18 January 1973 Leave the kid out of this. Little Jimmy Osmond simply stands in a line of cutesy and precocious child performers, from Shirley Temple to whatever senior infant is currently wowing 'em on social media, and that strand of light entertainment has thrived since the days of vaudeville and music hall. Here in … Continue reading Little Jimmy Osmond – ‘Long Haired Lover From Liverpool’
Tag: 70s
John Lennon and Yoko Ono and the Plastic Ono Band with the Harlem Community Choir – ‘Happy Xmas (War Is Over)’
4 January 1973 There's some irony in John and Yoko's perennial Yuletide anthem for peace being kept off Ireland's 1972 Christmas number one spot by a song about an Irish bandit shooting a British Army officer. That said, given that year's events and chart-topping singles, plus Ireland's liking for Christmas number ones that have a … Continue reading John Lennon and Yoko Ono and the Plastic Ono Band with the Harlem Community Choir – ‘Happy Xmas (War Is Over)’
Thin Lizzy – ‘Whiskey In The Jar’
21 December 1972 Like an acid-tripping episode of Nationwide, our number ones of 1972 begin in the peaceful céilí-showband Slaney Valley, then head north to catch up with community goings-on Foyleside and a music-loving British Army regiment who've made the area their home, and now end here with an action-packed visit to the scenic Celtic-rock … Continue reading Thin Lizzy – ‘Whiskey In The Jar’
Chuck Berry – ‘My Ding-A-Ling’
7 December 1972 What in God's name is Chuck Berry doing at the top of the charts—in Ireland, the UK and, amazingly, for the only time in the US—in 1972? Well, if it had ever gone away at all, '50s rock n' roll was having a glam- and nostalgia-fuelled renewal of interest. Berry had headlined … Continue reading Chuck Berry – ‘My Ding-A-Ling’
Lieutenant Pigeon – ‘Mouldy Old Dough’
2 November 1972 I turn again to the words of my guru, Hugo Drax: "Not being English, I sometimes find your sense of humour rather difficult to follow". Feigning interest in 'Mouldy Old Dough' for a moment, I discern a mixum-gatherum of traditional English cultural expression: music hall; sea shanty; medieval folk; Dickensian grotesquery; end-of-the-pier … Continue reading Lieutenant Pigeon – ‘Mouldy Old Dough’
Gilbert O’Sullivan – ‘Clair’
26 October 1972 Others abide Operation Yewtree's questioning; Gilbert is free. Even with lines like "to me you're more than a child" and "in spite of our age difference" there's no implication of anything untoward in 'Clair'. We know that this is simply the Gilbertian muse in action: take an idea whimsically, run with it … Continue reading Gilbert O’Sullivan – ‘Clair’
David Cassidy – ‘How Can I Be Sure’
19 October 1972 Every generation has its male pop teen-idols and pin-ups. Since the '90s, they've tended to originate in variety packs of four or five, known to science as boybands, so that you can choose your preferred dreamboat from the cheeky one, the cute one, the tough one, the talented one, or—let's not kink-shame—the … Continue reading David Cassidy – ‘How Can I Be Sure’
T. Rex – ‘Children Of The Revolution’
5 October 1972 The crop is getting noticeably thinner; 'Children Of The Revolution' doesn't have a bridge or a third verse, and at barely two-and-a-half minutes it's half the length of 'Hot Love' and two minutes shorter than 'Get It On'. Also thinning off here is the market demand; 'Children Of The Revolution' didn't get … Continue reading T. Rex – ‘Children Of The Revolution’
Slade – ‘Mama Weer All Crazee Now’
21 September 1972 If Slade are the Oasis of glam, then with 'Mama Weer All Crazee Now' they seem to be getting their Be Here Now era in early. The substance of choice here, as per the lyrics, may be whiskey, but this tired and tiring trudge is redolent of the most coked-up of rock … Continue reading Slade – ‘Mama Weer All Crazee Now’
Dermot Henry – ‘The Gypsy’
7 September 1972 There are a few factoids and minutiae to get out of the way first. This is the second chart-topping single for Sligo folk-showband balladeer Dermot Henry, after 1970's rich-people-have-feelings-too sobfest 'If Those Lips Could Only Speak'. We won't see such Sligo dominance of our number one spot again until the advent of … Continue reading Dermot Henry – ‘The Gypsy’
