100 Years of Music Trivia Quiz

Answer: Al Bowlly

Al Bowlly was born on January 7, 1898 in Lourenço Marques, Portuguese Mozambique and was brought up in South Africa. After various jobs such as a barber and a jockey in the '20s, he joined the Edgar Adeler Dance Band mainly as a guitarist.

By 1927 he was performing in Germany and made his first record "Blue Skies" by Irving Berlin, which was recorded in Berlin. He moved to England in 1928, where he played in various bands before joining the Ray Noble Orchestra in 1930.

"Goodnight Sweetheart" was written by Ray Noble/Jimmy Campbell/Reg Connelly. It was recorded by The Ray Noble Orchestra with Al Bowlly on guitar and vocals, in 1931. The song was later sung by Nick Curtis, as the signature tune to the UK TV series, "Goodnight Sweetheart".

Al Bowlly died asleep in bed during a bombing raid by the Luftwaffe. A parachute mine detonated outside his apartment in London, just after 3:00am on the morning of April 17, 1941; he was 43 years old.

Question submitted by shipyardbernie

Answer: "Near You", Francis Craig

"Near You" by Francis Craig and his Orchestra, topped the Billboard chart for seventeen weeks in 1947. "White Christmas" was number one for fourteen weeks (1942). "In The Mood" (1940) and "Paper Doll" (1943) held the top spot for twelve weeks.

"Near You" was written by Francis Craig with lyrics added by Kermit Goell, vocal was done by Bob Lamm. In 1977 a version of the song topped the Billboard Country Music chart by Tammy Wynette and George Jones. Many other artists have recorded the song including an instrumental version by Jerry Lee Lewis, who is mentioned elsewhere in this quiz.

Question submitted by Desimac

Answer: Jerry Lee Lewis

"Great Balls Of Fire" written by Otis Blackwell/Jack Hammer peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 for Jerry Lee Lewis in 1958. It was number one for two weeks on the UK Singles Chart the same year, making Jerry Lee Lewis the odd one out, with his only number one hit.

"(We're Gonna) Rock Around The Clock" written by Jimmy DeKnight/Max C. Freedman, was number one for eight weeks on the Billboard Top 100 for Bill Haley and His Comets in 1955. It was number one for five weeks on the UK Singles Chart the same year.

"That'll Be The Day" written by Jerry Allison/Buddy Holly was number one for one week on the Billboard Top 100 for The Crickets in 1957. It was number one for three weeks on the UK Singles Chart the same year.

"It's Only Make Believe" written by Jack Nance/Conway Twitty was number one for two weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 for Conway Twitty in 1958. It was number one for five weeks on the UK Singles Chart in 1958/59.

Question submitted by shipyardbernie

Answer: To Sir, With Love

"To Sir, With Love" was released as a single in the United States in 1967 and in October reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100, where it remained for five weeks, and became a gold record.

Canada's RPM magazine put the song at number two for the year 1967.

The song did not chart in the UK as it was released as the B-Side of "Let's Pretend" which reached number 11 on the UK Singles Chart.

Question submitted by Kennell

Answer: Stayin' Alive

"Stayin' Alive" was written and recorded by the group The Bee Gees which consisted of the three Gibb brothers, Robin, Maurice and Barry. The song reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and was used in the movie "Saturday Night Fever". "Stayin' Alive" received a Grammy Award for Best Vocal Arrangement For Two or More Voices in 1979.

"I Will Survive" was recorded by Gloria Gaynor and written by Freddie Perren and Dino Fekaris. The song reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and received a Grammy Award for Best Disco Recording. It was nominated for Record of the Year and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.

"Last Dance" was recorded by Donna Summer and written by Paul Jabara. The song reached number three on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It received an Academy Award and Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song for the movie "Thank God It's Friday".

"We Are Family" was recorded by the group Sister Sledge which consider of the four Sledge sisters, Joni, Debbie, Kim and Kathy. It was written by Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers and reached number one on the Billboard Dance Club Songs and number two on the Billboard Hot 100. In 2017 Billboard Magazine ranked it number 20 on their list of greatest girl group songs of all time.

Question submitted by dekeaunt

Answer: Devil's Radio

George wrote "Devil's Radio" in 1987. He was so fed up by the gossip, trivia and cynical talk from the media which he said spread so many lies and inaccurate stories about celebrities (such as himself). His idea was to write a song instead of, as he put it "breaking someone's jaw!" He was giving an interview one day, and said that on that particular day, "People Magazine" had been told that he was in treatment at the Betty Ford Clinic!

He refers to gossip as "Industrial waste" and "Pollution of the highest degree".

Question submitted by Kennell

Answer: Love Is All Around

Wet Wet Wet had an international hit with "Love Is All Around", later featured on the soundtrack of, "Two Weddings and a Funeral", starring Rowan Atkinson, Andie MacDowell and Hugh Grant.

The song had been a chart topper for The Troggs in 1967 and stayed on the UK and USA charts for 16 weeks. The Troggs' lead singer Reg Presley's song was apparently written in ten minutes, inspired by a Salvation Army melody. It has been recorded by numerous artists. Reg Presley died in 2013 aged 71.

Question submitted by Waitakere

Answer: Beautiful Day

"All You Can't Leave Behind" was their first album release in almost a decade. The album was released in October of 2000. It was also their last album released on cassette.

"Beautiful Day" not only won the Grammy Award for Song of the Year, it also won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year. It was number one in several countries including Ireland, UK, Finland, Portugal and Spain. It peaked at number 21 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Question submitted by JamesFree

Answer: I Will Always Love You

"I Will Always Love You" from the movie "The Bodyguard" was Whitney's biggest hit in 2012 peaking at number three on the Billboard Hot 100. The song was her biggest all time hit making number one for fourteen weeks in 1992 on the Hot 100 and making number one for ten weeks in Australia, Canada and the UK.

The song was written by Dolly Parton who took the song to the top of the Billboard Country chart twice, in 1974 then again in 1982. In 1995 Dolly charted the song once more in a duet with Vince Gill. "I Will Always Love You" will go down as one of the most enduring pop songs of all time alongside classics like "Always", "Stardust" and "Something" among others.

Question submitted by Desimac

Answer: Naatu, Naatu

"Naatu, Naatu" was written by M. M. Keeravani and Chandrabose and performed by Rahul Sipligunj and Kaala Bhairava for the movie "RRR" . It is the first song from an Indian film to win the Academy award and the Golden Globe award for Best Original Song.

"Applause " was written by Diane Warren and performed by Sofia Carson, for the movie "Tell it Like a Woman". This was Diane Warren's fourteenth song to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song but she has not won yet as of the date this quiz was written.

"Lift Me Up" was written by Rihanna, Tems, Ryan Coogler and Ludwig Goransson and performed by Rihanna for the movie "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever". It was also nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Original Song.

"Hold My Hand" was written by Lady Gaga and BloodPop and performed by Lady Gaga for the movie "Top Gun: Maverick". This song was also nominated for a Golden Globe and Grammy award.

The fifth song nominated that year was "This is a Life" written by Mitski, David Byrne and Ryan Lott, performed by Son Lux, Mitski and David Byrne for the movie "Everything Everywhere All At Once".


Question submitted by dekeaunt