6/13/14

Playlisticle: RADIO & RECORDS AOR SUPER CHART [1978]

In 1978, the highly successful and much despised radio format known as AOR (Album Oriented Rock) was celebrating it's tenth anniversary and radio industry trade magazine Radio & Records published a special issue, The AOR Story (click link to open pdf).  In addition to many profiles of AOR personalities, The AOR Story contained a list of the forty-three most played AOR songs: a Super Chart. Nearly forty years down the dial, many of these songs and artists are the building blocks of what is now commonly referred to as Classic Rock though HERC can honestly state for the record he hadn't heard the Boz Scaggs blues-epic "Loan Me A Dime" in at least 25-30 years until writing today's post.  In Any Town USA, you can turn on the radio right now and hear one (or more) of these songs playing.  While these songs are not all Summer per se, if you're like HERC then one (or more) of them has been part of the soundtrack from a favorite Summer of yours.  Or motion picture soundtrack. Or television show soundtrack.  Or commercial.

<<click on song title to listen>>
songartisttimeyearHot 100Rolling Stone 500 [2010]
43"Stranglehold"Ted Nugent0:08:261975
42"More Than A Feeling"Boston0:04:4419765
41"Year Of The Cat"Al Stewart0:06:4019768
40"Hotel California"Eagles0:06:301976149
39"Listen To The Music"Doobie Brothers0:04:44197211
38"Jumping Jack Flash"Rolling Stones0:03:4219683125
37"Your Song"Elton John0:04:0419708137
36"Kashmir"Led Zeppelin0:08:281975141
35"Gimme Shelter"Rolling Stones0:04:31196938
34"Yesterday"Beatles0:02:031965113
33"Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)"Bruce Springsteen0:07:041973
32"Hypnotized"Fleetwood Mac0:04:481973
31"She's Gone"Hall & Oates0:05:1519737
30"Rocky Mountain Way"Joe Walsh0:05:17197323
29"All Along The Watchtower"Jimi Hendrix Experience0:04:0019682047
28"Moondance"Van Morrison0:04:35197092231
27"School"Supertramp0:05:351974
26"Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band"/Beatles0:04:46196771
"With A Little Help From My Friends"311
25"Loan Me A Dime"Boz Scaggs0:12:301969
24"Green Grass & High Tides"Outlaws0:09:491975
23"Henry"/"Maggie May"Rod Stewart0:05:4819711131
22"Train Kept A-Rollin' "Aerosmith0:05:331974
21"Born To Run"Bruce Springsteen0:04:3419752321
20"Aqualung"Jethro Tull0:06:341971
19"(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction"Rolling Stones0:03:44196512
18"Like A Rolling Stone"Bob Dylan0:06:13196521
17"Low Spark Of High-Heeled Boys"Traffic0:11:351971
16"Sympathy For The Devil"Rolling Stones0:06:18196832
15"Funeral For A Friend"/"Love Lies Bleeding"Elton John0:11:091973
14"Money"Pink Floyd0:06:22197313
13"Do You Feel (Like We Do)" [live]Peter Frampton0:14:16197610
12"Miracles"Jefferson Starship0:06:5219753
11"Rhiannon"Fleetwood Mac0:04:12197511
10"Hey Jude"Beatles0:07:11196818
9"Light My Fire"The Doors0:07:051967135
8"A Day In The Life"Beatles0:05:35196728
7"Nights In White Satin"/"Late Lament"Moody Blues0:07:2419672
6"Won't Get Fooled Again"The Who0:08:32196715134
5"Suite: Judy Blue Eyes"Crosby, Stills & Nash0:07:28196921426
4"Roundabout"Yes0:08:29197113
3"Layla"Derek & the Dominos0:07:0519705127
2"Free Bird"Lynyrd Skynyrd0:09:09197319193
1"Stairway To Heaven"Led Zeppelin0:08:02197131
averages0:06:4019711698

This list contains songs from 1965-1976. If we were to compile such a list today, with a few extra decades of hindsight and musical possibilities, what songs would make the cut?  Let HERC know in the comments.

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