Artist · chart history

The Fall

Band Prestwich United Kingdom Active 1976–2018 English post‐punk group founded by Mark E. Smith

The Fall formed in 1976 in Prestwich, United Kingdom and was active until 2018. The Fall has 102 chart appearances on 35 radio countdowns from 7 stations on RockLists, spanning 1979–2024. The most successful song on radio countdowns is “Mr. Pharmacist”, which appears on 3 lists with a best position of #3. In total the artist has topped 2 countdowns. The station that charted The Fall most often is John Peel (BBC Radio 1), with 89 appearances. The artist’s biggest year on year-end countdowns was 1993.

102appearances

35countdowns

85songs charted

7stations

2#1 finishes

1979–2024years

The Fall came out of Prestwich, Greater Manchester, in 1976, and for the rest of their long life they were whatever Mark E. Smith said they were. He was the one member who never left, and everyone else was passing through, some for a few months, some for decades. What stayed constant was the method: Smith's acid-tongued lyrics, delivered in a half-spoken, half-hectoring bark, over guitars that grind and repeat until they turn hypnotic, and a rhythm section wound tight as a spring.

They surfaced from the punk explosion with Una Baines and Martin Bramah among the early crew, and the lineup kept churning. The long-haul players gave the band its shape: Steve Hanley, whose melodic, looping bass lines anchored the sound from 1979 to 1998, drummers Karl Burns, Paul Hanley and Simon Wolstencroft, and guitarists Marc Riley, Craig Scanlon and, from 1983, Brix Smith. The early '80s produced the jagged, sprawling Hex Enduction Hour and Perverted by Language, and the middle of the decade the run of The Wonderful and Frightening World of… The Fall, This Nation's Saving Grace and Bend Sinister, the last of which carried their tear through "Mr. Pharmacist".

The late '80s and early '90s brought the closest they came to hits, minor ones: the stomping "Hit the North Part 1" from The Frenz Experiment, "Bill Is Dead" from Extricate, "Free Range" from Code: Selfish and "Hey Student" from Middle Class Revolt. Mainstream stardom never came, but it never needed to. The Fall had a cult that never wavered, and in John Peel, the BBC DJ, a champion who called them his favorite band and had them in for session after session.

Between 1979 and 2017 the band put out 31 studio albums, and a small mountain of live records and compilations appeared too, many against Smith's wishes. The band ended when he died in 2018.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.

Songs by The Fall on radio countdowns

#	Song	Strength	Lists	Best	#1s	Peak year
1	Mr. Pharmacist	229	3	#3	–	1986
2	Cruisers Creek	201	3	#3	–	1985
3	Theme From Sparta F.C.	198	2	#1	1	2004
4	Hit The North	141	4	#9	–	1987
5	How I Wrote 'Elastic Man'	140	3	#24	–	–
6	Free Range	115	2	#6	–	1992
7	Totally Wired	104	3	#21	–	–
8	Bill Is Dead	100	1	#1	1	1990
9	Australians In Europe	98	1	#2	–	1987
10	Hey Student	98	1	#2	–	1994
11	Dr Buck's Letter	96	1	#3	–	2000
12	Edinburgh Man	94	1	#4	–	1991
13	Touch Sensitive	94	1	#4	–	1999
14	The Legend Of Xanadu	92	1	#5	–	1992
15	Cheetham Hill	90	1	#6	–	1996
16	F-oldin' Money	88	1	#7	–	1999
17	Feeling Numb	88	1	#7	–	1995
18	Eat Y'Self Fitter	86	1	#8	–	1983
19	A Lot Of Wind	84	1	#9	–	1991
20	Lay Of The Land	84	1	#9	–	1984
21	US 80s 90s	82	1	#10	–	1986
22	1/2 Inch	81	1	#7	–	1997
23	Why Are People Grudgeful	80	1	#11	–	1993
24	Ed's Babe	78	1	#12	–	1992
25	Cab It Up	78	2	#14	–	1988
26	The Chiselers	76	1	#13	–	1996
27	Living Too Late	72	1	#15	–	1986
28	White Lightning	72	1	#15	–	1990
29	Bremen Nacht	70	1	#16	–	1988
30	Hostile	70	1	#16	–	1996
31	Fiery Jack	68	2	#30	–	–
32	C.R.E.E.P.	66	1	#18	–	1984
33	Lost In Music	64	1	#19	–	1993
34	Bournemouth Runner	62	1	#20	–	1986
35	Glam Racket	62	1	#20	–	1993
36	The Man Whose Head Expanded	60	1	#21	–	1983
37	I'm Going To Spain	58	1	#22	–	1993
38	Susan vs Youthclub	58	1	#22	–	2002
39	Spoilt Victorian Child	56	1	#23	–	1985
40	Two Librans	56	1	#23	–	2000
41	Big New Prinz	54	1	#24	–	1988
42	Don't Call Me Darling	54	1	#24	–	1995
43	High Tension Line	54	1	#24	–	1991
44	Athlete Cured	50	1	#26	–	1987
45	Green Eyed Loco Man	50	1	#26	–	2003
46	R.O.D. (Realm Of Dusk)	50	1	#26	–	1986
47	Service	50	1	#26	–	1993
48	I'm A Mummy	48	1	#17	–	1997
49	I Am Kurious Oranj	48	1	#27	–	1988
50	Victoria	48	2	#772	–	–
51	Ladybird (Green Grass)	44	1	#29	–	1993
52	Blood Outta Stone	42	1	#30	–	1990
53	Bonkers In Phoenix	42	1	#30	–	1995
54	I Wake Up In The City	42	1	#30	–	2001
55	Gut Of The Quantifier	36	1	#33	–	1985
56	Kimble	34	1	#34	–	1992
57	Kicker Conspiracy	32	1	#35	–	1983
58	Telephone Thing	32	1	#35	–	1990
59	The War Against Intelligence	32	1	#35	–	1991
60	Jerusalem	30	1	#36	–	1988
61	Lucifer Over Lancashire	28	1	#37	–	1986
62	Rowche Rumble	26	2	#40	–	–
63	City Dweller	26	1	#38	–	1994
64	Dead Beat Descendant	26	1	#38	–	1989
65	The Classical	26	1	#38	–	–
66	Couldn't Get Ahead	24	1	#39	–	1985
67	Guest Informant	22	1	#40	–	1988
68	Wings	22	1	#40	–	1983
69	A Past Gone Mad	20	1	#41	–	1993
70	Chicago, Now!	20	1	#41	–	1990
71	M5	20	1	#41	–	1994
72	The Mixer	20	1	#41	–	1991
73	L.A.	18	1	#42	–	1985
74	Behind The Counter	16	1	#43	–	1993
75	So What About It?	16	1	#43	–	1991
76	WB	16	1	#43	–	2000
77	No Bulbs	14	1	#44	–	1984
78	Bingo Master's Break-Out!	9	1	#771	–	–
79	Lie Dream Of A Casino Soul	8	1	#47	–	–
80	Dktr. Faustus	6	1	#48	–	1986
81	It's A Curse	6	1	#48	–	1993
82	Shake Off	4	1	#49	–	1998
83	The Joke	4	1	#49	–	1995
84	The Birmingham School Of Business School	2	1	#50	–	1992
85	War	2	1	#50	–	1993

Albums with charting songs

Where each song was first released, from MusicBrainz.

Year-end chart timeline

Combined year-end countdown points per year. Taller bars mean more songs placing higher across more stations.

83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04

Every countdown appearance

Year	#	Song	Countdown
2024	772	Victoria	The Colorado Sound Top 850 Cover Songs
2023	771	Bingo Master's Break-Out!	The Colorado Sound Top 850 Songs of the 1980s
2019	567	Totally Wired	KEXP Listeners' Favorite Songs of All Time
2004	1	Theme From Sparta F.C.	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 2004
2003	2	Theme From Sparta F.C.	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 2003
2003	26	Green Eyed Loco Man	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 2003
2003	467	Cruisers Creek	Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003)
2003	688	Mr. Pharmacist	Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003)
2003	1254	Victoria	Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003)
2003	1638	Hit The North	Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003)
2002	22	Susan vs Youthclub	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 2002
2001	30	I Wake Up In The City	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 2001
2000	3	Dr Buck's Letter	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 2000
2000	23	Two Librans	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 2000
2000	43	WB	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 2000
2000	24	How I Wrote 'Elastic Man'	John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (2000)
2000	34	Totally Wired	John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (2000)
2000	38	The Classical	John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (2000)
1999	4	Touch Sensitive	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1999
1999	7	F-oldin' Money	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1999
1999	861	Hit The North	CFNY Top 1002 Songs of All-Time (November 1999)
1998	49	Shake Off	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1998
1997	7	1/2 Inch	John Peel's 'Pretty' Festive Thirty-One of 1997
1997	17	I'm A Mummy	John Peel's 'Pretty' Festive Thirty-One of 1997
1996	6	Cheetham Hill	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1996
1996	13	The Chiselers	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1996
1996	16	Hostile	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1996
1995	7	Feeling Numb	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1995
1995	24	Don't Call Me Darling	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1995
1995	30	Bonkers In Phoenix	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1995
1995	49	The Joke	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1995
1994	2	Hey Student	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1994
1994	38	City Dweller	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1994
1994	41	M5	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1994
1993	11	Why Are People Grudgeful	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1993
1993	19	Lost In Music	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1993
1993	20	Glam Racket	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1993
1993	22	I'm Going To Spain	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1993
1993	26	Service	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1993
1993	29	Ladybird (Green Grass)	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1993
1993	41	A Past Gone Mad	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1993
1993	43	Behind The Counter	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1993
1993	48	It's A Curse	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1993
1993	50	War	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1993
1992	78	Free Range	CFNY Top 102 Songs of 1992
1992	5	The Legend Of Xanadu	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1992
1992	6	Free Range	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1992
1992	12	Ed's Babe	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1992
1992	34	Kimble	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1992
1992	50	The Birmingham School Of Business School	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1992
1991	4	Edinburgh Man	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1991 (the 'Phantom Fifty')
1991	9	A Lot Of Wind	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1991 (the 'Phantom Fifty')
1991	24	High Tension Line	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1991 (the 'Phantom Fifty')
1991	35	The War Against Intelligence	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1991 (the 'Phantom Fifty')
1991	41	The Mixer	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1991 (the 'Phantom Fifty')
1991	43	So What About It?	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1991 (the 'Phantom Fifty')
1991	723	Cruisers Creek	CFNY Top 1002 Songs of All-Time (1991 Edition)
1990	1	Bill Is Dead	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1990
1990	15	White Lightning	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1990
1990	30	Blood Outta Stone	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1990
1990	35	Telephone Thing	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1990
1990	41	Chicago, Now!	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1990
1989	38	Dead Beat Descendant	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1989
1989	169	Mr. Pharmacist	WOXY Modern Rock 500 (1989)
1989	483	Cab It Up	WOXY Modern Rock 500 (1989)
1988	14	Cab It Up	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1988
1988	16	Bremen Nacht	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1988
1988	24	Big New Prinz	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1988
1988	27	I Am Kurious Oranj	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1988
1988	36	Jerusalem	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1988
1988	40	Guest Informant	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1988
1987	78	Hit The North	WLIR Top 100 Songs of 1987
1987	2	Australians In Europe	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1987
1987	9	Hit The North	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1987
1987	26	Athlete Cured	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1987
1986	3	Mr. Pharmacist	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1986
1986	10	US 80s 90s	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1986
1986	15	Living Too Late	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1986
1986	20	Bournemouth Runner	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1986
1986	26	R.O.D. (Realm Of Dusk)	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1986
1986	37	Lucifer Over Lancashire	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1986
1986	48	Dktr. Faustus	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1986
1985	3	Cruisers Creek	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1985
1985	23	Spoilt Victorian Child	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1985
1985	33	Gut Of The Quantifier	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1985
1985	39	Couldn't Get Ahead	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1985
1985	42	L.A.	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1985
1984	9	Lay Of The Land	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1984
1984	18	C.R.E.E.P.	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1984
1984	44	No Bulbs	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1984
1983	8	Eat Y'Self Fitter	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1983
1983	21	The Man Whose Head Expanded	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1983
1983	35	Kicker Conspiracy	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1983
1983	40	Wings	John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1983
1981	30	Fiery Jack	John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (1981)
1981	33	How I Wrote 'Elastic Man'	John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (1981)
1981	47	Lie Dream Of A Casino Soul	John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (1981)
1980	21	Totally Wired	John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (1980)
1980	26	How I Wrote 'Elastic Man'	John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (1980)
1980	38	Fiery Jack	John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (1980)
1980	49	Rowche Rumble	John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (1980)
1979	40	Rowche Rumble	John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (1979)

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