H/D's List: 123 songs that should still be played ...

[Hoosier Daddy]

And now ... back to the hits!


38. EMMA - Hot Chocolate (1974)

Hot Chocolate was best known for their disco-era hits You Sexy Thing and Every 1's a Winner. This one is a bit more somber and pre-dates the aforementioned tunes by one and four years, respectively. Lead singer Errol Brown wrote Emma about his mother's life; and the over-the-top emotion almost caused the record company to not release the song. The female office staff at RAK Records convinced the producer to change his mind. Errol Brown and Company took Emma to #8 on Billboard's Hot 100.





37. THE LAST GAME OF THE SEASON - David Geddes (1976)

The follow-up to Run Joey Run ...





36. HERE COMES THE NIGHT - Them (1965)

Lulu (of To Sir, With Love fame) originally sang this tune in 1964 and scored a lukewarm hit, scratching the charts at #50. Van Morrison's Belfast, Northern Ireland garage band "Them" covered this song in 1965, musically bending and twisting it a little and scoring a transcontinental hit. Jimmy Page played guitar. Andy White (the '5th Beatle' who subbed for Ringo Starr in several recording sessions) and Tommy Scott sang backup vocals. Phil Coulter (now an internationally recognized pianist and composer) handled the keyboards, and Ronnie Millings played the drums. None of them knew it at the time, but the band had an all-star lineup in the infancy of their music careers. Here Comes the Night peaked at #24 on Billboard's Hot 100 and scored #2 in the UK.

[Hoosier Daddy]

35. ROCK AND ROLL I GAVE YOU ALL THE BEST YEARS OF MY LIFE - Mac Davis (1975)

An easy contender for Longest Song Title Ever, crossover country artist Mac Davis offers up this hit that charted at #15 on Billboard's Hot 100, #2 on the US Adult Contemporary chart, and #29 on the US Country chart, all at the same time. Thats how Top 40 radio was back in the mid 70s ...





34. EVERY TIME I THINK OF YOU - The Babys (1979)

The Babys were vocalist John Waite, drummer Tony Brock, keyboard player Jonathan Cain, bassist Ricky Phillips, and guitarist Wally Stocker. Waite was also lead singer for a band called Bad English and he had a number of solo releases in the mid 80s, including the #1 hit Missing You in 1984. This song charted at #13 on Billboard's Hot 100 in April 1979.





33. LET ME - Paul Revere and the Raiders (1969)

One of a gaggle of great songs released by lead singer Mark Lindsay (who I guess you could call "Paul Revere") and the Raiders. #20 on Billboard's Hot 100.

[Scott Reppert]

Again, not a thread hijack. Since we have already looked at songs that The Beatles wrote that were done by others, let's take a look at that theory in reverse and see some of the original versions of Beatles hits (all of them from their pre-1966 period):

[Hoosier Daddy]

32. IS SHE REALLY GOING OUT WITH HIM - Joe Jackson (1979)

Joe Jackson's very first single, released in 1978 and unnoticed, then re-released in 1979 and hitting #21 on Billboard's Hot 100.





31. PUMP IT UP - Elvis Costello (1978)

Some early work from The Other Elvis ...





30. I WANNA BE WITH YOU - The Raspberries (1972)

This is the lesser played Raspberries hit from the summer of '72. Go All The Way is the token favorite for oldies stations that are classy enough to feature this powerhouse Cleveland pop-rock band. The group's classic lineup consisted of Eric Carmen (vocalist/guitarist/bassist), Wally Bryson (guitarist), Jim Bonfanti (drummer), and Dave Smalley (guitarist/bassist). The Raspberries broke up in 1975 when Eric Carmen left to begin a successful solo career, but their sound had been distinctive and their musical influence was lasting. Bruce Springsteen praised the Raspberries in a number of concert appearances, and Paul Stanley of Kiss, Tom Petty, and Axl Rose of Guns n' Roses have all also cited Raspberries as a major influence in their songwriting. #16 on Billboard's Hot 100.

[Hoosier Daddy]

29. WALKING IN THE RAIN - Ronettes (1964)

This was the only Phil Spector song to win a Grammy Award. Walking in the Rain was covered later by the Walker Brothers, the Partridge Family, Cheryl Ladd, Jay and the Americans, and Erasure. This is the original, and it reached #23 on Billboard's Hot 100 back in '64.





28. INDIAN RESERVATION - Don Fardon (1968)

Indian Reservation was written by John D. Loudermilk and was first recorded in 1959 by Marvin Rainwater and released as The Pale Faced Indian. Rainwater's MGM release stayed unnoticed. Don Fardon, a former member of The Sorrows, covered the song in 1968 and it reached #20 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart and #3 on the UK Singles Chart. The most familiar (and very different) version is from 1971 when The Raiders (formerly Paul Revere and the Raiders) recorded the song. That version went to #1 on the U.S. chart and sold over a million copies.





27. BERNADETTE - Four Tops (1967)

Here's another 60s band that just cranked out one great song after another. Ask The Lonely, I Can't Help Myself, Reach Out I'll Be There, Standing in the Shadows of Love, Its the Same Old Song, Shake Me Wake Me ... the list goes on and on. And The Four Tops were buried in a Top 40 music mix that included The Beatles, The Who, Jefferson Airplane, The Doors, The Turtles, Aretha Franklin, Buffalo Springfield, The Rolling Stones, Neil Diamond, The Spencer Davis Group, the Monkees, The Lovin Spoonful, Eric Burdon and The Animals, Sonny and Cher, Tommy James and the Shondells, Jimi Hendrix and hundreds of other groups, solo artists and one-hit wonders that dotted the radar. And real live DJs played these songs and dropped jingles and talked up the intros and took requests and held contests ... <sigh> What a great time to be a kid and listen to the AM radio.

[Hoosier Daddy]

Counting them down!


26. ACTION - Sweet (1975)

They're best known for pop staples like Little Willy and Fox on the Run, but I could do an entire thread on the great songs kicked out by the British glam-rocker band known as The Sweet that never get airplay anymore. Here's one of them. From the summer of 1975, Action charted in 13 different countries, including topping at #20 on Billboard's Hot 100.





25. KEEP ON SMILIN' - Wet Willie (1974)

A sort-of one-hit wonder band from Mobile, Alabama. Wet Willie produced a number of albums during the 70s that featured their high energy southern soulful rock. A number of the singles gained a little traction on the radio playlists but none ever came close to the popularity of this song.





24. COME AND SEE HER - The Easybeats (1966)

A forgotten classic from Australia's most popular 60s rock band ...

[Scott Reppert]

"Action". Possibly the best of The Sweet's singles.

I can't wait to do a "countdown within your countdown" of my favorites that you have you listed! This and "Lonely Drifter" are at the top of the list!!!

[Hoosier Daddy]

EXTRA: Random forgotten oldies from the 80s ...

All the stuff you ought to hear but don't ...


LITTLE SUZI - Tesla (1987)




NAUGHTY NAUGHTY - John Parr (1985)




DEEPER AND DEEPER - The Fixx (1984)




ROCK AND ROLL IS KING - Electric Light Orchestra (1983)




THEY DON'T KNOW - Tracey Ullman ( 1983)




CLONES - Alice Cooper (1980) ** Video somewhat NSFW




BREAKING AWAY - Balance (1981)




BLACK CARS - Gino Vannelli (1985)




VALLEY GIRL - Moon Unit Zappa (1982)




THE POLITICS OF DANCING - Reflex (1983)

[Scott Reppert]

"They Don't Know" is one of the highlights I found in the "Stiff Box" set. I enjoyed it and all of the other goodies
in there written or sung by Kirsty MacColl.

As for "Clones", has anyone ever heard the original version? I can't even remember who did it, but I know one exists.

ELO's "Hold On Tight" and "Rock And Roll Is King" should not be as forgotten as they are.

"Deeper And Deeper". The #1 Album Track of 1984 at WTCS.

As for "Breaking Away", we played it heavily but I always thought it sounded too much like this...

[Hoosier Daddy]

23. JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE MIND - Amboy Dukes (1968)

The Amboy Dukes alternately played in Detroit and Chicago when they were starting out, and the band is credited with launching the career of Ted Nugent. Journey is the band's biggest selling and most recognized song and is a powerful fusion of progressive, heavy metal and psychodelic rock. The song itself was allegedly inspired by an acid trip, a charge confirmed by vocalist Steve Farmer and alternately confirmed and denied by Nugent.





22. LONELY DAYS - Bee Gees (1970)

Another great one from the Brothers Gibb ...





21. PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE - The Shangri-Las (1966)

This is the last Shangri-Las record issued on the Red Bird label just before the company went belly up. Past, Present and Future is said to be about surviving rape, something lead singer Mary Weiss strongly disagrees with. She said it is about teenage angst, heartbreak and "being hurt and not wanting anyone near you." Decide for yourself. This is powerful stuff for 1960s Top 40 music, and once again, proof there is no such thing as a bad record from the Shangri-Las. To know them is to love them.

[Hoosier Daddy]

20. ONE TIN SOLDIER - Coven (1971)

Original Caste, a Canadian band, recorded the original version of this song in 1969, charting at #34 in the US. Jinx Dawson of the band Coven covered the song in 1971 as part of the soundtrack for the movie Billy Jack, using a studio orchestra instead of her fellow band members. This version reached #26 on Billboard's Hot 100 but was pulled by film producers due to legal squabbles over recording rights. The full Coven band reluctantly re-recorded the song for their album in 1973 that coincided with the release of the film The Trial of Billy Jack. Coven's two versions of One Tin Soldier were named the #1 All Time Requested Song in 1971 and 1973 by the American Radio Broadcasters Association.





19. THIS FLIGHT TONIGHT - Nazareth (1973)

If you hear anything on the radio from Nazareth, its probably their 1975 power ballad called Love Hurts. But those crazy Scots covered a 1971 Joni Mitchell song called This Flight Tonight, changing a flowery hippie tune into a powerful hard rock anthem that charted in five European countries and Canada but saw very little airplay in the US. What a shame. Its a great song.





18. STAY WITH ME - Lorraine Ellison (1966)

Holy crap. You GOTTA hear this one. Just listen.

[Hoosier Daddy]

17. IF YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN - Neil Diamond (1976)

Neil Diamond is one of those ubiquitous artists (like Johnny Cash and Roy Orbison) that can sing half a sentence of any song and you instantly know who he is. Diamond dominated the Top 40 and Hot AC charts from the late 60s until the early 80s and had many hits back then that still make the rotation on oldies stations nowadays. But this one doesn't and it should. If You Know What I Mean charted #1 on the Hot AC charts and #11 on Billboard's Hot 100 during our nation's Bicentennial and, tied with Cracklin' Rosie, Holly Holy, and Brother Love's Travelling Salvation Show, it's one of my all-time personal favorites.





16. PICTURES OF MATCHSTICK MEN - Status Quo (1968)

Status Quo was a British band that had a number of hits in Europe but was a one-hit wonder here in the states. And this is the one hit.





15. I LIE AWAKE - The New Colony Six (1967)

Chicago's very own with their Colonial military uniforms and a distinct psychodelic pop sound. Former DJ and record critic Richie Unterberger characterized the NC6 style as "a poppier American Them with their prominent organ, wobbly Lesley-fied guitar amplifications and rave-up tempos". The New Colony Six put ten different hits on Billboard's Hot 100 between 1966 and 1971 and they're best known for their 1968 hit I Will Always Think About You and Things I'd Like To Say from 1969. This is a rare one straight from the Summer of Love and its smothered in awesome sauce and served hot just for you.

[Hoosier Daddy]

EXTRA: One! Last! Time! Forgotten hits from the 80s ...

80s music was the Swan Song of radio as a vibrant and relevant local medium ...


LET ME LOVE YOU ONCE - Greg Lake (1981)




AH, LEAH - Donnie Iris (1980)




THE KILLING MOON - Echo and the Bunnymen (1984)




DO YOU WANNA TOUCH - Joan Jett and the Blackhearts (1982)




DEEP INSIDE MY HEART - Randy Meisner (1980)




MAN OUT OF TIME - Elvis Costello and The Attractions (1982)




BEAT'S SO LONELY - Charlie Sexton (1985)




TAKE THE L - The Motels (1982)




NEW GIRL NOW - Honeymoon Suite (1984)




HOW 'BOUT US - Champaign (1981)




MR. SOUL - Neil Young (1983)

[Scott Reppert]

The Greg Lake and Elvis Costello songs are both highly overlooked.

I still hear "Ah, Leah" a lot...especially out of Pittsburgh.

I was just thinking about "New Girl Now" last week. It is one, however, that I do hear occasionally on some better-programmed Classic Rock stations.

Concerning "Do You Wanna Touch Me There": the original version (Gary Glitter) has kinda become "creepy" (using an Edna word) seeing as what the author (Gary Glitter) has gotten himself into over the years. I have always preferred what I call the "second version" of it to be the best. As a matter of fact, I don't think we even played Joan's version at TCS because this one was so big (following up on his other great forgotten hit, "Slip Away")...

[Hoosier Daddy]

14. IT'S OVER - Roy Orbison (1964)

Roy Orbison was hardly a prototype for a pop music idol. He grew up poor during the Great Depression, was nearly blind, and had a childhood bout with jaundice that left his face and skin sallow. He had noticably protruding ears, and his hair began turning white while in elementary school, causing him to dye it jet black. But My God this man could sing. Elvis Presley and Bono have stated Roy's voice was "the greatest and most distinctive" they had ever heard. Bruce Springsteen and Billy Joel both commented on the otherworldly quality of Orbison's voice, and Dwight Yoakam stated that Orbison's voice sounded like "the cry of an angel falling backward through an open window". Barry Gibb went further to say that when he heard Crying for the first time, "That was it. To me that was the voice of God." Bob Dylan remarked that Orbison "sang compositions in three or four octaves that made you want to drive your car over a cliff. His voice could jar a corpse, always leave you muttering to yourself something like, 'Man, I don't believe it'". Rolling Stone Magazine credited Orbison with "a passionate intensity" that made "his love, his life, and, indeed, the whole world seemed to be coming to an end—not with a whimper, but an agonizing, beautiful bang". Many of Orbison's songs conveyed a quiet, desperate vulnerability, and he was known for performing while standing still and solitary, wearing black clothes and dark sunglasses which lent an air of mystery to his persona. After a dry spell lasting almost 20 years, Roy Orbison made a comeback in the 80s, performing with the supergroup The Travelling Wilburys. At the height of his resurgance, Orbison died of a heart attack on December 6, 1988. He was 52 years old. This song is a personal favorite and it charted at #9 on Billboard's Hot 100.





13. CRY BABY - Garnet Mimms and the Enchanters (1963)

McDowell County, West Virginia's very own Garnet Mimms and his biggest chart-topping hit. #4 on Billboard's Hot 100.





12. MR. BOJANGLES (Uncle Charlie) - Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (1971)

Country music artist Jerry Jeff Walker said he was inspired to write this song after an encounter with a street performer in a New Orleans jail. While in jail for public intoxication in 1965, Walker met a homeless white man who called himself "Mr. Bojangles" to conceal his true identity from the police. He had been arrested as part of a police sweep of indigent people following a high-profile murder. The two men and others in the cell chatted about a number of things, but when Mr. Bojangles told a story about his dog, the mood in the room turned heavy. Someone else in the cell asked for something to lighten the mood, and Mr. Bojangles obliged with a tap dance. Contrary to popular belief, this song does not refer to the famous stage and movie personality Bill "Bojangles" Robinson. #9 on Billboard's Hot 100.

[Hoosier Daddy]

Crankin' out the Final 10 ...


11. TEENAGE RAMPAGE - The Sweet (1974)

Here's another power pop/rock song from The Sweet that charted in at least ten different countries and was either #1 or #2 in seven of them, but the song saw very little airplay here in the US. Teenage Rampage was sandwiched in between Ballroom Blitz and Fox on the Run and both of those tunes hit #5 on Billboard's Hot 100, so it wasn't like the radio stations had never heard of The Sweet or their music. What a great song!





10. PINBALL WIZARD - Elton John (1975)

Elton John released a truckload of awesome music during the 70s and 80s and most of it isn't played anymore. I was going to choose Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding because, at about 12 minutes long, it was every disc jockey's emergency record of choice when a potentially nuclear nature call occured. But Pinball Wizard is just a bit more awesome and it could actually be heard during most dayparts, where "Funeral" was relegated to late nights and overnights when there was no pesky commercial spot load to worry about. The original version of this song was performed by The Who back in 1969 and was featured in the rock opera Tommy. When Tommy was remade as a theatrical adaptation, Elton John covered the song and changed The Who's acoustic guitar sound into an explosive, pounding piano solo. I think this version blows the original away. Elton John's cover of Pinball Wizard is the only time anyone remade a song originally recorded by The Who and was able to hit the top 10. Pinball Wizard went to #7 on Billboard's Hot 100.





9. CHICK A BOOM - Daddy Dewdrop (1971)

His real name is Dick Monda, and he was a songwriter from Cleveland who created this catchy tune for an episode of the CBS saturday morning cartoon series Sabrina and the Groovy Ghoulies. Just like with the Sugar Bear cereal records, this one took off and Sunflower Records released it on both an album of novelty songs and as a single. It charted at #9 on Billboard's Hot 100.

[Scott Reppert]

"Teenage Rampage". Now that's what I'm talking about!

Most people would probably recognize it from a TV commercial from a few years back (I forget the product, but I remember The Sweet)...

[Hoosier Daddy]

8. I WANNA HOLD YOUR HAND - The Beatles (1963)

Here's a historically significant tune you never seem to hear on the radio. Early Beatles staples like Love Me Do, P.S. I Love You, and She Loves You had all been released in the United States on a limited basis before I Wanna Hold Your Hand hit the American shore, but to me, THIS is the song that officially launched the British Invasion. Capitol Records had been holding back on throwing their industry muscle (and checkbook) behind those long-haired boys from Liverpool, but when this song shot straight to #1 in the UK, Australia, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden, the record company executives saw the writing on the wall and smelled the boatloads of money to be made. Capitol released I Wanna Hold Your Hand late in 1963, and, as anticipated, it quickly hit the #1 spot in the US and in Canada. The British Invasion was here.





7. YOU NEVER CAN TELL - Chuck Berry (1964)

If it wasn't for the movie Pulp Fiction, this song would have faded off into obscurity ...





6. MIRAGE - Tommy James and the Shondells (1967)

A most excellent forgotten hit from Niles, Michigan's very own Tommy James Jackson. #10 on Billboard's Hot 100.

[Scott Reppert]

Almost NOTHING sounded more out of place on the radio in 1964 than "You Never Can Tell", aside from "Hello, Dolly".

Not saying it's a bad song, it's actually one of Chuck's better later songs, but it just sounded...well, out of place.

"Mirage" is getting played a bit more in this day and age, but you are right: there was a period where it was totally neglected...

[Hoosier Daddy]

Almost NOTHING sounded more out of place on the radio in 1964 than "You Never Can Tell", aside from "Hello, Dolly".

You're right. It didn't fit anywhere.
I always thought that song was released somewhere between 1959 and 1961.
Checked several sources and all of them said 1964, and it topped the Billboard Hot 100 at #14.
Who would have known?

"Mirage" is getting played a bit more in this day and age, but you are right: there was a period where it was totally neglected...

The canned oldies stations usually think about playing Tommy James songs in this order:

1. I Think We're Alone Now
2. Crystal Blue Persuasion (their biggest turd, IMHO)
3. Crimson and Clover
4. Mony, Mony
5. Sweet Cherry Wine
6. Hanky Panky

Only stations that bother to make it to #7 actually consider Mirage.

I'd strike Crystal Blue from the list and put Mirage somewhere between Crimson and Clover and Mony Mony. But what do I know. I didn't favor consolidation of media ownership back in the 90s or The Great Translator License Orgy (a.k.a. 'Let's Screw LPFM') of 2003, either.