#91: Make My Life A Little Bit Brighter by Chester

Peak Month: November 1973
13 weeks on Vancouver’s CKLG chart
Peak Position #3
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ did not chart
YouTube.com: “Make My Life A Little Bit Brighter”
Lyrics: “Make My Life A Little Bit Brighter”

Chester was a band from Toronto that formed in the early 70’s. They were comprised of Glenn Morrow on keyboard, guitar and vocals; Jim Mancel on lead vocals; Mike Argue on lead guitar and vocals, and Glen “Wedge” Monroe on drums, piano, and guitar. Morrow was born in 1946. An obituary with the City of Toronto states Morrow “started playing in bands around Toronto in his early teen years. Hammond B-3 organ and piano were his favorite instruments to perform on. An extremely talented keyboardist-arranger, he played with the Bluenotes, T.K’s., Tarot” and played organ with Canadian Rock Theatre in 1972. Jim Mancel released a single in 1970 titled “I Could Give You The World”.

Continue reading →

#98: Could You Ever Love Me Again by Gary and Dave

Peak Month: September 1973
13 weeks on Vancouver’s CKLG chart
Peak Position #2
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #92
YouTube.com: “Could You Ever Love Me Again”
Lyrics: “Could You Ever Love Me Again”

Gary and Dave was a duo that formed in 1969. Gary Weeks was born in 1950 in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. David Lloyd George “Dave” Beckett was born in Newmarket, Ontario, in 1949. Weeks and Beckett had been friends since grade school in the early 1960s. They played in numerous bands until 1966, when the pair competed in a United Appeal concert and came in fourth out of five hundred acts. In 1969, they got a contract with Quality Records and released “Tender Woman”. It got little airplay. Still, they began to play the festival circuit, and became a top attraction at Expo ’70 in Osaka, Japan.

Continue reading →

#394: Close Your Eyes by Edward Bear

Peak Month: May 1973
10 weeks on CKLG’s Vancouver Chart
Peak Position ~ #4
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #37
YouTube.com: “Close Your Eyes”
Lyrics: “Close Your Eyes”

In the mid-60’s Larry Evoy and Paul Weldon were jamming in basements and experimenting with blues rock tunes. In 1966 bass player Craig Hemmings and drummer Dave Brown formed a band with Evoy and Weldon. They got guitarist Danny Marks to join them after he answered an ad. After a year they settled on the name The Edward Bear Revue. They got the name from A.A. Milne’s children’s book, Winnie The Pooh, whose central character has the proper name of Edward Bear. In time the band shortened their name to Edward Bear. The band originally was a blues and rock band and opened in 1968 for a Toronto concert with Led Zeppelin as the headliner.

Continue reading →

#428: Daytime Night-time by Keith Hampshire

Peak Month: January 1973
10 weeks on Vancouver’s CKLG
Peak Position #3
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #51
YouTube.com: “Daytime Night-Time”
Lyrics: “Daytime, Night-Time”

Keith Hampshire was born in London in 1945. At the age of four he got tap dancing lessons and His family moved to Canada when he was six-years-old. They visited Toronto, took a train west and moved to Calgary. It was in Calgary that Keith Hampshire took singing lessons, founded a number of high-school bands, including the Intruders, Keith and The Bristols, and the Variations. Each band got gigs at other schools and clubs around town. The Variations opened for Roy Orbison one summer in the early 60s at the Calgary Stampede. Out of high school Keith Hampshire got a position at CFCN radio and TV as a cameraman. He ended up programming and announcing, playing Brian Poole & The Tremeloes, the Swinging Blue Jeans, the Animals and the Searchers at the beginning of the British Invasion. At the age of 21 Hampshire moved back to the UK and got work from July 1966 to August 1967 as a DJ for a pirate radio station called Radio Caroline South. He moved back to Canada in September 1967 and got a job as a DJ with CKFH in Toronto. He got married in 1969.

Continue reading →

#577: Roll Over Beethoven by Electric Light Orchestra

Peak Month: August 1973
10 weeks on Vancouver’s CKLG chart
Peak Position #7
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #42
YouTube.com: “Roll Over Beethoven”
“Roll Over Beethoven” lyrics

Jeffrey Lynne was born in suburban Birmingham, England in 1947. His dad bought him a guitar when he turned twelve. In 1966 he formed a band that by 1968 called themselves the Idle Race. He left for another band by the end of the 60s named The Move. The latter development was a catalyst for working on a musical project combining rock with orchestration. Beverley “Bev” Bevan was born in Birmingham, UK, in 1944. He learned to play drums and in 1956 he joined a rock band named Denny Laine & the Diplomats. In 1965 he moved on to join Carl Wayne & the Vikings, and in 1966 The Move. Bevan went through the transition from the Move to Electric Light Orchestra with Jeff Lynne. By the end of 1970 the Electric Light Orchestra was born.
Continue reading →

#709: Gypsy by Abraham’s Children

Peak Month: March 1973
8 weeks on Vancouver’s CKLG chart
Peak Position #6
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #119
YouTube.com: “Gypsy”
“Gypsy” lyrics

Vincenzo Donato Bertucci moved with his Italian immigrant family to Toronto when he was six years old. When he was in high school he formed a band named Just Us. His school mate, Ron Bartley, was a singer and guitarist. Bartley had been raised as a child in Virden, Manitoba. His parents were a duo called the Singing Sweethearts. Bartley’s family moved to the Annex neighborhood in Toronto when he was ten. When he was 13-years-old, Ron Bartley met Jimi Bertucci. They hung around the St. Alban’s Boy Club and talked about music. Soon, Bartley and Bertucci co-founded the London Tones. Bertucci also was asked to join a band called The Death, which opened for James Brown and the Famous Flames at a venue in the Toronto suburb of Mimico, Ontario.

Continue reading →

Peak Month: August 1973
6 weeks on Vancouver’s CKLG chart
Peak Position #11
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #57
YouTube.com “Bongo Rock”

Preston Epps was born in Oklahoma in 1930 and learned to play percussion instruments while he was in the Korean War. In the early 50s Epps found his passion after he fell in love with the drums after visiting Bop City, a San Francisco jazz club. Epps was the main percussionist on “Earth Angel”, which was recorded in 1954 by the Penguins. In April 1955, “Earth Angel” climbed to #1 on the Billboard R&B charts, #8 on the Billboard Best Sellers in Stores pop music chart, and #2 on the Cashbox Best Selling Singles chart. In 1957 Preston Epps was featured in the film Calypso Heat Wave where he played the bongos. In 1959 Preston Epps released an instrumental he co-wrote titled “Bongo Rock”. The single peaked at #14 in June ’59 on the Billboard Hot 100. The instrumental climbed to #6 in Vancouver (BC).
Continue reading →

Peak Month: July 1973
10 weeks on CKLG’s Vancouver Chart
Peak Position ~ #7
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ did not chart
YouTube.com: “Dreams Are Ten A Penny”
“Dreams Are Ten A Penny” lyrics

John Nicholas Shakespeare was born in 1942 in Birmingham, UK. He formed a skiffle band around 1957. In 1961 he co-founded a duo named Carter-Lewis and the Southerners. Jimmy Page, later of the Yardbirds and then Led Zeppelin, played guitar on a three of their non-hit singles recorded in 1963 and 1964. From 1964 to 1966 Carter was a member of a backing vocal session trio named The Ivy League. They backed The Who on “I Can’t Explain“. In 1965 The Ivy League had two Top Ten hits on the UK singles chart, “Funny How Love Can Be” and “Tossing And Turning”. The latter tune was not a cover of the 1961 Bobby Lewis hit stateside.

Continue reading →

#634: Moonshine by John Kay

Peak Month: June-July 1973
8 weeks on CKLG’s Vancouver Charts
Peak Position ~ #5
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #105
YouTube.com: “Moonshine (Friend of Mine)”
“Moonshine (Friend of Mine)” lyrics

Joachim Fritz Krauledat was born in Tilsit, East Prussia, Germany, in 1944. His father, Fritz, was killed in the war the month before his birth. In 1945, Soviet troops advanced across what became East Germany. His mother fled with him in what the child recalled as “a daring nighttime escape” into what became the British occupied zone to Hanover, West Germany. Young Joachim was influenced by British newsreels of the People’s Uprising in 1953 in East Germany. The uprising took place three months after the death of Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, on June 16-17, 1953. It involved over a million people going on strike across 700 towns and cities. The uprising was crushed by 20,000 Soviet soldiers and 8,000 East German police. Joachim was also stirred by the Hungarian Revolution of October 23 to November 10, 1956. Joachim Krauledat moved to Canada in 1958.

Continue reading →

#720: Blue Collar by Bachman-Turner Overdrive

Peak Month: December 1973-January 1974
11 weeks on CKLG’s Vancouver Charts
Peak Position ~ #12
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #68
YouTube.com: “Blue Collar”
“Blue Collar” lyrics

Randolph Charles Bachman was born in 1943 in Winnipeg, Manitoba. When he was just three years old he entered the King of the Saddle singing contest on CKY radio, Manitoba’s first radio station that began in 1923. Bachman won the contest. When he turned five years he began to study the violin through the Royal Toronto Conservatory. Though he couldn’t read music, he was able to play anything once he heard it. He dropped out of high school and subsequently a business administration program in college. He co-founded a Winnipeg band called The Silvertones with Chad Allan in 1960. In 1962 the band became Chad Allan and the Expressions, and was renamed The Guess Who? in 1965 with their first big hit, “Shakin’ All Over”. The Guess Who dropped the question mark in their title a few years later.

Continue reading →

#853: I’m Gonna Love You Too by Terry Jacks

Peak Month: January 1973
9 weeks on Vancouver’s CKLG chart
Peak Position #11
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #116
YouTube.com: “I’m Gonna Love You Too”
“I’m Gonna Love You Too” lyrics

Terrence Ross Jacks was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, in 1944. During his career as a recording artist he became a household name and recognized as a singer, songwriter, record producer and environmentalist. His family moved to Vancouver in 1961 and he formed a band named The Chessmen along with local guitarist, Guy Sobell. The Chessmen had four singles that made the Top 20 in Vancouver, two which were double-sided hits. These included the Top Ten hits “Love Didn’t Die,” “The Way You Fell” and “What’s Causing This Sensation”. Jacks met Susan Pesklevits on a local CBC music show called Let’s Go in 1966.

Continue reading →

#897: The Farmer’s Song by Murray McLauchlan

Peak Month: June 1973
8 weeks on Vancouver’s CKLG chart
Peak Position #9
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ did not chart
YouTube.com: “The Farmer’s Song”
“The Farmer’s Song” lyrics

Murray Edward McLauchlan was born in Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland, in 1948.  is a Canadian singer, songwriter, guitarist, pianist, and harmonica player. He immigrated to Canada with his family when he was five years old. Near the end of high school he picked up the guitar and began to write songs. When he turned seventeen he started to appear at coffeehouses in Toronto’s Yorkville neighborhood. Out of high school he took classes in Fine Arts at Central Tech prior to choosing to give his full attention to music. One thing led to another and he found himself at The Philadelphia Folk Festival, sharing the stage with Jim Croce and John Prine. When McLaughlan appeared at the Mariposa Folk Festival in Toronto, according to his bio on True North Records, “he gave up half of his concert time so Joni Mitchell could play.” Opportunities kept opening up and he played at venues like The Riverboat in Toronto, The Bitter End in New York, The Main Point in Philadelphia and the Earl of Old Town in Chicago. He spent some time living in New York City to advance his career, but there were few breaks.

Continue reading →

#938: You Don’t Know What Love Is by Susan Jacks

Peak Month: March 1973
7 weeks on Vancouver’s CKLG chart
Peak Position #8
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #116
YouTube..com: “You Don’t Know What Love Is”
“You Don’t Know What Love Is” lyrics

Susan Pesklevits was born in 1948 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. When she was seven years old she was a featured singer on a local radio station. At the age of eight her family moved to the Fraser Valley town of Haney, British Columbia. When she was 13 years old she had her own radio show. In a December 1966 issue of the Caribou newspaper, the Quesnel Observer noted that Susan Pesklevits had auditioned for Music Hop in the summer of 1963 when she was only 15 years old. She had her first public performance at the Fall Fair in Haney when she was just 14 years old. It was noted she liked to ride horseback, ride motorcycles and attend the dramatic shows. Asked about what she could tell the folks in Quesnel about trends in Vancouver, Pesklevits had this to report, “the latest things in Vancouver are the hipster mini-skirts, bright colored suit slacks, and the tailored look. The newest sound is the “Acid Sound,” derived from L.S.D…. it is “pshodelic” which means it has a lot of fuzz tones and feed back. As an example, she gave “Frustration” recorded by the Painted Ship” a local band from Vancouver. Pesklevits added that on the West Coast “the latest dance is the Philly Dog. It mainly consists of two rows, one of girls and one of boys. The idea is to take steps, move in unison, while doing jerking motions and using a lot of hand movement.” In the summer of 1966 Pesklevits formed a trio with Tom Northcott and Howie Vickers called The Eternal Triangle who released one single titled “It’s True.” Vickers went on to form The Collectors which later morphed into Chilliwack.

Continue reading →

#1008: I Just Want To Make Music by Tobias

Peak Month: February 1973
7 weeks on Vancouver’s CKLG chart
Peak Position #8
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ did not chart
YouTube.com: “I Just Want To Make Music”
“I Just Want To Make Music” lyrics

In 1945 Ken Tobias was born in Saint John, New Brunswick. His family’s home was filled with music and young Ken was featured in a number of tap dancing performances. Though he dreamed of becoming a draftsman, out of high school he and his brother Tony formed the folk group The Ramblers. By the mid-60s Tobias lived in Halifax and was a staple in the roster of performers on CBC TV’s afternoon show, Music Hop. This led to his appearing several years later on Singalong Jubilee with other Canadian music stars Anne Murray, Gene MacLellan.

Continue reading →

#1323: Oh My Lady by The Stampeders

Peak Month: March 1973
6 weeks on Vancouver’s CKLG chart
Peak Position #15
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #115
YouTube.com: “Oh My Lady”
“Oh My Lady” lyrics

The Stampeders are a rock trio from Calgary named after that city’s football team, The Calgary Stampeders. Although, it could be argued that the yearly Calgary Stampede was also an inspiration for their name. During the band’s most successful chart run from 1968 to 1976, it was made up of guitarist Rich Dodson, bass player Ronnie King (born Cornelius Van Sprang) and drummer Kim Berly (born Kim Meyer). All three provided vocals. Originally, the band was a group of five formed in 1964 called The Rebounds. The Rebounds had five members: Rich Dodson, Len Roemer, Brendan Lyttle, Kim Berly, and Race Holiday. They renamed themselves The Stampeders in 1965 and Len Roemer was replaced with Ronnie King and Van Louis, making them a band of six for a few years. But after a temporary move to Toronto in 1966 the band was down to three members, Dodson, King and Berly by 1968. Between 1967 and 1976 The Stampeders charted 15 singles into the Canadian RPM Top 40.

Continue reading →

#1130: Cousin Mary by Fludd

Peak Month: November 1973
8 weeks on Vancouver’s CKLG chart
Peak Position #11
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ did not chart
YouTube.com: “Cousin Mary”
“Cousin Mary” lyrics

Fludd had its roots in a band called The Pretty Ones, formed by Ed Pilling and Greg Godovitz. The band was briefly part of Toronto’s Yorkville scene in the 1960s, but broke up before achieving much commercial success. Pilling and his brother Brian then moved to Birmingham, England, where they formed a band called Wages of Sin and spent some time touring as a backing band for Cat Stevens in 1970. However, disagreement over musical direction with Stevens led the brothers to return to Toronto by the end of the year. Inspired by the then-emerging psychedelic blues rock sound of British acts such as Small Faces, they then reunited with Godovitz, and recruited drummer John Andersen and guitarist Mick Walsh to create Fludd.

Continue reading →

#1178: I’m A Stranger Here by the Five Man Electrical Band

Peak Month: June 1973
7 weeks on Vancouver’s CKLG chart
Peak Position #13
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #76
YouTube.com: “I’m A Stranger Here”
“I’m A Stranger Here” lyrics

The Five Man Electrical Band was a Canadian mainstream rock band from Ottawa. They had an international hit in 1970 called “Signs”. Les Emmerson was born in 1944. In 1963 the Staccatos were formed in Ottawa. The group included lead singer and local disc jockey Dean Hagopian. After some local hits they got the attention of Capitol Records. Other Staccatos bandmates included Vern Craig on guitar, Brian Rading on bass guitar and Rick Bell on drums and vocals.  Meanwhile, Hagopian left the band by the end of 1964, and was replaced on lead vocals by Les Emmerson.

Continue reading →

#1207: Cry Your Eyes Out by Les Emmerson

Peak Month: September 1973
7 weeks on Vancouver’s CKLG chart
Peak Position #13
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ did not chart
YouTube.com: “Cry Your Eyes Out”

Les Emmerson was born in 1944. In 1963 he formed the Staccatos. The Ottawa group included lead singer and local disc jockey Dean Hagopian. After some local hits they got the attention of  Capitol Records. One of their 1965 singles imitated the surfing sound with “Moved To California”. In 1966 their Top 40 hit on the Canadian RPM singles chart, “Let’s Run Away”, won the group the two Juno awards that year for Best Produced Single and Vocal Instrumental Group Of The Year. Then they  released “Half Past Midnight” and the song peaked on the Canadian RPM singles chart at #8 in May 1967. It won them a JUNO award for Best Produced Single and got them gigs in the trendy music scene in the downtown Toronto neighborhood of Yorkville. Coca-Cola lined them up for some jingles and they shared one of two sides of an album in 1968 with The Guess Who called A Wild Pair.

Continue reading →

#1331: A Good Song by Valdy

Peak Month: March 1973
6 weeks on Vancouver’s CKLG chart
Peak Position #15
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ did not chart
YouTube.com link: “A Good Song”
“A Good Song” lyrics

Paul Valdemar Horsdal was born in Ottawa in 1945. Valdy was a member of the London Town Criers during the 1960s and subsequently joined Montreal band The Prodigal Sons. Prior to beginning his solo career, he was based in Victoria. There he  worked with various artists, including Canadian country music singer Blake Emmons. Emmons was the host of CTV show Funny Farm (Canada’s answer to the CBS TV show Hee Haw).

Continue reading →