Remembering 1968 Trivia Quiz

Answer: (Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay

Otis Redding died on December 10 1967, when the plane carrying him and his band crashed in Lake Monona near Madison, Wisconsin. "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" was released in January of 1968 and reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 on March 16, 1968, spending four weeks at the top spot.

The song was co-written by Redding and Guitarist Steve Cropper, who was a member of the band Booker T. & the M.G.'s. Redding also penned the Aretha Franklin hit "Respect", which she took to number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1967.

Answer: Harper Valley PTA

"Harper Valley PTA", written by country star Tom T. Hall, was a break-out hit for Riley, spending one week at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and three weeks at number one on the U.S. Hot Country Singles chart. The song made Riley the first female artist to top both charts with the same song.

The single, which has sold over six million copies, also inspired a 1978 motion picture and a short-lived TV series, both starring Barbara Eden.

Answer: True

True story. In a 2008 interview with PopEntertainment.com James said "Two nights before we went into the studio, we had a track done, but no title. We were looking for a girl's name, a two syllable word, but everything sounded so stupid. So (my writing partner) Richie Cordell and I went out on my terrace. I was living in New York at the time. I go out to have a cigarette and I see the Mutual of New York insurance company sign: MONY. And we just started to laugh because that was the perfect name. And that ended up being the name of the record." "Mony, Mony" peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100 from 1968.

Answer: Elenore

"Elenore" was actually written as a parody of their hit "Happy Together" as band member Howard Kaylan explained in the liner notes of The Turtles' Anthology "Solid Zinc". Kaylan said: "It was never meant to be a straight-forward song. It was an anti-love letter to White Whale (the bands record company), who were constantly on our backs to give them another 'Happy Together.' So I gave them a very skewed version.

It was my feeling that they would listen to how strange and stupid the song was and leave us alone.

But they didn't get the joke. They thought it sounded good." The song, it turned out, was no joke as it climbed all the way to number six on the Billboard Hot 100.

Answer: Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart

Boyce and Hart met in Los Angeles in 1959, but didn't have any real success until Chubby Checker recorded their song "Lazy Elsie Molly" in 1964. Although it wasn't a huge success, number 40 on the Billboard Hot 100, it led to bigger and better things for the young songwriters.

They went on to write "Come a Little Bit Closer" for Jay and the Americans and a number of hit songs for The Monkees, including "Last Train to Clarksville", "Valleri" and "(I'm not your) Steppin' Stone". According to the Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll, Boyce and Hart wrote more than 300 songs, and sold more than 42 million records as a writing team.

Answer: Vanilla Fudge

The band was formed in Long Island, New York in 1965 and were originally called The Pigeons, before changing their name to Vanilla Fudge in 1966. The group did record some original material, but were better known for their loud, heavy, and slowed-down versions of popular songs. "You Keep Me Hangin' On" was released in the U.S. in 1967, but didn't do as well as the band had hoped.

The band continued to tour extensively and gradually expanded their fan base. After performing the song on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1968, Atco (the bands record company), re-issued the single and it reached number six on Billboard's Hot 100 in the summer of '68. Vanilla Fudge disbanded in 1970, but have reunited several times since.

Answer: People Got to Be Free

"People Got to Be Free" was number one from August 17 to September 21, the group's longest stay at that postion. It was the band's third number one single after "Good Lovin' " in 1966 and "Groovin'" in 1967. The record also ranked number five on the Billboard Year-End singles chart.

The song's message of peace and tolerance was well received in a year that had seen the assassinations of both Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy.

Answer: Love is All Around

"Love is All Around" was quite a departure from the bands 1966 rock anthem "Wild Thing", but that didn't seem to matter as the song reached number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent 16 weeks on the chart. The song was written by band member Reg Presley, who sadly passed away in 2013 from lung cancer.

Answer: Merrilee Rush

"Angel of the Morning" was originally offered to Connie Francis, but she thought the subject matter was to risque for her career and turned it down. The song had been recorded several times prior to Rush's version, but none of the recordings had any real success.

The single reached number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 from 1968 and reached number one in Canada, New Zealand and Australia. The song was also recorded by Juice Newton in 1981 and reached number four on the Billboard Hot 100 from that year.

The song was written by Chip Taylor (born James Wesley Voight) who also wrote The Troggs 1966 number one "Wild Thing". Taylor is the brother of actor Jon Voight and the uncle of actress Angelina Jolie.

Answer: Classical Gas

The song was originally titled "Classical Gasoline", but eventually was changed to the more familiar "Classical Gas". The song features Williams on guitar with backing instrumentation performed by members of "The Wrecking Crew". Williams was not only a talented musician, he was also a gifted comedy writer.

While working as the head writer on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour he created the popular "Pat Paulsen for President" campaign in 1968. It was during this time that Williams released the song and he premiered the composition on the show.

The single peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent two weeks there.