Back in the past I had successful records (4)
I believe the answer is:
hits
'successful records' is the definition.
(hit records)
'back in the past i had' is the wordplay.
'back' shows that the letters should be reversed in order.
'in' indicates a hidden word.
'stih' can be found hidden inside 'past i had'.
'stih' backwards is 'HITS'.
(Other definitions for hits that I've seen before include "Raps - successful recordings" , "The sort of strikes" , "Pop successes" , "In the 60s these were 'groovy'" , "that please the public?" .)