Berkeley, Calif. pop-punk trio Green Day has grabbed Rolling Stone’s number one spot for best single, best album and top artist of the decade.
As the top single, readers picked the ballad “Boulevard of Broken Dreams,” one of two Green Day tunes that made the cut, along with “American Idiot” (No. 13). The rest of the top five were Beyoncé’s “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It),” U2’s “Beautiful Day,” Britney Spears’ “Toxic” and Mariah Carey’s “We Belong Together.”
Also getting love in the top 15 were Kanye West, Avril Lavigne, My Chemical Romance, Kelly Clarkson, the White Stripes and Coldplay.
A number of acts notched two albums on the list of the decade’s top releases. While Green Day took the number-one spot with American Idiot, Radiohead landed at No. 3 (Kid A) and No. 5 (In Rainbows). U2 scored a twofer at No. 6 (All That You Can’t Leave Behind) and No. 15 (No Line on the Horizon), and Kelly Clarkson hit No. 8 (All I Ever Wanted) and No. 11 (Breakaway).
The top 20 also featured discs from Jay-Z, Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, Avril Lavigne, Christina Aguilera, My Chemical Romance and Justin Timberlake. A notable absence was Eminem, who was deemed the top-selling artist of the ’00s by Nielsen SoundScan but failed to get a single mention on the Rolling Stone readers’ list.
Green Day topped the Artist of the Decade list, followed by Radiohead, U2, Coldplay, the Black Eyed Peas, Justin Timberlake and Bruce Springsteen. Slim Shady finally worked his way in on that list, dropping into the No. 8 slot, just ahead of the White Stripes’ Jack White, Jay-Z, Kings of Leon and Fall Out Boy.
Despite having last year’s biggest album and becoming hip-hop’s reigning superstar, Lil Wayne checked in at a modest No. 18, coming in behind the Arcade Fire (No. 13), M.I.A. (No. 14), Wilco (No. 15), Bright Eyes’ Conor Oberst (No. 16) and Bob Dylan (No. 17).
Rolling Stone readers’ top singles of the decade:
1. Green Day, “Boulevard of Broken Dreams”
2. Beyoncé, “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)”
3. U2, “Beautiful Day”
4. Britney Spears, “Toxic”
5. Mariah Carey, “We Belong Together”
6. Kanye West, “Stronger”
7. My Chemical Romance, “Welcome to the Black Parade”
8. Avril Lavigne, “Complicated”
9. Kelly Clarkson, “Since U Been Gone”
10. White Stripes, “Seven Nation Army”
11. Black Eyed Peas, “I Gotta Feeling”
12. Coldplay, “Viva la Vida”
13. Green Day, “American Idiot”
14. Christina Aguilera, “Beautiful”
Top albums:
1. Green Day, American Idiot
2. Kanye West, Graduation
3. Radiohead, Kid A
4. Avril Lavigne, Let Go
5. Radiohead, In Rainbows
6. U2, All That You Can’t Leave Behind
7. Britney Spears, Blackout
8. Kelly Clarkson, All I Ever Wanted
9. Jay-Z, The Blueprint
10. Lady Gaga, The Fame
11. Kelly Clarkson, Breakaway
12. Beyoncé, I Am … Sasha Fierce
13. Christina Aguilera, Stripped
14. My Chemical Romance, Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge
15. U2, No Line on the Horizon
16. Mariah Carey, The Emancipation of Mimi
17. Justin Timberlake, FutureSex/LoveSounds
18. Coldplay, Viva la Vida
19. Bruce Springsteen, The Rising
Top artists:
1. Green Day
2. Radiohead
3. U2
4. Coldplay
5. Black Eyed Peas
6. Justin Timberlake
7. Bruce Springsteen
8. Eminem
9. Jack White
10. Jay-Z
11. Kings of Leon
12. Fall Out Boy
13. Arcade Fire
14. M.I.A.
15. Wilco
16. Conor Oberst
17. Bob Dylan
18. Lil Wayne
19. My Morning Jacket
20. Beyoncé
21. Kelly Clarkson
22. My Chemical Romance
23. Kanye West
