Every hour we're getting closer and closer to the Biggest #2 Record as we celebrate 2-22-22 ... which, as you can see is a WHOLE lotta 2's ...
And we're counting down a whole lotta 2's as well ...
47 records peaked at #2 in all three major trade publications between 1955 and 1989 ... the Forgotten Hits Era ... and we're taking a look at every single one of them.
#23
The Box Tops' kick off this hour with their 1968 hit, "Cry Like A Baby."
It placed second for six total weeks to Bobby Goldsboro's monster hit record "Honey."
The Box Top went straight to the top with their very first record ("The Letter," 1967) ... but "Cry Like A Baby" is a great rock and soul single as well. It earned 68 points in this special #2's countdown.
#22
Blood, Sweat and Tears peaked at #2 with their first three hit records in Billboard ... but because "And When I Die" reached #1 in Cash Box (and "Spinning Wheel" peaked at #3 in Cash Box), the only Blood, Sweat and Tears record represented on this special countdown is "You've Made Me So Very Happy," a remake of a minor Motown hit first recorded by Brenda Holloway.
(It earned six weeks at #2 along with 69 points.) The #1 Record at the time was "Aquarius / Let The Sunshine In" by The Fifth Dimension, a medley derived from the smash hit Broadway Musical "Hair."
#21Connie Francis had 18 Top Ten hits between 1958 and 1962. These include TWO #1 Records. ("Everybody's Somebody's Fool" and "My Heart Has A Mind Of Its Own," both in 1960.)
But only ONE of her many hits peaked at #2 in all three of the major trades (Billboard, Cash Box and Music Vendor) and THAT hit was big enough to become the 21st biggest #2 Hit of The Forgotten Hits Era.
"My Happiness" spent a total of SEVEN collective weeks in the #2 position ... and it very well may have gone all the way to #1 were it not for The Platters' huge hit, "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes." It earned 70 points in the process.
We're Entering The Top 20
#20
Brook Benton had one of the smoothest voices in popular music ... and as such, he was a regular fixture on the pop charts throughout the late '50's and early '60's. (A couple of those were EXCELLENT duets with his labelmate, Dinah Washington.)
So when he recorded what many would consider to be a novelty song in 1961, it came as a bit of a surprise. It ALSO turned out to be the biggest hit of his career.
Now some would argue that his big comeback record, "Rainy Night In Georgia," 1970 should earn that honor ... and I would probably agree with that analysis, based strictly on the timeless airplay it has received ever since ...
But the truth is, Brook hit the #2 spot not only with that record but also with his first big hit, "It's Just A Matter Of Time" (1959) and then again with "Baby, You've Got What It Takes" (1960), one of his duets with the aforementioned Ms. Washington.
However, that record only hit #2 in Cash Box Magazine ... it stopped at #5 in both Billboard and Music Vendor. "It's Just A Matter Of Time" also peaked at #2 in Cash Box ... but stalled at #3 in the other two publications. And while "Rainy Night In Georgia" made it to #2 in both Cash Box and Record World, it peaked at #4 in Billboard, thus disqualifying it from this special competition. (A record had to be #2 in all three major trade publications to make our list ... the very best of the BEST #2 Hits.)
And that's why only his 1961 hit "The Boll Weevil Song" made our Top #2 Hits, 1955 - 1989 countdown. It went to #2 in all three publications, spending an accumulated seven weeks there between the three ... so technically, THIS is his all-time biggest hit. And, with 71 points, it's also the #20 song in today's #2's Countdown.
And it probably would have gone all the way to #1 were it not for The Record Of The Year that year, Bobby Lewis' "Tossin' And Turnin'" standing in its way!
#19
The #19 song on the countdown belongs to Rockwell, who just happened to be Berry Gordy, Jr.'s son. (Rockwell's real name is Kennedy Gordy.) It's no [stevie] wonder that his #2 hit came out on Motown Records!
It was also that relationship that prompted Michael Jackson, the hottest artist on the planet at the time, thanks to his "Thriller" album, to sing the choruses on this tune!
In 1984, "Somebody's Watching Me" spent a total of seven weeks at #2 and earned 72 points in this very special countdown of the biggest #2 hits. It never made it to #1 due to Kenny Loggins' big hit, "Footloose." After a minor follow-up hit later that year, Rockwell disappeared from the pop charts forever.
#18
Heavy Metal Band Whitesnake scored the two biggest hits of their career with back-to-back power ballads in 1987.
The first of these unlikely hits, "Here I Go Again," went all the way to #1 ... while the second, "Is This Love," peaked at #2 and became the 18th Biggest #2 Hit of The Forgotten Hits Era, 1955 - 1989, spending a total of seven collective weeks there, earning 73 points in the process.
The band was formed by former Deep Purple lead vocalist David Coverale, who also cowrote their two biggest hits.
See you back here at noon when we count down #17 - #12 of The Biggest #2 Hits, 1955 - 1989.
