Tuesday, August 23, 2005

Top Single: This Week in 1965

That's right, you guessed it. The No. 1 song in America 40 years ago this week was "I Got You Babe" by Sonny and Cher. This was the first big hit for the married duo, and would be their only No. 1 record. After Cher went on to a solo career, she would land three songs at the top of the charts, including "Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves."

If you remember, "I Got You Babe" played a big part in one of Bill Murray's best movies. It was the song which woke him up every morning -- the same morning -- in the 1993 movie Groundhog Day. The song was also the one Sonny and Cher sang when they had their television reunion on the David Letterman Show back in November 1987.

Strangely enough, Sonny and Cher's record company, Atco, didn't even want "I Got You Babe" as the A-side of the duo's single. They preferred a song called "It's Gonna Rain" as the A-side, with "Babe" as the B-side. Sonny, who wrote the song, decided to take matters into his own hands by taking "I Got You Babe" to radio station KHJ in Hollywood, and after the song proved to be an immediate smash with listeners, Atco changed their minds and released it as the A-side.

"I Got You Babe" grabbed the No. 1 spot on August 14, 1965, and stayed on top for three weeks. Here's the other songs which made up the Top 5 on August 14, 1965:

2. (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction -- Rolling Stones
3. Save Your Heart For Me -- Gary Lewis and the Playboys
4. I'm Henry VIII, I Am -- Herman's Hermits
5. What's New Pussycat? -- Tom Jones

No comments: