American Top 40 - Fourth of July 1979 Special: "The Top 40 Hits of the Disco Era, 1974-1979"

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For the American Top 40 episode of July 7, 1979, Casey counted down "The Top 40 Hits of the Disco Era, 1974-1979." Methodology for determining chart placement is never discussed in the episode, but Casey states that "The Disco Era" started on July 4, 1974 when "Rock the Boat" hit #1 on the pop chart. In his words, it was the first song to hit #1 that had that "disco sound and disco feel." For comparison, I'll note here that Billboard magazine published its first disco chart on October 26, 1974, titled "Disco Action." Also, I share the opinion of many who believe the first disco song was "Soul Makossa" by Cameroonian saxophonist Manu Dibango, which peaked at #35 in 1973. But here's how the countdown is described in a June 30, 1979 memo to AT40 subscribing stations:

Rather vague, no? But here's what they came up with:

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AT40 Extra #1: "Rock the Boat" by The Hues Corporation for reasons mentioned above.

Rank	Song	Artist	Top 40 Debut	Top 40 Peak	Disco Chart Peak	R&B Chart Peak
40	"Love To Love You Baby"	Donna Summer	12/20/75	2	1	3
39	"Shake Your Groove Thing"	Peaches & Herb	1/27/79	5	2	4
38	"(Every Time I Turn Around) Back in Love Again"	L.T.D.	11/12/77	4	19	1
37	"Last Dance"	Donna Summer	6/3/78	3	1	5
36	"Turn the Beat Around"	Vicki Sue Robinson	6/19/76	10	1
35	"Keep It Comin' Love"	K.C. & The Sunshine Band	8/13/77	2	9	3
34	"Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)"	The Jacksons	3/31/79	7	20	3
33	"Dance With Me"	Peter Brown	5/6/78	8	4	5

AT40 Extra #2: "How Deep Is Your Love" by The Bee Gees. The AT40 staff interviewed "dozens of disco DJs all around the country" and asked them which song they used to "cool things off a bit." This song was the third most mentioned.

Rank	Song	Artist	Debut	Top 40	Disco	R&B
32	"That's the Way (I Like It)"	K.C. & The Sunshine Band	11/1/75	1	18	1
31	"I Feel Love"	Donna Summer	9/3/77	6	3	9
30	"Dazz"	Brick	11/20/76	3	7	1
29	"Disco Inferno"	The Trammps	3/25/78	11	1	9
28	"Knock On Wood"	Amii Stewart	2/24/79	1	5	6

AT40 Extra #3: "The Twist" by Chubby Checker. Included as "the biggest dance hit of all time."

Rank	Song	Artist	Debut	Top 40	Disco	R&B
27	"You Should Be Dancing"	The Bee Gees	7/17/76	1	1	4
26	"Get Up and Boogie (That's Right)"	Silver Convention	4/17/76	2	5	5
25	"In the Navy"	Village People	3/31/79	3	14	30
24	"You Sexy Thing"	Hot Chocolate	12/6/75	3		6
23	"Got to Give It Up"	Marvin Gaye	4/23/77	1	1	1

AT40 Extra #4: "Three Times a Lady" by Commodores. Second-most popular slow song as voted by Disco DJs.

Rank	Song	Artist	Debut	Top 40	Disco	R&B
22	"Fly, Robin, Fly"	Silver Convention	10/25/75	1	1	1
21	"Hot Stuff"	Donna Summer	4/28/79	1	1	3
20	"Star Wars Theme/Cantina Band"	Meco	8/27/77	1	6	8
19	"More, More, More"	Andrea True Connection	4/24/76	4	2	23
18	"Miss You"	The Rolling Stones	6/10/78	1	6	33

AT40 Extra #5: "Disco Duck" by Rick Dees & His Cast of Idiots. Included because it was a #1 tune that wasn't played in discos and, instead, mocked disco music. Casey claims that the popularity of this novelty song was "a declaration that disco had arrived. If disco could be taken seriously enough to poke fun at it, then it wasn't just a passing fad, it had become a legitimate part of our pop culture."

Rank	Song	Artist	Debut	Top 40	Disco	R&B
17	"Car Wash"	Rose Royce	12/11/76	1	3	1
16	"If I Can't Have You"	Yvonne Elliman	2/25/78	1
15	"(Shake, Shake, Shake) Shake Your Booty"	K.C. & The Sunshine Band	7/31/76	1	9	1

AT40 Extra #6: "Reunited" by Peaches & Herb. The top slow song as voted by Disco DJs.

Rank	Song	Artist	Debut	Top 40	Disco	R&B
14	"I'm Your Boogie Man"	K.C. & The Sunshine Band	4/27/77	1	9	3
13	"Dance, Dance, Dance (Yowsah, Yowsah, Yowsah)"	Chic	12/10/77	6	1	6
12	"MacArthur Park"	Donna Summer	9/30/78	1	1	8
11	"Don't Leave Me This Way"	Thelma Houston	1/29/77	1	1	1
10	"Y.M.C.A."	Village People	11/11/78	2	2	32
9	"Boogie Oogie Oogie"	A Taste of Honey	7/22/78	1	1	1
8	"I Love the Nightlife (Disco Round)"	Alicia Bridges	9/9/78	5	2	31

AT40 Extra #7: "The Hustle" by Van McCoy & Soul City Orchestra. Included as it "introduced the most popular dance step in American discos," according to Casey.

Rank	Song	Artist	Debut	Top 40	Disco	R&B
7	"Do Ya Think I'm Sexy"	Rod Stewart	12/23/78	1	1	5
6	"I Will Survive"	Gloria Gaynor	1/20/79	1	1	4
5	"A Fifth of Beethoven"	Walter Murphy & The Big Apple Band	7/4/76	1		10

AT40 Extra #8: "San Francisco (You've Got Me)" by Village People. Included as the song that "did the best on the disco chart without making the pop chart." Not to be pedantic, but the song topped the chart as an album cut alongside the other three tracks on the album. Casey mistakenly claims the song wasn't released as a single. It was actually the very first single released by the group and would peak on the Bubbling Under chart at #102 in January 1978.

Rank	Song	Artist	Debut	Top 40	Disco	R&B
4	"Best of My Love"	The Emotions	7/2/77	1	11	1
3	"Stayin' Alive"	The Bee Gees	12/24/77	1	3	4
2	"Night Fever"	The Bee Gees	2/11/78	1	3	8
1	"Le Freak"	Chic	11/18/78	1	1	1

Would make a helluva playlist. Artists appearing more than once in the countdown: Chic (2), The Bee Gees (2), The Village People (2), K.C. & The Sunshine Band (4), and Donna Summer (5). These 5 acts are responsible for 37.5% of the 40 tunes. The soundtrack for Saturday Night Fever fares quite well, too.

I could complain about the inclusion of the Rolling Stones or the low ranking of my all-time favorite disco tune, If I Can't Have You, but I won't because I'm happy to see Chic in the #1 spot. Plus, there were some great Nile Rodgers & Bernard Edwards disco tunes still to come with the likes of Sister Sledge and Diana Ross.

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Previously, I've looked at these AT40 episodes:

May 26, 1984

July 2, 1983 - "The Forty Top Acts of the Eighties - So Far"
November 6, 1982
September 18, 1982
October 24, 1981
July 19, 1980
July 5, 1980 - "The Book of Records"
February 16, 1980
August 4, 1979
June 9, 1979 - Guest host: Bruce Philip Miller
September 16, 1978

July 1, 1978 - "The 40 Biggest Acts of the 70's"
April 1, 1978 - "AT40 Goes to the Movies"
April 23, 1977
July 4, 1976 - "4th of July's Greatest Hits"

Rock Short Takes, March 1984

Click on the image below to open a pdf file of the "Rock Short Takes" album reviews from Musician magazine's March, 1984 issue. Artists include David Bowie, Chic, and The Minutemen.

Counting down my Top 79 of '79: Singles #10 - 1

A breakdown of my top singles from 1979

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Minute by Minute

The Doobie Brothers

Weeks in Hot 100: 14

Peaked: June 23

Album: Minute by Minute (Warner Bros.)

U.S. Billboard charts:
Hot 100	14
Adult Contemporary	13

Heck, this thing might have cracked the top ten even if the entire single was only the electric piano intro on repeat for three minutes, but then the smooth groove hits and Michael McDonald's vocals and man-oh-man, I just can't help but sing along. It's the title track to a great album, but it's not even the best cut on the album (see below).

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Good Times

Chic

Weeks in Hot 100: 19

Peaked: August 18

Album: Risqué (Atlantic)

U.S. charts:
Hot 100	1
Adult Contemporary	28
R&B	1
Disco	3

And there it is. That bass line. One of the most important, most sampled, most imitated bass lines of all time (see Bowie's "Let's Dance," Queen's "Another One Bites The Dust,' and, of course, "Rapper's Delight"). But then add Nile Rodgers' guitar scratching, soaring strings, and precise vocals and, baby, you got a stew goin'. Ranked #229 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

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My Sharona

The Knack
Weeks in Hot 100: 22

Peaked: August 25

Album: Get the Knack (Capitol)

U.S. charts:
Hot 100	1

According to Billboard, this was the #1 song of 1979, but #8 was the best I could do for it. New wave power pop like nothing I'd ever heard before. The Knack got more out of a one note bass line than any other.  The first New Wave #1? Could be. I like to tell people that my wife's nickname is Sharona and that the song was written about her. Apparently, the real Sharona is a real estate agent in L.A.

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Got to be Real

Cheryl Lynn

Weeks in Hot 100: 18

Peaked: February 17

Album: Cheryl Lynn (Columbia)

U.S. charts:
Hot 100	12
R&B	1
Disco	11

There's absolutely nothing in this song that doesn't work: the bass and horns intro to the funky groove to the countermelody to the key change to the backing vocals, more horns, great vocals, and did I mention that groove. Never fails to get me moving. Written by Lynn, David Foster, and Toto keyboardist David Paich.

During the 1997-98 school year, I taught 8th grade English (holycowwasthatreally21yearsago?? Those kids are now in their mid 30s. Sheesh.). Not being much for classroom management, my classes were always a little loose (but test scores were fantastic - my administrators never could quite wrap their head around the dichotomy of noisy learning). One day, out of the blue, a student named Nick sang the intro to this song and, within seconds, the whole class joined in the singing, including myself. (It was probably just a few students and myself, but "whole class" makes for a better story.) That scene in room 104 always comes to mind when I hear this song now. (End of parentheticals).

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Rise

Herb Alpert

Weeks in Hot 100: 25

Peaked: October 20

Album: Rise (A&M)

U.S. charts:
Hot 100	1
Adult Contemporary	1
R&B	4
Disco	17

If there's such a thing as a laid back disco tune, this is it.  This song became popular as I was learning to play trumpet and I was hooked immediately. I even bought the sheet music so I could play along with Herb.  It came with the lyrics which I've never heard sung other than by myself:

Of all the songs here in the top ten, this record was the first I purchased. Heck, I had lawn mowing earnings burning a hole in my pocket, so why not?

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I Want You to Want Me

Cheap Trick

Weeks in Hot 100: 19

Peaked: July 21

Album: Cheap Trick at Budokan (Epic)

U.S. charts:
Hot 100	7

One of the great live singles and great love song to boot. A power pop song that rocks so hard that it needs two guitar solos, a drum break, and a live version that is miles ahead of the studio version.  This song reminds me of my childhood friend Robert - we rode our bikes and threw the Frisbee a lot in the summer of '79.

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Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough

Michael Jackson

Weeks in Hot 100: 21

Peaked: October 13

Album: Off the Wall (Epic)

U.S. charts:
Hot 100	1
R&B	1
Disco	2

One of the great album openers. Check your pulse if you can sit still during this one because the force got a lot of power. Just when you think it can't get any better, an instrumental bridge kicks in at 2:40  with a guitar solo over horns and there's so much going on I don't know what to listen to and it doesn't really matter. Just listening to the syncopated cowbell part gets me going.

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What a Fool Believes

The Doobie Brothers

Weeks in Hot 100: 20

Peaked: April 14

Album: Minute by Minute (Warner Bros.)

U.S. charts:
Hot 100	1
Adult Contemporary	22
Disco	40

According to the creators of the term "yacht rock," this is the ultimate yacht rock song, scoring a perfect 100 on their Yachtski Scale. All that is well and good, but this had quite the pedigree before that. In addition to topping the charts, it won three Grammy awards, including two top awards at the end of the broadcast:

1. Record of the Year 
2. Song of the Year
3. Best Arrangement Accompanying Vocals 

Never heard the Jim Burgess 12" disco remix? Treat yo self:

I have tickets to see Michael McDonald in July and if he doesn't play both this song and "Minute by Minute" I can't be held responsible for my actions.

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We are Family

Sister Sledge

Weeks in Hot 100: 19

Peaked: June 16

Album: We are Family (Cotillion)

U.S. charts:
Hot 100	2
Adult Contemporary	30
R&B	1
Disco	1

I always call this song "the best Chic single of all-time" and that's tongue-in-cheek but it's really not, is it? The single version gets me dancing every time, but the 8:20 full version is spectacular because Bernard Edwards lays down a great bass solo. How could bass playing be both understated and funky at the same time?  Check out his work at the break about 3:55 into the title track. It's one of the few overplayed '70s tunes that could be played every hour and it probably wouldn't bother me. To that short list, please add...

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September

Earth, Wind & Fire

Weeks in Hot 100: 17

Peaked: February 10

Album: The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1 (Columbia)

U.S. charts:
Hot 100	8
Adult Contemporary	41
R&B	1

Not only the best song of 1979, this is one of the all-time greats. I gave it a grade of A+ a few years back and that seems low.

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All chart positions are peak positions from Billboard charts. These are my personal top 79 singles of those that peaked on the Billboard charts in 1979. The list is solely my opinion. Using Joel Whitburn's book, Pop Annual 1955-1999, I started with the 475 singles that peaked on Billboard Magazine's Hot 100 chart in 1979. An initial pass through that list narrowed it down to 105 tunes, then listening, ranking, and editing began. The top 79 are presented here, in order.

Counting down my Top 79 of '79: Singles #61 - 44

A breakdown of my top singles from 1979

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	Title	Artist	Pop	AC	R&B	Disco
61	"The Devil Went Down to Georgia"	Charlie Daniels Band	3	30
60	"I Want Your Love"	Chic	7	9	5	1
59	"Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now"	McFadden & Whitehead	13		1	10
58	"Pop Muzik"	M	1			4
57	"Somewhere in the Night"	Barry Manilow	9	4
56	"Don't Bring Me Down"	Electric Light Orchestra	4
55	"Bad Girls"	Donna Summer	1		1	1
54	"Every Time I Think of You"	The Babys	13	36
53	"Spooky"	Atlanta Rhythm Section	17	23

	Title	Artist	Pop	AC	R&B	Disco
52	"Reunited"	Peaches & Herb	1	4	1
51	"Take the Long Way Home"	Supertramp	10	28
50	"Lead Me On"	Maxine Nightingale	5	1	37
49	"Roxanne"	The Police	32
48	"Chase"	Giorgio Moroder	33	42		31
47	"He's the Greatest Dancer"	Sister Sledge	9		1	1
46	"Children of the Sun"	Billy Thorpe	41
45	"Shattered"	The Rolling Stones	31
44	"Up on the Roof"	James Taylor	28	7

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All chart positions are peak positions from Billboard charts. These are my personal top 79 singles of those that peaked on the Billboard charts in 1979. The list is solely my opinion. Using Joel Whitburn's book, Pop Annual 1955-1999, I started with the 475 singles that peaked on Billboard Magazine's Hot 100 chart in 1979. An initial pass through that list narrowed it down to 105 tunes, then listening, ranking, and editing began. The top 79 are presented here, in order.

MFD Random Five #40

In which I click the shuffle icon on the iTunes app and listen to the first five songs that pop up from the year 1979.

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1. "Dim All the Lights" by Donna Summer (1979, Casablanca)
   A familiar trope from Donna: start half time then get up to disco speed about 45-60 seconds in. But it don't bother me a bit. In fact, this was written by Donna herself, so you can't blame her for basing her form on previous hits. If it ain't broke and whatnot. Love the descending bass line in the B section. A #2 pop hit in November '79.


2. "Boogie Wonderland" by Earth, Wind & Fire with The Emotions (1979, ARC/Columbia)
   OOOOOH, YEAH! making me feel so good this morning. I just checked my list of top 5 EWF songs and somehow this didn't make the cut. That seems unreal as I listen now, but they produced that much good music.
   
   
   
   Ask yourself: "Should I listen to more Earth, Wind & Fire?"  Inevitably, the answer is yes.


3. "Too Much Too Young" by The Specials (1979, 2Tone)
   One of the stand-out tracks from a fantastic debut album. I like ska in small doses so when a great track such as this shuffles around, it's perfect. Was I listening to this in '79? Nope, but I caught up a few years later.
   


4. "Cars" by Gary Numan (1979, Beggars Banquet)
   A groundbreaking classic - when this hit the radio, it was like nothing I'd heard before. Does it sound dated?  Absolutely.  Does it matter?  Not in the least. I've read that Numan himself isn't overly fond of the tune, but I would imagine he's become fond of the royalties.


5. "A Warm Summer Night" by Chic  (1979, Atlantic)
   Not quite a slow jam, this laid-back, soothing, sexy tune provides a brief reprise between disco classics "Good Times" and "My Feet Keep Dancing" on side one of the Risqué album, exhibit A in the case against those who suggest that there was little substance to disco music (according to the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, p. 434)

MFD Random Five #38

In which I click the shuffle icon on the iTunes app and listen to the first five songs that pop up from the years 1976-85.

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1. "High Society" by Norma Jean (1980, Bearsville)
   A Chic recording in all but name and, as such, is deserving of our respect.


2. "Too Hot to Handle" by Heatwave (1977, Epic)
   The Too Hot to Handle album was featured on this blog a few years back. Here's what I wrote about it then: "A great opening track that gets me dancin'.  Sounds like a Michael Jackson or Brothers Johnson tune from around that time, complete with Earth Wind & Fire type horn licks." My opinion hasn't changed.


3. "Disco Nights (Rock Freak)" by GQ (1979, Arista)
   With its synth-funk groove, this tune sounds more like early '80s R&B than disco.  I like it okay, but it pales in comparison to the follow-up, the wonderful slow jam "I Do Love You."


4. "Be Ever Wonderful" by Earth, Wind & Fire (1977, Columbia)
   One of EWF's best-ever ballads, this is the perfect album closer for All 'N All which I'll now pull off the shelves and listen to in its entirety. Should I listen to Earth, Wind & Fire more often? Yes. Yes, I should.


5. "Call Me" by Blondie  (1980, Chrysalis)
   A huge hit for the group. Rumor has it that writer Giorgio Moroder originally offered this to Stevie Nicks which woulda been a completely different tune. Although it was #1 for 6 straight weeks, I never hear it much anymore; radio stations usually opt for "Heart of Glass" instead. Shame. I never bought this single, but I bought another single from the American Gigolo soundtrack and it had an instrumental version of this tune on the b-side:
   
   

MFD Random Five #34

In which I click the shuffle icon on the iTunes app and listen to the first five songs that pop up from the years 1976-85.

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1. "I Want Your Love" by Chic (1979, Atlantic)
   As longtime blog readers know, Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards hold lofty, elevated status around this house. If they made bobbleheads of those two, I'd own 'em and buy extras to give as gifts. My only complaint with this simmering, building disco tune is that I shuffled into the shorter three and a half minute single edit instead of the full seven minute version.


2. "Don't Tell Me No" by The Cars (1980, Elektra)
   The Cars could write some catchy hooks, unfortunately, they didn't include any in this single from the very mediocre Panorama album. And the lyrics:

   It's my transition, it's my play
   It's my phone call to beta ray
   It's my hopscotch, light the torch
   It's my downtime, feel the scorch, well

   Saywhatnow? I don't think I'm alone in my opinion: this song was released as a single but failed to chart.


3. "Loud Music in Cars" by Billy Bremner (1981, Stiff)
   Guitarist for Rockpile cuts a solo single and guess what? It sounds like Rockpile/Nick Lowe/Dave Edmunds stuff. And that's okay with this guy. This thing shuffles along with a decent verse but the George Harrison-esque chorus comes along and I'm hooked.


4. "A Rock 'n' Roll Fantasy" by The Kinks (1978, Arista)
   I feel bad about not liking any Kinks record, but with a title like that, I expect a rocker, not maudlin navel-gazing.


5. "For Your Eyes Only" by Sheena Easton (1981, Warner Bros.)
   James Bond theme music written by Bill "Gonna Fly Now" Conti. And I gotta confess - I like the thing. The atmospheric production, Easton's vocals, all of it. I didn't tolerate many ballads in '81 as a transitioned to a New Waver wannabe, but I more than tolerated this tune. I'm also reminded of an ill-advised Maynard Ferguson cover (click at your own risk). According to the Wiki, "Easton is the only artist (to date) to be seen singing the theme song to a Bond movie during its opening titles."
   
   

AT40, August 4, 1979 [Part 4 of 4]

I'm breaking down the AT40 show of August 4, 1979 track by track. 

So what was I doing around the time of this AT40 episode's broadcast?  Not much beyond looking forward to 8th grade (top dog at the middle school!). I don't remember much about the summer of '79; I rode my Sears 10-speed bike around town a lot, I guess. If we went on a family vacation that summer, I couldn't find any photographic evidence of it around here. In the words of Peter Gibbons, "I did absolutely nothing, and it was everything I thought it could be."  Man-oh-man what I wouldn't give for a carefree three months like that again.

Your humble blogger's 7th grade yearbook photo

Now, on with the countdown:

#10: "I Want You to Want Me" by Cheap Trick. This was recently featured in a "Not-So-Random Five" post. One of the great live singles and great love song to boot. This was the first of 8 Top 40 singles for the band; it had peaked at # 7 a few weeks earlier.

Like he did in the first hour, Casey gives the address so listeners could receive a free copy of the AT40 Worldwide Listening Directory, a listing of stations that carry AT40..

#9:  "Hot Stuff" by Donna Summer. This song was #1 back in June and was falling down the chart only because her follow-up single was in the middle of a five week run at #1. I prefer this tune to "Bad Girls" simply because of the guitar, but really Donna could do no wrong in my book.

#8:  "When You're in Love with a Beautiful Woman" by Dr. Hook. Now here's some soft rock goodness with just a slight touch of disco.  Right up my alley as 13 year old and I still like it today. This song would spend 16 weeks in the Top 40, peaking at #6 in August.

#7:  "Makin' It" by David Naughton. A TV show theme, sung by the show's lead.  I've always liked this song with its positive attitude over a disco beat.   And, yes, I remember watching a few (if not all) episodes of the TV show.  The theme song entered the Top 40 on May 12, nearly two months after the show had been canceled.  Naughton's only song to reach the Top 40, it peaked at #5 in 16 weeks on the chart.  The TV series, on the other hand, only lasted 9 weeks. Below is an episode. If you can make it through all 24 minutes, you made it twice as far as I just did.

"There's a man in the countdown who used to be a member of a famous trio who once had all their cash stolen by a real kangaroo dressed in a sports coat. And they have photographs to prove it. That story is coming up."

#6:  "My Sharona" by The Knack. A great song from a great album. The first New Wave #1? I like to tell people that my wife's nickname is Sharona and that the song was written about her. Apparently, the real Sharona is a real estate agent in L.A. This would sit atop the Hot 100 for 6 consecutive weeks starting August 25.

Casey tells the story of the Kingston Trio touring in Australia, running over a kangaroo, dressing it in their clothes, and photographed themselves. The kangaroo was only stunned, revived, and took off still wearing their clothes (with the group's cash in the sports coat's pocket). Note - this probably isn't true, it's a urban legend-type story called "The Kangaroo Thief" that dates back to the early 1900's. But it's still a good story, Casey. Anyway, John Stewart was a member of the Kingston Trio from 1961-67, so this tall tale leads into...

#5:  "Gold" by John Stewart. Stewart was more known for his songwriting than his singing. With production by Lindsey Buckingham and background vocals by Stevie Nicks, this sounds like a mid-'70s Fleetwood Mac hit, which is probably what they were after. It peaked here at #5 in 13 weeks in the Top 40.

#4:  "The Main Event/Fight" by Barbra Streisand. This song was featured in its own post back in 2014. (Spoiler alert: I gave it a grade of 'B'). It would move up to #3 the next week, peaking there.

#3:  "Ring My Bell" by Anita Ward. I loves me some disco, but I just don't care for this one.  Something about the chorus grates on me.  Nonetheless, it topped the Top 40 charts for 2 weeks, the R&B charts for 5 weeks, and the disco chart for a week.  It was Ward's only Top 40 hit.

#2:  "Good Times" by Chic.  This song contains the most important, most sampled, most imitated bass lines of all time (see Bowie's Let's Dance, Queen's Another One Bites The Dust, and, of course, Rapper's Delight). Nile Rodgers is a musical genius and hella guitar player. The last of Chic's 5 Top 40 tunes, this one was huge: #1 pop, #1 R&B, #28 AC, #3 Disco. What kept it from earning its rightful #1 spot on the disco chart? According to my crack staff, it was The Boss (all cuts) by Diana Ross and "This Time Baby" by Jackie Moore.

Before we continue, Casey tells us what's atop the other charts:

• Country: "You're the Only One" by Dolly Parton
• Disco: "I've Got the Next Dance" by Deniece Williams
• R&B: "Good Times" by Chic
• Album: Bad Girls by Donna Summer

#1:  "Bad Girls" by Donna Summer. Summer and Moroder and the peak of their disco powers.  A huge hit, this would spend a total of 15 weeks in the Top 40, five of those weeks in the #1 spot. This is the fourth of those five. It also hit #1 on the R&B chart and, of course, #1 on the disco chart.

Billboard, August 4, 1979, p. 56

"Keep your feet on the ground and keep reaching for the stars."

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Previously, I've looked at these AT40 episodes track by track:
September 18, 1982
October 24, 1981
July 19, 1980
February 16, 1980
June 9, 1979
April 23, 1977

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Counting down my Top 78 of '78: Singles #10 - 1

A breakdown of my top singles from 1978

WARNING! The following post contains excessive amounts of hair.

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Peg

Steely Dan

Weeks in Hot 100: 19

Peaked: March 11

Album: Aja (ABC)

U.S. charts:
Hot 100	11
Adult Contemporary	30

The third Steely Dan tune on this list. I distinctly remember this tune blaring on the radio as the car I was riding in neared the intersection of Andrews Hwy and E 42nd St in Odessa. Probably KRIG 1410 AM but who knows. I had never heard anything like it before - and haven't since, though many have tried. So many of my favorite artists play on the track: Tom Scott, Bernard Purdie, Michael McDonald, and of course, Jay Graydon on the iconic guitar solo. I finally got a copy of the Aja album from Columbia House record "club" in 1982 and my eyes were fully opened.

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Stayin' Alive

Bee Gees

Weeks in Hot 100: 27

Peaked: February 4

Album: Saturday Night Fever (RSO)

U.S. charts:
Hot 100	1
Adult Contemporary	28
R&B	4
Disco	3

In seventh grade ('78-'79), I befriended two brothers that lived down the street: one my age, one a year older. Those boys introduced me to "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant," the FM Soundtrack, and the Saturday Night Fever Soundtrack. (I quickly picked up The Stranger and SNF Soundtrack, but for some unknown reason, didn't get FM until much later). In classic preteen style, the three of us also worked up a choreographed lipsync routine for this tune. However, it kind of all fell apart when we couldn't figure out what the lyrics were. (Thank goodness we didn't have video capabilities on our phones and social media back then so the only thing keeping that routine alive is our memories.) I didn't see the movie until the PG version was released in 1979, but then I was treated to this song's use in the film's memorable opening scene (yeah you've seen it before, but you're gonna click anyway):

Sadly, those two brothers moved to Corpus Christi in the summer of 1979. I visited them once, but those friendships are usually destined to fade away after awhile.

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Le Freak

Chic
Weeks in Hot 100: 25

Peaked: December 9

Album: C'est Chic (Atlantic)

U.S. charts:
Hot 100	1
Adult Contemporary	48
R&B	1
Disco	1

Nothing much to report here other than to say this song makes me happy and makes me dance and who wouldn't want to hear a song like that? I'm usually up and dancing before the count off gets to "2." I sang the first two seconds of this song quite often in 7th grade, much to the chagrin of my teachers and a disgruntled student or two. I didn't know it at the time, but this song would make me a life-long fan of Nile Rodgers and his immediately identifiable guitar style. Chic, of course, would go on to be the backing band for numerous artists, including Diana Ross, Sister Sledge, Madonna, Bowie, etc.

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I Just Wanna Stop

Gino Vannelli

Weeks in Hot 100: 21

Peaked: December 9

Album: Brother to Brother (A&M)

U.S. charts:
Hot 100	4
Adult Contemporary	4

I have visceral reactions to every song in this top 7. Some punch me in the gut, some immediately relax every muscle in my body, some make me overly nostalgic, some all of the above, but they all have some inexplicable effect on me. I'm quickly relaxed with this sophisticated tune, right from the opening note through the Ernie Watts sax solo. And is that Jimmy Haslip of Yellowjackets on bass? Some might argue that "sophisticated soft rock" is an oxymoron, but they'd be wrong. To that argument, I present Exhibit A.

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Mr. Blue Sky

Electric Light Orchestra

Weeks in Hot 100: 12

Peaked: August 12

Album: Out of the Blue (Jet)

U.S. charts:
Hot 100	35

Easily my favorite ELO tune (and I loves me some ELO). A happy shuffle with lyrics to match. Seems to me this is where Jeff Lynne stopped trying to sound like The Beatles and started trying to sound like Jeff Lynne. Granted, that period didn't last long, but no matter - we're treated to this beautiful pop concoction full of strings, vocoder, tight background vocals, and hooks galore. Why this wasn't more popular in '78 is a mystery. Sure made a impression on recent movie soundtracks, though.

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With a Little Luck

Wings

Weeks in Hot 100: 18

Peaked: May 20

Album: London Town (Capitol)

U.S. charts:
Hot 100	1
Adult Contemporary	5

Described in the most basic of terms, Sir Paul's music has gotten me through life. I got it kind of backwards, though, as I first heard his solo & Wings stuff on the radio before delving into The Beatles stuff (the blue and red greatest hits albums sure made high school a lot easier, but that's a story for another time). London Town isn't the best Wings by a long shot, but this tune, with it's opening electric piano, positive lyrics, and easily singable melody, is easily the highlight of the album. There's also a lot of synth pads for 1978. It transports me back to '78, one time so suddenly I actually welled up for no immediately discernible reason. Music, right?

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Reminiscing

Little River Band

Weeks in Hot 100: 20

Peaked: October 28

Album: Sleeper Catcher (Harvest)

U.S. charts:
Hot 100	3
Adult Contemporary	10

Immediately relaxing. Reminds me of 7th grade. And that trumpet solo fits perfectly; can you imagine any other instrument getting a chance at that solo? As I wrote when I proclaimed this to be the best LRB single:

"Reminiscing" is not only my favorite Little River Band tune, it's one of the great soft-rock songs of the late '70s.  Apparently I'm in good company as John Lennon and Frank Sinatra are reported to have declared their love for it as well; the latter calling in "the best 1970's song in the world."  The laid back groove, the smooth just-off-the-beat vocals, the sublime electric piano, the references to Glenn Miller and Cole Porter, the string and background vocal arrangements, the Bob Venier trumpet solo - it all works for this soft rock kid."

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Whenever I Call You 'Friend'

Kenny Loggins

Weeks in Hot 100: 20

Peaked: October 28

Album: Nightwatch (Columbia)

U.S. charts:
Hot 100	5
Adult Contemporary	9

I moved from the desert of west Texas to the humidity of the gulf coast in August 1978. I quickly found a Top 40 radio station (KILT 610 AM) and listened to it almost constantly when I was home. This song reminds me that time - new school, new house, new church, new climate, integrated schools (you read that right, my previous school district still wasn't yet integrated in the 1970's), the search for new friends, etc. Love the writing, the harmonies, the arrangement. Fast forward a few years: I learned that the Nightwatch album was produced by Bob James and this song was co-written by Melissa Manchester. And it all made sense.

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Always and Forever

Heatwave

Weeks in Hot 100: 20

Peaked: April 8

Album: Too Hot to Handle (Epic)

U.S. charts:
Hot 100	18
Adult Contemporary	33
R&B	2

Simply put, this is THE BEST SLOW JAM OF ALL TIME. For further research, click here. Or here. Or here.

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If I Can't Have You

Yvonne Elliman

Weeks in Hot 100: 22

Peaked: May 13

Album: Saturday Night Fever (RSO)

U.S. charts:
Hot 100	1
Adult Contemporary	9
R&B	60

I wish I knew what it was about this song that appeals to me so dadgum much. As soon as hear the opening strings, I drop everything and simply listen (admittedly, that's a problem when I'm driving). Maybe it's because it's a disco tune that's driven by toms instead of hi-hat? The harmonies? The sweet french horn arrangements? All of the above and more. Elliman makes it sound so easy. The song reminds me of the summer of 1978, a carefree time between elementary school and junior high. In my highly selective memory, I spent everyday that summer at either the movies, the pool, or playing soccer (my dream at the time was to be a member of the US soccer team in the 1984 Olympics).

This is my all-time favorite disco record. Book it.

For the record (pun not intended), I've heard the Bee Gees version a few times and it does nothing for me but make me yearn for the Yvonne Elliman version.

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All chart positions are peak positions from Billboard charts. These are my personal top 78 singles of those that peaked on the Billboard charts in 1978. The list is solely my opinion. Using Joel Whitburn's book, Pop Annual 1955-1999, I started with the 451 singles that peaked on Billboard Magazine's Hot 100 chart in 1978. An initial pass through that list narrowed it down to 117 tunes, then listening, ranking, and editing began. The top 78 are presented here, in order.