4 Songs From the 50s and 60s That Topped the Charts in 1987 via Cover Versions

You could look to just about any time in music history, and the phrase “all things old are new again” would make sense. Old styles and old songs have a way of popping back up when you least expect them.

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The year 1987 followed this adage more closely than other years on the calendar. That’s when a quartet of No. 1 hits all turned out to be covers of 50s and 60s classics.

“You Keep Me Hangin’ On” by Kim Wilde

When a song has a sturdy foundation, it can captivate audiences via different interpretations multiple times. “You Keep Me Hangin’ On”, written by Motown’s wonderful Holland-Dozier-Holland trio, first scored by hitting No. 1 for The Supremes in 1966. A heavy rock track by Vanilla Fudge made it to the Top 10 a year later. Why not turn it into a club-type dance track to update it for the 80s? That’s what Kim Wilde decided to do when she did a version of the song in 1986. Wilde, a British act who’d only scored a minor hit to that point with the song “Kids In America”, found the sweet spot for 80s audiences. “You Keep Me Hangin’ On” went back to No. 1 two decades after it first achieved the feat.

“La Bamba” by Los Lobos

Los Lobos has done a ton of amazing work in its career. The California band amassed a heaping helping of critical acclaim right from the get-go, and they continue to get it done today. We encourage you to check out their impressive catalog if all you know of them is their cover of Ritchie Valens’ “La Bamba”. Actually, to be more accurate, Valens himself was covering it, refurbishing a traditional song. By firing it up with the energy of early rock and roll, he created a sensation in 1958. Sadly, his plane crash death followed quickly on the heels of that success. Los Lobos’ faithful version preserved that spirit for the biopic of the same name.

“I Think We’re Alone Now” by Tiffany

Tommy James proved to be one of the consistent hitmakers of the 60s. In fact, don’t forget his name, because you’re going to be hearing it again real soon on this list. “I Think We’re Alone Now” was penned by Ritchie Cordell and Bo Gentry, although Gentry wasn’t credited due to a contractual situation. James heard the song as a demo when it featured a slow tempo, but had the wisdom to pep it up. That helped the song hit the Top 5 in 1967. Considering that the majority of the target audience for teen pop sensation Tiffany hadn’t been born the first time the song was a hit, it was a smart choice for her to modernize it. With some dance beats pasted onto the track that were very much of that era, Tiffany soared to the top of the charts.

“Mony Mony” by Billy Idol

There’s that Tommy James guy again. In the case of “Mony Mony”, James had a hand in writing the song, along with Ritchie Cordell, Bo Gentry, and Bobby Bloom. James apparently wanted to do a kind of mindless dance song. He stumbled upon the title when he noticed a sign for Mutual of New York on a Big Apple building. After James turned it into a dance classic, Billy Idol did a studio version in 1981. Five years later, Idol released a live take of the song in conjunction with a greatest hits compilation. That version made it to No. 1 in 1987. The song that replaced it at the top of the charts? You guessed it: Tiffany’s version of “I Think We’re Alone Now”, also first done by Tommy James.

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