Max Martin Hits No. 1 on Hot 100 for 18th Time with Taylor Swift's "Shake It Off"; Trails Only Paul McCartney and John Lennon

Who are the best songwriters of all time? Beatles fans will quickly split into factions to argue for either John Lennon or Paul McCartney, and that's fine. McCartney has 32 no. 1's to his name and Lennon has 26, good for the no. 1 and 2 all time in terms of no. 1 singles. But no. 3 all time? How about Max Martin, who just got out of a tie with Mariah Carey thanks to his work on Taylor Swift's "Shake It Off." The song marks Martin's 18th time at the top of the Hot 100 according to Billboard.

Now we're not ones to say that "most no. 1's" equals "best songwriter" necessarily, but you've got to acknowledge that he's been pretty successful in recent years from a business perspective. Thanks to his work with Katy Perry and a slew of female pop stars—only two of his 18 no. 1's have come from a male act...one for *NSYNC and one for Maroon 5—Martin is also tied for second all-time in terms of no. 1's produced, with 16. He has produced 16 of the tracks he wrote as well, helping him tie with figures such as Dr. Luke and Terry Lewis. It'll be a while before he competes for no. 1 in the production category...George Martin is no. 1 with 23 no. 1's...again thanks to The Beatles.

Here's a full list of Martin's no. 1 hits:

"...Baby One More Time" by Britney Spears

"It's Gonna Be Me" by *NSYNC

"I Kissed A Girl" by Katy Perry

"So What" by Pink

"My Life Would Suck Without You" by Kelly Clarkson

"3" by Britney Spears

"California Gurls" by Katy Perry ft. Snoop Dogg

"Teenage Dream" by Katy Perry

"Raise Your Glass" by Pink

"Hold It Against Me" by Britney Spears

"E.T." by Katy Perry ft. Kanye West