THE 20TH CENTURY UK SINGLES CHART ARCHIVE

A HISTORICAL RECORD OF THE UK SINGLES CHART IN THE 20TH CENTURY

The Chart Time Machine is a comprehensive archive of the official UK singles chart, covering every chart week from the 1950s through to the end of the 20th century. From the very first NME chart in November 1952 to the final week of 1999, every chart position, every number one single, and every artist to grace the UK top 40 is catalogued here.

The 20th century was the golden age of the UK singles chart. It witnessed the birth of rock and roll in the 1950s, Beatlemania and psychedelia in the 1960s, glam rock, disco and punk in the 1970s, the synth-pop and rap revolution of the 1980s, and the Britpop, grunge and dance music explosion of the 1990s. No other era produced such diversity, creativity or cultural impact — and this archive puts it all at your fingertips.

On this website you can search for artists or song titles by keyword and date range, filter by chart position, browse an artist's complete UK chart history, and explore a song's full chart run week by week. Whether you want to know what was number one on a particular date, how many times an artist reached the top 10, or which label had the biggest hits in 1987, it's all just a few clicks away.

The Chart Time Machine is for everyone — casual music fans and dedicated chart aficionados alike. Many songs in the archive can be played directly by clicking the Play icon next to the title, and we add more playable tracks every week. We also offer chart quizzes to test your knowledge and a playlist generator to bring the hits of the past back to life.

Happy searching... and listening!

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ABOUT THE UK SINGLES CHART

The UK singles chart can be traced back to November 1952, when newspaper New Musical Express (NME) began collecting sales data from no more than a few dozen record stores which were initially aggregated into a list of the top 12 best-selling songs. This was expanded into a top 20 list in October 1954. Rival publication Record Mirror were quick to follow, compiling their own chart from January 1955. This was initially a top 10 and then a top 20 from October 1956, giving parity with NME. Both would later expand with Record Mirror becoming a top 20 in October 1955 and NME a top 30 in April 1956.

More rivals would soon arrive on the scene. Melody Maker started compiling its own top 20 from April 1956 and was soon joined by Disc in February 1958 and Record Retailer in March 1960. The proliferation of competing charts created an often confusing landscape for music fans, as different publications occasionally produced conflicting results depending on which record shops they surveyed and how they weighted their data. A song could sit at number one in one publication while languishing outside the top five in another. It's Record Retailer that is used as the source for all chart data between 1960 and early 1969, as its methodology — surveying record retailers directly — was considered the most commercially representative. Data from NME is used for the 1950s.

Until 1969, there was no unified single chart. It was, as indicated, a fragmented situation with multiple newspapers and magazines publishing their own chart from different sources. That all changed in February of that year when the British Market Research Bureau (BMRB) was tasked by the BBC to compile the first official chart listing, culled from a sampling of 250 record shops, chosen at random from approximately 6,000. The BMRB then sent the information over to the BBC every Tuesday.

This arrangement continued until 1983 when Gallup took over, and it was at this time the chart was expanded into a top 100. In 1990, the Chart Information Network was formed, a joint venture comprised of the BBC, Spotlight Publications (who published Music Week), the British Association of Record Dealers (BARD), and shortly thereafter the BPI. It was BARD - courtesy of member retailers including HMV, Virgin, WH Smith and Woolworths - who provided sales data to the Chart Information Network. In February 1994, Millward Brown started compiling the chart and has continued ever since.

The Chart Information Network changed its name to The Official UK Charts Company in November 2001, a name that remains to this day.

THIS WEEK'S FEATURED SONGS

    1990sFEATURED SONGS FROM 1992, 1994 AND 1999

    This week in chart history in 1992, Mr Big held at number 8 this week with To Be With You, released on Atlantic. The song would go on to reach number 3, remaining on the chart for 11 weeks in total. It was Mr Big's highest charting single. It was also Atlantic's highest charting single of 1992.

    This week in chart history in 1994, D:Ream made a chart entry at number 5 with U R The Best Thing (Perfecto Remix), released on Magnet / East West. The song would go on to reach number 4, charting for 11 weeks in total. It was also Magnet / East West's highest charting single.

    This week in chart history in 1999, Kele Le Roc entered the chart at number 8 with My Love, on Wild Card. The song's highest position was number 8, charting for 7 weeks in total. It was Kele Le Roc's highest charting single. It was also Wild Card's highest charting single of 1999.

    1980sFEATURED SONGS FROM 1981, 1985 AND 1986

    This week in chart history in 1981, The Who peaked at number 9 this week with You Better You Bet, on Polydor. The song peaked at number 9, spending 8 weeks on the chart in total.

    This week in chart history in 1985, Alison Moyet had reached a peak of number 2 this week with That Ole Devil Called Love, via CBS. The song's highest position was number 2, spending 10 weeks on the chart in total. It was Alison Moyet's highest charting single.

    This week in chart history in 1986, Culture Club hit a high of number 7 this week with Move Away, on Virgin. The song peaked at number 7, spending 7 weeks on the chart in total.

    1970sFEATURED SONGS FROM 1972, 1973 AND 1974

    This week in chart history in 1972, Lindisfarne hit a high of number 5 this week with Meet Me On The Corner, via Charisma. Number 5 was the song's peak position, spending 11 weeks on the chart in total.

    This week in chart history in 1973, The Faces sat at number 9 this week with Cindy Incidentally, released on Warner Bros. The song would go on to reach number 2, spending 9 weeks on the chart in total. It was The Faces's highest charting single. It was also Warner Bros's highest charting single of 1973.

    This week in chart history in 1974, Ringo Starr hit a high of number 4 this week with You're Sixteen, on Apple. Number 4 was the song's peak position, remaining on the chart for 10 weeks in total.

    1960sFEATURED SONGS FROM 1962, 1966 AND 1969

    This week in chart history in 1962, Elvis Presley sat at the top spot this week with Can't Help Falling In Love / Rock-A-Hula Baby, via RCA. The song reached number 1, charting for 20 weeks in total. It was Elvis Presley's highest charting single. It was also RCA's joint-highest charting single.

    This week in chart history in 1966, The Kinks held at number 8 this week with Dedicated Follower Of Fashion, on Pye. The song went on to peak at number 4, charting for 11 weeks in total.

    This week in chart history in 1969, Diana Ross And The Supremes And The Temptations sat at number 9 this week with I'm Gonna Make You Love Me, on Tamla Motown. It would eventually peak at number 3, charting for 11 weeks in total. It was Diana Ross And The Supremes And The Temptations's highest charting single.

    1950sFEATURED SONGS FROM 1953, 1957 AND 1959

    This week in chart history in 1953, Al Martino charted at number 4 this week with Now, on Capitol. It would eventually peak at number 3, spending 12 weeks on the chart in total.

    This week in chart history in 1957, Guy Mitchell had reached a peak of number 3 this week with Knee Deep In The Blues, via Philips. Number 3 was the song's peak position, remaining on the chart for 12 weeks in total.

    This week in chart history in 1959, Shirley Bassey held at number 6 this week with Kiss Me Honey Honey Kiss Me, on Philips. It would eventually peak at number 3, charting for 17 weeks in total.

      ON March 13, 1973...

      On this day in 1973, the top 10 looked like this:

      MOST WEEKS IN TOP 40 - 1970s