Every year, songs shoot to the top of the charts, either for just one week, or for multiple weeks in a row. In a series of posts, we’re going to rank the hot 100 number one singles from the Billboard chart for each year of the 1980s and 1990s. Today, we’re looking at the year 1994.
One notable exception from this year’s list is “All I Wanna Do” by Sheryl Crow, which spent six weeks at number two. It’s a bummer as we probably would put that song as number one on our list below.
Note: “Hero” by Mariah Carey started the year at number one, but it had previously also reached number one in 1993, and as is our rule, we will not include it here, since it was already included in our list for 1993.
As always, these lists are subjective, we’re not claiming to be the definitive ranking here. We’re not that important, but you are, so we hope seeing the below songs conjures up a friendly memory or two.
But first, to get you in the mood for the year 1994…
- The George Foreman Grill was released for the first time.
- The Beastie Boys were the first to use the term mullet to refer to the “business in the front, party in the back” hairstyle in their song Mullet Head.
- The Channel Tunnel (aka the Chunnel) between France and England opened on May 6th after seven years of construction.
- Tonya Harding won the national championship title for figure skating, but was stripped of it after an attack on her rival Nancy Kerrigan.
- Netscape Navigator was released in December as the first commercially successful web browser.
- The George Foreman Grill was released for the first time.
- The Beastie Boys were the first to use the term mullet to refer to the “business in the front, party in the back” hairstyle in their song Mullet Head.
- The Channel Tunnel (aka the Chunnel) between France and England opened on May 6th after seven years of construction.
- Tonya Harding won the national championship title for figure skating, but was stripped of it after an attack on her rival Nancy Kerrigan.
- Netscape Navigator was released in December as the first commercially successful web browser.
8. Bryan Adams, Rod Stewart, & Sting - All For Love
Written for the movie The Three Musketeers, the song title is inspired by the motto, “All for one, and one for all.”
7. Ini Kamoze - Here Comes the Hotstepper
A one hit wonder if there ever was one, this reggae-infused dance hit is most famous for its “na na na na na…” chorus, which is sampled from “Land of 1000 Dances” by Cannibal & the Headhunters.
5. All-4-One - I Swear
This song was probably on almost every love-related mix tape/cd of this era. It’s actually a cover of the country music version by John Michael Montgomery, which was released the previous year.
4. Celine Dion - The Power of Love
A showcase for Celine’s vocal talents, this song is actually a cover of the 1984 original by Jennifer Rush, and has also been covered by Air Supply and Laura Branigan.
3. Lisa Loeb & Nine Stories - Stay (I Missed You)
The first artist to make the Hot 100 without being signed to a record label, Ethan Hawke directed the memorable music video for this ’90s classic.
What was your favorite song of 1994? Let us know in the comments.
