The Greatest Hits of All Time: Song Facts

Jackie Wilson - Reet Petite

'Reet Petite' by Jackie Wilson: The making of the unlikely Christmas Number 1

Music

Shakin' Stevens – Merry Xmas Everyone

'Merry Christmas Everyone by Shakin' Stevens: The making of the delayed Xmas No.1

Band Aid - Do They Know It's Christmas?

'Do They Know It's Christmas?' by Band Aid: The making of the original Feed The World hit

Fairytale of New York - The Pogues and Kirsty MacColl

'Fairytale of New York' by The Pogues and Kirsty MacColl: The making of the timeless Christmas masterpiece

Music

Mud - Lonely This Christmas

'Lonely This Christmas' by Mud: The making of the Elvis-inspired Christmas classic

ELO - Mr Blue Sky

'Mr Blue Sky' by ELO: The making of Jeff Lynne's Beatles-inspired hit

Bruce Springsteen - Born to Run

'Born to Run' by Bruce Springsteen: The making of the Boss's breakthrough hit

Richard and Karen Carpenter

'(They Long to Be) Close to You' by Carpenters: The making of the duo's breakthrough hit

The Foundations

'Build Me Up Buttercup' by The Foundations: The making of the Brit soul classic

David Bowie - "Heroes"

"Heroes" by David Bowie: The making of the soaring Berlin masterpiece

David Bowie

Louie Louie

'Louie Louie': Why was the classic rock song investigated by the FBI?

Music

The Beatles - Hey Jude

'Hey Jude' by The Beatles: The making of Paul McCartney's soaring epic

The Beatles

Lulu at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1969

'Boom Bang-a-Bang' by Lulu: The making of the quirky Eurovision joint-winner

Brotherhood of Man in 1976

'Save Your Kisses For Me' by Brotherhood of Man: The making of the Eurovision winner

Steve Harley and Cockney Rebel - Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)

Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me) by Steve Harley and Cockney Rebel: The making of the glam hit

Gerry Rafferty - Baker Street

'Baker Street' by Gerry Rafferty: The making of the rock classic and truth behind that saxophone riff

David Bowie and Queen - Under Pressure

'Under Pressure' by Queen & David Bowie: The making of the ultimate rock duet

Queen

Song Lists

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Christmas songs

The 20 greatest Christmas songs, ranked

Song Lists

The best songs of 1964

The 30 best songs of 1964

Song Lists

Quincy Jones and his collaborators

Quincy Jones' 10 greatest songs, ranked

Song Lists

David Essex

David Essex's 10 greatest songs ever, ranked

Song Lists

T. Rex, thanks to their founder and bandleader Marc Bolan, are widely considered to be the definitive glam rock band.

Marc Bolan and T Rex's 15 greatest songs ever, ranked

Song Lists

More Features

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Andy Williams' TV specials were a joy

Why Andy Williams is the underrated King of Christmas music

Music

When Ringo Starr went to record his 1973 debut solo album, he very nearly reunited The Beatles.

When Ringo Starr nearly reunited The Beatles for his 1973 debut solo album

The Beatles

Michael Caine in Zulu

How Michael Caine landed his big-screen breakthrough in Zulu

TV and Film

Roy Orbison and Johnny Cash

Relive Roy Orbison singing 'Pretty Paper' on The Johnny Cash Show at Christmas

Roy Orbison

The Beatles - Red Album (1962-1966) and Blue Album (1967-1970)

The Beatles: What's the difference between the new Red and Blue albums and the classic originals?

The Beatles