Music History

Simon and Garfunkel began a five-week run at No. 1 on the UK album chart with “Bookends”. The duo’s fourth studio album included the songs “America”, “Mrs. Robinson”, and “A Hazy Shade of Winter”. “Bookends” is a concept album tracing the journey of life from childhood to old age.

The Beach Boys scored their second No. 1 single in the UK with “Do It Again”, which became their second and final UK chart-topper. In the US, the song reached No. 20.

Cream's single "Sunshine of Your Love" reached No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100, while their third album, "Wheels of Fire", was at No. 1 on the Top LPs & Tape chart.

The Doors earned their second No. 1 Billboard single with “Hello, I Love You”, which reached No. 15 in the United Kingdom.

The Bee Gees scored their second UK number-one single with “I've Gotta Get a Message to You.” It was also their first US Top 10 hit. The song tells the story of a man awaiting execution in the electric chair who asks a prison chaplain to deliver a final message to his wife.

Creedence Clearwater Revival first appeared on the chart with their debut single “Suzie Q”.

Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66 reached No. 1 on the Easy Listening chart with their cover of The Beatles' song “The Fool On The Hill”.

The Doors returned to No. 1 on the US Billboard 200 after a one-week break with their third studio album Waiting for the Sun.

The Hollies’ Greatest reaches No. 1 on the UK albums chart and stays there for six weeks. It is the group’s first and only album to top the UK chart.

“Wet Dream” by Jamaican reggae singer Max Romeo entered the UK singles chart. Because of its sexually explicit lyrics, the song was banned by the BBC and most radio stations.

Jethro Tull achieved their first UK No. 1 album with their second studio album, “Stand Up”. The album was their first international hit and reached No. 20 in both the US and Canada.

Elvis Presley reached No. 35 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and No. 21 on the UK singles chart with “Clean Up Your Own Back Yard.”

Chicago, then known as Chicago Transit Authority, first entered the chart with “Questions 67 and 68”.

Three Dog Night's “Easy to Be Hard” entered the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 77. The song continued to climb the chart and reached its peak position of No. 4 on September 27, 1969.

The Guess Who's "These Eyes" received a gold certification.

Andy Williams' album “Happy Heart” was certified gold.

The song “A Boy Named Sue” reached number one on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart and number two on the Hot 100.

The Rolling Stones began a four-week run at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 with “Honky Tonk Women”, their fifth US number-one single. The song was written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards and was inspired by Brazilian gauchos at the ranch where they stayed in Matão, São Paulo. In the UK, the song also reached number one; it was released one day after the death of founding member Brian Jones and spent 17 weeks on the UK chart, including five weeks at number one. It was the band's last hit involving Brian Jones, who had died by drowning in his swimming pool on July 3. The song also reached number one in Australia, Denmark, Ireland, New Zealand and Switzerland in 1969.

Elvis Presley’s tenth studio album “From Elvis in Memphis” reached No. 1 on the UK albums chart.

The Rolling Stones reached No. 1 on the US chart with “Honky Tonk Women”, their fifth single to reach the top of that chart.

Zager and Evans began a three-week run at No. 1 on the UK singles chart with “In the Year 2525 (Exordium & Terminus)”. The song was written by Rick Evans in 1964. That same year, it also reached No. 1 in Canada, Ireland, New Zealand and the US, where it remained at the top for six weeks.

Bob Dylan reached No. 7 on the U.S. Billboard singles chart and No. 5 in the UK with "Lay Lady Lay". His unusually calm, deeper vocal, different from his usual high nasal delivery, helped the song achieve international success.

Jethro Tull scored their first UK No. 1 album when "Stand Up" reached the top of the chart.

The Rolling Stones remained at No. 1 on the U.S. singles chart for a third week with "Honky Tonk Women". Johnny Cash was at No. 2 with "A Boy Named Sue", while The Archies were at No. 3 with "Sugar, Sugar".

The album Green River reached number one on the US Billboard 200 on October 4, 1969, beginning a four-week run at the top. It was Creedence Clearwater Revival's first album to reach number one on any Billboard chart. The album included Bad Moon Rising, Lodi, Green River, and Commotion, and reached number 2 in Canada. It was later ranked No. 95 on Rolling Stone's 2003 list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

Grand Funk Railroad's debut album, On Time, entered the Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart at No. 65. Although many music critics received it unfavourably, the Michigan trio later became one of the most commercially successful rock groups in terms of touring and record sales.

Elvis Presley released “The Wonder of You” as a single on RCA Victor, backed by “Mama Liked the Roses.”

Elvis Presley reached No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart with “The Wonder of You,” beginning a six-week run at the top.

The album "Blood Sweat & Tears 3" began a two-week run at No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard 200 album chart (Billboard Top LPs & Tape). It was the group's second consecutive No. 1 album. The album produced the singles "Hi-De-Ho" and "Lucretia MacEvil". It overtook "Cosmo's Factory" by Creedence Clearwater Revival.

The Carpenters spent their third week at No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 with “(They Long to Be) Close to You”.

They scored their first number-one song with “How Can You Mend A Broken Heart”.

The song “Lookin’ Out My Back Door” entered the US Billboard Top 40 and later reached No. 2. Although its surreal imagery led to interpretations involving drugs, John Fogerty said he wrote the song for his three-year-old son Josh.

The song “Lay A Little Lovin' On Me” peaked at No. 11 after eight weeks on the Billboard Hot 100. His next single received almost no radio airplay, and McNamara remained best known as a one-hit artist.

Simon & Garfunkel's album Bridge Over Troubled Water was at No. 1 on the UK chart. It spent a total of 33 weeks at the top and won six Grammy Awards.

Creedence Clearwater Revival's album “Cosmo's Factory” reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 200, where it remained for nine weeks.

The song “Snowbird” entered the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and later climbed to No. 8. It became a million-selling hit and the first American Gold Record awarded to a Canadian female solo singer. The song’s success made her the first Canadian female solo singer to receive this honor in the United States. Songwriter Gene MacLellan said he wrote “Snowbird” in approximately 25 minutes after seeing a flock of snow buntings on a beach on Prince Edward Island.

B.J. Thomas was at No. 1 on the Easy Listening chart with the song “I Just Can't Help Believing”.

“Make It with You” reached No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, where it remained for one week. It was Bread’s first and only single to reach the top of the U.S. chart; in the United Kingdom, it reached No. 5. The song was written by singer David Gates. It was later recorded by, among others, The Supremes, Aretha Franklin, Earth, Wind & Fire, Dusty Springfield, Andy Williams, and Marc Cohn.

The fifth studio album “Cosmo's Factory” began a nine-week run at No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart, later known as the Billboard 200, and also reached No. 1 in the United Kingdom, Australia, France, Finland, Canada, and Norway. The album contained the hits “Up Around the Bend” (#4 U.S.), “Lookin' Out My Back Door” (#23 U.S.), and “Who'll Stop the Rain” (#2 U.S.). The title “Cosmo's Factory” came from the warehouse in Berkeley where the group rehearsed; John Fogerty insisted on rehearsing almost every day, and drummer Doug “Cosmo” Clifford therefore began calling the place “the factory”.

After leaving The Animals the previous year, Eric Burdon returned to the charts with his new group War and the song “Spill the Wine”, which reached No. 3. Burdon separated from War in 1971, while the group later continued successfully without him and recorded further hits, including “The World Is a Ghetto” (#9), “The Cisco Kid” (#12), “Gypsy Man” (#8), “Why Can't We Be Friends?” (#6), “Low Rider” (#7) and “Summer” (#7).

The Moody Blues began a three-week run at No. 1 on the British album chart with their sixth studio album, “A Question of Balance”. In the U.S., the album peaked at No. 3.

Anne Murray's "Snowbird" reached No. 1 on the Easy Listening chart.

Edwin Starr's "War", written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong, reached No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100, where it remained for three weeks. It reached No. 3 in the UK and became his only US No. 1 hit. The song was later nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance but lost to B. B. King's "The Thrill Is Gone". According to Starr, the song was not specifically about the Vietnam War but concerned gang violence and other domestic conflicts.

Elvis Presley's single "I've Lost You/The Next Step Is Love" reached No. 32 on the US chart.

Creedence Clearwater Revival's album Cosmo’s Factory spent its seventh week at No. 1 on the US album chart on October 3, 1970, out of a total of nine weeks at the top. The Woodstock soundtrack was No. 2, Joe Cocker's Mad Dogs & Englishmen was No. 3, and Chicago II by Chicago was No. 4. Also in the Top 10 were The Band's Stage Fright, Grand Funk Railroad's Closer to Home, The Moody Blues' A Question of Balance, The Who's Tommy, Blood, Sweat & Tears 3 and Neil Young's new release After the Gold Rush.