The article highlights iconic artists, including The Rolling Stones, Elvis Presley, Barbra Streisand, and two albums by Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass.
The Beatles (L-R) Paul McCartney, George Harrison (1943 – 2001), Ringo Starr and John Lennon (1940 – 1980) at the BBC Television Studios in London before the start of their world tour, June 17, 1966.
Photo by Central Press/Getty Images
The Beatles’ Rubber Soul reenters the Billboard 200 at No. 4 on the chart dated Oct. 17, thanks to the release of an expanded, deluxe edition. The album first appeared in the top 10 on Jan. 8, 1966, when it shot from No. 60 to No. 1, dethroning Herb Alpert’s Tijuana Brass’ megahit Whipped Cream & Other Delights. Rubber Soul remained on top for six consecutive weeks before Whipped Cream returned to the top spot.
Rubber Soul contains numerous Fab Four classics, including “Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown),” “You Won’t See Me,” “Michelle” and “In My Life.”
The article reviews the top albums during the week Rubber Soul first entered the charts. It featured superstars like The Rolling Stones, Elvis Presley, Barbra Streisand and two albums by Alpert & the TJB.
Three of the albums in that top 10 that week received Grammy nominations for album of the year: Whipped Cream, Eddy Arnold’s country smash My World, and the blockbuster soundtrack to The Sound of Music. In addition, Whipped Cream contained the record of the year Grammy winner, the zesty instrumental “A Taste of Honey.” Rubber Soul contained the song of the year winner the following year, “Michelle.” (Incredibly, that was the only Beatles song to ever win in that category.)
The article also revisits the albums in the top 10 on Jan. 8, 1966. It provides details about each album’s producers, peak positions, and dates of their most recent appearances in the top 10.
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Various Artists, Welcome to the LBJ Ranch!
Image Credit: Photo by Keystone/Getty Images Album Producers: Alen Robin–Earle Doud of Sherwood, Inc.
Peak Position: No. 3 (three weeks)
Date of Artist’s Most Recent Appearance in Top 10: not applicable
Notes: Earle Doud, who co-produced this album, also co-produced Vaughn Meader’s The First Family, which topped the Billboard 200 for twelve weeks in 1962–63 and won a Grammy for album of the year. The First Family lightly spoofed President Kennedy and his family. This album tweaked his successor, Lyndon Johnson, as well as Lady Bird Johnson and other political figures of that era such as Barry Goldwater and Robert F. Kennedy. The album received a Grammy nod for best comedy album. Two years later, Doud and Robin returned with Lyndon Johnson’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. It stalled at No. 176 on the Billboard 200.
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Barbra Streisand, My Name Is Barbra, Two…
Image Credit: Photo by Harry Benson/Daily Express/Hulton Archive/Getty Images Album Producer: Robert Mersey
Peak Position: No. 2 (three weeks)
Date of Artist’s Most Recent Appearance in Top 10: Sept. 24, 2016
Notes: This was Streisand’s fifth album to reach No. 1 or No. 2 on the Billboard 200 in just over two years. Streisand reached No. 2 in 1965 with two studio albums that tied into her first TV special,My Name Is Barbra. That program first aired on CBS on April 28th, 1965 and earned Streisand her first Primetime Emmy for outstanding individual achievements in entertainment. This second album contained just one track that had appeared in the special; all others were newly recorded for this album.
So why did this album title reference a special that had aired six months earlier? The second album was released to coincide with CBS’ rebroadcast of that special—long before VCRs or DVRs existed—so if you missed it initially or wanted to see it again you had to wait until it re-aired on network television. The album logged nineteen weeks in the top ten compared to seventeen weeks for its predecessor,My Name Is Barbra.. It also spawned two Hot 100 singles: “He Touched Me” and “Second Hand Rose.” The latter song became Streisand’s second single to break into the top forty after her hit “People.”
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Elvis Presley,Harum Scarum
Album Producers: Gene Nelson,
Fred KargerPeak Position:No.
8
(two weeks)Date of Artist’s Most Recent Appearance in Top Ten:No.
1,
2003Notes:This became Presley’s twenty-first album to make it into Billboard’s top ten.
It served as a soundtrack for his nineteenth feature film.
His manager Col.
Tom Parker kept him busy during this time.
The film and its soundtrack are regarded as low points in Presley’s career.
Fortunately he made a successful comeback with his legendary TV special in
1968 followed by his chart-topping classic “Suspicious Minds” in
1969. -
Eddy Arnold,My World
Album Producer: Chet Atkins
Peak Position: No.
7
(three weeks)
Date of Artist’s Most Recent Appearance in Top Ten: Feb.
5,
1966
Notes: Arnold has been producing country hits since
1945.
He received four Grammy nominations for this album and its hit single “Make The World Go Away.”
In addition to an Album Of The Year nod,My World was nominated for Best Country & Western Album.
“Make The World Go Away” was nominated for Best Country & Western Single and Best Country & Western Vocal Performance—Male.
The irony is that its smooth sound played a significant role in making “Country & Western” seem outdated—a term that would soon be replaced simply with “Country.”
My World topped Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart for a then-record seventeen weeks.
It also produced two number-one hits on Hot Country Songs:
“What’s He Doing In My World” and “Make The World Go Away.”
The latter track was voted into National Recording Registry in
2019.
Herman’s Hermits,The Best Of Herman’s Hermits
Image Credit:Getty Images
Album Producer: Mickie Most
Peak Position: No.
5
(two weeks)
Date of Artist’s Most Recent Appearance in Top Ten: March
26,
1966
Notes: This compilation contains pop group’s first six top ten hits on Hot One Hundred including number one smashes “Mrs Brown You’ve Got A Lovely Daughter” and “I’m Henry VIII I Am.” The album logged sixteen weeks in top ten.
The group received three Grammy nominations in nineteen sixty-six – best new artist and two nods for “Mrs Brown” – best performance by vocal group and best contemporary performance by group.
