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 1990, 1992 AND 1999

    This week in chart history in 1990, Michael Bolton held at number 10 this week with How Am I Supposed To Live Without You, via CBS. The song went on to peak at number 3, remaining on the chart for 10 weeks in total. It was Michael Bolton's highest charting single.

    This week in chart history in 1992, Ce Ce Peniston hit a high of number 2 this week with Finally (Reissue), via A&M. The song's highest position was number 2, remaining on the chart for 8 weeks in total. It was Ce Ce Peniston's highest charting single. It was also A&M's highest charting single of 1992.

    This week in chart history in 1999, B*Witched charted at number 9 this week with Blame It On The Weatherman, on Epic. The song hit the top spot, remaining on the chart for 10 weeks in total. It was B*Witched's highest charting single. It was also Epic's joint-highest charting single.

    1980sFEATURED SONGS FROM 1980, 1981 AND 1984

    This week in chart history in 1980, Marti Webb charted at number 6 this week with Take That Look Off Your Face, on Polydor. It would eventually peak at number 3, remaining on the chart for 12 weeks in total. It was Marti Webb's highest charting single.

    This week in chart history in 1981, Shakin' Stevens sat at the top spot this week with This Ole House, on Epic. The song hit the top spot, spending 17 weeks on the chart in total. It was Shakin' Stevens's highest charting single. It was also Epic's joint-highest charting single.

    This week in chart history in 1984, Shakin' Stevens held at number 7 this week with A Love Worth Waiting For, via Epic. It would eventually peak at number 2, remaining on the chart for 10 weeks in total.

    1970sFEATURED SONGS FROM 1970, 1973 AND 1977

    This week in chart history in 1970, Elvis Presley sat at number 9 this week with Don't Cry Daddy, via RCA. The song went on to peak at number 8, charting for 11 weeks in total.

    This week in chart history in 1973, Donny Osmond topped the charts this week with The Twelfth Of Never, on MGM. The song reached number 1, charting for 14 weeks in total. It was Donny Osmond's highest charting single. It was also MGM's joint-highest charting single.

    This week in chart history in 1977, The Manhattan Transfer charted at number 3 this week with Chanson D'Amour, via Atlantic. The song went all the way to number 1, charting for 13 weeks in total. It was The Manhattan Transfer's highest charting single. It was also Atlantic's joint-highest charting single.

    1960sFEATURED SONGS FROM 1968, 1969 AND 1969

    This week in chart history in 1968, Lemon Pipers held at number 8 this week with Green Tambourine, on Pye International. It would eventually peak at number 7, remaining on the chart for 11 weeks in total. It was Lemon Pipers's highest charting single.

    This week in chart history in 1969, Donald Peers charted at number 4 this week with Please Don't Go, on Columbia. It would eventually peak at number 3, charting for 18 weeks in total. It was Donald Peers's highest charting single.

    This week in chart history in 1969, Engelbert Humperdinck hit a high of number 3 this week with The Way It Used To Be, released on Decca. The song peaked at number 3, charting for 14 weeks in total.

    1950sFEATURED SONGS FROM 1953, 1958 AND 1958

    This week in chart history in 1953, Kay Starr sat at number 8 this week with Comes A-Long A-Love, on Capitol. The song reached number 1, spending 16 weeks on the chart in total. It was Kay Starr's highest charting single. It was also Capitol's joint-highest charting single.

    This week in chart history in 1958, Perry Como rode high at number 1 this week with Magic Moments, released on RCA. The song reached number 1, remaining on the chart for 17 weeks in total. It was Perry Como's highest charting single. It was also RCA's joint-highest charting single.

    This week in chart history in 1958, Paul Anka sat at number 7 this week with You Are My Destiny, via Columbia. The song would go on to reach number 6, spending 13 weeks on the chart in total.

      ON March 16, 1974...

      On this day in 1974, the top 10 looked like this:

      MOST WEEKS IN TOP 40 - 1970s