I have written a number of posts on music and songs. Recently, I have focused on interactive music quizzes that are popular with Active Rain participants. These are usually based on the record charts -- Billboard, sometimes based on Cashbox which was a similar magazine. Recently, I have mainly looked at singles. Let's move to albums this time. There were #1 singles and #1 albums. One thing that might surprise readers is that the singles and the albums charts often have much different entries from one another. For example, artists who have had #1 albums, yet NEVER had a #1 single include elite performers -- Dylan, Hendrix, CCR, REM, Nirvana and others. Billboard magazine charts just about everything. It is as esoteric as baseball history. One interesting publication is the Billboard Book of Number One Albums, which lists all of the top albums from the beginning of the rock era, 1956, until 1995 (they need to put out a new edition to update it but they have not done so yet). I think this is a complex Twin-Pick that will silence the horde of critics who have whined privately and publicly that the last few Twin-Picks were sub-par and were designed for simpletons or wimps. This one will make you think, whether you are a simpleton or not! You know how it all works, the quiz is self-correcting. If you click on the right answer, you will be taken to a performance of a song from the album (due to the age of some of these albums, a reasonable facsimile of the performer may be substituted). But, if you get it wrong, you will be soundly humiliated by my rude cyber assistants. Question: According to Billboard's Book of Number One Albums, which album is the longest charting (54 weeks at #1) since the rock era began in 1956? (Just for the record, each selection below is in the top 50 albums as per Billboard, no losers here). A. Thriller -- Michael Jackson B. Sgt Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band -- Beatles C. Ropin' The Wind -- Garth Brooks D. West Side Story-- Soundtrack E. Blue Hawaii -- Elvis Presley F. The Sound of Music -- Original cast G. More of the Monkees-- The Monkees H. Music from Peter Gunn -- Henry Mancini For more "Stories Behind the Music" click on the guitar Steven L. Smith Bellingham WA Home Inspections 
Check out "This Day In History" -- music and vintage television from the 1950's through the 1980's. I enjoy writing these articles because they take me back to my days in radio broadcasting. Click on Elvis' gold record, below, to revisit those golden hits of yesteryear.
