List of Billboard Modern Rock Tracks number ones of the 1980s
Alternative Airplay is a record chart that ranks the most-played songs on American modern rock radio stations. Published by the music industry magazine Billboard, it was created in the midst of the growing popularity of alternative music on rock radio in the late 1980s.[1] As less-established alternative acts were receiving minimal exposure on album-oriented rock (AOR) radio stations, their labels turned to modern rock stations for airplay.[2] Billboard introduced the chart in response to demand within the music industry for consistent information on the commercial performance of alternative music.[3] During the decade, it was known as the Modern Rock Tracks chart and tabulated based on weighted reports from twenty-nine radio stations: eighteen established standard-bearer commercial stations and eleven non-commercial college stations.[3][4]
The Modern Rock Tracks chart debuted in the September 10, 1988, issue of Billboard, with the inaugural number-one song being "
Number-one songs
- Key
- † – Billboard year-end number-one song
- ↑ – Return of a song to number one
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References
- ^ a b Whitburn 1996, p. 8.
- ^ a b Milward, John (November 24, 1988). "Billboard Has A New Top 10 List: 'Modern Rock' Is Meant To Chart Up-and-coming Acts". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved June 13, 2013.
- ^ a b "'Billboard' Answers Call For Alternative Music Data". Los Angeles Daily News. September 19, 1988. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved June 13, 2013.
- ^ Cateforis 2011, p. 65.
- Idolator. Archivedfrom the original on June 16, 2013. Retrieved June 13, 2013.
- ^ a b c d e f Whitburn 1996, p. 248.
- ^ "The B-52s Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
- ^ "R.E.M. Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
- ^ a b "Top Modern Rock Tracks" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 100, no. 52. December 24, 1988. p. Y-22. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
- ^ "Top Modern Rock Tracks" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 101, no. 51. December 23, 1989. p. Y-58. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
Bibliography
- Cateforis, Theo (2011). Are We Not New Wave?: Modern Pop at the Turn of the 1980s. ISBN 978-0-4720-3470-3.
- ISBN 978-0-8982-0114-7.