Artist · chart history
Johnny Hates Jazz
Band United Kingdom Formed 1986
Johnny Hates Jazz formed in 1986 in the United Kingdom. Johnny Hates Jazz has 2 chart appearances on 2 radio countdowns from 1 station on RockLists, spanning 1987–1988. The most successful song on radio countdowns is “Shattered Dreams”, which appears on 2 lists with a best position of #76. The station that charted Johnny Hates Jazz most often is Live 105 (San Francisco, CA), with 2 appearances. The artist’s biggest year on year-end countdowns was 1987.
Johnny Hates Jazz came together in London in 1986, three studio-savvy Brits who knew their way around a mixing desk as well as a hook: Clark Datchler writing, singing and playing keyboards, Mike Nocito on guitar and bass, and Calvin Hayes on drums and keyboards. Their debut, Turn Back the Clock, came out on RAK in 1988, produced by the band themselves, and it gleams like a showroom floor: slick pop rock with a new wave sheen and Datchler's smooth, rueful voice gliding over the top.
"Shattered Dreams" was the calling card, all crisp clockwork beat and wistful melody, and it went top five in Britain and to number two in America. The album went all the way to the top of the UK chart, moved four million copies and threw off two more hits, "Heart of Gold" and "I Don't Want to Be a Hero".
The name beats most band-name yarns. At a party, Nocito's brother-in-law broke a Dave Brubeck record, and the wife of a friend of producer Phil Thornalley summed up the damage with three words that stuck. Datchler and Nocito carry the name on today.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs by Johnny Hates Jazz on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Peak year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shattered Dreams | 2 | #76 | – | 1987 |
Albums with charting songs
Where each song was first released, from MusicBrainz.
Every countdown appearance
| Year | # | Song | Countdown |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | 395 | Shattered Dreams | Live 105 Top 500 Songs of All-Time (Memorial Day 1988) |
| 1987 | 76 | Shattered Dreams | Live 105 Top 105.3 Songs of 1987 |
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