The Top 50 Adult Contemporary Artists Ever

 

 

 

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10

Anne Murray

The Canadian singer's arrival with the six-week No. 1 "Snowbird" in 1970 marked the start of an AC chart career that now totals 41 entries, 18 top 10s and eight No. 1s. Murray often appeared on Glen Campbell's (see No. 25) TV series "Goodtime Hour."

 

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9

Lionel Richie

The R&B crooner extraordinaire has notched 27 solo AC hits after leaving the Commodores, including 11 No. 1s. He's spent 47 weeks at No. 1 as a soloist, second only to Elton John for most frames in charge for a male artist.

 

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8

Carpenters

The highest ranking of two duos on this countdown (see No. 33) racked 15 No. 1s, the second-best AC total, between 1969 and 1981. The New Haven, Conn., brother/sister team of Richard and Karen encapsulated the format at its gentlest, one of AC's defining traits. Sadly, Karen passed away at 32, from heart failure due to anorexia nervosa, in 1983.

 

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7

Billy Joel

The Bronx, N.Y.-born Piano Man (known to be taken by a certain Uptown Girl), tallied 37 AC hits between 1974 and 1997. The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer wrote his first 31 chart entries, a string broken when he covered Presley's "All Shook Up" (No. 15) in 1992. Joel has banked 22 AC top 10s, including eight No. 1s.

 

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6

Chicago

While the Carpenters are Billboard's top all-time AC duo, Chicago takes the title among groups with more than two members. The band, with songs sung by the likes of Peter Cetera, Jason Scheff and Bill Champlin, has totaled 40 AC hits, including 23 top 10s and eight No. 1s, between 1970 and 2006.

 

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5

Kenny Rogers

No one has enjoyed more country-to-AC chart success than Rogers (who's also notably tasted victory in the restaurant business, thanks to his Kenny Rogers Roasters chain). His 47 AC hits are tied for seventh-best; his 28 top 10s are sixth-best; and, his eight No. 1s are tied for 10th-best in the chart's history.

 

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4

Barry Manilow

Since arriving with the No. 1 "Mandy" in 1974, Manilow's AC totals stand at 47 chart entries, 27 top 10s and a third-best 13 No. 1s. The evergreen singer, who just scored his 13th Billboard 200 top 10 album ("15 Minutes: Fame... Can You Take It?"), and sixth since 2002, never saw one of his most famous compositions take a bite out of the AC chart: the jingle he wrote for McDonalds, "You Deserve a Break Today."

 

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3

Barbra Streisand

Men take the top two spots on this list, so that makes Babs Billboard's all-time AC queen. She holds the records among women for most AC chart entries (64) and top 10s (35) in a chart history that dates to the No. 1 "People" in 1964.

 

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2

Neil Diamond

Did you watch the 2011 Billboard Music Awards? If so, you know that the festivities ended with Diamond leading a sing-along of "Sweet Caroline" after an evening of performances by artists born long after his career had begun. Our inaugural "Billboard Icon" award winner has tallied 37 AC top 10s dating to his chart debut in 1969. Diamond is the only artist to grace the survey in each decade of its half-century existence.

 

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1

Elton John

Sir Reginald Dwight is Billboard's all-time AC chart king. John holds the records for most AC No. 1s (16), top 10s (38) and chart entries (68), dating to his grand entrance with "Your Song" in 1970. Having recently hosted "Saturday Night Live" and scored his highest-charting Billboard 200 album (the No. 3 "The Union," with Leon Russell) since 1976, clearly the musical and cultural icon is still standing strong.

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via billboard.com