Tuesday, August 3, 2021

Music History Today: August 4, 2021

August 4 1973: Maureen McGovern's "The Morning After (The Song From The Poseidon Adventure)" hits Number 1 in the US for the first of two weeks.

The Poseidon Adventure was part of a wave of ’70s disaster movies. The film came two years after Airport and two years before The Towering Inferno. 

The Poseidon Adventure movie poster

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The movies got bad reviews but did good business. It’s hard to even stay awake until stuff starts going bad because of the drippy, hackneyed melodrama of the early scenes. “The Morning After” comes from one of those early scenes. 

Read more: Stereogum

August 4, 1958: "Poor Little Fool" by  Ricky Nelson starts a two week run at Number 1.

The publication of the first-ever Billboard Hot 100 is an occasion well known to devotees of Ricky Nelson. 

"Poor Little Fool" by  Ricky Nelson

When the magazine published that historic first list for August 4, 1958, the pop idol, still only 18, stood proudly at No.1 with “Poor Little Fool.”
Read more: U Discover Music

August 4, 1979: John Stewart peaked at Number 5 on the Billboard singles chart with "Gold."

John Stewart was a member of the Kingston Trio in the early 60s and wrote the Monkees’ #1 hit, “Daydream Believer.” He came from out of nowhere and scored a Top 5 hit in the summer of 1979 with “Gold.” 
Read more: Onstage Magazine

 

August 4, 1972: The movie Super Fly is released, along with a soundtrack by Curtis Mayfield.

The choice of Curtis Mayfield to score the blaxploitation film Super Fly was an inspired one. 

Super Fly 1972 movie  poster 
No other artist in popular music knew so well, and expressed through his music so naturally, the shades of gray inherent in contemporary inner-city life.  

Read more: Allmusic

August 4, 1990: Mariah Carey was atop the Billboard singles chart with "Vision of Love." 

Shortly after Mariah found out she would be signing a record contract with Columbia Records, she began to write ‘Vision of Love’ alone on a keyboard and later finalised it with Ben Margulies. A rough version was recorded in the back of Ben’s father’s cabinet making factory, where the songwriting duo had also recorded the famous demo tape which led to Mariah’s deal. 
Read more: We Miss Music

 

 The Morning After
(The Song From The Poseidon Adventure)
Maureen McGovern

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