David A
Well-Known Member
My usual caveat - if this has been discussed elsewhere, apologies, I didn't find anything in my admittedly brief search.
When looking over the Carpenters hit songs, there were 15 A/C #1 hits. All but 5 of those were also in the top 10 overall on the Billboard Hot 100 (see chart below). If you look further into the A/C charts the Carpenters had a lot more songs that made the top 20 on the A/C but charted very low on the BB 100 (outside the top 40 - example: Sweet, Sweet Smile rose to #7 on the A/C chart in 1978, but peaked at #44 on BB hot 100).
According to Wikipedia, the Carpenters are:
* 2nd only to Elton John in terms of number 1 songs on the A/C chart (Elton had 16, one more than Carpenters).
* Number 8 out of the top 10 all-time A/C chart artists
Question: Does anyone here know / can quantify the difference in sales between having a #1 overall song on the BB 100, and a #1 on the Adult/Contemporary chart? In looking into this it appears that (at least back in the 1970's) the A/C chart was a sub-set of the overall chart. But I couldn't find quantifiers in terms of sales numbers, in percentage or otherwise. In terms of a songs "success" as a hit (and big money maker), it seems having a big (even #1) hit on the A/C chart is demonstrably less important, so I assume that must mean there is a substantial difference in sales figures.
More from Wikipedia:
The 1970s
The Hot 100 and Easy Listening charts became more similar again toward the end of the 1960s and into the early and mid-1970s, when the texture of much of the music played on Top 40 radio once more began to soften. Contemporary artists who recorded adult-appeal music, such as The Carpenters, Barbra Streisand, Barry Manilow, Anne Murray, John Denver, and Helen Reddy began to be played more often on Top 40 radio. Much of the music recorded by singer-songwriters such as James Taylor, Carole King, and Janis Ian got as much, if not more, airplay on this format than on Top 40 stations. A few of the acts that came of age as pop artists targeting younger audiences in the 1960s and early 1970s started moving toward easy listening as they matured (Neil Sedaka, Paul Anka and The Osmonds being prime examples). Easy Listening radio also began including songs by artists who had begun in other genres, such as rock and roll, R&B, or even country (it was during this time frame that a number of songs charted on the country and easy listening charts, often not on the Hot 100).
The longest stay at No. 1 on the Easy Listening chart in the 1970s was "Time Passages" by Al Stewart, which remained atop the chart for ten weeks. More common, however, was a high turnover rate at the summit of the Easy Listening survey during this decade. Over a three-year period from 1973 through 1975, there were 100 No. 1 songs on this chart, and most remained atop the chart for a single week. Among songs which topped both the Easy Listening (renamed Adult Contemporary in 1979) and pop charts in the 1970s were "(They Long to Be) Close to You" and "Please Mr. Postman" by The Carpenters, "Song Sung Blue" by Neil Diamond, "Annie's Song" by John Denver, "You Are the Sunshine of My Life" by Stevie Wonder, "I Honestly Love You" and "Have You Never Been Mellow" by Olivia Newton-John, "Love Will Keep Us Together" by Captain & Tennille, and "You Light Up My Life" by Debby Boone.[1]
When looking over the Carpenters hit songs, there were 15 A/C #1 hits. All but 5 of those were also in the top 10 overall on the Billboard Hot 100 (see chart below). If you look further into the A/C charts the Carpenters had a lot more songs that made the top 20 on the A/C but charted very low on the BB 100 (outside the top 40 - example: Sweet, Sweet Smile rose to #7 on the A/C chart in 1978, but peaked at #44 on BB hot 100).
According to Wikipedia, the Carpenters are:
* 2nd only to Elton John in terms of number 1 songs on the A/C chart (Elton had 16, one more than Carpenters).
* Number 8 out of the top 10 all-time A/C chart artists
Question: Does anyone here know / can quantify the difference in sales between having a #1 overall song on the BB 100, and a #1 on the Adult/Contemporary chart? In looking into this it appears that (at least back in the 1970's) the A/C chart was a sub-set of the overall chart. But I couldn't find quantifiers in terms of sales numbers, in percentage or otherwise. In terms of a songs "success" as a hit (and big money maker), it seems having a big (even #1) hit on the A/C chart is demonstrably less important, so I assume that must mean there is a substantial difference in sales figures.
More from Wikipedia:
The 1970s
The Hot 100 and Easy Listening charts became more similar again toward the end of the 1960s and into the early and mid-1970s, when the texture of much of the music played on Top 40 radio once more began to soften. Contemporary artists who recorded adult-appeal music, such as The Carpenters, Barbra Streisand, Barry Manilow, Anne Murray, John Denver, and Helen Reddy began to be played more often on Top 40 radio. Much of the music recorded by singer-songwriters such as James Taylor, Carole King, and Janis Ian got as much, if not more, airplay on this format than on Top 40 stations. A few of the acts that came of age as pop artists targeting younger audiences in the 1960s and early 1970s started moving toward easy listening as they matured (Neil Sedaka, Paul Anka and The Osmonds being prime examples). Easy Listening radio also began including songs by artists who had begun in other genres, such as rock and roll, R&B, or even country (it was during this time frame that a number of songs charted on the country and easy listening charts, often not on the Hot 100).
The longest stay at No. 1 on the Easy Listening chart in the 1970s was "Time Passages" by Al Stewart, which remained atop the chart for ten weeks. More common, however, was a high turnover rate at the summit of the Easy Listening survey during this decade. Over a three-year period from 1973 through 1975, there were 100 No. 1 songs on this chart, and most remained atop the chart for a single week. Among songs which topped both the Easy Listening (renamed Adult Contemporary in 1979) and pop charts in the 1970s were "(They Long to Be) Close to You" and "Please Mr. Postman" by The Carpenters, "Song Sung Blue" by Neil Diamond, "Annie's Song" by John Denver, "You Are the Sunshine of My Life" by Stevie Wonder, "I Honestly Love You" and "Have You Never Been Mellow" by Olivia Newton-John, "Love Will Keep Us Together" by Captain & Tennille, and "You Light Up My Life" by Debby Boone.[1]
SONG | A/C Chart | Billboard 100 |
We've Only Just Begun | Peaked at #1 on 10.9.1970 | 2 |
Touch Me When We're Dancing | Peaked at #1 on 8.21.1981 | 16 |
(They Long To Be) Close To You | Peaked at #1 on 7.10.1970 | 1 |
I Won't Last A Day Without You | Peaked at #1 on 5.31.1974 | 11 |
Please Mr. Postman | Peaked at #1 on 1.17.1975 | 1 |
Superstar | Peaked at #1 on 10.8.1971 | 2 |
Hurting Each Other | Peaked at #1 on 2.4.1972 | 2 |
Yesterday Once More | Peaked at #1 on 7.6.1973 | 2 |
Rainy Days And Mondays | Peaked at #1 on 5.28.1971 | 2 |
Sing | Peaked at #1 on 3.30.1973 | 3 |
Only Yesterday | Peaked at #1 on 5.2.1975 | 4 |
There's A Kind Of Hush (All Over The World) | Peaked at #1 on 4.2.1976 | 12 |
I Need To Be In Love | Peaked at #1 on 7.9.1976 | 25 |
Solitaire | Peaked at #1 on 9.5.1975 | 17 |
For All We Know | Peaked at #1 on 2.26.1971 | 3 |