Were you wearing this?
Ah the Eighties! In the coming weeks on Sunday Replay we’ll count down the Top 100 singles of that fabulous decade as well as taking a look at year-by-year events and the top TV moments, Fashion, and hearing Megamixes from some of the top selling artists
Today we covered hits 100 through to 81. In reverse order they were as follows. Sales figures are in brackets.
[81] I WANNA DANCE WITH SOMEBODY – Whitney Houston (660,000)
[82] MOVE CLOSER – Phyllis Nelson (660,000)
[83] (JUST LIKE) STARTING OVER – John Lennon (655,000) – written and performed by John Lennon for his album, Double Fantasy”. It was released as a single on 24 October 1980 and reached number one in both the USA and UK two weeks after he was murdered.
[84] IT’S MY PARTY – Dave Stewart and Barbara Gaskin (655,000)
[85] BEING WITH YOU – Smokey Robinson (650,000) – The song was a number one hit in the UK for two weeks in June 1981, becoming Robinson’s second UK #1 single and his first as a solo artist.
[86] WORKING MY WAY BACK TO YOU/FORGIVE ME GIRL – Detroit Spinners (650,000)
[87] WHEN THE GOING GETS TOUGH – Billy Ocean (645,000)
[88] BILLIE JEAN – Michael Jackson (645,000)
[89] 9 TO 5 (MORNING TRAIN) – Sheena Easton (640,000)
Easton had released one single prior to “9 to 5”: “Modern Girl”. This had failed to chart highly, but after exposure on the BBC documentary, The Big Time, both “9 to 5” and “Modern Girl” were propelled into the top ten at the same time, making her the first female artist to achieve this feat. “9 to 5” became a top three hit and was one of the best-selling singles of 1981
[90] A GOOD HEART – Feargal Sharkey (640,000)
Former Undertones singer Feargal Sharkey’s third solo single. A UK Number One single for two weeks in November 1985. Background vocals on the song’s choruses were sung by Boy George.
[91] BAGGY TROUSERS – Madness (635,000)
It was released as a single on September 5, 1980 and spent 20 weeks in UK charts, reaching a high of No.3. It was the 11th best-selling single of 1980 in the UK. The music video of this song was shot in a school and park of Kentish Town. The band’s saxophone player,Lee Thompson decided he wanted to fly through the air for his solo, with the use of wires hanging from a crane. The resulting shot is one of the most popular of any Madness music videos.
[92] TAKE ON ME – A-Ha (635,000)
[93] HAPPY BIRTHDAY – Altered Images (630,000)
A single from their 1981 album Happy Birthday. The song entered the UK charts on 26 September 1981, and peaked at number 2 on 31 October, holding that position for three weeks
[94] HANDS UP (GIVE ME YOUR HEART) – Ottawan (630,000)
[95] ASHES TO ASHES – David Bowie (625,000)
[96] WOMAN – John Lennon (625,000)
“Woman” was the second single released from the Double Fantasy album, and the first Lennon single issued after his death on 8 December 1980.
[97] LOVE AND PRIDE – King (620,000)
[98] GOLDEN BROWN – Stranglers (620,000)
[99] ALL NIGHT LONG (ALL NIGHT) – Lionel Richie (615,000)
Hit single for Lionel Richie from 1983. Taken from his second solo album, Can’t Slow Down, it combined Richie’s soulful Commodores style with Caribbean influences. In the UK, it was kept off the top spot by Billy Joel’s “Uptown Girl”, peaking at number two on the UK Singles Chart for three weeks. This track was sung in English and Swahili, but with one word in Spanish.
[100] LOVE OF THE COMMON PEOPLE – Paul Young (615,000)
