The year that many consider to be the first true year of pop music as a stand-alone genre which went on to dominate the charts for another (at least) forty years. Whilst the pop music of 1963 was still quite heavily laden with influences from previous decades, it truly began to form into something of its own with the emergence of Gerry and the Pacemakers, Freddie and the Dreamers, The Searchers, The Beach Boys and those shy Liverpudlians, The Beatles.
The Four Seasons were dealing with gender sterotypes in 'Walk like a Man' and 'Big Girls don't cry' but managed to release what I think might be the worst cover version I've ever heard - including every single trip to the Gateshead District Social Club Karaoke Night - 'Ain't That a Shame'. They don't just murder it, they bury it in an unmarked grave in the woods. Bobby Darin's 'Eighteen Yellow Roses' sounds like they released a Roy Orbison B-side and put the wrong name on the label. Michael Jackson famously sang the song 'Ben' which was about a rat but I wonder if John Leyton's 'I'll cut your tail off' was also about a rodent of some kind. Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme's 'I want to stay here' sounds almost exactly like the theme tune to Eastenders - Soap Opera Theme Tune composer Simon May was 19 when this song was out - just saying.
40. Julie Grant - "Up On The Roof"
'Up on the roof', was no doubt sung by every tiling contractor in the country at the time. It seems that if you liked a song in the early sixties, Carole King probably had something to do with it. This was another of her collaborations with Gerry Goffin which was originally recorded by The Drifters. It was Kenny Lynch who introduced the song to us, though his version was lacking a little energy and it was the horror that was Robson and Jerome's 1995 version, which made sure nobody would ever want to hear the song ever again.
Julie's version however has just the right ingredients and the right level of optimism to chase away the ghosts of the Soldier Soldier pair. It's in the newly emerging Meseybeat style and was produced by Tony Hatch who wrote the theme tune to Crossroads.
39. Shirley Bassey - "I (Who Have Nothing)"
Shirley became almost omnipotent by the 1970s, appearing on every light entertainment program she could fit into her schedule. Even when I was a young'un in the 80s, she'd pop up on Little and Large or anything hosted by Des O'Connor. Her histrionic style wasn't so much in evidence in the early 60s however but this song, 'I (Who Have Nothing)' is dramatic, full of dynamics and tempo changes and Timpanis (which improve anything they appear on) - it probably led her to leaning more into her 'expressive' vocal style later in her career.
The song itself is an English language version of the Italian song 'Uno dei tanti'. Ben E. King sang the first iteration of it, only releasing it in the US in 1962 before Shirley took it to 6 in the UK. Tom Jones thought he'd have a crack at it in 1970 and scored a number 16 hit.
Here's a little snippet of trivia you might not have known. This song was the first ever release by the band 'The Spectres' in 1966 (later known as Status Quo) but it failed to chart.
38. The Shadows - "Atlantis"
Seventeen weeks this spent in the chart. Seventeen!! It stalled at number 2 for two weeks however behind the saccharine Gerry and the Pacemakers song, 'I Like it'. It was written by Jerry Lordan (who also wrote 'Apache' and 'Wonderful Land').
The stereo version has the rhythm guitar and drum tapping in the right ear whilst the female choir, lead guitar twanging and violins in the left ear - it's a terrible mix for headphones but I guess that wasn't a problem if you only had one speaker in 1963.
37. Chiffons - "He's So Fine"
Just after The Beatles had been riding high in the chart with 'From me to you' (which should really have been The Chuckle Brothers' theme tune), George Harrison must have switched on the radio and heard this track, allowing it to slowly burrow into his sub-cortical emotional centres. It gestated in there for a while and then emerged like a butterfly in the song 'My Sweet Lord' - about which there was a lengthy court case. It ended up with George Harrison's one-time manager Allen Klein purchasing the company that held the rights to 'He's So Fine' and Harrison was ordered to buy the company from Klein. The case went on from 1971 to 1991. The Chiffons recorded a version of 'My Sweet Lord' in 1975 to try and capitalise on all the publicity.
'He's So Fine' went to number one in the States for four weeks, only managing a modest number 16 here. It utilises that catchy motif that often causes songs to lodge in your long-term memory, the 'Doo-lang doo-lang doo-lang' lasting much longer than anything else about the song.
36. The Beatles - "Please Please Me"
Whilst their first release 'Love Me Do' (which wasn't an invitation to appreciate their haircuts), 'Please Please Me' was a lot more interesting and rocketed them up the chart and into the public consciousness with a number 2 hit. It stalled behind Frank Ifield's 'Wayward Wind' (something for which I hope he took tablets), fell to number 3 and then went back up to number 2, this time behind Cliff Richard's 'Summer Holiday'.
This track is crafted really well; it has destinct sections, counter melodies, choral parts, instrumental hooks, unusual harmonies and rhythm and blues inspired chromatic builds. It's much more than a pop song really.
35. Mel Torme - "Coming Home Baby"
This song creeps along and creates a kind of uneasy atmosphere that's strangely magnetic. There's a melodic minor moment which gives the single that 'multiple listens' factor you need to creep up the chart.
This was Mel Torme's second hit, a number 13, which followed his 1956 debut 'Mountain Greenery' which reached number 3. His nickname was 'The Velvet Fog' and his biggest imprint on history was the fact he composed the music for 'The Christmas Song' (better known by the lyric 'Chestnuts roasting on an open fire').
34. Swinging Blue Jeans - "Hippy Hippy Shake"
I'm not sure if this band got their name from the contents of their washing line on a windy day but Hippies weren't a thing until the mid-sixties (mind you, the cocktail of drugs they imbibed invariably resulted in 'the shakes').
Turns out, the 'Hippy Hippy Shake' is a dance ('You shake it to the left, You Shake it to the right, you do the Hippy Shake Shake with all of your might') but what part of your body they want you to shake left and right isn't specified.
The 'Blue Jeans' had a modest introduction to the chart rundown, reaching number 30 in June with 'It's Too Late Now' whilst the follow-up, 'Hippy Hippy Shake' climbed all the way up to number 2 (spending seven weeks in the top 10) but couldn't knock The Dave Clark Five's 'Glad all over' off the top spot.
33. Chubby Checker - "What Do You Say"
Chubby's chart career was barely two years old when it came to a juddering halt with this tune, an underwhelming number 37 peaking track which became his penultimate solo outing on the chart. He wasn't seen again until 1975 when they re-released (again) his 1961 hit 'Let's Twist Again' without changing the lyrics to 'Let's Twist Again, like we did fourteen summers ago'.
This song bears a haunting similarity to Gerry and the Pacemakers' 'How do you do' but it's still catchy.
32. Freddie And The Dreamers - "You Were Made For Me"
Freddie Garrity and the boys only troubled the charts for about 23 months but they made a huge impact. Their debut 'If you Gotta Make a Fool out of Someone' reached number 3 and the follow up 'I'm telling you now' managed one place better, peaking at number 2 in August. It underlined how much the record buying public was clamouring for more bouncy, happy and slightly nauseating pop expeditions. Freddie usually resorted to seemingly random leg-spasms which resulted in him scampering around the stage, leaping in the air like he was being attacked by a swarm of Tarantulas and choreographed heel kicks in unison with the rest of the band (except the drummer whose heels we couldn't see). It was fun for many but a little over-the-top for those whose tastes were more Shirley Bassey based.
After a number 3 and a number 2, they were in the hunt for that elusive number 1. It sadly never arrived as this only reached number 3 and they only had one more top ten hit in 1964's 'I understand' which reached number 5.
31. Peter, Paul And Mary - "Blowing In The Wind"
Peter, Paul and Mary, at first glance, looked like they should be presenting a Children's TV show which centred on Philosophy and featured the making of a meditation temple out of a washing up liquid bottle and some sticky-back plastic.
Then you hear the titles of some of their songs : 'Tell it to the Mountain', 'Lemon Tree', 'If I Had a Hammer' and it's like Playschool's Greatest Hits. They were of course at the vanguard of the folk revival and hugely popular. I'm not a big fan of Bob Dylan although I do appreciate his place in the scheme of things - this cover of his most enduring lament is probably kryptonite to the purists but, because it's sung by people who can sing, it's immediately more palatable. They reached number 13 in October whilst Bob's version was never released in the UK. Because the song is so general, spiritual and moralistic, its something that will always be relevant and powerful - and there's not a lot of commercial songs you can put alongside this on the top shelf.
30. Brian Poole And The Tremeloes - "Twist And Shout"
This is one of those songs that any start-up band would have learned to warm up to in rehearsals before writing their own songs. It's become a kind of staple in the American songbook. It was written by Phil Medley and Bert Berns (me neither) and was originally recorded by The Top Notes (me neither).
It was finally certified as a hit after the Isley Brothers recorded it in 1962. So enduring is its energy and 'call and response' structure (which was repeated many times across many other songs in 1963) it has been a hit across the decades being covered by The Beatles, Salt-N-Pepa and the luminaries of Reggae-pop, 'Chaka Demus & Pliers'.
The Beatles probably recorded the best version of this (and it became a mainstay of their live set) but it only ever appeared as an album track, paving the way for Brian Poole and chums to have a chart hit with it. Brian and his band had actually been signed by Decca Records in favour of The Beatles having auditioned on the same day. Ironically, it was the emerging success of The Beatles that allowed Brian's group to finally taste chart success of their own. They managed a number 4 with this and followed it up with a number 1 - another cover version, which I'll talk about later in the countdown.
I don't like this version of the song at all - it lacks everything the song demands but it was a hit so what do I know?
29. Johnny Cymbal - "Mr. Bass Man"
This song always seemed to be on in my house when I was but a child - and I always thought it was one of those Peter Sellers or Stan Freberg-type comedy songs. This was by Johnny Cymbal (who used to wear a high hat) and it became his signature song. The 'Bass Man' in the song was Ronnie Bright who was a member of vocal group The Cadillacs and The Valentines (neither of which charted in the UK).
Mr. Bass Man was his only hit in the UK, reaching number 24 in March.
28. The Shadows - "Foot Tapper"
Filmmaker Jacques Tati asked The Shadows to write some music for his next film 'Playtime' in 1961 but the movie didn't emerge until 1967 so when the Shadz were on the set of the movie 'Summer Holiday' in which they had a small part and Peter Yates mentioned he needed some music to creep out of the radio during a bus journey scene, they gave him 'Foot Tapper'.
When it was released, it shot to number 1, just as its predecessor 'Dance on' had. It was then used as the signature tune of BBC Radio's 'Sounds of the 60s' from 1983 to 2017.
Ironically, it's a bit too fast to actually tap your foot to and if you try, you'll end up with one massive calf like Arnold Schwarzenegger by the end of the song.
27. Billy J Kramer And The Dakotas - "Bad To Me"
'Bad to Me' was sort of written by Lennon and McCartney. At one time Lennon said he'd written it for Billy J Kramer whilst he was on holiday in Spain - then, he said both he and McCartney had written it in the back of a van. McCartney was actually at the recording sessions at Abbey Road and watched with interest as the song climbed all the way up to number 1 for three weeks (he'd previously had a number 2 hit with the Lennon-McCartney penned 'Do You Want to Know a Secret' in May) knocking The Searchers' 'Sweets for my Sweet' off the top spot. 'Bad to Me' was eventually knocked off the top spot by another Lennon-McCartney composition, 'She Loves You', which they performed themselves.
26. Billie Davis - "Tell Him"
This track foreshadows artists like Sandie Shaw. Billie Davis (real name Carol Hedges, who should really have released a version of the song 'Privet Dancer') took her name from Billie Holiday and Sammy Davis Jr. She won a talent contest whilst being backed by Cliff Bennett's The Rebel Rousers and then recorded some tracks with The Tornados. She then provided the foil to the extremely unsavoury Mike Sarne (much as Wendy Richard had on 'Come Outside') on the hit 'Will I What'. It was after this she covered The Exciters' 'Tell Him' which was also written by Bert Berns of 'Twist and Shout' fame.
A car accident, after which she had to have her jaw wired shut for four months, put the skids on her recording career and apart from the number 40 peaking 'He's the One' released a few months after 'Tell Him' she only managed one more hit, 1968's 'I Want you to be my Baby'.
25. The Shadows - "Shindig"
This track was recorded at the Jubilee Theatre in Blackpool whilst the Shadows were on tour. The world still hadn't tired of their instrumental shenanigans but it wouldn't be long before their star would fade. It was the penultimate time they'd see the top 10 in the 60s.
This track makes use of the Dave Brubeck 'gliss' although I'm not sure he or his people noticed.
24. Orlons - "Don't Hang Up"
Whilst this song only got to number 39 in the UK, it was much more to the taste of the American record purchasers, reaching number 4, selling over one million copies and being certified gold.
The song, weirdly, appeared in the 1993 children's movie 'Dennis the Menace'. It's a track that has a lot going for it. It's bouncy, the vocal is interesting and has enough energy to cheer any listener up for at least two minutes. Weird it didn't chart higher.
23. The Dave Clark Five - "Glad All Over"
One of the biggest songs in the early part of the 'British Invasion' and the first hit of that movement that wasn't by The Beatles (although the drive of the song owes a lot to Ringo Starr's drumming style). Dave and his mates actually knocked 'I Want to Hold Your Hand' off the top spot and scored the second biggest seller of 1964 after The Beatles' 'Can't Buy me Love'. This was another example of the call and response style I mentioned earlier - 'You say that you love me (say you love me) - All of the time (all of the time)'. There's a saxophone which plays under the entire song as a bolster rather than a decorative melodic device and a thumping beat which probably led to many a dance club's parquet flooring needing more than a little maintenance on a Monday Morning.
There's mention in my research notes of a rivalry between The Beatles and DC5 but I don't know if it was at the level of Oasis Vs Blur or even that of Steps Vs S Club 7.
22. Adam Faith - "The First Time"
Ironically, Adam Faith's 'The First Time' is the first time I've actually enjoyed an Adam Faith track. He doesn't do his 'Hiccup' in this song for start (something that makes my toes curl into a ball). He'd managed twenty consecutive chart hits since 1959 which was quite the feat given the changing landscape over that period.
'The First time' was his last top ten hit, reaching number 5, which was also his first hit with backing band 'The Roulettes'.
21. Crystals - "Then He Kissed Me"
This was probably the Crystals' most well known song, peaking at number 6 in the US and number 2 in the UK. It was another, more prominent outing for the new 'Wall of Sound' being implemented on everything Phil Spector was producing with the help of Jack Nitzsche.
It's a travesty that this didn't get to number 1, being kept off the top spot by a song which was a bad parody of the original, which I'll discuss later. The Crystals only had one more single in the charts, 1964's 'I Wonder' (apart from a re-release of 'Da Doo Ron Ron' in 1974).
The Beach Boys covered the song in 1965, changing the lyric to 'Then I Kissed her' and singing the song from the boyfriend in the Crystals version's point of view. It was released in 1967 against the group's wishes but it still landed at number 4 in the chart.
The little riff at the start of the song was used again by Donna Summer in her hit 'Love's Unkind' and again by Erasure on their hit 'Stop'.
20. Crystals - "Da Doo Ron Ron"
For people who didn't experience the sixties, this is a song they would have heard regardless. There are so many instances across chart history where a songwriter has come up with a tune but can't think of a lyric and so, just sings nonsense (see Neil Sedaka) but then, the nonsense sounds better than lyrics so they keep it. This is another example. There was a bit of a battle going on between The Crystals and Phil Spector over who should actually be singing on their records - Spector favouring Darlene Love who wasn't even in the group! Love sang on the first recording but, at the last minute, Spector asked Delores 'LaLa' Brooks (no relation to the Teletubby) to sing lead. Rumour has it that Cher sang backing vocals too. It reached number 5 in the UK.
Incidentally, for trivia fans, the opening lyric to 'Da Doo Ron Ron' is referenced in the Tears for Fears song 'Cold' : 'I met her on a Monday and my heart did nothing new' rather than, 'my heart stood still'.
The Beach Boys covered this too but their version remained unreleased.
19. Ruby And The Romantics - "Our Day Will Come"
Ruby and Co. topped the US charts in 1963 with 'Our Day Will Come' which only just crept into the UK top 40 at number 38. The group is still quite obscure to many sixties music fans but they are regarded as one of the most covered and influential R&B groups of the 60s. Their harmony treatments became a template for The Temptations and were a huge influence on The Carpenters (and Donny and Marie Osmond... if you count them as music artists).
The first iteration of the group was Ruby, her sister and three of her friends who sang at record hops, mixers and talent shows. Ruby was then recruited by The Feilos who had a deal with Kapp Records and the rest is history.
There are two vocal performances in my top 40 of 1963 that I would put on the shortlist for the best vocal performance on a top 40 single of all time. I don't say that lightly because there are some stunning vocals throughout the history of the pop chart but Ruby's performance on this record is one of the best I've ever heard and the other is just a few places higher in this rundown.
18. Gerry And The Pacemakers - "How Do You Do It?"
I'm on my own here probably but I can't stomach this group. They began their careers with three number 1 singles in a row (a feat not equalled until the emergence of 'Frankie Goes to Hollywood') followed by a number 2. 'You'll never walk alone' is a dirge, 'Ferry cross the Mersey' is nauseating and the gag-inducing 'I Like it' is as hollow and basic as they come.
Having said that, 'How do you do it?' is quite enjoyable, despite Gerry's naïve vocal and vacant lyric (and quite why there's a jazz piano solo in the middle is beyond me). The group were from Liverpool (surprise), managed by Brian Epstein and recorded by George Martin. The group probably had just as much a hand in the rise of the British Beat boom as The Beatles did.
The Beatles actually recorded a version of this song (reluctantly) but managed to convince George Martin to let them release 'Love Me Do' instead. It was also offered to Adam Faith and Brian Poole but both rejected it.
17. Helen Shapiro - "Queen For Tonight"
This is the second of those vocal performances I was talking about. It rendered me quite immobile when I first heard this - jaw open, staring into space, the lot. It's flawless and full of character and emotion.
Johnny 'Summer' Hallyday recorded the first iteration of this song, 'King for Tonight' in 1962 but it wouldn't be released until 1990! Matt Collins also recorded the 'King' version in 1963 but the only version of the song to see chart action was Helen's 'Queen'. Sadly, this was during Helen's chart decline, only reaching number 33 after her last single 'Keep Away from Other Girls' only got to number 40. She'd see two more singles chart (at 35 and 38 respectively, the last in January 1964) before disappearing from the run down forever.
16. Vernons Girls - "Funny All Over"
This, on first listen, felt like a Victoria Wood outtake. Then it started to grow on me and by the end of the song I wanted to listen to it again. The Vernons Girls were formed at the Vernons Football Pools Company (where you had to guess football results in order to win substantial cash prizes) as a sixteen piece choir that recorded standards and rivalled the other pools company 'Littlewoods's own choir, 'Littlewood songsters'. This is bizarre indeed unless you were around at the time, then it all sounds perfectly normal I assume.
In 1961 they shed members until they remained as a three-piece recording cover versions of American hit singles. By 1964 they'd outstayed their welcome, had no further hits and disbanded. One of the group, Vicky Haseman married Joe Brown and had a daughter, Sam Brown (who had chart success herself) and another member, Joyce Baker married Marty Wilde and together had a daughter Kim Wilde who needs no introduction.
15. Jimmy Soul - "If You Wanna Be Happy"
Whilst I'm a little nervous to be including this song in my top 40 for the year, I can't shift the tune from my head. Lyrically, it's of its time - the time being 1934 - however, when resurrected in 1963, many radio stations banned it because of the 'ugly woman' reference. I'd like to think it's a parody rather than the overt misogynistic thing it appears on the surface. It's inclusion in the movie 'Mermaids' in 1990 seems to point to the former.
If you don't want to listen to the song, it's the musical version of the old joke : 'Marry an ugly woman. She'll never leave you and if she does, you won't mind.' It got to number 39 in the UK.
14. Andy Williams - "Can't Get Used To Losing You"
Whether you like this song or not really depends on a few things. Do you like the drunken-drawl of Andy Williams and do you like songs that bumble along without really going anywhere? If you said yes to both, then you're in luck. Those who were popping into record stores in March 1963 loved both because they sent this single rocketing to number 2 in the UK and in the US. Predictably, it was The Beatles that stopped Andy scoring his second number 1 single with their 'From Me to You' which is a much inferior song.
It reached number 3 in 1983 when The Beat did a Reggae flavoured cover of it.
13. Ronettes - "Be My Baby"
Co-written by Jeff Barry (who was responsible for 'Tell Laura I Love Her', 'Do Wah Diddy' and 'River Deep - Mountain High'), this was the Ronettes' biggest hit. It hit number 4 in the UK and is almost always mentioned in 'best songs of the 60s' lists. It was the first recording Phil Spector did with a full orchestra and is the best example of his 'Wall of Sound' production technique. Over the years it has been played on radio over three million times and the drum phrase is one of the most recognisable in the history of pop music - now that's how you write a song.
It was during the recording of the song that Phil Spector developed a fixation on lead singer Veronica (known as Ronnie - the only Ronnette to appear on the single), who would later become his wife. I'll let you Google what happened next...
12. Cliff Richard - "Summer Holiday"
The perfect tonic to accompany a not-particularly hot summer. A jolly song by a jolly singer for a jolly good movie of the same name. Credited to Cliff Richard and The Shadows, the song was written by Bruce Welch and Brian Bennett. The movie spawned four number 1 singles : the title track, 'Batchelor Boy', 'Foot tapper' and 'The Next Time' (which was the B-Side to Batchelor Boy but was still listed as a number 1 in its own right because of some weird chart rule).
The song bears out one of my 'rules for having a hit single' in that the lyrics are simple, memorable, relatable and have that nursery rhyme quality. Even I knew all the lyrics to the chorus at the age of 5, having heard it just the once.
11. Tony Bennett - "The Good Life"
Tony Bennett was a bit of a ledge. Another from the big voice stable that included Andy Williams, Shirley Bassey and Frankie Vaughan. 'The Good Life' was originally a Sacha Distel song called 'La Belle Vie' and, when converted to English money, appeared on no less than four of Tony Bennett's albums and he sang it at his last concerts at Radio City Music Hall at the age of 95. It also provided the title of Tony's autobiography. It's a song that wouldn't have been out of place in a Frank Sinatra set.
It only reached a measly number 27 in the UK, probably because people were drifiting away from songs in this particular genre towards the two and a half minute blasts of jangling guitar and too many drums.
10. Elvis Presley - "Devil In Disguise"
Elvis singles were a bit hit and miss. They were either really exciting and interesting or dour and predictable. This is the former. The tempo changes and shuffling beat elevate this above much of his output at this time. It starts much like a fifties school dance-type smootchie song but then kicks into a completely unexpected gear.
The song debuted in the UK on the TV show 'Juke Box Jury' on which, guest John Lennon said the song would be a miss and that Elvis had become 'like Bing Crosby' whatever that meant. The song then, predictably, went to number 1. What did John Lennon know about hit songs, eh?
9. Lesley Gore - "It's My Party"
A song which smashes you in the face with its moribund minor key melancholy, which is always a little bit of a risk when trying to sell units. Fun and optimism had just returned to the pop chart but it seemed people were still in the market for a bit of a whinge. The narrator of the song tells us that her boyfriend Johnny has disappeared only to reappear with Judy who is wearing his ring. The expert framing of the song was done by the legendary Quincy Jones. Jones was unaware that Phil Spector had also cut a version of the song with The Crystals (which the writers were much more excited about). However, a chance meeting outside a concert at Carnegie Hall led to Jones learning about Spector's intentions so he skipped the concert, went home, pressed 100 copies of Gore's version and mailed them out to Radio Programmers. It got to number 1 but the rushed release meant they couldn't come up with a catchier second name for Leslie in time. Not that it mattered because she was sitting at number 1 regardless.
The lyrics were based on real events although the 'tears' were from a girl who heard that her Grandparents were being invited to her Sweet Sixteen and that it wasn't going to be the kind of party she had anticipated.
Helen Shapiro had actually recorded the song but a delay meant that by the time her version saw the light of day, people assumed her version was a cover of Lesley Gore's song. Another cover of the song emerged in 1981 by Dave Stewart (not the Eurythmics one) and Barbara Gaskin. That one got to number 1 too. *(Goes off to Google a list of songs that hit number 1 twice by different artists)*.
8. Gene Pitney - "Twenty Four Hours From Tulsa"
'This Ole House', 'Unchained Melody', 'You'll Never Walk Alone', 'Spirit in the Sky', 'The Tide is High' among many others, in case you were wondering.
Anyway, Carole King (and Gerry Goffin) might have been dominating things in the songwriting stakes somewhat in the early sixties but another behemoth was emerging as a contender for greatest songwriter of all time - Burt Bacharach (and Hal David) for it was them that made this tune.
There's so much skill in the construction of this song, especially with the changing key types and odd tones (subdominants, super tonics and the like) used to modulate the melody, that it captures your attention. Add Gene's liquid silver voice with his dramatic performance and you've got a timeless hit. It reached number 5 despite the quite unsavoury lyrics about driving home to see your partner only to have a fling with someone you just met in a hotel 24 hours from your house in Tulsa (the British version of this would have been '24 hours from Wigan').
7. Cascades - "Rhythm Of The Rain"
Well this is lovely isn't it? If you'd asked me who this song was by before compiling this list, I would have said 'dunno' and to be honest, I'm none the wiser now. I'm guessing the 'Cascades' were named after the subject of the song - just like 'The Weather Girls' were named to suit the title of their song 'It's Raining Men'.
At the end of the Twentieth Century, Broadcast Music Inc. (BMI) said this was the 9th most played song on Radio & TV ever. The track has a cheeky cameo by Glen Campbell on guitar too. Rain is a well worn metaphor (or used in a literal sense here) in pop music... 'Raining in my Heart', 'Cryin' in the Rain', 'Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head', 'Laughter in the Rain' and my all time favourite, 'No Rain' by Blind Melon (what a song!!).
Jason 'thrownback' Donovan recorded this in 1990 (along with many other 60s standards) and managed a number 9 hit, bringing the song to an entirely new generation of fifteen year olds.
6. Brian Poole And The Tremeloes - "Do You Love Me?"
Just like 'Twist and Shout', Brian Poole should never have been allowed anywhere near this song. Firstly, the spoken intro sounds like someone trying to get you to give up your seat on a bus to someone who needs it more than you. The rest of the song is so apologetic - like Brian is singing it from the sheet music having just had it handed to him without ever hearing any other version of the song. The 'response' backing sounds like its being done by the animals in the background of an animated Disney movie. Listen to the bit where he sings 'I can do the Twist'. He says it in such an uncovincing manner, you start to doubt he knows what any of the words he's singing mean.
Now go listen to the version by The Contours. From the first second of the song, you're dragged in and pinned to the wall whilst Joe Billingslea demands to know whether you love him or not - the only response being, of course I do and I'll give you all the money in my wallet if you put me down.
It was written by Berry Gordy Jr. who directed The Contours to do the song exactly as he had written it. It had been earmarked for The Temptations but they would never had gotten anywhere near The Contours' version. The song is a little weird if you pay attention to the lyrics however - it's about asking a girl if she loves you based entirely on your ability to perform the dances of the day to an acceptable standard. I have to say, that's what I look for in a partner - their ability to do the 'Mashed Potato' - especially if she's also doing Toad in the Hole (and no, that's not a euphemism).
5. The Beatles - "She Loves You"
Asinine lyrics aside, this is as energetic a performance as you'll ever hear on polyvinyl chloride. It's quite the hurricane and sounds fuelled by Red Bull or the 1963 equivalent.
This single surpassed (and therefore set) many sales records in the UK, it remains The Beatles' best selling single of all time (as well as being the best selling single of the entire 1960s) and was one of the five Beatles' songs to occupy the top five spots in the US chart in April 1964. It became their second number 1 hit in the UK in August.
It was written after a gig at Newcastle's Majestic Ballroom in which they played with Roy Orbison and Gerry and the Pacemakers. John Lennon admitted that their trademark falsetto 'whooo' was inspired by The Isley Brothers' cut of 'Twist and Shout' and the 'Yeah Yeah Yeah' echoing Elvis' song 'All Shook Up'. After the song was completed, Paul and John used acoustic guitars to play it for Jim McCartney (Paul's dad). After they'd finished, he commented, 'It's nice but there's enough Americanisms around. Couldn't you change it to 'She loves you, yes yes yes?'.
4. Skeeter Davis - "End Of The World"
I always thought Skeeter was a character off The Muppet Show.
This is a song which perfectly frames heartbreak which has probably had a Goth makeover in the 90s at some point. I love this sort of introspective stuff - it's why I own everything Gary Numan ever released. The best part is the way it accurately describes that feeling when your world is crumbling but everyone around you isn't bothered - they're completely unaware, getting on with their own lives. The vocal on this has just the right amount of sadness without being whiney, allowing you to empathise rather than think, 'get over it' which a lot of post-80s Emo does.
This track was recorded in Nashville and produced by Chet Atkins with Floyd Cramer on piano. It stalled at number 2 in the US behind Ruby and the Romantics' 'Our Day will Come'. There were four Billboard charts in the US (Hot 100, Easy Listening, Hot R&B singles and Hot Country) and this song was the first and, at time of writing, only one to reach the top five of them all - 2, 1, 4 and 2 respectively.
Liverpudlian songstress Sonia covered this in 1990 and got to number 18 in the UK, the exact same position Skeeter managed in 1963. And, if it's cover versions you're in to, you might want to check out The Carpenters 1973 version.
3. The Beatles - "I Want To Hold Your Hand"
The vocals on this are all over the place. A bit out of tune - the harmonies don't quite mesh, the timing is off and the instrument volumes are all a bit chaotic (it was the first time they'd used a 4-track system so all the instruments felt like they were in different places in your house) but you know what? It totally works. This is the song, for me, that launched the Beatles properly - even though the lyrics are still a little vapid. It's a loud tumultuous song that goes from A to B without really letting up, apart from the relatively controlled bridge.
Advance orders on this single exceeded one million and I don't think a lot of people in that million had heard the song yet, such was the pulling power of the Beatles machine. It didn't go straight to number 1 however as their own 'She Loves You' was there already. It took two weeks to get there and stayed at the top for a further five weeks.
2. Bobby Vee - "The Night Has A Thousand Eyes"
My five year old self heard this song and immediately imagined the 'eyes' that the night had were the stars twinkling in the sky. I now realise it's an Edgar Allan Poe style metaphor. Either, 'if you cheat on me, someone will see you and report back' or, as in 'Tell-Tale Heart', the 'eyes' are that person's own conscience - you know what you've done and it'll haunt you until you confess.
Maybe I'm looking into it too much as usual. Either way, it makes the entire song intreging in the extreme. It also has one of the best verses of the year - sing-a-long-able and full of rhythmic edges with a chorus that sticks to the part of your brain that won't let you go to sleep, on repeat.
It's a pity that Bobby never saw the top ten again, this song reaching number 3, following up with one more release (the oddly titled 'Bobby Tomorrow') which reached number 21 in June 1963. The Teen Idol had thirty eight 'Hot 100' hits in the US, ten of which reached the top 20 and he was awarded six gold singles in his career. He truly was one of the greatest ever pop acts and was instrumental in helping to characterise the chart in the early 60s with his feel-good tunes as well as bridging the gap between Rock 'n Roll to the beginnings of pop music, opening doors for other acts to follow (The Beatles included) in his joyous footsteps.
1. Dusty Springfield - "I Only Want To Be With You"
Dusty had already been in the charts with The Springfields but this was the birth of a true music legend and what a song to release as your debut. Dusty had already recorded nine songs in persuit of the perfect tune to launch her solo career and it was this, the tenth, that was selected. We'll be following Dusty's career very closely in these top 40 lists as she dominated the 60s right through to the end of 1968.
This song was filled out with bombastic string sections, brass and zealous drumming which her vocals slice through with astounding positivity and exuberance.
The song has been covered by people not so accomplished as Dusty such as The Bay City Rollers and Samantha Fox but also by Annie Lennox when she was in The Tourists. Writer Mike Hawker married one of the Vernons Girls and wrote this song the day after their ceremony.
Dusty was the second Brit to have a hit in the US after The Beatles with this song and it was one of the songs which appeared on the first ever edition of Top of the Pops on 1st January 1964 - what a time to be alive.
It reached number 4 in the UK chart and shifted 200,000 units. As an aside, the song was used over a scene in Eastenders where Sam Mitchell dug up the body of Den Watts, which is probably what Dusty had in mind when she was recording it.
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40. Julie Grant - "Up On The Roof"
'Up on the roof', was no doubt sung by every tiling contractor in the country at the time. It seems that if you liked a song in the early sixties, Carole King probably had something to do with it. This was another of her collaborations with Gerry Goffin which was originally recorded by The Drifters. It was Kenny Lynch who introduced the song to us, though his version was lacking a little energy and it was the horror that was Robson and Jerome's 1995 version, which made sure nobody would ever want to hear the song ever again.
Julie's version however has just the right ingredients and the right level of optimism to chase away the ghosts of the Soldier Soldier pair. It's in the newly emerging Meseybeat style and was produced by Tony Hatch who wrote the theme tune to Crossroads.
39. Shirley Bassey - "I (Who Have Nothing)"
Shirley became almost omnipotent by the 1970s, appearing on every light entertainment program she could fit into her schedule. Even when I was a young'un in the 80s, she'd pop up on Little and Large or anything hosted by Des O'Connor. Her histrionic style wasn't so much in evidence in the early 60s however but this song, 'I (Who Have Nothing)' is dramatic, full of dynamics and tempo changes and Timpanis (which improve anything they appear on) - it probably led her to leaning more into her 'expressive' vocal style later in her career.
The song itself is an English language version of the Italian song 'Uno dei tanti'. Ben E. King sang the first iteration of it, only releasing it in the US in 1962 before Shirley took it to 6 in the UK. Tom Jones thought he'd have a crack at it in 1970 and scored a number 16 hit.
Here's a little snippet of trivia you might not have known. This song was the first ever release by the band 'The Spectres' in 1966 (later known as Status Quo) but it failed to chart.
38. The Shadows - "Atlantis"
Seventeen weeks this spent in the chart. Seventeen!! It stalled at number 2 for two weeks however behind the saccharine Gerry and the Pacemakers song, 'I Like it'. It was written by Jerry Lordan (who also wrote 'Apache' and 'Wonderful Land').
The stereo version has the rhythm guitar and drum tapping in the right ear whilst the female choir, lead guitar twanging and violins in the left ear - it's a terrible mix for headphones but I guess that wasn't a problem if you only had one speaker in 1963.
37. Chiffons - "He's So Fine"
Just after The Beatles had been riding high in the chart with 'From me to you' (which should really have been The Chuckle Brothers' theme tune), George Harrison must have switched on the radio and heard this track, allowing it to slowly burrow into his sub-cortical emotional centres. It gestated in there for a while and then emerged like a butterfly in the song 'My Sweet Lord' - about which there was a lengthy court case. It ended up with George Harrison's one-time manager Allen Klein purchasing the company that held the rights to 'He's So Fine' and Harrison was ordered to buy the company from Klein. The case went on from 1971 to 1991. The Chiffons recorded a version of 'My Sweet Lord' in 1975 to try and capitalise on all the publicity.
'He's So Fine' went to number one in the States for four weeks, only managing a modest number 16 here. It utilises that catchy motif that often causes songs to lodge in your long-term memory, the 'Doo-lang doo-lang doo-lang' lasting much longer than anything else about the song.
36. The Beatles - "Please Please Me"
Whilst their first release 'Love Me Do' (which wasn't an invitation to appreciate their haircuts), 'Please Please Me' was a lot more interesting and rocketed them up the chart and into the public consciousness with a number 2 hit. It stalled behind Frank Ifield's 'Wayward Wind' (something for which I hope he took tablets), fell to number 3 and then went back up to number 2, this time behind Cliff Richard's 'Summer Holiday'.
This track is crafted really well; it has destinct sections, counter melodies, choral parts, instrumental hooks, unusual harmonies and rhythm and blues inspired chromatic builds. It's much more than a pop song really.
35. Mel Torme - "Coming Home Baby"
This song creeps along and creates a kind of uneasy atmosphere that's strangely magnetic. There's a melodic minor moment which gives the single that 'multiple listens' factor you need to creep up the chart.
This was Mel Torme's second hit, a number 13, which followed his 1956 debut 'Mountain Greenery' which reached number 3. His nickname was 'The Velvet Fog' and his biggest imprint on history was the fact he composed the music for 'The Christmas Song' (better known by the lyric 'Chestnuts roasting on an open fire').
34. Swinging Blue Jeans - "Hippy Hippy Shake"
I'm not sure if this band got their name from the contents of their washing line on a windy day but Hippies weren't a thing until the mid-sixties (mind you, the cocktail of drugs they imbibed invariably resulted in 'the shakes').
Turns out, the 'Hippy Hippy Shake' is a dance ('You shake it to the left, You Shake it to the right, you do the Hippy Shake Shake with all of your might') but what part of your body they want you to shake left and right isn't specified.
The 'Blue Jeans' had a modest introduction to the chart rundown, reaching number 30 in June with 'It's Too Late Now' whilst the follow-up, 'Hippy Hippy Shake' climbed all the way up to number 2 (spending seven weeks in the top 10) but couldn't knock The Dave Clark Five's 'Glad all over' off the top spot.
33. Chubby Checker - "What Do You Say"
Chubby's chart career was barely two years old when it came to a juddering halt with this tune, an underwhelming number 37 peaking track which became his penultimate solo outing on the chart. He wasn't seen again until 1975 when they re-released (again) his 1961 hit 'Let's Twist Again' without changing the lyrics to 'Let's Twist Again, like we did fourteen summers ago'.
This song bears a haunting similarity to Gerry and the Pacemakers' 'How do you do' but it's still catchy.
32. Freddie And The Dreamers - "You Were Made For Me"
Freddie Garrity and the boys only troubled the charts for about 23 months but they made a huge impact. Their debut 'If you Gotta Make a Fool out of Someone' reached number 3 and the follow up 'I'm telling you now' managed one place better, peaking at number 2 in August. It underlined how much the record buying public was clamouring for more bouncy, happy and slightly nauseating pop expeditions. Freddie usually resorted to seemingly random leg-spasms which resulted in him scampering around the stage, leaping in the air like he was being attacked by a swarm of Tarantulas and choreographed heel kicks in unison with the rest of the band (except the drummer whose heels we couldn't see). It was fun for many but a little over-the-top for those whose tastes were more Shirley Bassey based.
After a number 3 and a number 2, they were in the hunt for that elusive number 1. It sadly never arrived as this only reached number 3 and they only had one more top ten hit in 1964's 'I understand' which reached number 5.
31. Peter, Paul And Mary - "Blowing In The Wind"
Peter, Paul and Mary, at first glance, looked like they should be presenting a Children's TV show which centred on Philosophy and featured the making of a meditation temple out of a washing up liquid bottle and some sticky-back plastic.
Then you hear the titles of some of their songs : 'Tell it to the Mountain', 'Lemon Tree', 'If I Had a Hammer' and it's like Playschool's Greatest Hits. They were of course at the vanguard of the folk revival and hugely popular. I'm not a big fan of Bob Dylan although I do appreciate his place in the scheme of things - this cover of his most enduring lament is probably kryptonite to the purists but, because it's sung by people who can sing, it's immediately more palatable. They reached number 13 in October whilst Bob's version was never released in the UK. Because the song is so general, spiritual and moralistic, its something that will always be relevant and powerful - and there's not a lot of commercial songs you can put alongside this on the top shelf.
30. Brian Poole And The Tremeloes - "Twist And Shout"
This is one of those songs that any start-up band would have learned to warm up to in rehearsals before writing their own songs. It's become a kind of staple in the American songbook. It was written by Phil Medley and Bert Berns (me neither) and was originally recorded by The Top Notes (me neither).
It was finally certified as a hit after the Isley Brothers recorded it in 1962. So enduring is its energy and 'call and response' structure (which was repeated many times across many other songs in 1963) it has been a hit across the decades being covered by The Beatles, Salt-N-Pepa and the luminaries of Reggae-pop, 'Chaka Demus & Pliers'.
The Beatles probably recorded the best version of this (and it became a mainstay of their live set) but it only ever appeared as an album track, paving the way for Brian Poole and chums to have a chart hit with it. Brian and his band had actually been signed by Decca Records in favour of The Beatles having auditioned on the same day. Ironically, it was the emerging success of The Beatles that allowed Brian's group to finally taste chart success of their own. They managed a number 4 with this and followed it up with a number 1 - another cover version, which I'll talk about later in the countdown.
I don't like this version of the song at all - it lacks everything the song demands but it was a hit so what do I know?
29. Johnny Cymbal - "Mr. Bass Man"
This song always seemed to be on in my house when I was but a child - and I always thought it was one of those Peter Sellers or Stan Freberg-type comedy songs. This was by Johnny Cymbal (who used to wear a high hat) and it became his signature song. The 'Bass Man' in the song was Ronnie Bright who was a member of vocal group The Cadillacs and The Valentines (neither of which charted in the UK).
Mr. Bass Man was his only hit in the UK, reaching number 24 in March.
28. The Shadows - "Foot Tapper"
Filmmaker Jacques Tati asked The Shadows to write some music for his next film 'Playtime' in 1961 but the movie didn't emerge until 1967 so when the Shadz were on the set of the movie 'Summer Holiday' in which they had a small part and Peter Yates mentioned he needed some music to creep out of the radio during a bus journey scene, they gave him 'Foot Tapper'.
When it was released, it shot to number 1, just as its predecessor 'Dance on' had. It was then used as the signature tune of BBC Radio's 'Sounds of the 60s' from 1983 to 2017.
Ironically, it's a bit too fast to actually tap your foot to and if you try, you'll end up with one massive calf like Arnold Schwarzenegger by the end of the song.
27. Billy J Kramer And The Dakotas - "Bad To Me"
'Bad to Me' was sort of written by Lennon and McCartney. At one time Lennon said he'd written it for Billy J Kramer whilst he was on holiday in Spain - then, he said both he and McCartney had written it in the back of a van. McCartney was actually at the recording sessions at Abbey Road and watched with interest as the song climbed all the way up to number 1 for three weeks (he'd previously had a number 2 hit with the Lennon-McCartney penned 'Do You Want to Know a Secret' in May) knocking The Searchers' 'Sweets for my Sweet' off the top spot. 'Bad to Me' was eventually knocked off the top spot by another Lennon-McCartney composition, 'She Loves You', which they performed themselves.
26. Billie Davis - "Tell Him"
This track foreshadows artists like Sandie Shaw. Billie Davis (real name Carol Hedges, who should really have released a version of the song 'Privet Dancer') took her name from Billie Holiday and Sammy Davis Jr. She won a talent contest whilst being backed by Cliff Bennett's The Rebel Rousers and then recorded some tracks with The Tornados. She then provided the foil to the extremely unsavoury Mike Sarne (much as Wendy Richard had on 'Come Outside') on the hit 'Will I What'. It was after this she covered The Exciters' 'Tell Him' which was also written by Bert Berns of 'Twist and Shout' fame.
A car accident, after which she had to have her jaw wired shut for four months, put the skids on her recording career and apart from the number 40 peaking 'He's the One' released a few months after 'Tell Him' she only managed one more hit, 1968's 'I Want you to be my Baby'.
25. The Shadows - "Shindig"
This track was recorded at the Jubilee Theatre in Blackpool whilst the Shadows were on tour. The world still hadn't tired of their instrumental shenanigans but it wouldn't be long before their star would fade. It was the penultimate time they'd see the top 10 in the 60s.
This track makes use of the Dave Brubeck 'gliss' although I'm not sure he or his people noticed.
24. Orlons - "Don't Hang Up"
Whilst this song only got to number 39 in the UK, it was much more to the taste of the American record purchasers, reaching number 4, selling over one million copies and being certified gold.
The song, weirdly, appeared in the 1993 children's movie 'Dennis the Menace'. It's a track that has a lot going for it. It's bouncy, the vocal is interesting and has enough energy to cheer any listener up for at least two minutes. Weird it didn't chart higher.
23. The Dave Clark Five - "Glad All Over"
One of the biggest songs in the early part of the 'British Invasion' and the first hit of that movement that wasn't by The Beatles (although the drive of the song owes a lot to Ringo Starr's drumming style). Dave and his mates actually knocked 'I Want to Hold Your Hand' off the top spot and scored the second biggest seller of 1964 after The Beatles' 'Can't Buy me Love'. This was another example of the call and response style I mentioned earlier - 'You say that you love me (say you love me) - All of the time (all of the time)'. There's a saxophone which plays under the entire song as a bolster rather than a decorative melodic device and a thumping beat which probably led to many a dance club's parquet flooring needing more than a little maintenance on a Monday Morning.
There's mention in my research notes of a rivalry between The Beatles and DC5 but I don't know if it was at the level of Oasis Vs Blur or even that of Steps Vs S Club 7.
22. Adam Faith - "The First Time"
Ironically, Adam Faith's 'The First Time' is the first time I've actually enjoyed an Adam Faith track. He doesn't do his 'Hiccup' in this song for start (something that makes my toes curl into a ball). He'd managed twenty consecutive chart hits since 1959 which was quite the feat given the changing landscape over that period.
'The First time' was his last top ten hit, reaching number 5, which was also his first hit with backing band 'The Roulettes'.
21. Crystals - "Then He Kissed Me"
This was probably the Crystals' most well known song, peaking at number 6 in the US and number 2 in the UK. It was another, more prominent outing for the new 'Wall of Sound' being implemented on everything Phil Spector was producing with the help of Jack Nitzsche.
It's a travesty that this didn't get to number 1, being kept off the top spot by a song which was a bad parody of the original, which I'll discuss later. The Crystals only had one more single in the charts, 1964's 'I Wonder' (apart from a re-release of 'Da Doo Ron Ron' in 1974).
The Beach Boys covered the song in 1965, changing the lyric to 'Then I Kissed her' and singing the song from the boyfriend in the Crystals version's point of view. It was released in 1967 against the group's wishes but it still landed at number 4 in the chart.
The little riff at the start of the song was used again by Donna Summer in her hit 'Love's Unkind' and again by Erasure on their hit 'Stop'.
20. Crystals - "Da Doo Ron Ron"
For people who didn't experience the sixties, this is a song they would have heard regardless. There are so many instances across chart history where a songwriter has come up with a tune but can't think of a lyric and so, just sings nonsense (see Neil Sedaka) but then, the nonsense sounds better than lyrics so they keep it. This is another example. There was a bit of a battle going on between The Crystals and Phil Spector over who should actually be singing on their records - Spector favouring Darlene Love who wasn't even in the group! Love sang on the first recording but, at the last minute, Spector asked Delores 'LaLa' Brooks (no relation to the Teletubby) to sing lead. Rumour has it that Cher sang backing vocals too. It reached number 5 in the UK.
Incidentally, for trivia fans, the opening lyric to 'Da Doo Ron Ron' is referenced in the Tears for Fears song 'Cold' : 'I met her on a Monday and my heart did nothing new' rather than, 'my heart stood still'.
The Beach Boys covered this too but their version remained unreleased.
19. Ruby And The Romantics - "Our Day Will Come"
Ruby and Co. topped the US charts in 1963 with 'Our Day Will Come' which only just crept into the UK top 40 at number 38. The group is still quite obscure to many sixties music fans but they are regarded as one of the most covered and influential R&B groups of the 60s. Their harmony treatments became a template for The Temptations and were a huge influence on The Carpenters (and Donny and Marie Osmond... if you count them as music artists).
The first iteration of the group was Ruby, her sister and three of her friends who sang at record hops, mixers and talent shows. Ruby was then recruited by The Feilos who had a deal with Kapp Records and the rest is history.
There are two vocal performances in my top 40 of 1963 that I would put on the shortlist for the best vocal performance on a top 40 single of all time. I don't say that lightly because there are some stunning vocals throughout the history of the pop chart but Ruby's performance on this record is one of the best I've ever heard and the other is just a few places higher in this rundown.
18. Gerry And The Pacemakers - "How Do You Do It?"
I'm on my own here probably but I can't stomach this group. They began their careers with three number 1 singles in a row (a feat not equalled until the emergence of 'Frankie Goes to Hollywood') followed by a number 2. 'You'll never walk alone' is a dirge, 'Ferry cross the Mersey' is nauseating and the gag-inducing 'I Like it' is as hollow and basic as they come.
Having said that, 'How do you do it?' is quite enjoyable, despite Gerry's naïve vocal and vacant lyric (and quite why there's a jazz piano solo in the middle is beyond me). The group were from Liverpool (surprise), managed by Brian Epstein and recorded by George Martin. The group probably had just as much a hand in the rise of the British Beat boom as The Beatles did.
The Beatles actually recorded a version of this song (reluctantly) but managed to convince George Martin to let them release 'Love Me Do' instead. It was also offered to Adam Faith and Brian Poole but both rejected it.
17. Helen Shapiro - "Queen For Tonight"
This is the second of those vocal performances I was talking about. It rendered me quite immobile when I first heard this - jaw open, staring into space, the lot. It's flawless and full of character and emotion.
Johnny 'Summer' Hallyday recorded the first iteration of this song, 'King for Tonight' in 1962 but it wouldn't be released until 1990! Matt Collins also recorded the 'King' version in 1963 but the only version of the song to see chart action was Helen's 'Queen'. Sadly, this was during Helen's chart decline, only reaching number 33 after her last single 'Keep Away from Other Girls' only got to number 40. She'd see two more singles chart (at 35 and 38 respectively, the last in January 1964) before disappearing from the run down forever.
16. Vernons Girls - "Funny All Over"
This, on first listen, felt like a Victoria Wood outtake. Then it started to grow on me and by the end of the song I wanted to listen to it again. The Vernons Girls were formed at the Vernons Football Pools Company (where you had to guess football results in order to win substantial cash prizes) as a sixteen piece choir that recorded standards and rivalled the other pools company 'Littlewoods's own choir, 'Littlewood songsters'. This is bizarre indeed unless you were around at the time, then it all sounds perfectly normal I assume.
In 1961 they shed members until they remained as a three-piece recording cover versions of American hit singles. By 1964 they'd outstayed their welcome, had no further hits and disbanded. One of the group, Vicky Haseman married Joe Brown and had a daughter, Sam Brown (who had chart success herself) and another member, Joyce Baker married Marty Wilde and together had a daughter Kim Wilde who needs no introduction.
15. Jimmy Soul - "If You Wanna Be Happy"
Whilst I'm a little nervous to be including this song in my top 40 for the year, I can't shift the tune from my head. Lyrically, it's of its time - the time being 1934 - however, when resurrected in 1963, many radio stations banned it because of the 'ugly woman' reference. I'd like to think it's a parody rather than the overt misogynistic thing it appears on the surface. It's inclusion in the movie 'Mermaids' in 1990 seems to point to the former.
If you don't want to listen to the song, it's the musical version of the old joke : 'Marry an ugly woman. She'll never leave you and if she does, you won't mind.' It got to number 39 in the UK.
14. Andy Williams - "Can't Get Used To Losing You"
Whether you like this song or not really depends on a few things. Do you like the drunken-drawl of Andy Williams and do you like songs that bumble along without really going anywhere? If you said yes to both, then you're in luck. Those who were popping into record stores in March 1963 loved both because they sent this single rocketing to number 2 in the UK and in the US. Predictably, it was The Beatles that stopped Andy scoring his second number 1 single with their 'From Me to You' which is a much inferior song.
It reached number 3 in 1983 when The Beat did a Reggae flavoured cover of it.
13. Ronettes - "Be My Baby"
Co-written by Jeff Barry (who was responsible for 'Tell Laura I Love Her', 'Do Wah Diddy' and 'River Deep - Mountain High'), this was the Ronettes' biggest hit. It hit number 4 in the UK and is almost always mentioned in 'best songs of the 60s' lists. It was the first recording Phil Spector did with a full orchestra and is the best example of his 'Wall of Sound' production technique. Over the years it has been played on radio over three million times and the drum phrase is one of the most recognisable in the history of pop music - now that's how you write a song.
It was during the recording of the song that Phil Spector developed a fixation on lead singer Veronica (known as Ronnie - the only Ronnette to appear on the single), who would later become his wife. I'll let you Google what happened next...
12. Cliff Richard - "Summer Holiday"
The perfect tonic to accompany a not-particularly hot summer. A jolly song by a jolly singer for a jolly good movie of the same name. Credited to Cliff Richard and The Shadows, the song was written by Bruce Welch and Brian Bennett. The movie spawned four number 1 singles : the title track, 'Batchelor Boy', 'Foot tapper' and 'The Next Time' (which was the B-Side to Batchelor Boy but was still listed as a number 1 in its own right because of some weird chart rule).
The song bears out one of my 'rules for having a hit single' in that the lyrics are simple, memorable, relatable and have that nursery rhyme quality. Even I knew all the lyrics to the chorus at the age of 5, having heard it just the once.
11. Tony Bennett - "The Good Life"
Tony Bennett was a bit of a ledge. Another from the big voice stable that included Andy Williams, Shirley Bassey and Frankie Vaughan. 'The Good Life' was originally a Sacha Distel song called 'La Belle Vie' and, when converted to English money, appeared on no less than four of Tony Bennett's albums and he sang it at his last concerts at Radio City Music Hall at the age of 95. It also provided the title of Tony's autobiography. It's a song that wouldn't have been out of place in a Frank Sinatra set.
It only reached a measly number 27 in the UK, probably because people were drifiting away from songs in this particular genre towards the two and a half minute blasts of jangling guitar and too many drums.
10. Elvis Presley - "Devil In Disguise"
Elvis singles were a bit hit and miss. They were either really exciting and interesting or dour and predictable. This is the former. The tempo changes and shuffling beat elevate this above much of his output at this time. It starts much like a fifties school dance-type smootchie song but then kicks into a completely unexpected gear.
The song debuted in the UK on the TV show 'Juke Box Jury' on which, guest John Lennon said the song would be a miss and that Elvis had become 'like Bing Crosby' whatever that meant. The song then, predictably, went to number 1. What did John Lennon know about hit songs, eh?
9. Lesley Gore - "It's My Party"
A song which smashes you in the face with its moribund minor key melancholy, which is always a little bit of a risk when trying to sell units. Fun and optimism had just returned to the pop chart but it seemed people were still in the market for a bit of a whinge. The narrator of the song tells us that her boyfriend Johnny has disappeared only to reappear with Judy who is wearing his ring. The expert framing of the song was done by the legendary Quincy Jones. Jones was unaware that Phil Spector had also cut a version of the song with The Crystals (which the writers were much more excited about). However, a chance meeting outside a concert at Carnegie Hall led to Jones learning about Spector's intentions so he skipped the concert, went home, pressed 100 copies of Gore's version and mailed them out to Radio Programmers. It got to number 1 but the rushed release meant they couldn't come up with a catchier second name for Leslie in time. Not that it mattered because she was sitting at number 1 regardless.
The lyrics were based on real events although the 'tears' were from a girl who heard that her Grandparents were being invited to her Sweet Sixteen and that it wasn't going to be the kind of party she had anticipated.
Helen Shapiro had actually recorded the song but a delay meant that by the time her version saw the light of day, people assumed her version was a cover of Lesley Gore's song. Another cover of the song emerged in 1981 by Dave Stewart (not the Eurythmics one) and Barbara Gaskin. That one got to number 1 too. *(Goes off to Google a list of songs that hit number 1 twice by different artists)*.
8. Gene Pitney - "Twenty Four Hours From Tulsa"
'This Ole House', 'Unchained Melody', 'You'll Never Walk Alone', 'Spirit in the Sky', 'The Tide is High' among many others, in case you were wondering.
Anyway, Carole King (and Gerry Goffin) might have been dominating things in the songwriting stakes somewhat in the early sixties but another behemoth was emerging as a contender for greatest songwriter of all time - Burt Bacharach (and Hal David) for it was them that made this tune.
There's so much skill in the construction of this song, especially with the changing key types and odd tones (subdominants, super tonics and the like) used to modulate the melody, that it captures your attention. Add Gene's liquid silver voice with his dramatic performance and you've got a timeless hit. It reached number 5 despite the quite unsavoury lyrics about driving home to see your partner only to have a fling with someone you just met in a hotel 24 hours from your house in Tulsa (the British version of this would have been '24 hours from Wigan').
7. Cascades - "Rhythm Of The Rain"
Well this is lovely isn't it? If you'd asked me who this song was by before compiling this list, I would have said 'dunno' and to be honest, I'm none the wiser now. I'm guessing the 'Cascades' were named after the subject of the song - just like 'The Weather Girls' were named to suit the title of their song 'It's Raining Men'.
At the end of the Twentieth Century, Broadcast Music Inc. (BMI) said this was the 9th most played song on Radio & TV ever. The track has a cheeky cameo by Glen Campbell on guitar too. Rain is a well worn metaphor (or used in a literal sense here) in pop music... 'Raining in my Heart', 'Cryin' in the Rain', 'Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head', 'Laughter in the Rain' and my all time favourite, 'No Rain' by Blind Melon (what a song!!).
Jason 'thrownback' Donovan recorded this in 1990 (along with many other 60s standards) and managed a number 9 hit, bringing the song to an entirely new generation of fifteen year olds.
6. Brian Poole And The Tremeloes - "Do You Love Me?"
Just like 'Twist and Shout', Brian Poole should never have been allowed anywhere near this song. Firstly, the spoken intro sounds like someone trying to get you to give up your seat on a bus to someone who needs it more than you. The rest of the song is so apologetic - like Brian is singing it from the sheet music having just had it handed to him without ever hearing any other version of the song. The 'response' backing sounds like its being done by the animals in the background of an animated Disney movie. Listen to the bit where he sings 'I can do the Twist'. He says it in such an uncovincing manner, you start to doubt he knows what any of the words he's singing mean.
Now go listen to the version by The Contours. From the first second of the song, you're dragged in and pinned to the wall whilst Joe Billingslea demands to know whether you love him or not - the only response being, of course I do and I'll give you all the money in my wallet if you put me down.
It was written by Berry Gordy Jr. who directed The Contours to do the song exactly as he had written it. It had been earmarked for The Temptations but they would never had gotten anywhere near The Contours' version. The song is a little weird if you pay attention to the lyrics however - it's about asking a girl if she loves you based entirely on your ability to perform the dances of the day to an acceptable standard. I have to say, that's what I look for in a partner - their ability to do the 'Mashed Potato' - especially if she's also doing Toad in the Hole (and no, that's not a euphemism).
5. The Beatles - "She Loves You"
Asinine lyrics aside, this is as energetic a performance as you'll ever hear on polyvinyl chloride. It's quite the hurricane and sounds fuelled by Red Bull or the 1963 equivalent.
This single surpassed (and therefore set) many sales records in the UK, it remains The Beatles' best selling single of all time (as well as being the best selling single of the entire 1960s) and was one of the five Beatles' songs to occupy the top five spots in the US chart in April 1964. It became their second number 1 hit in the UK in August.
It was written after a gig at Newcastle's Majestic Ballroom in which they played with Roy Orbison and Gerry and the Pacemakers. John Lennon admitted that their trademark falsetto 'whooo' was inspired by The Isley Brothers' cut of 'Twist and Shout' and the 'Yeah Yeah Yeah' echoing Elvis' song 'All Shook Up'. After the song was completed, Paul and John used acoustic guitars to play it for Jim McCartney (Paul's dad). After they'd finished, he commented, 'It's nice but there's enough Americanisms around. Couldn't you change it to 'She loves you, yes yes yes?'.
4. Skeeter Davis - "End Of The World"
I always thought Skeeter was a character off The Muppet Show.
This is a song which perfectly frames heartbreak which has probably had a Goth makeover in the 90s at some point. I love this sort of introspective stuff - it's why I own everything Gary Numan ever released. The best part is the way it accurately describes that feeling when your world is crumbling but everyone around you isn't bothered - they're completely unaware, getting on with their own lives. The vocal on this has just the right amount of sadness without being whiney, allowing you to empathise rather than think, 'get over it' which a lot of post-80s Emo does.
This track was recorded in Nashville and produced by Chet Atkins with Floyd Cramer on piano. It stalled at number 2 in the US behind Ruby and the Romantics' 'Our Day will Come'. There were four Billboard charts in the US (Hot 100, Easy Listening, Hot R&B singles and Hot Country) and this song was the first and, at time of writing, only one to reach the top five of them all - 2, 1, 4 and 2 respectively.
Liverpudlian songstress Sonia covered this in 1990 and got to number 18 in the UK, the exact same position Skeeter managed in 1963. And, if it's cover versions you're in to, you might want to check out The Carpenters 1973 version.
3. The Beatles - "I Want To Hold Your Hand"
The vocals on this are all over the place. A bit out of tune - the harmonies don't quite mesh, the timing is off and the instrument volumes are all a bit chaotic (it was the first time they'd used a 4-track system so all the instruments felt like they were in different places in your house) but you know what? It totally works. This is the song, for me, that launched the Beatles properly - even though the lyrics are still a little vapid. It's a loud tumultuous song that goes from A to B without really letting up, apart from the relatively controlled bridge.
Advance orders on this single exceeded one million and I don't think a lot of people in that million had heard the song yet, such was the pulling power of the Beatles machine. It didn't go straight to number 1 however as their own 'She Loves You' was there already. It took two weeks to get there and stayed at the top for a further five weeks.
2. Bobby Vee - "The Night Has A Thousand Eyes"
My five year old self heard this song and immediately imagined the 'eyes' that the night had were the stars twinkling in the sky. I now realise it's an Edgar Allan Poe style metaphor. Either, 'if you cheat on me, someone will see you and report back' or, as in 'Tell-Tale Heart', the 'eyes' are that person's own conscience - you know what you've done and it'll haunt you until you confess.
Maybe I'm looking into it too much as usual. Either way, it makes the entire song intreging in the extreme. It also has one of the best verses of the year - sing-a-long-able and full of rhythmic edges with a chorus that sticks to the part of your brain that won't let you go to sleep, on repeat.
It's a pity that Bobby never saw the top ten again, this song reaching number 3, following up with one more release (the oddly titled 'Bobby Tomorrow') which reached number 21 in June 1963. The Teen Idol had thirty eight 'Hot 100' hits in the US, ten of which reached the top 20 and he was awarded six gold singles in his career. He truly was one of the greatest ever pop acts and was instrumental in helping to characterise the chart in the early 60s with his feel-good tunes as well as bridging the gap between Rock 'n Roll to the beginnings of pop music, opening doors for other acts to follow (The Beatles included) in his joyous footsteps.
1. Dusty Springfield - "I Only Want To Be With You"
Dusty had already been in the charts with The Springfields but this was the birth of a true music legend and what a song to release as your debut. Dusty had already recorded nine songs in persuit of the perfect tune to launch her solo career and it was this, the tenth, that was selected. We'll be following Dusty's career very closely in these top 40 lists as she dominated the 60s right through to the end of 1968.
This song was filled out with bombastic string sections, brass and zealous drumming which her vocals slice through with astounding positivity and exuberance.
The song has been covered by people not so accomplished as Dusty such as The Bay City Rollers and Samantha Fox but also by Annie Lennox when she was in The Tourists. Writer Mike Hawker married one of the Vernons Girls and wrote this song the day after their ceremony.
Dusty was the second Brit to have a hit in the US after The Beatles with this song and it was one of the songs which appeared on the first ever edition of Top of the Pops on 1st January 1964 - what a time to be alive.
It reached number 4 in the UK chart and shifted 200,000 units. As an aside, the song was used over a scene in Eastenders where Sam Mitchell dug up the body of Den Watts, which is probably what Dusty had in mind when she was recording it.