The song with the second-highest “Lost Factor” of the early ‘70s is hard to hear on the radio now. But it was also hard to hear Chuck Berry on the radio in 1972. I was in New York for the summer when “My Ding-a-Ling” was on its way to No. 1. But Top 40 powerhouse WABC added it, then dropped it after a few days. Plus, I was listening to the more MOR-leaning WNBC to hear Imus. I heard plenty of double entendre that summer, just not that song very much. In fact, of any song since I began listening to current music, “My Ding-a-Ling” is probably the No. 1 song that I have heard least on the radio.
1972 also gave us the “Lost” leader of the early ‘70s — “Daddy Don’t You Walk So Fast.” Many of the high “Lost Factor” songs, big hits that don’t endure on the radio today, were already throwbacks when they were new, and 1972 was a key year in the ‘50s and early-‘60s revival that put Wayne Newton back on the radio, along with Berry, Elvis Presley, Rick Nelson, Sammy Davis Jr., and many others.
One reason songs fade with time is because subsequent generations don’t attach the same feelings to them; for retro-sounding songs, listeners not only have to carry memories of what songs meant to them in 1972, but they also have to summon their memories of an earlier era (or, if they’re under retirement age, what they learned from parents or American Graffiti.)
Since April, we’ve been calculating the “Lost Factor” of every song that made the Billboard year-end Top 100 between 1960 and 1994. Our formula is points based on year-end chart position divided by the number of monitored spins a song received over a seven-day period. Those spins are at the mostly large- and medium-market stations monitored by BDSRadio. They don’t include Sirius XM’s ‘70s on 7, but mostly FM stations playing what they perceive as safe and enduring hits.
Our calculations for the ‘70s were done earlier this year. So there’s one significant asterisk. Two weeks ago, Bobby “Boris” Pickett’s “Monster Mash” not only wasn’t lost, it was big enough to rechart in the U.K. for a week. Ten days before Halloween, I heard it blaring from a car, and I’m not sure if it was the radio or this podcast that the driver was playing.
Here are the 100 songs from 1970-74 with the highest Lost Factor:
RANK | ARTIST | TITLE | YEAR | LOST FACTOR | SPINS |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Wayne Newton | Daddy Don't You Walk So Fast | 1972 | 91 | 0 |
2 | Chuck Berry | My Ding-a-Ling | 1972 | 86 | 1 |
3 | Melanie | Lay Down (Candles in the Rain) | 1970 | 78 | 1 |
4 | Murray Head & Trinidad Singers | Superstar | 1971 | 75 | 0 |
5 | Paul Anka | (You're) Having My Baby | 1974 | 73 | 1 |
6 | Donny Osmond | Sweet and Innocent | 1971 | 69 | 0 |
7 | Osmonds | Down by the Lazy River | 1972 | 65 | 1 |
8 | Kenny Rogers & First Edition | Something's Burning | 1970 | 63 | 1 |
9 | Mel & Tim | Starting All Over Again | 1972 | 63 | 0 |
10 | Bobby "Boris" Pickett | Monster Mash | 1973 | 63 | 0 |
11 | Charles Wright & Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band | Love Land | 1970 | 51 | 1 |
12 | Helen Reddy | I Don't Know How to Love Him | 1971 | 51 | 0 |
13 | Osmonds | Yo-Yo | 1971 | 50 | 0 |
14 | Chakachas | Jungle Fever | 1972 | 50 | 1 |
15 | Partridge Family | Doesn't Somebody Want to Be Wanted | 1971 | 48 | 0 |
16 | Donny Osmond | Go Away Little Girl | 1971 | 47 | 2 |
17 | Mac Davis | One Hell of a Woman | 1974 | 46 | 2 |
18 | Clint Holmes | Playground in My Mind | 1973 | 45 | 2 |
19 | Bells | Stay Awhile | 1971 | 44 | 1 |
20 | Jim Stafford | Spiders and Snakes | 1974 | 43 | 2 |
21 | Michael Jackson | Ben | 1972 | 41 | 2 |
22 | Cher | Dark Lady | 1974 | 34 | 2 |
23 | Daddy Dewdrop | Chick-a-Boom (Don't Ya Jes' Love It) | 1971 | 34 | 2 |
24 | Tony Orlando & Dawn | Say, Has Anybody Seen My Sweet Gypsy Rose | 1973 | 34 | 2 |
25 | O'Jays | Put Your Hands Together | 1974 | 33 | 0 |
26 | Sammy Davis Jr. | The Candy Man | 1972 | 32 | 3 |
27 | Sonny & Cher | A Cowboy's Work Is Never Done | 1972 | 31 | 1 |
28 | Mac & Katie Kissoon | Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep | 1971 | 30 | 0 |
29 | Helen Reddy | Leave Me Alone (Ruby Red Dress) | 1974 | 30 | 1 |
30 | Andy Williams | (Where Do I Begin?) Love Story | 1971 | 29 | 1 |
31 | Dennis Coffey | Scorpio | 1972 | 29 | 2 |
32 | Ronnie Dyson | (If You Let Me Make Love To You Then) Why Can't I Touch You? | 1970 | 27 | 0 |
33 | Beginning of the End | Funky Nassau | 1971 | 26 | 0 |
34 | Osmonds | One Bad Apple | 1971 | 25 | 4 |
35 | Ray Stevens | The Streak | 1974 | 24 | 4 |
36 | Bobby Goldsboro | Watching Scotty Grow | 1971 | 23 | 1 |
37 | Ike & Tina Turner | I Want to Take You Higher | 1970 | 22 | 1 |
38 | Hurricane Smith | Oh, Babe, What Would You Say? | 1973 | 22 | 2 |
39 | Mike Oldfield | Tubular Bells | 1974 | 22 | 0 |
40 | Helen Reddy | Delta Dawn | 1973 | 22 | 4 |
41 | Judy Collins | Amazing Grace | 1971 | 21 | 0 |
42 | Jimmy Castor Bunch | Troglodyte (Cave Man) | 1972 | 21 | 1 |
43 | Temptations | Masterpiece | 1973 | 21 | 0 |
44 | Frijid Pink | House of the Rising Sun | 1970 | 21 | 2 |
45 | Helen Reddy | Peaceful | 1973 | 20 | 0 |
46 | Bo Donaldson and The Heywoods | Billy Don't Be a Hero | 1974 | 20 | 4 |
47 | Donny and Marie Osmond | I'm Leaving It Up to You | 1974 | 20 | 0 |
48 | Joe Tex | I Gotcha | 1972 | 19 | 5 |
49 | 8th Day | She's Not Just Another Woman | 1971 | 19 | 2 |
50 | Hot Butter | Popcorn | 1972 | 18 | 4 |
51 | Freda Payne | Bring the Boys Home | 1971 | 18 | 2 |
52 | Joe Simon | Power of Love | 1972 | 18 | 0 |
53 | Donny Osmond | Puppy Love | 1972 | 17 | 2 |
54 | Gilbert O'Sullivan | Get Down | 1973 | 17 | 2 |
55 | Clarence Carter | Patches | 1970 | 17 | 4 |
56 | Pipkins | Gimme Dat Ding | 1970 | 15 | 0 |
57 | Jackson 5 | Mama's Pearl | 1971 | 15 | 1 |
58 | Blue Ridge Rangers | Jambalaya (On the Bayou) | 1973 | 15 | 0 |
59 | Sister Janet Mead | The Lord's Prayer | 1974 | 15 | 0 |
60 | Robin McNamara | Lay a Little Lovin' on Me | 1970 | 14 | 1 |
61 | Buoys | Timothy | 1971 | 14 | 1 |
62 | Bobby Vinton | Sealed With a Kiss | 1972 | 14 | 0 |
63 | Lobo | Don't Expect Me to Be Your Friend | 1973 | 14 | 0 |
64 | Lamont Dozier | Trying to Hold on to My Woman | 1974 | 14 | 0 |
65 | Ringo Starr | Oh My My | 1974 | 14 | 2 |
66 | Marvin Hamlisch | The Entertainer | 1974 | 13 | 4 |
67 | Supremes | Up the Ladder to the Roof | 1970 | 13 | 1 |
68 | Partridge Family | I Woke Up in Love This Morning | 1971 | 13 | 1 |
69 | Poppy Family | Which Way You Goin' Billy? | 1970 | 13 | 6 |
70 | Dr. Hook & Medicine Show | Sylvia's Mother | 1972 | 12 | 3 |
71 | Carpenters | Hurting Each Other | 1972 | 12 | 3 |
72 | Sailcat | Motorcycle Mama | 1972 | 12 | 0 |
73 | Jud Strunk | Daisy a Day | 1973 | 12 | 0 |
74 | Marmalade | Reflections of My Life | 1970 | 12 | 5 |
75 | Jermaine Jackson | Daddy's Home | 1973 | 11 | 5 |
76 | Billy Preston | Outa-Space | 1972 | 11 | 7 |
77 | Bobby Sherman | Easy Come, Easy Go | 1970 | 11 | 4 |
78 | Barbra Streisand | The Way We Were | 1974 | 11 | 9 |
79 | Godspell | Day by Day | 1972 | 11 | 0 |
80 | New York City | I'm Doin' Fine Now | 1973 | 11 | 5 |
81 | Jim Stafford | My Girl Bill | 1974 | 11 | 0 |
82 | John Denver | Sunshine on My Shoulders | 1974 | 10 | 8 |
83 | Cher | Half-Breed | 1973 | 10 | 8 |
84 | Roberta Flack | The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face | 1972 | 9 | 11 |
85 | Joan Baez | The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down | 1971 | 9 | 9 |
86 | Eddie Kendricks | Boogie Down | 1974 | 9 | 8 |
87 | Sylvia | Pillow Talk | 1973 | 9 | 9 |
88 | Gladys Knight & Pips | I've Got to Use My Imagination | 1974 | 9 | 7 |
89 | Bobby Womack | Lookin' for a Love | 1974 | 9 | 4 |
90 | Free Movement | I've Found Someone of My Own | 1971 | 8 | 9 |
91 | Carly Simon & James Taylor | Mockingbird | 1974 | 8 | 6 |
92 | Pacific Gas & Electric | Are You Ready? | 1970 | 8 | 1 |
93 | Wilson Pickett | Don't Knock My Love | 1971 | 8 | 1 |
94 | Robert John | The Lion Sleeps Tonight | 1972 | 8 | 10 |
95 | Jim Stafford | Wildwood Weed | 1974 | 8 | 1 |
96 | Anne Murray | You Won't See Me | 1974 | 8 | 6 |
97 | Carpenters | Top of the World | 1974 | 8 | 8 |
98 | Mouth & MacNeal | How Do You Do | 1972 | 8 | 10 |
99 | Ocean | Put Your Hand in the Hand | 1971 | 8 | 9 |
100 | Michael Jackson | Rockin' Robin | 1972 | 8 | 8 |
As we did with 1975-79, we tallied certain characteristics of songs (and some songs fit into more than one category). Among the top 100 songs there were:
- 33 titles that could now be classified as MOR. Besides the No. 1 title, Helen Reddy places three titles in the top 100. So does Cher, two as a solo artist and one as half of Sonny & Cher.
- 27 R&B titles, once again including a number of records that I consider among the greatest of the era, beginning with the No. 9 “Starting All Over Again” by Mel & Tim. Early ‘70s R&B isn’t just disadvantaged by the lack of play from today’s Classic Hits stations (which do less with the ‘70s overall) but, because this is all-format airplay being tallied, from a lack of airplay even at Adult R&B stations, many of which start in the late ‘70s or now in the ‘80s. Look for more on this in a forthcoming column.
- 12 songs by teen idols, half of them by an Osmond — Donny, Donny & Marie, or the Osmonds.
- 12 songs that could be considered throwback-sounding/deliberately retro at the time.
- Nine novelty songs, although if you counted any slightly quirky ‘70s story song, the count could be considerably higher. Jim Stafford, known for his country/pop novelties, had three songs in the Lost 100, although I didn’t code “Spiders & Snakes” as a novelty.
- Eight songs that had some connection to movies and Broadway, including two from Jesus Christ Superstar.
- Seven songs from the early ‘70s “Jesus Rock” category, ranging from the aforementioned two titles to Sister Janet Mead’s “The Lord’s Prayer.”
- Seven songs that could be considered bubblegum — again, for some people, that’s anything that’s goofy and from the ‘70s, but we went for songs like “Yo-Yo” by the Osmonds and Daddy Dewdrop’s cartoon show cover “Chick-a-Boom.”
Meanwhile, these are the songs with the lowest “Lost Factor” scores of the ‘70s. Most are songs that remain Classic Rock mainstays, although a few are songs aren’t as heavily spun on today’s radio, but make the cut because they have a relatively low year-end placing to outperform (e.g., “Papa Was A Rollin’ Stone” or “Won’t Get Fooled Again”).
RANK | ARTIST | TITLE | YEAR | SPINS |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Doors | Riders on the Storm | 1971 | 249 |
2 | David Bowie | Space Oddity | 1973 | 318 |
3 | Pink Floyd | Money | 1973 | 696 |
4 | Edgar Winter Group | Free Ride | 1973 | 248 |
5 | Temptations | Papa Was a Rollin' Stone | 1973 | 37 |
6 | Doors | Love Her Madly | 1971 | 199 |
7 | Steve Miller Band | The Joker | 1974 | 1419 |
8 | Who | Won't Get Fooled Again | 1971 | 41 |
9 | Elton John | Rocket Man | 1972 | 1043 |
10 | Wings | Live and Let Die | 1973 | 755 |
A few other minor categories…I count five instrumentals, though all but “Scorpio” fall into some other category as well. Then you have “unnecessary remakes” (House of the Rising Sun, The Lion Sleeps Tonight, Mockingbird, Puppy Love–I guess most of those could go in the retro category) and Not Family Friendly (Something’s Burning, Jungle Fever, Pillow Talk).
Good point about “Not Family Friendly,” I should probably tally those across the years.
This may be blasphemy, but there are good reasons most of these are lost, and these songs got teenage boys running to the stereo system and the album station. (How in the world did Debbie Boone miss this dubious distinction—number one for 132 weeks in 1977 and barely heard since) Yes, there are a couple of favorites for me, “Scorpio” for one and the Joe Simon songs; The 8th Day and even Frijid Pink’s electrified “House”. The most dated song of all was “Bring the Boys Home” since it was tied to Vietnam.
Remember this particular page is 1970-74. Debby Boone was #185 for the ’70s overall; it’s the #5 song of 1978 (the year-end chart it’s on, despite being from fall ’77) and the #73 song of 1975-79. The week I did the calculations, it had 16 BDS spins. Last week, it had nine, although that still wouldn’t have put it in the top 100 for the decade, since it’s competing with so many songs–especially from the early ’70s–that get no monitored airplay at all now. Now that the full 1970s list