Every Entry Into The Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart- 1969- Part 10.  The three singles that are featured today all entered the Hot 100 on January 18th and like yesterday’s three all of them stalled on the charts in the 70’s.  I hadn’t heard any of them before and one of them is a real gem.

28. “I’m Gonna Hold On As Long As I Can”- The Marvelettes. Tamla. Soul. Written by Frank Wilson and Lena Manns. B-side- “Don’t Make Hurting Me A Habit.” “I”m Gonna Hold On As Long As I Can” peaked at #76 and was in the Hot 100 for only 3 weeks. The Marvelettes go down in history for having the first Motown #1 hit with “Please Mr. Postman” in 1961. Overall they would place 23 singles into the Top 100 and 10 into the Top 40 but in looking at their chart singles other than “Please Mr. Postman” and their 1966 comeback hit  “Don’t Mess With Bill” for a Motown group they weren’t as successful as you would have thought they would have been. One problem was The Supremes came along and stole their thunder- they had an intense rivalry with The Surpemes. A few factors came in to place to stall their career- a lack of promotion by Motown- it surely helped The Supremes success that their lead singer Diana Ross was sleeping with the boss- as far as getting promotion and the best songs to record, also The Marvelettes had some health and substance abuse issues and there were personnel changes to deal with. The Marvellette did “Hold On As Long As They Can” but would disband in 1969.Grade: C+

29. “He Called Me Baby”- Ella Washington- Sound Stage. R&B-Soul. Written by Harlan Howard. B-side-“You’re Gonna Cry, Cry, Cry,” “He Called Me Baby” peaked at ## 77 and spent 3 weeks in the Hot 100. It was Ella Washington’s only Hot 100 hit. Ella Washington was born in Miami, Florida in 1943. In the mid-60’s she began her recording career. Her single “He Called Me Baby” was a re-working of a song written by the legendary country music songwriter Harlan Howard- Howard wrote it in 1961 as “She Called Me Baby” and over the years it had been recorded by country singers Patsy Cline [as “He Called Me Baby”} and by Bobby Bare, Dick Curless, and Carl Smith all before Ella Washington recorded the song. In 1964 Charlie Rich recorded the song but it sat unreleased for a decade until Charlie had his big hits “Behind Closed Doors” and “The Most Beautiful Girl In The World”- then it was released and went to #1 on the country singles chart. Back to Ella Washington- I love her version of the song-especially her voice. This single should have gotten more attention. In 1973 Washington would turn to gospel music. At last report she was a church pastor in her native Miami.  Grade: A

30. “The Grooviest Girl In The World”- The Fun and Games. Uni. Bubblegum, Sunshine Pop.. Written by Gary Zekley and Mitchell Bottler. B-side “It Must Have Been The Wind.””The Grooviest Girl In The World” peaked at #78 and spent a total of 4 week in the Hot 100. The Fun and Games was a short lived group from Houston, Texas. They had a number of personel changes around the time the single came out and broke up soon after. This is their only entry into the Hot 100 during their brief career. I don’t know when the last time I heard someone say the word “groovy.” Bad bubblegum music. I may have gotten a cavity listening to it. Grade: D