Thirty years ago I delayed getting out of my car and going to work to hear the No 1 song in a Triple M Greatest Songs Ever Countdown which was November Rain by Guns N’ Roses. I can’t remember if it was listener voted, but if it was I knew the top song wasn’t going to be something unexpected like Melissa Tkautz‘s Read My Lips because Triple M was a rock station, and Melissa didn’t fit the format or demographic.
No Melissa on Triple M circa 1994, or perhaps ever.
Yesterday, across my weekend jobs, I followed along to triple j‘s Hottest 100 of Australian Songs. 2,655,826 people voted, with 18–29-year-olds the biggest demographic, voting for, surprisingly perhaps, songs that were released before they hit high school.
If you missed it, INXS were No 1 with Never Tear Us Apart, No 2 were Australian hip hop legends Hilltop Hoods with their 2003 hit which samples Melanie Safka, Nosebleed Section. Twin sisters Lisa and Jessica Origliasso, better known as The Veronicas were third with Untouched, then Scar by singer / songwriter Missy Higgins, and Don’t Dream It’s Over by Crowded House No 5.
The full 100 is here: https://www.abc.net.au/triplej/countdown/hottest100
Here are some other stats from triple j:
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What I have loved during the countdown, across triple j and Double J socials, and afterwards on various news sites, is the debate about the missed out, the ‘shoulda been higher’ and the ‘what the heck was that one?’ that the 100 inspired. I want this debate to continue and was emotional at just how invested Australians of all ages were in where their own favourite songs fell.
I would suggest that most people would have had at least 2 of their songs they submitted in the top 20. That was the beauty of it – whether you were a fan of AC/DC, the Veronicas, Hilltop Hoods or John Farnham, you were represented. High up. This countdown was our nation personified, across genres, decades, communities and demographics.
I’ve heard How to Make Gravy by Paul Kelly a lot, but yesterday I felt like it was the first time again as I yelled “Give My Love to Angus” alongside what I imagined was thousands of others. I pulled my 16 year old out of his bedroom to explain why Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again is a peak live music experience. And my 19 year old son, currently living in the UK, and I messaged each other all day about where our own picks turned up. He wanted Never Tear Us Apart to be No 1 (his countdown is below with 7 in the top 20!). Only two were released after he was born.
I haven’t lingered around the radio for such a long time. I enjoyed hearing the artist’s insights like Bernard Fanning on the B-Side, These Days, that boomed after use in the movie Two Hands, and Jimmy Barnes getting quite emotional when Flame Trees unexpectedly followed Khe Sanh. I also felt like Zan Rowe and Lucy Smith were just as into the debate and excitement about what was up next as we were. I’ve got some new additions to my Spotify liked songs and a lingering soundtrack running through my head as I write this. Long live radio!
This countdown continues this week. Double J will air the Hottest 200-101 Australian songs each day next week. More details on the Double J socials. On Unearthed, from 6pm-8pm Monday-Thursday, hear the 100 Best Unearthed Discoveries of all time, also voted by you.
Jen Seyderhelm is a writer, editor and podcaster for Radioinfo. The image of the insert of Kick, the wonderful INXS album from which Never Tear Us Apart comes, is mine.