EVERY Billboard #1 hit discussion thread 1958-Present

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by alphanguy, Jan 29, 2016.

  1. Lance LaSalle

    Lance LaSalle Prince of Swollen Sinus

    Boy this thread is getting deep; the fleeting transience of human existence; only the pop songs remain.
     
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  2. bare trees

    bare trees Senior Member

    Looking at the Canadian chart....

    "It Might Be You" sounds like it was from a couple of years earlier.

    I'm surprised that "Sex (I'm A...)" hit the top 20. This song got no airplay whatsoever in my area.
     
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  3. tmoore

    tmoore Forum Resident

    Location:
    Olney, MD
    It matters to my father who fought in WWII. And nothing I said was untrue (e.g., Sept 2 is still summer, also -- the war in Europe ended in May).
    For all practical purposes the war ended in mid-August, my father was in DC when that happened and told me about how crowded the streets were, when the news came through.

    Sorry for the nit-pick.
     
    Last edited: Mar 31, 2020
  4. AppleBonker

    AppleBonker Forum Resident

    Location:
    Seattle
    It's weird that I was never a big fan of any of the top stars of this era. Madonna, Jackson, Wham/George Michael, Duran Duran, etc. Didn't like any of them. OK, Prince was cool, although I didn't like Purple Rain all that much. But the second tier artists I really did like. So most of the #1 songs we are going to talk about over the next year as part of the chart conversation don't do much for me, but the songs around the edges... those I love!

    One of those second tier songs was She Blinded Me With Science. I knew this guy in my physics class at school, and I swear, the only thing I ever said to him was "....Science!" just like the old guy in this video. Anyways, I loved this goofy number by Thomas Dolby. It reached 5 on the Billboard charts in early 1983.

    I must have seen this video a bazillion times. The woman with the violin on her back really made an impression on me!

     
    Last edited: Mar 31, 2020
  5. AppleBonker

    AppleBonker Forum Resident

    Location:
    Seattle
    Since we were talking about Canadian hits :), Pass the Dutchie by Musical Youth was another song they played and played on MTV when I first got it. It reached 10 on the Billboard charts sometime in early 1983. I loved the cool reggae vibe of this number.



    Are they now called Musical Retirees? :)
     
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  6. W.B.

    W.B. The Collector's Collector

    Location:
    New York, NY, USA
    This might be jumping ahead (or not), but this originally came out in the U.S. on Harvest before being transferred to Capitol. I have the Harvest o' this:
    [​IMG]
    Oh, and "the old guy" shouting "Science!" was Magnus Pyke:
    [​IMG]
     
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  7. W.B.

    W.B. The Collector's Collector

    Location:
    New York, NY, USA
    This was #1 for 3 weeks in the UK in late 1982, as discussed within the Every UK #1 Single of The 1980's Discussion Board.
     
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  8. MikeInFla

    MikeInFla Glad to be out of Florida

    Location:
    Kalamazoo, MI
    Same with me, I wasn't really into those artists at the time. But I loved She Blinded Me With Science. I just looked up some trivia on this song and found something interesting:

    The speaking voice parts were done by Magnus Pyke, a famous TV show host for a children's educational show in England. His trademark was yelling "Science!" throughout the show. Dolby, who was raised in London, liked the idea of bringing Pyke to an American audience, and thought he was a perfect character for the video.
     
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  9. Albuman

    Albuman Women should have the right to choose

    Location:
    Maryland
    I met Thomas Dolby once. I was an intern at a college radio station when he came in to do an interview for a book he had written. We sat in the lobby while we waited for someone to show him to the booth, and we were the only ones in the lobby for a good few minutes. We didn't say much, but I did tell him I liked the song.
     
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  10. tmoore

    tmoore Forum Resident

    Location:
    Olney, MD
    Although I now know there is no relationship between the two,

    it just so happened that I learned about Dolby noise reduction at almost the same time as when I first heard Thomas Dolby's "She Blinded Me With Science".
     
  11. I couldn't place "It Might Be You" and haven't bothered to YouTube it, but I do remember the Berlin song. It must have received play in ol' Saskatchewan because I didn't have the album and I can't remember ever seeing the video, so it must have been on the radio.
    This pretty much defines me as well.
     
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  12. pablo fanques

    pablo fanques Somebody's Bad Handwroter In Memoriam

    Location:
    Poughkeepsie, NY
    Hahahahaha I did that TOO! I would have been in 8th grade but I definitely remember yelling that out often and getting plenty of laughs for my efforts. Talk about a song that takes you back to a specific time and place!
     
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  13. SITKOL'76

    SITKOL'76 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Colombia, SC
    I love little trivia like this. At this point all the songs we're discussing are closer to the year 2000 than we are currently.
     
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  14. sunspot42

    sunspot42 Forum Resident

    Location:
    San Francisco
    The charts were insanely strong the week "Come On Eileen" hit #1, by the way. You could almost make the argument that any random sampling of 15 songs from this chart would be better than all but the best #1 hits of '81 or '82 (although the tail end of this chart is pretty weak). Still, it's the exact reverse of charts from the year before, where there were just a few diamonds poking out of the poop.

    1 2 COME ON EILEEN –•– Dexys Midnight Runners (Mercury)-14 (1 week at #1) (1)
    An '80s classic. Old by the time it finally hit here. Loved it!

    2 5 A future #1
    Someone was on a roll...

    3 3 MR. ROBOTO –•– Styx (A&M)-11 (3)
    Like a bizarre flashback to 1981. Caught the tail-end of America's Shogun-inspired Japan mania.

    4 4 JEOPARDY –•– The Greg Kihn Band (Beserkley)-13 (4)
    Can't hear this one without thinking of Weird Al's parody - one of his first to get fairly wide play. Great single, though.

    5 1 BILLIE JEAN –•– Michael Jackson (Epic)-14 (1)
    Rapidly dropping down the charts now.

    6 9 DER KOMMISSAR –•– After The Fire (Epic)-11 (6)
    I forgot this one climbed so high - loved it. Ger-mania was about to displace Japamania, I guess.

    7 7 ONE ON ONE –•– Daryl Hall & John Oates (RCA)-13 (7)
    Decent low-key single from the duo. They certainly hadn't faded yet.

    8 8 SEPARATE WAYS (Worlds Apart) –•– Journey (Columbia)-12 (8)
    Seems really dull and dated compared to its surroundings, but evidence that at least some of the big acts of the early '80s lull weren't done for yet.

    9 15 A future #1
    And a huge comeback.

    10 13 SHE BLINDED ME WITH SCIENCE –•– Thomas Dolby (Capitol / Harvest)-10 (10)
    If there's any hit in the Top 10 that deserved to go to #1, it was this one. Dolby is something of a one-hit wonder in America, which is a pity because his greatest hits package is dynamite and contains several of what I think are some of the best singles of the decade.

    11 6 HUNGRY LIKE THE WOLF –•– Duran Duran (Harvest)-18 (3)
    Dropping now, but it had done its job, firing up Duranmaina in America. There was a lot of mania in the '80s. :biglaugh:

    12 17 LITTLE RED CORVETTE –•– Prince (Warner Brothers)-9 (12)
    Now I finally understood who that girl in my typing class was such a fan of. The heavy eyeliner and long purple coats in Phoenix weather suddenly made sense. It's amazing that two of the most important acts of the decade were cropping up on the charts at the same time with career-defining hits.

    13 16 EVEN NOW –•– Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band (Capitol)-7 (13)
    Not one of my Seger favorites. I've always thought this one had more energy than melody.

    14 10 DO YOU REALLY WANT TO HURT ME –•– Culture Club (Virgin)-21 (2)
    Make that three of the most important acts of the decade were cropping up on the charts at the same time with career-defining hits.

    15 19 OVERKILL –•– Men At Work (Columbia)-3 (15)
    My favorite Men At Work song. Surprisingly didn't do all that well, but I think it's melancholy genius.

    16 20 I WON’T HOLD YOU BACK –•– Toto (Columbia)-7 (16)
    Feels like a flashback to 1981. Barely remember this one, but it was a big hit. Feels really dull and formulaic in this company. Also, like something Rita Coolidge should be singing.

    17 12 YOU ARE –•– Lionel Richie (Motown)-15 (4)
    From his '82 solo debut. After loathing "Truly" this is such an improvement. Bizarrely, Thomas Dolby is playing the synths on this one - the b-vox sound like the Temps, at least in spots, but I don't see them listed. Who is back there? Thomas Dolby and Richard Marx!

    18 22 SOLITAIRE –•– Laura Branigan (Atlantic)-6 (18)
    Really lacked the power of her debut smash "Gloria". Feels formulaic and "tasteful". No balls. Lame melody. Reminds me of those flop Kim Carnes singles post-"Bette Davis".

    19 11 WE’VE GOT TONIGHT –•– Kenny Rogers & Sheena Easton (Liberty)-13 (6)
    Country had pretty rapidly been displaced from the pop charts in the wake of the MTV boom - it suddenly seemed ridiculously tacky and lame - but Rogers and Easton knocked their cover of this Bob Seger tune completely out of the park. EMI label boss Larry Mazza had pitched the duet to Rogers, in an attempt to revive Easton's lagging career. Rogers - in spite of a rumored stormy recording session with the Scottish diva - ended up liking the results enough to title his '83 solo album after it. Got to #1 on the country charts, where it was a monster single. Whatever troubles they might or might not have had in the recording studio, they were over it by the time of this dynamite live performance. Remember when singers could actually sing?



    In spite of being o-v-e-r "country" music and not a huge fan of ballads I really loved this one (of course, it's not particularly country, so...). Something about his gravely voice - which he really pushes on this tune - coupled with her high, feminine voice really works. Rest in peace, Kenny.

    20 14 I KNOW THERE’S SOMETHING GOING ON –•– Frida (Atlantic)-25 (13)
    In hindsight, the first real sign of the coming Phil Collins | Genesis | Peter Gabriel dominance of the sound of the '80s - it had now infected ABBA. Frida really slammed it with this one. I should check out the album on Spotify, because I adore this single. Should have been a much bigger hit.

    21 18 BACK ON THE CHAIN GANG –•– The Pretenders (Sire)-20 (5)
    And this should have been a #1. The Pretenders came roaring back with this agonizing bit of rocking pop. Certainly a candidate for song of the year in my book. This whole Top 40 reads like a year-end best of list. Amazing.

    22 21 CHANGE OF HEART –•– Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers (Backstreet)-9 (21)
    Kind of a forgotten Petty hit. Not one of my favorites.

    23 23 TWILIGHT ZONE –•– Golden Earring (21 Records)-22 (10)
    I'm having another one of those Channel 61 flashbacks! Hard rock wasn't really my thing, but I liked this one. Deftly updated for the '80s.

    24 24 I’VE GOT A ROCK N’ ROLL HEART –•– Eric Clapton (Duck)-13 (18)
    No memory of this one from the time - I caught it years later on oldies radio. Feels like Clapton by the numbers, and really dated. Not bad but dull and lightweight - surprised it got this far on the charts. The title is much more exciting than the tune, which is quite a disappointment. There's nothing rock 'n roll about this song.

    25 25 SHAME ON THE MOON –•– Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band (Capitol)-19 (2)
    Seger was on fire on the charts - three hits at once! Too much Americana at once for me, although this is a decent example of it. I probably like it more now than I did at the time. I was over this old white guy rock at the time after close to three years of it all over the charts. Remember, when you're a kid two years feels like two decades.

    26 32 PHOTOGRAPH –•– Def Leppard (Mercury)-7 (26)
    White kids had more exciting stuff to listen to now, anyhow. I never had much time for hard rock - it always seemed like recycled glam with all the edges knocked off and the volume turned up to 11. This crap always felt like self-parody to me long before Spinal Tap came along - it's the professional wrestling of pop music. But they sold truckloads of this stuff, so somebody clearly loved it. Not my thing.

    27 33 WELCOME TO HEARTLIGHT –•– Kenny Loggins (Columbia)-7 (27)
    Oh I forgot all about this one. There's even a video. It feels vaguely Lindsey Buckingham. Loggins was clearly trying to adapt to the '80s, unlike many of his peers. It sorta works.

    28 30 WHIRLY GIRL –•– Oxo (Geffen)-10 (28)
    Forgot all about this number. It's both bizarre and predictable. Dull and annoying.

    29 29 IT MIGHT BE YOU –•– Stephen Bishop (Warner Brothers)-13 (29)
    From Tootsie. Kind of a dull leftover from 1982. Not awful for what it is, but just outgunned in this environment. And we'd had more than enough of these.

    30 34 SOME KIND OF FRIEND –•– Barry Manilow (Arista)-9 (30)
    Speaking of stuff we'd had more than enough of. Manilow was trying to adapt to the '80s, and it was a bad fit. Reminds me of Cliff Richard's hits from the previous couple of years, only not as good.

    31 35 RIO –•– Duran Duran (Capitol)-4 (31)
    Now this was more like it! Awesome follow-up to "Hungry Like The Wolf" - might be my favorite Duran Duran tune. The one-two punch of these great hits, coupled with those incredible videos, really established the band as a huge act in America.

    32 37 MY LOVE –•– Lionel Richie (Motown)-3 (32)
    Another by-the-numbers ballad from Lionel. Zzzzzzzzz.

    33 38 A future #1...

    34 39 STRAIGHT FROM THE HEART –•– Bryan Adams (A&M)-7 (34)
    And now Canada has generated a Bob Seger / John Cougar / Springsteen, Americana rocker. Yea. I guess people who were scared by synths had something dull and comforting to listen to... His first US Top 40, it actually did 10 positions better here than in his native Canada. Oddly, this by-the-numbers, gravely ballad was a much bigger hit than "Cuts Like A Knife", which felt like his signature tune and was the title track of his album (and frankly, strangles and murders this flaccid number).

    35 31 I LIKE IT –•– DeBarge (Gordy)-12 (31)
    I was never a huge fan of DeBarge. Barely remember this one. The combined arrival of Michael Jackson and Prince made this sound instantly dated.

    36 40 SO WRONG –•– Patrick Simmons (Elektra)-6 (36)
    Haven't heard this one in an eternity. If it sounds vaguely Michael McDonald esque, that's probably because Simmons hails from The Doobie Brothers, where he'd been the only consistent member of the band and lead vocalist on "Black Water", which he also wrote - the band's first #1. This is a great cut with a killer groove, and even seems to reflect that Phil Collins sound. I'm shocked it topped out at #30 (although it got to #8 on the dance charts).

    37 41 MORNIN’ –•– Jarreau (Warner Brothers)-6 (37)
    Like the soundtrack for a douche commercial. There wasn't an elevator or a doctor's office in America that this cut didn't flow into during the '80s. Just...too much smooth.

    38 45 STRANGER IN MY HOUSE –•– Ronnie Milsap (RCA)-5 (38)
    Must be just about the last remnant of the country boom on these charts, although as with "We've Got Tonight" this sounds way more pop than country, apart from Milsap's vocal.

    39 53 AFFAIR OF THE HEART –•– Rick Springfield (RCA)-2 (39)
    Springfield had trouble following up the success of "Jesse's Girl" and "Don't Talk To Strangers". This one was headed to a #9 peak, but I always thought it was generic and boring. I much preferred the follow up "Human Touch" - with its ridiculous video - but it barely cracked the Top 20. He wasn't quite done yet though.

    40 50 ALWAYS SOMETHING THERE TO REMIND ME –•– Naked Eyes (EMI-America)-7 (40)
    Just mentioned this one upthread. Fantastic cover, killer production. So much more exciting than the traditional rockers on this chart.

    POWER PLAYS

    41 55 FAITHFULLY –•– Journey (Columbia)-2 (41)
    I was pretty much over Journey by this point, but this was much more interesting than their current hit.

    44 44 LOVE MY WAY –•– Psychedelic Furs (Columbia)-8 (44)
    Now this was exciting. Sadly, you only heard it on album radio and MTV, and then just barely. Sported a great Tim Pope video that looks several years ahead of its time - could come from the late '80s or early '90s. Produced by Todd Rundgren. Never cracked the Top 40. Cropped up in the '83 film Valley Girl, which gave it a huge pop culture boost, and later in The Wedding Singer in '98.

    46 59 TIME (Clock Of the Heart) –•– Culture Club (Virgin)-2 (46)
    Stunningly beautiful pop song - really puts the dull, formulaic ballads by other acts on this countdown to shame. MTV kicked down so many doors for acts the dullards running the labels and the radio stations would have otherwise ignored. It didn't last long, but it was such a blast.

    50 57 GIMME ALL YOUR LOVIN’ –•– ZZ Top (Warner Brothers)-4 (50)
    Who in their right mind would have guessed these bearded weirdos would become pop superstars thanks to MTV? Proof positive you didn't have to look good - or even be particularly visible behind a wall of hair - to get thrown into heavy rotation on MTV. Top went from something of a cult act to the center of the pop zeitgeist virtually overnight. And talk about adapting to the '80s - these guys got it.

    NEW THIS WEEK

    81 — TOO SHY –•– Kajagoogoo (EMI-America)-1 (81)
    Another iconic '80s tune is about to hit the countdown.

    85 — DO YOU WANNA HOLD ME –•– Bow Wow Wow (RCA)-1 (85)
    Another UK phenomena comes to America. Never managed to crack the Top 40, but MTV and especially my local Channel 61 played the video incessantly. A genuine - if obscure - '80s classic.
     
    Last edited: Apr 1, 2020
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  15. Grant

    Grant Life is a rock, but the radio rolled me!

    Tsk! Tsk! You kids! :unhunh:
     
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  16. Jrr

    Jrr Forum Resident

    Never seen that label for that particular song but I feel like I’m reading a novel...never seen that much writing on a 45 label!
     
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  17. Jrr

    Jrr Forum Resident

    Thank you for the write up. Your reward: listen to the Frida album!! No question if you like the single you’ll love it! I think it’s outstanding, and has Phil’s hands all over it but the production really works and he picked really strong songs. Pretty much not a bad song and it’s clear they worked hard on it. Does not sound like an ABBA album at all, unlike Agnetha’s solo album which came out about the same time. The opening song is dynamite, and To Turn The Stone, closing side one, is just beautiful between her vocal and his brilliant production...and I’m not even a big Collins fan. Should have been a much bigger album. Make sure you seek it out! It was recently reissued on vinyl so someone liked it. As a bonus it was very well recorded, and the reissue is excellent. The cover sucks so don’t judge it by that.
     
    Last edited: Apr 1, 2020
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  18. W.B.

    W.B. The Collector's Collector

    Location:
    New York, NY, USA
    Now to see what I could contribute to . . .
    Was very ubiquitous "back then." Nowadays, you hardly hear it except occasionally on the classic rock station . . .

    And perhaps Beserkley's biggest hit.

    Much prefer this version to the original by a chap named Falco.

    Too long and drawn out. Mel and Tim in 1969 took the same topic and theme and did in a much shorter and more compact space of time - "Backfield In Motion":


    The short 45 edit you hardly hear anymore. Everywhere you turn when they play this, it's the longer LP version.

    In its key and tempo, sounded almost like a "Son of 'Who Can It Be Now?'."

    I much prefer the Neil Sedaka-written "Solitaire," anyway, especially as covered by the Carpenters (speaking of which, we just passed the time point at which Karen Carpenter died, right?).

    Even so, I still prefer Seger's original.

    I only recently heard this, but it's a surprise to me this was bigger, chart-wise, than their 1974 hit "Radar Love."

    Anyone notice that label's mascot seemed modeled after Daffy?

    Another I remember hearing all the time then, but you hardly hear anymore.

    I agree. The "Photograph" that Ringo Starr had his first solo #1 with was more preferable to this anyway.

    I actually saw Tootsie in a movie theatre at the time. The studio where the soap was supposed to be taped as in the film, has since been torn down and a luxury hotel and off-off-Broadway theatre now stand in its place.

    And on top of it, its tempo was in the same mode as his recording of "Oh Julie."

    Almost like a reworking of "Easy." But as far as songs with that title go, I'll take Paul McCartney & Wings'. I know some would prefer the Petula Clark one.

    As one critic noted, every one of those song titles were clichés.

    Unlike you, I vividly remember it.

    I seem to remember the video, with some cutesy animation to go with it.

    There were two different intros to this - one with drums accompanying them, the other without. You hardly hear the latter anymore.

    Funny that their follow-up would have the title of another Bacharach-David composition - but not be the said Bacharach-David tune.

    Not as fond of this as some others by them . . .

    Was #1 for two weeks in the UK in February 1983, as discussed in the Every #1 UK Single of The 1980's Discussion Thread. I know it wasn't, but one of the lines in the chorus sounded to me vaguely like "Hush hush, Idlewild" - a reference to the old name of JFK International Airport in New York. (What can I say - this is what happens when you listen via a dinky alarm clock radio.)
     
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  19. sunspot42

    sunspot42 Forum Resident

    Location:
    San Francisco
    Yeah, their cover of "Der Kommissar" actually bests the original.
     
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  20. Thank you, for the rundown, again and every time; in days like these, I need a laugh like this 'ready for a hype sticker' quotation. I have no idea what this song is, but kinda want to hear it...who am I kidding, I'm searching it up.
     
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  21. Wingsfan2012

    Wingsfan2012 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Junior's Farm, IL
    I think Billboard posted a survey many years ago and the two "worst" number 1 hits were "The Macarena" and "My Ding A Ling".
     
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  22. tmoore

    tmoore Forum Resident

    Location:
    Olney, MD
    I believe that my "Hungry Like the Wolf" single was on the aforementioned Harvest label.

    EDIT - I see there were two such singles on Harvest. I had the later one, which had "Hungry Like the Wolf" on both sides.
     
    Last edited: Apr 1, 2020
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  23. W.B.

    W.B. The Collector's Collector

    Location:
    New York, NY, USA
    The later mix of "Hungry Like The Wolf" was later transferred to Capitol. I have the Harvest.
     
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  24. Hoover Factory

    Hoover Factory Old Dude Who Knows Things

    Location:
    Spokane, WA
    I was a huge fan of the Psychedelic Furs - they were one of my favorite bands of the time. Richard Butler’s unique voice combined with their post-modern “wall of sound” production made them distinctive among alternative rock bands. I got hooked with the Talk Talk Talk album, and the follow up Forever Now was just as good. “Love My Way” is great - one of their more recognizable tunes due to its use in numerous movie soundtracks. But, it’s just one of many great singles they would produce - “Pretty in Pink;” “All That Money Wants;” “Heartbreak Beat;” “Until She Comes;” and the epic “The Ghost in You” - one of my very favorite songs.
     
  25. jimmydean

    jimmydean Senior Member

    Location:
    Vienna, Austria
    original is maybe not so correct... the lick is "adapted" from rick james "superfreak"
     

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