UK charts 70's II

Well, I feel it's about time I tackled the UK charts for the 70's just like I did for the Billboard charts, again I'm using a homemade chart on RYM to determine the order each entry appears on this list as well as stopping at a particular point to highlight only the best of the best over there this decade. I'm also skipping over entries that didn't become a hit in the southern hemisphere whilst providing alternate art where possible for each entry to give them a visual difference compared to their other appearances on this site.

This is the only appearance from Ian Dury and the Blockheads on this list as well as their only candidate, although they did have a second hit in the form of "Reasons to be cheerful" which was too minor to be considered a candidate for this list. Even though this was a massive chart topper for the band, they didn't have much luck moving into the 80's even in their homeland.

Well at least Hot chocolate managed to have a number one hit in their homeland even if it wasn't with their signature track, this managed to top the UK charts for the band which of course led to its success in Australia and NZ for them. Considering they would continue to have hits well into the 80's, it's curious how "Every 1's a winner" was only a minor hit at best in their homeland given its success in America.

We skipped over another entry from T Rex on my RYM list, it too failed to get to number one in their homeland despite how well it did overall. Here we are with their second appearance on this list, which was a chart topper for them, I guess you can say that we Aussies only allowed their number one hits to crossover as their next entry was another chart topper for them in their homeland.

For what it's worth, "Smoke on the water" was a candidate for my Billboard list as that was indeed the sole hit that Deep purple had over there despite its failure everywhere else in the world (for some reason it was only a hit over there.) Fortunately, they had a massive hit here in Australia with this track even if it came a year later as it was a hit upon its initial release in their homeland where it nearly topped the UK charts.

Both hits that the Kinks had in Australia and NZ will be accounted for on this list, this was the bigger hit of the two which makes sense given how it was their sole entry on my Billboard list. This also got stuck at number two in their homeland, although again, I should mention that the UK charts were fairly stagnant during the first stretch of the decade which explains the late of chart toppers from that period.

We have another bridesmaid for this list (that is, a song that got stuck at number two) this time it's the breakthrough single from Sweet which was big enough in their homeland to appeal to the kiwis but not us Aussies for whatever reason. Their first Australian hit was with "Ballroom blitz" which was two years after this came out, meaning that most of their entries on here we owe to the kiwis.

This was a hit twice in the UK throughout the decade, although its appearance on this list only comprises of its original release given how the rerelease it saw in 1976 didn't find any success internationally. I'm not sure why this flopped in America given how Rod already had a chart topper on Billboard with his earlier entry on this list, however he would bounce back with his next album.

If you can believe it, we've already skipped over an entry from Donna Summer as "Love's unkind" remains her biggest hit in the UK despite that failing to get to number one over there. Of course this was a chart topper over there for her, hence how it managed to become a massive hit in Australia and NZ even though it was only a decent hit at best in her native America.

You've probably noticed that there's plenty of rock and roll tracks on this list compared to my 80's and 90's lists for the UK, that's because the Brits were more open to the genre this decade which is how they allowed Emerson Lake and Palmer to score a massive success over there with this number. It's because of this that this and the album it came from was also a massive hit here in Australia for the trio.

We've already skipped over the B-side to Boney M's earlier entry on this list, that should give you an idea of just how big those two songs were in the UK and why they're considered the biggest hit of the decade over there. They had a total of eight hits over there (nine if you count their earlier entry separately) with this being a big one just like it was in Australia and NZ for the German band.

Given how this was a massive hit in America as well as here in Australia, it makes sense that this solo debut single from Gerry Rafferty was also a huge hit in his homeland even if it failed to get to number one over there like it did down under. He did have a second candidate for this list with "Night owls," however that was a flop internationally which is why we won't be looking at it.

This is one of only two entries from Blue mink on this list, not only that but these were their only candidates for the list despite how many entries they had on my NZ list for this decade. This is a holdover from the 60's as it lasted just long enough in the 70's to qualify for this list, admittedly I really stretched the rules to allow this debut single on here as I'm not going back to the 60's on this site.

Four of Leo Sayer's entries from the decade will be accounted for on this list, this was his biggest hit in his homeland as well as his sole chart topper despite him having a chart topper with "You make me feel like dancing" over in America. I'm not sure why this ballad was his biggest hit worldwide back in the day given how it's widely overshadowed by several of his other hits from the time nowadays.

Even though this failed to crack the top ten here in Australia, that didn't seem to matter as this was a massive hit here due to how long it lasted in our top twenty. This is likely due to it lasting for quite some time on the UK charts as while it charted much higher over there (as high as number two as a matter of fact) it showed no signs of dropping out of the charts for the longest time back in the day.

It turns out this wasn't the Boomtown rats biggest hit in their native UK given how we skipped over their breakthrough single "Rat trap" which was their actual biggest hit over there. I would say that it was thanks to a Countdown performance that this took off in the southern hemisphere, except their appearance on the show came after this became a hit, meaning we Aussies and kiwis simply gave them a second chance.

Much like here in Australia and NZ, this was the sole chart topper that Kate Bush had in her homeland which no doubt led to us Aussies and kiwis to follow suit in making this a success for the (then) young singer/songwriter. Unlike Australia however, she never quite recreate this songs success as her 80's material were decent hits at best as opposed to here where "Babooshka" nearly topped our charts.

Well at least this song appears at a much more respectable place on this list as we can thank the Brits for why it took off worldwide despite it being a chart topper in George McCrae's native America. The Brits appeared to love this so much that they gave George a second hit with "It's been so long" which means that he's actually a two-hit wonder over there as opposed to a one hit wonder everywhere else.

This is technically another holdover from the 60's given how this was released in the UK just as the decade was coming to an end, however it did peak in the 70's over there which more than makes it eligible for this list. If you felt Glenn Campbell's absence on my Billboard list, then hopefully his three other appearances on this list will make up for that given how much the Brits and us Aussies loved him.

I bet you weren't expecting to see this so early on the list, admittedly Leo Sayer had to start his career somewhere which he did when this nearly topped the UK charts back in the day. Even though it was only a decent hit at best here in Australia, it apparently inspired the Average white band (holy Jebus that band name) to perform a cover which was actually a candidate for my Billboard list.

We have the kiwis to thank for allowing this one and only hit from Chicory tip to appear on this list, it appears we Aussies were slow on the uptake when it came to the glam scene as this was another glam track we Aussies ignored that was a massive worldwide hit. Even with all the success these guys had with this track, it was their only hit even in their homeland for whatever reason.

Both of Roger Whittaker's appearances on this site will be accounted for on this list, naturally this was the bigger of the two in his homeland given how it very nearly topped the UK charts for the crooner even though it was four years later over there just like it was internationally. Unfortunately, he wasn't able to find any more luck even in his homeland after this as this was the last anyone has heard from him.

There'll be plenty of entries from European artists on this list, here's one of the bigger hits to come from the continent as Baccara had an easy chart topper in the UK that of course translated to its success here in Australia. They had a second hit over there with "Sorry I'm a lady," however it was too minor of a hit to be considered a candidate for this list, not that it would appear on here if it were a candidate.

This will be the final time I give new commentary to this track from Pink Floyd now that I've featured it on this list, indeed it was originally released in their homeland right when the decade was coming to an end which allowed it to qualify for its placement on this list. At the very least, it's able to share its company with plenty of rock tracks as opposed to its appearance on my 80's list for the UK.

Here we are with the big chart topper that Don Mclean had in the UK, I would say this was due to the Brits confusing it for a John Denver track except A: John Denver only has one entry on this list B: that doesn't explain its absence on my Billboard list and C: he already had a huge hit with his earlier entry on this list over there. Why this was a flop for him in his homeland, I'm not sure about.

Unlike on my Billboard list where we established Johnny Nash as a one hit wonder in his homeland, this list will feature both of his biggest hits as we have the Brits to thank for why this was such a massive hit for him over in NZ. It was his only chart topper over there in addition to being the bigger hit than his Billboard chart topper "I can see clearly now" which won't be on this list for quite a bit.

For whatever reason, the name of this band is different depending on what sources you're referring to. They're either Belle Epoque or La Belle Epoque which translates to "beautiful period" and "the beautiful period" respectively. Regardless of what they went by, they had a massive worldwide hit with their disco cover of the Los Bravos track including in the UK where it nearly topped their charts.

Here's our second appearance from Glenn Campbell on this list as this became a massive hit for him in the UK just like it was in Australia and NZ for the country singer. I don't know what he did to have his fellow Americans turn against him at the start of the decade as he scored two big hits on Billboard with "Galveston" and "Witchia lineman" just before the 60's became the 70's.

Given how this failed to appear on my Billboard list due to an (in my opinion) inferior cover that became a hit over there in its place, it feels right that we finally have the breakthrough single from Paper lace on this list. As you can imagine, this was a massive chart topper for them in their homeland which of course led to Bo Donaldson recording his version to score a chart topper in his homeland.

Not only will this be the only entry from John Denver on this list, but it was also his only charting single in the UK which nonetheless encouraged us Aussies to finally give the country legend a shot in 1974 which of course resulted in his chart dominance down under right when Countdown launched. If anything, I get the feeling the Brits confused this for a Don Mclean track given "Vincent's" success from earlier.

Well, if only I found this album art when I first featured this song on my site, oh who am I kidding, everyone who read my 1975 list on the NZ side of my site appreciated me featuring album art of a woman lying on the sand in a bikini and we all know it. In any case, we have the one and only hit from Typically tropical which was indeed a chart topper in their homeland due to its summery vibes.

It turns out these guys had three hits overall throughout their career, although that's because their second candidate for this list differs from the one that was a candidate for my Billboard list. In any case, it appears that Australia was the only place in the world where the German band found no success, although it was most successful in NZ where it didn't get stuck at number two like it did on Billboard and in the UK.

This is one of only two entries from Roxy music on this list, although that's only because they had one appearance on my 70's lists on each side of my site with this one pulling from the NZ side. Both of their entries on here peaked at number two as the band wouldn't have a chart topper in their homeland until their John Lennon tribute in early 1981.

I kind of hinted that this guy was meant to be the British equivalent of Elvis Presley when I featured this on my Australian list for this decade, if that was the case, then this proved to be a failing experiment since this was the best Faron Young could do even in his homeland throughout his career. Hey at least it has a high placement on this list, meaning it outranks several more obvious entries for the list.

Given how this was easily 10cc's biggest hit here in Australia, it makes sense it would also be as such in their homeland even though it was a massive failure for them in America. I guess the Americans didn't appreciate this pseudo reggae track right when Bob Marley was taking over the airwaves worldwide, or at least I would say that if you know, Bob Marley had an actual hit on Billboard.

We have a second appearance from Slade on this list, this one failed to get to number one and yet it outranks five songs that did top the UK charts to give you an idea of why getting to number one wasn't always everything in the UK as has been the case at any point in time regardless of where in the world you're from.

Well, those hits Donny Osmond had here in Australia had to become as such somehow, it turns out it was because of how popular he was in the UK as we have our second chart topper from the (at the time) young pop star that managed to crossover to our charts despite it being a massive failure for him in his native America. Rest assured that we haven't seen the last of this kid on this list.

Even though the Brits like to claim responsibility for how Debbie Harry and company saw massive success worldwide, I should point out it was us Aussies who brought them their earliest success as "In the flesh" won't be appearing on this list which predates all of the candidates I had for this list from Blondie. That said, they did have five candidates for this list as opposed to the three that are on the Australian list.

Given how this appears in roughly the same spot as it did on my Billboard list, I have to assume this was a success in America due to how well it did here in Australia as this appears slightly higher on my Australian list than it does on either one of these lists. Apparently, this was performed on Countdown back in the day, although if that's the case then it's currently lost media as I can't find this performance anywhere.

It looks like this was also a chart topper for Terry Jacks in the UK just like it was everywhere else in the world, honestly considering what we've looked at on these lists, I'd be shocked if the Brits didn't see what the rest of the world saw in this ballad back in the day. Once again, he didn't score a second hit over there, meaning this is an international one hit wonder.

It appears that the Brits were a bit put off by this second single from Arrival given how much lower it appears on this list compared to the other two singles from the album, they definitely weren't as big of fans of this track as we Aussies and kiwis were given how it topped both our charts back in the day. In any case, it was nonetheless a huge hit for the Swedish quartet over there.

If you recall on my Australian and NZ lists, there was a fair amount of reggae to become popular in both countries throughout the decade. It turns out you can thank the Brits for this phenomenon as one of the first reggae tracks to top the charts this decade was this track from Dave and Ansel Collins. They managed to score a second hit over there with "Monkey spanner" before fading into obscurity.

Given how many hits both these artists had throughout the 60's (including a few they had together) it seems odd that this would fail to become a hit here in Australia and their native America given how it nearly topped the NZ and UK charts for the pair. If I ever did look over the 60's charts on this list, you can rest assure that there'll be plenty of other entries from both of them on this site.

It was lucky that this was a sleeper hit here in Australia, otherwise I wouldn't be able to feature the song that put Blondie on the map in the UK given how this nearly topped the British charts for the band. I guess I should mention that their earlier entry was a chart topper over there as was the second single from Parallel lines "Sunday girl" which no doubt encouraged their fellow Americans to make them a household name.

This is the second of three entries from Middle of the road on this list, these other two entries of course come to us thanks to their success over in NZ as the Scottish group are essentially a one hit wonder here in Australia with their earlier entry on this list. That said, this was a minor hit here in Australia during the first half of the decade, I just didn't include it as I doubt any Aussie remembers this track.

Well, I hope you're not expecting much love from the Rolling stones on this list because they didn't have a single chart topper in their homeland this decade like they did in America. This came close to getting to number one on the UK charts; however, it got stuck behind "Knock three times" by Dawn to give you an idea of how long songs used to last at number one over there.

Like I said earlier on this list, the Brits did a much better job in spreading out the Abba phenomenon throughout their catalogue as opposed to condensing it to their third and fourth albums like we Aussies did. As such, the lead single to their fifth album was a huge chart topper in the UK as opposed to it being a mere top ten hit down under and in NZ for the Swedish band.

We have the second and final UK chart topper from Gary Glitter on this list, his third chart topper was "I'm yours" which was a candidate but unfortunately wasn't a hit in Australia or NZ back in the day. He still has one more entry to come on this list, although it would've been five had we Aussies allowed his other hits in the UK to become as such here.

This is the second UK chart topper from 10cc on this list, it's their oldest song on this list even though "Donna" was their big breakthrough in their homeland. As I said already on this site, this was an eclectic band given how all of their biggest hits in Australia were from different genre, this of course being a glam track which explains its success at the time of its release.

We have another UK chart topper from T Rex on this list; this time it's with their second and final top ten entry here in Australia given how most of their entries on the Australian list for this decade were only top twenty hits for the band. We'll be looking at those entries the further down this list we go, but suffice to say, the three we've already looked at were the best they could do here.

To give you an idea of just how floaty the UK charts were during the first half of the decade, this track from Perry Como makes it this high on the list despite only peaking at number seven on the charts. This means that this outranks several songs that went to number one over there on this list, giving you an idea of how stagnant the charts were compared to other periods of time.

It turns out that this was a hit in NZ thanks to it being a UK chart topper for the Floaters, although at least their fellow Americans were amused enough for this to be a moderate success on Billboard for the RNB group of colour. Although there's far fewer black artists that had success in the UK compared to America and even NZ, you can rest assured that there's still more representation from them on this list than there is in the 2020's.

This is the only solo entry to come from Paul McCartney given how his collaboration with his wife Linda wasn't even released as a single in his homeland despite it being a Billboard chart topper for the pair. Indeed, were it not for his earlier entry with Wings, he wouldn't have had a single chart topper in his homeland this decade as this failed to get to number one over there like it did here in Australia.

Given how this was easily one of the biggest hits of the decade in Australia and NZ, I'm a bit surprised at how low this one and only hit from Carl Douglas is on this list even though it was a chart topper in his homeland just like it was internationally. I have to imagine this was a hit in America mainly for how we Aussies and kiwis took to the track as well as it being release at the height of the Kung fu craze.

Given how this was easily in the top ten biggest hits of the decade here in Australia the fact that this didn't even get to number one in Racey's homeland, let alone appear higher on this list is shocking to me. You can't even say it's due to the band appearing on Countdown to promote this track as their episode was in 1980 which was a year after this took off on our charts and in NZ.

We have another entry from Slade on this list, admittedly I'm going to struggle to come up with things to say about these guys as in a bit of an embarrassing confession, I struggle telling their songs apart even after repeated listens for each of them. I can't even talk about their impact on the UK charts without it coming off as redundant.

This proved to be slightly less successful in the UK than it did in NZ, mainly because this got stuck at number two on the UK charts as opposed to NZ where it went to number one for the south African band. In any case, this was a massive worldwide hit for the girls and was only a moderate hit at best here in Australia due to their being a local version that this had to compete with.

While these guys obviously didn't have as much success in the UK as they did in their native America, the fact this managed to appear so high on this list despite having the low peak position of seven should tell you just how floaty the UK charts were even during the second half of the decade. They had just as many candidates for this list as they did for my Billboard list for what it's worth.

Glenn Campbell returns for a third time on this list with the song he found success with between his two earlier entries, admittedly this is among his more forgettable tracks hence why it wasn't as big as those two songs were over there which was the case here in Australia and NZ. He still has one more entry to come which is his first Billboard chart topper "Rhinestone cowboy."

This is the only other appearance that Blue mink have on this list, it owes its placement to the fact that it was a big hit in NZ given how they're a one hit wonder here in Australia despite this cracking our top twenty (again to my fellow Aussies, do you know this song even exists?) These guys would have several other hits in NZ despite their fellow Brits giving up on them after this.

All three of Gilbert O'Sullivan's entries on the Billboard list for this decade will be accounted for on this list, although for a bit of a fun fact, they'll appear in reverse order on this list as this was his weakest entry on that list and yet it was his biggest hit in his homeland. As I said on that list, this was his final hit in most parts of the world, although he did have one more hit after this in his homeland.

Even though this will be the only entry from the Stylistics on this list, they had several other candidates for the list including a UK chart topper in the form of "Can't give you anything." This didn't get to number one over there, although I doubt the long running RNB group mind given how many hits they had throughout the world including in their homeland.