One Direction might be a bigger deal in the UK, where their five albums produced four #1 singles, but they made quite a splash in the United States as well. During their four-year run, all of their albums went Platinum or multi-Platinum in the U.S., and they set a record as the first band to have their first four albums debut atop the Billboard 200.
All that success didn’t translate into a #1 hit on the Hot 100, however, despite six top ten hits.
Bob Dylan showing up on the list of notable artists who’ve never had a #1 hit isn’t exactly surprising. Even at his most popular, his music was a bit too cerebral and too far out of the mainstream to translate to chart success.
While he’s not a singles artist, Dylan’s complete albums have sold well. He has placed 20 albums in the Top 10 of the Billboard 200, and five at #1. But how close has he come to a #1 single?
Usher held on to the two top spots the week of July 3, 2004, with ‘Burn’ at #1 and ‘Confessions Part II’ at #2. This song eventually replaced its album mate atop the chart.
As the title suggests, ‘Confessions Part II’ is a sequel to another track called ‘Confessions’ which immediately precedes it on the album (also titled Confessions). You can hear the first track at the beginning of this song’s video, embedded below.
Throwing back to the week of July 2, 1994, we find All-4-One’s ‘I Swear’ continuing its stranglehold on the #1 spot.
At #2 is rapper Warren G with ‘Regulate,’ a track from the soundtrack of the basketball drama Above the Rim. Another West Coast rapper, Nate Dogg, is featured on the track.
Nate is the cousin of Snoop Dogg, whom Warren G is credited with discovering. The trio performed together in Long Beach, California, as a group called 213 before all three found success as solo artists.
So far this week I’ve covered artists who came just short of a #1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 without quite reaching the milestone.
Today’s band never even got close. Their highest ranking song on the chart peaked at #23 and they’ve had only two other titles in the top 40. But I’m including them because they managed that while releasing the second highest-selling album in music history.
Meet Me In Montauk 