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JET Jams 1.11.18


JET's Top 20 Singles is one of my favorite magazine staples. I often go through old issues just to see what was dominating radio in any given week/month/year.


January of 1979... Wow, that's been almost 40 years now. I love how JET incorporated the zodiac into the cover of this issue. I don't think I ever knew that Sammy Davis, Jr. was a Sagittarius... funny how my 2018 astrological prediction mirrors his 1979 one... "Spontaneous and pragmatic, Mr. Entertainer will be stepping up the pace this year!"


Sammy Davis, Jr.

1979 saw the Arif Mardin-produced solo debut of Chaka Khan (featuring the classic Ashford & Simpson composition "I'm Every Woman"), Cheryl Lynn's dynamic eponymous debut (featuring "Got To Be Real", her biggest hit to date), two albums from Rick James (Bustin' Out of L Seven & Fire It Up), and two releases from the Parliament-Funkadelic collective.


Evelyn Champagne King, the 17-year old Philadelphian who burst onto the music scene in 1977 with Smooth Talk, charted with the RIAA-gold-certified "I Don't Know If It's Right". That record peaked number 23 in the Billboard Hot 100, number 7 in the Hot Soul Singles, and it was positioned at number 21 on the year-end top 50 Soul Singles of 1979. Folks tend to forget Evelyn was so young when she debuted... She was just 16 when she recorded Smooth Talk.


JET also included a pretty dope The Eyes Have It game in this issue. How many of these can you guess? NO CHEATING (the answers are posted under the playlist).

Can You Guess Who Is Who?
Can You Guess Who Is Who?





So... How good were you at spotting the celebrities by their eyes alone?!

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