Dave's Music Database Hall of Fame: Music Maker Inductees (September 2020)

Top 20 Billboard Hot 100 Acts Originally posted 9/22/2020. January 22, 2019 marked the 10-year anniversary of the DMDB blog! To honor that, Dave’s Music Database announced its own Hall of Fame. This seventh class of music maker inductees celebrates some of the all-time Billboard Hot 100 acts from 1958-2015 (see the full list here). These are the top 20 from that list, minus previous inductees, which included the Beatles, Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, Elton John, Madonna, Elvis Presley, Prince, The Rolling Stones, and Stevie Wonder. See the full list of music maker inductees here.

Bee Gees (active 1966-2001) Inducted September 2020 as a “Top Billboard Hot 100 Act”

Pop/disco trio from Manchester, England consisting of brothers Barry and twins Maurice and Robin. They first performed in December 1955. They went to Australia in 1958; performed as the Gibbs, later as BG’s, finally the Bee Gees. Returned to England in February 1967. In 1969, each tried a solo career. Reunited the next year. Best known for 1977’s Saturday Night Fever soundtrack, which is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Albums of All Time. “Stayin’ Alive” is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Rock Era. Read more.

Chicago (active 1967-) Inducted September 2020 as a “Top Billboard Hot 100 Act”

Jazz-oriented rock group formed in Chicago. Originally called The Big Thing; later Chicago Transit Authority. Members included Peter Cetera (v/b: 67-85), Robert Lamm (k/v), James Pankow (trombone), Lee Loughnane (trumpet), Terry Kath (g; died of an accidental self-inflicted gunshot on 1/23/78 at age 31), Walt Parazaider (reeds), Danny Seraphine (d: 67-89), Donnie Dacus (g: 78-79), Bill Champlin (k: 82-), Jason Scheff (v: 85-), and DaWayne Bailey (g: 89-). Best known for #1 songs “If You Leave Me Now,” “Hard to Say I’m Sorry,” and “Look Away” as well as album rock staples “25 or 6 to 4” and “Saturday in the Park.” Read more.

Daryl Hall & John Oates (active 1974-) Inducted September 2020 as a “Top Billboard Hot 100 Act”

Pop-rock, blue-eyed-soul duo. Met while students at Temple University in 1967. Hall sang backup for many top soul groups before teaming up with Oates in 1972. In the late 1980s, they passed the Everly Brothers as the #1 charting duo of the rock era. Had #1 pop hits with “Rich Girl,” “Kiss on My List,” “Private Eyes,” “I Can’t Go for That,” “Maneater” and “Out of Touch.” Read more.

Janet Jackson (1966-) Inducted September 2020 as a “Top Billboard Hot 100 Act”

R&B/pop singer born in Gary, Indiana. Youngest of nine children. Her older brothers, including Michael Jackson, were in the Jackson 5. She debuted at age 7 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas with her brothers. She was a regular on TV’s Good Times (1977-79), Diff’rent Strokes (1981-82) and Fame (1984-85) before becoming a superstar singer. She had #1 hits with “When I Think of You,” “Miss You Much,” “Escapade,” “Black Cat,” “Love Will Never Do Without You,” and “That’s the Way Love Goes.” Read more.

Paul McCartney (1942-) Inducted September 2020 as a “Top Billboard Hot 100 Act”

Rock singer/songwriter and bassist born James Paul McCartney in Liverpool, England. With the Quarrymen and the Beatles (60-70) before going solo and recording with the Wings (71-79). He had #1 hits with “My Love,” “Band on the Run,” “Listen to What the Man Said,” “Silly Love Songs,” “With a Little Luck,” “Coming Up,” “Ebony and Ivory” (a duet with Stevie Wonder), and “Say, Say, Say” (a duet with Michael Jackson). Read more.

Olivia Newton-John (1948-) Inducted September 2020 as a “Top Billboard Hot 100 Act”

Country/pop singer born in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England. With Pat & Olivia duo and group Tomorrow before going solo. Moved to Australia in 1953. At age 16, won talent contest to England. CMA Award for 1974 Female Vocalist of the Year. In movies Grease, whose soundtrack is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Albums of All Time, as well as Xanadu, and Two of a Kind. Had #1 hits with “I Honestly Love You,” “Have You Never Been Mellow,” “You’re the One That I Want,” “Magic,” and “Physical.” Read more.

Rihanna (1988-) Inducted September 2020 as a “Top Billboard Hot 100 Act”

Pop/R&B singer born in Saint Michael, Barbados. Youngest artist (age 23) in Billboard history to land 10 #1’s. “Umbrella,” “Love the Way You Lie,” “We Found Love,” and “Work” are featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Digital Era. Read more.

Rod Stewart (1945-) Inducted September 2020 as a “Top Billboard Hot 100 Act”

Rock singer born Roderick David Stewart in Highgate, London, England. With the Shotgun Express (66),Jeff Beck Group (67-69), andThe Faces (69-75). Has worked as a solo artist since 1969. “Maggie May” is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Rock Era. He had #1 hits with that song, “Tonight’s the Night (Gonna Be Alright), “Da Ya Think I’m Sexy?,” and “All for Love.” Read more.

The Supremes (active 1959-1976) Inducted September 2020 as a “Top Billboard Hot 100 Act”

Female R&B vocal group from Detroit. Formed as The Primettes in 1959. Signed to Motown’s Tamla label in 1960. Changed name to The Supremes in 1961. Members included Diana Ross (59-69), Mary Wilson (59-76), Florence Ballard (59-67; died 2/22/76), Barbara Martin (59-61), Cindy Birdsong (67-76), Jean Terrell (69-73), Lynda Lawrence (72-73), Scherrie Payne (73-76), and Susaye Green (76). Had a dozen #1 hits including “Where Did Our Love Go,” “Baby Love,” “Stop! In the Name of Love,” and “You Can’t Hurry Love,” all of which rank in the DMDB’s top 1% of songs. Read more.

Usher (1978-) Inducted September 2020 as a “Top Billboard Hot 100 Act”

R&B singer born Usher Raymond IV on 10/14/1978 in Dallas, TX. “Yeah!” is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Digital Era. His album Confessions ranks in the top 100 albums of the 21st century. Read more.

Diana Ross/The Supremes: Top 50 Songs

image from washingtonblade.com

Diana Ross was born in Detroit, Michigan on March 26, 1944. As a member of the Supremes, she topped the Billboard charts twelve times and helped establish them as the top female group of all time. She left the group in 1970, but launched straight into a successful solo career. In celebration of her birthday, here are her top 50 songs of all time, with and without the Supremes. #1 songs are noted as follows: #1 US (Billboard pop chart), #1 AC (Billboard adult contemporary chart), #1 RB (Billboard R&B chart), and #1 UK (the UK charts).

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The Top 50 Diana Ross/Supremes Songs

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Where Did Our Love Go

1. Endless Love (with Lionel Richie, 1981) #1 US, #1 RB, #1 AC
2. Stop! In the Name of Love (The Supremes, 1965) #1 US
3. Where Did Our Love Go (The Supremes, 1964) #1 US, #1 RB
4. Baby Love (The Supremes, 1964) #1 US, #1 RB, #1 UK
5. You Can’t Hurry Love (The Supremes, 1966) #1 US, #1 RB
6. Upside Down (1980) #1 US, #1 RB
7. Ain’t No Mountain High Enough (1970) #1 US, #1 RB
8. You Keep Me Hangin’ On (The Supremes, 1966) #1 US, #1 RB
9. Love Child (The Supremes, 1968) #1 US
10. Someday We’ll Be Together (The Supremes, 1969) #1 US, #1 RB

Stop! In the Name of Love

11. Love Hangover (1976) #1 US, #1 RB
12. Touch Me in the Morning (1973) #1 US, #1 AC
13. Do You Know Where You’re Going To (Theme from ‘Mahogany’) (1975) #1 US, #1 AC
14. Come See About Me (The Supremes, 1964) #1 US
15. I’m Gonna Make You Love Me (The Supremes with the Temptations, 1968)
16. I Hear a Symphony (The Supremes, 1965) #1 US
17. I’m Coming Out (1980)
18. Back in My Arms Again (The Supremes, 1965) #1 US, #1 RB
19. Reflections (The Supremes, 1967)
20. Why Do Fools Fall in Love (1981)

21. The Happening (The Supremes, 1967) #1 US
22. The Last Time I Saw Him (1973) #1 AC
23. Muscles (1982)
24. Love Is Here and Now You’re Gone (The Supremes, 1967) #1 US, #1 RB
25. Missing You (1984) #1 RB
26. Mirror, Mirror (1982)
27. All of You (with Julio Iglesias, 1984)
28. Remember Me (1970)
29. Reach Out and Touch Somebody’s Hand (1970)
30. It’s My Turn (1980)

Ain’t No Mountain High Enough

31. Love Is Like an Itching in My Heart (The Supremes, 1966)
32. Chain Reaction (1985) #1 UK
33. Ease on Down the Road (with Michael Jackson, 1978)
34. I’m Livin’ in Shame (The Supremes, 1969)
35. In and Out of Love (The Supremes, 1967)
36. When the Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes (The Supremes, 1974)
37. My Mistake Was to Love You (with Marvin Gaye, 1974)
38. My World Is Empty Without You (The Supremes, 1965)
39. The Boss (1979)
40. Gettin’ Ready for Love (1977)

Upside Down

41. Swept Away (1984)
42. Forever Came Today (The Supremes, 1968)
43. Nothing But Heartaches (The Supremes, 1965)
44. Pieces of Ice (1983)
45. You’re a Special Part of Me (with Marvin Gaye, 1973)
46. Some Things You Never Get Used To (The Supremes, 1968)
47. I’m Still Waiting (1971) #1 UK
48. I’ll Try Something New (The Supremes with the Temptations, 1969)
49. Good Morning Heartache (1973)
50. The Composer (The Supremes, 1969)

Endless Love

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Awards:

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Resources and Related Links:

• Diana Ross’ DMDB Music Maker Encyclopedia entry
• The Supremes’ DMDB Music Maker Encyclopedia entry

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50 years ago: The Supremes “You Can’t Hurry Love” hit #1

You Can’t Hurry Love The Supremes

Writer(s): Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier, Eddie Holland (see lyrics here) Released: July 25, 1966 First Charted: August 5, 1966 Peak: 12 US, 11 CB, 11 GR, 12 HR, 12 RB, 3 UK, 3 CN, 6 AU, 1 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 1.0 US, 0.6 UK Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 5.0 radio, 10.0 video, 366.54 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: “You Can’t Hurry Love” was the seventh chart-topper from the Supremes. Like its predecessors, it was written by the Motown songwriting and production trio of Holland-Dozier-Holland. Billboard magazine described it as “the group’s most exciting side to date.” WK “Every one of the Supremes’ hits had a big beat working for it, a four-four engine driven by handclaps and bass-drum hits. But none of the hits leading up to ‘You Can’t Hurry Love’ had a beat quite that big.” SG “That beat is the focal point, even more than the vocals. Diana Ross and her fellow Supremes flit around that bassline like hummingbirds.” SG Lamont Dozier, one of the songwriters, said “It was basically a gospel feel we were after.” FB To that end, they were inspired by the ‘50s gospel song “You Can’t Hurry God, He’s Right on Time” by Dorothy Love Coates & the Original Gospel Harmonettes. SG It includes the lines “You can’t hurry God/ You just have to wait/ Trust and give him time/ No matter how long it takes.” In the Supremes’ hands, Diana Ross sings “as someone who wants to be in a relationship and who finds herself getting more and more impatient.” SG It “works less as a lonely woman’s lament and more as a piece of romantic advice.” SG Cash Box summed it up as a “pulsating pop-R&B rhythmic ode which contends that romance is a slow-developing game of give-and-take.” WK Phil Collins’ 1982 cover of the song reached #10 in the United States and topped the charts in the UK, doing even better than the #3 peak of the original. Dozier considers it one of the best covers of a song by the Supremes. FB Dozier would later co-write “Two Hearts,” a #1 song in the United States for Collins from the 1988 movie Buster. Resources: FB Fred Bronson (2003). The Billboard Book of Number One Hits (5th edition). Billboard Books: New York, NY. Page 207. DJ David Jasen (2002). A Century of American Popular Music: 2000 Best-Loved and Remembered Songs (1899-1999). Routledge: Taylor & Francis, Inc. Page 221. SF Songfacts SG Stereogum (9/18/2018). “The Number Ones” by Tom Breihan WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 2/6/2023.

50 years ago: The Supremes hit #1 with “Stop! In the Name of Love”

Stop! In the Name of Love The Supremes

Writer(s): Brian Holland/Lamont Dozier/Eddie Holland (see lyrics here) Released: February 8, 1965 First Charted: February 20, 1965 Peak: 12 US, 11 CB, 11 GR, 11 HR, 2 RB, 7 UK, 3 CN, 42 AU, 1 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 1.0 US, 0.12 UK, 1.12 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 2.0 radio, 10.9 video, 104.52 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: This song grew out of an argument between Lamont Dozier – one of the songwriters – and his girlfriend. She was about to head out the door when he yelled “stop, in the name of love!,” a slight variation of the phrase “stop, in the name of the law.” TB It broke the tension and they both starting laughing over the silliness of the line. TC Of course, Dozier was one-third of the famed Holland-Dozier-Holland writing team at Motown. They crafted many of Motown’s biggest hits, but were more associated with the Supremes than any other act. “’Stop!’ moves with the grace of HDH’s greatest productions.” DM Initially, the Supremes – Diana Ross, Mary Wilson, and Florence Ballad – thought the song was “insufficiently feminine, too forthright.” TC Once in the studio, however, they had fun with it. TC As for the signature choreography, they were making a live appearance before having the moves for the song worked out. Moments before they went on stage, they worked with Motown head honcho Berry Gordy and a couple of the members of the Temptations to come up with the moves – in the mens’ room! SJ The song became the trio’s fourth #1 out of five consecutive chart-toppers. In fact, they amassed a dozen #1 songs from 1964 through the end of the decade, giving them more trips to the top than any other American act in the 1960s. It also made them the most successful Motown act of the decade. TB Resources: TC Toby Creswell (2005). 1001 Songs: The Great Songs of All Time. Thunder’s Mouth Press: New York, NY. Page 570. DM Dave Marsh (1989). The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made. New American Library: New York, NY. Pages 496-7. SJ Bob Shannon and John Javna (1986). Behind the Hits: Inside Stories of Classic Pop and Rock and Roll. Warner Brothers, Inc.: New York, NY. Pages 126-7. TB Thunder Bay Press. (2006). Singles: Six Decades of Hot Hits & Classic Cuts. Outline Press Ltd.: San Diego, CA. Page 76. Related Links: First posted 4/15/2020; last updated 4/2/2023.