1975 was a very busy year… I graduated from high school in May and moved into my freshman dorm at Vanderbilt University by late August. 1975 was also my first full year of being a regular DJ on our college radio station, WRVU.
As the station’s music director that year, it was my responsibility to select all current and new music to play on the station. This week’s show is just a small sampling of what I had to choose from that year.
Also In 1975:
- Minimum wage in the U.S. was $2.10 per hour
- The average annual income was $14,816
- A new car cost $4,225
- You could build a new home for $39,300
- A loaf of bread was 36 cents
- A full-service gallon of gas was just 44 cents
- First Class postage was only 10 cents!
1975 World News Headlines:
- Margaret Thatcher became the first woman elected to lead Britain’s Conservative Party
- Egypt reopened the Suez Canal after being closed for eight years
- U.S. President Ford met with Philippine President Marcos to renew American use of strategic air and naval bases in the Philippines
- Saigon was captured by North Vietnamese troops and was renamed Ho Chi Minh City
- The first linkup of Soviet and American spacecraft in space occurred
- India launched its first satellite
1975 U.S. News Headlines:
- John Mitchell, H.R. Haldeman & John Erlichman were sentenced to prison for conspiring to obstruct justice in the Watergate investigation
- Work began on the Alaskan Oil Pipeline
- The busing of 21,000 students was ordered in Boston to achieve racial balance in public schools
- Former Teamsters boss Jimmy Hoffa disappeared, and was presumed murdered
The top TV shows in 1975: All in the Family, Laverne & Shirley, Maude, The Bionic Woman, Sanford & Son, Rhoda, The Six Million Dollar Man, Happy Days, One Day at a Time, The Waltons, M*A*S*H*, Welcome Back Kotter, Starsky & Hutch, The Jeffersons, Saturday Night Live, and Mary Hartman Mary Hartman
Favorite movies from 1975: One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Jaws, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Dog Day Afternoon, Barry Lyndon, Nashville, Tommy, Rollerball, Shampoo, Mahogany, The Eiger Sanction, The French Connection II, The Great Waldo Pepper, Funny Lady, The Sunshine Boys, and Rooster Cogburn.
Hear Progressive Rock and more from 1975 right now on both Live365 and TuneIn apps! Click below to listen and enjoy the memories!
And please send us feedback and your comments on the show. Thanks for listening!
– Fred
Please help Fred you’re the only one that would know this. You used to play a song from about 71 or 72.
I thought it was called New York City Trilogy it was a three movement song about New York the first part had was upbeat had a line about something is wrong here doesn’t belong here people are locking themselves behind their own four walls. something about a mayor deals and a junkie Steals .and then the last part was very slow with strings talking about City was dying oh New York City can’t believe it’s true thanks for your help, mr. Madison
Hello Mr. Madison,
Thank you for your question. You’re talking about “American City Suite” by Cashman & West — released back in 1972 on the Lifesong Records label. You can still hear this song on “Retro Album Rock” whenever we feature the year 1972. Thanks for asking and as always, thanks for listening!
Best regards,
Fred
Hey Fred! Enjoyed the show today. Good memories! Thanks!
Thanks for listening today, Clyde! Hope you’re doing well. When all this craziness is over, we’ll have to catch another lunch! All the best!
Fred, great deep stuff from 75. Nice Nice Very Nice, I Cheat the Hangman, Two Lane Highway, I Don’t Know Why (I love that Stones single, perhaps no one remembers it except you and me!!). I do a music spoiler and look back at the overnight playlist. If you can, how about “Empty Sky” Elton (re-released in 75)…. or “To The Last Whale” Crosby-Nash. I thank you, sir.
Bob Bradley, New Rochelle NY
Hi Bob — Thanks for listening and for the kind words. Yes, that definitely is a rare Stones single, but a good one! Glad you like the other deep cuts, too. I’ll try and get the Elton & Crosby/Nash on for you. If not soon, keep listening throughout the week as we feature 1975, and you’ll probably hear them come up at some point. All the Best & Happy New Year! — Fred
Thanks for playing lesser known acts and ,B sides such as Steeleye Span . I immediately thought Fairport Convention and was half right which led me to discover something today’s radio can’t or won’t.
Thanks for the kind words, Chris, and much appreciated. I hope you will continue to listen for more “lesser known acts”. Our specialty is what I call “oh-wow” songs and artists. We like to frequently mix those in with a few familiar favorites. Thanks for listening! – Fred