In researching this, I came across an article suggesting the 70s was “one of the most stylish decades of all time.” Make of that what you will. It certainly had a massive variety, taking us from the 60s extremes of chic mini-skirts and long hippy beads and dreds, all the way through to the anti-fashions of grungy punk in 1979.
The early 70 saw lots of bare midriffs as frilly crop-tops accompanied tight denim, leather or matching fabric trousers, all suitably flared from either the knees or thighs. I had a pair of pale purple, brushed-denim flares with big brown buttons all the way from knee to floor, and I remember wearing them until they fell apart and mum chucked them out. Bell bottoms or Oxford bags, trouser legs used a lot of material. In contrast, women’s tops became skimpier as tight-fitting halter-necks and boob-tubes became all the rage, firstly in discos, then in general wear.
By the middle of the decade, the mini-skirts and hot pants gave way to midi-dresses, kaftans and every conceivable type of jumpsuit, from functional polyester to crazy, open fronted crochet and cool cotton for the beach. Wrap dresses offered a professional appearance in the office, and could then be dressed up for an evening on the town immediately after work. Trousers became increasingly acceptable for both formal and work wear for women, and trouser suits became less form-fitting and feminine.
The late 70s saw Glam Rock overtaken by Punk Rock and the OTT spangles and sequins turned to torn denim and lace held together with safety pins. Black leather trousers/skirt formed the basis of many outfits, often teamed with leopard print or tartan.
You have until 22nd April to pre-order Chloe’s Chaos the second in the Calamity Chicks (70s Sweethearts) series at the bargain price of £2.22/$2.99.
The third book, Linda’s Lament is also up for pre-order.
If Tina’s story is the question, Chloe’s story is the answer to why so many of these endearing characters acted the way they did. I had a total blast writing it: despite having a second dose of COVID, it took a mere 26 days, the words just falling over themselves to hit the page.
I know many writers say their latest story is their favourite, but this is definitely in my all-time top three – I never expected Chloe to be such fun when I first met her as Tina’s friend.
Quite where the pseudo-autistic skater-guy, gentle-giant hairy biker and psychotic millionaire-stalker appeared from is a mystery. But when Chloe turned out to be the spitting image of Stevie Nicks, it all came together perfectly.
Tina’s Torment, the prequel to this, was the second full story I’d ever written (back in the nineties), with the working title Dubious Revenge and, trust me, I thought it was pretty awesome in my naivety. Couldn’t be further from the truth – chock-a-block full of every rookie writer’s frequent offenders – way too much passive telling, pages of elaborate description, unrealistic dialogue – every sin in the book! After a bunch of fabulous authors had pointed out these flaws, it first saw the light of day as Tina’s Dilemma in 2014, as part of an anthology of medium-length novellas, published as Triple Jeopardy under my pseudonym Rowanna Green. Having written/published 30 stories in between, I’ve added in a couple of sub plots and reinstated all the 70’s music a strict editor told me to remove. Now it’s a much more immersive experience, and I’m thrilled to spend more time in this time period, getting to know these lads and lasses even better.
Still a lot of bubble gum, along with several proper classics from Labi Siffre, Diana Ross, Cher and Rod Stewart.
The likes of the Sweet and T Rex heralded the start of glam rock, and I was totally knocked out by Slade’s Coz I Luv You. Still one of my all-time faves and I’m proud to say I saw them live three times – the original good-time band.
Slade – Coz I Luv You – 11-71
Labi Siffre – It Must Be Love – 12-71
Diana Ross – I’m Still Waiting – 08-71
Cher – Gipsies Tramps & Thieves – 11-71
Rod Stewart – Maggie May – 09-71
Peter Noone – Oh You Pretty Things – 06-71
Isaac Hayes – Theme From ‘Shaft’ – 12-71
The Rolling Stones – Brown Sugar – 05-71
The Congregation – Softly Whispering I Love You – 12-71
The Sweet – Funny Funny – 04-71
Lobo – Me And You And A Dog Named Boo – 07-71
The Mixtures – The Pushbike Song – 01-71
Redbone – Witch Queen Of New Orleans – 10-71
And a few which deserve an honorary mention: Curved Air – Back Street Luv – 09-71 George Harrison – My Sweet Lord – 01-71 The Fortunes – Freedom Come Freedom Go – 10-71 Neil Diamond – Sweet Caroline – 02-71 Dawn – Knock Three Times – 05-71 The Tams – Hey Girl Don’t Bother Me – 08-71 Andy Williams – (Where Do I Begin) Love Story – 04-71 The New Seekers – I’d Like To Teach The World To Sing – 12-71
As always, there are bound to be a few I’ve missed, so I’m keen to hear your best musical memories from 1971 – it may jog a memory or two.
Ask anyone to name wine from 70s and almost everyone will mention Blue Nun (a German Liebfraumilch – mother’s milk, anyone???) and Mateus Rose – as drunk by the Queen and Jimi Hendrix – apparently! I suspect the unusual packaging made them memorable: a tall, thin blue bottle a blue and white-clad nun on the label, and the extravagant, bulbous bottom-heavy Portugese offering. But a brilliant marketing campaign convinced that “The French adore Le Piat d’Or,” so this custom-built-for-the-UK wine became a brand leader. You can find our more here
I’m sure there were plenty of others – for example, the prosecco of the day was Lambrusco, and the other one – Lambrini which I now discover was made from Perry – just like Babycham. Which people used to add to cheap brandy, ruining both drinks.
The one I remember for having a kick was Thunderbird – I’m pretty sure it was the pear one, but I do remember it being kinda thick and treacly and making me very squiffy. When researching, I came across this advert which proper puts it into place – even if the clothes are actually 1969, rather than 70s.
All I can remember from my first outings to pubs (at 14, but my boyfriend was 18), was not having a clue. So being a guy’s guy, his best suggestion was half a lager and lime. I’ve never been a fan of beer, I moved to rough cider (with the dead rats floating in the barrel) then to pilsner – but I wouldn’t thank you for a dash of lime. *Shudders!*
The TV told us a Double Diamond works wonders, Guinness is good for you and Courage Tavern was what your right arm’s for. But the one I remember most was the Watneys party seven – no party was complete without one. Apparently sales of lager rose from 2% in 1965 to 20% in 1975, but the long hot summer of 1976 saw lager as a real contender. We had Carling Black Label, Guinness’ Harp, Heineken and Carlsberg.
I never tried them till the 80s, but these are some I missed out on:
Stinger with crème de menthe
Rusty Nail with Drambuie
Brandy Alexander with coffee liqueur, cream and nutmeg
Grasshopper with cream, coffee and crème de menthe
Legal aspects
Remember when pubs actually closed? In the seventies, the official opening hours were 11.30 am–3 pm and 5.30-10 pm, Monday to Saturday and 12.30-2.30 pm and 7-10 pm on Sundays. They didn’t go 11am-11pm until the late 80s and it was only from 2005 that publicans could apply for licences for up to 24 hours a day.
Although the maximum legal blood alcohol (drink driving) limit in the UK was set in the Road Safety Act of 1967, it wasn’t enforced so stringently, and if you could walk in a straight line for a few yards you could generally get off. The maximum BAC (blood alcohol concentration) was 80mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood, or the equivalent 107 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of urine which equates to roughly 4.5 units of alcohol. As a rule of thumb, two pints of regular-strength lager or two small glasses of wine would put you over the limit. This was followed by the 1981 Transport Act which stated that 35 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath was to be the maximum legal breath alcohol limit. Although the act introduced evidential breath testing legislation, it was not actually established and implemented until 1983. These limits still hold true, but you are far more likely to be tested these days.
Over to you – what do you remember about drinking in the 70s? Share your experiences in the comments below.
Trying to make the Calamity Chicks series a truly immersive 70s experience, I’ve spent days of my life trawling through websites to rediscover the best music of my life. As anyone who was a teen in the 70s will know, it took us from tail-end of crooners and Beatles, through all that Glam-rock, Disco and exquisite Soul stuff all the way to Punk and New Wave right at the end.
So I’m gonna put a tentative top thirteen (because I’m not limited to base 10) for each year, and hope people will suggest songs I’ve somehow left out because this is a long-haul task to fine tune it to the ones which meant the most to me. The numbers at the end are month/year just for completeness.
Mungo Jerry – In The Summertime – 06-70
The Carpenters – (They Long To Be) Close To You – 10-70
Smokey Robinson & The Miracles – The Tears Of A Clown – 08-70
Diana Ross – Ain’t No Mountain High Enough – 10-70
And a few which deserve an honorary mention: The Beatles– Let It Be – 03-70 Chicago – 25 Or 6 To 4 – 08-70 Clarence Carter – Patches – 10-70 Sacha Distel – Raindrops Keep Fallin’ On My Head – 03-70 Lee Marvin – Wand’rin’ Star – 02-70 Matthews Southern Comfort – Woodstock – 10-70 Simon & Garfunkel – Bridge Over Troubled Water – 03-70
As you can see, a lot of my choices were proper “bubble-gum” tracks, but in my defence, I was only 10 years old for the majority of the year.
JRo Author 