dwvanstone | Recent Entries

This is the public view of my Dreamwidth account. I've used it in the past to comment on music that I'm listening to.

I'm also using Dreamwidth to post regularly about my personal life and an occasional set of photos from my digital library. Only the music-related posts are public.

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David

Max Martin has produced (or co-produced) 27 Billboard Hot #1s -- a record for a producer! (He's still behind Paul McCartney as a songwriter.)

His first was Britney Spears' "...Baby One More Time" which rises to #1 this week (Jan 30, 1999) in Billboard history.

But what grabbed my eye this month was that most of the songs in the Top 10 had been on the charts for exactly 9 weeks. That's a weird coincidence! So I looked nine weeks back to the chart on December 5, 1998 and ... oh my goodness, 61 of the songs were debuting that week.

Whaaa????

Usually somewhere between 2 and 12 songs debut each week. Something must be going on.

So I found this article on Billboard which exclaimed:

Billboard looks back at one of the most important rule changes in Hot 100 history, which occurred in December 1998, and the immediate impact it had on the chart at the time.

But it's behind a paywall!

I finally found a Wordpress blog written by a fan who explained what happened. The team at Billboard relaxed their rules for what songs could appear on the chart. Before that date, a song could be on the chart only if a consumer could buy the single. After that date, any song was eligible (such as if it played on the radio).
Record companies were denying consumers the ability to buy the popular singles to encourage them to buy the full album. (This was before Apple introduced 99 cent individual downloadable songs.)

The page lists several songs that were very popular on radio that never charted because of this rule (such as "Stairway to Heaven"). I found it fascinating!

Thankfully, there are about 5-6 new songs each week so far in 1999. That makes it so much faster for me to catch up on the new songs each week. (Compared to 1967 or 2025.)

My musical journey back in time is to the Billboard charts of Nov 25, 1967 when I was just under one year old.

I like the #1 song that week ("Incense and Peppermints") - it's playful and knowingly nonsensical in its lyrics.

Two songs stuck out as different this week. Well, they aren't songs, they are spoken text with patriotic schmaltz in the background. The first is the conservative "An Open Letter To My Teenage Son" (eventually reaching #10) by Victor Lundberg about a father who is trying to explain himself to (and threaten with disownment) his draft-card-burning, hippie son. The response track "A Letter To Dad" was released by Every Father's Teenage Son and entered the charts this week. These two pieces are very political and direct.

Also entering this week is the weird response to "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" called "Judy In Disguise (With Glasses)". It's....bizarre.

It's still a fun journey to hear another era of music.

Let's talk about what debuted at #100 on this week's Hot 100: "Headlock" by Imogen Heap, from her 2005 album Speak for Yourself.

I adore Imogen Heap and am so happy and surprised to hear her here. This is her only Billboard Hot 100 song in her lengthy career. (Seek out "Hide and Seek" and "Goodnight and Go" if you haven't heard them.)

I remember that Kate Bush popped into the Hot 100 for a while in 2022 due to her song "Running Up That Hill" being featured in the TV series Stranger Things. I also remember Fleetwood Mac reappeared in the charts with "Dreams" in 2020 due to a viral TikTok video.

The Imogen Heap song is charting now due a TikTok trend of showing edited clips from the video game Mouthwashing with "Headlock" as the soundtrack. (I couldn't find any reason why the video game was associated with the song.)

It's a beautiful song. I'm so happy it's having its moment!

#100 on the older chart I'm listening to (Aug 12, 1967) is "Good Day Sunshine" by the singer Claudine Longet. It actually spent two weeks at #100 before dropping off. (A rare feat to do!) I recommend it only if you like kitschy Beatles covers.)

In the current Billboard Hot 100 charts there's an ongoing race for the most weeks at #1.

Six years ago Lil Nas X smashed that record with his genre-defying "Old Town Road" which lasted a jaw-dropping 19 weeks at #1. It still is the champion but a few songs are vying to tie and possibly break that record.

The pleasant country song "A Bar Song (Tipsy)" by new artist Shaboozey was on course to defeat that record last month. He hit 19 weeks on my birthday (Dec 1) but was displaced for one critical week by the surprise release of Kendrick Lamar's album GNX. "Squabble Up" lasted only one week at the top but it was too late. "All I Want for Christmas is You" by Mariah Carey came back as she does every year and dominated the top spot over the holiday season.

Once Christmas was over there was a new leader in Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars' nostalgic hit "Die With a Smile." However, Shaboozey waits patiently at #2 in case Gaga & Mars flounder. He may match or break Lil Nas X's record still.

But ... that Mariah Carey song now has also racked 18 weeks at #1 and is likely to return to the top again next Christmas as she's done every year since 2019. She will probably have the record for the rest of my lifetime!

[I'm still grieving over the election - part of what I do for comfort is listen to music and reflect on music history. Thus, today's post.]

I'm listening to music from the second half of 1965 recently. I knew about the Beatles and Motown and Rolling Stones and some psychedelic music ... but Sonny & Cher? Aren't they from the 70's??

It turns out they started in 1964 and had their first giant (and only #1) hit, "I Got You Babe" in 1965. I remember that song as a child from watching The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour from the 70's.

What I also didn't expect was that several other hits by them (together or solo) were charting simultaneously. Here are their hits on the Hot 100 on September 18, 1965:

49. "All I Really Want to Do" by Cher (peaked at #15): her first solo single, a cover of a Bob Dylan track, charting at the same time with a different cover by The Byrds.

42. "Just You" by Sonny & Cher (peaking at #20): it was first released in April but was rereleased after their huge success.

22. "Baby Don't Go" by Sonny & Cher (peaking at #8): first released in 1964, then rereleased in 1965.

14. "Laugh at Me" by Sonny (peaking at #10): Sonny's only Hot 100 song.

10. "I Got You Babe" by Sonny & Cher (peaked at #1): it still has a catchy sweetness.

From these, the Bob Dylan cover and "I Got You Babe" are my favorite. The others seem typical from the time with nothing that stands out.

I've noticed errors on the Billboard Hot 100 charts over the years, usually related to typos in the artist or song name.

However, the recent weeks I've been enjoying from 1977 skip an entry.

January 1, 1977: Missing # 19
January 8, 1977: Missing # 17
January 15, 1977: Missing # 15

My theory is that an unspecified song is somehow missing from their internal database. I informed Alex Vitoulis, the Associate Director Charts Production Manager at Billboard. He claims he'll look into it.

I found out (through top40weekly.com) that the missing song is Somebody to Love by Queen. Why is it missing? Who knows!

I had found a previous mistake from March 12, 1960 which had two #26s and no #29. Maybe Alex will solve that problem too!

Where are the proofreaders??

I've switched from listening to Billboard songs from 1960 to Billboard songs from 1977. On January 8, 1977 there were two songs called "In the Mood" which debuted -- I thought maybe this was another case of an original and a cover coming in at the same time. But no!

The first was part of a medley by Rush from their 1976 live album All The World's a Stage. (The full song is "Fly By Night/In The Mood.")

The second was ... well, this weird cover of the Glenn Miller original by Henhouse Five Plus Too. (I believe this was a spoof of the 50s Dixieland jazz band Firehouse Five Plus Two.)

Also debuting was a disco version of the I Love Lucy theme by the Wilton Place Street Band. (The band was created for the sole purpose of releasing this single.)

I'm in for several months of listening to novelty tracks. I'm both amused and terrified.

Ha! I found an answer! I'm up to Billboard week of 1960-06-20 and *four* versions of "Look For a Star" entered the charts simultaneously. Furthermore, one was by Garry Miles and other by Garry Mills. Is there deviousness going on here where someone purposefully created a counterfeit hit?

This wikipedia page confirms that theory!

The original song was recorded by Garry Mills for the movie Circus of Horrors. Buzz Cason, a singer & songwriter, purposefully picked the pseudonym "Garry Miles" to sow confusion! He ended up recording new songs under this pseudonym in later years. Several other people also quickly released their own versions to try to ride the wave.

The pseudonym version ended up being the bigger hit!

I don't particularly recommend any of these versions -- it was just a weird pop trend I wanted to note.

This week we have two versions of "Fast Car" in the Billboard Hot 100. The recent cover from Luke Combs is back in the top 10 in its 46th week on the charts, but the original Tracy Chapman version just popped up at #42. I'm seeing other chart bumps from the Grammy Awards but this one made me smile the most.

I don't recall any time in the recent years where a song and its cover charted at the same time. However, back in the chart of June 6, 1960 (which I'm currently listening to) there were lots of versions of the same song.

Ray Bryant started the dance craze called The Madison with his song "The Madison Time" (peaked at #30), but the version by Al Brown's Tunetoppers reached its peak of #23 that same week.

There's "Heartbreak (It's Hurtin' Me)" written and performed by Little Willie John up to #79 in its second week...but a new cover by Jon Thomas just entered at #93.

There are two instrumental covers of Augusto Alguero's Spanish song "La Montana (If She Should Come To You)", one by Frank DeVol and His Rainbow Strings (!!) and one by Roger Williams.

But, best of all, there are three versions of "Alley-Oop", a song about the comic strip of the same name. The original (video) was by the Hollywood Argyles -- this version eventually hit #1. The other two copycats were by The Dyna-Sores and by Dante and the Evergreens.

I'm curious how artists were able to record songs so quickly and get them released.

Music from 1960 is weird. Many of the songs are covers of Standards or of previous hits, but a sizeable portion which are renditions of popular songs from the 40s or earlier. (I'm thinking of "Chattanooga Choo Choo", "Waltzing Matilda", "Oh My Darling, Clementine," or "Don't Fence Me In".)

The one track that caught my attention was the spiritual "Down by the Riverside" performed by Le Compagnons De La Chanson, a French choir. Why was there such fascination of French music in 1960 in America?

Enjoy if you are curious!

I finished listening to six months of Billboard Hot 100 hits of 1972 and I've started listening to music from 1960. So far...nothing much is to my taste this first week. Part of this project is just to learn the names of famous artists and associate them with styles of music. I also like associating a year with the kinds of music that were popular. This is before the British Invasion (which started in 1964), before Brazilian pop (which started in 1965). I went through 1962 in the past and found lots of interesting music so I expect to find some favorites as I go along.

1960 was the third year in a row that the novelty Xmas song "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)" charted. (It was the only Christmas song to hit #1 until Mariah Carey's current pop Christmas song whose name I shall not mention.)

Here are two songs from this year that caught my attention, clearly mimicking the Chipmunks:

"Uh Oh! Part 1" (peaked at # 45)

and

"Uh Oh! Part 2" (peaked at #14)

both by The Nutty Squirrels. I've never seen a song broken up into parts with both parts charting. This was a 45 RPM single with two sides. (The charts in 1960 combined record sales, radio plays, and jukebox plays.)

The Chipmunks liked to play pop music, the Nutty Squirrels sang jazz with their weird high-pitched scat singing.

Worth a listen!

I'm still listening to lots of music from Billboard's Hot 100 from 1987. It's not my favorite year of music but there are some treats here and there. I should finish that year in a few more weeks.

Afterwards, I'll be listening to the second half of 1972. The first thing I do with this project is make a Spotify playlist of all 100 songs (or as many are on Spotify) from the first week (July 1, 1972) and slowly fill it in. I just reached the song at #11 with the longest artist I've ever encountered:

"Amazing Grace" by The Pipes And Drums And The Military Band Of The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards

It's exactly what it sounds like, an instrumental bagpipe version of "Amazing Grace". And I think ... why?? Why was this popular? Why in 1972? What was happening then? (Note: the song ended up peaking at #11.)

A funny note from Wikipedia:

"It is also a controversial instrumental, as it combined pipes with a military band. The Pipe Major of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards was summoned to Edinburgh Castle and chastised for demeaning the bagpipes."

Poking at this a bit ... it turns out that Judy Collins had recorded an a cappella version on her 1970 album Whales & Nightingales ... and it was a surprise hit on the radio and reached #15 on Billboard's Hot 100. Aretha Franklin also based her biggest album from 1972 around that spiritual hymn. It was just in the air.

I don't just listen to the current Billboard Hot 100, I also go back in time and listen to a randomly-selected six month period. I'm finishing up the second half of 2009, the time of big hits by Lady Gaga, The Black-Eyed Peas, Taylor Swift, and lots of contemporary country artists.

This was also the start of a string of short-lived hits by the cast of Glee. Whenever a song was covered on an episode, it was simultaneously released for digital download (and maybe streaming?) and gobbled up by fans. From 2009-2015 the Glee cast broke the record for the most entries in the Hot 100, featuring 207 songs in total.

The songs usually debut somewhere in the middle of the Hot 100 then drop out the following week. It was a great strategy to reach that Billboard record. (This record was finally surpassed by Drake in 2021.)

The only songs in 2009 that I really enjoyed were pairings of covers mixed together, like "Rumour Has It" together with "Someone Like You."

The second highest song debuting this week (at #26) is "Ella Balla Sola" by Eslabon Armado X Peso Pluma.

Most of the songs in Spanish on the charts in recent years have been reggaeton (such as "Despacito,") so it surprises me when another genre emerges as a trend. This song sounds to me like traditional Mexican music, i.e., "Regional Mexican" music. I've been hearing other traditional Mexican music bubble in the bottom of the charts over the past year but this is the first time a song from this genre debuted into the top 40.

Another Regional Mexican hit "Bebe Dame" (by Fuerza Regida X Grupo Frontera) is in its 12th week on the charts, reaching as high as #25. This definitely feels like a new trend!

Every once in a while something on the Billboard Hot 100 charts grab my attention. I'll try to post it when it happens.

This week there are three songs in a row with the same US state in its title:

38 -> 74 Tennessee Numbers by Morgan Wallen
91 -> 75 Tennessee Orange by Megan Moroney
54 -> 76 Tennessee Fan by Morgan Wallen

Tennessee must be the latest country trope.

"I’d tell her it's my fault and I still love her
But she quit taking calls from Tennessee numbers"

"In Georgia, they'd call it a sin
I'm wearin' Tennessee orange for him"

"Yeah, she was raised Roll Tide 'til the day she died
But ever since that night, she's been a Tennessee fan"

(Note: Wallen is from Tennessee and Moroney is from Georgia.)

Related: Here's an article from 2016 about the most represented states in song lyrics. It looks like New York was the leader and likely still is.

I wanted to share three of the tracks I find interesting from this week's Hot 100.

I love hearing an artist revisit an old classic of theirs. Taylor Swift debuts at #11 with her newly released "Love Story," a re-recording of her #4 hit from 2008. This is part of her project to own the masters of her music now that they old masters were sold to an investment company. I want to see which of her rerecording sticks around for multiple weeks or even exceed the original placement on the charts.

A new artist, Giveon, has two debut songs. The lower one at #95 is "LIKE I WANT YOU," a slow triple-beat jam with a rare slow groove that knows how to takes it's time. (Most songs on the chart are under three minutes - this one is over four.) I like that his voice is central to the song, compared to being lost in the mix of slick production and layers in other hits.

"Good Days" by SZA. Just listen to the extra reverbed intro and her conversational style of singing with surprise jumps and runs. There's not a strong melodic hook but lots of beautiful sonics and SZA connecting to us. This debuted eight weeks ago, peaked at #9 and just fell to #18. It's her first top 10 and it sounds like nothing else on the charts these days. (It's also over four minutes.) I hope for more surprises from her.

There are some interesting details in the female country artist scene on this historic week in Billboard history.

#100: This is likely to be the final week for "Not Ready to Make Nice" by The Chicks (formally The Dixie Chicks). Although it only reached #23, it won two Grammys for Record of the Year and Song of the Year in 2007. In 2003, the lead vocalist Natalie Maines criticized President Bush and the invasion in Iraq. There was a strong backlash as their songs were blacklisted from Country radio stations. This song was their response to their situation.

In this week in 2021, Morgan Wallen, the latest bad boy of country radio with nine songs on the Billboard Hot 100, was just blacklisted himself on Country radio stations for angrily saying the N-word at someone in public. Usually (white) bad boys like him get away with an apology and everybody moves on, so I'm pleased and surprised that Country radio finally drew the line somewhere on racial justice.

#86: This week the song "Tim McGraw" debuted in the Hot 100. This is the first song by Taylor Swift who will, in later years, dominate the charts. I didn't know this song. (She is on the charts this week in 2021 with her folky hit "Willow".)

#79: "Sunshine and Summertime" by Faith Hill, slowly falling from its peak at #70. Mildly catchy, and has a great moment where Hill sings a scale up and down.

#78: "Before He Cheats" by Carrie Underwood, climbing the charts. I think this is one of Underwood's biggest pop crossover hits with a rock edge over jealous rage.

In 2021 there's a related track called "I Wish" by Gabby Barrett which, for me, is even catchier and healthier way to seek revenge.

#47: "Leave the Pieces" by The Wreckers, a duo of Michelle Branch and Jessica Harp. They had one album together and this is the bigger of their two hits. I like their harmonizing.

In 2021, there are only three female country acts. Maybe when Morgan Wallen falls off next week some more women will take his place.

I wanted to highlight two songs on this week's Billboard Hot 100.

Morgan Wallen has nineteen songs on the charts. He's a young country artist who has figured out the social media platforms successfully to grab massive streams when he has a new album out. But, more interestingly to me, he is merging some hip-hop elements into his music. His highest charting (#9) song is "Wasted On You" with its swing rhythm articulated by click-y (hip-hop style) percussion. As most bro country songs, he feels sorry for himself. Poor guy.

Doja Cat keeps being interesting with her releases. I had grouped her together with the recent female rap artists hitting the charts in the past few years but she shocked me her disco bopper "Say So" last year. This week she debuts at #91 with "Streets" with its slow R&B click-y sound and odd, parallel harmonizing. I can't really classify the track.

Most songs on the charts are easily classified within the first few seconds. I enjoy the tracks that strain against the boundaries.

Although I'm not loving much of the music from 2006, it is nice to see so many female artists in the top 10 -- six in that week in 2006 compared to three this week in 2021.

I'm noticing a trend of several female pop artists who were also big in reality shows or movies/TV. For instance, Paris Hilton released one album in 2006 which included her only Hot 100 hit "Stars Are Blind" (reaching #18). It has a light reggae beat. (I just learned the phrase cod reggae meaning reggae made by white folks.) It's not as bad as I imagined it would be.

A more interesting song to me is Jessica Simpson's "A Public Affair," a song borrowing heavily from Madonna's sound from the 80's. Nostalgia? Her younger sister, Ashlee Simpson, also has a hit this week with "Invisible", her last top 40 hit. This is my favorite of the three with fun clangy guitars in the chorus.

Brooke Hogan, daughter of Hulk, has the highest debut song (#53) with "About Us," a pop-by-numbers trifle. I don't recommend it. There's also Monica debuting at #94 with a catchy "Everytime Tha Beat Drop".

I supposed any of the American Idol cast on the charts would also be considered TV stars. It seemed to me that to be a female musician in 2006 also meant being pervasive across media. (Probably the same way artists have to be all over social media now.)

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David Van Stone

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David Van Stone

Recent Entries

Welcome to Dreamwidth

Billboard Notes: 1999-01-30

Billboard Notes: 1967-11-25

Billboard Notes: 2025-01-25

Billboard Notes: 2024-01-18

Billboard Notes: 1965-09-18

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Billboard History: 2006-09-23

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