Best-Selling Singles of 1984

Today's Music: Thursday, December 11, 2014. The 1980s, particularly 1984, is considered by some to be one of the most glorious periods of pop music, thanks to the broader presence of women and Black artists in popular music and advancements in technology such as the invention of the compact disc (CD). In this program, we introduce the best-selling works of this period worldwide: Careless Whisper - George Michael, I Just Called to Say I Love You - Stevie Wonder, Girls Just Want to Have Fun - Cyndi Lauper, Relax - Frankie Goes to Hollywood. The song 'Careless Whisper' by George Michael, who at that time formed the duo Wham! with Andrew Ridgeley, was released in the album 'Make It Big' with a duration of six minutes and 40 seconds. The release of the five-minute single version brought it to the top of the charts in the USA, UK, and Switzerland, although it was released under George Michael's name and not Wham!, as the group's record company did not consider it comparable to other songs by Ridgeley and Michael and was concerned about fan reactions. The creation of the song, however, dates back to the period of collaboration between Ridgeley and Michael before the establishment of Wham!, and George Michael once stated that he wrote the saxophone solo of this song at the age of fourteen. Stevie Wonder, the renowned artist of soul, funk, and pop, created and wrote the single 'I Just Called to Say I Love You' for the film 'The Woman in Red' directed by Gene Wilder. This work reached the status of the best-selling song in many countries and won an Oscar in the music category at the 57th Academy Awards the following year. This song has been covered multiple times, and Richard Clayderman and James Last have also released orchestral versions of it. The song 'Girls Just Want to Have Fun' is the first successful work of American artist Cyndi Lauper, released in her debut solo album 'She's So Unusual.' This work gradually found its place as a kind of anthem for confident and self-reliant women. Interestingly, the creator of this song is a man named Robert Hazard, who had previously proposed it with different lyrics to the Rolling Stones. To date, over 30 other artists have covered this song, and it has been used multiple times in films, series, and advertisements. In the music video for 'Girls Just Want to Have Fun,' Cyndi Lauper's real mother plays her mother, having had no prior experience in front of the camera. The role of the father is played by American wrestler Lou Albano. 'Relax' is the first and only successful work of the group Frankie Goes To Hollywood, which is a collaboration of its members, released under the name 'Relax' in their first album 'Welcome to the Pleasuredome.' The broadcast of this work was briefly banned on BBC Radio One due to its sexual innuendos, but it did not provoke a similar reaction in the USA. 'Relax' reached the top of the charts in Germany, the UK, and Switzerland and was successful in many other countries as well. Three music videos were made for this song, with the first version being banned from airing on both BBC and MTV. The second version (which is published on this page) was aired more in the UK, and the third version was made for the United States.