ATRL - Chart Listings: Top 200 Best Selling Female Solo Hits Of The 80s

Gezza76 · , 7:17 AM

156. JUST WHAT I ALWAYS WANTED- Mari Wilson (152,000)

RELEASED: 1982
PEAK POSITION: 8
WKS ON CHART: 10

With a backing group named the Wilsations and backing singers called the Marionettes (which at times included Julie Fordham and Michelle Collins) Wilson had a few chart failures before striking it lucky with this track in late 1982. Much media interest surrounded the singer with her evident 60s influenced music and bee hive hairdo but the record buyers of the day didn’t follow the newspapers lead and only one top 30 hit followed for the singer but she did provide the theme “Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps” for the TV show “Coupling”.

155. DEAR JESSIE- Madonna (153,000)

RELEASED: 1989
PEAK POSITION: 5
WKS ON CHART: 4

Madonna’s final release of the decade makes our survey after just 4 weeks on the chart (the least weeks on the chart for any song on this chart), and was the fourth and final release from the “Like A Prayer” album. The subject of the song, Jessie, was actually (the co-writer) Patrick Leonard’s daughter who wrote it for his daughter before handing it to Madonna to alter some words after she met his daughter. The cover incidentally is a Herb Ritts picture from 1987 taking the micky (gettit) out of early Madonna critics who said her voice was like Minnie Mouse on Helium.

gareton · , 7:47 AM

Dear Jessie

Gezza76 · , 7:27 AM

154. GREATEST LOVE OF ALL- Whitney Houston (153,000)

RELEASED: 1986
PEAK POSITION: 8
WKS ON CHART: 11

Good old Whitters, before the drugs and Bobby Brown and movie soundtracks there was a bona fide superstar who could belt out a song better than most. Her first single “You Give Good Love” Failed to impress here but once the hits started she couldn’t be stopped accumulating 9 top 20 hits in 4 years including a trio of chart toppers all of which naturally make this list. Anyway this was first recorded by George Benson for the Mohammed Ali biopic “The Greatest” and co-written by Linda Creed who was going through treatment for breast cancer at the time which is what the track relates to. It was a hit twice in the US really as it first appeared on the B Side of the aforementioned “You Give Good Love” before getting a release of its own and topping the US chart.

153. I FOUND SOMEONE- Cher (156,000)

RELEASED; 1987
PEAK POSITION: 5
WKS ON CHART: 10

Written by Michael Bolton for Laura Branigan (we’ll meet her later in the thread) and produced Harold Faltermayer on Branigan’s version , it had all the credentials for a big hit but without a promo the track stalled at No 90 in the US in 1986 and failed to get anywhere here. A year later Cher covered the track and had her first hit single in 14 years with it. Again produced by Bolton the video starred her then boyfriend Rob Camilletti 17 years her junior it sparked a major revival in the singer which lasted into the 00s.

Gezza76 · , 7:32 AM

152. SET ME FREE- Jaki Graham (157,000)

RELEASED: 1986
PEAK POSITION: 7
WKS ON CHART: 12

A third and final appearance for Graham on this list. This was her highest peaking solo track in addition to being her biggest selling hit, it’s one of those long forgotten hits that you’re instantly remembered of when you listen to it and this was the song she chose to sing on ITV’s “Baby One More Time” in 2005. She still records and releases music though it’s been 17 years since she made the charts.

151. I DON’T WANNA LOSE YOU- Tina Turner (161,000)

RELEASED: 1989
PEAK POSITION: 8
WKS ON CHART: 8

After the relative failure of 1986’s “Break Every Rule” confidence in Turner was restored with 1989’s “Foreign Affair” which sold healthily through 89 and 90 and spawned five chart singles two of them in the 80s and this is the least selling. In part due its November release date and the fact that it was still in the top 20 when the decade ended but it did its job in keeping the album in the public consciousness for the Christmas 89 period.

Gezza76 · , 12:19 PM

150. CHERISH- Madonna (161,000)

RELEASED: 1989
PEAK POSITION: 3
WKS ON CHART: 8

Another hit from “Like A Prayer”, “Cherish” was the third release and became a top 3 hit in September 89 and spent a fortnight at No 2 in the US behind Janet Jackson. Herb Ritts directed the beach lensed promo which saw Madonna in typically flirty mood though Madonna has been less than flattering about the song saying it contains lyrics which she is slightly embarrassed about now.

149. LICENCE TO KILL- Gladys Knight (163,000)

RELEASED: 1989
PEAK POSITION: 6
WKS ON CHART: 11

Bond theme alert!! The Film was the first Bond film not to be filmed in the UK fact fans. Anyway that’s not the only thing unusual about the film score, it’s one of the few that has nothing to do with John Barry as he was recovering from throat cancer at the time and so this hit is penned by Narada Michael Walden amongst others, it’s also by some distance the least selling of them. Nevermind it returned Knight to the top 10 for the first time in 12 years.

dannylex · , 1:28 PM

I love Cherish, the song and video

Jdella11 · , 1:39 PM

License To Kill is one of my least favorite 007 songs.

Nobody Does It Better will always live up to its name.

Gezza76 · , 2:19 PM

148. YOU MIGHT NEED SOMEBODY- Randy Crawford (163,000)

RELEASED: 1981
PEAK POSITION: 11
WKS ON CHART: 13

Somewhat amazingly Crawford has never made the US top 100 as a solo artist, not so here thankfully. Covered by Shola Ama in 1997 this track was a No 11 hit in 1981 for Crawford as the follow up to the much bigger hit “One Day I’ll Fly Away” , it is of course worth remembering that she was lead vocalist with the Crusaders who of course had a big 70s hit with “Streetlife” .

147. COME INTO MY LIFE- Joyce Sims (165,000)

RELEASED: 1988
PEAK POSITION: 7
WKS ON CHART: 9

The world first heard of Sims with 1986’s “All In All” which made the top 20 but sadly didn’t sell enough to make this rundown, her only other top 20 hit has though. A top 10 smash in early 1988 a continuous string of hits just seemed to always evade Sims who did manage to re-chart this song in 1995 but outside of that all her hits were in the 80s.

Gezza76 · , 12:04 PM

146. EXPRESS YOURSELF- Madonna (165,000)

RELEASED: 1989
PEAK POSITION: 5
WKS ON CHART: 10

Sharing the same video inspiration as Queen’s “Radio Gaga” this looked to “Metropolis” for its idea and concept, “Express Yourself” was the second release from “Like A Prayer” and just like “Cherish” it spent a fortnight at No 2 in the US, and in 2011 “Born This Way” by Lady Gaga drew many comments in the alleged similarities to it. Viewed by many at the time as a reaction against the pro conservatism movement in the USA in the 80s and an assertion of female independence.

145. BEHIND THE GROOVE- Teena Marie (168,000)

RELEASED: 1980
PEAK POSITION: 6
WKS ON CHART: 10

Initially mistaken as a black singer. Marie was reared for stardom from an early age bagging herself a role in the “Beverley Hillbillies” as a kid and by 1976 had signed a record deal with Motown. Her debut album was ready by 1979 causing somewhat of a sensation when she appeared on “The Soul Train” (unusual for a white act) and the first time many had seen her as there was no picture of her on the sleeve of any record at the time. This is her only top 20 hit in the UK, sadly she died in 2010.

Gezza76 · , 12:23 PM

144. KNOCK ON WOOD/ LIGHT MY FIRE- Amii Stewart (168,000)

RELEASED: 1985
PEAK POSITION: 7
WKS ON CHART: 12

Amii Stewart is the aunt of Sinitta, it’s a small world of 80s female pop stars kids. She was a 70s disco star whose biggest 70s hits were disco versions of “Knock On Wood” (originally by Eddie Loyd) and “Light My Fire” (The Doors) which both made the top 10. After her career went into a lull she managed a comeback of sorts with 1984’s “friends” which bought her a top 20 hit, and to capitalise on that single her two biggest hits were combined and made the top 10 all over again. After that she moved to Italy and is a UN ambassador for the country.

143. FOUR LETTER WORD- Kim Wilde (171,000)

RELEASED: 1988
PEAK POSITION: 6
WKS ON CHART: 12

Sticking with the songwriting duo of her brother and Father, Wilde had 12 top 20 hits, this was the last hit she released by them, and coincidently also her final top 10 hit of her career, thanks to Xmas 88 this generated more sales than her previous hit (at No 193) but was the effective end of Wilde as a chart regular. This is a little winter warmer that has largely been forgotten about over the years, quite undeservedly so.

Gezza76 · , 12:05 PM

142. PINK CADILLAC- Natalie Cole (172,000)

RELEASED: 1988
PEAK POSITION: 5
WKS ON CHART: 12

Written by Bruce Springsteen in 1981 he didn’t actually get around to recording it until 1984 when it made the B-Side of “Dancing In The Dark”. In the meantime it was recorded by Bette Midler but Springsteen vetoed the recording claiming it was a man’s song, well he obviously changed his mind later in the decade when Cole recorded her version of it. Cole is obviously the daughter of 50s crooner Nat “King” Cole, and was suffering from drug addiction in the early 80s after a brief 70s career which showed much promise, “Pink Cadillac” turned her career around becoming her first top 10 hit in the UK, as for the subject of “Pink Cadillac” well that’s rather rude so i’ll leave you to investigate that for yourself.

141. MOVE OVER DARLING- Tracy Ullman (144,000)

RELEASED: 1983
PEAK POSITION: 8
WKS ON CHART: 9

From the 1963 film of the same name with songs by the delightful Doris Day, this was revamped in 1983 by Tracy Ullman as her third single, and third and final top 10 hit. She had found fame in the early 80s as part of the burgeoning female comic circle and appeared on TV in comedy series “Three Of A Kind” and “Girls On Top” in addition to West End Shows, before residing in the US and getting citizenship there whilst helping to launch “ The Simpsons” on her TV show. For which incidentally Paula Abdul was the choreographer.

Gezza76 · , 12:14 PM

140. O SUPERMAN- Laurie Anderson (174,000)

RELEASED: 1981
PEAK POSITION: 2
WKS ON CHART: 6

One of the more unusual 80s hit, Anderson is a performing artist who had only one hit in the UK ever- this one. With an eccentric chart run of 18-2-3-15-24-54 it was in and out of the charts before many noticed but it was a fitting run for an unusual record. 8 mins long in its proper form it also has one of the most bizarre TOTP interpretations I think I’ve ever seen.

139. VOYAGE VOYAGE- Desireless (174,000)

RELEASED: 1987/88
PEAK POSITION: 5
WKS ON CHART: 19

Desireless, or Claudie Fritsch- Mentrop as she’s known to her friends, is a French singer whose sole contribution to the UK charts came in 1987 when “Voyage Voyage” was released. A 1987 release got no higher than No 53 despite being a sizeable hit all over the continent, but it took a remix by Pete Hammond of S/A/W fame to finally bring UK success in early 1988 after which we quickly lost interest.

Gezza76 · , 11:11 AM

138. I DROVE ALL NIGHT- Cyndi Lauper (174,000)

RELEASED: 1989
PEAK POSITION: 7
WKS ON CHART: 12

From the fair hand of Billy Steinberg comes this little ditty which was written for Roy Orbison who recorded it in 1987 but that version wasn’t released until 1992 giving lots of time for an alternative version to chart, step forward Lauper. She was back with her third album in 1989 and this was the lead single which returned her to the top 10 for the first time in 5 years. The video is slightly saucy Lauper appearing naked but with scenes projected onto her body, the singer wanted to record the record as she “liked the idea of being a woman in charge, behind the driving wheel”.

137. GIRLIE GIRLIE- Sophia George (176,000)

RELEASED: 1985
PEAK POSITION: 7
WKS ON CHART: 11

A glorious one hit wonder, this is the sole impact left by Jamaican Chanteuse Sophia George. A chart topper back in her native country this struck the right chord to warm up a cold UK come January 1986, so who remembers this one? I have to confess I had no memory of it at all from the time.

Gezza76 · , 11:15 AM

136. JOE LE TAXI- Vanessa Paradis (181,000)

RELEASED: 1988
PEAK POSITION: 3
WKS ON CHART: 10

Topping the French charts for 11 weeks in 1987 this was one of the few foreign sung songs pre the 90s to make the transition from the continent to the UK. Paradis was just 14 yrs old when “Joe Le Taxi” made her an overnight sensation in her homeland and created a stir around Europe before crossing the channel.

135. WHO’S LEAVING WHO- Hazell Dean (182,000)

RELEASED: 1988
PEAK POSITION: 4
WKS ON CHART: 11

After starting out in the mid 70s Dean competed twice, and failed in the song for Europe competition (she finally got there doing backing vocals for Samantha Janus in 1991), but it was the Hi-Nrg boom of the early 80s that bought Dean to the charts. After two top 10 hits (more of which later) she made a comeback four years later with this cover of the Anne Murray track “Who’s Leaving Who” (she had a hit with it in Canada in 1986), revamped into the familiar S/A/W track and it hurtled into the top 5, subsequent singles followed the law of diminishing returns sadly.

ashuduff · , 12:18 AM

Gezza76 · , 7:03 AM

134. NEVER TOO LATE- Kylie Minogue (183,000)

RELEASED: 1989
PEAK POSITION: 4
WKS ON CHART: 10

The poorest selling Kylie Single of the 80s was the last, and was still on the charts at the end of the 80s. A third release from “Enjoy Yourself” rumour is that Kylie wanted the title track for the third release but S/A/W considered this the stronger track and it duly debuted at No 17 causing surprise and alarm amongst fans at the low entry point. Not to worry the 12” hadn’t been released yet and once all formats were available the song duly bounded up to No 4 though the staggered release probably cost it at least one rung on the chart peak.

133. FRENCH KISSIN IN THE USA- Debbie Harry (183,000)

RELEASED: 1986
PEAK POSITION: 8
WKS ON CHART: 10

With the break up Blondie in the early 80s Harry had branched out solo with mixed results and with 1986’s “Rockbird” album she finally managed to land herself a solo top 10 hit single. It was written by Chuck Lorre who is now a comedy writer having created such hits as “Grace Under Fire””Dharma & Greg” and more recently “The Big Bang Theory”. This remains her biggest solo hit ever.

Gezza76 · , 7:08 AM

132. COULD’VE BEEN- Tiffany (183,000)

RELEASED: 1988
PEAK POSITION: 4
WKS ON CHART: 9

After the runaway success of “I think We’re Alone Now” this was the follow up. In the US the song repeated the success of her debut going all the way to No 1, we however were not so enamoured of it, significantly different from her first hit it wrong footed many of her audience who were expecting uptempo stuff from her and through 1988 many stories surfaced about Tiffany and her difficult relationship with her mother and manager which culminated in an attempt to basically divorce her parents. All of this affected her popularity at a time when she was competing with the more wholesome Debbie Gibson for the teen US audience. The hits continued through 1988 but after that we thought it best to let Tiffany sort out her affairs out of the public eye. A cover of the Beatles “I Saw Him Standing There” (her final top 10) is better forgotten by all.

131. WEAK IN THE PRESENCE OF BEAUTY- Alison Moyet (185,000)

RELEASED: 1987
PEAK POSITION: 6
WKS ON CHART: 10

Yes you were wondering when she’d show up weren’t you? Former Yazoo front woman had quite a good 80s with six top 10 hits in the decade. I never knew this was a cover but it sure is, in this instance of a track by a group called Floy Joy which made the non impressive No 85 position in the charts, it was surely in safer hands with Moyet who converted it into a top 10 hit. In recent years Moyet has expressed her dissatisfaction with her version saying she recorded it solely as she knew it would be a hit rather than because she loved it, no matter I’m sure she enjoyed the resulting album sales.

Quiqui4eva · , 7:35 AM

Was "Piano In The Dark" already on the chart?

Gezza76 · , 7:54 AM

First post contains the full list of what's been revealed, but it only reached No 23 here so it won't feature.

Gezza76 · , 5:42 AM

130. WIND BENEATH MY WINGS- BETTE MIDLER (188,000)

RELEASED: 1989
PEAK POSITION: 5
WKS ON CHART: 12

This song was first released on vinyl form by none other than Roger Whittaker, and was released over the course of the decade by Gladys Knight amongst others, but no great shakes until Bette Midler took her version all the way to No 1 in the US in 1989 (helped by its inclusion in the film "Beaches"), and caused the release over here where it became her first charting single after several years of attempting to make the charts. It remains one of only 2 singles by her to make the top 40 and was a bigger hit when covered by "London's Burning" star Steve Houghton in 1997.

129. I FEEL THE EARTH MOVE- Martika (189,000)

RELEASED:; 1989
PEAK POSITION; 7
WKS ON CHART: 13

A song which was one of those unusual ones to suffer from events outside of its control. It was the second release from Martika who had already made the top 5 with “Toy Soldiers”, and she chose to do a cover of Carol King’s “I Feel The Earth Move” (which was originally released as a double A-side with “It’s Too Late” covered 2 years later by Quartz) which raced up the charts on both sides of the Atlantic but due to the San Francisco earthquake that October causing it to be pulled from many radio playlists stateside. No such worries here and the song duly made No 7.