4 January 1973 There's some irony in John and Yoko's perennial Yuletide anthem for peace being kept off Ireland's 1972 Christmas number one spot by a song about an Irish bandit shooting a British Army officer. That said, given that year's events and chart-topping singles, plus Ireland's liking for Christmas number ones that have a … Continue reading John Lennon and Yoko Ono and the Plastic Ono Band with the Harlem Community Choir – ‘Happy Xmas (War Is Over)’ →

21 December 1972 Like an acid-tripping episode of Nationwide, our number ones of 1972 begin in the peaceful céilí-showband Slaney Valley, then head north to catch up with community goings-on Foyleside and a music-loving British Army regiment who've made the area their home, and now end here with an action-packed visit to the scenic Celtic-rock … Continue reading Thin Lizzy – ‘Whiskey In The Jar’ →

8 December 2017 When all 16 tracks from Ed Sheeran's Divide album swamped the top twenty in the UK and in Ireland in March 2017, they had to change the rules. However, Ed wasn't done with breaking the charts that year, no sirree. 'Perfect' had been around for a while - after all, it was … Continue reading Ed Sheeran – ‘Perfect’ →

18 November 2016 Gawd. The knuckle-gnawingly naff title and chorus alone were enough to put me off 'Rockabye' at the time. Yet this was a genuine heavyweight smash: eight weeks at the top of the charts in Ireland, nine weeks in the UK, and in both countries the 2016 Christmas number one. Not being a … Continue reading Clean Bandit ft. Sean Paul and Anne-Marie – ‘Rockabye’ →

23 December 1971 Duetting with yourself as a child: must be some modern-day AI jiggery-pokery, right? No, it's Ireland's Christmas number one of 1971! How it's done: '70s showband singer Tommy Drennan had in his youth been '50s boy soprano Tommy Drennan, of whom there was a 1953 recording of him singing 'O Holy Night'. … Continue reading Tommy Drennan and The Monarchs – ‘O Holy Night’ →

11 December 2015 Having already topped the Irish charts twice just before this, Justin Bieber also pockets our 2015 Christmas number one. What's more, those other two chart-topping songs, 'What Do You Mean?' and 'Sorry', were at numbers 2 and 4 that Christmas. In fact, thanks mostly to his latest album, Purpose, he had a … Continue reading Justin Bieber – ‘Love Yourself’ →

25 December 1970 British rock and pop of the '60s never shook off its worship of bluesy '50s US rock & roll, so you can't really say 'I Hear You Knocking' embodies the start of the new decade's '50s revival. That said, a tinny, crappy vocal track on a much-covered old song suggests the creative … Continue reading Dave Edmunds – ‘I Hear You Knocking’ →

18 December 2014 I wonder if 'Uptown Funk' brought a wry smile to Maria Walsh and Carole Nelson of Zrazy. They were the duo behind 'Ooh, Ahh, Paul McGrath', that enjoyable Irish-chart-topping post-Italia-'90 bop which featured a terrace chant based on 'Oops Upside Your Head' by The Gap Band, who didn't have a writing credit, … Continue reading Mark Ronson ft. Bruno Mars – ‘Uptown Funk’ →

20 November 2014 Let's first jump forward to Band Aid 40 in 2024. It won't be featuring here in its own right, since it didn't get to number one in Ireland or the UK. Okay, it was just a mash-up of Band Aids 1, 20 and 30, harshly omitting Band Aid II, so there was … Continue reading Band Aid 30 – ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas? (2014)’ →

14 November 1969 The Archies are our first encounter with a hit-making fictional cartoon act, paving the way for Bart Simpson, Chef, Gorillaz and Shakin' Stevens. What you hear on 'Sugar, Sugar' are the vocals of session singer Ron Dante, co-writer Andy Kim (who goes on to become a flesh-and-blood one-hit wonder in 1974 with … Continue reading The Archies – ‘Sugar, Sugar’ →