1973 In Music - April's Almost Made the Charts

Continuing my look at songs that dropped off the charts during the month, but never made the Top 40.  And for the April, I counted 16.  That's notably fewer than previous months in 1973. February and March.

Here they are, with peak position noted:

• Superman - Donna Fargo - 41
• Down And Out In New York City - James Brown - 50
• Pardon Me Sir - Joe Cocker - 51
• Let Your Yeah Be Yeah - Brownsville Station - 57
• Yesterday I Had The Blues - Harold Melvin And The Blue Notes - 63
• If You Gotta Break Another Heart - Albert Hammond - 63
• Gudbuy T' Jane - Slade - 68
• Mama Was A Rock And Roll Singer, Papa Used To Write All Her Songs Part 1 - Sonny & Cher - 77
• Wish That I Could Talk To You - The Sylvers - 77
• Sail On Sailor - The Beach Boys - 79
• Delta Queen - Don Fardon - 86
• River Road - Uncle Dog - 86
• If I Could Only Be Sure - Nolan Porter - 89
• Saw A New Morning - Bee Gees - 94
• Mr. Magic Man - Wilson Pickett - 98
• Friend And A Lover - The Partridge Family - 99

Pond 17 - Color or Black and White?

Pond 17 at Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge in Marion, IL.  

Just a simple iPhone shot, converted to B&W later (on the computer).

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Watershed Nature Center

A couple of bird shots from a recent wander at Watershed Nature Center, Edwardsville, IL, USA.  

I was watchingthis Heron hunting, looked down to adjust my camera settings for the tricky light, and completely missed the catch.  But he (she?) held it nicely for a quick photo!

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I caught his Egret (Heron?) at the end of our walk, across the main pond.  I liked the layers, especially the Redbud in the background.

 

On The Charts - April 1973

 Continuing the review of songs that were on the Top 40 (US) charts 50 years ago (1973).  We're on to April, and 33% through the year!  

All of the 1973 music posts can be seen HERE, btw.

Following the format from last year, here's the Top 10 songs for April1973, based on the average chart position (US charts) over the 4 weeks in the month:

• The Night The Lights Went Out In Georgia - Vicki Lawrence - 2
• Tie A Yellow Ribbon Round The Ole Oak Tree - Dawn Featuring Tony Orlando - 2.75
• Sing - Carpenters - 4.5
• The Cisco Kid - War - 5.5
• Neither One Of Us (Wants To Be The First To Say Goodbye) - Gladys Knight And The Pips - 5.5
• Ain't No Woman (Like The One I've Got) - Four Tops - 5.75
• Masterpiece - The Temptations - 10
• Danny's Song - Anne Murray - 10.5
• Little Willy - The Sweet - 11
• Killing Me Softly With His Song - Roberta Flack - 11.5

"The Night The Lights Went Out In Georgia" spent the first 2 weeks at #1, followed by "Tie A Yellow Ribbon Round The Ole Oak Tree" for the next 2 weeks.  

There were 56 individual songs on the Top 40 over the course of the 4 weeks, wich tracks pretty closely with the January, February and March.

Not the greatest month for me, as far as top 10, I only own 6 of the 10 songs, but only one I didn't remember (Masterpiece).   On the other hand, there were quite a few great songs making their Top 40 debuts:

• Reeling In The Years - Steely Dan - 25
• Pillow Talk - Sylvia - 30
• Thinking Of You - Loggins & Messina - 32
• Out Of The Question - Gilbert O'Sullivan - 34
• Daniel - Elton John - 35
• "Cherry Cherry" from Hot August Night - Neil Diamond - 36
• My Love - Paul McCartney And Wings - 36
• One Man Band (Plays All Alone) - Ronnie Dyson - 37
• Funky Worm - Ohio Players - 37
• Armed And Extremely Dangerous - First Choice - 37
• Step By Step - Joe Simon - 38
• The Right Thing To Do - Carly Simon - 38
• I'm Doin' Fine Now - New York City - 38
• Bitter Bad - Melanie - 38
• Hallelujah Day - Jackson 5 - 39
• Frankenstein - Edgar Winter Group - 39
• Hocus Pocus - Focus - 39
• Pinball Wizard/See Me, Feel Me - The New Seekers - 40
• Oh La De Da - The Staple Singers - 40
• Leaving Me - The Independents - 40

So that's it, look for the post later this month of songs that dropped off the Hot 100 in April without having made the Top 40!

Toulouse Street

 

"I'm walkin' in shadows, I cannot see.  Faces, they smile when I fall or flee.  Doors without windows all shuttered tight.  I just might pass this way again" - Doobie Brothers - Toulouse Street.

Doorway, Toulouse Street, French Quarter, New Orleans, USA

Monument to the Immigrant

 Statue on the waterfront in New Orleans...  

As noted on the internet:  "The “Monument to the Immigrant” was erected in March 1995 and stands along the Mississippi River in Woldenberg Park. The monument depicts an immigrant family on one side and the other side a stylized figure shaped like the front of a ship, reminding people that New Orleans is historically a port city and a city of immigrants."

This is the side facing the city, the other side (with an immigrant family) faces the river.  I like this side much better than the other, but that's just my opinion...

Elizabeth Female Academy, Natchez, Mississippi

During our recent travels, we drove 100 miles +/- on the Natchez Trace Parkway. Just 5 miles from the Natchez start is the remains of the Elizabeth Female Academy, which was the 1st female educational institution in Mississippi, and was active from 1818 to 1845. I took a handful of photos, but these 2 are my favorites. 

 Shot with the camera's B&W filter (not converted on the computer).  First one is SOOC (straight out of camera) and the second has very minor tweaks (I think I  added a hint of "warmth".

 
Which do you prefer?

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One of my favorite thing about digital is that it is "free".  there is no cost to take reference photos, like the signs at historical places,  So, here's some notes on the Academy: 

Yellow Crowned Night Heron

 During our recent trip to New Orleans, we took a drive to Venice, LA, which is (reportedly) the Southernmost Point in Louisiana. They even have a sign where the road runs out. This Heron was hanging out where the road ended, and was polite enough to pose for a couple of photos. This is a new entry in my gallery of birds I've photographed!

Hiker's 365 Challenge - March update

 March is in the books, and we're 25% through the year!  Through 3/31, I've completed 127 miles, still nicely above pace (90 miles).  That said I managed 0.7 fewer miles in March than February, even with 3 more days.  Blame it on weather, travel and work.  

I did add hikes in Louisianna, so I've hiked in 6 states over the past 3 months (IL, LA, MO, OH, PA, VA). Not that it means anything, but I think it is cool.  I'll be pleasantly surprised if I make a dozen for the year, 10 is probably more realistic.  

 I did continue to lengthen my hikes, my average for March was 2.0, up from 1.8 in February and 1.4 in January.  I tried to be better about posting to the Weekend Adventurer Facebook group, but still pretty spotty. 

Looks like I only posted 3 shots of my badge, I need to be better about that!

Color or Black and White: Owens Creek Waterfall

Owens Creek Waterfall is at mile 52.4 of the Natchez Trace Parkway, about an hour from the SW terminus (at Natchez, MS).  Very cool spot, although the creek was a little slow.  I took this photo in color, but with black and white in mind.  Both images are tweaked in a hotel room, on my iPad, using Snapseed editing ap.  The original photo is from my Fujifilm X-T4,  Zoom was at 18mm (27mm equivalent).

So, what do you think?

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