Three Dog Night is famous for hitting the number 21, so appearing at Stateline’s MontBleu Theatre is a natural.
The band had 21 consecutive top 40 hits. While Casey Kasem kept his feet on the ground and reached for the stars the DJ also talked nonstop about then next ascending hit song by the group founded in 1968 by Danny Hutton and Cory Wells, who remain, along with keyboardist Jimmy Greenspoon, drummer Pat Bautz and guitar player Michael Allsup.
The band resonated with pop, rock and country fans throughout the globe, including those in Japan, Canada, England, Germany and Spain. It featured multiple lead and harmony singers. It also was integrated, unusual for a rock band in the 1960s with African-American drummer Floyd Sneed.
Moreover, it was the great songs which made Three Dog Night once of the nation’s most popular bands of all time. The group had a penchant for superb arrangements of tunes written by accomplished songwriters, including Hoyt Axton, “Joy to the World,” Harry Nilsson, “One,” Randy Newman, “Mama Told Me Not to Come” and Paul Williams, “Old Fashioned Love Song.”
Three Dog Night had three No. 1 songs, 11 in the top 10 and 18 in a row in the top 20. Many of the songs are used today in movies and television commercials, including the “Shambala” with its iconic guitar riff and howling harmonies.
The term “three-dog-night” is a bush reference to how many dogs are needed inside on an especially cold night. But the band has remained hot. After its long run of hits, it had a hiatus from 1975-1981. It continues to tour, most years performing about 80 times.
Singles were released on vinyl 45s during Three Dog Night’s heyday, and the band usually had songs on either side of the record reach the charts. In honor of that, it recently released two songs publicists called a “double-A sided single, “Heart Of Blues” “Prayer of the Children.”
Three Dog Night
When: 9 p.m. Saturday, June 21. Doors open at 8 p.m.
Where: MontBleu Theatre
Tickets: $45 and $55, plus $3 entertainment tax
Purchase: LINK
Three Dog Night’s 21 Consecutive Top 40 Hits:
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Mama Told Me (Not To Come)#1
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Joy to The World #1
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Black And White #1
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Shambala #3
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Easy To Be Hard #4
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An Old Fashioned Love Song #4
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The Show Must Go On #4
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One #5
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Never Been To Spain #5
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Liar #7
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Eli’s Coming #10
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The Family Of Man #12
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Celebrate #15
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Out In The Country #15
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Sure As I’m Sittin’ Here #16
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Let Me Serenade You #17
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One Man Band #19
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Pieces Of April #19
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Try A Little Tenderness #29
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Til The World Ends #32
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Play Something Sweet (Brickyard Blues) #33
