THIS QUESTION IS SO LAST CENTURY
Dear Fred,
As an “American Top 40” listener back in the ’70s and ’80s, I hope you’ll answer this question: Now that “Live Your Life” by T.I. and Rihanna has broken the chart record for jumping to No. 1, I noticed that the next 10 biggest movers are all from this century (and all but one are from the past two years). So what were the top 10 biggest movers to No. 1 before the turn of the century?
Thanks,
Mitchell Pote
Indianapolis, IN
Dear Mitchell,
Good question, one that no one asked before. Until Kelly Clarkson shattered a 38-year-old record for the biggest jump to No. 1 with the 52-1 leap of “A Moment Like This” in October 2002, the record was held by the 27-1 bound of the Beatles’ “Can’t Buy Me Love” in 1964.
For a more complete list of the 20th century’s biggest jumps to No. 1, check the fifth edition of my book, “The Billboard Book of Number One Hits,” the source for the following excerpt:
27-1: “Can’t Buy Me Love,” the Beatles (April 4, 1964)
23-1: “The Boy Is Mine,” Brandy and Monica (June 6, 1998)
16-1: “Heartbreaker,” Mariah Carey featuring Jay-Z (Oct. 9, 1999)
15-1: “Paperback Writer,” the Beatles (June 25, 1966)
15-1: “All My Life,” K-Ci and JoJo (April 4, 1998)
14-1: “Say My Name,” Destiny’s Child (March 18, 2000)
12-1: “Tequila,” The Champs (March 17, 1958)
12-1: “Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey,” Paul and Linda McCartney (Sept. 4, 1971)
11-1: “Sherry,” the Four Seasons (Sept. 15, 1962)
11-1: “Walk Right In,” the Rooftop Singers (Jan. 26, 1963)
11-1: “Come On Over Baby (All I Want Is You),” Christina Aguilera (Oct. 14, 2000)
Please note that because of ties, there are 11 songs in the top 10. Also note that “Tequila” by the Champs is the only No. 1 hit on the list that pre-dates the Hot 100. RIHANNA TAKES THE FIFTH
Dear Fred,
With Rihanna scoring her fifth No. 1 on the Hot 100 this week with “Live Your Life,” is has she scored the most No. 1s of all female artists in this decade? If so, that’s an amazing feat for such a short period of time.
Thanks,
Neil Maciejewski
San Francisco, CA
Dear Neil,
I’ll have to quote myself again to give you the answer. From this week’s Chart Beat, which you can read by clicking billboard.com/fred, here is a list of the solo female artists with five or more No. 1 hits in the rock era:
Mariah Carey (18)
Madonna (12)
Whitney Houston (11)
Janet Jackson (10)
Diana Ross (6)
Paula Abdul (6)
Barbra Streisand (5)
Olivia Newton-John (5)
Rihanna (5)
Now let’s break down those numbers, with the combined total from the ’70s through the ’90s on the left and the total for this decade on the right:
Mariah Carey (14/4)
Madonna (11/1)
Whitney Houston (11/0)
Janet Jackson (8/2)
Diana Ross (6/0)
Paula Abdul (6/0)
Barbra Streisand (5/0)
Olivia Newton-John (5/0)
Rihanna (0/5)
As you can see, Rihanna has the most No. 1s this decade.THE KENNY-TIM-TOBY TRIANGLE
Hello Fred,
With Kenny Chesney’s “Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven” moving 2-1 on the Hot Country Songs list, he earns his 15th No. 1, and his 12th this decade. This puts him in a tie for second place with Tim McGraw as the artist with the most No. 1 country hits this decade — behind Toby Keith, who has 13.
Keith could increase his total to 14, as “She Never Cried in Front of Me” remains at No. 3, and McGraw still has an opportunity to break the second place tie with “Let It Go” moving up 9-8 this week. Only time will tell, however!
John Maverick
Burt County, NE
Dear John,
Yes, it’s the drama that keeps folks coming back to Chart Beat week after week, so thanks for giving us reasons to keep an eye on Hot Country Songs in the days ahead.RETURNING TO A CHART NEAR YOU
Dear Fred,
Jesper Tan recently asked about songs returning to the Hot 100’s top spot in the same calendar year. He didn’t mention that “Fame” by David Bowie and “That’s the Way (I Like It)” by KC and the Sunshine Band both topped the chart twice in 1975. “Le Freak” by Chic, “I Will Survive” by Gloria Gaynor and “Hot Stuff” by Donna Summer all returned to the summit in 1979 while “U Got It Bad” by Usher and “Dilemma” by Nelly featuring Kelly Rowland did the trick in 2002.
Also omitted was “The Sounds of Silence” by Simon and Garfunkel in 1966, so 1966 holds the record so far with four “yo-yo” No. 1s.
As not mentioned was Alicia Key’s “Fallin” in 2001, so 2001 also had three. By the way, the longest stretch between returning No. 1s was from February 1983 (“Down Under” by Men at Work) to May 1994 (“The Sign” by Ace Of Base).
David Dana-Bashian
Garden Grove, CA
Dear David,
Thanks for the fact-checking and bringing this item up to date. Your mention of Ace of Base comes on the same day the Consulate General of Sweden in New York is announcing that I will do a one-on-one interview with Ulf Ekberg of the group at the eighth annual Swedish Music Seminar, to be held in New York City on Oct. 23. Ace of Base fans might be interested to know that the subject of the interview is “The Past, Present and Future of Ace of Base.”
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