page_title: List of UK charts and number-one singles (1969–1988)
section_title: New Musical Express (NME)
hierarchical_section_title: List of UK charts and number-one singles (1969–1988) / Main charts / New Musical Express (NME)
caption_attribution_description: ABBA in AVRO's TopPop (Dutch television show) in 1974
context_page_description: The UK Singles Chart is the official chart for the United Kingdom of singles. The chart is compiled by the Official Charts Company and the beginning of an "official" singles chart is generally regarded as February 1969 when the British Market Research Bureau was formed to compile the chart in a joint venture between the BBC and Record Retailer. Charts were used to measure the popularity of music and, initially, were based on sheet music. In 1952, NME imitated an American idea from Billboard magazine and began compiling a chart based on physical sales of the release. Rival publications such as Record Mirror, Melody Maker, Disc began to compile their own charts in the mid-to-late 1960s. Trade paper Record Retailer compiled their first chart in March 1960.
  This list covers the period from the start-up of the BMRB in February 1969 to the last independently compiled charts of NME and Melody Maker in May 1988. This period includes the point at which compilation of the UK Singles Chart was taken over by Gallup in January 1983.
  During this 19-year period, there was a total of 343 canonical number-ones, plus an additional 149 that are not recognized by the Official Charts Company.
context_section_description: The New Musical Express (NME) chart was the first in the United Kingdom to gauge musics' popularity by physical sales – previously sheet music sales were used. NME's co-founder Percy Dickins imitated the chart produced by American Billboard magazine and began to compile Britain's first hit parade in 1952. Other periodicals produced their own charts and The Official Charts Company and Guinness' British Hit Singles & Albums regard NME as the canonical British singles chart until 10 March 1960. After this Record Retailer is regarded as the canonical source until February 1969, when the BMRB was formed. However, during the 1960s NME had the biggest circulation of charts in the decade and was the most widely followed.
  After 1969, NME continued to compile charts in the 1970s and 1980s and ended its time as the longest running independently compiled in May 1988.
caption: ABBA, who had a total of eleven number-one singles between 1974 and 1982 – nine of which topped the official charts, and an additional two not recognised in the Official Charts Company's canon.
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