Greatest #1 Hits of the Year
1958: All I Have To Do Is Dream - The Everly Brothers
1959: Stagger Lee - Lloyd Price
1960: Stay - Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs
1961: Surrender - Elvis Presley
1962: I Can't Stop Loving You - Ray Charles
1963: Fingertips Pt. 2 - Stevie Wonder
1964: House Of The Rising Sun - The Animals
1965: (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction - The Rolling Stones
1966: Good Vibrations - The Beach Boys
1967: Hello, Goodbye - The Beatles
1968: (Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay - Otis Redding
1969: Everyday People - Sly & the Family Stone
1970: The Tears Of A Clown - Smokey Robinson & The Miracles
1971: Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me) - The Temptations
1972: Let's Stay Together - Al Green
1973: Let's Get It On - Marvin Gaye
1974: The Joker - Steve Miller Band
1975: Island Girl - Elton John
1976: 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover - Paul Simon
1977: Hotel California - The Eagles
1978: Stayin' Alive - Bee Gees
1979: Heart Of Glass - Blondie
1980: Another Brick In The Wall, Pt. 2 - Pink Floyd
1981: Starting Over, (Just Like) - John Lennon
1982: Jack And Diane - John Cougar Mellencamp
1983: Beat It - Michael Jackson
1984: When Doves Cry - Prince
1985: Everybody Wants To Rule The World - Tears for Fears
1986: Sledgehammer - Peter Gabriel
1987: With Or Without You - U2
1988: Sweet Child O' Mine - Guns N' Roses
1989: Like A Prayer - Madonna
1990: Vision Of Love - Mariah Carey
1991: Set Adrift On Memory Bliss - P.M. Dawn
1992: Baby Got Back - Sir Mix-A-Lot
1993: I Will Always Love You - Whitney Houston
1994: Bump N' Grind - R. Kelly
1995: Waterfalls - TLC
1996: California Love - 2Pac
1997: Mo Money Mo Problems - Notorious B.I.G.
1998: Doo Wop (That Thing) - Lauryn Hill
1999: Smooth - Santana
2000: Amazed - Lonestar
2001: All For You - Janet Jackson
2002: Hot In Herre - Nelly
2003: Hey Ya! - Outkast
2004: Yeah! - Usher
2005: Gold Digger - Kanye West
2006: SexyBack - Justin Timberlake
2007: Irreplaceable - Beyonce
2008: Whatever You Like - T.I.
2008: Low - Flo Rida Featuring T-Pain (I feel your pain!)
"The Twist" — named by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum as one of the 500 songs that shaped rock 'n' roll, (groundbreaking because it was the first time adults were dancing "apart... to the beat...of teen music.") The irony here is that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame refuses to induct Chubby Checker, ignoring his contributions.
Geoff Mayfield, director of charts at Billboard magazine, acknowledged that the list might not jibe with some fans' personal thoughts of the most popular songs of the past 50 years. "This is simply a chronicle of how each of these songs performed in their era on the Hot 100. We're not saying these are the most memorable songs of your life. That would be something that's almost impossible to determine," said Mayfield. "Everyone has a subjective frame of reference."
The Billboard Hot 100 chart measures airplay and sales information (and more recently digital downloads) in determining the nation's most popular songs. To determine the most popular song of the Hot 100 era, Billboard used a formula to determine the top song — not always relying on weeks at No. 1 since the data was reported differently in its early days.
“The Twist began on a sweltering afternoon in July, 1960 when Chubby Checker first performed and danced the Twist on my Palisades Amusement Park television hour. "The Twist" spent a total of only three weeks at the top of the charts, but did
so twice in two separate runs more than a year apart.
"It's the only song that was ever No. 1 in two different chart runs," he said.
Checker, 67, said he was gratified that Billboard noted the popularity of "The Twist," and lamented that both the song and his career have been at times overlooked.
"My music is less played that any performer that has been a No. 1 chart man on the planet," said Checker, who also had hits with "Pony Time," "The Fly" and "Let's Twist Again," which earned him a Grammy.
"I don't get the respect that Rod Stewart gets, or the Rolling Stones, or Frankie Valli. ... But I have to deal with it." billboard.com Billboard
