(The Hit Hammer is where I'm reviewing each #1 song on the Billboard Hot 100. Starting from when the chart started in 1958 and eventually working my way to the present. To see my inspiration and more information about this blog, please CLICK HERE)
Mary MacGregor - "Torn Between Two Lovers"
Hit Number 1: February 5, 1977
Stay at Number 1: 2 Weeks
A woman knows that what she is doing is wrong, but doesn't seem to care that much. If anything, she wants her main lover to stick by her side, and basically sweep this whole thing under the rug. This is the general plot of "Torn Between Two Lovers," a song about a woman involved in a love triangle where she's seeing two different guys, with the song's story being told from the woman to her main lover. This woman tries to "gently" tell this guy about what is going on, but makes the mistake of saying "he knows he can't possess me and he knows he never will/there's just this empty place inside of me that only he can fill." Yeah, that's still pretty rough. What would you do if your lover came up to you and said that? You'd probably break off the relationship right then and there, and at least expect some remorse from the person who did you wrong. But the thing is, this woman doesn't seem remorseful at all. The lyrics tell all: "I couldn't really blame you if you turned and walked away/But with everything I feel inside, I'm asking you to stay." Comical.
Mary MacGregor is obviously not a name most people have ever heard of, but she does have an interesting story. Not only is she apparently from Minnesota (the state I live in) but she had been involved in music since she was six years old, eventually getting the opportunity to tour the country with other musical acts when she was just a teenager. That's how Peter Yarrow from Peter, Paul & Mary discovered her, and she got the opportunity to sing backup with Yarrow on some of his tours. This led to a record deal with Ariola Records, a record company based out of Germany, though this was not the record company involved with the making of "Torn Between Two Lovers." That song was mainly written by Yarrow, with MacGregor recording it at the famous Muscle Shoals Sound Studio in Alabama.
Let's be real for a second here. Obviously the story of "Torn Between Two Lovers" is hot garbage and it's not one of Yarrow's finest pieces of work, but sometimes songs can be saved by good music. Unfortunately in this case, the song doesn't have that either. It's just a mellow piece of music, gently breezing past without much of a purpose in the world. The chorus has just enough fire power to it that it could get stuck in your head, but it's about the only somewhat saving grace the song has. I think the thing that bothers me the most though is how MacGregor sounds like she's trying to play the victim. She has this gentle, soft voice that works for the song, but it makes her sound like she's sorry for herself, and not caring much about the one that's getting the major bomb dropped on them. And again, she knows and acknowledges that she's the one that messed up, but wants all of it to be forgotten about and the two can move on. I have to admit, this is one of the more puzzling chart-toppers that I've reviewed to this point. I'm not sure what it was in 1977 that people thought was so appealing about this.
One thing about "Torn Between Two Lovers" that's kind of funny is how much MacGregor hated it in the end. Her reason? She hated the narrator as much as anyone else would. In Fred Bronson's The Billboard Book of Number One Hits, she believed that the song even led to the breakup of her own real-life marriage. Once the song hit #1, MacGregor became a minor star, causing her to have to be away from home all the time, which strained her relationship with her husband. And to make things worse, MacGregor's career dried up pretty quickly afterward due to lack of a repeat hit. I guess sometimes these #1 hits don't always make people's lives great, and not long afterward they just become another person. It's worse when said song, like "Torn Between Two Lovers," kind of sucks too.
GRADE: 3/10
IN POP CULTURE:
"Torn Between Two Lovers" was actually mentioned in Dolly Parton's 1984 song "God Won't Get You." There are covers by some obscure artists, but thought this could be a fun one to put in this IPC. Here's the audio for that song:
(Dolly Parton will eventually appear in this blog)
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