70s Weekly Countdown with Mark and Pete

Back in 1978 was a typical day like another a Sunday in Salem where it was fun to stay at the Y.M.C.A.? Was that just too much heaven for a blue collar man? When Monday came along, in a strange way, perhaps you felt alive, and were ready to take a chance again. With that double vision now cleared, you left that bottle on the shelf and proceeded straight on back to work. After a time, all...

Back in the 70’s there were just too many people with hurt feelings and bad blood. Relationships fell into two categories, diamonds and rust. Some sadly learned that it only takes a minute for their partner to fly robin fly and head sky high. If you were one of the lucky ones who believed in miracles, you knew who loves you, and sooner or later our day would come. Well we couldn’t think of so...

Back in October of 1977 we had to accept the fact that the king is gone. Don’t it make my brown eyes blue just thinking about it? I go crazy remembering, it was as cold as ice. Then baby what a big surprise, she did it. She said hang on; help is on its way. At daybreak she got you down from the 7th floor of that brick house by enticing you to come sail away for a change in latitudes down in blue b...

This week we go all the way and listen to the music from the Billboard Top 40 from the week ending October 14, 1972. With some songs we walk the tight rope with our opinions, and with others we fear bringing thunder and lightning. We can see clearly now that musical taste is not always black and white. Link to a listing of the songs in this week’s episode: https://top40weekly.com/1972-all-cha...

Which musical camp did you belong to in the 70’s? Did you say keep on rocking me, did you shake your booty at the best disco in town, did you play that funky music, or did you say get the funk out my face and give me a fifth of Beethoven? This week we try and getaway from all that controversy and get the lowdown of the Billboard Top 40 from the week ending October 9, 1976. Don’t fear the devil wom...

This week we go all the way and listen to the music from the Billboard Top 40 from the week ending October 14, 1972. With some songs we walk the tight rope with our opinions, and with others we fear bringing thunder and lightning. We can see clearly now that musical taste is not always black and white. Link to a listing of the songs in this week’s episode: https://top40weekly.com/1972-all-cha...

Remember when you were lovin’, touchin’ , squeezin’, thinking you were the boss, in the driver’s seat and getting ready for the main event. Then she pushed you away and told you were nothing but a dirty white boy and good girls don’t. You responded by saying, please don’t go, don’t bring me down, and why do you lead me on? Ain’t that a shame. Those were good times, but after the love has gone...

In the 70’s there were a lot of choices. You could take the rocky mountain way to higher ground, or hitch a free ride on the midnight train to Georgia. You could choose to just keep on truckin’ and be a rambling gypsy man. As you traveled further and further from home, at some point you realized that you had never been this far before. In the distance you saw a woman and thought, who’s that l...

In the summertime in the 70’s, you probably went out in the country to escape the war that seemed to have been going on for a long long time. There, a green eyed lady named Lola, or was it Joanne, promised peace will come according to plan. It was good that you took that trip instead of sticking closer to home like you normally would, alone, like a solitary man. All right now, I’ll be there for th...

At first, maybe you didn’t feel like makin' love, but she was one hell of a woman. She told you things like she never knew love before, and then came you. You were still reluctant, but you took one look at her those skin tight clothes and thought “just do it baby”. You then went off to do your own thing, like a free man in Paris. A few months later, you got a letter from her saying that she r...

What happens when a magnet and steel come close to each other? Well the two objects bond together. Conversely, when the floor has grease all over, then you’re steppin’ in a slide zone. Back in the day, you probably thought two tickets to paradise was just what you needed, only to find that once you got there, you couldn’t wait to be back in the USA. In this episode we will be reminiscing abou...

Supposedly the number 13 is unlucky, but is this the week when we learn the truth at 17? In fact, there were those in the 70’s who pleaded “please mister please”, don’t choose B17 on the jukebox, because that song could cause a ballroom blitz. Everybody knew that it only takes a minute to go from some jive talking to really bad feelings. If things got really out of hand, you would hear people...

It wasn’t as easy to communicate back in the 70’s as it is now. At best, you could get in touch via the telephone line, but perhaps you had to resort to something more primitive strawberry letter. Perhaps the only thing you could see was the smoke from a distant fire that just seemed to float and float on. You told your love that you just want to be your everything, your handy man, your telep...

What you see is what you get is not always the undisputed truth. Smiling faces sometimes turn out to be liars. However, we’ve all become wiser with as time passes like the summer sand. I just want to celebrate that we won’t get fooled again. We are discerning enough to know that she’s not just another woman in hot pants, and we therefore need to treat her like a lady. We know that we should not be...

Someone’s knocking at the door. It could be a sophisticated lady, are you going to let her in? Or it could be that the boys are back in town and they are ready to give up the funk and tear the roof off the sucker, are you going to let ‘em in? Of course it’s summer, you should be steppin’ out to soak up some of that sunshine, what an afternoon delight. You should be dancing, shake your booty, if yo...

With the Apollo space program winding down, things had really started moving fast in 1972. We were still quite young and often pleaded with our fathers, “Daddy, don’t you walk so fast; what are you some kind of rocket man?”. Perhaps you had gone a ways and suddenly realized you had forgotten to use the restroom before you left home. Our fathers would just smile and say “It’s too late to turn...

With 12 episodes in the till, there ain’t no stopping us now, and you can’t change that! We started out with big dreams of making it, but not in terms of gold, only in terms of good times. As we explored the boogie wonderland, we found songs that made us want to dance the night away. Songs that reached out to the heart, as if they were pleading, I want you to want me. We heard music...

As we circle back to 1973, it’s yesterday once more. Chances are you didn’t have a lot of money. Perhaps you were just looking for the right place where peaceful waters run, your own Shambala. Maybe you were looking to re-connect with a missing family member, asking the question “Has anybody seen my brother Louie?” Were you just an uneasy rider on a long train running searching for your perfect di...

In this episode we sing a song of joy to commemorate the very first episode of American Top 40. What was it like for you back then, did it seem everything was beautiful, or was it all just a ball of confusion. Do you remember hitching’ a ride from Ohio to go see your Mississippi Queen, or instead did you take the westbound #9? Well get ready, because in this episode we ask the question, how good w...

You know we don’t have a mean streak and far be it from us to rock the boat, but could this week’s episode be our Waterloo? Maybe we are already gone. Perhaps we need to be thankful for what we’ve got and realize all we really need is the air that we breathe. Come Monday we may just decide we haven’t got time for the pain, and if we wanna to get to rock and roll heaven, we gotta keep on smiling an...

Did you ever get to the end of the work week and feel like you were turning bluer than blue due to lack of oxygen? Like you barely had enough energy to do a last dance with your own shadow? Yet as darkness started to fall because the night was closing in, you had that sudden realization that it was the weekend and you felt your brain scream “thank god it’s Friday”! It was a heartache as you longed...

Ah the way we were in the old days. Even though we may have had a run of bad luck, we still looked for a shining star to guide us forward. As a society we asked if love will keep us together? As individuals we asked when will I be loved? The smart ones refused to listen to what the man said and looked for their own dynamite idea for a hustle that could work magic. Those in trouble, or going throug...

Whatcha gonna do when there are rumors of the boogie man? Did you just hop on a jet airliner and head to California, or Margaritaville, or perhaps Texas, or somewhere else to enjoy those southern nights? Whatever you did, it was clear you had better fly now and head higher and higher until it looked like you made it to safety. This week we take a bird’s eye view of the Billboard Top 40 from the we...

Let’s face it; things didn’t come easy in the 70’s. People spent a lot of time searching the want ads and it was hard to not get down on a Monday when you couldn’t find anything in there. Relationships were strained when he loved her madly, but she didn’t know how to love him, and yet both realized they never can say goodbye. The drumbeat of bad news made a lot of people turn toward the heavens an...

Were you feeling ok back in the 70’s? Did you feel feverish? Were you perpetually hungover because of too much partying? Perhaps the pain and anguish of losing a beloved pet made you feel like you were about to go crazy, as if your whole world was in a blue mist. Maybe you felt like you were a fool to cry and still feel that way after all these years. Did you seek out cures in strange magic, or as...