Seven days in July, 1974

For a short spell in 1974 there was no country singer better than Bobby Bare. His quirky hit "Marie Laveau'' made it to the pinnacle that summer for one blessed week.

A week earlier Anne Murray's "He Thinks I Still Care'' had been No. 1 on the Billboard country chart. And week later Bare's reign was ended by Donna Fargo's "You Can't Be a Beacon (If You're Light Don't Shine)''.

But for seven fabulous days Bobby Bare was king of country. You would have thought that might have happened with "Detroit City'' or "Five Hundred Miles Away From Home'', two memorable songs from early in his career. But you just never know. A guy charts nearly 60 songs in his career and scores his only No. 1 with a tune about a voodoo witch.

"Marie Laveau'' came off "Lullabys, Legends and Lies'', an album of mostly oddball tunes penned by Shel Silverstein. Here's a 1980 clip of Bare performing "Marie Laveau'' in Rotterdam, complete with Dutch subtitles. Daar gaan we dan!

We gave a birthday toast to Bare on his 74th back in April, mentioning at the time how much we enjoy his 2005 Dualtone release "The Moon Was Blue.'' It's nice to know the ol' coot still gets off his fishing boat occasionally to visit the recording studio.