There are so very, very many songs in the world, but only some of them remain popular for decades after they were first released. Remember, just because a track is a hit doesn’t mean it’s going to stick around (we’re looking at you Nickelback).
In a search to discover which songs are the world’s most timeless, data scientist Matt Daniels has analysed all Spotify plays from 2014 to determine which tracks remain the most listened-to, and while his results seem pretty accurate, there are a few surprises.
Daniels originally set out to prove that Blackstreet’s No Diggity — yes, the one covered by Chet Faker — is a timeless tune. While Daniels did prove that No Diggity is timeless, the song came 24th on his list of today’s most-listened-to Billboard hits from between 1950 and 2005.
The rest of the list is made of up classics like the most-played ’90s song, Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit; the most-played ’80s song, Journey’s Don’t Stop Believing; and the most-played ’70s song, Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody.
Daniels says that his data is “skewed” because Spotify users tend to be young, meaning his list “more-or-less represents a generation in their mid-20s”. What’s more, The Beatles aren’t on Spotify. Nor is Taylor Swift, for that matter.
That said, there is one clear winner in Daniels’ study, and the final result might surprise you. Catch the list of the 25 most timeless songs according to Spotify, below.
Spotify data has previously been used to map out the songs which define cities around the world, rank the top metal genres and find the world’s most popular genre.
Catch the rest of Daniels’ interactive Spotify data, including the most timeless rappers from 1986 to 1999, over at Polygraph.
Gallery: The 25 Most Timeless Songs From 1950 To 2005, According To Spotify
The 25 Most Timeless Songs, According To Spotify
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1 Nirvana
25. 'Come As You Are' — Nirvana (1992): 30,368,401 Plays -
2 Blackstreet
24. 'No Diggity' — Blackstreet (1996): 30,911,317 Plays -
3 Dr Dre
23. 'The Next Episode' — Dr. Dre (2000) 31,793,183 Plays -
4 Tracy Chapman
22. 'Fast Car' — Tracy Chapman (1988): 32,092,736 Plays -
5 Kanye
21. 'Gold Digger' — Kanye West (2005): 32,113,198 Plays -
6 Beyonce
20. 'Crazy In Love' — Beyonce (2003): 32,150,597 Plays -
7 Queen
19. 'Bohemian Rhapsody' — Queen (1975): 32,298,690 Plays -
8 Green Day
18. 'Boulevard Of Broken Dreams' — Green Day (2004): 32,343,283 Plays -
9 Rhcp
17. 'Under The Bridge' — Red Hot Chili Peppers (1992): 33,625,240 Plays -
10 Survivor
16. 'Eye Of The Tiger' — Survivor (1982): 34,225,439 Plays -
11 Oasis
15. 'Wonderwall' — Oasis (1996): 34,352,877 Plays -
12 Goo Goo Dolls
14. 'Iris' — Goo Goo Dolls (1998): 35,669,952 Plays -
13 Eminem
13. 'Mockingbird' — Eminem (2005): 36,065,242 Plays -
14 Mariah Carey
12. 'All I Want For Christmas Is You' — Mariah Carey (2000): 36,253,472 Plays -
15 Rhcp
11. 'Californication' — Red Hot Chili Peppers (2000): 38,190,230 Plays -
16 Coldplay
10. 'Fix You' — Coldplay (2005): 38,912,539 Plays -
17 White Stripes
9. 'Seven Nation Army' — The White Stripes (2003): 39,559,321 Plays -
18 Mj
8. 'Billie Jean' — Michael Jackson (1983): 40,732,708 Plays -
19 Outkast
7. 'Hey Ya!' — OutKast (2003): 41,296,582 Plays -
LINKIN 4 HR
6. 'In The End' — Linkin Park (2001): 43,025,894 Plays -
21 Nirvana
5. 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' — Nirvana (1991): 50,657,282 Plays -
Journey
4. 'Don't Stop Believin'' — Journey (1981): 50,855,135 Plays -
23 Linkin Park
3. 'Numb' — Linkin Park (2003): 52,969,898 Plays -
24 The Killers
2. 'Mr. Brightside' — The Killers (2005): 54,367,533 Plays -
25 Eminem
1. 'Lose Yourself' - Eminem (2002): 59,039,765 Plays
