Smorgasbord Blog Magazine – Music Column – The Breakfast Show with William Price King and Sally Cronin – Chart Hits 1969 – Part One – Sly The Family Stone, Blood Sweat and Tears, The Rolling Stones and Bobby Gentry

Each week William and I will select two top hits from the charts in the US and UK starting with 1960 for two weeks followed by 1961 etc..through to 1985. We will also include some of the notable events in those years for the up and coming stars who were centre stage at the time.

Welcome to our show and we are excited to share decades of music with you in 2021. Here is my first selection of  top 1969 hits which I hope you will enjoy.  William.

News Event: January 12th Debut album of Led Zeppelin released first in the US

Sly and the Family Stone –  Everyday People

“Everyday People” composed by Sly Stone, this was the first single by the band to go to #1 on the Soul singles chart and the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart, holding that position for four weeks. Billboard ranked it as the #5 song of 1969. The song is a plea for peace and equality between differing races and social groups, which was a major theme and focus for the band. Rolling Stone ranked “Everyday People” as #145 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time

News Event: March 12th 11th Grammy Awards: “By the Time I Get to Phoenix” by Glen Campbell wins best record

Blood, Sweat and Tears – Spinning Wheel

“Spinning Wheel”, written by the Canadian lead vocalist David Clayton-Thomas, was a huge hit worldwide, reaching #2 in the US charts and remaining for three weeks. It was nominated for three Grammy Awards and won two: Best Instrumental Arrangement and Album of the Year. This song has been covered by practically every major recording artist in the world

News Event: March 29th 14th Eurovision Song Contest: Salome for Spain (“Vivo cantando”), Lulu of United Kingdom (“Boom Bang-a-Bang”), Lenny Kuhr of Netherlands (“De troubadour”), and Frida Boccara of France (“Un jour, un enfant”) all win in Madrid

Now time for my first top chart picks from 1969 and it seems like only yesterday that I was dancing at my local club to the music.

The Rolling Stones – Honky Tonk Women

“Honky Tonk Women” is a 1969 hit song by the Rolling Stones. It was a single-only release, available from 4 July 1969 in the United Kingdom, and a week later in the United States (although a country version called “Country Honk” was later included on the album Let It Bleed). It topped the charts in both nations. The song is on Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list, and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Murciélago SV

News Event: May 31st Stevie Wonder releases the single “My Cherie Amour” which goes on to become a soul classic

Bobby Gentry – I’ll Never Fall in Love Again

“I’ll Never Fall in Love Again” is a popular song by composer Burt Bacharach and lyricist Hal David that was written for the 1968 musical Promises, Promises. Several recordings of the song were released in 1969, the most popular of which was by Dionne Warwick, who took it to number six on Billboard magazine’s Hot 100 and spent three weeks with it at number one on the magazine’s list of the 40 most popular Easy Listening songs in the US. Another best-selling version was by Bobbie Gentry, which topped the UK chart which is my favourite version.  SweetDreams

Additional sources: On This Day – Music – Hits of the 60s: Sixties City – Wikipedia

Your Hosts for The Breakfast Show

William Price King is an American jazz singer, crooner, and composer.

His interest in music began at an early age when he studied piano and clarinet in high school. At Morehouse College in Atlanta where he grew up, he sang in the Glee Club and studied classical music. After graduation he went off to the Yale School of Music where he earned a Masters degree. From there he journeyed to New York where he created a jazz trio ‘Au Naturel’ which performed in some of the hottest venues in Manhattan including gigs on Broadway and the famous ‘Rainbow Room.’ These gigs opened doors for performances in Montreal and a European tour.

While touring Europe he met a lovely French lady, Jeanne Maïstre, who, a year later became his wife. King left the group ‘Au Naturel’ and settled in the south of France where he started a new life on the French Riviera, opening his own music school – the “Price King Ecole Internationale de Chant.” He has had the pleasure over the years of seeing many of his students excel as singers on a professional level, and some going on to become national celebrities. He continues to coach young singers today, in his spare time.

Blog– IMPROVISATION – William Price King on Tumblr – Buy William’s music: William Price King iTunes – Facebook – William Price King – Twitter – @wpkofficial
Regular Venue – Cave Wilson

Sally Cronin is an author, blogger and broadcaster who enjoyed four years as part of the team on Onda Cero International’s English speaking morning show in Marbella and then for two years as a presenter on Expressfm the local radio station in Portsmouth. She co-presented two ‘Drive Time’ shows a week with Adrian Knight, hosted the live Thursday Afternoon Show and The Sunday Morning Show guests including musicians and authors. Following this she became Station Director for a local internet television station for two years, producing and presenting the daily news segment, outside broadcasts and co-presenting the Adrian and Sally chat show live on Friday evenings.

She and her husband David have now returned to Ireland where they live on the Wexford Coast where she blogs and continues to write books.

Books :Amazon US – And: Amazon UK – More reviews: Goodreads – blog: Smorgasbord Blog Magazine Twitter: @sgc58 – Facebook: Sally Cronin – LinkedIn: Sally Cronin

Next week 1969 Part Two. We hope you will tune in.. as always we love to hear from you.. thanks William and Sally.

 

Previous Breakfast Shows can be found The Breakfast Show Archive