I won’t grumble too much at anything so far. Jack Your Body is fine but I don’t enjoy it as much as I respect it.

Wow. I just noticed your score for Jack Your Body 😱

Mixed feelings about Star Trekkin' as a massive Trek fan since I was 11 years old. I worshipped that show! Before video I used to record the episodes onto audio tape so I could play them over and over and bought all the photonovels to look at while playing them😄The track was mostly amusing on first few listens, and I was happy to see Trek top the charts even in a pisstake - and there are way worse novelty 80's tracks! But a few listens is all you need before it gets annoying, for me especially that Shatner line "We Come In Peace Shoot To Kill" which was not something Trek would do - they only shot those trying to kill them! 😄

5 hours ago, Colm said:

Wow. I just noticed your score for Jack Your Body 😱

I’d rather not Jack (my body)

Jester is the anti Reynolds Girl, he’d rather Fleetwood Mac than Jack

Ah my most-hated record reference 😄a spinning out of control car crash (not my fault, I was the victim) and M5 caved in car memory attached to it, but I was always of the opinion that I would much rather Fleetwood Mac than Jack and I'm pleased to see popular (weekly singles chart) opinion is in agreement almost 40 years on...😄

On 17/03/2026 at 00:43, jimwatts said:

No complaints about this bottom two. I'm hoping a certain song doesn't appear too soon!

And 'Star Trekkin'' is that song - as one who isn't that interested in the Star Trek franchise, it's just a fun novelty send-up. Also "it's worse than that, it's physics Jim!" might be one of the best lines in a #1 ever. It might be in the top 4 of the countdown rather than the bottom 4 if I were doing this (...so it's just as well I'm not).

16. Jackie Wilson – Reet Petite (score 3.5/10)

Number 1 for 4 weeks (2 in 1987)

Two sogs in a row, both with novelty Claymation videos! Reet Petite was a number 6 peaking hit for Jackie Wilson in 1957, the title was taken from a 1948 Louis Jordan track called ‘Reete, Petite and Gone’, Reet meaning fantastic jazz fans!

Jackie Wilson released the song as his first song after leaving the Dominoes and due to the success of the record, one of the writers, Berry Gordy, was able to fund the launch of Motown Records.

Fast forward to 1986, a clay amination video if the song was made for the BBC2 show Arena and such was the success of the video, the song was reissued in time for the Christmas market and became the Christmas number 1 of 1986, holding onto the top spot into 1987.

I was hyper aware of this song when I was younger, due to the video which at the time seemed very high tech (I was brought up on Morph so that helped). The actual song though is pretty irritating, especially the rolled r’s and I cannot rate it any higher due to this.

Still, the video has huge nostalgia value and is still engaging to this day.

The last two drop outs are very memorable, both sonically and visually, but I wouldn't particularly seek out either - so am not mad about those placings!

Awwww Reet Petite deserves a bit better than a 3.5... I'll wait and see what else is to come before deciding how much higher I'd place it but I think it's really fun and can't fault the vocals or production really considering its age

As a novelty record, I don't mind Star Trekkin. I watched the repeats of Star Trek in the 1970s so could appreciate the humour in it. I do like Reet Petite but don't think I would have put it much higher than this.

16 minutes ago, dandy* said:

Awwww Reet Petite deserves a bit better than a 3.5... I'll wait and see what else is to come before deciding how much higher I'd place it but I think it's really fun and can't fault the vocals or production really considering its age

The ratings are really in context of the 20 songs in isolation, I’d probably give it a higher rating if I was rating every number 1 tbh!

I really like Reet Petite a lot, it really reminds me of Christmas because the (slightly unsettling but very clever) video used to show up all the time on those Christmas Number 1 rundowns.

The song is a complete earworm, the rolling r's I always love to try and copy 😂

Reet Petite is a classic from an iconic performer, it was good he got his chance at number 1 even if it was just because of the claymation video. Although my favourite from him is Your Love Keeps Lifting Me (Higher and Higher).

Reet Petite is pure party-time singalong, joyful and a welcome resurgence for poor Jackie after his long coma and death. Even better it bought Higher & Higher and I Get The Seetest Feeling back into the charts for the third time. His back catalogue is pretty fine outside of those 3 big hits, and of course even if Reet had been awful (it isn't) totally worth it for funding Motown's existence and everything that came from that.

I am enjoying these divisive number 1s, expect a few more and the next post later!

I played Reet Petite at a wedding I DJ-ed years ago, Went down really well.

I would give it at least a 7.0. There's very little wrong with 1987 number ones.

Edited March 25Mar 25 by Colm

“Reet Petite” is fantastic - one of my favourite 50s songs.

What a great idea for a thread, and one of the very best years to choose! Allow me to catch up then-

Firstly, I agree with your bottom 2 songs.

Let It Be is a poor, thrown together charity record typical of the era and has very little to offer musically. Also a 1 from me.

Boy George’s cover version is nowhere near as good as the original, so feels unnecessary. A score of 2 for me.

Being old enough (unfortunately) to have lived through this chart period as a teenager, I can remember the impact Jack Your Body had when it appeared, almost completely out of the blue, at the top of the charts. In the digital era we have every #1 signposted at least days in advance it’s easy to forget that could happen then. It might sound a bit tame compared to what came after but it was such a breath of fresh air, like nothing before, a proper what is that event. It’s fantastic and I’d give it a 9.

Star Trekin’ is a difficult one, most times I dislike novelty songs but this feels quite humorous and nostalgic. Nowadays it brings a smile and I’m happy to hear it. Giving it a 6.

Reet Petite is a song I liked before its resurgence at Christmas that year, my favourite of Jackie’s and a great 50s song. The video, though innovative at the time, along with the festive period, seems to have led to the idea it was a novelty song, but that really wasn’t the case prior to this year. I’d go for a 7.

I’m really looking forward to the rest of your countdown!

15. Madonna - Who's That Girl (score 5/10)

1 week at number 1

Kept off number 1: Atlantic Starr – Always (3)

This is by far the inferior of Madonna’s number 1s in 1987 and a poor copy of that particular song, imo.

Who’s That Girl was released as the title track for the third film starring Madonna – not the first (or last) time she starred in and wrote songs for her film soundtracks. Written by Madonna with Patrick Leonard, this was another Latin inspired pop song which sought to replicate the success of her previous number 1. I’ve never seen the film and have no real motivation to do so; but I gather it’s about a woman accused of murder and her attempt to expose the real felon with an interrupted wedding staging the denouement. Sounds a bit standard!

Riding on the coat tails of her previous successes, this was Madonna’s fifth UK number 1 (and her sixth US billboard chart topper) – her second number 1 in one year, a trick she would repeat in 2000. I think this is the definition of a non-number 1 - It’s a bland shadow of another song and it just does nothing for me.

In fact, I am not alone in passing this one by, it had mixed reviews on release (mediocre, boring and uninspired among the words quoted) so I feel less guilty on being harsh on a Madonna single given I am a huge fan in general.

Sorry Madge!