As Elton John Returns Home To Billboard Hot 100 After 21 Years Alongside Dua Lipa W/ Single 'Cold Heart', We Celebrate Elton's Biggest Chart Hits!

As Elton John Returns Home To Billboard Hot 100 After 21 Years Alongside Dua Lipa W/ Single 'Cold Heart', We Celebrate Elton's Biggest Chart Hits!

"In honor of Sir Elton John's 70th birthday today (March 25), Billboard takes a look at his highest-ranking hits on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. John boasts 67 total entries on the Hot 100 (beginning with&nbsp;<div>"Border Song," which marked his Billboard chart debut on Aug. 15, 1970). 

With nine having hit No. 1, he's tied for 10th place among all acts for the most leaders. Among solo males, he shares second place with Paul McCartney and Usher; Michael Jackson leads all male soloists with 13 Hot 100 No. 1s. John has also charted 47 records on the Billboard 200 albums chart, with seven hitting the top spot. 

His top 10 count stands at 19, spanning from his first entry (and second LP), his No. 4-peaking self-titled 1970 set, to his latest, Wonderful Crazy Night (No. 8, 2016). John is additionally king of Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart, with a record 72 appearances and an unmatched 16 No. 1s. 

When Billboard celebrated the survey's 50th anniversary in 2011, John was honored as the chart's all-time top performer. John's biggest Hot 100 hit, the double-sided single "Candle in the Wind 1997"/"Something About the Way You Look Tonight," debuted at No. 1 on Oct. 11, 1997, and ruled for 14 weeks. "Candle," his tribute to Princess Diana, who died that Aug. 31, also won him a Grammy Award for best male pop vocal performance.

  

John's biggest Hot 100 hit, the double-sided single "Candle in the Wind 1997"/"Something About the Way You Look Tonight," debuted at No. 1 on Oct. 11, 1997, and ruled for 14 weeks. "Candle," his tribute to Princess Diana, who died that Aug. 31, also won him a Grammy Award for best male pop vocal performance.

The singer-songwriter was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 1994; has won five Grammy Awards; an Academy Award and a Golden Globe (both for "Can You Feel the Love Tonight," from Disney's The Lion King); and a Tony Award (for the score of the musical Aida). He was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1995 and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1998 for his charity work.

(Coincidentally, March 25 also marks Aretha Franklin's 75th birthday, and John and Franklin dueted on 1989's "Through the Storm." The song ranks at No. 38 on the list below of John's biggest Hot 100 hits.)

In honor of the legend's birthday, here is an exclusive Billboard recap of John's 40 biggest Hot 100 hits. 

Elton John's Biggest Hot 100 Hits

1, "Candle in the Wind 1997"/"Something About the Way You Look Tonight," peak position No. 1 (14 weeks), peak date Oct. 11, 1997           

2, "That's What Friends Are For" (Dionne & Friends), No. 1 (four weeks), Jan. 18, 1986

3, "Philadelphia Freedom" (The Elton John Band), No. 1 (two weeks), April 12, 1975

4, "Crocodile Rock," No. 1 (three weeks), Feb. 3, 1973

5, "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" (Elton John & Kiki Dee), No. 1 (four weeks), Aug. 7, 1976

6, "Bennie and the Jets," No. 1 (one week), April 13, 1974

7, "Island Girl," No. 1 (three weeks), Nov. 1, 1975

8, "Little Jeannie," No. 3, July 19, 1980

9, "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road," No. 2, Dec. 8, 1973

10, "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds," No. 1 (two weeks), Jan. 4, 1975

11, "Daniel" No. 2, June 2, 1973

12, "I Don't Wanna Go on With You Like That," No. 2, Aug. 27, 1988

13, "Can You Feel the Love Tonight," No. 4, Aug. 6, 1994

14, "Someone Saved My Life Tonight," No. 4, Aug. 16, 1975

15, "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me," No. 2, July 27, 1974

16, "I Guess That's Why They Call It the Blues," No. 4, Jan. 28, 1984

17, "The Bitch Is Back," No. 4, Nov. 2, 1974

18, "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word," No. 6, Dec. 25, 1976

19, "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" (George Michael/Elton John), No. 1 (one week), Feb. 1, 1992

20, "Candle in the Wind," No. 6, Jan. 23, 1988

21, "Nikita," No. 7, March 22, 1986

22, "Sad Songs (Say So Much)," No. 5, Aug. 11, 1984

23, "Rocket Man," No. 6, July 15, 1972

24, "Mama Can't Buy You Love," No. 9, Aug. 25, 1979

25, "Your Song," No. 8, Jan. 23, 1971

26, "The One," No. 9, Sept. 19, 1992

27, "Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting," No. 12, Sept. 15, 1973

28, "I'm Still Standing," No. 12, July 9, 1983

29, "Honky Cat," No. 8, Sept. 23, 1972

30, "Blue Eyes," No. 12, Oct. 2, 1982

31, "Sacrifice," No. 18, March 31, 1990

32, "Healing Hands," No. 13, Oct. 28, 1989

33, "Empty Garden (Hey Hey Johnny)," No. 13, May 29, 1982

34, "Believe," No. 13, May 13, 1995

35, "Wrap Her Up," No. 20, Dec. 7, 1985

36, "Who Wears These Shoes?," No. 16, Nov. 3, 1984

37, "Grow Some Funk of Your Own"/"I Feel Like a Bullet (In the Gun of Robert Ford)," No. 14, Feb. 28, 1976

38, "Through the Storm" (Aretha Franklin & Elton John), No. 16, May 27, 1989

39, "A Word in Spanish" No. 19, Nov. 12, 1988

40, "Circle of Life," No. 18, Dec. 15, 1994

Elton John's Biggest Billboard Hot 100 hits (as a soloist) chart is based on actual performance on the weekly Billboard Hot 100, through the April 1, 2017, ranking. Songs are ranked based on an inverse point system, with weeks at No. 1 earning the greatest value and weeks at No. 100 earning the least. Due to changes in chart methodology over the years, eras are weighted to account for different chart turnover rates over various periods." -Billboard.com