#1 songs on my birthday, 1974-1983

I have links only to the middle tune, the song of my birthday. You can go to the website and hear the other contenders. If I’ve heard it before, I won’t play it again. If I’ve never heard of it, I’ll play it once. But I won’t listen to the adjacent tunes. My goal: am I happy with THAT choice to celebrate my birthday? Or (as will be the case in the latter stages of the game), I have no idea?

2/9/74 Love Unlimited Orchestra – Love’s Theme
3/2/74 Terry Jacks – Seasons In The Sun
3/23/74 Cher – Dark Lady

Don’t particularly remember the Cher song. Unfortunately, I DO remember the drippy Seasons in the Sun, which I HAVE heard by someone else, to better effect. So, I pick yet another instrumental.

2/22/75 Average White Band – Pick Up The Pieces
2/29/75 Eagles – Best Of My Love
3/8/75 Olivia Newton-John – Have You Never Been Mellow

Oddly, own and like all of these, AWB maybe a bit more than the others. It’s almost an instrumental as well.

2/28/76 Rhythm Heritage – Theme From S.W.A.T
3/6/76 The Miracles – Love Machine (Part 1)
3/13/76 The Four Seasons – December 1963 (Oh, What A Night)

Possibly my favorite Four Seasons song. Yet I’m a sucker for that first big Miracles hit sans Smokey Robinson.

2/26/77 Eagles – New Kid In Town
3/5/77 Barbra Streisand – Love Theme From A Star Is Born (Evergreen)
3/26/77 Daryl Hall & John Oates – Rich Girl

Own all of these as well. Always related to the Eagles tune.

2/4/78 Bee Gees – Stayin’ Alive
3/4/78 Andy Gibb – (Love Is) Thicker Than Water
3/18/78 Bee Gees – Night Fever

I have ZERO recollection of the Andy Gibb song. On first listen, I’m not enthralled. Whereas I owned the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack, so have both Bee Gees songs. I like the heart-smart Stayin’ Alive; apparently, it’s the right beat when applying CPR. But I always enjoyed the story behind Night Fever. It seems the producers wanted a song that said “Saturday Night, Saturday Night,” but the brothers Gibb ignored them, and put out this track instead. Good on them.

1/6/79 Bee Gees – Too Much Heaven
2/10/79 Rod Stewart – Do Ya Think I’m Sexy?
3/10/79 Gloria Gaynor – I Will Survive

I’ll pick Gloria’s anthem over mod Rod, thank you.

2/16/80 Captain and Tennille – Do That To Me One More Time
2/23/80 Queen – Crazy Little Thing Called Love
3/22/80 Pink Floyd – Another Brick In The Wall (Part II)

A FantaCo colleague and I wrote some rather risque lyrics for the Pink Floyd song, so there’s that extra bit of nostalgia. I like the Queen too, but no specific recollection of the Daryl and Toni song.

2/21/81 Dolly Parton – 9 To 5
2/28/81 Eddie Rabbitt – I Love A Rainy Night
3/21/81 REO Speedwagon – Keep On Loving You

I liked the movie 9 to 5, so I’ll go with that. Though I do love a rainy night.

1/30/82 Daryl Hall & John Oates – I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do)
2/6/82 The J. Geils Band – Centerfold
3/20/82 Joan Jett & The Blackhearts – I Love Rock ‘N Roll

I share a birthday with Peter Wolf (b. 1946) of J. Geils. Love Hall & Oates, yet I Love Rock ‘N’ Roll is such a song of its period, I’d pick that.

2/19/83 Patti Austin with James Ingram – Baby, Come To Me
3/5/83 Michael Jackson – Billie Jean
4/23/83 Dexys Midnight Runners – Come On Eileen