Okay, let’s shifts gears from my blend of basketball and bass fishing to my blend of tunes and bass fishing.
Yes, folks, Trip Tunes returns for another year, albeit in belated fashion. Perhaps you recall my less than impressive performance during my first fishing trip of 2020 back on March 7. While it only produced one bass, it did result in the Top 10 Trip Tunes selection that comes your way over the next two days.
For anyone new to the series, I still roll with the radio about anywhere I go and that includes the drive to and from the fishing hole. When it is all said and done I pick the Top 10 cuts that graced the airwaves and pass along not only my countdown but also my two cents regarding each tune.
And it goes a little something like this…hit it!
10. Kung Fu Fighting – Carl Douglas (1975)
While I was familiar with Bruce Lee and used to watch Grasshopper snatch the pebble from his Master’s hand, I wasn’t really a Kung Fu kid. Regardless, this one-hit wonder that went all the way to the top of the charts was right on target for an eight-year old armed with a radio on the nightstand. Still gets folks going all of these years later and I will always remember a friend and co-worker from the 90s expertly hitting each “Huh!” and “Ha!” along the way. R.D., if you’re out there, quite a treat.
9. Cruel to be Kind – Nick Lowe (1979)
For music fans of my age range, MTV was a revolution. Not only was I introduced to a wider range of tastes but I also got to actually see the performers performing. So many more than The Midnight Special, American Bandstand, Don Kirshner’s Rock Concert, Night Flight, Saturday Night Live or Fridays could provide. Artists such as Nick Lowe were among the initial batch of video offerings that continue to entertain nearly 40 years later. MTV would eventually go down the tubes but I’m proud to say that I knew MTV when it used to rock n’ roll.
8. Hurting Each Other – The Carpenters (1972)
What do you get when you combine top notch songwriting, exquisite arrangements and one of the top female vocalists of all-time? Well, you get The Carpenters, who compiled three Billboard chart toppers (15 on the Adult Contemporary chart), five number two hits, several Grammy awards, 90 million records sold, television shows and a Hollywood star. For those who find it not cool to be a Carpenters fan, you are missing out. And while I’m at it, I also dig Barry Manilow, Air Supply and The Village People.
7. Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head (1969)
While we are talking top vocalists, I’d rank B.J. Thomas right up there on my list of male singers. “Raindrops” and “Hey, Won’t You Play…” are fixtures when revisiting the soundtrack of my childhood courtesy of a transistor radio or wood panel station wagon dial. Over the years there’ve been more than a few rainy days on the water where I’ve found this tune creeping into my mind. A welcome treat when I get into that wonderful zone of escape where “nothing’s worrying me.”
6. The Love You Save – Jackson 5 (1970)
I challenge you to pull any version of this tune up on the internet that features some live footage of these performers and not find yourself smiling. Better yet, not find yourself moving, or even pondering dancing. Heck, I’m smiling now just thinking about that little eleven year old performer getting down. Interesting lyrics too, as they reference Isaac Newton, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Graham Bell and Christopher Columbus. When this tune hit the top of the charts in 1970, my household consisted of the Jackson 4. A few years later it would skip right past the Jackson 5 as we welcomed two at a time.
Been a while since I got distracted on one of these remotely fishing related tangents, kind of missed it. Lucky for me, I get to do it again tomorrow with the Top 5. Talk to you later. Troy