1975 was the year when I became seriously obsessed with popular music. Sure, there were definite underpinnings leading up to that year. Lord knows how I loved the Raspberries’ “Go All the Way,” but I had trouble finding that 45 in the “big city” of Anderson which was becoming a common theme for my life then. Shortly thereafter, I had to follow my parents’ rules for a WHOLE MONTH of my life in order for them to correct my budding aberrant behavior with the pay-off being Alice Cooper’s Billion Dollar Babies album. Talk about determination! You know, a month is a LONG time for a fourth-grader who had undiagnosed ADHD, and a touch of Obsessive Defiant Disorder, to stay in line but I persevered.
In August of 1974, I unwittingly discovered Casey Kasem and his mind altering American Top 40 radio show while running home from an afternoon of basketball games in the neighborhood. As I was cutting through a nearby neighbor’s yard, I had Casey talking about ABBA’s hit “Waterloo.” I literally stopped in my tracks in the neighbor’s yard and started a conversation with the high school girl who was laying out in her backyard listening to this great radio program. Since I knew everyone in this suburban haven, the young lady told me all about AT40 as my mom stood in our backyard yelling at me to hurry up and get home. After that brief conversation was over (all I got was the radio information), I got home to turn on my radio in my room and faded into heaven. Mom burst into my room to yell at me about being late or something, but I did not care because Casey was bringing me the top hits in the USA.
AT40 exposed me to EVERYTHING in popular music, music that was not yet on the playlists of local radio stations. He told me anecdotes about these artists whose hits I loved. And, since I was an information sponge, I was memorizing each week’s Top 40, along with baseball and basketball statistics, and spouting off in an effort to impress my classmates (it didn’t work!). I discovered Bruce Springsteen, Queen, Eagles, Fleetwood Mac and so many others on Casey’s iconic weekly radio show. Perhaps, most importantly, I got exposed to two more things: K-Tel Record Albums and KISS.
K-Tel was the early Gen Xers’ version of the NOW record series. Now, you could for the cheap price of $2.99 purchase a piece of vinyl with up to 20 hit songs! And, because of one of those compilations I discovered KISS and their studio version of “Rock and Roll All Nite.” Yet, it was Casey who turned me onto the live version of that song. KISS was a perfect band for a tween. They have a cool image and played a pop version of metal. Now, I was hooked. I charted KISS’ weekly movement through the Top 40 thanks to Casey. But, my was I ever bummed when that song never entered the Top 10.
Some people say they love music from the Sixties, Seventies, Eighties or Nineties, but my decade is that weirdly place ten-year span which runs from 1975 to 1984. Think about it! During that decade, we got disco, punk, New Wave of British Heavy Metal, post-punk, new wave, college rock, hardcore, dance music, Prince, synth pop, funk, hair metal and so much more which all corresponds to my coming of age story.
So, let’s look at my musical journey to adulthood by beginning with my 100 favorite songs of 1975.
100. “Over My Head” – Fleetwood Mac
99. “White Punks on Dope” – The Tubes
98. “Get Dancin'” – Disco Tex & the Sex-O-Lettes
97. “Do It (‘Til Your Satisfied)” – B.T. Express
96. “When Will I See You Again” – The Three Degrees
95. “Lonely People” – America
94. “Third Rate Romance” – Amazing Rhythm Aces
93. “I’m on Fire” – Dwight Twilley Band
92. “Magic” – Pilot
91. “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” – Elton John
90. “Don’t Call Us, We’ll Call You” – Sugarloaf
89. “How Long” – Ace
88. “You Are So Beautiful” – Joe Cocker
87. “Only Women Bleed” – Alice Cooper
86. “Some Kind of Wonderful” – Grand Funk
85. “Lovin’ You” – Minnie Ripperton
84. “Bad Blood” – Neil Sedaka
83. “Hair of the Dog” – Nazareth
82. “Saturday Night Special” – Lynyrd Skynyrd
81. “At Seventeen” – Janis Ian
80. “Love Is Alive” – Gary Wright
79. “Games People Play” – The Spinners
78. “Take It to the Limits” – Eagles
77. “Shining Star” – Earth, Wind & Fire
76. “I Love Music” – The O’Jays
75. “Wish You Were Here” – Pink Floyd
74. “This Will Be” – Natalie Cole
73. “The Hustle” – Van McCoy
72. “Love Machine” – The Miracles
71. “Let Your Love Flow” – The Bellamy Brothers
70. “Roadrunner” – The Modern Lovers
69. “Love Will Keep Us Together” – The Captain & Tennille
68. “Sing a Song” – Earth, Wind & Fire
67. “Tush” – ZZ Top
66. “Sailing” – Rod Stewart
65. “Let’s Do It Again” – The Staple Singers
64. “Gloria” – Patti Smith Group
63. “It Only Takes a Minute” – Tavares
62. “Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain” – Willie Nelson
61. “Rhinestone Cowboy” – Glen Campbell
60. “Listen to What the Man Says” – Wings
59. “Why Can’t We Be Friends” – War
58. “Golden Years” – David Bowie
57. “Low Rider” – War
56. “One of These Nights” – Eagles
55. “Jive Talkin'” – Bee Gees
54. “Fallin’ in Love” – Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds
53. “All by Myself” – Eric Carmen
52. “Jackie Blue” – Ozark Mountain Daredevils
51. “Chevy Van” – Sammy Johns
50. “You’re No Good” – Linda Ronstadt
49. “Lady” – Styx
48. “Express” – B.T. Express
47. “Walking in Rhythm” – The Blackbyrds
46. “S.O.S.” – ABBA
45. “Junior’s Farm” – Wings
44. “Amie” – Pure Prairie League
43. “Miracles” – Jefferson Starship
42. “Sweet Thing” – Rufus featuring Chaka Khan
41. “Fooled Around and Fell in Love” – Elvin Bishop
40. “Evil Woman” – Electric Light Orchestra
39. “Slow Ride” – Foghat
38. “That’s the Way (I Like It)” – KC & the Sunshine Band
37. “Young Americans” – David Bowie
36. “That’s the Way of the World” – Earth, Wind & Fire
35. “Hurricane” – Bob Dylan
34. “Dream Weaver” – Gary Wright
33. “Nights on Broadway” – Bee Gees
32. “Feel Like Makin’ Love” – Bad Company
31. “Bad Time” – Grand Funk
30. “Can’t Get It Out of My Head” – Electric Light Orchestra
29. “Must of Got Lost” – The J. Geils Band
28. “Killer Queen” – Queen
27. “Fly, Robin, Fly” – Silver Convention
26. “Kashmir” – Led Zeppelin
25. “Lady Marmalade” – Labelle
24. “Ballroom Blitz” – Sweet
23. “Sister Golden Hair” – America
22. “Love to Love You Baby” – Donna Summer
21. “Landslide” – Fleetwood Mac
20. “T.N.T.” – AC/DC
19. “Old Days” – Chicago
18. “Sweet Emotion” – Aerosmith
17. “I’m Not in Love” – 10 c.c.
16. “Philadelphia Freedom” – Elton John
15. “Reasons” – Earth, Wind & Fire
14. “Someone Saved My Life Tonight” – Elton John
13. “Wake Up Everybody” – Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes
12. “Love Rollercoaster” – Ohio Players
11. “Tangled Up in Blues” – Bob Dylan
10. “Fame” – David Bowie
9. “Tear the Roof Off the Sucker” – Parliament
8. “Walk This Way” – Aerosmith
7. “December 1963 (Oh What a Night)” – The Four Seasons
6. “Love Is the Drug” – Roxy Music
5. “Get Down Tonight” – KC & the Sunshine Band
4. “Rhiannon” – Fleetwood Mac
3. “Rock and Roll All Nite (live)” – KISS
2. “Sara Smile” – Daryl Hall & John Oates
1. “Born to Run” – Bruce Springsteen
If My Records Could Talk 