Greatest song of the 70's

[Bear Bibeault]

We have a home Sirius radio that for the past few months we've kept tuned to the 70's station -- a decade that produced some of the best music, and some of the worst tripe.

Vote for your choice for the greatest song of the 70's.

Rules:

Any genre, must have originally aired in the 1970's.

You get only one vote.

You can comment on anyone else's choice, but only if you enter a vote yourself.

[Bear Bibeault]

I'll start:

Boston: More Than a Feeling

[Christophe Verré]

In 1970, the Doors released the album "Morrison Hotel", including the song "Ship of Fools". I can't tell if it's my greatest song of the 70's, as there are so many 70's songs that I love listening to, but I love this song, especially the longer organ part of the live versions.

[Andrew Monkhouse]

So many great songs, and so many that I am afraid to mention as it will once again demonstrate my warped tastes.

- Midnight At The Oasis
- Ballroom Blitz
- Billy, Don't Be A Hero
- Drift Away
- Brandy (You're A Fine Girl)
- One Toke Over The Line
- Fox On The Run
- Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood
- Build Me Up Buttercup
- KeyLargo
- American Pie
- Stuck In The Middle With You
- Tears Of A Clown
- You're So Vain
- The Things We Do For Love
- Piano Man
- Me And Bobby McGee

And my favourite:
- The Night Chicago Died

[Maneesh Godbole]

Eric Clapton Wonderful tonight

I agree with Christophe and Andrew. There are so many songs and so many bands to choose from that it is difficult to pick a single one as favorite.

I still listen to
Beatles
ABBA (yes, really)
Olivia Newton John (watched Grease I countless times for the music and Grease II countless times for Michelle, sigh!)
Simon Garfunkel
Paul Anka
Pink Floyd
Dire Straits
Eric Clapton

[Pat Farrell]

Maneesh Godbole wrote:I still listen to
Beatles
....Dire Straits

Er, the Beatles broke up in 1970. Simon & Garfunkel also broke up in 1970. I'm not sure they are legit here.

I was going to call you out on Dire Straits, but I see that they actually started in 1977.

Released in 1970, but from a group that really was a 60s group is "Chestnut Mare" by The Byrds.
By the mid-70s, most college radio stations banned it from play -- overplayed constantly. I wish commercial stations had done the same with the Eagle's Hotel California.

[Maneesh Godbole]

I have heard/read/seen about so many groups having so many comeback tours, that I have given up on who is who!
But you are correct. I have modified my list.

[Pat Farrell]

Maneesh Godbole wrote:I have heard/read/seen about so many groups having so many comeback tours

Yeah, we'd have to ask for an official rulling on the many groups that have been making the "oldies" tour. Some are the group in name only. The folks touring under "the byrds" into the late 70s were only Roger McQuinn and a bunch of session musicians. Some of the soul groups toured without any of the original singers.

Little Feat was a very serious 70s group that are nearly completely forgotten.

Song: Lynyrd Skynyrd's Free Bird

[Gregg Bolinger]

I'm just going to say almost anything by Queen. Keep in mind that I was born in 1974 so I didn't live through the era but still enjoy bits of it. It's really hard to pick a single song from an entire decade.

[Maneesh Godbole]

Oh man!
I remember seeing a video (or was it TV, don't recall now) of the Live Aid concert.
There were something like 100,000 people, all singing "We will rock you" along with Freddie. Awesome! I found Woodstock pale in comparison to this.

[Darya Akbari]

In Germany Heino was one of the 70s.



Sorry Marc Weber, I couldn't resist that one

[Mike Simmons]

Personally, I pick:

Yes: Heart of the Sunrise

I was also sorely tempted by:

Genesis: Supper's Ready, and others
Yes: Awaken, and others
Led Zepplin: Kashmir, Stairway to Heaven, and many more
Queen: almost anything (right, Gregg!), but Bohemian Rhapsody is way overplayed nowadays. How about The Prophet's Song? Or '39?
Rush: Xanadu, La Villa Strangiato, The Trees
Styx: Pieces of Eight, Suite Madame Blue, Come Sail Away
Kansas: Song for America, Carry On My Wayward Son, and others
John Denver: Rocky Mountain High
Gordon Lightfoot: The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald
The Eagles: lots of stuff
Bob Marley: everything

[Mike Simmons]

Andrew Monkhouse wrote:Build Me Up Buttercup

I certainly would have listed this. Had it been released sometime in the seventies.

But, to be fair, "American Pie" was a good call - I should have had that in there.

Also, should have put in some Elton John, and some Billy Joel. Oh, yes.

But I'm still putting Yes' "Heart of the Sunrise" at #1.

[Joe Ess]

If it's not on Freedom Rock, it doesn't qualify:

[Paul Sturrock]

Heart of Gold.

[Ram kovis]

great thread!!!

Glad Queen is mentioned.. I agree.. Evry song from that band is a master peice... Freddy rocks!!

and Santana.. there are great catchy songs.. especially Jingo.. there is a cover version by greats Santana and Eric Clapton.. Jam!!

and Steveie wonder.. the great!! Superstition song and its clavinet riff and saxo....

[Ram kovis]

and Steve Miller's Fly like an eagle..

[Darya Akbari]

I vote for Queen (Heino was not serious)

[Pat Farrell]

Actually, this thread is a bit weird. The 70s was when albums ruled the world. At the beginning, some 45s were sold, and some folks listened to "top 40 radio" but the 70s were really about albums. You bought and listened to albums and cared about albums and groups, not songs.

Moody Blues,
New Riders of the Purple Sage,
Steely Dan

etc

[Bear Bibeault]

Pat Farrell wrote:You bought and listened to albums and cared about albums and groups, not songs.

You, perhaps. Me, not so much.

[Pat Farrell]

Bear Bibeault wrote:You, perhaps. Me, not so much.

er, I wasn't the guys who coined the term "album oriented rock"

It owned the radio, even commercial radio.

I had roughly 150 LPs, maybe 200. I got my first CD player in about 85, and didn't buy many albums after that. I have about 807 "albums" these days, with the CDs to prove purchase and keep the RIAA away. All stored in flac on some disks.

More groups:

Dillards
Flying Burrito Brothers
Poco

[Arvind Mahendra]

1.Brady Bunch Song.
2. Scooby Doo Song.
3. 1973 from All the Lost Souls by james Blunt
4. Sugar Sugar by the Archies

[fred rosenberger]

dudes...

FREEBIRD!!!

Sadly, I didn't get into music until the 80's, so I missed most of these songs the first time around, and still think of the 80's as the best decade ever.

But...I'd probably go with something by Genesis...Supper's Ready is a staple on my iPod, as is The Musical Box and much of the Lamb album.

Since I only get one vote (according to the rules), I'll go with Supper's Ready.

[Arvind Mahendra]

I don't know the name and I'm too lazy to google, but I really like that song that went something like:
"Me and you and a dog named boo and how I love being a free man.
Welcome to the Hotel California, oh its such a lovely place, such a lovely place
so much room at the hotel California"

[fred rosenberger]

I think you are confusing two songs.

the first one is called "Me and You and a Dog Named Boo", by Lobo.

The second is called Hotel California, from the album of the same name by the Eagles.

[Bear Bibeault]

Sort of like merging Dancing Queen with Dust in the Wind....

[Arvind Mahendra]

They are both wonderful songs Fred! I also like that song "I'd love you to love me" by the same guy. I can't believe nobody has mentioned that yet. All this great music, really takes me back to a time before I was born.

[marc weber]

Wow, it's almost impossible to pick one. My contenders include...

"My Sweet Lord" (1970) by George Harrison.
"Layla" (1970) by Derek and the Dominos.
"Have You Ever Seen the Rain" (1970) by Creedence Clearwater Revival.
"Sylvia's Mother" (1972) by Doctor Hook.
"My Old School" (1973) by Steely Dan.
"Kashmir" (1975) by Led Zeppelin.
"Count on Me" (1978) by Jefferson Starship.
"Sultans of Swing" (1978) by Dire Straits.
"So It Goes" (1978) by Nick Lowe.
"Death or Glory" (1979) by The Clash.

I think my final choice is "My Old School" by Steely Dan.

By the way, here's my current CD collection (less 580 jazz discs that I still haven't unpacked)...

[marc weber]

Great. Now I'm destined to spend the rest of the day thinking of songs I should have considered, like "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet" (1974) by Bachman-Turner Overdrive.

[Eric Pascarello]

Marc,

where did you get the racks?

Eric

[marc weber]

Eric Pascarello wrote:...where did you get the racks? ...

http://www.boltz.com/

Great stuff!

[Pat Farrell]

marc weber wrote:Wow, it's almost impossible to pick one. My contenders include...

By the way, here's my current CD collection (less 580 jazz discs that I still haven't unpacked)...

Nice picks.

Do you actually play CDs? You don't have a SlimDevices to play them as flac files from a hard disk?
I have found that I buy far more CDs with the music server than I did before. I have 807 today. I have five or six of the SlimDevices units (still, I've given three away). I find that the web access to my music makes it far easier to listen to music, and when its easy, I do it more.

I also gave up on transferring my LPs to the computer, unless the LP is out of print or otherwise not on CD. Most 70s albums are under $10 on CD, and I find it takes a lot of time to transfer them from turntable to wave to flac, editing out the surface noise, cutting the side into tracks, etc.

[marc weber]

Yeah, I already cast my vote for "My Old School" by Steely Dan, but some other great songs came to mind...

"All the Young Dudes" (1972) by Mott the Hoople.
"I'll Take You There" (1972) by The Staple Singers.
"Acadian Driftwood" (1975) by The Band.
"Young Americans" (1975) by David Bowie.
"Running on Empty" (1977) by Jackson Browne.

(I just listened to "Sylvia's Mother" by Dr. Hook. Geez, that's depressing!)

Pat, what are these "hard drive" things I keep hearing about? Seriously, I'm just not that organized yet. I've got about 16,500 songs in iTunes, but no "plan" for a serious digital approach. I just rip what I'm in the mood for, and usually grab some CDs on the way out the door to play in my car.

[Maneesh Godbole]

Pat Farrell wrote:
I also gave up on transferring my LPs to the computer, unless the LP is out of print or otherwise not on CD. Most 70s albums are under $10 on CD, and I find it takes a lot of time to transfer them from turntable to wave to flac, editing out the surface noise, cutting the side into tracks, etc.

Pat,
What do you use for editing? I got a bunch of LPs with Indian classical music from the 60s and 70s which I have been meaning to turn digital.

[Mark Spritzler]

Andrew is a Sweet fan
Mike is a Progger

My favorite

S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y night - Bay City Rollers.

Oh wait, my first favorite song was

"Spinning Wheel" - Blood Sweat & Tears.

Mike I am more on your wavelength, and if you haven't looked at my videos at www.youtube.com/bytor9999
check them out, I think you would like them a lot.

Mark

[Mike Simmons]

I think you're missing a '9' there, Mark. And the videos are very cool, but I preferred seeing you live. '03 was it? Something like that. That was a fun trip.

Also: @marc: nice rack!

(Someone had to say it.)

[Monu Tripathi]

I am not sure, if they are from 70s; I have listened to and liked :

Imagine - John Lennon
Led Zepplin - Stairway to Heaven, kashmir, communication breakdown
Eagles - Hotel California
Pink Floyd - Time, Sorrow, High Hopes, Learn to fly and many more
Mark Knopfler - You dont know you're born