The song of the month for January 1974
All Of My Life by Diana Ross (peak chart position: No.9)
Diana Ross was proving to be as consistently successful as a solo artist as she had been in tandem with the Supremes. ‘All Of My Life’ may have only scraped into the British Top Ten, but it still ranks as one of her very finest love songs. Miss Ross then proceeded on to a couple of heavyweight collaborations with another American icon, Marvin Gaye, which yielded the excellent ‘You Are Everything’. Regardless of the trends and fads which surfaced and then vanished, the recordings of Diana Ross remained constantly popular.
The song of the month for February 1974
Billy, Don’t Be A Hero by Paper Lace (peak chart position: No.1)
This sad tale about a young soldier who ignored his fiancee’s plea to keep his “pretty head low” also reached the American pop summit, but it was covered by Bo Donaldson and the Heywoods, who gave it an American Civil War setting. Even more strange was the fact that Paper Lace actually topped the Billboard singles chart later in the year with ‘The Night Chicago Died’. This track will always be remembered for its military sound of a marching drum and an accompanying flute.
The song of the month for March 1974
Seasons In The Sun by Terry Jacks (peak chart position: No.1)
Following shortly after the tearjerker that was ‘Billy Don’t Be A Hero’ was perhaps the saddest song of them all. Yes, in spite of the title, ‘Seasons In The Sun’ was far from sunny. Instead it is sung from the point of view of a person contemplating an imminent death who recalls past times when he had joy and fun and seasons in the sun. Tissue paper manufacturers must surely have been doing a good trade in the spring of this year. ‘Seasons In The Sun’ was so popular that it became the second biggest-selling single of the year.
The song of the month for April 1974
Waterloo by Abba (peak chart position: No.1)
Continental Europe had never provided artists who could enjoy a durable chart career in Britain or the United States, but all that was to change with the Abba invasion from Sweden, which began with the glorious ‘Waterloo’. The two men and two women singing act had been a well-worn formula, but this time the two guys were highly capable composers, so the group simply stuck to their own admirable material. What was remarkable was that after the success of ‘Waterloo’, Abba struggled to find a decent follow-up for eighteen months until their flagging fortunes were rescued by an ‘S.O.S.’.
The song of the month for May 1974
This Town Ain’t Big Enough For Both Of Us by Sparks (peak chart position: No.2)
One of the great injustices in human history was the fact that the Rubettes kept this charming rocker off the Number One position in the British singles listing. Nevertheless, the Sparks had delivered one of the biggest music thrills of the year with this eccentric piece, underpinned by the sound of gunfire, a falsetto singing voice, not to mention the ‘Hitler moustache’ of the keyboardist Ron Mael. Any ‘seventies compilation that overlooks this magnificent museum piece deserves itself to be overlooked.
The song of the month for June 1974
Rock Your Baby by George McCrae (peak chart position: No.1)
The British record-buyers were mercifully beginning to tire of glam rock and turned instead in increasing numbers to the genre of disco. The only drawback was that for a few years anything with the word ‘disco’ in the song title found its way onto the charts, regardless of its dubious quality. Nevertheless, there were clearly a number of giant dancefloor classics, of which ‘Rock Your Baby’ is most certainly one. George McCrae reaches the high notes here and is deservedly rewarded with a Number One on both sides of the Atlantic.
The song of the month for July 1974
Band On The Run by Wings (peak chart position: No.3)
The fertile imagination of Paul McCartney hit upon the crazy idea of fleeing to Africa to record an album there. The ensuing result of Macca’s ‘band on the run’ was a long player that even the once scornful John Lennon approved of. Wings may have gone on to dwell at Number One for a staggering nine weeks with ‘Mull Of Kintyre’, but McCartney’s jailbreak song represents his post-Beatles creative peak. The item switches cleverly between a wonderful acoustic guitar and electric guitar. Such is popular taste that McCartney has reached singles summits with songs that don’t compare with the quality of this tune.
The song of the month for August 1974
Annie’s Song by John Denver (peak chart position: No.1)
John Denver was no stranger to lofty chart positions in the United States, courtesy of the likes of ‘Thank God I’m A Country Boy’ but his only major British success story was the hugely listenable ‘Annie’s Song’. Here was one of those occasions when the adults closed ranks and purchased something which all the teenage record-buyers would not have warmed to. This delightful piece benefited from harmonies and a fine strings arrangement and re-appeared in the UK chart in 1978 when Irish flautist James Galway delivered his own version.
The song of the month for September 1974
Sad Sweet Dreamer by Sweet Sensation (peak chart position: No.1)
ITV’s hugely popular ‘Opportunity Knocks’ was the breeding ground for many new acts in the world of showbusiness. One such instance was the emergence of the Sweet Sensation who were regarded as Britain’s very own answer to the Jacksons. This young group never fulfilled the high expectations, which is all the more surprising since they made a majestic splash with the beautiful ‘Sad Sweet Dreamer’. Here is another candidate for one of the best-ever pop songs. Yet again record-buyers were seduced by a sad, sweet composition.
The song of the month for October 1974
Killer Queen by Queen (peak chart position: No.2)
Queen carved out their very own niche on planet pop by shrewdly offering material that was more accessible than heavy metal and yet they were correctly labelled as a ‘rock band’. They made an impressive start with the ‘Seven Seas Of Rhye’ and it was becoming apparent that they would be a prolific act when they then issued ‘Killer Queen’. Failing narrowly to hit the Number One spot, this is an entertaining tale of a femme fatale, decorated with tongue-in-cheek lyrics while Brian May’s guitar weighs in with its customary excellence.
The song of the month for November 1974
You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet by Bachman-Turner Overdrive (peak chart position: No.2)
This monumental rock song was one of Canadian music’s finest moments. Taking its cue from ‘All Right Now’, the recording has amusing seduction lyrics. It certainly struck a chord with music aficionados on both sides of the ‘big pond’. The item was later popularized by spoof disc jockeys ‘Smashy’ and ‘Nicey’ who were rather fond of it. The trouble for Randy Bachman and his team were that they will forever be remembered for this one song, but then when you record one of the great rock anthems, you only have yourself to blame.
The song of the month for December 1974
Help Me Make It Through The Night by John Holt (peak chart position: No.6)
Bob Marley was slowly beginning to emerge as one of the world’s most important performers, but in the mean time a plethora of acts still took turns to fly the flag for Jamaican music. Stepping up to the mark for his four minutes of fame this time was John Holt, a renowned exponent of love songs in Caribbean circles. Holt expertly covered Kris Kristofferson’s delightful song of seduction and eventually helped himself to a British Top Five position in early 1975. Both the vocals and the musical accompaniment were of the highest order.
Listed Below are the Top 10 Best Selling UK Singles of 1974
1 Tiger Feet Mud
2 Seasons In The Sun Terry Jacks
3 Billy, Don’t Be A Hero Paper Lace
4 When Will I See You Again The Three Degrees
5 Rock Your Baby George McCrae
6 Gonna Make You A Star David Essex
7 Kung Fu Fighting Carl Douglas
8 She Charles Aznavour
9 Sugar Baby Love The Rubettes
10 Everything I Own Ken Boothe
1974’s CONCERTS OF THE YEAR
The Beatles once insisted that they would not tour the United States until they had achieved a Stateside Number One. ‘I Want To Hold Your Hand’ resolved that potential impasse. Eleven years later, John Lennon made a similar pronouncement to his new buddy, Elton John. Lennon stated that he would not take to the stage unless his new disco release, ‘Whatever Gets You Through The Night’, should reach the top of the Billboard charts. To Lennon’s astonishment, his new single did indeed climb to the American pop summit, whereupon he kept his word and joined Elton John on stage at Madison Square Garden in November where the two Johns (Elton and Lennon) performed versions of ‘Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds’ and ‘I Saw Her Standing There’, as well as Lennon’s current US chart-topper. It would be the last time that one of the icons of popular music would sing live. Meanwhile, back in the spring, a different musical gathering at Brighton, on England’s south coast, witnessed the birth of pop world’s next ‘big thing’ when Sweden’s Abba conquered the Eurovision Song Contest, en route to global domination in the ensuing seven years.
1974’s ALBUM OF THE YEAR: Natty Dread by Bob
(released in October; reached No.43 in the UK)
Robert Nesta Marley was entering new territory with his ‘Natty Dread’ recording, as his act was now billed as Bob Marley And The Wailers. The recent departure of his closest collaborators Bunny Livingstone and Peter Tosh to pursue their own solo paths had necessitated this new state of affairs. Bob recruited his wife Rita as well as singers Judy Mowatt and Marcia Griffiths to form the backing band, the I-Threes, whilst American blues guitarist Al Anderson was hired to assist the Barrett brothers who comprised the Wailers’ rhythm section. The result was Marley’s first breakthrough into the British album charts. The long player visited Marley’s main concerns of inequality (‘Them Belly Full’) and oppression (‘Rebel Music’). It also possessed the first outing of ‘No Woman, No Cry’, as well as a fans’ favourite, ‘Lively Up Yourself’. On the road to becoming reggae’s first superstar and an ambassador for the Third World, Bob Marley was already setting out his stall with his musical anxieties about ‘Babylon’. This isn’t by any means his best album, but it was a signpost of what was to follow from Jamaica’s most famous son who quickly became one of the most important recording stars of the 1970s.
SPORT IN 1974
English Division One football champions: Leeds United; runners-up: Liverpool
English FA Cup final: Liverpool 3 Newcastle United 0
English League Cup Final: Wolverhampton Wanderers 2 Manchester City 1
Scottish Division One football champions: Glasgow Celtic; runners-up: Hibernian
Scottish FA Cup final: Glasgow Celtic 3 Dundee United 0
Scottish League Cup final: Dundee 1 Glasgow Celtic 0
Irish League football champions: Coleraine; Irish Cup final: Ards 2 Ballymena United 1
League Of Ireland football champions: Cork Celtic; cup winners: Finn Harps
European Cup final: Bayern Munich 4 Atletico Madrid 0 (in a replay)
European Cup-Winners’ Cup final: FC Magdeburg 2 AC Milan 0
UEFA Cup final: Feyenoord beat Tottenham Hotspur 4-2 on aggregate
English county cricket champions: Worcestershire
Five Nations’ rugby union champions: Ireland (five points)
Formula One world drivers’ champion: Emerson Fittipaldi (Brazil) in a McLaren car
Gaelic football All-Ireland champions: Dublin; runners-up: Galway
British Open golf champion: Gary Player (at Royal Lytham & St Annes)
US Masters golf champion: Gary Player
US Open golf champion: Hale Irwin
USPGA golf champion: Lee Trevino
Rugby league Challenge Cup final: Warrington 24 Featherstone Rovers 9
Wimbledon men’s singles tennis final: J Connors beat K Rosewall 6-1, 6-1, 6-4
Wimbledon ladies’ singles tennis final: C Evert beat O Morozova 6-0, 6-4
World snooker final: Ray Reardon (Wales) beat Graham Miles (England) 22-12
The Aintree Grand National steeplechase winner: Red Rum; price 11-1
The Epsom Derby winner: Snow Knight; jockey - Brian Taylor; price 50-1
World Cup final: West Germany 2 Holland 1
1974’s DEATHS
January 6th: David Siqueiros (Mexican painter), aged 77
January 25th: James Pope-Hennessy (British author), aged 57
January 31st: Samuel Goldwyn (US film producer), aged 91
April 2nd: Georges Pompidou (France’s President), aged 62
April 5th: Richard Crossman (British politician), aged 66
May 24th: Duke Ellington (US musician), aged 75
June 10th: Duke of Gloucester, aged 74
June 18th: Marshal Georgi Zhukov (Soviet soldier), aged 77
July 1st: Juan Domingo Peron (Argentina’s President), aged 78
July 5th: Georgette Heyer (British novelist), aged 71
July 9th: Earl Warren (US judge), aged 83
July 29th: Mama Cass Elliot (US singer), aged 32
August 13th: Kate O’Brien (Irish novelist), aged 76
August 22nd: Dr. Jacob Bronowski (Polish biologist), aged 66
September 23rd: Robbie McIntosh (British musician), aged 24
October 24th: David Oistrakh (Soviet violinist), aged 66
November 7th: Eric Linklater (British novelist), aged 75
November 13th: Vittorio de Sica (Italian film director), aged 72
November 24th: Cornelius Ryan (Irish writer), aged 54
November 25th: Nick Drake (British singer), aged 26
November 25th: U Thant (Burmese UN Secretary-General), aged 65
December 14th: Walter Lippman (US journalist), aged 75
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