MUSIC | 1960s| BEST SONGS | LISTS

The 10 Best Pop Songs from Each Year of the 1960s

Here are the year-end #1 songs from 1960–1969 according to the Billboard Hot charts

Photo by Miriana Dorobanțu on Unsplash

Every year, Billboard magazine releases a year-end best song of the year based on total sales, airplays, and now streams. Steaming, of course, wasn’t an option in the 1960s. The lists were just dependent on record sales as well as radio play.

Based on those metrics, here are the year-end best pop songs for every year from 1960 to 1969.

1960 —Theme from “A Summer Place” by Percy Faith

The theme from “A Summer Place” by Percy Faith was an instrumental. It was written for the 159 film A Summer Place.

In 1960, the song spent a whopping nine weeks as #1 on the charts. To this day, it remains the instrumental with the longest run at #1 in Billboard history.

[embed]

1961 — “Tossin’ and Turnin’” by Bobby Lewis

Released in 1960, “Tossin’ and Turnin’” by Bobby Lewis sold over 3 million copies. The crossover hit spent ten weeks as #1 on the R&B charts, and seven weeks as #1 on the pop charts.

It was Billboard’s song of the year in both the R&B list and the pop list.

[embed]

1962 — “Stranger on the Shore” by Mr. Acker Bilk

“Stranger on the Shore” was an easy-listening song by clarinetist Mr. Acer Bilk. It was the first British artist to have a #1 song on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, but he would not be the last. The “British Invasion” had not happened yet.

The original song was named “Jenny” for the artist’s daughter, but when it was used for the theme song on the BBC TV series “Stranger on the Shore,” the name was changed.

[embed]

1963 — “Surfin’ U.S.A.” by The Beach Boys

Released in 1963, “Surfin’ U.S.A.” by The Beach Boys peaked at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 but stayed in the top ten for a long time. Because of that, Billboard named it their song of the year.

Although the original writing credits were given to Brian Wilson, Chuck Berry was later given co-writing credit after he threatened to sue. The song sounded a lot like his 1958 hit, “Sweet Little Sixteen.”

[embed]

1964— “I Want to Hold Your Hand” by The Beatles

“I Want to Hold Your Hand” by The Beatles was the best-selling single that year worldwide. It sold over 12 million copies globally. It elevated the Beatles to superstar status.

The song was co-written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney. “I Want to Hold Your Hand” stayed at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 for seven weeks until it was replaced at #1 by their next hit, “She Loves You.”

[embed]

1965 — “Wooly Bully” Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs

Written by frontman Domingo “Sam” Samudio, “Wooly Bully” was a hit for Sant the Sham & the Pharaohs in 1965.

It never got to #1, peaking at #2, but it spent an incredible eighteen weeks on the US Billboard Hot 100. For that reason, Billboard named it their song of the year.

[embed]

1966 — “California Dreamin’” by The Mamas and the Papas

In the song, “California Dreamin’” was written by the married members of The Mamas and the Papas, John and Michelle Phillips. When they wrote the song, they were in a cold New York winter and dreaming about their California home.

Another Billboard song of the year not to reach #1, “California Dreamin’” peaked at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 but was given the top honor because of its longevity in the charts.

[embed]

1967 — “To Sir with Love” by Lulu

Lulu was from Scotland and was the first Scottish singer to have a #1 hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. “To Sir with Love” spent five weeks as #1.

It was also the best-selling single of the year in the United States, leading to Billboard naming it the 1967 pop song of the year.

[embed]

1968 — “Hey Jude” by The Beatles

The Beatles had eighteen #1 hits in the 1960s.

“Hey Jude,” written by Paul McCartney to comfort John Lennon’s son Julian while his parents were getting divorced, spent nine weeks at #1. At the time, it was tied for the longest run any pop song had at #1.

[embed]

1969 — “Sugar, Sugar” by The Archies

Compared to the heavier rock and roll being released at the same time, “Sugar, Sugar” by the Archies was a soft pop hit in 1969.

It spent four weeks at #1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and stay in the charts for 22 weeks. The song was a massive success globally and named Billboard’s pop song of the year in 1969.

[embed]

Source

So much of modern rock and roll has its roots in the 1950s and 1960s. Without bands like Beach Boys and Beatles paving the way, music wouldn’t be the same today.

Of course, missing from this list are the heavier rock and roll bands like the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, and The Who. The music the masses went out and bought didn’t always equate to what was the best, and what would stand the test of time.

What are your favorite songs from the 1960s? Are they on this list? Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments.

As always, thanks for reading!

If you like my listicles, you can find the complete list of them here, organized by subject: The Unabridged List of All of my Listicles

For other articles by Curt: My Top Ten Performing Listicles on Medium The 10 Year-End Billboard Best Pop Albums from Each Year of the 1960s Historical Facts: 15 U.S. Presidential Firsts The 10 Year-End Billboard Best Country Songs from Each Year of the 1970s From the Vault: 15 Great Television Finales The 10 Year-End Billboard Best Pop Albums from Each Year of the 1980s 10 Bygone Features That Are Rarely Found in Cars Today 8 Popular Songs Based on Classic Poetry 8 Directors with the Most Oscar Nominations 16 Quotes from the World’s Biggest Advocate for Beer: Homer Simpson The 10 Year-End Billboard Best Pop Albums from Each Year of the 1970s U.S. Ads: 10 of the Funniest Commercials on TV The 10 Best Pop Songs from Each Year of the 1980s The 12 Least Educated U.S. Presidents 30 Quotes That Show the Genius of Albert Einstein On the Bookshelf: 14 Masterpieces of Short Fiction The 10 Best Pop Songs from Each Year of the 1970s 20 Quotes About Beer That Will Make You Smile 14 Pearls of Timeless Wisdom from Mark Twain On the Big Screen: 10 Movies with Odyssey-Like Journeys On the Bookshelf: 10 Great Novels Featuring Time Travel On the Big Screen: 12 Memorable Movie Teachers TV Vault: The 10 Most Iconic Lines from Seinfeld The 59 Names Mentioned in “We Didn’t Start the Fire” 18 Great Debut Albums That Made Music History