and listening to a canadian stream: http://radiotime.com/station/s_31245/The_HAWK_1039.aspx

came in right before one of the schmaltziest songs in the chart this week,  the orchestrated version of Francis Lai's Theme from Love Story, but that is rinsed out with a triple soul shot of Rufus Thomas, Marvin Gaye and Johnny Taylor.  phew!

[RGMike]

Obviously, my "mighty" Mike Curb comment was ironic -- he was a classic hypocritical Repug.

Wow.  "Burning Bridges" is undoubtedly the OMGWTFLOL of the week.

It was (in case Casey didn't mention) the theme song from the move Kelly's Heroes with Clint Eastwood, a sort of poor man's Dirty Dozen. Curb later became Lt Gov of Calif, running as a Reaganesque Repug, talkin' 'bout how the music business needed cleaning up to rid it of all those sex and drugs lyrics.

[RGMike]

Holy shit!  I don't think I'd ever heard Andy Williams' vocal take on Love Story, "Where Do I Begin": I had no idea he was capable of singing with this much feeling.  Clearly he was paying attention to what Elvis was doing with ballads at this point?

Williams is underrated IMHO; he gets lumped in with the middle-of-the-road acts who were identifed with TV shows your grandparents might watch.  (Not to mention he discovered the Osmonds.) He had the hit version of the Godfather theme too, the following year. But he made a lot of good "easy-listening" records in the '60s -- his "Can't Get Used to Losing You" (a #2 pop hit later given the ska treatment by the English Beat) was my favorite song when I was 7; one of the the first songs that made me aware of verse structure and the art of moving a narrative forward within a 3-minute song. (Yes, I was a precocious child.) 

'71 was a good year for MOR singers having their biggest hits in years; we just missed Perry Como's top-10 "It's Impossible", which fell out of the 40 this week. Williams' "Love Story" would be the biggest of the 3 versions, peaking at #9.