1969 Bubblegum Pop No. 1, Performed By A Fake Band, Hit The Top 57 Years Ago Today

If you didn't know any better, you would think Archie and the gang were moving from Riverdale to LA after the Archies' "Sugar, Sugar" reached Billboard's No. 1 spot at the end of September 1969. The Archies may have been tied to the beloved comics drawn by Bob Montana, but the truth behind the song, which sat atop the charts 57 years ago on September 29, is closer to a ghost kitchen than a performing act. 

Producer Don Kirshner had already made magic as the musical supervisor for the Monkees' TV show before he moved on to fill the same role for "The Archie Show" in 1968. He tapped singer Ron Dante for the vocals and recorded several songs for the show prior to "Sugar, Sugar." Sunshine pop had already taken the public by storm in 1967, but this new brand of bubblegum pop had a much younger intended audience (hence why one of its most notable hits came from a children's television program). Written by producer Jeff Berry and Andy Kim, and with Toni Wine joining Dante on vocals, "Sugar, Sugar" initially didn't get a lot of play. As Kim recalled in a 2019 interview with NPR, "I had no idea what was going on except a lot of people were putting the song and the record down, as if it was fluff. As if it didn't mean anything, there was no value to it."

However, as soon as "Sugar, Sugar" hit the airwaves, it reached No. 1 on several charts across the world. And in the U.S., the iconic love song held the top spot for the longest in 1969, bringing this fake band to a very real and vast audience.

With its sweet guitar strums, twinkling tambourine, and a catchy keyboard riff, the Archies' "Sugar, Sugar" could give you a toothache with the instrumentals alone. However, the lyrics are especially endearing, with affectionate lines such as "You are my candy girl" and "I'm gonna make your life so sweet, yeah, yeah, yeah." 

Although the animated band performing it gave it a bit of a juvenile facade, several big-name acts would go on to cover the song, including the original vocalist, Rob Dante. Ike & Tina Turner recorded their own soulful rendition in 1977, heartthrob Tom Jones performed a raspy cover in 1970, and even reggae icon Bob Marley & the Wailers released a version in 1969. It seemed as though everyone had a sweet tooth, as the track became Billboard's year-end No. 1 song of 1969. Of all the hits and artists that took over the summer of 1969, it may seem strange that "Sugar, Sugar" would surpass them all. 

The Archies would never quite make it back to No. 1, but their albums did chart on the Billboard Top 200 over the years, and their 1970 track "Jingle Jangle" even peaked at No. 10 on the Hot 100. However, whether performed by a real or fake band, perhaps audiences in that tumultuous year of social upheaval and the ongoing Vietnam War just needed some simple, uncomplicated, and sweet, sweet love.