Artists with at least 20 recognizable hits

I have to confess that the only reason I know Jealous Guy is because of Roxy Music

 

That's beside the point. Whether or not their current tour breathes some new life into those old songs, as I mentioned actually did happen with "Silver Springs" back in the 90's, remains to be seen.

My gut feeling is it would probably take a big media event like a full reunion of the surviving members, or appearances in commercials/movies/etc., to truly achieve this. The fact that most of the current focus appears to be on Lindsey Buckingham getting fired, and filing suit against the band, is sadly telling.

Lindsey Buckingham Leaves Fleetwood Mac (confirmed by Variety)
Lindsey Buckingham Sues Fleetwood Mac Over Dismissal from Band

 

These songs are still very much alive. And I am sure Fleetwood Mac will not play any of these in their new tour.

 

Lennon has just ONE song everyone knows he did as a solo artist.

The Beatles all accomplished hit solo careers but I think only one of them manage to release a song that is today well known by the general public.

I'll give Maybe I'm Amazed and My Sweet Lord some recognizability too but not over the more iconic "Imagine".

 

Only thing I can see everyone remembering from Cat is "Wild World". As for the Police, it's always that one song.

Everyone can have a bunch of hits but most would kill for having a hit song that people would be like "oooh this is my song!" without saying they were a fan and kept up with it. Most play songs by artists and are sometimes shocked they were hits.

 

Most of the guys listed have at best 15-17 tracks that are still well known to the general public today. I'd say the Beatles as a group dwarfs everyone up, even Dylan.

 

Looks to me like they are playing some of those non-Buckingham/Nicks songs:
Fleetwood Mac Concert Setlists

Unfortunately, the situation with Lindsey Buckingham has cast such a shadow over their current tour that the band, and by extension those songs, IMHO will not likely gain (m)any new fans. I could well be proven wrong, especially given that alone among Fleetwood Mac personnel it is Stevie Nicks who has become a cultural icon of sorts, so as long as she's in there a more general media interest should follow (hence, my inclusion of her solo material in my original list), while the rest of the band members have essentially remained musicians (which is not necessarily a bad thing, btw).

We'll see how it all unfolds. Thanks for reading!

 

I'd also add "Happy Xmas" at least for US audiences. It plays in heavy rotation on the radio, stores, malls, etc. from Thanksgiving to Christmas every year. Can't imagine anyone here who wouldn't recognize that one.

 

That’s a reason why twenty recognizable hits is so hard to reach.

For instance I think Elton John had only one recognizable hit after 1976, and that’s “Candle in the Wind”- which is more due to the death of Princess Diana.

More examples of this,

Billy Joel after “We Didn’t Start the Fire”.

Prince after “Cream”.

Now if the question were twenty top 40 hits this and other artists would easily make the lists.

 

Cool, I expect they will play them in a surprising way

 

The Frogs get so close with 19 hits more than likely recognized by most:

I've Got Drugs (Out Of The Mist)

I Don't Care If U Disrespect Me (Just So You Love Me)

Theses Are The Finest Queen Boys (I've Ever Seen)

Someone's Pinning Me To The Ground

Richard Dick Richards

Men (Come On Men)

Been A Month Since I Had A Man

Children Run Away (The Man With The Candy)

April Fools (He Had The Change Done At The Shop)

The Boys With The Boys

I'm Sad The Goat Just Died Today

Put Your Finger In The Dike, Stop The Leak

Which One Of You Gave My Daughter The Dope?

Is It Right To Kiss The Boys (When You're A Girl And Not A Boy?)

(Try Out My New) Sex Doll Baby!!!

I'm Back To Women

Sailors Board Me Now

When The Cat Pisses In The Corner Again

Garden Hose (The Nozzle Boys)

 

Well, I always wonder if I'm too focused on the US, the UK, Canada and Australia. I couldn't tell you who the biggest stars are in Brazil or China. And I definitely wouldn't recognize 20 of their songs.

 

I went with the discography on Wiki - it lists some hits under "Rock" but 0 on the Hot 100.

I can't access the link you provided at work!

 

Cat Stevens hits... I can't get it to 20, but somewhere around 15 is not bad.

Matthew and Son
I Love My Dog
I'm Gonna Get Me A Gun
The First Cut Is The Deepest (Cat, also many other versions)
Here Comes My Baby (Tremeloes)
Lady D'Arbanville
Wild World
Father and Son
Morning Has Broken
Peace Train
Moonshadow
Can't Keep It In
Oh Very Young
Another Saturday Night
Remember the Days of the Old Schoolyard

I've limited it to songs which were 'hits' in major markets, and excluded well-known album tracks such as 'Sitting', Into White' etc.

 

I can sing and recall the melodies of maybe 4 or 5 of those songs. I'm not a Cat Stevens fan. I doubt a casual music listener could name that many and, if they can, name the artist who sings them. I really only know First Cut through the Stewart cover as well.

In general people seem to be confusing having 20 songs that charted being the same as 20 recognizable hits to the average listener. It's not.

 

It helps to say which song you mean as popularity differs from country to country , in case of the Police for me it would be either Every breath ,Message in a bottle or even Roxanne .
I'm saying this because not even remotely would I associate Wild world as the song "everyone(is) remembering from Cat"

 

I disagree....if we limit the discussion to the average listener today, then we lose all those artists from the past who had successful careers, and frankly ruile pretty much everybody out. We would be answering a different question ... How much does the average listener today know about the hits of the past? well we know that is not very much.

Bing Crosby had many hits, recognisable to two whole generations.... The fact that many of his audience are no longer with us doesn't alter the fact that he had more than 20 hits which a music-following or radio audience of the time would have recognised.

The fact that you personally recognise only 4 or 5 of the Cat Stevens songs is neither here nor there, I only recognise a handful of the Stevie Wonder songs, but i thought it was a good answer to the original question. Or do we just say "The Beatles' and go home.....?

 

There is never a consensus on these sorts of things because everyone has different listening habits and artists' popularity varies from country to country.

This is probably why the OP bailed and asked the thread to be shut down as it was her conclusion that there were NO artists who meet the criteria she set out in her opening post. As this relates to Cat Stevens, I'm a music nut, I even used to own a Cat Stevens hits collection although I wouldn't call myself a fan, and I barely even remember any of his songs, save 4 or 5, let alone 20, nor can 99.99% of the world's population so it's certainly relevant to this thread.

 

Exactly, his best known song in Europe is, by far, Father And Son, and after that probably Lady D'Arbanville, Morning Has Broken, Matthew And Son, Moonshadow, Can't Keep it In and If You Want To Sing Out.

 

I know. The OP asked for hits as in top 40 hits but then a lot of people listed Bowie, The Cure, Cars and REM who never had 20 US top 40 hits. Even U2 has just 16 US top 40 hits. Some posters at least mentioned that their list is for UK top 40 so those guys are exempt

 

You’re pretty much right on Prince and Billy Joel, but you don’t think “Sad Songs (Say So Much),” “Little Jeannie,” “I Guess That’s Why They Call It the Blues” and the Lion King songs are recognizable? I do. (They’re not as good as Elton’s earlier material, but that’s a whole different matter.)

 

The original version...

 

I mean it's hard to say in that almost nothing is universal and everyone is guessing. Is Happy Birthday To You truly universal? I don't know. Do you? It's all guessing. I don't listen to what the "general" pop fan listens to...so their music isn't universal either. No one's is.

 

But what we listen to counts, doesn't it? And people here don't all listen to the same stuff or know everything. I don't know plenty of what has been talked about here. I don't know a single Iron Maiden song!

 

I forgot about the Lion King. Those other songs I don’t think are recognizable hits that are played or referenced to (like in movies or commercials).

But you bring up an interesting question for me. What artists were able to extend their careers with either movie soundtracks or TV work.