To me the definition of great hit song is one that is so catchy and undeniable that whenever it comes on you feel like your 20 feet tall and invincible. It’s a song that you are grateful when it get stuck in your head because it never gets old. Today we’re gonna celebrate the 7 catchiest songs of the 70s that are sonic masterworks… including the tale of a struggling songwriter who was surviving on food stamps. But when her phone rang out of nowhere and Earth, Wind and Fire's Maurice White asked her to co-write his next album… she was saved from the brink. And the hit song September they wrote together is a guaranteed bad mood killer. Then there’s The Hollies, who released their biggest US hit after their frontman had already quit. Sitting at home, he had to watch their song climb the charts while another singer performed his parts on tour. Would he get back with the band? And finally… right in the middle of tracking the all-time feel-good classic Come and Get Your Love, the studio door swung open, and the drummer’s wife walked in and served divorce papers while he was behind the kit. But he didn’t slow down or even miss a beat. Find out what happened next on Professor of Rock. Let’s get started.
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Executive Producer
Brandon Fugal
Honorary Producers
Robert Taylor, Missy D, Stan Summay, MG, David Fritz
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Hey Music Junkies, Professor of rock Always here to celebrate the greatest artists and the greatest songs of all time. If you ever blew it your speakers when playing your music too loud. You’ll dig this channel of deep musical nostalgia. Make sure to like, share, and comment. Alright, it’s time to take the time machine back to the 70s as we celebrate the 7 catchiest songs from the decade… Song that you love and don’t mind when they get stuck in your head. We’re kicking off this Catchy 70s countdown at #7… with a revelation. It’s September by Earth, Wind & Fire. So everything about Earth, Wind & Fire was guided by singer Maurice White’s belief that songs should lift people to a higher place. He wanted to connect listeners around the world… across cultures, backgrounds, and beliefs. So the band studied philosophies and spiritual traditions from around the globe, always looking for common ground, always looking for a universal thread.
And by the late 70s, no song would capture that “come together” spirit more perfectly than “September.” But to get there, Maurice needed the right collaborator. At the time, songwriter Allee Willis was anything but a household name. She was surviving on food stamps, and chasing her break. The connection happened almost by chance… a mutual friend of hers happened to know Verdine White, EWF’s bassist and Maurice’s younger brother. That friend put in a good word for Allee and short time later, her phone rang. On the other end was Maurice. Skipping the small talk, he said, “This is Maurice White, and I want to know if you'd like to write the entire next Earth, Wind & Fire album with me.” Allee said yes on the spot and later described it as the most surreal moment of her life. Allee went from almost being homeless to hit songs from 1 phone call.
Her first day in the studio set the tone. She opened the door and heard the band playing the guitar intro that would become "September." She immediately thought, “Please let that be what they want to work on.” Allee already knew it was a hit. Before she left that first day, Maurice gave some homework… a reading list of philosophical texts he wanted her to absorb. Allee spent months working through those books, letting the ideas sink in. "September" ended up being one of the least philosophical songs Allee ever wrote, but it was the most joyful. But there was a problem… the nonsensical word “ba-dee-ya.” Maurice insisted that the song be built around it. And Allee hated it. For 3 weeks she pushed back, saying that a lyric that meant nothing had no business in the song. She made all kinds of suggestions to replace “ba-dee-ya.” Finally, Maurice put his arm around her and said, “You gotta trust me on this — I can't let a bulky lyric get in the way of a melodic groove."
And “ba-dee-ya” fit perfectly. Eventually Allee came around. She later called it the most important lesson she’d ever
