The results are
in! After weeks of voting and thousands of votes, here are the biggest hits of
all time
as voted by YOU in our 13th annual poll of the "Top 77 All Time Songs."
This is the
"countdown" version of the results which allows you to "count down the hits"
from #77 to #1,
with some interesting trivia and details along the way.
Asterisks (*) indicate a
former #1 song on WABC.
So let's get to
the results. As a bonus, we're starting off with the "extras"...the songs that
just missed the top 77.
And then we'll go right to the heart of the list...YOUR thirteenth annual
All-Time Top 77 Songs!
====================
100 Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen - 1976/1992 (Peaks: WABC #3, Natl #9-1976/#2-1992)
99 Kentucky Rain - Elvis Presley - 1970 (Peaks: WABC #26, Natl #16)
98 *Alone Again (Naturally) - Gilbert O'Sullivan - 1972 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
97 Tighter Tighter - Alive and Kicking - 1970 (Peaks: WABC #6, Natl #7)
96 *This Guy's in Love With You - Herb Alpert - 1968 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
95 Free Bird (original studio version) - Lynyrd Skynyrd - 1975 (Peaks: WABC - Did Not Chart, Natl #19)
94 Won't Get Fooled Again - Who - 1971 (Peaks: WABC #21, Natl #15)
93 Lola - Kinks - 1970 (Peaks: WABC #8, Natl #9)
92 *The Rain The Park & Other Things - Cowsills - 1967 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #2)
91 *We Can Work It Out - Beatles - 1966 )Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
90 *Downtown - Petula Clark - 1965 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
89 Don't Worry Baby - Beach Boys - 1964 (Peaks: WABC - Did Not Chart, Natl #24)
88 My Little Town - Simon and Garfunkel - 1975 (Peaks: WABC #10, Natl #9)
87 Palisades Park - Freddy Cannon - 1962 (Peaks: WABC #4, Natl #3)
86 I Saw Her Standing There - Beatles - 1964 (Peaks: #29, Natl #14)
85 Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes) - Edison Lighthouse - 1970 (Peaks: WABC #4, Natl #5)
84 Gloria - Shadows of Knight - 1966 (Peaks: WABC #8. Natl #10)
83 *Remember (Walkin' In The Sand) - Shangri-Las - 1964 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #5)
82 *Cherish - Association - 1966 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
81 Tonite Tonite - Mello-Kings - 1957 (Peaks: Pre-dates WABC Chart, Natl #77)
80 Sweet Seasons - Carole King - 1972 (Peaks: WABC #13, Natl #9)
79 *Runaround Sue - Dion - 1961 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
78 Red Rubber Ball - Cyrkle - 1966 (Peaks: WABC #3, natl #2)
And now, let's
continue on to the songs you voted into the Top 77!...
Along with some "Bet Ya Didn't Know" facts...
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! The song at #77 became popular as an African-American folk song and was first recorded by Texas Alexander in the 1920s, and then by a number of other artists including Leadbelly, Woody Guthrie, Josh White and later Nina Simone. It was Nina's version that The Animals first heard.
#77 - *The House of the Rising Sun - Animals - 1964 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Written as a slow soul song, Bill Wyman began doing the song in a style heard at Jewish weddings. With this as inspiration, co-manager Eric Easton and Charlie Watts improvised a rhythm heard in some Middle Eastern dances which led to the final product.
#76 - *Paint It Black - Rolling Stones - 1966 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Surprisingly, this was The Beatles' LEAST successful hit in over a year and a half when it was released, breaking a string of six consecutive #1 releases when it only peaked at #3 nationally in 1966.
#75 - Nowhere Man - Beatles - 1966 (Peaks: WABC #4, Natl #3)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Originally written as a "B" side, "Everlasting Love" is one of only two songs to become a Top 40 hit in the 1960s, '70s, '80s and '90s. It was also a #1 UK hit in 1968 for Love Affair.
#74 - Everlasting Love - Robert Knight - 1967 (Peaks: WABC #33, Natl #13)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! The B side of this song won a Grammy for R&B instrumental. And you might be a bit shocked to hear Marvin's lyrics at the very end of the song just at the final fade. Listen if you dare!
#73 - Sexual Healing - Marvin Gaye - 1983 (Peaks: Post-dates WABC charts, Natl #3)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW: Written by Kingston Trio member John Stewart shortly before he left the group, this #1 hit was remixed and re-released in 1986 with a heavier drum track, but only got up to #79.
#72 - *Daydream Believer - Monkees - 1967 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Although it's thought of as the last Supremes song with Diana Ross, it REALLY was Miss Ross' first SOLO effort, since neither of the other Supremes was in the studio at the time. Actually, it was Maxine and Julia Waters along with writer-performer Johnny Bristol who supplied the backing vocals.
#71 - Someday We'll Be Together - Diana Ross and the Supremes - 1969 (Peaks: WABC #4, Natl #1)
=====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This was written by Lou Josie, the same man who wrote "Soul Finger" for the Bar-Kays. And the L.A.-based band Love of "7 and 7 is" and "My Little Red Book" fame also used the name "The Grass Roots" in 1965.
#70 - Midnight Confessions - Grass Roots - 1968 (Peaks: WABC #3, Natl #5)
=====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Dion cites Bo Diddley's "I'm A Man" and Wilbert Harrison's "Kansas City" as the inspiration for this macho period piece.
#69 - The Wanderer - Dion - 1962 (Peaks: WABC #5, Natl #2)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! First charting on June 28, 1969, there are three mixes of this song. The original mono 45 mix had a loud orchestra and glockenspiel compared to the stereo version on the "Brother Love's Travelling Salvation Show" LP. The third version had the orchestra mixed down and the background vocals mixed up with a longer fade. It's found only on the Neil Diamond "His 12 Greatest Hits" CD.
#68 - Sweet Caroline - Neil Diamond - 1969 (Peaks: WABC #2, Natl #4)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Danny and the Juniors must still be regretting not doing this song when it was offered to them first. When it first hit #1 in the fall of 1960 it was a bigger hit in New York than it was nationally. But the second time it hit #1 in January of '62 it was a bigger hit nationally than it was in New York.
#67 - *The Twist - Chubby Checker - 1960/1962 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This song was originally offered to Aretha Franklin, who turned it down but then later recorded it after hearing Dusty Springfield's version. Aretha's version charted only as a tag-along B-side of the single, "Call Me". This would be Dusty's last top ten hit for almost 20 years until she teamed up with Pet Shop Boys for the single "What Have I Done to Deserve This?" in 1987.
#66 - Son of a Preacher Man - Dusty Springfield - 1969 (Peaks: WABC #19, Natl #10)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This song was written by Jesse Belvin, whose most well-known song, "Goodnight My Love (Pleasant Dreams)", didn't chart, even though The McGuire Sisters, The Fleetwoods and Paul Anka all made the top 40 with that song. In the meantime, the cover version of this Penguins' hit got all the way to #3 in a version by The Crew-Cuts.
#65 - Earth Angel (Will You Be Mine) - Penguins - 1955 (Peaks: Pre-dates New York Charts, Natl #8)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! In their homeland England, The Dave Clark Five hit the top 50 twenty-three times, but NEVER with this song.
#64 - Because - Dave Clark Five - 1964 (Peaks: WABC #4, Natl #3)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This song was a bigger hit in the UK than it was in the US. In England, it reached #1 in 1968 and enjoyed a second chart run in 1974, when it peaked at #6.
#63 - *Young Girl - Union Gap - 1968 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #2)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! "Strawberry Fields Forever" was originally recorded for "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band", but was instead released in February 1967 as a double A-side single with "Penny Lane". The working title was "It's Not Too Bad" and the Beatles recorded three distinct versions of the song.
#62 - Strawberry Fields Forever - Beatles - 1967 (Peaks: WABC #34, Natl #8)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Following the song's release in 1972, "Brandy" increased in popularity as a girl's name in the United States, jumping from the 353rd most popular name in 1971 to the 140th most popular in 1972, and then in 1973 (the first full year after the song's popularity), to 82nd.
#61 Brandy Looking Glass - 1972 (Peaks: WABC #2, Natl #1)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Think you know where this song takes place? Think again. The actual song lyrics never specify the exact location. It could take place in Wichita, Kansas, OR Wichita County, Kansas (which is over 250 road miles away), OR Wichita Falls, Texas, OR Wichita County, Texas, which have all been suggested as possibilities.
#60 - Wichita Lineman - Glen Campbell - 1968 (Peaks: WABC #2, Natl #3)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! - The instrumental break was done by producer George Martin by playing a piano solo and speeding up the tape to make it sound like a harpsichord. John Lennon had asked him to fill it with something "baroque."
#59 - In My Life (From the LP - "Rubber Soul") - Beatles - 1966 (Peaks: WABC - Did Not Chart, Natl - Did Not Chart, Natl - LP #1)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This would be Tommy James' last top ten hit with the Shondells. With his group, he had 7 top ten songs and two additional top 20 songs. As a solo act, he had only ONE top ten hit and ONE top 20 song!
#58 - *Crystal Blue Persuasion - Tommy James and the Shondells - 1969 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #2)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Hugo Montenegro arranged Dion's first single release, a song called "The Chosen Few", when Dion was with a group called The Timberlanes.
#57 - I Wonder Why - Dion and the Belmonts - 1958 (Peaks: Pre-dates WABC charts, WMGM-NY #7, Natl #22)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This group was originally called "Thee Six-Pence" and the song was originally called "The Happy Whistler". The famous intro to the song was written by lead guitarist Ed King, who later joined Lynyrd Skynyrd and promptly wrote the legendary guitar intro licks we hear on "Sweet Home Alabama".
#56 - *Incense and Peppermints - Strawberry Alarm Clock - 1967 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Jimmy Fox, the drummer on the Outsiders' first album, later formed The James Gang with Joe Walsh.
#55 - Time Won't Let Me - Outsiders - 1966 (Peaks: WABC #6, Natl #5)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This song was never released in England. Instead, The Bachelors, a three-piece vocal group from Ireland, released this in 1966 and got to #3 in the UK.
#54 - *The Sounds of Silence - Simon and Garfunkel - 1965 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Sonny Bono was inspired to write this song to capitalize on the popularity of the term "babe," as heard in Bob Dylan's "It Ain't Me Babe"
#53 - *I Got You Babe - Sonny and Cher - 1965 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! At the time of its release, this was the only song that Elton John and Bernie Taupin ever consciously wrote to be a single.
#52 - *Philadelphia Freedom - Elton John - 1975 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Of The Beach Boys first 19 charted singles, eight were double-sided hits. The biggest "B" side was "Shut Down", which got to #23 in 1963. "God Only Knows" was their LAST "B" side to chart.
#51 - God Only Knows - Beach Boys - 1966 (Peaks: Did Not Chart on WABC, Natl #39)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This was recorded between 4 and 7 in the morning and was Elvis' eighteenth and last number one single in the United States.
#50 - Suspicious Minds - Elvis Presley - 1969 (Peaks: WABC #4, Natl #1)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This was the last Four Seasons hit to feature bass singer/bassist Nick Massi. The same month "Let's Hang On!" was released, Massi left the group and was temporarily replaced by the band's arranger Charles Calello before Joe Long came in as Massi's full-time replacement.
#49 - Let's Hang On - Four Seasons - 1965 (Peaks: WABC #4, Natl #3)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This was recorded in 3 different sessions before the Eagles found the right key for Don Henley's vocal. The line "They stab it with their steely knives but they just can't kill the beast" is a reference to friendly rivals Steely Dan. The year before, Steely Dan included the line "Turn up the Eagles, the neighbors are listening" on their song "Everything You Did."
#48 - Hotel California - Eagles - 1977 (Peaks: WABC #2, Natl #1)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Although it's well-known that the title and lyrics were inspired by both Roy Orbison and Bing Crosby songs, it's less known that Paul and John learned and mimicked the harmonies on this song directly from The Everly Brothers' hit "Cathy's Clown".
#47 - Please Please Me - Beatles - 1964 (Peak: WABC #3, Natl #3)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! The opening line, "You never close your eyes any more when I kiss your lips," was inspired by the Paris Sisters song "I Love How You Love Me," which begins, "I love how your eyes close whenever you kiss me."
#46 - *You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin' - Righteous Brothers - 1965 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Tom Petty makes reference to this in his top 25 hit, "Runnin' Down A Dream". The line is, "It was a beautiful day, me and Del were singing, a little runaway."
#45 - *Runaway - Del Shannon - 1961 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! The Mindbenders back up Lulu on the original version of the song, which was never released in its own right in England, instead appearing as the B-side to the 1967 #11 U.K. hit "Let's Pretend".
#44 - *To Sir With Love - Lulu - 1967 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This is the oldest chart topper of the rock era due to the fact that the lyrics are based on Pete Seeger's rewrite from the Bible's Book of Ecclesiastes. It took more than 50 takes to produce the track that was released as a single.
#43 - *Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is a Season) - The Byrds (1965) (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
====================
BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Keyboardist Michael Brown would later go on to have a #1 song with the group Stories and "Brother Louie" in 1973, making him a rare one-hit wonder TWICE on WABC, having only one top 20 hit with two different groups.
#42 - Walk Away Renee - Left Banke - 1966 (Peaks: WABC #2, Natl #5)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Walden Robert Perciville Cassotto chose the name "Bobby" because he had been called that as a child. He allegedly chose Darin because he had seen a malfunctioning electrical sign at a Chinese restaurant reading "DARIN DUCK" rather than "MANDARIN DUCK", and he thought "Darin" looked good. Later, he said that the name was randomly picked out of the telephone book. It has also been suggested that he amended the word "daring" to suit his ambitions. None of these stories has been verified.
#41 - Beyond the Sea - Bobby Darin - 1960 (Peaks: Pre-dates WABC Charts, WMGM-NY #3, Natl #6)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This song hit #18 on the US Black Singles chart and was inspired by the writer's childhood friend, Denice Lefrak.
#40 - Denise - Randy and the Rainbows - 1963 (Peaks: WABC #2, Natl #10)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Dolores "La La" Brooks sang lead for The Crystals on this and for the rest of their career as a group. She was only 16 years old when this song was released. And after leaving the group. La La converted to Islam and took the name "Sakinah Muhammad". In 1968, she appeared in the original Broadway production of the musical Hair, where she performed the song "Aquarius".
#39 - Then He Kissed Me - Crystals - 1963 (Peaks: #3, Natl #6)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Francis Castaluccio got his stage name comes from "Texas Jean" Valley, the singer who took him to his first audition.! As a solo act starting in 1967, he had six national top 20's and two number ones.
#38 - *Can't Take My Eyes Off You - Frankie Valli - 1967 (WABC #1, Natl #2)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This song was a #2 hit for Ben Selvin in 1934. The Flamingos charted from 1953 until 1970, but never made it higher than #30 on the top 100 after this hit got to #11.
#37 - I Only Have Eyes for You - Flamingos - 1959 (Peaks: Pre-dates WABC Charts, WMGM-NY #5, Natl #11)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Lou's last chart appearance came in 1981 when he peaked at #81 with "Summer '81 (Medley)" as part of The Cantina Band. That song was a medley of Beach Boys songs.
#36 - *Lightnin' Strikes - Lou Christie - 1966 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Group member Michelle Phillips enjoyed visiting churches, and a few days before this song was written, she and husband John visited St. Patrick's Cathedral, which inspired the second verse of the song.
#35 - *California Dreamin' - Mamas and the Papas -1966 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #4)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This was the first time a Beatle recorded without the others and was also the first Beatles' song that could not be reproduced live to sound like it did on record without additional musicians.
#34 - *Yesterday - Beatles - 1965 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! - Originally titled "Terry", then "Jackie", and then finally "Sherry", it took less than 15 minutes for Bob Gaudio to write this hit, much less time than it took the group to decide on a name for the song.
#33 - *Sherry - Four Seasons - 1962 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Although by now most of us know that Darlene Love was actually the voice of "The Crystals" on this song and that no members of the actual group sang on the recording, what is lesser known is that Phil Spector also used Darlene Love to pose as the Crystals (again) for the follow-up #11 hit "He's Sure The Boy I Love".
#32 - He's a Rebel - Crystals - 1962 (Peaks: WABC #2, Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This was a top 100 hit for eight different artists: The Dick Hyman Trio, Richard Hayman and Jan August, Lawrence Welk, Louis Armstrong, Billy Vaughn, Les Paul, Bobby Darin, and Ella Fitzgerald. It charted under several different titles including "Moritat" and "A Theme from the Three Penny Opera".
#31 - Mack the Knife - Bobby Darin - 1959 (Peaks: Pre-Dates WABC Charts, WMGM-NY #1, Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Because of the multiple takes needed to perfect the orchestral contributions and the final 42 second note, as well as John and Paul's considerable procrastination in composing the song, the final product took 34 hours to record, which was 24 hours longer than it took The Beatles to record their entire first LP.
#30 - A Day in the Life (From the LP - "Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band") - Beatles - 1967 (Peaks: WABC - Did Not Chart, Natl - Did Not Chart, Natl - LP #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! The alto (high) vocal in the middle of this song is sung by a male band member, not a woman. In addition, Harry's 1980 song "Sequel", which continued the story started in "Taxi", was actually a bigger chart hit than "Taxi", peaking at #23.
#29 - Taxi - Harry Chapin - 1972 (Peaks: WABC: #9, Natl #24)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This song is from the "Blue Hawaii" LP, which was Elvis' biggest LP. The album stayed at #1 for 20 straight weeks, which was a longer at #1 than any Beatles album.
#28 - Can't Help Falling in Love - Elvis Presley - 1962 (Peaks: WABC #8, Natl #2)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This is the most charted song in top 100 history. It made the list ten different times by seven different artists on the national top 100 surveys. In 1955, three versions of this song were in the top 20 at the same time by Les Baxter, Al Hibbler, and Roy Hamilton, while a fourth version by June Valli peaked at #29. And The Righteous Brothers (in reality just Bobby Hatfield solo) had two of their own versions of this song in the top 20 at the same time when, in 1990, the song was featured in the "Ghost" movie soundtrack.
#27 - Unchained Melody - Righteous Brothers - 1965/1990 (Peaks: WABC #4, Natl #4)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Originally called The Poquellos and then The Honeytones, this group became The Shirelles to honor their favorite group, the Chantels, by coming up with a similar sounding name. Lead singer Shirley Alston hated this song until producer-writer Luther Dixon changed the sound of the song from country and western to pop.
#26 - *Will You Love Me Tomorrow - Shirelles - 1961 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Some of the unlikely artists who have recorded this song are Bob Marley & the Wailers, Johnny Thunders, The Four Seasons, The Rascals, Cher, Judy Collins, The Rolling Stones, Green Day, Spirit, Johnny Winter, John Mellencamp and Jimi Hendrix. The Swedish version of the song translates to "Like a Homeless Soul". The Italian version is titled literally, "Like a Kicked-off Stone".
#25 - Like a Rolling Stone - Bob Dylan - 1965 (Peaks: WABC #3, Natl #2)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! The Kinks hated the first version they recorded of this. At the second session, Dave Davies slashed his amp to get the desired live sound. That was the version that was released. Rolling Stone magazine placed the song at number 4 on their list of the The 100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time. In 2005, the song was voted the best British song of the 1955-1965 decade in a BBC radio poll.
#24 - You Really Got Me - The Kinks - 1964 (Peaks: WABC #2, Natl #7)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! In 1985, this became the first Beatles song ever used in a commercial when it was featured in an ad for Ford cars. Ford paid $100,000 for it. The version in the commercial was performed by a sound-alike group.
#23 - *Help! - Beatles - 1965 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Written by Paul specifically for Art, this song originally had two verses and different lyrics. The lyrics were partly inspired by the line "I'll be your bridge over deep water if you trust in me" from the classic Swan Silvertones' 1958 song "Mary Don't You Weep". Garfunkel's first two attempts to record the difficult vocal failed.
#22 - *Bridge Over Troubled Water - Simon and Garfunkel - 1970 (Peaks WABC#1, Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! According to Paul McCartney, this song was somewhat inspired by Bobby Rydell's "Forget Him", as The Beatles wanted to write a song telling the guy to "forget worrying about other guys because she loves YOU." In the UK, this is the biggest selling Beatles single. And it held the record for top-selling UK single of all time until 1977, when that record was broken by...Paul McCartney and Wings with "Mull Of Kintyre."
#21 - *She Loves You - The Beatles - 1964 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! The German version lyrics in "Komm Gib Mir Deine Hand" are really not close to what most of the world sang along to in the English version. Compare for yourself: "In your arms I'm happy and glad. It was never that way with anyone else, never that way, never that way. Oh you are so pretty, as pretty as a diamond. I want to go with you. Come give me your hand... "
#20 - *I Want To Hold Your Hand - The Beatles (1964) (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! While this song was moving up the charts on the Phillips label, the Vee-Jay label pitted The Four Seasons against themselves by releasing "Stay". Although "Stay" only peaked at #16, it possibly drew enough sales away from "Dawn (Go Away)" to keep that song from getting to #1.
#19 - Dawn (Go Away) - Four Seasons - 1964 (Peaks: WABC #2, Natl #3)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! In the UK, this song originally only got to #6 and wasn't released as a single until 1975. After John's death, the single re-entered the UK chart and was #1 for four weeks in January 1981. It came out again as a single in the UK in 1988 and got to #45. Finally, it was released for a FOURTH time as a single in 1999 and made it all the way to #3.
#18 - Imagine - John Lennon - 1971 (Peaks: WABC #4, Natl #3)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! George Harrison's "This Song", which was about the "My Sweet Lord"/"He's So Fine" plagiarism suit, references "I Can't Help Myself". In the middle of the song, the lyrics proclaim "Could be 'Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch'". To which the response, referring to the Fontella Bass song, is, "Naah! More like 'Rescue Me'".
#17 - *I Can't Help Myself - 4 Tops - 1965 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! The first recording of the song was made by Allan Clarke of the The Hollies, although its release was delayed, only appearing after Springsteen's own now-famous version.
#16 - Born to Run - Bruce Springsteen - 1975 (WABC #36, Natl #23)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This recording features Davies' first wife Rasa on background vocals. In 1985 Ray Davies released an album entitled "Return to Waterloo", a soundtrack for the movie of the same name and he also wrote a collection of short stories called "Waterloo Sunset".
#15 - Waterloo Sunset - Kinks - 1967 (Peaks: WABC - Did Not Chart, Natl - Did Not Chart)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! In celebration of its 40th year, The Beach Boys released five versions of "Good Vibrations" including the original single version, various session takes, an alternate take (previously released on the Beach Boys'"Rarities" album), an instrumental track in stereo (the only official stereo version of this song), and a live concert rehearsal (from Hawaii in August 1967).
#14 - Good Vibrations - Beach Boys - 1966 (Peaks: WABC #4, Natl #1))
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This was a huge hit around the world, peaking at #3 in Australia, #2 in Brazil, #6 in the U.K., #14 in Ireland, and #24 in the Netherlands. But which is one of the biggest countries that the song performed poorest in? That would be the country where Jim Morrison died, France. There the song only got to #62.
#13 - *Light My Fire - Doors - 1967 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Between their other activities, The Ronettes did background vocals for artists like Bobby Rydell, Del Shannon and Joey Dee.
#12 - *Be My Baby - Ronettes - 1963 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #2)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This was The Temptations' first number-one hit, and it was also the first number one hit on the reinstated Billboard R&B Singles chart, which had gone on a fifteen-month hiatus from 1963 to 1965.
#11 - My Girl - Temptations - 1965 (Peaks: WABC #4, Natl #1)
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This Beatles superhit held the record as the Fab Four's longest running #1 song on WABC, staying there for seven weeks as one of 16 number one songs on MusicRadio." And this was the #1 song on April 10, 1970 when the Beatles announced their break-up. Inspired by Paul McCartney's mother Mary, John absolutely hated this song.
#10 - *Let It Be - Beatles -1970 (Peaks: WABC#1. Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Although the original version of this song is a classic, Donna Summer's version of the song was bigger, reaching #1 on both the WABC New York charts and the national charts.
#9 - MacArthur Park - Richard Harris - 1968 (Peaks: WABC #2, Natl #2)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This hit was re-released in 1991. Although the re-release didn't chart in the U.S., it did go to #12 in the U.K. after charting at #2 in 1972. Madonna's version of the song was #1 in England in 2000, making it bigger than either of McLean's chart runs there.
#8 - *American Pie - Don McLean - 1972 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! When Diana got to #1 on September 13, 1970, it marked the ONLY time any song by The Supremes OR Diana Ross ever knocked another Motown act from the #1 spot. The song dethroned by Diana was "War" by Edwin Starr.
#7 - *Ain't No Mountain High Enough - Diana Ross - 1970 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! After their initial LP "America" hit #1, the titles of their next SEVEN LPs began with the letter "H".
#6 - *A Horse with No Name - America - 1972 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Somehow, it has pretty much slipped under the radar that this tune "borrowed" heavily from "Taurus" by Spirit, a song from two years earlier. So maybe it's not coincidental considering that Led Zeppelin was the opening act for Spirit on their first American tour.
#5 - Stairway to Heaven - Led Zeppelin (From the untitled LP referenced as "Led Zeppelin IV") - 1971 (Peaks: WABC - Did Not Chart. Nat'l - Did Not Chart, Natl - LP #2)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This was originally the "B" side to "The Jones Girl", and although the single was only a moderate hit when it was first released, its esteemed status is partly credited to its inclusion in the highly influential 1959 LP series, "Oldies But Goodies" on DJ Art Laboe's Original Sound label. It was ranked #90 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". Other versions include Santo & Johnny, Paul Anka, Debbie Gibson, and Boyz II Men. The song was intentionally spelled as "In the Still of the Nite" to avoid confusion with Cole Porter's "In the Still of the Night." And finding out exactly how popular this song really would fare was the inspiration for this very Top 77 survey back in 1998.
#4 - In the Still of the Nite - Five Satins - 1956 (Peaks: Pre-dates WABC Charts, WMGM-NY #13, Natl #24)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Charlie Watts recalls that "Satisfaction" was recorded at the same studio where Duke Ellington recorded one of the greatest jazz songs ever, "Take the A Train track". And the lyric, "I can't get no satisfaction", actually comes from a line from a Chuck Berry song called "Thirty Days (To Come Back Home)", when Chuck sings, "If I don't get no satisfaction from the judge, I'm gonna take it to the FBI and voice my grudge.".
#3 - *(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction - Rolling Stones - 1965 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! Although written in 1966 and intended for inclusion in the "Get Back" sessions, "Isn't It a Pity", the flip side of George Harrison's "My Sweet Lord", borrowed several elements from "Hey Jude" and sounded strikingly similar to it by the time it appeared on "All Things Must Pass". This included some near-identical "na-na-na, na na na na's" that begin at the 5:15 mark and become downright blatantly obvious at the 5:42 mark, disguised as "ah-ah-ah, ah ah ah ah". As for ‘Hey Jude”, this is the first time this song has NOT been #1 on our list in 13 years!
#2 - *Hey Jude - The Beatles - 1968 - (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
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BET YA DIDN'T KNOW! This song went from "Pick Hit of the Week" directly to #1 on WABC and stayed there for six weeks. Nationally, it was #1 for two weeks. But after this, The Four Seasons would not have a #1 song again until "December 1963 (Oh What a Night)" which came out in December, 1975. And in an ironic twist of fate, the month of December 1963 was one of only a handful of weeks that The Four Seasons did not appear on the top 100 charts between their debut on August 25, 1962 and February 1969.
And if you think YOUR vote doesn’t count, remember this: This song finished at #1 on the Top 77 BY by POINT, the closest of margins possible! In this corner, the brand new CHAMP-PEEN...it's The Four Seasons!
#1 - *Rag Doll - Four Seasons - 1964 (Peaks: WABC #1, Natl #1)
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So there you have it, the all-new Top 77 for 2010, with a BRAND NEW #1 song after 12 years with The Beatles on top. Be sure to check out the "analysis page" for all the details and interesting breakdowns of the stats of the Top 77 voting for 2010.
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