9 Songs That Hit #1 For Two Different Artists

There are only 9 songs in Billboard Hot 100 history to hit #1 for two different artists. Here they are.

The Billboard Hot 100 was established in 1958. According to Billboard, more than 32,000 songs have entered the charts during its 68 year history, but only 4% of those songs have reached #1.

At the time of writing, just 1,194 songs have topped the Billboard Hot 100, which is less than I’d have guessed. Now, of those 1,194 songs, how many topped the charts for two different artists?

Nine. In the whole history of the Billboard Hot 100, just nine different songs have reached #1 for two different artists. That’s quite a rare feat. Rarer still is the songwriting team that can pull it off…because remarkably, there are some songwriters who appear on this list twice.

A Quick Point of Clarification

Examples abound of songs that reached #1 for two different artists on two different charts. For instance, Roberta Flack topped the Billboard Hot 100 with “Killing Me Softly” in 1973 and The Fugees took the same tune to the top of the U.K. Official Singles chart in 1996.

Similarly, Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together” was a Billboard Hot 100 chart-topper in 1972. In 1983, Tina Turner topped the U.S. Dance Charts with her cover version.

Considering how many charts there are in the U.S. alone, this exercise could take us down a rabbit hole with no bottom. But when we focus our full attention on the all-important Billboard Hot 100, the list is whittled down to just the following nine songs.

The 9 Songs that Topped the Charts for Two Different Artists

1. Go Away Little Girl

by Goffin and King

By 1963, songwriting duo and married couple Gerry Goffin and Carole King already had a few major hits under their belt when they composed “Go Away Little Girl.”

Teen idol Bobby Vee was the first to record it, but Steve Lawrence was the first to have a smash with it. Lawrence was already a fixture on American televisions and turntables as half of the singing duo Steve and Edie.

Steve Lawrence (1963)

Lawrence released his version in late ‘62 and it held the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks in January of 1963. His version also topped the charts in New Zealand.

A few other noteworthy versions followed including a 1966 cut by Paterson, New Jersey sunshine pop band The Happenings.

That version charted at #12, which also makes this one of the rare songs to reach the Billboard Top 20 by three different artists.

Donny Osmond (1971)

Donny was the second youngest of eight children, five of whom formed a family band called the Osmonds. The teen idols out of Ogden, Utah peaked in popularity during the first half of the ‘70s, landing 10 top 40 hits and even scoring a Saturday morning cartoon in 1972.

Donny emerged as a solo artist while still recording and touring with his brothers. He launched his own clutch of hits (as well as a few later chart entries as a duet with sister Marie), and became one of Tiger Beat’s most reliable cover boys.

All in all though, Donny had only one chart-topper of his own, his 1971 cover of Goffin and King’s “Go Away Little Girl”. His version stuck to the top spot for three weeks. Say what you want about Donny Osmond, but he was just 13 at the time.

A Few Other Noteworthy Versions

British singer and actor Mark Wynter was best known for the song “Venus in Blue Jeans”, a U.K. #4 in 1962.

That same year, he reached #6 with his cover of “Go Away Little Girl”.

New York-born soul singer Marlena Shaw recorded a 1977 cut called “Yu-Ma/Go Away Little Boy”. This version reached #21 on the U.S. Billboard R&B charts.

2. The Loco-motion

by Goffin and King

The second song on our list is also a Goffin and King composition from 1962.

With Philly-born singer Dee Dee Sharp in mind, Goffin and King wrote a prototypical dance craze tune called “The Loco-motion”. Dee Dee had just recently landed her own dance craze smash with that year’s “Mashed Potato Time”, which topped the Billboard R&B and Cashbox charts while reaching #2 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Dee Dee declined to record the new song. But Goffin and King had a backup plan – their babysitter.

Little Eva (1962)

Eva Boyd was an aspiring singer who earned money on the side as a nanny. Carole King has said that when they hired her to watch their kids, they already knew she could sing. It was just a matter of pairing her with the right song.

When Sharp turned down “The Loco-Motion”, Eva Boyd was next in line. She recorded her debut record under the name Little Eva with Carole King on backup vocals. The single was released in June and topped the charts in July.

Little Eva mostly recorded dance craze material with diminishing results over the next two years. Her last charting entry in the U.S. came just a year later, and by the end of the decade, she had left the music business altogether. Earning just $50 a week during her time as a recording artist, and owning none of her own copyrights, Eva struggled with poverty and obscurity for the next two decades.

Grand Funk Railroad (1974)

Roughly a decade after Little Eva’s last charting hit, Flint, Michigan rockers Grand Funk Railroad recorded their own version for their 8th studio album, Shinin’ On. Grand Funk Railroad was riding high, fresh off their first chart-topper, 1973’s “We’re an American Band.”

With a second consecutive album produced by Todd Rundgren, the veteran rockers scored their second #1. Their version of “The Loco-motion” held the top spot for two weeks in the spring of ‘74.

Kylie Minogue (1988)

The Kylie Minogue version of “The Loco-Motion” reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 100. This is worth noting for a few reasons. First, it makes this the very rare song to reach the Top 10 by three different artists.

Second, the Australian pop star’s charting success did help Little Eva emerge from obscurity in 1987. Giving credit where credit is due, the enormous success of the film Dirty Dancing that same year sparked a massive oldies revival of which Boyd and Minogue were both the beneficiaries.

Little Eva capitalized on the moment by returning to live touring circuit. She said during an interview at the time that she was not a fan of Minogue’s version. However, its charting success did help extend Little Eva’s stay on the oldies circuit. She continued to perform live until her death from cervical cancer in 2001.

3. Please Mr. Postman

by Georgia Dobbins, William Garrett, Brian Holland, Robert Bateman, Freddie Gorman

“Please Mr. Postman” as we know it was pieced together by a succession of songwriters.

First among them was Georgia Dobbins. She had been an original member of a girl group called Marvelettes while still in high school. As the lead singer, Georgia scored her group an audition with Berry Gordy’s fledgling Tamla label. [Tamla merged with Motown in 1960]

Seeking new material for the audition, Dobbins contacted her friend William Garrett. He provided her with a blues-based song that became the basis for “Mr. Postman.” Dobbins added her own touches to Garrett’s song as she prepared the girls for their audition. But when her father refused to let her participate, Dobbins was forced to drop out of her own group.

The Marvelettes auditioned without her and landed a contract. Motown enlisted the in-house songwriting team of Brian Holland & Robert Bateman (known internally as Brianbert) to refine “Mr. Postman”. (Brian would of course become far more famous as part of Motown’s prolific songwriting team – Holland-Dozier-Holland. You’ll see that name again on our list.)

There were also reportedly some songwriting contributions from Freddie Gorman, another partner of Brian Holland’s and, it’s said, an actual Detroit postman.

The Marvelettes (1961)

The Marvelettes recorded the definitive cut of “Please Mr. Postman” without Georgia Dobbins in 1961. The album closely followed the release of Marvin Gaye’s debut album – The Soulful Sounds of Marvin Gaye. The album was a commercial disappointment, which led Gaye to seek out session work for help paying the bills. Gaye contributed drums to the original cut of “Please Mr. Postman”.

“Please Mr. Postman” became Motown’s second million seller and its very first #1 hit. Executives at Motown believed that the Marvelettes would be the biggest stars on their roster based on their immediate success. Though they would quite soon be eclipsed by label-mates like the Supremes, they did pepper the charts with noteworthy hits throughout the decade. However, they never equaled the success of their one and only chart-topper.

The group faded in popularity and by the early ‘70s, the remaining core splintered.

Carpenters (1975)

Just three years after the Marvelettes disintegrated, the brother-sister duo of Richard and Karen Carpenter revived their biggest hit. While the original was the first #1 for Motown, this cover was the third and final #1 for the Carpenters. It was also the 10th and final Carpenters single to sell over a million copies. In the second half of the ‘70s, the duo was derailed by Richard’s addiction to Quaaludes and Karen’s battle with anorexia. Sadly this is a battle that she would lose in 1983.

The Beatles (1963)

Special mention must be made for the Beatles’ iconic take on “Mr. Postman”. The Liverpool quartet often cited American girl groups as a huge influence on their early work. They paid tribute to this influence by performing an incendiary version of “Please Mr. Postman” during a 1962 appearance on the BBC.

Without knowing it, the Beatles gave British audiences their very first exposure to the Motown sound. The impact of this moment on the course of popular music is inestimable.

4. Venus

by Robbie van Leeuwen

“Venus” is a song written by a Dutch rock band called Shocking Blue. They were among the more successful groups to emerge from the so-called Nederbeat movement – a Dutch exponent of the British Beat Boom whose other most notable acts were the Golden Earring and the George Baker Selection.

Shocking Blue (1970)

Guitarist Robbie van Leeuwen penned “I’m Your (Venus)” in 1969. (In a previous article, I explained how the musical arrangement for this tune can be traced all the way back to “Oh! Susanna”)

Anyway, “Venus” topped the charts in nine countries. It was the first Dutch song to reach #1 in the U.S., and it would go on to sell 5 million copies worldwide. It was the first in a string of global hits for the band.

Their other claim to fame is the song “Love Buzz”, also written in 1969.

Nirvana’s iconic 1988 debut single is a grimy, slithering cover of the unlikely Shocking Blue album cut.

But I digress.

Bananarama (1987)

In 1986, a trio of British singers from London included a cover of the Shocking Blue’s “Venus” on their third release, True Confessions.

The song was once again a #1 international hit, topping the charts in 6 countries, and catapulting Bananarama into superstar status on the strength of a provocative MTV video that received heavy airplay in the summer of ’86.

5. Lean On Me

by Bill Withers

In 1972, Bill Withers was living as a budding songwriter in Los Angeles, which felt like a million miles away from his upbringing in a tiny, impoverished coal mining town called Slab Fork, West Virginia. The lyrics to “Lean on Me” came to him in a moment of deep home sickness.

Bill Withers (1972)

Withers recorded with backing from the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band, probably best-known in their own right for 1969’s “Do Your Thing”.

“Lean On Me” was released in late April as the first single off of Bill Withers’ sophomore record, Still Bill.

It reached #1 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and R&B charts that summer, and ranked as the 7th biggest hit of that year.

Club Nouveau (1987)

Don’t be fooled by the French name. Club Nouveau was from California. The story essentially begins with Berkeley-based New Jack Swing group Timex Social Club (1983-1987). The core members formed their combo in high school circa 1983, and it was there they wrote their future hit single “Rumors”.

When local producer Jay King heard the demo for “Rumors”, he teamed with Timex to release the single on his own label. The result was an eventful 1986 for the Timex Social Club. “Rumors” became a major club hit and Timex toured in support of Run D.M.C. alongside the Beastie Boys, LL Cool J, and Whodini.

But by 1987, relations between King and the core members had soured. Jay King began work with a new group called Jet Set, yoinking a few Timex Social Club members for his project. As a result, the Timex Social Club disbanded. King renamed his new band Club Nouveau (the New Club) as a jab at his old mates, and even followed up with the release of a diss track called “Jealousy”.

“Jealousy” was included on their 1987 debut album, along with this cover of “Lean on Me”, which topped the Billboard Hot 100 that same year.

To prove there are no hard feelings all these years later, the remaining members of both groups are now interchangeable, all having taken part in the occasional revival for both Club Nouveau and Timex Social Club.

6. You Keep Me Hangin’ On

by Holland-Dozier-Holland

I promised that Brian Holland would show up again on our list, here alongside Lamont Dozier and brother Eddie Holland (who had a few minor Motown hits before shifting his focus to songwriting).

Holland-Dozier-Holland became key architects of the Motown sound, penning iconic songs for the Four Tops (“Reach Out I'll Be There"), Martha and the Vendellas (“Heatwave”), Marvin Gaye (“Can I Get a Witness”), and far too many others to name here. Perhaps most notable though were their contributions to the Supremes.

The Supremes has 12 #1 hits, and 10 of them came from Holland-Dozier-Holland, all jammed into two-and-a-half years between 1964 and 1967.

“You Keep Me Hangin’ On” is just one of these chart toppers, a classic Motown recording backed by the legendary Funk Brothers and released in the fall of 1966. It topped the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks during the Thanksgiving holiday.

The Supremes (1966)

“You Keep Me Hangin’ On” would be frequently covered and reinterpreted thereafter. Most notably, the next year saw psychedelic band Vanilla Fudge reaching #6 on the charts with their fuzzed-out garage take.

Wilson Pickett recorded a cool version in 1969.

But the reason it’s on this list is because of the 1987 cover by Kim Wilde.

Kim Wilde (1987)

Kim Wilde was already well-acquainted with the charts. In 1981, she debuted with the single “Kids in America” and immediately shot to the #2 slot on the U.K. charts. Later that same year, it scaled to the Top 40 in the U.S.

She would enjoy her biggest success in ‘87 with her cover of the Holland-Dozier-Holland standard. She once again reached the #2 slot in her home country, but secured the top spot in the U.S. She became only the 5th solo female artist from the U.K. ever to do so (Petula Clark, Lulu, Sheena Easton, and Bonnie Tyler preceded her).

In the U.S., Wilde is mostly known for the two songs noted above. But she continued to chart throughout the decade in the U.K. Indeed, she is, according to her Wiki, the most-charted British female solo act of the 1980s, with 17 UK Top 40 hit singles.

7. When a Man Loves a Woman

by Calvin Lewis & Andrew Wright

In 1965, Alabama-born singer Percy Sledge worked as an orderly at a local hospital while moonlighting on the weekends as the lead vocalist for a combo called the Esquires. The official copyright for his biggest hit says that fellow Esquires Calvin Lewis and Andrew Wright improvised the tune and composed the lyrics respectively.

However, there is some minor disagreement over the exact authorship of “When a Man Loves a Woman”. Sledge has said that he conceived the idea and most of the lyrics based on his own recent breakup. In subsequent interviews, Sledge has said that he granted authorship to his bandmates because the song gave him a chance to “sing his heart out.”

That he does. And either way, Sledge never seemed to hold a grudge over authorship. He called the recording a perfect marriage of songwriting, performance, producing, and backing. And that makes pretty good sense, because it was recorded in the legendary FAME Music Studios in Florence Alabama. Sledge was supported by a who’s who of local session musicians – a cast and crew that gained notoriety as part of the iconic Muscle Shoals Sound.

Percy Sledge (1966)

In fact, “When a Man Loves a Woman” became the first Muscle Shoals song to top the charts when the single went to #1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, R&B Charts and Cash Box 100. It was a massive international hit as well. Sledge recorded a number of additional minor chart performers but remained a popular concert draw and toured nearly up until his death in 2015. “When a Man Loves a Woman” remained his signature song throughout his career.

Michael Bolton (1991)

We’re not here to judge anybody’s taste or take cheap shots. Just know that this is for educational purposes, and I wouldn’t necessarily include it on my personal playlist. Anyway, quick review.

In the late 70s and early 80s, Michael Bolton tried his hand as a hard rock and heavy metal singer, performing and recording both solo and as the lead singer of a band called Blackjack. Once upon a time, Blackjack even opened for Ozzy Osbourne.

Bolton then turned his attention to songwriting, authoring a Top 10 hit for Laura Branigan with “How Am I Supposed to Live Without You” in 1983.

By the late ‘80s, Bolton had completely rebranded as an adult contemporary solo performer, achieving massive mainstream success with his audience. In 1990, Bolton landed his first chart-topper with his own version of Branigan’s hit.

One year later, Bolton released his cover of the Sledge tune on his 7th solo studio album.

“When a Man Loves a Woman” became his only other chart-topper, and won Bolton a Grammy.

8. I’ll Be There

by Berry Gordy, Hal Davis, Bob West and Willie Hutch

Composed by a songwriting team that included Motown label head Berry Gordy (along with Hal Davis, Bob West, and Willie Hutch), “I’ll Be There” was written for the red hot Jackson 5.

Jackson 5 (1970)

The lead single from their self-explanatory Third Album, “I’ll Be There” was issued on the same day as the record – August 28, 1970.

When it reached #1 in October, it became the 4th consecutive Jackson 5 single to top the charts. The Jackson brothers became the first artists ever to top the charts with their first four singles and the first black artists ever to have four chart toppers in one year.

Moving 4.2 million copies in the U.S., “I’ll Be There” became the most successful domestic single from Motown’s Golden Era (1959-1972)--so noted because 1972 marked Motown’s move from Detroit to L.A.

Ironically, “I’ll Be There” would also be the last chart-topper for the Jackson 5. Though Michael Jackson would go on to record 13 chart-toppers, the fraternal combo would never again surpass #2 on the charts.

Mariah Carey (1992)

Their biggest hit, however, would find its way back to the top of the charts when pop diva Mariah Carey made the last minute decision to include it in her 1992 MTV Unplugged performance as a duet with backing singer Trey Lorenz.

It became the 6th chart-topper of Mariah Carey’s career, and also marked her emergence to a broader international audience. “I’ll Be There” topped the charts in Canada, the Netherlands and New Zealand, as well as reaching the top five in the United Kingdom and Ireland, the Top 10 in Australia, and the Top 20 in most markets across Europe.

The already enormously successful Carey jumped to another level of global stardom with her cover. And with 19 Billboard Hot 100 chart-toppers to her name, Carey is second on the all-time list to only the Beatles (who had 20).

In 2009, Mariah Carey and Trey Lorenz would reunite to perform “I’ll Be There” at Michael Jackson’s funeral.

9. Lady Marmalade

by Bob Crewe and Kenny Nolan

Bob Crewe was already well-acquainted with the top of the charts by 1974, having co-written nearly all of the Four Seasons’ biggest hits, many of them alongside Four Seasons member Bob Gaudio. Inspired by a recent visit to New Orleans, Crewe conceived this song alongside fellow songwriter Kenny Nolan.

Nolan sang unmistakably Valli-esque lead vocals on the original recording, a session from a quickly-assembled studio group fittingly called The Eleventh Hour. Though the song had hit potential, the key ingredients were not quite there yet.

Labelle (1975)

That changed when Crewe shared the song with legendary New Orleans singer, songwriter and producer Allen Toussaint. It was he who suggested pairing the song with the seasoned Philly-based group, LaBelle.

Patti LaBelle and company traveled to New Orleans, recorded with backing support from the Meters, and landed their one and only #1 hit.

When LaBelle topped the Billboard Hot 100 in March of 1975, they actually knocked another Crewe-Nolan composition from the top spot – Frankie Valli’s “My Eyes Adored You”.

This feat made Crewe and Nolan one of only 3 songwriting teams to replace its own song at the top of the charts. The others were Lennon-McCartney and…you guessed it...Holland-Dozier-Holland.

Christina Aguilera, Lil’ Kim, Mya and Pink (2001)

In 2001, rapper Missy Elliot was tapped to produce a collaborative cover of “Lady Marmalade” as the key single for the Baz Luhrmann film Moulin Rouge. Relocating the scene of the song’s action from New Orleans to Paris, the collaboration brings together a collection of the period’s biggest pop and hip-hop stars…sort of.

Conflicting touring schedules prevented Missy Elliot, Christina Aguilera, Lil’ Kim, Mya and Pink from ever actually sharing studio space. Each performer recorded their own verse separately before the vocal performances were stitched together in the studio. That didn’t stop the recording from reaching #1 and spending 5 weeks there in the summer of 2001.

Though they were never in the studio together, they did assemble for a flamboyant video as well as a performance at that year’s MTV Music Video Awards. They would subsequently take home Video of the Year honors that night. They also performed together at that year’s Grammy’s, where they were actually joined by Patti LaBelle.