More Music trivia

Hot off the press of Billboard Magazine, celebrating its 55th anniversary. Their latest compiling is the Hottest 100 Singles of All Time. So I am sharing it with you. When it comes to lists, we all have our preferences. On first glance I was a bit baffled. But after more thought, I am utterly perplexed.

Hot 100 All-Time Songs 

I realize that it is based not on shelf life or sales, but number of weeks at the top of the charts. There must be something more complex at play in the digital age or else a lack of artists to spread the wealth. Roughly a third are from the 80's and 90's which in my mind is not music's greatest era. But a good 25% are from the last decade and I honestly am not sure of the song and often the artist on a few of them. Thank God for the disco era and the Bee Gees who racked up a slew of notables. Paul McCartney and the Beatles had a few honorable mentions. A single Elvis & Elton John shout out surprised me. Michael Jackson, the King of Pop only had one tune in the mix. Surprising are oddities like Debby Boone's "You Light Up My Life" & the Archies "Sugar Sugar." Both are certainly hits but it seems odd that a century from now they will be an icon to refer to. Also worthy are that there were a few vintage chestnuts like Bobby Darin's "Mack the Knife" & Chubby Checker's "The Twist." But is the Macarena destined to become what we consider a Pop Classic? Really?