Monday, December 31, 2018

Acclaimed Music – Songs of the Year, 1920-2018

Originally posted 12/29/2014; updated 12/31/2018.

Acclaimed Music was started in 1994 by Henrik Franzon in Stockholm, Sweden. He has aggregated multiple best-of lists to come up with all-time lists for albums and songs as well as annual lists.

  • 2018: Childish Gambino “This Is America”
  • 2017: Kendrick Lamar “Humble”
  • 2016: Beyoncé “Formation”
  • 2015: Tame Impala “Let It Happen”
  • 2014: Future Islands “Seasons (Waiting on You)”
  • 2013: Daft Punk with Pharrell Williams “Get Lucky”
  • 2012: Frank Ocean “Pyramids”
  • 2011: M83 “Midnight City”
  • 2010: Kanye West with Pusha T “Runaway”

  • 2009: Jay-Z with Alicia Keys…Empire State of Mind
  • 2008: Hercules & Love Affair “Blind”
  • 2007: M.I.A. “Paper Planes”
  • 2006: Gnarls Barkley “Crazy”
  • 2005: Arctic Monkeys “I Bet You Look Good on the Dance Floor”
  • 2004: Franz Ferdinand “Take Me Out”
  • 2003: OutKast “Hey Ya!”
  • 2002: LCD Soundsystem “Losing My Edge”
  • 2001: Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliott “Get UR Freak On”
  • 2000: OutKast “Ms. Jackson”

  • 1999: Aphex Twin “Windowlicker”
  • 1998: Stardust “Music Sounds Better with You”
  • 1997: Radiohead “Paranoid Android”
  • 1996: The Prodigy “Firestarter”
  • 1995: Pulp “Common People”
  • 1994: Oasis “Live Forever”
  • 1993: Beck “Loser”
  • 1992: Radiohead “Creep”
  • 1991: Nirvana “Smells Like Teen Spirit”
  • 1990: Sinéad O’Connor “Nothing Compares 2 U”

  • 1989: Public Enemy “Fight the Power”
  • 1988: The La’s “There She Goes”
  • 1987: Guns N’ Roses “Sweet Child O’ Mine”
  • 1986: The Smiths “There Is a Light That Never Goes Out”
  • 1985: Madonna “Into the Groove”
  • 1984: Prince “When Doves Cry”
  • 1983: New Order “Blue Monday”
  • 1982: Michael Jackson “Billie Jean”
  • 1981: The Specials “Ghost Town”
  • 1980: Joy Division “Love Will Tear Us Apart”

  • 1979: The Clash “London Calling”
  • 1978: Blondie “Heart of Glass”
  • 1977: Sex Pistols “God Save the Queen”
  • 1976: Sex Pistols “Anarchy in the U.K.”
  • 1975: Bruce Springsteen “Born to Run”
  • 1974: Bob Marley & the Wailers “No Woman, No Cry”
  • 1973: The Stooges “Search and Destroy”
  • 1972: Stevie Wonder “Superstition”
  • 1971: Marvin Gaye “What’s Going On”
  • 1970: Derek & the Dominos “Layla”

  • 1969: The Rolling Stones “Gimme Shelter”
  • 1968: Marvin Gaye “I Heard It Through the Grapevine”
  • 1967: The Beatles “A Day in the Life”
  • 1966: The Beach Boys “Good Vibrations”
  • 1965: Bob Dylan “Like a Rolling Stone”
  • 1964: The Kinks “You Really Got Me”
  • 1963: The Ronettes “Be My Baby”
  • 1962: Booker T & the MG’s “Green Onions”
  • 1961: Ben E. King “Stand by Me”
  • 1960: The Shirelles “Will You Love Me Tomorrow”

  • 1959: Ray Charles “What’d I Say”
  • 1958: Chuck Berry “Johnny B. Goode”
  • 1957: Buddy Holly & the Crickets “That’ll Be the Day”
  • 1956: Elvis Presley “Heartbreak Hotel”
  • 1955: Little Richard “Tutti Frutti”
  • 1954: Bill Haley & His Comets “We’re Gonna Rock Around the Clock”
  • 1953: Willie Mae “Big Mama” Thornton “Hound Dog”
  • 1952: Lloyd Price “Lawdy Miss Clawdy”
  • 1951: Woody Guthrie “This Land Is Your Land”
  • 1950: Muddy Waters “Rollin’ Stone”

  • 1949: Hank Williams “I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry”
  • 1948: John Lee Hooker “Boogie Chillen’”
  • 1947: Bill Monroe & the Blue Grass Boys “Blue Moon of Kentucky”
  • 1946: Charles Trenet “Beyond the Sea (La Mer)”
  • 1945: Edith Piaf “La Vie En Rose”
  • 1944: Les Brown with Doris Day “Sentimental Journey”
  • 1943: Duke Ellington “Come Sunday”/“Black, Brown, and Beige”
  • 1942: Bing Crosby with the Ken Darby Singers & the John Scott Trotter Orchestra “White Christmas”
  • 1941: Billie Holiday “God Bless the Child”
  • 1940: Quintet of the Hot Club of France “Nuages”

  • 1939: Billie Holiday “Strange Fruit”
  • 1938: Artie Shaw Begin the Beguine
  • 1937: Robert Johnson “Hellhound on My Trail”
  • 1936: Robert Johnson “Crossroads (aka "Cross Road Blues")”
  • 1935: The Carter Family “Can the Circle Be Unbroken (Bye and Bye)”
  • 1934: Huddie “Leadbelly” Ledbetter “The Midnight Special”
  • 1933: Bennie Moten’s Kansas City Orchestra “Moten’s Swing”
  • 1932: Bing Crosby “Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?”
  • 1931: Cab Calloway “Minnie the Moocher”
  • 1930: Duke Ellington “Mood Indigo”

  • 1929: Fats Waller “Ain’t Misbehavin’”
  • 1928: Louis Armstrong “West End Blues”
  • 1927: Blind Willie Johnson “Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground”
  • 1926: Jelly Roll Morton “Black Bottom Stomp”
  • 1925: Bessie Smith with Louis Armstrong “St. Louis Blues”
  • 1924: Paul Whiteman with George Gershwin “Rhapsody in Blue”
  • 1923: Bessie Smith “Down Hearted Blues”
  • 1922: James P. Johnson “Carolina Shout”
  • 1921: Al Jolson “April Showers”
  • 1920: Mamie Smith “Crazy Blues”
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2018: Top 25 Albums

First posted 1/8/2021.

Dave’s Music Database:

Top Albums of 2018

Based on a combination of year-end lists and overall status in Dave’s Music Database, these are the top 25 albums of 2018:

  1. Kacey Musgraves Golden Hour
  2. Drake Scorpion
  3. Janelle Monáe Dirty Computer
  4. Cardi B Invasion of Privacy
  5. Lady Gaga with Bradley Cooper A Star Is Born soundtrack
  6. Post Malone Beerbongs & Bentleys
  7. Travis Scott Astroworld
  8. Robyn Honey
  9. The 1975 A Brief Inquiry into Online Relationships
  10. Pusha T Daytona

  11. Mitski Be the Cowboy
  12. Ariana Grande Sweetener
  13. Arctic Monkeys Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino
  14. Black Panther soundtrack
  15. Noname Room 25
  16. Christine & the Queens Chris
  17. Brandi Carlile By the Way, I Forgive You
  18. Pistol Annies Interstate Gospel
  19. Rosalía El Mal Querer (A Toxic Love)
  20. Queen Bohemian Rhapsody soundtrack

  21. The Carters (Jay-Z & Beyoncé) Everything Is Love
  22. Courtney Barnett Tell Me How You Really Feel
  23. Jack White Boarding House Reach
  24. Neko Case Hell-On
  25. Eminem Kamikaze

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Top 50 Songs of 2018

Dave’s Music Database:

Top 50 Songs of 2018

These are the top 50 songs of the year based on their overall performance in Dave’s Music Database, which is determined by combining chart data, sales figures, streaming, video views, and aggregates from year-end lists.

Check out “Top Songs and Albums of the Year” lists here.

    DMDB Top 1%:

  1. Lil Nas X with Billy Ray Cyrus “Old Town Road” (2018)
  2. Drake “God’s Plan”
  3. Lady Gaga with Bradley Cooper “Shallow”
  4. Drake “In My Feelings”
  5. Ariana Grande “Thank U, Next”
  6. Lewis Capaldi “Someone You Loved”
  7. Post Malone with Swae Lee “Sunflower”

    DMDB Top 2%:

  8. Drake “Nice for What”
  9. Zedd with Maren Morris & Grey “The Middle”
  10. Cardi B with Bad Bunny & J. Balvin “I Like It”

  11. Panic! At the Disco “High Hopes”
  12. Halsey “Without Me”
  13. Childish Gambino “This Is America”
  14. Travis Scott with Drake “Sicko Mode”
  15. 5 Seconds of Summer “Youngblood”
  16. Marshmello with Bastille “Happier”
  17. Post Malone with Ty Dolla $ign “Psycho”
  18. Juice Wrld “Lucid Dreams”

    DMDB Top 5%:

  19. XXXtentacion “Sad!”
  20. Benny Blanco with Halsey & Khalid “Eastside”

  21. Dan + Shay “Tequila”
  22. Calvin Harris with Dua Lipa “One Kiss”
  23. Post Malone “Better Now”
  24. Post Malone “Wow.”
  25. Ariana Grande “No Tears Left to Cry”
  26. Marshmello with Anne-Marie “Friends”
  27. Ella Mai “Boo’d Up”
  28. Imagine Dragons “Natural”
  29. Dean Lewis “Be Alright”
  30. Lil Baby with Gunna “Drip Too Hard”

  31. Ava Max “Sweet But Psycho”
  32. Kendrick Lamar with SZA “All the Stars”
  33. Shawn Mendes “In My Blood”
  34. Dan + Shay “Speechless”
  35. Trevor Daniel “Falling”
  36. Khalid “Better”
  37. Lil Baby with Drake “Yes Indeed”
  38. Khalid & Normani “Love Lies”

    DMDB Top 10%:

  39. Kodak Black with Travis Scott & Offset “Zeze”
  40. Morgan Wallen “Whiskey Glasses”

  41. XXXtentacion “Moonlight”
  42. Drake “Nonstop”
  43. Lauv “I Like Me Better”
  44. Mumford & Sons “Guiding Light”
  45. Tyga with Offset “Taste”
  46. Janelle Monáe “Make Me Feel”
  47. Shaed “Trampoline”
  48. DJ Snake with Selena Gomez & Cardi B “Taki Taki”
  49. The Weeknd “Call Out My Name”
  50. 21 Savage with J. Cole “A Lot”

Resources/Related Links:

First posted 12/26/2021; last updated 1/17/2023.

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Saturday, December 22, 2018

The Gibb Brothers (Bee Gees & more): Top 100 Songs

Barry, Robin, Maurice, and Andy Gibb

Bee Gees et al

Top 100 Songs

Twins Maurice (died 1/12/2003) and Robin Gibb (died 5/20/2012) were born on this day (December 22) in 1949 in Douglas, Isle of Man, UK. Together with their older brother Barry (born 9/1/1946 in Douglas, Isle of Man, UK), they formed the Bee Gees, a group known for three-part harmony and falsetto voices. The family moved to Australia in 1958, where the Bee Gees started as a pop-rock act. They returned to the UK in 1967 and and hit their commercial peak in the latter-half of the 1970s when they became disco icons. Their string of hits from 1977’s Saturday Night Fever soundtrack made for one of the greatest chart dominations ever accomplished by a group as the album lingered atop the U.S. album chart for six months fueled by four #1 hits.

They landed three more songs atop the Billboard Hot 100 with their 1979 album Spirits Having Flown. Their success waned after that, but over a forty-year run, they sold more than 220 million albums. Their younger brother, Andy (born 3/5/1958, died 3/10/1988), was also a successful singer.

Saturday Night Fever is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Albums of All Time. One of that soundtrack’s songs, “Stayin’ Alive,” is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Rock Era 1954-1999.

For a complete list of the Bee Gees’ DMDB honors, check out the DMDB Music Maker Encyclopedia entry.

Click here to see other acts’ best-of lists.

Awards:

Top 100 Songs

Dave’s Music Database lists are determined by song’s appearances on best-of lists, appearances on compilations and live albums by the featured act, and songs’ chart success, sales, radio airplay, streaming, and awards. Songs which hit #1 on various charts are noted. (Click for codes to singles charts.)

DMDB Top 1%:

1. B-M-R: Stayin’ Alive (Bee Gees, 1977) #1 US, CB, HR, RR, CN, AU
2. B-M-R: Night Fever (Bee Gees, 1977) #1 US, CB, HR, RR, UK, CN
3. B-M-R: How Deep Is Your Love (Bee Gees, 1977) #1 US, CB, RR, AC, CN
4. A-B-M-R: Shadow Dancing (Andy Gibb, 1978) #1 US, CB, HR, RR, AU
5. B-M-R: Islands in the Stream (Kenny Rogers & Dolly Parton, 1983) #1 US, CB, AC, CW, CN, AU

DMDB Top 5%:

6. B: I Just Want to Be Your Everything (Andy Gibb, 1977) #1 US, CB, HR, RR, UK, AU
7. B-R: Woman in Love (Barbra Streisand, 1980) #1 US, CB, HR, RR, AC, UK, CN, AU
8. B-R: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart (Bee Gees, 1971) #1 US, CB, HR, CN
9. B-M-R: Too Much Heaven (Bee Gees, 1978) #1 US, HR, RR, CN
10. B-M-R: You Should Be Dancing (Bee Gees, 1976) #1 US, CB, CN

11. B-M-R: Jive Talkin’ (Bee Gees, 1975) #1 US, CB, HR, RR, CN
12. B-M-R: Tragedy (Bee Gees, 1979) #1 US, CB, HR, RR, UK, CN
13. B-M-R: The Lights Went Out in Massachussets (Bee Gees, 1967) #1 UK
14. B-M-R: If I Can’t Have You (Yvonne Elliman, 1977) #1 US, CB, RR, CN
15. B: Grease (Frankie Valli, 1978) #1 US, CB, HR, RR, CN
16. B-R: To Love Somebody (Bee Gees, 1967)
17. B-M-R: More Than a Woman (Bee Gees, 1977)

DMDB Top 10%:

18. B-R: Emotion (Samantha Sang, 1977) #1 CB, CN
19. A-B: Love Is Thicker Than Water (Andy Gibb, 1977) #1 US, CB, HR
20. B-M-R: Heartbreaker (Dionne Warwick, 1982) #1 AC

21. B-M-R: Lonely Days (Bee Gees, 1970) #1 CB, HR, AU
22. B: The Grease Megamix (Olivia Newton-John & John Travolta, 1990) #1 AU
23. B-M-R: Guilty (Barbra Streisand & Barry Gibb, 1980)
24. B-M-R: Love So Right (Bee Gees, 1976)
25. B-M: Words (Bee Gees, 1968) #1 CN
26. B-M-R: Love You Inside Out (Bee Gees, 1979) #1 US, CN
27. B-M-R: More Than a Woman (Tavares, 1977)
28. All I Have to Do Is Dream (Andy Gibb & Victoria Principal, 1981)
29. B-M-R: I Started a Joke (Bee Gees, 1968) #1 CN, AU
30. B-M-R: Nights on Broadway (Bee Gees, 1975)

DMDB Top 20%:

31. B: An Everlasting Love (Andy Gibb, 1978)
32. B-R: To Love Somebody (Michael Bolton, 1992) #1 AC
33. B: Our Love (Don’t Throw It All Away) (Andy Gibb, 1978)
34. B-M-R: Fanny, Be Tender with Me Love (Bee Gees, 1975)
35. B-M-R: Chain Reaction (Diana Ross, 1985) #1 UK, AU
36. B-M-R: I’ve Gotta Get a Message to You (1968) #1 UK
37. B-R: Come on Over (Olivia Newton-John, 1976) #1 AC
38. B-M-R: How Deep Is Your Love (Portrait, 1995)
39. B-M-R: Run to Me (Bee Gees, 1972)
40. R: Hold on to My Love (Jimmy Ruffin, 1980)

41. B-M-R: Alone (Bee Gees, 1997)
42. B-R: Emotion (Destiny’s Child, 2001)
43. B-R: New York Mining Disaster 1941 (Bee Gees, 1967)
44. B-M-R: The Woman in You (Bee Gees, 1983)
45. B-R: My World (Bee Gees, 1972)
46. B-M: Don’t Forget to Remember (Bee Gees, 1969)
47. B-M-R: How Deep Is Your Love (Take That, 1996) #1 UK
48. B-M-R: Ghetto Supastar (That Is What You Are) (Pras Michel, 1998) *
49. B: What Kind of Fool (Barbra Streisand with Barry Gibb, 1980) #1 AC
50. B-M-R: Desire (Andy Gibb, 1980)

51. B-M-R: First of May (Bee Gees, 1969)
52. B-M-R: You Win Again (Bee Gees 1987) #1 UK
53. B: I Can’t Help It (Andy Gibb with Olivia Newton-John, 1980)
54. B-M-R: One (Bee Gees, 1989) #1 AC
55. B-M: Alive (Bee Gees, 1972)
56. B: This Woman (Kenny Rogers, 1983)
57. B-M: Shine Shine (Barry Gibb, 1984)
58. B-M-R: Boogie Child (Bee Gees, 1976)
59. B: Spicks and Specks (Bee Gees, 1966)
60. B-R: Love Me (Yvonne Elliman, 1976)

61. B-M: Tomorrow Tomorrow (Bee Gees, 1969)
62. B-M-R: Jumbo (Bee Gees, 1968)
63. B-R: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart (Al Green, 1972)

Beyond the DMDB Top 20%:

64. B: Take the Short Way Home (Dionne Warwick, 1983)
65. A-B: Time Is Time (Andy Gibb, 1977)
66. B-M-R: Edge of the Universe (Bee Gees, 1975)
67. Oh! Darling (Robin Gibb, 1978)
68. B-M: Eaten Alive (Diana Ross with Michael Jackson, 1985)
69. B-R: Paying the Price of Love (Bee Gees, 1993)
70. B-M-R: He’s a Liar (Bee Gees, 1981)

71. B-M: Eyes That See in the Dark (Kenny Rogers, 1983)
72. B-M: I.O.I.O. (Bee Gees, 1970)
73. B-M-R: Someone Belonging to Someone (Bee Gees, 1983)
74. B-M-R: Islands in the Stream (Vanessa Jenkins with Bryn West, Sir Tom Jones & Robin Gibb; 2009) #1 UK
75. B-M-R: Islands in the Stream (Bee Gees, 1998)
76. B-M-R: I Saw a New Morning (Bee Gees, 1973)
77. B-R: Mr. Natural (Bee Gees, 1974)
78. B-R: Holiday (Bee Gees, 1967)
79. B-R: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart (Michael Bublé, 2003)
80. B-M-R: I Started a Joke (Faith No More, 2003)

81. B-R: Promises (Barbra Streisand, 1980)
82. B-M-R: This Is Where I Came In (Bee Gees, 2001)
83. B-M-R: Immortality (Celine Dion with the Bee Gees, 1997)
84. B-M-R: Living Eyes (Bee Gees, 1981)
85. M-R: Boys Do Fall in Love (Robin Gibb, 1984)
86. B-M-R: Still Waters Run Deep (Bee Gees, 1997)
87. B-R: For Whom the Bell Tolls (Bee Gees, 1993)
88. B: Don’t Wanna Live Inside Myself (Bee Gees, 1971)
89. B-M: World (Bee Gees, 1967)
90. B-M: If Only I Had My Mind on Something Else (Bee Gees, 1970)

91. B-M-R: Wouldn’t I Be Someone (Bee Gees, 1973)
92. B-M-R: All the Love in the World (Dionne Warwick, 1982)
93. B-M-R: We Tryin’ to Stay Alive (Wyclef Jean & the Refugee All Stars, 1997) **
94. R: Saved by the Bell (Robin Gibb, 1969)
95. B-M-R: Ups and Downs (Snoop Dogg with the Bee Gees, 2005) ***
96. B-M-R: E.S.P. (Bee Gees, 1987)
97. B-M-R: Only One Woman (Marbles, 1968)
98. B-M-R: Stayin’ Alive (Richard Ace, 1978)
99. A: Me Without You (Andy Gibb, 1980)
100. B-M-R: Buried Treasure (Kenny Rogers, 1983)

* samples “Islands in the Stream”
** samples “Stayin’ Alive”
*** samples “Love You Inside Out”

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First posted 5/20/2012; updated 6/5/2022.
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Friday, December 21, 2018

50 years ago: Glen Campbell topped the country chart with “Wichita Lineman”

Wichita Lineman

Glen Campbell

Writer(s): Jimmy Webb (see lyrics here)

First Charted: November 2, 1968

Peak: 3 US, 2 CB, 3 HR, 16 AC, 12 CW, 7 UK, 14 CN, 15 AU (Click for codes to singles charts.)

Sales (in millions): 1.0 US, 0.2 UK, 1.2 world (includes US + UK)

Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 32.54 video, 46.38 streaming

Awards:

Click on award for more details.

About the Song:

Glen Campbell worked as a session guitarist in Los Angeles in the 1960s and even served as a vocalist with the Beach Boys for a short time. His big break as a solo artist came in 1967 when he recorded a song by Jimmy Webb called “By the Time I Get to Phoenix”. The song was a #2 country hit.

Campbell turned to the man he’d called “the best musical poet to come out of America” TC for another gem. It proved to have immense crossover appeal, hitting #1 on the country and adult contemporary charts as well as going top 10 on the top charts in the U.S. and U.K. It was also nominated for a Grammy for Record of the Year.

Webb was inspired by a real-life event to write his tune about a lonely telephone line repairman who ironically labors to ensure that others stay connected. He was driving through a remote area of northern Oklahoma and was struck by the image of a lineman working on a telephone pole out in the middle of this flat, remote area which was “almost surreal in its boundless horizons and infinite distances.” TC

In “just two short verses and one chorus, [it] says as much in them as many authors say in a lifetime.” BBC The music, which included Webb playing Hammond organ, matched the story with its “somehow vast and yet empty soundscape.” TB Webb told Campbell later that “Phoenix,” “Lineman,” and Campbell’s other Webb-penned hit “Galveston” were all about the same character. TB

Resources:

  • BBC BBC Radio 2 (2004). “Sold on Song Top 100”.
  • CR Toby Creswell (2005). 1001 Songs: The Great Songs of All Time. Thunder’s Mouth Press: New York, NY. Page 388-9.
  • MC Neil McCormack (3/13/09). Telegraph.co.uk “100 Greatest Songs of All Time”
  • TB Thunder Bay Press (2006). Singles: Six Decades of Hot Hits & Classic Cuts. Outline Press Ltd.: San Diego, CA. Page 101.

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First posted 11/2/2011; last updated 11/4/2021.

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Saturday, December 15, 2018

Song of the Year, 1900-2019

This page has been changed. To access different "song of the year" lists, go to the Bests of Lists page, Songs by Year.
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Friday, December 14, 2018

100 years ago: “I’m Always Chasing Rainbows” hit #1

I’m Always Chasing Rainbows

Charles Harrison

Writer(s): Frederick Chopin (music), Harry Carroll (music), Joseph McCarthy (words) (see lyrics here)

First Charted: November 8, 1918

Peak: 15 US, 3 GA, 12 SM (Click for codes to charts.)

Sales (in millions): 1.0 (sheet music)

Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 0.17 video, -- streaming

Awards:

Click on award for more details.

About the Song:

Harry Carroll adapted the music from the melody of Frédéric Chopin’s “Fantaisie Impromptu in C sharp minor.” It was “one of the first instances of a popular song being lifted from a famous classical composition.” TY2 Joseph McCarthy added lyrics “about things always going wrong.” SM The singer has tried to find happiness, but says “my dreams have all been denied.” He then asks, “Why have I always been a failure / What can the reason be? / I wonder if the world’s to blame / I wonder if it could be me?” TY2

The song was introduced in the Broadway show Oh Look, SM sung by vaudeville dancer, actor, and comedian Harry Fox DJ and the identical twins Rose and Jenny – known as the Dolly Sisters. SM

The version that reached #1 on the charts, however, was by Charles Harrison. His was one of four versions to chart in 1918. The others were by Fox (#5), Prince’s Orchestra (#6), and Sam Ash (#9). PM The song was also featured in the movie musicals Ziegfeld Girl (1941), sung by Judy Garland, The Merry Monahans (1944), and The Dolly Sisters (1945).

The latter version was sung by Betty Grable and revived interest in the song, leading to three more chart versions in 1945-46 by Perry Como (#5), Helen Forrest & Dick Haymes (#7), and Harry James’ Orchestra with Erno Rapee on vocals (#9). PM Other versions have been recorded by Julie Andrews, Tony Bennett, Henry Burr, Diahann Carroll, Petula Clark, Alice Cooper, Bing Crosby, Sammy Davis Jr., Benny Goodman, Al Jolson, Liberace, Guy Lombardo, Harry Nilsson, Debbie Reynolds, Frank Sinatra, Jo Stafford, and Barbra Streisand. WK

Resources:

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First posted 3/20/2023.

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Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductees Ranked

image from loudersound.com

With every year’s announcement of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees, there are two guarantees – there will be a slew of complaints about who hasn’t been inducted and who has been inducted who shouldn’t have been. This challenged me to come up with an objective rating of the inductees to determine just who has earned it most and who hasn’t. These rankings consolidate multiple best-artists-of-all-time lists along with sales figures, chart statistics, and other awards and honors. In the event of ties, earliest inductees are listed first. Here are the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees (through the class of 2019) ranked.

1. The Beatles
2. Elvis Presley
3. The Rolling Stones
4. Michael Jackson
5. Elton John
6. Stevie Wonder
7. Louis Armstrong
8. Bob Dylan
9. Bruce Springsteen
10. David Bowie

11. Madonna
12. U2
13. Prince
14. Eric Clapton
15. Ray Charles
16. Aretha Franklin
17. Led Zeppelin
18. The Beach Boys
19. Paul McCartney
20. Marvin Gaye

21. James Brown
22. Nat “King” Cole
23. Queen
24. Rod Stewart
25. The Who
26. Jimi Hendrix
27. Johnny Cash
28. Billy Joel
29. The Bee Gees
30. Pink Floyd

31. Neil Young
32. Billie Holiday
33. Fleetwood Mac
34. Chuck Berry
35. John Lennon
36. Eagles
37. R.E.M.
38. Fats Domino
39. The Temptations
40. Aerosmith
41. Bob Marley
42. The Doors
43. Roy Orbison
44. The Supremes
45. The Kinks
46. Simon & Garfunkel
47. Ike & Tina Turner
48. Sam Cooke
49. Little Richard
50. The Police

51. Hank Williams
52. AC/DC
53. Chicago
54. Creedence Clearwater Revival
55. Neil Diamond
56. Van Morrison
57. Nirvana
58. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers
59. Santana
60. Buddy Holly

61. Otis Redding
62. Pearl Jam
63. Van Halen
64. Genesis
65. Janet Jackson
66. Elvis Costello
67. Four Tops
68. Bon Jovi
69. The Jackson 5
70. Black Sabbath

71. Journey 72. The Everly Brothers
73. Paul Simon
74. Al Green
75. Crosby, Stills & Nash
76. Guns N’ Roses
77. Smokey Robinson
78. B.B. King
79. Miles Davis
80. Robert Johnson

81. Daryl Hall & John Oates
82. Cream
83. Earth, Wind & Fire
84. Gladys Knight & the Pips
85. Linda Ronstadt
86. The Clash
87. Kiss
88. Muddy Waters
89. Brenda Lee
90. Janis Joplin

91. Metallica
92. Carole King
93. The Isley Brothers
94. Velvet Underground
95. James Taylor
96. The Miracles
97. Sly & the Family Stone
98. Grateful Dead
99. Donna Summer
100. Joni Mitchell

101. Jefferson Airplane/Jefferson Starship
102. Frank Zappa
103. The Drifters
104. Ramones
105. The Band
106. Lynyrd Skynyrd
107. The Byrds
108. Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble 109. Ricky Nelson
110. Rush

111. Louis Jordan
112. Etta James
113. Sex Pistols
114. Bob Seger
115. Curtis Mayfield
116. The Allman Brothers Band
117. George Harrison
118. Deep Purple
119. Bessie Smith
120. The Four Seasons

121. Radiohead
122. Jerry Lee Lewis
123. Yes
124. Electric Light Orchestra
125. Jackie Wilson
126. Abba
127. Tupac Shakur
128. Blondie
129. ZZ Top
130. Bobby Darin

131. Steely Dan
132. Dire Straits
133. John Lee Hooker
134. Parliament/Funkadelic
135. The Platters
136. Peter Gabriel
137. Herb Alpert
138. Red Hot Chili Peppers
139. Les Paul
140. Dinah Washington
141. Green Day
142. Beastie Boys
143. The Cure
144. The Impressions
145. Quincy Jones
146. Bobby “Blue” Bland
147. Wilson Pickett
148. Talking Heads
149. Heart
150. Lou Reed

151. Ringo Starr
152. Pretenders
153. Berry Gordy Jr.
154. John Mellencamp
155. Jimmie Rodgers
156. Roxy Music
157. Steve Miller
158. Buddy Guy
159. The Moody Blues
160. Brian Holland/Lamont Dozier/Eddie Holland

161. Phil Spector
162. Ferdinand “Jelly Roll” Morton
163. Huddie “Leadbelly” Ledbetter
164. Alice Cooper
165. Howlin’ Wolf
166. Tom Waits
167. Cat Stevens
168. The Ink Spots
169. Bo Diddley
170. Ruth Brown
171. Public Enemy
172. Woody Guthrie
173. Traffic
174. Bonnie Raitt
175. The Cars
176. The O’Jays
177. Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller
178. Dion
179. Chet Atkins
180. Kenneth Gamble & Leon Huff

181. Def Leppard
182. The Yardbirds
183. Patti Smith
184. Jackson Browne
185. Bill Monroe
186. Bob Wills
187. The Hollies
188. Dusty Springfield
189. Run-D.M.C.
190. The Stooges

191. T-Bone Walker
192. The (Young) Rascals
193. Isaac Hayes
194. Stevie Nicks
195. Bill Haley & the Comets
196. Dave Clark Five
197. The Animals
198. Sam Phillips
199. Duane Eddy
200. Ma Rainey

201. The Dells
202. George Martin
203. Charlie Christian
204. Albert King
205. Buffalo Springfield
206. Donovan
207. Jerry Wexler
208. Big Joe Turner
209. Pete Seeger
210. Freddy King

211. The Mamas & the Papas
212. Wilie Dixon
213. The Righteous Brothers
214. The Shirelles
215. Cheap Trick
216. Barry Mann & Cynthia Weil
217. Dave Bartholomew
218. N.W.A.
219. Elmore James
220. Charles Brown

221. Leonard Cohen
222. Martha & the Vandellas
223. The Coasters
224. Booker T. & the MGs
225. Clive Davis
226. Mahalia Jackson
227. Clyde McPhatter
228. Doc Pomus
229. Jimmy Reed
230. Hank Ballard & the Midnighters

231. John H. Hammond
232. Bobby Womack
233. Sister Rosetta Tharpe
234. Jeff Beck
235. Ahmet Ertegun
236. Gerry Goffin
237. Bill Withers
238. Randy Newman
239. Gene Pitney
240. Tom Dowd

241. Nina Simone
242. Solomon Burke
243. Joan Jett
244. Professor Longhair
245. Little Anthony & the Imperials
246. Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers
247. The Staple Singers
248. Little Walter
249. Leonard Chess
250. Gene Vincent

251. Lovin’ Spoonful
252. The Ventures
253. Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five
254. Joan Baez
255. The Faces
256. Jeff Barry & Ellie Greenwich
257. Mort Shuman
258. Eddie Cochran
259. Otis Blackwell
260. Allen Toussaint

261. Dick Clark
262. Alan Freed
263. Chis Blackwell
264. Lloyd Price
265. Del Shannon
266. James Jamerson
267. Bill Black
268. LaVern Baker
269. Glyn Johns
270. Little Willie John

271. The Moonglows
272. Sam & Dave
273. The Flamingos
274. Carl Perkins
275. Andrew Loog Oldham
276. Ritchie Valens
277. Floyd Cramer
278. Brian Epstein
279. Nesuhi Ertegun
280. Jac Holzman

281. Jerry Moss
282. Milt Gabler
283. Bill Graham
284. Art Rupe
285. Wanda Jackson
286. Earl Palmer
287. Nile Rodgers
288. The Ronettes
289. The Orioles
290. Lou Adler

291. Scotty Moore
292. James Burton
293. Percy Sledge
294. Johnny Otis
295. Leon Russell
296. Johnnie Johnson
297. Cosimo Matassa
298. Paul Butterfield
299. David Geffen
300. Don Kirshner

301. Jim Stewart
302. Mo Ostin
303. Seymour Stein
304. Syd Nathan
305. Dr. John
306. The Small Faces
307. The Soul Stirrers
308. The Zombies
309. Hal Blaine
310. Darlene Love

311. DJ Fontana
312. Ralph Bass
313. King Curtis
314. Bennie Benjamin
315. Steve Douglas
316. Spooner Oldham
317. Jesse Stone
318. The E Street Band
319. Leo Fender
320. Paul Ackerman

321. Jimmy Yancey
322. Tom Donahue
323. Jann Wenner
324. Frank Barsalona
325. Jimmy Cliff
326. Laura Nyro
327. The Five Royales
328. Bert Berns

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50 years ago: Marvin Gaye hit #1 with “I Heard It Through the Grapevine”

I Heard It Through the Grapevine

Marvin Gaye

Writer(s): Barrett Strong, Norman Whitfield (see lyrics here)

Released: October 30 1968

First Charted: November 16, 1968

Peak: 17 US, 15 CB, 14 GR, 11 HR, 17 RB, 13 UK, 8 CN, 40 AU, 1 DF (Click for codes to charts.)

Sales (in millions): 4.0 US, -- UK, 6.0 world (includes US + UK)

Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 6.0 radio, 64.5 video, 299.89 streaming

Awards:

Click on award for more details.

About the Song:

Marvin didn’t want to record it, RS500 Motown didn’t want to release it, RSP and Berry Gordy, the company head honcho, thought it was horrible. FB Naturally it became Gaye’s first pop #1 and biggest hit, as well as Motown’s longest running #1 to date. FB

Norman Whitfield, a producer for Motown, had a habit of pushing the same song on multiple acts. While it frustrated some of his charges, it also worked, at least on occasion. Never was that more the case than with Gaye’s cover of “Grapevine.” RS500 First the Miracles put their spin on it, then the Isley Brothers, whose version is still locked somewhere in the Motown vaults. FB In 1967, both Gaye and Gladys Knight & The Pips tackled it. WK Before year’s end, the Pips had a #1 R&B and #2 pop hit with it.

Gaye’s version was more aligned with the song’s lyrical theme. TB It was spookier than the Pips’ “journeyman rendition,” MA slowed down “to a voodoo chant pace” TC and “accenting a more churchy, Ray Charles feel.” TC When they were recording the song, Whitfield encouraged the reluctanct Gaye to sing in a high, raspy voice. As was generally the case, Whitfield got his way. WK

Whitfield championed Gaye’s “Grapevine,” but it was shelved for more than a year, finally emerging when filler was needed for Gaye’s In the Groove album. A DJ on a radio station in Chicago began playing the song and when it was obvious it was a hit, Gordy finally gave in and allowed the single to be released. WK

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First posted 11/16/2011; last updated 2/3/2023.

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