A very solid debut single from a pop icon, although one she has bettered many times since.

I like this one but she did way better many times.

I appreciate Sexy Chick but it wouldn’t be among my Guetta favourites.

Just Dance was a great introduction and I still enjoy it but the best was/is yet to come.

'Just Dance' is my fave of the 3 Gaga tracks here but all are fab. As slightly dated as it may be now it still goes off when I hear it and it was love from word go.

I actually think the chorus of “Just Dance” is a little weak and lets it down - the verses and middle eight and the production are brilliant though.

I know you’ve said several times that it’s your favourite Gaga song so I’m surprised to see it behind the other one - but not complaining as I agree that one is the best.

'Just Dance' sounded big at the time, and I much preferred it to 'Poker Face', still do.

I love Just Dance and what a great introduction it was to Lady Gaga.

It felt a little special at the time watching this and Poker Face achieve massive success in Australia, before breaking through in the UK and US.

I've never been a Lady Gaga fan myself. So many people in my age group went mad for her from 2009 onwards. I'm sure some still do.

There's nothing wrong with that. I have found over the years that Lady Gaga has immense talent and is a versatile artist. She can carry off any style or genre. You just wouldn't catch me checking her Instagram or Twitter every 5 minutes.

I find 'Poker Face' a repetitive and robotic song which does not showcase her vocal abilities. She's released better than this over the years. I think her best songs are stripped back.

Edited Tuesday at 07:445 days by Charlielargepotatoes

2 Rage Against The Machine - Killing In The Name

1 week in December 2009: 27-{25}-37-53 // {1}-2-40->4+3

Kept off #1: none

#8 in EOY 2009

So this series of #1 reviews are spared the ignominy of the final one of the 2000s being topped by a song whose spiritual home should probably be in the 20th Century Retro forum. I think most of you will know how it became a UK #1 in 2009, but the means by which it got there and what that represented are not specifically the reason it is up here at #2 in this countdown, so I'll start right at the beginning. US rock band Rage Against The Machine were formed in 1991, and their mix of rap and metal was an early influence on the nu metal genre that would come to prominence around the turn of the millennium. This was their first hit single, inspired by the 1992 Los Angeles riots as a protest against police brutality. The song had its first legendary brush with the UK charts when it was inadvertently played uncensored on the UK Top 40 show in which it debuted at #27. It would peak two places higher and remained their definitive anthem, while the parent album of the band's name accumulated over a year in the chart by the end of 1994 despite a #17 peak. They would have 5 further UK Top 40 hits before splitting in 2000.

I didn't follow the charts until later in 1993, and the first time I knowingly heard the song was at an indie club while at uni following a friend's birthday party, although my memory of that whole evening is very hazy as I was possibly the most drunk I have ever been! I since caught it a few times on the radio (censored of course), but it wasn't until I had an iPod in 2007 that I downloaded it and came to know the song in full. There was something immensely powerful about having all this energy and adrenaline accessible from a tiny green piece of metal connected to my headphones, and though I wouldn't describe myself as being angry or disaffected at all, I would find a lot of pleasure from metaphorically surfing along on a wall of guitar while in my own headspace. The song contains only eight lines of lyrics and many changes in tempo, guitarist Tom Morello's charging riffs matching Zack de la Rocha's intensity on the microphone. The real power is in the bridges where they stop everything dead and slowly ratchet back up to the "Those who died are justified" choruses. However the infamous section comes in the final minute, with THAT expletive-riddled line, repeated 16 times over, and the crescendo that builds through the first eight times until Zack screams the last eight with the band at full-on intensity.

Whether it was that line specifically, the band's name, or the general spirit of rebellion that was adopted to strike a chord with music followers who were fed up with The X Factor's domination of popular culture, the campaign set up by British DJ Jon Morter via Facebook to download the song to prevent a 5th Christmas #1 in a row for a winning contestant's song captured enough collective imagination to gain credibility, with the endorsement of many artists including Tom from the band itself. The fact that they actually pulled it off, and sent this 17-year old rap metal song to UK #1 at Christmas with 502k sales, still seems like a fever dream another 17 years later. For my part, I already had the song on iTunes, but when I realised by the midweek that it actually had a realistic chance, I used a voucher code I'd been given from from some Amazon purchase, so it remains the only song I've ever downloaded from Amazon, if that counts as a sale towards this piece of chart history.

The song actually climbed from #80 the previous week, and only dropped to #2 the week after Christmas, so there's some evidence that along with The X Factor bloody-nosing, some people bought it because they genuinely liked it. In some ways, it was like an early glimpse into how the streaming era would rewrite the all-time 'sales' lists, where slowly established anthems that were hugely popular in certain circles, such as this, could end up usurping the combined sales of many of the biggest #1s in history due to their continued popularity. Whatever the legacy of this episode, ranking the 33 songs in this countdown from my least favourite to most brings it to this point. However the one that tops it is more genuinely aligned to the popular music of 2009 itself.

1 Lady Gaga - Bad Romance

2 weeks in December 2009 / January 2010: 14-10-11-8-5-3-{1}-3-3-1-4-7-9-12-16-20-15-20-24-24-21-27-24-25-35-40-32-41-39-47-58-44-47-52-53-55-59-58-59-63-62-69-59-60-55-70-69->47

Kept off #1: none

#17 in EOY 2009

Following the chart-topping success of Lady Gaga's debut album The Fame and its first two singles as already covered, an extended version of the album was released as The Fame Monster, with this single as one of its extra tracks. As it steadily gained airplay, it climbed towards the top, however it's possible it wouldn't have been here at all as a 2009 #1, had it not been for her appearance to perform the song on - yep! - The X Factor, following which it jumped there on sales of 72k. It dropped to #3 at Christmas behind the Rage / Joe tussle, and stayed there as they swapped places, before 76k saw it return as the first UK #1 of 2010.

It was actually while listening to the playlist for the Christmas #3s rate last year that I heard this for the first time in quite a while, and everything about it sounded so complete as a pop song that I started to think how any of her songs could possibly have bettered it. Perhaps because it arrived so late in the year and decade, 'Just Dance' had cemented its place above it for me, and I'd never been able to compare the two songs on a level playing field. However coming back to them now, the brilliance of this one wins out. RedOne's synthy production provides continuity, but adds a spaciousness which makes it sound huge, while the song and Gaga's performance are packed with highlights. The transcendent chorus and long "oh-oh-oh" that serves as the intro and post-chorus, the self-referencing "Gaga ooh la la" bridge, the lyrical twists starting with "I want your ugly, I want your disease...", the callbacks of "I'm a free bitch, baby", the middle eight with the lines in French, the higher notes towards the end - it stretched her voice more than her previous hits, and she delivered. Then there's the resonance of the title, and what it means to have a "bad" romance in the context of "I don't wanna be friends" - fantastic to cover this in such an anthemic setting, and another sign of the lasting cultural impact she was starting to create. And I haven't even talked about the iconic video!

I know the song has a whole heap of accolades already to its name on Buzzjack, including winning Record of the Decade no less than six times from its 10 eligible years, so it's an obvious choice to top this countdown, but it feels like the perfect place to end this series as far as the 2000s are concerned. Watch this space (the forum that is) for the 2010s equivalent - whether this song will be included again as a 2010 #1 if anything from that year could challenge it, I'm not sure. Until then, it goes out on a high as the song I've rated the best UK #1 of 2009.

My full list:

1 Lady Gaga - Bad Romance

2 Rage Against The Machine - Killing In The Name

3 Lady Gaga feat. Colby O'Donis - Just Dance

4 David Guetta feat. Akon - Sexy Chick

5 Lady Gaga - Poker Face

6 The Black Eyed Peas - I Gotta Feeling

7 Calvin Harris - I'm Not Alone

8 Dizzee Rascal & Armand Van Helden - Bonkers

9 La Roux - Bulletproof

10 Lily Allen - The Fear

11 The Black Eyed Peas - Meet Me Halfway

12 The Black Eyed Peas - Boom Boom Pow

13 Kelly Clarkson - My Life Would Suck Without You

14 David Guetta feat. Kelly Rowland - When Love Takes Over

15 Jay-Z feat. Rihanna & Kanye West - Run This Town

16 Cheryl Cole - Fight For This Love

17 Cascada - Evacuate The Dancefloor

18 JLS - Beat Again

19 Pixie Lott - Mama Do (Uh Oh, Uh Oh)

20 Tinchy Stryder feat. N-Dubz - Number 1

21 Peter Kay's Animated All Star Band - The Official BBC Children In Need Medley

22 Taio Cruz - Break Your Heart

23 Dizzee Rascal - Holiday

24 Chipmunk - Oopsy Daisy

25 Alexandra Burke - Hallelujah

26 Flo Rida feat. Ke$ha - Right Round

27 Alexandra Burke feat. Flo Rida - Bad Boys

28 JLS - Everybody In Love

29 Pixie Lott - Boys And Girls

30 Tinchy Stryder feat. Amelle - Never Leave You

31 Joe McElderry - The Climb

32 Vanessa Jenkins and Bryn West feat. Sir Tom Jones and Robin Gibb - Barry Islands In The Stream

33 X Factor Finalists 2009 - You Are Not Alone

Thank you to everyone who has commented or followed this thread! When I saw how many there were, I wasn't sure I'd be able to stick to posting one a day and do the commentaries as much justice as I wanted to, but I'm pleased with how it's turned out, and I've enjoyed reading all your thoughts on these songs as well - not to mention where you would have rated songs higher or lower, I expect to see a lot of your own versions of this list now!

💚

I love "Killing In The Name Of" - a killer at many parties. It was a great success for them to reach the #1 after that long time. Indeed the only song having a chance against the 3 Lady Gaga bangers. I need to find some time to listen to the 33 songs and come back with my full ranking. Thank you for hosting this amazing show @jimwatts

Thanks very much for this Jim! Great to have Rage as high as #2 and it’s hard to argue with that winner. I’ll do my own ranking in due course.

I’m pleased to announce the continuation of the series with some more lovely posters:

2010 @Iz様 🌟

2011 @Paddington James

2012 @RabbitFurCoat

2013 @Jaz13music

Christmas 2009 was one of the most iconic charts of all time. I bought Killing In The Name that week and completely got wrapped up in the David vs Goliath narrative and was delighted X Factor didn't manage to get it yet again. I do like the song though. I worked in Asda at the time and putting out the newspapers each morning was one of my jobs and I remember it was all over every front page on the Monday morning, it was absolutely huge.

But that's the same No.1 I would have chosen. Bad Romance is just epic, and Gaga still hasn't ever bettered it for me (although Shallow comes close). I was absolutely obsessed with it and it's still in my all-time top 20. It's such a big pop song and moment in pop culture in every way.

Great ending, thanks Jim, really enjoyed following this countdown a lot! Here is my rank:

1. Lady Gaga - Bad Romance

2. Lady Gaga - Poker Face

3. Cascada - Evacuate The Dancefloor

4. Cheryl Cole - Fight For This Love

5. Calvin Harris - I'm Not Alone

6. Dizzee Rascal & Armand Van Helden - Bonkers

7. La Roux - Bulletproof

8. Lily Allen - The Fear

9. Pixie Lott - Boys And Girls

10. The Black Eyed Peas - Boom Boom Pow

11. David Guetta feat. Kelly Rowland - When Love Takes Over

12. The Black Eyed Peas - I Gotta Feeling

13. Tinchy Stryder feat. Amelle - Never Leave You

14. Rage Against The Machine - Killing In The Name

15. Lady Gaga feat. Colby O'Donis - Just Dance

16. Chipmunk - Oopsy Daisy

17. Tinchy Stryder feat. N-Dubz - Number 1

18. Alexandra Burke feat. Flo Rida - Bad Boys

19. Kelly Clarkson - My Life Would Suck Without You

20. Peter Kay's Animated All Star Band - The Official BBC Children In Need Medley

21. The Black Eyed Peas - Meet Me Halfway

22. Pixie Lott - Mama Do (Uh Oh, Uh Oh)

23. Flo Rida feat. Ke$ha - Right Round

24. David Guetta feat. Akon - Sexy Chick

25. Taio Cruz - Break Your Heart

26. JLS - Beat Again

27. JLS - Everybody In Love

28. Jay-Z feat. Rihanna & Kanye West - Run This Town

29. Dizzee Rascal - Holiday

30. Alexandra Burke - Hallelujah

31. Joe McElderry - The Climb

32. Vanessa Jenkins and Bryn West feat. Sir Tom Jones and Robin Gibb - Barry Islands In The Stream

33. X Factor Finalists 2009 - You Are Not Alone
    
    2009 was a great year for me and the No.1s were solid. It's only the bottom three I'm really not keen on. And I actively like everything down to Right Round up to a point. Taio, JLS x2, Jay-Z and Holiday are a bit mid for me and Hallelujah I appreciate parts of, particularly the strength of Alexandra's vocal, but overall it leaves me a bit cold.

Edited Monday at 20:495 days by gooddelta

As expected, a fantastic top 2! I've gained more and more appreciation for 'Killing In The Name' over the years as I encounter it on occasion in a concert or party setting or just on my playlists, a moment whenever it shows up and a great reminder of the power of the (motivated) masses when we can get them together. That's a good point about the long arc of culture, how songs with many more days of continued existence and fandom can eventually show up the streaming chart and a song as good as this one from RATM does just build and build that sort of thing over time.

I think personally I might have put Bulletproof at #1 out of this list* though Killing In The Name would have definitely been in the top 5. Actually:

1 La Roux - Bulletproof

2 Lily Allen - The Fear

3 Rage Against The Machine - Killing In The Name

4 Jay-Z feat. Rihanna & Kanye West - Run This Town

5 Kelly Clarkson - My Life Would Suck Without You

6 Lady Gaga - Poker Face

7 Cascada - Evacuate The Dancefloor

8 Calvin Harris - I'm Not Alone

9 Dizzee Rascal & Armand Van Helden - Bonkers

10 Lady Gaga feat. Colby O'Donis - Just Dance

11 David Guetta feat. Kelly Rowland - When Love Takes Over

12 The Black Eyed Peas - Boom Boom Pow

13 The Black Eyed Peas - Meet Me Halfway

14 Tinchy Stryder feat. N-Dubz - Number 1

15 Tinchy Stryder feat. Amelle - Never Leave You

16 The Black Eyed Peas - I Gotta Feeling

17 Dizzee Rascal - Holiday

18 Cheryl Cole - Fight For This Love

19 Pixie Lott - Mama Do (Uh Oh, Uh Oh)

20 JLS - Beat Again

21 Taio Cruz - Break Your Heart

22 Flo Rida feat. Ke$ha - Right Round

23 Alexandra Burke - Hallelujah

24 Alexandra Burke feat. Flo Rida - Bad Boys

25 David Guetta feat. Akon - Sexy Chick

26 Peter Kay's Animated All Star Band - The Official BBC Children In Need Medley

27 Chipmunk - Oopsy Daisy

28 JLS - Everybody In Love

29 Pixie Lott - Boys And Girls

30 Vanessa Jenkins and Bryn West feat. Sir Tom Jones and Robin Gibb - Barry Islands In The Stream

31 X Factor Finalists 2009 - You Are Not Alone

?? Joe McElderry - The Climb

?? Lady Gaga - Bad Romance

that type shi anyway

*no spoilers

I'm sure Bad Romance will get all the love-in it deserves from everyone, I will admit it also gets better with age and certainly is one of Gaga's strong hitters, but that's all I shall say about that as as Julian says, I'll be kicking off the 2010s decade of this series with 2010, so keep an eye out for that one starting soon!

Thanks for hosting this one Jim, some really impressive writeups throughout to cap off a very nostalgic year.

No denying that was an iconic chart moment in time. It's an very inspired choice for the campaign against X Factor and a stomping tune. 'Bad Romance' is a deserving winner and another of Gaga's ultimate best.

My rank

1 Lady GaGa Ft Colby O'Donis & Akon - Just Dance

2 Black Eyed Peas - I Gotta Feeling

3 Lady GaGa - Poker Face

4 Black Eyed Peas - Meet Me Halfway

5 Lady GaGa - Bad Romance

6 Kelly Clarkson - My Life Would Suck Without You

7 Lily Allen - The Fear

8 Calvin Harris - I'm Not Alone

9 Pixie Lott - Boys and Girls

10 Rage Against The Machine - Killing In The Name Of

11 David Guetta Ft Kelly Rowland - When Love Takes Over

12 Pixie Lott - Mama Do

13 La Roux - Bulletproof

14 Black Eyed Peas - Boom Boom Pow

15 Tinchy Stryder Ft Amelle - Never Leave You

16 Cascada - Evacuate The Dancefloor

17 Cheryl Cole - Fight For This Love

18 David Guetta Ft Akon - Sexy Bitch / Chick

19 Dizzee Rascal - Bonkers

20 Flo Rida Ft Ke$ha - Right Round

21 Peter Kays Animated Allstar Band - The Official Children In Need Medley

22 Jay Z Ft Rihanna & Kanye West - Run This Town

23 Alexandra Burke - Hallelujah

24 Taio Cruz - Break Your Heart

25 Tinchy Stryder Ft N Dubz - Number 1

26 Dizzee Rascal - Holiday

27 Alexandra Burke Ft Flo Rida - Bad Boys

28 Vanessa Jenkins & Bryn West Ft Tom Jones and Robin Gibb - Islands In The Stream

29 JLS - Beat Again

30 JLS - Everybody In Love

31 Joe McElderry - The Climb

32 Chipmunk - Oopsy Daisy

33 X Factor Finalists - You Are Not Alone

Thanks for presenting 2009 Jim. Been a good'un.

The Killing in the Name-The Climb battle was the first properly publicised chart battle I was following the charts for (I sadly was too young for the Battle of Britpop) and it's still one of my favourite chart memories. I downloaded it at the time and I was really rooting for it, especially at a time when X Factor just felt so full of itself and they released possibly the blandest winners song yet. I remember so clearly at the time I was watching the midweeks intensely and towards the end of the week, Rage felt like it was tapering off and reality would set in but then there was a late surge which bought some hope and hearing it announced was just amazing. I do think it's a real cultural moment of both the changing state of music consumption, a comment on how social media was becoming the ultimate influencer and also an affirmation that the charts could never be predicted forever, I know X Factor resumed as usual at the top of the charts next year, but it felt like a dent in Cowell's armour given he'd made a career of polluting the charts with rubbish.

But I do like the song on it's own as well, I think it's original meaning still resonates a lot to this day and while I think most would associate it with this campaign, it's still aged really well. But I can understand that a number 1 is more appropriately for a 2009 song and Bad Romance is a fantastic pick, I think it's her magnum opus that will never be topped, it's got all the extravagance, drama, hooks and iconic aesthetics in one neat package and it still holds up amazingly today (Abracadabra called back to it brilliantly recently)

I do still quite like Poker Face but it has been tainted by overplay and never fully recovered (same with I Gotta Feeling) and Just Dance and Sexy Bitch/Chick are quite distinctly of their time, but like most of the list, I can appreciate them in a time capsule way.

Thank you for this Jim, the commentaries have been excellent and it's been great revisit a year that was really nostalgic to me, extremely pleased these will be continuing as well.

My own top 10 for 2009 (roughly):

1. La Roux - Bulletproof

2. Rage Against The Machine - Killing in the Name

3. Calvin Harris - I'm Not Alone

4. Lady Gaga - Bad Romance

5. Dizzee Rascal vs Armand Van Helden - Bonkers

6. Lily Allen - The Fear

7. David Guetta feat. Kelly Rowland - When Love Takes Over

8. Black Eyed Peas - Boom Boom Pow

9. Lady Gaga - Poker Face

10. Cheryl - Fight For This Love

There are a quite a few where I agree with Jim’s placing exactly or very close, but a few winners and losers in mine.

1 Dizzee Rascal & Armand Van Helden - Bonkers

2 Rage Against The Machine - Killing In The Name

3 Lady Gaga - Bad Romance

4 Calvin Harris - I'm Not Alone

5 The Black Eyed Peas - I Gotta Feeling

6 Lily Allen - The Fear

7 La Roux - Bulletproof

8 Lady Gaga - Poker Face

9 The Black Eyed Peas - Boom Boom Pow

10 David Guetta feat. Akon - Sexy Chick

11 Lady Gaga feat. Colby O'Donis - Just Dance

12 The Black Eyed Peas - Meet Me Halfway

13 Dizzee Rascal - Holiday

14 Cheryl Cole - Fight For This Love

15 David Guetta feat. Kelly Rowland - When Love Takes Over

16 Jay-Z feat. Rihanna & Kanye West - Run This Town

17 Cascada - Evacuate The Dancefloor

18 JLS - Beat Again

19 Pixie Lott - Mama Do (Uh Oh, Uh Oh)

20 Peter Kay's Animated All Star Band - The Official BBC Children In Need Medley

21 Flo Rida feat. Ke$ha - Right Round

22 Tinchy Stryder feat. N-Dubz - Number 1

23 Taio Cruz - Break Your Heart

24 Kelly Clarkson - My Life Would Suck Without You

25 Chipmunk - Oopsy Daisy

26 Tinchy Stryder feat. Amelle - Never Leave You

27 Alexandra Burke feat. Flo Rida - Bad Boys

28 JLS - Everybody In Love

29 Pixie Lott - Boys And Girls

30 Joe McElderry - The Climb

31 Alexandra Burke - Hallelujah

32 Vanessa Jenkins and Bryn West feat. Sir Tom Jones and Robin Gibb - Barry Islands In The Stream

33 X Factor Finalists 2009 - You Are Not Alone

I only surface level knew 'Killing In the Name' before 2009 but I've loved it ever since, that chart moment was just epic. I think the first time the public were truly engrossed in the charts since Spiller vs Posh and of course Blur vs Oasis (although the 2003 Christmas chart battle got rather a lot of attention too)

'Bad Romance' is just epic and truly iconic, I think it remains her absolute best because it's so MEGA and hits like a ten ton brick every single time.

It was a great countdown. 'Bad Romance' is better than 'Poker Face', imo. The Rage Against The Machine #1 campaign was an iconic moment. Can some people do 2010 - 2015 please?! I think we should allow nostalgia up to 2015 now in this forum!

Edited Monday at 22:525 days by TheSnake