Revisiting triple j’s Hottest 100s of years gone by: 2005

With the 2021 Hottest 100 set to take place on January 22nd, 2022, we here at Tone Deaf have decided to take a stroll down memory lane, recapping the countdowns of yesteryear in the lead-up to the latest edition of musical democracy. Today, we’re taking a look back at the Hottest 100 of 2005.

Taking place on January 26th, 2006, the triple j Hottest of 2005 was the 13th annual countdown held by the station which limited votes to songs released in the last year.

Following on from Franz Ferdinand’s domination of the poll in 2004, it was looking as though Ben Lee might be on track to take the #1 spot, having stalled at #2 back in 1998. However, the Sydney musician wasn’t about to get the glory just yet, with Powderfinger’s Bernard Fanning nabbing #1 with ‘Wish You Well’.

Fanning’s #1 position is actually something of Aussie music history now, with this being the third time he’s topped the countdown. To date, Powderfinger are the only band to have topped the countdown twice, but Bernard Fanning’s placing also makes him the first artist to hit the #1 spot with two different acts.

Check out Bernard Fanning’s ‘Wish You Well’:

While Ben Lee’s ‘Catch My Disease’ would be relegated to #2, it was in good company, with Gorillaz becoming the third band to place twice in the top five, with The Offspring and Powderfinger doing so in 1994 and 2000, and Kings Of Leon and Gang Of Youths doing it again in 2008 and 2017.

Making a bit of history as well was Wolfmother, whose massive six tracks give them the highest amount of tracks for a single artist in a countdown. Of course, while Dave Grohl scored ten tracks in 2002 and Jack White scored six in 2003, these were split between different acts, with Wolfmother’s record still standing to date.

The countdown also featured the equal-longest song in a countdown to date, with Green Day’s ‘Jesus Of Suburbia’ hitting #61 with a runtime of 9:08. In 2010, Kanye West would equal this record when ‘Runaway’ hit #14.

Lastly, The Cat Empire helped kick off the countdown with another piece of history. As ‘Party Started’ placed at #100, it saw Australia’s overall total of songs in the Hottest 100 reach 460, one more than the 459 that they tied with the USA at the end of 2004.

Since then, Australian tracks have continued to increase, and Aussie artists show no sign of slowing down their chart dominance.

Check out The Cat Empire’s ‘Party Started’:

At the end of the day, triple j’s Hottest 100 for 2005 featured songs by 71 different artists from a total of 6 countries, including 50 from Australia, 30 from the USA, and 14 from England.

While Wolfmother were the most successful act of the countdown with six tracks, Bloc Party and The Cat Empire trailed behind with four songs each. Meanwhile, Ben Lee, Franz Ferdinand, Gorillaz, Missy Higgins, System Of A Down, and The White Stripes all placed three times, while a further 15 artists charted twice, including Chris Cheney, who appeared with both The Living End and The Wrights.

Also, if you’re keen on some of the more obscure facts, the shortest track to appear in the countdown was Butterfinger’s cover of ‘Jesus I Was Evil’ at 1:47, while the longest was Green Day’s ‘Jesus Of Suburbia’ at 9:08.

Check out the full list of songs in the triple j Hottest 100 for 2005 below. If you’re keen to learn more, head over to the Hottest 100 Database, and check out the Hottest 100 songs that didn’t make the Hottest 100.

triple j’s Hottest 100 of 2005

#1. ‘Wish You Well’ – Bernard Fanning
#2. ‘Catch My Disease’ – Ben Lee
#3. ‘Feel Good Inc. (feat. De La Soul)’ – Gorillaz
#4. ‘Best Of You’ – Foo Fighters
#5. ‘DARE (feat. Shaun Ryder)’ – Gorillaz
#6. ‘Mind’s Eye’ – Wolfmother
#7. ‘My Doorbell’ – The White Stripes
#8. ‘O Yeah’ – End Of Fashion
#9. ‘Joker & The Thief’ – Wolfmother
#10. ‘Do You Want To’ – Franz Ferdinand

#11. ‘Figjam’ – Butterfingers
#12. ‘Computer Camp Love’ – Datarock
#13. ‘Gold Digger (feat. Jamie Foxx)’ – Kanye West
#14. ‘Songbird’ – Bernard Fanning
#15. ‘Flame Trees’ – Sarah Blasko
#16. ‘Apple Tree’ – Wolfmother
#17. ‘Blue Orchid’ – The White Stripes
#18. ‘I Was Only 19’ – The Herd
#19. ‘Middle Of The Hill’ – Josh Pyke
#20. ‘DOA’ – Foo Fighters

#21. ‘Hurricane’ – Faker
#22. ‘Do-Do’s & Whoa-Oh’s’ – Kisschasy
#23. ‘Two More Years’ – Bloc Party
#24. ‘Foxtrot Uniform Charlie Kilo’ – Bloodhound Gang
#25. ‘The Car Song’ – The Cat Empire
#26. ‘Fix You’ – Coldplay
#27. ‘B.Y.O.B.’ – System Of A Down
#28. ‘Everyday I Love You Less And Less’ – Kaiser Chiefs
#29. ‘Fast Girl’ – Gyroscope
#30. ‘Concrete Boots’ – After The Fall

#31. ‘The Special Two’ – Missy Higgins
#32. ‘My Enemy’ – Cog
#33. ‘Phoenix’ – The Butterfly Effect
#34. ‘I Predict A Riot’ – Kaiser Chiefs
#35. ‘Girl’ – Beck
#36. ‘Speed Of Sound’ – Coldplay
#37. ‘Dimension’ – Wolfmother
#38. ‘Sly’ – The Cat Empire
#39. ‘Colossal’ – Wolfmother
#40. ‘Helicopter’ – Bloc Party

#41. ‘Dirty Harry (feat. Bootie Brown & The San Fernando Valley Youth Chorus)’ – Gorillaz
#42. ‘Sweet As Sugar’ – Grinspoon
#43. ‘Autumn Flow’ – Lior
#44. ‘Sunnyroad’ – Emilíana Torrini
#45. ‘Positive Tension’ – Bloc Party
#46. ‘Juicebox’ – The Strokes
#47. ‘Stuff And Nonsense’ – Missy Higgins
#48. ‘An Honest Mistake’ – The Bravery
#49. ‘What’s On Your Radio?’ – The Living End
#50. ‘I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor’ – Arctic Monkeys

#51. ‘Be Yourself’ – Audioslave
#52. ‘America, Fuck Yeah’ – Team America
#53. ‘We’re All In This Together’ – Ben Lee
#54. ‘Two Shoes’ – The Cat Empire
#55. ‘Landed’ – Ben Folds
#56. ‘It’5!’ – Architecture In Helsinki
#57. ‘Radio/Video’ – System Of A Down
#58. ‘Little Sister’ – Queens Of The Stone Age
#59. ‘Bloody Mother Fucking Asshole’ – Martha Wainwright
#60. ‘All The Money Or The Simple Life Honey’ – The Dandy Warhols

#61. ‘Jesus Of Suburbia’ – Green Day
#62. ‘Beware Wolf’ – Gyroscope
#63. ‘Divorcee By 23’ – Clare Bowditch & The Feeding Set
#64. ‘Sitting, Waiting, Wishing’ – Jack Johnson
#65. ‘Always Worth It’ – Sarah Blasko
#66. ‘Gabrielle’ – Ween
#67. ‘The Denial Twist’ – The White Stripes
#68. ‘…And We’ll Dance On The Ashes Of What’s Left’ – The Beautiful Girls
#69. ‘Jesus I Was Evil’ – Butterfingers
#70. ‘This Year’ – The Mountain Goats

#71. ‘Better Together’ – Jack Johnson
#72. ‘I’m So Postmodern’ – The Bedroom Philosopher
#73. ‘Run’ – Cog
#74. ‘The Sound Of White’ – Missy Higgins
#75. ‘Qué Onda Guero’ – Beck
#76. ‘Hypnotize’ – System Of A Down
#77. ‘First Day Of My Life’ – Bright Eyes
#78. ‘The Fighter’ – After The Fall
#79. ‘Fuck Forever’ – Babyshambles
#80. ‘Believe’ – The Chemical Brothers

#81. ‘Let’s Take The Long Way Home’ – The Beautiful Girls
#82. ‘Smoke It’ – The Dandy Warhols
#83. ‘Filthy/Gorgeous’ – Scissor Sisters
#84. ‘White Unicorn’ – Wolfmother
#85. ‘Tightrope Walker’ – Epicure
#86. ‘Into The Dark’ – Ben Lee
#87. ‘We Can’t Hear You’ – The Herd
#88. ‘Like Eating Glass’ – Bloc Party
#89. ‘Bastard’ – Ben Folds
#90. ‘Walk Away’ – Franz Ferdinand

#91. ‘Heartstopper’ – Emilíana Torrini
#92. ‘Messages’ – Xavier Rudd
#93. ‘The Fallen’ – Franz Ferdinand
#94. ‘On This Side’ – Clare Bowditch & The Feeding Set
#95. ‘Face Without A Name’ – Kisschasy
#96. ‘Six Months In A Leaky Boat’ – Little Birdy
#97. ‘Themata’ – Karnivool
#98. ‘Why Do You Love Me’ – Garbage
#99. ‘Evie Part I (Let Your Hair Hang Down)’ – The Wrights
#100. ‘Party Started’ – The Cat Empire

Quick Facts:

Artists: 71
Most Successful Artist: Wolfmother (6 tracks)
Number Of Countries: 6
Top Three Countries: Australia (50 tracks), USA (30 tracks), England (14 tracks)
Shortest Song: ‘Jesus I Was Evil’ – Butterfingers (1:47)
Longest Song: ‘Jesus Of Suburbia’ – Green Day (9:08)

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