Take a walk down memory lane with commentary from legendary Countdown host Molly Meldrum
Step back in time with Countdown host Molly Meldrum in the second part of HiberNation’s return to the good old days of music. Check out the biggest Aussie hits of the 1970s – and cast a vote for your favourite!
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In the second part of our decade of music hits series, we highlight the biggest Australian songs of each year in the 1970s with commentary from legendary Countdown host Molly Meldrum.
Special assistance was given by chart guru Gavin Ryan, who crunched the vintage numbers.
TOP AUSSIE HITS EACH YEAR OF THE 1970S
1970: IN THE SUMMERTIME – THE MIXTURES
This local group lucked out by having their cover of the hit by UK band Mungo Jerry released on a small label (Fable) at a time when major record labels were involved in a bitter copyright battle with radio stations.
With the British version black-listed on local radio, The Mixtures’ In The Summertime hit No. 1 for nine weeks, followed up later that year by The Pushbike Song, which the band wrote themselves – it hit No. 2 in the UK and was a US hit – one of the first international hits to be written, recorded and produced in Australia.
“They were a fantastic group,” Meldrum said. “They deserved more success than they had.”
1971: EAGLE ROCK – DADDY COOL
Back in 1971 this set a record for a local single by spending 10 weeks at No. 1 (and 17 weeks at No. 1 in their hometown of Melbourne) and then became a Top 20 hit again when re-released in 1982.
In 1972 a young Elton John heard Eagle Rock while touring Australia.
“It definitely inspired Crocodile Rock,” Meldrum said.
“Rod Stewart, David Bowie, they all loved it. It should have been an international hit. It was such an important song for Australian music, not just at that time, but it continues to be a song new generations love.
“I remember going to a concert of theirs at the Melbourne Town Hall and I was right down the front being the biggest groupie ever, and totally not ashamed of it at all.”
1972: MOST PEOPLE I KNOW (THINK THAT I’M CRAZY) – BILLY THORPE AND THE AZTECS
Showcased at the Sunbury music festival that year, the song soared up the charts and became Thorpe’s signature anthem – going on to be the title of one of his memoirs.
“I actually said to Billy once ‘This song is the story of my life’,” Meldrum said.
“He dedicated it to me at a concert once, he used to call me Ian or Meldrum, this was before people knew me as Molly. His vocals on this are stunning.
“Thorpey was a great artist and a great person.”
1973: DELTA DAWN – HELEN REDDY
Originally a US Top 10 country hit for Tanya Tucker in 1972, a year later Australian singer Helen Reddy would have one of her three US No. 1 hits with the track (the others being her iconic I Am Woman and Angie Baby).
“Now there is an amazing woman,” Meldrum said.
“Helen is very underrated. She was someone artists in the Australian industry idolised, people like Colleen Hewett, because she was having so much success in America on her own terms and Delta Dawn came after she’d really summed up the changing times with I Am Woman.”
1974: EVIE (PARTS 1, 2 AND 3) – STEVIE WRIGHT
The former Easybeats frontman had fallen on tough times, his former bandmates Harry Vanda and George Young – who were about to produce AC/DC – wrote the epic Evie for him.
The song (featuring Malcolm Young on guitar) became the first 11 minute song to reach No. 1, later covered by Suzi Quatro and The Wrights, a supergroup featuring members of Jet, Powderfinger and You Am I.
“Evie is such a complicated song, but the way Stevie sang it, he made it a hit,” Meldrum said.
“Vanda and Young were the building blocks of Australian music, going back to the Easybeats’ Friday on My Mind, one of the greatest songs of all time.
“When they came to Australia it was like we inherited the Beatles and (producer) George Martin all in one. They changed the sound of our music.”
1975: HORROR MOVIE – SKYHOOKS
Just as the ‘Hooks were launching so was colour TV in Australia and a TV show on the ABC called Countdown, hosted by Molly Meldrum.
Skyhooks would film a suitably eye-catching performance for the program.
“There’s no doubt that without Skyhooks Countdown wouldn’t have survived in those early years,” Meldrum said.
“We needed them as much as they needed us, and with Greg Macainsh’s song and Shirley Strachan and Red Symons, they just had everything going for them.
“They were an Australian band singing about Australia.”
1976: HOWZAT – SHERBET
Sherbet, fronted by Daryl Braithwaite, had already scored 70s hits with Summer Love and Child’s Play, but went to the next level with Howzat, which bowled cricket metaphors into a break-up song.
Not only an Australian No. 1, it reached No. 4 in the UK, went Top 10 throughout Europe and even cracked the US Top 100.
“England got the cricket references, but it’s also just a great pop song,” Meldrum said.
1977: DON’T FALL IN LOVE – THE FERRETS
Discovered by Molly Meldrum after he heard the demo they had sent him, he wound up spending so long producing their debut album he was given the pseudonym Willie Everfinish.
Don’t Fall In Love was released with Lies as a double a-side; Meldrum spent weeks slaving over Lies, and then had only three hours to rush-record Don’t Fall in Love, which became the hit song radio gravitated to.
“It was very quirky but very catchy,” Meldrum said. “Of course the song I spent the least time on became the big hit.”
1978: STAYIN’ ALIVE – THE BEE GEES
Starting life as a folky/pop act, by the mid 70s The Bee Gees had transformed into a disco/funk band, and writing most of the 40 million selling Saturday Night Fever soundtrack set them up as one of the most successful acts of all time.
“At the time people were still shocked The Bee Gees were doing disco,” Meldrum said. “But they knew what they were doing.”
The other big Australian song that year was expat Kiwi band Dragon’s Are You Old Enough.
“An incredible song, with an incredible frontman in Marc Hunter,” Meldrum said. “It’s a real pity they didn’t take off overseas – they really should have.”
1979: UP THERE CAZALY – THE TWO MAN BAND
Mike Brady and Peter Sullivan’s ode to South Melbourne footballer Roy Cazaly sold more than 250,000 copies in 1979 and remains a constant fixture at AFL Grand Finals to this day.
The year’s other big local hit was C’Mon Aussie C’Mon, which started as a TV jingle by ad gurus Mojo to promote cricket on Channel 9, and then was extended by popular demand to become a stand-alone single.
“Australians love sport, and here’s examples of sport crossing into music,” Meldrum said.
Originally published as Take a walk down memory lane with commentary from legendary Countdown host Molly Meldrum
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