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There are four sources listed for end of year rankings. Billboard magazine is considered the standard and issued several weekly charts and a Top 100 at the end of the year. Cashbox also published its own weekly charts and compiled a year end Top 50 from 1956 to 1960, and then a Top 100 after that. Gilbert & Theroux published "The Top Ten 1956 - Present" in 1981 in which they ranked the Top 40 for each of those years. The EE rank is a calculated rank based on the weekly Billboard Top Twenty which includes all weeks a record was in the top twenty, allowing credit for performance by records that crossed over from one year to another. Any record that made the top forty of at least one of these sources is listed below -- sort by clicking on header. To view the listing for a specific source, click on the appropriate button to the right.
Click on the buttons below to access details about each particular set of rankings:
 
There was a lot of disagreement about the #1 song of 1963. Billboard tagged "Surfin' U.S.A." by The Beach Boys as the top record of the year. Cashbox had it at #16 and Gilbert & Theroux put it at #29. The EE ranking and Cashbox had "Limbo Rock" as #1 (its top spot on the chart was actually achieved in 1962 on December 22nd and again on December 29th) . Gilbert & Theroux listed Skeeter Davis's "The End of the World" as the best. There was also disagreement about the #2 record: Billboard = "The End of the World," Cashbox = "Go Away Little Girl" by Steve Lawrence, Gilbert & Theroux = "Blue Velvet" by Bobby Vinton, and the EE rank = "Sugar Shack" by Jimmy Gilmore & The Fireballs.
title artist BillBoard Rank Cashbox Ranking GT rank Year Power Rank
Be My Baby The Ronettes 35 44
33
Blame It On the Bossa Nova Eydie Gorme 24 32 39 65
Blowing in the Wind Peter, Paul & Mary 13 39 32 36
Blue Velvet Bobby Vinton 5 4 2 6
Busted Ray Charles 45 70
39
Can I Get a Witness Marvin Gaye

40 186
Can't Get Used to Losing You Andy Williams 8 8 7 28
Candy Girl The Four Seasons 39 50
40
Days Of Wine And Roses Henry Mancini 37

202
Deep Purple Nino Tempo & April Stevens 62 100 35 24
Denise Randy & the Rainbows 27 60
109
Dominique The Singing Nun

22 4
Easier Said Than Done The Essex 31 20 34 21
Fingertips - Part 2 Little Stevie Wonder 7 9 4 12
Forget Him Bobby Rydell

31 49
Go Away Little Girl Steve Lawrence 80 2 20 11
He's So Fine The Chiffons 4 13 6 7
Heat Wave Martha & the Vandellas 26 42
42
Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh Alan Sherman 71 97
38
Hello Stranger Barbara Lewis 34 38
58
Hey Paula Paul & Paula 6 14 8 5
I Love You Because Al Martino 15 27 24 54
I Will Follow Him Little Peggy March 20 6 12 14
I'm Leaving It Up To You Dale & Grace

21 17
If I Had a Hammer Trini Lopez 30 41
44
If You Wanna Be Happy Jimmy Soul 29 19 30 25
It's All Right The Impressions 85
11 60
It's My Party Lesley Gore 23 30 33 18
Limbo Rock Chubby Checker
1
1
Louie Louie The Kingsmen

18 3
Mockingbird Inez Foxx 19 22 23 87
My Boyfriend's Back The Angels 9 21 13 8
Our Day Will Come Ruby & the Romantics 33 23 40 29
Pipeline The Chantays 21 33 36 56
Puff, The Magic Dragon Peter, Paul & Mary 12 24 15 27
Rhythm of the Rain The Cascades 3 7 3 15
Ruby Baby Dion 32 25
32
She's a Fool Lesley Gore

9 57
Since I Fell For You Lenny Welch

30 41
So Much In Love The Tymes 11 12 10 23
South Street The Orlons 36 52
52
Sugar Shack Jimmy Gilmer & The Fireballs 40 68 14 2
Sukiyaki Kyu Sakamoto 10 29 19 13
Surf City Jan & Dean 22 26 29 20
Surfer Girl The Beach Boys
36
69
Surfin' U.S.A. The Beach Boys 1 16 5 34
Telstar The Tornadoes
5 22 10
The End of the World Skeeter Davis 2 3 1 26
The Monkey Time Major Lance 38 54
97
The Name Game Shirley Ellis 35 35 40 22
The Night Has a Thousand Eyes Bobby Vee 67 31
37
There I've Said It Again Bobby Vinton

27 9
Two Faces Have I Lou Christie 44 34
67
Up on the Roof The Drifters 64 11 28 76
Walk Like A Man The Four Seasons 18 18 18 16
Walk Right In The Rooftop Singers 28 17
19
Washington Square The Village Stompers 75
16 30
Wild Weekend The Rockin' Rebels 16 40 38 88
Wipe Out The Surfaris 14 45 37 35
You Can't Sit Down The Dovells 25 35
46
You're the Reason I'm Living Bobby Darin 17 28 27 31