ROCK AND ROLL’S RUBY ANNIVERSARY - JANUARY 1968

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With Wedding Anniversaries, the 40^th year is known as the “Ruby Anniversary.” For our purposes, we’ll utilize the same signifier to celebrate popular music from forty years ago. Pop music from January 1968 significant for a number of reasons. Most historians refer to the great albums of this era, and while it is true that ‘album rock’ started to flourish in 1968, this perspective overlooks the great wealth of pop songs from artists who never developed an identity as album artists. The first part of today’s show focuses on songs that debuted on the pop charts in January 1968, while part two counts ‘up’ the top 10 for the week of January 13, 1968. You may notice that while a number of performers can legitimately claim status as album artists (The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, Aretha Franklin), the majority were almost exclusively singles artists. These songs represent the spirit of the times, and so we celebrate their ‘Ruby Anniversary” with today’s show.

1)    She’s a Rainbow – The Rolling Stones

2)    Itchycoo Park – The Small Faces

3)    Nobody but Me – The Human Beinz

4)    I Wish It Would Rain – The Temptations

5)    Spooky – The Classics IV

6)    Simon Says – 1910 Fruitgum Co. (as a ‘Great Miss’)

7)    Skinny Legs and All – Joe Tex

8)    Green Tambourine – The Lemon Pipers

9)    I Second That Emotion – Smokey Robinson & the Miracles

10)  Bend Me Shape Me – The American Breed

11)  Chain of Fools – Aretha Franklin

12)  I Heard It Through the Grapevine – Gladys Knight & the Pips

13)  Woman, Woman, - The Union Gap

14)  Daydream Believer – The Monkees

15)  Judy In Disguise – John Fred & his Playboy Band

16)  Hello Goodbye – The Beatles