It’s only right that the song that should rule them all is Her Madgesty’s very first Number 1, the song that started off a run of 13 Number 1 singles, more than any other female artist in British chart history.
Soundtracking Madonna’s big-screen debut in Desperately Seeking Susan, Into The Groove was a huge hit over summer 1985. Despite not having a proper video and thanks in part to not being available on Madonna’s Like A Virgin album – until a reissue solved that problem later on – Into The Groove stormed to the top of the Official Singles Chart and refused to budge for a month.
While Into The Groove may not hold the same affection for many as Holiday or Crazy For You still do, it still pretty much sums up Madonna’s whole ethos. “Only when I’m dancing can I feel this free,” she sings, barely pausing for breath, and she hasn’t stopped busting a move since.
An anthem fit for a queen, Into The Groove takes the throne – it’s her biggest selling song, and you can’t argue with that.
SALES: 878,000. Yep, that’s right, it’s not a million-seller. Madonna is one of the most successful acts of all time to still not nab a million-selling single.
CHART FACTS: Into The Groove is tied with Vogue and 4 Minutes for her longest stint at Number 1 – four weeks. It knocked Eurythmics’ There Must Be An Angel (Playing With My Heart) off the top. It was eventually toppled by UB40 and Chrissie Hynde with their cover of I Got You Babe.
Into The Groove also managed to keep Madonna herself off Number 1 – the rerelease of Holiday sat right behind it from 11–17 August 1985. Coincidentally, that was the week of Madonna’s 27th birthday.
> See the full Top 100 from that week
MADGE FACT: Into The Groove would later feature in a jeans commercial, with a guest appearance from Missy Elliott and with refreshed lyrics. Missy would later team up with Madonna, Britney and Christina on that MTV VMAs performance in 2003.
Other notable entries
Madonna’s 1990 Number 1 Vogue just misses a Top 10 placing, landing at Number 11 with over 530,000 sales.
Her most recent chart-topper 4 Minutes FT Justin Timberlake is just behind it at 12, with 507,000 copies sold.
Material Girl, a Number 3 hit in 1985 thanks to one of her most iconic videos, has to settle for 16th, with over 385,000 sales.
Justify My Love, which was pretty saucy back in the day, and launched Madonna's first greatest hits album The Immaculate Collection, comes in 23rd with 275,500 sales. The Immaculate Collection is one of the biggest-selling albums of all time.
Fan-favourite Gambler, which Madonna doesn’t seem to be that fond of and can be very hard to track down, finishes 25th, with a sales tally of 270,000. Its sandwiched between two of Madonna’s hugely overlooked hits Dress You Up and Angel, which both reached Number 5 despite having no video! The power of Madonna in 1985 – if you'd have been able to bottle it, you'd have ruled the world.
Madonna’s collaboration with Britney Spears, Me Against The Music, scrapes into the Top 40 at Number 39, but if you’re a Madonna purist and want to know which Madge solo effort Me Against The Music has pushed into 41st place? Well, it’s bad news for Erotica. That lands just outside.
Madonna’s biggest selling single not to go Top 10? That honour belongs to Lucky Star – a Number 14 hit in 1984 and finishing 42nd on her countdown.
Take a look at Madonna's full chart archive
Here’s the full Top 40:
TRACK CHART PEAK YEAR
1 INTO THE GROOVE 1 1985
2 LIKE A VIRGIN 3 1984
3 CRAZY FOR YOU 2 1985/1990
4 HOLIDAY 2 1984/1985/1990
5 PAPA DON'T PREACH 1 1986
6 HUNG UP 1 2005
7 LIKE A PRAYER 1 1989
8 TRUE BLUE 1 1986
9 FROZEN 1 1998
10 BEAUTIFUL STRANGER 2 1999
11 VOGUE 1 1990
12 4 MINUTES 1 2007
13 LA ISLA BONITA 1 1987
14 MUSIC 1 2000
15 AMERICAN PIE 1 2000
16 MATERIAL GIRL 3 1985
17 DON'T CRY FOR ME ARGENTINA 3 1996
18 WHO'S THAT GIRL 1 1987
19 BORDERLINE 2 1986
20 YOU'LL SEE 5 1995
21 RAY OF LIGHT 2 1998
22 LIVE TO TELL 2 1986
23 JUSTIFY MY LOVE 2 1990
24 DRESS YOU UP 5 1985
25 GAMBLER 4 1985
26 ANGEL 5 1985
27 OPEN YOUR HEART 4 1986
28 DEAR JESSIE 5 1989
29 HANKY PANKY 2 1990
30 SORRY 1 2006
31 DIE ANOTHER DAY 3 2002
32 CAUSING A COMMOTION 4 1987
33 CHERISH 3 1989
34 DON'T TELL ME 4 2000
35 EXPRESS YOURSELF 5 1989
36 THE POWER OF GOOD-BYE 6 1998
37 GIVE IT 2 ME 7 2008
38 THIS USED TO BE MY PLAYGROUND 3 1992
39 ME AGAINST THE MUSIC (WITH BRITNEY SPEARS) 2 2003
40 RAIN 7 1993