We're Number Two! - VOL II Trivia Quiz

Answer: Mellow Yellow

Okay all you out there in Quizzyland, who fell for the rumour that smoking banana peels induced an euphoric high? Thought so!

While "Mellow Yellow" languished in the number two slot for those three weeks, The Beach Boys' opus "Good Vibrations" for one week and the novelty hit "Winchester Cathedral" by The New Vaudeville Band for two weeks held fast at Number One. The only Number One hit Donovan would achieve on any major chart worldwide was "Sunshine Superman". It topped the Billboard Hot 100 for a week in 1966.

Donovan's folk/pop/soft psychedelic style served him well over a four year period from 1966 to 1969 with several charting hits but those two releases would ultimately be his signature songs and biggest successes. By 1970, his style of music would fall out of favour and by the middle of the decade, he was living in seclusion in California's Joshua Tree Desert. He re-emerged in the early 1990s and now approaching his mid-60s as this is being written in 2009, he releases the occasional album and tours in its support.

"The Beat Goes On" by Sonny and Cher peaked at Number Six in early 1967; "Stoned Soul Picnic" by The 5th Dimension was a Number Three song in 1968; "Incense and Peppermints" hit Number One for The Strawberry Alarm Clock in 1967 for one week.

Answer: Return To Sender

This is how that song segment goes:
"I gave a letter to the postman, he put it his sack
Bright and early next morning, he brought my letter back
She wrote upon it: Return to sender, address unknown
No such number, no such zone."

Elvis Presley recorded this one and although he didn't have a Billboard Number One with it, it did top the U.K. charts for three weeks whereas "Big Girls Don't Cry" stalled at Number 13 across the pond. Further, The Four Seasons' song was "only" a Gold Record... Presley's was certified Platinum selling over two million copies.

Over the course of Presley's long recording career, he would have six Number Two Hot 100 singles to accompany his 17 Number Ones. During the 1955-1999 era, only Madonna was able to equal that "glass half full" feat. Creedence Clearwater Revival and The Carpenters each had five while The Beatles only had three Number Twos during their career.

Your other choices charted this way. "I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter" was a Number Three hit for Billy Williams in 1957. Originally written and recorded by Fats Waller in 1935, that version peaked at Number Five on the charts of the day. "Please Mr. Postman" hit Number One twice; once for The Marvelettes in 1961 then again for The Carpenters in 1975. "The Letter" was a Number One hit for The Box Tops in 1967.

Answer: A Boy Named Sue

Johnny Cash would only have one Top 10 Hot 100 hit and this was it. Of course, primarily a singer of Country songs, he had considerably more success in that genre... like 126 chart entries and 14 Number One hits. I find it odd that a movie wasn't made about this story... a boy whose father named him Sue because he wasn't going to be around and the name alone would make the lad tough in a cruel world. John Wayne would have made a perfect grizzled, old dad but who would play Sue? Presley? Hmmmm!

For the three weeks that this song was Number Two, The Rolling Stones occupied the top spot with "Honky Tonk Women". "Papa Was a Rolling Stone" was a Number One hit for the Temptations in 1972. "Son of a Preacher Man" also charted in 1969 for Dusty Springfield peaking at Number 10. Creedence Clearwater Revival took "Fortunate Son" to Number 14 on the Hot 100, also in 1969.

Answer: Can't You Hear My Heartbeat

"I'm Henry VIII, I Am" was the second Number One hit the group would have, their first being "Mrs. Brown You've Got a Lovely Daughter", both in 1965. "I'm Into Something Good" was that first Billboard charting single in late 1964 while "Wonderful World" placed at Number Four during 1965, sandwiched between their two chart toppers. The Number One song that denied "Can't You Hear My Heartbeat" the top of the charts was "Stop! In the Name of Love" by The Supremes.

Oddly, neither this song nor their two Billboard Number Ones made any sort of impression in their native England whatsoever. In fact, the only chart topper they would have in the U.K. was that first release, "I'm Into Something Good". These little chart idiosyncrasies fascinate me!

Herman's Hermits had a monster year in 1965 with seven Top 10 hits and remained a significant charting influence through 1967. By 1968, their light and bouncy pop recordings had become passé and attempts to emulate Donovan's psychedelic folk style fell flat. Lead singer, Peter Noone left the group in 1970 and the group soldiered on without success until disbanding in 1973. At the onset of the new millennium, Noone performed occasionally with a revamped version of the Hermits at oldies shows in North America while another Hermits group, formed by the original group's drummer, Barry Whitwam, was active in the U.K.

Answer: Born To Be Wild

Popularized when it was featured prominently in the movie "Easy Rider", Steppenwolf's "Born To Be Wild" signalled the onset of a musical genre that would become popular in the early 1980s - "Heavy Metal". In my opinion, it is the first song of the genre to achieve a Top 5 Billboard position but Wikipedia disagrees giving the honor to "Cum On Feel the Noize" by Quiet Riot in 1983. I suppose that is more accurate since "Heavy Metal" became an established musical genre by that time. Still, Steppenwolf's song was certainly the prototype.

This was Steppenwolf's debut release and they followed it up with the Number Three "Magic Carpet Ride" and the Number Ten "Rock Me" in very short order. Subsequent releases were barely Top 40 chart entries, if that, and by 1974, the band had run its course. Lead singer, John Kay, re-formed the group with new personnel in the mid-1980s and they continued to tour the oldies circuit well into the new millennium.

Two of your other quiz choices have been noted. "Motorcycle Mama" was a 1972 Number 12 hit for Sailcat.

Answer: The Boll Weevil Song

"The Fly" by Chubby Checker was a Number Seven hit in 1961, the same charting position achieved by the Bent Fabric instrumental "Alley Cat" in 1962. "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" topped the charts for The Tokens, also in 1962.

Brook Benton managed to chart 50 songs on the Hot 100 during his lengthy career and most of them featured his silky smooth baritone to great effect. Therefore, it's somewhat ironic that his biggest charting success would be a novelty type song that was largely spoken rather than sung. But, that's what "The Boll Weevil Song" was! Some of his other bigger hits were the Number Three "It's Just a Matter of Time" in 1959, the Number Three "Hotel Happiness" in 1963 and perhaps his most memorable hit, the Number Four "Rainy Night in Georgia" in 1970. The latter would be his final Top 40 hit and he faded from the musical scene thereafter, passing away in 1988 from complications due to spinal meningitis.

Bobby Lewis' smash seven week Number One hit "Tossin' and Turnin'" prevented "The Boll Weevil Song" from climbing to the top of the Hot 100.

Answer: Georgy Girl

"Georgy Girl", recorded by The Seekers, was the theme song from a movie of the same name starring Lynn Redgrave, James Mason, Alan Bates and Charlotte Rampling. The movie featured two different versions of the song but for the single release, entirely new lyrics were written and recorded. It also did very well in the U.K., peaking at Number Three.

The Seekers were much more popular in the U.K. and their native Australia than they were in North America where they only had three Top 40 songs... this one, "I'll Never Find Another You" and "A World of Our Own", Number Four and Number 19 hits in 1965. In late 1968, lead singer Judith Durham decided to go out on her own and the group dissolved briefly. Another member of the group, Keith Potger, assembled a "New Seekers" group with a new line-up. They lasted for four years and are best remembered for their adaptation of the Coca-Cola jingle "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing", a Number Seven hit in 1972. The original group reunited in 1993 and remained together for 11 years, recording and touring largely in Europe and their native land.

"Ramblin' Rose" was a Number Two hit for Nat "King" Cole in 1962, "Windy" was a huge four-week chart topper for The Association in 1967 while "Come Back When You Grow Up" was a Number Three success for Bobby Vee also in 1967.

Answer: Chain Gang

Sam Cooke's "Chain Gang" spent two weeks at Number Two. During its first week in that position, the week of October 3, Connie Francis held down Number One with "My Heart Has a Mind of Its Own". The following week, a truly wretched novelty song by Larry Verne, "Mr. Custer", leap-frogged Cooke's hit to wrest Number One honors for the week. During the week of Oct. 17, Verne's song dropped to Number Seven, Cooke's to Number Three and The Drifters took over Number One with "Save the Last Dance For Me". The next closest Cooke would ever come to topping the charts was his Number Seven posthumous hit single "Shake" in 1965. That release debuted on the Hot 100 approximately a month after his tragic death when he was shot under mysterious circumstances by a female motel manager in December 1964. He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1986. Incidently, his Number One song in 1957 was "You Send Me".

"Hit the Road Jack" was a Number One hit for Ray Charles in 1961, "Mule Skinner Blues", a Number Five song for The Fendermen in 1960 and "Working For the Man" a moderate Number 33 release for Roy Orbison in 1962.

Answer: (Theme From) Valley of the Dolls

During its four week stint at Number Two, Dionne Warwick's hit initially sat behind Paul Mauriat's instrumental hit "Love Is Blue" for the first three weeks then for the fourth week when Otis Redding's posthumous Number One "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay)" jumped to the top of the Hot 100.

For some reason the lyrics from this hit made no impression on me at all... they drew a complete blank, so I hope you had better success. However, as I implied, you might have been able to deduce the right answer if that lyric sample stumped you too. "Moon River", for example, was a moderate Number 11 hit for both Jerry Butler and Henry Mancini but much earlier in 1961. The song is most often attributed to Andy Williams today but if he ever released it as a single, it never even made an appearance on the Hot 100. Andy Williams also had the biggest charting success with "Theme From Love Story" but its highest charting position was Number Nine and again the year was off. It charted a few years later in 1971. Your final option, "Theme From Mahogany", was recorded in 1976. It was a Number One hit for Diana Ross.

The movie "Valley of the Dolls" focused on the drug-addled lives of three young starlets as they strive for stardom. Based on a best-selling novel by Jacqueline Susann, it created quite a stir at the time. The song was composed by Andre Previn with assistance from his then wife, Dory. One of the stars of the movie, Barbara Parkins, thought the song would be perfect for Dionne Warwick and lobbied for her to do the song on the soundtrack. Apparently, contractual difficulties precluded that and Dory Previn sang the song for the movie with Warwick covering it for release as a single. Wise decision... it prevailed as her biggest solo hit ever as she was another who never reached the pinnacle of the Billboard charts as a soloist. She did record a Number One song with The Spinners in 1974, "Then Came You", and again in 1985 with "That's What Friends Are For". A cumulative effort between Warwick, Elton John, Gladys Knight and Stevie Wonder, it was recorded under the banner "Dionne and Friends"

Answer: Daydream

The Lovin' Spoonful orchestrated this whimsical, laid back little number that at least topped the charts in one country for a week - Canada. During my research, this was the first instance I've found where a song peaked at Number Two on Billboard and in the U.K. I'm sure that it's a rare feat and if more instances are uncovered, they'll be noted in future installments of this series.

"Green Grass" by Gary Lewis and The Playboys charted right around the same time as "Daydream" in 1966 stalling at Number Eight on Billboard. It didn't chart at all abroad. Tom Jones' scored a Number One hit with "Green, Green Grass of Home" in the U.K. but it only reached Number 11 on Billboard in November of 1966. Meanwhile, "Pleasant Valley Sunday" by The Monkees peaked at Number Three on Billboard and Number 11 in the U.K. in 1967.

"Daydream" spent its two weeks at Number Two behind "(You're My) Soul and Inspiration" recorded by the Righteous Brothers.