---
Note: I'm resurrecting this post from August 2003 in commemoration of the 20th Anniversary of the release of "Purple Rain" (June 25, 1984). Prince has captured many new fans since this was first discussed. Hopefully this information will give them a better understanding of the pop culture impact of "Purple Rain" in preparation for the numerous discussions about the album that are sure to come over the next few days.
---

Prince achieved a level of commercial success with "Purple Rain" (the album and singles) that few artists ever attain. Although we talk about this fact regularly on the Org, it's mostly discussed in general terms.

The purpose of this thread is to be a bit more specific about Prince's commercial peak by putting it back into the context of the Billboard Top 40 singles chart, Top 10 album chart and Year-End chart -- where it all took place.

To accomplish this, I've gone back to the July 7 singles chart ("When Doves Cry" hits #1), the August 4 album chart (Purple Rain hits #1) and the year-end ranking to present a wide angle view of the musical landscape of the time.

The commentary following each chart is not limited to Prince because to put his importance into context means to understand the importance of his contemporaries.

I hope this thread is as enlightening to read as it was to assemble. (And if you're old enough to recall this period, enjoy a bit of nostalgia on me.)

(Special Note: This information could not have been compiled without the invaluable assistance of a few folks in the alt.culture.us.1980s newsgroup -- especially member and chart guru MCT who wrote most of the trivia. I thank you all wholeheartedly.)

Without further ado:

---

Billboard Top 40 singles for July 7, 1984:

First number is this week’s position; second number is last week’s position; number in parentheses denotes eventual or former peak position.

01 03 When Doves Cry - Prince (1)
02 02 Dancing In The Dark - Bruce Springsteen (2)
03 05 Jump (For My Love) - Pointer Sisters (3)
04 04 Self Control - Laura Branigan (4)
05 01 The Reflex - Duran Duran (1)
06 08 Eyes Without A Face - Billy Idol (4)
07 07 Time After Time - Cyndi Lauper (1)
08 10 Almost Paradise - Mike Reno & Ann Wilson (7)
09 06 The Heart Of Rock ‘N’ Roll - Huey Lewis & The News (6)
10 13 Legs - ZZ Top (8)
11 09 Let’s Hear It For The Boy - Deniece Williams (1)
12 15 Magic - The Cars (12)
13 17 Doctor! Doctor! - Thompson Twins (11)
14 18 Infatuation - Rod Stewart (6)
15 12 Borderline - Madonna (10)
16 19 Dance Hall Days - Wang Chung (16)
17 20 Sad Songs (Say So Much) - Elton John (5)
18 11 Oh Sherrie - Steve Perry (3)
19 29 Ghostbusters - Ray Parker Jr. (1)
20 25 Breakin’...There’s No Stoppin’ Us - Ollie & Jerry (9)
21 30 State Of Shock - Jacksons & Mick Jagger (3)
22 22 Modern Day Delilah - Van Stephenson (22)
23 16 Stay The Night - Chicago (16)
24 28 I Can Dream About You - Dan Hartman (6)
25 26 No Way Out - Jefferson Starship (23)
26 27 Don’t Walk Away - Rick Springfield (26)
27 31 What’s Love Got To Do With It - Tina Turner (1)
28 32 I’m Free (Heaven Helps The Man) - Kenny Loggins (22)
29 23 Sister Christian - Night Ranger (5)
30 33 Sunglasses At Night - Corey Hart (7)
31 39 Panama - Van Halen (13)
32 37 If Ever You’re In My Arms Again - Peabo Bryson (10)
33 -- Stuck On You - Lionel Richie (3)
34 36 Romancing The Stone - Eddy Grant (26)
35 14 It’s A Miracle - Culture Club (13)
36 -- She’s Mine - Steve Perry (21)
37 -- Alibis - Sergio Mendes (29)
38 38 Farewell My Summer Love - Michael Jackson (38)
39 34 Prime Time - Alan Parsons Project (34)
40 -- Boys Do Fall In Love - Robin Gibb (37)

Dropping out of the Top 40 this week:
Eurythmics – Who’s That Girl
Joe Jackson - You Can’t Get What You Want
Rockwell - Obscene Phone Caller
Lionel Richie - Hello

One week away from entering the Top 40:
Ratt - Round And Round
Tony Carey - The First Day Of Summer
Glenn Frey - Sexy Girl
Billy Squier - Rock Me Tonite
The Go-Gos - Turn To You

Some trivia from this week’s Top 40:
This was the first of 5 weeks at #1 for "When Doves Cry," Prince’s first chart-topping single on the Billboard Top 40.

Duran Duran’s "The Reflex," Cyndi Lauper’s "Time After Time" and Deniece Williams’ "Let’s Hear It For The Boy" were all former #1s on their way down (as was Lionel Richie’s "Hello," one of the songs that fell out of the Top 40 this week). "The Reflex" took a big drop from #1 to #5 this week.

Ray Parker Jr.’s "Ghostbusters" and Tina Turner’s "What’s Love Got To Do With It" were future #1s on their way up the chart. "Ghostbusters" actually replaced "When Doves Cry" at #1 on August 11.

Bruce Springsteen’s "Dancing In The Dark" never got to #1; #2 was its peak. It had been #2 behind "The Reflex" the previous week, but "When Doves Cry" leapfrogged over it into the #1 spot and it could never get past "When Doves Cry" again. Bruce has never had a #1 single; this was the closest he ever came.

Steve Perry had two songs in the Top 40 this week, "Oh Sherrie" at #18 and "She’s Mine" at #36. This would be a one-week thing, as "She’s Mine" was debuting in the Top 40 this week and "Oh Sherrie" fell out after this week.

The most unusual Top 40 hit this week was probably Michael Jackson’s "Farewell My Summer Love." This song came from an album of "lost" tracks that Motown Records had released to cash in on the "Thriller" phenomenon. The songs were recorded while Michael was under contract to Motown in the early 1970s. "Farewell My Summer Love" had probably been rejected for release when it was new, but Michael’s popularity was such that it managed to crack the Top 40.

Culture Club was dropping down the chart at #35 with "It's A Miracle." The song fell out of the Top 40 after this week ending a streak of 37 consecutive weeks in which the group had a song in the Top 40, going back to October 1983. In fact, since they had broken into the US charts in January 1983, there had only been three weeks when Culture Club hadn't had a song in the US Top 40. This week also broke a (sort-of) streak in which they had a song in the Top 20 for 32 weeks of a 33-week period (the one week that interrupted the streak, they had two songs in the Top 40 but neither was in the Top 20). This week basically marked the end of an era for Culture Club, as they would never return to this level of chart success.

---

Billboard Top 10 albums for August 4, 1984:

01 Prince & The Revolution – Purple Rain
02 Bruce Springsteen - Born In The USA
03 Huey Lewis & The News - Sports
04 The Jacksons – Victory
05 Lionel Richie – Can't Slow Down
06 The Cars - Heartbeat City
07 Ratt - Out Of The Cellar
08 Soundtrack - Ghostbusters
09 Soundtrack – Breakin’
10 Van Halen - MCMLXXXIV (1984)

Dropping out of the Top 10 this week:
Billy Idol - Rebel Yell (it would make a one-week return next week)
Soundtrack - Footloose

One week away from entering the Top 10:
Tina Turner - Private Dancer

Some trivia from this week’s Top 10:
Prince & The Revolution’s blockbuster "Purple Rain" album was released on June 25. It debuted on the Top 200 album chart at #11 on July 14, then climbed to #3 (July 21), then #2 (July 28). "Purple Rain" moved into the top spot this week for the first of 24 consecutive weeks at #1. This was the longest continuous run at #1 for any album in the 1980s. ("Thriller" spent more weeks at #1 overall, but did so in a series of nonconsecutive runs.) This was the first #1 album for Prince and his second to make the Top 10 (following "1999" the previous year).

"Born In The USA" dropped to #2 after 4 weeks on top. It would be stuck at #2 behind "Purple Rain" for 21 of its 24 weeks at #1. "Born In The USA" returned to #1 in January 1985 for three more weeks.

During the first 21 weeks that "Purple Rain" was #1, only three different albums were ever #2 or #3: "Sports," "Born In The U.S.A." and Tina Turner's "Private Dancer." At one point, the Top 3 remained unchanged for 10 weeks in a row (Prince at #1, Bruce at #2, Tina at #3).

"Ghostbusters" and "Out Of The Cellar" were new entries in the Top 10 this week.

"Sports" was the oldest album among the Top 10, having debuted on the album chart on October 8, 1983. Since Huey Lewis & The News didn't have much of a national following when the album was released, it took a while to climb the chart and didn't reach the Top 10 until March 1984. Between June ’84 and September ’84, "Sports" was in the top three for 18 straight weeks, but was only #1 for one week (June 30, immediately before "Born In The USA"). The rest of the time, "Sports" was stuck behind powerful albums like "Born In The USA" and "Purple Rain."

"Can’t Slow Down" was another former #1 album – it had been #1 for three weeks back in December 1983, shortly after its release. Like "Sports," it had spent a lot of time near the top of the chart, but relatively few weeks at #1 (it had totaled 13 weeks at #2). At this point, "Can’t Slow Down" hadn't been out of the Top 5 since its second week on the chart (in November 1983) and would remain in the Top 10 right through the end of 1984.

The Jacksons’ "Victory" looked like a good bet to be the next #1 album. It was only in its third week on the Top 200 and was already up to #4. Interest was high in the wake of Michael Jackson’s "Thriller" (which had been in the Top 10 as recently as five weeks before, and had actually been #1 as recently as April). However, "Victory" never got higher than this week’s position. A combination of poor media reviews, a growing Michael Jackson backlash and the coronation of Prince as the newest musical superstar took its toll on the album. Despite The Jackson’s much-hyped Victory tour, by the end of September the album was out of the Top 10 never to return.

---

Billboard Top 100 Songs of 1984:

This information is taken from the book "Billboard’s Hottest Hot 100 Hits" by Fred Bronson.

100. Some Guys Have All The Luck - Rod Stewart
99. An Innocent Man - Billy Joel
98. Doctor! Doctor! - Thompson Twins
97. Desert Moon - Dennis DeYoung
96. Blue Jean - David Bowie
95. Read ’Em and Weep - Barry Manilow
94. On The Dark Side - John Cafferty & The Beaver Brown Band
93. Dancing In The Sheets - Shalamar
92. I Still Can’t Get Over Loving You - Ray Parker, Jr.
91. The Language Of Love - Dan Fogelberg
90. The Longest Time - Billy Joel
89. Round And Round - Ratt
88. Lights Out - Peter Wolf
87. New Moon On Monday - Duran Duran
86. Breakin’...There’s No Stoppin’ Us - Ollie & Jerry
85. Magic - The Cars
84. Think Of Laura - Christopher Cross
83. Cruel Summer - Bananarama
82. Head Over Heels - The Go-Go's
81. Wrapped Around Your Finger - The Police
80. Let The Music Play - Shannon
79. Nobody Told Me - John Lennon
78. Thriller - Michael Jackson
77. Pink Houses - John Cougar Mellencamp
76. Got A Hold On Me - Christine McVie
75. I’m So Excited - Pointer Sisters
74. They Don’t Know - Tracey Ullman
73. Breakdance - Irene Cara
72. Adult Education - Daryl Hall & John Oates
71. You Might Think - The Cars
70. Love Somebody - Rick Springfield
69. To All the Girls I’ve Loved Before - Julio Iglesias & Willie Nelson
68. I Can’t Hold Back - Survivor
67. If Ever You’re In My Arms Again - Peabo Bryson
66. Strut - Sheena Easton
65. Legs - ZZ Top
64. Cover Me - Bruce Springsteen
63. Almost Paradise - Mike Reno & Ann Wilson
62. Lucky Star - Madonna
61. Sad Songs (Say So Much) - Elton John
60. Miss Me Blind - Culture Club
59. If This Is It - Huey Lewis & The News
58. I Want A New Drug - Huey Lewis & The News
57. All Through The Night - Cyndi Lauper
56. The Warrior - Scandal featuring Patty Smyth
55. State Of Shock - The Jacksons
54. Eyes Without A Face - Billy Idol
53. Purple Rain - Prince & The Revolution
52. Borderline - Madonna
51. Sister Christian - Night Ranger
50. I Can Dream About You - Dan Hartman
49. Sunglasses At Night - Corey Hart
48. Better Be Good Me - Tina Turner
47. Infatuation - Rod Stewart
46. No More Lonely Nights - Paul McCartney
45. Girls Just Want To Have Fun - Cyndi Lauper
44. Automatic - Pointer Sisters
43. The Heart Of Rock & Roll - Huey Lewis & the News
42. Twist Of Fate - Olivia Newton-John
41. I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues - Elton John
40. Here Comes The Rain Again - Eurythmics
39. Drive - The Cars
38. 99 Luftballons - Nena
37. Oh Sherrie - Steve Perry
36. She Bop - Cyndi Lauper
35. Stuck On You - Lionel Richie
34. That’s All! - Genesis
33. Penny Lover - Lionel Richie
32. Running With The Night - Lionel Richie
31. Somebody’s Watching Me - Rockwell
30. The Glamorous Life - Sheila E.
29. Break My Stride - Matthew Wilder
28. Joanna - Kool & the Gang
27. Jump (For My Love) - Pointer Sisters
26. Hold Me Now - Thompson Twins
25. The Wild Boys - Duran Duran
24. Self Control - Laura Branigan
23. Let’s Go Crazy - Prince & The Revolution
22. Hard Habit To Break - Chicago
21. Talking In Your Sleep - The Romantics
20. Caribbean Queen (No More Love On The Run) - Billy Ocean
19. Dancing In The Dark - Bruce Springsteen
18. The Reflex - Duran Duran
17. Time After Time - Cyndi Lauper
16. Let’s Hear It For The Boy - Deneice Williams
15. Missing You - John Waite
14. I Feel For You - Chaka Khan
13. Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go - Wham!
12. Out Of Touch - Daryl Hall & John Oates
11. I Just Called To Say I Love You - Stevie Wonder
10. Ghostbusters - Ray Parker, Jr.
9. Footloose - Kenny Loggins
8. Against All Odds (Take A Look At Me Now) - Phil Collins
7. Owner of A Lonely Heart - Yes
6. Hello - Lionel Richie
5. Like A Virgin - Madonna
4. Karma Chameleon - Culture Club
3. Jump - Van Halen
2. What’s Love Got to Do With It - Tina Turner
1. When Doves Cry – Prince

Some Prince trivia from this chart:

Prince is solely credited for the #1 song of the year, "When Doves Cry," but he appears with The Revolution at #23 with "Let’s Go Crazy" and #53 with "Purple Rain." (A fourth single,"I Would Die 4 U," was released on November 28, too late to appear on the 1984 chart.)

"When Doves Cry" went to #1 on the Billboard Top 40 on July 7. It spent 5 weeks in its peak position, 11 weeks in the Top 10 and 16 weeks in the Top 40.

"Let’s Go Crazy" went to #1 on the Billboard Top 40 on September 29. It spent 2 weeks in its peak position, 9 weeks in the Top 10 and 14 weeks in the Top 40.

"Purple Rain" went to #2 on the Billboard Top 40 on November 17. It spent 2 weeks in its peak position, 7 weeks in the Top 10 and 11 weeks in the Top 40.

In addition to his self-penned singles, two other songs written by Prince appear on the list. Chaka Khan’s cover of "I Feel For You" is #14 while new Prince protégé Sheila E. comes in at #30 with her debut single "The Glamorous Life."

"I Feel For You" went to #3 on the Billboard Top 40 on November 24. It spent 3 weeks in its peak position, 9 weeks in the Top 10 and 17 weeks in the Top 40.

"The Glamorous Life" went to #7 on the Billboard Top 40 on October 6. It spent 1 week in its peak position, 5 weeks in the Top 10 and 16 weeks in the Top 40.
[This message was edited Wed Jun 23 9:52:00 2004 by livewire]
[This message was edited Wed Jun 23 18:54:00 2004 by livewire]

Simply said...




well done livewire. and Happy Birthday Purple Rain. Being 16 at the time, boy seeing all those songs brings back some memories.

I so remember these charts! Wow! Brings back memories. I was heavily into the charts at that time. Duran Duran was one of my favorites. I never knew that "The Reflex" made it to #1. I needed to pay closer attention.

Another thing I never realized: Prince beat out The Jacksons! Wow, it's no wonder that everyone started to compare MJ and Prince during the 1980's, just like they're doing now with Usher and Prince (no comparison IMHO).

Anyway, thanks for posting these chart facts. I hope that the youngsters will begin to realize the enormous impact that Prince had on the industry in the 1980's. He ruled the '80s, simple and plain. Not to mention the fact that he is the hardest working musician in the business. Why do no one rarely mentions this fact is beyond me.

He toured tirelessly in the 1980's, including an album nearly every year, 3 movies, producing/writing for other artists, etc. He's done so much for the industry that it saddens me how very few people realize the vast contribution that Prince has made to music OUTSIDE of Purple Rain, which in my opinion, is a highly overrated album considering the fact that Prince has written some of the most imaginative, captivating and brilliant music other than Purple Rain that few will ever get a chance to hear...

On a side note: please forgive any misspellings/grammatical errors. I was typing fast...

I find it amazing that every act on the chart that week still is making hit records and touring with sold out shows across the country.
My god, what were we thinking in the 80's?

aw man...I remember ALL THE SONGS on this chart!!!! whoo, the good ole days, chile

Ok ..time to fess up ...beside Purple Rain how many of these other albums did you own?

for me ..embarassingly enough I owned Huey Lewis and the News , "Sports" and Lionel Richie "Cant Slow Down"

in subsequent years I purhchased the Greatest Hits packages for The Cars, Billy Idol and Tina Turner



01 Prince & The Revolution – Purple Rain
02 Bruce Springsteen - Born In The USA
03 Huey Lewis & The News - Sports
04 The Jacksons – Victory
05 Lionel Richie – Can't Slow Down
06 The Cars - Heartbeat City
07 Ratt - Out Of The Cellar
08 Soundtrack - Ghostbusters
09 Soundtrack – Breakin’
10 Van Halen - MCMLXXXIV (1984)

Dropping out of the Top 10 this week:
Billy Idol - Rebel Yell (it would make a one-week return next week)
Soundtrack - Footloose

One week away from entering the Top 10:
Tina Turner - Private Dancer

SquarePeg said:

I loved the 80's damn good songs then. I miss the 80's

Few things...

Thanks for putting this together.

Funny most of the songs on that chart were classics IMO...makes the current charts look pathetic. I remember all of these songs and I didn't even like a lot of them. Sad state of the music biz these days and the proof is right there.

Most of the songs went pretty high..as most 80's stuff saw some sort of love on the charts.

Madonna is just starting as Prince is peaking.
[This message was edited Wed Jun 23 12:31:58 2004 by superspaceboy]

I am certain that I was supposed to be born in the 70's so I could have enjoyed the fabulous 80's instead of arriving right in the middle of the decade!!

superspaceboy said:[quote]Few things...

Thanks for putting this together.

Funny most of the songs on that chart were classics IMO...makes the current charts look pathetic. I remember all of these songs and I didn't even like a lot of them. Sad state of the music biz these days and the proof is right there.

of course now, we sound like our parents and the 60's--"they just don't make em like they used to" lol

newpower99 said:

With the exception of the "Ghostbusters" and "Breakin'" soundtracks, I own them all! And I ain't ashamed to say so, either!

Lawdy, where's my time travelin' DeLorean, I wanna go baaaack...

Peace, David

I enjoyed reading those charts it brought back wonderful memories of how hard we used to jam back in 1984.

On a depressing note, compare the chart of 1984 with the chart of 2004. Look at the tempo of the music. 2004 is much SSSSSLLLLLOOOOOWWWWEEEEERRRRR (Slower)! What the hell's going on people, we're moving backwards instead of forward!

the amazing thing is on that 1984 chart of the top 100 songs i liked about 85 of them..if you list the top 100 songs of 2003 i think i only like about 5..if that ..that list shows how music has gone down the tubes in 20 years

vainandy said:

not only that but the artists of today are boring! i mean Usher dresses like the guys in my neighboorhood dress..i want the cool look of the 80's when rock stars looked like rock stars

Looking at those charts from 1984 reminds me of how much great music we had back then.Kinda makes you sad when you compare it to today's crap,doesn't it?

DavidEye said:

1984 was such a great year. At the time, many rock fans were mourning the 60's and 70's, especially critics who were saying we'd never get a year like 1967 again, but look at that chart. With few exceptions, the songs are conventional, not groundbreaking fare, but 84 was probably the last great year for having a common experience of singles. A top 10 hit today is heard by, like, a tiny fraction of a top 10 hit back then. Even though radio is far more regimented, we are not at all hearing the same songs because there's too much specialization. in 84, a hit song impacted across a broad spectrum, and the quality of mainstream records that year happened to be phenomenal - Springsteen, Madonna, Tina Turner, Cindy Lauper, etc. I think the communal nature of the experience also comes from music videos, who truly became massive in 83, 84.

DavidEye said:

yes, it does.

Eyes Without A Face - Billy Idol
Doctor! Doctor! - Thompson Twins
Borderline - Madonna
Dance Hall Days - Wang Chung
Oh Sherrie - Steve Perry
I Can Dream About You - Dan Hartman

Dropping out of the Top 40 this week:
Joe Jackson - You Can’t Get What You Want
I've have listened to Body & Soul album last week


edit : 100. Some Guys Have All The Luck - Rod Stewart Isn't it a Robert Palmer song?
[This message was edited Thu Jun 24 16:29:23 2004 by jn2]

[/quote]

I don't believe it! Another person that actually AGREES with me! Back in the day you couldn't go in the store and buy the same clothes the stars wore. ALL THE STARS had their clothes custom made back then and they weren't jeans and T Shirts. Each star had their own look and hairstyle: Prince, Michael Jackson, Tina Turner, Cyndi Lauper, Madonna, Rick James, Boy George, Duran Duran...the list is endless. If anyone on this list were in a crowd you could spot them a mile away. Nobody looked alike. Everyone stood out by their self. Everyone had their own sound too. Even the head bangers were pretty.

If any of the new stars were to step in a crowd, they would just blend right in with the rest of the average Joes.

vainandy said:

I don't believe it! Another person that actually AGREES with me! Back in the day you couldn't go in the store and buy the same clothes the stars wore. ALL THE STARS had their clothes custom made back then and they weren't jeans and T Shirts. Each star had their own look and hairstyle: Prince, Michael Jackson, Tina Turner, Cyndi Lauper, Madonna, Rick James, Boy George, Duran Duran...the list is endless. If anyone on this list were in a crowd you could spot them a mile away. Nobody looked alike. Everyone stood out by their self. Everyone had their own sound too. Even the head bangers were pretty.

If any of the new stars were to step in a crowd, they would just blend right in with the rest of the average Joes.[/quote]
I could not had said it any better!

Aerogram said:

DavidEye said:

Fuck yeah!

Just looking at those charts, I love about 80% of those songs!

Those were the days.

bkw said:

I'll gladly trade in the music of 2004 or 1994 for 1984.
The VH1 Behind the Music for the year 1984 is a must see.
Glad I still have VHS tapes of most of the videos from this era.

Isn't it great that so many of us have positve memories of this time in our lives. In a way, we owe this to the music of 1984.