They were contemporaries on the pop charts and they left this mortal coil on successive days. Helen Reddy, best known for her feminist anthem "I Am Woman," died yesterday at the age of 78. "I Am Woman" was a smash hit, but it's actually fairly polite and with a moderately brassy arrangement typical of the time:
She had a few other hits over the years, but as a practical matter she disappeared by the end of the decade. Her later hits were somewhat weirder, like this one:
That was yesterday. Today, word came that another familiar face from the early 70s, Mac Davis, had passed away. Davis had one foot in the pop world and another in country, and first made his name as a songwriter. He wrote this one for Elvis Presley:
Not exactly a social justice move, but certainly of the period. About a year later, Davis had his largest hit with this song:
"Baby Don't Get Hooked On Me." It was a smash hit. And I hate this song with every fiber of my being. It's horrible and smarmy, a cautionary tale told by a cad. But it sold a lot of records and since Davis was a reasonably handsome dude, he managed to have a decent career, including a year or two with his own television variety show, in a time where the networks were so in love with the concept that they gave one to a pair of mimes. This might be the most 70s video of all time:
Then again, this is likely the most 70s video of all time.
Yeah, I digress more than a little. But all these years later, the common thread is that entertainers were interested in entertaining, even if they were a little mixed up on their concepts. I don't miss the 1970s, but I am glad we can visit.
No comments:
Post a Comment