DAILY DIRT: From a male perspective, the ’70s’ top effort(s) belonged to Sir Rod Stewart

Daily Dirt for Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025

At least the first eight songs in today’s rankings are Hall of Fame worthy … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 1,214 of The Daily Dirt.

1. Today it’s the guys’ turn.

Yesterday we spotlighted the top 10 songs from individual female singers from the 1970s, and I must say I feel like today’s product is stronger overall.

When I was wading through all of the Billboard charts from that decade to make sure I had not missed any songs, what struck me was the serious lack of female entries. There were plenty of guys’ songs to choose from, but the ladies were seriously lacking and I have no idea why.

Maybe things will change as we move into other decades as the year progresses, but it’s definitely food for thought. I’ll be interested to see how this branch of music plays out.

1. “Maggie May/Reason to Believe,” by Rod Stewart (1971): Has there ever been a .45 record that contained two songs of this magnitude? Both songs were part of the famous “Every Picture Tells A Story” album.

2. “Heart of Gold,” by Neil Young (1972):“I’ve been to Hollywood, I’ve been to Redwood … “

3-tie. “Tonight’s The Night” and “First Cut Is The Deepest,” by Rod Stewart (1976): Cat Stevens actually wrote “First Cut Is The Deepest”. 

4. “Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad,” by Meat Loaf: “Maybe we can talk all night … “

5-tie. “Margaritaville” and “Come Monday,” by Jimmy Buffet (1979): “Strummin’ my six string on my front porch swing …”

6. “Tiny Dancer,” by Elton John (1972): For me, it’s always a tossup which Elton John song was the greatest, this one or “Rocket Man”.

7-tie. “Let’s Stay Together” and “I’m Still In Love With You,” by Al Green (1972): This was his lone No. 1 song, though he dominated the soul and pop charts for much of the decade.

8. “Fire and Rain,” by James Taylor (1970): This song’s background deals with mental illness, which plague “Sweet Baby James,” along with alcohol and heroin.

9. “Two Tickets to Paradise,” by Eddie Money (1978): His real name was Edward Joseph Mahoney.

10. “You’re the First, Last My Everything,” by Barry White (1975): The sultry serenader at his finest.

2. Did you know (Part 288)

• That Elvis Presley recorded more than 600 songs during his career, but did not write any of them.
• That the band Toto, made famous by its single “Africa,” was Michael Jackson’s backing band on the album “Thriller”.
• That James Brown was an extremely strict bandleader. During concerts, he had signals arranged with his manager to let him know if a musician made a mistake. After the concert, everything was tallied up and the musicians had their mistakes taken out of their paychecks.
• That Rihanna’s song “Umbrella” was originally supposed to be for Britney Spears, but her record label rejected the song.
• That the national symphony orchestra in the Principality of Monaco has more members than its army corps.

3. Like yesterday, we’re continuing with today’s music theme and I would like to suggest five more classic videos for you to watch.

In no particular order:

• “Hungry Eyes,” by Eric Carmen (the official video from the movie “Dirty Dancing”).
• “Love Is All Around,” by Wet Wet Wet.
• “Sherry Darling,” by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (1979 No Nukes Concert).
• “If I Could Back Time,” by Cher. (It’s the official video, the one with Cher and all the sailors).
• “As I Lay Me Down,” by Sophie B. Hawkins.

Steve Thought O’ The Day — If you’re not that familiar with Sophie B. Hawkins, check out some of her work from the early 1990s. “Damn I Wish I was Your Lover” was her other big hit. Now 60, Hawkins occasionally shows up on a talk show, but for the most part is retired.

Steve Eighinger writes daily for Muddy River News. If you didn’t know Steve was going to put “Rod the Mod” at the top of this list, you haven’t been paying attention.