Billboard Top 10 Rock 'n' Roll Hits of 1968 and 1969!

I'm starting to collect 1968-69 info like this - music, news stories, phenomena, whatever. Feel free to add related findings in a comment to the related post.

From Amazon - where you can listen to audio clips - here's the list for 1968:

http://www.amazon.com/Billboard-Top-Rock-Roll-Hits/dp/B0000032JA/ref=pd_sim_m_1

1. Tighten Up - Archie Bell & the Drells
2. Judy in Disguise (With Glasses) - John Fred & His Playboy Band
3. (Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay - Otis Redding
4. People Got to Be Free - The Rascals
5. Chain of Fools - Aretha Franklin
6. Green Tambourine - The Lemon Pipers
7. Cry Like a Baby - The Box Tops
8. Mony Mony - Tommy James & the Shondells
9. Yummy, Yummy, Yummy - Ohio Express
10. Horse - Cliff Nobles & Company

Again from Amazon, here is the list from 1969 (somehow I think the Bay Area's list was a little different - with, say, the Jefferson Airplane, Grateful Dead, Santana, etc.?):

http://www.amazon.com/Billboard-Top-Rock-Roll-Hits/dp/B0000032JC/ref=ntt_mus_ep_dpi

1. Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In - The 5th Dimension

2. Dizzy - Tommy Roe

3. Sugar, Sugar - The Archies

4. Crimson and Clover - Tommy James & the Shondells

5. Crystal Blue Persuasion - Tommy James & the Shondells

6. Na Na Hey Hey (Kiss Him Goodbye) - Steam

7. Take a Letter, Maria - R.B. Greaves

8. Build Me Up Buttercup - The Foundations

9. Time of the Season - The Zombies

10. Good Morning Starshine - Oliver

Guess Who's Coming to the Reunion?

OK, that was just to get your attention.

Seriously, folks, I do have the RSVP list - but I'm not allowed to post it!

I can, however, answer your questions about who's coming by email. Send classmate names to me at lowell40reunion[at]gmail.com.

I will answer within a day or two.

Thanks!

Six-Word Memoirs

Here's a fun challenge: Tell your life story in six words - no more, no less! Anyone can do it - you do not need to be a writer, I promise!

There are actually several books of collected six-word memoirs out now, the first one of which is called Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous and Obscure.

So what does a six-word memoir look like? See lots of samples collected at the site that started it all: Smith Magazine.

Now, use the Comments feature to writer your own! (And please sign your real name!)

To see all Comments, you don't need to register or sign in. To post a Comment, however, you'll need to register (just once) and/or sign in, and then come back to this post. When you click on the title, the new page will have a text box below this post, where you can write and post your Comment.

Have fun!

Connect with Classmates Here!

Looking for a classmate? Been out of touch for a while? Use the Comments feature to post their names - someone else might be able to connect you!

You don't need to register or sign in to view this post and its comments - just click on the title.

To post a Comment, you'll need to register (just once) and/or sign in, and then come back to this post. When you click on the title, the new page will have a text box below this post, where you can write and post your Comment.

So, who are you looking for? Who have you found? Tell us!

Latest Update from the Reunion Planners

Reunion planners Nancy de Ita and Mike Adelson have some exciting news items:

• The biggest news is that the Class of Fall 1969 has been added to the invitees list! So if you know anyone from that class, encourage them to join in!
• About 100 people so far have bought tickets. If we reach our goal of 270 tickets, we can have the entire restaurant to ourselves!
• Until then, we don't have a separate banquet room, but we do have a big section of the restaurant till midnight - hopefully well after the regular diners move on, so we can have the place to ourselves after that.
• Someone is bringing a senior movie - possibly from Spring 1969 - and will be playing it on a laptop in repeat mode, so you can watch it anytime, all through dinner and beyond.
• As mentioned earlier, Mike will be bringing a small boombox, so bring your CDs of Sixties-era music - rock, soul, folk, any and all of that great music! (Remember to write your name and phone number on each CD.)
• A few people are bringing poster-sized photos from their high-school days. If you have photos from our Lowell days, and know how to make poster prints (FedExKinko's?), by all means bring it with you!
• With all these exciting new amenities, the planners are now thinking of spending the entire evening, till midnight, at the restaurant, instead of heading for a nightclub (don't think I could manage that anyway).

Pass the word, mockingbird!

Which Classmates Are Coming?

You don't even need to register to see who's coming - just click the headline to see the comments!

Once you're there, use the Comments feature to let us know who's coming - or not coming - to the reunion. (Make sure it's OK with the classmates you're mentioning. And no need to say why they're not coming, just that they're not able to come.)

To use the Comments feature, just Register once (search for "how to" to find out how), sign in, come back to this post (search for "classmates" if necessary), and post a comment in the text field below the post.

That's it!

Bring Pictures!

Don't forget to bring a few photos to the reunion - of your family, of our classmates, of our high school days, whatever. And if you can make poster-size printouts of a high-school photo or two, all the better. We'll be decorating the walls with them at the restaurant!

Bring Your CDs of Sixties Music!

Just found out from reunion planner Mike Adelson that we can play some of our own music, on a small boom box that he'll bring, even though we won't be in a separate banquet room or anything. It won't play LPs, of course, but it will play CDs, so bring CDs - clearly labeled with your name and phone number or email address - of music from our high school days, the Sixties!

Bring Your Yearbook!

If you still have your yearbook, you will be doing those of us who lost ours an immense favor by bringing it along and sharing it with your table mates (with promises to handle with care!). You have no idea how hard it is to remember names and faces without it! Many thanks in advance.

Bring LPs from Back in the Day!

Dust off your Old School LPs and bring them to the reunion! And if you have a mini stereo with a turntable, we'll see if we can set it up at the restaurant. After all, when's the last time you heard your own LPs?

I have a keeper: The Loading Zone's one and only LP, featuring Lowell's own Linda Tillery. The Loading Zone played at our Senior Prom, remember? It was the first time a rock band played at a Lowell prom. Before then, only orchestras played the proms.

Where to Find a Hotel

Here are some places to start when looking for a hotel or motel to stay in while you're in town for the reunion.

Yelp.com's San Francisco Hotels and Travel page: Searchable by neighborhood (Marina/Cow Hollow is closest to the Fisherman's Wharf reunion location). See customer reviews for each hotel/motel listed.

http://www.yelp.com/c/sf/hotelstravel

San Francisco Convention and Visitors Bureau: Click on the Where to Stay tab on the left, and search by neighborhood, by name, or by price. No customer reviews here.

http://www.onlyinsanfrancisco.com

Expedia.com: Plan your entire trip here, from airline tickets to hotel reservations.

http://www.expedia.com/daily/hotels/default.asp?rfrr=-383

Email lowell40reunion[at]gmail.com if you know of other good hotel-search sites - or if you know of good, reasonably priced places to stay.

Post Comments Here to Ask about Classmates

Looking for a classmate? Want to reminisce about friends from Lowell? Post your comments here (all comments are moderated). Or, send an email to lowell40reunion[at]gmail.com. To post a comment, register (once) or sign in (after registering once). If you don't end up back on this post, click this post's heading/title ("Post Comments Here to Ask about Classmates").

Who and What Is This Blog For?

This blog is for all classmates and their families and friends for the Classes of Fall 1968 and Spring 1969 of Lowell High School. To participate in comments, etc., you'll need to register, which is a quick, one-time process (see blog post on how to register). Feel free to send this blog's address to all interested parties: http://lowell40reunion.blogspot.com.

The blog's purpose is to post reunion updates, and to connect with classmates.

How to Register for This Blog

Before we get started, you might want to (1) bookmark this page (or make it a Favorite); and (2) print these instructions.

To register for this blog, just click the Follow button on the left side of this page, below the Welcome message and the search function. In the registration page that appears, you have two options:

• If you've already set up an account in Google, Yahoo, or others shown there, just click on the logo and sign in; or
• If you don't have any of these accounts, click the "Create a new Google account" link at the bottom of the registration page. (If you've already clicked the Google logo and find yourself at the Google sign-in page, there's a "Create a new Google account" there too, right under the sign-in area.) Fill out the form that appears next, and click Create an Account. After registration, you should be returned to this blog, but if you aren't, here is the address (or use your bookmark or Favorite): http://lowell40reunion.blogspot.com.

That's the simplest way. There are several other ways to register, but they are all more complicated.

I especially do not recommend registering while trying to post a comment; you'll get trapped in Google's net, asking you to sign up for a blog of your own - when all you wanted to do was post a comment to this blog!

(If you get caught on a page asking you to sign up for a blog of your own, get out of it quick. I'm not sure what options you'll have, but look for a Cancel button, a No button, or the like. Then start fresh from the Reunion blog home page, using these instructions.)

So, follow the KIS principle (Keep It Simple), and Follow this blog - that is, use the Follow button to register!

Once you register, you only have to sign in to post comments. And you don't have to register at all just to see what others have posted!

How to Post a Comment

To post a comment in response to a blog post, simply click the post heading or title (here, "How to Post a Comment"). The resulting page will have a text box where you can type your comment, and a button to post your comment. You will have to register (once) and sign in to post a comment.

Update from Reunion Organizer Nancy de Ita

From an email dated 8/10/09:

Dear Classmates: We have about 100 people coming to the reunion dinner. However we would like to have 270 to take over the entire floor of the restaurant so we can have music and a mike for announcements. Feel free to bring your children and friends. If you have already paid for yourself all guests can come for $60. We would all like to meet your kids and friends. We are even inviting some friends who attended Lincoln at the same time we did. So think about friends and family who might enjoy a night out, send a check and let me know their meal preferences. Chowder or Salad, Filet Mignon, Salmon, Halibut or Vegetarian.

Best, Nancy Ligon de Ita

Contact: Nancy de Ita at (650) 347-0132 or nancydeita@aol.com