NZ hits of 1977

Disco hadn't quite reached its peak yet, however it was a rising star this year along the likes of soft rock and rock operas.

This was another inescapable hit that Abba had back in the day in NZ, no doubt because it was their one and only Billboard chart topper proving that even America couldn't resist the infectious melody of this track despite their obvious best efforts to do otherwise given their overall lack of success over there.

This remains as Elton John's biggest hit in his career here in Australia and in NZ, mainly due to how much chemistry he has with Kiki Dee on the track as well as the track being about how the two are in love with each other whilst acknowledging how that that was becoming at the time for people to experience.

I guess America wasn't interested in listening to a song about Paul's Scottish heritage, it's their loss as this became one of the biggest hits of the decade throughout the rest of the world with NZ being no exception.

Well at least these guys were able to score more than one hit in NZ back in the day, and hey their one and only Australian hit was twice as successful over there due to the kiwis having more love for RNB at the time of its release.

You better believe that Rod Stewart was one of the biggest artists of the 70's in NZ just like he was everywhere else in the world, in fact he was arguably even bigger over there than he was in Australia due to the lack of competition he had from their local music scene.

This was Sherbet's only hit outside of Australia, at least it's their most iconic work given how it's a song about how Daryl has figured out his partner cheated on him and how he uses cricket metaphors to alert the person to his awareness. This was a big hit throughout Europe due it arguably being a bigger hit in NZ than it was here.

Well, I did say that Supercharge reminded me of a German disco band when I featured them on the Australian side of my site, here's an actual German disco band who managed to score a massive hit worldwide this year thanks to how catchy this track was. It makes you wonder why this wasn't a hit here in Australia as we had little issues with German disco making it big if Boney M is anything to go by.

It appears that there was plenty of interest in the idea of Andrew Lloyd Webber turning the life of Eva Peron into a Broadway musical as this theme song to the stage show was a success for Julie Covington years prior to it being first performed on stage. It was just as successful in NZ as it was in Australia and her native UK.

This was one of several hits that the Dutch group Pussycat were able to achieve in NZ that wasn't a success in Australia, although these guys were a one hit wonder here with "Mississippi" despite them being one of the biggest bands of the decade internationally with some of the other songs still to come on this site.

This was originally released on Rod Stewart's album Atlantic crossing; however, it was pushed as a single two years after the albums initial release for reasons I can't seem to fathom where it became a huge success over in NZ also for reasons I can't seem to fathom.

Like in Australia, Kenny Rogers already had massive success in NZ from the start of the decade with his band the First edition, meaning this was more of a comeback than an introduction to his music like it was over in the UK. I still can't believe this flopped in his native America, he managed to score other hits on Billboard during the second half of the decade after all.

Well, this was a much bigger hit in NZ than it was here in Australia, although Simple dreams wasn't as successful over there as it was here so perhaps this song ate up all of the success from the album in NZ that it didn't down under. In any case, this was her biggest hit over there as "Don't know much" wasn't as warmly received in the early 90's as it was here in Australia.

For what it's worth, this guy was a massive deal in NZ during the era of the Listener charts (charts that existed prior to the RIANZ charts for the uninitiated) meaning that this hit wasn't a complete surprise for them at the time. Still the fact that it was one of the biggest hits of the decade over there must have been something to behold in retrospect.

Well, if you're into a spoken word RNB track about guys hitting on you by introducing themselves with their horoscopes, then this is the song for you as the Floaters (wow that band name) managed to score a massive worldwide hit with this ballad likely due to the novelty of the track that I've just described.

This was an interesting year for (then) older artists in NZ, we have the second appearance from an artist who only did moderately well here in Australia scoring a massive success in NZ likely through 60's nostalgia already kicking in over there. This did Tom Jones no favours as just like in Australia; he wouldn't touch the charts again over there until his collaboration with Art of noise over a decade later.

This was also a major success for David Soul over in NZ back in the day, in fact his success over there was more or less the same as it was here likely due to the kiwis love for Starsky and Hutch being on par with the rest of the worlds.

This may very well have been the first time the kiwis had heard from Chicago, after all the Listener charts suggest that they didn't have any success over there during the first half of the decade whereas they at least had a hit here in Australia with "25 of 6 to 4" from the start of the 70's.

This was more of an immediate success in NZ than it was in Australia, likely because the kiwis were more accepting of disco music initially than us Aussies but likely because they were instantly heartfelt by the tale of perseverance in the song. They would score a second minor hit with "Hot to trot" before they faded into obscurity just like everywhere else in the world.

As far as the RIANZ charts are concerned, this was the first hit that Barbra Streisand had over in NZ given how she never had any hits on the Listener charts from earlier in her career. I guess the fact that it was for her Oscar winning ballad from her rendition of A star is born was fitting considering all of her hits in Australia at this point had either been from her films or her shows on Broadway.

Well Jon English managed to have a huge music career by appearing in Jesus Christ superstar, so it seems natural that someone who played the titular character in the original west end version also managed to have a massive success in NZ with a song of his own. This was Paul Nicholas who scored his one and only hit worldwide with this pop tune before returning to the world of theatre.

So, you remember that melody from "I wanna sex you up" from Color me badd right? Well, it turns out the boy band got that melody from this track from the Brothers Johnson who scored a massive hit with this RNB ballad produced by Quincy Jones before he met the future king of pop on the set of the Wiz. These guys would score a second hit with "Stomp" at the start of the 80's before fading into obscurity.

This was the second of two chart toppers that Mark Williams was able to have in NZ back in the day, the first was with "Yesterday was the beginning of my life" which is a song best known nowadays as the song that the first season of NZ idol performed back in 2004.

This was the big hit that ELO had in NZ and in America from their breakthrough album A new world record, I guess it was the most normal sounding track on the album which is why it managed to be such a huge hit in both countries and not the lead single "Living thing" which was the big hit here in Australia (although that is still to come on this list.)

I'm dumbfounded this wasn't a hit here in Australia, heck I could've even accepted the Eric Clapton version from the following year as a huge hit but that was also a flop down under back in the day. Fortunately, the kiwis instantly recognised this as a classic as it became a massive success for JJ Cale back in the day. It makes even less sense this flopped here as he previously had a hit with "Crazy mama" earlier in the decade.

This proved to be an even bigger success in NZ as did a lot of songs that were made from musicians of colour back in the day, hey at least many of these songs became hits over here even if they were relatively minor compared to what they achieved in NZ. I haven't seen the film this is named after, although it looks like one of those blaxploitation films that were popular throughout the 70's.

I guess the song that became a success in NZ for KC and the sunshine band was different compared to the one that made it big here in Australia, well that and the song in question being twice as successful over there is the only other difference between their careers in both countries as the band was big in the southern hemisphere just not as big as they were in their homeland.

This was another massive hit for Pussycat in NZ back in the day, it's staggering to think these guys were so successful over in NZ despite them being one hit wonders here in Australia, but this is the reality we live in.

This was the lead single from Rod Stewart's album Foot loose and fancy free, and like his other songs and albums this decade, it was a massive success for him worldwide. Sorry but I don't have anything new to add to this entry.

It seems odd that this was Boney M's big breakthrough over in NZ, at least we Aussies had given them a hit with "Daddy cool" before rewarding them with success for a dance track history lesson about one of the evilest women from the first half of the twentieth century. The kiwis either appreciated the history lesson or simply found this track to be catchy in a way they didn't find their earlier work to be.

It appears the kiwis were slightly more on board with making Andy Gibb a household name than we Aussies were, not by much as he only had two big hits over there as opposed to the three he had here, however both of these songs were quite big (the second one even bigger over there) and this one was released slightly sooner there than it was here.

Well, the kiwis might not have been as impressed with this track about a disco duck (I mean comparatively speaking as this had a lower peak and shorter chart run over there despite having less competition than here in Australia) but at least the idea was amusing enough for them to make it a huge hit around this time for the future radio DJ Rick Dees.

Hey, does anyone want to hear a disco rendition of Beethoven's "Symphony no 5?" Well Walter Murphy did just that as he got his orchestra the Big apple band to rearrange the classical piece to make it fit with the disco craze which resulted in it becoming a massive worldwide hit for him. This was a modest hit here in Australia, but nowhere near as popular as it was internationally.

This guy also had more than just the one hit in NZ, although "Going in with my eyes open" wasn't quite as big over there as it was here or in the UK, so it won't be making a second appearance on this site like his other two entries.

This was the biggest hit from the Bay city rollers in NZ, it happens to be a cover of a song that I'm not even sure was a hit over there given how the Listener charts only go back to 1966 and the Dusty Springfield original was released in 1965.

This was a hit for Elvis Presley in NZ upon its initial release over there, it was also a hit here in Australia albeit a sleeper hit due to us Aussies beginning to grow tired of the king of rock and roll from around this time but changing our minds when he tragically passed away later in the year. Indeed, this also rebounded on the NZ charts once he passed away, although that only stretched its chart run over there.

I guess the kiwis loved this ballad from Leo Sayer more than anything else in his career, admittedly it's possible that his other entry on this list was bigger over there given how there was a shockingly big gap during most of the summer of 1976/1977 over there, however, as is this was his biggest hit as far as I can tell.

There was no escaping this disco jam throughout the world upon its initial release, so much so that's it being a success in NZ like it was here in Australia was inevitable back in the day despite the fact that the official soundtrack from the film it was paying homage to was a massive flop over there.

Well, this was an inescapable hit for Abba in NZ just like it was here in Australia, it must be due to the group's criticism of capitalism which seemed to resonate with audiences back in the day.

This was Skyhook's only hit in NZ, you'd think they'd crossover with something like "Horror movie" or something from their second album, but instead it's with this track which was far from their biggest hit here in Australia. At least they had some success over in NZ, nowhere near as much as their main rivals Sherbet but it was better than nothing.

Unlike in Australia where there was more than one track celebrating what a lovely place Rio is (whatever you say guys) in NZ it was only Michael Nesmith's endorsement of the capital of Brazil that was a success over there. This was his third hit in the southern hemisphere as both "Joanne" and "Silver moon" where huge hits in both countries from the start of the decade.

I'm a bit surprised that Donna Summer didn't have as much success in NZ as she did here in Australia back in the day, although I'm slowly discovering that women of colour from the disco scene did much better here in Australia overall, I guess we Aussies weren't completely biased against musicians of colour in the 70's like I originally thought.

Again, I can't say definitively that Leo's earlier entry on this list was his biggest hit as I'm ranking these songs based on their chart performance, it's possible this song did quite well during the summer of 1976/1977 in NZ, but we'll never know since the charts went on a two-month hiatus during that time which was the peak of its popularity here in Australia.

Well, this is a surprise, we have a funk track from the Commodores about them wanting the perfect woman which they describe as a "brick house" (I guess this song was ahead of its time when it came to body positivity.) This and "Lady" from 1981 were the only upbeat tracks to become a success for the band, mainly because they didn't have Lionel Richie on lead vocals, it's another connection both songs have.

These guys were massively successful when it came to their albums during the first half of the decade in their native UK, however as far as I can tell, this was their only hit single anywhere in the world which became as such in NZ this year likely due to them combining disco with African influences.

OK I don't normally do this on this site; however, I'd be remiss not to share the Japanese cover art of this track on here. This was what was advertised to Japanese audiences back in the day to sell the track people.

Unlike here in Australia where this needed several attempts to make it big, it appears the kiwis were able to instantly recognise this as a classic given how it immediately rose up their charts upon its initial release over there. I'm willing to be this only became a hit down under once we Aussies saw how well this was doing over there and it finally clicking with us.

This was an even bigger success in NZ for Peter McCann, you'd think this would mean that singer/songwriters would dominate the charts in lieu of all the Australians that clogged up our charts but alas, that wasn't the case given what did end up appearing on each of these lists in NZ.

This was another successful American all-girl RNB trio of colour to make it big in NZ, although unlike the Emotions, they only had the one hit in both countries likely due to the kiwis and their fellow Americans only confusing them the one time for the women who brought us "Best of my love" this year. If it's any consolation, this was far bigger over there than that Billboard chart topper.

This was the only hit that Rita Coolidge had in NZ, like Australia it was a cover of a song that was a complete flop over there back in the day (at least according to the Listener charts) however unlike Australia, the kiwis atoned for this by giving Jackie Wilson a genuine hit ten years after this albeit due to a creepy Claymation music video.

Well, this guy was a one hit wonder in NZ like he was everywhere else in the world with this Billboard chart topper given how "Skinny girls" wasn't a hit over there like it was over here back in the day. At least this was much bigger over there to compensate for him not having a second hit.

This was a husband-and-wife duo who began their careers as the lead vocalists from the band the Fifth dimension a decade prior, they had massive success with the band including here in Australia where they scored three hit singles. They left the band to start their own career which only had this Billboard chart topper as its only success, still they did better than most singers from highly successful bands.

This was the only hit that the Welsh band Racing cars managed to have worldwide, I'm guessing it was through the title which makes it seem like it's a novelty track when really, it's your typical soft rock ballad that was popular throughout the 70's. It seemed to only be a hit in NZ as the rest of the world was likely put off from the title of the song.

Some of these new entries on this list only barely missed the cut on making it on the Australian side of my site, I can tell you now that I can extend these lists to a top 500 and this iconic entry from the Eagles still wouldn't make the cut because that's how much of a failure it was here in Australia back in the day. Fortunately, it was a massive hit in NZ, which is why it gets its day in court on my site.

This was one of several disco hits to be a success in the UK despite being a massive flop in the band's native America, although Tavares didn't have much success on Billboard this decade as all of their success came from how popular they were with the Brits back in the day. This was their only hit over in NZ, so perhaps this was the case of the Brits being over the moon for what they world considered an unremarkable band.

Well at least the kiwis were likely more familiar with how problematic this ballad is as it wasn't nearly as successful over there as it was throughout the rest of the world, I guess if you ignored the lyrics, it's a sweet enough ballad that easily fits in with the other adult contemporary from around this time.

Well at least we get to look at a new David Bowie track on this side of my site one last time, this time it's the lead single to his album Low which is considered one of his best albums by afficionados. If I were to look over the Listener charts, Bowie would have a ton of other entries on this site as he was quite popular in NZ during the first half of the decade.

While it wasn't released as a single in NZ until almost a full year after it was released here in Australia, this Australian and NZ exclusive track from Abba did eventually become a massive hit over there this year around the time of their two earlier entries on this list, proving that the Abba phenomenon was still strong over there during this phase of their career.

Around this time, the Muppets show premiered on TV which was such an instant success that the theme song (which was originally written for another project Jim Hensen was a part of) became a huge success albeit only in NZ for some reason. I guess this did chart here in Australia which likely led to Kermit the frog's solo hit from the end of the decade from the Muppet movie here.

I'm guessing the film Car wash was a massive success over in NZ given how the soundtrack managed to give Rose Royce a second hit over there this year with this number. This sees the band's male vocalists take centre stage as opposed to their other two big hits which had their female vocalists in the lead, making them a hybrid of Earth wind and fire and the Emotions with these releases.

This was also a hit for Elvis Presley in NZ just before he died, although it wasn't quite as big a hit over there as it was here likely because his earlier entry on this list was the big hit from his final album over there even before he passed away.

It's hard to definitively say, however it's possible that this lead single from A new world record should be even higher on this list given that this also peaked during the summer period of 1976/1977 here in Australia. As is, it was only a moderate success over in NZ as opposed to their earlier entry on this list.

Well, here's the other big hit that Yvonne Elliman had in NZ, she also had a hit over here in Australia with this disco classic, but it was too much of a sleeper hit to appear on that side of my site unfortunately. I feel like this song's placement is too low on this list, mainly because it peaked here in Australia during our summer period which the RIANZ charts were on hiatus during that time.

This is another song from Abba that was released exclusively here in Australia and NZ given how inescapably popular the quartet was in both countries, this time it's a song that was originally a B-side to "So long" which it turns out was the true lead single to their third album and not "I do I do I do I do I do" like I and many others had thought.

This was one of only two hits that Phoebe Snow had in NZ throughout her career, although at least it's one more hit she had over there than she did in her native America even though "Poetry man" failed to become a hit over there like it did on Billboard earlier in the decade. I guess the trade-off for her singles flopping here in Australia was that her third album was a genuine success by the end of the decade.

This was Smokie's only hit single in NZ given how the kiwis clearly weren't impressed with the band's output, heck this likely was only a success due to how inescapably popular it was over here given how it was one of the biggest hits of the decade down under thanks to them appearing on Countdown to perform this on the show.

This was also a big hit in NZ this year for the Eagles, although it was also a minor hit here in Australia which perhaps suggests that if their earlier entry on this list was the lead single to their album Hotel California, then perhaps it would've been a massive hit for them over here back in the day.

This was the first of three big hits that the Emotions were able to achieve in NZ, although we've already looked at their other two hits assuming you're following these lists in the order I've posted them. This was their biggest hit over on Billboard likely due to it being the perfect disco jam for the dance floors in their native America, this makes you wonder why it underperformed in Australia around this time.

We have another reappearance of Hot chocolate on this side of my site, this time it's this RNB classic which the kiwis appeared to love just as much as we Aussies did back in the day even though it had far fewer competition over there than it did over here. Indeed, this was the only track from the band to have equal amounts of success in both countries despite it being among their less catchy numbers.

This was the third hit to come from Leo Sayer's magnum opus Endless flight in NZ, I guess this is further proof that the kiwis didn't allow strong album sales to affect the success of said albums singles back in the day given how this was a minor hit at best here in Australia despite how much more well-loved the English crooner was over here back in the day.

Dazz was one of the less popular disco bands to have a hit in their native America this decade, this was the hit they had on Billboard which was groovy enough for it to crossover to NZ this year in the early months of the year, making this another entry that could potential place higher were it not for the long summer gap the charts had at the time.

This is one of those ballads that made it big due to the influx of adult contemporary that made it big during the 70's, although it's worth noting that this guy began his career in the disco genre given how his previous claim to fame was as a part of Disco Tex and his Sexolettes who you may know for their Billboard hit single "Get dancing" from two years prior.

If the name Hues corporation is familiar to you, that's because this is the group that brought the world "Rock the boat" earlier in the decade which is often credited as one of the songs that brought disco to the mainstream due to its success in their native America. The kiwis obviously still had enough love for them to make this a hit long after their popularity had faded throughout the rest of the world.