*Survey courtesy Gary Pfeifer and ARSA site
Last month we covered Alaska ... so this week we jump down to Hawaii! (How often are you going to see charts from either one of these brand new states, especially dating back 50 years?!?!?)
Yet, for the most part, everything seems relatively normal here chartwise (with a few notable exceptions ... such as THE Exception at #2 with a track called "You Don't Know What I Know," a nice cover of the Sam and Dave tune.)
We also see that The Fabulous Farquahr are back, this time with a premier of their latest, "My Island." (Clark will cover both of these in his weekly commentary ... our job is to focus on the hits! lol)
In that respect, the biggest movers of the week seem to be The Rolling Stones (their latest, "Jumpin' Jack Flash," climbs up five spaces from #11 to #6), The Sweet Inspirations (doing "Sweet Inspiration," which takes a leap of NINE places to become the biggest mover of the week, up from #19 to #10) and Gary Puckett and the Union Gap's new hit, "Lady Willpower," which climbs from #20 to #13, a jump of seven places. (kk)
6-11-68 KPOI Honolulu, Hawaii
A few future stars get the obscure showcase this week in our 1968 chart from the 50th state. The #2 ranked Exception and their cover of Sam & Dave's 1966 hit "You Don't Know Like I Know" gets the spotlight first. The band was one of the supergroups of the Chicago 60's featuring Pete Cetera (later of Chicago) as well as future members of the NC6, The Buckinghams and the Fabulous Rhinestones! Within the year (and after three failed Capitol Records singles), the band would split and members would go on to greater heights.
A nice song, "My Island" by Connecticutt's Fabulous Farquar, gets the expected (as the title would suggest) hit status here as well.
Lastly, future Poco and Eagles member, Randy Meisner, who hailed from Nebraska, but was in the Poor in 1968, when they recorded "Feeling Down," which was a "bubbling under" this week on KPOI. Formed from Denver bands before moving to California, The Poor had just recorded the main theme for "Hells Angels on Wheels," as had Davie Allan previously done in similar films. Despite its excellence, this 45 would end the group's attempts and Meisner would move on to much greener pastures.
-- Clark Besch
The success of The Exceptions' record at #2 cannot help but spark a WTF moment.
These guys were from CHICAGO ... and were one of the most highly respected bar bands on the local scene ... yet they never placed a record on the charts here. Nationally, they never so much as "bubbled under" on any of the major trade charts.
Yet here they are, with the #2 Record in Hawaii!!!
(As a rule, several of our Chicagoland Local Heroes did exceptionally well ... pun intended ... on the Hawaiian charts over the years ... but this was a group that, short of our own downtown bar scene, NOBODY even knew!!!)
Somebody really should put together some type of collection of all of their recorded works. Just the fact that the band spawned Peter Cetera of Chicago and Marty Grebb of The Buckinghams would be enough to warrant that ... and it would give listeners a chance to learn more about the band and their sound.
This Week in '68:
6/11/68 – A fire breaks
out in the London studio where The Rolling Stones were recording the track
“Sympathy For The Devil” for their “Beggar’s Banquet” album.
Across town, The Beatles
are busy in the studio today, too … John Lennon is working on his “Revolution
9” montage in Studio 3 while Paul McCartney is alone in Studio 2 recording
“Blackbird”
6/14/68 - Iron Butterfly’s
“In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida” album is released. (Over 25 million copies have been sold
since!)
6/15/68 – John and Yoko plant
an acorn at Coventry Cathedral, UK
Also on 6/15/68, Jazz Guitarist
Wes Montgomery dies at the age of 48 in New York City
6/16/68 – Elvis
Presley’s new movie “Speedway” (co-starring Nancy Sinatra) opens in Charlotte,
North Carolina, where much of it was filmed.
