Yet another attempt at internet-proof trivia/puzzle (category: music)

[Grover]

Originally Posted by cuervo72

Funny, when I read "stupid mind/puzzle games" I thought of Head Games. I...don't think anyone would attempt to make a Foreigner MR though.

He might.

[Matthean]

Originally Posted by Grover

I was looking at Cher, but don't know enough about her non-#1 hits to make an educated guess on it.

Also factor in Sonny and Cher. I think you would guess more than one #1 hit though.

[Suicane75]

The artist is Phil Collins, the song is In The Air Tonight, don't know about the other 3, I can't be assed to do research at 10am on a Saturday morning.

[Grover]

Originally Posted by Suicane75

The artist is Phil Collins, the song is In The Air Tonight, don't know about the other 3, I can't be assed to do research at 10am on a Saturday morning.

In The Air Tonight hit 19 in the US, so that would be one non-#1.

I think the other two would potentially be...

You Can't Hurry Love
I Wish It Would Rain Down

With Sussudio and One More Night being the disagreed upon #1

[Suicane75]

I'm probably wrong.

[QuikSand]

Originally Posted by NorvTurnerOverdrive

no clue. here ya go

List of artists who reached number one in the United States

Okay, a confession/refinement here, I guess. So, some more clues:

-My act is indeed on the list above

-On the act's individual Wikipedia page, the act is mentioned as having an impressive number of #1 US hits

-It now appears that this must have included some of the other US charts, perhaps... as the list linked above shows a lesser (but still multiple) number of overall #1 hits

So, sorry about that. I still believe that if you had looked up this act, you'd have at least tossed it out there, so I don't think this has completely upended the puzzle... just a refinement of sorts.


So... my act:

-Had at least 3 singles that went to #1 on the overall US charts, according to the Wikipedia page linked above

-Had several other singles that (presumably) topped the US subsidiary charts (or else Wikipedia is incorrect, *gasp*) - but by any measure were big hits and still recognizable to most people with appropriate cultural knowledge

-Had at least 3 *other* songs that didn't reach #1 overall, and didn't reach #1 on a subsidiary chart, but are still strong entries for the act's RM list (and a reasonable person might argue are all more deserving than any of the #1 hits from above)

[Matthean]

Also depends on if Genesis is involved. There's also "Easy Lover" with Philip Bailey although it's more of a Philip Bailey song than Phil Collins.

[QuikSand]

Originally Posted by Suicane75

The artist is Phil Collins, the song is In The Air Tonight, don't know about the other 3, I can't be assed to do research at 10am on a Saturday morning.

Pretty good entry, actually, though not the act who started this conversation.

Collins has a pretty long list of seven US #1 singles... it's tough but not impossible to make a case here.

In The Air Tonight
I Missed Again
Easy Lover

...there are three fairly strong entries, none of which hit #1 in the US.

You do have to put all three of those ahead of a number of other hits, though -- I think the "Against All Odds" song would make my list and that of most people, and "One More Night" as well. I guess you could argue for the list of three above ahead of these two and the other #1s, but it's something of a stretch, I think.

"In The Air Tonight" appears to have been a worldwide hit did not hit #1 in the US, oddly.

[QuikSand]

And that's by far the most thinking about Phil Collins I expect to do in my lifetime.

[Grover]

Originally Posted by QuikSand

And that's by far the most thinking about Phil Collins I expect to do in my lifetime.

Ditto.

[Suicane75]

Shame on you both. He's a wonderful artist.

[britrock88]

Marvin Gaye is the type of act who had better songs than his #1s. "Ain't No Mountain High Enough," "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing," "Mercy Mercy Me," maybe "Sexual Healing" fit the bill.

[QuikSand]

Would anyone do a Marvin Gaye MR, actively exclude "Let's Get It On" and "Heard It Through The Grapevine" and be taken seriously?

[Matthean]

Any of the artists in the linked list that haven't been picked I can't imagine only picking one #1 from their body of work.

[QuikSand]

Here's some more on the hidden hint from the original puzzle:

-The reason Mrs. Q and I had occasion to think about this act for the second time was (predictably) that a few days ago we heard one of the act's big songs (one of the #1s). If you get the tiny hint embedded in the original puzzle, you would know what sing that was with pretty clear conviction.

-Earlier I said nobody had even "sniffed" the hidden clue. True, that nobody was looking at the right phrase/sentence where the clue was embedded. However, in concept, someone was on the right overall track...so, sort of a right church, wrong pew situation.

-There's now a slight addition to the original tiny hint that comes from the phrasing of this post itself.

[Grover]

Lionel Richie had a pretty impressive list of #1s across all charts, but I doubt it's him.

[QuikSand]

Originally Posted by Matthean

Any of the artists in the linked list that haven't been picked I can't imagine only picking one #1 from their body of work.

And just to try again to be clear... it's not just that no more than #1 makes the list of four... it's that three non-#1 songs have at least a good argument to be admitted before any of the #1 songs. The #1 single is not only alone in the list of four, but by our reckoning, it was the last one in.

[panerd]

I know Clapton never really got the love on the charts that he gets on Classic Rock stations. I haven't had a chance read this thread so I don't know if he was mentioned yet. But Layla, Wonderful Tonight, and I shot the Sheriff don't look like #1 hits on his page.

EDIT: I Shot the Sheriff #1, Tears in Heaven not

[Grover]

Originally Posted by panerd

I know Clapton never really got the love on the charts that he gets on Classic Rock stations. I haven't had a chance read this thread so I don't know if he was mentioned yet. But Layla, Wonderful Tonight, and I shot the Sheriff don't look like #1 hits on his page.

Clapton, surprisingly only had one #1 in the US, so he has to be ruled out.

[Matthean]

Random guess. Bryan Adams. Summer of '69 and Cuts like a Knife actually weren't number one songs. He had four that went #1 but some of them are weak/cheesy so I can see them getting bypassed or one added on late.

[panerd]

I thought "sniffed" might have meant cocaine. Maybe that just shows how my mind works.

[gkb]

In researching this last night I found out John Travolta had 1 number one hit. I'm not sure how I feel about this. Way back in the day I owned a CD that Bruce Willis released. However, I did not own Eddie Murphy's CD. None of this has anything to do with Quik's puzzle.

I'm surprised that no one has mentioned Mariah Carey or Whitney Houston yet. I went their songs last night briefly, but I gave up.

[Matthean]

Originally Posted by panerd

I thought "sniffed" might have meant cocaine. Maybe that just shows how my mind works.

Three Dog Night? No clue on songs. Snoop Dogg as well.

[QuikSand]

Stil no hits on either the act or the hidden clue.

I am shortly leaving for a daytime venture into oppressive Mid-Atlantic heat, and will be away a while.

For those who remain interested in this, carry on.

For the obligatory group who feel deeply robbed and cheated by my terrible puzzle, sorry.

[Suicane75]

I hope you sweat into your eyes and it stings and you get that thing where your nose starts to burn.

[NorvTurnerOverdrive]

is it the carpenters? they had 3 and their wiki page fits the bill. it also looks like they had a bunch of #2's so probably some contention as to greatest song.

problem is idk dick about the carpenters.

[QuikSand]

Some more input that might help confirm a hit if you get it, but likely won't be of much help until then:

-When Mrs Q and I started comnparing our MR lists for this act, I offered "Well, you have to include Song A - that's the first one on the list." Mrs. Q agreed. That song was a pretty big hit but not a #1 in its time, but it has apparently aged well and gets more exposure - I'm confident many/most people would agree it's #1, and virtually everyone would place it into the MR. This pick is, to me, a lock.

-Mrs Q then made a case for another specific song, which apparently wasn't a huge hit on the charts (I would have guessed Top 10, but apparently not even that high), but gets some extra credit for being the act's first single of note, and also represents a certain song type that is fair for a MR to try to include. That second hint not so subtle, but that it was a breakthrough hit for a now major artist seems to work in its favor. This pick is, to me, pretty defensible with that factor weighing in, but some others might not value that as much, understandably.

-Third, we agreed that we needed a hit song from another subset of songs (like many acts, over time this act slid into some different niches) - we settled on one as the best of that group of pop singles as our pick, though other people might have landed elsewehere (likely on one of the #1 hits). Our pick here was a song that charted well, but not as high as #1. This pick is defensible, but not inarguable.

-Past that, we talked about three or four other songs that could fill our last slot -- in playing RM, I tend to be a "completist" and I wanted to factor in another sub-genre of the act's songs, and had a specific one in mind (that went to #1, it turns out). Mrs Q made a case for another song that was top 10 but not #1, and then we discussed another couple of contenders, each of which went to #1. We never really bothered to settle on a #4, to be honest, we thought there were several contenders, and lost focus.

[Grover]

Rod Stewart?

But I feel like Maggie Mae would be a consensus #1...

[Simbo Klice]

Whitney Houston. Done.

[Simbo Klice]

Originally Posted by Simbo Klice

Whitney Houston. Done.

Oh wait, I guess "I Will Always Love You" was the best selling single in history now that I look it up, so I get the wrongest answer of the thread.

But between "sniffed" and the fact that that song has gotten a lot more popularity due to her recent death... No, still a horrible guess.

[QuikSand]

Originally Posted by Simbo Klice

Whitney Houston. Done.

You are either seriously misunderstanding the question, or horribly misguided about her most noteworthy works. I'll give you credit for being lazy rather than stupid, and say it's the former. Your call if you'd like to contest that.

[Jughead Spock]

Engaged... marry... church...

wild-ass guess (of course) - it was an anniversary, you hear "Everything I Do" (#1) by Bryan Adams. IMO, a Mt. Rushmore of him would def. be Run to You (#6), Summer of '69 (#5), Cuts Like a Knife (#15), and... any number of tripe-filled dreck that he came out with starting with Everything I Do (four #1s, all slow-motion producer-driven sludge).

[Buccaneer]

The late Donna Summer?

[Grover]

That second hint not so subtle, but that it was a breakthrough hit for a now major artist seems to work in its favor.

Who's currently getting famous off someone else's past hit?

[Jughead Spock]

My original thought was MeatLoaf (back to the wide body), and "All Coming Back to Me" would fit in with that thought (Celine).

[NorvTurnerOverdrive]

oh fuck

[NorvTurnerOverdrive]

during pretty much every road trip, late night, wait in line, and so forth... poor thing

this

[CU Tiger]

queen
despite wayne's worlds best effort BR never made #1
we will rock you another never #1

admittedly Im too lazy to search the link and see if they had 3 #1s in it

[sabotai]

We can probably rule out Barbra Streisand. If QS had done a Mount Rushmore with his wife about Streisand, I doubt he'd come here to advertise that.

[Buccaneer]

I like the Queen choice. Donna Summer had a slew of #1s on the Dance and R&B charts and I think 4 on the regular chart. So don't know if that qualifies.

[NorvTurnerOverdrive]

huh. can't be. i thought for sure it was richard marx (endless summer nights, right here waiting, etc) but it can't be. fuck

[Grover]

Queen only had 2 #1s in the United States.

[NorvTurnerOverdrive]

i give up. finnegans wake is fucking easier

[Vince, Pt. II]

Originally Posted by NorvTurnerOverdrive

this

That was my first thought as a hint too, but Quik mentioned that no one had sniffed it and that had already been brought up.

[Jughead Spock]

Springsteen. Born to Run is the absolute lock of a #1 on MR, but only charted at #27. 'A couple days ago' was the 4th, so Born in the USA was all over the place. Breakthrough hit for another act could be Patti Smith or Manfred Mann ('major' being highly debatable).

[Matthean]

Originally Posted by Jughead Spock

Springsteen. Born to Run is the absolute lock of a #1 on MR, but only charted at #27. 'A couple days ago' was the 4th, so Born in the USA was all over the place. Breakthrough hit for another act could be Patti Smith or Manfred Mann ('major' being highly debatable).

Lacks multiple #1 hits and I doubt the fourth pick is his only #1 song since it charted for somebody else.

[NorvTurnerOverdrive]

huey lewis? with fourth side of the mountain being some weird allusion to hip to be square? gahhhhhhh i gotta get out of this thread

[Pyser]

neil diamond

based mostly on a huge catalog of hits, but that sweet caroline never hit #1

[Swaggs]

Huey Lewis and the News?

[CrimsonFox]

Originally Posted by NorvTurnerOverdrive

huey lewis? with fourth side of the mountain being some weird allusion to hip to be square? gahhhhhhh i gotta get out of this thread

Originally Posted by Swaggs

Huey Lewis and the News?