No. 1 Hits of the 70s Vol.15 Trivia Quiz

Answer: War

"War" was a 1970 number one hit for Edwin Starr, spending three weeks at the top of the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 charts as well as number three in the U.K. in the summer that year. It was a tune penned by Barrett Strong and Norman Whitfield for the Motown label and was originally intended for The Temptations.

After some careful consideration, Motown decided that they did not want to alienate Temptations fans with the song, so they had Edwin Starr record the popular version that everyone knows, although The Temptations version can be found on their "Psychedelic Shack" album.

The song became Starr's most recognizable tune and the biggest hit of his career. In 1986 the song was covered by Bruce Springsteen and made it to number eight on the Billboard charts.

Answer: Maggie May

"Maggie May", from the album "Every Picture Tells a Story" was the tune that put Stewart on the map as a solo artist, although he was still working with The Jeff Beck Group at the time. The single was released as a b-side to "Reason to Believe", but that was quickly changed when it started to receive massive airplay.

It ended up spending five weeks at the top of the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 charts in the fall of 1971 and a number of weeks at the top of the U.K. charts as well. "Reason to Believe" also was number one in the U.K. but only managed a number 62 placing in the U.S.

Answer: Three Dog Night

"Black and White" was a song originally penned in 1954 by two men named David Arkin and Earl Robinson. It was alleged to have been inspired by the U.S. Supreme Court's decision concerning racial segregation in schools. The original version had a verse which specifically referred to that sad chapter in U.S. history.

The first recording of the song was by Sammy Davis Jr. in 1957. The most popular version, with the reference verse removed, was the Three Dog Night version, which became a number one U.S. Billboard Hot 100 hit for them in 1972 spending a week at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 charts that year.

Their version did not include the controversial verse and was perceived to be more about racial harmony than segregation.

Answer: Stories

The song itself was originally done by two members of the group Hot Chocolate and released in the U.K. The U.S. version was covered by Stories in 1973 and spent two weeks at the top of the U.S. Billboard charts. The subject matter of interracial love was still kind of taboo for the times but the song was a major hit nevertheless.

Answer: Billy

In a kind of U.S./U.K. competition, a group called Paper Lace released "Billy Don't Be a Hero" in the U.K. and it went to number one there in the spring of 1974. Before they could release it in the U.S., Bo Donaldson and the Heywoods got a hold of it and release a cover in the U.S. That version went to number one on the charts for a two week stay in June of that year.

The song's lyrics tell of a young man who joins the military and despite pleadings from his girlfriend to be careful, gets himself killed while serving.

Answer: True

Billboard lists this song as the longest titled number one song ever (as of the end of 2009). The song itself was a B.J. Thomas hit which spent one week at the top of the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 charts in the spring that year. It was Thomas' second number one hit, the first being "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" in 1969.

The song also went to number one on the Country charts, paving the way for Thomas' success as a country artist, which lasted well into the 1980s.

Answer: Afternoon Delight

"Afternoon Delight" was the song that made it to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 charts for The Starland Vocal Band for a two week stay in July of 1976. The lyrics themselves suggest a sexual tryst between two partners in the middle of the day, and the term 'afternoon delight' has come to mean just that in some circles.

Answer: Leo Sayer

Leo Sayer took "When I Need You" which was written by Albert Hammond and Carole Bayer Sager, and went to the top of the Billboard charts for a week in the spring of 1977. It had reached number one in the U.K a few months earlier. This song has been covered by such notables as Celine Dion, Luther Vandross, Rod Stewart, Julio Iglesias and Cliff Richard.

Answer: Hot Child in the City

Nick Gilder, formerly of the group Sweeney Todd, scored with "Hot Child in the City" as solo artist in 1978. The song spent a week at the top of the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 charts and was number one in his Canadian home as well. The song earned him two Juno Awards and a U.S. People's Choice Award. It was his only Top 40 American hit as a solo artist.

Answer: Robert John

"Sad Eyes" was a spring release for Robert John, who had previously scored a top 10 hit with his cover of The Tokens' "The Lion Sleeps Tonight". This song hung around the charts for many, many weeks, finally hitting the top of the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 charts for one week in October that year.

As previously stated, it was one of the few non-disco hits to climb to the top of the chart for the entire year of 1979.