This piece from American Songwriter looks back at three pop songs from 1972 that dominated the airwaves and, according to the writer, became obsessive repeat listens for teenagers of the era. It's a nostalgic retrospective rather than a hard news story, highlighting how the early 1970s pop charts blended rock, soul and emerging pop-rock sounds into hits that defined a generation's musical memory.

The three songs featured are "Ben" by Michael Jackson, his first US solo No. 1 and the start of a career that would earn him the title King of Pop; "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)" by Looking Glass, a chart-topping soft rock storytelling song about a barmaid longing for a sailor, which remains the band's only Top 30 hit; and "Day After Day" by Badfinger, a power pop track that reached No. 4 on the Hot 100 and, though released in the US in 1971, only became a major hit after reaching the UK in 1972.

– Michael Jackson's "Ben" was his first solo No. 1 hit in the US.
– Looking Glass's "Brandy" topped the Hot 100 but was their only Top 30 entry.
– Badfinger's "Day After Day" hit No. 4 and broke big in the UK in 1972.