*** music trivia ***

[Ky Fried Redleg]

132. Another one from '74-75. The album dropped early in '74. The first two single releases were underwhelming. The first single peaked at #32 on the Billboard Hot 100, while the follow up didn't make the Top 40 , peaking at #52. But it's the third release that is the subject of this question. It was a track that wasn't supposed to be anything but an afterthought, much less a hit. It was all happenstance, just a happy accident. The band liked the song, but never even considered the possibility of it being a hit. The record label agreed. The song was relegated to the indignity of being the B-side of the album's initial release in March of '74. Yes, it's one of those rare B-sides that became a bigger hit than the A-side--- A MUCH bigger hit!!!

A little of the backstory. The band's guitarist came up with this riff a year before, thinking that one day he would do something with it and write a song. This is story of how a timeless classic was crafted from that simple acoustic riff and only became known to the population at large because a disc jockey in Virginia flipped a record over. Let's get into it.

The inspirations for the song included the Mississippi River, a couple of Mark Twain classic novels, and the singer/songwriter's sojourns in and around New Orleans, visiting clubs in the French Quarter and listening to Dixieland Jazz. The band had spent a week playing in New Orleans, when the songwriter decided it was time to put words to that riff. He took a streetcar from the district around Tulane University, heading to uptown New Orleans to do some laundry. It started to rain, but the sun continued to shine as the rain poured. He jotted down some lyrics while on the trolley.

The opening section of the song draws from his childhood imaginings of the South from reading Twain's Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer. Subsequent lyrics, after the first chorus, including its melodious a capella section, drew upon his experiences partying in the French Quarter and listening to Dixieland jazz bands and watching the moon reflect off of the mighty Mississippi.

So how did a tune that the band and it's record label view as nothing more than a B-side become a timeless classic? Well, you see, there was this disc jockey in, of all places, Roanoke, VA, that decided to flip over the A-side record and listen to the B-side. The A-side had stalled at #32 on the Billboard chart, and was eventually pulled from radio airplay due to the lyric, "And the radio just seems to bring me down," which apparently offended a lot of people in radio.

I suspect the reason the DJ flipped the record over and played the B-side is due to the song's title having a geographical connection to Roanoke. Regardless of the reason, the DJ liked the song and , after listeners responded positively to the record, and started requesting it, the song was played in heavy rotation on the station. Then, I guess , a friend of a friend of someone in Roanoke , who lived in Minneapolis , heard about the song and got the word out to a DJ in that city. Before long, the song was in heavy rotation in Minneapolis.

From there, word of mouth resulted in the song being played on radio stations all across the country. Due to its sudden, unexpected popularity, that happened just by chance, the band released the record, this time as a A-side in November of 1974. In March of '75, it became the band's first of two #1 songs. The band's next #1 wouldn't come until 1977, when a different lead singer took a song to #1.

Can you name this most surprising #1 song, a record that began as a B-side to a mediocre offering, but became one of the most beloved classics of all time, known for its folksy, laid back charm and its evoking of imagery of the Mississippi River and New Orleans nightlife?

[dfs]

That's Black Water from the Doobie Brothers.

[Ky Fried Redleg]

That's Black Water from the Doobie Brothers.

Do you know the name of the A-side ?

[texasdave]

Do you know the name of the A-side ?

Another park, another Sunday.

I loved that album's title - What once were vices are now habits. Classic.

[Ky Fried Redleg]

B-Side , turned A- Side, turned #1 song:






Original A-side, then yanked off the air:

[Roy Tucker]

B-Side , turned A- Side, turned #1 song:






Original A-side, then yanked off the air:

Was a great jukebox song. It’s a lost art to go to bars and dump a bunch of quarters in the jukebox and play tunes. It was always a score when your song sequence rotated around to play.

[Ky Fried Redleg]

Was a great jukebox song. It’s a lost art to go to bars and dump a bunch of quarters in the jukebox and play tunes. It was always a score when your song sequence rotated around to play.

Man, I always loved the jukebox. My sister and I had this favorite little diner downtown that served those little burgers(like White Castle, but better). We'd stay in there for hours eating burgers, playing the pinball machine and playing songs on the jukebox. I can still remember hearing John Denver's "Take Me Home Country Roads" playing on that jukebox about every time we went in there to play pinball. In fact, I usually heard it several times by the time we left.

[Ky Fried Redleg]

133. It's Saturday morning, and I got to thinking about Saturday morning and afternoon TV when I was a kid. My lineup was usually cartoons from early morning until about 11 , or so. Then it was TWIB, with Mel Allen. And then it was time for my Saturday music lineup with American Bandstand around noon and then Soul Train, with Don Cornelius, at 1:00 pm. Did anyone else here do the AB and ST double dip on Saturdays. I mean , it was like a Saturday ritual in our house. Did you enjoy those as much as I did?

You know I have to do a trivia question , now, don't you? lol

133. What was the first ever song performed on Soul Train by a white superstar artist? It was a huge crossover hit. It went to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #15 on the Hot Soul Singles chart, driven by heavy airplay on R&B stations. The song was also the first ever Billboard #1 song that made use of a stuttering technique. In 2024, Rolling Stone ranked the song at #371 of the 500 greatest rock in roll songs of all time. How many #1 songs about fictional glam girl bands do you know? Only one that I know of. You know it, too, don't you? Play that funky music, white boy!

[texasdave]

I believe Elton John was the first white artist to play on Soul Train. Since you mentioned stuttering, it has to be B-B-B-Bennie and the Jets.

[Ky Fried Redleg]

133. It's Saturday morning, and I got to thinking about Saturday morning and afternoon TV when I was a kid. My lineup was usually cartoons from early morning until about 11 , or so. Then it was TWIB, with Mel Allen. And then it was time for my Saturday music lineup with American Bandstand around noon and then Soul Train, with Don Cornelius, at 1:00 pm. Did anyone else here do the AB and ST double dip on Saturdays. I mean , it was like a Saturday ritual in our house. Did you enjoy those as much as I did?

You know I have to do a trivia question , now, don't you? lol

133. What was the first ever song performed on Soul Train by a white artist? It was a huge crossover hit. It went to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #15 on the Hot Soul Singles chart, driven by heavy airplay on R&B stations. The song was also the first ever Billboard #1 song that made use of a stuttering technique. In 2024, Rolling Stone ranked the song at #371 of the 500 greatest rock in roll songs of all time. How many #1 songs about fictional glam girl bands do you know? Only one that I know of. You know it, too, don't you? Play that funky music, white boy!

Did you know that B-B-B-Bennie was a girl ? "She's got electric boots, a mohair suit..."

[Ky Fried Redleg]

While Elton is widely recognized by many music aficionados as the first while male artist to perform on Soul Train, it's really not the case. Yes, Elton was the first white superstar artist to appear on the show. By the time May of '75 rolled around, Elton was pretty much the biggest thing in rock music in America . He's the one everyone remembers, because he's a legend and many of us tuned in to watch that episode in March of '75. It was a cultural phenomenon, and it paved the way for other white artists like Bowie, the Average White Band, Hall & Oates, and others to appear on the show. Elton's appearance actually greatly overshadowed two white guys who had previously knocked on Don's Soul Train doors.

A fellow by the name of Dennis Coffey, a guitarist, performed his instrumental hit, "Scorpio,"(many of you will remember that song) on Soul Train, way back in 1972. So, really, Dennis was the first white dude to perform on ST. Sure, Dennis didn't sing, but he did play. Now, the many legions of the Rocketman's fans will say, well, Elton was the first white artist to SING on Don Cornelius' Soul Train.

Not so fast, my friends ! One of the reasons you click on RZ music trivia thread is to get those little known stories or facts about songs or happenings in the history of music that many are unaware of. It just so happens that about three months before Elton appeared on Soul Train, another white guy performed on the show, AND HE DID SING! And guess what ... you're gonna tell me who he was.

134. Three months before Elton's landmark and trailblazing appearance on Soul Train, a white Canadian-born singer appeared on the show and sang his first charting hit, a song that peaked at #22 on the Billboard Hot 100 in late 1974 , and led to him touring with Stevie Wonder and being invited to perform his hit on Soul Train, early in '75.

You might remember him better for two major hits that he had a few years later. His highest charting single came in 1978 with a song that peaked at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was #1 in Canada. The song was nominated for a Grammy for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. He lost to Barry Manilow. Then, in 1981 he had another gigantic hit that peaked at #6. The dude had a fantastic head of hair(even better than Richard Marx) and a very fine singing voice. While he was born in Montreal, his parents immigrated there from Italy, so he is an Italian- Canadian. He was a heart throb for many young girls in the late 70's, and particularly the early 80's. And dorks like me would have died for that hair.

So, while Elton is usually credited for being the first white artist to perform on Soul Train, he was really the third . Can you name the VERY FIRST white artist to SING on Soul Train?

[Roy Tucker]

I know Dennis Coffey (a white guy) played his instrumental hit Scorpio on Soul Train as the first white performer. But he didn’t sing.

[Ky Fried Redleg]

While Elton is widely recognized by many music aficionados as the first while male artist to perform on Soul Train, it's really not the case. Yes, Elton was the first white superstar artist to appear on the show. By the time May of '75 rolled around, Elton was pretty much the biggest thing in rock music in America . He's the one everyone remembers, because he's a legend and many of us tuned in to watch that episode in March of '75. It was a cultural phenomenon, and it paved the way for other white artists like Bowie, the Average White Band, Hall & Oates, and others to appear on the show. Elton's appearance actually greatly overshadowed two white guys who had previously knocked on Don's Soul Train doors.

A fellow by the name of Dennis Coffey, a guitarist, performed his instrumental hit, "Scorpio,"(many of you will remember that song) on Soul Train, way back in 1972. So, really, Dennis was the first white dude to perform on ST. Sure, Dennis didn't sing, but he did play. Now, the many legions of the Rocketman's fans will say, well, Elton was the first white artist to SING on Don Cornelius' Soul Train.

Not so fast, my friends ! One of the reasons you click on RZ music trivia thread is to get those little known stories or facts about songs or happenings in the history of music that many are unaware of. It just so happens that about three months before Elton appeared on Soul Train, another white guy performed on the show, AND HE DID SING! And guess what ... you're gonna tell me who he was.

134. Three months before Elton's landmark and trailblazing appearance on Soul Train, a white Canadian-born singer appeared on the show and sang his first charting hit, a song that peaked at #22 on the Billboard Hot 100 in late 1974 , and led to him touring with Stevie Wonder and being invited to perform his hit on Soul Train, early in '75.

You might remember him better for two major hits that he had a few years later. His highest charting single came in 1978 with a song that peaked at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was #1 in Canada. The song was nominated for a Grammy for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. He lost to Barry Manilow. Then, in 1981 he had another gigantic hit that peaked at #6. The dude had a fantastic head of hair(even better than Richard Marx) and a very fine singing voice. While he was born in Montreal, his parents immigrated there from Italy, so he is an Italian- Canadian. He was a heart throb for many young girls in the late 70's, and particularly the early 80's. And dorks like me would have died for that hair.

So, while Elton is usually credited for being the first white artist to perform on Soul Train, he was really the third . Can you name the VERY FIRST white artist to SING on Soul Train?

First line of his biggest hit: "When I think about those nights in Montreal, I get the sweetest thoughts of you and me."

[texasdave]

Bennie and the Jets stuttered its way to #! on the Billboard Top 100 in 1974. Later that year, another song did likewise. This was from another foreign group, which was born after the breakup of a Canadian band that hand multiple songs chart on Billboard. The stuttering was a gentle poke at the lead singer's brother, who was also a member of the band.
What are the song and the group?

[dfs]

You Ain't seen Nothing Yet. BTO