1972

The **1972** season was the thirteenth regular season of *Jay's Music Search*. It followed the 1971 season and preceded the 1973 season.

Pop singer Tom Jones was the winner of the season, becoming the first UK act to win. Folk rock singer/guitarist Gordon Lightfoot finished second, with fellow folk singer Joan Baez finishing third, and singer and pianist Ray Charles coming in fourth.

# Episodes

## Auditions

The first round consisted of about 100 acts auditioning to make the Top 48 that would move into Round 2.

### Episode 1301

**Accepted:**

* **Joan Baez**
* **Tony Christie**
* **Simon & Garfunkel**
* **The Hollies**
* **Tchaikovsky**
* **Gaetano Donizetti**
* **Mouth & MacNeal**
* **Elvis Presley**

**Rejected:**

* Tom Rapp
* Cher
* Georges Brassens
* Juicy Lucy
* Family

### Episode 1302

**Accepted:**

* **Leslie Uggams**
* **Jimmy McGriff and Junior Parker**
* **The Who**
* **Marianne Rosenberg**

**Rejected:**

* Benny Goodman
* Larry Kert
* Robert Guillaume
* Linda Bennett
* Jack Lemmon
* Peter Nero
* Fred Astaire
* Walter De Buck

### Episode 1303

**Accepted:**

* **The Beatles**
* **Neil Young**
* **Santana**
* **Johnny Johnson & The Bandwagon**
* **Neil Diamond**
* **Procol Harum**
* **Augusto Martelli**
* **Earl Scruggs**

**Rejected:**

* Jefferson Airplane
* Lunar Funk
* Irwin Goodman
* Lester Young
* Sailcat

### Episode 1304

**Accepted:**

* **Ryan's Fancy**
* **The Kinks**

**Rejected:**

* *Pete Seeger*
* McCoy Tyner
* Eugene Ormandy
* Dave Collins
* Bismillah Khan
* Ram Narayan
* Ravi Shankar & Ali Akbar Khan
* Shivkumar Sharma, Hariprasad Chaurasia and Brijbhushan Kabra
* Vilayat Khan
* Pannalal Ghosh

### Episode 1305

**Accepted:**

* **Solomon Burke**
* **Tom Jones**
* **Rod Hunter**
* **Diana Ross and The Supremes & The Temptations**
* **The Last Poets**
* **Billie Holiday**
* **Gordon Lightfoot**
* **The Cats**
* **Bob Dylan**

**Rejected:**

* The Rolling Stones
* *Slim and Slam*
* Duke Ellington
* McBride

### Episode 1306

**Accepted:**

* **T. Rex**
* **Richie Havens**
* **Ray Charles**

**Rejected:**

* Titanic
* The Wolfe Tones
* Jackie Moore
* Erika Pluhar
* Slade
* Peter Hamilton Orchestra
* Walt Disney
* *Tony Ronald*
* Marvin Gaye

### Episode 1307

**Accepted:**

* **Salome Bey**
* **Third World War**
* **The Seashells**
* **Gilbert O'Sullivan**
* **Brinsley Schwarz**

**Rejected:**

* Chet Atkins
* Canzoniere Internazionale
* Slade (second chance)
* Sonny Stitt
* Yusef Lateef
* James Brown
* The Grateful Dead
* Mighty Baby

### Episode 1308

**Accepted:**

* **David Bowie**
* **Hawkwind**
* **Three Dog Night**
* **Polaris**
* **Katja Ebstein**
* **Fela Kuti**

**Rejected:**

* Skin Alley
* Daevid Allen & Gong
* The Pink Fairies
* The Edgar Broughton Band
* Donny Osmond
* Michel Fugain

## Round 2 Battles

As only 45 of the 48 needed acts made it through auditions, three acts were brought back as audition wildcards to fill out the 48. The three acts were Pete Seeger, Slim and Slam, and Tony Ronald.

The battles in the round are listed below, with the winners being in bold. Battle losers in italics received saves and also moved on. Only eight saves were available to give away in this round.

### Episode 1309

* Augusto Martelli vs **Billie Holiday**
* *Bob Dylan* vs **Brinsley Schwarz**
* *David Bowie* vs **Diana Ross and The Supremes & The Temptations**
* **Earl Scruggs** vs Elvis Presley
* **Fela Kuti** vs Gaetano Donizetti
* Gilbert O'Sullivan vs **Gordon Lightfoot**

### Episode 1310

* **Hawkwind** vs Jimmy McGriff and Junior Parker
* **Joan Baez** vs Johnny Johnson & The Bandwagon
* **Katja Ebstein** vs Leslie Uggams
* *Marianne Rosenberg* vs **Mouth & MacNeal**
* *Neil Diamond* vs **Neil Young**
* Pete Seeger vs **Polaris**

### Episode 1311

* Procol Harum vs **Ray Charles**
* **Richie Havens** vs Rod Hunter
* **Ryan's Fancy** vs *Salome Bey*
* Santana vs **Simon & Garfunkel**
* Slim and Slam vs **Solomon Burke**
* *T. Rex* vs **Tchaikovsky**
* The Beatles vs **The Cats**
* *The Hollies* vs **The Kinks**
* **The Last Poets** vs The Seashells

### Episode 1312

* The Who vs **Third World War**
* *Three Dog Night* vs **Tom Jones**
* **Tony Christie** vs Tony Ronald

## Round 3 Battles

The Top 32 were split into sixteen new battles. They were sorted again alphabetically, but starting in 1966, rematches were disallowed, so adjustments were made in some cases to prevent two acts that went up against each other in Round 2 from going up again together.

The battles in the round are listed below, with the winners being in bold. This time, only four saves were available to give away in this round.

### Episode 1313

* **Billie Holiday** vs Bob Dylan
* **Brinsley Schwarz** vs David Bowie
* *Diana Ross and The Supremes & The Temptations* vs **Earl Scruggs**
* Fela Kuti vs **Gordon Lightfoot**
* *Hawkwind* vs **Joan Baez**
* Katja Ebstein vs **Marianne Rosenberg**

### Episode 1314

* **Mouth & MacNeal** vs Neil Diamond
* **Neil Young** vs Polaris
* **Ray Charles** vs Richie Havens
* Ryan's Fancy vs **Simon & Garfunkel**
* **Salome Bey** vs Solomon Burke
* T. Rex vs **The Cats**
* *Tchaikovsky* vs **The Hollies**

### Episode 1315

* The Kinks vs **The Last Poets**
* **Third World War** vs Three Dog Night
* **Tom Jones** vs *Tony Christie*

## Wildcard Battles

The wildcard round saw eight acts that were eliminated in Rounds 2 and 3 be brought back for a final chance to make the Top 24. They were split into four battles, with only the winners moving on. No saves were available in this round.

### Episode 1316

* Gilbert O'Sullivan vs **Neil Diamond**
* Ryan's Fancy vs **Santana**
* Slim and Slam vs **Solomon Burke**
* **The Beatles** vs The Kinks

## Top 24

The Top 24 were split into four groups of six. Three from each group advanced and made it into the Top 12.

### Episode 1317

**Advanced:**

* **Neil Diamond** (1st)
* **Gordon Lightfoot** (2nd)
* **Brinsley Schwarz** (3rd)

**Eliminated:**

* Billie Holiday
* Diana Ross and The Supremes & The Temptations
* Earl Scruggs

### Episode 1318

**Advanced:**

* **Neil Young** (1st)
* **Joan Baez** (2nd)
* **Hawkwind** (3rd)

**Eliminated:**

* Marianne Rosenberg
* Mouth & MacNeal
* Santana

### Episode 1319

**Advanced:**

* **Ray Charles** (1st)
* **Tchaikovsky** (2nd)
* **Simon & Garfunkel** (3rd)

**Eliminated:**

* Salome Bey
* Solomon Burke
* The Cats

### Episode 1320

**Advanced:**

* **The Beatles** (1st)
* **The Last Poets** (2nd)
* **Tom Jones** (3rd)

**Eliminated:**

* The Hollies
* Third World War
* Tony Christie

## Top 12

In this round, ten acts moved forward, and two were eliminated.

### Episode 1321

**Advanced:**

* **Brinsley Schwarz**
* **Joan Baez**
* **Hawkwind**
* **Ray Charles**
* **Gordon Lightfoot**
* **Tchaikovsky**
* **The Beatles**
* **The Last Poets**
* **Tom Jones**
* **Neil Diamond** (bottom 3)

**Eliminated:**

* Simon & Garfunkel
* Neil Young

## Top 10

In this round, eight acts moved forward, and two were eliminated.

### Episode 1322

**Advanced:**

* **Hawkwind**
* **Joan Baez**
* **Ray Charles**
* **Gordon Lightfoot**
* **The Beatles**
* **The Last Poets**
* **Tom Jones**
* **Tchaikovsky** (bottom 3)

**Eliminated:**

* Neil Diamond
* Brinsley Schwarz

## Top 8

In this round, four acts moved into the finale, and four were eliminated.

### Episode 1323

**Advanced:**

* **Joan Baez**
* **Tom Jones**
* **Ray Charles**
* **Gordon Lightfoot** (middle 2)

**Eliminated:**

* Hawkwind
* Tchaikovsky
* The Last Poets
* The Beatles (middle 2)

## Finals

This was the final round of the competition, in which the final four all performed three final times, before the winner was decided.

### Episode 1324

* **Winner: TOM JONES**
* **2nd place: Gordon Lightfoot**
* **3rd place: Joan Baez**
* **4th place: Ray Charles**