70's Number One Hits Trivia

This week, in honour of a long time friend in Kingston, Ontario, John Hanlon, we’re asking trivia questions about the # 1 hits of the 1970’s, based on the Billboard Magazine Hot 100 singles chart. There’s one question for every year of the ‘70’s, so score yourself 10 points for each correct answer and see how close you can come to 100%. Answers, as always, are below the final question.


1. This song was # 1 for four weeks in January 1970. It was featured in a classic

movie starring two movie icons and written by two songwriting Hall of Famers.

The singers’ first name is Billy – he was born in Oklahoma and raised in

Texas. Although he’d had previous hits on the charts, this one was his biggest.

Can you name the movie, the song and the artist? (FULL POINTS FOR ANY

TWO)



2. In 1971, this former grave digger had his first solo number one, Although he

was born in London, England, he had a passion for all things Scottish. His early

groups include the Hoochie Coochie Men and Steampacket. Later, he became a big name in a ‘small’ group. So far in his career, he’s had three number one

singles, the last coming in 1979. Do you know this red headed stranger?



3. She is the daughter of one of the pioneers in pop music as well as a direct

descendant of a legendary frontiersman and explorer from America’s first

century. Her only number one was locked at the top of the singles chart for 10

weeks during the last 3 months of 1977 and was finally knocked from the top

spot by The Bee Gees “How Deep Is Your Love”. Can you name this female

singer as well as her # 1 song from 1977?



4. She was a regular on the Carol Burnett TV show and later went on to star in a

hit TV series of her own. In April of 1973, she made it to the top of the Billboard

Magazines’ singles chart for 2 weeks with her only number one hit. Who is the performer and what’s the title of the song?



5. In 1979, this performer hit the number spot 3 times. She was as hot as a

summer’s day in Mexico. It was all good for this artist, there was no 'Bad Stuff'

that year. Who is this singer and can you name any two of her three 1979

number ones?



6. For the week of November 2nd 1974, the number one song on Billboards’ Hot

100 chart was “You Haven’t Done Nothin’” by Stevie Wonder. The following

week that song was replaced at the top of the chart by a similar sounding title,

but it was a totally different song by a totally different group. Can you name

the song AND the group. (HINT: DON’T PUT YOUR BRIAN IN OVERDRIVE TO

ANSWER THIS ONE)



7. During the 1960’s, this performer had 6 Top Ten hits, which included one

number one. He returned to the charts in the 1970’s and scored two # 1’s – both

in 1975. Ironically, his second # 1 was knocked out of his two week run in the

top spot in ’75 by the owner of the record label he was signed to,although there

was no 'bad blood' between the two artists. Who is this singer/songwriter and

what was the title of his second 1975 # 1?



8. This performer was one of The Beatles favourite American singer/songwriters.

In 1972, he was at the top of the Billboard singles chart for 4 weeks with a song

written by two members of a group signed to The Beatles Apple Records label.

Who is this performer and what was his # 1 hit? (HINT: COME AND GET

THIS ANSWER. IT SHOULD BE EASY FOR YOU)



9. During 1976, two TV theme songs made it to number one. One came from a

show about a teacher. The other was the theme about an elite unit on the

police force. Can you name these 2 hits and who performed them?


10. This performer had some very successful brothers. In 1978, this younger

brother topped the Billboard singles chart for 7 weeks with a song he and

his brothers wrote. This was not his first # 1, in fact he’d had two previously.

Although initially, he lived in his brothers’ ‘shadow’, he became a major star

on his own, even to the point of hosting a TV show. Do you know who this little

brother is?


ANSWERS


1. The movie was “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” starring the late Paul

Newman and Robert Redford. “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ (On My Head)” was the

song. The singer was Billy Joe Thomas or B. J. Thomas as he was better

known. Legend has it that the Hall of Fame songwriters, Burt Bacharach and

Hal David had originally asked Bob Dylan to sing it, but fortunately for B. J.,

Bob took a pass.



2. Rod Stewart’s career as a grave digger ended when he ran into Long John

Baldry in 1964 who heard Rod singing while waiting for a train. Baldry asked

Rod to join The Hoochie Coochie Men and later Steampacket. In 1966, Rod

joined The Jeff Beck Group as their vocalist and in ’69, he joined future Rolling

Stone Ron Wood in The Faces”, who’d changed their name from the Small

Faces. Although Rod had had previous singles released in England, it wasn’t

until 1971 that he hit it big when “Maggie May” climbed to # 1 on Billboards’

Hot 100 chart. His other two number one hits are “Tonight’s The Night (Gonna

Be Alright)”, which stayed number one for 7 weeks in November and

December of 1976 and “Do Ya Think I’m Sexy” which lasted 4 weeks at the top

of the singles chart in January and February, 1979.



3. Debbie Boone is the daughter of 1950’s/1960’s pop star/acto Pat Boone and is

a direct descendant of Daniel Boone, who fought in the Revolutionary War and

was a legendary frontiersman and later statesman. Debbie’s single, “You

Light Up My Life”, which sold over two million copies, was the theme song to a

movie with the same title. Debbie never again made it to the top of the singles

charts, although she did have other charted hits.



4. Vicki Lawrence, one of the stars of the Carol Burnett Show, made it to the top of

the charts with a song written by her then husband, Bert Russell. “The Night

The Lights Went Out In Georgia” was # 1 for two weeks in April of 1973. The

song that replaced it at the top was the mega smash by Tony Orlando & Dawn,

“Tie A Yellow Ribbon Round The Ole Oak Tree”.



5. Donna Summer had an incredible year in 1979 and she’d had a great ’78 with

“MacArthur Park”, which topped the singles chart for 3 weeks in November of

that year. But on to 1979’s feats – “Hot Stuff” was Donna’s first # 1 in ’79. It

first hit the top of the singles chart on June 2, but was replaced the following

week by The Bee Gees “Love You Inside Out”. “Hot Stuff” jumped back to # 1

the next week where it stayed for two more weeks and was finally knocked off

by Anita Wards’ “Ring My Bell”, which after two weeks on top, was itself

knocked off by Donna Summer’s “Bad Girls” which had a 5 week run at # 1 in

July and August of ‘79. Donna didn’t see the top of the singles chart again

until November 24th, when her duet with Barbra Streisand, ”Enough Is

Enough (No More Tears)” landed in the top spot for two weeks.



6. Stevie Wonder’s number one for the week of November 2nd 1974, “You Haven’t

Done Nothin’” was replaced at the top by “You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet” from

Canadian rockers Bachman-Turner Overdrive, which had a two week stay at

# 1.
7. OK, if you were paying attention, we gave you the title of this 1975 number one.

“Bad Blood” was 60’s hitmaker Neil Sedaka’s second # 1 in 1975 (his first was

“Laughter In The Rain” which landed atop the singles chart for one week on

February 1st). Neil had signed with Elton John’s Rocket Records label and hit

the top spot on the singles chart a second time with “Bad Blood” on October

11th of ’75 and hung there for two weeks. Neil’s record label boss, Elton John,

then replaced Neil at # 1 with “Island Girl” on November 1st, 1975.

Incidentally, Neil was responsible for a third # 1 in 1975, having written The

Captain & Tennille's hit “Love Will Keep Us Together”. If you listen closely

near the end, you’ll hear them sing, “Sedaka Is Back”.



8. Harry Nilsson was the performer we were looking for. His 1972 hit, “Without

You” was written by two members of Badfinger, Pete Ham and Tom Evans, both

of whom later committed suicide. Badfinger was signed to The Beatles Apple

label and had several hits, including “Come And Get It”, “No Matter What” and

“Day After Day”.



9. “Welcome Back”, written and sung by John Sebastian, was # 1 for the week of

May 8th, 1976. It was the theme song for the hit TV series “Welcome Back

Kotter” starring Gabe Kaplan and a young John Travolta. The “Theme From

SWAT”, a # 1 for the week of February 28th, 1976 was performed by Rhythm

Heritage, although in Canada, the song was covered by, and became a hit for

the THP Orchestra. The initials THP stand for Three Hats Productions.



10. Andy Gibb (born Andrew Roy Gibb in 1958) was the younger brother to

Maurice, Robin and Barry Gibb of The Bee Gees. Andy’s first hit, “I Just Want

To Be Your Everything” (written by brother Barry) was # 1 for 3 weeks in July

and August 1977. “(Love Is) Thicker Than Water” (written by Barry and

Andy). topped the singles chart for two weeks starting on March 4th, 1978. It

replaced the other Gibb brothers # 1, “Stayin’ Alive” and was replaced by The

Bee Gees yet again with their next hit from “Saturday Night Fever”, “Night

Fever”. “Shadow Dancing”, which was # 1 for 7 weeks throughout most of

June and all of July 1978, was co-written by all 4 Gibb brothers. Andy co-

hosted the “Solid Gold” TV show during the 1980 to ‘82 seasons. As well, he

appeared on TV sitcoms, “Punky Brewster” and “Gimme A Break!”. Five days

after celebrating his 30th birthday, Andy Gibb died on March 10, 1988.

JOHN LENNON TRIVIA

Here we are once again rock trivia fans, this time we’re celebrating the life of the legendary John Lennon, who, this year would have turned 70. As a member of The Beatles, Lennon helped change the world, not only in music, but in fashion, hairstyles and social mores. He campaigned for peace during his honeymoon with Yoko Ono in 1969 and continued to advocate peace and love throughout the rest of his life. John Lennon was tragically murdered on December 8th, 1980. As usual, score 10 points for each correct answer – see how close you can come to 100%. Answers are below the final question.

1. In 1969, John formally changed his middle name to Ono. What was his original
middle name?

2. John had two sons, the oldest was with first wife Cynthia. His second, with wife
Yoko Ono, was born in 1975. John wrote the song “Beautiful Boy” for him. Can
you name Lennon’s two sons?

3. One of John’s solo hit, “Give Peace A Chance” was recorded during John and
Yoko’s honeymoon in their hotel hotel room. In what city did they record “Give
Peace A Chance”?

4. John’s final public performance came on Thanksgiving Day 1974 at Madison
Square Garden. It happened during a concert by another British superstar.
Whose concert was it?

5. The original bass player in The Beatles was a close friend of John’s from his art
school days. Paul McCartney, at that time, was playing guitar in the group.
When John’s friend left the band, Paul took up the bass. Can you name The
Beatles first bass player?

6. In one of John’s later solo hits, he speaks the words “For the other half of the
sky” over the introduction music at the beginning of the song. Can you name
this John Lennon hit?

7. When John Lennon split from Yoko Ono in 1973, he temporarily moved to Los
Angeles, where among other things, he hung out with and produced an album
for a longtime friend who'd had several hits of his own. Can you name this
friend and the album John produced?

8. Besides The Beatles films “A Hard Days Night”, “Help” and “Magical Mystery
Tour”, John Lennon acted in only one other movie. Can you name this 1966
release, which was also directed by Richard Lester, who’d been behind the
camera for both “Help” and “A Hard Days Night”.

9. What was John Lennon’s ‘magic’ number. In other words, what number was
most significant in his life?

10. In September of 1969, John brought an impromptu group of musicians over
from England to perform at the Rock and Roll Revival Show in Toronto under
the name Plastic Ono Band. Yoko came as did Klaus Voorman, The Beatles
pal from Germany, who played bass along with Alan White, later of the group
Yes, who was the drummer. Which British superstar did John bring over with
him as lead guitar?

ANSWERS

1. John Winston Lennon was his birth name. John was born on October 9th 1940,
during World War II. His middle name was in honour of then British Prime
Minister Winston Churchill.

2. John’s two sons are named Julian and Sean. Both became musicians, although
of the two, Julian was the more commercially successful, charting several
albums and singles, including “Valotte” and “Too Late For Goodbyes” in 1985.
Sean Lennon has recorded 3 solo albums and others with Cibo Matto and The
Ghost Of A Saber Tooth Tiger.

3. “Give Peace A Chance” was recorded in room 1742 of the Queen Elizabeth Hotel
in Montreal, Quebec on June 1, 1969 during John & Yoko’s ‘Bed-In For Peace’
campaign. It was released in 1969 on The Beatles’ Apple label under the name
The Plastic Ono Band. Two of the other performers on the record were 60’s star
Petula Clark and Tommy Smothers of The Smothers Brothers. The song
reached # 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart on September 6th, 1969.

4. It was an Elton John concert on November 28, 1974. Elton & John sang three
Lennon/Beatles songs, “Whatever Gets You Through The Night”, “Lucy In The
Sky With Diamonds” and “I Saw Her Standing There”.

5. Stuart Sutcliffe was John’s friend from the Liverpool Art College. Stu met and
fell in love with a German student and photographer named Astrid Kirchherr
while The Beatles were playing clubs in Hamburg, Germany. He left the band
to study and continue as a painter and abstract artist. Stuart Sutcliffe died in
Hamburg on April 10th, 1962 at the age of 22.

6. The song was “Woman” from 1980’s “Double Fantasy” album. Listen closely as
the song first starts and you’ll hear it. Ironically, during The Beatles days, Paul
McCartney had also written a song called “Woman”, which became a hit for
Peter & Gordon in 1966. McCartney wrote the song under the name Bernard
Webb because he wanted to see if it could become a hit without his Beatle
credentials. It did, making it to # 14 on Billboards’ Hot 100 singles chart.
Lennon’s “Woman” went to number 2 in 1981.

7. Harry Nilsson was a longtime pal of The Beatles and when in 1973, Lennon
came out to LA, where Nilsson lived, the two hung around together and Lennon
produced Nilsson’s album “Pussycats”. Harry Nilsson died on January 15,
1994.

8. In “How I Won The War”, which was shot in Spain, John played Sgt. Gripweed.
John’s co-stars included British actors Michael Crawford and Roy Kinnear,
who’d previously worked with Lennon in The Beatles 1965 film “Help!”.

9. That would be the number 9. John was born on October 9th, as was his son
Sean (although obviously in different years. John in 1940, Sean in 1975).
Although he was shot and killed on December 8th, in England (Lennon’s
birthplace), it was already December 9th. John wrote several songs with his
special number 9 in the title, including “Revolution # 9” from The Beatles’
'White Album' and “# 9 Dream” from 1974’s solo “Walls And Bridges” album.

10. The Rock and Roll Revival show, which took place at Varsity Stadium in
Toronto on September 13, 1969 before a crowd of nearly 20,000, featured
Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Gene Vincent, Little Richard, Alice
Cooper, The Doors and many more. The guitarist for The Plastic Ono Band set
that September night was Eric Clapton.