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Throwback Thursday Forgotten 45: Sammy Johns

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Throwback Thursday Forgotten 45: Sammy Johns


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Happy New Year! This Saturday from 8 to noon on American Top 40 the 70’s, Casey Kasem has part 2 of the Top 100 songs of 1975, it’s where I found today’s Forgotten 45 at 3:45 from Sammy Johns with “Chevy Van”.

The singer out of Charlotte, North Carolina is a true one-hit wonder, but what a hit! “Chevy Van” was originally recorded in 1973, but wasn’t released until ’75 and went all the way to #5 on the pop charts 50 years ago and the song actually increased sales of vans into 1976!

The song also created a term called “Vansploitation” which in which a van or vans were a large plot of a movie like 1977’s “The Van” which featured the song and even starred a young Danny DeVito!

A true 70’s classic, “Chevy Van” by Sammy Johns is today’s Forgotten 45!

Jeff Winfield
105.7 KOKZ afternoons: the Forgotten 45 at 3:45 and the 5 O'Clock Traffic Jams.
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