The Gavin Report 1958-2000

The Gavin Report 1958-2000 features every artist and song that appeared on the weekly chart.  The Artist Section is an alphabetical-by-artist listing.  Listed for each song is its Debut Date, Peak Position, Weeks on the Chart, record’s B-side, label and number, and an indication if it is not in our Top Pop Singles editions (and thus did not make Billboard magazine’s “Hot 100” chart).  Artist biographies appear only for those artists not in our Top Pop Singles book.

Also includes an alphabetical Title Section, a chronological #1 Hits Section and a Rankings Section (Top 150 Artists, Top Hits By Decade, All-Time Top 100 Hits, and Achievements).

A Brief History of The Gavin Report

From a small, hand-typed mimeographed “tip sheet” to a full-sized, glossy trade magazine, The Gavin Report charted the long and colorful history of Top 40 radio.  Bill Gavin began with a limited sampling of stations which grew to a large panel of Top 40 reporters from markets of every size and paved the way for others to follow, in fair and accurate reporting of what radio stations were actually playing and what music fans were enjoying from coast-to-coast.  Issues of The Gavin Report are likely to have been at the fingertips of those who worked in radio or were dedicated record collectors at any time from the 1960s through 2000.  Now, Record Research presents one of Joel Whitburn’s final projects:  his ‘record research’ of every song and artist that ever appeared in the history of The Gavin Report.

The Gavin Report’s slogan (The Most Trusted Name In Radio) reflected the integrity and impact of the publication’s founder, the late Bill Gavin.  Born in Wisconsin in 1907, Bill Gavin became a fan of early radio broadcasts.  After graduating from college, Gavin moved to San Francisco and began his career as a baritone vocalist with radio station KPO (later KNBC), as well as in local theater productions.  After working for the government during World War II, Gavin returned to KNBC radio and spent time writing commercial jingles for the station’s clients.  One of those clients was Lucky Lager beer.  In 1951, Gavin began writing, producing and hosting a syndicated radio countdown program called the Lucky Lager Dance Time.  The affiliated radio stations (mainly on the West Coast) sent him their local charts to compile the countdown and Gavin’s true calling had begun.  By 1958, Gavin had expanded his list of radio stations across the entire U.S. and the result was a mimeographed “tip sheet” called Bill Gavin’s Record Report (this book begins with Report #1, dated May 20, 1958).  This soon to be weekly publication quickly became must-reading for radio programmers across the country.  Gavin accepted no paid advertising of any kind, which gave him instant integrity among his peers.  He believed in only reporting the facts and avoided the usual record industry hype of the day.  In 1965, Gavin hosted the first of what was to become an annual gathering of radio industry DJs and programmers.  These yearly seminars became an increasingly important place for radio people to meet and share ideas.  The Gavin Report continued to grow in stature over the years.  Just a few months before he passed away in 1985, Gavin sold his publication to several long-time, trusted employees.  The new owners kept the publication as a vital concern, publishing a weekly Top 40 chart until November of 2000, when the publication went monthly (with industry news, but no more charts) and finally ceased production in 2002.