# What song held the number one spot longest in 1980?

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/what-song-held-the-number-one-spot-longest-in-1980/
- Published: 2026-07-17T06:59:52+00:00
- Updated: 2026-08-03T00:15:58+00:00
- Original publisher: Far Out
- Original article: https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/what-song-held-the-number-one-spot-longest-in-1980/
- Topics: Entertainment, Music

## Key points

- The Police led the UK chart for four weeks.
- Kenny Rogers and Blondie jointly led the US chart for six weeks.
- 1980’s charts reflected a changing pop landscape.

## Summary

The article examines the longest-running number-one singles of 1980 in the UK and United States, using them to illustrate a musically varied year shaped by new wave, disco, pop and other emerging styles. It argues that chart success reflected the period’s transition into the 1980s, shortly before MTV’s launch and amid major changes in popular music.

In the UK, The Police’s ‘Don’t Stand So Close to Me’ spent four weeks at number one after its September release. In the US, the longest stays atop the Billboard Hot 100 were joint records of six weeks: Kenny Rogers’ ‘Lady’, written by Lionel Richie, and Blondie’s ‘Call Me’, produced by Giorgio Moroder and used in the film American Gigolo.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.