Eugene Playlist: 1970-1972 KEED Part 5

I wanted to start getting back into the swing of things by spending just a little bit of time jotting down more of my Eugene Playlist of things I was hearing on the radio when I was living here in Eugene from 1970-1972 before I turn in for the night.
-Grand Funk Railroad-"Footstompin' Music"-I'm trying to recall if I also heard the single edit of "I'm Your Captain" from 1970 as well during this time. I'm really fuzzy on this. I had to have heard it at least a few times. I can say, without question, that I heard "Footstompin' Music". This one always got my blood going quite nicely. They were a basic band out to show people a good time back then.
-Ozark Mountain Daredevils-"If You Want To Get To Heaven"-I really enjoyed this one. I always dug the harmonica line.
-Don McClean-"Castles In The Air", "American Pie"-I dearly love both songs. The former really struck me in how sincere McClean's delivery was in convincing people that he hated the city way of life. The part I identified with, however, was the yearning for being with a woman he could be compatable with. "American Pie" is an institution unto itself. The song became a fabric of our lives.
-Roberta Flack-"The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face"-I grew up on the single edit and it took me years to realize that htere was a longer version of the song. But let me tell you! Impact, you say? And then some would be my answer. This was another case of a Soul artist making a case for depth. I am so incredibly grateful to her for choosing this song (hers is not the original version, but it is the one that everybody remembers) to sing and release as a single. Listening to a song such as this made me aware of the magnitude that love can create for two people in love. This song also made me grow on a personal level even at this young age. Roberta would nail me again a few more times when I moved back to California.
-The Dramatics-"Whatcha See Is What You Get", "In The Rain"-What a great groove "Whatcha See Is What You Get" had. "In The Rain" really hit me. I loved the production on it.
-Barry White/Love Unlimited Orchestra-"Walking In The Rain"-This was my first exposure to Barry White. It was certainly not going to be my last. Not a lot of people remember this great one where Barry only makes a vocal appearance as the phone caller in the song. God! The production values that White would employ on his other hits was most certainly in evidence here already.
-Joe Simon-"Drowning In The Sea Of Love"-Oh yeah! I really dug this one. Plus, his voice knocked me out as well.
-Rare Earth-"Get Ready", "Celebrate" and "I'm Losing You"-These guys were a multi-racial group (if I'm recalling correctly) signed to Motown. I only grew up on the single edits of these songs. The long version of "Get Ready" is a true groover.
-Joe Tex-"I Gotcha"-This song rarely failed to make me crack up a little bit whenever I listened to it and sang along. His attitude was just so infectious that you had to smile.
-Rita Coolidge-"Easy Beside Me"-I think that's what this single was titled. This song has an almost mythical status with me because it really made me blue in the horny way. Her singing voice is what got to me. It was the first time I wished I could be next to her and she was singing this song to me and holding me up to her breasts. Yes, I really had thoughts like this back then. I chuckle when I think about this now.
-Brewer & Shipley-"One Toke Over The Line"-This is a great song. Yes, it's about marijuana. But so what? I have a very fond memory of this song that I will relate to you when I talk about my early baseball experiences one of these times.
-Marilyn McCoo-"Wedding Bell Blues"-As if my crushes on women weren't bad enough! I didn't need a wedding song to help get me going and being a pest too. LOL!
-Cymarron-"Rings": Oh Good God, do I love this song! What a wonderful little single. It has such beautiful sentiment attached to it. In the end, there's another wedding ceremony attached to it as well. I still love how the members of Cymarron sing the line "got James Taylor on stereo" in this version while Lobo (who would do a cover version of this song later on) sang "got Jim Croce on stereo".
-The Staple Singers-"I'll Take You There"-Let me tell you something. This song carries every bit of relevence about race relations now as it did back when I first heard this song. I also took this song to heart as one of my anthems concerning a lot of things. I think I also may have heard "Respect Yourself" when I was living up here to, but this was the one which got huge airplay. It was a massive hit and it deserved being one. They would absolutely nail me once again when I moved back to California with a song that I consider my favorite from them.
-Lou Rawls-"A Natural Man"-I totally identified with the idea that it was o.k. to have an identity of your own and that you could live your life with respect and in any way you desired. Lou was just so cool. He would also nail me again later in the '70s and when I was expanding my album vocabulary later on as well.
-Redbone-"Witch Queen of New Orleans"-I loved the production of this and the atmosphere it created. When I moved back to Santa Clara, they would hit me with a song that I consider one of the defining singles of the decade.
-Melanie-"Brand New Key"-She drew me in. Her voice fascinated me.
-Dave Edmunds-"I Hear You Knockin'"-This is one of the first singles I got exposed to when I moved up here. It showed me that Roots Rock and heavy reverb still existed. Plus, it had plenty of hurt attitude that snarled.
-The Dells-"The Love We Had (Stays On My Mind)"-This one went deep into my heart. It is sung with so much feeling that it practically hurts. The production on this is outstanding. It is every bit as dramtic as the song needs to be.
-Paul Revere & the Raiders-"Indian Reservation"-This is one of the defining songs of the early '70's. It planted a seed in my mind of having respect for Native Americans. Those of you who recall this song should know that this is not the original version. This is a cover. It is proud and it is defiant.
-"Here Comes That Rainy Day Feeling Again"-I can't remember who did this marvelous song. The orchestration just kills me. When I hear this today, it takes me back to how excited I was whenever this thing came on the radio back then.
More to come when time permits and I'm not too tired. I have new neighbors next door to me (renters) and I don't know how it's going to work out yet. This may affect how often I post for a while.