Billboard's #1 Pop Singles

[I Am A Swede]

Well, maybe I'm stretching the non-English part a bit..... But it's definitely non-English in origin. The song I'm referring to is this one, French conductor Paul Mauriat's famous chart-topping hit from 1968, written by French composer André Popp: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG--KuT1VGQ It was originally Luxembourg's entry for the 1967 Eurovision Song Contest. Then with lyrics by Pierre Cour and performed by Greek-born singer Vicky Leandros: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_orG0VDFqOQ

[alphanguy74]

Ah!! I had no idea that was Eurovision, either! LOL I love that song, and will expound it much more when it's time comes along, I see what you mean by a different version. My favorite Eurovision song of all time is a Swedish entry, so i'll start that thread, so we don't get too far off track in here with our Eurovisions discussions. I have TONS to say on those.

[Max]

I Am A Suede and Alphanguy, thank you both so much for sharing your expertise of Eurovision. I feel so embarrassed, but I had never heard of Eurovision before.

I have no idea how these other songs did at Eurovision, but only three other foreign language songs (to the best of my knowledge) ever made it to #1. (The list gets bigger if you include records that were sung partly in English and partly in another language.) They are as follows:

"Sukiyaki" by Kyu Sakamoto (1963)

"Dominique" by The Singing Nun (1963) [This is a truly dreaduly song, IMO.]

"La Bamba" by Los Lobos (1987)

"Eres Tu" by Mocedades--which Alphanguy posted earlier--reached #9 in 1974. I believe that the higest charting foreign language song that failed to go to #1 was 1984's "99 Luftballons" by Nena, which peaked at #2. (An English version of this song--titled "99 Red Balloons"--failed to chart.)

The third doo-wop song to reach #1 in 1958 was "Little Star" by The Elegants, which spent one week at the peak position: the week ended 8/25/58.

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The Elegants were a white vocal group from Staten Island, led by Vito Picone. (Like most white doo-wop groups, the Elegants were Italian-Americans.) The group got the idea for its name after seeing an advertisement for Schenley's Whiskey, stating that it was the "liquor of elegance." The Elegants' one and only hit was a rock and roll interpretation of Mozart's "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star," with lyrics written by Picone and fellow group member Arthur Venosa.

Aside from failing to make the top 40 again (which is the standard definition of a one-hit wonder), the Elegants never even managed to have another entry appear on the Hot 100 chart. I personally felt that this group deserved better, given that "Little Star" is a dreamy and enjoyable tune.

[DRW50]

The best part of the song is the start They're better than the song. I wish they'd had other hits.

[alphanguy74]

I'd never seen the Elegants before, and wow, what a good looking bunch. I agree with Carl the group is better than the song.... but however, the repetetive chorus is nice... it's another one of those songs that just skips along at a nice pace. I will say, whoever is singing the second tenor part in the intro seems a little flat to me.

[I Am A Swede]

It's nothing to feel embarrassed about. If you're from the U.S. then it's not surprising that you've never heard of the Eurovision Song Contest. Not many songs or artists from that competition reach outside Europe. (With a few notable exceptions of course, of which ABBA, Cliff Richard, Nana Mouskouri, Olivia Newton-John, Julio Iglesias and Celine Dion are perhaps the most famous)

[Max]

After "Volare" fell from the top spot for the second time, it was succeeded by "It's All in the Game" by Tommy Edwards. "It's All in the Game" is a beautiful song that spent six weeks at number one: the weeks ended 9/29/58, 10/6/58, 10/13/58, 10/20/58, 10/27/58, & 11/3/58.

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Without a doubt, "It's All in the Game" is the most commercially successful tune ever written by a politician: its music was written in 1912 by Charles G. Dawes, who served as Vice President of the United States from 1925-29 (under Calvin Coolidge). It would not be until 1951 when Carl Sigman added lyrics to the song; later that year, Tommy Edwards became one of four vocalists to record "It's All in the Game," with his version making the best showing on the chart. (It peaked at #18.) Seven years later, Edwards re-recorded this tune (with modern production techniques), and it subsequently became one of the most popular songs of 1958.

Tommy Edwards was a singer whose music was part pop and part R&B. Despite the huge success of (the second version of) "It's All in the Game," Edwards' second biggest hit was "Please Mr. Sun," which reached #11 in 1959. After 1960, Edwards never again made the Hot 100. (Ironically, his final chart entry was titled "It's Not the End of Everything.") However, the saddest news regarding Mr. Edwards was that he died of a brain aneurysm in 1969 at age 47.

As a final note, modestly successful cover versions of "It's All in the Game" were made by Cliff Richard and the Four Tops. The former version peaked at #25 in 1964, while the latter peaked at #24 in 1970.

[OldSchoolSoapFan]

Tommy Edwards had some great songs. "Please Mr. Sun" is a terrific one which I think I enjoy a teeny bit more than his big one "It's All In The Game". Donny & Marie did a cover version of his "Morning Side Of The Mountain" which they took to the Top 10 in 1975.

OMG I love the Elegants' "Little Star"!!!! Straight outta Staten Island!!!!!

[alphanguy74]

Holy Mackerel! I had no idea that Tommy Edwards had the original version of "Morning Side Of the Mountain", fascinating. Here are those cover versions that Max mentioned... I'm pretty sure Cliff's version was a big hit in the UK, although it was only #25 here. And the Four Tops' version is notable in that it's the only Four Tops single where Levi Stubbs shares the lead with Obie Benson

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8iVHiwwgAgM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qB48ZvBHmxQ

Max, this song hit the hot 100 3 times, I wonder how many songs have hit multiple times with different artists like that. I have a suspicion that "Everlasting Love" might be the record holder, as I know it hit 4 times (5 times if you count the UK charts)

[Max]

Alphanguy, I never knew that anybody other than Levi Stubbs sang lead on a Four Tops recording. (I had never before listened to their version of "It's All in the Game.") I also had no idea that "Everlasting Love" charted so many times.

OldSchoolSoapFan, welcome to this thread! Though I prefer "It's All in the Game," "Please Mr. Sun" is also an enjoyable recording.

I wholeheartedly agree with your assessment on "Little Star"!

Conway Twitty is one of the biggest names in country music history. His sole #1 hit on the pop chart was "It's Only Make Believe," which spent two non-consecutive weeks at the top: the weeks ended 11/10/58 & 11/24/58. (Note that I had a lot of trouble finding the original recording of this song on YouTube. I'm pretty sure that what's posted below is the original, or something that's very close to it.)

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At different points in the life of Harold Lloyd Jenkins, he seriously considered becoming a minister or a professional baseball player. However, he decided to become a musician upon hearing Elvis Presley's "Mystery Train." Somebody suggested to Jenkins that his real name didn't have "star quality," so he decided to re-name himself after two towns: Conway, AR and Twitty, TX.

Twitty's rock and roll career was short-lived, as he would only score two additional top 10 hits: 1959's "Danny Boy" and 1960's "Lonely Blue Boy." (Despite this fact, he served as the inspiration for Conrad Birdie, the main character of the rock musical "Bye Bye Birdie.") Truth be told, however, Conway was getting bored of the genre, and decided that his real interests were with country music. This career change proved to be a wise one, as he scored a whopping 40 number one hits on the country chart (five of which were duets with Loretta Lynn). To the best of my knowledge, only George Strait has more country chart-toppers, with 44 of them.

There's no telling how many number one country hits Twitty would have amassed if he hadn't died of an abdominal aortic aneurysm in 1993. He was only 59 years old.

Before I conclude, I just wanted to say that it's amazing just how much "It's Only Make Believe" sounds like a Presley recording. (The fact that the Jordanaires served as back-up gave it even more of that "Presley feel.") And incidentally, it would be among my favorite Elvis songs if it was indeed one of the King's own.

[quartermainefan]

Max, according to the reponders to this upload, this is the true version. No idea if it is the same version as yours.

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[DRW50]

It's Only Make Believe is a nice song, although I really prefer his version o Danny Boy.

I find it amusing that the '70s had such a backlash against country-pop, all kinds of anger at Olivia Newton John and John Denver, when some of their biggest stars, like Charlie Rich and Conway Twitty, started out of pop or rock.

For me the best thing about Conway is the duet career he had with Loretta Lynn.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rm5-sZLBPfs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ruQVee-Q53M

I also remember those "greatest hits" commercials he made where he was on some cheap set, miming to his biggest hits. "Hello darlin..nice to see ya...IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME...")

[Max]

Carl, out of Twitty's rock/pop hits, "It's Only Make Believe" and "Lonely Blue Boy" are my favorites. However, "Danny Boy" is a really good song as well.

Qfan, thank you for posting the original verson of "It's Only Make Believe." Though I think it is the same version as the one I posted, it's good to have your addition so that others can be able to judge for themselves.

In between the two non-consecutive weeks "It's Only Make Believe" spent at number one, "Tom Dooley" by The Kingston Trio held the top spot for one week: the week ended 11/17/58.

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The Kingston Trio--a group from San Francisco consisting of Dave Guard, Bob Shane, and Nick Reynolds--served as the pioneers of modern folk music. (In 1961, Guard left and was replaced by John Stewart.) Their first hit was about a man named Tom Dula (whose last name was prounced "Dooley"), a resident of North Carolina who was hanged for the 1866 murder of his one-time girlfriend, Laura Foster. To this day, details about Foster's murder remain murky, and many believe the actual killer was not Dula (who was a Confederate veteran), but rather a former lover of his by the name of Anne Melton. (It's further believed by some that Dula covered for Melton, which is perhaps one reason why she was acquitted of Foster's murder at her own trial.)

The Kingston Trio served as a major influence to many other artists, including Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, John Denver, and Peter, Paul, & Mary. Listed below are the trio's other top 40 hits:

"The Tijuana Jail" (#12 in 1959)

"M.T.A." (#15 in 1959)

"A Worried Man" (#20 in 1959)

"El Matador" (#32 in 1960)

"Bad Man Blunder" (#37 in 1960)

"Where Have All the Flowers Gone" (#21 in 1962)

"Greenback Dollar" (#21 in 1963)

"Reverend Mr. Black" (#8 in 1963)

"Desert Pete" (#33 in 1963)

It may be surprising to some that these above songs weren't bigger hits, but the fact of the matter is that (for whatever reason) folk songs usually perform poorly on the pop chart.

[DRW50]

The dying days of folk in the mainstream. Many blamed Bob Dylan for the pollution of the purest folk music, but folk artists like Joan Baez and Peter, Paul and Mary kept the tradition going on the charts.

[alphanguy74]

You know, Max, when I worked at a garden center 20 years ago, we had a regular customer whose name was Tom Dooley, and that song went through my head every time he would come in. I have to say that "Where Have All The Flowers Gone" is my favorite form them, as depressing as it is. It's very beautiful, one of the most beautiful war protest songs, next to Dusty Springfield's "Broken Blossoms".