Artist · chart history
Danny Wilson
Band Dundee United Kingdom Active 1987–1991 Scottish pop group
Danny Wilson formed in 1987 in Dundee, United Kingdom and was active until 1991. Danny Wilson has 2 chart appearances on 2 radio countdowns from 2 stations on RockLists, spanning 1987–2001. The most successful song on radio countdowns is “Mary's Prayer”, which appears on 2 lists with a best position of #39. The station that charted Danny Wilson most often is WLIR / WDRE (Long Island, NY), with 1 appearance. The artist’s biggest year on year-end countdowns was 1987.
Danny Wilson were a Scottish pop group out of Dundee, and in 1988 they took "Mary's Prayer" to number 3 in the UK, a lilting, soft-focus confection with the sort of melody that makes a jaded listener sit up and hum along despite himself. They were sophisti-pop through and through, signed to Virgin Records and dressed in polished chords and grown-up melancholy at a time when half the charts sounded like a drum machine having an argument.
Gary Clark was the talent at the centre, with Kit Clark and Ged Grimes in the lineup, and the band was done by 1991. What they really turned out to be was a launch pad. Clark went on to King L and Transister in the '90s, then found his true calling writing songs for other people: Natalie Imbruglia, Liz Phair, Nick Carter, k.d. lang, and the ex-Spice Girls Melanie C and Emma Bunton. Other alumni surfaced in Simple Minds, Deacon Blue and Swiss Family Orbison.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs by Danny Wilson on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Peak year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mary's Prayer | 2 | #39 | – | 1987 |
Every countdown appearance
| Year | # | Song | Countdown |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 393 | Mary's Prayer | Virgin Radio Top 500 Songs of All-Time (December 2001) |
| 1987 | 39 | Mary's Prayer | WLIR Top 100 Songs of 1987 |
Comments
Log in or create a free account to join the conversation about Danny Wilson.
No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts.