Last updated 5/4/2020

Songs 1-20 are located here.

Songs 21-34 are located here.

Songs 51-64 are located here.

The Bonus Songs are located here.

Week 19

Yet another Beatles record (there will be 10 on the expanded list) peaked at #3 on 3/14/64 and 3/21/64.
Originally released by Vee-Jay in February 1963, the record flopped. The January 1964 reissue did a lot better…
This is the 2009 remaster of the mono album version, which supposedly has more echo than the original mono single. The stereo album version is a different take that includes a Lennon vocal flub in the last verse.

#35 – “Please Please Me” by The Beatles

Week 20

One of the last early-60s-style girl-group hits peaked at #3 on 1/11/64 and 1/18/64.
This was the only national hit for the group and for their label, Chattahoochie Records. However, the songwriter, David Gates, went on to better things. As primary singer and songwriter for the pop group Bread, and as a solo artist, he had eleven Top 20 hits in the 1970s.
The song was recorded in mono. This is a DES (Digitally Extracted Stereo) mix.

#36 – “Popsicles And Icicles” by The Murmaids

Week 21

The top-ranked instrumental on the list peaked at #3 on 2/1/64 and 2/8/64.
The Marketts were not an actual group – they were a changing set of studio musicians.
The song is loosely based on themes from the TV science fiction series “The Outer Limits” and “The Twilight Zone.” The record’s original title was “Outer Limits,” but not surprisingly it had to be changed for legal reasons.
This is the stereo version.

#37 – “Out Of Limits” by The Marketts

Week 22

The biggest hit for Jay and the Americans peaked at #3 on 11/21/64 and 11/28/64.
This was their second Top 10 record, but the first with new lead singer Jay Black (real name David Blatt).
It was the first hit for songwriters Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart, who would soon be writing hits for The Monkees, and later becoming recording artists themselves.
The original recording only exists in mono, because there is no known stereo mix of this record. This is a DES (Digitally Extracted Stereo) mix.

#38 – “Come A Little Bit Closer” by Jay and the Americans

Week 23

The only Top 20 record by the Ray Charles Singers peaked at #3 on 6/13/64.
This is the other Ray Charles, with his vocal group that backed up Perry Como on TV variety shows and recordings for 35 years.
His other TV work included Glen Campbell, Sha-Na-Na, and “The Muppet Show.” He was also the male singer on the theme song from the 1970s comedy series “Three’s Company.”
They recorded for the Command label, which was best known for producing hi-fi demonstration records like “Persuasive Percussion.”
This is the stereo mix.

#39 – “Love Me With All Your Heart (Cuando Caliente El Sol)” by Ray Charles Singers

Week 24

Jan and Dean’s second-biggest hit and last Top 10 record peaked at #3 on 8/1/64.
After Jan’s near-fatal automobile accident in April 1966, Dean became a successful graphic designer and designed many record album covers, winning one Grammy Award.
This is the original wide stereo mix. Later stereo remixes are narrower, with a fade out that runs 20 seconds longer.

#40 – “The Little Old Lady (From Pasadena)” by Jan and Dean

Week 25

The second-biggest hit for The Dave Clark Five peaked at #3 on 9/12/64.
The group was originally formed because Clark needed to earn money to buy equipment for a soccer team.
Stereo versions of pre-1967 DC5 hits are very rare. The original vinyl releases were mono and fake stereo. The digital releases, both CDs and downloads, are all mono, because that’s what Clark prefers.
This is a true stereo mix, taken from a 1970 British “Best Of” vinyl LP.

#41 – “Because” by The Dave Clark Five

Week 26

The 1965 Grammy winner for Best Folk Recording peaked at #4 on 10/17/64, 10/24/64, and 10/31/64.
Gale Garnett was a New Zealand–born Canadian singer, actress, and writer whose recording career ended in the early 1970s.
1964 Grammy winner for Best Folk Recording.
This is the stereo version.

#42 – “We’ll Sing In The Sunshine” by Gale Garnett

Week 27

The DC5’s second American hit peaked at #4 on 5/2/64, 5/9/64, and 5/16/64.
This is a more typical Dave Clark Five record, with Clark’s thumping drums throughout.
Another true stereo mix from the British “Best Of” vinyl LP.

#43 – “Bits And Pieces” by The Dave Clark Five

Week 28

The only Top 20 hit by The Rip Chords peaked at #4 on 2/8/64 and 2/15/64.
Another case of a rotating group of performers using a single group name. The two singers who made up the original group don’t sing at all on this record. The voices here are producer Terry Melcher, son of actress Doris Day, and Bruce Johnston, who has been a member of The Beach Boys since the “Pet Sounds” album in 1965. The touring group consisted of one of the original singers and two other musicians.
This is the stereo version.

#44 – “Hey Little Cobra” by The Rip Chords

Week 29

Possibly the worst record on this list peaked at #4 on 1/25/64 and 2/1/64.
This surf/garage bank combination is based on two records by The Rivingtons that failed to make the Top 40: “Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow” from 1962 and “The Bird’s The Word” from 1963.
When the band was booked for American Bandstand on 1/4/64, only singer/drummer Steve Wahrer was there to lip-synch the record. His bandmates didn’t join him because the band’s management wouldn’t pay to fly them to Philadelphia. The somewhat disturbing performance is easily found on YouTube.
This was a mono recording.

#45 – “Surfin’ Bird” by The Trashmen

In case you’re not familiar with the original recordings, here are The Rivingtons in stereo.

“Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow” by The Rivingtons

Week 30

The first and biggest hit by Gerry Marsden and his group peaked at #4 on 7/4/64 and 7/11/64.
They were another Liverpool group signed by Beatles manager Brian Epstein. Gerry’s brother Freddie was the drummer.
This is the stereo version.

#46 – “Don’t Let The Sun Catch You Crying” by Gerry and the Pacemakers

Week 31

The tenth Beatles record in the Top 50 peaked at #4 on 12/26/64 and 1/2/65.
This one is different, because it’s the only B-side to make the list. The A-side of the record was Song #8, “I Feel Fine.”
This is the 2009 stereo remaster. The original American mono single had extra reverb added, and there was no true stereo version at that time.

#47 – “She’s A Woman” by The Beatles

Week 32

The second of the two instrumentals on the list peaked at #4 on 2/29/64.
Al Hirt had been an Army bugler and big band trumpeter before returning to his home town of New Orleans and moving into Dixieland. This was his first chart hit and only Top 10 record.
The song had originally been recorded by its primary writer, legendary New Orleans producer and songwriter Allen Toussaint, in 1958.
This record won the 1964 Grammy Award for Best Performance by an Orchestra or Instrumentalist with Orchestra.
This is the stereo version.

#48 – “Java” by Al Hirt

Week 33

The only Top 20 hit by Ronny and the Daytonas peaked at #4 on 9/26/64.
The Daytonas came from Nashville and only recorded through 1967.
It’s strange that The Beach Boys could manage only one record on the Top 50 of the year, while several lesser surf/car groups were able to make the list.
This was a mono recording.

#49 – “G.T.O.” by Ronny and the Daytonas

Week 34

The last Top 40 hit by Robert Ridarelli peaked at #4 on 1/18/64.
In 1956, Ridarelli was the drummer in a band that included Frankie Avalon on trumpet.
He started recording as Bobby Rydell for the Cameo label in 1959 and had 19 Top 40 hits.
This song was recorded in England during a tour. It was written and produced by veteran British songwriter and producer Tony Hatch, who would become best known the following year when he began a long string of worldwide hit records by Petula Clark.
This was a mono recording. This is a DES (Digitally Extracted Stereo) mix.

#50 – “Forget Him” by Bobby Rydell