Number Ones 1983 in the UK
So what were the best selling songs, or the number ones 1983 that made it to the top of the singles charts? This post is one of a series, tracking the tunes that reached pole position during the 1980s.
I can reveal that the Christmas number one for 1982 scored the top spot for another fortnight at the start of the year, making it the first number one song in 1983 as well as the last of the preceding 12 months.
The Jam and Bucks Fizz did well in 1982, but what did fate have in store next? Would the UK number ones of 1983 include any tracks by the bands that scored two each in the previous year?
The last number 1 song of 1983 is one I remember well: I was 9 then and was already building my own small collection of vinyl singles. I would later have tenuous connections with a couple of the 1983 top hits too, though I wasn’t to know that until years later.
Some are tunes I still listen to, though they tend not to be the ones I actually owned back then. My idea of the best hits in the 1983 music charts has changed somewhat during the intervening years!
There are fewer 1983 number one songs than in 1980, 1981 or 1982 – just 18. This is because some of the 1983 UK number ones stayed at the prime spot for longer.
A couple of huge 80s bands also truly made their mark, along with several solo artists, setting the tone for the rest of the decade in some ways. Read on to find out who they are.
These are the 18 tracks that topped the 1983 charts.
The 18 number ones 1983 in the UK
Renee & Renato – Save Your Love
2 weeks at number one in January 1983
Phil Collins – You Can’t Hurry Love
2 weeks at number one in January 1983
Men at Work – Down Under
3 weeks at number one in January & February 1983
Kajagoogoo – Too Shy
2 weeks at number one in February 1983
Michael Jackson – Billie Jean
1 week at number one in March 1983
Bonnie Tyler – Total Eclipse Of The Heart
2 weeks at number one in March 1983
Duran Duran – Is There Something I Should Know
2 weeks at number one in March & April 1983
David Bowie – Let’s Dance
3 weeks at number one in April 1983
Spandau Ballet – True
4 weeks at number one in April & May 1983
New Edition – Candy Girl
1 week at number one in May & June 1983
The Police – Every Breath You Take
4 weeks at number one in June 1983
Rod Stewart – Baby Jane
3 weeks at number one in July 1983
Paul Young – Wherever I Lay My Hat (That’s My Home)
3 weeks at number one in July & August 1983
KC And The Sunshine Band – Give It Up
3 weeks at number one in August 1983
UB40 – Red Red Wine
3 weeks at number one in September 1983
Culture Club – Karma Chameleon
6 weeks at number one in September, October & November 1983
Billy Joel – Uptown Girl
5 weeks at number one in November & December 1983
The Flying Pickets – Only You
4 weeks at number one in December 1983
What do you think of the number ones 1983?
Did you own, or do you ever listen to, any of these tunes? I still rate the Duran Duran, Billy Joel, Culture Club, David Bowie and Michael Jackson tracks in particular, and own some of them now on various albums. My favourite song in 1983 would probably be a toss-up between Billy and Billie.
As for those tenuous connections regarding the music charts of 1983 – I went to Paul Young‘s old high school in Luton from around 1986, and Ali Campbell lives about a mile away from me now.
Some of these 1983 top songs have stood the test of time; some not so much. What will the next year and the rest of the decade bring? Some of the best music ever made, that’s what!
Marcy x
Discover all the number one singles from the rest of the 80s here:
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