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.
This was the debut single for Kate Bush, it’s incredible to think that someone as young as she was managed to craft a song that’s resonated with so many people over the years but there you go. Kate’s popularity grew well into the 80’s likely due to her fitting in really well with the MTV era, after all the visuals in her videos while bizarre at time, still strike a chord with visual media to this day.
1978 20 weeks
This was the lead single to Silverchair’s second album Freak show, admittedly this album is a bit more mature than their last mainly due to the boys being closer to adults during its production.
1997 20 weeks
This was a huge worldwide smash for Prince likely due to it being the theme to his first autobiographical film Purple rain, although I would’ve thought the title track from the album/soundtrack would be the main theme to the film but whatever. This is one of his best songs in a catalogue filled with timeless classics, I don’t even care that I have no idea what he means by doves crying.
1984 20 weeks
This was a huge success for Billy Joel despite it being the second single from one of his albums, normally if an album of his already spawned a hit single from it he then wouldn’t score another hit except in the UK this was the lead single to An innocent man rather than “Tell her about it” which led to it becoming his biggest hit there. I’m guessing the Brits wanted to hear his love letter to Christine Brinkley that he turned into this song.
1983 20 weeks
This was a massive flop in Nitty’s native America, I’m guessing because his fellow Americans didn’t appreciate the interpolation of the Archies “Sugar sugar” on the chorus. It appears we Aussies did as this was a number one hit over here, although it’s often considered one of the least memorable chart toppers in recent memory down under due to most people (me included) often forgetting that it even exists.
2005 20 weeks
This might be my favourite vocal performance from Frankie Valli throughout his entire catalogue, although I might just be saying that due to how much I love the film in question more than anything. This was his final hit single (not counting a remix of “December 1963”) although he was in his forties by this stage so it’s understandable that he didn’t find any further success after this.
1978 20 weeks
This was the last hit that Ricky Martin was able to achieve in most parts of the world, I’m guessing because his Latin lover shtick had grown stale by this point as other Latin crooners such as Enrique Iglesias and Marc Anthony had released less bombastic tracks from the genre to massive success. I know it would’ve been a bold move at the time, but I kind of wished he made these songs for men given his sexuality.
2000 20 weeks
(This is from the physical charts)
2005 20 weeks
There were no signs of these girls slowing down in the music industry as their second single managed to become a massive worldwide hit for them, this time it’s with one of their ballads which showcases a more restrained side of them which I’m sure also titillated their audiences the same was as their other songs did.
2005 20 weeks
This was the third mega hit in a row that Hanson were able to score in several parts of the world, although it’s worth pointing out that this ballad was their second biggest hit in their native America as “Where’s the love” sadly didn’t do as well over there as it did internationally. I feel this was the song which sparked the backlash against these kids as the other two songs are at least a ton of fun to listen to.
1990 20 weeks
Before Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks joined Fleetwood Mac, this guy was the original lead vocalist for the band during the first half of the decade (fun fact, Fleetwood Mac started off as an instrumental band.) He left the group due to not finding any success with them, and while I’m sure he was kicking himself when he saw them take off soon after his departure, he at least got a consolation prize by having this be a success for him in Australia and his native America.
1978 20 weeks
This was the only success that Redgum had throughout their career, to think this was a bonus track from their live album Caught in the act which in turn helped the album also become a success for the band here. If you couldn’t tell from the cover art, this song tells an emotional story about how the narrator was drafted in the Vietnam war at age nineteen and all of the horrors he went through during his draft.
1983 20 weeks
This is a response track to Eamon’s entry from earlier on this list, although contrary to popular belief, Frankee wasn’t the girlfriend Eamon was singing about on his song as she was instead some random singer who wanted to cash in off the success of that track by writing a response from the perspective of his girlfriend.
2004 20 weeks
I guess Eminem felt enough time had passed from Encore that he could return with the exact type of songs that he made on that album, I guess there was a fanbase for these two albums to draw on given how Relapse was a massive success for him even though (in my opinion) it shares a lot of the same problems that Encore had from five years earlier.
2009 20 weeks
This was the first of two collaborations that Baby Bash made with the RNB singer Frankie J, the other would be on “Obsession” where the two roles would be reversed as Frankie would be the lead artist whilst the rapper was the featured artist. This is another song that was heavily delayed a release in Australia as it was meant to come out last year like it did internationally, thankfully it didn’t affect its success here.
2004 20 weeks
Well, I don’t think there’s much analysis needed in what John Paul Young is trying to convey in this song, I do find it ironic that he scored three of the bigger hits of the decade with songs that were critical of the music scene and yet would go on to have massive success later in the decade with a song that embodies all that he stood against on these tracks.
1976 20 weeks
This was the theme song to the second Terminator film as well as the lead single to the Use your illusions era which produced two very long albums from Axel Rose and company that would dominate the music landscape for about eighteen months with its singles. It was certainly an ambitious project for them to take on and one that arguably does live up to their early promise they had on their debut album.
1991 20 weeks
This was another song that was heavily delayed here in Australia to allow Australian idol to take over the charts, as such it proved to be less successful here than if it had of been released on time like it was everywhere else in the world towards the end of the previous year. I guess its delay allowed this to out chart “Kryptonite” here even if that song was more successful down under than this ballad.
2004 20 weeks
It looked like Roxette were also able to survive the transition from the 80’s to the 90’s as this title track from their third album became a huge hit throughout the world, although admittedly they did tweak their sound to have less synthesizers compared to their earlier work so perhaps, they did make more of an effort to change with the times than many of their peers. Their time would come to an end when they appeared on the Super Mario brother’s soundtrack two years later.
1991 20 weeks
This was the debut single from the Veronicas, one of the very few Australian artists to ever have the chance to work with the likes of Max Martin and Dr Luke which of course led to their eventual international fame with their second album. People seem divided on them as their fans (which includes me) praise them for the same reason their detractors despise them, that being their gimmick of singing in unison as if they were one person.
2005 20 weeks
This may have been overshadowed by her earlier entry on this list due to how inescapable that was in her native America, however this lead single from Daydream was a massive success for Mariah Carey largely thanks to the sample she uses from the Tom Tom club (a side project of members of Talking heads) throughout the track. These two songs were enough to make the album be a massive success worldwide, although it did spawn one more Billboard chart topper with its third single “Always be my baby.”
1995 20 weeks
This was another successful song to come from the Bay city rollers this year, in fact it’s worth noting that these guys managed to spawn a hit single from each of their albums during the midpoint of the decade to give you an idea of how inescapable they were here in Australia.
1975 20 weeks
This was the third single to come from Make it big, unless of course you’re from America in which case it was pushed back as the fourth single so that “Everything she wants” would top the Billboard charts for the duo. This is often confused with George’s solo hit of the same name from 1990, so much so that version is credited as “Freedom 90” to avoid confusion with this track.
1984 20 weeks
This was a bittersweet victory for Roy Orbison given how he had tragically passed away before it and the album it came from were released to the public. I get the feeling this was meant for the second edition of the Traveling wilburys album given how that was never released to the public, either way it makes for a sad but satisfying book end to a highly successful career from Roy.
1989 20 weeks
This was the third single from MJ’s album Bad, a song where he declares his love for a significant other who makes him feel good whenever they’re around. This would be his final hit single in Australia for the decade as the next hit he would have down under would be “Black or white” from his next albums Dangerous.
1987 20 weeks
This was the lead single to Tina’s third album In deep, an album that didn’t exactly live up to the hype that her previous album set up but was nonetheless a huge success for her here in Australia. I personally would’ve gone with “Now I can dance” as the lead single as that was more fun and a better album opener than this track.
1997 20 weeks
There was a theme on Gwen Stefani’s album where she was playing with pop cliches of wanting to be rich and famous only to then denounce those desires as she already had everything she wanted in her life at the time, it was very clever for its time and perhaps the real reason why it was a massive success back in the day. This second single from the album is the finest example of that as well as it being her reunion with Eve from earlier in the decade.
2005 20 weeks
(This is from the physical charts)
2006 20 weeks
This was the debut single from Pseudo echo, a song that features their trademark synth heavy production that had little trouble finding an audience back in the day throughout the decade. There’s an earlier version of this track that I prefer which strips back the production in favour of a catchy melody as well as putting emphasis on the lyrics were indeed about a couple’s failure to communicate.
1983 20 weeks
This was the title track to David Bowie’s most successful album in his catalogue, although curiously this didn’t hit number one in Australia despite A: it being a massive chart topper everywhere else in the world and B: the video being filmed throughout Sydney. Even though it didn’t top our charts, it did become a massive hit for Bowie down under.
1983 20 weeks
This was meant to be a farewell track to Ginger Spice following her departure from the band during their Spiceworld tour, although given the behind-the-scenes drama, I doubt the girls had much love for her when they originally recorded this track even though they do sound heartfelt on this track. This is often considered to be the final song in their catalogue that displays any sort of personality from any of them.
1998 20 weeks
This was the second single to come from Rick Astley’s debut album, although if you’re from America then this song and the third single (still to come on this list) were skipped over in favour of “Together forever” which helped him score back-to-back Billboard chart toppers from the album. It was a massive year for him regardless of the order of the album cycle, although his popularity would end with his second album.
1988 20 weeks
This was originally the lead single to Roxette’s second album in their native Sweden; however, it was released as the second single from the album when it was finally given an international release where it was only a success here in Australia. I’m not sure why this album flopped everywhere else in the world, however I think its success here came from them performing it on Countdown revolution.
1989 20 weeks
These two songs were bundled together likely due to Sherbet’s label wanting to give the former a second chance in the spotlight following its commercial failure from earlier in the decade. Indeed, the former became a massive success largely thanks to it being attached to the much more popular track which incidentally remains one of the more fondly remembered tracks from Sherbet’s discography.
1976 20 weeks
I haven’t seen Two of a kind, although judging by the lyrics from Livie’s final hit single anywhere in the world (that wasn’t a mashup of her earlier work) it seems like quite the film as there’s a theme about being back from the dead on this track. Her rare foray into rock music paid off as it became one of her most well-known songs in her catalogue, although as I said, this would be the last relevant hit in her career.
1983 20 weeks
This was the biggest hit from Little river band in Australia, and it comes after a long dry spell that many of its members had from their previous bands as this feels more like a supergroup considering we have members from Axiom, Mississippi, the Twilights and Drummond in this line-up. Suffice to say, this is the most successful band that all of these men were a part of due to how well they did internationally.
1977 20 weeks
This was another double release from Sherbet, this time we have two songs that they couldn’t decide to promote from their album Life is for living and as such went for both. This proved to be a massive success for the band as it helped them retain their popularity over their main rivals Skyhooks, although it also proved that they had a specific target audience in mind for their music.
1975 20 weeks
It looked like Paula Abdul no longer had any issues with finding success here in Australia as this lead single to her second album proved to be a huge success for her here, that is until the rest of the album came out and flopped here. For what it’s worth, Paula did see a surprise hit later in the decade down under with “My love is for real,” so it’s not like we always unfairly ignored her music.
1991 20 weeks
This was the breakthrough single for Cheap trick here in Australia, largely thanks to a very memorable performance they gave on Countdown with this song which helped them find an audience here which had ignored them despite how big they were in their native America. They would have further success in the 80’s here, although not without a huge dry spell throughout the middle of the decade.
1979 20 weeks
This was originally meant to be the lead single from the second volume of Listen without prejudice, however the album was cancelled when George Michael decided to instead take over from Freddie Mercury as the lead singer for Queen following his tragic passing the previous year. That didn’t prevent him from releasing this track where it became a massive success for him due to how sexually charged it is.
1992 20 weeks
This was written by Prince under a pseudonym, presumably because he didn’t want to let people know that he was just like everyone else who hated Mondays like we’re all Garfield (OK I hate Mondays too.) He donated the song to the Bangles who scored a massive hit with their version worldwide due to how everyone could relate to the lyrics, although their popularity wouldn’t peak until their third single from earlier on this list.
1986 20 weeks
This was the only hit single that Chaka Khan managed to achieve in Australia, even so we have the assistance of Prince (who wrote the song for her) as well as Grandmaster Melle providing a guest verse during a time where that was unheard of helping her score success here. This was a huge success in the UK, likely due to how well she did over there during her time with her band Rufus.
1984 20 weeks
Although New Jersey wasn’t nearly as successful an album as Slippery when wet, the album was nonetheless a success for Bon Jovi as it spawned a popular lead single that helped it fly off the shelves upon its initial release. This continued their glam rock trajectory which is perhaps why the album wasn’t as big as people felt this was more of the same which their 90’s output certainly wasn’t.
1988 20 weeks
(This is from the physical charts)
2008 20 weeks
This was the biggest hit from JT’s solo debut album Justified, mainly because it’s well known that it was written for the king of pop in mind who passed this up for reasons I can’t seem to ascertain. Justin scooped it up and strangely didn’t have it be the lead single for whatever reason as it was clear from the get-go that this would be the song to launch his career away from N sync following his breakup with Britney Spears.
2003 20 weeks
It looks like the Abba phenomenon was beginning to die down with their latest album err…. the Album. With that said, these guys continued to have success here for the remainder of the decade and even into the 80’s as their dip in popularity was more due to overexposure from their previous two albums, although it could also be this lead single not being the best choice to lead an album cycle.
1977 20 weeks
Kelis is only a two-hit wonder here in Australia with both of her entries on this list, however she was one of the biggest names in music throughout the decade in Europe due to her scoring a bunch of hits over there including both of these entries. She’s also only a two-hit wonder in America, although this wasn’t one of those hits as “Bossy” was her other hit on Billboard from two years later.
2004 20 weeks
Continuing with his meta commentary of the state of music, John Paul Young decided to target the state of love songs which often resulted in setting up unrealistic expectations in real life romances. I guess it’s good to know that people have been making these observations in music for this long, although John manages to do so while having an aurally pleasing song that managed to become a huge hit for him.
1976 20 weeks
This was originally a minor hit for Elton John from his 1974 album Caribou here in Australia, however it was given its full due when George Michael agreed to perform it with him at a concert which was so well received that it became a chart topper for them both in America and their native UK. I’m guessing this was meant to be included on George’s second Listen without prejudice album just like his earlier entry.
1991 20 weeks
This was somewhat a return to form for Jimmy Barnes following the massive success of his first Soul deep project, although this wouldn’t feel too out of line on that album so it’s obvious he wasn’t going to fully default back to his pub rock roots anytime soon. This would cost him another huge hit for him throughout the decade even though he continued to achieve moderate success with his singles.
1993 20 weeks
It seems weird that UB40 would initially struggle to find success in Australia with their album Labour of love II when they found little issues with scoring a hit with Robert Palmer on this cover of the Bob Dylan track. I guess this is what the band needed to find success here with a later entry on this list given how Robert was still one of the hottest stars in the world when he agreed to do this duet.
1990 20 weeks
Named after the film it was written for, we have the first Billboard chart topper from Phil Collins likely because of the film’s critical and commercial success due to it being a neo noir film made at a time where that was a rarity in Hollywood. It was likely due to this ballad that Phil filled his next album with ballads given how even outside of America, this was one of his biggest hits in his catalogue.
1984 20 weeks
This was written for the Richard Gere flick American gigolo, a film which basically exploits the (then) attractive actor for those who appreciates the male body back when that was a socially acceptable thing to do in pop culture. Of course, the song has become more well known over the years due to it being Blondie’s biggest hit in their native America, and indeed it was also a huge hit for them internationally.
1980 20 weeks
Given how the original version of this track was never released as a single, this leaves the Elton John version the only successful version of this track supposedly about LSD given that’s the initials of the song. Paul has of course denied this and reckons it’s actually about a girl named Lucy who was dreaming to become a huge international superstar, and indeed it appears that’s the direction Elton takes this song in.
1975 20 weeks
It was a new decade and Jenny Morris released this track which tried to change with the times given how some of her contemporaries failed to do so which resulted in their popularity dwindling throughout the decade. Although this was a success for the NZ pop star, it was merely through residual good will she acquired throughout the previous decade as she too found it difficult to keep her momentum going this decade.
1991 20 weeks
(This is from the physical charts)
2006 20 weeks
One of the biggest bands of the 70’s was the Captain and Tennille, and considering this was released just as it was coming to an end, it makes sense that this would be their final hit in their career as it became a success for them during the first year of the 80’s. It’s one of the few hit singles to have a pan flute as one of its instruments, I’m guessing the pair were going for a throwback to the first half of the century.
1980 20 weeks
This was the first of two Oscar winning tracks from Irene Cara, although Australia was one of the few places in the world where this was a hit upon its initial release as this wouldn’t be a hit in NZ and throughout Europe until two years later when the TV show began to air. The film remains a classic thanks to the relatable characters as well as the dance sequences which hold up to modern viewing.
1980 20 weeks
If this vocalist sounds familiar to you, that’s because the KLF were able to get Tammy Wynnette on here which helped them score their third hit in a row worldwide as people no doubt had nostalgia for the country legend. They would release one more single after this which is a remake of their first song as the KLF “What time is love” before they faded into obscurity and eventually broke up.
1992 20 weeks
Well, I did mention when I talked about the original version of this track that this version was a much bigger hit here in Australia a mere three years later, so here we are with this version which was the only other hit that Blue was able to achieve here likely due to our familiarity with the original. I feel they were the 00’s equivalent of MN8 as they too combined harsher RNB elements with the boy band sound.
2001 20 weeks
This was the only hit for both people involved on this track here in Australia, although both of them were much more popular in America given how Fabolous scored a bunch of hits on Billboard whilst Tamia was a popular choice for a guest vocalist on other people’s tracks over there. As with most tracks with a male rapper and female singer, this was a “thugs need love too” anthem that was popular back in the day.
2003 20 weeks
Well, they may have been late to the party here in Australia compared to everywhere else in the world, however that didn’t mean that the Real McCoy saw failure with their singles as evidence by this second hit from their album becoming a massive success here. This was the last song they released where they were credited as MC Sar and the Real McCoy, presumably because it was an unnecessarily long band name for them.
1995 20 weeks
So, it’s come to this, we have the first big hit from Michael Bolton as him as the lead performer. Here we see him cover Otis Redding on the twentieth anniversary of his death likely as a tribute to his body of work, it’s obvious that he wanted to pay his respects to the late musician of colour, and I guess audiences gave him a pass for his good intentions.
1988 20 weeks
This was one of the more popular bands to emerge from Countdown during the 80’s, mainly because despite this not being among the bigger hits of the year down under, it became a huge success in NZ and even decently successful throughout Europe for the band likely due to audiences mistaking them for Icehouse. This would eventually receive a popular remix by the end of the decade just as the band called it quits.
1983 20 weeks
While this is still harder than what they would release later in the decade, many people point to this ballad as the turning point for their transition towards a more mainstream audience as this was a more watered-down version of their sound compared to what had come previously from them. It was a best of both worlds situation as fans weren’t quite off the bandwagon while it also being a huge commercial success.
1992 20 weeks
Following the success of her film Grease, Olivia Newton John decided to use the transformation that her character in the film Sandy went through and apply it to her real-life music career as she went in a more risqué direction with her music. This was the first song she released in this vein which while quite tame to what would come in the 80’s, was still sexier than anything she had released up until this point.
1978 20 weeks
Well, if you thought that Kool and the gang’s only hit in Australia was their version of this ballad, wait until you get a hold of this version from Dutch RNB singer Pappa Bear who managed to outdo the funk band with his rendition of the track. This became a success here in Australia due to it being one of the biggest hits of the decade over in NZ, proving how fondly remembered the original version was.
1998 20 weeks
This was the final hit that Ray Stevens managed to achieve anywhere in the world, at the very least it’s neither one of his comedy tracks or a song about racial harmony to try and make up for his blatantly racist humour. Instead, we have this country ballad which no doubt connected with audiences due to it being released during the height of John Denver’s popularity worldwide.
1975 20 weeks
Following the demise of Raydio the previous year, Ray Parker Jr decided to embark on a solo career which was off to a good start when he scored massive success with this song about how he was in a relationship with someone and how he was falling in love with another woman outside the relationship. It’s a sleazy song sure, but Ray’s performance makes this feel like more of a joke song than him bragging.
1982 20 weeks
This was originally the B-side to Elvis’s hit single “Don’t cry daddy” from 1970, there it was a big hit here in Australia and in most parts of the world given that it was the first song he released after the success of “Suspicious minds.” British DJ Paul Oakenfold decided to remix the track where it became a big success for the king of rock and roll posthumously just like “A little less conversation” the previous year.
2003 20 weeks
Given how Phil Collins had established himself as one of the biggest names in music by this point, it only makes sense that Genesis would finally see some mainstream success which they achieved with the title track of their most successful album. People have complained that this is a Phil Collins track marketed as a Genesis track, I personally don’t care either way as solo or with the group, I’m a fan of his.
1986 20 weeks
Unlike her E street co-star Melissa Tkautz, Toni Pearen waited until she was an adult before she began recording songs which it turns out were far less sexually charged given how she went for a more adult contemporary direction with her music. This means that while her songs are admittedly less memorable, they’re also less embarrassing which is why Toni was able to successfully become a TV host once the hits dried up.
1992 20 weeks
Given how the Eminem show was meant to debunk all of the controversies that were lobbied against Eminem, it only makes sense that he would make this the centrepiece of the album which of course meant that it would be released as a single right after his entry from towards the top of this list. While it didn’t win over his haters, it did reassure those who were on the fence that no, he wasn’t a violent misogynistic homophobe like he portrayed himself as on his albums.
2003 20 weeks
This was the fourth and final single to come from BEP’s first album with Fergie, although I should point out that this song was called “Let’s get retarded” on the album which makes the lyrics about acting stupid make a bit more sense even if it also makes the song ableist as heck. Naturally the band changed the offending word to avoid any implications that they were down is that sort of behaviour.
2004 20 weeks
Well, they may have switched from standing up for aboriginal rights to fighting for the Australian miners and their rights, however that’s the only change that Midnight Oil made for their first album of the 90’s as music wise it’s the same rock and roll that made them a household name throughout the 80’s. This was their final hit in their career in Australia, although they did score one more hit in NZ with “Truganini” in 1993.
1990 20 weeks
I know that this is one of the most quintessential ballads of the 80’s, but something about it feels like it was made in the 90’s to me. I think it’s the way the synths create a dreamy atmosphere that would become more popular in that decade than in this one, although I definitely see how this was able to help the trio become a massive international success given how lovestruck Tom Bailey is throughout the track.
1984 20 weeks
Well, I guess even D12 can prove that they had a serious side to them during their time together, as such we have their third and final hit from their discography which seems to take a page from some of Eminem’s more serious work from his solo albums. They never released a third album due to the death of Proof two years later, although they did try to reunite throughout the 2010’s to little avail.
2004 20 weeks
Just a heads up that I’m on team Digimon when it comes the Pokémon vs Digimon wars from around this time, it’s just a better constructed franchise with better characters and a more complex card game that it’s based on (even though Yu-gi-oh is my favourite card game but I digress.) That out of the way, this was the theme song to the English dub of the first Pokémon movie, a dub that’s infamous for changing the storyline of the original film which was a common troupe for 4kids dubs back in the day.
1999 20 weeks
Given how many entries on this list alone had to have their release schedules tampered with in order to allow Guy Sebastian to have success in Australia, I think it’s safe to say that the general public widely rejected this move given how this only barely makes the list due to sheer prosperity.
2004 20 weeks
This was the other big hit that Sophie B Hawkins was able to achieve worldwide, although it was originally released the previous year to deafening silence likely due to people thinking she was gay due to some lyrics in her other big hit from three years prior suggesting as such. Here there’s no such subtext, it’s just Sophie professing her love towards this person (who could be a guy or a girl) in a sweet and humble way that connected with audiences.
1995 20 weeks
While this wasn’t her debut single, it was the song that got Irish new age vocalist Enya into the mainstream as it became a surprise success in her native UK when it got to number one over there. I’m guessing this was a huge hit down under due to the number of female singer/songwriters making it big around this time, making it a win for what would eventually become the Lilith Fair crowd.
1989 20 weeks
We haven’t had many actors from Home and away to make it big in the music industry, one of the lucky few was Tammin Sursock who scored a massive hit with this song about being in a pointless relationship with someone who isn’t willing to meet her halfway in said relationship. It was a big hit for the Australian actress; however, it was also her only hit as she’s more well known for her TV roles these days.
2004 20 weeks
This was the lead single of the 60’s band the Kingston trio, a band that never saw much success here in Australia back in the day as did a lot of bands and artists who you otherwise would’ve thought were inescapable here. Here he recruits Stevie Nicks on backing vocals for his one and only solo hit anywhere in the world, I’m guessing her presence was what finally made him a success down under.
1979 20 weeks
This was the title track to the third album Bon Jovi had massive international success with, it appears that they didn’t want to alienate fans that made New Jersey a success in the late 80’s too much as they went with the song that most resembled their 80’s material as their first single of the 90’s. Indeed, the rest of the album would be more akin to what the 90’s rock scene would shape up to be.
1992 20 weeks
Well, we’ve finally come to one of the most politically charged songs to ever become a hit worldwide, there’s not much to think about on this track as Green day make very clear that they felt ashamed to be Americans given the political climate they were living in at the time of the song’s release. It served as the lead single to their biggest album which was a concept album that further explored this feeling they had.
2004 20 weeks
Given that he served in the American military earlier in the decade, it’s a bit surprising that Shaggy’s debut single was a flop on Billboard and needed to find success in the UK and throughout Europe to kick start his music career. I’m guessing Americans weren’t too thrilled with this reggae cover of an early 60’s hit, either that or they didn’t realise that this man would go on to rule over both hip hop and reggae throughout the 90’s.
1993 20 weeks
If the melody sounds familiar to you on this track, that’s because it was originally the melody from Spandau Ballet’s “True” from eight years prior that PM Dawn took for themselves for their breakthrough single this year. This has the distinction of being the first Billboard chart topper when they started using Neil scan to determine their charts, meaning that they relied on computers to calculate what was popular rather than audience engagement.
1991 20 weeks
We have one final double entry on this list, this time it’s the third and fourth single from All Saints which were bundled together as they were both covers of popular tracks from yesteryear. I guess “Lady marmalade” fits in with the rising trend of vaudeville tracks becoming hits around this time, however their take on “Under the bridge” sparked outrage from Red hot chili peppers fans for ruining the original for them.
1998 20 weeks
This was the only hit that Roger Voudouris was able to score anywhere in the world, again we have his appearance on Countdown to thank for this as I don’t think it would’ve been as big here in Australia had he not performed the song on the show. I guess you can file this in the same category as all the hits that Leif Garrett and Shaun Cassidy had during the second half of the decade, a good-looking pop star scoring a hit with girls who found him attractive.
1979 20 weeks
Although they made a big splash here in Australia with their cover of the Kinks “You really got me” back in 1978, it wasn’t until this became a Billboard chart topper than Van Halen were able to score massive success here likely due to how frenetic the energy is on this track. Even though this finally put the band on the map down under, it was their only hit with David Lee Roth as the lead vocalist.
1984 20 weeks
Given how he had one of the biggest albums of the decade with the Stranger, Billy Joel no longer had any issues with finding success with his ballads even though he was criticised at the time for making the type of music that seemed to be catered to the soccer mums of the world. Naturally this criticism has died out over the years thanks to his complex song writing as well as how memorably his compositions are.
1978 20 weeks
It’s hard to believe that these guys were considered to be rock dinosaurs when this became a hit for them, after all they had only been active in the music industry for fifteen years by this point. I’m guessing that’s how the youth of the day referred to them when they scored a massive hit with this disco track, after all they hadn’t had a hit in five years, and this was the perfect comeback for them.
1978 20 weeks
These guys claimed that they always wanted to be throwback artists and only went the teen pop direction in order to build their audience so that they could find success with the music they wanted to make. I guess this was the best proof people had for this claim as this feels like a throwback song rather than something to compete with the boy bands of the era, although it makes you wonder why they waited nine years to finally make that transition in their career.
1997 20 weeks
(This is from the physical charts)
2007 20 weeks
The hits kept on coming for Ja Rule in Australia as he released the lead single to his album the Last temptation, I’m guessing it was due to the presence of Bobby Brown who hadn’t had a hit here for a decade and was now providing a chorus for Ja about what it’s like to have thug loving (basically a term he coined for the “thugs need love too” troupe.) This was a huge flop for him in his native America, although at least it was released over there.
2002 20 weeks
This was a short-lived supergroup which comprised of the two vocalists from Led zeppelin as well as members of the Yardbirds and Nile Rogers of Chic fame. Naturally this was going to be a success for the band even though this was the only song they released from their one and only album, it was a temporary project that wasn’t going to last regardless of the results they got.
1984 20 weeks
Black box were on a roll when they released their first single of the 90’s which helped them become established as the hottest EDM group of the moment, although there’s still the issue of Martha Davis not being promoted as their lead singer in their marketing despite her clearly distinct vocals and people having fond memories of her hit single “It’s raining men” during her time with the Weather girls.
1990 20 weeks
If you couldn’t tell from their two biggest hits this year, Mi-sex were a strange but enjoyable band who thought outside the box when it came to incorporating the science fiction craze in their music. Here we have the lead single to their second album which was based on aliens as evidence by the lyrics as well as the cover art. Indeed, the NZ band have been described as otherworldly by those who aren’t into them.
1980 20 weeks
This was originally released as the B-side to Bruce Springsteen’s “Dancing in the dark” which was ranked the second biggest hit of the decade in Australia by David Kent due to its mammoth 64 week run on the charts. Naturally Natalie Cole saw how big this song was and decided to make it her own four years later which allowed it to become her first big hit here after over a decade of trying to make it big.
1988 20 weeks
This was a bit of a surprise hit for Julian Lennon as the last time he troubled the charts anywhere in the world was with his debut single “Too late for goodbyes” from five years prior. Indeed, this lead single to his third album was a massive flop throughout the rest of the world and yet it was a huge success for him here in Australia, likely for the video which depicted him with a prototype of Slappy the dummy from Goosebumps.
1989 20 weeks
