A few months ago, in honor of Galgalatz radio’s 25 years on the air, we shared an interesting analysis of the top songs played on the station over its history. Recently, however, Yediot Achronot took that analysis a step further.
To mark the upcoming end of the first two decades of the new millennium, Yediot decided to look at the music of ALL Israeli stations. Galgalatz may have its biases, they figured, but what if we examine the music of all major radio stations nationwide?
The results revealed some surprising trends. But one thing is clear:
The oldies never go out of style.
The most-played song on Israeli radio
Case in point: the most played song on Israeli radio over the past 20 years is “Shir Shel Yom Chulin”. The song was originally recorded by Ilanit in 1976, but was later covered by Yardena Arazi & Avi Peretz, Sarit Hadad, and Maor Cohen, among others…all of which helped push the song to #1.
A classic? Sure. The most played song on Israeli radio since 2000? Hard to believe, but true.
Zohar Argov took spots #2 and #3, and is sprinkled throughout the top 30 a number of times.”HaPerach B’gani”, the #2 song, got help from a whole host of covers, including versions by Shimi Tavori, Chaim Moshe, Yishai Levy, Eyal Golan, Sarit Hadad, Zehava Ben, Ethnix and many more. While music as a whole has evolved quite a bit since “King Zohar” recorded the song in 1982, his classic still takes up a large space in the hearts of many Israelis.
Which Israeli singer topped the list?
If you turn on the radio in Israel at any random time, which artist are you most likely to hear? Arik Einstein, the “Frank Sinatra” of Israeli music who passed away in 2013. Despite not having any individual songs in the top 30, Arik received more airplay overall than any other singer. His mellow singing style and memorable songs continue to draw in Israelis from all walks of life.
Interestingly, the most-played song on Galgalatz – “Bo” by Rita and later Ivri Lider – only came in at #25 among radio stations nationwide. As an artist, Idan Raichel was #1 for Galgalatz, but came in at #5 overall on this new list.
English music on Israeli Radio
What about English music? Unfortunately, we’re well aware of the prominence of English-language music on Israeli radio. To the dismay of Israeli music fans everywhere, we often have to suffer through music from the USA while we await our favorite Hebrew tunes. But overall, it seems radio stations in Israel are typically NOT playing American Top 40 music, opting instead (for the most part) for some of the classics of the 70s, 80s and 90’s. The top five? #5: “California Dreamin’” by the Mamas and the Papas; #4: “Forever Young” by Alphaville; #3: “Killing Me Softly With His Song” by Roberta Flack and later, The Fugees; #2: “Hotel California” by The Eagles and later, the Gypsy Kings, and; #1: “One” by U2.
The Top 30 Hebrew Songs played on Israeli radio, 2000-2019 (source: Yediot Achronot)
- Ilanit (and others) – Shir Shel Yom Chulin
- Zohar Argov (and others) – HaPeach B’gani
- Zohar Argov (and others) – Nachon L’hayom
- Ruchama Raz / Eyal Golan – Chalomot
- Rita / Idan Raichel – Mechakeh
- Ehud Banai – Hayom
- Kobi Aflalo & Elai Botner – Michtav L’achi
- Meir Banai – Ahava K’tzara
- Yigal Bashan – Sivan
- Idan Raichel Project – Milim Yafot Me’eileh
- Boaz Sharabi / Zohar Argov / Others – At Li Laila
- Avraham Tal – Mechuzakim LaOlam
- Shalom Hanoch – Ahavat Ne’urai
- Idan Raichel Project – Mima’amakim
- Zohar Argov / Carolina / Others – Tzel Etz Tamar
- Uri Banai – Parparim
- Dorit Reuveni / Avraham Tal – Adam Tzober Zichronot
- Izhar Ashdot – Mah Tomri
- Esther Shamir / Tomer Yosef & Ben Hendler – Avarti Rak Kedei Lir’ot
- Gidi Gov / Ron Shoval – Ein Od Yom
- Ariel Zilber / Mosh Ben Ari – V’eich SheLo
- Assaf Amdursky – Rakevet LaTzafon
- Idan Raichel Project – She’eriyot Shel HaChayim
- HaChaverim Shel Natasha – Od Negi’ah
- Rita / Ivri Lider – Bo
- Gali Atari & Sagiv Cohen – MeHaMerchakim
- Ehud Banai – Kulam Yod’im
- Yehudit Tamir / Yehuda Poliker – Romeo
- Lahakat Tzlil Mechuvan / Yitzcak Klepter / Others – Tzlil Mechuvan
- Boaz Sharabi / Rita & Gidi Gov / Orna & Moshe Datz – Chayecha V’chayai
The Top 30 Israeli singers played on Israeli radio, 2000-2019 (source: Yediot Achronot)
- Arik Einstein
- Shlomo Artzi
- Eyal Golan
- Sarit Hadad
- Idan Raichel
- Moshe Peretz
- Yehudit Ravitz
- Mashina
- Shlomi Shabbat
- Yehuda Poilker
- Dudu Aharon
- Ehud Banai
- Shalom Hanoch
- Chaim Moshe
- Gali Atari
- Omer Adam
- Rita
- Gidi Gov
- Yishai Levi
- Ivri Lider
- Lior Narkis
- Chava Alberstein
- Aviv Geffen
- Zohar Argov
- Boaz Sharabi
- Yehoram Gaon
- Barry Sacharof
- Ethnix
- Tipex
- Subliminal
What do you think of the results? Did your favorite songs or artists make the list?
