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.
#1400
It took them three albums but Salt n Pepa were finally able to find success in their native America with the lead single to Very necessary, I feel like we need to give them and female hip hop in general a round of applause for finally breaking down barriers in the hip hop community over there. It's easy to see how this made it big internationally, the rhymes are arguably at their best on here as is the production.
#1399
So, for whatever reason, someone decided to do a mashup of "You're the one that I want," "Greased lightning" and "Summer nights" from the Grease soundtrack where it managed to become a massive success at the start of the decade. The DJ gave full credit to both stars of the film, and as such it recharted later in the decade when the 20th anniversary of the film was released.
#1398
This was originally written for the film Mo money, hence why the two performers insist that the best things in life are free given that's the theme the film is going for (from what I can gather that is.) This proved to be a huge success for both parties involved particularly here in Australia where neither of them was exactly among the most successful stars of the moment, of course that changed once Janet released her next album.
#1397
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1396
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1395
As I said earlier on this list, this song was bundled with Madonna's third single from her second album in order to lessen her grip on the Australian charts. I'm willing to be that "Angel" wouldn't have been nearly as popular here if this didn't happen as it's obvious that this song from her film debut Desperately seeking Susan was what made the double A-side release be as successful as it was.
#1394
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1393
OK we have to talk about a song where even as a kid I never got the appeal of, I know that people tend to mistake these guys for Aqua but at least Aqua played their own instruments and thus had artistic integrity. These guys on the other hand copied their formula superficially and made music that was meant to be part of a lore where it's played exclusively on their bus which they've declared the fun nest place on earth.
#1392
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1391
There were a lot of post grunge songs to become hits this year, one of the more prominent tracks comes to us from Lifehouse who managed to have the biggest hit of the year in their native America despite this failing to reach number one on Billboard. This is the second time this has happened as the previous year had "Breathe" by Faith Hill claim the top spot despite that also failing to reach number one.
#1390
Many people believe (me included) that this is a song about masturbation, mainly because it's the best explanation as to what Dave Fenton means when he claims that he's "turning Japanese" throughout the song. The song became a huge success here in Australia likely due to this urban legend despite only doing decently well in their native UK, although the band called it quits likely due to their novelty status not long after.
#1389
For the second single in a row, Racey were able to top the Australian and NZ charts proving that there was still plenty of love for the rockabilly revival craze that people often forget is affiliated with the 70's. Their third single from their album was also a huge hit in Australia, however this would prove to be the end for the band as they haven't released any new material since.
#1388
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1387
This was a huge comeback success for Alice Cooper who had been MIA on the charts for exactly a decade worldwide as the last hit he had was with "How you gonna see me now" from the end of the 70's. Here he is with a song that seems to be a perfect fit into the hair metal that was popular around this time, meaning that he sadly wasn't able to retain his popularity going into the 90's.
#1386
This is the first of two hits from country star Donna Fargo to appear on this list, I told you there would be a ton of entries from female country artists on here which is a large reason why I dragged my feet in writing commentary for this list. Honestly the fact that she's a two-hit wonder here as opposed to a one hit wonder is the only thing separating Donna from the likes of Barbara Ray and Susan Raye.
#1385
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1384
This was the lead single to Phil Collin's acting debut Buster, a film that I haven't seen but from what I can gather is absolutely terrible and rightfully lost to the sands of history. I can't say I'm that impressed with this update of the Mindbenders track from the 60's, mainly because for a song with the word groovy in its title, there doesn't seem to be much of that on this track.
#1383
To think these two had been active for almost fifteen years when they released this track two years prior to deafening silence, likely because it was too much of an underground hit for even Triple J to notice at the time. It was given a remix from Todd Terry which helped it crossover to the dance floors around the world which is how this song finally took off for the husband-and-wife duo.
#1382
This was the first major hit that Helen Reddy scored here in Australia and indeed the rest of the world, although it was a hit here first given how she had yet to attract international attention which is how things work for Australian artists making it big globally. We'll be looking at three more of her ballads as we go down this list, each of them showcasing her talents as a vocalist in the country genre.
#1381
This was the final hit that Madonna has had in her career, maybe she can make a comeback given how stranger things have happened in the music industry since this song came out, but I very much doubt it given how she's been pandering to meme culture in recent years. Indeed, I get the feeling this is more of a JT track who foolishly took a one-off payment from the song in exchange for Madonna keeping all of its royalties.
#1380
Although he had already achieved success worldwide with his misguided cover of Otis Redding's "Dock of the bay," many consider this to be the moment when Michael Bolton began his chart dominance worldwide due to much more of a hit it was compared to his earlier work. Despite him being the writer for this ballad, it was originally a hit for Laura Branigan seven years prior in America.
#1379
As far as I can tell, this wasn't the theme to a theatrical film, meaning that these guys were instantly trying to recreate the success they had with their breakthrough single "End of the road" from two years prior. I guess this paid off for them as the lead single to their second album II was a huge success worldwide for the RNB boy band, and indeed the replaced themselves at number one on Billboard with their next single.
#1378
Often considered to be one of the greatest duets of all time, this collaboration between Elton John and Kiki Dee (who despite being described as an unknown singer did have a minor hit two years prior with "Amoureuse") managed to give the former his first chart topper in his native UK, which is impressive to think about considering how much success he already had over in America by this point.
#1377
So, have you ever watched Don Blueth's Anastasia and wanted to know what really happened with the historical figure portrayed by the film's villain? Well Boney M has you covered with this track that serves as a (admittedly brief) historical lesson as to what the man was really like during the Russian revolution which brought an end to the Russian tsars, all set to a catchy disco beat to boot.
#1376
This was released on its own as the third single from Madonna's sophomore album Like a virgin, however it was quickly bundled with "Into the groove" in Australia and her native America in order to lessen her overall grip on both charts. As such I'll be giving both songs their own separate entries on this list to give you an idea of how big they both were on their own had they not been combined into one entry.
#1375
It seemed like Diana Ross was yesterday's news when she scored a massive hit with this track, of course this was written by the Bee gees and even has the Brothers Gibb provide backup vocals, which meant that it had massive international appeal even if it bombed in her native America. The video is also really cool as it serves as a montage of how she began as a Motown artist twenty years prior and where she was at this moment.
#1374
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1373
This was the biggest hit in Billy Ocean's career in Australia, mainly due to it being the theme to Jewel of the Nile, which for the uninitiated is the sequel to Romancing the stone and is often considered to be an inferior film to its predecessor. I agree to an extent as this film isn't as funny or adventurous as the other flick, however it does still have plenty of heart and isn't too much of an Indiana Jones rip-off.
#1372
This is the one and only hit from the RNB duo Gnarls Barkley, a duo best known for its member Cee Lo Green who had a huge solo hit with "F U" in 2010 and for appearing as the Mummy in the Hotel Transylvania franchise (and a bunch of social media posts I won't get into here.) This feels like a throwback to the 70's which how rich the soul sound is even compared to the songs that inspired it.
#1371
Although the Brothers Gibb were already among the most popular artists of the decade, this second single from the Saturday night fever soundtrack made them the kings of disco thanks to how it managed to stick around the upper echelons of the charts throughout the world. It's easy to see why this made them a household name, the falsettos on the track remain iconic to this day and it's catchy as hell.
#1370
Many will tell you this is one of the worst covers to ever exist as it took an infectious disco track from the start of the decade and turned it into a bombastic new wave track, I don't agree with this assessment as though it's very different from the original, Pseudo echo do more than enough to make it their own without turning it into a gimmick. It is a shame this remains their one and only hit in the northern hemisphere but what are you going to do?
#1369
This was a bit of a disappointment from Billy Joel considering how inescapable (at least in Australia) his previous album was, although it did spawn arguably his biggest hit in the form of its lead single which in turn translated to the album's success worldwide. His next album would be even bigger, although it would also be his final album as he would spend the rest of his life as a touring act.
#1368
This was the final bestselling album that John Denver released in his career, although he kept soldiering on throughout the decade and even well into the 80's in an attempt to recreate the success he had this year. I guess he just happened to be in the right place at the right time as country music was all the rage worldwide during the midpoint of the 70's.
#1367
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1366
To think this was the only success En vogue had in Australia as a lead artist, thankfully they did have a massive hit earlier in the decade as the featured artist on Salt n Pepa's "Whatta man" because they would've been one hit wonders with this theme to the film Set it off otherwise. I guess they owe their success here to the hip hop trio and the Hollywood flick now that I think about it.
#1365
It makes sense that these guys would perform this track on Countdown thirteen years after its initial release given how it was indeed one of the biggest hits of the decade here in Australia back in the day. Interestingly, this was only a hit in America two years after it became a massive worldwide success, even more curiously it was around the time that they topped our charts with "Fox on the run."
#1364
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1363
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1362
Now that the world seemed to have been reunited with what it considered to be the in trends of the moment, we have one of many tracks that became a success in Australia this year that likely wouldn't have had it been released earlier in the decade. Indeed, this was a minor hit in NZ several months prior to it becoming a huge success here to give you an idea of how the times were changing.
#1361
Although it wasn't their highest charting single in Australia (that honour goes to "Hook me up") this was indeed the biggest hit that the Veronicas had here which allowed it to become a massive international hit for the duo worldwide by the end of the decade. They remain a one hit wonder in the northern hemisphere with this track, I'm guessing due to audiences not getting the gimmick of them singing in unison on their songs.
#1360
Although these guys did have minor success earlier in the decade with their debut album, it was this lead single to their second album which made them an international household name likely due to the endorsement of De la soul who provide a guest verse on certain versions of this track (that admittedly I'm unfamiliar with to this day.) It even allowed the band to crossover to America due to how funky it is.
#1359
This is one of the more bombastic tracks to come out of the American hip hop scene, although it may surprise you to learn that this wasn't a hit in the duo's native America but rather throughout Europe due to this and their other hit "Don't stop" being huge chart toppers in the UK for some reason. Naturally we Aussies followed suit in making these songs a huge success, likely due to how catchy they were for our dance floors.
#1358
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1357
Most people will be familiar with the Celine Dion version of this track from eight years later, however this was originally a hit for American born German pop star Jennifer Rush who took the world by storm with her strong vocals (though not as strong as Celine's) as well as the lyrics of devotion that struck a chord with audiences.
#1356
Although these guys had earlier singles and even albums in their native Canada, this was the song which introduced the world to what many regard as one of the worst bands to come from the new millennium. I personally feel these guys get too much hate as there's certainly worse bands and artists out there, although I can't help but notice how much quicker we Aussies were into making this a hit than the rest of the world.
#1355
I think my American readers will be surprised to see this song appear on this list and not one of my 90's lists, this is because this signature track from the Proclaimers was eventually chosen as the theme song to the Johnny Depp flick Benny and Joon in 1993 despite it being five years old by the time that movie was released. I guess this does serve as the perfect song to use on a road trip montage.
#1354
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1353
This was the third hit that Creedence clearwater revival (CCR for short) achieved from their magnum opus Cosmo's factory, it was a chart topper here in Australia which was quite rare for a track from a highly successful album that wasn't said album's lead single. I guess when you're selling two future staples on oldies stations for the price of one, that was something that was bound to happen.
#1352
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1351
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1350
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1349
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1348
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1347
This was the peak of Boney M's popularity throughout the world, a song that in my opinion lacks a lot of the charm that can be found throughout the rest of their discography. I'm guessing this was done in order for them to appeal to the American market as this was a minor success on the Billboard charts, however when you think of these guys, chances are you're thinking of "Rasputin" or "Ma baker" over this.
#1346
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1345
Well, this is a song that many of my readers will likely have no recollection of ever existing, this is mainly due to it being banned in Pussyfoot's native UK for its highly suggestive lyrics which resulted in it flopping on the British charts. We Aussies didn't have such censorship towards this song which resulted in it becoming a huge success for the band before faded into obscurity.
#1344
Well regardless of what you think of this song (it has a great bassline even if Vanilla stole it from Queen to use for his weak rapping) you can't deny this songs achievement for becoming the first hip hop track to top the Billboard charts, thankfully both MC Hammer and Young MC topped the Australian charts before this did. It's a bit of a tragedy to see how quickly Robert's fall from grace was following this songs success.
#1343
These guys were already among the more popular bands of the 70's in Australia and their native NZ going into the 80's, however it was this single to their magnum opus True colours that made them a household name and even sparked international interest in them which resulted in this being one of the first songs to be played on MTV the following year. Not bad for a band whose gimmick centred around clowns.
#1342
Finally, we have another song that's survived the test of time on this list given how it's still fondly remembered even outside of oldies stations to this day. This was one of only three hits that Don Mclean had here in Australia, the other two being ballads as opposed to this lengthy track that serves as a history lesson about the day the music died (03/02/1959.)
#1341
This was the second and final hit that Paper lace managed to achieve in most parts of the world, it's a biographical song about Al Capone which is full of historical inaccuracies which obviously didn't prevent the song from becoming a huge success upon its initial release. They did achieve a third hit in certain parts of the world with "Black eyed boy," however that would be the last anyone would hear from them.
#1340
This was the fourth year in a row where a Triple J compilation album was among the most successful albums in Australia, although I'm basing this list on the AMR charts as these albums naturally didn't chart on the ARIA charts due to ARIA considering them compilation albums and thus excluding them from their rankings.
#1339
There were no signs of Human nature slowing down as within a year of reinventing themselves, they released their second Motown cover album which also proved to be a massive success for the former boy band. Their mileage would continue well into the 2010's as they would find massive success with each of their albums for the next decade until audiences finally grew tired of them.
#1338
Although he achieved a hit from his first album from earlier in the decade, this was the album that finally made Ringo Starr a household name worldwide thanks to spawning two Billboard chart toppers for him, although his time in the spotlight away from the fab four would be rather brief.
#1337
While I doubt Nickelback would've benefitted on our digital charts given how both "Far away" and "Saving me" didn't exactly dominate them upon their initial release, I doubt they would've been hindered by their presence either given how Chad Kroeger's collaboration with Santana was a huge success there like it was on our main charts.
#1336
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1335
Right around the time Miley Cyrus was making it big in the music industry through her connections with Disney, her older brother Trace was the lead singer of this short-lived pop rock band who scored their one and only hit with this number. I'm guessing this was as big as it was due to the connection he had with Miley and their father and how this was considered edgy compared to the music his family was making.
#1334
This was the first of three big hits that Mika was able to achieve from his debut album worldwide, not bad for an artist who was widely criticised at the time for being a childish caricature of a teen idol by those who didn't realise that was the appeal of his music (not that I blame his naysayers if I'm being honest.) This was a song about how showbusiness tends to screw up celebrities no matter how well adored they are.
#1333
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1332
While people have questioned whether or not Samantha Fox had any business being in the music industry over the years due to her vocals not being up to par with many of her contemporaries, I don't think the vast majority cared as A: she was smoking hot and likely awakened many people's sexual fantasies and B: the music she made was well crafted similar to her 90's Disney counterpart Britney Spears.
#1331
This is a song I want to like but don't because of Akon's chanting throughout the track, I'm obviously in the minority here as this remains Gwen's biggest solo hit and arguably her biggest hit overall given that its popularity rivals that of "Don't speak" from a decade prior down under. She would have one more hit after this before fading into obscurity as a solo artist, although she did reform No doubt in 2012.
#1330
Well, this was certainly a different side of Will Smith we weren't used to seeing prior to this songs release, apparently this was recorded in an attempt for him to adapt into the gangster rap which was quickly taking over the mainstream around this time to mixed results. Somehow this became his biggest hit with his partner in crime DJ Jazzy Jeff in Australia and NZ, likely due to the hilarity factor back then.
#1329
Well mashup singles were all the rage this decade, so why not have one of the final hit singles be a mashup from this British group? I guess the gimmick here was the band's mascot which appears to be a (in my opinion) poorly drawn rabbit dancing around to this mashup in the video. Needless to say, this doesn't rank among the more popular mashups of the day despite it easily being the biggest hit in this genre.
#1328
One of the catchiest female empowerment anthems to ever be released, this debut single from Madison Avenue created plenty of international success, so much so that it managed to top both the NZ and UK charts despite it getting stuck behind Eiffel 65's entry from earlier on this list here in Australia. Sadly, the duo ruined their good will at the 2000 ARIA awards when Cheyne Coates appeared to be intoxicated while performing on stage.
#1327
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1326
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1325
If this feels like a victory single to anyone, rest assured that it isn't as it's in fact the debut single from Delta Goodrem who took a circuitous route in becoming a successful musician as she first appeared on Neighbors as Nina Tucker before translating the popularity she had on the show into her music career. I guess you can argue this is a victory single in that regard, although the rest of the album has more personality to it.
#1324
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1323
This was the only noticeable success that Dexy's midnight runners had outside of their native UK (unfortunately "Geno" didn't find success elsewhere despite it topping their charts) although I would've been dumbfounded if I found out this song failed back in the day due to how incessantly catchy it is as well as the Celtic instrumentation fitting in well with the surprising rise in popularity Celtic music was receiving at the time.
#1322
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1321
I guess we Aussies can breathe a sigh of relief by allowing a rapper of colour (even one as goofy as MC Hammer) to claim the prize of having the first hip hop chart topper on our charts over Vanilla ice like what happened in America. I think a part of why this happened was us somehow remembering the Rick James track this song heavily samples throughout its runtime in order to create the atmosphere he was going for.
#1320
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1319
These guys were a two-hit wonder everywhere in the world except for America where this failed to become a hit for them, this was due to a cover from Bo Donaldson and the Heywood's charting over there instead of this version likely due to the American band being a better fit for these lyrics about a foolish young soldier who loses his life in a war despite being warned against it.
#1318
Technically this is the biggest hit of Bryan Adams career in Australia given how "Everything I do for you" was pulled from shelves here in order to promote his (then) most recent album Waking up the neighbours. Here he provides the theme to a little remembered film Don Juan de Marco which sees Johnny Depp as a romantic lead in a Spanish setting, no wonder no one seems to remember this film.
#1317
Ah yes, we have yet another Oscar winning ballad to become a massive success in Australia, this time it's the love theme from Dirty dancing (yet another movie you either love or hate which I love for the record) which captivated audiences upon its initial release thanks to the chemistry between Righteous brother Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes simulating the characters from the film it was written for.
#1316
This was the first of a string of hits that American singer Anastacia had in Australia, I bring this up because she curiously never had a hit on the Billboard charts despite being a massive success throughout Europe. I guess this was due to her fellow Americans confusing her for a woman of colour initially and being taken aback when they saw she wasn't, she does admittedly have a lot of soul in her vocals.
#1315
This was a huge success for All saints all around the world, so much so that it became one of the few non-American RNB ballads to become a huge success on Billboard later in the year albeit with a different music video there than the one used everywhere else in the world. I always felt these girls didn't reach their full artistic potential until their second album released in the new millennium.
#1314
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1313
This was originally released earlier in the decade in the aging duo's native Spain to critical and commercial success, however when it was released to the English-speaking parts of the world, it was given a remix which includes additional verses from the titular Macarena which makes her out to be a bit of a diva that nonetheless connected with audiences thanks to the ridiculous dance attached to the song.
#1312
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1311
This was released the year prior to deafening silence for Gloria Estefan, I'm guessing because unlike the rest of the world, we Aussies weren't particularly interested in her work with the Miami sound machine and thus had little interest in her solo work. The album eventually became a success for her due to her surviving a horrific accident where she was violently knock out of her bed in her tour bus while she was sleeping during a crash it was involved with, needless to say our support for her was strong as a result.
#1310
It's funny how Joel Turner failed to make it onto Australian idol during its first season (something to do with him being "unsuitable" for the series) and yet he would have massive success with this track he released about the youth of the day being lost with what the mainstream is pushing onto them. It was a massive hit for the rapper and beatboxer, but unfortunately it was the peak of his success.
#1309
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1308
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1307
This was for the longest time the signature track from Abba as this was their only Billboard chart topper during their run throughout the 70's and 80's. It's easy to see why this was their biggest hit in America as it perfectly demonstrates the joyous and upbeat nature of their discography that continues to captivate audiences to this day.
#1306
It looks like Alvin Stardust had a hit here in Australia after all given how this was the biggest hit in the glam rock genre during its peak, although curiously this was a flop over in NZ despite him having a hit over there with "Pretend" almost a decade later. Then again, the kiwis weren't that big with the glam rock scene, at least not to the extent we Aussies were.
#1305
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1304
Given how Eminem was at the height of his popularity this year, it only seems fitting that a protegee of his would find massive success worldwide which was the case for Curtis Jackson AKA 50 cent. Here we have his club banger which became a massive success for the east coast rapper (despite it being produced by Dr Dre) which led to him having massive success from the album it came from.
#1303
This was the only successful album that Rod Stewart was able to have here in Australia, I'm guessing because both of the hits that spawned from the album are upbeat which was something different from the usually mellow crooner who made albums based on midtempo ballads. He would score a hit here and there throughout the rest of the 80's, however his popularity would skyrocket in the early 90's.
#1302
OK so this album was a bit slow to find success here in Australia, I'm guessing it was due to us Aussies finding the lead single to be more of a novelty as it was her rare sex jam in a catalogue otherwise filled with ballads. It was when the second single was released that this became a huge success here, sort of how "Breathe again" from her previous album made it a household name for her.
#1301
This was the last album to have Phil Collins as part of the band as he wouldn't reunite with the band later in the decade when they put out their final album to deafening silence. This album's success likely came from its main theme of religion which was becoming an increasingly popular topic for artists this decade ever since Madonna destigmatised criticisms of the church with her album Like a prayer.
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