Pazz & Jop

Pazz & Jop: Top 10 Singles by Year, 1979–2017

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1979 

1. Ian Dury & the Blockheads: “Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick”/”Reasons to Be Cheerful, Pt. 3”

2. M: “Pop Musik”

3. Donna Summer: “Hot Stuff”

4. (Tie) Sister Sledge: “We Are Family”/”He’s the Greatest Dancer”
The Pretenders: “Stop Your Sobbing”/”The Wait”

6. (Tie) Fleetwood Mac: “Tusk”
The Knack: “My Sharona”

8. Blondie: “Dreaming”

9. (Tie) The Brains: “Money Changes Everything”
The Flying Lizards: “Money”

1980 

1. Kurtis Blow: “The Breaks”

2. Joy Division: “Love Will Tear Us Apart”

3. Blondie: “Call Me”

4. (Tie) The Clash: “Train in Vain”/”London Calling”
Pretenders: “Brass in Pocket”

6. Stevie Wonder: “Master Blaster (Jammin’)”

7. John Lennon: “(Just Like) Starting Over”/Yoko Ono: “Kiss Kiss Kiss”

8. The Vapors: “Turning Japanese”

9. Lipps, Inc.: “Funkytown”

10 (Tie) Diana Ross: “Upside Down”
Bruce Springsteen: “Hungry Heart”

1981 

1. (Tie) Laurie Anderson: “O Superman”/”Walk the Dog”
Rolling Stones: “Start Me Up”

3. Grandmaster Flash: “The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash on the Wheels of Steel”

4. (Tie) Kim Carnes: “Bette Davis Eyes”
Yoko Ono: “Walking on Thin Ice”

6. Tom Tom Club: “Genius of Love”

7. (Tie) Pete Shelley: “Homosapien”
Soft Cell: “Tainted Love”/”Where Did Our Love Go?”

9. Funky Four Plus One: “That’s the Joint”

10. Prince: “Controversy”

1982 

1. Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five: “The Message”

2. Marvin Gaye: “Sexual Healing”

3. The Clash: “Rock the Casbah”

4. Prince: “1999”/”How Come You Don’t Call Me Anymore?”

5. Soft Cell: “Tainted Love”/”Where Did Our Love Go?”

6. Musical Youth: “Pass the Dutchie”

7. Pretenders: “Back On the Chain Gang”/”My City Was Gone”

8. Afrika Bambaataa & the Soul Sonic Force: “Planet Rock”

9. (Tie) ABC: “The Look Of Love”
Aretha Franklin: “Jump To It”
The Human League: “Don’t You Want Me”

1983 

1. Michael Jackson: “Billie Jean”

2. The Police: “Every Breath You Take”

3. The Pretenders: “Back on the Chain Gang”/”My City Was Gone”

4. (Tie) Afrika Bambaataa & the Soul Sonic Force: “Looking for the Perfect Beat”
Prince: “Little Red Corvette”

6. Eddy Grant: “Electric Avenue”

7. Michael Jackson: “Beat It”

8. Grandmaster Flash & Melle Mel: “White Lines (Don’t Don’t Do It)”

9. Run-D.M.C.: “It’s Like That”/”Sucker M.C.s”

10. Talking Heads: “Burning Down the House”

1984 

1. Prince: “When Doves Cry”/”17 Days”

2. Bruce Springsteen: “Dancing in the Dark”/”Pink Cadillac”

3. Tina Turner: “What’s Love Got to Do With It”

4. Hüsker Dü: “Eight Miles High”

5. Van Halen: “Jump”

6. Prince: “Let’s Go Crazy”/”Erotic City”

7. (Tie) Afrika Bambaataa & the Godfather of Soul James Brown: “Unity”
Run-D.M.C.: “Rock Box”

9. Chaka Khan: “I Feel for You”

10. (Tie) Cyndi Lauper: “Girls Just Want to Have Fun”
Cyndi Lauper: “Time After Time”

1985 

1. Artists United Against Apartheid: “Sun City”

2. Aretha Franklin: “Freeway of Love”

3. John Fogerty: “The Old Man Down the Road”/”Big Train (From Memphis)”

4. Hüsker Dü: “Makes No Sense at All”/”Love Is All Around”

5. Ramones: “Bonzo Goes to Bitburg”

6. Don Henley: “The Boys of Summer”/”A Month of Sundays”

7. Eurythmics: “Would I Lie to You?”

8. Lisa-Lisa and Cult Jam With Full Force: “I Wonder If I Take You Home”

9. Doug E. Fresh and the Get Fresh Crew: “The Show”/”La-Di-Da-Di”

10. Kate Bush: “Running Up That Hill”

1986 

1. Run-D.M.C.: “Walk This Way”

2. Cameo: “Word Up”

3. Prince & the Revolution: “Kiss”/”Love or Money”

4. Peter Gabriel: “Sledgehammer”

5 (tie). Billy Bragg: “Levi Stubbs’ Tears”
R.E.M.: “Fall on Me”
Timbuk 3: “The Future’s So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades”

8. Steve Winwood: “Higher Love”

9 (tie). Public Image Ltd.: “Rise”
Talking Heads: “Wild Wild Life”

1987 

1. Prince: “Sign ‘O’ the Times”

2. Suzanne Vega: “Luka”

3. Los Lobos: “La Bamba”

4. Prince: “I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man”/”Hot Thing”

5. M/A/R/R/S: “Pump Up the Volume”

6 (tie). Grateful Dead: “Touch of Grey”
Bruce Springsteen: “Brilliant Disguise”/”Lucky Man”
R.E.M.: “The One I Love”

9. Prince: “U Got the Look”/”Housequake”

10 (tie). Bruce Springsteen: “Tunnel of Love”
X: “Fourth of July”/”Positively Fourth Street”

1988 

1. Tracy Chapman: “Fast Car”

2. Rob Base & D.J. E-Z Rock: “It Takes Two”

3. Guns N’ Roses: “Sweet Child o’ Mine”

4. Prince: “Alphabet St.”

5. Midnight Oil: “Beds Are Burning”/”The Dead Heart”

6 (tie). Public Enemy: “Don’t Believe the Hype”/”Prophets of Rage”
Traveling Wilburys: “Handle With Care”

8. Bobby Brown: “My Prerogative”

9 (tie). Eric B. & Rakim: “Follow the Leader”
D.J. Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince: “Parents Just Don’t Understand”
The Primitives: “Crash”

1989

1. Public Enemy: “Fight the Power”

2. Neneh Cherry: “Buffalo Stance”

3. Soul II Soul: “Keep On Movin’ ”

4. Fine Young Cannibals: “She Drives Me Crazy”

5. Tone-Loc: “Wild Thing”

6. Young M.C.: “Bust a Move”

7. Madonna: “Like a Prayer”

8. The B-52s: “Love Shack”

9. Tom Petty: “Free Fallin’ ”

10. Rolling Stones: “Mixed Emotions”

1990 

1. Deee-Lite: “Groove Is in the Heart”/”What Is Love”

2. Sinéad O’Connor: “Nothing Compares 2 U”

3. Digital Underground: “The Humpty Dance”

4. Madonna: “Vogue”

5 (tie). Faith No More: “Epic”
Lisa Stansfield: “All Around the World”

7. Black Box: “Everybody Everybody”

8. Madonna: “Justify My Love”

9. Soho: “Hippychick”

10. Public Enemy: “Welcome to the Terrordome”

1991 

1. Nirvana: “Smells Like Teen Spirit”

2. R.E.M.: “Losing My Religion”

3. Naughty by Nature: “O.P.P.”

4. Geto Boys: “Mind Playing Tricks on Me”

5. Metallica: “Enter Sandman”

6 (tie). P.M. Dawn: “Set Adrift on Memory Bliss”
Crystal Waters: “Gypsy Woman (She’s Homeless)”

8 (tie). Public Enemy: “Can’t Truss It”
Seal: “Crazy”

10. EMF: “Unbelievable”

1992 

1. Arrested Development: “Tennessee”

2. House of Pain: “Jump Around”

3. Kris Kross: “Jump”

4. En Vogue: “My Lovin’ (You’re Never Gonna Get It)”

5 (tie). Arrested Development: “People Everyday”
Cypress Hill: “How I Could Just Kill a Man”/”The Phuncky Feel One”

7. Sir Mix-a-Lot: “Baby Got Back”

8. U2: “One”

9. The KLF: “Justified and Ancient”

10. Sophie B. Hawkins: “Damn I Wish I Was Your Lover”

1993

1. The Breeders: “Cannonball”

2 (tie). Digable Planets: “Rebirth of Slick (Cool Like Dat)”
Nirvana: “Heart-Shaped Box”

4. Dr. Dre: “Nuthin’ but ‘

G’ Thang”

5. Salt-N-Pepa: “Shoop”

6 (tie). Radiohead: “Creep”
Soul Asylum: “Runaway Train”

8. The Juliana Hatfield Three: “My Sister”

9. Urge Overkill: “Sister Havana”

10 (tie). Ice Cube: “It Was a Good Day”/”Check Yo Self”
Tony! Toni! Toné!: “If I Had No Loot”

1994 

1. Beck: “Loser”

2. Veruca Salt: “Seether”

3. Coolio: “Fantastic Voyage”

4. Warren G: “Regulate”

5. Beastie Boys: “Sabotage”

6. R.E.M.: “What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?”

7. Pavement: “Cut Your Hair”

8 (tie). Hole: “Doll Parts”
Liz Phair: “Supernova”

10. Offspring: “Come Out and Play”

1995 

1. Coolio: “Gangsta’s Paradise”

2. Edwyn Collins: “A Girl Like You”
Alanis Morissette: “You Oughta Know”

4. Elastica: “Connection”

5. TLC: “Waterfalls”

6. Joan Osborne: “One of Us”

7. PJ Harvey: “Down by the Water”

8. TLC: “Creep”

9 (tie). Dionne Farris: “I Know”
Shaggy: “Boombastic”

1996 

1. Quad City DJs: “C’mon N’ Ride It (The Train)”

2 (tie). Beck: “Where It’s At”
Smashing Pumpkins: “1979”

4 (tie). Oasis: “Wonderwall”
Pulp: “Common People”

6. Busta Rhymes: “Woo Hah!! Got You All in Check”

7. The Chemical Brothers: “Setting Sun”

8 (tie). Beck: “Devils Haircut”
Blackstreet: “No Diggity”
Primitive Radio Gods: “Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth With Money in My Hand”

1997 

1. Hanson: “MMMBop”

2. Chumbawamba: “Tubthumping”

3. The Verve: “Bitter Sweet Symphony”

4. Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliott: “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)”

5. Blur: “Song 2”

6. Cornershop: “Brimful of Asha”

7. The Chemical Brothers: “Block Rockin’ Beats”

8 (tie). Erykah Badu: “On and On”
Smash Mouth: “Walkin’ on the Sun”

10. The Notorious B.I.G. (featuring Puff Daddy and Mase): “Mo Money Mo Problems”

1998 

1. Fatboy Slim: “The Rockafeller Skank”

2. Lauryn Hill: “Doo Wop (That Thing)”

3. Beastie Boys: “Intergalactic”

4. Madonna: “Ray of Light”

5. Aaliyah: “Are You That Somebody?”

6. OutKast: “Rosa Parks”

7. Hole: “Celebrity Skin”

8. Fastball: “The Way”

9. Jay-Z: “Hard Knock Life”

10. Natalie Imbruglia: “Torn”

1999 

1. TLC: “No Scrubs”

2. Eminem: “My Name Is”

3. Len: “Steal My Sunshine”

4. Madonna: “Beautiful Stranger”

5. Backstreet Boys: “I Want It That Way”

6. Cher: “Believe”

7. Smash Mouth: “All Star”

8 (tie). Ricky Martin: “Livin’ La Vida Loca”
The Roots: “You Got Me”

10. Santana featuring Rob Thomas: “Smooth”

2000

1. OutKast: “Ms. Jackson”

2. Eminem featuring Dido: “Stan”

3. OutKast: “B.O.B.”

4. U2: “Beautiful Day”

5. Madonna: “Music”

6. Nelly: “(Hot S**t) Country Grammar”

7. Eminem: “The Real Slim Shady”

8. Mystikal: “Shake Ya Ass”

9. Destiny’s Child: “Say My Name”

10 (tie). Aaliyah: “Try Again”
Macy Gray: “I Try”

2001 

1. Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliott: “Get Ur Freak On”

2. Gorillaz: “Clint Eastwood”

3. Jay-Z: “Izzo (H.O.V.A.)”

4. Alicia Keys: “Fallin’ ”

5 (tie). Coldplay: “Yellow”
Pink: “Get the Party Started”

7. Eve feat. Gwen Stefani: “Let Me Blow Ya Mind”

8. Mary J. Blige: “Family Affair”

9. Weezer: “Hash Pipe”

10 (tie). Ryan Adams: “New York, New York”
Daft Punk: “One More Time”

2002

1. Missy Elliott: “Work It”

2. Eminem: “Lose Yourself”

3. Nelly: “Hot in Herre”

4. The Hives: “Hate to Say I Told You So”

5. Eminem: “Without Me”

6. The White Stripes: “Fell in Love With a

Girl”

7. Kylie Minogue: “Can’t Get You Out of My Head”

8. Nirvana: “You Know You’re Right”

9. Rapture: “House of Jealous Lovers”

10. Tweet: “Oops (Oh My)”

2003

1. OutKast: “Hey Ya!”

2. Beyoncé featuring Jay-Z: “Crazy in Love”

3. The White Stripes: “Seven Nation Army”

4. Kelis: “Milkshake”

5. 50 Cent: “In Da Club”

6. Johnny Cash: “Hurt”

7. Fountains of Wayne: “Stacy’s Mom”

8. R. Kelly: “Ignition — Remix”

9. Junior Senior: “Move Your Feet”

10. Panjabi MC featuring Jay-Z: “Beware of the Boys (Mundian To Bach Ke)”

2004 

1. Franz Ferdinand: “Take Me Out”

2. Jay-Z: “99 Problems”

3. Usher featuring Lil Jon and Ludacris: “Yeah!”

4. Modest Mouse: “Float On”

5. Britney Spears: “Toxic”

6. Kanye West: “Jesus Walks”

7. Snoop Dogg featuring Pharrell: “Drop It Like It’s Hot”

8. M.I.A.: “Galang”

9. Yeah Yeah Yeahs: “Maps”

10. U2: “Vertigo”

2005 

1. Kanye West featuring Jamie Foxx: “Gold Digger”

2. Amerie: “1 Thing”

3. Kelly Clarkson: “Since U Been Gone”

4. Gorillaz/De La Soul: “Feel Good Inc.”

5 (tie).Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley: “Welcome to Jamrock”
Gwen Stefani: “Hollaback Girl”

7 (tie). Franz Ferdinand: “Do You Want To”
Madonna: “Hung Up”

9. The White Stripes: “My Doorbell”

10. Three 6 Mafia featuring Young Buck & Eightball & MJG: “Stay Fly”

2006 

1. Gnarls Barkley: “Crazy”

2. T.I.: “What You Know”

3. Christina Aguilera: “Ain’t No Other Man”

4. Justin Timberlake featuring T.I.: “My Love”

5. The Raconteurs: “Steady, As She Goes”

6. Nelly Furtado featuring Timbaland: “Promiscuous”

7. Justin Timberlake: “Sexyback”

8. Dixie Chicks: “Not Ready to Make Nice”

9 (tie). Lupe Fiasco: “Kick, Push”
Arctic Monkeys: “I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor”

2007 

1. Amy Winehouse: “Rehab”

2. Rihanna featuring Jay-Z: “Umbrella”

3. LCD Soundsystem: “All My Friends”

4. Feist: “1234”

5. Justice: “D.A.N.C.E.”

6. M.I.A.: “Paper Planes”

7. Kanye West: “Stronger”

8. UGK featuring Outkast: “International Players Anthem”

9. Peter Bjorn & John: “Young Folks”

10. Battles: “Atlas”

2008

1. MIA: “Paper Planes”

2. Estelle featuring Kanye West: “American Boy”

3. Beyoncé: “Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)”

4. MGMT: “Time to Pretend”

5. Lil Wayne: “A Milli”

6. Santogold: “LES Artistes”

7. Hercules & Love Affair: “Blind”

8. Coldplay: “Viva la Vida”

9. Kanye West: “Love Lockdown”

10. Fleet Foxes: “White Winter Hymnal”

2009 

1. Jay-Z (featuring Alicia Keys): “Empire State of Mind”

2. Phoenix: “1901”

3. Animal Collective: “My Girls”

4. Grizzly Bear: “Two Weeks”

5. Dirty Projectors: “Stillness Is the Move”

6. Yeah Yeah Yeahs: “Zero”

7. Lady Gaga: “Bad Romance”

8. Girls: “Lust for Life”

9. Phoenix: “Lisztomania”

10. Taylor Swift: “You Belong With Me *”

2010 

1. Cee Lo Green: “Fuck You!”

2. Janelle Monáe (featuring Big Boi): “Tightrope”

3. Robyn: “Dancing on My Own”

4. Kanye West (featuring Pusha T): “Runaway”

5. Kanye West (featuring Dwele): “Power”

6. Kanye West (featuring Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Nicki Minaj, and Bon Iver): “Monster”

7. Big Boi (featuring Cutty): “Shutterbugg”

8. Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti: “Round and Round”

9. The National: “Bloodbuzz Ohio”

10. Sleigh Bells: “Rill Rill”

2011

1. Adele: “Rolling in the Deep”

2. Beyoncé: “Countdown”

3. Nicki Minaj: “Super Bass”

4. M83: “Midnight City”

5. Jay-Z and Kanye West: “Niggas in Paris”

6. Azealia Banks: “212”

7 (tie). Britney Spears: “Till the World Ends”
Lana Del Rey: “Video Games”

9. Adele: “Someone Like You”

10 (tie). Tyler, the Creator: “Yonkers”
Foster the People: “Pumped Up Kicks”

2012 

1. Carly Rae Jepsen: “Call Me Maybe”

2. Miguel: “Adorn”

3. Usher: “Climax”

4. Frank Ocean: “Thinkin’ ’Bout You”

5. Japandroids: “The House That Heaven Built”

6. Taylor Swift: “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together”

7. Solange: “Losing You”

8. Gotye (featuring Kimbra.): “Somebody That I Used to Know”

9. Kanye West (featuring Big Sean, Pusha T, and 2 Chainz): “Mercy”

10. Frank Ocean: “Pyramids”

2013 

1. Daft Punk (featuring Pharrell Williams): “Get Lucky”

2. Lorde: “Royals”

3. Haim: “The Wire”

4 (tie). Kanye West: “New Slaves”
Robin Thicke (featuring T.I. and Pharrell): “Blurred Lines”

6. Drake (featuring Majid Jordan): “Hold On — We’re Going Home”

7. Kanye West: “Black Skinhead”

8. Icona Pop (featuring Charli XCX): “I Love It”

9. Miley Cyrus: “We Can’t Stop”

10. Kanye West: “Bound 2”

2014 

1. Future Islands: “Seasons (Waiting on You)”

2. FKA Twigs: “Two Weeks”

3. Taylor Swift: “Blank Space”

4 (tie). Taylor Swift: “Shake It Off”
Kendrick Lamar: “I”

6. ILoveMakonnen (featuring Drake): “Tuesday”

7. Sia: “Chandelier”

8. Charli XCX: “Boom Clap”

9 (tie). Beyoncé (featuring Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie): “****Flawless”
DJ Snake (featuring Lil Jon): “Turn Down for What”

2015

1. Drake: “Hotline Bling”

2. Kendrick Lamar: “King Kunta”

3. The Weeknd: “Can’t Feel My Face”

4. Kendrick Lamar: “Alright”

5. Courtney Barnett: “Pedestrian at Best”

6. Missy Elliott (featuring Pharrell Williams): “WTF (Where They From)”

7. Fetty Wap: “Trap Queen”

8. Mark Ronson (featuring Bruno Mars): “Uptown Funk”

9. Adele: “Hello”

10. Jamie xx (featuring Young Thug & Popcaan): “I Know There’s Gonna Be (Good Times)”

2016

1. Beyoncé: “Formation”

2. Kanye West: “Ultralight Beam”

3. Solange: “Cranes in the Sky”

4. Rae Sremmurd (featuring Gucci Mane): “Black Beatles”

5 (tie). A Tribe Called Quest: “We the People”
Mitski: “Your Best American Girl”

7. Leonard Cohen: “You Want It Darker”

8. David Bowie: “Lazarus”

9 (tie). David Bowie: “Blackstar”
Rihanna (featuring Drake): “Work”

2017 

1. Cardi B: “Bodak Yellow”

2. Kendrick Lamar: “HUMBLE”

3. Carly Rae Jepsen: “Cut to the Feeling”

4. Lorde: “Green Light”

5. Kendrick Lamar: “DNA”

6. Lil Uzi Vert: “XO TOUR Llif3”

7. St. Vincent: “New York”

8. Charli XCX: “Boys”

9 (tie). Future: “Mask Off”
Selena Gomez: “Bad Liar”

Highlights