Thursday, July 1, 2010

Wear a flower

The Summer of Love was coming into full swing at this time in 1967 as Scott McKenzie's "San Francisco" (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair)" made its way up the Billboard chart.

It coulda and we think maybe it shoulda made it all the way to No. 1, but this was as close as it got on July 1:

1. Windy, Association
2. Groovin', Young Rascals
3. Little Bit O' Soul, Music Explosion
4. San Francisco, Scott McKenzie
5. She'd Rather Be With Me, Turtles

Windy dominated radio airplay that month, remaining No. 1 until July 29 when the Doors took over with "Light My Fire" and the earth began to shake. Procul Harum had "A Whiter Shade of Pale" and the Beatles dialed in with "All You Need is Love" from Sgt. Pepper.  And in Studio C at Capitol Records in Hollywood Bobbie Gentry recorded the song whose lyrics she had scribbled down at 3 a.m. one morning:

Billie Joe McAllister jumped off the Tallahatchee Bridge.

You tell us there was a better time to be listening to the music of the day and you will not win the argument. Not at the Sanctuary, where the sounds of the Sixties live on forever...

7 comments:

  1. Growing up in Tallahassee, I had a friend who traveled to Europe in the mid '70s. When she told some Norwegian guy she was from Tallahassee, his reply was:
    "I've heard of that place! That's where Billy Joe McAllister jumped off that bridge!"

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  2. This song, in my opinion, is John Phillips' (the Mamas and the Papas) finest work of his long career. He gave away killer songs as if they grew on trees, and he was a generous - and visionary - man.

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  3. Flowers in her hair....that was me, a bellbottoned, tie tied, long flowin blond haired, flowers in her hair hippie chick.

    I knew I knew I knew she could make me happy...happy .... happy.... flowers in her hair, flowers everywhere. I love the flower girl.

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  4. Opps wrong song....lol,Well we all loved flowers in our hair back then....who sang the song I was refering to anyway????? It's late I'm tired.....

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  5. That, lass, was a Cowsills classic! ;-{)

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  6. I always felt that when you're feeling low and the fish won't bite a little bit o' soul will put you right.

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  7. your right Davey, that was a good song by Music Explosion, and how true the words!

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