Radioinfo is taking you back to the songs that turn 50 this year. And January, by Scottish band Pilot, an Australian No 1, really couldn’t wait any longer.
While songs that are one hit wonders have been thoroughly explored by radio stations and music enthusiasts alike, last year I went down the path of a twonder, an artist who has had TWO hit or well known songs before dropping off the face of the earth. Some examples are below:
Pilot are an example of a twonder with two big hits in 1975, January, a No 1 and Magic which reached No 5 (it’s below):
Both have held up pretty well after 50 years, Magic perhaps more so. Selena Gomez covered it in 2009 when she was just 17 years old. A decade later, Pilot singer and song writer David Paton was offered a fair sum of money to return to the Abbey Road Studios and re-record the song for pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk, replacing the ‘O-o-o-it’s magic’ with ‘O-o-o-Ozempic‘ to promote the weight loss drug. Which honestly has removed just a tad of the magic of the song in the first place, but I suppose we all gotta do what we gotta do.
January is not about the month, but about a person with that seasonal name. In the UK Magic was released first, in 1974 and January, in January of 1975 where it also went to No 1. Australia was a bit behind this. January debuted on the charts in May ’75, with Magic a couple of months later.
The story of Pilot might never have happened as lead singer, acoustic and bass guitarist Paton and keyboardist and vocalist Billy Lyall were originally picked up to be part of another up and coming Scottish band The Bay City Rollers. Paton and Lyall decided to branch out on their own, with 1975 also a very big year for the band they left behind.
Lyall sadly died of an AIDS related illness very young, in his mid 30s. Paton however has his name on the credits of some significant songs and events that came later. He plays acoustic guitar on Kate Bush‘s magnificent Wuthering Heights and bass on several of the other tracks on The Kick Inside from which Wuthering Heights comes. In the 80s he joined Elton John‘s band, playing guitar on Nikita and became part of his touring crew, joining Elton on stage for Live Aid in 1985 amongst many other shows. Apparently much earlier Paton was invited to join Elton but it clashed with a promise he’s made to work with Rick Wakeman. He was lucky enough to be asked again and describes the experience as living his dream.
Jen Seyderhelm is a writer, editor and music trivia buff for Radioinfo
In related trivia, “January” was the first track played on Scottish station Radio Forth when it launched 50 years ago.