Artist · chart history
Tommy James and the Shondells
Band Niles United States Active 1960–1970
Tommy James and the Shondells formed in 1960 in Niles, United States and was active until 1970. Tommy James and the Shondells has 6 chart appearances on 5 radio countdowns from 4 stations on RockLists, spanning 1991–2026. The most successful song on radio countdowns is “Mony Mony”, which appears on 3 lists with a best position of #398. The station that charted Tommy James and the Shondells most often is WYEP (Pittsburgh, PA), with 3 appearances.
Tommy James and the Shondells came out of Niles, Michigan, and made some of the most irresistible pop rock of their day, bubblegum on the surface and something stranger bubbling underneath. "Hanky Panky" went all the way to number one in the U.S. in 1966 and was the band's only RIAA-certified gold record.
The hits kept coming on Roulette: "I Think We're Alone Now" and "Mirage" in 1967, and "Mony Mony" in 1968, a party-starting stomp with a chant for a chorus that's practically impossible to resist. Then came "Crimson and Clover", their second number one, and a real left turn: slow, swooning and psychedelic, with a wobbling vocal that sounds like it's being sung through a spinning fan. "Sweet Cherry Wine" and "Crystal Blue Persuasion" followed in 1969, both Top 10 hits, and all told the band put twelve more songs in the top 40 beyond their two chart-toppers.
Tommy James has stayed at the center of it all, with Pete Lucia, Mike DiMeo and Greg Smith among the many players to have filled out the Shondells over the years.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs by Tommy James and the Shondells on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Peak year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mony Mony | 3 | #398 | – | – | |
| 2 | Crimson And Clover | 2 | #808 | – | – | |
| 3 | Crystal Blue Persuasion | 1 | #778 | – | – |
Albums with charting songs
Where each song was first released, from MusicBrainz.
Every countdown appearance
| Year | # | Song | Countdown |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 691 | Mony Mony | WYEP Greatest Songs of All Time |
| 2023 | 398 | Mony Mony | WYEP Countdown to Fall 2023 |
| 2023 | 778 | Crystal Blue Persuasion | WYEP Countdown to Fall 2023 |
| 2020 | 1363 | Crimson And Clover | WXPN 2020 Greatest Songs of All Time |
| 2018 | 808 | Crimson And Clover | The Current's 893 Essential Songs |
| 1991 | 403 | Mony Mony | WNEW Firecracker 500 (1991) |
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