Early '70s "Break-In" Records on the Charts

The novelty record boom of the late fifties brought forth the "break-in" single, a creation by record producer Dickie Goodman in which he'd insert snippets of current hits into a little melodrama usually set up as a newscast. "The Flying Saucer" (credited to Goodman and his partner Bill Buchanan) was his biggest one, hitting #3 in 1956, after which Goodman, the original mad sampler, went straight to court. (He prevailed after judges declared his records to be artistic statements.)

The early seventies novelty resurgence spawned more break-in records thanks to the nostalgia boom among adults and the strong preteen radio demographic who appreciated their entertainment value. Dickie Goodman resurfaced on the charts during this era, along with some imitators, but the difference between these new break-in records and those of previous years—and those after—was a darker undercurrent that reflected frustrating current events. Kids could laugh at them, but the cognizant ears of adults were crucial to their success. A glance at Goodman's rather enormous discography indicates a consistent eye for politics and current events from the fifties all the way to his tragic death of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in 1989. (The image above comes from a 6/2/73 Billboard ad.) Below is a roundup of all the charting break-ins by Goodman and his imitators (with the non-charting "Speaking of Ecology" included for the sake of context).

*Bonus*

"Speaking of Ecology" (1971)

Dickie Goodman and Ruthie

Written by Bill Ramal and Dickie Goodman * 45: "Speaking of Ecology" / "Dayton's Theme" * Label: Ramgo Records * Billboard charts: —

Ecology was on everyone's mind in the early seventies, including that of "break-in" king Dickie Goodman, due to his involvement in the glass bottle industry campaign discussed previously. His non-charting "Speaking of Ecology" listed "Dickie Goodman and Ruthie" as artists, with Ruthie, as revealed by his son John in The King of Novelty (2000), being Goodman's mistress at the time. After this, a non-Goodman break-in single called "Convention '72" would renew public taste in Goodman's specialty.

The samples: "Shaft" (Isaac Hayes), "Ain't No Sunshine" (Bill Withers), "Make It Funky" (James Brown), "Gypsys, Tramps and Thieves" (Cher), "Only You Know and I Know" (Delaney and Bonnie), "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" (Joan Baez), "Thin Line Between Love and Hate" (Persuaders), "Yo Yo" (Osmonds), "Maggie May" (Rod Stewart), "Do You Know What I Mean" (Lee Michaels), "Never My Love" (5th Dimension), "Sweet City Woman" (Stampeders).

"Speaking of Ecology"

"Convention '72" (1972)

The Delegates

Written by Nick Cenci and Nick Koselaneos * Produced by Nik-Nik Productions * 45: "Convention '72" / "Funky Butt" * LP: The Delegates * Label: Mainstream * Billboard charts: Hot 100 (#8)

Pittsburgh record men Nick Cenci and Nick Koseleanos concocted this racy spoof of the Republican and Democratic conventions, which they had gotten KQV disk jockey Bob DeCarlo to record. Its top ten success must have irked "break-in" king Dickie Goodman, who had been creating break-in records without pause since the fifties, but at least "Convention '72" created a renewed interest in his stock in trade. Most kids, though, likely had no idea who and what the record spoofed. Uncredited jazz rock fills up side B.

The samples: "Troglodyte" (Jimmy Castor Bunch), "I Gotcha" (Joe Tex), "Lean on Me" (Bill Withers), "Sealed with a Kiss" (Bobby Vinton), "Happiest Girl in the Whole USA" (Donna Fargo), "Jungle Fever" (Chakachas), "Alone Again (Naturally)" (Gilbert O'Sullivan), "Coconut" (Nilsson), "A Horse with No Name" (America), "Take It Easy (In Your Mind)" (Jerry Reed)," "If Loving You Is Wrong (I Don't Wanna Be Right)" (Luther Ingram), "Back Stabbers" (The O'Jays), "Liar" (Three Dog Night), "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" (Bee Gees), "Mr. Big Stuff" (Jean Knight), "Gypsys, Tramps and Thieves" (Cher), "Last Night I Couldn't Get to Sleep" (5th Dimension), "Double Barrel" (Dave and Ansell Collins), "The Candy Man" (Sammy Davis Jr.), "I Don't Know How to Love Him" (Yvonne Elliman).

Side A: "Convention '72"


Side B: "Funky Butt"

"Super Fly Meets Shaft" (1973)

John and Ernest

Written and produced by Dickie Goodman and Sal Passantino * 45: "Super Fly Meets Shaft" / "Part Two" (Rainy Wednesday) * LP: Mr. Jaws and Other Fables by Dickie Goodman (Cash, 1975) * Billboard charts: Hot 100 (#31), soul (#17)

Dickie Goodman teamed up with a partner named Sal Passantino for this pseudonymous record featuring two white guys (although no one knew that) satirizing black popular culture. (Joel Whitburn cites the duo as "John Free" and "Ernest Smith," but these are likely pseudonyms he'd found somewhere for Goodman and Passantino.) It's another record that could entertain preteens who likely had little familiarity with contemporary icons of blaxploitation films such as Superfly or Shaft. The record's content propelled it to #17 on Billboard's soul chart; a John and Ernest follow-up called "Soul President Number One" would never reach the charts. The gag track on the other side ("Part Two") is a two-minute continuation of the jumbled up "Superfly" utterance that closes side A. On his 45cat profile, Passantino reports that Curtis Mayfield had sued the duo over it, but settled "for $1,000 and a withdrawal of the song."

The samples: A mystery version of Jackie Ross's "Selfish One," "I Got Ants in My Pants" (James Brown), "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone" (Temptations), "Keeper of the Castle" (Four Tops), "Me and Mrs. Jones" (Billy Paul), "I'll Be Around" (Spinners), "Shaft" (Isaac Hayes), "Back Stabbers" (O'Jays), "Love Train" (O'Jays), "Freddie's Dead" (Curtis Mayfield), "Daddy's Home" (Jermaine Jackson).

Side A: "Super Fly Meets Shaft"


Side B: "Part Two"

"Watergrate" (1973)

Dickie Goodman

Written and produced by Dickie Goodman * 45: "Watergrate" / "Friends" * Label: Rainy Wednesday * Billboard charts: Hot 100 (#42)

Among the fallout of the Watergate break-in scandal was this break-in record by Dickie Goodman, which came out shortly after the Senate Watergate committee hearings became a regular televised event. Side B contained soul instrumental filler music played by nameless session players, with writing credits to "P.D." (public domain). The "Watergrate" title jibed with all of the other mangled names on the record, such as "John Snitchell."

The samples: "Soul Makossa" (Manu Dibango), "Pillow Talk" (Sylvia), "Drinkin' Wine Spo-De-O-Dee" (Jerry Lee Lewis), "Stuck in the Middle with You" (Stealers Wheel), "No More Mr. Nice Guy" (Alice Cooper), "Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" (Dawn Featuring Tony Orlando), "Wild Flower" (Skylark), "The Cisco Kid" (War), "Funky Worm" (Ohio Players), "Reelin' in the Years" (Steely Dan), "I Knew Jesus (Before He Was a Superstar)" (Glen Campbell), "You Are the Sunshine of My Life" (Stevie Wonder), "My Love" (Paul McCartney and Wings).

Side A: "Watergrate"


Side B: "Friends"

"Energy Crisis '74" (1974)

Dickie Goodman

Written by Dickie Goodman * Produced by Dickie Goodman and Phil Kahl * 45: "Energy Crisis '74" / "Ruthie's Theme" (Rainy Wednesday) * LP: Mr. Jaws and Other Fables by Dickie Goodman (Cash, 1975) * Billboard charts: Hot 100 (#33)

This Top 40 hit perhaps took the edge off of radio listeners waiting in the early seventies' notoriously long gas lines, a direct effect of the Arab oil embargo. Helen Reddy's recurring "Leave Me Alone" voiced the precise response cynical Americans expected to hear from higher ups regarding the crisis. Side B ("Ruthie's Song") contains the kind of horn-rock filler music that also appeared on "Watergrate," and as explained earlier (see "Speaking of Ecology"), "Ruthie" was the name of Goodman's mistress—an especially good reason, perhaps, for its public domain writing credit.

The samples: "Leave Me Alone (Ruby Red Dress)" (Helen Reddy), "Smokin' in the Boys' Room" (Brownsville Station), "Livin' for the City" (Stevie Wonder), "Helen Wheels" (Paul McCartney and Wings), "Mind Games" (John Lennon), "The Joker" (Steve Miller Band), "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" (Elton John), "Hello It's Me" (Todd Rundgren), "You're Sixteen" (Ringo Starr), "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World" (Charlie Rich), "Top of the World" (The Carpenters).

Side A: "Energy Crisis '74"


Side B: "Ruthie's Theme"

"Mr. President" (1974)

Dickie Goodman

Written by M. Alexander * Produced by Dickie Goodman * 45: "Mr. President" / "Popularity" * Label: Rainy Wednesday * Billboard charts: Hot 100 (#73)

At this stage the Watergate hearings were all about tapes and missing conversations, as was this record. "Mr. President" would be the last of Goodman's political break-in offerings to crack the Hot 100. (M. Alexander was likely a Goodman pseudonym.) His final two charting hits, occurring in the second half of the decade, would be movie tie-ins: "Mr. Jaws" (#4 in 1975) and "Kong" (#48 in 1977).

The samples: "The Streak" (Ray Stevens), "Seasons in the Sun" (Terry Jacks), "Bennie and the Jets" (Elton John), "Don't You Worry 'Bout a Thing" (Stevie Wonder), "My Girl Bill" (Jim Stafford), "Dancin' Machine" (Jackson 5), "The Entertainer" (Marvin Hamlisch), "Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me" (Gladys Knight and the Pips), "The Loco Motion" (Grand Funk), "Oh My My" (Ringo Starr), "Hooked on a Feeling" (Blue Swede), "I Won't Last a Day Without You" (The Carpenters).

"Mr. President"

"Evil Boll-Weevil" (1974)

Grand Canyon

Written by Jeff McKee and Ed Brown * Produced by Jeff McKee * 45: "Evil Boll-Weevil" / "Got to Find My Way Back" * Label: Bang * Billboard charts: (#72)

The stuntman Evel Knevel was a subject all age groups could fully understand, unlike the political quagmires that previous charting break-in records had been lampooning. But Jeff McKee, the co-writer and producer (with no involvement from break-in king Dickie Goodman) explains in the comments for the YouTube link that this single suffered from bad timing. It mimicked Ed Sullivan but appeared at the same time as the beloved TV personality's death in October 1974, affecting stations' willingness to air it. McKee and co-writer Ed Brown worked at Top 40 station WQXI in Atlanta, hence the "Chattahoochee," "Doraville" and "Peachtree" references. An outtake from Paul "I Go Crazy" Davis, signed to Bang at the time, appears as the single's flip, possibly the best of all "break in" B sides. Listen to the guitar hook—it's one to remember.

The samples: "Jet" (Paul McCartney and Wings), "Summer Breeze" (Seals and Crofts), "Rocket Man" (Elton John), "It's My Life" (The Animals), "Evil Ways" (Santana), "Dialogue (Part I & II)" (Chicago), "Sweet Home Alabama" (Lynyrd Skynyrd), "Help Me" (Joni Mitchell), "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" (Elton John), "Baby You're a Rich Man" (Beatles), "Clap for the Wolfman" (The Guess Who), "Here, There and Everywhere" (Beatles), "Rock and Roll Heaven" (Righteous Brothers), "Feel Like Makin' Love" (Roberta Flack), "Billion Dollar Babies" (Alice Cooper), "Do It Again" (Steely Dan), "Doraville" (Atlanta Rhythm Section), "Please Come to Boston" (Dave Loggins), "La Grange" (ZZ Top).

Side A: "Evil Boll-Weevil"


Side B: "Got to Find My Way Back"

Wolfman Jack's "Jesus Crusade"

This headline appeared in the Nov. 27, 1971 issue of Billboard (p. 20), and Nat Freedland's article included the following:

"Wolfman Jack, the raspy-voiced veteran of 16 years in Mexican border super-transmitter radio, is shipping a public service Jesus Rock half-hour show free to any radio station that requests it. Wolfman Jack's 'Jesus Crusade' is already set for 50 major markets and begins broadcasting in December.

" 'The show features music like George Harrison's "My Sweet Lord" and Ocean doing "Put Your Hand in the Hand," ' notes Wolfman, 'all the religious-oriented rock songs that have made the charts.' Interspersed with the music will be Jack telling Bible stories in his own inimitable manner. In addition, Wolfman will answer mailed-in questions from his listeners as part of regular conversations with non-denominational Protestant Minister Joe Racculia.

"The show's audience will be encouraged to think of itself as members of a Jesus Christ Fan Club. 'I know this sounds hokey,' says Jack. 'But I feel that the traditional organized religious approach is obviously not reaching the kids and all I want to do is pass on the message in a way they can relate to. Like, when I'm asked if the Bible says it's forbidden to smoke grass, I'll say it's not forbidden, but the Bible says, 'Do not endanger the House of God,' which means the human body.

" 'In recent months I have been brought closer to the Lord and what I want most to do now is bring young people to Jesus. I've certainly made enough money from the other things I do so that I don't have to do this for the money...'

"...A Wolfman Jack Bible Stories album has been completed with back-up music by jazz pianist Victor Feldman and will probably be offered via the Jesus Rock show in a few months, at a lower price than if it was released through a major label."

Nothing is mentioned about any of this in Wolfman Jack's Have Mercy autobiography. I also haven't had any luck finding any other evidence about the show's existence (or the album's), save for another brief mention of it on page 21 of the April 15, 1972 Billboard. Strange.

Wolfman Jack on the Charts

Wolfman Jack (born Bob Smith) created such a perfect radio persona that it's hard to imagine him not being around before he started howling from XERF, a 250,000 watt "border blaster" in Ciudad Acuña (near Del Rio, Texas) in 1963. Later in the sixties, the Wolfman's moon-bark and growling jive talk filled American midnight skies thanks to two additional airwave monsters, the Tijuana stations XERB and XEG. He was the hallucinating night driver's companion, the insomniac's blessing and curse, and the juvie's secret accomplice. (He remembers the '50s DJs he cut his fangs on as being "a lot cooler than even the toughest hood in the toughest street gang around.") It all sounds a bit mythical, but George Lucas was one listener who experienced the Wolfman's radio hoodoo and made it quasi mythical by featuring it as a crucial aspect of American Graffiti (1973), the ultimate manifestation of the early seventies nostalgia boom.

For me, what makes Wolfman Jack special among radio legends is that he was a true "personality DJ" fueled by music. Usually the personality jocks are inconvenienced by music while the music wonks tend not to sweat the manner of delivery. It was Wolfman Jack's passion for R&B 45's he discovered in the '50s, most of them oldies by the time he became a household name, that fueled his character and made him so addictive to listeners. This passion is all over his 1995 memoir Have Mercy: Confessions of the Original Rock 'n' Roll Animal (written with Byron Laursen), and it's one reason why the book, published only a single month before his death, is such a pleasurable showbiz memoir. Other reasons are its voice, which anyone familiar with him would recognize as his (hats off to Laursen, who transcribed personal interviews), along with remarkable stories like the one where he explains how he joined forces with XERF. That's a tale of shadowy border intrigue, greenbacks in burlap sacks, and gun slinging bandidos worthy of a rock 'n' roll corrido or two.

The post-American Graffiti Wolfman Jack, of course, was a multimedia experience. In addition to ongoing radio work, he was the Midnight Special host from 1973 to 1981, a regular presence on TV commercials ("Clearasil's the triple threat!"), and the guest star/host of many a sitcom, drama, and variety show. All of this activity makes me think about the stuff the Wolfman didn't do. How would his involvement in Happy Days have reshaped the show had his staff not turned down the show's invitation? Or how might his ambitious road show I Saw Radio - featuring tributes to vintage rock 'n' roll, archived clips from classic DJs, and an elaborate set including a massive radio dial - have flourished had it not literally gone up in flames, thanks to some Union thugs? (His recounting of a confrontation between said thugs, the show's road crew, and some Detroit theater security who turned out to be "three of the wimpiest rent-a-cops this side of a Don Knotts film festival" is another story that sticks in my head.)  To his credit, whatever the media situation Wolfman Jack did find himself prowling through, his rock 'n' roll pedigree was always the clear reason why.

Here are a handful of Wolfman Jack-oriented singles that got airplay in the early to mid-'70s and charted in Billboard:

Wolfman Jack - "I Ain't Never Seen a White Man" (Billboard #106, entered 9/23/72). Written by Dick Monda. Produced by Don Sciarrotta and Dick Monda. 45: "I Ain't Never Seen a White Man"/"Gallop" (Wooden Nickel 1972). LP: Wolfman Jack (Wooden Nickel 1972).

This racial equality offering appeared on Wolfman Jack's self-titled solo album, which was his first proper one (pictured above). It featured compositions by Richard Monda, who had already been writing songs for another wolfman and his monster friends on the Groovie Goolies cartoon. As Daddy Dewdrop, Monda took his song "Chick-A-Boom (Don't Ya Jes' Love It)", with its Wolfman Jack-influenced lead vocal, to #6 in 1971.

The Guess Who - "Clap for the Wolfman" (Billboard #6, entered 7/20/74). Written by Burton Cummings, Bill Wallace, and Kurt Winter. Produced by Jack Richardson. 45: "Clap for the Wolfman"/"Road Food" (RCA Victor 1974). LP: Road Food (RCA Victor 1974).

Canada got a real case of Wolfman fever in the mid-'70s and this might have had to do with his 1973 stints on WNEW and WNBC in New York City. In his Have Mercy book, he claims that this single's success and a subsequent tour with the Guess Who saved him from a self-destructive situation in the Big Apple. Must have been pretty bad if a rock 'n' roll tour felt like rehab.

Ray Stevens - "Moonlight Special" (Billboard #73, entered 7/27/74). Written and produced by Ray Stevens. 45: "Moonlight Special"/"Just So Proud to Be Here" (Barnaby 1974). LP: Boogity Boogity (Barnaby 1974).

A pretty funny parody featuring "The Sheepdog" introducing acts like "Mildred Queen and the Dips" (Gladys Knight and the Pips), "Agnes Stupor" (Alice Cooper), and "J. Joe Harry Lee Jimmy Bimmy" (Jerry Lee Lewis). This was Stevens' followup single for his chart-topping "The Streak."

Sugarloaf/Jerry Corbetta - "Don't Call Us, We'll Call You" (Billboard #9, entered 12/7/74). Written by Jerry Corbetta and John Carter. Produced by Frank Slay. 45: "Don't Call Us, We'll Call You"/"Texas Two-Lane" (Claridge (1975). LP: Don't Call Us - We'll Call You (Claridge 1975).

This Denver group was simply called "Sugarloaf" when they hit #3 with "Green Eyed Lady" in 1970. With this single, they were officially "Sugarloaf/Jerry Corbetta," since Corbetta had been working as a solo artist for another label before getting back together with the old gang. "Don't Call Us" razzes on CBS Records, who had recently rejected the band, and includes the dialtones to the label's private number. Also featured: winks to the Beatles and Stevie Wonder along with an imitation of the Wolfman. (Love that B-side!)

Todd Rundgren - "Wolfman Jack" (Billboard #105  entered 1/18/75). Written and produced by Todd Rundgren. 45: "Wolfman Jack"/"Breathless" (Bearsville 1974). LP: (The version with Wolfman's participation appeared on no album).

On Rundgren's 1972 Something/Anything? album, this song (which doubles up as a thumping Motown tribute) appears without the Wolfman's voice anywhere. The 1974 single release of "Wolfman Jack," though, rectified the situation.

Wings - "Listen to What the Man Said" (Billboard #1, entered 5/31/75). Written by Paul McCartney and Linda McCartney. Produced by Paul McCartney. 45: "Listen to What the Man Said"/"Love in Song" (Capitol 1975). LP: Venus and Mars (Capitol 1975).

Although the radio version of this Paul McCartney smash often didn't include it, the Venus and Mars album version starts out with a spoken Wolfman Jack intro: "Heh, heh, very good to see you down in New Orleans, heh, heh, yeah, yeah..."

The Stampeders - "Hit the Road Jack" (Billboard #40, entered 2/28/76). Written by Percy Mayfield. Produced by Mel Shaw. 45: "Hit the Road Jack"/"Hard Lovin Woman" (Quality 1975). LP: Steamin (Music World Creations 1976).

More Canadian love for the Wolfman, this time from the Calgary trio who scored a #8 hit in 1971 with "Sweet City Woman." Lacking in Ray Charles buoyancy, the single's still fun with contributions from Wolfman Jack himself. In 1976 and 1977 he would host a TV variety series called The Wolfman Jack Show, which was filmed in Vancouver and syndicated to the US.

Flash Cadillac and the Continental Kids - "Did You Boogie (With Your Baby)" (Billboard #29, entered 8/26/76). Written by Rod McQueen. Produced by Joe Renzetti and David Chackler. 45: "Did You Boogie (With Your Baby)"/"Maybe It's All in My Mind" (Private Stock 1976). LP: Sons of the Beaches (Private Stock 1976).

This Sha Na Na-style '50s tribute band (also from Colorado, like Sugarloaf) appeared in American Graffiti as the prom combo and contributed the only freshly-recorded material to the movie's soundtrack album. An eventual team up with Wolfman Jack, then, seemed natural, even if it ended up sounding more like something from Happy Days' shark-jumping era. (Certain pressings of this single, for some reason, omitted his spoken interludes.)

Late '70s Bonus:

Tammy Wynette - "(I'd Like to See Jesus) On the Midnight Special" (1978, country #26): Written by Dorvell Smith and Robert Seay. Produced by Billy Sherrill. 45: "(I'd Like to See Jesus) On the Midnight Special"/"Love Doesn't Always Come (On the Night You Need It)" (Epic 1978). LP: Womanhood (Epic 1978).

The chorus goes, "I'd like to Jesus on the Midnight Special, I'd like to see the Wolfman bring him on." Wolfman Jack's response: "...To my knowledge, the Son of God never made a personal appearance for us [on the Midnight Special]. But practically everybody else in show business eventually did" (Have Mercy, p. 263).