by Kevin Burton Oh my goodness how did I ever miss this one? Earlier this year to mark the year 2022 I did a series of posts about songs that peaked at number 22 on the Billboard Hot 100. It turns out one of my all-time favorite songs, “Free Man in Paris,” …
Tag Archives: 70s music
Fruit Of The Spirit: Biblical Gentleness
by Kevin Burton One of the most unfortunate rhymes is meek rhyming with weak. Those two words are much closer to opposites than to synonyms. This is the eighth in a series on the Fruit of the Spirit from Galatians 5:22-23. We’re looking at those characteristics that will become more evident in a …
Disco Tunes That Rockers Can Tolerate
by Kevin Burton Found another story last week on the animosity toward disco from rock and rollers in the 1970s. This one contained a little surprise. The story was under the headline, “Surviving the 70s: 12 disco songs even rock fans enjoy.” It was written by Greg Brodsky on the Best Classic bands …
Of OSSB And A Bright Sunshiny Day
by Kevin Burton How do you get to 50 years? It starts with a day, or a night. Then, you turn your heart toward the sunrise, again and again. There was a night when my parents put me into the family Delta 88 and drove me from our home in Yellow Springs …
“Best Of My Love,” Pure Joy In 1977
by Kevin Burton Their gospel wailing and harmonies brought out the emotion from listeners in their native Chicago. People confided as much to their mentor/father Joe. That’s why when the singing Hutchinson sisters needed a new name for the group, they called themselves The Emotions. Forty-five years ago, their “Best Of My …
Did Gilbert O’Sullivan Launch Disco Era?
by Kevin Burton There have been many theories to explain the rise and fall of disco music. Here’s a new one for its rise: Disco music exploded in the mid-70s as a direct result of “Alone Again Naturally” by Irish singer-songwriter Gilbert O’Sullivan. OK, so I can’t prove I’m right, but you …
The Bell Tolls For Olivia And For Me
by Kevin Burton There is a picture of Olivia Newton-John that haunts me. The picture is of her at the end of “Grease,” her character Sandy riding in the car with Danny, John Travolta’s character. She turns around and waves at the camera as they ride off into the high school and movie …
Drift Away: The Healing Power Of Music
by Kevin Burton Let me be clear: the beat, the rock and roll beat, does not free one’s soul. But in the secular sense it sure frees something. And that’s the heart of the great 1973 song “Drift Away.” Lawrence Darrow Brown was born in Simonton, Texas on this day in 1940. …
Mining For Radio Gold In Canada
by Kevin Burton The things we don’t say, can’t say, the things we won’t see and refuse to feel, these are the ghosts that inhabit a great 1971 song. I speak of “If You Could Read My Mind” by Gordon Lightfoot. The orchestration is good but it never gets in the way of …
Songs And Seasons In The Canadian Sun
by Kevin Burton Friday was Canada Day, which got me thinking about my favorite songs by Canadian musicians. The discussion started Saturday on Page 7 (“A Salute To Canada’s Greatest Hits,” July 2.) I have learned a few things just looking into it. For instance, Rush, a group I never listened to …
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