Olivia Newton-John's Biggest Hits, Ranked
Olivia Newton-John, the beloved actress and singer known for her role as Sandy Olsson in Grease and for the 1981 hit "Physical," passed away on August 8, 2022 at 73 years old.
The news was confirmed by her official Facebook page, in a statement, “Dame Olivia Newton-John (73) passed away peacefully at her Ranch in Southern California this morning, surrounded by family and friends. We ask that everyone please respect the family’s privacy during this very difficult time”. Her only child, Chloe Lattanzi posted a beautiful collection of throwbacks on her instagram account.
Dame Olivia Newton-John was a British-born Australian raised singer, songwriter, actress, entrepreneur and activist who got her start in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1974. In addition to five number-one hits on the Billboard Hot 100, the Grease star also has ten top-ten hits on the Billboard 200, including “If You Love Me”, “Let Me Know”, and “Have You Never Been Mellow."
Olivia Newton-John is one of the most successful music artists of the second half of the 20th century with more than 100 million records sold worldwide. As a longtime advocate for environmental and animal rights issues, as well as health awareness, she participated in various charities and fundraisers. Aside from launching multiple product lines for Koala Blue, she co-owns the Gaia Retreat & Spa in her native Australia. Here are Olivia Newton-John’s top ten songs ranked by the Billboard Hot 100.
10 "Heart Attack" (1982)
“Heart Attack” is the first single from her second 'greatest hits' album Olivia's Greatest Hits Vol. 2 in 1982. The song peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 46 on the UK Singles chart. “Heart Attack” was also a top ten hit in other countries like Canada(2), South Africa(4), Norway(5) and Austria(7). Newton-John was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance in 1983 for “Heart Attack”.
9 "Hopelessly Devoted To You" with John Travolta (1978)
Originally performed by Newton-John in the film version of the musical Grease in 1978, “Hopelessly Devoted To You” was released in Australia that same year when it peaked at No. 2. It reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 7 on the Adult Contemporary chart. The song peaked at number 20 on the country chart, her first top 20 hit in two years. Olivia performed the song at the 21st Grammy Awards in 1979. At the 51st Academy Awards, the song was nominated for Best Original Song, but lost to "Last Dance" from Thank God It's Friday.
8 "Let Me Be There" (1974)
“Let Me Be There” was first recorded by Olivia Newton-John and released as the second single from her studio album of the same name in 1973. This country-influenced song was Newton-John's first U.S. Top 10 single, peaking at No. 6, and won her a Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocalist. The bass vocal harmony on the song was sung by Mike Sammes.
7 "I Honestly Love You" (1974)
The song was the first US and Canadian number one hit for her in 1974. Up until the 1981 hit "Physical", it was her signature solo song. "I Love You, I Honestly Love You" was the single's original title in Australia. The single won both Record of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female at the 17th Grammy Awards in 1975. Additionally, It was nominated for Song of the Year, but lost to "The Way We Were".
6 "Have You Never Been Mellow" (1975)
“Have You Never Been Mellow” became Newton-John's second consecutive number-one hit on the Billboard Hot 100, in March 1975. In addition to topping the Adult Contemporary chart, it peaked at number three on the Hot Country Songs chart, continuing her crossover success.
The song also became her fourth consecutive single to be certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). In addition to reaching number one in Canada and number ten in Australia, the song was nominated for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female at the 18th Annual Grammy Awards, but lost to Janis Ian's "At Seventeen."
5 "Please Mr. Please" (1975)
The song was written by Bruce Welch and John Rostill, both members of Cliff Richard's backing band, The Shadows. It was first recorded by Welch in 1974 without any commercial success. In 1975, Olivia Newton-John recorded and released her version of “Please Mr. Please” as the second single from her fifth studio album, Have You Never Been Mellow.
It peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 5 on Billboard’s Hot Country Singles Chart.
4 "A Little More Love" (1979)
"A Little More Love" was released in 1978 as the lead single from her tenth studio album, Totally Hot. It was a worldwide hit, peaking at No. 4 on the UK Singles chart and No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100. In Canada, it spent three weeks at No. 2, and was the seventh-biggest Canadian hit of 1979. Billboard magazine ranked "A Little More Love" as the 17th most popular song of 1979.
3 "You're the One That I Want" with John Travolta (1978)
"You're the One That I Want" is performed by actor and singer John Travolta and alongside Olivia Newton-John for Grease. It was released in May 1978 as the second single from Grease: The Original Soundtrack from the Motion Picture.
Today, it is one of the best-selling singles in history, with over 4 million copies sold in the United States and the United Kingdom alone, and estimates of more than 15 million copies sold globally. Despite the success of the song, it spent just one week at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.
2 "Magic" (1980)
Billboard magazine ranked "Magic" as the third most popular single of 1980, behind only "Call Me" by Blondie and "Another Brick in the Wall, Part II" by Pink Floyd. The single spent four weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 beginning on 2 August 1980. On August 30, it was booted from its peak position by Christopher Cross’ "Sailing".
In Canada, the single spent two weeks at number one, it also reached No. 4 in Australia and No. 32 in the UK. “Magic” also became Olivia Newton-John's biggest Adult Contemporary hit, spending five weeks at the top of the US chart, and also topped the Canadian Adult Contemporary chart for a single week.
1 "Physical" (1981)
“Physical” is the most successful song in Olivia Newton-John’s catalog. It was the lead single of her 1981 album of the same name. The song was an instant hit, selling two million copies in the U.S., where it was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and spent 10 weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100 cementing her legacy in pop superstardom, a journey that began on the Eurovision Song Contest.
The song was banned in some markets due to its suggestive lyrics but however helped to change Newton-John's long-standing image from clean-cut to sexy and assertive, a persona that was solidified with her follow-up hits like "Make a Move on Me", "Twist of Fate" and "Soul Kiss."
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