1978
THE LAST GREAT YEAR OF ROCK
SO THIS IS CALLED 1978 THE LAST GREAT YEAR OF ROCK, SURE THERE WERE A COUPLE OF MORE GREAT YEARS 1980,1982,1984, COME TO MIND. BUT 1978 WAS A TURNING POINT IN MANY WAYS EVEN IF WE DID NOT KNOW IT AT THE TIME.
1978 SAW 100 MILLION SINGLES SOLD IN THE UK , AND MARKS THE HIGH WATER POINT OF THE SINGLE. SURE SINGLES WERE GOING TO SELL IN LARGE AMOUNTS FOR A FEW MORE YEARS. CLEVER MARKETING WOULD SEE TO THAT WITH SEVERAL VERSIONS OF THE SAME SINGLE COMING OUT HELPING IT UP THE CHART AS WE WOULD SEE IN 1984 WITH FRANKIE GOES TO HOLLYWOOD. BUT ALSO CD WAS JUST AROUND THE CORNER AND COME THE END OF THE 1980S RECORD COMPANYS WERE DOING EVERYTHING THEY COULD TO SAY VINYL WAS DEAD, EVEN PRESSING SINGLES ON LOW QUALITY VINYL TO MAKE A POINT CD WAS KING. THEN BY THE 1990S THE SINGLE WAS GONE.
BUT NOT ONLY THAT THE WORLD WAS CHANGING. 1978 IS KIND OF LIKE THE CHANGING OF THE GUARD. THIRTY THREE YEARS AFTER THE END OF WORLD WAR TWO, IN ENGLAND WE WERE IN THE LAST YEAR OF A LABOUR GOVERNMENT, BY MAY OF 1979 WE WOULD HAVE A CONSERVATIVE GOVERNMENT IN POWER FOR THE NEXT EIGHTEEN YEARS. OLD INDUSTRIES OLD ATTITUDES WERE ALL ABOUT TO CHANGE, WITH THIS CAME CHANGES TO OUR WHOLE WAY OF LIFE, SO 1978 IS THE LAST YEAR OF THE OLD AND THINGS WOULD NEVER BE THE SAME AGAIN. THE SHAR OF IRAN, IDI AMIN, POL POT ALL LOSING POWER BY 1979, THREE POPES AND SPACE INVADERS. IN THE CASE OF THE SHAR OF IRAN THE START OF A CONFLICT WHICH STILL RAGES TO THIS DAY. ALSO WITH THE RISE OF POLITICAL CORRECTNESS FROM THIS TIME ON IT WOULD BECOME HARDER FOR BANDS TO SHOCK AND BE EXCITING IF THEY WANTED TO SELL RECORDS, THERE WAS STILL TIME BUT THIS IS WHERE IT STARTED. TO THE POINT NOW WHERE THROWING A TV OUT YOUR HOTEL MIGHT JUST MEAN THE END OF YOUR CAREER.
SO LETS TAKE A LOOK AT THIS WEEK CHART. FOR THE THIRD WEEK IN A ROW WE HAVE A NEW NUMBER ONE WITH ABBA MOVING UP TO NUMBER ONE WITH TAKE A CHANCE ON ME. BROTHERHOOD OF MAN AND SCOTT FITZGERALD AND YVONNE KEELY ARE TWO AND THREE.
DARTS AND ROD STEWART ARE BOTH NEW TO THE TOP FIVE THIS WEEK WITH COME BACK MY LOVE AND I WAS ONLY JOKING/HOT LEGS. UP FIVE TO NUMBER SIX IS ROSE ROYCE AND WISHING ON A STAR, DOWN TO SEVEN IS ALTHEA AND DONNA AND UPTOWN TOP RANKING, WHILE GOING UP EIGHT PLACE THE ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA AND MR BLUE SKY.
SWEET MAKE THE TOP TEN FOR THE LAST TIME WITH LOVE IS LIKE OXYGEN, AND AT TEN BACCARA AND SORRY IM A LADY.
YELLOW DOG CLIMB TEN PLACES TO SIXTEEN WITH JUST ONE MORE NIGHT, AND HERES THE POINT WHERE 1978 KICKS OF AND THE BEE GEES RULE, AT EIGHTEEN UP THIRTEEN PLACES WITH STAYIN ALIVE THE BEE GEES. WHILE AT TWENTY ANOTHER GIBB BROTHER SONG EMOTIONS GOES UP THIRTEEN AS WELL FOR SAMANTHA SANG.
FREE ARE A NEW ENTRY AT TWENTY FIVE WITH THE FREE EP, AND AT TWENTY SEVEN KATE BUSH MAKES THE TOP FORTY FOR THE FIRST TIME WITH WUTHERING HEIGHTS.
THE TOM ROBINSON BAND ARE NEW AT THIRTY WITH THE RISING FREE EP , A FOUR TRACK EP ALL RECORDED LIVE AT THE END OF 1977, AND CONTAINING DONT TAKE NO FOR AN ANSWER AND GLAD TO BE GAY IT THE SOUND OF A BAND ON TOP FORM AND IT WAS THEY WOULD NEVER HAVE ANOTHER TOP TWENTY HIT.
ERUPTION TAKE THE ANN PEEBLES I CANT STAND THE RAIN TURN IT INTO DISCO AND HAVE A NEW ENTRY AT THIRTY ONE WITH PRECIOUS WILSON ON VOCALS.
AND THAT ABOUT IT FOR THIS WEEK EARTH WIND AND FIRE, THE JACKSONS, AND CARPENTERS ALL HAVE NEW ENTRYS WITH ONLY EARTH WIND AND FIRE FANTASY BECOMING A BIG HIT SINGLE.
WORDS BY PETER STOCK HAMMERSMITH78MUSICPROMOTIONS COPY RIGHT 2018
