Top Songs of 1979: The Year's Biggest Hits & Trends

The top songs of 1979 crowned one scrappy debut single over disco's biggest stars.

The Knack's "My Sharona" grabbed the #1 spot outright.

It sold faster than any debut single in Capitol Records history.

Behind it, one woman ruled the rest of the year by sheer volume.

Donna Summer's voice showed up on four different entries, more than anyone else on the chart.

The Bee Gees kept their late-decade streak alive with three more hits in the top 40.

A delicate solo piano instrumental and Michael Jackson's first solo single rounded out a genuinely strange year.

1979 closed the decade by refusing to settle on just one sound.

Infographic showing the top songs of 1979, with The Knack's My Sharona at number one, Donna Summer's four year-end chart entries, and the Bee Gees' three top-40 hits

Chart data: Billboard Year-End Hot 100, 1979.

The Knack's My Sharona Leads the Top Songs of 1979

No song announced the end of the decade quite like The Knack's "My Sharona."

It was the outright #1 song among the top songs of 1979.

Singer Doug Fieger wrote it about a real person.

Her name was Sharona Alperin, and she was his girlfriend at the time.

The song spent six weeks at #1 on the weekly Hot 100.

It became the fastest-selling debut single in Capitol Records' entire history.

Its raw, stripped-down energy felt like a direct answer to disco's polish.

That contrast is a big part of why it still sounds so sharp decades later.

No other single artist matched that combination of speed and staying power in 1979.

Curious what song topped the chart on your own birthday that year?

Try the Birthday #1 Song Finder and find out.

Donna Summer Rules 1979 With Four Chart Entries

If The Knack owned the top spot, Donna Summer owned the rest of the chart.

Her voice appeared on four separate entries among the top songs of 1979, more than any other artist that year.

"Bad Girls" (#2)
"Hot Stuff" (#7)
"MacArthur Park" (#12)
"Heaven Knows" (#39)

Three of those are credited to Donna Summer solo.

The fourth, "Heaven Knows," is credited jointly to Donna Summer and Brooklyn Dreams.

That duet credit is kept separate from her solo tally rather than folded into one combined count.

Even counted that way, no other performer's voice showed up on four different 1979 entries.

"Bad Girls" and "Hot Stuff" both leaned hard into the four-on-the-floor disco sound she helped define.

"MacArthur Park," by contrast, was a sweeping disco reworking of Jimmy Webb's 1968 orchestral original that had already spent three weeks at #1 on the Hot 100.

Want to hear how these songs stack up against tracks from every other year of the decade?

Spin the 70s Decade Wheel and land on a random year.

Twelve Artists Landed Multiple Hits

Beyond Donna Summer's four entries, eleven more acts landed multiple songs among the top songs of 1979.

That brings the year's full multi-hit count to twelve artists.

Donna Summer: "Bad Girls" (#2), "Hot Stuff" (#7), "MacArthur Park" (#12)
Chic: "Le Freak" (#3), "Good Times" (#20), "I Want Your Love" (#62)
Peaches & Herb: "Reunited" (#5), "Shake Your Groove Thing" (#31)
Village People: "Y.M.C.A." (#8), "In the Navy" (#48)
Bee Gees: "Too Much Heaven" (#11), "Tragedy" (#16), "Love You Inside Out" (#33)
Dr. Hook: "When You're in Love with a Beautiful Woman" (#13), "Sharing the Night Together" (#46)
Earth, Wind & Fire: "After the Love Has Gone" (#38), "September" (#78)
Kenny Rogers: "The Gambler" (#40), "She Believes in Me" (#47)
Little River Band: "Lady" (#42), "Lonesome Loser" (#66)
Sister Sledge: "He's the Greatest Dancer" (#45), "We Are Family" (#53)
Electric Light Orchestra: "Shine a Little Love" (#71), "Don't Bring Me Down" (#81)
GQ: "Disco Nights (Rock-Freak)" (#76), "I Do Love You" (#99)

Chic's third entry, "I Want Your Love," rarely gets mentioned next to "Le Freak" and "Good Times."

It still counts, and it ties Chic with Donna Summer and the Bee Gees for the year's busiest acts.

Donna Summer's duet credit with Brooklyn Dreams isn't counted in her line above, matching the separation explained in the previous section.

Bee Gees, Barbra Streisand, and the Year's Closing Acts

The Bee Gees kept their dominant late-decade run going into 1979.

They placed three songs inside the top 40 of the year-end chart.

"Too Much Heaven" (#11)
"Tragedy" (#16)
"Love You Inside Out" (#33)

That capped a two-year stretch that had already made them one of the decade's most successful acts.

Barbra Streisand charted twice in 1979, but under two separate credits.

Her duet with Neil Diamond, "You Don't Bring Me Flowers," reached #21.

Her solo track, "The Main Event/Fight," charted at #35.

Those two credits are counted separately here rather than combined into one tally.

Elsewhere on the chart, an unlikely instrumental found real success.

Frank Mills' "Music Box Dancer" reached #49 with no vocals at all.

And at #91, Michael Jackson charted with "Don't Stop 'til You Get Enough," his first solo single after years recording with his brothers.

It spent one week at #1 on the weekly Hot 100 and pointed straight toward the solo career that followed.

Put together, the top songs of 1979 closed the decade on its most unpredictable note yet.

Disco's biggest stars, a garage-rock throwback, and a lone orchestral instrumental all shared the same chart.

See how 1979 compares to the year before it in our Top Songs of 1978 countdown.

Frequently Asked Questions

What was the number one song of 1979 on Billboard's year-end chart?

The Knack's "My Sharona" was the number one song among the top songs of 1979.

Singer Doug Fieger wrote it about a real girl named Sharona Alperin, his girlfriend at the time.

The track spent six weeks at #1 and became the fastest-selling debut single in Capitol Records' history.

Which artist had the most entries among the top songs of 1979?

Donna Summer's voice appeared on four different entries in 1979, more than any other artist.

Three were credited to her solo: "Bad Girls" at #2, "Hot Stuff" at #7, and "MacArthur Park" at #12.

The fourth, "Heaven Knows" at #39, was credited jointly to Donna Summer and Brooklyn Dreams.

How many songs did the Bee Gees place among the top songs of 1979?

The Bee Gees placed three songs inside the top 40 of the 1979 year-end chart.

"Too Much Heaven" reached #11, "Tragedy" hit #16, and "Love You Inside Out" landed at #33.

That capped a two-year run that had already made them one of the decade's dominant acts.

Which artists landed multiple hits among the top songs of 1979?

Twelve artists placed two or more songs on the 1979 year-end chart.

Chic actually landed three, tying Donna Summer and the Bee Gees for the year's busiest acts.

Peaches & Herb, Village People, Dr. Hook, Earth Wind & Fire, Kenny Rogers, Little River Band, Sister Sledge, Electric Light Orchestra, and GQ each landed two apiece.

Did Barbra Streisand chart twice among the top songs of 1979?

Barbra Streisand appears on the 1979 year-end chart under two separate credits.