Davi Again and a Collection Milestone

Today, once again, I get to treat myself to a single side I have owned for 45 years without giving it a listen. The disclaimer is that my way of doing things back then would have caused me to play the song as soon as I got it, but I remember pointedly ignoring this 45 every time it surfaced in the box, for reasons only three-year-old caithiseach could divulge. On this particular point, he’s keeping silent.

I do have one small set of tidbits to share about “Reason for Love” by Davi (Stark 110). In my search for information on the label, the song and the artist, I came across a guy in Brooklyn, Bobby, who stated in a forum post that “Reason for Love” is one of his favorite songs. I’ll listen to it in a moment, and then I’ll know why.

Sounds like old R&B, 6/8 time, doo-wop, sort of like “Sixteen Candles.” Occasional falsetto. Not bad. It was most likely too slow for three-year-old caithiseach to endure.

What I learned about the songwriters, F. Hill and D. Svitenko, is that they were in a band together in the Northeastern U.S. I’ve lost the details of that tidbit, because I didn’t write down the information when I first saw it. Now, my searches aren’t giving me the same results. Sorry about that.

Will I now play this 45 often? I’ll perhaps play “Go Charley Go” from time to time, but “Reason for Love” will show up when I make my next compilation of my old 45s, and that’s about it. I’m glad Bobby in Brooklyn likes it. Here’s the link to the song, after which I have more to say today:

Davi, Reason for Love

Since I can’t tell you which band included Hill and Svitenko, or the names of other songs they wrote, I figure I should appease you with more information about two aspects of this blog to which I refer often.

First, here are two photos of the former Big Top department store, where my Uncle Tom bought me all those 45s all those years ago. They are recent shots, from my August trip home for my high-school reunion. If you are kind enough to take a moment to look at them, you may gain some understanding of why I speak so nostalgically about the place. Photo 1 Photo 2

And second, I mentioned my affinity for the hits of 1970 a couple of weeks ago. I said I thought there was an unusually high concentration of classic tunes on the 1970 Top 40 charts, and that, as a result, I had collected more songs from 1970 than from any other year. While I had acquired every Top 40 hit from 2006 and 2007, that was easy, thanks to iTunes, Rhapsody and SpiralFrog. Most of my 1970 songs came long before I started buying digital files, however.

Since I owned 2006-07 complete, it seemed a shame not to have all of 1970. I identified 20 or so songs I didn’t own, and I bought them. If I counted correctly, I now own the 244 songs that debuted in 1970, the 12 flip sides that appeared on the charts paired with their A side, and the 36 songs that carried over from 1969. I counted 38 One-Hit Wonders, as well as 3 songs that spent just one week in the Top 40 (all by artists with at least one other hit).

In case you are collecting old recordings and would like a handy checklist of all 1970 Top 40 hits, here it is. The songs are listed by debut date, and the number to the left is each song’s debut position. I hope this list is useful to someone out there. It's long, so I may snip it out in a couple of weeks.

Next time, I’ll bring you a rock-and-roll classic, as well as what amounts to a 1956 fusion recording that features a vocalist who made it sort of big—thirteen years later. See you Wednesday!

1969 legacy hits on 1/3/1970:
1 Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head/Thomas, B.J.
2 Leaving on a Jet Plane/Peter, Paul & Mary
3 Someday We'll Be Together/Ross, Diana/Supremes
4 Down on the Corner/CCR
5 Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye/Steam
6 Whole Lotta Love/Led Zeppelin
7 I Want You Back/Jackson 5
8 Venus/Shocking Blue
9 Holly Holy/Diamond, Neil
10 La La La (If I Had You)/Sherman, Bobby
11 Midnight Cowboy/Ferrante & Teicher
12 Come Together/Beatles
13 Jam Up Jelly Tight/Roe, Tommy
14 Eli's Coming/Three Dog Night
15 Don't Cry Daddy/Presley, Elvis
16 Take a Letter Maria/Greaves, R.B.
17 Jingle Jangle/Archies
18 Early in the Morning/Vanity Fare
19 Backfield in Motion/Mel and Tim
20 And When I Die/Blood, Sweat & Tears
21 These Eyes/Walker, Jr. & All-Stars
22 Evil Woman Don't Play Your Games with Me/Crow
23 Yester-Me, Yester-You, Yesterday/Wonder, Stevie
24 Friendship Train/Knight, Gladys & the Pips
25 Up on Cripple Creek/The Band
26 Smile a Little Smile for Me/Flying Machine
27 A Brand New Me/Springfield, Dusty
28 She/James, Tommy and the Shondells
30 Baby, I'm for Real/Originals
31 Ain't It Funky Now Pt. 1/Brown, James
32 Wedding Bell Blues/5th Dimension
33 Cold Turkey/Plastic Ono Band
34 Cherry Hill Park/Royal, Billy Joe
36 Heaven Knows/Grass Roots
37 Wonderful World, Beautiful People/Cliff, Jimmy
39 Point It Out/Robinson, Smokey & Miracles
1/3/1970 debuts:
29 Without Love (There Is Nothing)/Jones, Tom
35 Winter World of Love/Humperdinck, Engelbert
38 She Belongs to Me/Nelson, Rick
40 I'll Never Fall in Love Again/Warwick, Dionne
1/10/1970
34 Arizona/Lindsay, Mark
35 Hey There Lonely Girl/Holman, Eddie
39 She Came in Through the Bathroom Window/Cocker, Joe
40 Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)/Sly & the Family Stone
1/17/1970
31 Walk a Mile in My Shoes/South, Joe
36 Walkin' in the Rain/Jay & the Americans
39 No Time/Guess Who
1/24/1970
31 Blowing Away/5th Dimension
36 Baby Take Me in Your Arms/Jefferson
37 Let's Work Together/Harrison, Wilbert
38 Psychedelic Shack/Temptations
39 Cupid/Nash, Johnny
40 Part Two (Let a Man Come In and Do the Popcorn)/Brown, James
1/31/1970
30 Honey Come Back/Campbell, Glen
32 The Thrill Is Gone/King, B.B.
34 Rainy Night in Georgia/Benton, Brook
39 Fancy/Gentry, Bobbie
2/7/1970
18 Travelin' Band/CCR
28 Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time)/Delfonics
33 Ma Belle Amie/Tee Set
34 Oh Me Oh My (I'm a Fool for You Baby)/Lulu
35 He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother/Hollies
36 One Tin Soldier/Original Caste
37 Give Me Just a Little More Time/Chairmen of the Board
39 Monster/Steppenwolf
40 Evil Ways/Santana
2/14/1970
13 Bridge Over Troubled Water/Simon & Garfunkel
24 The Rapper/Jaggerz
35 Breaking Up Is Hard to Do/Welch, Lenny
36 Always Something There to Remind Me/Greaves, R.B.
2/21/1970
30 House of the Rising Sun/Frijid Pink
37 Never Had a Dream Come True/Wonder, Stevie
38 If I Were a Carpenter/Cash, Johnny & June Carter
39 Jennifer Tomkins/Street People
40 Kentucky Rain/Presley, Elvis
2/28/1970
24 Call Me/Franklin, Aretha
28 Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)/Edison Lighthouse
31 Gotta Hold On to This Feeling/Walker, Jr. & All-Stars
35 Do the Funky Chicken/Thomas, Rufus
38 Easy Come, Easy Go/Sherman, Bobby
40 It's a New Day Pts. 1 & 2/Brown, James
3/7/1970
33 Instant Karma!/Lennon, John
34 Celebrate/Three Dog Night
37 The Bells/Originals
38 Come and Get It/Badfinger
39 Spirit in the Sky/Greenbaum, Norman
3/14/1970
36 All I Have to Do Is Dream/Campbell, Glen/Bobbie Gentry
37 Something's Burning/Rogers, Kenny & First Edition
39 Up the Ladder to the Roof/Supremes
3/21/1970
6 Let It Be/Beatles
14 ABC/Jackson 5
38 Love or Let Me Be Lonely/Friends of Distinction
39 Shilo/Diamond, Neil
3/28/1970
32 Tennessee Bird Walk/Blanchard, Jack/Misty Morgan
34 American Woman/Guess Who
35 Long Lonesome Highway/Parks, Michael
37 You're the One/Little Sister
39 Temma Harbour/Hopkin, Mary
40 Who's Your Baby?/Archies
4/4/1970
31 Reflections of My Life/Marmalade
32 Turn Back the Hands of Time/Davis, Tyrone
35 Woodstock/Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
36 Get Ready/Rare Earth
37 You Need Love Like I Do (Don't You)/Knight, Gladys & the Pips
4/11/1970
37 Everybody's Out of Town/Thomas, B.J.
38 Vehicle/Ides of March
39 For the Love of Him/Martin, Bobbi
40 Little Green Bag/Baker, George Selection
4/18/1970
37 Everything Is Beautiful/Stevens, Ray
38 Cecelia/Simon & Garfunkel
40 Love on a Two-Way Street/Moments
4/25/1970
31 What Is Truth/Cash, Johnny
35 Airport Love Theme/Bell, Vincent
38 Which Way You Goin' Billy?/Poppy Family
39 Come Running/Morrison, Van
40 Make Me Smile/Chicago
5/2/1970
30 Up Around the Bend/CCR
36 Viva Tirado/El Chicano
37 Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)/Ross, Diana
38 Puppet Man/5th Dimension
40 Come Saturday Morning/Sandpipers
5/9/1970
26 The Letter/Cocker, Joe
31 Daughter of Darkness/Jones, Tom
38 Hey Lawdy Mama/Steppenwolf
39 Let Me Go to Him/Warwick, Dionne
40 Oh Happy Day/Campbell, Glen
5/16/1970
33 Soolaimon (African Trilogy II)/Diamond, Neil
36 Hitchin' a Ride/Vanity Fare
39 Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)/Melanie
5/23/1970
26 My Baby Loves Lovin'/White Plains
30 United We Stand/Brotherhood of Man
33 Brother Rapp Pts. 1 & 2/Brown, James
35 The Long and Winding Road/Beatles
36 The Wonder of You/Presley, Elvis
38 Ride Captain Ride/Blues Image
40 Sugar Sugar/Pickett, Wilson
5/30/1970
29 Question/Moody Blues
37 Band of Gold/Payne, Freda
38 It's All in the Game/Four Tops
40 Love Land/Wright, Charles
6/6/1970
15 The Love You Save/Jackson 5
24 Ball of Confusion/Temptations
33 Mama Told Me (Not to Come)/Three Dog Night
38 Gimme Dat Ding/Pipkins
39 Hey, Mister Sun/Sherman, Bobby
40 (You've Got Me) Dangling on a String/Chairmen of the Board
6/13/1970
34 Spirit in the Dark/Franklin, Aretha
37 Mississippi Queen/Mountain
39 Check Out Your Mind/Impressions
40 Baby Hold On/Grass Roots
6/20/1970
32 A Song of Joy/Rios, Miguel
34 Are You Ready?/Pacific Gas & Electric
35 O-O-H Child/Five Stairsteps
37 Westbound #9/Flaming Ember
38 Teach Your Children/Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
39 I Want to Take You Higher/Sly & the Family Stone
40 Mississippi/Phillips, John
6/27/1970
36 Save the Country/5th Dimension
37 (They Long to Be) Close to You/Carpenters
40 Go Back/Crabby Appleton
7/4/1970
20 Tighter, Tighter/Alive and Kicking
39 Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours/Wonder, Stevie
7/11/1970
20 Make It with You/Bread
30 Ohio/Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
36 I Just Can't Help Believing/Thomas, B.J.
38 Spill the Wine/Burdon, Eric & War
39 Silver Bird/Lindsay, Mark
40 The End of Our Road/Gaye, Marvin
7/18/1970
37 Lay a Little Lovin' on Me/McNamara, Robin
38 Steal Away/Taylor, Johnnie
7/25/1970
25 War/Starr, Edwin
26 Why Can't I Touch You?/Dyson, Ronnie
32 In the Summertime/Mungo Jerry
38 Maybe/Three Degrees
39 Tell It All Brother/Rogers, Kenny & First Edition
40 Trying to Make a Fool of Me/Delfonics
8/1/1970
28 Overture from Tommy/Assembled Multitude
29 Patches/Carter, Clarence
30 Get Up (I Feel Like Being Like a) Sex Machine/Brown, James
33 Summertime Blues/Who
34 The Sly, Slick and the Wicked/Lost Generation
37 Everybody's Got the Right to Love/Supremes
38 25 or 6 to 4/Chicago
39 Do You See My Love (For You Growing)/Walker, Jr. & the All-Stars
8/8/1970
30 Big Yellow Taxi/Neighborhood
35 Hand Me Down World/Guess Who
38 I Want to Take You Higher/Turner, Ike & Tina
40 Groovy Situation/Chandler, Gene
8/15/1970
23 Lookin' Out My Back Door/CCR
25 Hi-De-Ho/Blood, Sweat & Tears
26 Ain't No Mountain High Enough/Ross, Diana
34 Solitary Man/Diamond, Neil
38 Julie, Do Ya Love Me/Sherman, Bobby
8/22/1970
23 Don't Play That Song/Franklin, Aretha
36 I've Lost You/Presley, Elvis
37 (I Know) I'm Losing You/Rare Earth
38 Snowbird/Murray, Anne
40 It's a Shame/Spinners
8/29/1970
29 I (Who Have Nothing)/Jones, Tom
33 Candida/Dawn
36 Rubber Duckie/Ernie
40 Cracklin' Rosie/Diamond, Neil
9/5/1970
35 Closer to Home/Grand Funk Railroad
36 Joanne/Nesmith, Michael
37 Peace Will Come (According to Plan)/Melanie
38 Neanderthal Man/Hotlegs
40 All Right Now/Free
9/12/1970
31 Long Long Time/Ronstadt, Linda
35 Out in the Country/Three Dog Night
38 Everything's Tuesday/Chairman [sic] of the Board
39 Express Yourself/Wright, Charles
40 Lola/Kinks
9/19/1970
34 Look What They've Done to My Song, Ma/New Seekers
35 Indiana Wants Me/Taylor, R. Dean
37 That's Where I Went Wrong/Poppy Family
39 Green-Eyed Lady/Sugarloaf
40 I'll Be There/Jackson 5
9/26/1970
37 It's Only Make Believe/Campbell, Glen
38 El Condor Pasa/Simon & Garfunkel
39 Still Water (Love)/Four Tops
40 Fire and Rain/Taylor, James
10/3/1970
18 We've Only Just Begun/Carpenters
37 Somebody's Been Sleeping/100 Proof Aged in Soul
39 Do What You Wanna Do/Five Flights Up
40 Stand by Your Man/Staton, Candi
10/10/1970
35 Our House/Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
36 It Don't Matter to Me/Bread
37 Lucretia Mac Evil/Blood, Sweat & Tears
39 Deeper & Deeper/Payne, Freda
10/17/1970
30 God, Love and Rock & Roll/Teegarden & Van Winkle
34 Super Bad Pts. 1 & 2/Brown, James
38 Ungena Za Ulimwengu (Unite the World)/Temptations
39 See Me, Feel Me/Who
40 Montego Bay/Bloom, Bobby
10/24/1970
28 Cry Me a River/Cocker, Joe
29 Engine Number 9/Pickett, Wilson
39 Gypsy Woman/Hyland, Brian
40 Yellow River/Christie
10/31/1970
17 I Think I Love You/Partridge Family
27 The Tears of a Clown/Robinson, Smokey/Miracles
39 Make It Easy on Yourself/Warwick, Dionne
40 Heaven Help Us All/Wonder, Stevie
11/7/1970
33 Let's Work Together/Canned Heat
34 As the Years Go By/Mashmakhan
35 Share the Land/Guess Who
38 You Don't Have to Say You Love Me/Presley, Elvis
40 For the Good Times/Price, Ray
11/14/1970
30 5-10-15-20 (25-30 Years of Love)/Presidents
35 After Midnight/Clapton, Eric
39 I Am Somebody Pt. II/Taylor, Johnnie
40 Heed the Call/Rogers, Kenny and the First Edition
11/21/1970
22 Stoned Love/Supremes
28 One Less Bell to Answer/5th Dimension
36 No Matter What/Badfinger
37 Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?/Chicago
38 He Ain't Heavy…He's My Brother/Diamond, Neil
40 Black Magic Woman/Santana
11/28/1970
35 Be My Baby/Kim, Andy
39 Can't Stop Loving You/Jones, Tom
40 I'm Not My Brother's Keeper/Flaming Ember
12/5/1970
13 My Sweet Lord/Harrison, George
27 Domino/Morrison, Van
33 Knock Three Times/Dawn
35 Only Love Can Break Your Heart/Young, Neil
36 It's Impossible/Como, Perry
39 One Man Band/Three Dog Night
40 Do It/Diamond, Neil
12/12/1970
30 Groove Me/Floyd, King
32 Pay to the Piper/Chairmen of the Board
35 River Deep-Mountain High/Supremes & Four Tops
36 Immigrant Song/Led Zeppelin
40 Stoney End/Streisand, Barbra
12/19/1970
32 If I Were Your Woman/Knight, Gladys & the Pips
37 Border Song (Holy Moses)/Franklin, Aretha
38 Your Song/John, Elton
39 Love the One You're With/Stills, Stephen
40 Rose Garden/Anderson, Lynn
12/26/1970
26 Lonely Days/Bee Gees
39 Games/Redeye
40 We Gotta Get You a Woman/Runt