4 No. 1 Hits From 1971 That Are Still Just as Infectiously Catchy Today

The 1970s were a fantastic decade for music, and the songs from 1971 were certainly no small exception. From full-length LPs to incredible singles, this year saw the release of countless songs that remain just as infectiously catchy today. Here are some of the best No. 1 songs from 1971.

“I Feel The Earth Move” by Carole King

Carole King released “I Feel The Earth Move” as a double A-side with “It’s Too Late”, both of which dominated the pop airwaves in 1971. The album that features these two tracks, Tapestry, remains one of King’s most popular releases decades later. “I Feel The Earth Move” is just as catchy today, inviting the listener to sing along with a melody that is both memorable and unique compared to other, more standard and simplistic musical lines.

“Me and Bobby McGee” by Janis Joplin

Released posthumously in 1971, Janis Joplin’s version of Kris Kristofferson’s “Me And Bobby McGee” took on a new, melancholy meaning after the former rock ‘n’ roll singer’s tragic death at 27 years old. “Freedom’s just another word for nothing left to lose” suddenly seemed to reflect Joplin’s devil-may-care attitude while alive and the legacy she left behind in a blaze of glory. Kristofferson once said that when he first heard Joplin’s rendition after her death, he was moved to tears.

“Brand New Key” by Melanie

Is she talking about roller skates? Or a kilo of marijuana, as a man once claimed to me at a gig around my hometown? Whatever the case may be, Melanie’s October 1971 single, “Brand New Key”, is still a crowd favorite even over five decades after its initial release. The high, lilting melody is the kind of earworm that embeds itself deep into the brain, and who doesn’t love a good “la, la, la” singalong? This track remains Melanie’s most commercially successful single of her career.

“Joy To The World” by Three Dog Night

Finally, all one needs to hear is, “Jeremiah was a bullfrog,” to know which song is about to get stuck in their head for the rest of the week. Three Dog Night technically released “Joy To The World” on their November 1970 album Naturally. A few months later, they released the track as a single in February, after which it topped the North American charts, where virtually everyone was singing, “Joooy to the world, aaaall the boys and girls, joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea, joy to you and me.”