Saturday, January 13, 2024 6pm ET: Feature LP: Helen Reddy – I Am Woman (1972)

I Am Woman is the third studio album by Australian–American pop singer Helen Reddy, released on November 13, 1972, by Capitol Records. The album included her second recording of the song that gave the album its name, which was also the version that spent a week at number one on the Billboard Hot 100. The album debuted on the Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart in the issue dated December 9, 1972, and reached number 14 during a 62-week run, and in Canada’s RPM magazine it peaked at number seven. On March 7, 1973, the Recording Industry Association of America awarded the album with Gold certification for sales of 500,000 copies in the United States, and Platinum certification for sales of one million copies came on December 5, 1991. On July 22, 2003, it was released for the first time on compact disc as one of two albums on one CD, the other album being her 1973 release Long Hard Climb.

The song “I Am Woman” was originally written for and included on Reddy’s 1971 debut album, I Don’t Know How to Love Him, but, because of its length and arrangement, she thought it “clearly was not hit-single material.” When it was selected for use in the 1972 film Stand Up and Be Counted, her record company wanted a longer version to release as a 45 in conjunction with the opening of the film. The new recording of the song, produced by Jay Senter, was done at Sunwest Recording Studio, Los Angeles, California, on April 23, 1972, and was made available on May 22 of that year. Reddy has summarized the response to the song from most disc jockeys that she experienced as, “‘I can’t stand this record! I hate this song! But you know, it’s a funny thing, my wife loves it!'”. Her husband-manager Jeff Wald landed her 19 appearances on various television shows where she could perform it, and “women began calling radio stations and requesting the song, thereby forcing airplay.” Other tracks, such as “Peaceful”, were recorded at recording engineer Armin Steiner’s Sound Labs Studio, Los Angeles, California, for Reddy’s album, which would be named after her aforementioned single.

Billboard’s reviewer wrote that “the powerful stylist offers by far her finest package, artistically and commercially.” Charles Donovan of AllMusic retrospectively noted that, except for the cover of ‘Hit the Road Jack’, the album was “a fine collection of light pop and ballads” and that the second single was “everything easy listening should be: undemanding, sweet and flawlessly produced.”

In Thomas O’Neil’s book The Grammys: The Ultimate, Unofficial Guide to Music’s Highest Honor, O’Neil writes, “The most famous acceptance speech in the history of the Grammys was given [in 1973] by Helen Reddy when she picked up the trophy for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female for ‘I Am Woman’.” Reddy concluded her speech by thanking “‘God because She makes everything possible,'” and “was flooded with protest letters from religious fundamentalists” afterwards.

“Peaceful” 2:50
“I Am Woman” 3:24
“This Masquerade” 3:35
“I Didn’t Mean to Love You” 4:00
“Where Is My Friend” 3:10
“And I Love You So” 4:00
“What Would They Say” 2:45
“Where Is the Love” 3:01
“Hit the Road Jack” 2:18
“The Last Blues Song” 2:41

Helen Reddy – vocals
Mike Deasy – guitars
Jim Gordon – drums
Mike Melvoin – piano
Leland Sklar – bass
Dick Hyde – trombone, string and horn arrangements
Don Menza – saxophone
Kathy Deasy – backing vocals

Tuesday 10/25/22 10am ET: Feature Artist: Helen Reddy

Helen Maxine Reddy (October 25, 1941 – September 29, 2020) was a singer, actress, and activist who held dual Australian and American citizenship. Born in Melbourne, Victoria to a show-business family, Reddy started her career as an entertainer at age four. She sang on radio and television, and won a talent contest on a television program, Bandstand, in 1966; her prize was a ticket to New York City and a record audition, which turned out to be unsuccessful. She pursued her international singing career by moving to Chicago and, subsequently, Los Angeles, where she made her debut singles “One Way Ticket” and “I Believe in Music” in 1968 and 1970, respectively. The B-side of the latter single, “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” reached No. 10 in Canadian pop chart RPM and she was signed to Capitol Records a year later.

During the 1970s, she enjoyed international success, especially in the United States where she placed 15 singles in the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100. Six made the Top 10 and three reached No. 1, including her signature hit “I Am Woman”. She placed 25 songs on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart; 15 made the Top 10 and eight reached No. 1, six consecutively. In 1974, at the inaugural American Music Awards, she won the award for Favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist. In television, she was the first Australian to host a one-hour weekly primetime variety show on an American network, along with specials that were seen in more than 40 countries.

Between the 1980s and 1990s, as her single “I Can’t Say Goodbye to You” became her last to chart in the U.S., she acted in musicals and recorded albums such as Center Stage before retiring from live performance in 2002. She returned to university in Australia and earned her degree, and practised as a clinical hypnotherapist and motivational speaker. In 2011, after singing “Breezin’ Along with the Breeze” with her half-sister, Toni Lamond, for Lamond’s birthday, Reddy decided to return to live performing.

Her song “I Am Woman” played a significant role in popular culture, becoming an anthem for second-wave feminism. She came to be known as a “feminist poster girl” or a “feminist icon”. In 2011, Billboard named her the No. 28 adult contemporary artist of all time (No. 9 woman). In 2013, the Chicago Tribune dubbed her as the “Queen of ’70s Pop”.

Thursday 12/30/21 2pm ET: RadioMaxMusic Special: The Music of 1973 A to Z – Part 3

This RadioMax special features our Library of music from 1973 A2Z.

We continue with letter C and start D with music from: Spinners, Byrds, Buckingham Nicks, Led Zeppelin, America, King Harvest, Chicago, Joe Walsh, Doobie Brothers, Elton John, War, Helen Reddy, Who, Jimmy Buffett, Anne Murray, Archie Bell and The Drells and many more.

2pm to 6pm ET

1973-episode-3Download

Monday 1/11/2021 4pm ET: Across The Tracks – In Memoriam 2020

In this edition of Across The Tracks we salute the music artists that passed away in 2020.

Featured in the program:  Uriah Heep, Hal Ketchum, McGuire Sisters, Mountain, KT Oslin, Charlie Pride, Van Halen, Spencer Davis Group, Rance Allen, Billy Joe Shaver, Johnny Nash, Outfield, Helen Reddy, Mac Davis, Four Seasons, Kool & The Gang, Bay City Rollers, Sweet, Wayne Fontana, Fleetwood Mac, Charlie Daniels Band, Bobby Lewis, Millie Small, Bonnie Pointer, John Prine, Fountains of Wayne, Kingston Trio, Robert Parker and Rush.

In Memoriam: Helen Reddy (1941 – 2020)

Helen Maxine Reddy (October 25, 1941 – September 29, 2020) was a singer, actress, and activist who held dual Australian and American citizenship. Born in Melbourne, Victoria to a show-business family, Reddy started her career as an entertainer at age four. She sang on radio and television, and won a talent contest on a television program, Bandstand, in 1966; her prize was a ticket to New York City and a record audition, which turned out to be unsuccessful. She pursued her international singing career by moving to Chicago and, subsequently, Los Angeles, where she made her debut singles “One Way Ticket” and “I Believe in Music” in 1968 and 1970, respectively. The B-side of the latter single, “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” reached No. 10 in Canadian pop chart RPM and she was signed to Capitol Records a year later.

During the 1970s, she enjoyed international success, especially in the United States where she placed 15 singles in the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100. Six made the Top 10 and three reached No. 1, including her signature hit “I Am Woman”. She placed 25 songs on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart; 15 made the Top 10 and eight reached No. 1, six consecutively. In 1974, at the inaugural American Music Awards, she won the award for Favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist. In television, she was the first Australian to host a one-hour weekly primetime variety show on an American network, along with specials that were seen in more than 40 countries.

Between the 1980s and 1990s, as her single “I Can’t Say Goodbye to You” became her last to chart in the U.S., she acted in musicals and recorded albums such as Center Stage before retiring from live performance in 2002. She returned to university in Australia and earned her degree, and practised as a clinical hypnotherapist and motivational speaker. In 2011, after singing “Breezin’ Along with the Breeze” with her half-sister, Toni Lamond, for Lamond’s birthday, Reddy decided to return to live performing.

Her song “I Am Woman” played a significant role in popular culture, becoming an anthem for second-wave feminism. She came to be known as a “feminist poster girl” or a “feminist icon”. In 2011, Billboard named her the No. 28 adult contemporary artist of all time (No. 9 woman). In 2013, the Chicago Tribune dubbed her as the “Queen of ’70s Pop”.

 

Thursday 8pm: Across The Tracks: Featuring – One (Part 8)

This installment of Across The Tracks feature tunes with “ONE” in the title.  We’ll feature music from Darius Rucker, Elton John, April, Rod Stewart, Abba, Helen Reddy, Clint Black, Andrew Gold, Jack Johnson and much more across the tracks and genres.