December 29, 1972

1	1	Carly Simon--You're So Vain
3	2	Johnny Rivers--Rockin' Pneumonia - Boogie Woogie Flu
2	3	Billy Paul--Me and Mrs. Jones
5	4	Clean Living--In Heaven There is No Beer
11	5	Elton John--Crocodile Rock
7	6	Timmy Thomas--Why Can't We Live Together
4	7	Donna Fargo--Funny Face
12	8	Stylistics--I'm Stone in Love With You
9	9	Blue Haze--Smoke Gets in Your Eyes
10	10	Raspberries--I Wanna Be With You
17	11	Loggins & Messina--Your Mama Don't Dance
16	12	Hurricane Smith--Oh, Babe, What Would You Say?
6	13	Gilbert O'Sullivan--Clair
20	14	Jethro Tull--Living in the Past
23	15	Paul McCartney--Hi, Hi, Hi
24	16	Stevie Wonder--Superstition
18	17	Curtis Mayfield--Superfly
21	18	Blue Ridge Rangers--Jambalaya
15	20	Neil Diamond--Walk on Water
31	21	Edward Bear--Last Song
34	22	John Denver--Rocky Mountain High
13	23	Albert Hammond--It Never Rains in Southern California
25	24	James Taylor--Don't Let Me Be Lonely Tonight
27	25	Engelbert Humperdinck--I Never Said Goodbye
30	26	Holland-Dozier Featuring Lamont Dozier--Why Can't We Be Lovers
33	27	Paul Davis--Boogie Woogie Man
---	28	Shel Silverstein--Sara Cynthia Sylvia Stout
29	29	Cat Stevens--Sitting
14	30	Harold Melvin & the Bluenotes--If You Don't Know Me By Now
22	31	Three Dog Night--Pieces of April
40	32	Bette Midler--Do You Want to Dance?
---	33	Lobo--Don't Expect Me to Be Your Friend
37	35	Rita Coolidge--My Crew
---	37	Marvin Gaye--Trouble Man
---	39	Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose--I'm Never Gonna Be Alone Anymore

The December 29 survey did not appear in the newspaper, so it has been reconstructed from the “Last Week” column of the January 5 survey. This leaves some holes where the records were that dropped off from December 29 to January 5.

Debuting at number 28 is a spoken-word recording that did not make the Billboard charts; “Sara Cynthia Sylvia Stout” is Shel Silverstein reciting one of his stories. It’ll spend nine weeks on the survey and peak at number 15. I remember it from hearing it on Dr. Demento a little later in the 70s. The other debuts are Lobo’s “Don’t Expect Me to Be Your Friend” (8BB/4KJR); “Trouble Man” by Marvin Gaye (7/25); and “I’m Never Gonna Be Alone Anymore” by the Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose (37/30).