Most played songs 2003-2008

[MrsSprat]

This made slightly depressing reading.

The five most played tracks, 2003-8

Bad Day - Daniel Powter
Because of You - Kelly Clarkson
You're Beautiful - James Blunt
I Don't Feel Like Dancin' - Scissor Sisters
Chasing Cars - Snow Patrol
Source: PRS

With the exception of the Scissors, how dull we are. Or how dull those radio station algorhythms are.

It's not so surprising really that the most popular music is the kind of stuff that you don't really notice and is used for background music. Anything too clearly sitting at a point on the spectrum away from the middle ground would not have the mass appeal. For example I could list half a dozen folk songs that I love from this period but just the word folk would turn a lot of people off, they may prefer hard rock, but we would both be able to sit in a pub with the above playing in the background and barely have an opinion about them.

it just goes to show how dull mainstream radio stations are.

it's onot only radio play/ music channells etc.
songs like "had a bad day" or "chasing cars" may have gotten a lot of play when they were flavour of the month, but where they have shot up the "most played" list is commercial/media.
they lend themselves to use in adds and tv shows/movies.
so every coffee/hot chocolate/fast food/ chocolate/sweet company has a ready made add for them thanks to that song. show someone have a shitty day then as the up beat chorus kicks in, show their husband/wife/child give them a bigmac/horlicks and everything is ok again, done and dusted.
these then get played about 50 times a day if the company is big enough, without anyone actually requesting it.