George Thorogood - Bad To The Bone
KISS - Rock n Roll All Nite
The JB's - Pass The Peas
Stevie Wonder - Isn't She Lovely
AC/DC - Back In Black

Lead Belly - Rock Island Line

Etta James - At Last
Kraftwerk - Trans-Europe Express
Black Sabbath - Iron Man
Herbie Hancock - Chameleon

Muddy Waters - Hoochie Coochie Man

Billie Holiday - Strange Fruit

many popular Christmas songs weren't hits

alphastreet said:

Madonnas Holiday missed the top 10, and so did Janet pleasure principle. And Britney’s I’m a slave for you missed the top 20

Not quite. "Holiday" was #1 on the US Dance Chart.

"The Pleaure Principle" was #1 on the US R&B.

I'm not even sure those charts exist now, but they were there then and they were huge songs. They were hits. To think "Holiday" was a 'miss' on the charts feels terribly short-sighted. I lived in Oklahoma City, a terribly conservative place in the Reagan 80s and that song was everywhere.

Not totally surprised about "I'm A Slave 4 U" though. It felt like that period was so oversaturated with pop diva wannabes, boy bands, etc., that for anyone to chart at all was a near miracle. Plus, these were the days of Napster etc. The effect of downloading was already showing on the charts and in sales.

alphastreet said:

Madonnas Holiday missed the top 10, and so did Janet pleasure principle. And Britney’s I’m a slave for you missed the top 20

Really? so weird it has everything to be a hit, what a shame and yet, is regarded as a classic now and one of her signature songs.

SantanaMaitreya said:

Haha, Mick, I knew you would respond! Isn't She Lovely is a good example, I think everybody can sing along to that. Hoochie Coochie Man, another good one, picked up by so many rock bands that it's become a classic. And yeah, Strange Fruit, another classic. And a tragic one.

It wasn't even a single, right?

Don't Stop Me Now by Queen peaked at #86 in the US Billboard chartsin 1979,but now is the #1 all time streamed song from that year!

Here are a couple I can think of right off the top of my head.

Jean Carn - "Don't Let It Go To Your Head" - Peaked at #54 R&B. Now considered a classic and her best known song.

Teena Marie - "Portuguese Love" - Peaked at #54 R&B. Now considered a classic and one of her most well-known songs.

Al Green, Sly and The Family Stone and Bob Dylan whole careers, which is a crime. They have made such beautiful and incredible music that they should have hits by the hundreds.

ZZ Top - La Grange
Z.Z. Hill - Down Home Blues
Al Wilson - The Snake
Smokey Robinson - Quiet Storm (a radio program was named after this song)
Bob Seger - Old Time Rock n Roll
Sugarhill Gang - Rapper's Delight
Johnnie Taylor - Last Two Dollars
Sir-Mix-A-Lot - Posse On Broadway
Yello - Oh Yeah
Soul Searchers - Ashley's Roachclip

Jackson 5 - Who's Lovin' You
Jackson 5 - All I Do Is Think Of You (mainly because of the Troop version)
Jermaine Jackson - Castles Of Sand
Clarence Carter - Strokin'
O'Jays - Brandy
O'Jays - Cry Together
Mel Waiters - Hole In The Wall
Herb Alpert - Route 101
Mr. C The Slide Man - Cha Cha Slide
Stevie Wonder - Happy Birthday

Jean Knight - My Toot Toot

Celia Cruz & Johnny Pacheco - Quimbara

Kool & The Gang - Summer Madness

I don't know how famous they were, but it seems to me that a lot of Prince songs that I loved like Sometimes It Snows In April, Still Would Stand All Time, Strollin' Elephants and Flowers, and so many more, that were not big hits on the charts, but to those that were big Prince fans.

i always assumed Herbie Hancock's Rockit was a huge hit on the Hot 100 but was shocked to learn it only reached #71, yet it was number one on the Dance Charts and hit #6 on the R&B charts. Strange.

slyjackson said:

Wolfie87 said:

If I was Your Girlfriend of course! I know that we are a Prince community. But guys, it won the best song contest that Moonbeam compiled among the fans. That says it all. And yet, it never got proper recognition around the world. Still to this day too risque.

It should have been a rare number one just as Famiy Affair was back in the day, I mean who would have thougt such a song wiould get to number one spot.

Willie Hutch - After The Party
Willie Hutch - I Choose You

Lynyrd Skynyrd - Freebird
Bishop Bullwinkle - Hell To The Naw Naw
Creedence Clearwater Revival - I Heard It Through The Grapevine
Peggy Scott-Adams - Bill

N.W.A. - F The Police
Marvin Sease - Candy Licker
Iron Butterfly - In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida
The Time - The Bird
The Clash - Should I Stay Or Should I Go
Lenny Williams - Cause I Love You
Rick James & Teena Marie - Fire And Desire

Led Zeppelin - Stairway To Heaven

MotownSubdivision said:

RJOrion said:

MotownSubdivision said:

RJOrion said:

RJOrion said:

MotownSubdivision said:

Shocked me to when I found that out. Same with Stevie's "Isn't She Lovely". In retrospect, you can't help but wonder why they didn't put these tunes out as singles. They got "hit" written all over them but maybe, just maybe that makes them hold up that much stronger as songs.

i remember when Boogie Wonderland came out as "I Am" first single...i liked it no doubt.. but once i got the album, i felt like there were 3 or 4 songs that could/should have been the lead single. But Maurice and Philip Bailey have both said there was pressure from CBS Records to serve up "Boogie Wonderland" first because that uptempo disco vibe was so commercially viable back in 78-79...Philip said the group wanted "Let Your Feelings Show" to be first single...shit i wouldve picked "Cant Let Go" as the first release...there are times i think "Cant Let Go" is their greatest song ever

I wore that vinyl album out; not a bad song on it.

Zoom - Commodores

Love's Train - ConFunkShun

Fire And Desire - Rick James and Teena Marie

Rock That! - EWF(Every high shcool band and College band including mine played it)

RJOrion said:

MotownSubdivision said:

Shocked me to when I found that out. Same with Stevie's "Isn't She Lovely". In retrospect, you can't help but wonder why they didn't put these tunes out as singles. They got "hit" written all over them but maybe, just maybe that makes them hold up that much stronger as songs.

i remember when Boogie Wonderland came out as "I Am" first single...i liked it no doubt.. but once i got the album, i felt like there were 3 or 4 songs that could/should have been the lead single. But Maurice and Philip Bailey have both said there was pressure from CBS Records to serve up "Boogie Wonderland" first because that uptempo disco vibe was so commercially viable back in 78-79...Philip said the group wanted "Let Your Feelings Show" to be first single...shit i wouldve picked "Cant Let Go" as the first release...there are times i think "Cant Let Go" is their greatest song ever

Definitely my favorite from the album. That interlude before it is perfect with Maurice on

the Kalimba.

phunkdaddy said:

It's shocking that this well-known song was never released as a single.Rick was OK with that,though."If you wanted to play it,you had to buy my whole album",he said

phunkdaddy said:

Fire And Desire - Rick James and Teena Marie