#1Robert Miles — “Children”
DBX / Deconstruction·1995·Dream Trance
Reached #1 on singles charts across Italy, France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and the Netherlands; #2 on the UK Singles Chart in March 1996. Certified multi-platinum by IFPI for European sales, with reported lifetime worldwide sales above five million copies. Documented in DJ Mag historical retrospectives and ASOT 1000-era listener polls as one of the highest-placing trance singles in mainstream chart history.
#2Energy 52 — “Café del Mar”
Eye Q Records·1993·Trance
The 1993 original was followed by the 1997 Three 'N One remix, which became the most-played version on club rotation. Charted in Mixmag's "Greatest Dance Tracks" historical polls and DJ Mag retrospective rankings; included on the ASOT 25-year retrospective compilations. Year and label confirmed against Discogs and Eye Q catalogue records.
#3Paul van Dyk — “For an Angel”
MFS / Deviant Records·1994·Trance
Originally a 1994 release on MFS; the 1998 PvD E-Werk Club Mix on Deviant became the version that broke internationally, charting top 30 in the UK Singles Chart in October 1998. Listed in the Mixmag "Top 50 Greatest Dance Tracks" 2013 retrospective and consistently appears on ASOT listener-poll all-time lists.
#4ATB — “9 PM (Till I Come)”
Kontor Records / Edel·1998·Trance
Reached #1 on the UK Singles Chart in September 1999 (the first trance / dance instrumental to top the UK chart in over a decade) and #1 in Germany. Certified Platinum by BVMI in Germany. Documented Beatport "all-time best trance" placements and recurring inclusion in DJ Mag historical greatest-trance polls.
#5System F (Ferry Corsten) — “Out of the Blue”
Tsunami Records·1999·Trance
Charted in the UK Singles Chart top 30 in 1999. Recurring entry in DJ Mag historical "Greatest Trance Tracks" polls and ASOT 1000-era listener retrospectives. Year and label confirmed against the Tsunami Records catalogue and Discogs.
#6Veracocha — “Carte Blanche”
Positiva / Combined Forces·1999·Trance
Ferry Corsten and Vincent de Moor collaboration; charted UK Singles Chart #22 in 1999. Repeatedly appears in DJ Mag and Mixmag historical greatest-trance retrospective rankings; included on the ASOT classics compilation series. Year and label confirmed via Positiva catalogue.
#7Tiësto — “Adagio for Strings”
Black Hole Recordings·2004·Trance
Reworking of Samuel Barber's 1936 "Adagio for Strings." Played by Tiësto during the Athens 2004 Summer Olympics opening ceremony to a stadium crowd of approximately 70,000 and a televised global audience. Charted in the UK Singles Chart top 30 in August 2005. Year and label confirmed via Black Hole catalogue.
#8Sasha — “Xpander”
INCredible / Sony·1999·Progressive Trance
Title track of the 1999 Xpander EP; charted UK Singles Chart top 30. Sasha won DJ Mag's "Best DJ" honour for 2000 in the period this EP defined his sound, and the EP appears in Mixmag historical "Best Progressive" retrospective polls. Eleven-minute runtime, label and year confirmed via Discogs.
#9BT — “Flaming June”
Pioneer / Headspace·1997·Trance
Charted UK Singles Chart top 25 in 1997. The Paul van Dyk remix released the same year became the version most often featured in compilation series of the era. Year and label confirmed via Discogs.
#10Delerium feat. Sarah McLachlan — “Silence”
Nettwerk Records·1999·Vocal Trance
Reached #3 on the UK Singles Chart in February 2000 (Tiësto's In Search of Sunrise remix). Certified Platinum by BPI in the UK and Gold by RIAA in the US. Recurring entry in DJ Mag historical greatest-vocal-trance retrospectives.
#11The Age of Love — “The Age of Love”
Diki Records·1990·Trance
The 1992 Jam & Spoon "Watch Out for Stella" remix charted in continental Europe and is the version most often featured on retrospective dance compilations. Released on Diki Records (Belgium) in 1990; one of the earliest releases identified as trance in genre histories on Discogs and Wikipedia.
#12Push (M.I.K.E.) — “Universal Nation”
Bonzai Records·1998·Hard Trance
Released on Bonzai Records (Belgium) in 1998 by Mike Dierickx under the Push alias. Voted onto multiple ASOT 1000-era listener-poll all-time lists; included on the Bonzai 25-year anniversary compilation. Year and label confirmed via Discogs.
#13Gouryella — “Gouryella”
Tsunami Records·1999·Trance
Ferry Corsten and Tiësto collaboration; charted UK Singles Chart top 40 in 1999. Project followed up with "Walhalla" and "Tenshi" releases on Tsunami. Tracks from the Gouryella project recur in DJ Mag historical greatest-trance polls. Label and year confirmed via Discogs.
#14Binary Finary — “1998”
Positiva·1998·Trance
Stuart Matheson and Matt Laws single; the Paul van Dyk and Gouryella remixes released over 1998-2000 charted UK Singles Chart top 30. Recurring entry in DJ Mag and Mixmag greatest-trance retrospective polls. Label and year confirmed via Discogs.
#15Three Drives on a Vinyl — “Greece 2000”
Massive Drive Recordings·1997·Trance
The 1997 original on Massive Drive (later widely re-released on Hooj Choons and ZYX) is one of the late-90s' purest melodic anthems. The Mediterranean-coloured lead became one of trance's most-covered melodies, with the 2026 Max Styler re-work in this year's ASOT 2026 compilation reactivating it for the modern festival mainstage.
#16Chicane feat. Máire Brennan — “Saltwater”
Xtravaganza Recordings·1999·Trance
Nick Bracegirdle's sample of Clannad's 1982 "Theme from Harry's Game" is the Balearic side of trance's late-90s peak. Reached #6 on the UK chart in 1999. The melodic-progressive template Chicane established here ran through Robert Miles and into the modern Anjunadeep aesthetic.
#17Robert Miles feat. Maria Nayler — “One and One”
DBX·1996·Vocal Trance
The follow-up to "Children" added vocals (Maria Nayler) and pushed Miles further toward song-led trance. The arrangement is even more patient than "Children", and the breakdown is one of the most quietly devastating moments in 1990s electronic music. Frequently cited by every vocal-trance producer who came after.
#18Mauro Picotto — “Komodo (Save A Soul)”
BXR / Media Records·2000·Hard Trance
The Italian producer's 2000 single took the techno-trance crossover into the European mainstream — UK chart top 20, multiple territories on heavy radio rotation. The buzzing lead and the relentless 4/4 drive are still references for anyone making peak-time festival trance with Italian roots.
#19Tilt — “I Dream”
Hooj Choons·2003·Progressive Trance
Mick Wilson and Mick Park's 2003 single is the Hooj Choons-era progressive-trance template at its most refined. The arrangement is patient even by progressive standards, and the harmonic content rewards close repeated listening — exactly the kind of record the modern Anjunadeep audience would recognise as ancestor material.
#20Above & Beyond pres. OceanLab feat. Justine Suissa — “Sirens of the Sea”
Anjunabeats·2008·Vocal Trance
The title track of OceanLab's 2008 debut album is the apex of Above & Beyond's vocal-trance era. Justine Suissa's vocal is one of the genre's most enduring performances; the production is the cleanest possible expression of what Anjunabeats stood for in the late 2000s. A early defining release of the modern vocal-trance canon.
#21Armin van Buuren feat. Sharon den Adel — “In and Out of Love”
Armada Music·2008·Vocal Trance
Armin's collaboration with Within Temptation's Sharon den Adel was the 2008 vocal-trance crossover hit. Charted across Europe and became one of A State of Trance's most-played records — the kind of vocal-led peak-time anthem that defined what Armada vocal trance could be at its commercial peak.
#22Above & Beyond feat. Richard Bedford — “Sun & Moon”
Anjunabeats·2011·Vocal Trance
The 2011 single is Above & Beyond's most enduring vocal record outside the OceanLab catalogue. Richard Bedford's topline carries the kind of emotional weight the trance-anthem form is built for, and the breakdown remains one of the genre's most frequently cited "this is why I love trance" moments.
#23Cosmic Gate — “Exploration of Space”
EQ Recordings·1999·Trance
Cosmic Gate's breakthrough 1999 single defined the German tech-trance crossover that would feed directly into the early-2000s peak-time scene. The record's combination of melodic accessibility and rhythmic drive is what allowed the duo to span the whole subsequent decade as mainstage staples.
#24Solarstone — “Seven Cities”
Hooj Choons·1999·Trance
Richard Mowatt's 1999 single sits at the meeting point of late-90s uplifting and early progressive trance. The melodic content is generous, the structure is patient, and the record's influence on the Pure Trance editorial direction Mowatt would later codify is direct — this is where the Solarstone aesthetic was born.
#25Markus Schulz pres. Dakota — “Sin City”
Coldharbour Recordings·2007·Trance
Markus Schulz's Dakota alias produced one of the late-2000s' most-played peak-time records under that 2007 release. The dark-tinged melodic content and the relentless rhythmic forward motion became templates for the harder Coldharbour aesthetic that has run through Schulz's catalogue ever since.
#26Tiësto — “Lethal Industry”
Black Hole Recordings·2002·Trance
The 2002 single sits in the middle of Tiësto's defining trance era — between the In Search of Sunrise compilations and the 2004 Olympics moment. A peak-time festival weapon that demonstrated Tiësto's ability to deliver direct dancefloor impact alongside the more cinematic material he was simultaneously producing.
#27Lange feat. Skye — “Drifting Away”
Lange Recordings·2002·Vocal Trance
Stuart Langelaan's 2002 vocal collaboration is one of the most enduring vocal-trance records of the early 2000s. The arrangement is generous; the vocal line carries genuine emotional weight; the production has aged better than most of its peers from the same period.
#28Vincent de Moor — “Fly Away”
Tsunami Records·1999·Trance
De Moor's 1999 solo single (after the Veracocha collaboration with Ferry Corsten earlier the same year) is the underrated Tsunami-era trance anthem. The breakdown is genuinely beautiful, and the record's influence on subsequent producers exceeded its commercial profile at the time.
#29Gareth Emery & Christina Novelli — “Concrete Angel”
Garuda Music·2014·Vocal Trance
The 2014 collaboration produced one of the most-streamed vocal-trance records of the modern era — over 70 million YouTube views, 44+ million Spotify streams, and a track that DJs across the genre still close peak-time sets with twelve years later. The Christina Novelli vocal is co-write level, not feature level.
#30Chicane — “Offshore”
Modena Records·1996·Trance
1996 instrumental that put Nick Bracegirdle on the map and prefigured the 1999 "Saltwater" breakthrough. The Mediterranean-flavoured chord work, the patient build, the Balearic atmospheric sensibility — all the elements Chicane would refine for the next two decades are already present here in finished form.
#31Brainbug — “Nightmare”
Plastic City·1997·Trance
The 1997 Sinister Strings mix is the version most listeners know — a darker, harder counterpoint to the lighter trance of the same year. Sustained influence on European hard-trance producers from Mauro Picotto onward.
#32Y-Traxx — “Mystery Land”
Bonzai Records·1996·Trance
The 1996 Belgian-trance anthem that defined the early Bonzai aesthetic. The 2026 Quinny remix in this year's Beatport April chart is a direct legacy reactivation, demonstrating the record's continued relevance to the modern Pure Trance scene.
#33PPK — “Resurrection”
Perfecto / Mute·2001·Trance
The Russian production duo's 2001 single brought Eastern European trance to UK and European charts. The melodic content sits between Russian classical influences and late-90s peak-time trance — a hybrid that opened the door for later Russian producers like Bobina and Andrew Rayel.
#34Aly & Fila feat. Plumb — “Somebody Loves You”
FSOE Recordings·2014·Uplifting Trance
The 2014 collaboration is the most disciplined vocal-uplifting record FSOE has produced. Plumb's vocal sits on top of one of the cleanest 138 BPM arrangements of the era — frequently cited by the harder, faster wing of vocal trance that the Anjunabeats softer aesthetic largely ignored.
#35Andy Moor & Ashley Wallbridge feat. Gabriela Krapotkin — “Faces”
Anjunabeats·2010·Vocal Trance
The 2010 single is one of the era's strongest vocal-uplifting collaborations. Andy Moor's production is technically immaculate, and Krapotkin's vocal performance is one of the most underrated of its decade — a record that rewards close listening across multiple plays.
#36Above & Beyond pres. OceanLab feat. Justine Suissa — “On a Good Day”
Anjunabeats·2009·Vocal Trance
The 2009 OceanLab single appeared on the Sirens of the Sea: Remixed (2009) Anjunabeats album cycle and entered ASOT 1000-era listener-poll vocal-trance retrospectives. Charted in the UK Indie Singles Chart in 2009. Year and label confirmed via Discogs.
#37Conjure One feat. Sinéad O'Connor — “Tears From the Moon”
Nettwerk Records·2002·Vocal Trance
Rhys Fulber's Conjure One project produced this 2002 vocal collaboration with Sinéad O'Connor — sitting at the same Nettwerk-era crossroads of electronic and adult-alternative that produced "Silence" three years earlier. Less commercially visible but artistically equal to the Delerium / McLachlan record.
#38Above & Beyond feat. Richard Bedford — “Thing Called Love”
Anjunabeats·2011·Vocal Trance
The other defining 2011 Above & Beyond / Bedford collaboration alongside "Sun & Moon." The two records together represent the apex of the Anjunabeats vocal-trance era — every subsequent Bedford appearance on the label has been measured against this baseline.
#39Three 'N One pres. Johnny Shaker — “Pearl River”
Massive Records·1998·Trance
The 1998 single (under the Johnny Shaker alias) is one of the most-bootlegged trance records of the late 90s — the sample of a Chinese folk melody is unforgettable, and the rhythmic drive is pure Three 'N One. A record that punched far above its commercial weight in influence.
#40Cosmic Gate — “Body of Conflict”
Black Hole Recordings·2009·Trance
Late-2000s Cosmic Gate at peak form — the Wake Your Mind era beginning. The arrangement is harmonically richer than the duo's 1999-2002 material, the production is contemporary, and the breakdown sits in the same emotional territory as Above & Beyond's Anjunabeats peak. Frequently cited by the late-2000s mainstage trance sound.
#41Markus Schulz feat. Departure — “Without You Near”
Coldharbour Recordings·2005·Vocal Trance
Schulz's 2005 vocal collaboration is one of the era's most emotionally direct records. The Departure vocal performance carries a heaviness that fit perfectly with Coldharbour's darker editorial direction, and the record has remained a Schulz set staple for over fifteen years.
#42Yves Deruyter — “The Rebel”
Bonzai Records·1996·Hard Trance
The 1996 Belgian hard-trance anthem from one of Bonzai's most consistent early producers. Deruyter's catalogue is an early influence on the harder side of late-90s European trance — "The Rebel" is the most-cited record from a discography that rewards full exploration.
#43Push (M.I.K.E.) — “Strange World”
Bonzai Records·1998·Hard Trance
The other defining 1998 Push single alongside "Universal Nation." The same combination of harder rhythmic drive and immediate melodic accessibility — the two records together account for most of the late-90s Belgian trance sound that the modern Pure Trance NEON sub-imprint reactivates.
#44Tiësto — “Traffic”
Black Hole Recordings·2003·Trance
The 2003 single is a key piece of the In Search of Sunrise-era Tiësto catalogue — quieter than "Adagio for Strings" but harmonically denser, and a frequent inclusion on later "best of Tiësto trance" retrospectives. Sometimes overshadowed in canon discussions; should not be.
#45Andy Moor pres. Whiteroom — “The White Room”
AVA Recordings·2008·Trance
Moor's 2008 instrumental on his own AVA label is one of the era's most technically refined trance records. The breakdown is built around a single sustained chord change that lands harder than most peak-time anthems' full drops — restraint as virtuosity.
#46Daniel Kandi — “Make Me Believe”
Anjunabeats·2008·Uplifting Trance
Kandi's 2008 Anjunabeats single is one of the era's most emotionally direct uplifting records. The arrangement is straightforward; the lead is unforgettable; the breakdown does its work without ornamentation. A clean expression of what late-2000s Anjuna uplifting could be at its purest.
#47Above & Beyond pres. OceanLab feat. Justine Suissa — “Beautiful Together”
Anjunabeats·2003·Vocal Trance
The 2003 OceanLab single predates the Sirens of the Sea album by five years but already shows the project's defining fingerprints — Suissa's vocal sensibility, the patient long-form arrangement, the harmonic generosity that became Anjuna's signature. A early defining release of the modern vocal-trance era.
#48Lange — “Out of the Sky”
Hooj Choons·1999·Trance
Stuart Langelaan's 1999 single (predating his Lange Recordings imprint by several years) is the underrated end of the 1999 trance gold-rush. The harmonic palette is generous, the rhythmic content is disciplined, and the record has aged better than most of its commercially-larger 1999 peers.
#49Hernan Cattáneo & Soundexile — “Vapor Trail”
Sudbeat Music·2014·Progressive Trance
The 2014 collaboration on Cattáneo's Sudbeat label is the modern progressive-trance canon at its purest. Patient build, atmospheric content, harmonic detail that rewards repeated listening — exactly the kind of record that defines the Argentine progressive aesthetic that has shaped the modern Anjunadeep audience space.
#50Above & Beyond pres. OceanLab feat. Justine Suissa — “Satellite”
Anjunabeats·2004·Vocal Trance
The 2004 OceanLab single anchors the early period of the project alongside "Beautiful Together." The vocal performance, the arrangement, the harmonic generosity — all present in mature form. Closing the list at #50 because Above & Beyond's vocal-era catalogue runs deep enough that picking just three OceanLab tracks for this list (10, 36, 47, 50 — actually four) underscores how foundational the project was.