Chart veterans launch podcast on life at No. 1
Two chart watchers who spent decades logging No. 1s are now asking singers what the day felt like.
Record Research Inc. launched A Heart for the Charts on Oct. 6. The podcast is built around conversations about songs that reached No. 1, according to Billboard. New episodes trace the stories behind the chart positions.
The hosts know the numbers. Fred Bronson began writing Billboard's Chart Beat column in 1993 and is the author of The Billboard Book of Number One Hits. Michael Ellis is Billboard's former director of charts, a post that oversaw the Billboard Hot 100, the weekly ranking of top songs in the United States, and the Billboard 200, the weekly ranking of top albums. They present the show with Paul Haney, Joe Marchese and Andy Skurow.
The opening episode sets the pattern. It is titled "The Day I Went to Number One" and features Thelma Houston and Gretchen Christopher of The Fleetwoods. Houston discusses "Don't Leave Me This Way," which topped the Hot 100 in 1977.
The booking list stays with that theme. Record Research publisher Kim Bloxdorf is scheduled for the Oct. 20 episode to discuss company founder Joel Whitburn. Kim Carnes is due on Nov. 3 to talk about "Bette Davis Eyes," her Hot 100 No. 1 from 1981. Rupert Holmes follows on Nov. 17 to discuss "Escape (The Piña Colada Song)," which reached No. 1 on the Hot 100 in December 1979.
Record Research has published music reference books since 1970. The company says the podcast is live and available through the Media tab on its website, with Watch Now video and Spotify audio options listed for Episode 1 on its Media page. Episode 1 is already posted there. Visitors can watch the video or open the audio in Spotify without leaving the page. The first season is scheduled to conclude on Dec. 1.
For listeners, this means short histories with the paperwork attached. A chart peak usually arrives as a line in a table. Here it arrives with the person who lived it.
