UK Music Chart: June 19, 1971

Number 17: The Temptations

A new Number 1 song graced the top of the British singles chart on this date in 1971, when Scottish group Middle of the Road jumped fifteen places with Lally Stott's infectious Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep.

Elsewhere, three acts entered the Top 20 with new hits - among them, American soul legends The Temptations and purveyors of pure pop, The Sweet.

The Chart: 

• 01 (16) Middle of the Road - Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep 
• 02 (01) Dawn - Knock Three Times 
• 03 (02) Tony Christie - I Did What I Did For Maria 
• 04 (09) Blue Mink - Banner Man 
• 05 (08) Tami Lynn - I'm Gonna Run Away From You 
• 06 (07) Mungo Jerry - Lady Rose 
• 07 (15) John Kongos - He's Gonna Step on You Again 
• 08 (05) The Elgins - Heaven Must Have Sent You 
• 09 (04) Neil Diamond - I Am...I Said 
• 10 (03) R. Dean Taylor - Indiana Wants Me 
• 11 (06) Free - My Brother Jake 
• 12 (13) Elvis Presley - Rags to Riches 
• 13 (12) Peter Noone - Oh, You Pretty Thing 
• 14 (11) McGuinness Flint - Malt and Barley Blues 
• 15 (17) Perry Como - I Think of You 
• 16 (10) The Rolling Stones - Brown Sugar 
• 17 (25) The Temptations - Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me)
• 18 (50) Hurricane Smith - Don't Let It Die 
• 19 (33) The Sweet - Co-Co 
• 20 (18) Waldo De Los Rios - Mozart Symphony No. 40

*Previous week in brackets; Climbers denoted in red; New entries in bold 
 Image: The Temptations: Gold

17: The Temptations: Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me)

Approximately two months earlier, The Temptations had scored their third US Hot 100 Number 1 hit with Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me) and its popularity was now growing in the UK. It jumped into the British Top 20 at Number 17 this week, but it could not replicate its American chart journey to the summit. The single did, however, peak at Number 8 - sadly, the last time The Temptations would enter the UK Top 10 with new material.

18: Hurricane Smith: Don't Let It Die

Up until this point, Norman 'Hurricane' Smith was more used to working behind the scenes in the recording studio. He had engineered and produced albums by The Beatles and later produced long players by both Pink Floyd and Barclay James Harvest. During this time, he had written a song and demoed it with the intention of offering it to John Lennon. However, he was persuaded to release Don't Let It Die himself and was subsequently surprised to see his ecological message speed up the chart, eventually peaking at Number 2.

19: The Sweet: Co-Co

The Sweet's first hit single, Funny Funny, was still hanging around the lower reaches of the UK chart as this second and more successful track jumped fourteen places into the Top 20. Similar to the previous hit, Co-Co was pure bubblegum and belied the true nature of The Sweet's harder rock sound. Also as was the case with Funny Funny, this second hit for the group only featured the vocals of lead singer, Brian Connolly; none of the rest of the group appear on the recording. Nevertheless, it became the first of five singles for the band to peak at Number 2 in the UK during the 1970s.

 

The US Top 10 this week:

• 01 (06) It's Too Late - Carole King
• 02 (03) Rainy Days and Mondays - The Carpenters
• 03 (01) Want Ads - Honey Cone
• 04 (02) Brown Sugar - The Rolling Stones
• 05 (04) It Don't Come Easy - Ringo Starr
• 06 (08) Treat Her Like a Lady - Cornelius Brothers and Sister Rose
• 07 (11) Indian Reservation - The Raiders
• 08 (05) Joy to the World - Three Dog Night
• 09 (09) I'll Meet You Halfway - The Partridge Family
• 10 (07) Sweet and Innocent - Donny Osmond

The UK Number 1 album this week:

• Sticky Fingers - The Rolling Stones