14 November 1969 The Archies are our first encounter with a hit-making fictional cartoon act, paving the way for Bart Simpson, Gorillaz and Shakin' Stevens. What you hear on 'Sugar, Sugar' are the vocals of session singer Ron Dante, co-writer Andy Kim (who goes on to become a flesh-and-blood one-hit wonder in 1974 with 'Rock … Continue reading The Archies – ‘Sugar, Sugar’
Tag: 60s
Joe Dolan – ‘Teresa’
7 November 1969 Here's the final Irish single to reach number one in Ireland in the '60s. You will be familiar with Joe, but I don't know this song and I'm not aware of it being up there in his classic pantheon with 'Make Me An Island' or 'You're Such A Good Looking Woman'. (A … Continue reading Joe Dolan – ‘Teresa’
Bobbie Gentry – ‘I’ll Never Fall In Love Again’
24 October 1969 Surely this is recency bias on my part, I thought, but I re-watched The Apartment on TV last week and my re-listen to 'I'll Never Fall In Love Again' today seemed like it could be fittingly sung by Shirley MacLaine's Miss Kubelik: same cruel heartbreak, same world-weary sadness, same biting wit and … Continue reading Bobbie Gentry – ‘I’ll Never Fall In Love Again’
Creedence Clearwater Revival – ‘Bad Moon Rising’
10 October 1969 Don't go out tonight! Don't make unnecessary journeys! Ireland in 1969 didn't have weather apps or storm-battered TV reporters, so it fell to mid-table rock bands like Creedence to warn the people of impending extreme weather events. 'Bad Moon Rising' predicts earthquakes, lightning and hurricanes, all of which John Fogerty wraps up … Continue reading Creedence Clearwater Revival – ‘Bad Moon Rising’
Bee Gees – ‘Don’t Forget To Remember’
3 October 1969 Those of you following Robin Gibb's 1969 solo run and his chart-topping 'Saved By The Bell' are probably waiting for the other shoe to drop: what happens now with the Bee Gees? Well, here's their subsequent single without the third brother, now replaced by a Peter Mason. You may be familiar with … Continue reading Bee Gees – ‘Don’t Forget To Remember’
Zager & Evans – ‘In The Year 2525 (Exordium & Terminus)’
19 September 1969 Exciting, isn't it: we're exactly 500 years from the year 2525! If I recall something I saw on TV once, everyone will be phenomenally beautiful, dressed in white spandex jumpsuits, and accompanied by droids quite similar to, but sufficiently distanced in copyright terms from, the droids in Star Wars. I think it … Continue reading Zager & Evans – ‘In The Year 2525 (Exordium & Terminus)’
Robin Gibb – ‘Saved By The Bell’
5 September 1969 Not, unfortunately, the theme from that '90s US high school sitcom: this 'Saved By The Bell' is a solo Bee Gees joint. I gather Robin briefly left the group after a disagreement with his brothers, perhaps on how exactly to make their records sound so gloopy and nauseous, then re-joined after a … Continue reading Robin Gibb – ‘Saved By The Bell’
Sean Dunphy and The Hoedowners – ‘When The Fields Are White With Daisies’
30 August 1969 Back in August 1969 Ireland was setting up refugee camps for families fleeing persecution and civil strife in their homeland. As it happens, those refugee families were also Irish, their homeland was the six counties of Northern Ireland, and they were fleeing loyalist attacks on nationalist areas of Belfast, Newry, Armagh and … Continue reading Sean Dunphy and The Hoedowners – ‘When The Fields Are White With Daisies’
The Rolling Stones – ‘Honky Tonk Women’
16 August 1969 Well, I certainly didn't expect to see the Stones' most debauchery-drenched single at number one in '60s Ireland - not because of prudishness or religiosity of the time and place, but because the last two years of Irish chart-toppers have been mostly twee bubblegum schmaltz. Could the same individuals who enjoyed 'Lily … Continue reading The Rolling Stones – ‘Honky Tonk Women’
Elvis Presley – ‘In The Ghetto’
19 July 1969 Most of us would probably agree that systemic poverty is a bad thing. So, I want to be generous to the impulse behind the writing of 'In The Ghetto'. That said, this is a dreadfully manipulative, exploitative and condescending record. Its main lyrical concern is that the poor are fecklessly reproducing, growing … Continue reading Elvis Presley – ‘In The Ghetto’
