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.
#3800
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3799
This was one of the cheesier songs to become a hit this decade, although I feel there was enough room for this type of ballad considering how much disco and rock opera there was as an alternative for audiences looking for cooler music. Alan remains a one hit wonder in most parts of the world with this ballad including in his native America, however he did score a second hit here in Australia with "Skinny girls."
#3798
This was the only hit that Men without hats scored outside of their native Canada, although they would retain their popularity in their homeland throughout the decade which was a rare feat for Canadian artists who saw international success this decade. In any case we have this novelty track that was written in response to people dancing aggressively at one of their shows which turned the show into a disaster.
#3797
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3796
Well, if the Grid were able to show us how to marry EDM with country music, then Rednex found a way to irritate audiences with their one and only hit worldwide with this track. Apparently, this was a remix of an old folk song that has been sung over the years by American outlaws that the Swedish group somehow got their hands on, although they did write the verses sung by the female vocalist.
#3795
This was the biggest hit from Poison in Australia, I'm guessing because they were coming off the overwhelming success of their second album Open up and say ahh which was one of the biggest here in Australia of the 80's. From what I can tell, this is a song about nothing which admittedly is a far cry from their earlier work which at least had individual messages for each song.
#3794
This was the only hit that Wyclef Jean had as a lead artist in Australia, although I get the feeling this was only a hit because it seemed like it was meant to be a reunion duet with Lauryn Hill that was instead a duet with the female member of City High once he realised he wasn't going to make up with his Fugees co member. He would have another hit with Shakira later in the decade whilst she would fade into obscurity.
#3793
Much like Daft punk, this was also a French duo who scored a massive hit at the start of the decade with an EDM number, although unlike Daft punk, they wouldn't last very long in the mainstream as they would disband later in the decade. Honestly there's not much more I can add to this track other than them being a less successful version of those guys.
#3792
Although he would see massive success in his native America throughout the 80's, it likely wouldn't have happened had this breakthrough hit for him here in Australia not become as such this year. I'm guessing the lyrics didn't jive well with American audiences as it is essentially Johnny looking for the perfect one-night stand, however it certainly did jive with us largely thanks to a memorable performance of it on Countdown.
#3791
From what I can gather, there are two versions of this song as there's the original which was released in the duo's native America which flopped and then there's the dance remix which became a massive success here and throughout Europe for the duo. This led to them having even more success with their earlier entry throughout the world, although they didn't find any further success with their other songs.
#3790
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3789
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3788
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3787
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3786
This was the third hit to come from Mika's debut album, he had a fourth hit with "Big girl" but that's too much of a sleeper hit to be making an appearance on this site of mine. Once that track fell off the charts, his popularity seemed to come to an end as his second album was a huge failure for him by the end of the decade.
#3785
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3784
This is the last hit that Linkin Park has had in their career, mainly because their output in the 2010's has taken many bizarre turns that the mainstream hasn't been able to keep up with (and the less said about their 2017 effort the better.) I guess it's fitting that this theme to the second Transformers film would be the last many would hear from them given how their previous hit in Australia was the theme to the first film.
#3783
These guys were yet another punk rock band that were adored by Triple J but otherwise largely ignored by Australian audiences, that is until this became a hit for them due to the video which lampoons some of the biggest teen pop stars of the late 90's as a way of distancing themselves from the other popular acts on TRL. This was a disturbingly common trend for older artists that regularly appeared on the music program.
#3782
There was a good chance that reggae was going to be the genre of the 70's if this track from Bruce Ruffin is anything to go by, it was a big hit here in Australia and even decently successful in the UK for the Jamaican singer likely due to the ad libs that pepper the track as well as that admittedly catchy reggae groove it has going for it.
#3781
You'd think that these guys would've kept the hits coming following the success of their two earlier entries on this list, alas this was the only other hit they had which was likely due to the success of those two chart toppers. Still the fact they managed one more hit does prove that there was at least some interest in their original material which is more than I can say for the other bands who scored a hit with a topical cover of an international chart topper on this list.
#3780
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3779
There was a lot of hype going into Toni Child's second album, that hype was met when the lead single became a huge success for her here in Australia despite her still being unable to find success in her native America (something that she never wound-up accomplishing.) Indeed, this would be her last hit single anywhere in the world as once the album cycle ended, she was considered yesterday's news.
#3778
This was the biggest hit that Gilbert O'Sullivan had in his native UK, it wasn't quite as inescapable throughout the rest of the world likely due to this song feeling like it was written about a dog rather than an overexcited partner of his. At least this isn't anywhere near as pessimistic as some of the other songs in his catalogue.
#3777
I guess the decade was known for its cheesy ballads, and hey the fact that there was a noticeable increase in artists whose first language wasn't English was admirable considering how most artists who were popular prior to the 70's were either American or British worldwide. With that out of the way, I've exhausted any positive comments I have for this ballad from the Brazilian crooner Morris Albert.
#3776
This was originally released as the B-side to Bruce Springsteen's "Dancing in the dark" which was ranked the second biggest hit of the decade in Australia by David Kent due to its mammoth 64 week run on the charts. Naturally Natalie Cole saw how big this song was and decided to make it her own four years later which allowed it to become her first big hit here after over a decade of trying to make it big.
#3775
This was the only success that the British band Sailor were able to achieve outside their native UK, I'm guessing this was a success due to glam still being popular this year despite it being more in line with what would eventually become new wave in the 80's. True to their band name, these guys did in fact have a gimmick of being a band of sailors who played for their ships captain.
#3774
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3773
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3772
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3771
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3770
One of the more promising Australian acts of the decade was Bachelor girl, a duo who scored their first hit with a song about how falling in love with a boy was the same thing as being brutally murdered in different ways. OK so it's dead simple to make fun of this song, however few have (to my knowledge at least) due to how heartfelt the vocals are as well as this being a staple of the 90's sound.
#3769
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3768
This was the second single to be released from East 17, and it managed to be a huge hit for them both here and in their native UK which cemented them as a worthy rival of Take that in their homeland and the clear winner of the first round of the boy band wars here in Australia. They would score two more hits from their debut album Walthamstow down under proving how inescapable they were.
#3767
I feel I have the same opinion of this song as what many people do, namely that while I love J-Lo's performance on this track, it's sadly cancelled out by that trumpet playing throughout the track which seems to be off key for some reason. It's because of this clash in sounds that the song was a success but not as much as her previous efforts from earlier in the decade, although it's still more coherent than the rest of the album.
#3766
While on the surface this is a song about how Sara Bareilles isn't going to write a love song about the relationship she's in, it's actually her standing up to her label who wanted her to write a generic love song even though she didn't have any experience with love while making her debut album from earlier in the decade. It turns out they were happy for this to be the lead single for her second album.
#3765
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3764
If you're wondering where the heck this EDM track came from, you'll probably be shocked to discover that this came from Jam and Spoon of "Right in the night" fame as they rebranded themselves to be anime fans as evidence by the Astro boy bootleg that appears in their promotion and the video for this track. They would score another hit later in the year with this formula which we'll get to in a bit.
#3763
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3762
This was the only hit for Minnie Riperton during her short life on this planet, yes, she would go on to tragically pass away by the end of the decade from cancer which makes this one of the more bittersweet hits to become a success on my site. This song has gained infamy for Minnie's high note at the end of each chorus as well as the lyrics admittedly making no sense, I think the song is cute for what it is.
#3761
This was the third big hit to come from the Veronicas debut album, it continues the trend of the duo singing in unison to create the illusion they were singing as one person which I and their many fans appreciate for its uniqueness as well as us connecting with the song regardless of how it's presented. They would release two more singles from the album which both flopped due to the album sales eating up their success.
#3760
Split Enz was on a roll as they were able to achieve massive success with the lead single to their album Corroboree/Waiata, an album which was meant to pay respect to the traditional owners of the lands of Australia and NZ despite the album not having any political tracks on there. The band would continue to spark international interest that failed to translate to actual success worldwide.
#3759
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3758
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3757
Well, if you thought that Kool and the gang's only hit in Australia was their version of this ballad, wait until you get a hold of this version from Dutch RNB singer Pappa Bear who managed to outdo the funk band with his rendition of the track. This became a success here in Australia due to it being one of the biggest hits of the decade over in NZ, proving how fondly remembered the original version was.
#3756
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3755
Given how he had taken the Australian music scene by storm with his two entries on the previous list, Joe Cocker decided to release a two for one deal with this album containing his first two albums which of course was a huge success here as Australian exclusives tend to do well on our charts.
#3754
Given how Mariah Carey and Eric Clapton had two of the biggest albums of the decade with their respective live albums from MTV unplugged, it makes sense that Rod Stewart would join in on the fun by releasing his album recorded at his unplugged concert which was also a massive success for him and the show.
#3753
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3752
While the mid to late 80's is considered a dark period in Elton John's life, it should be noted that he did achieve a moderate amount of success with his albums during this time period even if he doesn't look back upon them fondly. This album in particular managed to spawn one of his biggest hits in his catalogue which is just about the only thing most people like to remember from it nowadays.
#3751
This was the final album John Lennon released before he briefly retired in music, of course he would come back in 1980 months before his death but at this stage he wanted to step out of the spotlight due to all of the drama he had found himself in both with the band as well as his personal relationships.
#3750
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3749
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3748
As you've no doubt noticed going through these lists, there wasn't a lot of RNB albums to become popular here in Australia throughout the decade, this was one of the lucky few that was due to there being quite a lot of hype going into it due to the popularity of its advanced singles. Said singles proved to be even more popular in NZ at the expense of the album which flopped over there.
#3747
The legends are true, Metallica did indeed once go on tour with a symphony orchestra which was so well received that they decided to release a live recording of the best parts of the tour which was an instant success just as the 90's had come to an end. It would lead to a very rocky decade which had its highs (Death magnetic) and its lows (St anger.)
#3746
Well, he may not have had the magic that Bernie Taupin gave him through his songwriting, however that didn't prevent Elton John from finding success during this perceived dark period as evidence by how popular this album was for him. I'm guessing this did as well as it did in Australia due to him being a regular on Countdown as he did perform the lead single to this album which made it a huge hit.
#3745
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3744
Following the success of their comeback album from the previous year, Hoodoo gurus decided to release a greatest hits album which was also successful making you wonder why their 1989 album was a flop when it came out. This was the last success the band would have in their career, however it also proved that their back catalogue was well loved by their fans and such they became a touring act.
#3743
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3742
This was the debut album from German duo Enigma, an album they named after the year they released it in albeit in roman numerals in order to make it come off as an intellectual album. This was the first of many successful new age albums to be released this decade, and it was the second to be released period following Enya's landmark album Watermark from two years prior.
#3741
Much like their earlier entry on this list, this also saw a massive improvement on our digital charts compared to how well it did as a physical release which goes to show that these guys always had appeal on our digital storefront regardless of which phase of their career we're referring to.
#3740
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3739
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3738
These women were on a roll in Australia as they were able to score another massive hit with this ballad about wanting to take it slow in a sexual relationship, it appears that our stigma towards music of colour was finally long gone by the 80's even without the assistance of MTV promoting black artists. The trio would go on to have massive success this decade, although mostly through their upbeat tracks.
#3737
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3736
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3735
Although this wasn't their first song to find success in their native America, this was the song which made them an international household name likely due to it being written by Bruce Springsteen for a rock artist no one's heard of. The three ladies would go on to have massive success in the 80's here in Australia which would've been impossible for them to achieve if they had of peaked in the 70's.
#3734
For nine years, this was the only hit that Train had outside their native America as none of their other singles from the 00's managed to become a hit for them outside of the Billboard charts. That of course changed in 2010 when "Hey soul sister" got them out of the one hit wonder bin in most parts of the world, although I'm sure many people would rather this be their one and only hit in retrospect.
#3733
We have another British band making it big in Australia this year, although this is about as pop as you can get while still being from a band as this is obviously meant for all the Julie Anne's in the audience and how much these guys love them. It's innocent fun and easy to see why it was a huge success around this time.
#3732
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3731
This was the only hit that South African singer John Kongos had in his career (side note this was an excellent time for African artists if this list is any indication) it's a song that's since been eclipsed here in Australia due to the Party boys cover from 1987. It's a song that's best known for its strong African style production from the drums to it having somewhat of a tribal ambience to it.
#3730
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3729
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3728
While this wasn't her debut single, it was the song that got Irish new age vocalist Enya into the mainstream as it became a surprise success in her native UK when it got to number one over there. I'm guessing this was a huge hit down under due to the number of female singer/songwriters making it big around this time, making it a win for what would eventually become the Lilith Fair crowd.
#3727
I keep needing to remind myself this isn't an early ELO track and is instead from Wings of all bands, I definitely wasn't expecting to have a prog track from the band make it on this site even though it honestly would've dumbfounded me if this song wasn't a hit here in Australia given that it's a Bond theme for the movie of the same name. It means that I've now featured both the original and Guns n roses version of this track on my site.
#3726
This is a song that's since been claimed by the Dreamworks franchise Madagascar as people are likely more familiar with Sacha Baron Cohen's cover of this dance track than the original. Indeed, this wasn't a huge hit for the trio in their native America as this only became a worldwide smash due to it becoming a surprise hit in the UK, although there was little doubt that this would be a huge success in Australia.
#3725
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3724
There were plenty of boy bands competing in the boy band wars this decade, these guys stood out because they played their own instruments which even then wasn't a unique requirement as we had Hanson and our own Taxiride that also filled this bill. This was the British band's only hit single in Australia, which I feel was only the case to give them a shoutout among the other contestants.
#3723
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3722
Given how the two lead singles to her first official album were back-to-back success for her, I think it's safe to say that her not winning the fourth season of Australian idol wasn't a detractor for her popularity anymore given how much more popular she became than Damien Leith even by this point of her career. Of course, the best was still yet to come as it turns out she's also a gifted actress which led to her acting career taking off in the 2010's.
#3721
This was one of two hits that Sean Paul had in Australia as a lead artist, this is impressive considering how he only ever had a hit as a featured artist over in NZ which is bizarre considering the kiwis would've loved this guy throughout the 90's if he had released his catalogue back then. Another surprise is that he was massive over in the UK given how the Brits also didn't have much love for reggae over the years.
#3720
If you can believe it, there was a time where this had nothing to do with the Shrek franchise as this was originally written for the film Mystery men, hence why there's a version of this music video with clips of that film inserted randomly throughout its runtime. Even since this was included in the opening scenes of the Dreamworks flick, it's unfortunately become a meme for the band which harmed their career.
#3719
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3718
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3717
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3716
This was the only hit to come from Kelly Clarkson's third album My December, an album that was panned by critics for being too much of an emotional trainwreck as she recorded it without much guidance from her management at the time. I and many others have defended the album for being an honest look at her emotional state at the time, however her label insisted on them having more control over her music after it was released.
#3715
This was the only hit that Harry Chapin managed to achieve in his lifetime, indeed like some artists who made it big this decade, he didn't live for very long after he scored his big hit as he died in a car crash in 1981 meaning there was every chance he could've scored a second hit in his career if he lived through the 80's. This song was covered by Ugly kid joe in the early 90's where it became an even bigger success for them.
#3714
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3713
It looked like that Madonna was here to stay for the third decade in a row as this third single from her album Music was a massive success for the queen of pop worldwide, although her popularity would quickly fade away when she released her next album later in the decade where she attempted to tackle politics to dismal results. The decade would turn out to be a rocky one for her, although at least she had some success throughout.
#3712
This was originally released the previous year to deafening silence here in Australia, I'm not even sure why it flopped if I'm being honest as Livie was already one of the biggest stars here in Australia and she was acquiring a massive international audience with her country ballads. This was given a second chance following the success of her greatest hits album First impressions.
#3711
Frankie Valli certainly seemed to have a resurgence in popularity this decade which all began with this ballad about how he reminisces about a crush he had when he was a schoolboy. This managed to tug at the heartstrings of audiences worldwide and have it be a huge success for him, which in turn led to him having two more hits later in the decade both solo and with the Four seasons with disco tracks.
#3710
It looks like the Abba phenomenon was beginning to die down with their latest album err.... the Album. With that said, these guys continued to have success here for the remainder of the decade and even into the 80's as their dip in popularity was more due to overexposure from their previous two albums, although it could also be this lead single not being the best choice to lead an album cycle.
#3709
This is where it all began for Craig David, it's interesting to think that Usher would only have one hit by this point in his career in Australia and yet this guy would spawn three hits down under before his American counterpart would escape the one hit wonder bin here. That's honestly the best way I can describe Craig as he really was doing the same thing that Usher was during this phase of his career.
#3708
This was originally a hit for Norman Greenbaum sixteen years prior which in turn was a success due to the Jesus Christ superstar phenomenon that was taking the world by storm at the start of the 70's. These guys were able to score a massive hit throughout Europe with their interpretation of the lyrics before fading into obscurity making this an example of a one hit wonder covering a one hit wonder.
#3707
This is the third and final hit that T.I had outside of America, although I feel that this would've been a hit regardless given how it has Justin Timberlake on the chorus who seemed to be a cheat code when it came to artists (specifically rappers) throughout the decade scoring a massive hit. This cheat code of his expired once the 2010's rolled around as he didn't have much success then even as a lead artist.
#3706
They did manage to have one of the most successful EDM albums of the decade with their breakthrough earlier in the decade, so it makes sense that the German trio would try to replicate that success with this song which they made a valiant attempt with as it was a huge hit for them here in Australia. Unfortunately, their time in the spotlight was up as newer EDM groups took over the mainstream.
#3705
This was the second hit that Merril Bainbridge managed to score in Australia this year, although it wasn't an eventual sleeper hit in America like her earlier entry despite having a new music video shot exclusively for an international market. Despite being a sweet ballad on the surface, the song is actually about how Merril's previous partner had drowned and how it made her an emotional wreck.
#3704
This was the lead single of the 60's band the Kingston trio, a band that never saw much success here in Australia back in the day as did a lot of bands and artists who you otherwise would've thought were inescapable here. Here he recruits Stevie Nicks on backing vocals for his one and only solo hit anywhere in the world, I'm guessing her presence was what finally made him a success down under.
#3703
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#3702
It seems weird that UB40 would initially struggle to find success in Australia with their album Labour of love II when they found little issues with scoring a hit with Robert Palmer on this cover of the Bob Dylan track. I guess this is what the band needed to find success here with a later entry on this list given how Robert was still one of the hottest stars in the world when he agreed to do this duet.
#3701
I haven't seen Two of a kind, although judging by the lyrics from Livie's final hit single anywhere in the world (that wasn't a mashup of her earlier work) it seems like quite the film as there's a theme about being back from the dead on this track. Her rare foray into rock music paid off as it became one of her most well-known songs in her catalogue, although as I said, this would be the last relevant hit in her career.
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