The second volume of Rhino subsidiary Flashback Records' '70s Radio Hits series is focused on the spring of 1970, presenting ten songs that were in the Top 40 in that season, five of them gold records. The artists are almost all one- or two-hit wonders: Vanity Fare's "Hitchin' a Ride" was their only Top Ten hit; "Spirit in the Sky" was Norman Greenbaum's only Top 40 hit, as were White Plains' "My Baby Loves Lovin'" and Blues Image's "Ride Captain Ride"; "Turn Back the Hands of Time" was one of two Top Ten hits for Tyrone Davis, as were "Love on a Two-Way Street" for the Moments and "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)" for Melanie; and the George Baker Selection's "Little Green Bag" was one of their two Top 40 hits. Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band, meanwhile, scored three Top 20 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, one of them being "Love Land." Thus, these songs are sometimes better known than the artists who recorded them, particularly gold-selling Top Five hits like "Hitchin' a Ride" and "Ride Captain Ride." Those who were listening to AM Top 40 radio in the spring of 1970 will remember them, and others may discover some pleasant, if weightless, pop music. ~ William Ruhlmann
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