Review: Billboard Top Hits CDs

The nostalgic person I am, when I was around 15, I came across a series of CDs released by Billboard, the famous company whose chart magazines lists each week's top music performers, singles, and records. So when I came across the brightly colored CDs, each bearing a different year, I thought I would take a look at the back of the jewel case and see what the CDs had to offer. Lo and behold, the CDs contained songs that were at or near the top of the charts for each respective year. "How cool," I thought (I was 15, mind you).

With so many years being offered (spanning from the 1950s into the 1990s), I did not know where to start! After all, I not only feel patronage to the years of music I can recall (from the mid 80s on up), but to all years of music. Think of all the great hits that were produced over the last five decades.

I ended up starting my Billboard CD collection with 1981, the year of my birth. The songs included, which generally cover "pop" music, span the gamut in the Billboard collection. In the case of 1981, the range includes everything from easy listening, like Air Supply's "The One that You Love" to Kool and the Gang's disco hit "Celebration." Also included are Olivia Newton-John's dance hit "Physical," Dolly Parton's famous theme to the movie "9 to 5" and Kim Carnes' top-performer, "Bette Davis Eyes." In other words, if you are in the market for a good, inclusive review of music from any particular year, these Billboard CDs are certainly the answer.