1975 Songs: Rhinestone Cowboy

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Oh, yeah. The past three songs have pretty much explained the strange music year of 1975. The shock rocker, the folk rocker, and now….country music? That topped the POP chart?! If you look at the songs that were #1 half a century ago it’s quite diverse. So here we go with today’s song. (Linda? You probably know this one, so you make the call.) Rhinestone Cowboy - Glen Campbell There were, according to Picky Wedia, SIX country songs that made it to #1 on the pop charts in 1975. Well, asterisk. You can debate on whether or not this was a “real” country song (unlike another one that hit #1, which will be along later in the countdown ). Let’s examine the evidence against this being “country.” It was written by Larry Weiss, who co-wrote the 1967 American Breed hit “Bend Me, Shape Me”). If you didn’t know, Glen Campbell was an unofficial Beach Boy (he subbed for Brian Wilson when Wilson’s stage fright/anxiety disorder kept him from touring in the 60s) and a member of the L.A.-based group of session musicians known as The Wrecking Crew. And then there were all those Jimmy Webb songs Campbell hit with in the late 60s…. But hey, cowboy is in the title, right? Regardless, it’s a memorable song. Rhinestone Cowboy Written by Larry Weiss Recorded by Glen Campbell From Rhinestone Cowboy, 1975 There’s been a load of compromising: