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Hays Code decency standards permeate showbiz as local “blue-nose brigades” police nightclubs, a federal sin tax targets dancing establishments and It’s a Wonderful Life hits theaters. Most Jazz Big Bands dissolve and leave the charts to Pop Singers and “Sweet Bands,” but a Black vocal group scores the year’s top hit, and Great American Songbook legends shine on records.

#1 Song of the Year   The top song according to our Chartcrush ranking of all songs that earned the majority of their chart ranking points in the year

Artists of the Year   The top three artists based on all charted songs that spent most of their chart runs in the year

1. Perry Como
2. Bing Crosby
3. Frank Sinatra

Artist with Most Charting Songs   Artist(s) with the most charting songs during the year (song count in parentheses)

• Bing Crosby (12)

Average #1 Artist Age   The average of how old artists who scored #1 hits during the year were when their songs first reached #1

• 36.1

#1 Songs   List of #1 songs that earned the majority of their chart ranking points in the year, and (in parentheses), the month the song first hit #1 and the total number of weeks it was #1

1. Freddy Martin & His Orchestra, vocal Clyde Rogers – Symphony (January, 2 wks)
2. Vaughn Monroe & His Orchestra, vocal Vaughn Monroe & Norton Sisters – Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! (January, 5 wks)
3. Betty Hutton – Doctor, Lawyer, Indian Chief (March, 2 wks)
4. Frankie Carle & His Orchestra, vocal Marjorie Hughes – Oh! What It Seemed to Be (March, 8 wks)
5. Perry Como – Prisoner of Love (May, 5 wks)
6. Ink Spots – The Gypsy (May, 10 wks)
7. Perry Como – Surrender (August, 1 wk)
8. Eddy Howard & His Orchestra, vocal Eddy Howard – To Each His Own (August, 9 wks)
9. Frank Sinatra – Five Minutes More (September, 3 wks)
10. Frankie Carle & His Orchestra, vocal Marjorie Hughes – Rumors Are Flying (October, 8 wks)
11. Kay Kyser & His Orchestra, vocal Michael Douglas – Ole Buttermilk Sky (December, 1 wk)
12. Bing Crosby with The Ken Darby Singers – White Christmas (December, 1 wk)

Pop amps up, the Tea Party ramps up, and the Great Recession spawns the most epic Dance boom since ’70s Disco starring Gaga, Taio, Usher… and Auto-Tune! Eminem is back big, and will.i.am’s “bubble” philosophy permeates the charts and even wins over critics, many of whom get political on the eve of social media’s gatekeeper-busting democratization of pop culture.

#1 Song of the Year   The top song according to our Chartcrush ranking of all Hot100 songs that earned the majority of their chart ranking points in the year

Artists of the Year   The top three artists based on all charted songs during the calendar year

1. Usher
2. Ke$ha
3. Lady Gaga

Artist with Most Charting Songs   Artist(s) with the most Hot100 charting songs during the year (song count in parentheses)

• Glee Cast (80)

Average #1 Artist Age   The average of how old artists who scored #1 Hot100 hits during the year were when their songs first reached #1

• 27.8 years

#1 Songs   List of Hot100 #1 songs that earned the majority of their chart ranking points in the year, and (in parentheses), the month the song first hit #1 and the total number of weeks it was #1

1. Jay-Z feat. Alicia Keys – Empire State of Mind (November ’09, 5 wks)
2. Ke$ha – TiK ToK (January, 9 wks)
3. Black Eyed Peas – Imma Be (March, 2 wks)
4. Taio Cruz feat. Ludacris – Break Your Heart (March, 1 wk)
5. Rihanna – Rude Boy (March, 5 wks)
6. B.o.B feat. Bruno Mars – Nothin’ on You (May, 2 wks)
7. Usher feat. will.i.am – OMG (May, 4 wks)
8. Eminem – Not Afraid (May, 1 wk)
9. Katy Perry feat. Snoop Dogg – California Gurls (June, 6 wks)
10. Eminem feat. Rihanna – Love the Way You Lie (July, 7 wks)
11. Katy Perry – Teenage Dream (September, 2 wks)
12. Far*East Movement feat. Cataracs & Dev – Like a G6 (October, 3 wks)
13. Rihanna – Only Girl (In the World) (December, 1 wk)

It’s the eve of the ’60s and polished Teen Idol Pop, Folk and “story songs” are surging on the airwaves and charts as Congress takes aim at Rock ‘n Roll radio and DJs in the Payola hearings. A plane crash in Iowa claims three of Rock’s most promising stars, and two of the year’s top ten hits are about murderers.

#1 Song of the Year   The top song according to our Chartcrush ranking of all songs that earned the majority of their chart ranking points in the year

Artists of the Year   The top three artists based on all charted songs that spent most of their chart runs in the year

1. Lloyd Price
2. Connie Francis
3. Frankie Avalon

Artist with Most Charting Songs   Artist(s) with the most charting songs during the year (song count in parentheses)

• Fats Domino (9)

Average #1 Artist Age   The average of how old artists who scored #1 hits during the year were when their songs first reached #1

• 24.3 years

#1 Songs   List of #1 songs that earned the majority of their chart ranking points in the year, and (in parentheses), the month the song first hit #1 and the total number of weeks it was #1

1. The Chipmunks with the Music of David Seville – The Chipmunk Song (December ’58, 4 wks)
2. The Platters – Smoke Gets in Your Eyes (January, 3 wks)
3. Lloyd Price – Stagger Lee (February, 4 wks)
4. Frankie Avalon – Venus (March, 5 wks)
5. The Fleetwoods – Come Softly to Me (April, 4 wks)
6. Dave “Baby” Cortez – The Happy Organ (May, 1 wk)
7. Wilbert Harrison – Kansas City (May, 2 wks)
8. Johnny Horton – The Battle of New Orleans (June, 6 wks)
9. Paul Anka – Lonely Boy (July, 4 wks)
10. Elvis Presley with The Jordanaires – A Big Hunk O’ Love (August, 2 wks)
11. The Browns – The Three Bells (August, 4 wks)
12. Santo & Johnny – Sleep Walk (September, 2 wks)
13. Bobby Darin – Mack the Knife (October, 9 wks)
14. The Fleetwoods – Mr. Blue (November, 1 wk)
15. Guy Mitchell – Heartaches by the Number (December, 2 wks)

Retail Armageddon as rampant online piracy torpedoes CD sales and the last big box specialty chain goes under, but artists and producers hustle to chart the path forward with catchy, ringtone-ready singles, massive artist-brand partnerships, iTunes, Myspace and the very first viral #1. Meanwhile, American Idol alums shine, Beyonce triumphs, Snap crosses over, T-Pain unleashes Autotune and Hip-Hop is never the same again.

#1 Song of the Year   The top song according to our Chartcrush ranking of all Hot100 songs that earned the majority of their chart ranking points in the year

Artists of the Year   The top three artists based on all charted songs during the calendar year

1. Justin Timberlake
2. Fergie
3. Rihanna

Artist with Most Charting Songs   Artist(s) with the most Hot100 charting songs during the year (song count in parentheses)

• Hannah Montana (5)

Average #1 Artist Age   The average of how old artists who scored #1 Hot100 hits during the year were when their songs first reached #1

• 26.1 years

#1 Songs   List of Hot100 #1 songs that earned the majority of their chart ranking points in the year, and (in parentheses), the month the song first hit #1 and the total number of weeks it was #1

1. Akon feat. Snoop Dogg – I Wanna Love You (December ’06, 2 wks)
2. Beyonce – Irreplaceable (December ’06, 10 wks)
3. Nelly Furtado – Say It Right (February, 1 wk)
4. Justin Timberlake – What Goes Around…Comes Around (March, 1 wk)
5. Mims – This Is Why I’m Hot (March, 2 wks)
6. Fergie feat. Ludacris – Glamorous (March, 2 wks)
7. Akon – Don’t Matter (April, 2 wks)
8. Timbaland feat. Nelly Furtado & Justin Timberlake – Give It to Me (April, 2 wks)
9. Avril Lavigne – Girlfriend (May, 1 wk)
10. Maroon 5 – Makes Me Wonder (May, 3 wks)
11. T-Pain feat. Yung Joc – Buy U a Drank (Shawty Snappin’) (May, 1 wk)
12. Rihanna feat. Jay-Z – Umbrella (June, 7 wks)
13. Plain White T’s – Hey There Delilah (July, 2 wks)
14. Sean Kingston – Beautiful Girls (August, 4 wks)
15. Fergie – Big Girls Don’t Cry (September, 1 wk)
16. Soulja Boy Tell’em – Crank That (Soulja Boy) (September, 7 wks)
17. Kanye West – Stronger (September, 1 wk)
18. Chris Brown feat. T-Pain – Kiss Kiss (November, 3 wks)

It’s the “Eve of Destruction” and young Baby Boomers “(Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” as the Vietnam draft widens the generation gap, Folk plugs in and Bob Dylan sets a new bar for Pop lyrics. Motown and Soul soundtrack the Civil Rights movement and bolster Black Pride as chart hits become street anthems and the British Invasion transcends youth culture.

#1 Song of the Year   The top song according to our Chartcrush ranking of all Hot100 songs that earned the majority of their chart ranking points in the year

Artists of the Year   The top three artists based on all charted songs during the calendar year

1. The Beatles
2. Herman’s Hermits
3. The Supremes

Artist with Most Charting Songs   Artist(s) with the most Hot100 charting songs during the year (song count in parentheses)

• The Beatles (10)

Average #1 Artist Age   The average of how old artists who scored #1 Hot100 hits during the year were when their songs first reached #1

• 23.3 years

#1 Songs   List of Hot100 #1 songs that earned the majority of their chart ranking points in the year, and (in parentheses), the month the song first hit #1 and the total number of weeks it was #1

1. The Supremes – Come See About Me (December ’64, 2 wks)
2. The Beatles – I Feel Fine (December ’64, 3 wks)
3. Petula Clark – Downtown (January, 2 wks)
4. The Righteous Brothers – You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’ (February, 2 wks)
5. Gary Lewis & The Playboys – This Diamond Ring (February, 2 wks)
6. The Temptations – My Girl (March, 1 wk)
7. The Beatles – Eight Days a Week (March, 2 wks)
8. The Supremes – Stop! in the Name of Love (March, 2 wks)
9. Freddie & The Dreamers – I’m Telling You Now (April, 2 wks)
10. Wayne Fontana & The Mindbenders – Game of Love (April, 1 wk)
11. Herman’s Hermits – Mrs. Brown You’ve Got a Lovely Daughter (May, 3 wks)
12. The Beatles – Ticket to Ride (May, 1 wk)
13. The Beach Boys – Help Me, Rhonda (May, 2 wks)
14. The Supremes – Back in My Arms Again (June, 1 wk)
15. Four Tops – I Can’t Help Myself (June, 2 wks)
16. The Byrds – Mr. Tambourine Man (June, 1 wk)
17. The Rolling Stones – (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction (July, 4 wks)
18. Herman’s Hermits – I’m Henry VIII, I Am (August, 1 wk)
19. Sonny & Cher – I Got You Babe (August, 3 wks)
20. The Beatles – Help! (September, 3 wks)
21. Barry McGuire – Eve of Destruction (September, 1 wk)
22. The McCoys – Hang on Sloopy (October, 1 wk)
23. The Beatles – Yesterday (October, 4 wks)
24. The Rolling Stones – Get Off of My Cloud (November, 2 wks)
25. The Supremes – I Hear a Symphony (November, 2 wks)
26. The Byrds – Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is a Season) (December, 3 wks)
27. The Dave Clark Five – Over and Over (December, 1 wk)

The Beatles have split, Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin are dead, and culture is on the ropes in a year when the top two songs are accidental hits. Meanwhile, everything is political as taxpayer funding takes protest and activism mainstream, radical revolutionaries get violent and All in the Family debuts. But Singer-Songwriters, story songs, religion and nostalgia offer sanctuary to help soothe frayed nerves.

#1 Song of the Year   The top song according to our Chartcrush ranking of all Hot100 songs that earned the majority of their chart ranking points in the year

Artists of the Year   The top three artists based on all charted songs during the calendar year

1. James Brown
2. Carpenters
3. Three Dog Night

Artist with Most Charting Songs   Artist(s) with the most Hot100 charting songs during the year (song count in parentheses)

• James Brown (9)

Average #1 Artist Age   The average of how old artists who scored #1 Hot100 hits during the year were when their songs first reached #1

• 25.9 years

#1 Songs   List of Hot100 #1 songs that earned the majority of their chart ranking points in the year, and (in parentheses), the month the song first hit #1 and the total number of weeks it was #1

1. George Harrison – My Sweet Lord (December ’70, 4 wks)
2. Dawn – Knock Three Times (January, 3 wks)
3. The Osmonds – One Bad Apple (February, 5 wks)
4. Janis Joplin – Me and Bobby McGee (March, 2 wks)
5. The Temptations – Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me) (April, 2 wks)
6. Three Dog Night – Joy to the World (April, 6 wks)
7. The Rolling Stones – Brown Sugar (May, 2 wks)
8. The Honey Cone – Want Ads (June, 1 wk)
9. Carole King – It’s Too Late (June, 5 wks)
10. The Raiders – Indian Reservation (The Lament of the Cherokee Reservation Indian) (July, 1 wk)
11. James Taylor – You’ve Got a Friend (July, 1 wk)
12. Bee Gees – How Can You Mend a Broken Heart (August, 4 wks)
13. Paul & Linda McCartney – Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey (September, 1 wk)
14. Donny Osmond – Go Away Little Girl (September, 3 wks)
15. Rod Stewart – Maggie May (October, 5 wks)
16. Cher – Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves (November, 2 wks)
17. Isaac Hayes – Theme from Shaft (November, 2 wks)
18. Sly & The Family Stone – Family Affair (December, 3 wks)

The Lilith Fair festival tour galvanizes women in music the year The Spice Girls, Hanson and Backstreet Boys usher in the late ’90s Pop boom. Meanwhile, the sudden deaths of The Notorious B.I.G. and Lady Diana inspire multiplatinum tribute singles, Punk notches its very first #1 and Rock newcomers score four of the year’s top hits.

#1 Song of the Year   The top song according to our Chartcrush ranking of all Billboard Radio Songs entries that earned the majority of their chart ranking points in the year

Artists of the Year   The top three artists based on all charted songs (on the Billboard Radio Songs chart) during the calendar year

1. Jewel
2. The Wallflowers
3. Spice Girls

Artist with Most Charting Songs   Artist(s) with the most charting songs on the Billboard Radio Songs chart during the year (song count in parentheses)

• 3-WAY TIE: Spice Girls/Hanson/Smashing Pumpkins (3)

Average #1 Artist Age   The average of how old artists who scored #1 Billboard Radio Songs hits during the year were when their songs first reached #1

• 27.2 years

#1 Songs   List of Billboard Radio Songs #1's that earned the majority of their chart ranking points in the year, and (in parentheses), the month the song first hit #1 and the total number of weeks it was #1

1. No Doubt – Don’t Speak (December ’96, 16 wks)
2. Toni Braxton – Un-Break My Heart (January, 2 wks)
3. Jewel – You Were Meant for Me (April, 9 wks)
4. Hanson – MMMBop (June, 4 wks)
5. Shawn Colvin – Sunny Came Home (July, 4 wks)
6. Will Smith – Men in Black (August, 4 wks)
7. Third Eye Blind – Semi-Charmed Life (September, 3 wks)
8. Jewel – Foolish Games (September, 3 wks)
9. Sugar Ray – Fly (October, 6 wks)
10. Chumbawamba – Tubthumping (November, 9 wks)

Whitney Houston takes the charts by storm and emerges as a multi-format superstar in a transitional year for Pop as Run-D.M.C. takes Hip-Hop mainstream (with a little help from Aerosmith), The Bangles break through, synthy Arena Rock succumbs to Glam Metal and music’s benefit streak peaks with Amnesty International’s Conspiracy of Hope concerts and a charity single for AIDS research that becomes the year’s top chart hit.

#1 Song of the Year   The top song according to our Chartcrush ranking of all Hot100 songs that earned the majority of their chart ranking points in the year

Artists of the Year   The top three artists based on all charted songs during the calendar year

1. Janet Jackson
2. Billy Ocean
3. Miami Sound Machine

Artist with Most Charting Songs   Artist(s) with the most Hot100 charting songs during the year (song count in parentheses)

• 3-WAY TIE: Miami Sound Machine/Billy Ocean/Bob Seger (4)

Average #1 Artist Age   The average of how old artists who scored #1 Hot100 hits during the year were when their songs first reached #1

• 32.3 years

#1 Songs   List of Hot100 #1 songs that earned the majority of their chart ranking points in the year, and (in parentheses), the month the song first hit #1 and the total number of weeks it was #1

1. Lionel Richie – Say You, Say Me (December ’85, 4 wks)
2. Dionne & Friends (Elton John, Gladys Knight & Stevie Wonder) – That’s What Friends Are For (January, 4 wks)
3. Whitney Houston – How Will I Know (February, 2 wks)
4. Mr. Mister – Kyrie (March, 2 wks)
5. Starship – Sara (March, 1 wk)
6. Heart – These Dreams (March, 1 wk)
7. Falco – Rock Me Amadeus (March, 3 wks)
8. Prince & The Revolution – Kiss (April, 2 wks)
9. Robert Palmer – Addicted to Love (May, 1 wk)
10. Pet Shop Boys – West End Girls (May, 1 wk)
11. Whitney Houston – Greatest Love of All (May, 3 wks)
12. Madonna – Live to Tell (June, 1 wk)
13. Patti LaBelle & Michael McDonald – On My Own (June, 3 wks)
14. Billy Ocean – There’ll Be Sad Songs (To Make You Cry) (July, 1 wk)
15. Simply Red – Holding Back the Years (July, 1 wk)
16. Genesis – Invisible Touch (July, 1 wk)
17. Peter Gabriel – Sledgehammer (July, 1 wk)
18. Peter Cetera – Glory of Love (Theme from the Karate Kid Part II) (August, 2 wks)
19. Madonna – Papa Don’t Preach (August, 2 wks)
20. Steve Winwood – Higher Love (August, 1 wk)
21. Bananarama – Venus (September, 1 wk)
22. Berlin – Take My Breath Away (Love Theme from Top Gun) (September, 1 wk)
23. Huey Lewis & the News – Stuck with You (September, 3 wks)
24. Janet Jackson – When I Think of You (October, 2 wks)
25. Cyndi Lauper – True Colors (October, 2 wks)
26. Boston – Amanda (November, 2 wks)
27. The Human League – Human (November, 1 wk)
28. Bon Jovi – You Give Love a Bad Name (November, 1 wk)
29. Peter Cetera & Amy Grant – The Next Time I Fall (December, 1 wk)
30. Bruce Hornsby & The Range – The Way It Is (December, 1 wk)
31. Bangles – Walk like An Egyptian (December, 4 wks)

“The Harlem Shake” debuts at #1 the week after Billboard adds YouTube to its Hot100 formula and bloggers lash out as fans propel “incorrect” hits like “Thrift Shop” and “Blurred Lines.” No Black headliner scores a #1 hit all year, but the first Gen-Zer (Lorde) does. Plus, Timberlake is back and married, Katy is divorced and Roaring, Indie Folk booms, Bruno surges and Miley gets her twerk on at the VMAs.

#1 Song of the Year   The top song according to our Chartcrush ranking of all Hot100 songs that earned the majority of their chart ranking points in the year

Artists of the Year   The top three artists based on all charted songs during the calendar year

1. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
2. Imagine Dragons
3. Bruno Mars

Artist with Most Charting Songs   Artist(s) with the most Hot100 charting songs during the year (song count in parentheses)

• Justin Bieber (14)

Average #1 Artist Age   The average of how old artists who scored #1 Hot100 hits during the year were when their songs first reached #1

• 28.9 years

#1 Songs   List of Hot100 #1 songs that earned the majority of their chart ranking points in the year, and (in parentheses), the month the song first hit #1 and the total number of weeks it was #1

1. Rihanna – Diamonds (December ’12, 3 wks)
2. Bruno Mars – Locked Out of Heaven (December ’12, 6 wks)
3. Macklemore feat. Wanz – Thrift Shop (February, 6 wks)
4. Baauer – Harlem Shake (March, 5 wks)
5. Bruno Mars – When I Was Your Man (April, 1 wk)
6. P!nk feat. Nate Ruess – Just Give Me a Reason (April, 3 wks)
7. Macklemore feat. Ray Dalton – Can’t Hold Us (May, 5 wks)
8. Robin Thicke feat. T.I. & Pharrell – Blurred Lines (June, 12 wks)
9. Katy Perry – Roar (September, 2 wks)
10. Miley Cyrus – Wrecking Ball (September, 3 wks)
11. Lorde – Royals (October, 9 wks)