If your favorite song made it to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart back in 1973, it was inevitably knocked down from the spot by other tracks. That’s just how the charts go, after all. The following three rock and country songs usurped other hits on the chart that year, and any of the six songs mentioned might just be one of your favorites. Let’s take a look!
“You’re So Vain” by Carly Simon
“You’re So Vain” by Carly Simon was released in 1972 and continued to chart in 1973. In fact, this famous breakup tune knocked “Me And Mrs. Jones” by Billy Paul from the No. 1 spot on the Hot 100 chart on January 6, 1973. “You’re So Vain” stayed at the top spot on the Hot 100 for three weeks and spent an impressive 17 total weeks on the chart. Billy Paul’s hit spent three weeks at No. 1 and 16 weeks total on the chart before Simon took his spot.
Videos by American Songwriter
“The Night The Lights Went Out In Georgia” by Vicki Lawrence
This country ballad was a surprising hit for the often pop-oriented Hot 100 chart. This song hit No. 1 on the Hot 100 on April 7, 1973, effectively knocking “Killing Me Softly With His Song” by Roberta Flack from the top spot. Vicki Lawrence’s hit track, “The Night The Lights Went Out In Georgia”, spent two weeks at that No. 1 spot, and Flack’s famous tune previously spent five weeks at that tippy-top spot before Lawrence took over.
“My Love” by Paul McCartney and Wings
“My Love” by Paul McCartney and Wings reached the No. 1 spot on the Hot 100 chart on June 2, 1973, where it usurped the spot previously held by “Frankenstein” by Edgar Winter Group. This is one of the most well-remembered No. 1 tracks from 1973, and a go-to favorite among McCartney fans today.
“My Love” hit No. 1 on April 14, 1973, and stayed at No. 1 for a whole month. The song also spent 18 total weeks on the Hot 100. Edgar Winter Group’s No. 1 instrumental hit spent one week at the top spot before McCartney knocked them down, but they also spent a whopping 20 weeks on the board in total.
Photo by Reg Lancaster/Daily Express/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
More The List
-
MINNEAPOLIS – 1986: Jack Hues of the band Wang Chung performs In Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1986. (Photo by Jim Steinfeldt/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images) -
(MANDATORY CREDIT Ebet Roberts/Getty Images) UNSPECIFIED – JANUARY 01: Photo of Lisa LOEB; Lisa Loeb performing on stage (Photo by Ebet Roberts/Redferns) -
UNITED KINGDOM – DECEMBER 15: THANK YOUR LUCKY STARS Photo of BEATLES and Paul McCARTNEY, of the Beatles, performing at Alpha Television Studios, Aston, Birmingham (Photo by David Farrell/Redferns) -
UNITED KINGDOM – JANUARY 01: Photo of Loretta LYNN (Photo by Sylvia Pitcher/Redferns) -
Photo by Adam Ritchie/Redferns -
CIRCA 1966: John Lennon of the rock and roll band "The Beatles" poses for a portrait in circa 1966. (Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images) -
Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day performs at Arco Arena on August 24, 2009 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images) -
MADRID, SPAIN – JULY 20: Elwood Francis and Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top perform on stage during Noches del Botanico music festival at Real Jardin Botanico Alfonso XIII on July 20, 2026 in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by Mariano Regidor/Getty Images)