"I'm A Man" #10 5/6/1967

The last US hit for the Spencer Davis Group, as Steve Winwood and his brother Muff both quit the band. Muff became a record executive (producing the first Dire Straits album) and Steve moved on to join Traffic, Blind Faith, and other projects, eventually having a successful solo career. This isn't the Bo Diddley tune covered by the Yardbirds; this particular song was covered quite well a few years later by Chicago.

"Close Your Eyes" #8 5/6/1967

Peaches and Herb were actually Herb Fame (born Herbert Feemster) and Frances Barker (the first of a succession of females in the pairing), both from Washington, DC. Herb got into the music biz thanks to fellow Washington native Van McCoy. After five Top 40 singles in '67 and '68, they stepped away from show business as Herb joined the DC police force. He found a new "Peaches" and the duo had a comeback in the late 70's shakin' their groove thing.

"Mother-In-Law" #1 5/27/1961

From May '61, some #1 New Orleans stylings from Ernest Kador, billed as Ernie K-Doe. Benny Spellman sang bass here. Written by NOLA legend Allen Toussaint, who was actually single at the time. Allen's granny was horrified the first time she heard the lyrics, but she forgave him. Ernie later became a radio DJ and opened a pub called the Mother-In-Law Lounge. He died in 2001, but his widow kept it open until Hurricane Katrina destroyed the place. It reopened, but she died on Fat Tuesday in 2009.

"Runaway" #1 4/29/1961

One of my all-time faves, a song by Del Shannon that every beginning rock and roll band just needed to learn. It topped the charts for four weeks in the spring of 1961 and had one of the most unique instrumental breaks ever, played by Max Crook on a custom-built keyboard he called a Musitron. Tom Petty directly referenced this song in "Runnin' Down A Dream." ("Me and Del were singin' little runaway...") Just. WOW.

"Blue Moon" #1 4/8/1961

A number of early rock hits were written in the 1930's and reworked. This Rodgers and Hart tune came from the 1934 movie "Manhattan Melodrama" with Clark Gable, William Powell and Myrna Loy and has been done countless times since. Richard Rodgers later said he completely hated this rocked-up version. The Marcels, an interracial doo-wop group from Pittsburgh, made it their only #1 in April 1961. Fred Johnson is the bass singer doing all the bomp-ba-bomping.

"Surrender" (Elvis) #1 3/25/1961

Back we go to #1's from 1961. From March of that year, here's the followup to "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" and the 16th chart-topper from Elvis. Like "It's Now Or Never" it was a rewrite of an Italian ballad. This one dates from 1902, originally called "Toma a Surriento" or "Come Back To Sorrento." Nashville session legends Floyd Cramer and Boots Randolph appear, as do the Jordanaires.

"Puppet On A String" (Sandie Shaw) #1 UK 4/27/1967

Not to be confused with an Elvis song having the same title. We present the UK's #1 record this week in 1967 as done by Sandie Shaw, and the first British entry to win the Eurovision Song Contest. ABBA and Céline Dion got career boosts from that competition. Sandie had showcased five tunes on a BBC programme and this was selected by viewers to represent the country. She later said she despised the song as too cutesy but recorded it anyway. It was her third and last #1 over there. I don't believe it was ever released in America. Her trademark was performing barefoot.