Editor’s Note on pop music from 1969 to 1972:
In 1969, I was beginning to move further away from the Top 40 music format. FM rock stations were blossoming everywhere, with formats and playlists distinctly different from AM radio. Like the music typically played on FM radio, my focus moved from hit singles to album cuts. My song choices here, reflect some of that transition from AM to FM. But I’ve included a few notable AM hits that I found memorable, or in some cases worthy of mentioning in retrospect. Many of you will have different perspectives. Comment below.
| First Appeared | Peak Position | Title | Artist |
| 08-31-68 | 25 | Magic Bus | Who |
| 09-14-68 | 11 | Time Has Come Today | Chambers Brothers |
| 09-28-68 | 20 | All Along the Watchtower | Jimi Hendrix |
| 09-28-68 | 12 | Piece of My Heart | Big Brother & the Holding Company |
| 10-12-68 | 6 | Elanore | Turtles |
| 11-16-68 | 3 | Wichita Lineman | Glen Campbell |
| 11-23-68 | 8 | Both Sides Now | Judy Collins |
| 02-06-69 | 28 | Crossroads | Cream |
| 04/12/69 | 57* | Day After Day | Shango |
| 05-03-69 | 4 | Oh Happy Day | Edwin Hawkins Singers |
| 05-03-69 | 19 | Pinball Wizard | Who |
* Although this song didn’t make the Top 40, I’ve included it for special relevance. It satirized the contemporary doomsday hysteria that California was in imminent danger of being destroyed by an earthquake and literally fall into the ocean.
Watch and listen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6EO3dehg9to
One other song I remember from the ‘68-‘69 timeframe was “MacArthur Park” sung by Richard Harris.
Yeah,that was a big hit in 68. Weird Al did a great parody years later called “Jurrasic Park. (someone left the eggs out in the rain) My son was a huge Weird Al fan, and I had to play the Richard Harris version, because he didn’t get the reference.