Notable singles from each decade...

Mary’s Boy Child, by Harry Belafonte (1957)

Belafonte, right, was the first black artist to hold the British No 1 spot.

Music fans who came of age in the 1970s rather than the 1950s may be more familiar with Boney M’s disco-tinged version.

Bubbling under: Great Balls Of Fire, by Jerry Lee Lewis; Jailhouse Rock, by Elvis Presley; Three Coins In The Fountain, by Frank Sinatra.

I Want To Hold Your Hand, by The Beatles (1963)

We couldn’t not have The Beatles, could we? The Fab Four had 17 No 1s.

Along with She Loves You, this was a huge hit Stateside and kick-started the so-called British Invasion.

That in turn introduced millions of American teenagers to bands such as The Rolling Stones, gave the 1960s its initial swing and made London the centre of the pop music world.

Bubbling under: Good Vibrations, by The Beach Boys; (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction, by The Rolling Stones; Je t’aime…moi non plus, by Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg.

Bohemian Rhapsody, by Queen (1975)

When is a pop song not a pop song? When it’s six minutes long, has no chorus, name-checks Beelzebub and is sung by Freddie Mercury in an operatic falsetto.

Nobody whose musical entertainment came from charts-based daytime radio had heard anything like it.

Bubbling under: I Feel Love, by Donna Summer; Dancing Queen, by Abba;

Are Friends Electric?, by Tubeway Army

Do They Know It’s Christmas?, by Band Aid (1984)

The pop single as novelty item was well established but it was Midge Ure, left, and Bob Geldof who had the wit to turn it into a humanitarian tool by bashing out a song in a day or so, forming a supergroup from leading pop acts and using the proceeds to help tackle famine in Ethiopia.

It was recorded at the end of November and, by

December 31, racked up more than three million sales.

Bubbling under: Ghost Town, by The Specials; Billie Jean, by Michael Jackson; West End Girls, by Pet Shop Boys.

Don’t Look Back In Anger, by Oasis (1996)

With a sneer and a chunky guitar riff, Mancunians ruled the 1990s, bringing a swagger that glossier pop acts couldn’t muster.

This was the first Oasis single to feature Noel Gallagher, left, on vocals.

Bubbling under: Brimful Of Asha, by Cornershop; Firestarter, by The Prodigy; Nothing Compares 2 U, by Sinead O’connor

Crazy In Love, by Beyonce (2003)

Beyonce Giselle Knowles, formerly of R&B trio Destiny’s Child, was destined for a game-changing solo career when the band hit pause following 2001 album Survivor.

Crazy In Love spent three weeks at No 1 and you could say that, since then, it has been Queen Bey’s world – the rest of us just live in it.

Bubbling under: Can’t Get You Out Of My Head, by

Kylie Minogue; The Real Slim Shady, by Eminem; Toxic, by Britney Spears.

Someone Like You, by Adele (2011)

Pop music turned pretty maudlin after the 2008 financial crisis. Generally, most people were sad – and nobody in pop music does sad better than Adele, left. Returning narrative to the heart of pop music, she crafted a song that really does leave them sobbing in the aisles.

Bubbling under: Get Lucky, by Daft Punk; Royals, by Lorde; Shape Of You, by Ed Sheeran

No Time To Die, by Billie Eilish (2020)

If there is an artist who speaks to and for the young cohort worst affected by Covid and lockdown – let’s call it Generation C – it’s Eilish, left. “Fool me once, fool me twice,” she sings in what is one of the gloomiest yet most resonant No 1 singles ever.

Bubbling under: Running Up That Hill, by Kate Bush; Anti-hero, by Taylor Swift, WAP, by Cardi B.