Every UK #1 Single of The 1980's Discussion Thread.

"Speak Like A Child" by The Style Council
(#1 on MM for 1 week - 26 March 1983)

The UK single (no US release):

Wikipedia entry - #4 on Official Charts

 

"Temptation" by Heaven 17
(#1 on MM for 1 week - 28 May 1983)

The UK single (no US release):

Wikipedia entry - #2 on Official Charts

 

"I.O.U." by Freeez
(#1 on MM for 1 week - 13 August 1983)

The UK single:

The US single:

Wikipedia entry - #2 on Official Charts

 

"All Night Long (All Night)" by Lionel Richie
(#1 on MM for 1 week - 05 November 1983)

The UK single:

The US single:

Wikipedia entry - #2 on Official Charts (kept out by Billy Joel's "Uptown Girl" which, on this chart, succeeded it)

 

"Say Say Say" by Paul McCartney And Michael Jackson
(#1 on MM for 1 week - 26 November 1983)

The UK single:

The US single:

Wikipedia entry - #2 on Official Charts

 

"1999" by Prince
(#1 on MM for 1 week - 02 February 1985)

The UK single:

The US single:

Wikipedia entry - #2 on Official Charts

 

"Axel F" by Harold Faltermeyer
(#1 on MM for 2 weeks - 13 July-20 July 1985)

The UK single:

The US single:

Wikipedia entry - #2 on Official Charts

 

"What Have You Done For Me Lately" by Janet Jackson
(#1 on MM for 1 week - 10 May 1986)

The UK single:

The US single:

Wikipedia entry - #3 on Official Charts

 

"On My Own" by Patti La Belle And Michael McDonald
(#1 on MM for 1 week - 17 May 1986)

The UK single:

The US single:

Wikipedia entry - #2 on Official Charts

 

Going back a few months, I noticed this other number that didn't make the top of Gallup's or NME's charts . . .
"Only Love" by Nana Mouskouri
(#1 on MM for 1 week - 08 February 1986)

The UK single (was not released in US):

Wikipedia entry - #2 on Official Charts

 

Back to the linear trajectory of #1's unique to Melody Maker . . .
"Holding Back The Years" by Simply Red
(#1 on MM for 1 week - 14 June 1986)

The UK single:

The US single:

Wikipedia entry - #2 on Official Charts

 

"I Can't Wait" by Nu Shooz
(#1 on MM for 1 week - 21 June 1986)

The UK single:

The US single:

Wikipedia entry - #2 on Official Charts

 

"Sometimes" by Erasure
(#1 on MM for 1 week - 13 December 1986)

The UK single:

The US single:

Wikipedia entry - #2 on Official Charts

 

"Lean On Me" by Club Nouveau
(#1 on MM for 1 week - 25 April 1987)

The UK single:

The US single:

Wikipedia entry - #3 on Official Charts (and B.T.W., I still prefer Bill Withers' original).

 

"Can't Be With You Tonight" by Judy Boucher
(#1 on MM for 1 week - 09 May 1987)

The UK single (not released in US):

Wikipedia entry for Ms. Boucher; could only muster #2 on Official Charts; the last "unique" #1 of Melody Maker's charts (its last #1, like NME's, was "Perfect" by Fairground Attraction, but on MM its run on the charts was 2 weeks, from 7 May to 14 May 1988).

 

Favourite number one single - Bangles, Eternal Flame


Some singles I enjoyed in '89

Roy Orbison - You Got It

The Waterboys - Fisherman's Blues

Sam Brown - Stop

Diesel Park West - All The Myths On Sunday

Guns N' Roses - Paradise City

Madonna - Like A Prayer

Midnight Oil - Beds Are Burning

Queen - I Want It All

Soul II Soul - Back To Life

Don Henley - The End Of The Innocence

Rolling Stones - Mixed Emotions

Black Box - Ride On Time

The Blue Nile - The Downtown Lights

Lisa Stansfield - All Around The World

Tom Petty - Free Fallin'


Favourite albums of 1989

The Enid - Final Noise [Steve Stewart fairwell concerts]

Don Henley - The End Of The Innocence

Diesel Park West - Shakespeare Alabama

Roy Orbison - Mystery Girl

Del Amitri - Waking Hours

Bonnie Rait - Nick Of Time

Neil Young - Freedom

The B-52's - Cosmic Thing

Lou Reed - New York

The Blue Nile - Hats

Warren Zevon - Transverse City

Soul II Soul - Club Classics Vol. 1

Rolling Stones - Steel Wheels

Tears For Fears - Seeds Of Love

Tom Petty - Full Moon Fever

 

To one and all: Of all those that only topped Melody Maker's singles charts between 1980 and 1987 (26 in total, outside of the additional 44 #1's that had peaked at NME only), which would be your favourites? Enquiring minds want to know . . .

 

Speak Like A Child would have to be my pick of the MM-only #1s. It's still one of my favourite singles ever. 1999 is also pretty seminal.

EG.

 

Golden Brown, Just An Illusion and Torch also rank highly on my own all-time 1982 list.

EG.

 

Best new entry of the week:

What can I say?

 

I wish they'd not gone back and tried to make lightning strike twice.

EG.

 

Things like this remind me of a routine from the late Brother Dave Gardner, an American comedian from the South:

"Ain't you ever heard someone say, 'Let's do it again.' Now, how you gonna do that? . . . Again. You can't do anything again, brother! Once it's done, it's gone, man! You can do somethin' similar. . . . "​

There are 100 (or more) examples everywhere of people trying to "do it again," each new time with decreasing dividends and results. (The attempt at a Woodstock 50 concert is the latest.)

 

...I thought that this thread had gotten to Janet Jackson " What Have You.. " and Club Noveau and the like.

 

Ah, but not that they topped Melody Maker's charts . . . besides, you probably know my format for introducing new #1's from the '60's UK #1's thread out there . . . not to mention that the UK labels I hadn't up to this point brought up . . .

Now, you can truly say that every UK #1 single has been dealt with - BMRB/Gallup's, NME's, and Melody Maker's.

 

...I know I saw a page dealing with Janet, CN, etc. Have you, perhaps, started a separate one for the MMs?
Wait, I just saw above I am at J/C at an. Oh well.