I will be 50 soon. I can scarcely believe it. To mark the passing of time, and all of its sickening crimes, I'm going to be counting down (or, rather, up, I suppose) the tracks that were number 1 in the charts on my birthday, starting from the day I was born and working up to the present.
What will be #1 on my 50th? I don't care really - chances are I'll loathe it anyway. Anyway, here goes - part one:
- Tears of a Clown - Smokey Robinson and the Miracles: sets the tone perfectly for the next 50 years
- I'm Still Waiting - Diana Ross: presumably waiting for the BeeGees to do Chain Reaction with her
- Mama Weer All Crazee Now - Slade: this is more like it!
- Young Love - Donny Osmond: my sister liked him
- Love Me For A Reason - The Osmonds: yes, that one
- Sailing - Rod Stewart: I remember this being huge
- Dancing Queen - Abba: 433 million YouTube views and counting...
- Way Down - Elvis Presley: riding up the charts on a wave of grief
- Three Times A Lady - The Commodores: the sight of Lionel going solo hoves into view
- We Don't Talk Any More - Cliff Richard: my sister's favourite
Christ, what a dire selection. Osmonds, solo Stewart, dead Presley, Commodores, Cliff... ladies and gentlemen, I give you the decade of punk! Fingers crossed the 80s offer up a better selection... and whilst Slade very nearly got the nod, there's only one song to end with, surely?
Source: officialcharts.com
It's like punk never happened!
ReplyDeleteI know...and once you see the 80s and 90s, it's like nothing happened!
DeleteGreat idea Martin, look forward to the rest. One or two good songs in there but on the whole the list does look incredibly bland and mainstream. No wonder we needed the Indie Charts to follow!
ReplyDeleteHaving researched 50 years of #1s for this, am forced to conclude that this isn't the time of year for labels to release their biggest tunes.
DeleteI just passed that milestone too, and am doing something similar - an album per year (70s and 80s published, 90s coming soon).
ReplyDeleteI toyed with the idea of Number 1 singles, and then realised I kept missing the cool songs by a week or so. 1979 was the only real exception with Gary Numan - Are Friends Electric.
It's your albums countdown/up that inspired me to do this!
DeleteThat's the summer holiday hits of my teenage years, right there. Slow dances to Three Times A Lady, the shock death of Elvis, swooning over Donny Osmond and plastering pictures on him on my bedroom wall etc. What made it to No. 1 often had no relation to what was going on in the rest of the charts, it was often just that a much broader range of the population homed in on it and made a rare purchase - Thus novelty records, charity singles, spin-offs from films and tv become the best-selling singles of all time. The ones that stand the true test of time often just made it to the 10 - 20 spot. Interesting stuff (if you like all the stats and trivia re chart hits - I'm a nerd!).
ReplyDeleteYou've nailed it, Alyson - chart success doesn't equal quality. And that will become even more evident in next week's run through the 80s!
DeleteTears of a clown,you have to giggle don't you..
DeleteI know, mate, couldn't make it up! Have to laugh...
DeleteJust looked at number one when I was one in 1971-Ernie the fastest milkman in the West by Benny Hill. Blitzed you for quality already!!
ReplyDeleteBrilliant! If only it had been the fastest cheeseman...
DeleteThat's by far the best list for me, despite the double Osmond dip in the middle. (Sorry, Alyson.) I've even got a soft spot for We Don't Talk Anymore... though admittedly it's no Wired For Sound.
ReplyDeleteWired For Sound...AM, FM!
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