1970s in music in the UK |
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This is a summary of 1979 in music in the United Kingdom, including the official charts from that year. 1979 saw the beginning of several trends in British music. Electropop reached number one in both the singles and albums charts in the form of Gary Numan and Tubeway Army, and synthesiser bands began to gather momentum which would come to dominate music in the early 1980s. The first rap hit in the UK came from the Sugar Hill Gang. The 2 Tone movement also emerged, with early work from bands such as The Specials and Madness. Disco music was still the most popular music of the year, although it showed signs of dying out in the year's later months. 1979 remains the year when physical-format singles hit their sales peak in the UK.
Date | Song | Artist |
---|---|---|
6 January | "Y.M.C.A." | Village People |
13 January | ||
20 January | ||
27 January | "Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick" | Ian Dury and the Blockheads |
3 February | "Heart of Glass" | Blondie |
10 February | ||
17 February | ||
24 February | ||
3 March | "Tragedy" | Bee Gees |
10 March | ||
17 March | "I Will Survive" | Gloria Gaynor |
24 March | ||
31 March | ||
7 April | ||
14 April | "Bright Eyes" | Art Garfunkel |
21 April | ||
28 April | ||
5 May | ||
12 May | ||
19 May | ||
26 May | "Sunday Girl" | Blondie |
2 June | ||
9 June | ||
16 June | "Ring My Bell" | Anita Ward |
23 June | ||
30 June | "Are 'Friends' Electric?" | Tubeway Army |
7 July | ||
14 July | ||
21 July | ||
28 July | "I Don't Like Mondays" | The Boomtown Rats |
4 August | ||
11 August | ||
18 August | ||
25 August | "We Don't Talk Anymore" | Cliff Richard |
1 September | ||
8 September | ||
15 September | ||
22 September | "Cars" | Gary Numan |
29 September | "Message in a Bottle" | The Police |
6 October | ||
13 October | ||
20 October | "Video Killed the Radio Star" | The Buggles |
27 October | "One Day at a Time" | Lena Martell |
3 November | ||
10 November | ||
17 November | "When You're in Love with a Beautiful Woman" | Dr. Hook |
24 November | ||
1 December | ||
8 December | "Walking on the Moon" | The Police |
15 December | "Another Brick in the Wall Part II" | Pink Floyd |
22 December | ||
29 December | ||
Date | Album | Artist | Weeks |
---|---|---|---|
6 January | Greatest Hits | Showaddywaddy | 2 |
13 January | |||
20 January | Don't Walk – Boogie | Various Artists | 3 |
27 January | |||
3 February | |||
10 February | Action Replay | Various Artists | 1 |
17 February | Parallel Lines | Blondie | 4 |
24 February | |||
3 March | |||
10 March | |||
17 March | Spirits Having Flown | Bee Gees | 2 |
24 March | |||
31 March | Barbra Streisand's Greatest Hits Vol. 2 | Barbra Streisand | 4 |
7 April | |||
14 April | |||
21 April | |||
28 April | The Very Best of Leo Sayer | Leo Sayer | 3 |
5 May | |||
12 May | |||
19 May | Voulez-Vous | ABBA | 4 |
26 May | |||
2 June | |||
9 June | |||
16 June | Discovery | Electric Light Orchestra | 5 |
23 June | |||
30 June | |||
7 July | |||
14 July | |||
21 July | Replicas | Tubeway Army | 1 |
28 July | The Best Disco Album in the World | Various Artists | 6 |
4 August | |||
11 August | |||
18 August | |||
25 August | |||
1 September | |||
8 September | In Through the Out Door | Led Zeppelin | 2 |
15 September | |||
22 September | The Pleasure Principle | Gary Numan | 1 |
29 September | Oceans of Fantasy | Boney M | 1 |
6 October | The Pleasure Principle | Gary Numan | 1 |
=13 October | Eat to the Beat | Blondie | 1 |
=13 October | Reggatta de Blanc | The Police | 4 |
20 October | |||
27 October | |||
3 November | |||
10 November | Tusk | Fleetwood Mac | 1 |
17 November | Greatest Hits Vol. 2 | ABBA | 3 |
24 November | |||
1 December | |||
8 December | Greatest Hits Vol.1 | Rod Stewart | 4 |
15 December | |||
22 December | |||
29 December | |||
1979 appears to be the only year since 1977 for which "full year" year-end charts do not exist. The British Market Research Bureau (BMRB), which compiled the official UK charts from 1969 to 1982, used a cut-off date for the collection of sales data sometime in early December each year, in order for the "end of year" chart to be published in the year's final issue of Music Week and to be broadcast on BBC Radio 1. However, from 1977 to 1982 BMRB produced updated charts a few months later which included the missing final weeks' sales for each year.
No updated chart appears to exist for 1979, so the tables below include only sales between 1 January and 8 December 1979. The two singles most affected by the lack of a full year chart are the records that were at number one and number two for the final three weeks of the year, "Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)" by Pink Floyd and "I Have a Dream" by ABBA: neither of these records appear in the end of year list for 1979.
Notes:
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1979.
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The UK Singles Chart is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-selling singles in the United Kingdom, based upon physical sales, paid-for downloads and streaming. The Official Chart, broadcast on BBC Radio 1 and MTV, is the UK music industry's recognised official measure of singles and albums popularity because it is the most comprehensive research panel of its kind, today surveying over 15,000 retailers and digital services daily, capturing 99.9% of all singles consumed in Britain across the week, and over 98% of albums. To be eligible for the chart, a single is currently defined by the Official Charts Company (OCC) as either a 'single bundle' having no more than four tracks and not lasting longer than 25 minutes or one digital audio track not longer than 15 minutes with a minimum sale price of 40 pence. The rules have changed many times as technology has developed, the most notable being the inclusion of digital downloads in 2005 and streaming in July 2014.
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