Playlist: The 10 greatest singles from 1968

Half a century ago the world was treated to a wealth of classic music, as artists picked up the musical baton of 1967 and ran with it

The year’s never-ending run of bad news, from Vietnam to political assassinations, didn’t hamper the flow of great music (Alamy)

Whenever the debate comes around as to what was the greatest year for popular music, more often than not 1967 trumps the competition thanks to the kaleidoscope of treasures flowing bountifully through the musical landscape of that glorified year.

But what of the year that followed? Poor old 1968 sometimes gets a bad rap – the hangover after the party to end all parties. Part of that may be due to the global climate of political and civil unrest, with the escalation of the war in Vietnam, the assassinations of Martin Luther King and Bobby Kennedy, and riots and rebellions in major cities throughout the world casting a dark shadow over such mere trifles as the three-minute pop song.

But 1968 witnessed a wealth of classic music also, as artists picked up the musical baton of 1967 and ran with it. Here, with a selection of the year’s greatest singles, is just a small sample of what was available to the music lover 50 years ago.

10 The Crazy World of Arthur Brown – Fire
“I am the God of Hellfire, and I bring you.... Fire!”, proclaimed one-time philosophy student Arthur Brown in the opening line of his only hit, a number one in August for one week. Driven by pulsating Hammond organ and Brown’s demonic performance, “Fire’s” incendiary message and Brown’s theatrical stage act encompassing death mask make-up, dervish-like dancing and a flaming helmet filled with petrol projected a faintly ludicrous yet undeniably unsettling image that chimed perfectly with the revolutionary air of 1968. Ah yes, the flaming helmet, which was almost Brown’s undoing as his hair caught fire on more than one occasion. Strictly a cult artist, Brown could never hope to follow “Fire” and has become the epitome of the one-hit wonder, but is still touring today.

9 The Lemon Pipers – Green Tambourine
Status Quo covered this song during their brief flirtation with paisley pattern before blue denim and three-chord by-the-numbers rock’n’roll claimed them forever, but this is the version you want, an intoxicating blend of bubblegum and psychedelia from the Ohio quintet that made the top ten in the UK and topped the Billboard charts in the US. The Lemon Pipers followed “Green Tambourine“ with a couple of minor hits, but this was their one moment in the sun. An electric sitar, vibraslap percussion, vocals echoing into infinity, and yes, a tambourine all add to the heady feel of the song; as a snapshot of a style and an era, “Green Tambourine” is pretty much unbeatable.

8 Diana Ross & the Supremes – Love Child
When, in 1967 Berry Gordy ousted troublesome founder member Florence Ballard and placed Diana Ross’s name before that of the group, he had envisaged only further glories for his top star and her by-now backing group, but it hadn’t quite worked out like that. A year later despite the fantastically hallucinogenic “Reflections” single, the group was floundering somewhat after a clutch of flops. A change of direction was required away from the classic but sugar-coated ditties that had served the group so well, and accordingly “Love Child”, the tale of an illegitimate girl who feared bringing up her own child with the same stigma, was composed to order. “Love Child’s” message, mirroring the changing social conditions of America, struck a chord with audiences and became the Supremes’ 11th US number one – and of course features an exemplary Diana Ross performance.

7 Aretha Franklin – I Say a Little Prayer
At this stage in her career, Aretha could do no wrong, even trumping the much-loved Dionne Warwick original with a powerful and authoritative performance. Again, a song with a theme that reflected the turmoil of the times in America and further afield, with Hal David’s lyrics beautifully conveying the fears of a young woman whose beau is serving in Vietnam. For a definitive Aretha take on “Say a Little Prayer“, check out her magisterial performance on the BBC from 1970 on YouTube.

6 The Moody Blues – Nights in White Satin
Composed after breaking up with a girlfriend, Justin Hayward’s haunting orchestral pop epic originally released in the dying embers of 1967, was a creeper, not making the top 40 until January ’68. It surprisingly peaked at a lowly number 19, but has since become an enduring classic, reaching the top ten again in 1972 and 1979. “Nights” and its attendant album Days of Future Passed proved to be the catalyst for the Moodies’ subsequent huge global success, transforming the over-the-hill beat group teetering on the edge of cabaret obscurity, to symphonic rock trailblazers. The song has even had a theme park ride named after it, but the irony for Hayward is, that despite selling shed loads, “Nights in White Satin” hasn’t earned him a penny in royalties thanks to a punitive contract he signed at the outset of his career.

5 Sly and the Family Stone – Dance to the Music
If ever a title defined a song then this is it. It is virtually impossible not to obey the command from one of black music’s most influential and innovative artists, Sly Stone, the patriarch of a pioneering multiracial, intergender rock/soul crossover which brought black music to a rock audience and shaped the future direction of all black music. “Dance to the Music”, with its exhilarating fusion of soul, doo wop, jazz and acid rock, virtually invented the psychedelic soul/funk sound of the era and forced others, notably Motown, to sit up and take notice.

4 James Brown – Say It Loud – I’m Black and I’m Proud
Released in the August of 1968 in the midst of a social and cultural maelstrom, just months after Brown had performed live on television in an attempt to calm tempers and discourage civil unrest after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr, “Say It Loud – I’m Black and I’m Proud” saw the figurehead of the black consciousness movement both encouraging and articulating the transformation in black people’s growing self-awareness and empowerment. The song inevitably garnered controversy. It was seized upon by the black power movement and lost Brown much of his white audience. It failed to chart in the UK, and just made the top ten in the USA, but its historical and cultural importance transcends sales and chart positions. The Godfather of Soul revolutionised R&B and fathered funk, but “Say It Loud – I’m Black and I’m Proud” also stands high in his of list of achievements.

3 The Beatles – Hey Jude
Famously composed in his car by Paul McCartney on the way to visit Cynthia Lennon, “Hey Jude” (working title Hey Jules) was an attempt to console Julian Lennon during his parents’ divorce. At over seven minutes long, with its legendary singalong refrain, “Hey Jude” broke the accepted status quo of the three-minute single and left even John Lennon himself deeply impressed.

2 Joe Cocker – With a Little Help from My Friends
With this one record, Sheffield’s finest exploded onto the scene, illustrating his special talent for making a song his own. Cocker’s dramatic re-imagining of one of the most-loved songs from Sgt Pepper soared to the top of the charts in November, and his gravel-throated, flailing-limbed live performance remains a vivid image from the era. A pre-Led Zeppelin Jimmy Page sparkles on guitar and it all adds up to one of the greatest Beatles cover versions, and one which Paul McCartney called a “soul anthem”.

1 The Rolling Stones – Jumpin’ Jack Flash
After a troubled year that encompassed drugs busts, jail sentences and a reluctance to fully engage with the pervading psychedelic swirl of the times, the Stones returned to what they did best in 1968, roots-based rock, producing one of their greatest albums, Beggar’s Banquet, and a classic single in “Jumpin’ Jack Flash”. Containing one of the most recognisable and primal riffs in all of rock music, and some self-mythologising lyrics from Jagger, “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” was a gas, gas, gas. The Stones first number one in two years, rivalling “Satisfaction” as the song most readily identifiable with the group, it was a watershed record for the Rolling Stones and marked the beginning of their second classic period.