Thursday, April 30, 2020

Dave’s Faves: #1 Songs

Dave’s Faves:

#1’s: 1960-2019

September 18, 1982. I can peg my fascination with music charts to that date. After listening to a local radio station’s countdown of the hits of the summer, I decided to make my own list of favorites (see original list here). I ended up revising it every few days, eventually developing my own charts which I maintained into the ‘90s.

I’ve made some adjustments to those original charts. First, the charts I did from 1982 to 1994 mixed current songs with classics. I’ve revised this list to put songs in their proper place chronologically. Second, since I didn’t do charts prior to 1982 or after 1994, I’ve speculated what would have been my #1’s.

Of course, I realize no one really cares about any of this but me. That’s fine. It’s my website so alongside content which (hopefully) matters to others, I get to stroke my own ego and post some content which is only important to an audience of one. In any event, you can check out the lists here if you wish:

Click here to see other Dave’s Faves song lists.


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First posted 4/28/2020; last updated 12/30/2023.

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Friday, April 24, 2020

Adult Album Alternative (AAA): Top 100, 1990-1996

First posted 4/24/2020.

Adult Album Alternative:

Top 100 Songs, 1990-1996

In 1996, Billboard magazine lanched the adult album alternative (AAA) chart. The radio format is a spinoff of the album-oriented radio stations focused on classic rock from the ‘60s and ‘70s. While artists like Eric Clapton, Tom Petty, and Bruce Springsteen are staples of classic rock, their current material was largely neglected by those stations. Alongside these heritage acts, AAA played mainstream-rock-oriented alternative acts like the Gin Blossoms, Goo Goo Dolls, Hootie & the Blowfish, Matchbox 20, Dave Matthews Band, and Alanis Morissette.

As is usually the case with a new chart, though, the format was already well established before Billboard started tracking. This list, therefore, is an effort to represent those songs preceded the chart. Eligibilty for this list was determined by acts who had later AAA chart hits, but songs from 1990 to 1996 which didn’t make that chart.

1. R.E.M. “Losing My Religion” (1991)
2. Oasis “Wonderwall” (1995)
3. U2 “One” (1992)
4. No Doubt “Don’t Speak” (1995)
5. Radiohead “Creep” (1993)
6. Seal “Kiss from a Rose” (1994)
7. Eric Clapton “Tears in Heaven” (1992)
8. Red Hot Chili Peppers “Under the Bridge” (1991)
9. Beck “Loser” (1993)
10. Sheryl Crow “All I Wanna Do” (1994)

11. Alanis Morissette “You Oughta Know” (1995)
12. Bruce Springsteen “Streets of Philadelphia” (1994)
13. Pearl Jam “Jeremy” (1991)
14. R.E.M. “Everybody Hurts’ (1992)
15. Alanis Morissette “Ironic” (1995)
16. Oasis “Live Forever” (1994)
17. Eric Clapton “Change the World” (1996)
18. Jewel “You Were Meant for Me” (1995)
19. Oasis “Don’t Look Back in Anger” (1995)
20. Smashing Pumpkins “1979” (1995)

21. Lisa Loeb & Nine Stories “Stay (I Missed You)” (1994)
22. Tracy Chapman “Give Me One Reason” (1995)
23. Shawn Colvin “Sunny Came Home” (1996)
24. Alanis Morissette “You Learn” (1995)
25. Oasis “Champagne Supernova” (1995)
26. Green Day “Basket Case” (1994)
27. The Rembrandts “I’ll Be There for You” (1995)
28. Joan Osborne “One of Us” (1995)
29. Jewel “Foolish Games” (1995)
30. Pearl Jam “Alive” (1991)

31. Soundgarden “Black Hole Sun” (1994)
32. Sting “Fields of Gold” (1993)
33. The Cranberries “Zombie” (1994)
34. Radiohead “Fake Plastic Trees” (1995)
35. Soul Asylum “Runaway Train” (1992)
36. Eric Clapton ““Layla” (Unplugged version, 1992)
37. Green Day “Longview” (1994)
38. Hootie & the Blowfish “Only Wanna Be with You” (1994)
39. Counting Crows “Mr. Jones” (1993)
40. Alanis Morissette “Head Over Feet” (1995)

41. Sting “If I Ever Lose My Faith in You” (1993)
42. Pearl Jam “Daughter” (1993)
43. U2 “Night and Day” (1990)
44. Weezer “Buddy Holly” (1994)
45. The Black Crowes “Hard to Handle” (1990)
46. Live “Lightning Crashes” (1994)
47. R.E.M. “Man on the Moon” (1992)
48. Bonnie Raitt “I Can’t Make You Love Me” (1991)
49. U2 “Mysterious Ways” (1991)
50. The Cranberries “Linger” (1993)

51. Green Day “When I Come Around” (1994)
52. Beck “Where It’s At” (1996)
53. Bonnie Raitt “Something to Talk About” (1991)
54. Collective Soul “Shine” (1993)
55. Smashing Pumpkins “Disarm” (1993)
56. Lenny Kravitz “Are You Gonna Go My Way?” (1993)
57. Stone Temple Pilots “Interstate Love Song” (1994)
58. Dave Matthews Band “Crash into Me” (1996)
59. Spin Doctors “Two Princes” (1991)
60. Collective Soul “December” (1995)

61. Smashing Pumpkins “Tonight Tonight” (1995)
62. Stone Temple Pilot “Plush” (1992)
63. R.E.M. “What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?” (1994)
64. Seal “Crazy” (1990)
65. Blues Traveler “Run Around” (1994)
66. Sting “All This Time” (1990)
67. Smashing Pumpkins “Bullet with Butterfly Wings” (1995)
68. Sheryl Crow “Everyday Is a Winding Road” (1996)
69. Crowded House “Weather with You” (1991)
70. Collective Soul “the World I Know” (1995)

71. Goo Goo Dolls “Name” (1995)
72. R.E.M. “Drive” (1992)
73. Bruce Springsteen “Human Touch” (1992)
74. Gin Blossoms “‘Til I Hear It from You” (1995)
75. U2 “Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me” (1995)
76. INXS “Suicide Blonde” (1990)
77. U2 “Even Better Than the Real Thing” (1991)
78. R.E.M. “Shiny Happy People” (1991)
79. Alanis Morissette “Hand in My Pocket” (1995)
80. Radiohead “High and Dry” (1995)

81. Bonnie Raitt “Love Sneakin’ Up on You” (1994)
82. Hootie & the Blowfish “Let Her Cry” (1994)
83. Sheryl Crow “If It Makes You Happy” (1996)
84. Live “Selling the Drama” (1994)
85. Hootie & the Blowfish “Time” (1994)
86. Paula Cole “Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?” (1996)
87. The Cranberries “Dreams” (1992)
88. Pearl Jam “Better Man” (1994)
89. Jewel “Who Will Save Your Soul?” (1995)
90. Paula Cole “I Don’t Want to Wait” (1996)

91. Silverchair “Tomorrow” (1994)
92. Pearl Jam “Black” (1991)
93. Smashing Pumpkins “Today” (1993)
94. Bruce Springsteen “Secret Garden” (1995)
95. Sheryl Crow “Strong Enough” (1993)
96. John Mellencamp & Me’Shell Ndegeocello “Wild Night” (1994)
97. Sarah McLachlan “I Will Remember You” (1995)
98. Hootie & the Blowfish “Hold My Hand” (1994)
99. Matchbox 20 “Push” (1996)
100. Melissa Etheridge “I’m the Only One” (1993)

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Thursday, April 23, 2020

Digital Era (2000-2019): Top 100 Songs

Book:

The Top 100 Songs of the Digital Era, 2000-2019

This is the third in a series, following The Top 100 Songs of the Pre-Rock Era, 1890-1953 and The Top 100 Songs of the Rock Era, 1954-1999. Combined the three books cover 300 songs representing 130 years in the history of recorded music! Here are the top 100 as they appear in The Top 100 Songs of the Digital Era, 2000-2019:

1. Uptown Funk!… Mark Ronson with Bruno Mars (2014)
2. Hey Ya!...OutKast (2003)
3. Rolling in the Deep…Adele (2010)
4. Despacito…Luis Fonsi with Daddy Yankee & Justin Bieber (2017)
5. Lose Yourself…Eminem (2002)
6. Shape of You…Ed Sheeran (2017)
7. I Gotta Feeling…Black Eyed Peas (2009)
8. Somebody That I Used to Know…Gotye with Kimbra (2011)
9. Happy…Pharrell Williams (2013)
10. Yeah!...Usher with Lil’ Jon & Ludacris (2004)

11. Hello…Adele (2015)
12. Umbrella…Rihanna with Jay-Z (2007)
13. Crazy in Love… Beyoncé with Jay-Z (2003)
14. Blurred Lines…Robin Thicke with T.I. & Pharrell Williams (2013)
15. Crazy…Gnarls Barkley (2006)
16. We Belong Together…Mariah Carey (2005)
17. See You Again …Wiz Khalifa with Charlie Puth (2015)
18. Old Town Road…Lil Nas X with Billy Ray Cyrus (2018)
19. Closer…The Chainsmokers with Halsey (2016)
20. Low…Flo Rida with T-Pain (2007)

21. Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)… Beyoncé (2008)
22. Poker Face…Lady Gaga (2009)
23. Party Rock Anthem…LMFAO with Lauren Bennett & GoonRock (2011)
24. Royals…Lorde (2013)
25. Call Me Maybe…Carly Rae Jepsen (2011)
26. Boom Boom Pow…Black Eyed Peas (2009)
27. We Found Love…Rihanna with Calvin Harris (2011)
28. Tik Tok…Ke$ha (2009)
29. Viva La Vida…Coldplay (2008)
30. Perfect…Ed Sheeran with Beyoncé (2017)

31. Love the Way You Lie…Eminem with Rihanna (2010)
32. Gold Digger…Kanye West with Jamie Foxx (2005)
33. Shake It Off…Taylor Swift (2014)
34. Just the Way You Are (Amazing)…Bruno Mars (2010)
35. Moves Like Jagger…Maroon 5 with Christina Aguilera (2011)
36. In Da Club…50 Cent (2002)
37. Thinking Out Loud…Ed Sheeran (2014)
38. Thrift Shop…Macklemore & Ryan Lewis with Wanz (2012)
39. Irreplaceable… Beyoncé (2006)
40. Someone Like You…Adele (2011)

41. God’s Plan…Drake (2018)
42. Bleeding Love…Leona Lewis (2007)
43. Gangnam Style…Psy (2012)
44. One Dance…Drake with Wizkid & Kyla (2016)
45. Girls Like You…Maroon 5 with Cardi B (2017)
46. Roar…Katy Perry (2013)
47. All of Me…John Legend (2013)
48. All About That Bass…Meghan Trainor (2014)
49. Sexyback…Justin Timberlake (2006)
50. Get Lucky…Daft Punk with Pharrell Williams (2013)

51. Firework…Katy Perry (2010)
52. Hips Don’t Lie…Shakira with Wyclef Jean (2006)
53. Just Dance…Lady Gaga with Colby O’Donnis (2008)
54. Hot in Herre…Nelly (2002)
55. Havana…Camila Cabello with Young Thug (2017)
56. I’m Yours…Jason Mraz (2008)
57. Fallin’…Alicia Keys (2001)
58. You’re Beautiful…James Blunt (2005)
59. No One…Alicia Keys (2007)
60. Love Yourself…Justin Bieber (2015)

61. Blank Space…Taylor Swift (2014)
62. We Are Young…Fun. with Janelle Monae (2011)
63. Stay with Me…Sam Smith (2014)
64. I Kissed a Girl…Katy Perry (2008)
65. Can’t Stop the Feeling!...Justin Timberlake (2016)
66. Need You Now…Lady Antebellum (2009)
67. Can’t Get You Out of My Head…Kylie Minogue (2001)
68. Boulevard of Broken Dreams…Green Day (2004)
69. Bad Guy…Billie Eilish (2019)
70. Sorry…Justin Bieber (2015)

71. Apologize…One Republic with Timbaland (2007)
72. California Gurls…Katy Perry with Snoop Dogg (2010)
73. Counting Stars…One Republic (2013)
74. Empire State of Mind…Jay-Z with Alicia Keys (2009)
75. Bad Romance…Lady Gaga (2009)
76. Rockstar…Post Malone with 21 Savage (2017)
77. Can’t Feel My Face…The Weeknd (2015)
78. Bad Day…Daniel Powter (2005)
79. Dilemma…Nelly with Kelly Rowland (2002)
80. Music…Madonna (2000)

81. Fuck You (aka “Forget You”)…Cee-Lo Green (2010)
82. How You Remind Me…Nickelback (2001)
83. Love Story…Taylor Swift (2008)
84. Wake Me Up!...Avicii with Aloe Blacc (2013)
85. Beautiful Day…U2 (2000)
86. Rehab…Amy Winehouse (2006)
87. Dark Horse…Katy Perry with Juicy J (2013)
88. Stan…Eminem with Dido (2000)
89. Shallow…Lady Gaga with Bradley Cooper (2018)
90. Work…Rihanna with Drake (2016)

91. Seven Nation Army…The White Stripes (2003)
92. Cheap Thrills…Sia with Sean Paul (2016)
93. The Killers “Mr. Brightside” (2004)
94. Fancy…Iggy Azalea & Charli XCX (2014)
95. Big Girls Don’t Cry (Personal)…Fergie (2007)
96. Rude…Magic! (2013)
97. Take Me Out…Franz Ferdinand (2004)
98. Clocks…Coldplay (2002)
99. You Belong with Me…Taylor Swift (2008)
100. Radioactive…Imagine Dragons (2012)

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First posted 2/17/2020; updated 4/3/2021.

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Wednesday, April 22, 2020

Dave's Music Database Hall of Fame: Song Inductees (April 2020)

Originally posted 4/22/2020.

In honor of the 10th anniversary of the DMDB blog on January 22, 2019, Dave’s Music Database launched its own Hall of Fame. This is the sixth set of song inductees. These songs appear on the Dave’s Music Database list of standards. The top 100 list has been reordered based on overall DMDB points and the top ten songs not previously inducted have been included here.

American Quartet “Over There” (1917)

Inducted April 2020 as “Top Standard”

George M. Cohan’s “biggest song not written for Broadway” RCG became World War I’s most famous song. JA He penned the patriotic number after reading in the newspaper that the United States had declared war on Germany. He expanded the opening phrase of “Johnny Get Your Gun,” a popular song from 1886, into “a lyric that is both a call to arms and a vow not to come home till ‘it’s over, over there’.” RCGThe American Quartet, the Peerless Quartet, Nora Bayes, and Enrico Caruso all recorded #1 versions of the song. Read more.

Fred Astaire with Ginger Rogers & Leo Reisman’s Orchestra “Cheek to Cheek” (1935)

Inducted April 2020 as “Top Standard”

Composer Irving Berlin crafted thirteen songs which landed in Fred Astaire movies. “Cheek to Cheek,” which Berlin wrote in a day, TM was one of three to hit #1. It wasn’t just any #1, though; it “became one of Berlin’s greatest commercial successes,” TY spending more weeks atop the pop charts than any other song from 1935. WHC The song received an Academy Award nomination for best song. Read more.

Bobby Darin “Mack the Knife” (1959)

Inducted April 2020 as “Top Standard”

“Mack the Knife” originated in 1928 as “Moritat,” which translates to “murder deed.” RCG Bertlot Brecht and Kurt Weill wrote the original German song about “a bloodthirsty Berlin gangster” RS500 on the prowl for the musical The Three Penny Opera. Despite the song’s gruesome subject matter, the irresistible melody made the song hit-worthy. KL Instead of translating the lyrics literally, Marc Blitzstein gave the song a rewrite. SJ It became a standard, charting six times in 1956 alone, with Bobby Darin’s the biggest of all. The song transformed his image into that of “a finger-snapping sophisticate at home in the cocktail lounge.” RS500 Read more.

Al Jolson “Swanee” (1920)

Inducted April 2020 as “Top Standard”

George Gershwin may be America’s greatest songwriter. By 1919, he had already written two Broadway revues, one of which included the song “Swanee.” LW Co-writer Irving Caesar (who later wrote “Tea for Two”) persuaded his friend Al Jolson to use it in his Broadway show Sinbad. LW It became Gershwin’s first major hit and his best-selling song in terms of both sheet music and record sales. JA The song parodies Stephen Foster’s 1851 song “Old Folks at Home,” WK which came to be a symbol of freedom and emancipated slaves. Jolson performed the song in blackface, which is horrifically racist in hindsight, but was popular entertainment in the minstrel shows of the day. Read more.

Al Jolson “April Showers” (1922)

Inducted April 2020 as “Top Standard”

“April Showers” ranks as “one of America’s greatest ballads.” PS Louis Silvers composed the music and B.G. “Buddy” DeSylva wrote the lyrics. Al Jolson introduced “April Showers” in the 1921 Broadway musical, Bombo. It was his 13th #1 song and biggest hit to date PM and became “a well-known Jolson trademark.” WK Only “Sonny Boy,” from 1928, would spend more weeks on top of the chart (twelve). PM The song also became the biggest hit of 1922. WHC Read more.

Billy Murray & Haydn Quartet “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” (1908)

Inducted April 2020 as “Top Standard”

“The unofficial anthem of American baseball” RCG has been “affectionately referred to…as the ‘other’ national anthem.” SH It is “one of the most easily recognized songs in America,” SH behind only “Happy Birthday” and “The Star Spangled Banner,” SH having been sung at nearly every U.S. professional baseball game for the last 100 years. PS Surprisingly, neither the song’s composer (Albert Von Tilzer) nor lyricist (Jack Norworth) had ever seen a baseball game prior to writing the song. PS It got its start on vaudeville where Norworth’s wife, singer Nora Bayes, introduced it. JA-188 In 1908 Billy Murray’s recording of the song with the Haydn Quartet became the biggest song of the year. WHC Read more.

Peerless Quartet “Let Me Call You Sweetheart” (1911)

Inducted April 2020 as “Top Standard”

“Sweetheart” was “a tremendous hit in vaudeville” JA which “became a favourite around player pianos and community sings.” RCG It “is a straightforward declaration of love that came to be more of a sing-a-long than a ballad. Lou Friedman wrote the music in a waltzing tone while Beth Slater Whitson wrote the lyrics, [in] which he proclaims his love and asks the other to ‘whisper that you love me too.’” RCG With over 6 million sales of the sheet music, it is one of the top ten best selling sheet music songs of the first half of the century. PM Read more.

Artie Shaw “Begin the Beguine” (1938)

Inducted April 2020 as “Top Standard”

“Beguine” refers to a 1930s’ Cuban dance similar to a rumba. Depending on the account one chooses to believe, songwriter Cole Porter experienced it for the first time on a luxury cruise during a stop in Martinique or a Paris dance hall frequented by Martinique imigrants. He adopted the dance’s rhythm for a big production number for Jubilee, a musical comedy which debuted in 1935. SB Xavier Cugat had a #13 hit with it that year. However, it was Artie Shaw’s version three years later which became a #1 PM-476 and “one of the most popular jazz standards.” SB Read more.

Ethel Waters “Stormy Weather (Keeps Rainin' All the Time)” (1933)

Inducted April 2020 as “Top Standard”

In the early 1930s, the famed Cotton Club in Harlem, New York, featured African-American performers on stage although they weren’t allowed to sit in the audience. TM Harold Arlen, a cantor’s son, and Ted Koehler wrote this “bluesy perennial” TM for Cab Calloway to introduce in a Cotton Club revue, but decided it was more fitting for a female singer and gave it to Ethel Waters. TY When she performed “Stormy Weather” in the show Cotton Club Parade, she sang it “with all her soul…expressing the anguish of people who found nothing but gloom and misery…because of the Depression.” TY Metronome magazine called it “1933’s biggest hit.” SS “It has become a cabaret standard.” JA Read more.

Paul Whiteman “Whispering” (1920)

Inducted April 2020 as “Top Standard”

This was the debut chart single for Paul Whiteman, and what a beginning it was. It was the second biggest hit of the year WHC and the biggest chart success of Whiteman’s career. It was the first of Whiteman’s 30 songs to go all the way to the top and helped him to become the most popular bandleader of the pre-swing era and the dominant force in American popular recording. PM “Whispering” sold over two million copies which, considering the number of record players in use then, would be the equivalent today of sales of 20 million. TY The online All Music Guide says more than 700 different versions of the song have been recorded, including versions to chart in four different decades. Read more.
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Friday, April 17, 2020

Fiona Apple released Fetch the Bolt Cutters

First posted 1/12/2021.

Fetch the Bolt Cutters

Fiona Apple

Released: April 17, 2020

Peak: 4 US, 33 UK, 10 CN, 13 AU

Sales (in millions): -- US, -- UK, -- world (includes US and UK)

Genre: alternative rock

Tracks:

Song Title (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts.

  1. I Want You to Love Me
  2. Shameika (4/27/20, 19 AA)
  3. Fetch the Bolt Cutters
  4. Under the Table
  5. Relay
  6. Rack of His
  7. Newspaper
  8. Ladies
  9. Heavy Balloon
  10. Cosmonauts
  11. For Her
  12. Drumset
  13. On I Go

All songs written by Fiona Apple.

Total Running Time: 51:49

Rating:

4.639 out of 5.00 (average of 28 ratings)

Quotable: “A dense and richly poetic masterpiece from one of music’s best modern storytellers.” – Patrick Ryan, USA Today

Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Album:

Fiona Apple’s fifth album came out eight years after her previous effort, 2012’s The Idler Wheel. She started work on it in February 2015, writing and rehearsing at her home studio in Venice Beach. After attempts to record in Texas and Los Angeles, she and her bandmates returned to her home studio, where most of the album was recorded using GarageBand. She recorded “long, often improvised takes with unconventional percussive sounds,” WK the latter of which included dog bones and a metal butterfly. WK She attributed the focus on percussion to a childhood obsessive-compulsive disorder with walking rhythmically to a strict tempo. WK

Lyrically, she explored her “complex relationships with other women and other personal experiences, including bullying and sexual assault.” WK within songs that rejected pop music’s traditional verse-chorus structure. WK The title of the album and its theme comes from a quotation from the British-Irish TV crime drama series The Fall: “Fetch the fucking bolt cutters and get yourself out of the situation you’re in.” WK She summed up the album’s theme as being about “breaking out of whatever prison you’ve allowed yourself to live in.” WK

The album was nominated for a Grammy for Best Alternative Music Album. The single, Shameika, was nominated for Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance. The song, named after a girl who went to middle school with Apple, was based on an experience in which Apple was rejected by a group of popular girls. Shameika approached Apple, saying “Why are you trying to sit with those girls? You have potential.” WK

Cosmonauts dated back to 2012. The song was written for the film This Is 40. Director Judd Apatow wanted a song exploring a life-long romantic relationship. She struggled with the concept, unsure if she wanted to be with anyone forever. Because of that, she came up with the interpretation that “It’s going to be you and me in this little vessel by ourselves in space, except it’s going to weigh a lot more, and you’re going to really get on my nerves.” WK

Other songs included I Want You to Love Me, which was originally about a hypothetical lover but ended up influenced by Apple’s relationship with writer Jonathan Ames. Drumset was written after she broke up with him. Newspaper and Ladies explore how women shouldn’t let men pit them against each other. On For Her, Apple explored a man’s abuse of a woman, based on a friend’s experiences. The Boston Globe’s Maura Johnston praised the album for its “matter-of-fact depictions of everyday brutality.” WK

Under the Table was inspired by a dinner party where people were bragging and she called someone out for an offensive comment. WK Heavy Balloon dealt with depression and On I Go grew out of a 2012 imprisonment for hash possession. The title track came late in the recording process after the album already had its title. WK

Pitchfork gave the album a perfect score. The last time had been in 2010 for Kanye West’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Jenn Pelly described it as “an unyielding masterpiece.” WK All Music Guide’s Stephen Thomas Erlewine called it “complex and profoundly human, …nourishing and joyfully cathartic.” WK USA Today’s Patrick Ryan called it “a dense and richly poetic masterpiece from one of music’s best modern storytellers.” WK

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Friday, April 3, 2020

TSORT: Top 200 Songs, 1900-2020

First posted 4/3/2020.

Top 200 Songs:

1900-2020

TSORT aggregates multiple best-of lists (the site indicates 230 source charts, which include over 147,000 songs and more than 82,000 albums). By aggregating these lists, they’ve created an All Time Songs top 1000 list and have also adjusted that list to create better representation of songs from multiple eras. The latter, a list of 200 songs, is presented here. It makes for a much more representative “best of all time” list than most publications.

1. White Christmas… Bing Crosby with the Ken Darby Singers (1942)
2. “We’re Gonna Rock Around the Clock” Bill Haley & His Comets (1954)
3. Over the Rainbow… Judy Garland (1939)
4. “(Everything I Do) I Do It for You” Bryan Adams (1991)
5. “Hey Jude” The Beatles (1968)
6. “My Heart Will Go On” Celine Dion (1997)
7. “Bleeding Love” Leona Lewis (2007)
8. “I Will Always Love You” Whitney Houston (1992)
9. “In the Mood” Glenn Miller Orchestra (1939)
10. “Dancing Queen” Abba (1976)

11. “She Loves You” The Beatles (1963)
12. “Hips Don’t Lie” Shakira with Wyclef Jean (2006)
13. “Another Brick in the Wall Part II” Pink Floyd (1979)
14. “Nothing Compares 2 U” Sinéad O’Connor (1990)
15. “Mack the Knife” Bobby Darin (1956)
16. “My Sweet Lord” George Harrison (1970)
17. “The Way You Look Tonight” Fred Astaire with Johnny Greer’s Orchestra (1936)
18. “Believe” Cher (1998)
19. “Imagine” John Lennon (1971)
20. “Jailhouse Rock” Elvis Presley (1957)

21. “I Want to Hold Your Hand” The Beatles (1963)
22. “Gangsta’s Paradise” Coolio with L.V. (1995)
23. “Bohemian Rhapsody” Queen (1975)
24. “Let It Be” The Beatles (1970)
25. “You’re the One That I Want” Olivia Newton-John & John Travolta (1978)
26. “Yeah!” Usher with Lil’ Jon & Ludacris (2004)
27. “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” Kylie Minogue (2001)
28. “We Are the World” USA for Africa (1985)
29. “Y.M.C.A.” Village People (1978)
30. “Pennies from Heaven” Bing Crosby with George Stoll’s Orchestra (1936)

31. “Baby One More Time” Britney Spears (1998)
32. “Mona Lisa” Nat “King” Cole (1950)
33. “Swanee” Al Jolson (1920)
34. “I Just Called to Say I Love You” Stevie Wonder (1984)
35. “Wannabe” Spice Girls (1996)
36. “Swinging on a Star” Bing Crosby with John Scott Trotter’s Orchestra & Williams Brothers Quartet (1944)
37. “Seasons in the Sun” Terry Jacks (1974)
38. “Stand by Me” Ben E. King (1961)
39. “(Oh) Pretty Woman” Roy Orbison (1964)
40. “Kung Fu Fighting” Carl Douglas (1974)

41. “A Whiter Shade of Pale” Procol Harum (1967)
42. “I’ll Be Missing You” Puff Daddy with Faith Evans & 112 (1997)
43. “Stayin’ Alive” Bee Gees (1977)
44. “Like a Prayer” Madonna (1989)
45. “Are You Lonesome Tonight?” Elvis Presley (1960)
46. “Bette Davis Eyes” Kim Carnes (1981)
47. “American Pie” Don McLean (1971)
48. “Mambo No. 5 (A Little Bit of…)” Lou Bega (1999)
49. “Lose Yourself” Eminem (2002)
50. “Flashdance...What a Feelin’” Irene Cara (1983)

51. “Candle in the Wind 1997 (Goodbye England’s Rose)” Elton John (1997)
52. “It’s Now or Never” Elvis Presley (1960)
53. “Mmmbop” Hanson (1997)
54. “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” The Rolling Stones (1965)
55. “Happy Days Are Here Again” Ben Selvin (1930)
56. “Black or White” Michael Jackson (1991)
57. “You’re Beautiful” James Blunt (2005)
58. “Moonlight Serenade” Glenn Miller Orchestra (1939)
59. “If You Leave Me Now” Chicago (1976)
60. “Sentimental Journey” Les Brown with Doris Day (1945)

61. “Hung Up” Madonna (2005)
62. “Take on Me” a-ha (1985)
63. “California, Here I Come” Al Jolson with Isham Jones’ Orchestra (1924)
64. “Vogue” Madonna (1990)
65. “Angie” The Rolling Stones (1973)
66. “Don’t Speak” No Doubt (1996)
67. “Rock Me Amadeus” Falco (1986)
68. “Whenever, Wherever” Shakira (2001)
69. “The Prisoner’s Song” Vernon Dalhart (1925)
70. “In the Summertime” Mungo Jerry (1970)

71. “Unchained Melody” The Righteous Brothers (1965)
72. “Without Me” Eminem (2002)
73. “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” Aerosmith (1998)
74. “Funkytown” Lipps Inc. (1980)
75. “Another Day in Paradise” Phil Collins (1989)
76. “I’m a Believer” The Monkees (1966)
77. “Lady Marmalade” Christina Aguilera, Lil’ Kim, Mya, & Pink (2001)
78. “Macarena (Bayside Boys Mix)” Los Del Rio (1995)
79. “Hotel California” Eagles (1976)
80. “One O’Clock Jump” Count Basie (1937)

81. “I Can’t Stop Loving You” Ray Charles (1962)
82. “It Had to Be You” Isham Jones (1924)
83. “Medley I” Stars on 45 (1981)
84. “Where Is the Love?” Black Eyed Peas with Justin Timberlake (2003)
85. “Billie Jean” Michael Jackson (1982)
86. “Killing Me Softly” Fugees (1996)
87. “Hound Dog” Elvis Presley (1956)
88. “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” Band Aid (1984)
89. “The Stars and Stripes Forever” John Philip Sousa (1900)
90. “Alexander’s Ragtime Band” Arthur Collins with Byron Harlan (1911)

91. “Barbie Girl” Aqua (1997)
92. “Get Back” The Beatles with Billy Preston (1969)
93. “Rock-a-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody” Al Jolson (1918)
94. “Crazy” Gnarls Barkley (2006)
95. “Paper Doll” Mills Brothers (1942)
96. “Streets of Philadelphia” Bruce Springsteen (1994)
97. “Music” Madonna (2000)
98. “Frenesi” Artie Shaw & His Orchestra (1940)
99. “Down Hearted Blues” Bessie Smith (1923)
100. “I’d Do Anything for Love (But I Won’t Do That)” Meat Loaf (1993)

101. “I Wanna Dance with Somebody Who Loves Me” Whitney Houston (1987)
102. “Joyride” Roxette (1991)
103. “Sexyback” Justin Timberlake (2006)
104. “Begin the Beguine” Artie Shaw (1938)
105. “Whispering” Paul Whiteman & His Orchestra (1920)
106. “Heart of Glass” Blondie (1978)
107. “Rivers of Babylon” Boney M (1978)
108. “Strangers in the Night” Frank Sinatra (1966)
109. “Minnie the Moocher (The Ho De Ho Song)” Cab Calloway (1931)
110. “Cheek to Cheek” Fred Astaire & Ginger Rogers with Leo Reisman’s Orchestra (1935)

111. “All You Need Is Love” The Beatles (1967)
112. “The Twist” Chubby Checker (1960)
113. “Tennessee Waltz” Patti Page (1950)
114. “Never Gonna Give You Up” Rick Astley (1987)
115. “Nobody” Bert Williams (1906)
116. “A Groovy Kind of Love” Phil Collins (1988)
117. Eamon “Fuck It (I Don’t Want You Back)” (2004)
118. “Informer” Snow (1993)
119. “Back for Good” Take That (1995)
120. “Don’t Worry Be Happy” Bobby McFerrin (1988)

121. “Papa Don’t Preach” Madonna (1986)
122. “You Belong to Me” Jo Stafford (1952)
123. “Cry” Johnnie Ray & the Four Lads (1951)
124. “Eye of the Tiger” Survivor (1982)
125. “Smells Like Teen Spirit” Nirvana (1991)
126. “The Ketchup Song (Asereje)” Las Ketchup (2002)
127. “Karma Chameleon” Culture Club (1983)
128. “Tainted Love” Soft Cell (1981)
129. “Night Fever” Bee Gees (1977)
130. “When Irish Eyes Are Smiling” Chauncey Olcott (1913)

131. “Bridge Over Troubled Water” Simon & Garfunkel (1970)
132. “Fernando” Abba (1976)
133. “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me” Culture Club (1982)
134. “Rock Your Baby” George McCrae (1974)
135. “Runaway” Del Shannon (1961)
136. “Help!” The Beatles (1964)
137. “What’s Up?” 4 Non Blondes (1993)
138. “Puttin’ on the Ritz” Harry Richman with Earl Burtnett & His Los Angeles Biltmore Hotel Orchestra (1930)
139. “Maggie May” Rod Stewart (1971)
140. “All That She Wants” Ace of Base (1993)

141. “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” Elton John & Kiki Dee (1976)
142. “Woman in Love” Barbra Streisand (1980)
143. “Rum and Coca-Cola” The Andrews Sisters (1945)
144. “Tom Dooley” The Kingston Trio (1958)
145. “Don’t Fence Me In” Bing Crosby/Andrews Sisters (1944)
146. “God Bless America” Kate Smith (1939)
147. “I Want to Know What Love Is” Foreigner (1984)
148. “Riders in the Sky (A Cowboy Legend)” Vaughn Monroe Orchestra (1949)
149. “I’ll Never Smile Again” Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra with Frank Sinatra & The Pied Pipers (1940)
150. “Sing, Sing, Sing (With a Swing)” Benny Goodman (1938)

151. “To Be with You” Mr. Big (1992)
152. “Careless Whisper” George Michael (1984)
153. “Give My Regards to Broadway” Billy Murray (1905)
154. “Livin’ La Vida Loca” Ricky Martin (1999)
155. “Mr. Sandman” The Chordettes (1954)
156. “Rhythm Is a Dancer” Snap! (1992)
157. “All the Things She Said” t.A.T.u. (2003)
158. “Upside Down” Diana Ross (1980)
159. “Dragostea Din Tei” O-Zone (2004)
160. “End of the Road” Boyz II Men (1992)

161. “Every Breath You Take” The Police (1983)
162. “Let’s Twist Again” Chubby Checker (1961)
163. “Blue (Da Ba Dee)” Eiffel 65 (1999)
164. “Shut Up” Black Eyed Peas (2003)
165. “Return to Sender” Elvis Presley (1962)
166. “The House of the Rising Sun” The Animals (1964)
167. “Tiger Rag” Original Dixieland Jazz Band (1918)
168. “Mull of Kintyre” Paul McCartney & Wings (1977)
169. “Take My Breath Away” Berlin (1986)
170. “A Hard Day’s Night” The Beatles (1964)

171. “Paperback Writer” The Beatles (1966)
172. “Great Balls of Fire” Jerry Lee Lewis (1957)
173. “Good Vibrations” The Beach Boys (1966)
174. “Stan” Eminem with Dido (2000)
175. “Spirit in the Sky” Norman Greenbaum (1970)
176. “Sweet Georgia Brown” Ben Bernie (1925)
177. “These Boots Are Mde for Walkin’” Nancy Sinatra (1966)
178. “Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree” Tony Orlando & Dawn (1973)
179. “Wind of Change” The Scorpions (1991)
180. “Don’t Cha” The Pussycat Dolls with Busta Rhymes (2005)

181. “A-Tisket, A-Tasket” Ella Fitzgerald with Chick Webb & His Orchestra (1938)
182. “Without You” Mariah Carey (1994)
183. “All for Love” Bryan Adams with Rod Stewart & Sting (1994)
184. “The Final Countdown” Europe (1986)
185. “Bye Bye Blackbird” Gene Austin (1926)
186. “I’ve Been Thinking About You” Londonbeat (1990)
187. “They Can’t Take That Away from Me” Fred Astaire with Johnny Greer’s Orchestra (1937)
188. “Oops! I Did It Again” Britney Spears (2000)
189. “Shout” Tears for Fears (1984)
190. “Sixteen Tons” Tennessee Ernie Ford (1955)

191. “Vaya Con Dios (May God Be with You)” Les Paul & Mary Ford (1953)
192. “Sugar Sugar” The Archies (1969)
193. “Let’s Dance” David Bowie (1983)
194. “Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?” Bryan Adams (1995)
195. “Louie Louie” The Kingsmen (1963)
196. “La Bamba” Los Lobos (1987)
197. “Those Were the Days” Mary Hopkin (1968)
198. “I Feel Love” Donna Summer (1977)
199. “Dilemma” Nelly with Kelly Rowland (2002)
200. “Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen (Means That You’re Grand)” The Andrews Sisters (1938)

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