Top singles from the past
25 July 2026
60s soul sheros THE SUPREMES released their huge hit
YOU CAN’T HURRY LOVE (almost 600 million streams
on Spotify) on 25 July 1966, today 60 years ago.
The song, written by legendary Motown producers
Holland–Dozier–Holland hit the top spot in both
the UK and the US.
Top singles from the past
22 July 2026
Welsh heroes MANIC STREET PREACHERS released the title track of their
4th longplayer EVERYTHING MUST GO on 22 July 1996, today 30 years ago.
It was the first album without guitarist/lyricist Richey Edwards,
who disappeared mysteriously in February the year before.
Manics on the cover of NME in 1994 – Richey at the bottom
The song is cited by bassist Nick Wire as a message to the fans, saying the music had changed after the loss of Richey, but the band is still the same. Ushering in a new era
for the band, Wire‘s lyric asks fans to forgive them for changing.
The song peaked at #5 in the UK.
“And I just hope that you can forgive us
But everything must go
And if you need an explanation
Then everything must go”
Top singles from the past
ELVIS PRESLEY released his hit single DON’T BE CRUEL (more than
221 million streams on Spotify) today 70 years ago, on 13 July 1956.
Must be the first time we have a 70-year-old song here on TUTV.
It was written by Otis Blackwell who was more than happy to give up 50% of the royalties and a co-writing credit to Presley to ensure that the “hottest new singer around covered it”. But unfortunately, he had already sold the song for only $25 ($289 in 2024), as he later stated in an interview.
12 July 2026
Every day of this summer we go back to the same summer day somewhere in history
8 July 2026
R.E.M. (1980–2011, 15 albums) released superb debut single
RADIO FREE EUROPE, today 45 years ago, on 8 July 1981.
It peaked at #25 in the US.
In 1983, the band re-recorded the song
for their debut album Murmur.
“We’re calling out in transit
Calling out in transit
Radio Free Europe”
Top singles from the past
19 June 2026
British rock champs MUSE released their hit single SUPERMASSIVE BLACK HOLE
(more than 978 million streams on Spotify) today 30 years ago, on 19 June 1996.
The song was the lead single of their 4th album Black Holes And Revelations,
written by frontman Matt Bellamy. He said he was influenced by several Belgian
bands, specifically, Millionaire, dEUS, Evil Superstars and Soulwax. Bellamy said that
“these groups were the first to mix R&B rhythms with alternative guitar.
It peaked at #4 on the UK Singles Chart, the highest
singles chart position at that point in time in their
home country.
Top singles from the past
18 June 2026
Fab pop prodigies BLONDIE released their debut single
X OFFENDER this week 50 years ago.
It wasn’t a commercial success but the start of a top-ranking career.
The song was written by bassist Gary Valentine and Debbie Harry.
The original title was Sex Offender, but the band’s label Private Stock
was scared that they would get in trouble with it.
Valentine originally wrote the song about an 18-year-old boy being arrested
for having sex with his younger girlfriend. Harry changed the lyrics so that the
song was about a prostitute being attracted to the police officer that had
arrested her.
“Public defender
You had to admit
You wanted the love
Of a sex offender”
It appeared on
their debut LP.
17 June 2026
English beat group THE CREATION released their jangly debut
single MAKING TIME on 17 June 1966, today 60 years ago.
It was one of the first songs on which
the guitar was played with a bow.
The lyrics portray the experience of working in a clock factory
while co-workers listen to their favourites on the radio.
Their biographer Sean Egan defined their style as
“a unique hybrid of pop, rock, psychedelia and the
avant garde.”
To my ears, it sounds like a song that easily could
have been on The Who’s debut LP ‘My Generation’.
It was covered several times over the years and was
used for commercials and TV series in this century.
Top singles from the past
12 June 2026
Legendary nightingales THE BYRDS released their single
5D (Fifth Dimension today 60 years ago, on 12 June 1966.
It was the title track from their 3rd LP.
It peaked at #44 in the US.
Roger McGuinn who wrote the song has described its lyrics as an attempt to explain Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity, and as having been directly inspired by the book 1-2-3-4, More, More, More, More by Don Landis.
Top singles from the past
12 June 1981
British ska heroes THE SPECIALS scored their biggest hit
with GHOST TOWN this day 45 years ago, on 12 June 1981.
It topped the UK Singles Charts for 3 weeks.
The song’s sparse lyrics allude to urban decay, unemployment
and violence in inner cities in the UK, at the time.
Jerry Dammers (keyboards/songwriter): “The overall sense I wanted to convey was impending doom. There were weird, diminished chords: certain members of the band resented the song and wanted the simple chords they were used to playing on the first album. It’s hard to explain how powerful it sounded. We had almost been written off and then “Ghost Town” came out of the blue”
R.I.P. Terry Hall (1959-2022)
