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    • 70 Number One Hits of the 70s, Vols. 1-6

    01/01/1998

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    All Music Guide Review

    Sold as a package of six separate discs, each of which contain 11 or 12 tracks, this compilation actually does feature 70 recordings that were number one singles during the 1970s. The simple fact that it lives up to its title is more remarkable than you might think; there are albums out there with the phrase "number one hits" in their names that contain only a few actual chart-toppers. Justifying the title, though, is the best it does. Otherwise, it is a randomly sequenced collection of often stylistically disparate recordings, with no annotations. Typically for collections of this kind, there is a focus on minor artists and one-hit wonders, with most of the major names of the decade missing. Of the top 20 singles artists of the '70s (in the estimation of Billboard chart researcher Joel Whitburn), only four are included: Donna Summer, the Jackson 5, Tony Orlando and Dawn, and Three Dog Night. Similarly, of the top 20 hits of the decade, just four are here: "Le Freak," by Chic; "My Sharona," by the Knack; "Joy to the World," by Three Dog Night; and "Best of My Love," by the Emotions. But the set does provide a sense of the range of music that could top the charts in a notoriously fragmented decade, from the hard rock of "Frankenstein" and "American Woman" to gentle ballads like "If You Leave Me Now" and "Don't Give Up on Us," with a strong representation for disco in songs like "Rock the Boat" and "Hot Stuff." Those who grew up in the '70s, hearing these songs spilling from their AM radios in something like the arbitrary order they do here are liable to take this musical miscellany to their hearts, even if, in strictly musical terms, it must be considered an uneven jumble. ~ William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide

    Track Listing

  • Track#
  • Title
  • Artist
  • time
  • 1
  • Kiss You All Over
  • Exile [1]
  • 2
  • You're So Vain
  • Simon, Carly
  • 3
  • Then Came You
  • Spinners
  • 4
  • Welcome Back
  • Sebastian, John
  • 5
  • Horse With No Name
  • America [1]
  • 6
  • Make It With You
  • Bread [1]
  • 7
  • Pick Up the Pieces
  • Average White Band
  • 8
  • December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)
  • Four Seasons
  • 9
  • Le Freak
  • Chic
  • 10
  • Joy to the World
  • Three Dog Night
  • 11
  • (Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song
  • Thomas, B.J.
  • 12
  • Before the Next Teardrop Falls
  • Fender, Freddy
  • 13
  • Torn Between Two Lovers
  • McGregor, Mary
  • 14
  • The Escape (The Piña Colada Song)
  • Holmes, Rupert
  • 15
  • The Streak
  • Stevens, Ray [1]
  • 16
  • Fly, Robin, Fly
  • Silver Convention
  • 17
  • Billy, Don't Be a Hero
  • Donaldson, Bo & the Heywoods
  • 18
  • Car Wash
  • Rose Royce
  • 19
  • Bad, Bad Leroy Brown
  • Croce, Jim
  • 20
  • My Sharona
  • Knack [1]
  • 21
  • I Am Woman
  • Reddy, Helen
  • 22
  • Rhinestone Cowboy
  • Campbell, Glen [1]
  • 23
  • American Pie
  • McLean, Don
  • 24
  • Let's Stay Together
  • Green, Al
  • 25
  • (You're) Having My Baby
  • Anka, Paul
  • 26
  • Rock Me Gently
  • Kim, Andy
  • 27
  • Hot Child in the City
  • Gilder, Nick
  • 28
  • Sad Eyes
  • John, Robert
  • 29
  • Boogie Fever
  • Sylvers
  • 30
  • Boogie Oogie Oogie
  • Taste of Honey [1]
  • 31
  • Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)
  • Looking Glass
  • 32
  • I Can See Clearly Now
  • Nash, Johnny
  • 33
  • Shining Star
  • Earth, Wind & Fire
  • 34
  • Frankenstein
  • Winter, Edgar
  • 35
  • Best of My Love
  • Emotions [1]
  • 36
  • Play That Funky Music
  • Wild Cherry
  • 37
  • You Don't Have to Be a Star
  • 38
  • Family Affair
  • Sly & the Family Stone
  • 39
  • Baby Don't Get Hooked on Me
  • Davis, Mac
  • 40
  • Love Train
  • OJays
  • 41
  • The Most Beautiful Girl
  • Rich, Charlie
  • 42
  • Lady Marmalade
  • LaBelle
  • 43
  • Kiss and Say Goodbye
  • Manhattans
  • 44
  • Midnight Train to Georgia
  • Knight, Gladys
  • 45
  • Rock the Boat
  • Hues Corporation
  • 46
  • Knock Three Times
  • 47
  • Seasons in the Sun
  • Jacks, Terry
  • 48
  • Rich Girl
  • Hall & Oates
  • 49
  • If You Leave Me Now
  • Chicago
  • 50
  • Don't Give Up On Us
  • Soul, David
  • 51
  • Saturday Night
  • Bay City Rollers
  • 52
  • Afternoon Delight
  • Starland Vocal Band
  • 53
  • Brother Louie
  • Stories
  • 54
  • American Woman
  • Guess Who [1]
  • 55
  • Without You
  • Nilsson, Harry
  • 56
  • Will It Go Round in Circles
  • Preston, Billy
  • 57
  • The Love You Save
  • Jackson Five
  • 58
  • Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me)
  • Temptations
  • 59
  • Top of the World
  • Carpenters
  • 60
  • Three Times a Lady
  • Commodores

  • Credits



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