Customer Reviews

Billboard Top Rock'N'Roll Hits, 1969

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The 1969 editon of the Billboard Top Rock & Roll Hits is one of the best ones in the series, albeit within the inherent limitation that they always have 10 songs on each and every album. That being the case, Tommy James & The Shondells should not have been allowed two bites of the apple; "Crimson and Clover" is good enough. On the other hand, including two covers from the smash musical "Hair," The 5th Dimension's #1 medley "Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In" and Oliver's "Good Morning Sunshine," is perfectly appropriate. So much for consistency on my part. This collection certainly represents the music spectrum since it offers the bubblegum pop of Tommy Roe and The Archies as well as the spooky sound of the Zombies and Steam's classic "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye," which is still the greatest of the pre-"Rock & Roll, Part II" sports anthem songs. Everybody should know the rule of thumb by now: If a greatest hits collection would add five or more new songs to your music collection that you would really like to have, then you should seriously consider the album. Otherwise, feel free to keep on looking.

all great songs for the year, the big hits, just really well catchy and singable tunes.
Aquarius/let the sunshine- the big hit that year with a song to bring in the age of aquarius(which is this century now)check out the bass line to 'let the sunhine in' cool.
Dizzy, yeah if you ever see the film clip with the spinning top background you'll be dizzy too.
Sugar,Sugar the bubblegum pop song for this year,from the cartoon.
Crimson and Clover- this is a cool song, i remember when it came out i listened to it everyday after school with a friend of mine ,it has a neat effect in the middle of the song with a rapid echo (or flanging)and weird effects. hair long hair reviewer is wrong,this is the short version, the long version is over 5mins, you can get it at time life records, i know , i have looked for the long version for years...
Crystal blue persuasion-mellow pop,another tommy james hit.
Na Na Na Na Hey Hey Goodbye- total catchy pop tune used for a lot of rally's, and the band was from ct.
Take A Letter Maria-am pop radio song sounds happy but the lyrics are really a downer.
Build Me Up Buttercup-another am hit song
Time Of The Season,just a really cool,groovy tune and a great organ riff.all of the zombies songs are good.
Good Morning Starshine-as soon as you sing along,the song is over,too short but thats the way it is
1969 a real good year for songs and different styles,flower power,psychedelic,pop, rock,bubblegum...

This CD has a great selection of ten songs that were really big in 1969. The sound is great; and there are great photos of some of the groups represented on this CD. The liner notes lack any extensive essay; but who cares? You'll be transported back in time to 1969 with some great rock nostalgia. My only gripe is that this CD series limits the CD tracks to ten.

Another reviewer writes that Tommy James & The Shondells shouldn't have been picked twice since there was only room for ten songs on this CD. I think he has a good point; but I liked both "Crimson And Clover" and "Crystal Blue Persuasion" anyway. They are somewhat laid back, quasi-psychedelic songs that you can still hear occasionally on certain radio stations playing '60s music.

There are several different types of songs on this CD; and that's really a great plus! "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" has an awesome beat and is still sometimes played at sports events. "Sugar, Sugar" by The Archies represents that bubblegum type of '60s song that is very catchy even if it's not the greatest music ever written. "Build Me Up Buttercup" has a terrific, almost triumphant sounding musical arrangement this is completely infectious; and "Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In" has a certain dramatic element to it that starts the CD off on a very strong note.

In short, if you have to pick just one CD to cover the year 1969, this is a great choice. It's not as comprehensive as I would like it to be because Rhino limited the "Billboard Rock & Roll" series to ten songs each. I recommend this CD for fans of music from the late '60s and people who just want to know a little bit more about some of the great hits put out in 1969.

This series of discs are a nice addition to anyones 60s library. I don't know if I am the only one who's noticed but the 1969 disc has changed. I bought mine originally back in the early 1990's. Some of the songs on my edition are different. I bought mine at one of those record store chains back then. My tracks are 1. Aquarius/Let the Sun Shine In (5th Dimension), 2. Sugar, Sugar (The Archies), 3. Dizzy (Tommy Roe), 4. I can't get next to you (The Temptations), 5. Crimson and Clover (Tommy James and the Shondells, 6. Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye (Steam), 7. Hair (The Cowsills), 8. Build me up Buttercup (The Foundations), 9. Time of the Season (The Zombies), and 10. Get Together (The Youngbloods). As you can see there are some different songs on mine. I don't know what happened but perhaps on the first editions of these CD's they had some of the chart information wrong and thats why they changed. Who knows. At any rate I would recommend buying these CD's. They make a wonderful collection.

The 1969 hits are the best songs since the very first year, 1960, installed in this series. A favorite song of mine, and many other rock n roll fans is "Aquarius". This is included with another nice song, "Let the Sunshine In". These and "Na Na Hey Hey", are some of the most popular songs ever and some of the most richly deserved entries on this CD. Very accomadating music for parties or somebody hanging out at home. The lyrics here are suitable for oldies fans, and technical quality, the usual of Billboard is also very good. Since I am 13 years old and enjoy this music, quality is essential. Music is very easy to hear and free of static. Seems as if it was recorded just after broadcasting in 1969. The music groups presented here are varied, and each song is quite different from the last. So, at this point, I seriously recommended the entire 60's Billboard series.

When I picked up this CD, I couldn't see what songs were on it because labels were all over it, but I knew that if I didn't like it, I could return it, so I bought it. When I saw what was on, I couldn't believe what songs were on it for such a low price! This is a must buy for anyone who loves to listen to oldies form Buttercup to Take a Letter Maria!! A MUST BUY!!!!!! You'll <3 IT!

This collection seems to have it all, pop, bubble gum and soul. A truly great stereo version of Steams' "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye", and I'm also glad to see they didn't use the edited version of "Crimson And Clover", listening to this disc is just like 1969 all over again.

I would not buy a cd for $23.00 with only 10 songs on it if I were singing on the thing!!!! Good Grief!!!!!!

This CD with the top pop hits of 1969 set the mood for our work on a 1969 Porsche 912. It's a lot of fun.

My mom loves this music, and when she introduced it to me, I really liked it, too. The best songs on here are Dizzy, Sugar Sugar, and Build Me Up Buttercup. Now my goal is to collect the whole 60's billboard series.