On this day in 1983: Billy Joel went to #1 on the U.K. singles chart with ‘Uptown Girl’, which stayed at the top of the chart for five weeks. It would be Billy Joel’s only #1 hit in the U.K. The song was initially written about his relationship with his then-girlfriend Elle Macpherson, but it ended up also becoming about his soon-to-be wife Christie Brinkley (both women being two of the most famous supermodels of the 1980s). In the U.S., “Uptown Girl” peaked at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 for five consecutive weeks from November 12 to December 10, 1983.
On this day in 1988: The Beach Boys went to #1 on the U.S. singles chart with ‘Kokomo’. The track had been featured in the film ‘Cocktail’ starring Tom Cruise.
Also on this day back in 1988: ‘The Locomotion’, became the first song to reach the U.S. Top 5 in three different versions, when Kylie Minogue’s version reached #4 on the U.S. singles chart. Written by American songwriters Gerry Goffin and Carole King, the song is notable for charting in the Top 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 three times – each time in a different decade: for Little Eva in 1962, for Grand Funk Railroad in 1974 and For Minogue in 1988.
Here’s a look at the complete Top 20 on the U.S. singles chart from this day back in 1988:
1 2 KOKOMO –•– The Beach Boys – 10 (1)
2 3 WILD, WILD WEST –•– The Escape Club – 12 (2)
3 1 GROOVY KIND OF LOVE –•– Phil Collins – 10 (1)
4 7 THE LOCO-MOTION –•– Kylie Minoque – 11 (4)
5 10 BAD MEDICINE –•– Bon Jovi – 7 (5)
6 9 ONE MOMENT IN TIME –•– Whitney Houston – 9 (6)
7 8 NEVER TEAR US APART –•– INXS – 13 (7)
8 14 DESIRE –•– U2 – 6 (8)
9 4 RED RED WINE –•– UB40 – 28 (1)
10 5 WHAT’S ON YOUR MIND (PURE ENERGY) –•Information Society – 17 (3)
11 6 DON’T YOU KNOW WHAT THE NIGHT CAN DO? Steve Winwood – 12 (6)
12 17 HOW CAN I FALL? –•– Breathe – 9 (12)
13 21 BABY, I LOVE YOUR WAY/FREEBIRD –•– Will To Power – 9 (13)
14 12 CHAINS OF LOVE –•– Erasure – 15 (12)
15 22 KISSING A FOOL –•– George Michael – 5 (15)
16 16 ANOTHER LOVER –•– Giant Steps – 12 (16)
17 23 LOOK AWAY –•– Chicago – 7 (17)
18 20 DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU GOT (TILL IT’S GONE) – Cinderella – 10 (18)
19 11 DON’T BE CRUEL –•– Bobby Brown – 16 (8)
20 27 I DON’T WANT YOUR LOVE –•– Duran Duran – 4 (20)
