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The biggest songs of the summer each year in the 1970s
It's just not summer without Donna Summer.
The sound of sunshine gave way to the rhythms of the night. That's the short version of the musical trajectory of the 1970s, as disco eventually swept away the warm sounds of singer-songwriters. You hear that transition as you work through this playlist, the ten hottest songs of the hottest season.
Each of these tracks was the song of the summer the year it was released. Let's take a listen and tell us your favorite.
1. 1970: The Carpenters - "(They Long to Be) Close to You"
If birds did not suddenly appear every time this song was played, imitators certainly did. The tragic-beautiful duo set the mold for the decade. You could argue that half of the songs on this list owe a debt to the sound and vibes of "Close to You." It topped the charts for four weeks that first summer of the 1970s, though its golden haze hung over the following ten years.
2. 1971: Carole King - "It's Too Late / I Fell the Earth Move"
Funky and sad, "It's Too Late" wastes no time getting to the chorus. That's just one of the brilliant tricks employed by Carole King, finally turned her well-honed songwriting skills into personal fame. This double single sold by the sailboat-load (it's far too elegant and sleek for the kind of barge that the term "boatload" conjures) that summer, topping the charts for five weeks.
3. 1972: Gilbert O'Sullivan - "Alone Again (Naturally)"
The Irish singer-songwriter lucked into one of the biggest songs of the decade — the fifth most-popular of the Seventies, technically — with this melancholy ballad. As bittersweet as lemonade mix, it was perfect for lazing about in a hammock. No wonder it topped the charts for four weeks in the dog days.
4. 1973: Wings - "My Love"
It goes overlooked — or willfully ignored — but Paul McCartney was just as successful in the 1970s as he had been in the 1960s. With a new band in tow, including his wife, Linda, Macca sailed smoothly to the top of the charts repeatedly in Wings. "My Love," one of his mellowest ballads, sat at No. 1 for four weeks that summer.
5. 1974: Ray Stevens - "The Streak"
It just wouldn't be the 1970s without a novelty song on this list. Country comedian Ray Stevens tapped into two trends of the era — truckin' and streakin' (i.e., running nude) with this goofy tune, a "Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer" without the seasonal peg. It was as if Hee-Haw had been boiled down into a pop song, and it sat at No. 1 for three weeks around Memorial Day.
