Seventies Breeze by The Smooth Operators

James Walsh Gypsy Band, The Doobie Brothers, Minnie Riperton, America, Brothers Johnson

In Memory Dan Peek of America

Dan Peek was born in the U.S. in 1950, and became a member of the group America between 1970 and 1977. There first single hit in the UK came in 1971 with the enjoyable Horse With No Name. The song was a late starter in the U.S. and actually banned by a few radio stations, as the word "horse" is also a street word for drugs.

Dan during his time with the group would be lead singer, guitarist, keyboards and harmonica. Although Dan was born in Florida he was actually educated in the U.K. from 1963. They would become a huge group in America in the 1970s.

The group when the Grammy for the best new group.

Seventies Music Chart No1s of 1975 (US) JUNE

Here are all the No1 records from the year 1975 from the US charts of that year. It really is a who's who of 70s music, and turn it up really loud and enjoy. We continue with June of that year.

Thank God I'm A Country Boy by John Denver

Written by John Sommers from the 1974 album "Back Home Again"

Article about John Denver

Sister Golden Hair by America

Written by Gerry Beckley and from the album "Hearts", and was inspired by the mothers of the band, of which three had blonde hair. It also tells the story of a man in love, but not yet ready for marriage.

Lyrics to "Sister Golden Hair"

In the 1970s America

Great name for a group. But the British influence was huge as the band members all came from the UK or had UK connections. Gerry Beckley had a British mum and was born in Texas in 1942 and played with the group The Vanguards in 1962. He spent a lot of time in the UK, as his father was often stationed there.

Fellow member Dan Peek who was very influenced by Christian music. He was born in the U.S. but educated in the UK where he met the other band members. Dan left the group in 1977 and died in 2011 aged 60. He and Dewey Bunnel formed America and produced their debut album in 1971 called America. The album did not do that well, but it did NOT have a track called A Horse With No Name. It was later added and the album did very well.

A Horse With No Name went Gold in 1972 and was written by Dewey. The song was written whilst the band were in Dorset in the UK, and was inspired by a Salvador Dali painting and Dewey travelling with his ad through the deserts of Arizona and New Mexico. The song was banned by a few stations in the U.S. because of an assumption t was mentioning drugs. But the single and the album still sold very well, with the album going platinum. The single went to No. 11 in the UK.

The U.S. follow up was I Need You that went to No.9 in the Billboard charts. At this point the group all went to live in California and produced their second album in 1972 called Homecoming which became a million seller. The group won a Grammy in 1972.

Ventura Highway was the first single from the album getting to No. 8 in the U.S. charts which is about clouds in the skies and the shapes they make when you are on a journey.

Sister Golden Hair went to No. 1 in the U.S. in 1975 and was inspired by Jackson Browne. Other hits followed including Tin Man that was produced by George Martin of the Beatles fame. The song refers to the character in Wizard Of Oz. Also from the album Holiday came another U.S. hit called Lonely People.

In the UK the group only really had one hit single.

INTERVIEW WITH DAN PEEK

In Memory Dan Peek of America