WLCY RADIO HITSJuly 2015

Jul 24, 2015

Fleetwood Mac - You Make Loving Fun (1977)

"You Make Loving Fun" is a song written and sung by Christine McVie of the British-American band Fleetwood Mac. It was released as the fourth and final 45 rpm single from the band's album Rumours in 1977; its fourth top-ten hit, the song peaked at number nine on the Billboard Pop Singles Chart.

The song was inspired by an affair McVie had with Curry Grant. "To avoid flare-ups", she told her then-husband John McVie that the song was about her dog; he found out later what it was really about.

Early tracking of the song was done, according to McVie, in the absence of Lindsey Buckingham, which allowed her the freedom to "build the song on my own". The recording sessions were saturated with cocaine use. Buckingham played rhythm guitar (through a Leslie) and tracking was done with a Fender Rhodes, Nicks playing tambourine. John McVie's bass was rerecorded again later, and Mick Fleetwood and Christine McVie dubbed Hohner Clavinet parts. In an interview with the New York Post she remarked that she wanted it to be the third US single from the album, but instead "Don't Stop" was chosen, which boosted the album's commercial success in the US and the UK.

"You Make Loving Fun" was a concert staple for Fleetwood Mac and was played during every tour involving Christine McVie from 1976 until 1997, a year before McVie's departure from the band and retirement from touring. It has since been revived for Fleetwood Mac's 2014-2015 tour when McVie rejoined the band.

Special of the day: The Beatles - While My Guitar Gently Weeps (1968)

"While My Guitar Gently Weeps" is a song written by George Harrison, first recorded by the Beatles in 1968 for their eponymous double album (also known as "the White Album"). The song features lead guitar by Eric Clapton, although he was not formally credited on the album.

"While My Guitar Gently Weeps" is ranked at number 136 on Rolling Stone‍ 's "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time", number 7 on the magazine's list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time, and number 10 on its list of The Beatles 100 Greatest Songs. In an online poll held by Guitar World magazine in February 2012, "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" was voted the best of Harrison's Beatle-era songs. In October 2008, Guitar World ranked Clapton's playing at number 42 in its list of the "100 Greatest Guitar Solos".

Atlanta Rhythm Section - Imaginary Lover (1978)

On February 26th 1978, "Imaginary Lover" by the Atlanta Rhythm Section entered Billboard's Hot Top 100 chart at position #70; and on May 28th it peaked at #7 (for 1 week) and spent 17 weeks on the Top 100. It spent 4 weeks on the Top 10; started out at #10, then to #9, next was #8, and finally to #7. Between 1974 and 1981 the sextet had fourteen records on the Top 100; with two making the Top 10, and its other Top 10 record, "So In To You", also reached #7 on the Top 100.

Put the Atlanta Rhythm Section before an audience and watch the boys from Doraville whip them to a screaming, foot-stomping frenzy with their all-time clasics. "So Into You," "Imaginary Lover," and "Champagne Jam," are just part of the specially priced two record set of ARS at their best, doing their best. (November 3, 1978. Billboard )

Features of This Track

basic rock song structures
a subtle use of vocal harmony
mild rhythmic syncopation
repetitive melodic phrasing
extensive vamping
a clear focus on recording studio production
minor key tonality
a vocal-centric aesthetic
mixed acoustic and electric instrumentation
electric guitar riffs
an electric guitar solo
a dynamic male vocalist
heavy instrumental improvisation

Deep Purple - Highway Star (1972)

"Highway Star" is a song by the English rock band Deep Purple. It is the opening track on their 1972 album Machine Head and is the fastest song in tempo on the album. It is characterised by a long, classically inspired guitar solo and organ solo. Organist Jon Lord claimed that the organ and guitar solos were based on Bach-like chord sequences.

This song was born on a tour bus going to Portsmouth in 1971 when a reporter asked the band how they wrote songs. To demonstrate, guitarist Ritchie Blackmore grabbed an acoustic guitar and began playing a riff consisting of a single "G" repeated over and over, while vocalist Ian Gillan improvised lyrics over the top. The song was refined and was performed that same night. The song first appears on the 1972 LP Machine Head. The track remains one of the band's staples in live concerts, and was the set opener even before it was released on any album.

The very first live version released, recorded live for German TV program Beat-Club in September 1971 is featured on the History, Hits & Highlights '68–'76 DVD. The most famous live version is featured on the 1972 live album Made in Japan, where "Highway Star" is the first song. It's also the opening track on the live albums Nobody's Perfect (1988) and Come Hell or High Water (1994).

"Bohemian Rhapsody" is a song by the British rock band Queen. It was written by Freddie Mercury for the band's 1975 studio album A Night at the Opera. The song consists of several sections: a ballad segment ending with a guitar solo, an operatic passage, and a hard rock section. At the time, it was the most expensive single ever made.

When it was released as a single, "Bohemian Rhapsody" became a commercial success, staying at the top of the UK Singles Chart for nine weeks and selling more than a million copies by the end of January 1976. It reached number one again in 1991 for five weeks following Mercury's death, eventually becoming the UK's third best-selling single of all time. It topped the charts in several other markets as well, including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and The Netherlands, later becoming one of the best-selling singles of all time. In the United States the song originally peaked at number nine in 1976. It returned to the chart at number two in 1992 following its appearance in the film Wayne's World, which revived its American popularity.

Although critical reaction was initially mixed, "Bohemian Rhapsody" remains one of Queen's most popular songs and is frequently placed on modern lists of the greatest songs of all time. The single was accompanied by a promotional video, which many scholars consider ground-breaking. In 2004, "Bohemian Rhapsody" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. In 2012, the song topped the list on an ITV nationwide poll in the UK to find "The Nation's Favourite 70's Number One" over 60 years of music.

Led Zeppelin - Stairway To Heaven (1971)

"Stairway to Heaven" is a song by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, released in late 1971. It was composed by guitarist Jimmy Page and vocalist Robert Plant for the band's untitled fourth studio album (often referred to as Led Zeppelin IV). It is often referred to as one of the greatest rock songs of all time.

The song has three sections, each one progressively increasing in tempo and volume. The song begins with a slow acoustic-based folk melody accompanied by recorders before introducing electric instrumentation. The final section is an uptempo hard rock arrangement highlighted by Page's intricate guitar solo accompanying Plant's vocals that end with the plaintive a cappella line: "And she's buying a stairway to heaven".

"Stairway to Heaven" was voted #3 in 2000 by VH1 on its list of the 100 Greatest Rock Songs, and was placed at number 31 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". It was the most requested song on FM radio stations in the United States in the 1970s, despite never having been officially released as a single there. In November 2007, through download sales promoting Led Zeppelin's Mothership release, "Stairway to Heaven" hit No. 37 on the UK Singles Chart.

Tom Sawyer is a song by Canadian rock band Rush, named after Mark Twain's literary character. The song was released on Mercury Records and PolyGram in 1981 on the Moving Pictures album and numerous compilations thereafter, such as 1990's Chronicles. It has also appeared on several live albums and bootlegs. The song relies heavily on Geddy Lee's synthesizer playing and the techniques of drummer Neil Peart. Geddy Lee has referred to the track as the band's "defining piece of music...from the early '80s". It is one of Rush's best-known songs and is a staple of classic rock radio. It reached #25 in the UK Singles chart in October 1981 and in the US peaked at #44 on the Billboard Hot 100 and at #8 on the Billboard Top Tracks chart. In 2009 it was named the 19th-greatest hard rock song of all time by VH1. "Tom Sawyer" was one of five Rush songs inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame on March 28, 2010.

"Time" is the fourth track from the English progressive rock band Pink Floyd's 1973 album The Dark Side of the Moon, and the only song on the album credited to all four members of the band, though the lyrics were written by Roger Waters. It is the final Pink Floyd song credited to all four members and the last to feature Richard Wright on lead vocals until "Wearing the Inside Out" on The Division Bell. This song is about how time can slip by, but many people do not realize it until it is too late. Roger Waters got the idea when he realized he was no longer preparing for anything in life, but was right in the middle of it. He has described this realisation taking place at ages 28 and 29 in various interviews. It is noted for its long introductory passage of clocks chiming and alarms ringing, recorded as a quadrophonic test by Alan Parsons, not specifically for the album.

Taylor Swift - Bad Blood (2015)

"Bad Blood" is a song by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, from her fifth studio album 1989 (2014). The single version, featuring American rapper Kendrick Lamar, was released on May 17, 2015 by Republic Records. The song reached number-one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and is the third song from the album to do so.

"Bad Blood" first charted on the US Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks in November 2014 and January 2015 as an album cut from 1989, peaking at number 78. Following the music video premiere at the 2015 Billboard Music Awards, the remixed version of the song featuring Kendrick Lamar re-entered the chart at number 53 and number 26 on the Digital Songs Chart, selling 47,000 digital copies. The following week, the song topped the Billboard Hot 100 on the week ending May 24, 2015, selling 385,000 copies and jumping 52 positions, one of the largest jumps to the top spot in Billboard history. It became her fourth number one single and the third number one from 1989 (following "Shake It Off" and "Blank Space"), making Swift the first artist since Adele to yield three Hot 100 chart toppers from the same album; it is also her fourth consecutive top-10 single from 1989. It also became her 18th top 10 single and Lamar's second (also his first number-one single in the United States) and the 11th song with the word "Bad" in it to top the Hot 100 chart. It held the top spot for one week, before being replaced by Wiz Khalifa and Charlie Puth's "See You Again". As of July 1, 2015, the song has sold over 1,657,000 million digital copies in the U.S.

Orleans - Still The One (1976)

"Still the One" is a song written by Johanna Hall and John Hall, and recorded by the soft rock group Orleans on their album Waking & Dreaming, released in 1976, which made it to No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Country singer Bill Anderson recorded and released a successful cover version, peaking at No. 11 on Billboard's Hot Country Singles chart in 1977.

The lyrics of the song are of a man describing his feelings for a woman with whom he has a long lasting and, of course, intimate relationship ("You're still the one, I want to talk to in bed; Still the one that turns my head") and all the reasons why she is "Still the One" for whom he has feelings.

Features of This Track

pop rock qualities
mild rhythmic syncopation
interweaving vocal harmony
extensive vamping
intricate melodic phrasing
demanding instrumental part writing
a clear focus on recording studio production
major key tonality
melodic songwriting
electric guitar riffs
an electric guitar solo
a dynamic male vocalist
electric pianos
romantic lyrics
a mid-tempo swing feel
vocal harmonies
emphasis on instrumental arranging
heavy instrumental improvisation

The Spinners - Working My Way Back To You (1979)

"Working My Way Back to You" is a song made popular by The Four Seasons in 1966 and The Spinners in 1979.

Written by Sandy Linzer and Denny Randell, the song was originally recorded by The Four Seasons in 1966, reaching number nine on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. In the UK Top 50 chart it spent three weeks - all at No. 50. It is the only hit to feature the group's arranger Charles Calello in the temporary role of bassist/bass vocalist, having replaced original member Nick Massi.

The song is about a man who cheated on his girlfriend and also emotionally abused her. When she leaves, he realizes that he did love her and is very remorseful about his past actions. He vows to win her love back. It is in some ways a re-casting of the melody from their previous hit, "Let's Hang On!".

In 1979 American soul and R&B group The Spinners, or "The Detroit Spinners" in the United Kingdom to avoid confusion with a Liverpool-based folk group of that name, sang a medley of "Working My Way Back to You" and Michael Zager's "Forgive Me Girl," topping the UK Singles Chart for two weeks in April 1980. On the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, the medley (released the previous November in the U.S.) peaked at the number two position in March for two weeks, behind "Another Brick In The Wall" by Pink Floyd. The Spinners version also made it to number six on the Soul Singles chart and number eight on the disco/dance chart.

Special of the day: The Archies - Sugar, Sugar (1969)

"Sugar, Sugar" is a pop song written by Jeff Barry and Andy Kim. It was originally recorded by the Archies, a bubble gum pop band formed by a group of fictional teenagers in the television cartoon series The Archie Show. It reached number one in the US on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1969 and stayed there for four weeks. It was also number one on the UK Singles chart in that same year for eight weeks. The song became a hit again in 1970 when R&B and soul singer Wilson Pickett took it back onto the charts.

The Archies' "Sugar, Sugar" was the 1969 number-one single of the year. A week after topping the RPM 100 national singles chart in Canada on September 13, 1969 (where it spent three weeks), it went on to spend four weeks at the top of the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 from September 20 and eight weeks at the top of the UK singles chart. In total, it spent 22 weeks in the Billboard Hot 100. The song lists at number 73 on Billboard's Greatest Songs of All Time. It also peaked at one in the South African Singles Chart. On February 5, 2006, "Sugar, Sugar" was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame, as co-writer Andy Kim is originally from Montreal, Quebec.

In the United States, "Sugar, Sugar" was classified by the RIAA as a gold record in August 1969, meaning it sold 1 million units (the gold threshold was later lowered to 500,000). The single also topped the 1969 Billboard Year-End chart. "Sugar, Sugar" is listed as the 73rd top hit of all-time in Billboards 55th year anniversary edition

Jul 24, 2015

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