Fifty years ago, I made my first appeared on the Earth. In celebration, we are going to take a look at the year-end Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for each year of my life and see what songs resonated with me at the time and if they continue to do so to this day.
We continue our look back at the music of my lifetime with 1989, the year I finished my freshman year of high school and started my sophomore year. Z95 and B96 continued to be the hit stations in Chicago and provided the majority of the soundtrack of that year. At 68 songs, we are nearing 70% of the Hot 100 that remain familiar to me today, with 44 of them appearing in my collection in one way or another.
#99 Don Henley – The End of the Innocence
iTunes stats: N/A
The Eagles drummer and sometimes singer reached #8 with the title track from his third solo album.
#93 Michael Jackson – Smooth Criminal
iTunes stats: N/A
The sixth top-ten single from Jackson’s Bad album, this track peaked at #7.
#91 Alice Cooper – Poison
iTunes stats: 18 plays
Hitting #7, it was Cooper’s fist top ten hit in a dozen years.
#88 Rick Astley – She Wants to Dance with Me
iTunes stats: N/A
The lead single from Astley’s sophomore effort, it became his fourth consecutive top ten hit, peaking at #6.
#87 Samantha Fox – I Wanna Have Some Fun
iTunes stats: 24 plays
Reaching #8, the title track for the former Page 3 model was her third, and final, US top ten hit.
#86 Guns N’ Roses – Paradise City
iTunes stats: 14 plays
Ranked by VH1 as the 21st greatest metal song of all time, the final single from the group’s debut album rose to #5 on the Hot 100.
#84: Edie Brickell & New Bohemians – What I Am
iTunes stats: 15 plays
The group’s only Top 40 hit, it reached #7.
#82: Bon Jovi – Lay Your Hands on Me
iTunes stats: 11 plays
The fourth and final top ten hit from New Jersey, it peaked #7.
#81: Aerosmith – Love in an Elevator
iTunes stats: 18 plays
The band reached #5 on the Hot 100 and #1 on the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart with their lead single from Pump, their tenth studio album.
#77: Lita Ford & Ozzy Osbourne – Close My Eyes Forever
iTunes stats: 25 plays
The highest-charting solo single for both Ford and Osbourne, it peaked at #8.
#76: REM – Stand
iTunes stats: 33 plays
The future theme song of the Chris Elliot vehicle Get a Life, the song hit #6, giving the band their second top ten hit.
#74: Guns N’ Roses – Welcome to the Jungle
iTunes stats: 17 plays
Named the second greatest metal song by VH1 in 2008, it peaked at #7 on the Hot 100.
#71: Guns N’ Roses – Patience
iTunes stats: 26 plays
Reaching #4, the song is thought to be about the troubled relationship between singer Axl Rose and his ex-wife.
#68: The Cure – Lovesong
iTunes stats: N/A
The group’s only top ten hit on the Hot 100, it rose to #2 In October of 1989.
#66: Bangles – In Your Room
iTunes stats: 19 plays
The lead single from the band’s third album, it peaked at #5 in January of 1989.
#65: Tone Loc – Funky Cold Medina
iTunes stats: 20 plays
The second and final Top 40 hit for the rapper and producer, it reached #3 and became just the second ever platinum-certified rap single.
#61: Skid Row – 18 and Life
iTunes stats: 8 plays
The band’s biggest hit, it reached #4 on the Hot 100 and #11 on the Album Rock Tracks chart.
#60: White Lion – When the Children Cry
iTunes stats: 18 plays
Written by the group’s lead singer about his childhood with a single mother, it made it to #3 on the Hot 100.
#59: Madonna – Cherish
iTunes stats: N/A
Peaking at #2, it gave Madonna the record for the most consecutive top-five singles with 16.
#58: Tears For Fears – Sowing the Seeds of Love
iTunes stats: N/A
The lead single from the group’s third studio album, it reached #2, becoming their fourth and final top ten hit.
#57: Donny Osmond – Soldier of Love
iTunes stats: N/A
Originally unreleased in the US since Osmond didn’t have a record deal, it eventually topped out at #2, becoming Osmond’s sixth and last top ten hit.
#55: Madonna – Express Yourself
iTunes stats: 17 plays
Accompanied by a music video directed by David Fincher, it peaked at #2.
#54: Richard Marx – Satisfied
iTunes stats: N/A
The lead single from his second album, it became the second of three consecutive #1 singles for Marx.
#53: Def Leppard – Armageddon It
iTunes stats: 29 plays
The sixth single released off of Hysteria, it went to #3, becoming the band’s third top ten hit.
#52: New Kids on the Block – You Got It (The Right Stuff)
iTunes stats: N/A
Peaking at #3 in March, it was the second single released from the group’s second album.
#51: Love and Rockets – So Alive
iTunes stats: 16 plays
Easily the band’s biggest US hit, it reached #3 on the Hot 100 and spent five weeks at #1 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart.