Hey there, I thought I’d make a list ranking the longest charting singles from what I believe to be the most lucrative time in music history here in Australia. This list is fairly straight forward, each entry appears A: by how long they charted for and B: how well they did during their chart run. The only other thing is that the charts became somewhat redundant starting in 2007 where ARIA allowed for digital downloads which effectively removed the shelf life of each single. This means I’ve decided to include the chart runs of songs on the digital and single charts from this period to give an idea of how long a song would’ve lasted on the charts without this change whilst allowing songs that didn’t chart on the physical chart to appear on here as well.
Given how UB40 managed to score a huge hit the previous year with a reggae cover of an Elvis Presley track, I suppose it makes sense that these guys would score a hit with their reggae cover of a Peter Frampton track a mere five years after Will to power made a soft rock cover of the song in question. This was commissioned for the film Reality bites which is one of the more critically divided films of the decade.
1994 23 weeks
(This is from the physical charts)
2006 23 weeks
This was written and recorded for the James Bond film of the same name, it has the distinction of being the only Bond theme to have the performer appear in the opening credits which should give you an idea of how popular Sheena Easton was during the first half of the decade. It also should tell you that despite beginning her career with what I’ve dubbed as nursery pop, she really wanted to be a sex icon in music.
1981 23 weeks
We looked at their previous collaboration on the 2004 list, so now let’s look at the second collaboration between Baby Bash and Frankie J only with their roles reversed on this track as Baby Bash is now playing second fiddle to the RNB singer for his one and only hit internationally. I mean it when I say that their roles were reversed as this is essentially the same song as “Suga suga” when it comes to the subject matter.
2005 23 weeks
This was originally a hit for the Jackson five earlier in the decade, that would explain why Gloria has a more noticeable falsetto on this track compared to her other big hit from later in the decade. It seems odd that there was a battle for who the queen of disco was this decade as I think we can all agree that Donna Summer took that prize as the decade came to an end, however Gloria was in consideration for that prize as well.
1975 23 weeks
It appears that EDM was still here to stay as this track from the American duo IIO was a massive hit in most parts of the world except of course for their native America given how EDM rarely does well on Billboard at the best of times, it was a massive hit here in Australia likely due to how lovestruck the track is as well as it being catchy enough to be played on the dance floors.
2001 23 weeks
This was the only notable success that Utah saints had outside of their native UK, I’m guessing because of the samples throughout the track which made it appealing to the Australian EDM scene that was quickly growing this decade. We’ll be looking at plenty of other dance tracks from one hit wonders, so I hope you’re in the mood for more of this type of music.
1992 23 weeks
This was a collaboration between two fairly unknown singers Scott Fitzgerald and Yvonne Keeley who were back up by some school choir which somehow managed to make this song a massive worldwide success. If this concoction of people involved with the track isn’t confusing enough, the song is a combination of reggae with what appears to be the earliest forms of new wave making it a unique sounding song.
1978 23 weeks
This was the only hit single to come from Cyndi’s album of the same name everywhere except for her native America where “Change of heart” managed to also be a success for her on Billboard, that’s not to say the album was a failure but rather that everyone had clearly declared Madonna as the new queen of pop between these two women. This was the start of Cyndi’s more mature direction in music which is perhaps why she saw diminishing returns from here on out.
1986 23 weeks
Split Enz was on a roll as they were able to achieve massive success with the lead single to their album Corroboree/Waiata, an album which was meant to pay respect to the traditional owners of the lands of Australia and NZ despite the album not having any political tracks on there. The band would continue to spark international interest that failed to translate to actual success worldwide.
1980 23 weeks
This was the theme to the Leonardo DiCaprio flick The beach, a film that was critically panned for being little more than an excuse to see him stranded on a deserted island to be objectified by those who find him attractive. Indeed, the song remains the only part of the film that was well received as it became a massive hit for All saints who (in my opinion) greatly improved from their debut album two years prior.
2000 23 weeks
If you can believe it, there was a time where this had nothing to do with the Shrek franchise as this was originally written for the film Mystery men, hence why there’s a version of this music video with clips of that film inserted randomly throughout its runtime. Even since this was included in the opening scenes of the DreamWorks flick, it’s unfortunately become a meme for the band which harmed their career.
1999 23 weeks
Their debut album was already a moderate success for them here in Australia, however it was this lead single to their second album which made them a household name and even allowed Pop star to rebound on our charts upon the release of their second album. There was an obvious theme to both of the band’s biggest hits, namely that Wendy James wanted to know that the target of these songs was the love of her life.
1989 23 weeks
These guys had been active in the industry for over a decade before they finally score their first hit anywhere in the world with this soft rock classic, I guess even back in the day there was no age limit to when you could find success for the first time as most bands would’ve given up by this stage of their careers. These guys would score a second hit later in the decade with “Can’t fight this feeling.”
1981 23 weeks
This was a bit of a comeback for Simply red who hadn’t had a hit in Australia since their third album from the late 80’s. Indeed, this song in general was a milestone for the band as it became their only chart topper in their native UK despite having five of the most successful albums of all time over there, it’s also their rare upbeat track which showed they were willing to experiment with their sound for a hit.
1995 23 weeks
(This is from the physical charts)
2006 23 weeks
This was written for this year’s opening ceremony for the Commonwealth games in Melbourne by Delta Goodrem and her (then) fiancé Brian McFadden, it was an instant success due to how inescapably popular she was following the success of her first two albums throughout the decade.
2006 23 weeks
This might seem odd to my UK readers as the big hit from the Swedish rapper was “It’s my life” from two years prior, indeed I’m not sure how this managed to become a hit for Dr Alban down under two years later but it did. I guess this was a massive success throughout Europe the previous year and that we Aussies had only just realised how incessantly catchy the song was.
1994 23 weeks
It looked like that Madonna was here to stay for the third decade in a row as this third single from her album Music was a massive success for the queen of pop worldwide, although her popularity would quickly fade away when she released her next album later in the decade where she attempted to tackle politics to dismal results. The decade would turn out to be a rocky one for her, although at least she had some success throughout.
2000 23 weeks
Well at least I can honestly say that the Happy days theme was a success here in Australia, even if I’d be lying if I said it was the version that played during the intro and outro of each episode. This was a cover from the Australian duo Silver Studs which became such a success here that it sparked international interest in them which sadly didn’t come to be as with most Australian artists this decade.
1976 23 weeks
This was the only notable hit that the Manhattans were able to score in Australia, I’m guessing because musicians of colour were finding it easier around this time to find international success given how inescapable Stevie Wonder was with his music. They did score a second hit over in NZ with “Shining star” in 1980, proving that there was some further crossover potential here that was squandered.
1976 23 weeks
This will be the only appearance from Natasha Bedingfield on these lists as it was her only hit here in Australia despite having huge international success even in America, I guess we Aussies wanted to hear her song about how writing a song is difficult even when it’s only meant to be a simple love song and not anything else from her. At least it was bigger than either of her older brothers hits down under.
2004 23 weeks
Although he saw success with “Wising well” from the previous year here in Australia, it was this ballad that helped Terence Trent D’arby see massive success with his album likely due to him sounding similar to Prince in his performance on this track. This allowed the lead single “If you let me stay” to have a second chance in the spotlight as it was released here where it charted much higher this time around.
1988 23 weeks
This was the only notable success that Jimmy Nail managed to score outside of his native UK, although he did score a string of hits over there throughout his career suggesting that the Brits were in love with his spoken word poetry that he would occasionally break up with singing. I guess the story of how his partner was lying to him and him seeing right through them was engaging to make it a hit here.
1992 23 weeks
It looks like Kiss were doubling down on their mainstream appeal as this lead single to Unmasked proved, after all they had yet to dedicate one of their ballads to a specifically named girl like they did here (as uncommon as the name Shandi is.) This was the band’s final hit single in most parts of the world, which is probably for the best as their later material would see them shed their makeup.
1980 23 weeks
This is another song I would describe as a nursery pop number, mainly because of how chipper both the melody and the Irish family group are during the song’s runtime. This was all set to be a flop here in Australia despite how big the girls were in NZ and their native UK, however a memorable performance of this song on Countdown helped it become a surprise hit for them months after its initial release.
1981 23 weeks
This was the only hit to come from Kelly Clarkson’s third album My December, an album that was panned by critics for being too much of an emotional trainwreck as she recorded it without much guidance from her management at the time. I and many others have defended the album for being an honest look at her emotional state at the time, however her label insisted on them having more control over her music after it was released.
2007 23 weeks
And who says that the band who gave us “Relax” (which is still to come on this list) was all about fun and games? Here we have their second single which is so politically charged you’d think it was written specifically for a smear campaign for a candidate they didn’t like (most likely Margaret Thatcher.) To drive the point of the song home, they have a video where the political candidates fight each other in a wrestling ring.
1984 23 weeks
Now that these guys were established hit makers, they didn’t seem to have any issues with finding success with the rest of the songs from their sophomore album. Here we have their ballad which was a huge chart topper in the UK and their native America, although in the former it didn’t reach the top spot until the 90’s which means this was a hit here thanks to its popularity on Billboard.
1989 23 weeks
I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that reggae became a huge international success this decade given how many of the bigger hits fit into the genre perfectly. This was the second single from the Rockmelons that featured Deni Hines as the lead vocalist, as well as their second hit in a row that managed to crossover to NZ where reggae was an even bigger deal than it was in Australia. All of this led to the band receiving buzz over in the UK.
1992 23 weeks
This was where it all began for one of the happiest bands to score success this decade, or at least they were one of the happiest bands at first as later in the decade they would become edgier much to the chagrin of their fanbase. Here we have their E.P which featured the sickly sweet “Ordinary angels” which helped them build a fanbase for their equally sweet debut album Marvin the album.
1992 23 weeks
Riff were a short-lived hip hop group who failed to score any success in their native America with their songs, they had better luck in the southern hemisphere where they scored two hits in NZ and one hit in Australia with this theme to the Wesley Snipes flick White men can’t jump. I’m guessing this made it in the southern hemisphere due to our love of the film which sees Woody Harrelson learning to play basketball from Wesley.
1992 23 weeks
This was the advanced single from the Pretender’s third album, an album which wouldn’t come out for over a year after hits songs release due to the behind-the-scenes drama they had with each other. You wouldn’t know that from listening to this track as they seem to be well synchronised with each other, the band members grunting to give off the impression that they are working on a jail chain link.
1982 23 weeks
It looks like Black box weren’t the only band who utilised Martha Walsh as a vocalist in their music, here she is credited as Freedom Williams scoring a massive hit with C+C Music factory with a song that’s become synonymous with the early 90’s house scene. She would have another hit this year (stay tuned for it) before becoming fed up with being pushed aside in the marketing for more conventionally attractive women of colour.
1991 23 weeks
It seems odd that Glen Campbell would score so much success here in Australia and have his sell-out track about well…… selling out be his final hit single here. Indeed, this song about how Glen was going to be as he puts it, a rhinestone cowboy to the masses was his final hit here in Australia despite it being the first of two Billboard chart toppers for the country legend.
1975 23 weeks
This was the big hit that 3oh!3 had that I mentioned from earlier on this list, it was originally uploaded to YouTube the year prior before it was picked up and distributed as a single by a major label who naturally found the song to be hilarious. It appears the world also found this song funny as it became a massive worldwide hit for the duo, although perhaps not as big as their other entry on this list.
2009 23 weeks
I wondered how this sex jam from Quad city DJs was able to become a hit here in Australia given how rarely this type of music crossed over here, then I remembered that these guys provided the theme to Space jam which likely encouraged us Aussies to get in with what was the fuss about this track. All I have to say about the lyrics is that they aren’t referring to a choo choo train when talking about riding one.
1996 23 weeks
It was a new decade and yet it appears that the EDM scene hadn’t quite reached the end of its popularity in Australia as this trance single from Alice Deejay proved to be a massive success for them during the early months of the 00’s. I’m guessing the reason why they didn’t stick around for the rest of the decade was because they angered rock fans by titling their album who needs guitars anyway, that’s a recipe for disaster.
1999 23 weeks
Two of the biggest names in NZ music managed to score a massive hit this year here in Australia with this collaboration, here we have P-Money who was ahead of the curb when it came to producers taking lead credit for a song they don’t provide any vocals on and Scribe who delivers one of his solid rap performances which made him such a household name in his homeland.
2005 23 weeks
These women were on a roll in Australia as they were able to score another massive hit with this ballad about wanting to take it slow in a sexual relationship, it appears that our stigma towards music of colour was finally long gone by the 80’s even without the assistance of MTV promoting black artists. The trio would go on to have massive success this decade, although mostly through their upbeat tracks.
1981 23 weeks
The legends are true people, Mark Wahlberg did indeed have a career as a rapper before he took Hollywood by storm as one of the better actors to emerge this decade. Here he recruits soul singer Loleatta Holloway to provide a chorus for him while he flexes how awesome he is in the hip hop game; it went about as well as when his older brother flexed how tough he was on “Hanging tough.”
1991 23 weeks
(This is from the physical charts)
2009 23 weeks
This was the lead single to an E.P that Bryan Ferry released from around this time, although the E.P itself flopped in favour of the song likely due to it appearing on his second album which was a massive success due to his earlier entry on this list. This really does beg the question of how we Aussies loved this guy so much but only as a solo artist given how little love his band Roxy music received here back in the day.
1976 23 weeks
This is an English cover of Trio’s only hit single worldwide, although I wouldn’t blame you for thinking that this isn’t a song at all given how this seems to be tailor made for TV commercials (most notably the Sakata crackers.) I guess the novelty of this track ensured that it would be a massive hit in most parts of the world.
1982 23 weeks
This was the only hit that Men without hats scored outside of their native Canada, although they would retain their popularity in their homeland throughout the decade which was a rare feat for Canadian artists who saw international success this decade. In any case we have this novelty track that was written in response to people dancing aggressively at one of their shows which turned the show into a disaster.
1983 23 weeks
One of the biggest contemporary Christian artists of all time, Amy Grant was able to find success this year by temporarily moving away from her comfort zone and into a more adult contemporary sound which resulted in her scoring two hits this year with this being her first. She did have a Billboard chart topper prior to this become her second number one hit in America with Peter Cetera of all people.
1991 23 weeks
This was the big hit off of Bon Jovi’s album Keep the faith, mainly due to people not really understanding what this song is about as despite the lyrics “lay me down on a bed of roses,” this is actually a breakup song about him wishing that the relationship was still going when it’s clearly over. It’s certainly different from the other tracks they had up until this point which were to the point.
1993 23 weeks
This was originally Abba’s debut single which was released to deafening silence here in Australia likely due to it being a little ahead of its time back in 1973, indeed it was given a second chance once the band had conquered the world where this became yet another hit they had in a year where they had a ton of hits.
1976 23 weeks
This was the first hit that Bette Midler had in Australia since her 1973 cover of the Andrew sister’s classic “Boogie woogie bugle boy,” it happens to come from her theatrical debut The rose which is loosely based on the tragic life of Janis Joplin that was well received by critics. While the film isn’t historically accurate by any means, it remains a good film due to Bette’s performance which she was Oscar nominated for, unlike this song which missed out on a nomination.
1980 23 weeks
This is another musician of colour that had to wait for quite some time before they finally found any success in their career, in this case we have Dorothy Moore who scored a massive hit this year with this cover of an obscure track from around the time she began said career. This led to her album of the same name being a massive worldwide success before she was sadly relegated to yesterday’s news.
1976 23 weeks
I’ve heard this be described as having the feel of a Doobie brothers track, ever since all I hear whenever I hear this is the Pointer sisters covering “What a fool believes” which is admittedly a good thing in my book. Of course, the lyrics are completely different as it’s about how the girls are smitten by a shy guy as opposed to the Doobie brothers being felt like a fool for being in a relationship with someone.
1980 23 weeks
This was the only hit that the British freestyle band Freeez was able to achieve outside their native UK, although like many British bands this decade, they did have a couple of minor hits in their homeland that simply didn’t rise up to the standards of those songs that did make it big internationally. Here they succeeded thanks to a killer synth riff as well as the falsetto in the vocals that rival that of early George Michael.
1983 23 weeks
This was the first solo hit that Diesel had here in Australia, it wasn’t his first solo single as that honour goes to “Love junk” which was a huge flop for him, but this was what made him huge without the Injectors. Somehow this managed to be twice as successful over in NZ, I’m guessing he was more popular over there as his third solo single was also a huge success over there as well as his solo debut album.
1991 23 weeks
This was never a hit in the northern hemisphere, that should tell you how influential Countdown was for Australia and arguably in NZ as this debut single from Martha Davis and company was a huge hit in both countries thanks to it being promoted on the TV series. The band did eventually see success in their native America with their second album, success that didn’t translate back here where it all began.
1980 23 weeks
This was the first major hit that Boney M achieved here in Australia, it’s a Eurodance classic that fits in perfectly with the disco scene which made its worldwide success inevitable for the German band. Although their subsequent songs would become even bigger here as the decade went on, this still remains one of their most popular tracks on oldies stations due to how incessantly catchy it is.
1977 23 weeks
Given that she was now the face of Technotronic, it only makes sense that Ya Kid K would appear in the video for the group’s second single which helped it become a massive success worldwide. Apparently, the woman in the video from their earlier entry wasn’t part of the group which annoyed the rapper, making this a surprisingly good time for models of colour to appear in videos over much less photogenic musicians.
1990 23 weeks
This was one of the cheesier songs to become a hit this decade, although I feel there was enough room for this type of ballad considering how much disco and rock opera there was as an alternative for audiences looking for cooler music. Alan remains a one hit wonder in most parts of the world with this ballad including in his native America, however he did score a second hit here in Australia with “Skinny girls.”
1977 23 weeks
Well so much for James Reyne being the reason why Australian crawl never scored a hit single during their time together, this was his first song he released following the band’s demise, and it proved to be an instant hit for him. A common criticism towards his music is his inability to enunciate, I and many others don’t find that to be an issue as while it is hard to understand what he’s saying, the music usually makes up for it.
1987 23 weeks
Following the success she had with 5000 volts from earlier on this list, we have the first of three solo hits that Tina Charles managed to score throughout the world which all seem to have the same premise as each other. The premise is that she loves two things, her partner and dancing which naturally captivated audiences enough to make all of her hits as big as they were back in the day.
1976 23 weeks
This was originally released as a B-side to “Where the streets have no name” all the way back in 1987, although it did receive a release here in Australia as a lead single back in 1989 likely to cash in off the success of Rattle and hum that it didn’t end up accomplishing. It was given a second chance as a lead single this year when it was repackaged as a bonus track for their greatest hits album covering their 80’s material.
1998 23 weeks
This was the debut single from a band who would eventually become known as Icehouse, yeah, these guys went by Flowers originally but had to change it when they sparked international interest in them due to another band with that name also looking to make it big worldwide (wonder whatever happened to them.) The album went on to be one of the most successful here and in NZ funnily enough.
1980 23 weeks
You’d think that Rob Thomas’s reunion with Matchbox 20 from two years prior would’ve been more permanent, however it was only for one single as he released his second solo album before he got back together with the band to record their (to date) final album North in 2012. This was a big hit in Australia this year, although I don’t remember hearing it much due to coming out around the time MJ tragically passed away.
2009 23 weeks
This was the second single to be released from East 17, and it managed to be a huge hit for them both here and in their native UK which cemented them as a worthy rival of Take that in their homeland and the clear winner of the first round of the boy band wars here in Australia. They would score two more hits from their debut album Walthamstow down under proving how inescapable they were.
1993 23 weeks
If you need proof that Aqua were indeed a real band who just happened to appeal to the youth of the day better than their peers, allow me to present to you the fourth song from their debut album which was so mature and unlike the rest of the album it came from that it was chosen as the theme song to Sliding doors starring Gwyneth Paltrow. The film has two stories that run parallel with each other based on whether or not she makes it onto a train, something that makes this ballad seem appropriate to soundtrack.
1998 23 weeks
It appears Beyonce and Shakira watched the Bette Midler flick Outrageous fortune and wanted to make a song based on that movie’s plot of her and Shelley Long falling in love with the same man only to find out he had been lying to both of them (minus the terrorist subplot of course.) The result is this song which was the second single off the former’s deluxe edition of her second solo album and a massive worldwide hit for them both.
2007 23 weeks
Although these guys saw moderate success with their albums this decade, the last time they had a hit single was from the start of the decade when “No secrets” became a top ten hit for them. Here they are with a cover of the Animals classic from the mid 60’s, this being a surprise hit for them here and even their big crossover hit in NZ as this managed to win over the kiwis after a decade of silence there.
1987 23 weeks
This was the only hit for the two singers in question, both Dean Friedman and Denise Marsa managed to win over an audience with their ballad about how they felt lucky to have found each other the way they did and attributed their good fortunes to the lucky stars in the universe. Naturally this ballad didn’t lead to any further success for them.
1979 23 weeks
I’m surprised this wasn’t a bigger hit here in Australia considering how often it finds itself in commercials over the years, then again this needed two attempts to be a success in certain parts of the world as it flopped upon its initial release only for it to be a success on the one-year anniversary of its existence. This was the only success that the south African born British singer achieved in her career.
1991 23 weeks
Although they had seen plenty of buzz here in Australia prior to this standalone hit they had, this was the song which convinced us Aussies they were worth our time which made the failure of Paul Weller’s previous band the Jam here that much more puzzling in retrospect. I wouldn’t feel too bad for him though, the Jam were one of the most successful bands of the decade in his native UK.
1984 23 weeks
While this wasn’t Leo Sayer’s first hit in Australia (that honour goes to “The show must go on” from the previous year) it was the song that made him a household name despite it being a far cry from the soft rock ballads or even pseudo disco bangers that he would become synonymous with later in the decade.
1974 23 weeks
If you can believe it, this wasn’t originally released as the theme to Romeo + Juliet and was instead released as the Swedish band’s lead single to their third album from the previous year. Somehow Baz Lurhman got a hold of this track and included it in his film adaptation of the Shakespeare play where it became a massive worldwide success for them, probably because people thought it was a No doubt track.
1997 23 weeks
Although he had already achieved moderate success with his comeback album around this time, it was this third single from Edge which cemented his comeback status due to how fun and catchy it is from the aging pop star. This could’ve been a fluke for him given how audiences likely had nostalgia for Sherbet around this time, however his next album was even bigger meaning this wasn’t a fluke for him.
1989 23 weeks
This was the first of two hits that Fischer Z achieved this decade, although their second hit wouldn’t come until eight years after this was released as that was with “The perfect day” in 1988. This was due to the band briefly breaking up throughout the 80’s despite them having massive worldwide success with this new wave ballad, although they obviously came back and have been going strong ever since.
1980 23 weeks
This was originally the lead single to Peter Allen’s third album; however, it was a massive flop for him the previous year and only became a success this year due to his earlier entry being a massive chart topper here. These were the only two hits that the Australian performer was able to score during his career, although he found plenty of success as a songwriter for other people so there’s that at least.
1977 23 weeks
Technically this wasn’t the only hit that Motiv8 had in Australia as he also scored a hit under the alias of Mozaic the following year with “Nothing in the world” as well as being the brainchild behind Gina G’s Eurovision classic “Ooh aah just a little bit.” Before he scored a hit with either of those dance tracks, he made it big with this EDM track thanks to the vocals of Angie Brown who you may recognise for her performance on Mark Morrison’s “Return of the Mack.”
1994 23 weeks
This was the first of two hits that Yazoo scored this year throughout the world, you’ve likely noticed a pattern on this list where artists would score two hits this year before struggling for relevancy throughout the rest of the decade. In any case, we have the debut single from Yazoo who is a band best known for its members, specifically Alison Moyet who was a successful singer this decade and Vince Clark who was one half of Erasure.
1982 23 weeks
This was an excellent year for everyone who’s ever been involved with Genesis, we have the breakthrough single from Mike Rutherford’s side project Mike and the Mechanics who scored a massive hit with this track about relying on a miracle to make a relationship work (or in the video’s case, paying off a debt to a bar manager.) This song clicked with audiences this year and allowed lead singer Paul Carrack to find solo success the following year.
1986 23 weeks
This was originally a hit for Sandie Shaw back in the 60’s, although it never managed to crossover to Australia until Naked eyes made it their own this year likely due to their version adding church bells to the mix which adds to the drama of the lyrics as well as complimenting the music video which further adds drama to the song. This was their only hit worldwide, although Rob Fisher would return later in the decade as Climie Fisher.
1983 23 weeks
If these guys sound familiar to you, that’s because they would go on to become the Wiggles which is one of the most popular children’s bands of all time despite them never having success on the music charts. If you can believe it, this pop rock track about the girl of their respective dreams was their only hit here in Australia, although I’m reliably informed that preschool music doesn’t often chart in the mainstream.
1987 23 weeks
This was a song that was released exclusively in Australia, it interrupted the album cycle as “Kiss the bride” was always meant to be the third single from Too low for zero but was pushed back to the following year where it flopped due to everyone owning the album by that point. I guess this was his way of thanking us for keeping his popularity alive during the years Bernie Taupin was absent from his career.
1983 23 weeks
I guess this was a return to form for David Essex given how this feels more in line with his debut single “Rock on” than his previous two hits he had throughout the decade. I guess this did please his original fans as this became a huge hit for him this year, however his popularity would die out as the decade went on in Australia.
1976 23 weeks
If you want to know how Hall and Oates started finding success here in the 80’s despite already finding massive success in their native America throughout the 70’s, it’s likely due to them appearing on Countdown to promote this track which helped it become a hit for the duo around the time it topped the Billboard charts for them. They would have more permanent success as the decade went on here with their next few chart toppers.
1980 23 weeks
I never understood how this song was credited, mainly because it’s Kenny Dope presenting, himself as the Bucketheads is just an alias he used on this one and only hit he had worldwide. The song was a massive success for the American DJ everywhere except of course his native America, this was a huge hit in the UK which is why we Aussies and most of Europe knew about it.
1995 23 weeks
It seems odd that this would be Living Colour’s only hit single in Australia when they’re better known for their 1989 hit “Cult of living personality” which was a massive success in NZ two years prior. Indeed, their second album Time’s up managed to become a success this year down under purely thanks to how well this ballad did for them, not bad for a song about how love is such a tricky bastard.
1991 23 weeks
You better believe that the Glee phenomenon was so inescapable when the show debuted that it was able to spawn a genuine hit for its cast in the music industry, indeed this cover of the Journey classic was one of the last hits of the decade worldwide due to it being so well received on the show that it single handily made the original a cultural icon despite it being a massive flop back in the 80’s.
2009 23 weeks
This will be the only appearance from Selwyn on this site, mainly because “Buggin me” was too much of a sleeper hit to reach the upper echelons of the charts to qualify for this list and “Way love’s supposed to be” was only a minor hit at best despite it being the fan favourite from the Australian RNB singer. Here we have his cover of the Hall and Oates classic that was well received by us Aussies this year.
2002 23 weeks
This was the first hit that Wet wet wet (wow that’s a stupid band name) managed to achieve in Australia, it looked like it would be their only hit here given how their other songs failed to crossover despite how well they did in their native UK. That changed later in the decade when their cover of a Mindbenders tracks from a Hugh Grant flick became one of the biggest hits of the decade thanks to their tender vocals.
1990 23 weeks
This was the second single to come from Billy Ocean’s comeback album Suddenly, and one that seems to combine his strengths of having a catchy beat with his heartfelt declarations of being the man of this person’s dreams. At first glance it seems like he’s coming on strong with this person in the lyrics, however he makes it clear they’re playing hard to get which ultimately makes his advances justified.
1985 23 weeks
This was one of the last hit singles that Abba achieved before their inevitable demise later in the decade, in fact you can make the argument that this was the song which broke them apart as the two couples were going through a highly publicised divorce when this song was released. Let’s just say that Frida and Agnetha sound like they’ve been defeated by their husbands on this track given how the men wrote the lyrics they’re singing.
1980 23 weeks
This is often considered as the signature tune from Air supply, mainly because it’s the song that best represents their discography of passionate love songs performed in a melodramatic way. The duo scored more success in America than they did in Australia this decade, although they did have a few hits down under before we Aussies gave up on them entirely.
1980 23 weeks
This was another song from P!nk’s discography that was never released as a single in her native America, although this time it was released in many other parts of Europe in addition to the countries that “Leave me alone” was released in two years prior, proving that her popularity internationally had well exceeded what it ever was in her homeland. This would continue to be the case throughout the following decade for her.
2009 23 weeks
This was the only hit that Martha and the Muffins managed to achieve in their career, it’s a well-remembered track about how Martha Johnson reminisces about a time where she had the love of her life on the titular echo beach and how she longs to return to the location to meet up with her partner. I guess she wasn’t able to find much success going into the decade down under, not unlike another Martha on this list.
1980 23 weeks
(This is from the physical charts)
2009 23 weeks
This is a song I would’ve thought had done better back in the day, mainly because of how fondly it seems to be remembered on oldies stations to this day. Greg Kihn did manage to score a second hit here in Australia with “Jeopardy” the following year, however that hasn’t been as fondly remembered as this track likely because of how Greg seems to miss how songs used to be written here.
1981 23 weeks
This was a great year for artists to discover older tracks and remix them for their own songs, here we have the German group Boogie pimps taking the Jefferson airplane song of the same name and remixing its chorus for an easy worldwide hit for them. This won’t be the only song on this list to find success with this formula as we’ll see other entries as we go further down.
2004 23 weeks
This was the only hit to come from Leah Haywood, a rising star in the Australian music scene who curiously called it quits after just one album likely due to her feeling that she couldn’t adapt with the times after said album underperformed on our charts. Indeed, this feels like it was only a hit due to the success that Mandy Moore and Jessica Simpson had this year with their ballads being similar to this one.
2000 23 weeks
This was the only hit that French duo Deep Forest were able to achieve here in Australia, although I’m guessing this was due to two reasons. The first was because Enigma had already opened the doors for combining new age music with EDM earlier in the decade and the second being that their album was a huge success this year which prevented them from scoring another hit down under.
1992 23 weeks
Wow was this song EVERYWHERE when it first came out, it’s hard to believe that it wasn’t any bigger here in Australia as it certainly felt like it was on the radio and in commercials. This was the only hit that Groove Armada managed to score down under, likely due to the novelty of a track saying “I see you baby shaking that ass” ad nauseum not allowing them to be taken seriously in the mainstream.
1999 23 weeks
This was the solo debut single for Lisa Stansfield, although she was part of a band known as Bluezone who would technically go on to have a massive hit at the end of the decade with “Jackie” with Australian singer Joanne on lead vocals. Here she scores a massive hit worldwide with this song about what she did to lead to her boyfriend breaking up with her, it’s silly but enjoyable to listen to.
1989 23 weeks
(This is from the physical charts)
2007 23 weeks
