THE NEW MUSICAL EXPRESS (N.M.E)
New Musical Express evolved from Accordion Times and Musical Express (1946-1948) Then Musical Express (1948-1952). The revamped New Musical Express as part of its new outlook began displaying Britain's first ever Record chart on 15 November 1952. (the papers publishing date was 14 November).
The NME (As it became known) was very much aimed at the average fan in the street. It started to overtake the Melody Maker by the late 1950s mostly due to it not being anywhere as hostile to the emerging "Rock N' Roll" music sweeping both the United States and the UK. The NME had been reticent to cover Rock and Roll at first, but finding that articles, particularly about the music's greatest star; Elvis Presley; sent sales soaring, it soon embraced the trend.
By the 1960s its populist style had made it the clear leader in terms of sales from its competitors. By 1964 sales were around 300.000 which was an astronomically high figure! The paper was selling more than all its other rivals combined. In 1964 owner Maurice Khinn sold his shares to the IPC publishing group making the NME a sister paper to its major competitor, Melody Maker.
The paper became the `bible` for artists and management in this era as it carried such influence in pop circles. This authority made its charts a very powerful force in the industry with virtually every artist and manager eagerly trying for a feature or interview with the paper.
By the late sixties the paper started to lose touch with music trends. The editorial staff were rather elderly for a music paper; and though age should never be a barrier to the enjoyment of music, it did leave staff at the paper rather out of their depth with the late 1960s early 1970s music scene.
The `Heavy and Progressive` mode of music, circa 1968 to 1971 caught the paper flatfooted as of how to cover it. A fine young writer, Ian Macdonald was recruited late in 1967 to help out. Up until then the papers editor, Andy Gray had been the sole album reviewer (under the pseudonym of Alan Evans). The massive surge in LP releases of what could be some very complex and convoluted works made the reviewing task impossible for one man.
The paper rarely went past 16 pages in content size, which by 1969 was seen as too brief to cover the quickly expanding music scene.
By 1970 the paper was losing readers at an alarming rate as many music fans wanted more from a music paper than artist's favourite foods, colours or girls. In 1971 the paper was overtaken by Melody Maker and the new progressive paper Sounds.
In a drastic move to save the paper, Andy Gray left, with his job as editor taken over by long term staffer Alan Smith. Smith was only a stop-gap. His main function was to recruit many radical young writers from what was termed the `Underground Press`. Names such as Charles Shaar Murray, Nick Logan,Tony Tyler, Nick Kent, Mark Farren etc were now contributing to a radically altered paper. In February 1972 Alan Smith handed over to Ian Macdonald who steered the paper to renewed interest by fans in its anarchic irreverent style.
The paper really scored with its close identification of the "Punk-New Wave" movement of 1976- 77. In this period the paper really had its hand on the `pulse` of the new direction in music.
The paper has never looked back. Today it is the `Last man standing` as all its old rivals have gone. Though sales are not what they were, the paper, now in tabloid size, is still marching on.
New Musical Express Chart History.
The early years of the chart were compiled by advertising manager Percy Dickins along his normal duties of gathering advertisers to the paper. Mr Dickins worked from a master list of 53 willing record outlets, from these he would choose about 15 to 25 depending on time allowed each Monday to phone for a list of each stores twenty best selling records. He would rotate the stores used within the 53 never using exactly the same stores each week.
The stores though keeping precise internal sales figures would however relay the top sellers as a list which Mr Dickins would give 20 points to the top seller, 19 to second best and so on. He would then tally up the points to give the chart placings. In the late fifties as more and more stores came into the scheme the work was allocated to one of the new opinion polling agencies who phoned around 70 to 80 stores.
By the early to mid sixties the paper had reverted to using its own staff for phoning led by Fiona Foulgar; helped by up to five staffers. By the 1970s Karen Walter and Fred Dellar helped with these duties.
The maximum figure that the NME sample reached in the boom sales period of the sixties was 150. It was reduced down to exactly 100 in 1972 up to when the MRIB chart was used on 14 May 1988.
The size of displayed chart in 1952 was a top 12. It would often be larger due to the unusual method of dealing with tied positions e.g. a joint no2 instead of being followed by no 4 would be followed by no 3! This method was soon changed. On 2 October 1954 the chart expanded to a top 20. It became a top 25 for the Christmas sales of week ending 31 December 1955, resuming top 20 size the following week until 14 April 1956 when it grew to a published top 30. The NME chart stayed this size until 23 April 1983 when it became a top 50. This is how it stayed up to the MRIB listing of 14 May 1988, which too was a top 50 in size.
The NME chart became the most referred to and quoted chart of the fifties. It still carried a lot of influence well into the nineteen sixties though by then the Melody Maker chart was a serious rival. The chart was displayed in some national and many more regional newspapers. It was also used throughout the 1950's and 1960s by Radio Luxembourg.
The drawbacks of the NME chart were that for many years B-sides would be included as well as the splitting of double `A` sides, which impeded many other titles from entering. The chart also included LPs even after it ran its own LP chart from June 1962. It had a high reliance on advance order figures which caused the chart to register some records at higher first week entries than pure sales across the counter tallying. A perfect example of this is The Rolling Stones "Little Red Rooster" an instant number 1, but only entering in the 20s of two rival charts. Worst was the practise of `chart hyping`. The NME chart as it was so influential, was a major target and was subject to these machinations for a time in the sixties.
The NME chart never separated tied positions so it has the highest proportion of joint placings of the major charts including eleven joint number 1 records from 1952 to 1966.
On 14 May 1988 the NME stopped compiling its own chart and began running the Music Research Information Bureau top 50 thereby ending the longest independently compiled chart service.
1960
Date Title Artist (Brackets) Weeks At No 1
30 January Starry Eyed (Michael Holliday) 1
6 February Why (Anthony Newly) 4
5 March Poor Me (Adam Faith) 2
19 March Running Bear (Johnny Preston) 1
26 March +My Old Man's A Dustman (Lonnie Donegan) +4
23 April Do You Mind? (Anthony Newley) 1
30 April Cathy's Clown (Everly Brothers) 9
2 July Good Timing (Jimmy Jones) 3
23 July Please Don't Tease (Cliff Richard) 4
20 August Apache (Shadows) 6
1 October Tell Laura I Love Her (Ricky Valance) 2
15 October Only The Lonely (Roy Orbison) 3
5 November + It's Now Or Never (Elvis Presley) +9
1961
Date Title Artist (Brackets) Weeks At No 1
7 January Poetry In Motion (Johnny Tillotson) 3
28 January Are You Lonesome Tonight? (Elvis Presley) 5
4 March Walk Right Back (Everly Brothers) 3
25 March Wooden Heart (Elvis Presley) 2
8 April Are You Sure? (Allisons) 1
15 April Wooden Heart (Elvis Presley) 1
22 April Are You Sure? (Allisons) 1
29 April You're Driving Me Crazy (Temperence Seven) 1
6 May Blue Moon (Marcels) 2
20 May Runaway (Del Shannon) 1
27 May +Surrender (Elvis Presley) +4
24 June Runaway (Del Shannon) 3
15 July Temptation (Everly Brothers) 1
22 July Well I Ask You (Eden Kane) 2
5 August You Don't Know (Helen Shapiro) 3
26 August Johnny Remember Me (John Leyton) 1
2 September *Johnny Remember Me (John Leyton)
*You Don't Know (Helen Shapiro) =1
9 September Johnny Remember Me (John Leyton) 2
23 September Wild In The Country (Elvis Presley) 1
30 September Johnny Remember Me (John Leyton) 1
7 October Michael (Row The Boat) (Highwaymen) 1
14 October Walkinn' Back To Happiness (Helen Shapiro) 4
11 November His Latest Flame (Elvis Presley) 3
2 December *Tower Of Strength (Frankie Vaughn)
*Take Good Care Of My Baby (Bobby Vee) =1
9 December Tower Of Strength (Frankie Vaughn) 3
30 December Moon River (Danny Williams) 1
The other NME No.1s for the decade will appear in December
Merseybeat started on 13 July 1961 as a bi-weekly publication. It started to publish a top 20 chart in 1963, but was still only published on alternate weeks. It was only a regional paper at first, covering the Liverpool and North West England music scene. Editor was Bill Harry who was an enthusiastic supporter of local acts.
Even before they became national favourites, the Beatles were extremely well known in the Merseyside region circa 1960 - 61. By early 1962 the paper was avidly reporting the hundreds of local groups who were becoming successful throughout the North of England.
As the Beatles, Gerry and the Pacemakers, Searchers and the Mersey Beat sound swept the UK the papers sales soared. It was necessary to become a national publication to cater for demand.
Though Merseybeat became a national music paper in 1963 it was still a bi-weekly publication. It finally became a weekly in April 1964. By the autumn of 1964 Beatles manager Brian Epstein bought shares in the paper and an injection of finance. This enabled Merseybeat to start producing colour covers from December 3 1964, which gave it a very professional look
As the `beat boom` died down in 1965 it was obvious that the `Mersey` sound was all but dead. As a national paper, Merseybeat changed title to Music Echo but still kept a Mersey Beat section devoted to Liverpool region acts on the back page.
By 1966 sales were falling off rapidly and the paper was obviously doomed. Some form of `saviour` came when rival paper Disc incorporated Music Echo as part of an overhaul to colour. The new Disc And Music Echo was formed on 23 April 1966. That title lasted until 1972.
Bill Harry did not join the new Disc And Music Echo, joining colour rival Record Mirror, writing a Liverpool region column through to late 1967.
Merseybeat / Music Echo Chart History.
On 24 April 1964 the paper and its chart became weekly. The top 20 did not publish `Last Week` figures to show where each records previous weekly placing was It was only based on about ten stores surveyed as there wasn't much money to finance a very thorough chart until Brian Epstein acquired a share in the paper in late September 1964.
By December 1964 the paper produced the nations first top 100 chart. This appeared on 3 December 1964 and was based on approximately 40 to 50 postal returns. The paper underwent a change of title on March 6 1965 to Music Echo mainly because by then Merseybeat was becoming an out of date title.
The top 100 chart would sometimes be reduced to a top 75 or 50 if Bank Holidays or lower sales dictated. The chart eventually reduced to regular top 50 size on 8 January 1966 due to lower sales levels of records.
Merseybeat changed its date of publication at times during 1964 which caused its chart to be out of step with other lists, it finally stabilised on Friday publication (alongside most music papers) starting 2 January 1965. The paper ceased on 16 April 1966. It was incorporated into Disc which from 23 April 1966 became Disc And Music Echo. Music Echo had also been the first music paper to publish a top 50 LP charts on 29 May 1965; pre-empting Record Retailers top 50 LP chart by almost a year.
Merseybeat No 1's- 24 Apr 64 to 16 April 66
1964
Date Title Artist (Brackets) Weeks At No 1
24 April - Can't Buy Me Love - (Beatles) 1
1 May - Don't Throw Your Love Away - (Searchers) 2
15 May - Juliet - (Four Pennies) 1
22 May - You're My World - (Cilla Black) 5
25 June - Here I Go Again - (Hollies) 1
2 July - +House Of The Rising Sun - (Animals) +1
9 July - +Long Tall Sally E.P - (Beatles) +1
16 July - It's All Over Now - (Rolling Stones) 1
23 July - +A Hard Days Night - (Beatles) +4
20 August - Do Wah, Diddy-Diddy - (Manfred Mann) 3
10 September - You Really Got Me - (Kinks) 2
24 September - Where Did Our Love Go - (Supremes) 1
1 October - I'm Into Something Good - (Hermans Hermits) 1
8 October - Oh Pretty Woman - (Roy Orbison) 6
19 November - All Day, And All Of The Night - (Kinks) 1
26 November - +Little Red Rooster - (Rolling Stones) +1
3 December - +I Feel Fine - (Beatles) +4
1965
Date Title Artist (Brackets) Weeks at No 1
2 January - Yeh Yeh - (Georgie Fame) 2
16 January - Terry - (Twinkle) 1
23 January - Go Now (Moody Blues) 2
6 February - You've Lost That Loving Feeling (Righteous Brothers) 2
20 February - Tired Of Waiting For You (Kinks) 1
27 February - I'll Never Find Another You (Seekers) 2
13 March - The Last Time (Rolling Stones) 4
10 April - The Minute You're Gone (Cliff Richard) 1
17 April - +Ticket To Ride (Beatles) +4
15 May - King Of The Road (Roger Miller) 2
29 May - Where Are You Now? (Jackie Trent) 1
5 June - Long Live Love (Sandie Shaw) 1
12 June - The Price Of Love (Everly Brothers) 2
26 June - Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere (Who) 1
3 July - I'm Alive (Hollies) 1
10 July - Looking Through The eyes Of Love (Gene Pitney) 1
17 July - Mr Tambourine Man (Byrds) 2
31 July - +Help (Beatles) +4
28 August - I Got You Babe (Sonny and Cher) 1
4 September - I Can't Get No- Satisfaction (Rolling Stones) 1
11 September - I Got You Babe (Sonny and Cher) 1
18 September - *I Got You Babe (Sonny and Cher)
*I Can't Get No- Satisfaction (Rolling Stones) *=1
25 September - Tears (Ken Dodd) 2
9 October - If You Gotta Go, Go Now (Manfred Mann) 2
23 October - Tears (Ken Dodd) 2
6 November - Here It Comes Again (Fortunes) 1
13 November - Get Off My Cloud (Rolling Stones) 1
20 November - My Generation (Who) 2
4 December - The Carnival Is Over (Seekers) 1
11 December - +Day Tripper/We Can Work It Out (Beatles) +5
1966
Date Title Artist (Brackets) Weeks at No 1
15 January - Keep On Running (Spencer Davis Group) 3
5 February - Michelle (Overlanders) 2
19 February - These Boots Were Made For Walking (Nancy Sinatra) 2
5 March - Nineteenth Nervous Breakdown (Rolling Stones) 1
12 March - Sha La, La, La, Lee (Small Faces) 1
19 March - I Can't Let Go (Hollies) 1
26 March - The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Any More (Walker Brothers) 3
16 April - Somebody Help Me (Spencer Davis Group) 1
TOP POPS/MUSIC NOW
Top Pops began in May 1967 as a
monthly paper, though sometimes it would appear every three weeks. The paper
carried a colour cover, centre and pack pages. It had higher colour content
than either Disc and Music Echo or Record Mirror.
Original editor was the noted author Colin
Bostock-Smith. The paper also employed for its first ten issues writer Miranda
Ward. Miranda was very much in touch with the music scene of 1967 and had a
radio spot on the newly set up Radio One.
The paper went bi-weekly in publication in
November 1967 and finally weekly in June 1968 on its 26 issue.
Colin Bostock-Smith resigned in mid 1968
due to editorial disagreement with the papers owner MP Woodrow Wyatt. The paper
struggled for a while, but sales picked up in 1969. The change in the music
scene away from pure chart music was noticed by the paper and it started to
change its style to compliment this.
The paper was virtually alone in having a column
by staffer "Waxie Maxie" (Max Needham) covering 1950s `Rock N' Roll` and the
current `Rock Revivalist acts.
Album reviews became extensive and the
outdoor festival events were avidly covered. From issue 89 the paper started
calling itself Top Pops - Music Now
with emphasis on the latter.
In March 1970 the paper underwent a full
change to being titled Music Now and
renumbering each issue from its first publication as Music Now edition number one from 21 March 1970.
The launch of the music paper Sounds which was aimed at the
`Progressive` side of the music scene helped to undermine Music Now. Sales started to
fall quickly and by early 1971 the paper was in terminal decline. No known date
of the final issue is known due to the scarcity of editions from this period.
May 1971 has been mentioned as the final appearance of the paper. So far the
latest edition held by the author is 27rth February 1971 which is where the
chart ends.
Max Needham continued his "Maxie Waxie"
column for a few years in Record Mirror.
The paper recruited talented record
reviewer Karen De Groot
It only started to run a chart on 25 May
1968. The paper was still a bi-weekly then, but it went to a weekly issue on 22
June 1968. The chart was compiled by its first editor Colin Bostock-Smith from
branches of WH Smith And Son after the paper gave advertising
space to the firm. Bostock-Smith phoned to a dozen branches of Smiths for each
list of best selling records. The paper became Top Pops-Music Now on 20 September 1969; it re-launched as Music Now on 21 March 1970, the size of
sample expanded to between 30 to 40 stores. The paper ceased in May1971.
The answer to one hit wonders' Zager & Evans question was "no"
TOP POPS/MUSIC NOW No 1's 25 May 1968 to
27 February 1971
* Note!. The first two Bi-Weekly
charts are included because it was only a very brief period.
1968
Date Title Artist Weeks At No 1
25 May - Young Girl - Union Gap - 2 bi-weekly = 4
22 June - Jumping Jack Flash - Rolling Stones
- 3
13 July - Baby Come Back - Equals - 2
27 Jul - Mony Mony - Tommy James and The
Shondells - 2
10 Aug - Fire - Crazy World Of Arthur Brown - 1
17 Aug - Mony Mony - Tommy James and The
Shondells - 2
31 Aug - I've Gotta Get a Message To You - Bee Gees - 1
7 Sep -+Hey
Jude - Beatles -+4
5
Oct - Those Were The Days - Mary Hopkin - 5
9
Nov - With A Little Help From My Friends - Joe Cocker - 2
23 Nov - The Good, The Bad And The Ugly - Hugo
7 Dec - Lily The Pink - Scaffold - 5
1969
Date Title Artist Weeks At No 1
11 Jan - Ob-La-Di,
Ob-La-Da - Marmalade - 2
25 Jan - Albatross - Fleetwood
Mac - 4
22 Feb - Half As Nice - Amen
Corner - 2
8 Mar - Where Do You Go To? - Peter Sarstedt -
2
22 Mar - I Heard It
Through The Grapevine - Marvin Gaye - 4
19 Apr - The Israelites - Desmond
Dekker - 2
26 Apr - Get Back - Beatles
- 3
24 May - My Sentimental
Friend - Hermans Hermits - 2
7 Jun - Dizzy - Tommy Roe -
2
21 Jun - The Ballad of
John and Yoko - Beatles - 2
5 Jul - Oh Happy Day - Edwin
Hawkins Singers) - 1
12 Jul - In The Ghetto - Elvis
Presley - 1
19 Jul - Something In The
Air - Thunderclap Newman) - 1
26 Jul - Honky Tonk Women
- Rolling Stones - 2
9 Aug - Saved By The
23 Aug - My Cherie Amour -
Stevie Wonder - 1
30 Aug - In The Year 2525
- Zagar and Evans - 4
27 Sep - Don't Forget To
Remember - Bee Gees - 1
4 Oct - I'll Never Fall In Love Again - Bobbie
Gentry - 2
18 Oct - J'Taime - Jane
Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg) 2
1 Nov - Sugar Sugar - Archies - 2
15 Nov - Oh Well - Fleetwood
Mac - 2
29 Nov - Call Me Number
One - Tremeloes - 2
13 Dec - Ruby - Kenny
Rogers and the First Edition) - 1
20 Dec - Two Little Boys -
Rolf Harris - 6
1970
Date Title Artist - Weeks At No1
7
Feb - Love Grows -
28 Feb - I Want You Back -
21 Mar - Bridge Over Troubled Water - Simon
and Garfunkel - 5
25 Apr - Spirit In The Sky - Norman Greenbaum - 4
23 May - Back Home -
30 May -
13 Jun - In The Summertime - Mungo Jerry - 4
11 Jul - All Right Now - Free - 4
8
Aug - The Wonder Of You - Elvis Presley -
3
29 Aug - Tears Of A Clown - Smokey Robinson
and The Miracles - 4
26 Sep - Band Of Gold - Freda Payne - 5
31 Oct - Black Night - Deep Purple - 1
7
Nov -
28 Nov - Indian Reservation - Don Fardon - 1
5
Dec - I Hear You Knocking - Dave
Edmunds - 2
19 Dec - When I'm Dead And Gone - McGuinness Flint - 3
1971
9 Jan - Grandad - Clive Dunn - 3
30 Jan - My Sweet Lord - George
Harrison) up to 27 Feb.
RECORD MIRROR
The Record Mirror commenced on 17 June 1954. From 29 August 1959 it became Record and Show Mirror. Then from 18 March 1961 it became New Record Mirror. Finally from 16 November 1963 it reverted back to Record Mirror, which it stayed at until the papers demise on 6 April 1991. Record Mirror in the fifties also covered stage, film and television in its pages; pop music was only a part of this spectrum. Only in 1961 did the paper devote itself entirely to music.
The 1950's editions of the paper not only covered music, but Film, Television and Radio stars. The paper was a full entertainment guide. It was by far the best looking and set out paper of the time.
Unfortunately sales were not too good and by 1960 the paper re -launched as New Record Mirror now covering just pop music. The paper changed title again in 1962 to Record Mirror settling down in this incarnation.
Record Mirror prided itself on being the first with news on artists before they became popular. Its greatest scoop in this field was in early 1963 with a feature on the Rolling Stones. It could have been the first to do an article on the Beatles in October 1962 but did not use the interview due to the group not being sufficiently interesting to write about!
Record Mirror's Editor Peter Jones was very in touch with music trends of the sixties and often got good interviews with many pop acts. The paper was the first to feature a colour cover when on 16 November 1963 it featured the Beatles as its first colour cover picture.
The paper was only twelve pages in content and often printed text in very small type to compensate this lack of page content.
When Billboard Publications took the majority shareholding in late 1969 the paper changed to very expensive glossy paper. This did not reverse the sales dip it had suffered in the late sixties which left it just behind Disc and Music Echo in terms of the nations best selling colour music paper (NME and Melody Maker were always monochrome).
Record Mirror achieved good sales in the early 1970s by aligning closely with the `Glam - Glitter` Rock movement and Teenybopper music!
Record Mirror finally ceased in November 1989, the same week as sister paper Sounds.
Record Mirror Chart History.
The paper became the second magazine to compile and publish a record chart on 22 January 1955. Unlike the New Musical Express who conducted a phone poll of retailers for a chart, Record Mirror arranged for its pool of retailers to send in a list of best sellers by post. The paper would finance the costs of this survey.
Record Mirror would actually print each shops list of top ten best sellers plus the name and address of each shop contributing. This now seems a very reckless thing to do, but back in 1955 the spectre of chart `hyping` was basically unknown. The paper recommended (later in the decade) that other papers producing charts do the same! Record Mirrors first chart of 22 January 1955 was compiled from exactly 24 shops. As with NMEs method of tallying, Record Mirror would tot up points for placement to gauge a chart with 10 points for no1, 9 points for no2 and so on. By 1956 returns came from a higher number of shops (around 40) and by 1957 over 60 shops would be regularly contributing from a rotating pool of over 80.
The chart was a top 10 until 8 October 1955. It then became a top 20; which it stayed at until being replaced by the Record Retailer top 50.
By the late fifties the Record Mirror chart became a serious rival to the New Musical Express counterpart.
It proudly boasted its use by the majority of national newspapers. It also inaugurated the countries first Long Player chart, which commenced as a top five on 28 July 1956.
The early sixties saw fortunes change for the Record Mirror chart. It was by then receiving competition for publication in newspapers from Melody Maker and NME. It was also hit badly by the rise in postal costs of April 1961. Record Mirror had neither the financial backup nor staff levels to support the scope of chart they had been providing. The paper had decided to drop its printing of shops top tens and addresses in March 1961. By March the following year costs became too much and Record Mirror adopted publication of Record Retailers top 50 from 24 March 1962. Record Mirror never achieved sales levels of NME or Melody Maker; if it had, its own chart may have lasted many years longer.
Record Mirror No 1's 22 January 55 to 17 March 62
Key
* = Joint No 1
+ = Straight No 1
Note! A Print strike from 27 June to 8 August affected all papers except New Musical Express. However, Melody Maker, Record Mirror and Disc still compiled the charts in that period. They have recently surfaced and are now included in the listings.
1955
Date Title Artist Weeks At No 1
22 January Mambo Italiano (Rosemary Clooney) 3
12 February Naughty Lady Of Shady Lane (Dean Martin) 1
19 February Give Me Your Word (Tennessee Ernie Ford) 3
12 March Softly, Softly (Ruby Murray) 1
19 March Give Me Your Word (Tennessee Ernie Ford) 7
7 May Stranger In Paradise (Tony Bennett) 5
11 June Unchained Melody (Al Hibbler) 4
9 July Dreamboat (Alma Cogan) 2
23 July Rose Marie (Slim Whitman) 10
1 October Cool Water (Frankie Laine) 1
8 October The Man From Laramie (Jimmy Young) 5
12 November Rock Around The Clock (Bill Haley and The Comets) 8
1956
Date Title Artist (Brackets) Weeks At No 1
14 January Sixteen Tons (Tennessee Ernie Ford) 5
18 February Zambezi (Lou Busch) 2
3 March Memories Are Made Of This (Dean Martin) 2
17 March It's Almost Tomorrow (Dream Weavers) 3
7 April Poor People Of Paris (Winifred Atwell) 5
12 May No Other Love (Ronnie Hilton) 4
9 June I'll Be Home (Pat Boone) 6
21 July Why Do Fools Fall In Love (Frankie Lymon and The Teenagers) 3
11 August Whatever Will Be, Will Be (Doris Day) 6
22 September Lay Down Your Arms (Anne Shelton) 4
20 October Woman In Love (Frankie Laine) 3
10 November Just Walkin' In The Rain (Johnnie Ray) 8
1957
Date Title Artist (Brackets) Weeks At No 1
5 January Singing The Blues (Guy Mitchell) 2
19 January Singing The Blues (Tommy Steele) 1
26 January Singing The Blues (Guy Mitchell) 1
2 February Garden Of Eden (Frankie Vaughn) 3
23 February Young Love (Tab Hunter) 7
13 April Cumberland Gap (Lonnie Donegan) 4
11 May Butterfly (Andy Williams) 4
8 June Yes Tonight Josephine (Johnny Ray) 4
6 July Gambling Man (Lonnie Donegan) 1
13 July All Shook Up (Elvis Presley) 7
31 August Diana (Paul Anka) 8
26 October That'll Be The Day (Buddy Holly & Crickets) 4
23 November Mary's Boy Child (Harry Belafonte) 6
1958
Date Title Artist (Brackets) Weeks At No 1
4 January Ma! He's Making Eyes At Me (Johnny Otis Show) 2
18 January Great Balls Of Fire (Jerry Lee Lewis) 1
25 January +Jailhouse Rock (Elvis Presley) +3
15 February The Story Of My Life (Michael Holliday) 2
1 March Magic Moments (Perry Como) 7
19 April Whole Lotta Woman (Marvin Rainwater) 4
17 May Who's Sorry Now (Connie Francis) 6
28 June All I Have To Do Is Dream (Everly Brothers) 8
23 August When (Kalin Twins) 5
27 September Stupid Cupid/Carolina Moon (Connie Francis) 5
1 November Bird Dog (Everly Brothers) 3
22 November Hoots Mon! (Lord Rockingham's X1) 5
27 December Its Only Make Believe (Conway Twitty) 4
1959
Date Title Artist (Brackets) Weeks At No 1
24 January + I Got Stung/One Night (Elvis Presley) +5
28 February Smoke Gets In Your Eyes (Platters) 5
4 April Side Saddle (Russ Conway) 2
18 April It Doesn't Matter Any More (Buddy Holly) 2
2 May A Fool Such As I/ I Need Your Love Tonight (Elvis Presley) 7
20 June Roulette (Russ Conway) 1
27 June Dream Lover (Bobby Darin) 5
1 August Livin' Doll (Cliff Richard) 4
29 August Only Sixteen (Craig Douglas) 7
17 October Travelling Light (Cliff Richard) 7
5 December What Do You Want (Adam Faith) 5
1960
Date Title Artist (Brackets) Weeks At No 1
9 January What Do You Want To Make Those Eyes At Me For? (Emile Ford) 2
16 January Why? (Anthony Newley) 6
5 March Poor Me (Adam Faith) 1
12 March Running Bear (Johnny Preston) 2
26 March +My Old Mans A Dustman (Lonnie Donegan) +5
30 April Cathy's Clown (Everly Brothers) 9
2 July Good Timin' (Jimmy Jones) 4
30 July Please Don't Tease (Cliff Richard) 3
20 August Apache (Shadows) 6
1 October Tell Laura I Love Her (Ricky Valance) 2
15 October Only The Lonely (Roy Orbison) 3
5 November +Its Now Or Never (Elvis Presley) +9
1961
Date Title Artist (Brackets) Weeks At No 1
7 January Poetry In Motion (Johnny Tillotson) 3
28 January Are You Lonesome Tonight (Elvis Presley) 4
25 February Walk Right Back (Everly Brothers) 4
25 March Wooden Heart (Elvis Presley) 3
15 April Are You Sure? (Allisons) 2
29 April *Wooden Heart (Elvis Presley)
*You're Driving Me Crazy (Temperance Seven) *=1
6 May You're Driving Me Crazy (Temperance Seven) 1
13 May Blue Moon (Marcels) 2
27 May *Runaway (Del Shannon)
+*Surrender (Elvis Presley) *=1
3 June Surrender (Elvis Presley) 4
1 July Runaway (Del Shannon) 1
8 July Temptation (Everly Brothers) 4
5 August Well I Ask You (Eden Kane) 1
12 August You Don't Know (Helen Shapiro) 2
26 August Johnny Remember Me (John Layton) 5
30 September Kon-Tiki (Shadows) 1
7 October Michael Row The Boat (Highwaymen) 1
14 October Walkin' Back To Happiness (Helen Shapiro) 4
11 November His Latest Flame (Elvis Presley) 3
2 December Take Good Care Of My Baby (Bobby Vee) 1
9 December Tower Of Strength (Frankie Vaughn) 4
1962
Date Title Artist (Brackets) Weeks At No 1
6 January Stranger On The Shore (Acker Bilk) 2
20 January The Young Ones (Cliff Richard) 5
24 February Rocka-Hula-Baby/Can't Help Falling In Love (Elvis Presley) 4
From 24th March Record Mirror commenced publication of the Record Retailer top 50.