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Biggest Artists 1982

The UK's Top 20 best-performing artists in 1982 are listed below. The Jam have their best-ever year but it is their last. Yet the trio's two No. 1s and one unofficial No. 1 cannot overtake the "nutty boys", whose 41 weeks on the Top 40 see them crowned as year-end champs for a second time. After a five year absence, The Stranglers make a final return to the year-end Top 20 on the back of their No. 2 hit Golden Brown. Bucks Fizz, Dexys Midnight Runners and Duran Duran have strong years. As do Culture Club, but it is only a warm up for huge success in 1983.

Artists are ranked by their Chart-Measured Performance (CHAMP) totals for the year. Singles are listed per artist in chronological order (from left to right) with a symbol denoting peak position. Key to icons: ★No. 1 ●Top Ten ○Top 40 (all on official chart) ☆Unofficial No. 1 (i.e. No. 1 only on NME Chart)
WKS: total weeks spent on the official Top 40

WKS CHAMP
1 MADNESS●It Must Be Love  ○Cardiac Arrest  ★House Of Fun  ●Driving In My Car  ●Our House 41 3,987
2 THE JAM★Town Called Malice  ●Just Who Is The 5 O’Clock Hero  ☆The Bitterest Pill (I’ve Ever Had To Swallow)  ★Beat Surrender 25 2,929
3 SHAKIN' STEVENS★Oh Julie  ●Shirley  ○Give Me Your Heart Tonight  ●I'll Be Satisfied  ●Blue Christmas1 33 2,917
4 ADAM ANT●Ant Rap2  ○Deutscher Girls2  ★Goody Two Shoes  ●Friend Or Foe  ○Desperate But Not Serious 27 2,884
5 BUCKS FIZZ★The Land Of Make Believe  ★My Camera Never Lies  ●Now Those Days Are Gone 25 2,720
6 DEXY’S MIDNIGHT RUNNERS★Come On Eileen  ●Jackie Wilson Said  ○Let’s Get This Straight (From The Start) 27 2,640
7 CULTURE CLUB★Do You Really Want To Hurt Me  ☆Time (Clock Of The Heart) 21 2,443
8 DURAN DURAN●Hungry Like The Wolf  ●Save A Prayer  ●Rio 28 2,415
9 SHALAMAR●I Can Make You Feel Good  ●A Night To Remember  ●There It Is  ○Friends 33 2,408
10 SOFT CELL●Say Hello Wave Goodbye  ●Torch  ●What  ○Where The Heart Is 28 2,384
11 YAZOO●Only You  ●Don’t Go  ○The Other Side Of Love 28 2,345
12 TIGHT FIT★The Lion Sleeps Tonight  ●Fantasy Island 21 2,215
13 ABC●Poison Arrow  ●The Look Of Love  ●All Of My Heart 24 2,161
14 HAIRCUT 100●Love Plus One  ●Fantastic Day  ●Nobody’s Fool 24 2,029
15 KID CREOLE AND THE COCONUTS●I’m A Wonderful Thing Baby  ●Stool Pigeon  ●Annie I’m Not Your Daddy  ○Dear Addy 27 2,009
16 DOLLAR●Mirror Mirror (Mon Amour)  ●Give Me Back My Heart  ○Videotheque  ○Give Me Some Kinda Magic 31 1,989
17 KOOL AND THE GANG●Get Down On It  ○Take My Heart  ○Big Fun  ●Ooh La La (Let’s Go Dancin')  ○Hi De Hi Ho De Ho 32 1,874
18 IMAGINATION●Just An Illusion  ●Music And Lights  ○In The Heat Of The Night 23 1,749
19 THE STRANGLERS●Golden Brown  ●Strange Little Girl 18 1,662
20 IRENE CARA★Fame 18 1,566

Chart © Wow Vinyl 2024

★No.1 ●Top Ten ○Top 40 (all on official chart) ☆Unofficial No. 1 (i.e. No. 1 only on NME Chart)

WKS: total weeks spent on the official Top 40

Part of the chart run was in 1981 or 1983, which has been included in calculating the CHAMP score

1 Lead track on The Shakin' Stevens EP

2 Credited as Adam & The Ants

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