#1 Song In 1997 Review

| Song | Artist | Weeks at #1 | |------|--------|--------------| | Candle in the Wind 1997 | Elton John | 14 | | I’ll Be Missing You | Puff Daddy feat. Faith Evans & 112 | 11 | | Un-Break My Heart | Toni Braxton | 11 (late 1996–early 1997)* | | Wannabe | Spice Girls | 4 | | MMMBop | Hanson | 3 | | Foolish Games / You Were Meant for Me | Jewel | 4 |

– Elton John "You Were Meant for Me" / "Foolish Games" – Jewel

According to Billboard data, these were the top 10 tracks of the year: #1 song in 1997

In the United States, Elton John’s "Candle in the Wind 1997" was a statistical juggernaut. Rewritten by Bernie Taupin to honor the recently deceased Princess Diana, the song became the best-selling single of all time in the UK and shattered records in the US. It is a peculiar artifact: a tribute to a pop culture icon, sung by a pop culture icon, rewriting a tribute to a movie icon (Marilyn Monroe). It was the sonic equivalent of a state funeral—grand, weeping, and inescapable.

Ultimately, the number one song of 1997 acts as a mirror. If you were listening to Elton John, you were participating in a collective, traditional mourning of a fallen icon. If you were listening to Puff Daddy, you were witnessing the maturation of a genre that would come to define the next two decades of music. Both songs proved that in a year of technological optimism and shiny pop excess, the human ear still gravitated toward the sound of the heart breaking. The number one song of 1997 wasn't a beat to dance to; it was a shoulder to cry on. | Song | Artist | Weeks at #1

Note: Some year-end charts factor in points from late 1996 into 1997, but by almost every measure, Elton John’s single was unstoppable.

The song's success was swift and unprecedented. "MMMBop" debuted at #26 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and quickly rose to the top spot, staying there for four consecutive weeks. It also reached #1 on the Billboard Mainstream Top 40 and Rhythmic 40 charts. The song's popularity wasn't limited to the US; it topped the charts in several countries, including Australia, Canada, and the UK. It is a peculiar artifact: a tribute to

If you exclude the Diana tribute single, the biggest #1 song of 1997 is: