On a losing streak
Rich Appel tosses this out in the current Hz So Good newsletter:
July ‘65 was when the Rolling Stones’ “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” — a song about a man doing manly things, a song whose appeal was decidedly male — was #1, and went on to be, arguably, radio’s #1 song for that entire year.
My theory? That was the last time testosterone tipped the scales at contemporary radio. The following year, the ultra-macho “Ballad of the Green Berets” racked up impressive 45 sales, but radio’s biggest hits were decidedly for the girls: the Association’s “Cherish,” Sinatra’s “Strangers in the Night,” the Righteous Brothers’ “(You’re My) Soul and Inspiration.” The next seven years brought us #1s-for-the-year by Lulu, the Beatles (”Hey Jude”), the 5th Dimension, Simon & Garfunkel, 3 Dog Night, Roberta Flack and Tony Orlando & Dawn. See what I mean?
Was “Satisfaction” the last 45 lots of teen boys could proudly buy before the album age began and 45s became uncool?
Gawd, I hope not, if only because it was the first 45 I ever bought, and I wasn’t even a teen yet. (I turned twelve that year.)
But a larger question now gnaws at me: while I don’t doubt that boys’ and girls’ tastes in Top 40 didn’t exactly coincide in those days, does it make any difference? I remember taking the school bus fifteen or twenty miles each way, and we’d kill time with our own no-budget Motown Revue. (I did a pretty mean Diana Ross back then.)
And the last time I bought a current hit on 45 was … 1987. Same year I bought my first CD player, now that I think about it.
Venomous Kate said:
14 October 2008 @ 12:19 pm
Oh, I don’t know that testosterone-laden rock stopped with the Stones. Listen to Buck Cherry’s “Crazy Bitch” and you’ll see what I mean.
CGHill said:
14 October 2008 @ 12:23 pm
Of course it didn’t stop. But it stopped being a major contributor to the top of the charts, with the occasional exception — say, AC/DC. (”Crazy Bitch,” while doing better on secondary lists, stopped on its trip up the Billboard Hot 100 at #59.)
ms7168 said:
14 October 2008 @ 12:34 pm
The last 45 record I bought was Pet Shop Boys - West End Girls. The 45 has a cover that is similar to the album cover the single came from. This was in March 1986.