When Elton John squeaked onto the Billboard Hot 100 in 1970 with “Border Song,” little did he—or the rest of us—know it was the beginning of a near-constant presence on the chart that would last more than three full decades. His first chart single only made it to No. 92, but much bigger success was around the corner. Year after year, John kept placing hits on the Hot 100—with frequent placements in the Top 10—and he set the record for most consecutive years with a song on the chart with 31. It’s a remarkable streak, and one that nearly ended on a few occasions.
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As popular as John has been over the decades, it’s still hard to fathom how even he kept a string of pop hits going for 31 years, particularly during some of the leaner periods of his career. Let’s recount the times John nearly broke his streak and revisit the song that nearly kept it going in late 2001 but didn’t quite make it.
Getting Through a Late-’70s Lull
Once John followed up “Border Song” with “Your Song,” he was unstoppable on Billboard’s flagship singles chart. “Your Song” was the first of 15 Top-10 hits John released between 1970 and 1976. The last of those songs, “Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word,” was the lead single from John’s Blue Moves album. The double album broke a string of six consecutive albums to top the Billboard 200, though it still managed to reach No. 3. John released the album’s second single in January 1977, and “Bite Your Lip (Get Up and Dance!)” peaked at No. 26 on the Hot 100. Though it was disco-themed, it didn’t register on the Dance Club Songs chart, but it resonated enough with the late-‘70s’ biggest musical trend to keep John’s Hot 100 streak going. It would be his only entry on the chart for 1977.
John’s commercial decline would continue for the next two years. Not only did he fall out of step with the latest trends, but he also ditched his long-time lyricist Bernie Taupin, producer Gus Dudgeon, and higher-pitched singing style. Even so, John had two Top-40 hits in both 1978 and 1979. One of these, “Mama Can’t Buy You Love,” cracked the Top 10. However, John closed out the decade with Victim of Love, which was his only album from the decade to not receive Gold or Platinum certification.
More Ups and Downs in the ’80s
Just as it looked as if John’s incredible run of chart success might be over, he bounced back with another string of highly successful albums and singles. While he didn’t quite match the phenomenal level of success he had in the ‘70s, each of John’s first six albums of the ‘80s had multiple Top-40 hits. Only The Fox failed to receive Gold certification. John appeared to be peaking again in 1985, when “That’s What Friends Are For” (with Dionne Warwick, Gladys Knight, and Stevie Wonder) topped the Hot 100, and “Nikita” and “Wrap Her Up” (with George Michael) received substantial airplay as well, reaching No. 7 and No. 20, respectively. By the end of this run, John had reunited with both Taupin and Dudgeon.
John faced a commercial setback in 1986 with Leather Jackets—an album he has regarded as his worst ever. The lead single “Heartache All Over the World” spent only eight weeks on the Hot 100, marking the shortest stay for one of his singles since “Bite Your Lip (Get Up and Dance!).” At least John’s streak was still intact.
The Last Hurrah?
Just as he had done seven years earlier, John bounced right back. His live version of “Candle in the Wind” restored his chart luster in 1987, and he released the aptly titled Reg Strikes Back in 1988. The lead single “I Don’t Wanna Go On with You Like That” strengthened his momentum, and he returned to being a steady chart presence right through to his hits from the 1994 soundtrack for The Lion King and his 1995 album Made in England.
A big part of John’s success on the Hot 100 came from his rapid-fire succession of albums, which he miraculously maintained for a quarter century. As the pace of his album releases slowed in the latter half of the ‘90s, so did the quantity of hit singles. For every year between 1996 and 2000, John had exactly one Hot 100 entry in each year.
In 2001, John released Songs from the West Coast, his first new studio album in four years. All three singles made Billboard’s Adult Contemporary chart, but none cracked the Hot 100. The lead single “I Want Love” was the only one to come close. It spent seven weeks on Billboard’s Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart, but it never bubbled over to the actual Hot 100. “I Want Love” only got as high as No. 10 on the Bubbling Under rankings.
For a song that missed out on the Hot 100, “I Want Love” has earned a surprisingly large share of fans. The downtempo tune has been popular on Spotify (over 32 million streams), and its video, which stars Robert Downey Jr., is one of John’s 20 most-viewed official clips on YouTube (over 18 million views). “I Want Love” also received a nomination for the 2002 Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. Even if the song had pushed its way onto the Hot 100, it would have been John’s last hit on that chart for 20 years.
Not Done Yet
In 2021, John’s collaboration with Dua Lipa, “Cold Heart,” replaced “Someday Out of the Blue” as his most recent hit on the Hot 100. Despite the two-decade absence from the chart, John showed he was ready for another run. “Cold Heart” became his longest-residing song on the Hot 100, spending 52 weeks on the chart, and he followed it up with three more hits—”One of Me” (with Lil Nas X), “Merry Christmas” (with Ed Sheeran), and “Hold Me Closer” (with Britney Spears). John may not have another massive multiyear streak left in him, but he is far from done. His next album is expected out by December.
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