One lyric, one song: Guess even more 1970s hits
Readers keep asking for more, and we are happy to oblige. Since our first 1970s pop quiz, the responses have been rolling in with a consistent message that this decade still lives in the bones of anyone who grew up with it. Here is another round spanning the full ten years. Remember that to do well on this quiz, you need to name the artist before scrolling to the answer.
Image credit: DWPhotos / iStock
Question 1
“Sail on silvergirl, Sail on by. Your time has come to shine. All your dreams are on their way.”
Image Credit: Rob Bogaerts / Anefo / Wikimedia Commons.
Answer
“Bridge Over Troubled Water” by Simon & Garfunkel (1970). Paul Simon wrote it so quickly he later said he had no idea where it came from. Garfunkel sang it solo — a decision Simon came to deeply regret. It won five Grammys.
Image credit: DWPhotos / iStock
Question 2
“And if I were the king of the world. Tell you what I’d do. I’d throw away the cars and the bars and the war. Make sweet love to you”
Image credit: Wiki Commons
Answer
“Joy to the World” by Three Dog Night (1971). Writer Hoyt Axton’s mother co-wrote “Heartbreak Hotel” for Elvis Presley, making them the only mother-son duo to each top the Billboard chart.
Image Credit: Alessandro Biascioli/iStock
Question 3
“No, I can’t forget tomorrow. When I think of all my sorrow. When I had you there but then I let you go”
Image Credit: Wikipedia.
Answer
“Without You” by Nilsson (1972). Nilsson heard it at a party and assumed it was a Beatles song. It was written by two members of Badfinger. His producer had to convince him to build it into the orchestral ballad the world knows.
Image Credit: stockfour/iStock
Question 4
“He said he’s going back to find. (Going back to find). What’s left of his world. The world he left behind”
Image Credit: Soul Train / Wikimedia Commons.
Answer
“Midnight Train to Georgia” by Gladys Knight & the Pips (1973). Originally written as “Midnight Plane to Houston,” Knight changed both the city and the mode of transport. She later called it her personal favorite of everything she ever recorded.
Image Credit: Inside Creative House/iStock
Question 5
“Memories may be beautiful and yet. What’s too painful to remember. We simply choose to forget”
Image Credit: IMDb.
Answer
“The Way We Were” by Barbra Streisand (1974). The song was nearly cut from the film entirely. Director Sydney Pollack fought to keep it. It won the Academy Award for Best Original Song.
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Question 6
“Kick off your shoes and sit right down. Loosen off that pretty French gown. Let me pour you a good long drink”
Image Credit: Allan Warren / Wikimedia Commons.
Answer
“Tonight’s the Night” by Rod Stewart (1976). Recorded in one take in an empty nightclub at two in the morning, it spent eight weeks at number one — the longest run of any single in the entire decade.
Image Credit: MediaFeed / Bing Image Creator.
Question 7
“Rollin’ at sea, adrift on the water. Could it be finally I’m turning for home. Finally, a chance to say, “Hey, I love you.”
Photo Credit: Deposit Photos
Answer
“You Light Up My Life” by Debby Boone (1977). Ten consecutive weeks at number one — the longest single run at the top in more than twenty years of chart history. Boone was 21.
Image Credit: MediaFeed / DALL·E 3.
Question 8
“And that sweet city woman, she moves through the light. Controlling my mind and my soul”
Image Credit: Atco Records / Wikimedia Commons.
Answer
“Night Fever” by the Bee Gees (1978). The Gibbs originally called it “Saturday Night” before discovering that title was taken. It spent eight weeks at number one and helped make Saturday Night Fever one of the best-selling soundtracks ever recorded.
Image Credit: alvarez/iStock
Question 9
“Go on now, go, walk out the door. Just turn around now ’cause you’re not welcome anymore”
Image Credit: Gloria Gaynor by Thomas Rodenbücher (CC BY).
Answer
“I Will Survive” by Gloria Gaynor (1979). Released as a B-side. Club DJs ignored the A-side and played the flip instead. Gaynor recorded it after surgery, wearing a back brace, singing from a stool. It won the Grammy for Best Disco Recording — the only year that award existed.
Image credit: CZmarlin / Wikipedia
Question 10
“I spent the evening with the radio. Regret the moment that I let you go”
Image credit: Amazon
Answer
“Reunited” by Peaches & Herb (1979). The songwriters knew they had something when the singer cried hearing the demo for the first time. It spent four weeks at number one and earned a Grammy nomination for Song of the Year.
Image Credit: Prostock-Studio/iStock
How did you do?
Eight to ten and you were tuned in for every twist this decade had to offer. Five to seven, your memory is solid. Fewer than five? Time to spend an afternoon with one of the richest decades in pop history.
Ask us! What questions do you have about content, strategy, pop culture, lifestyle, wellness, history or more? We may use your question in an upcoming article!
Related:
- Quiz: Can you guess the 1971 song from just one lyric?
- Can you guess the 1975 song from just one lyric?
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