The LOVE charts

So I had nothing to do while I was waiting for important phone calls. Here’s what I did. I took the top 25 tracks in the Billboard Hot 100, Hot Country and Modern Rock for the years 1985, 1995 and 2005 and checked how many times the word “love” occurs in the lyrics during those years. What I found was interesting. Ok, enough talk, here’s the numbers

So we see here that in the normal mainstream chart Hot 100, it almost hasn’t changed at all! It’s weird though that it is so similar. Has nothing changed in music? Just for comparison, I did 1975 too and it got 64 (3 of the songs were instrumentals). Ok, let’s go to Country:

The same pattern is here as well; almost the same, but we see a slight decline. In 2015 it should be 41 times. I’ll post an update then to see if I was right :P. What is interesting though is that there is about 15% less love in countryland. Or maybe it is too much love there, so they sing about something else. Right, then how about the rockers?

Now here we see some real changes and might I add disturbing changes. By this rate there will soon be no love anymore. What will they be singing about? Well the tendency is scary. They sing about pain 13 times in 2005, so pain is apparently better than love when it comes to us music conscious buyers. Pain was only used once in 1995 and that was in the song “Bullet with Butterfly Wings” from “The Smashing Pumpkins”.

So to the grand finale. What about me? What about my top 25 songs for each year. Brace yourself ladies and gentlemen; you are in for a shock (as was I).

I was all lovin’ in 85, and look what happened? I was way above the charts; in fact I must have been the poster boy for love. I was 8 for crying out loud! I must have been a very disturbed kid back then running around with flowers in my hair looking like a cross between Freddy Fender and Mother Theresa which would be something like this: I can’t blame my sister either, because she used to blast hard rock in my ears. In 95 I was down to Hot 100 level, but in 2005 I was worse than the country charts. I’ll report back in 2015 when I have gotten married and my 5 kids Joe, Zoe, Lacey, Casey and Monty are selling drugs in the backyard with uncle Frank.

It’s looking good!

Here’s what I listened to in 1985 (Sorted alphabetically): A Ha - Take On Me, Alphaville - Forever Young, Autograph - Turn Up The Radio, Bon Jovi - In & Out Of Love, Bruce Springsteen - Born In The USA, Bryan Adams – Somebody, Bryan Adams - Summer Of '69, Chicago - You're The Inspiration, Don Henley - The Boys Of Summer, Duran Duran - A View To A Kill, Foreigner - I Wanna Know What Love Is, Heart – Never, Heart - What About Love, Hooters - And We Danced, Huey Lewis & The News - The Power Of Love, John Parr - St. Elmo's Fire (Man in Motion), Kiss - Tears Are Falling, Limahl - Never Ending Story, Lionel Richie - Say You, Say Me, Madonna - Crazy For You, Paul Young - Everytime You Go Away, REO Speedwagon - Can't Fight This Feeling, Simple Minds - Alive And Kicking, Starship - We Built This City, USA For Africa - We Are The World

Here’s what I listened to in 1995 (Sorted alphabetically , I am embarrassed by a few songs here): 2 Unlimited - Get Ready For This, Alanis Morissette - Hand In My Pocket, Alison Krauss - When You Say Nothing At All, Annie Lennox - No More I Love You's, Blessid Union Of Souls - I Believe, Bon Jovi - Something For The Pain, Bruce Springsteen - Secret Garden, Corona - The Rhythm Of The Night, The Corrs – Runaway, Des'ree - You Gotta Be, Diana King - Shy Guy, Dr. Dre - Keep Their Heads Ringin', Edwyn Collins - A Girl Like You, Elton John – Blessed, Foreigner - Until The End Of Time, The Human League - Tell Me When, Jamie Walters - Hold On, Michael Jackson - You Are Not Alone, Pearl Jam – Jeremy, Rednex - Cotton Eye Joe, Shaggy – Boombastic, Sheryl Crow - Strong Enough, Skee-Lo - I Wish, Take That - Back For Good, Tina Turner – Goldeneye

Here’s what I listened to in 2005 (Sorted alphabetically): Avril Lavigne - Nobody's Home, Backstreet Boys – Incomplete, Coldplay - Fix You, Foo Fighters - Best Of You, Gavin Degraw - I Don't Want To Be, Goo Goo Dolls - Better Days, Green Day - Wake Me Up When September Ends, Gwen Stefani – Cool, Howie Day – Collide, Jason Mraz – Wordplay, Jay-Z & Linkin Park - Numb-Encore, Keane - Somewhere Only We Know, Kelly Clarkson - Behind These Hazel Eyes, Korn - Twisted Transistor, Lifehouse - You And Me, Mario - Let Me Love You, Missy Elliott Featuring Ciara & Fat Man Scoop - Lose Control, Nickelback – Photograph, Papa Roach – Scars, Rascal Flatts - Bless The Broken Road, Sara Evans - A Real Fine Place To Start, Simple Plan - Untitled (How Can This Happen To Me), Sugarland - Baby Girl, Tim McGraw - Live Like You Were Dying, Tommy Lee - Good Times

My next blog will probably be Sunday because I will be partying tomorrow celebrating my 30^th
birthday! It’s officially on Monday, but partying on Monday isn’t so cool. Enjoy the weekend everyone!