3 No. 1 Hits From 1973 With Lyrics That Every 70s Kid Remembers

In the early to mid-70s, folk and rock songs graced the charts with clever stories and hooks. Here are some lyrics from 1973 hits that you’ll remember, especially if you were a kid in the 70s.

“Bad, Bad Leroy Brown” by Jim Croce

“And it’s bad, bad Leroy Brown / The baddest man in the whole damned town.”

“Bad, Bad Leroy Brown” was the only No. 1 Jim Croce had during his lifetime. His second was “Time In A Bottle”, which soared to the top of the charts after his death via plane crash in September of 1973. The character of Leroy Brown was inspired by a person that Croce actually met while he was in the National Guard.

“My Love” by Paul McCartney and Wings

Paul McCartney actually wrote “My Love” for his wife, Linda McCartney. This song ended up being Wings’ first significant success in the US. In an old interview, McCartney had this to say about Linda:

“She’s a great [woman], very strong woman, very misunderstood because when she does interviews she tends to tense up because she’s not really a professional person in that way.”

He continued, “She’s been behind a camera which is a lot easier than actually sitting there and explaining trying to justify living…”

“Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree” by Dawn ft. Tony Orlando

“Whoa, tie a yellow ribbon ’round the ole oak tree / It’s been three long years, do you still want me? / If I don’t see a ribbon round the ole oak tree /I’ll stay on the bus, forget about us, put the blame on me.”

Songwriters Irwin Levine and Larry Brown were inspired by an old folk story from Reader’s Digest with this song. The tale goes that a man had just been released from prison after four years. In a letter to his wife, he said to tie a yellow handkerchief to an oak tree near their home. If she did, he would take it as a sign that she would take him back. This song was one of the biggest hits of 1973. It made Dawn internationally famous, as it topped the charts in eight countries.

Photo by: Tony Evans/Timelapse Library Ltd./Getty Images

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