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Yearly Singles List Issue

I'm not sure if I'm the only person kind of puzzled by some of the recent updates, specifically in regards to the singles lists for the past few years. It seems that some songs have been moved out of the years that they were ACTUALLY singles and into the years where their respective albums came out. Some notable examples I found were:

- "Fell in Love with a Girl" moving from 2002, when the physical single and video came out, into 2001.

- "Hurt" by Johnny Cash moved in 2002, although the poignant video was released in 2003, which won a Country Music Award for "2003 Single of the Year"

- "Toxic" moved from 2004 to 2003, even though it was purely a smash hit in the former year.

- the one that REALLY gets me, "Since U Been Gone" moved onto 2004's list. I understand that most of this website's patrons from places other than the U.S. don't really grasp how huge this song really was in this country, but it was THE song of 2005 as far as most people in this country are concerned.

To place this is and other songs like it in earlier years is to (VERY, VERY slightly) tweak the cultural period of very modern times themselves. I understand that it would be impossible to go through every single in the AM lists and place them at the specific years that their physical single came out (since some don't even have a physical recording), but we all lived through these recent years and can recall when these songs can most reasonably be placed. Maybe Henrik has a specifically guideline for where singles should be placed, but I think it would make much more sense to move these (and other songs with the same qualification) back to their previous entry years. If you agree or disagree, go ahead and post, surely my opinion isn't the only valid one.

Re: Yearly Singles List Issue

I think the pont is that I (and many others) heard those records in the earlier years. If you're including non-singles there's no other way of doing it. YOu can see from the data when a song got praised.

Re: Yearly Singles List Issue

What used to be a singles list is now a songs list, and as such I see no other way than to list the songs under the year they were released for the first time.

I see your point but I think you all agree that "Life on Mars?" should be listed under 1971 and not 1973 when it was released as a single. And I'm sure that e.g. "Fell in Love with a Girl" will also be remembered as a song/single from the 2001 album "White Blood Cells".

Re: Yearly Singles List Issue

The Beatles' album, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, was released in 1967, however, the title track and "With a Little Help from My Friends" were not released as a single until 1978 (with "A Day in the Life" as the B-side). It would seem all too strange to list 1978 as the year of release for these songs, that most people who grew up listening to the Beatles would remember as recordings released more than a decade earlier. "Got to Get You Into My Life" from 1966's Revolver wasn't released as a single until 1976, and The White Album's (1968) "Back in the USSR" and "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" also made their debut 45 releases in 1976. Although albums are more single-oriented these days than they used to be, Henrik is right. There does need to be a standard used when it comes to release dates, and I think there is no better way of doing such than what is being used right now.

Whitney

One thing I noticed is that Whitney Houston's "It's Not Right But it's Okay" now appears under 1999, or at least it did at last check (even though the My Love is Your Love album was reelased in late 1998).

Re: Yearly Singles List Issue

JR, the change for Whitney will be done with the next update.