In this feature, Inside The Rock Era salutes The Top Double-Sided Hits*. What most struggling musicians would give to have one hit in their careers! A double-sided hit is almost like rubbing it in! Very few artists in the Rock Era have achieved it; one almost had to be a superstar to be able to pull it off.
When researching information for the project, I came across a website that used a mathematical formula to compute their list. What they did was add the chart numbers for each side, and base their ranking on the totals. While that is indeed commendable, and they did a fine job, comparing songs from different times in history, comparing songs from all different years without some common denominator is like comparing apples to oranges. For example, comparing the Guess Who's "American Woman", and the time in which it was released, to Pat Boone and its time is like night and day. We've said it many times but it bears repeating--chart numbers mean nothing without considering competition.
We used the following methodology: the basic formula for the copyrighted Top 5000 Songs of the Rock Era*, which considers the competition factor mentioned above, and not only considers airplay and sales at the time the song was released, but tracks both to the present day. We generated current rankings for each of the sides of a double-sided hit in our exclusive database of over 12,000 songs of the Rock Era, then added the totals of the two songs. Special weight was then given for songs that were both big hits, rather than one side of the record dominating the other. Here is that final ranking:
5. "Beginnings"/"Colour My World"--Chicago
9. "Down On The Corner"/"Fortunate Son"--Creedence Clearwater Revival
10. "Travelin' Band"/"Who'll Stop The Rain"
When researching information for the project, I came across a website that used a mathematical formula to compute their list. What they did was add the chart numbers for each side, and base their ranking on the totals. While that is indeed commendable, and they did a fine job, comparing songs from different times in history, comparing songs from all different years without some common denominator is like comparing apples to oranges. For example, comparing the Guess Who's "American Woman", and the time in which it was released, to Pat Boone and its time is like night and day. We've said it many times but it bears repeating--chart numbers mean nothing without considering competition.
We used the following methodology: the basic formula for the copyrighted Top 5000 Songs of the Rock Era*, which considers the competition factor mentioned above, and not only considers airplay and sales at the time the song was released, but tracks both to the present day. We generated current rankings for each of the sides of a double-sided hit in our exclusive database of over 12,000 songs of the Rock Era, then added the totals of the two songs. Special weight was then given for songs that were both big hits, rather than one side of the record dominating the other. Here is that final ranking:
1. "Don't Be Cruel"/"Hound Dog"--Elvis Presley
2. "Come Together"/"Something"--Beatles
3. "Strawberry Fields Forever"/"Penny Lane"--Beatles
4. "We Can Work It Out"/"Day Tripper"--Beatles
5. "Beginnings"/"Colour My World"--Chicago
6. "Hey Jude"/"Revolution"--Beatles
7. "Yellow Submarine"/"Eleanor Rigby"--Beatles
8. "It's Too Late"/"I Feel The Earth Move"--Carole King
9. "Down On The Corner"/"Fortunate Son"--Creedence Clearwater Revival
10. "Travelin' Band"/"Who'll Stop The Rain"
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