Brotherhood of Man had the biggest-selling single of 1976, with "Save Your Kisses for Me", the winning song of that year’s Eurovision Song Contest, which spent six weeks at number-one.Elton John had two top 10 singles this year, including his duet with Kiki Dee, "Don't Go Breaking My Heart", which topped the charts for six weeks and became the year's second best selling single.Pussycat became the first act from The Netherlands to reach number-one in the UK with their song "Mississippi", which spent four weeks at the top of the chart and became the third best selling single of 1976.ABBA achieved four consecutive UK top 10 entries this year, the first three of which went to number-one; "Mamma Mia", "Fernando" and "Dancing Queen", while "Money, Money, Money" peaked at number three in December.
The UK Singles Chart is one of many music charts compiled by the Official Charts Company that calculates the best-selling singles of the week in the United Kingdom.[1] Before 2004, the chart was only based on the sales of physical singles.[2][3] This list shows singles that peaked in the Top 10 of the UK Singles Chart during 1976, as well as singles which peaked in 1975 and 1977 but were in the top 10 in 1976. The entry date is when the single appeared in the top 10 for the first time (week ending, as published by the Official Charts Company, which is six days after the chart is announced).
One-hundred and thirty singles were in the top ten in 1976. Ten singles from 1975 remained in the top 10 for several weeks at the beginning of the year, while "Portsmouth" by Mike Oldfield, "Living Next Door to Alice" by Smokie and "Dr. Love" by Tina Charles were all released in 1976 but did not reach their peak until 1977. Twenty-four artists scored multiple entries in the top 10 in 1976. Billy Ocean, Dolly Parton, John Miles, Mike Oldfield and The Real Thing were among the many artists who achieved their first UK charting top 10 single in 1976.
The 1975 Christmas number-one, "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen, remained at number-one for the first four weeks of 1976. The first new number-one single of the year was "Mamma Mia" by ABBA. Overall, sixteen different singles peaked at number-one in 1976, with ABBA (3) having the most singles hit that position.
Background
Multiple entries
One-hundred and thirty singles charted in the top 10 in 1976, with one-hundred and seventeen singles reaching their peak this year.
Twenty-four artists scored multiple entries in the top 10 in 1976. ABBA and The Stylistics shared the record for most top 10 hits in 1976 with four hit singles each. "Mamma Mia", "Fernando" and "Dancing Queen" all reached number-one, while "Money, Money, Money" peaked at number three in December.
The following table (collapsed on desktop site) does not include acts who had previously charted as part of a group and secured their first top 10 solo single.
Dr. Hook had previously charted under the name Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show but their name was shortened in 1975. Ray Parker Jr. wrote "You See the Trouble with Me" and appeared alongside Barry White on the US single release, however he is not credited by the Official Charts Company for the UK release. His first and only official top 10 single would not come until the Ghostbusterstheme song reached number 2 in 1984.
The Miracles had their first top 10 single - "Love Machine" - since the departure of Smokey Robinson, who had been replaced by Billy Griffin. They had been known as Smokey Robinson and the Miracles for their previous two top 10 entries. Geoff Love charted under the pseudonym Manuel and the Music of the Mountains in 1976, a moniker he had used since the late 1950s. He had debuted with two singles in 1960 using his own name.
The following table shows artists who achieved two or more top 10 entries in 1976, including singles that reached their peak in 1975 or 1977. The figures include both main artists and featured artists, while appearances on ensemble charity records are also counted for each artist. The total number of weeks an artist spent in the top ten in 1976 is also shown.
a "Portsmouth" reached its peak of number three on 8 January 1977 (week ending).
b "Let's Twist Again" originally peaked at number 2 upon its initial release in 1962. "The Twist" originally peaked outside the top 10 at number 49 on its initial release in 1960. It reached the top 20 for the first time in 1962, peaking at number 14. In 1975, the two songs were re-issued together as a double A-sided single.
c "Happy to Be On An Island in the Sun" re-entered the top 10 at number 10 on 17 January 1976 (week ending).
d "Itchycoo Park" originally peaked at number 3 on its initial release in 1967.
e "No Regrets" re-entered the top 10 at number 8 on 28 February 1976 (week ending).
g "Leader of the Pack" originally peaked outside the top 10 at number 11 on its initial release in 1965. It first reached the top 10 in 1972, peaking at number 3.
hDr. Hook & the Medicine Show shortened their name to Dr. Hook in 1975 and reached the top 10 for the first time under this moniker in 1976.
i "Jeans On" was used as a jingle for Brutus Jeans adverts in 1976 before being turned into a full-length song.
j "You Should Be Dancing" re-entered the top 10 at number 5 on 11 September 1976 (week ending).
k "Sailing" originally peaked at number-one upon its release in 1975. It re-entered the top 10 at number 7 on 2 October 1976 (week ending) for 6 weeks, as a result of it being utilized as the theme song for Sailor, a documentary series on HMS Ark Royal, which BBC1 aired for ten weeks from 5 August 1976.
l "Substitute" originally peaked at number 5 on its initial release in 1966. It was re-released as a single in 1976 after being featured on the commercially successful compilation album The Story of The Who.
m "Lean on Me" re-entered the top 10 at number 10 on 8 January 1977 (week ending).
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