The wild party of late ’60s music officially ended this year. Pop music returned to its perennial emphasis on romantic love, with the huge chart success of Roberta Flack’s languorous “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face.” The exuberance of Don McClean’s mega-smash “American Pie” stemed from the freedom of late ’60s pop, but McClean sang mournfully of “the day the music died.” Proving that music was moving away from a larger awareness, Rat Pack alumni Sammy Davis, Jr. scored a big hit with the hyper-bubbly “Candy Man.”
100. Pop That Thang, Isley Bros.
99. Good Foot, Pt. 1, James Brown
98. Roundabout, Yes
97. I’d Like To Teach The World To Sing, Hillside Singers
96. Speak To The Sky, Rick Springfield
95. Baby Let Me Take You (In My Arms), Detroit Emeralds
94. Freddie’s Dead, Curtis Mayfield
93. I’d Like To Teach The World To Sing, New Seekers
92. Doctor My Eyes, Jackson Browne
91. Walking In The Rain With The One I Love, Love Unlimited
90. Troglodyte, Jimmy Castor Bunch
89. Motorcycle Mama, Sailcat
88. I Saw The Light, Todd Rundgren
87. Sealed With A Kiss, Bobby Vinton
86. Taxi, Harry Chapin
86. Taxi, Harry Chapin
84. Power Of Love, Joe Simon
83. Vincent / Castles In The Air, Don Mclean
82. The Witch Queen Of New Orleans, Leon Redbone
81. Day By Day, Godspell
80. Family Affair, Sly & The Family Stone
79. Use Me, Bill Withers
78. Drowning In The Sea Of Love, Joe Simon
77. Saturday In The Park, Chicago
76. School’s Out, Alice Cooper