Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. The top ranked song of 1968 should need no introduction since it also prevailed as the number one song of the decade. Here's the statistical scoop - 19 weeks in the Hot 100, all of them within the top 40; 14 weeks in the top 10; nine weeks at Number One. Total points based on weeks on the chart and chart placement - 2618 points, 104 more than the second ranked song of the decade, "Theme From A Summer Place", recorded in 1960 by Percy Faith. Only one group could have created these sorts of numbers (The Beatles) and it can only be one song. Go ahead and type it in!
2. No lyrical clues for the second ranked hit of 1968 because there were none... it was a lovely instrumental composed and recorded by Paul Mauriat. It charted for 18 weeks, 10 of those within the top 10 with five weeks at Number One, scoring 1482 points. What was this worldwide hit?
3. Ranked number three for 1968 with 1348 points was another song that topped the charts for five weeks during a 15-week tenure in the Hot 100. More than any other song that ranked highly that year, it is either fondly regarded as one of the most touching songs of the era or alternatively, deeply reviled as one of the sappiest songs of all time. Name it after reviewing this lyric segment that pretty much captures the overall tenor of the song.
"She wrecked the car and she was sad
And so afraid that I'd be mad
But what the heck
Though I pretended hard to be
Guess you could say she saw through me
And hugged my neck"
4. "You should see what a lovely, lovely world this'd be
If everyone learned to live together,
Seems to me such an easy, easy thing this would be
Why can't you and me learn to love one another"
Felix Cavaliere and Eddie Brigati of The Rascals composed these lyrics. The song was highly politically charged, anti-war, pro-civil rights and written in protest over Martin Luther King's assassination earlier in the year. It only charted for 14 weeks but five of them at Number One to garner 1316 points and fourth spot in the year-end rankings. Do you remember it?
5. The fifth ranked record for 1968 topped the charts for four weeks on its way to 1313 points. If you know what was the first song ever during the rock era to become a posthumous Number One hit, then you know this song's title already but here's a snippet of the lyric to assist you if you don't.
"Look like nothing's gonna change, everything still remains the same
I can't do what ten people tell me to do so I guess I'll remain the same"
6. "I started school in a worn, torn dress that somebody threw out
I knew the way it felt to always live in doubt
To be without the simple things
So afraid my friends would see the guilt in me"
This song, Number One for a couple of weeks in 1968, gathered 1242 points, enough to finish the year ranked number six. Lyrically, it was quite a departure from the type of songs this group had become famous for, 10 of which were Number Ones. But what song was this?
7. "Tell me now, is it so?
Don't let me be the last to know
My hands are shaking
Don't let my heart keep breaking 'cause
I need your love, I want your love"
These lyrics from "This Guy's In Love", the seventh ranked song of 1968, marked the singing debut of an artist who had already made his mark as an instrumental recording artist. It was Number One for four of the 14 weeks it spent in the Hot 100 earning 1168 points in the process. Who was the vocalist?
8. Ranked at number eight for 1968 was another instrumental release, this time by Hugo Montenegro. Although it only peaked at Number Two for one week, its 22 week run within the Hot 100 resulted in 1118 points ensuring its place within the top ten for the year. This piece was utilized as the title song for one of Sergio Leone's spaghetti westerns starring Clint Eastwood... but which one?
9. The record that ultimately ranked ninth for 1968 with 1094 points popped on to the Hot 100 for 14 weeks during the spring peaking at Number 36. Later in the year, the album that featured this song was released, did well, and spurred further interest in this single. It returned to the Hot 100 for a further 12 weeks and moved all the way up to Number Five. Many people point to this release as the template for "power" rock, a genre that would become more popular a decade or so later. Time to make your choice! Here's a slice of the lyric.
"It's getting near dawn when lights close their tired eyes
I'll soon be with you my love to give you my dawn surprise
I'll be with you darling soon, I'll be with you when the stars start falling"
10. With 1069 points based on a peak charting position of Number Four and 17 weeks on the Hot 100, the tenth ranked song for 1968 was the debut hit for the Union Gap featuring Gary Puckett. Identify it with this lyrical assistance.
"Have you got cheating on your mind, on your mind
A woman wears a certain look when she is on the move
And a man can always tell what's on her mind
I hate to have to say it but that look's all over you"
11. John Fred and His Playboy Band claimed the 11th spot on the 1968 year-end rankings with their only top 40 hit ever. It hit Number One for two weeks during a 16-week run in the Hot 100. It was a weird song that didn't make a lot of sense but at the end we know the singer was going to take a young lady's glasses. We'll only speculate as to his motivation but what was the lass's name?
12. "So hurry home to your mama, I'm sure she wonders where you are
Get out of here before I have the time to change my mind"
This is a piece of the lyric from the song ranked number twelve for 1968. Also by Gary Puckett and The Union Gap, it charted for 15 weeks stalling at Number Two for three weeks and scoring 1020 points in the process. Look at the lyric once more and name the song.
13. Ranked number 13 for 1968, this song marked the return of a musical genre that had disappeared after Chubby Checker and others had a lot success with it in the early 1960s - the dance song. The song starts with a spoken introduction that explains what the band was up to.
"Hi everybody. I'm Archie Bell and the Drells from Houston, Texas. We don't only sing but we dance just as good as we walk. In Houston we just started a new dance called the ___________" Here are your choices to fill in the blank, the song's title.
14. Rated number 14 for 1968 was a song featured in one of the classic movies of 1967. It was Number One for three weeks, in the Hot 100 for 13. Just one line should suffice for you to name the song.
"Jesus loves you more than you will know"
15. Rounding out the top 15 for 1968 was a Number Two song that spent 17 weeks on the charts to garner 1003 points. Another more country based version also charted at Number 39 that year. Identify it with this lyrical clue.
"And it don't rain in Indianapolis in the summertime
And there's no such thing as Doctor Seuss
Or Disneyland and Mother Goose, no nursery rhyme"
16. Among the recordings that just missed reaching the elite 15 for 1968 was this Number Three hit, a Jim Webb composition sung by one of his favorite vocalists, Glen Campbell. Let's see if you can identify it with this lyrical clue. It ranked number 18 for the year.
"I know I need a small vacation but it don't look like rain
And if it snows that stretch down south won't ever stand the strain
And I need you more than want you, and I want you for all time"
17. "Once upon a time there was a tavern
Where we used to raise a glass or two
Remember how we laughed away the hours
And dreamed of all the great things we would do"
The song represented by these lyrics didn't quite reach the top of the Billboard charts, stuck at Number Two for three weeks. It was a huge hit in the U.K. however, Number One there for six weeks. What was this song, ranked number 19 in the year-end recap for 1968?
18. Mason Williams had four of his recordings chart in the Hot 100. Let's forget about three of them - they barely eked onto the chart at Number 96, 99 and 90. The other was a different story. Two weeks at Number Two and a Number One Adult Contemporary hit, it was ranked the 41st biggest hit of 1968. What was the name of this guitar masterpiece?
19. "Well I know I was wrong
But I was just a fool
Too blind to see
You were the only girl for me-e-e
Ah, but now I see the light
And everything's gonna be all right"
A new musical genre made an appearance on the Billboard charts with this song in 1968 - reggae. Johnny Nash recorded it and it became a Number Five hit that year as a prelude to his smash Number One hit "I Can See Clearly Now" in 1972. What song, ranked number 53 for the year, was it?
20. What sort of song would be ranked Number 100 for a year? In 1968, it was a song that has become a standard for lounge lizards ever since. At the time, it charted for 15 weeks but could only forge its way up to Number 15 on the Hot 100. Hopefully, you'll identify it from this slice of lyric.
"I saw the light on the night that I passed by her window
I saw the flickering shadow of love on her blind
She was my woman
As she deceived me I watched and went out of my mind"
Source: Author
maddogrick16
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agony before going online.
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