Biggest albums/singles of all time in Australia

This is my biggest project yet! I've decided to rank all the biggest songs and albums to make it big here in Australia by how well they did on our charts from 1970 to 2009. The reason I'm not including the 2010's and beyond is because let's face it, I want this list to be a celebration of all the biggest and best songs to appeal to us Aussies and I feel that the vast majority of songs and albums that made it big after 2009 won't have the lasting cultural impact that even amid level hit from 1973 still has decades later. I'll be including stats from both the ARIA AND AMR charts meaning that all singles from mid-1988 onwards as well as albums that charted between mid-1988 and late 1998 will have two entries on this list to showcase how well they did on each chart (you'll know the difference when an entry has THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY rather than my commentary on it.) One final thing, this will be presented as a countdown, meaning that I'm breaking tradition by having each entry be more successful than the last as opposed to the opposite like every other list on this site.

#7100

This was the fifth single to come from Jessica's sophomore album, it goes to show how much Australian idol got it wrong by having her lose to Damien Leith in 2006 given how only three years later she would be one of the biggest names in music whilst he would be relegated to a tribute act at best.

#7099

This was the final hit that the Smashing pumpkins were able to score here in Australia, mainly because this was a Razzie nominated theme to what is considered to be one of the worst films of all time Batman and Robin. Obviously, the theme was nowhere near as bad as the film and that the Razzie's simply hated everything affiliated with it, however this did leave the band with a bad reputation in the music industry.

#7098

To think that this advertisement for the Hard rock cafe (which opened its doors in the UK in 1971) was one of only two hits that Carole King managed to score here in Australia, I'm guessing because we Aussies loved the restaurant chain that much (I still go whenever I can afford it to this day.) I get the feeling this killed her creditability in the music scene given how she broke through with the masterpiece Tapestry around the same time the food chain opened.

#7097

This was the last hit that Cyndi Lauper had in most parts of the world, although she would return five years later with a remix of her debut single in NZ and the UK so there's that at least. This was originally written for and performed by Roy Orbison; however, he didn't include it on his final album this year which technically means this version is the original version. Roy's version came out in the early 90's when word got out that it was meant for him.

#7096

This was the only hit for Australian actress/singer Abigail Rogan, I'm guessing this was the case due to the popularity of a TV she was on at the time of its release (it's surprisingly hard to find information about this woman) given how this saw a release in the UK where it predictably flopped.

#7095

This was the last major hit that the Masters apprentices had in their career, although their next single "Because I love you" would receive plenty of airplay due to a 1988 release of the track that flopped but was regardless what made them a favourite on oldies stations. Their success was more prevalent in the 60's due to their sound fitting in perfectly with the hippy revolution.

#7094

I think this may be the shortest song I ever feature on this site, even if I were to go back to the 60's, this would still hold that record due to it not even being a minute and a half long. I suppose calling this a song is stretching it as it's more a quick comedy routine set to rock music that amused fans of MTV back in the day from comedian Liam Lynch.

#7093

To date, this is the final hit that Darren Hayes has been able to achieve in his career, I'm guessing it was a hit because people felt it was enough like a Savage Garden track that they felt it was an unofficial reunion with him and Daniel Jones which it didn't wind up being. Still the fact that it was a hit was proof that we Aussies was willing to give his solo career a chance this far after the band was no more.

#7092

There were no signs of Shannon Noll slowing down from his second album as he managed to have a huge hit with the title track from said album, in fact it looked like he had finally overtaken Guy Sebastian in the mainstream given how he would only have one hit to his name this year (which we've already looked at) from an album that wasn't anywhere near as successful as what Lift was.

#7091

This was a surprise hit for west coast rapper Terrance Quaites AKA TQ considering it was released the previous year to massive success worldwide except for Australia, I guess the popularity of 2Pac from beyond the grave convinced us there was still merit to be found in west coast hip hop in the final year of the 90's. He wasn't able to achieve any other hits worldwide, making him a one hit wonder with this track.

#7090

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7089

We have another appearance from the Bay city rollers on this list, I've run out of things to say about them without coming off as mean so I'll leave my commentary at that.

#7088

This was the only hit to come from The Joshua tree in Australia, although as you've likely noticed, we Aussies don't tend to give out that many hits from highly successful albums due to our charts being strictly measured by capitalism. In any case, we have U2's first Billboard chart topper with this ballad about how Bono is unable to live his life whether he's in a relationship with this person or not.

#7087

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7086

This was the final hit that Cliff Richard managed to score in Australia for the rest of the twentieth century, although he did return in 1999 with "The millennium prayer" which was the last time anyone had heard from him in the mainstream. Even though this was a big hit for him in his native UK the previous year, it took a while for this to become a success here likely due to us Aussies not wanting to make him relevant but changing our minds several months later.

#7085

These guys were on a roll this year as they managed to score a second hit here in Australia as well as their second Billboard chart topper in their native America. As the name of the song implies, this is a song dedicated to a Sara who was the ex-girlfriend of the lead singer of the group. They would have one more hit the following year with the theme from the film Mannequin.

#7084

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7083

If you need proof that Aqua were indeed a real band who just happened to appeal to the youth of the day better than their peers, allow me to present to you the fourth song from their debut album which was so mature and unlike the rest of the album it came from that it was chosen as the theme song to Sliding doors starring Gwyneth Paltrow. The film has two stories that run parallel with each other based on whether or not she makes it onto a train, something that makes this ballad seem appropriate to soundtrack.

#7082

We have another appearance from the king of rock and roll for this list, I wish I could say something more interesting about these tracks of his, but they're honestly in one ear and out the other for me, proving that he could release anything at this point in his career and it would be a hit with us Aussies.

#7081

I guess it had been several decades since there was a dance craze in the music scene, so here's the big one from the 80's with a band called Was (not was) (whatever that's supposed to say about them) who scored their one and only hit with a song about doing the Dinosaur which is a strange dance that seems to be taken from the moves found in "Walk like an Egyptian" from the Bangles. It was a huge hit in Australia and the UK but not in their native America.

#7080

Given how many artists from highly successful bands were finding solo success around this time, it only makes sense that the Who's Pete Townshend would throw his hat in the ring with this solo entry from him. It became his only success both solo and with the band following their 1971 album Who's next, likely due to how bouncy it is as well as having his daughter on backing vocals.

#7079

It's puzzling to think that this was the big hit from blues legend JJ Cale and not "Cocaine" here in Australia, although I guess the fact that he had a hit here in Australia is proof that we Aussies did at least love him for one single as opposed to his fellow Americans who completely ignored his catalogue.

#7078

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7077

While this wasn't their debut single here in Australia, it was the song which got them off the ground given how the first two singles from their self-titled album were huge flops here despite the band performing them on Countdown the previous year. Naturally this was chosen as the lead single internationally once the album got off the ground here, which is why it did much better internationally than it did here.

#7076

This was the only hit that Vicki Sue Robinson was able to score here in Australia, although American readers will be more familiar with her Billboard hit "Turn the beat around" from ten years prior which was made famous ten years later by Gloria Estefan's cover. I'm guessing this was a hit here due to how much love we Aussies had for disco this far into the 80's compared to her fellow Americans.

#7075

While she hadn't had a hit since the start of the decade, Kate Bush was able to slip her way into the mainstream this year with this track about how she felt she made a deal with God in finding happiness with the person she's singing to. It became a surprise hit for her this year given how out of place it felt compared to everything else on this list, although it's par for the course when it comes to her discography.

#7074

You may have noticed that 1994 was a bit of a strange year overall for music here in Australia, as such it's little surprise the 100% hits recap wasn't that big of a success when it came out.

#7073

Given how Blink 182 had called it quits this year (albeit temporarily) it seemed like the perfect opportunity for their label to issue a greatest hits package which was predictably a success for them here in Australia given how popular their last three album was throughout the decade so far.

#7072

I think these guys are the only EDM artists to have more than one successful album in Australia throughout the 90's, although admittedly neither of their albums were as big as any of their contemporaries so perhaps this all balances out. In any case, the Dutch duo was able to double their success the following year by releasing more of their irresistibly catchy dance tracks on their next album.

#7071

This was a bit more successful than their previous album, I guess because this was their attempt at becoming the likes of Rage against the machine or other heavier rock bands with a political edge to their lyricism. Indeed, this saw the band take a stance against politics which was a common troupe that the decade would become known for, although they weren't the biggest success stories in this regard.

#7070

It looks like we Aussies wanted to have Jamiroquai be a one album wonder as this was seen as a massive disappointment compared to their previous effort, fortunately they would bounce back with their next album which would go on to be one of the biggest albums of the 00's down under.

#7069

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7068

This is what I meant when I said earlier that Leo Sayer found more success with his singles than he did with his albums following the success of his earlier entry on this list, that said, this follow up was decently successful here in Australia even if the title track has gone on to overshadow its legacy over the years.

#7067

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7066

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7065

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7064

It's a bit weird that Boston's debut album was a huge sleeper hit here in Australia given how you'd think it would've been as inescapable as something from the Eagles or Neil Diamond given how iconic it remains to this day, in a way, it makes sense that this follow up was more of an immediate success even if overall it didn't achieve nearly as much success in the long run as their previous effort.

#7063

This was a bit of a comeback for the Who here in Australia given how they hadn't troubled our charts since the start of the decade with their album Who's next, I'm guessing inserting their name into their album title was what compelled us Aussies into buying them since as far as I can tell, none of their other albums were a success here (despite how big their singles were throughout the 60's.)

#7062

This is the first compilation album to find success here in Australia in quite some time (there was one or two of them that found success throughout the 70's) although this was more of a recap release that would be synonymous with the Smash hits franchise that would begin in 1987 more than a seasonal compilation.

#7061

When news broke that the Spice girls would reunite for a one-off world tour, fans were so excited that they bought this greatest hits package in droves despite them only having three albums during their time together from the late 90's and earlier in the decade. While the tour was a massive success, it wasn't a permanent reunion as the girls sadly remembered why they broke up in the first place and did so again.

#7060

This will be the final appearance from Travis on this site as the Scottish band failed to achieve any further success after this album anywhere in the world, although they at least got in one final hit in their native UK with its lead single after the success of Coldplay's earlier entry on this list which I still believe is the reason why they didn't have any further success after this album.

#7059

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7058

Well, we already looked at the Tour of duty series from the 80's, now let's look at another soundtrack from a TV series set during the Vietnam war which was known as China Beach. Like Tour of duty, this was another critically acclaimed TV show based on the Vietnam war that was a massive success in the southern hemisphere, although it only produced two soundtracks as opposed to three like Tour of duty.

#7057

I guess Luciano Pavarotti was more popular prior to him teaming up with Jose Carreras and Placido Domingo throughout the 90's if the success of this greatest hits album was anything to go by here in Australia.

#7056

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7055

Following the demise of Led Zeppelin from the start of the decade, Robert Plant decided to embark on a solo career which was off to a sound start with this album given how it was a modest success for him worldwide. He would have much better luck with his second album the following year where it became a huge success for him.

#7054

One of the more poignant films of the decade was Philadelphia, it's a film where Tom Hanks portrays a homosexual man who is sued by his former law firm for reasons that wind up being little more than homophobia as it's revealed he also has HIV. It deservedly won a bunch of awards due to shining a light on the rampant homophobia of the world, and the soundtrack was also a success due to its theme song.

#7053

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7052

One of the best rom coms of the decade is easily Love actually, a Christmas film that has several stories intertwined with each other about several British citizens falling in love at a time where that seemed to be nigh impossible in modern society. As with most British films, it had a rather eclectic soundtrack which is perhaps why the soundtrack managed to be a massive success in addition to the film.

#7051

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7050

One of the most popular films of the decade was the first Matrix film, it took the concept of Alice in wonderland and placed it in an internet setting which blew the minds of audiences back in the day. It's a bit dated now given how the internet has evolved, however it remains a favourite of audience to this day thanks to its creative concept as well as the soundtrack which was a huge success as well.

#7049

Given how immensely popular RHCP were back in the day, it only makes sense they would rerelease their album Blood sugar sex magik and repackage it to include all of their songs they recorded during the making of the album on a bonus disc. Apparently, this was only released here in Australia and NZ, likely suggesting the band appreciated the success we gave them over their fellow Americans.

#7048

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7047

Given how his previous album was one of the biggest of the decade worldwide, it only makes sense that David Bowie would achieve some modicum of success with this follow up even if it only achieved a fraction of what his earlier effort achieved.

#7046

Given how Nirvana had a live album released mere months after the death of Kurt Cobain from MTV, I guess the BBC wanted to release their own cash in from an album of a popular band who performed on their set from around this time. That came with this album from the fab four from when they were just starting out in their career.

#7045

It was a new decade and yet even Poison were able to find success this year, true hair metal was beginning to lose its popularity as even at the time it was seen as a distinctive feature of the 80's, but that wasn't enough to prevent these guys from having success this year with their third album. Besides you don't have an album as instantly recognisable as Open up and say aah and have the band in question be a one album wonder.

#7044

I guess the Beach boys saw a resurgence in popularity this year for some reason, as such this greatest hits package from two years prior managed to become a huge hit for the band here in Australia.

#7043

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7042

This was the second hit to come from D:ream this year, it was also released the previous year to deafening silence likely due to the Irish band needing that extra promotion to ensure their bright and happy dance tracks would find an audience for them. Indeed, they did as the band were able to find massive success with these songs and their album they came from, although their popularity faded soon after.

#7041

I get the feeling this second single from Destiny fulfilled had a bit of an identity crisis here in Australia given how I'm actually not that well familiar with the version that has both T.I and Lil Wayne on the track and instead just with the version with the trio by themselves. I guess the two rappers were meant to be the soldiers in question that the girls were singing about throughout the track.

#7040

There were no signs of Abba slowing down when they released the third single from Arrival, in fact this wound up being their biggest hit in the UK likely due to this being a breakup song which was in sharp contrast with the bright and upbeat pseudo disco tracks they had put out throughout their career. Indeed, this song was a bit ahead of its time when it came to the band singing about their messy breakups.

#7039

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7038

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7037

This was the last song to become a hit for Craig David outside his native UK, although I get the feeling this was the case due to it sampling Sting's "Shape of my heart" from his 1993 album Ten summoner's tales and even managed to get Sting to rerecord the chorus on this track which connects the verses together. It was also the first time Sting managed to score a hit anywhere in the world in over a decade.

#7036

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7035

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7034

As with every fad in the music industry, it was only a matter of time before there would be a parody song about the rockabilly revival that would be a success. That came in the form of this track from the Belgian group the Veterans who made a joke song about how the rockabilly revival was flooding the mainstream over newer and more exciting music.

#7033

This was a massive worldwide hit for the Canadian band Ocean, likely due to how unapologetically religious it is which connected with spiritual audiences back in the day. It appears there weren't many Aussies in that audience given how much less successful it was here compared to the rest of the world.

#7032

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7031

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7030

This is one of only two entries from Stevie Wonder, that's right, one of the biggest names of the decade only had two hits here in Australia even if his albums did do considerably well with us Aussies (which somewhat makes him an album artist as far as we're concerned.) At least this was a chart topper on Billboard even if it's one of his rare slow jams that got popular over the years.

#7029

By far one of their most easily recognisable hits in their catalogue, we have this ballad from the Carpenters which became their biggest hit in the UK likely due to how tender it sounds despite it clearly being about nostalgia for the years that had gone by. It was also a huge hit in their native America, although not quite at the dizzying heights of their earlier entries.

#7028

This was an Oscar winning ballad for the film Lovers and other strangers, although this version from the Carpenters was released well after the film won its prize meaning that it isn't an Oscar winning ballad like the other entries from the academy awards on this list. Still, I wouldn't be surprised if this was a hit due to its affiliation with the film.

#7027

This was the only notable hit that the Venetians managed to have here in Australia, although they did spark international interest in their catalogue despite them being far from the most successful Australian band of the decade. They would try to find a second hit here throughout the rest of the decade before they called it quits and broke up in 1989, much like many bands from the 80's now that I think about it.

#7026

I haven't seen the Goonies (nor do I plan on doing so) so I have no idea how accurately this theme song reflects the film as it appears that fans feel it's a terrible theme due to how wacky Cyndi makes it out to be in the song and especially the video. It's one of two songs in her catalogue that she seems to have regretted making as it hardly ever appears on her greatest hits compilations despite its initial success.

#7025

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7024

Well, if nothing else, you can't accuse Robbie Williams of being one dimensional as this was his venture towards ska pop which I suppose wasn't too far removed from his venture towards swing from earlier in the decade. It was a big hit for him worldwide, although it would be one of his last hits as his next album would see him venture towards hip hop which fans didn't appreciate.

#7023

Given how the Eminem show was meant to debunk all of the controversies that were lobbied against Eminem, it only makes sense that he would make this the centrepiece of the album which of course meant that it would be released as a single right after his entry from towards the top of this list. While it didn't win over his haters, it did reassure those who were on the fence that no, he wasn't a violent misogynistic homophobe like he portrayed himself as on his albums.

#7022

This was Bob Seger's other bit hit this year, it comes from Beverly Hills cop II and helped the film earn both an academy award nomination and a Razzie with George Michael's earlier entry on this list from the film. This was the critically acclaimed song of the two and the one which finally allowed Bob to have a Billboard chart topper after over a decade of scoring hits in his native America.

#7021

This was the big hit from I'm talking due to it being the lead single to their debut album, evidently the songs they released the previous year were from an E.P which is why none of them appear on their album they released this year. I think they were trying to win over an international audience as there's a remix of this track that was done by Stock Aiken and Waterman, this remix was a flop unfortunately.

#7020

This was yet another double release that became a hit in the late 90's in Australia, although at least there's nowhere in the world where either of these songs were released individually so it's not like we Aussies bundled them together because we wanted to or anything. I guess "Who do you think you are" is the lead single from this release given how it's a disco revival track whereas "Mama" is one of the more subdue tracks that often slips under their radar.

#7019

Even though this track from Alison Mccallum wasn't among the most popular here in Australia back in the day, it nonetheless sparked international interest for the rock singer which is why I was able to find cover art for it that wasn't just a Jpeg of its vinyl for this list. Naturally this interest didn't do her career any favours as she would retire from music by the end of the decade.

#7018

I guess Rick Astley wasn't done with the music industry after the failure of his second album, so he cut ties with Stock Aiken and Waterman to release a third album which did slightly better this year likely due to him going in a more down to earth direction with his music. This change in direction only worked for this one song as it was more in line with the adult contemporary of this year than his earlier work.

#7017

Although she managed to score two hits from her third album here in Australia, neither of them was that big and the album wound up underperforming for P!nk which suggested that her time in the spotlight was up which thankfully wasn't the case as we'll see later in the decade. It's a shame this underperformed because it's one of her more fun tracks about how much of a troublemaker she can be.

#7016

Following the commercial disappointment of "What do I have to do" (which sadly won't be appearing on this list) Kylie decided to have the fourth and final single from Rhythm of love have a guest rap verse that didn't appear on the album on the single which paid off as it was able to become a success for her here and in the UK. Said rap verse has largely been lost to the sands of time due to it not adding much to the track.

#7015

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7014

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7013

Although he saw massive success at the start of the decade in his native NZ as a teen idol, this was the first hit that Jon Stevens had in Australia given that he had become the lead singer of Noiseworks to reinvent himself as a pub rocker in the same vein as Jimmy Barnes and other Australian singers. I'm not sure why this was a success and not "No lies," both have such a passionate performance from Jon that they should've been bigger.

#7012

This was the biggest hit that the New seekers had in their native UK as well as in America, this is due to the song being sampled for a Coca-Cola add shortly after its release which boosted its popularity throughout the world. Naturally this add had no affect on the song's popularity here in Australia given how it was far from the most popular song of its day here.

#7011

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7010

This was the second single to be released from the Use your illusions era, although technically it was the first as their earlier entry on this list was originally meant for the Terminator 2 soundtrack before being included on the second edition. I'm not sure if was meant to be two albums or one excruciatingly long double album conceptually, either way both volumes became a massive worldwide success for them.

#7009

This has to be one of the most incessantly catchy songs to become a hit throughout the 80's, this is due to the charismatic performance of Limahl as well as the instrumentation that his band Kajagoogoo (man what a stupid band name) provided for him on this track. For whatever reason, this wasn't that big of a hit here in Australia which is why it appears much lower on this list than you would otherwise expect.

#7008

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)

#7007

It seems odd that of all the victory singles to make it big from American idol here in Australia, it would come from Fantasia who never had much success even in her homeland following her victory on the reality series. I guess this was a hit here due to the previous winner Rubben Studdard having success over in NZ the previous year along with the runner up Clay Aiken.

#7006

Norman Gunston was an Australian character who originate from Aunty Jack, the Australian 70's equivalent of Mrs. browns boys which was widely successful during its two-season run from 1972-1973. Once the show ended, the actor playing him released a comedy album which contained this skit about the popularity of Abba that became a hit for him, it wasn't even his last single as he did the same thing for Kiss in 1980.

#7005

This was the only hit that John Farnham had for almost ten years as his last hit was from 1973 and his next one wouldn't come until he joined the Little river band later in the decade. This is a cover of the Beatles classic, although aside from replacing the voices of Paul and John with his own, he admittedly doesn't add much to this track which is perhaps why it's been lost to the sands of time.

#7004

Well, this is just bizarre, we have this diss track that Eminem made to Insult the comic dog that somehow managed to become a hit for the rapper despite the fact that he was going after a comic strip whose gimmick was that they were poking fun at people like they were the Muppets. I guess people found this funny back in the day, it's certainly hilariously ironic that Eminem of all people would attack the publication.

#7003

Well, if you wanted to imagine Cliff Richard as your daddy, I guess this is the song for you as that's essentially what he's doing here on this cover of an obscure track from the early 60's. It was a big hit for the aging pop crooner following the success of his earlier entry, although he wouldn't trouble our charts gain for another four years before he teamed up with the Young ones to remake his debut single for charity.

#7002

This is a song that I feel has too much brass in it (or rather synthesisers pretending that they're brass) as a result I feel that the song is a bit too annoying for my liking which puts me in the minority as this remains one of the band's most iconic songs to this day. This would be their last hit in Australia as their second Billboard chart topper "Human" would flop here, possibly due to the band being reduced to a trio by that point.

#7001

(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)