The UK Singles Chart is one of many music charts compiled by the Official Charts Company that calculates the best-selling singles of the week in the United Kingdom.[1] Before 2004, the chart was only based on the sales of physical singles.[2] [3] This list shows singles that peaked in the top 10 of the UK Singles Chart during 1963, as well as singles which peaked in 1962 and 1964 but were in the top 10 in 1963. The entry date is when the single appeared in the top 10 for the first time (week ending, as published by the Official Charts Company, which is six days after the chart is announced).
One-hundred and four singles were in the top ten in 1963. Nine singles from 1962 remained in the top 10 for several weeks at the beginning of the year, while "Dominique" by The Singing Nun, "Glad All Over" by The Dave Clark Five, "I Only Want to Be with You" by Dusty Springfield and "Twenty Four Hours From Tulsa" by Gene Pitney were all released in 1963 but did not reach their peak until 1964. "(Dance With The) Guitar Man" by Duane Eddy & the Rebelettes, "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" by Brenda Lee and "The Next Time"/"Bachelor Boy" by Cliff Richard and The Shadows were the singles from 1962 to reach their peak in 1963. Twenty-nine artists scored multiple entries in the top 10 in 1963.The Beatles, The Dave Clark Five, Dusty Springfield, Gerry and the Pacemakers and The Searchers were among the many artists who achieved their first UK charting top 10 single in 1963.
The 1962 Christmas number-one, "Return to Sender" by Elvis Presley, remained at number one for the first week of 1963. The first new number-one single of the year was "The Next Time"/"Bachelor Boy" by Cliff Richard and The Shadows. Overall, seventeen different singles peaked at number-one in 1963, with The Beatles and Gerry and the Pacemakers (3) having the joint most singles hit that position.
One-hundred and four singles charted in the top 10 in 1963, with ninety-four singles reaching their peak this year.
Twenty-seven artists scored multiple entries in the top 10 in 1963. The Shadows secured the record for most top 10 hits in 1963 with nine hit singles, four of which were with Cliff Richard.
The Searchers were one of a number of artists with two top-ten entries, including the number-one single "Sweets for My Sweet". Del Shannon, Joe Brown and the Bruvvers, Kenny Lynch and Tommy Roe were among the other artists who had multiple top 10 entries in 1963.
Thirty-seven artists achieved their first top 10 single in 1963, either as a lead or featured artist. Of these, eight went on to record another hit single that year: Brian Poole, The Crystals, Gerry and the Pacemakers, Kenny Lynch, Paul & Paula, The Searchers, The Springfields and The Tremeloes. Billy J. Kramer & The Dakotas, Dusty Springfield, Freddie and the Dreamers all had two more top 10 singles in 1963. The Beatles had three other entries in their breakthrough year.
The following table (collapsed on desktop site) does not include acts who had previously charted as part of a group and secured their first top 10 solo single.
Original songs from various films entered the top 10 throughout the year. These included "Summer Holiday" (from Summer Holiday), "Theme from The Legion's Last Patrol (Concerto disperato)" (The Legion's Last Patrol), "She Loves You" (A Hard Day's Night), "You'll Never Walk Alone" (Carousel) and "Dominique" (The Singing Nun).
Additionally, a melody used in "Never on Sunday" was turned into a hit single recorded by Brenda Lee as "All Alone Am I". "Do You Want to Know a Secret?", written by Lennon-McCartney and performed by The Beatles and taken into the top 10 by Billy J. Kramer and The Dakotas, was inspired by the tune "I'm Wishing" from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. "Secret Love" had first been heard in the 1953 film Calamity Jane, sang by Doris Day. Kathy Kirby took her cover version to number four. "María Elena" started as an instrumental featured in the film Bordertown.
Until 1970 there was no universally recognised year-end best-sellers list. However, in 2011 the Official Charts Company released a list of the best-selling single of each year in chart history from 1952 to date. According to the list, "She Loves You" by The Beatles is officially recorded as the biggest-selling single of 1963. "She Loves You" (1) was also ranked as the best-selling single of the decade, while "I Want to Hold Your Hand" (2) also ranked in the top 10 best-selling singles of the 1960s. "She Loves You" also stands as the 8th biggest-selling single of all time in the UK (as of December 2017).
| Symbol | Meaning | |
|---|---|---|
| bgcolor=lightblue | ‡ | Single peaked in 1962 but still in chart in 1963. |
| ♦ | Single released in 1963 but peaked in 1964. | |
| (#) | Year-end best-selling single. | |
| Entered | The date that the single first appeared in the chart. | |
| Peak | Highest position that the single reached in the UK Singles Chart. |
The following table shows artists who achieved two or more top 10 entries in 1963, including singles that reached their peak in 1962 or 1964. The figures include both main artists and featured artists. The total number of weeks an artist spent in the top ten in 1963 is also shown.
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