The Shagadelic Tunes of 1965

The Shagadelic Tunes of 1965

Author: David Yas & Michael ”Milt” Wolfe January 30, 2026 Duration: 1:54:02
Dave and Milt hop back into the Past Tens time machine and land in February 1965—a time when the Billboard Top 10 didn’t mess around. This is peak-era stuff: songs you know, artists you trust, and records that somehow still sound better than half the things clogging your algorithm today. As always, the guys do more than just count them down. They break apart the songs, talk about where they hit in their own musical DNA, and wander into side streets involving movies, memories, and the occasional “how did we get here?” tangent. The chart itself is loaded: Sam Cooke, Marvin Gaye, The Temptations, The Righteous Brothers, The Kinks—basically a greatest-hits album disguised as a single week in ’65. Somewhere along the way, a perfectly reasonable discussion turns into a full-blown “sweet” song playdate, because once you open that door, you’re not closing it quietly. The episode wraps with debates about longevity, covers that worked (and didn’t), and the usual Past Tens soul-searching about which songs are truly immortal—and which ones just had a really good run.   Topics  00:00 – Welcome to Past Tens (set your dials accordingly)01:17 – Listener Feedback & Shoutouts04:09 – Time Machine Locked In: February 196505:30 – What 1965 Looked Like Outside the Radio15:55 – Countdown Begins (no wasted notes) 34:06 – Sweet Talkin’ Woman – ELO39:45 – My Girl – The Temptations (yes, that moment)48:35 – All Day and All of the Night – The Kinks57:24 – Love Potion No. 9 – The Searchers01:06:07 – Hold What You’ve Got – Joe Tex 01:11:31 – This Diamond Ring – Gary Lewis & The Playboys 01:13:21 – The Ed Sullivan Show Question01:14:02 – Gary Lewis’ Chart Run01:14:55 – Al Kooper’s Vision for This Diamond Ring01:16:49 – The Name Game – Shirley Ellis01:24:12 – Petula Clark Takes Us Downtown01:30:12 – The Righteous Brothers and That Vocal01:36:11 – Covers, Substitutions, and Tough Calls01:38:47 – Final Thoughts, Personal Stories, and Why 1965 Still Wins  

For anyone who’s ever argued about a one-hit wonder or wondered what exactly made a chart-topper tick, there’s PAST 10s: A Top 10 Time Machine-Music of the 70s, 80s and More. Hosts Michael “Milt” Wolfe and David Yas don’t just play the hits; they dig into the actual top ten lists from decades past, serving up a blend of nostalgia and fresh commentary. Each episode is a deep dive into a specific chart, breaking down not just the winners but the curious also-rans and genuine oddities that shared the space. You’ll hear them analyze everything from the undeniable classics to those “how did that get there?” moments, all with a sense of camaraderie and genuine curiosity. While the core of the podcast revolves around the music of the 1970s and 1980s, they happily venture into the 90s and other eras, applying the same formula to themed lists like the greatest cover songs, iconic TV themes, and memorable movie soundtracks. It’s less a lecture and more like eavesdropping on a great conversation between two knowledgeable friends who love to unpack the stories behind the songs. The result is a consistently engaging listen that might make you revisit your old playlists with a new appreciation. Tune in for a weekly dose of musical archaeology that’s as much about the cultural context as it is about the melody.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

PAST 10s: A Top 10 Time Machine - Music of the 70s, 80s and More
Podcast Episodes
‘76 Hits: Our Listeners Re-Write the Top 10 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:53:45
ave and Milt revisit the week ending July 10, 1976, letting listeners vote on a replacement Billboard Top 10 drawn from 25 Hot 100 songs that never reached the top 10. They count down the survey results including the maj…
Rock Bottom! Lowest Hits of ‘76 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:16:55
Dave and Milt announce a listener survey to vote on a new “substitution” Top 10 for the July 10, 1976 chart as part of their bicentennial-week trilogy, sharing shout-outs (including a Spotify playlist by Jason Hedman) an…
The Hits of 1976: USA! USA! [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:55:36
This week on Past Tens, we celebrate America's 200th birthday the only way we know how—by firing up the musical time machine and heading back to the Billboard Top 10 for Bicentennial week, ending July 10, 1976. But first…
The Most Underrated 70s Tunes [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 25:27
Things take a turn for the cosmic. Thanks to a special introduction from our old pal George Clooney, we learn that Elon Musk has apparently purchased Past Tens, folded it into SpaceX, and blasted Dave and Milt into separ…
Hits of ‘86: Nu Shooz, Sad Songs, Bad Proms [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:11:53
Dave and Milt hop into the Past 10s time machine and travel back to the Billboard Top 10 for the week ending June 14, 1986. But before they even hit the charts, they celebrate the emotional madness of the Knicks’ incredi…
The Greatest SCREAMS in Rock History [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:17:15
This week on Past Tens, Dave and Milt welcome a fresh face to the show: new intern Jason, a Tulane University student possibly as obsessed with music as the Past Tens bozos. Jason talks about catching A$AP Rocky's "Don't…
The Hits of 1970 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:02:32
Dave and Milt crank up the Time Machine and head back to the week ending May 30, 1970, but not before detouring through spam-text “pig slaughtering” scams, listener banter, and a recap of Stephen Colbert’s farewell show,…
The Top 10 Late-Night Hosts [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:30:49
Dave and Milt hit record for a special edition of Past 10s marking the end of an era: the final episode of Stephen Colbert’s Late Show. But instead of hopping into the Billboard Hot 100 time machine, the boys pivot to la…
The Rock of 1989: Doctor, There’s A Great White in My Heartbreaker [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:54:05
Dave and Milt fire up the Top 10 Time Machine and head straight for the week ending May 20, 1989 — but this time they ditch the Hot 100 in favor of the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart, because apparently Aqua Net, guitar…
The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:30:58
Dave and Milt plug into one of rock nerd-dom’s favorite barstool arguments: Rolling Stone’s freshly dropped list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Solos Ever. Naturally, they treat it less like gospel and more like a karaoke ma…