Bands/artists that never hit #1...

Oops. Sorry.

 

Amended list:

CCR
The Cars
Bruce
ELO
Pointer Sisters
The Who
James Brown
Journey
Impressions
Grass Roots
Fats Domino
Tom Petty
Pat Benatar
Hollies

And if you make it 10 top 40 singles rather than a dozen, Steely Dan and Cat Stevens.

 

Radiohead. 17 top 40 singles in the UK but no #1. No #1 in the US but two #1s in Canada.

 

How about Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers?

 

This topic shows quite well, that "No 1" positions may be nice for the ego and the biographies, but in the end they mean nothing. Especially when you see that real big and long lasting acts never reached that position.

 

Excellent! I'm amending the amendment.

 

Pat Benatar (15)
http://www.umdmusic.com/default.asp...=&ChMonth=&ChYear=&ChBand=PAT+BENATAR&ChSong=

 

List amended.

 

It looks like we've already forgotten they existed but

Glee Cast (51)
http://www.umdmusic.com/default.asp...ay=&ChMonth=&ChYear=&ChBand=GLEE+CAST&ChSong=

 

The Hollies had 12 top 40 U.S. hits and got up to #2: "Long Cool Woman" (which sounds like the music of the first band I mentioned ).

 

Glad they never did

 

Technically...Petty did hit number 1 with his duet with Stevie Nicks..."Stop Dragging Me Heart Around". Not sure if that disqualifies him.

 

Do I really have to add Glee Cast to my list? Please say I don't.

 

Not according to my Billboard Top 40 Hits book. It says #3.

 

Good point, I guess I didn't understand what you meant in terms of "winning". I thought you meant in terms of biggest artist from a cultural, critical and sales perspective that never topped the charts, and ELO are not in the same league as Springsteen (or the The Who or The Smiths, frankly).

 

Shania Twain had nine top 40 hits, and none of them went #1.

 

Glee Cast now holds the record for most chart entries of all-time, I believe. More than even Elvis or James Brown. The highest they ever got was #4 with their remake of Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'". I think most of their chart success is due to digital sales. I'm not sure they ever got much airplay, as evidenced by the fact that out of all their charted hits, not one of them (as far as I can remember) has managed to stay on the charts for even 10 weeks. Their songs tend to debut high, then take huge drops down the chart the following week.

Don't forget "Slow Hand", which also went to #2 and stayed there a week longer than "Fire".

What chart did that go to #1? In Billboard, it was #3 for 6 weeks in 1981. I think that was the record at the time for most weeks at #3 without going to #1.

Bruce Springsteen has been mentioned, and I assume we're going by the Billboard Hot 100 chart here, but "Dancing In The Dark" went to #1 in Cashbox, I believe. It should also be noted that he WROTE a Billboard #1 - "Blinded By The Light" by Manfred Mann's Earth Band.

I think CCR hit #1 in the Cashbox and Record World charts, just not Billboard.

 

Ah ok...he's in the clear.!

 

The Cure. Lots of charting singles but the closest they got was #2 in the US for Lovesong. (Although Wish did chart at #1 in the UK for albums)

 

How about REM? I know they had a couple of #1's on the Alt Rock list, but how about the regular Billboard Hot 100?

 

KISS

 

I don't think Nirvana ever made it to number 1 on the pop charts. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" reached #6 as the highest. They only have one #1 on Mainstream Rock ("You Know You're Right"). Pearl Jam hasn't hit #1 either. Their highest chart entry was "Last Kiss" at #2.

 

That is surprising considering how successful Born In The USA was, spawning seven top 10 hits.

 

They had nine through "Bang and Blame" in '95 and I don't think they hit the U.S. top 40 pop again.

 

IIRC, Bruce (jokingly) blamed Prince for him not hitting #1. In the case of BITUSA, it was because of Purple Rain.