The UK Singles Chart is one of many music charts compiled by the Official Charts Company that calculates the best-selling singles of the week in the United Kingdom. Before 2004, the chart was only based on the sales of physical singles. ''

New Musical Express ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' (''NME'') magazine had published the United Kingdom record charts for the first time in 1952. ''NME'' originally published only a top 12 (although the first chart had a couple of singles that were tied so a top 15 was announced) but this was gradually extended to encompass a top 20 by October 1954. This list shows singles that peaked in the Top 10 of the UK Singles Chart during

1955 Events January * January 3 – José Ramón Guizado becomes president of Panama. * January 17 – , the first nuclear-powered submarine, puts to sea for the first time, from Groton, Connecticut. * January 18– 20 – Battle of Yijian ...

, as well as singles which peaked in

1954 Events January * January 1 – The Soviet Union ceases to demand war reparations from West Germany. * January 3 – The Italian broadcaster RAI officially begins transmitting. * January 7 – Georgetown-IBM experiment: The fir ...

and

1956 Events January * January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan. * January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian Missionary, missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, Ed McCully, Jim ...

but were in the top 10 in 1955. The entry date is when the single appeared in the top 10 for the first time (week ending, as published by the Official Charts Company, which is six days after the chart is announced). Eighty singles were in the top ten in 1955. Eleven singles from 1954 remained in the top 10 for several weeks at the beginning of the year, while "Meet Me on the Corner" by Max Bygraves, " Suddenly There's a Valley" by Petula Clark and "Twenty Tiny Fingers" by The Stargazers were all released in 1955 but did not reach their peak until 1956. "No One But You" by

Billy Eckstine William Clarence Eckstine (July 8, 1914 – March 8, 1993) was an American jazz and pop singer and a bandleader during the swing and bebop eras. He was noted for his rich, almost operatic bass-baritone voice. In 2019, Eckstine was posthumously ...

, "

The Finger of Suspicion (Points at You) "The Finger of Suspicion (Points at You)" is a popular song written by Paul Mann and Al Lewis, and published in 1954. It was recorded by Dickie Valentine in the United Kingdom and by Jane Froman in the United States. Valentine's version reached ...

" by Dickie Valentine with The Stargazers and "Heartbeat" by

Ruby Murray Ruby Florence Murray (29 March 1935 – 17 December 1996) was a Northern Irish singer. One of the most popular singers in the British Isles in the 1950s, she scored ten hits in the UK Singles Chart between 1954 and 1959. She also made pop chart ...

were the songs from 1954 to reach their peak in 1955. Nineteen artists scored multiple entries in the top 10 in 1955.

Bill Haley & His Comets Bill Haley & His Comets were an American rock and roll band founded in 1947 that continued until Haley's death in 1981. The band was also known as Bill Haley and the Comets and Bill Haley's Comets. From late 1954 to late 1956, the group record ...

Malcolm Vaughan Malcolm Vaughan (22 March 1929 – 9 February 2010) was a Welsh traditional pop music singer and actor. Known for his distinctive tenor voice, he had a number of chart hits in the United Kingdom during the 1950s. Biography Born Malcolm James Th ...

, Slim Whitman, Teresa Brewer and Tony Martin were among the many artists who achieved their first UK charting top 10 single in 1955. The 1954

Christmas number-one In the United Kingdom, Christmas number ones are singles that top the UK Singles Chart in the week in which Christmas Day falls. The singles have often been novelty songs, charity songs or songs with a Christmas theme. Historically, the volume ...

, "

Let's Have Another Party "Let's Have Another Party" is a 1954 ragtime composition which became a number one hit in the UK Singles Chart for the pianist Winifred Atwell. It is a composite of several pieces of music, and was a follow up to Atwell's successful hit "Let's Have ...

" by Winifred Atwell, remained at number-one for the first week of 1955. The first new number-one single of the year was " The Finger of Suspicion" by Dickie Valentine with The Stargazers. Overall, fifteen different singles peaked at number-one in 1955, with Dickie Valentine and Jimmy Young (2) having the joint most singles hit that position.

Background

Multiple entries

Eighty singles charted in the top 10 in 1955, with seventy-two singles reaching their peak this year. Nine songs were recorded by several artists with each version reaching the top 10: *" A Blossom Fell" - Dickie Valentine, Nat King Cole, Ronnie Hilton *"

Cherry Pink (and Apple Blossom White) "Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White" or "Cerezo Rosa" or "Ciliegi Rosa" or "Gummy Mambo", is the English version of "Cerisiers Roses et Pommiers Blancs", a popular song with music by Louiguy written in 1950. French lyrics to the song by Jacq ...

" -

Eddie Calvert Albert Edward "Eddie" Calvert (15 March 1922 – 7 August 1978) was an English trumpeter, who enjoyed his greatest success in the 1950s. Between 1953 and 1958, Calvert achieved seven instrumental hits on the UK Singles Chart, including two ch ...

, Pérez 'Prez' Prado and His Orchestra *"Hey There" - Johnnie Ray,

Rosemary Clooney Rosemary Clooney (May 23, 1928 – June 29, 2002) was an American singer and actress. She came to prominence in the early 1950s with the song "Come On-a My House", which was followed by other pop numbers such as " Botch-a-Me", " Mambo Italiano", ...

*" Let Me Go, Lover!" -

Dean Martin Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor and comedian. One of the most popular and enduring American entertainers of the mid-20th century, Martin was nicknamed "The King of Cool". M ...

, Teresa Brewer with The Lancers *"

Mr. Sandman "Mr. Sandman" (or "Mister Sandman") is a popular song written by Pat Ballard and published in 1954. It was first recorded in May of that year by Vaughn Monroe & His Orchestra and later that year by the Chordettes and the Four Aces. The song's ly ...

" - Dickie Valentine, The Four Aces *" Stranger in Paradise" - The Four Aces, Tony Bennett, Tony Martin *"

The Naughty Lady of Shady Lane "The Naughty Lady of Shady Lane" is a popular song written by Sid Tepper and Roy C. Bennett. Background The lyrics suggest that this "naughty lady" driving the whole town crazy is an attractive young woman who "throws those come-hither glances at ...

" -

The Ames Brothers ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

, Dean Martin *" Unchained Melody" -

Al Hibbler Albert George Hibbler (August 16, 1915 – April 24, 2001) was an American baritone vocalist, who sang with Duke Ellington's orchestra before having several pop hits as a solo artist. Some of Hibbler's singing is classified as rhythm and blue ...

, Jimmy Young, Les Baxter *"

Under the Bridges of Paris "Under the Bridges of Paris" is a 1913 popular song with music written by Vincent Scotto, the original French lyrics (entitled "''Sous les ponts de Paris''") by Jean Rodor (1913), and English sections of lyrics added by Dorcas Cochran (1952) res ...

" - Dean Martin,

Eartha Kitt Eartha Kitt (born Eartha Mae Keith; January 17, 1927 – December 25, 2008) was an American singer and actress known for her highly distinctive singing style and her 1953 recordings of "C'est si bon" and the Christmas novelty song "Santa Ba ...

Nineteen artists scored multiple entries in the top 10 in 1955.

secured the record for most top 10 hits in 1955 with seven hit singles. The Stargazers were one of a number of artists with three top-ten entries, including the number-one single "

, The Four Aces, Johnnie Ray and The Mellomen were among the other artists who had multiple top 10 entries in 1955.

Chart debuts

Twenty-six artists achieved their first top 10 single in 1955, either as a lead or featured artist.

and Slim Whitman both had two other entries in their breakthrough year. The following table (collapsed on desktop site) does not include acts who had previously charted as part of a group and secured their first top 10 solo single.

Songs from films

Original songs from various films entered the top 10 throughout the year. These included "

" (from '' Underwater!''), " Ready, Willing and Able" ('' Young at Heart''), "

Rose Marie Rose Marie (born Rose Marie Mazzetta; August 15, 1923 – December 28, 2017) was an American actress, singer, comedian, and vaudeville performer with a career ultimately spanning nine decades, which included film, radio, records, theater, night ...

" & "

Indian Love Call "Indian Love Call" (first published as "The Call") is a popular song from ''Rose-Marie'', a 1924 operetta-style Broadway musical with music by Rudolf Friml and Herbert Stothart, and book and lyrics by Otto Harbach and Oscar Hammerstein II. Origi ...

" (''

''), "John and Julie" (''John and Juliet''), "

The Man from Laramie ''The Man from Laramie'' is a 1955 American Western film directed by Anthony Mann and starring James Stewart, Arthur Kennedy, Donald Crisp, and Cathy O'Donnell. Written by Philip Yordan and Frank Burt, the film is about a stranger who defies ...

" (''

''), " The Yellow Rose of Texas" ('' Giant'') and "

Rock Around the Clock "Rock Around the Clock" is a rock and roll song in the 12-bar blues format written by Max C. Freedman and James E. Myers (the latter being under the pseudonym "Jimmy De Knight") in 1952. The best-known and most successful rendition was record ...

" (''

Blackboard Jungle ''Blackboard Jungle'' is a 1955 American social drama film about an English teacher in an interracial inner-city school, based on the 1954 novel ''The Blackboard Jungle'' by Evan Hunter and adapted for the screen and directed by Richard Brooks. I ...

''). Additionally, " Stranger in Paradise" (from the film '' Kismet'') was covered by several artists who took it into the top 10 ( The Four Aces, Tony Bennett and Tony Martin) and " Unchained Melody - nominated for Best Original Song at the Academy Awards for the original version by Todd Duncan - was recorded by

, Jimmy Young and Les Baxter, His Chorus & Orchestra, while " Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing" from the film of the same name entered the charts in a version by The Four Aces featuring

Al Alberts Al Alberts (born Al Albertini, August 10, 1922 – November 27, 2009) was an American popular singer and composer. Biography Born Al Albertini in Chester, Pennsylvania, United States, he went to South Philadelphia High School. As a teenager, h ...

. " Hernando's Hideaway" from '' The Pajama Game'' reached the top 10 after being released by

The Johnston Brothers The Johnston Brothers were a vocal group who had a No. 1 hit in the UK Singles Chart in 1955 with their cover version of "Hernando's Hideaway". The group was formed by Johnny Johnston (born John Harold Johnston, 10 July 1919 – 10 June 1998, Lon ...

, and Fats Domino's version of " Ain't That a Shame" - covered by Pat Boone - was used in " Shake, Rattle & Rock!".

Best-selling singles

Until 1970 there was no universally recognised year-end best-sellers list. However in 2011 the Official Charts Company released a list of the best-selling single of each year in chart history from 1952 to date. According to the list, "

" by Slim Whitman is officially recorded as the biggest-selling single of 1955. "

" by

(1) was ranked as the best-selling single of the decade.

Top-ten singles

;Key

Entries by artist

The following table shows artists who achieved two or more top 10 entries in 1955, including singles that reached their peak in 1954 or 1956. The figures include both main artists and featured artists. The total number of weeks an artist spent in the top ten in 1955 is also shown.

Notes

* "Hold My Hand" re-entered the top 10 at number 7 on 13 January 1955 (week ending). * "This Ole House" re-entered the top 10 at number 5 on 4 November 1954 (week ending) for 10 weeks and at number 10 on 20 January 1955 (week ending) for 2 weeks. * "Rain Rain Rain" re-entered the top 10 at number 9 on 16 December 1954 (week ending) for 4 weeks and at number 8 on 27 January 1955 (week ending). * "Give Me Your Word" is recorded as the best-selling single of the year by some sources but the Official Charts Company lists "Rose Marie" as its best-seller. * "The Naughty Lady of Shady Lane" (Dean Martin version) re-entered the top 10 at number 7 on 24 March 1955 (week ending). * "Let Me Go Lover" (Teresa Brewer with The Lancers version) re-entered the top 10 at number 10 on 24 March 1955 (week ending). * "Ready, Willing and Able" re-entered the top 10 at number 9 on 21 April 1955 (week ending) for 2 weeks. * "If You Believe" re-entered the top 10 at number 8 on 9 June 1955 (week ending) for 3 weeks. * "Unchained Melody" (Les Baxter version) re-entered the top 10 at number 10 on 30 June 1955 (week ending). * "Indian Love Call" re-entered the top 10 at number 10 on 13 October 1955 (week ending). * "Blue Star" was used as the theme music to the television series '' Medic''. * "Rock Around the Clock" re-entered the top 10 at number 8 on 18 October 1956 (week ending) for 5 weeks. * "Suddenly There's a Valley" re-entered the top 10 at number 9 on 29 December 1955 (week ending) for 4 weeks. * Figures includes single that first charted in 1954 but peaked in 1955. * Figure includes single that peaked in 1954. * Figure includes single that peaked in 1956.

References

General * Specific

External links

1955 singles chart archive
at the Official Charts Company (click on relevant week) {{UK Music Charts 1955 record charts

1955 in British music

Background

Multiple entries

Chart debuts

Songs from films

Best-selling singles

Top-ten singles

Entries by artist

Notes

See also

References

External links