Summer '75: Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds Cruise to #1 with "Fallin' in Love"

Photo of Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds UNSPECIFIED - JANUARY 01: (AUSTRALIA OUT) Photo of Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds (Photo by GAB Archive/Redferns)
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(GAB Archive/Redferns)

Summer 1975 in America. Kids across the country beat the heat by packing movie houses to scare themselves silly watching a new kind of movie known as the "summer blockbuster": Jaws. Keeping those crowds amped (and noisy) was the hottest new sugar sensation to hit the candy shelves, Pop Rocks. For the fifth straight year, the biggest show on TV was All in the Family.

On the radio, Los Angeles soft-rock trio Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds ruled the airwaves with their one and only chart-topping track on the Hot 100, "Fallin' in Love." Released in May 1975, the song peaked at #1 for the week of August 23 of that same year. The song ruled the chart for just one week, dethroned on the following list by KC and the Sunshine Band's "Get Down Tonight."

"Fallin' in Love" was written by the band's Dan Hamilton and his wife, Ann: "In the 1970s, as a youngster, I was privileged to have access to the recording industry," Ann Hamilton explained via Songfacts. "At that time, I was married to Dan Hamilton of Hamilton, Joe Frank, and Reynolds. Dan had a huge hit record 'Don't Pull Your Love,' when we met. By the time we married, Dan, Joe Frank, and Allan Dennison were working on a new album of original songs. As fate would have it, Dan had some difficulty coming up with lyrics for three songs on the album. I submitted my ideas for 'Fallin' In Love,' 'Winners & Losers,' and 'Love Is.' Danny loved the lyrics and I had my first hit record, 'Fallin' In Love.'" Watch the group perform the song with Helen Reddy on The Midnight Special below.

The song was the subject of a major lawsuit back in 2010, filed by none less than Playboy Enterprises. Back in the early 1970s, the legendary men's magazine launched Playboy Records, which counted Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds on its roster. As it turns out, Canadian rap star Drake had liberally sampled the song for his breakout track, "Best I Ever Had," without a lick of permission. In 2011, Drake and the Young Money/Cash Money Records labels quietly settled the matter with Playboy out of court.

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