A Look Back at Olivia Newton-John’s 5 US No. 1 Singles

Olivia Newton-John’s sunny disposition and disarming modesty masked the fact that she was a pop music sensation. She maintained her highest levels of success for a much longer stretch than most artists.

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Newton-John’s dominance of the US pop charts is evidenced by the fact that she delivered five chart-topping singles in her career. These five songs show just how well she navigated the ever-shifting tastes of music fans.

“I Honestly Love You” (1974)

Early in her career, Olivia Newton-John was caught somewhat betwixt and between in terms of her style of music. She was briefly positioned as a country artist. And she occasionally seemed poised at times to have a Linda Ronstadt-like career of covering top artists. (Remember that her first big hit was a cover of Bob Dylan’s “If Not For You”.) But she started to really surge when she took hold of ballads that weren’t yet known that well. As a result, she could put her stamp on these songs, such as the achingly vulnerable performance she lends to “I Honestly Love You”.

“Have You Never Been Mellow” (1975)

Olivia Newton-John’s music career really began to soar once she hooked up professionally with John Farrar. An Australian musician of several different well-known bands. Farrar became Newton-John’s primary songwriter and producer in the mid-70s. He wrote “Have You Never Been Mellow”. On this track, Newton-John’s pillowy-soft, dreamy vocals seem to be the very embodiment of mellowness. Only 26 when the song was released, she came across as a convincing voice of wisdom to the friend she advises in the lyrics.

“You’re The One That I Want” (1978)

When Olivia Newton-John joined the cast of Grease, she brought John Farrar with her. Keep in mind that the original musical featured an extremely beloved batch of songs. But Farrar had the temerity to insist that he be allowed to write a few songs tailored to Newton-John. Those two songs: “You’re The One That I Want” and “Hopelessly Devoted To You”, No. 1 and No. 3 hits, respectively. The former song displayed the indelible chemistry between Newton-John and John Travolta. Pop audiences of the day ate it up and, subsequently, had “chills multiplyin’”.

“Magic” (1980)

One of the first projects to define the 80s as a decade in pop culture that would embrace excess, Xanadu, as a movie, dared to throw Olivia Newton-John, Gene Kelly, and roller disco into an unholy stew. Oh, and don’t forget ELO, who got roped into providing half of the soundtrack album, plus a collaboration with Newton-John on the peppy title track. Meanwhile, John Farrar delivered “Magic”, delivered by Newton-John at her most ethereal and sultry. Even in the midst of a film flop, Olivia still soared on the pop charts.

“Physical” (1981)

Legend has it that Olivia Newton-John had second thoughts about recording this massive hit, one of the biggest of the 80s. But it was too late to pull it out of circulation once her regrets overtook her. Of course, history shows that it’s a good thing that she didn’t. One wonders if Rod Stewart, the intended artist of songwriters Steve Kipner and Terry Shaddick, would have enjoyed the same type of success. Perhaps, but it’s the juxtaposition of Newton-John’s pristine image with the tawdry inferences of the lyrics that makes it work.

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