What is the longest (in minutes) top 10 hit song?

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How long is "Hotel California"?

6:30. It only feels like 6 hours.

― ffirehorse, Friday, 25 February 2005 00:27 (nineteen years ago) link

> what is the shortest top 10 hit song ?

I'm not familiar with the Adam Faith song Dom refs, but "Stay" by Maurice Williams & the Zodiacs was the shortest U.S. #1 (also 1:37) and the shortest Top 40 hit was Duane Eddy's "Some Kind-a Earthquake" (1:17). I've never heard the latter, alas.

― Joseph McCombs (Joseph McCombs), Friday, 25 February 2005 00:41 (nineteen years ago) link

Meat Loaf - I Would Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That): 12 minutes and that's the version that charted.

― blawa (blawa), Friday, 25 February 2005 01:49 (nineteen years ago) link

"Stay" is only 1:37?

― ffirehorse, Friday, 25 February 2005 02:45 (nineteen years ago) link

How long is Blur's "Song 2"? Something like 2:05, isn't it?

― joseph cotten (joseph cotten), Friday, 25 February 2005 02:58 (nineteen years ago) link

Jethro Tull's "Thick As A Brick" ?????

― Eleventy-Twelve (Eleventy-Twelve), Friday, 25 February 2005 03:45 (nineteen years ago) link

wasn't there a janet jackson cd single that didn't enter the singles (too long - over 20 minutes)charts ?
It might have been "escapade"

― charlene drummond, Friday, 25 February 2005 04:03 (nineteen years ago) link

Shortest Hit Single via the some record breakers and chart miscellany link i provided:
The shortest duration of a hit single is 1 min 15 seconds. This record is held by Nukleuz DJs. The title/lead track of their 2003 "DJ Nation - Bootleg Edition" EP was a mix of each of the other six tracks on the EP (available on three separate CD/12" singles) clocking in at just 75 seconds.
In terms of a complete song (ie. not a medley), "Let's Get Together" by Hayley Mills (1961) clocked in at is 1 minute 25 seconds. The US version of "Some Kinda Earthquake", an instrumental single by Duane Eddy, was abridged (1 minute 17 seconds in duration, 1959) but the British version ran at the full 1 min 53 secs.
The shortest chart-topper is Adam Faith's "What Do You Want" from 1959 (1 minute, 38 seconds).

so, if the next question is 'what is the longest note held in a hit' you can go there. Donna Summer is third with a note in her song Dim All The Lights, 16 seconds.

― gspm (gspm), Friday, 25 February 2005 04:16 (nineteen years ago) link

It's gonna be a lovely daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay

― Joseph McCombs (Joseph McCombs), Friday, 25 February 2005 05:20 (nineteen years ago) link

How long is Blur's "Song 2"? Something like 2:05, isn't it?

Close. 2:01.

― ffirehorse, Friday, 25 February 2005 05:25 (nineteen years ago) link

What about Paranoid Android? That's the most recent one I can think of. Though I don't know how it charted

― Seuss, Friday, 25 February 2005 09:35 (nineteen years ago) link

Didn't Metallica's 'One' go top 10? Is that 7 mins plus?

'Hocus Pocus' sure was a long one too. Yaddle-diddle-daddle-diddle-daddle-diddle-daddle-diddle-yaddle-diddle--diddle-daddle-hey-woohoo! I mean, the chorus alone takes five frigging minutes to write out.

― NickB (NickB), Friday, 25 February 2005 09:49 (nineteen years ago) link

The shortest a-side track? Whatever Liam Lynch.

Shortest 'title' would be "Theme from Space Invaders" Yellow Magic Orchestra, which was 8 secs (20 secs on the 12")

I thank yez.

Oh, my "Blue Room" CD single track registers at 40' 1" which is quite tall. Long I mean.

― MarkG, Friday, 25 February 2005 14:15 (nineteen years ago) link

i guess the shortest hit song will soon be a ringtone, once they are counted in the charts !

― AleXTC (AleXTC), Friday, 25 February 2005 14:21 (nineteen years ago) link

That'll be "Sweetie the chick" then.

― MarkG, Friday, 25 February 2005 14:24 (nineteen years ago) link

god i hate these ringtones commercials on mtv... worst thing ever in western civilisation. maybe.

― AleXTC (AleXTC), Friday, 25 February 2005 17:01 (nineteen years ago) link

I was thinking that Jan Hammer's "Miami Vice Theme" which hit #1 in 1985 would take this, but apparently the single version that charted was 2:26 (extended from the 1:03 version that actually played over the show's opening credits).

― o. nate (onate), Friday, 25 February 2005 17:11 (nineteen years ago) link

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