#AtoZChallenge 1970's Billboard Hits - C is for...


It’s day three of the #AtoZChallenge, and that brings us to the letter C.  In case you missed it earlier, the theme that I have chosen for this year’s challenge is 1970’s Billboard Hits.

We talked a little bit about Alone Again (Naturally) on the first, and if you have not had the opportunity to vote in the battle of the bands, I’d like to encourage you to do so. You can find the battle HERE. Voting ends April 6 @ 6pm EST.

1970 - (They Long To Be) Close To You

The song was first recorded by Richard Chamberlain and released as a single in 1963 as "They Long to Be Close to You", without parentheses. However, only that single's flip side, "Blue Guitar", became a hit. The tune was also recorded as a demo by Dionne Warwick in 1963 and re-recorded with a Burt Bacharach arrangement for her 1964 album Make Way for Dionne Warwick, and was released as the B-side of her 1965 single "Here I Am". Bacharach released his own version in 1968. But the version recorded by Carpenters with instrumental backing by L.A. studio musicians from the Wrecking Crew, which became a hit in 1970, is the best known.

In 1970, it was released by the Carpenters on their album Close to You, and it became their breakthrough hit. The song stayed at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks. This song was originally given to Herb Alpert as a follow up to his number one hit, "This Guy's in Love with You", another Bacharach-David composition. Alpert was not thrilled with his version and shelved the recording. Looking for a follow-up to their first A&M Records/Billboard number 54 recording "Ticket to Ride", in 1969 Alpert decided to give it to the Carpenters (Alpert's version was released in 2005 on the Tijuana Brass album Lost Treasures 1963–1974). Richard had stated that when Alpert introduced the song to him back in early 1970, he was a bit apprehensive about the song. He and Alpert collaborated on the song, and the finished product was a 4-minute, 36-second long song. When A&M Records decided to release it as a 3-minute, 40-second long single in May 1970, it became A&M's biggest hit since Alpert's "This Guy's in Love with You" from 1968. Billboard ranked it as the number 2 song for 1970.





1972 -  The Candy Man

"The Candy Man" (or alternatively, "The Candy Man Can") is a song which originally appeared in the 1971 film Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. It was written by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley specifically for the film.

The song is best known through Sammy Davis, Jr.'s version, which appears on the Sammy Davis Jr. Now album. Though he admitted to hating the song, finding it too saccharine, it became his only number-one hit, spending three weeks at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart starting June 10, 1972 and two weeks at the top of the easy listening chart. Billboard ranked it as the No. 5 song for 1972. The track featured vocals by the Mike Curb Congregation, who had earlier released their own unsuccessful version of the song. It is recognized as one of Davis's signature songs, and "The Candy Man" came to be his moniker later in his career.





1974 - Come And Get Your Love

"Come and Get Your Love" is a 1974 hit single by the Native American rock band Redbone. The song was written by band member Lolly Vegas and produced by Lolly and his brother Pat Vegas, who was also a band member. It was originally featured on Redbone's 1973 album, Wovoka; later the song appeared on many "greatest hits" albums released by the band, as well as on numerous compilation albums of the 1970s.

The song peaked at number 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in April 1974. It spent 18 weeks in the Top 40 and landed as the 4th most popular song on the Hot 100 for 1974. The single was certified gold by the RIAA on April 22, 1974, which indicates that it had sold over half a million copies in the United States. The song is Redbone's highest charting single and one of two Top 40 hits by the band (an earlier recording, "The Witch Queen of New Orleans", peaked at number 21 in 1972).

"Come and Get Your Love" also exists in a longer version, with an introductory slow part, plus a longer repeated coda. However, most radio stations rarely play it on the air. The song features a prominent part for electric sitar.






Be sure to follow the 2017 AtoZ Challenge playlist for all of the songs featured in this years challenge.




Did you listen to any of these tunes in the 70's?  Would you like to know more about these artists in future posts? Let me know in the comments.

What does tomorrow bring?
Wednesday brings us the letter 'D'. 
Any guesses as to which 1970 Billboard Hits will be showcased?






Comments

  1. Sounds like a great tune. Waiting for your next word post!

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    1. not just one, but three great tunes :)

      Thanks for stopping by!

      ~Mary

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  2. Karen Carpenter had the most haunting voice, beyond tragic she died so young! Close to you was one of my childhood/'teenhood' favourites :) Your posts really take me back to happy times, thanks.

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    1. So glad that I could take you down memory lane. I've got a few more stops along the way, so it will be an enjoyable trip.

      ~Mary

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  3. I love Close To You. And I can't hear The Candy Man Can without seeing Gene Wilder lol
    Debbie

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    1. I remember learning The Candy Man song in elementary Music class. I had no idea at the time that it was a big hit. I just really liked the song.

      ~Mary

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  4. Mary, "Come and Get Your Love" is an excellent 70s one-hit wonder. If Redbone had anything else that amounted to anything I just don't remember but then again if you're like me then it's hard to remember who Redbone is because they weren't a leading 70s band. Every thing Karen Carpenter produced was beautiful and "Close To You" is no exception. This song I sing a lot to DH because that's just the way he makes me feel. I know, I'm sappy. Just throw a cup of coffee in my face already but make sure it's not hot. :D "The Candy Man" is just one of those feel-good songs and the late Sammy Davis, Jr really had a nice voice. I don't think I appreciated it much back in the day as I do now. Thanks for sharing some great classic 70s mewsic and whenever you get a chance, check out some critters I drew for the letter "C" in my A2Z series, Art Sketching Through the Alphabet! Happy a2zing, my friend!

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    1. Thanks, Cathy!

      I'll definitely be by your series in just a few minutes. I love how you share your talent with us!

      ~Mary

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  5. I love the Carpenters and have sung my way round the supermarket many a time to that tune - they seem fond of it :)
    I had no idea Sammy David Jr did a version of Candy Man - the songs are my least fav part of Charlie and The Chocolate Factory :)
    Know the last song but have never seen the band before.
    Tasha
    Tasha's Thinkings - Shapeshifters and Werewolves

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    1. Youngster! Sammy Davis jr was best known for this song. When I first learned the song, I had no idea it had come from Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory. All I knew was that it was fun to sing :)

      ~Mary

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  6. Hearing for the first time. And I liked them. :)

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    1. Thank you! I hope to be able to share more with you in the coming days.

      ~Mary

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  7. Cool history of the song. As soon as I read the name The Carpenters I could hear it. ~grin~ Happy Blogging!

    http://darlamsands.blogspot.com/

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    1. Only one? What about the other two? ;)

      ~Mary

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    2. I mean in my mind. ~snort~ Thanks for prodding me to look harder at how to embed video. This old dog learned a new trick.

      http://darlamsands.blogspot.com/2017/04/revisiting-letter-with-video.html

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    3. It's really not hard to do. When using YouTube, click on Share, then embed. Put that link in the html side of your blogger, and it will appear correctly in your post.

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    4. I know! How easy once I trained my eyes to see what I needed. ~shakes head~ It's a problem for when bombarded with information. Even at restaurants with those huge boards, worse when they repeat menu items in different categories. I think I have the opposite of ADD if there is such a thing. ~grin~ My overloaded brain rebels and I sometimes just walk away. It's gotten to the point I would decide what I wanted before meeting writing friends for dinner. Weird, huh? And so typically me.

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    5. Ooh, I should have read this over before posting. ~sigh~ 'It's a problem for me when... I'm sure you got what I meant anyway. Happy blogging!

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    6. haha! No worries. I sometimes do the very same thing. Glad I could help you out.

      ~Mary

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  8. I work in an airport, and at our shoe shine spot there's a picture of Sammy Davis Jr. and it says 'the Candy Man kept his shoes shined and so should you!' This made me think of that. :)

    26 Things To Hate About Writing: C is for Creating Characters

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    1. haha! That's pretty cool! The influences from everywhere. You never quite know where they will show up.

      ~Mary

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  9. Dr. Kildare (Richard Chamberlain) sang? Who knew? Of course I had to Google that! LOL Yup; really saccharine. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tft09VpllvU
    I remember all of these songs and agree with Sammy Davis' similar assessment of Candy Man. It sure got plenty of airplay! My favourite Redbone song is Witch Queen of New Orleans. Good band!
    Loving your theme, Mary! See you tomorrow. ☺

    Debbie @ THE DOGLADY'S DEN
    Latest Post: CHERRY HILL PARK: First love is the hardest!

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    1. Isn't it crazy the little things we learn about the songs we've known forever? I think that's one of the best parts of doing this blog.

      ~Mary

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  10. Uh-oh! To me, that looked like a Snow-Dance in the Redbone video. Just great! So much for Spring arriving THIS weekend.

    ~ D-FensDogG
    Check out my new blog @
    (Link:] Stephen T. McCarthy Reviews...

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    1. Well now, that certainly explains the snow on the ground this morning! In checking the forecast, we're supposed to warm up again by the weekend, but I'm sure we'll have more flurries in the meantime.

      ~Mary

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  11. Loved listening to the Candy Man again. When I saw you are in the challenge, I was glad I didn't sign up this year. I did it on two blogs at the same time last year and got burned out. Have fun with it.

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    1. You didn't sign up because I'm in the challenge? That doesn't sound right. Personally, I think it is hard enough to keep up with one blog in the challenge, let alone multiple blogs. Something tells me that those with multiple blogs in the challenge, pretty much just stay in their lane and don't check out any of the new to them blogs simply because there aren't enough hours in the day. Thanks for stopping by.

      ~Mary

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    2. Oh, I did check out other blogs. I tried to do it all. You aren't the reason I didn't sign up. Last year's experience is the reason. April is also a bad month this year. I still haven't started taxes. I never would have been able to do a challenge. Too bad the challenge isn't in July.

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    3. Last year was crazy for me as well. If it weren't for the fact that my posts were pre-written, I may not have finished last year. My mother passed in the middle of the month, and being that she lived in a different state, meant quite a hectic time for me. Sure hope you get your taxes done in time! Hope to see you join us next year.

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    4. I'm sorry for your loss. Pre-written posts can be very useful. Part of my problem last year was that I only found out about the challenge a few days before it started -- too late to pre-write more than one or two. I will have to plan ahead better next year if I decide to join again. Participating was a valuable experience.

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  12. Close to You was the third 45 I bought with birthday money! I am pretty sure the first two were BRAnd New KEY and Gypsies Tramps and Thieves!
    Candy Man was a staple and still love Come and Get Your LOVE!

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    1. Great songs and even better memories!

      Thanks for dropping by!

      ~Mary

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  13. I remember all three songs but if you came to my home and went throw my very large and dusty( No I do know why I keep them) Stacks of 45,s you would find one of the three and that would be Come And Get Your Love
    Roger

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    1. Hey Roger! I bet you keep them because a)nostalgia and b)one day they will be worth a mint (some may even be worth some $$ already!) But as my friend McCarthy says.. be careful playing Come and Get Your Love, as he strongly suspects they are doing a snow dance and it will bring snow storms to your area. Take care and have a good one!

      ~Mary

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  14. I was a kid then, but my mom used to play so much good music then that these are some of my favorite songs today. Great blog! :-)

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    1. I was pretty young then myself. I was under the influence of my older brothers and sister, though. But I know exactly what you mean when you say they are some of your favorites today.

      Thanks for stopping by, Tameka!

      ~Mary

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  15. Richard Chamberlain??? I did not know that. It I think I will stick with the Carpenters. Sammy Davis Jr made the song so famous.

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    1. Hey there Birgit!

      It's the little tidbits of trivia that I find fascinating. And I agree, I'll stick with the Carpenters version!

      Thanks again for dropping by!

      ~Mary

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  16. I know all of these. Love the Carpenters! Also always found Come & Get Your Love very catchy.

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    1. The Carpenters are embedded so deep in my memory. You can not go wrong with Karen Carpenter's voice. As for Redbone, it's really too bad they didn't have more hits. I really Come & Get Your Love as well.

      ~Mary

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  17. The Carpenters were one of my favourites. Karen Carpenter had such a unique and beautiful voice. I think my favourite Carpenters songs are Only Yesterday and Yesterday Once More.

    Suzy at Someday Somewhere

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