I don’t know if anyone else has been following these as obsessively as I have been, but I’ve been keeping track of my least favorite songs from each year’s list (beginning in 1966) in addition to my favorite songs. These are the songs that finished in dead-ass last place in the world-famous Ponch8 Music Rating System, to use the parlance of our times. You’ll notice that there are quite a few ties.
No need for you to list your least favorite every year; feel free to mention just a few of your most absolutely hated #1 songs that appeared in the polls.
Notes: an asterisk means the song that I hate most somehow managed to win the poll for that year. As far as I know, this only happened in 2007.
All songs produced by Dr. Luke that don’t feature Kesha get AUTOMATIC ZERO scores in the Ponch8 Music Rating System. That asshole has one #1 song in 2014, but his last few singles have bombed, so there may be hope that his luck is coming to an end.
1966. The Association – “Cherish”
1967. The Association – “Windy”
1968. Bobby Goldsboro – “Honey”
1969. no vote
1970. Bread – “Make It with You”
1971. Melanie – “Brand New Key”
1972. no vote (too many to count)
1973. no vote
1974. Terry Jacks – “Seasons in the Sun;” Ray Stevens – “The Streak;” Bo Donaldson & The Heywoods – “Billy Don’t Be a Hero;” Paper Lace – “The Night Chicago Died;” Paul Anka & Odia Coates – “You’re Having My Baby”
1975. Frankie Valli – “My Eyes Adored You”
1976. Bay City Rollers – “Saturday Night;” Bellamy Brothers – “Let Your Love Flow;” Starland Vocal Band – “Afternoon Delight”
1977. David Soul - “Don’t Give Up on Us;” Emotions – “Best of My Love;” Debbie Boone – “You Light Up My Life”
1978. Exile – “Kiss You All Over”
1979. M – “Pop Muzik;” Rupert Holmes – “Escape (The Pina Colada Song)”
1980. Captain and Tennille – “Do That to Me One More Time”
1981. Stars on 45 – Medley
1982. Joe Cocker & Jennifer Warnes – “Up Where We Belong”
1983. Patti Austin and James Ingram – “Baby Come to Me”
1984. Cyndi Lauper – “Time After Time”
1985. Phil Collins and Marilyn Martin – “Separate Lives”
1986. Simply Red – “Holding Back the Years”
1987. Atlantic Starr – “Always”
1988. Will to Power – “Baby I Love Your Way/Freebird”
1989. New Kids on the Block – “I’ll Be Loving You Forever”
1990. New Kids on the Block – “Step by Step”
1991. Michael Bolton – “When a Man Loves a Woman”
1992. The Heights – “How Do You Talk to an Angel”
1993. Silk – “Freak Me”
1994. Bryan Adams, Rod Stewart, Sting – “All For Love;” Celine Dion – “The Power of Love;” Lisa Loeb – “Stay;” Boyz II Men – “I’ll Make Love to You;” Boyz II Men – “On Bended Knee”
1995. Boyz II Men – “On Bended Knee;” Mariah Carey & Boyz II Men – “One Sweet Day”
1996. Mariah Carey & Boyz II Men – “One Sweet Day;” Celine Dion – “Because You Loved Me;” Mariah Carey – “Always Be My Baby;” Bone Thugs-n-Harmony – “Tha Crossroads;” 2Pac with K-Ci & JoJo – “How Do U Want It;” Toni Braxton – “You’re Makin’ Me High;” Toni Braxton – “Let It Flow;” Toni Braxton – “Unbreak My Heart”
1997. Boyz II Men – “4 Seasons of Loneliness”
1998. Savage Garden – “Truly Madly Deeply”
1999. Cher – “Believe”
2000. Christina Aguilera – “What a Girl Wants;” Savage Garden – “I Knew I Loved You;” Mariah Carey and 98 Degrees – “Thank God I Found You;” NSync – “It’s Gonna Be Me;” Creed – “With Arms Wide Open;” Destiny’s Child – “Independent Women Part 1”
2001. Destiny’s Child – “Independent Women Part 1”
2002. Nelly and Kelly Rowland – “Dilemma”
2003. Clay Aiken – “This is the Night”
2004. Fantasia Barrino – “I Believe”
2005. Carrie Underwood – “Inside Your Heaven”
2006. James Blunt – “You’re Beautiful”
2007. Plain White T’s – “Hey There Delilah” *
2008. Katy Perry – “I Kissed a Girl” (AUTOMATIC ZERO)
2009. Kelly Clarkson – “My Life Would Suck Without You” (AUTOMATIC ZERO)
2010. Katy Perry – “California Gurls;” Katy Perry – “Teenage Dream” (AUTOMATIC ZEROS)
2011. Britney Spears – “Hold It Against Me;” Katy Perry – “ET;” Katy Perry – “Last Friday Night” (AUTOMATIC ZEROS)
2012. Katy Perry – “Part of Me” (AUTOMATIC ZERO)
2013. Katy Perry – “Roar;” Miley Cyrus – “Wrecking Ball” (AUTOMATIC ZEROS)
2014. Katy Perry – “Dark Horse” (AUTOMATIC ZERO)
Here’s my list. Slightly different time period, but it is indicative of when my listening had a decent overlap with what was being played on top-40 stations.
1960
Mark Dinning - “Teen Angel”
Percy Faith and his Orchestra - “Theme from A Summer Place”
The Everly Brothers - “Cathy’s Clown”
1961
Bobby Vee - “Take Good Care of My Baby”
1962
Neil Sedaka - “Breaking Up Is Hard To Do”
1963
Little Peggy March - “I Will Follow Him”
1964
The Dixie Cups - “Chapel of Love”
1965
Barry McGuire - “Eve of Destruction”
1966
Barry Sadler - “The Ballad of the Green Berets”
1967
No vote - they’re all good, or at least okay
1968
The Lemon Pipers - “Green Tambourine”
Paul Mauriat - “Love Is Blue”
Bobby Goldsboro - “Honey”
Herb Alpert - “This Girl’s In Love With You”
1969
No vote - see 1967
1970
The Carpenters - “(They Long To Be) Close To You”
1971
The Bee Gees - “How Can You Mend a Broken Heart”
1972
Gilbert O’Sullivan - “Alone Again (Naturally)”
Looking Glass - “Brandy (You’re A Fine Girl)”
1973
Vicki Lawrence - “The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia”
Dawn w/ Tony Orlando - “Tie A Yellow Ribbon 'Round the Ole Oak Tree”
Wings - “My Love”
George Harrison - “Give Me Love (Give Me Peace On Earth)”
Maureen McGovern - “The Morning After”
1974
Jim Croce - “Time in a Bottle”
Barbra Streisand - “The Way We Were”
Terry Jacks - “Seasons in the Sun”
Bo Donaldson & the Heywoods - “Billy Don’t Be A Hero”
Harry Chapin - “Cat’s In the Cradle”
1975
Barry Manilow - “Mandy”
Neil Sedaka - “Laughter In the Rain”
Wings - “Listen To What the Man Said”
1976
Barry Manilow - “I Write the Songs”
Wings - “Silly Love Songs”
Walter Murphy and the Big Apple Band - “A Fifth of Beethoven”
1977
Mary McGregor - “Torn Between Two Lovers”
Hall & Oates - “Rich Girl”
Leo Sayer - “When I Need You”
Andy Gibb - “I Just Want to Be Your Everything”
Debby Boone - “You Light Up My Life”
1978
The Bee Gees - “How Deep Is Your Love”
Wings - “With A Little Luck”
Anne Murray - “You Needed Me”
Barbra Streisand & Neil Diamond - “You Don’t Bring Me Flowers”
1979
The Bee Gees - “Too Much Heaven”
Gloria Gaynor - “I Will Survive”
The Bee Gees - “Tragedy”
Styx - “Babe”
1980
Christopher Cross - “Sailing”
Queen - “Another One Bites the Dust”
1981
Christopher Cross - “Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do)”
1982
Hall & Oates - “I Can’t Go for That (No Can Do)”
Paul McCartney & Stevie Wonder - “Ebony And Ivory”
The Human League - “Don’t You Want Me”
Steve Miller Band - “Abracadabra”
Chicago - “Hard To Say I’m Sorry”
Joe Cocker & Jennifer Warnes - “Up Where We Belong”
1983
Hall & Oates - “Maneater”
Lionel Richie - “All Night Long (All Night)”
1984
Yes - “Owner Of A Lonely Heart”
Madonna - “Like A Virgin”
1985
Foreigner - “I Want To Know What Love Is”
REO Speedwagon - “Can’t Fight This Feeling”
Phil Collins - “One More Night”
USA For Africa - “We Are the World”
Paul Young - “Everytime You Go Away”
1986
Lionel Richie - “Say You, Say Me”
Dionne Warwick & Friends - “That’s What Friends Are For”
Starship - “Sara”
Simply Red - “Holding Back the Years”
Peter Cetera & Amy Grant - “The Next Time I Fall”
1987
Whitney Houston - “Didn’t We Almost Have It All”
Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes - “(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life”
1988
Bobby McFerrin - “Don’t Worry, Be Happy”
Phil Collins - “A Groovy Kind Of Love”
1989
Bette Midler - “Wind Beneath My Wings”
1990
No vote, due mostly to unfamiliarity with the songs.
1991
Extreme - “More Than Words”
1992
Michael Jackson - “Black Or White”
1993
Whitney Houston - “I Will Always Love You”
1994-1995
No vote - see 1990.
1996
Toni Braxton - “Un-Break My Heart”
1997
The Spice Girls - “Wannabe”
Elton John - “Candle in the Wind 1997”
1998
Celine Dion - “My Heart Will Go On”
1999-present
No vote. See 1990.
I have tried to do this, but looking at the polls I have come to a realization.
For some years, mainly those which I was not born yet, there are some songs that I don’t recognize, therefore I can’t fairly judge them. Most years though I find that songs that are not my favorite, I am actually rather neutral or indifferent to, rather than dislike.
Not to say there are some songs I don’t absolutely dislike.
Take 2014, I hate that atrocity of a song, the abortion known as “All About That Bass” by Meghan Trainor. What a hypocritical song, calling for fat acceptance, yet shaming skinny “bitches” and saying that women should love themselves as long as men love their booty. It contradicts the entire premise and message of the song.
Terrible, first it was catchy, but after two weeks it was run to the ground. While it is not important, Meghan Trainor is very unattractive, and I’m alluding to her weight. She is about to turn 21, pity I have for her. If she looks like that at 21, what will she look like when she is older?