RockOnTheNet.com
presents The Top Pop Songs
Of All Time !
We have ranked the top pop songs that have charted over the past
50+ years on The ARC Weekly Top 40 and Billboard Hot 100, and
come up with
a definitive list that will continue to expand as we add to it,
and continue to modify as new songs chart on The ARC Weekly Top
40.
"I'm
really mouthy about not having the Hollywood
look. Everyone asks me 'Why don't you feel
pressured to get the Hollywood look?' and I'm
like 'Because I don't'. I quite like my eyes
and my lips. I don't like my double chin or
my gut, but I don't not like them enough to
do something about it." - Adele
TIMELINE
Adele was born Adele Laurie
Blue Adkins on May 5, 1988 in North London.
Artists who have influenced Adele's music include
Etta James, Mary J. Blige, The Cure,
Jeff Buckley, Peggy Lee,
Jill Scott, Alicia Keys, Dusty Springfield,
and Bjork. Her love of music led to
an audition at London's BRIT school (a
performing-arts high school). While finishing at
the BRIT (graduating in May, 2006), Adele was
able to let her music be heard on MySpace.com
which led to signing with a record label. With
her debut LP, Adele made a name for herself in
the UK and in the US, but it was her sophomore LP
that propelled her into worldwide success with
fans and critics and dominating radio and record
sales in the summer of 2011. Rolling Stone
described her surge of success: "In a year
of sex bombs and art projects on the pop charts,
the biggest surprise hit of 2011 is a breakup LP
that could have been recorded in Muscle Shoals,
Alabama - the work of an earth, full-figured 22
year-old whose go-to outfits are billowy
turtleneck sweaters..."
October: Adele released her first
single "Hometown Glory" in the UK. The
song eventually hit the Top 20 on the UK charts 9
months later as a re-release. The song also
eventually became known to US audiences through
the TV shows Grey's Anatomy, One
Tree Hill, and So You Think You Can
Dance.
February 9: Adele topped the UK LP
chart for 1 week with 19.
February 20: Adele won the Critic's
Choice Award at the BRIT Awards.
March: Adele topped the singles
chart in Norway and the Top 10 in the UK,
Ireland, and the Netherlands with "Chasing
Pavements."
June 10: Adele released her debut
LP 19 in the US. The LP was
released in Europe in January, 2008. 19 hit #1 in Holland and the
Top 10 in the US, Australia, Canada, Germany,
Ireland, New Zealand, and Norway. Entertainment
Weekly described Adele's debut as
"...lovelorn lyrics in a smoky voice much
more mature than her 20 years would
suggest..." Adele said of the LP: "The
whole album is about being 18 and 19; about
love."
Adele hit the Top 10
in the UK, Ireland, and the Netherlands with
"Make You Feel My Love."
October 18: Adele performed
"Chasing Pavements" and "Cold
Shoulder" on Saturday Night Live.
The show received high ratings with the
appearance of failed Vice Presidential candidate
Sarah Palin, and subsequently interest in Adele's
single "Chasing Pavements" reignited
downloads for the song and LP.
February 22: Adele released 21 in the US. The LP was
released in Europe a month earlier. 21 hit #1 in Australia,
Austria, Brazil, Canada, Holland, Finland,
France, Germany, Ireland, New Zealand, Norway,
Scotland, and Switzerland, and the Top 10 in
Argentina, Greece, Italy, Mexico, Poland, Spain,
and Sweden.
February 26: Adele topped the UK
singles chart for 5 weeks with "Someone Like You." The song also
topped the charts in Australia, Ireland,
Scotland, and New Zealand.
March 12: Adele topped the
Billboard 200 LP chart for 24 non-consecutive
weeks, Top Digital Albums chart for 16 weeks, and
Top Internet Albums chart for 13 weeks with 21. The LP sold over 352,000
copies its first week of release in the US.
May 7:Adele topped the
Billboard Hot Digital Tracks chart for 8 weeks
and the Rock Digital Songs chart for 16 weeks
with "Rolling In The Deep."
May 14: Adele topped the
Billboard Adult Top 40 Tracks chart for 13 weeks
with "Rolling In The Deep."
May 21: Adele topped the
Billboard Hot 100 chart for 7 weeks and Hot
Digital Songs chart for 6 weeks with "Rolling In The Deep." The song also
topped the charts in Belgium, Brazil, Canada,
Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Switzerland.
September 17: Adele topped the
Billboard Hot 100 chart for 5 weeks, Digital
Songs chart for 4 weeks, Digital Tracks chart for
4 weeks, Pop Digital Songs chart for 3 weeks, and
Rock Digital Songs chart for 15 weeks with "Someone Like You."
October: Adele had to cancel
several sold-out dates of her US tour due to a
vocal chord hemorrhage. By the end of the month,
it was determined that Adele would have throat
surgery and cancelled the remaining tour dates.
January 28: Adele topped the
Billboard Digital Songs chart for 1 week, Digital
Tracks chart for 1 week, and Pop Digital Songs
chart for 2 weeks with "Set Fire To The Rain."
February 4: Adele topped the
Billboard Hot 100 chart for 2 weeks and
Alternative Digital Songs chart for 3 weeks with
"Set Fire To The Rain."
February 21: Adele won 2 BRIT Awards
for Best Female Solo Artist and British Album of
the Year (21).
February 24: 21 was certified 8x platinum
and 19 was certified 2x platinum.
February 25: Adele topped the
Billboard Pop Songs chart for 4 weeks and Radio
Songs chart for 6 weeks with "Set Fire To The Rain."
March 5: Adele's huge sales for
her LP 21 became even bigger
following her Grammy Award win with her best sales
week after a year on the chart. 21 sold over 730,000 copies
in the US during the week and topped the LP chart
for a 21st week - making it the longest #1 LP by
a woman in chart history. The same week, Adele
became the first woman in chart history to have 3
hits simultaneously in the Top 10. Her first LP 19 also rebounded into the
Top 5 and a new peak on the LP charts.
December 31: 21 was the top-selling LP of
the year (again) with 4.4 million copies sold.
December 31: Adele topped the Billboard 2012
Year-End Chart-Toppers chart as the Top Pop
Artist, Top Pop Artist - Female, Top Pop
Billboard 200 Album Artist, Top Pop Billboard 200
Album Artist - Female, Top Pop Digital Album
Artist, Top Pop Digital Songs Artist, Top Adult
Contemporary Artist, and with the Top Pop
Billboard 200 Album and Top Pop Digital Album (21).
January 13: Adele was nominated for a
Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song ("Skyfall").
November 14: Adele topped the
Billboard Hot 100 chart and Digital Songs chart
with "Hello." The single set a record for
downloads in the US in a week (over 1.1 million).
December 12: Adele topped the
Billboard 200 LP chart and Digital Albums chart
with 25. The LP sold over 3.3
million copies its first week of release in the
US - shattering all exisitng first week sales
records and becoming the best-selling LP of the
year.
August 14: Adele announced that she
wouldn't be performaing at the Super Bowl next
year: "I mean, come on, that show is not
about music. And I don't really - I can't dance
or anything like that. They were very kind, they
did ask me, but I did say no."
December 31: Adele topped the Billboard 2016
Year-End Chart Toppers chart as the Top Pop
Artist, Top Pop Artist - Female, Top Pop
Billboard 200 Album Artist, Top Pop Billboard 200
Album Artist - Female, Top Adult Pop Songs
Artist, and Top Adult Contemporary Artist, and
with the Top Pop Billboard 200 Album and Top Pop
Digital Album (25).
January: Adele was set to play 24
concerts at the Caesars Palace Colosseum in Las
Vegas but had to cancel the day before the first
performance due to not being ready: "I'm so
sorry, but my show ain't ready. Half my team have
Covid and it's been impossible to finish the
show..."
July: Adele unveiled new dates
for her residency at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas
that was put on hold back in January. The
'Weekends With Adele" will run from November
to March, 2023 with 24 rescheduled shows and 8
additional shows.
Released: June 10, 2008 (US) US: 3x Platinum Billboard Top
200 LPs
peak: # 4 Rolling Stone: - Entertainment
Weekly:B Tracks:
"Daydreamer" - "Best For
Last" - "Chasing Pavements" -
"Cold Shoulder" - "Crazy For
You" - "Melt My Heart To
Stone" - "First Love" -
"Right As Rain" - "Make You
Feel My Love" - "My Same" -
"Tired" - "Hometown
Glory" Import Edition includes:
"Painted Pictures" - "Now And
Then" - "That's It I Quit, I'm
Moving On" Import Deluxe
Edition includes live versions of:
"Chasing Pavements" - "Melt My
Heart To Stone" - "That's It, I
Quit, I'm Moving On" - "Crazy For
You" - "Right As Rain" -
"My Same" - "Make You Feel My
Love" - "Daydreamer" -
"Hometown Glory" - and the tracks:
"Many Shades Of Black" (with The
Raconteurs) Limited Edition includes live versions
of: "Right As Rain" - "Melt My
Heart To Stone" - "My Same" -
"That's It, I Quit, I'm Movin' On"
- "Chasing Pavements"
(also available on vinyl)
Released: February 3, 2009 Billboard Top
200 LPs
peak: # 105 Live Tracks: "Crazy For
You" - "Right As Rain" -
"Make You Feel My Love" -
"Melt My Heart To Stone" -
"Hometown Glory" - "Chasing
Pavements" - "Fool That I Am"
- "That's It, I Quit, I'm Moving
On"
Released: November 21, 2011 Live Tracks: "Hometown
Glory" - "I'll Be Waiting" -
"Don't You Remember" -
"Turning Tables" - "Set Fire
To The Rain" - "If It Hadn't Been
For Love" - "My Same" -
"Take It All" - "Rumour Has It" - "Right As
Rain" - "One & Only" -
"Lovesong" - "Chasing
Pavements" - "I Can't Make You Love
Me" - "Make You Feel My Love"
- "Someone Like You" - "Rolling In The Deep"
Note: Song title and position
links lead you to the song's ARC Weekly Top 40 chart run, LP links take
you to Amazon.com for that LP's info (often
including track listings and track samples), and
single cover art takes you to Amazon.com for that CD single (if
available). Songs charting prior to 1980 have
information from Billboard magazine.