12th March 1995

A sudden surprise number one from a track that had seemed to have peaked: She’s A River belatedly giving Simple Minds a chart-topper where earlier classics didn’t, notably Up On The Catwalk which came closest. There’s some fab guitar riffing, and it’s an under-rated track as poor ol Jim Kerr by this time was getting some serious stick from rock musos who had turned on him for not sounding like he did 10 or 15 years earlier, and being more U2-ish stadium-sounding. In the age of grunge that was an unforgivable sin. As I’ve never let being out of fashion musically affect my love for a great record, I continued to ignore trendy rock critics and the backlash.

Highest new entry at 8 is Turn On Tune In Cop Out, Freakpower returning to my charts with a track that was a minor UK hit in 1993, very annoyingly, as it’s got great funk-tastic laid-back groovy vibes, maaaan. It’s also Fatboy Slim Norman Cook’s best track to date pre-Fatboy. Sophie B. Hawkins gets her 3rd top 10 track, the lovely As I Lay Me Down hitting 9, and Paul Carrack, the late Paul Young and Mike Rutherford get a good top 20 climb as Mike And The Mechanics, giving 2 of them 21 years of that, and Paul Young 16 years since Sad Cafe debuted. Talking of 21 years of top 20 entries...Sparks leap to 20 with Charlie Parker (sort of) and a new BBC version of the song that launched them This Town Ain’t Big Enough For Both Of Us.

 

In the week he was touring (see below) Prince does a medley of hits as promo single, and enters at 24, giving him 15 years worth of chart bothering. East 17, Rozalla, Elastica, Alex Party and Brand New Heavies all go top 40, while an oddity pops in at 33, the great fun Glam Metal Detectives, the theme to the Peter Richardson satire sketch show which was written by 10CC’s Lol Creme and Trevor Horn ex-Buggles and producer supremo. In at 36, progressive house duo Leftfield (featuring Toni Halliday) and Original, following up the John Lydon Open Up. At 44 Duran Duran cover classic Lou Reid a few years before the BBC make it a million seller for everyone except Duran Duran - there’s gratitude for you!

 

Which leaves Siouxsie and The Banshees returning 17 years in, with Stargazer, Terrorvision, some people say, Prince’s band New Power Generation, Faith No More and Wet Wet Wet, Julia says. I says they are all new entries.

 

 

 

1 ( 12 ) SHE’S A RIVER Simple Minds

2 ( 2 ) ONE MAN IN MY HEART Human League

3 ( 3 ) WAKE UP BOO The Boo Radleys

4 ( 1 ) I’VE GOT A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR YOU MN8

5 ( 6 ) WHOOPS NOW! Janet Jackson

6 ( 4 ) REACH UP (PAPA’S GOT A BRAND NEW PIGBAG) Perfecto Allstarz

7 ( 7 ) I KNOW Dionne Farris

8 ( NEW ) TURN ON TUNE IN COP OUT Freak Power

9 ( 15 ) AS I LAY ME DOWN Sophie B. Hawkins

10 ( 5 ) NO MORE ‘I LOVE YOU’S Annie Lennox

 

 

11 ( 18 ) BACK FOR GOOD Take That

12 ( 9 ) BELIEVE Elton John

13 ( 16 ) I KNOW THE LORD The Tabernacle

14 ( 10 ) OUR RADIO ROCKS PJ & Duncan

15 ( 25 ) OVER MY SHOULDER Mike + The Mechanics

16 ( 13 ) THIS COWBOY SONG Sting featuring Pato Banton

17 ( 22 ) RUN AWAY MC Saar and The Real McCoy

18 ( 14 ) COWBOY DREAMS Jimmy Nail

19 ( 8 ) WE’VE GOT TONIGHT Bob Seger and The Silver Bullet Band

20 ( 64 ) WHEN I KISS YOU (I HEAR CHARLIE PARKER PLAYING)/ THIS TOWN AIN'T BIG ENOUGH FOR BOTH OF US (BBC VERSION) Sparks

 

 

21 ( 11 ) THE ONLY ONE Gun

22 ( 30 ) YOU GOTTA BE Des’ree

23 ( 28 ) LOVE CAN BUILD A BRIDGE Cher, Chrissie Hynde, Neneh Cherry and Eric Clapton

24 ( NEW ) PURPLE MEDLEY Prince

25 ( 20 ) INDEPENDENT LOVE SONG Scarlet

26 ( 37 ) YE KE YE KE (REMIX) Mory Kante

27 ( 17 ) ONE NIGHT STAND Let Loose

28 ( 19 ) TELL ME WHEN Human League

29 ( 51 ) LET IT RAIN East 17

30 ( 46 ) CLOSE TO YOU Brand New Heavies

 

31 ( 24 ) GLORY BOX Portishead

32 ( 23 ) CRUSH WITH EYELINER REM

33 ( NEW ) EVERYBODY UP Glam Metal Detectives

34 ( 31 ) THINK TWICE Celine Dion

35 ( 49 ) (I DON’T EVEN KNOW IF I SHOULD CALL YOU) BABY Rozalla

36 ( NEW ) ORIGINAL Leftfield featuring Toni Halliday

37 ( 29 ) OPEN YOUR HEART M People

38 ( 47 ) DON’T GIVE ME YOUR LIFE Alex Party

39 ( 60 ) WAKING UP Elastica

40 ( 53 ) SOMEDAY I’LL BE SATURDAY NIGHT Bon Jovi

 

 

41 ( 34 ) WHATEVER Oasis

42 ( 27 ) ALL I WANT Those 2 Girls

43 ( 26 ) CHILL OUT (THING’S GONNA CHANGE) John Lee Hooker

44 ( NEW ) PERFECT DAY Duran Duran

45 ( 21 ) BEDTIME STORY Madonna

46 ( 32 ) CALL IT LOVE Deuce

47 ( 35 ) COTTON EYE JOE Rednex

48 ( 44 ) TAKE A BOW Madonna

49 ( 45 ) PUT YOURSELF IN MY PLACE Kylie Minogue

50 ( 43 ) WONDERFUL Adam Ant

 

51 ( 48 ) MISS YOU NIGHTS/ ALL I HAVE TO DO IS DREAM Cliff Richard and Phil Everley

52 ( 36 ) U WILL KNOW BMU featuring R Kelly, BoyzIImen

53 ( 40 ) HOLD MY HAND Hootie And The Blowfish

54 ( 42 ) RIVERDANCE Bill Whelan

55 ( 39 ) EVERY DAY OF THE WEEK Jade

56 ( NEW ) STARGAZER Siouxsie And The Banshees

57 ( 38 ) CAROLINE Kirsty MacColl

58 ( NEW ) SOME PEOPLE SAY Terrorvision

59 ( 65 ) A GIRL LIKE YOU Edwyn Collins

60 ( 57 ) STARS China Black

 

61 ( 33 ) UNITED WE STAND Reg Dwight aka Elton John

62 ( 52 ) FOR YOUR LOVE Stevie Wonder

63 ( 63 ) DANCING QUEEN/EAGLE Abba

64 ( 68 ) RIGHT BESIDE YOU Sophie B. Hawkins

65 ( 71 ) TRUE FAITH 94 New Order

66 ( NEW ) WILD New Power Generation

67 ( 67 ) YOU’VE LOST THAT LOVING FEELING The Righteous Brothers

68 ( 56 ) HEARTBEAT Jimmy Somerville

69 ( RE ) I’M NOT IN LOVE (1995) 10CC

70 ( 70 ) WITHOUT YOU Nilsson

 

71 ( NEW ) PUSH THE FEELING ON The Nightcrawlers

72 ( 54 ) CREEP TLC

73 ( 73 ) 20TH CENTURY BOY T.Rex

74 ( NEW ) DIGGING THE GRAVE Faith No More

75 ( NEW ) JULIA SAYS Wet Wet Wet

 

 

This week I went to see Prince again at Wembley Arena. Prince has a reputation for being one of the great live acts. He is. I’d seen him before, so I also knew trying to smuggle a cassette recorder in to get my own crappy quality souvenir was counter-productive - the last time they searched everyone going in and took away any cameras, tapes etc and stored them in the coat-drop with a ticket to collect afterwards. As you can imagine, it took effing forever to get it back afterwards which meant a very late drive back to Dorset. Prince, of course, continues to do his best to avoid keeping a fanbase (rather effectively), acting somewhat like the gulls in Finding nemo: Mine! Mine! Hey, ho, he was great anyway though not as memorable as the Graffiti Bridge tour. Top tracks were 1. 7, 2. LETITGO and 3. LOVE THY WILL BE DONE (the Martika track he wrote for her)

19th March 1995

 

Human League get their 2nd number one of 1995, and their final (credited) to date with a total of 9, as One Man In My Heart slides sweetly on top. Freak Power Turn On Tune In Drop Out, I mean Cop Out at 2. Sorry that’s a Timothy O’Leary hippie habit. East 17 don’t need an umbrella, they rocket to 3 and are happy to Let It Rain. Take That get their 4th top 10 record as Back For Good continues a slow climb upwards. Duran Duran meanwhile shoot from 44 to 12 on what must have been a Perfect Day for a decent cover version, and the first one to chart - even Lou didn’t chart with it!

 

Leftfield hit the top 20 with a synthy shuffle, the duo’s Paul Daley now 3 places higher than former bandmates Brand New Heavies latest. Faves of mine 10CC’s new version of I’m Not In Love is back in the 20 for the first time in 20 (years). Also doing it: Des’ree, Cher & co, and Prince, who keeps ahead of his New Power Generation getting wild at 26, both getting a concert boost. Neither are on youtube, so Prince must be behind them. Hey ho. In at 39, the highest new entry is Crash Test Dummies doing quirky XTC cover: I never saw The Ballad OF Peter Pumpkinhead coming, but both versions should have been big. The video has Dumb and Dumber’s Jeff Daniels in it.

 

A flood of new entries lower down, Simple Minds follow up Hypnotised, a Radiohead classic is High and Dry, the late Aaliyah states Age Is Nothin' But A Number, probably justifying getting married at 15 to R. Kelly. The courts hold a different view these days. Bomb The Bass and The Stone Roses are back, Clock cover Axel F to keep the 80's vibe going, while Snap! and the Bucketheads enter with a couple of great dance tracks. Rankin' Roger's back with Pato Banton, giving him 16 years of chart entries since The Beat debuted, and 2 Unlimited and Rednex keep the European former UK chart-topper list topped up.

 

 

1 ( 2 ) ONE MAN IN MY HEART Human League

2 ( 8 ) TURN ON TUNE IN COP OUT Freak Power

3 ( 29 ) LET IT RAIN East 17

4 ( 1 ) SHE’S A RIVER Simple Minds

5 ( 5 ) WHOOPS NOW! Janet Jackson

6 ( 7 ) I KNOW Dionne Farris

7 ( 6 ) REACH UP (PAPA’S GOT A BRAND NEW PIGBAG) Perfecto Allstarz

8 ( 4 ) I’VE GOT A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR YOU MN8

9 ( 11 ) BACK FOR GOOD Take That

10 ( 3 ) WAKE UP BOO The Boo Radleys

 

 

11 ( 10 ) NO MORE ‘I LOVE YOU’S Annie Lennox

12 ( 44 ) PERFECT DAY Duran Duran

13 ( 9 ) AS I LAY ME DOWN Sophie B. Hawkins

14 ( 12 ) BELIEVE Elton John

15 ( 36 ) ORIGINAL Leftfield featuring Toni Halliday

16 ( 69 ) I’M NOT IN LOVE (1995) 10CC

17 ( 22 ) YOU GOTTA BE Des’ree

18 ( 30 ) CLOSE TO YOU Brand New Heavies

19 ( 23 ) LOVE CAN BUILD A BRIDGE Cher, Chrissie Hynde, Neneh Cherry and Eric Clapton

20 ( 24 ) PURPLE MEDLEY Prince

 

 

21 ( 14 ) OUR RADIO ROCKS PJ & Duncan

22 ( 17 ) RUN AWAY MC Saar and The Real McCoy

23 ( 15 ) OVER MY SHOULDER Mike + The Mechanics

24 ( 16 ) THIS COWBOY SONG Sting featuring Pato Banton

25 ( 13 ) I KNOW THE LORD The Tabernacle

26 ( 66 ) GET WILD New Power Generation

27 ( 19 ) WE’VE GOT TONIGHT Bob Seger and The Silver Bullet Band

28 ( 38 ) DON’T GIVE ME YOUR LIFE Alex Party

29 ( 18 ) COWBOY DREAMS Jimmy Nail

30 ( 20 ) WHEN I KISS YOU (I HEAR CHARLIE PARKER PLAYING)/ THIS TOWN AIN'T BIG ENOUGH FOR BOTH OF US (BBC VERSION) Sparks

 

31 ( 33 ) EVERYBODY UP Glam Metal Detectives

32 ( 25 ) INDEPENDENT LOVE SONG Scarlet

33 ( 21 ) THE ONLY ONE Gun

34 ( 28 ) TELL ME WHEN Human League

35 ( 26 ) YE KE YE KE (REMIX) Mory Kante

36 ( 31 ) GLORY BOX Portishead

37 ( 58 ) SOME PEOPLE SAY Terrorvision

38 ( 34 ) THINK TWICE Celine Dion

39 ( NEW ) THE BALLAD OF PETER PUMPKINHEAD Crash Test Dummies

40 ( 32 ) CRUSH WITH EYELINER REM

 

 

41 ( NEW ) REAL LOVE Drizabone

42 ( 37 ) OPEN YOUR HEART M People

43 ( 53 ) HOLD MY HAND Hootie And The Blowfish

44 ( 27 ) ONE NIGHT STAND Let Loose

45 ( 41 ) WHATEVER Oasis

46 ( NEW ) HIGH AND DRY Radiohead

47 ( 35 ) (I DON’T EVEN KNOW IF I SHOULD CALL YOU) BABY Rozalla

48 ( NEW ) HYPNOTISED Simple Minds

49 ( 42 ) ALL I WANT Those 2 Girls

50 ( NEW ) AGE AIN’T NOTHIN’ BUT A NUMBER Aaliyah

 

51 ( 48 ) TAKE A BOW Madonna

52 ( 49 ) PUT YOURSELF IN MY PLACE Kylie Minogue

53 ( 51 ) MISS YOU NIGHTS/ ALL I HAVE TO DO IS DREAM Cliff Richard and Phil Everley

54 ( NEW ) AXEL F Clock

55 ( NEW ) ONE TO ONE RELIGION Bomb The Bass

56 ( 43 ) CHILL OUT (THING’S GONNA CHANGE) John Lee Hooker

57 ( NEW ) THE FIRST THE LAST ETERNITY Snap! featuring Summer

58 ( NEW ) BUBBLIN’ HOT Pato Banton featuring Rankin’ Roger

59 ( 59 ) A GIRL LIKE YOU Edwyn Collins

60 ( NEW ) TEN STOREY LOVE SONG The Stone Roses

 

61 ( 50 ) WONDERFUL Adam Ant

62 ( 60 ) STARS China Black

63 ( 63 ) DANCING QUEEN/EAGLE Abba

64 ( NEW ) HERE I GO 2 Unlimited

65 ( 64 ) RIGHT BESIDE YOU Sophie B. Hawkins

66 ( 65 ) TRUE FAITH 94 New Order

67 ( 67 ) YOU’VE LOST THAT LOVING FEELING The Righteous Brothers

68 ( 47 ) COTTON EYE JOE Rednex

69 ( NEW ) THE BOMB Bucketheads

 

70 ( 70 ) WITHOUT YOU Nilsson

71 ( 71 ) PUSH THE FEELING ON The Nightcrawlers

72 ( 54 ) RIVERDANCE Bill Whelan

73 ( 75 ) JULIA SAYS Wet Wet Wet

74 ( 73 ) 20TH CENTURY BOY T.Rex

75 ( NEW ) OLD POP IN AN OAK Rednex

 

In my oldies playlisting I was obsessed with the brilliant original histrionically emotional one-take of Lorraine Ellison's 60's classic Stay With Me Baby. Criminally this record has never charted in mine, or the UK, though many more insipid versions have. Go figure...

 

Not going to lie, that's a terrible number one! :D

 

Up there with Human and Empire State Human as their most cringeworthy...

 

 

(Leftfield on the other hand :wub: )

Edited April 28, 201510 yr by dandystar

Not going to lie, that's a terrible number one! :D

 

Up there with Human and Empire State Human as their most cringeworthy...

(Leftfield on the other hand :wub: )

 

Yeah it's not dated well on the whole, I was overcome with joy to have them back (and seeing them in concert) I think :lol:

26th March 1995

 

It’s yet another new number one, this time East 17 get their sole topper after not quite managing to Stay Another Day, they decide to Let It Rain. Will the Number One revolving door stop any time soon? Well, it’s a good dancepop record but not a classic, so place your bets... while up to 3 threatening is Leftfield doing something Original, and Take That at 4 looking like they are Back For Good. Up 51 places to 6, Snap get their 3rd big dance single, following on from The Power and Rhythm Is A Dancer in 1990 and 1992. Up 41, Simple Minds get a quick 2nd Top 10 hit at 7, Hypnotised, an altogether more laid back vibe to She’s A River. Duran Duran meantime keep the top 10 span alive with Perfect Day at 8, 14 years since Planet Earth did it first. Finally, at 9, Crash Test Dummies get a third top 10 hit. Mmm mmm mmmm pumpkin. Phew, that’s a bit of a turnover!

 

Highest new entry is C.B Milton, It’s A Loving Thing at 17, but just behind it’s The Fab Four, a BBC live version of The Shirelles Baby It’s You (a Burt Bacharach toon). OK the sound quality is basic, but the joy of hearing John Lennon over-rides that, as at that time, it’s the first newly-available Beatles single (of unavailable tracks, give or take a Movie Medley) in 25 years. Granted a studio version was available back in 63, but The Beatles in the singles chart is where they still belong, as far as I’m concerned! Meanwhile, Tom Petty, part time Wilbury with The Fabs George Harrison, doesn’t know how it feels to be at 18 - cos he’s in at 26. The UK Eurovision entry goes 90’s in sound, rap Love City groovetastic, and bangs straight in at 27, the highest chart placing for a UK entry in a decade, with the best UK entry in over 20 years, if not ever!

2 Unlimited show they can still rocket up into the 40, and here I go, ahead of some hand holding from Hootie going back up, to 29. There’s a spot of wiggling with the Outhere Brothers new at 31, and some more Rednex pop in at 37, with some clocking at 40 to add a bit of cheese into a chart sandwich. At 45 Mica Paris does a soul cover of U2’s recent classic One, not the first time U2 songs have successfully transformed into soul records, cos soul (like U2) is about wearing your heart on your sleeve, with passion. Mica’s run of singles stretches back to 7 years or so. The Lightning Seeds are meanwhile Marvellous as always, and in at 58, and Boy George returns at 60, Funtime and 13 years of cultured hits. Barry White is also back 22 years on (again) with a song that isn’t an old Dusty Springfield classic - it’s just the title. Londonbeat are also back at 70, and Bryan Adams somewhat dirge-like woman at 74.

 

 

1 ( 3 ) LET IT RAIN East 17

2 ( 1 ) ONE MAN IN MY HEART Human League

3 ( 15 ) ORIGINAL Leftfield featuring Toni Halliday

4 ( 9 ) BACK FOR GOOD Take That

5 ( 2 ) TURN ON TUNE IN COP OUT Freak Power

6 ( 57 ) THE FIRST THE LAST ETERNITY Snap! featuring Summer

7 ( 48 ) HYPNOTISED Simple Minds

8 ( 12 ) PERFECT DAY Duran Duran

9 ( 39 ) THE BALLAD OF PETER PUMPKINHEAD Crash Test Dummies

10 ( 8 ) I’VE GOT A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR YOU MN8

 

 

11 ( 10 ) WAKE UP BOO The Boo Radleys

12 ( 6 ) I KNOW Dionne Farris

13 ( 4 ) SHE’S A RIVER Simple Minds

14 ( 26 ) GET WILD New Power Generation

15 ( 5 ) WHOOPS NOW! Janet Jackson

16 ( 7 ) REACH UP (PAPA’S GOT A BRAND NEW PIGBAG) Perfecto Allstarz

17 ( NEW ) IT’S A LOVING THING C.B. Milton

18 ( NEW ) BABY IT’S YOU/ I’LL FOLLOW THE SUN The Beatles

19 ( 14 ) BELIEVE Elton John

20 ( 11 ) NO MORE ‘I LOVE YOU’S Annie Lennox

 

 

21 ( 13 ) AS I LAY ME DOWN Sophie B. Hawkins

22 ( 18 ) CLOSE TO YOU Brand New Heavies

23 ( 19 ) LOVE CAN BUILD A BRIDGE Cher, Chrissie Hynde, Neneh Cherry and Eric Clapton

24 ( 16 ) I’M NOT IN LOVE (1995) 10CC

25 ( 28 ) DON’T GIVE ME YOUR LIFE Alex Party

26 ( NEW ) YOU DON’T KNOW HOW IT FEELS Tom Petty

27 ( NEW ) LOVE CITY GROOVE Love City Groove

28 ( 64 ) HERE I GO 2 Unlimited

29 ( 43 ) HOLD MY HAND Hootie And The Blowfish

30 ( 17 ) YOU GOTTA BE Des’ree

 

 

31 ( NEW ) DON’T STOP (WIGGLE WIGGLE) The Outhere Brothers

32 ( 20 ) PURPLE MEDLEY Prince

33 ( 21 ) OUR RADIO ROCKS PJ & Duncan

34 ( 38 ) THINK TWICE Celine Dion

35 ( 37 ) SOME PEOPLE SAY Terrorvision

36 ( 27 ) WE’VE GOT TONIGHT Bob Seger and The Silver Bullet Band

37 ( 75 ) OLD POP IN AN OAK Rednex

38 ( 34 ) TELL ME WHEN Human League

39 ( 36 ) GLORY BOX Portishead

40 ( 54 ) AXEL F Clock

 

41 ( 32 ) INDEPENDENT LOVE SONG Scarlet

42 ( 23 ) OVER MY SHOULDER Mike + The Mechanics

43 ( 24 ) THIS COWBOY SONG Sting featuring Pato Banton

44 ( 29 ) COWBOY DREAMS Jimmy Nail

45 ( NEW ) ONE Mica Paris

46 ( 25 ) I KNOW THE LORD The Tabernacle

47 ( 33 ) THE ONLY ONE Gun

48 ( 73 ) JULIA SAYS Wet Wet Wet

49 ( 58 ) BUBBLIN’ HOT Pato Banton featuring Rankin’ Roger

50 ( 45 ) WHATEVER Oasis

 

51 ( 30 ) WHEN I KISS YOU (I HEAR CHARLIE PARKER PLAYING)/ THIS TOWN AIN'T BIG ENOUGH FOR BOTH OF US (BBC VERSION) Sparks

52 ( 40 ) CRUSH WITH EYELINER REM

53 ( 52 ) PUT YOURSELF IN MY PLACE Kylie Minogue

54 ( 51 ) TAKE A BOW Madonna

55 ( 53 ) MISS YOU NIGHTS/ ALL I HAVE TO DO IS DREAM Cliff Richard and Phil Everley

56 ( 35 ) YE KE YE KE (REMIX) Mory Kante

57 ( 22 ) RUN AWAY MC Saar and The Real McCoy

58 ( NEW ) MARVELLOUS The Lightning Seeds

59 ( 31 ) EVERYBODY UP Glam Metal Detectives

60 ( NEW ) FUNTIME Boy George

 

61 ( 42 ) OPEN YOUR HEART M People

62 ( 44 ) ONE NIGHT STAND Let Loose

63 ( NEW ) I ONLY WANT TO BE WITH YOU Barry White

64 ( 63 ) DANCING QUEEN/EAGLE Abba

65 ( 59 ) A GIRL LIKE YOU Edwyn Collins

66 ( 69 ) THE BOMB Bucketheads

67 ( 66 ) TRUE FAITH 94 New Order

68 ( 65 ) RIGHT BESIDE YOU Sophie B. Hawkins

69 ( 67 ) YOU’VE LOST THAT LOVING FEELING The Righteous Brothers

70 ( NEW ) I’M JUST YOUR (PUPPET ON A STRING) Londonbeat

 

71 ( 70 ) WITHOUT YOU Nilsson

72 ( 62 ) STARS China Black

73 ( RE ) MURDER INCORPORATED Bruce Springsteen

74 ( NEW ) HAVE YOU EVER REALLY LOVED A WOMAN Bryan Adams

75 ( 74 ) 20TH CENTURY BOY T.Rex

2nd April 1995

 

Take That get a second chart-topper and it’s their best record, still, the brilliant song that is Back For Good. I seriously didn’t believe Gary Barlow had it in him, as most of his own songs (bar the sublime Pray) just hadn’t impressed me until this one came along. I never let preconceived opinions get in the way though, and was thoroughly convinced by this, their only US hit of significance, and a big UK chart-topper. Simple Minds get a quick number 2 to add to a number 1, and I was Hypnotised enough to rate it. The Beatles get their first “new” single top 10 in 13 years, though I’ll Follow The Sun on the B Side was an actual Beatles song and a better choice for an A side, I thought.

 

Mica Paris has a big jump to 14 with U2’s One, Rednex inexplicably get a second top 20, as do Love City Groove (for the first and last time) the UK’s Eurovision biggest UK entry since the 70’s, most likely. In at 27, and it’s Bobby Brown’s best record, a remix of Two Can Play That Game belatedly making it big, while Australia’s Tina Arena is in Chains at 28, a great drama ballad. As always, The Lightning Seeds are Marvellous, at 30, and competing with Pet Shop Boys for those one-word very British song titles. We go on Strike at 34, well U sure do anyway, a good dance track, at 36 Massive Attack return with a cover of Karma Chameleon. not. The soulful Brownstone harmonise with passion at 37, If You Love Me, Bitty McLean is Over The River and still having a surprisingly long run of reggae singles charting, Roxette are still vulnerable at 60, Corona go pop with Baby Baby, and Tin Tin Out cover Sandie Shaw (or Dionne Warwick dpending on which Bacharach/David version you regard as the definitive) in a dance-stylee a few years ahead of breaking through with an actual hit.

 

 

 

1 ( 4 ) BACK FOR GOOD Take That

2 ( 7 ) HYPNOTISED Simple Minds

3 ( 1 ) LET IT RAIN East 17

4 ( 6 ) THE FIRST THE LAST ETERNITY Snap! featuring Summer

5 ( 3 ) ORIGINAL Leftfield featuring Toni Halliday

6 ( 2 ) ONE MAN IN MY HEART Human League

7 ( 9 ) THE BALLAD OF PETER PUMPKINHEAD Crash Test Dummies

8 ( 8 ) PERFECT DAY Duran Duran

9 ( 5 ) TURN ON TUNE IN COP OUT Freak Power

10 ( 18 ) BABY IT’S YOU/ I’LL FOLLOW THE SUN The Beatles

11 ( 14 ) GET WILD New Power Generation

12 ( 10 ) I’VE GOT A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR YOU MN8

13 ( 12 ) I KNOW Dionne Farris

14 ( 45 ) ONE Mica Paris

15 ( 15 ) WHOOPS NOW! Janet Jackson

16 ( 11 ) WAKE UP BOO The Boo Radleys

17 ( 13 ) SHE’S A RIVER Simple Minds

18 ( 37 ) OLD POP IN AN OAK Rednex

19 ( 19 ) BELIEVE Elton John

20 ( 27 ) LOVE CITY GROOVE Love City Groove

 

 

21 ( 21 ) AS I LAY ME DOWN Sophie B. Hawkins

22 ( 25 ) DON’T GIVE ME YOUR LIFE Alex Party

23 ( 17 ) IT’S A LOVING THING C.B. Milton

24 ( 16 ) REACH UP (PAPA’S GOT A BRAND NEW PIGBAG) Perfecto Allstarz

25 ( 29 ) HOLD MY HAND Hootie And The Blowfish

26 ( 26 ) YOU DON’T KNOW HOW IT FEELS Tom Petty

27 ( NEW ) TWO CAN PLAY THAT GAME Bobby Brown

28 ( NEW ) CHAINS Tina Arena

29 ( 20 ) NO MORE ‘I LOVE YOU’S Annie Lennox

30 ( 58 ) MARVELLOUS The Lightning Seeds

 

 

31 ( 23 ) LOVE CAN BUILD A BRIDGE Cher, Chrissie Hynde, Neneh Cherry and Eric Clapton

32 ( 22 ) CLOSE TO YOU Brand New Heavies

33 ( 63 ) I ONLY WANT TO BE WITH YOU Barry White

34 ( NEW ) U SURE DO Strike

35 ( 31 ) DON’T STOP (WIGGLE WIGGLE) The Outhere Brothers

36 ( NEW ) KARMACOMA Massive Attack

37 ( NEW ) IF YOU LOVE ME Brownstone

38 ( 49 ) BUBBLIN’ HOT Pato Banton featuring Rankin’ Roger

39 ( 48 ) JULIA SAYS Wet Wet Wet

40 ( 34 ) THINK TWICE Celine Dion

 

 

41 ( 36 ) WE’VE GOT TONIGHT Bob Seger and The Silver Bullet Band

42 ( 24 ) I’M NOT IN LOVE (1995) 10CC

43 ( 28 ) HERE I GO 2 Unlimited

44 ( 39 ) GLORY BOX Portishead

45 ( 38 ) TELL ME WHEN Human League

46 ( 30 ) YOU GOTTA BE Des’ree

47 ( 40 ) AXEL F Clock

48 ( 32 ) PURPLE MEDLEY Prince

49 ( NEW ) OVER THE RIVER Bitty McLean

50 ( 60 ) FUNTIME Boy George

 

51 ( 33 ) OUR RADIO ROCKS PJ & Duncan

52 ( 50 ) WHATEVER Oasis

53 ( 53 ) PUT YOURSELF IN MY PLACE Kylie Minogue

54 ( 41 ) INDEPENDENT LOVE SONG Scarlet

55 ( 55 ) MISS YOU NIGHTS/ ALL I HAVE TO DO IS DREAM Cliff Richard and Phil Everley

56 ( 54 ) TAKE A BOW Madonna

57 ( 44 ) COWBOY DREAMS Jimmy Nail

58 ( 43 ) THIS COWBOY SONG Sting featuring Pato Banton

59 ( 47 ) THE ONLY ONE Gun

60 ( NEW ) VULNERABLE Roxette

 

61 ( 35 ) SOME PEOPLE SAY Terrorvision

62 ( 51 ) WHEN I KISS YOU (I HEAR CHARLIE PARKER PLAYING)/ THIS TOWN AIN'T BIG ENOUGH FOR BOTH OF US (BBC VERSION) Sparks

63 ( NEW ) BABY BABY Corona

64 ( 64 ) DANCING QUEEN/EAGLE Abba

65 ( 74 ) HAVE YOU EVER REALLY LOVED A WOMAN Bryan Adams

66 ( 70 ) I’M JUST YOUR (PUPPET ON A STRING) Londonbeat

67 ( 67 ) TRUE FAITH 94 New Order

68 ( 65 ) A GIRL LIKE YOU Edwyn Collins

69 ( 69 ) YOU’VE LOST THAT LOVING FEELING The Righteous Brothers

70 ( 68 ) RIGHT BESIDE YOU Sophie B. Hawkins

 

71 ( 71 ) WITHOUT YOU Nilsson

72 ( NEW ) ALWAYS SOMETHING THERE TO REMIND ME Tin Tin Out featuring Espiritu

73 ( 72 ) STARS China Black

74 ( 62 ) ONE NIGHT STAND Let Loose

75 ( 75 ) 20TH CENTURY BOY T.Rex

9th April 1995

2 weeks Back For Good and Take That still on top, as Crash Test Dummies grab a sudden double A sided single peak of 2, their biggest single and even bigger than XTC’s original top 10 Pumpkinhead. Love City Groove leap to 3, and in one fell swoop is officially the biggest Eurovision entry from the UK since the New Seekers hit 1 in 1972 with Beg Steal Or Borrow. Bobby Brown gets a 3rd top 10 track, and highest new entry is Guaglione, Prez Prado’s 1950’s instrumental hit pushed in a TV advert and becoming a most unlikely hit. Actually, it’s a re-entry as it charted in my charts in January, but with a bit of a gap between.

 

Grace, Not Over yet, in at 18, one of the great dance records of the 90’s, no less. It just gets better with age, and this wasn’t the last time it would chart by any means, yes it’s that good, passionate, exciting, great production (Paul Oakenfold wasn’t lacking in that department, he was in the band), great tune, great vocal from Patti Low (original singer with the band) who was later blended in with regular jazz singer band member Dominique Atkins on later versions. Let Loose also return, with a good ballad, Best In Me at 30. From memory think they mean bringing out (The Best In Me), rather than, it’s (The Best In Me). 33 and Weezer arrive with a bang and a fantastic Happy Days TV sitcom tribute video to their terrific Buddy Holly. Weezer were consistently good, and consistently under-rated commercially. As with all bands, critics regard being witty as in some way inferior to being intense. It’s not. Both are equally valid.

 

Terence Trent D’Arby returns at 37 some 8 years on after being a huge new act that never managed to really follow it up, sadly. Corona make the top 40 with Baby Baby, Sleeper drop in on Vegas at 46, and a Duran Duran snippet fires a new entry at 61, Shut Up And Dance, I say, and BoyzIIMen thank me for that at 63.

 

 

1 ( 1 ) BACK FOR GOOD Take That

2 ( 7 ) GOD SHUFFLED HIS FEET/ THE BALLAD OF PETER PUMPKINHEAD Crash Test Dummies

3 ( 20 ) LOVE CITY GROOVE Love City Groove

4 ( 2 ) HYPNOTISED Simple Minds

5 ( 4 ) THE FIRST THE LAST ETERNITY Snap! featuring Summer

6 ( 27 ) TWO CAN PLAY THAT GAME Bobby Brown

7 ( 3 ) LET IT RAIN East 17

8 ( RE ) GUAGLIONE Perez ‘Prez’ Prado and His Orchestra

9 ( 5 ) ORIGINAL Leftfield featuring Toni Halliday

10 ( 6 ) ONE MAN IN MY HEART Human League

 

 

11 ( 8 ) PERFECT DAY Duran Duran

12 ( 9 ) TURN ON TUNE IN COP OUT Freak Power

13 ( 14 ) ONE Mica Paris

14 ( 11 ) GET WILD New Power Generation

15 ( 10 ) BABY IT’S YOU/ I’LL FOLLOW THE SUN The Beatles

16 ( 30 ) MARVELLOUS The Lightning Seeds

17 ( 16 ) WAKE UP BOO The Boo Radleys

18 ( NEW ) NOT OVER YET Grace

19 ( 28 ) CHAINS Tina Arena

20 ( 12 ) I’VE GOT A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR YOU MN8

 

 

21 ( 15 ) WHOOPS NOW! Janet Jackson

22 ( 37 ) IF YOU LOVE ME Brownstone

23 ( 13 ) I KNOW Dionne Farris

24 ( 17 ) SHE’S A RIVER Simple Minds

25 ( 36 ) KARMACOMA Massive Attack

26 ( 38 ) BUBBLIN’ HOT Pato Banton featuring Rankin’ Roger

27 ( 33 ) I ONLY WANT TO BE WITH YOU Barry White

28 ( 21 ) AS I LAY ME DOWN Sophie B. Hawkins

29 ( 34 ) U SURE DO Strike

30 ( NEW ) THE BEST IN ME Let Loose

 

 

31 ( 19 ) BELIEVE Elton John

32 ( 49 ) OVER THE RIVER Bitty McLean

33 ( NEW ) BUDDY HOLLY Weezer

34 ( 25 ) HOLD MY HAND Hootie And The Blowfish

35 ( 18 ) OLD POP IN AN OAK Rednex

36 ( 24 ) REACH UP (PAPA’S GOT A BRAND NEW PIGBAG) Perfecto Allstarz

37 ( NEW ) HOLDING ON TO YOU Terence Trent D’Arby

38 ( 23 ) IT’S A LOVING THING C.B. Milton

39 ( 63 ) BABY BABY Corona

40 ( 29 ) NO MORE ‘I LOVE YOU’S Annie Lennox

 

 

41 ( 32 ) CLOSE TO YOU Brand New Heavies

42 ( 35 ) DON’T STOP (WIGGLE WIGGLE) The Outhere Brothers

43 ( 40 ) THINK TWICE Celine Dion

44 ( 22 ) DON’T GIVE ME YOUR LIFE Alex Party

45 ( 39 ) JULIA SAYS Wet Wet Wet

46 ( NEW ) VEGAS Sleeper

47 ( 26 ) YOU DON’T KNOW HOW IT FEELS Tom Petty

48 ( 41 ) WE’VE GOT TONIGHT Bob Seger and The Silver Bullet Band

49 ( 31 ) LOVE CAN BUILD A BRIDGE Cher, Chrissie Hynde, Neneh Cherry and Eric Clapton

50 ( 44 ) GLORY BOX Portishead

 

51 ( 45 ) TELL ME WHEN Human League

52 ( 42 ) I’M NOT IN LOVE (1995) 10CC

53 ( 53 ) PUT YOURSELF IN MY PLACE Kylie Minogue

54 ( 52 ) WHATEVER Oasis

55 ( 47 ) AXEL F Clock

56 ( 55 ) MISS YOU NIGHTS/ ALL I HAVE TO DO IS DREAM Cliff Richard and Phil Everley

57 ( 46 ) YOU GOTTA BE Des’ree

58 ( 56 ) TAKE A BOW Madonna

59 ( 48 ) PURPLE MEDLEY Prince

60 ( 65 ) HAVE YOU EVER REALLY LOVED A WOMAN Bryan Adams

 

61 ( NEW ) SAVE IT TILL THE MOURNING AFTER Shut Up And Dance

62 ( 62 ) WHEN I KISS YOU (I HEAR CHARLIE PARKER PLAYING)/ THIS TOWN AIN'T BIG ENOUGH FOR BOTH OF US (BBC VERSION) Sparks

63 ( NEW ) THANK YOU BoyzIIMen

64 ( 64 ) DANCING QUEEN/EAGLE Abba

65 ( 43 ) HERE I GO 2 Unlimited

66 ( NEW ) SUDDENLY Sean Maguire

67 ( 69 ) YOU’VE LOST THAT LOVING FEELING The Righteous Brothers

68 ( 68 ) A GIRL LIKE YOU Edwyn Collins

69 ( 67 ) TRUE FAITH 94 New Order

70 ( 70 ) RIGHT BESIDE YOU Sophie B. Hawkins

 

71 ( 71 ) WITHOUT YOU Nilsson

72 ( 54 ) INDEPENDENT LOVE SONG Scarlet

73 ( 59 ) THE ONLY ONE Gun

74 ( 73 ) STARS China Black

75 ( 75 ) 20TH CENTURY BOY T.Rex

16th April 1995

 

3 weeks for Take That on top, as Let Loose are looking for the Best In Me at 7, their 3rd top 10 and The Lightning Seeds have an even longer run of top 10 entries and that’s Marvellous, at 9. Brownstone strut into the top 10, too, fabbily, leaving Mary J. Blige chasing fast highest new entry at 13 with the equally soulful attitudinal I’m Goin’ Down, and equally good.

 

Paul Young’s 60’s cover returns to the 40, Grazing grass as Portishead enter at 29 with some Sour Times. In a quiet week, the only other new entry of note is an early 70’s track from Bob Marley, Keep On Moving, written by Curtis Mayfield and remixed 1995 stylee.

 

1 ( 1 ) BACK FOR GOOD Take That

2 ( 3 ) LOVE CITY GROOVE Love City Groove

3 ( 2 ) GOD SHUFFLED HIS FEET/ THE BALLAD OF PETER PUMPKINHEAD Crash Test Dummies

4 ( 4 ) HYPNOTISED Simple Minds

5 ( 6 ) TWO CAN PLAY THAT GAME Bobby Brown

6 ( 5 ) THE FIRST THE LAST ETERNITY Snap! featuring Summer

7 ( 30 ) BEST IN ME Let Loose

8 ( 7 ) LET IT RAIN East 17

9 ( 16 ) MARVELLOUS The Lightning Seeds

10 ( 22 ) IF YOU LOVE ME Brownstone

 

 

11 ( 18 ) NOT OVER YET Grace

12 ( 19 ) CHAINS Tina Arena

13 ( NEW ) I’M GOIN’ DOWN Mary J. Blige

14 ( 8 ) GUAGLIONE Perez ‘Prez’ Prado and His Orchestra

15 ( 13 ) ONE Mica Paris

16 ( 10 ) ONE MAN IN MY HEART Human League

17 ( 9 ) ORIGINAL Leftfield featuring Toni Halliday

18 ( 12 ) TURN ON TUNE IN COP OUT Freak Power

19 ( 32 ) OVER THE RIVER Bitty McLean

20 ( 15 ) BABY IT’S YOU/ I’LL FOLLOW THE SUN The Beatles

 

 

21 ( 14 ) GET WILD New Power Generation

22 ( 11 ) PERFECT DAY Duran Duran

23 ( 33 ) BUDDY HOLLY Weezer

24 ( 29 ) U SURE DO Strike

25 ( 17 ) WAKE UP BOO The Boo Radleys

26 ( 26 ) BUBBLIN’ HOT Pato Banton featuring Rankin’ Roger

27 ( RE ) GRAZING IN THE GRASS Paul Young

28 ( 21 ) WHOOPS NOW! Janet Jackson

29 ( NEW ) SOUR TIMES Portishead

30 ( 20 ) I’VE GOT A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR YOU MN8

 

 

31 ( 39 ) BABY BABY Corona

32 ( 37 ) HOLDING ON TO YOU Terence Trent D’Arby

33 ( 34 ) HOLD MY HAND Hootie And The Blowfish

34 ( 63 ) I THANK YOU BoyzIIMen

35 ( 24 ) SHE’S A RIVER Simple Minds

36 ( 23 ) I KNOW Dionne Farris

37 ( 27 ) I ONLY WANT TO BE WITH YOU Barry White

38 ( 36 ) REACH UP (PAPA’S GOT A BRAND NEW PIGBAG) Perfecto Allstarz

39 ( 25 ) KARMACOMA Massive Attack

40 ( 42 ) DON’T STOP (WIGGLE WIGGLE) The Outhere Brothers

 

 

41 ( 28 ) AS I LAY ME DOWN Sophie B. Hawkins

42 ( 31 ) BELIEVE Elton John

43 ( 35 ) OLD POP IN AN OAK Rednex

44 ( 40 ) NO MORE ‘I LOVE YOU’S Annie Lennox

45 ( 38 ) IT’S A LOVING THING C.B. Milton

46 ( 46 ) VEGAS Sleeper

47 ( 41 ) CLOSE TO YOU Brand New Heavies

48 ( 43 ) THINK TWICE Celine Dion

49 ( 61 ) SAVE IT TILL THE MOURNING AFTER Shut Up And Dance

50 ( 47 ) YOU DON’T KNOW HOW IT FEELS Tom Petty

 

51 ( 51 ) TELL ME WHEN Human League

52 ( 60 ) HAVE YOU EVER REALLY LOVED A WOMAN Bryan Adams

53 ( 50 ) GLORY BOX Portishead

54 ( 53 ) PUT YOURSELF IN MY PLACE Kylie Minogue

55 ( 56 ) MISS YOU NIGHTS/ ALL I HAVE TO DO IS DREAM Cliff Richard and Phil Everley

56 ( 44 ) DON’T GIVE ME YOUR LIFE Alex Party

57 ( 54 ) WHATEVER Oasis

58 ( 52 ) I’M NOT IN LOVE (1995) 10CC

59 ( 58 ) TAKE A BOW Madonna

60 ( 48 ) WE’VE GOT TONIGHT Bob Seger and The Silver Bullet Band

 

61 ( 65 ) HERE I GO 2 Unlimited

62 ( 62 ) WHEN I KISS YOU (I HEAR CHARLIE PARKER PLAYING)/ THIS TOWN AIN'T BIG ENOUGH FOR BOTH OF US (BBC VERSION) Sparks

63 ( 49 ) LOVE CAN BUILD A BRIDGE Cher, Chrissie Hynde, Neneh Cherry and Eric Clapton

64 ( 64 ) DANCING QUEEN/EAGLE Abba

65 ( NEW ) YOU AND I WILL NEVER SEE THINGS EYE TO EYE Kingmaker

66 ( 67 ) YOU’VE LOST THAT LOVING FEELING The Righteous Brothers

67 ( 55 ) AXEL F Clock

68 ( NEW ) KEEP ON MOVING Bob Marley And The Wailers

69 ( 68 ) A GIRL LIKE YOU Edwyn Collins

70 ( 70 ) RIGHT BESIDE YOU Sophie B. Hawkins

 

71 ( 69 ) TRUE FAITH 94 New Order

72 ( 71 ) WITHOUT YOU Nilsson

73 ( 45 ) JULIA SAYS Wet Wet Wet

74 ( NEW ) CALLING OUT YOUR NAME Jimmy Nail

75 ( 75 ) 20TH CENTURY BOY T.Rex

23rd April 1995

4 weeks at 1 for Back For Good, as the charts go a little weird. That’s because I went on a 3-week holiday adventure around the world with mum and my brother, booked myself by fax, and multiple plane connections. Consequently current UK chart hits not that much in evidence, and all sorts of odd tracks (mostly American) getting airplay in odd places. So plenty don’t move, drop unexpectedly, or climb after peaking previously. Mary J. Blige goes top 10, Portishead top 20, and highest new entry is MC Saar and The Real McCoy at 15 with Love And Devotion. I wouldn’t put money on it going up though as I heard no UK radio for almost a month and a lot of the hit tracks of those weeks are either unknown or forgotten from lack of hearing them!

 

In at 20, and overshadowing their own current UK single, it’s BoyzIImen and their previous single On Bended Knee, heard somewhere between Heathrow Airport and Singapore City - I’ve misplaced the holiday diary for the moment so no expanded stories and anecdotes and details. Suffice to say it was a voyage of nostalgia for us, returning to our old house at Bedokville and old haunts around the former RAF Changi , and a very modern metropolitan city much-changed around Orchard Road, hot, humid, sunny. Rather lack0lustre singles take on a false lease of life in such circumstances - which explains BoyzIImen at 20. That’s my excuse anyway!

 

Annie Lennox, former number one, climbs again after I heard it in an orange juice kiosk on Orchard Road, air-conditioned relief from the humidity, and in at 27 it’s Richard Marx covering a Tom Jones country-music cover from 1967 (at least for me) which was a US hit in 1969 when I lived in Singapore, and the lyrics of which I bought in a songbook of current pop hits sheet music aged 11 or 12. Sometimes life is so circular... Meanwhile Sleeper go top 40, and Mark Morrison debuts in my charts with Crazy at 34, and what looked to be a promising classy Brit soul career.

 

At 40, it’s 20 fingers and Gillette, Mr. Personality, a eurodance hit that missed in the UK but made it in North America (as a minor hit). Taylor Swift might approve of it’s Toni Basil-esque Mickey rhythms. At 43 TLC return with the naughty Red Light Special, some other US chart ballads, and REM with some strange currencies. In my case, the Singapore dollar. Which I used to buy LOADS of nostalgia-driven souvenirs in Changi Village from a Sikh shop-owner who was about my age, and who excitedly introduced us to his family when we told him we were there in 1969 through 1971, when he was a boy helping his dad run a shack shop. All of the shacks in Changi Village had been knocked down and replaced with brick things, somewhat better to work in, but charmless. I missed all the smells and bustling village that it once was. These days, it was a very quiet hotel stopping place near new Changi International Airport, but off the beaten track. I missed the old Singapore. Remarkably, 24 years on, I still easily found our old house, and school, and swimming pool, everything was as clear as day to me, and still is vivid, despite diversions from new builds, new roads and building out into what was coastal waters.

 

1 ( 1 ) BACK FOR GOOD Take That

2 ( 2 ) LOVE CITY GROOVE Love City Groove

3 ( 3 ) GOD SHUFFLED HIS FEET/ THE BALLAD OF PETER PUMPKINHEAD Crash Test Dummies

4 ( 4 ) HYPNOTISED Simple Minds

5 ( 5 ) TWO CAN PLAY THAT GAME Bobby Brown

6 ( 6 ) THE FIRST THE LAST ETERNITY Snap! featuring Summer

7 ( 7 ) BEST IN ME Let Loose

8 ( 8 ) LET IT RAIN East 17

9 ( 13 ) I’M GOIN’ DOWN Mary J. Blige

10 ( 9 ) MARVELLOUS The Lightning Seeds

 

 

11 ( 12 ) CHAINS Tina Arena

12 ( 11 ) NOT OVER YET Grace

13 ( 10 ) IF YOU LOVE ME Brownstone

14 ( 29 ) SOUR TIMES Portishead

15 ( NEW ) LOVE AND DEVOTION Mc Sar and The Real McCoy

16 ( 18 ) TURN ON TUNE IN COP OUT Freak Power

17 ( 19 ) OVER THE RIVER Bitty McLean

18 ( 14 ) GUAGLIONE Perez ‘Prez’ Prado and His Orchestra

19 ( 24 ) U SURE DO Strike

20 ( NEW ) ON BENDED KNEE BoyzIIMen

 

 

21 ( 15 ) ONE Mica Paris

22 ( 23 ) BUDDY HOLLY Weezer

23 ( 16 ) ONE MAN IN MY HEART Human League

24 ( 28 ) WHOOPS NOW! Janet Jackson

25 ( 32 ) HOLDING ON TO YOU Terence Trent D’Arby

26 ( 44 ) NO MORE ‘I LOVE YOU’S Annie Lennox

27 ( NEW ) I’M NEVER GONNA FALL IN LOVE AGAIN Richard Marx

28 ( 20 ) BABY IT’S YOU/ I’LL FOLLOW THE SUN The Beatles

29 ( 17 ) ORIGINAL Leftfield featuring Toni Halliday

30 ( 21 ) GET WILD New Power Generation

 

 

31 ( 22 ) PERFECT DAY Duran Duran

32 ( 34 ) THANK YOU BoyzIIMen

33 ( 46 ) VEGAS Sleeper

34 ( NEW ) CRAZY Mark Morrison

35 ( 38 ) REACH UP (PAPA’S GOT A BRAND NEW PIGBAG) Perfecto Allstarz

36 ( 42 ) BELIEVE Elton John

37 ( 26 ) BUBBLIN’ HOT Pato Banton featuring Rankin’ Roger

38 ( 25 ) WAKE UP BOO The Boo Radleys

39 ( 43 ) OLD POP IN AN OAK Rednex

40 ( NEW ) MR. PERSONALITY 20 Fingers featuring Gillette

 

 

41 ( 48 ) THINK TWICE Celine Dion

42 ( 30 ) I’VE GOT A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR YOU MN8

43 ( NEW ) RED LIGHT SPECIAL TLC

44 ( 59 ) TAKE A BOW Madonna

45 ( 35 ) SHE’S A RIVER Simple Minds

46 ( RE ) WONDERFUL Adam Ant

47 ( 31 ) BABY BABY Corona

48 ( NEW ) LOVE OF MY LIFE Fun Factory

49 ( 67 ) AXEL F Clock

50 ( 27 ) GRAZING IN THE GRASS Paul Young

 

51 ( 51 ) TELL ME WHEN Human League

52 ( 52 ) HAVE YOU EVER REALLY LOVED A WOMAN Bryan Adams

53 ( 55 ) MISS YOU NIGHTS/ ALL I HAVE TO DO IS DREAM Cliff Richard and Phil Everley

54 ( 36 ) I KNOW Dionne Farris

55 ( 33 ) HOLD MY HAND Hootie And The Blowfish

56 ( 54 ) PUT YOURSELF IN MY PLACE Kylie Minogue

57 ( 49 ) SAVE IT TILL THE MOURNING AFTER Shut Up And Dance

58 ( NEW ) ETERNAL LOVE PJ & Duncan

59 ( 57 ) WHATEVER Oasis

60 ( 53 ) GLORY BOX Portishead

 

61 ( 64 ) DANCING QUEEN/EAGLE Abba

62 ( RE ) SUDDENLY Sean Maguire

63 ( 63 ) LOVE CAN BUILD A BRIDGE Cher, Chrissie Hynde, Neneh Cherry and Eric Clapton

64 ( 41 ) AS I LAY ME DOWN Sophie B. Hawkins

65 ( 37 ) I ONLY WANT TO BE WITH YOU Barry White

66 ( 66 ) YOU’VE LOST THAT LOVING FEELING The Righteous Brothers

67 ( NEW ) I BELIEVE Blessid Union Of Souls

68 ( 61 ) HERE I GO 2 Unlimited

69 ( 73 ) JULIA SAYS Wet Wet Wet

70 ( 71 ) TRUE FAITH 94 New Order

 

71 ( 70 ) RIGHT BESIDE YOU Sophie B. Hawkins

72 ( 69 ) A GIRL LIKE YOU Edwyn Collins

73 ( 72 ) WITHOUT YOU Nilsson

74 ( NEW ) STRANGE CURRENCIES REM

75 ( 75 ) 20TH CENTURY BOY T.Rex

30th April 1990

5 weeks on top, Back For Good, Take That preside over a static chart with only returns for some recent records and big climbs for recent biggies that get a renewed lease of life as they crop up on flights, in shops, on TV and seem fresher in the new exotic surroundings. Frankly I was far too busy with days out, jetlag and checking in! Just a quick mention that Crash Test Dummies 1994 track God Shuffled His Feet is back up to 2 second time around, Madonna and Edwyn Collins get big boosts back into the 40, with Pato Banton and Rankin’ Roger, and Richard Marx all adding to their run of top 20 hits. Other than that I’m featuring some oldies I heard on the holiday as video links, as there’s nothing much new to feature.

 

1 ( 1 ) BACK FOR GOOD Take That

2 ( 3 ) GOD SHUFFLED HIS FEET/ THE BALLAD OF PETER PUMPKINHEAD Crash Test Dummies

3 ( 2 ) LOVE CITY GROOVE Love City Groove

4 ( 5 ) TWO CAN PLAY THAT GAME Bobby Brown

5 ( 4 ) HYPNOTISED Simple Minds

6 ( 8 ) LET IT RAIN East 17

7 ( 6 ) THE FIRST THE LAST ETERNITY Snap! featuring Summer

8 ( 9 ) I’M GOIN’ DOWN Mary J. Blige

9 ( 7 ) BEST IN ME Let Loose

10 ( 11 ) CHAINS Tina Arena

 

11 ( 10 ) MARVELLOUS The Lightning Seeds

12 ( 15 ) LOVE AND DEVOTION Mc Sar and The Real McCoy

13 ( 13 ) IF YOU LOVE ME Brownstone

14 ( 12 ) NOT OVER YET Grace

15 ( 22 ) BUDDY HOLLY Weezer

16 ( 16 ) TURN ON TUNE IN COP OUT Freak Power

17 ( 14 ) SOUR TIMES Portishead

18 ( 37 ) BUBBLIN’ HOT Pato Banton featuring Rankin’ Roger

19 ( 27 ) I’M NEVER GONNA FALL IN LOVE AGAIN Richard Marx

20 ( 20 ) ON BENDED KNEE BoyzIIMen

 

21 ( 18 ) GUAGLIONE Perez ‘Prez’ Prado and His Orchestra

22 ( 26 ) NO MORE ‘I LOVE YOU’S Annie Lennox

23 ( 32 ) THANK YOU BoyzIIMen

24 ( 19 ) U SURE DO Strike

25 ( 72 ) A GIRL LIKE YOU Edwyn Collins

26 ( 44 ) TAKE A BOW Madonna

27 ( 43 ) RED LIGHT SPECIAL TLC

28 ( 24 ) WHOOPS NOW! Janet Jackson

29 ( 21 ) ONE Mica Paris

30 ( 17 ) OVER THE RIVER Bitty McLean

 

31 ( 23 ) ONE MAN IN MY HEART Human League

32 ( 34 ) CRAZY Mark Morrison

33 ( 36 ) BELIEVE Elton John

34 ( 25 ) HOLDING ON TO YOU Terence Trent D’Arby

35 ( 28 ) BABY IT’S YOU/ I’LL FOLLOW THE SUN The Beatles

36 ( 31 ) PERFECT DAY Duran Duran

37 ( 35 ) REACH UP (PAPA’S GOT A BRAND NEW PIGBAG) Perfecto Allstarz

38 ( 45 ) SHE’S A RIVER Simple Minds

39 ( 29 ) ORIGINAL Leftfield featuring Toni Halliday

40 ( 40 ) MR. PERSONALITY 20 Fingers featuring Gillette

 

41 ( 33 ) VEGAS Sleeper

42 ( 30 ) GET WILD New Power Generation

43 ( 49 ) AXEL F Clock

44 ( 60 ) GLORY BOX Portishead

45 ( 52 ) HAVE YOU EVER REALLY LOVED A WOMAN Bryan Adams

46 ( 46 ) WONDERFUL Adam Ant

47 ( 38 ) WAKE UP BOO The Boo Radleys

48 ( 48 ) LOVE OF MY LIFE Fun Factory

49 ( RE ) COTTON EYE JOE Rednex

50 ( 42 ) I’VE GOT A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR YOU MN8

 

51 ( 41 ) THINK TWICE Celine Dion

52 ( 39 ) OLD POP IN AN OAK Rednex

53 ( 53 ) MISS YOU NIGHTS/ ALL I HAVE TO DO IS DREAM Cliff Richard and Phil Everley

54 ( 51 ) TELL ME WHEN Human League

55 ( 58 ) ETERNAL LOVE PJ & Duncan

56 ( 62 ) SUDDENLY Sean Maguire

57 ( 56 ) PUT YOURSELF IN MY PLACE Kylie Minogue

58 ( 54 ) I KNOW Dionne Farris

59 ( 59 ) WHATEVER Oasis

60 ( NEW ) LOVE ME FOR A REASON Boyzone

 

61 ( 47 ) BABY BABY Corona

62 ( 50 ) GRAZING IN THE GRASS Paul Young

63 ( 61 ) DANCING QUEEN/EAGLE Abba

64 ( 66 ) YOU’VE LOST THAT LOVING FEELING The Righteous Brothers

65 ( 57 ) SAVE IT TILL THE MOURNING AFTER Shut Up And Dance

66 ( NEW ) TOTAL ECIPSE OF THE HEART Nicki French

67 ( 67 ) I BELIEVE Blessid Union Of Souls

68 ( 69 ) JULIA SAYS Wet Wet Wet

69 ( 55 ) HOLD MY HAND Hootie And The Blowfish

70 ( 70 ) TRUE FAITH 94 New Order

 

71 ( 71 ) RIGHT BESIDE YOU Sophie B. Hawkins

72 ( 73 ) WITHOUT YOU Nilsson

73 ( 63 ) LOVE CAN BUILD A BRIDGE Cher, Chrissie Hynde, Neneh Cherry and Eric Clapton

74 ( 64 ) AS I LAY ME DOWN Sophie B. Hawkins

75 ( 75 ) 20TH CENTURY BOY T.Rex

 

 

In Singapore: a walk up Mount Faber (on foot, exhausting in the hot sun) and a sweaty cable car ride over to Sentosa (which had aircon hooray!), a boat ride round Singapore harbour (cloudy, but got sunburnt) still as busy with worldwide shipping as it ever was, and some joy with the odd monsoon torrential downpour - no kidding I love warm downpours of rain in the tropics (as long as they aren’t prolonged)! The next step in the holiday was a flight from Changi to Cairns in Australia, with a refuelling stop in Darwin. It was a surprisingly long flight, and Australia is both bigger and further away than you think!

 

 

Heard in "Asia" section of Sentosa island, Singapore, and a big record in 1971 Singapore

 

Cairns customs gave us a hard time for the crime of trying to import such vastly hazardous materials through customs as long-life milk (imported to Singapore from Australia, I mean really! Returning it from where it came...?!) Then there was the packets of instant hot chocolate drinks: who knew these were riddled with mad cow disease and that people in the UK were all headed for an old age of slowly dying from it from packets of cocoa. Not to mention the souvenir bamboo coasters we’d bought, which qualified as alien plant products bringing disease into the country. Who knew industrial-processed bamboo was so lethal?! It was reassuring to know that no Australian shops in any way import anything containing bamboo from outside Australia, oh no, that’s 100% for sure. Or food. Or wood. After threats to prosecute us for so flagrantly flouting Australian customs, and their sarcastic, stress-inducing, patronising attitude to tourists where they could have just gently explained and disposed of products, I decided pretty much then and there that I would never go back to Australia. They don’t want my tourist money, and I don’t want the stress, fair exchange. I’ve stuck to that and never been back.

 

 

heard in Woolworths, Cairns.

 

 

Cairns, though, was a delight, more like Singapore in the 60’s and early 70’s than modern-day Singapore in mood. Largely quiet, far away from the pace of modern life, and locals were friendly and chatty and upfront, which I like. The Barrier Reef was nearby, my brother disappeared for a few days diving, and I took mum to Green Island by boat, and snorkelled happily amongst the coral and fish and golden sands. Bliss. An old steam train trip to Kuranda was like the olden days, and the netted coves of nearby coastal settlements fascinating (to keep out the box jellyfish). I bought some Australian cd’s, some souvenirs, and we stayed in actual ground floor apartment with cooking and fridge and bedrooms and TV so it was much more relaxing than Singapore. I really liked it, just regretted that there was no time to travel the huge distance to Sydney.

 

 

heard in Cairns

7th May 1995

 

In the week that we were in Cairns and flew to Honolulu, new UK music was non-existent, it was like going slightly back in time, and mostly to AOR USA rock stations. Consequently, lots of records go back up and re-enter, and the few new entries are non-UK hits. Madonna shoots up 25 places to get a second run on top nearly 6 months on with the fab Take A Bow, a record that was mystifyingly minor in the UK and huge elsewhere. Portishead make the top 10 for the second time, while Dionne Farris and Hootie And The Blowfish both reach new top 10 peaks.

 

Sheryl Crow re-enters at a new peak of 12, with the rather touching Strong Enough, while Blessid Union Of Souls rocket up to 17, with I Believe, and TLC’s Creep and Madonna’s Bedtime Story re-enter the 40, while Martin Page and Firehouse both enter inside the 40 with very Adult Rock tracks. It’s worth pointing out in normal times tracks like Firehouse wouldn’t stand a chance in my charts, though the Martin Page song isn’t bad. At 45, Newton covers Jigsaw’s mighty 1975 worldwide hit Sky high. Jigsaw were the first band I saw live in concert in 1977/8, and this Stock Aitken Waterman version didn’t happen in the UK as dance music had moved on - but it hit elsewhere, and the song’s good, even in this trashy pop cover version. Finally, at 59, 4 P.M. cover the English lyric soulful A Taste Of Honey cover of the original brilliant Japanese language Kyu Sakamoto version of Sukiyaki. Kyu eventually got the record to top my charts in the 2010’s, 50 years late, cos I loved the toon as a kid and it’s still great. This version is a reasonable doo-wop influenced stylee not a million miles away from BoyzIImen.

 

 

1 ( 26 ) TAKE A BOW Madonna

2 ( 1 ) BACK FOR GOOD Take That

3 ( 2 ) GOD SHUFFLED HIS FEET/ THE BALLAD OF PETER PUMPKINHEAD Crash Test Dummies

4 ( 58 ) I KNOW Dionne Farris

5 ( 3 ) LOVE CITY GROOVE Love City Groove

6 ( 4 ) TWO CAN PLAY THAT GAME Bobby Brown

7 ( 17 ) SOUR TIMES Portishead

8 ( 6 ) LET IT RAIN East 17

9 ( 5 ) HYPNOTISED Simple Minds

10 ( 69 ) HOLD MY HAND Hootie And The Blowfish

 

11 ( 7 ) THE FIRST THE LAST ETERNITY Snap! featuring Summer

12 ( RE ) STRONG ENOUGH Sheryl Crow

13 ( 9 ) BEST IN ME Let Loose

14 ( 8 ) I’M GOIN’ DOWN Mary J. Blige

15 ( 12 ) LOVE AND DEVOTION Mc Sar and The Real McCoy

16 ( 11 ) MARVELLOUS The Lightning Seeds

17 ( 67 ) I BELIEVE Blessid Union Of Souls

18 ( 10 ) CHAINS Tina Arena

19 ( 22 ) NO MORE ‘I LOVE YOU’S Annie Lennox

20 ( 20 ) ON BENDED KNEE BoyzIIMen

 

 

21 ( 16 ) TURN ON TUNE IN COP OUT Freak Power

22 ( 33 ) BELIEVE Elton John

23 ( 13 ) IF YOU LOVE ME Brownstone

24 ( 27 ) RED LIGHT SPECIAL TLC

25 ( 14 ) NOT OVER YET Grace

26 ( 25 ) A GIRL LIKE YOU Edwyn Collins

27 ( 19 ) I’M NEVER GONNA FALL IN LOVE AGAIN Richard Marx

28 ( 15 ) BUDDY HOLLY Weezer

29 ( RE ) CREEP TLC

30 ( 21 ) GUAGLIONE Perez ‘Prez’ Prado and His Orchestra

 

31 ( 18 ) BUBBLIN’ HOT Pato Banton featuring Rankin’ Roger

32 ( 44 ) GLORY BOX Portishead

33 ( 28 ) WHOOPS NOW! Janet Jackson

34 ( RE ) BEDTIME STORY Madonna

35 ( 23 ) THANK YOU BoyzIIMen

36 ( NEW ) IN THE HOUSE OF STONE AND LIGHT Martin Page

37 ( 29 ) ONE Mica Paris

38 ( NEW ) I LIVE MY LIFE FOR YOU Firehouse

39 ( 31 ) ONE MAN IN MY HEART Human League

40 ( 40 ) MR. PERSONALITY 20 Fingers featuring Gillette

 

 

41 ( 37 ) REACH UP (PAPA’S GOT A BRAND NEW PIGBAG) Perfecto Allstarz

42 ( 30 ) OVER THE RIVER Bitty McLean

43 ( 38 ) SHE’S A RIVER Simple Minds

44 ( 24 ) U SURE DO Strike

45 ( NEW ) SKY HIGH Newton

46 ( 46 ) WONDERFUL Adam Ant

47 ( 35 ) BABY IT’S YOU/ I’LL FOLLOW THE SUN The Beatles

48 ( 39 ) ORIGINAL Leftfield featuring Toni Halliday

49 ( 49 ) COTTON EYE JOE Rednex

50 ( 36 ) PERFECT DAY Duran Duran

 

 

51 ( 51 ) THINK TWICE Celine Dion

52 ( RE ) YOU GOTTA BE Des’ree

53 ( 32 ) CRAZY Mark Morrison

54 ( 53 ) MISS YOU NIGHTS/ ALL I HAVE TO DO IS DREAM Cliff Richard and Phil Everley

55 ( 54 ) TELL ME WHEN Human League

56 ( 50 ) I’VE GOT A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR YOU MN8

57 ( 47 ) WAKE UP BOO The Boo Radleys

58 ( 42 ) GET WILD New Power Generation

59 ( NEW ) SUKIYAKI 4 P.M.

60 ( 34 ) HOLDING ON TO YOU Terence Trent D’Arby

 

 

61 ( 57 ) PUT YOURSELF IN MY PLACE Kylie Minogue

62 ( 59 ) WHATEVER Oasis

63 ( 63 ) DANCING QUEEN/EAGLE Abba

64 ( RE ) RUN AWAY MC Saar and The Real McCoy

65 ( 64 ) YOU’VE LOST THAT LOVING FEELING The Righteous Brothers

66 ( 43 ) AXEL F Clock

67 ( RE ) SET YOU FREE N Trance

68 ( NEW ) IF YOU ONLY LET ME IN MN8

69 ( 45 ) HAVE YOU EVER REALLY LOVED A WOMAN Bryan Adams

70 ( 70 ) TRUE FAITH 94 New Order

 

71 ( 71 ) RIGHT BESIDE YOU Sophie B. Hawkins

72 ( 72 ) WITHOUT YOU Nilsson

73 ( 48 ) LOVE OF MY LIFE Fun Factory

74 ( 60 ) LOVE ME FOR A REASON Boyzone

75 ( 75 ) 20TH CENTURY BOY T.Rex

 

My brother had been scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef, and when he got back we caught our next flight to Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii. I wouldn’t say the Pacific Ocean is big but.....apart from some glorious coral reef islands, and dramatic sunsets, it was just sea for the whole flight, and it took as long to get there as it did to get to Singapore from London. It. Is. Huge. Vast. We landed well after midnight in Hawaii, and I’d booked us some airport stayover cabins, tiny but at least it was possible to sleep a bit, and wash and change. Next day we went to our apartment, wayyy on high in what we used to call skyscrapers. Hawaii 5-0 was on permanent rotation on TV, but happily they also had the mainland US TV shows, so I was in Star Trek heaven, among many cult shows of the time.

 

So what was Hawaii like? Well, we were staying near Diamond Head, near the big Waikiki Beach with the paddling canoes and bustling tourists galore - it was, in short, exactly like the title intro to the TV show. Fab! Shopping malls, trolley buses, exotic fish round the local harbour, and an extinct (mostly) volcano to look at. I really was taken with the place. If only it wasn’t 7000 miles+ away...trip reports next week...

14th May 1995

In the week I returned with massive relief to the UK from Hawaii, my chart explodes with delight as exactly one-third of the dreary chart is ejected in favour of UK music scene delight. I can’t under-state how dull the music scene of each country was compared to the UK music scene in 1995. At number one, Love City Groove do what no UK act had done since the New Seekers 1972 - enter Eurovision and top my chart! One of the great UK entries, soul rap and sounding like it actually had some musical relevance to the year of entry. Still waiting for that to happen again! Let Loose shoot up to 2, their biggest hit, with great ballad Best In Me, Guaglione peaks at 3, MC Sar and The Real McCoy hit 9 and Weezer just miss at 11 with Buddy Holly.

 

It’s all about the new entries, though - in at 4 it’s Bernard Butler, ex-Suede and now partnered with the amazing vocals of David McAlmont for one of the greatest records of the 90’s, the awesome building OTT strings explosion that is Yes. When I say it reaches a climax, that is to understate the case! Brilliant in every way and in at 4. In at 7 temporarily ex-of-UB40, main vocalist Ali Campbell has a very UB40 duet with Pamela Starks, the lovely reggae easy-listening fabness of That Look In Your Eye, while in at 10, Marc Almond goes all Italian-dance with Adored And Explored, which sounds a bit odd 2 decades on when I was expecting a dramatic ballad - yes I’d forgotten this one! Marc’s former duet partner (I Feel Love) also enters at 15 with a cover of Susan Cadogan’s 1975 top 5 Hurts So Good, still reggae but not quite as good.

 

Charles & Eddie return with 24-7-365, a pleasant soul groove, at 18; the only World Hit to climb substantially is Newton going Sky High at 13; Definition Of Sound go Boom Boom at 27, though they really should have guested Basil Brush on it; at 29 Scatman John does scat dance stylee and influences future UK Eurovision entry from Electro Velvet. They did it with a better record. At 30, Duran Duran do a pretty good rock cover of the classic Grandmaster Flash & Melle Mel rap White Lines 11 years on, while at 34 Elton John is Made In England. Des’ree feels so high at 35, easily pleased obviously, while Dumb and Dumber’s offshoot Gigolo Aunts Where I Find My Heaven strums in at 36 in a Rembrandts stylee. Oasis are back with Some Might Say at 37, and some great riffing but not such a great song as recent singles, but still good, while Bitty McLean covers The Carpenters We’ve Only Just Begun at 40 reggae style (of course), and the utterly fantastic and under-rated song-writer Paul Williams can do no wrong for me. He was also an Orang-Utan in the Apes movies.

 

Michelle Gayle’s back with some Freedom at 43, Baby D are back with a drum ‘n’ bass/dub-step cover of The Korgis brilliant Everybody’s Got To Learn Sometime at 45, change the title, drop some lyrics, and do a pretty good job of it. Other newies include Boyzone, Sheryl Crow, The Wildhearts, Mike + The Mechanics, Scarlet, Chris Isaak and best of the bunch Living Joy in at 69 with smash hit Dreamer, a great dance track. Phew!

 

 

1 ( 5 ) LOVE CITY GROOVE Love City Groove

2 ( 13 ) BEST IN ME Let Loose

3 ( 30 ) GUAGLIONE Perez ‘Prez’ Prado and His Orchestra

4 ( NEW ) YES McAlmont & Butler

5 ( 2 ) BACK FOR GOOD Take That

6 ( 1 ) TAKE A BOW Madonna

7 ( NEW ) THAT LOOK IN YOUR EYE Ali Campbell featuring Pamela Starks

8 ( 6 ) TWO CAN PLAY THAT GAME Bobby Brown

9 ( 15 ) LOVE AND DEVOTION Mc Sar and The Real McCoy

10 ( NEW ) ADORED AND EXPLORED Marc Almond

 

11 ( 28 ) BUDDY HOLLY Weezer

12 ( 45 ) SKY HIGH Newton

13 ( 4 ) I KNOW Dionne Farris

14 ( 3 ) GOD SHUFFLED HIS FEET/ THE BALLAD OF PETER PUMPKINHEAD Crash Test Dummies

15 ( NEW ) HURTS SO GOOD Jimmy Somerville

16 ( 7 ) SOUR TIMES Portishead

17 ( 20 ) ON BENDED KNEE BoyzIIMen

18 ( NEW ) “24-7-365” Charles and Eddie

19 ( 9 ) HYPNOTISED Simple Minds

20 ( 8 ) LET IT RAIN East 17

 

21 ( 12 ) STRONG ENOUGH Sheryl Crow

22 ( 11 ) THE FIRST THE LAST ETERNITY Snap! featuring Summer

23 ( 23 ) IF YOU LOVE ME Brownstone

24 ( 10 ) HOLD MY HAND Hootie And The Blowfish

25 ( 25 ) NOT OVER YET Grace

26 ( 19 ) NO MORE ‘I LOVE YOU’S Annie Lennox

27 ( NEW ) BOOM BOOM Definition Of Sound

28 ( 16 ) MARVELLOUS The Lightning Seeds

29 ( NEW ) THE SCATMAN Scatman John

30 ( NEW ) WHITE LINES (DON’T DON’T DO IT) Duran Duran

 

 

31 ( 22 ) BELIEVE Elton John

32 ( 14 ) I’M GOIN’ DOWN Mary J. Blige

33 ( 18 ) CHAINS Tina Arena

34 ( NEW ) MADE IN ENGLAND Elton John

35 ( NEW ) FEEL SO HIGH Des’ree

36 ( NEW ) WHERE I FIND MY HEAVEN Gigolo Aunts

37 ( NEW ) SOME MIGHT SAY Oasis

38 ( 17 ) I BELIEVE Blessid Union Of Souls

39 ( NEW ) MY GIRL JOSEPHINE Super Cat featuring Jack Radics

40 ( NEW ) WE’VE ONLY JUST BEGUN Bitty McLean

 

 

41 ( 21 ) TURN ON TUNE IN COP OUT Freak Power

42 ( NEW ) FREEDOM Michelle Gayle

43 ( RE ) BABY BABY Corona

44 ( 27 ) I’M NEVER GONNA FALL IN LOVE AGAIN Richard Marx

45 ( NEW ) (EVERYBODY’S GOT TO LEARN SOMETIME) I NEED YOUR LOVIN’ Baby D

46 ( 26 ) A GIRL LIKE YOU Edwyn Collins

47 ( 47 ) BABY IT’S YOU/ I’LL FOLLOW THE SUN The Beatles

48 ( NEW ) I WANNA BE FREE (TO BE WITH YOU) Scarlet

49 ( 24 ) RED LIGHT SPECIAL TLC

50 ( 32 ) GLORY BOX Portishead

 

51 ( 34 ) BEDTIME STORY Madonna

52 ( NEW ) KEY TO MY LIFE Boyzone

53 ( 29 ) CREEP TLC

54 ( 41 ) REACH UP (PAPA’S GOT A BRAND NEW PIGBAG) Perfecto Allstarz

55 ( NEW ) CAN’T CRY ANYMORE Sheryl Crow

56 ( 39 ) ONE MAN IN MY HEART Human League

57 ( 68 ) IF YOU ONLY LET ME IN MN8

58 ( 33 ) WHOOPS NOW! Janet Jackson

59 ( 54 ) MISS YOU NIGHTS/ ALL I HAVE TO DO IS DREAM Cliff Richard and Phil Everley

60 ( NEW ) I WANNA GO WHERE THE PEOPLE GO The Wildhearts

 

61 ( 43 ) SHE’S A RIVER Simple Minds

62 ( RE ) KEEP ON MOVING Bob Marley And The Wailers

63 ( 63 ) DANCING QUEEN/EAGLE Abba

64 ( 56 ) I’VE GOT A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR YOU MN8

65 ( 36 ) IN THE HOUSE OF STONE AND LIGHT Martin Page

66 ( NEW ) BEGGAR ON A BEACH OF GOLD Mike + The Mechanics

67 ( 65 ) YOU’VE LOST THAT LOVING FEELING The Righteous Brothers

68 ( 61 ) PUT YOURSELF IN MY PLACE Kylie Minogue

69 ( NEW ) DREAMER Living Joy

70 ( 38 ) I LIVE MY LIFE FOR YOU Firehouse

 

 

71 ( 71 ) RIGHT BESIDE YOU Sophie B. Hawkins

72 ( 70 ) TRUE FAITH 94 New Order

73 ( 72 ) WITHOUT YOU Nilsson

74 ( 62 ) WHATEVER Oasis

75 ( NEW ) SOMEBODY’S CRYING Chris Isaak

 

Meanwhile, in Hawaii, it was a tour around the island by coach to some awesome scenery, gorgeous coral reef bays being trampled underfoot by hordes of f*cking thicky tourists and the authorities doing nothing about it, some massive waves for lifestyle surfers lazing about, going inside Diamond Head volcano, and on the last day a quite serenely sad tour of the wrecks in Pearl Harbour and film presentations. I was most struck by the small fact that on one ship 3 brothers from the same family were killed, which led to new laws preventing serving families being on the same ship - the loss to one family is just too much to ask.

 

We caught a late overnight flight to LAX, intending on spending a few hours on Sunset Boulevard. Sadly, what with the jetlag over the time difference, not sleeping much, we were too exhausted to leave the airport and just sat with the luggage trying to nap a little, or in my case, listening to much better Los Angeles radio stations than any I’d heard in weeks. The overnight flight home to Heathrow was also jetlag on top of jetlag, I can’t tell you how rotten I felt. I don’t handle sleep deprivation, and body-clock changes at all well...

 

If I ever did it again I would travel east to west. Everytime!

21st May 1995

It’s a first week at 1 for McAlmont & Butler and the devastatingly brilliant Yes. Yes? Yes! One of the great vocal pop performances, brilliant arrangement, exhilarating song. Ali Campbell meanwhile gets his biggest record since UB40’s debut Food For Thought in 1980, at 2, and Newton almost catches up with the original 1975 version of Sky High at 4. Highest new entry at 7 is the fantastic Sparks, back with one of their periodic reinvention comebacks, 21 years on from chart-topper This Town Ain’t Big Enough For Both Of Us - and it’s the fab When Do I Get To Sing ‘My Way’, back in what they call an EDM-stylee these days, orchestral-tastically.

 

At 12, the gorgeous Eurovision Song Contest winner, Nocturne enters for Secret Garden, a bold Irish folk-flavoured mostly instrumental lush gentle and sweeping ballad with operatic singing. In Norwegian! Yes, Norway outdoing Ireland in the winning stakes, obviously believing if you can’t beat ‘em join ‘em, and then you can beat ‘em. Livin’ Joy go up a whopping 60 places to 9 with Dreamer, the under-rated Weezer to 10 and Scatman John up to 11, while Barry White grabs a 22nd year of top 20 tracks as I Only Want To Be With You re-enters at 17. Oasis sneak into the 20, as a novelty “funny” version of a great old Chinn-Chapman song (originally New World, then Smokie) Living Next Door To Alice is ruined by someone called Gompie at 30. There was worse to come....

 

Baby D go top 40 with The Korgis great song, as does Michelle Gayle with Freedom, and at 36 new in the latest cover version of Joni Mitchell’s Big Yellow Taxi, this time from Amy Grant 3 or 4 years on from Baby Baby. At 40, The Boo Radleys find the answer within the top 40. As long as the question is where will I enter? At 48, Montell Jordan enters with the rather good This Is How We Do It r’n’b track fondly remembered still. At 54 another candidate for “Best Record Of The 90’s” and it’s Pulp back with their tour de force, the huge Common People, and the poor boy/posh girl’s plaything lyrics were a level above the pop norm and then some. Jarvis Cocker was suddenly a star after a decade or so of trying. About time!

 

At 55, Dusty is still happily making records, this time with an assist from Daryl Hall on the good ballad Wherever Would I Be, for 27 years of hits for Dusty and a mere 19 for Daryl. At 59, Bob Dylan still has his Dignity after a long gap away, some 26 years on from Lay Lady Lay, while Adam Ant is being sinful at 60. Others: Runrig, Radiohead, Bjork and Billie Ray Martin all pop back with new singles, some even quite big like Fake Plastic Trees as cheerful as ever. Oh yes, a huge UK million-selling number one cover version by two actors on a TV show about soldiers outsold the definitive Righteous Brothers cover of a previously chart-topping song. Unchained Melody hit the top for the 4th act, and it looked as if they would manage to kill it off forever, at a lowly 71 in my chart though, but no there was still one more insipid huge-selling chart-topping version to come before it looks to have been laid to rest.

 

 

1 ( 4 ) YES McAlmont & Butler

2 ( 7 ) THAT LOOK IN YOUR EYE Ali Campbell featuring Pamela Starks

3 ( 1 ) LOVE CITY GROOVE Love City Groove

4 ( 12 ) SKY HIGH Newton

5 ( 5 ) BACK FOR GOOD Take That

6 ( 3 ) GUAGLIONE Perez ‘Prez’ Prado and His Orchestra

7 ( NEW ) WHEN DO I GET TO SING ‘MY WAY’ Sparks

8 ( 2 ) BEST IN ME Let Loose

9 ( 69 ) DREAMER Living Joy

10 ( 11 ) BUDDY HOLLY Weezer

 

 

11 ( 29 ) THE SCATMAN Scatman John

12 ( NEW ) NOCTURNE Secret Garden

13 ( 8 ) TWO CAN PLAY THAT GAME Bobby Brown

14 ( 10 ) ADORED AND EXPLORED Marc Almond

15 ( 15 ) HURTS SO GOOD Jimmy Somerville

16 ( 13 ) I KNOW Dionne Farris

17 ( RE ) I ONLY WANT TO BE WITH YOU Barry White

18 ( 14 ) GOD SHUFFLED HIS FEET/ THE BALLAD OF PETER PUMPKINHEAD Crash Test Dummies

19 ( 6 ) TAKE A BOW Madonna

20 ( 37 ) SOME MIGHT SAY Oasis

 

 

21 ( 9 ) LOVE AND DEVOTION Mc Sar and The Real McCoy

22 ( 18 ) “24-7-365” Charles and Eddie

23 ( 30 ) WHITE LINES (DON’T DON’T DO IT) Duran Duran

24 ( 62 ) KEEP ON MOVING Bob Marley And The Wailers

25 ( 34 ) MADE IN ENGLAND Elton John

26 ( 33 ) CHAINS Tina Arena

27 ( 27 ) BOOM BOOM Definition Of Sound

28 ( 38 ) I BELIEVE Blessid Union Of Souls

29 ( 24 ) HOLD MY HAND Hootie And The Blowfish

30 ( NEW ) ALICE WHO THE F*** IS ALICE Gompie

 

31 ( 19 ) HYPNOTISED Simple Minds

32 ( 45 ) (EVERYBODY’S GOT TO LEARN SOMETIME) I NEED YOUR LOVIN’ Baby D

33 ( 23 ) IF YOU LOVE ME Brownstone

34 ( 20 ) LET IT RAIN East 17

35 ( 42 ) FREEDOM Michelle Gayle

36 ( NEW ) BIG YELLOW TAXI Amy Grant

37 ( 52 ) KEY TO MY LIFE Boyzone

38 ( 40 ) WE’VE ONLY JUST BEGUN Bitty McLean

39 ( 39 ) MY GIRL JOSEPHINE Super Cat featuring Jack Radics

40 ( NEW ) FIND THE ANSWER WITHIN The Boo Radleys

 

41 ( 16 ) SOUR TIMES Portishead

42 ( 22 ) THE FIRST THE LAST ETERNITY Snap! featuring Summer

43 ( 28 ) MARVELLOUS The Lightning Seeds

44 ( 26 ) NO MORE ‘I LOVE YOU’S Annie Lennox

45 ( 31 ) BELIEVE Elton John

46 ( 46 ) A GIRL LIKE YOU Edwyn Collins

47 ( 17 ) ON BENDED KNEE BoyzIIMen

48 ( NEW ) THIS IS HOW WE DO IT Montell Jordan

49 ( 32 ) I’M GOIN’ DOWN Mary J. Blige

50 ( 55 ) CAN’T CRY ANYMORE Sheryl Crow

 

51 ( 25 ) NOT OVER YET Grace

52 ( 41 ) TURN ON TUNE IN COP OUT Freak Power

53 ( 21 ) STRONG ENOUGH Sheryl Crow

54 ( NEW ) COMMON PEOPLE Pulp

55 ( NEW ) WHEREVER WOULD I BE Dusty Springfield and Daryl Hall

56 ( NEW ) EVERYDAY Incognito

57 ( 36 ) WHERE I FIND MY HEAVEN Gigolo Aunts

58 ( NEW ) WORK IT OUT Shiva

59 ( NEW ) DIGNITY Bob Dylan

60 ( NEW ) GOTTA BE A SIN Adam Ant

 

 

61 ( NEW ) THE HIGHEST APPLE Runrig

62 ( 47 ) BABY IT’S YOU/ I’LL FOLLOW THE SUN The Beatles

63 ( 63 ) DANCING QUEEN/EAGLE Abba

64 ( 59 ) MISS YOU NIGHTS/ ALL I HAVE TO DO IS DREAM Cliff Richard and Phil Everley

65 ( 50 ) GLORY BOX Portishead

66 ( 66 ) BEGGAR ON A BEACH OF GOLD Mike + The Mechanics

67 ( NEW ) FAKE PLASTIC TREES Radiohead

68 ( NEW ) CAN’T STAND LOSING YOU (Live version) The Police

69 ( 67 ) YOU’VE LOST THAT LOVING FEELING The Righteous Brothers

70 ( 35 ) FEEL SO HIGH Des’ree

 

71 ( NEW ) UNCHAINED MELODY Robson Green and Jerome Flynn

72 ( NEW ) ALL TOGETHER NOW Everton F.C.

73 ( 71 ) RIGHT BESIDE YOU Sophie B. Hawkins

74 ( NEW ) YOUR LOVING ARMS Billie Ray Martin

75 ( NEW ) ARMY OF ME Bjork

28th May 1995

 

2 weeks for Yes on top, as Livin’ Joy go top 5, Scatman John goes top 10, and Human League are the highest entry at 10 with the 3rd top 10 single in a row, the tuneful and sweet enough Filling Up With Heaven. Into the 20 go Bob Marley, Incognito and Elton John, so that’s 20 years of top 20’s for Bob and 24 for Elton. In at 22, U2 do a Batman Forever soundtrack song that is much better than the movie, the fab Hold Me Thrill Me Kiss Me Kill Me, for a 14th year of top 40 entries. Meanwhile, Paula Abdul returns after a gap for 7 years of chart entries, this one better than most not least cos it features Ofra Haza on a vocal assist, My Love Is For Real in at 35. Radiohead go top 40 again, rocketing up with some Fake Plastic Trees, always a barrow of laughs the boys are, and they can run the whole gamut of emotion from angst to miserable. Then there’s Pulp not climbinmg anywhere near as fast as one might imagine for such a classic pop single, only at 36.

 

New entries lower down: Annie Lennox follows up her chart-topper with a rather gentle, lovely version of A Whiter Shade Of Pale at 46, some 23 years since Procol Harum charted with it in my charts on reissue, and 28 years since I first liked it. Annie gets an extension to her 16 years of hits in various guises. At 51, the duet we’d all though would have happened much sooner, it’s Michael and Janet with Scream. A good single and a fab video, but I think expectations were so much higher. Still, 25 years of hits for Michael, 9 for Janet. Rod’s a Star at 54, for 24 years of them, though not one I recall without heading for Youtube.

 

1 ( 1 ) YES McAlmont & Butler

2 ( 2 ) THAT LOOK IN YOUR EYE Ali Campbell featuring Pamela Starks

3 ( 4 ) SKY HIGH Newton

4 ( 9 ) DREAMER Livin' Joy

5 ( 5 ) BACK FOR GOOD Take That

6 ( 3 ) LOVE CITY GROOVE Love City Groove

7 ( 11 ) SCATMAN (SKI-BA-BOP-BA-DOP-BOP) Scatman John

8 ( 13 ) TWO CAN PLAY THAT GAME Bobby Brown

9 ( 6 ) GUAGLIONE Perez ‘Prez’ Prado and His Orchestra

10 ( NEW ) FILLING UP WITH HEAVEN Human League

 

 

11 ( 8 ) BEST IN ME Let Loose

12 ( 12 ) NOCTURNE Secret Garden

13 ( 7 ) WHEN DO I GET TO SING ‘MY WAY’ Sparks

14 ( 15 ) HURTS SO GOOD Jimmy Somerville

15 ( 14 ) ADORED AND EXPLORED Marc Almond

16 ( 10 ) BUDDY HOLLY Weezer

17 ( 20 ) SOME MIGHT SAY Oasis

18 ( 24 ) KEEP ON MOVING Bob Marley And The Wailers

19 ( 56 ) EVERYDAY Incognito

20 ( 25 ) MADE IN ENGLAND Elton John

 

 

21 ( 21 ) LOVE AND DEVOTION Mc Sar and The Real McCoy

22 ( NEW ) HOLD ME THRILL ME KISS ME KILL ME U2

23 ( 23 ) WHITE LINES (DON’T DON’T DO IT) Duran Duran

24 ( 16 ) I KNOW Dionne Farris

25 ( 30 ) ALICE WHO THE F*** IS ALICE Gompie

26 ( 26 ) CHAINS Tina Arena

27 ( 32 ) (EVERYBODY’S GOT TO LEARN SOMETIME) I NEED YOUR LOVIN’ Baby D

28 ( 28 ) I BELIEVE Blessid Union Of Souls

29 ( 36 ) BIG YELLOW TAXI Amy Grant

30 ( 35 ) FREEDOM Michelle Gayle

 

 

31 ( 18 ) GOD SHUFFLED HIS FEET/ THE BALLAD OF PETER PUMPKINHEAD Crash Test Dummies

32 ( 19 ) TAKE A BOW Madonna

33 ( 37 ) KEY TO MY LIFE Boyzone

34 ( 33 ) IF YOU LOVE ME Brownstone

35 ( NEW ) MY LOVE IS FOR REAL Paula Abdul featuring Ofra Haza

36 ( 54 ) COMMON PEOPLE Pulp

37 ( 17 ) I ONLY WANT TO BE WITH YOU Barry White

38 ( 67 ) FAKE PLASTIC TREES Radiohead

39 ( 29 ) HOLD MY HAND Hootie And The Blowfish

40 ( 22 ) “24-7-365” Charles and Eddie

 

41 ( 46 ) A GIRL LIKE YOU Edwyn Collins

42 ( 31 ) HYPNOTISED Simple Minds

43 ( 48 ) THIS IS HOW WE DO IT Montell Jordan

44 ( 38 ) WE’VE ONLY JUST BEGUN Bitty McLean

45 ( 34 ) LET IT RAIN East 17

46 ( NEW ) A WHITER SHADE OF PALE Annie Lennox

47 ( 27 ) BOOM BOOM Definition Of Sound

48 ( 44 ) NO MORE ‘I LOVE YOU’S Annie Lennox

49 ( 40 ) FIND THE ANSWER WITHIN The Boo Radleys

50 ( 50 ) CAN’T CRY ANYMORE Sheryl Crow

 

 

51 ( NEW ) SCREAM Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson

52 ( 55 ) WHEREVER WOULD I BE Dusty Springfield and Daryl Hall

53 ( 60 ) GOTTA BE A SIN Adam Ant

54 ( NEW ) YOU’RE THE STAR Rod Stewart

55 ( 45 ) BELIEVE Elton John

56 ( 43 ) MARVELLOUS The Lightning Seeds

57 ( 57 ) WHERE I FIND MY HEAVEN Gigolo Aunts

58 ( 39 ) MY GIRL JOSEPHINE Super Cat featuring Jack Radics

59 ( 52 ) TURN ON TUNE IN COP OUT Freak Power

60 ( 72 ) ALL TOGETHER NOW Everton F.C.

 

61 ( 58 ) WORK IT OUT Shiva

62 ( 71 ) UNCHAINED MELODY Robson Green and Jerome Flynn

63 ( 63 ) DANCING QUEEN/EAGLE Abba

64 ( 41 ) SOUR TIMES Portishead

65 ( 64 ) MISS YOU NIGHTS/ ALL I HAVE TO DO IS DREAM Cliff Richard and Phil Everley

66 ( 42 ) THE FIRST THE LAST ETERNITY Snap! featuring Summer

67 ( NEW ) SEXUAL Maria Rowe

68 ( 74 ) YOUR LOVING ARMS Billie Ray Martin

69 ( 69 ) YOU’VE LOST THAT LOVING FEELING The Righteous Brothers

70 ( 59 ) DIGNITY Bob Dylan

 

71 ( 49 ) I’M GOIN’ DOWN Mary J. Blige

72 ( 65 ) GLORY BOX Portishead

73 ( NEW ) SURRENDER YOUR LOVE Nightcrawlers

74 ( 73 ) RIGHT BESIDE YOU Sophie B. Hawkins

75 ( 62 ) BABY IT’S YOU/ I’LL FOLLOW THE SUN The Beatles

4th June 1995

3 weeks for Yes at 1, McAlmont & Butler still rule, and it’s Livin’ Joy at 3, cos I’m a Dreamer. Human League make it 3 top 5 in a row in 1995, as U2’s Batman track brings them another top 10 12 years on from the first, and a Eurovision winner breaks into the 10 too, not that common in the 90’s but then Nocturne is a great track. Duran Duran take White Lines into the 20, which is nothing to sniff at, so don’t don’t do it, and Paula Abdul and Ofra Haza jointly do the same, ditto Baby D, and best of the bunch so does all-time classic Pulp, Common People, uncommonly brilliant record.

 

Rugby record time, it must be Swing Low Sweet Chariot back again after a 20 year break - but it’s not Eric Clapton this time, it’s Ladysmith Black Mombazo and China Black, Ladysmith stretching back with Paul Simon assist from South Africa and Graceland 1986. There’s another oldie also back, and it’s The Detroit Spinners finally getting a hit with their much-covered I’ll Be Around - in a sampled version by Rappin’ 4 Tay at 34. Reef are Nakedly new at 36, and Mike + The Mechanics, Montell Jordan and Annie Lennox all enter the 40. At 59, it’s the fab Right In The Night from Jam & Spoon (not forgetting Plavka), a dance goodie, and at 64 it’s The Happy Mondays, errr I mean Black Grape, Rev-ing their way in.

 

1 ( 1 ) YES McAlmont & Butler

2 ( 2 ) THAT LOOK IN YOUR EYE Ali Campbell featuring Pamela Starks

3 ( 4 ) DREAMER Livin' Joy

4 ( 10 ) FILLING UP WITH HEAVEN Human League

5 ( 5 ) BACK FOR GOOD Take That

6 ( 3 ) SKY HIGH Newton

7 ( 7 ) SCATMAN (SKI-BA-BOP-BA-DOP-BOP) Scatman John

8 ( 12 ) NOCTURNE Secret Garden

9 ( 6 ) LOVE CITY GROOVE Love City Groove

10 ( 22 ) HOLD ME THRILL ME KISS ME KILL ME U2

 

 

11 ( 8 ) TWO CAN PLAY THAT GAME Bobby Brown

12 ( 17 ) SOME MIGHT SAY Oasis

13 ( 9 ) GUAGLIONE Perez ‘Prez’ Prado and His Orchestra

14 ( 14 ) HURT SO GOOD Jimmy Somerville

15 ( 23 ) WHITE LINES (DON’T DON’T DO IT) Duran Duran featuring Grandmaster Flash

16 ( 11 ) BEST IN ME Let Loose

17 ( 35 ) MY LOVE IS FOR REAL Paula Abdul featuring Ofra Haza

18 ( 36 ) COMMON PEOPLE Pulp

19 ( 27 ) (EVERYBODY’S GOT TO LEARN SOMETIME) I NEED YOUR LOVIN’ Baby D

20 ( 28 ) I BELIEVE Blessid Union Of Souls

 

 

21 ( 21 ) LOVE AND DEVOTION Mc Sar and The Real McCoy

22 ( 20 ) MADE IN ENGLAND Elton John

23 ( 19 ) EVERYDAY Incognito

24 ( 26 ) CHAINS Tina Arena

25 ( 16 ) BUDDY HOLLY Weezer

26 ( 18 ) KEEP ON MOVING Bob Marley And The Wailers

27 ( 13 ) WHEN DO I GET TO SING ‘MY WAY’ Sparks

28 ( NEW ) SWING LOW SWEET CHARIOT Ladysmith Black Mombazo featuring China Black

29 ( 15 ) ADORED AND EXPLORED Marc Almond

30 ( 34 ) IF YOU LOVE ME Brownstone

 

31 ( 50 ) CAN’T CRY ANYMORE Sheryl Crow

32 ( 29 ) BIG YELLOW TAXI Amy Grant

33 ( 38 ) FAKE PLASTIC TREES Radiohead

34 ( NEW ) I’LL BE AROUND Rappin 4 Tay Featuring The Detroit Spinners

35 ( RE ) BEGGAR ON A BEACH OF GOLD Mike + The Mechanics

36 ( NEW ) NAKED Reef

37 ( 30 ) FREEDOM Michelle Gayle

38 ( 43 ) THIS IS HOW WE DO IT Montell Jordan

39 ( 25 ) ALICE WHO THE F*** IS ALICE Gompie

40 ( 46 ) A WHITER SHADE OF PALE Annie Lennox

 

41 ( 41 ) A GIRL LIKE YOU Edwyn Collins

42 ( 24 ) I KNOW Dionne Farris

43 ( 31 ) GOD SHUFFLED HIS FEET/ THE BALLAD OF PETER PUMPKINHEAD Crash Test Dummies

44 ( 44 ) WE’VE ONLY JUST BEGUN Bitty McLean

45 ( 33 ) KEY TO MY LIFE Boyzone

46 ( 32 ) TAKE A BOW Madonna

47 ( 51 ) SCREAM Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson

48 ( 39 ) HOLD MY HAND Hootie And The Blowfish

49 ( 42 ) HYPNOTISED Simple Minds

50 ( 62 ) UNCHAINED MELODY Robson Green and Jerome Flynn

 

51 ( 37 ) I ONLY WANT TO BE WITH YOU Barry White

52 ( 52 ) WHEREVER WOULD I BE Dusty Springfield and Daryl Hall

53 ( 48 ) NO MORE ‘I LOVE YOU’S Annie Lennox

54 ( 54 ) YOU’RE THE STAR Rod Stewart

55 ( 40 ) “24-7-365” Charles and Eddie

56 ( 45 ) LET IT RAIN East 17

57 ( 47 ) BOOM BOOM Definition Of Sound

58 ( 53 ) GOTTA BE A SIN Adam Ant

59 ( NEW ) RIGHT IN THE NIGHT Jam And Spoon featuring Plavka

60 ( 55 ) BELIEVE Elton John

 

 

61 ( 59 ) TURN ON TUNE IN COP OUT Freak Power

62 ( 58 ) MY GIRL JOSEPHINE Super Cat featuring Jack Radics

63 ( 63 ) DANCING QUEEN/EAGLE Abba

64 ( NEW ) REVEREND BLACK GRAPE Black Grape

65 ( 65 ) MISS YOU NIGHTS/ ALL I HAVE TO DO IS DREAM Cliff Richard and Phil Everley

66 ( 57 ) WHERE I FIND MY HEAVEN Gigolo Aunts

67 ( 69 ) YOU’VE LOST THAT LOVING FEELING The Righteous Brothers

68 ( 68 ) YOUR LOVING ARMS Billie Ray Martin

69 ( 49 ) FIND THE ANSWER WITHIN The Boo Radleys

70 ( 56 ) MARVELLOUS The Lightning Seeds

 

71 ( NEW ) HOLD MY BODY TIGHT East 17

72 ( 73 ) SURRENDER YOUR LOVE Nightcrawlers

73 ( 74 ) RIGHT BESIDE YOU Sophie B. Hawkins

74 ( 72 ) GLORY BOX Portishead

75 ( 66 ) THE FIRST THE LAST ETERNITY Snap! featuring Summer

 

 

4th June

OLDIES PLAYLIST

1. GREATEST HITS - Tommy James And The Shondells

2. GREATEST HITS - K.C. And The Sunshine Band

3. Love Is Like Oxygen - The Sweet

Oldies greatest hits were on my playlist, best of all I’d discovered a wealth of back catalogue from often-covered, infrequent UK chart visitor Tommy James and The Shondells. Big in America but a solitary UK number one in the brilliant Mony Mony and not much else. The sheer variety of styles and great songs impressed much, and this featured oldie track most of all: Crystal Blue Persuasion. Gorgeous. Still looking for an excuse to chart it, a new greatest hits, an advert, a new movie soundtrack, anything...!

11th June 1995

It’s a 4th dominating week of McAlmont & Butler, oh yes, yes, yes! At 2, with a sudden spurt after previously peaking top 10 in 1994, and refusing to leave the 75 since, the brilliant Edwyn Collins A Girl Like You finally becomes a UK hit and gets a new lease of life and a new peak after 36 weeks of avoiding the top 3. Also screaming into the top 3 it’s Michael and Janet, I’m presuming the fab sci-fi video promo had aired and caused the rush from 47, as it made the record sound better than it had previously. Paula Abdul gets her only top 5 single, My Love Is For Real, though Ofra Haza had peaked at 2 7 years earlier with Im Nin Alu. Duran Duran go up to 7, White Lines having a 2nd run inside the top 10 with Grandmaster Flash assisting. Ladysmith Black Mombazo and China Black take Swing Low Sweet Chariot into the top 10 for the first time, outdoing all previous versions, and Eric Clapton who had the previous highest charting version in 1975.

 

Jam & Spoon go up a whopping 46 places to 13, very alright in the night it seems, and even bigger leaping for Black Grape who take the rev out for a spin at 17 with a bit of gospel 90’s dance fun from Shaun Ryder and co. The highest new entry is in at 19, and it’s Joy Division back for a 3rd run, this time in remix form along with the original version, though I only listed the remix for this week, cos y’know, the original can’t be improved on. It just can’t. Back upwards, and a new peak of 20, Bitty McLean keeps his surprisingly long run of reggae covers alive, covering The Carpenters version of Paul Williams gorgeous We’ve Only Just Begun. Admittedly less gorgeous than the originals, though.

 

Back at 30, Dodgy have a 1995 version of Staying Out The Summer, which suits me as the very Beatles harmony hook sits well with me, while Loveland featuring Rachel MacFarlane Don’t Make Me Wait at 36, and Whigfield returns at 40, Thinking Of You. Apparently. Sounds a little like Saturday Night, oddly. Happily at 44, it’s a more-laid-back dance groove with an actual strong song, Search For A Hero and M People. Yay! Others: Bon Jovi, Celine Dion, Brandy, Wet Wet Wet. The others add to their list of chart entries (and not with much credit in these cases) while Brandy is a remix of a 1994 debut single.

 

1 ( 1 ) YES McAlmont & Butler

2 ( 41 ) A GIRL LIKE YOU Edwyn Collins

3 ( 47 ) SCREAM Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson

4 ( 4 ) FILLING UP WITH HEAVEN Human League

5 ( 17 ) MY LOVE IS FOR REAL Paula Abdul featuring Ofra Haza

6 ( 10 ) HOLD ME THRILL ME KISS ME KILL ME U2

7 ( 15 ) WHITE LINES (DON’T DON’T DO IT) Duran Duran featuring Grandmaster Flash

8 ( 2 ) THAT LOOK IN YOUR EYE Ali Campbell featuring Pamela Starks

9 ( 28 ) SWING LOW SWEET CHARIOT Ladysmith Black Mombazo featuring China Black

10 ( 5 ) BACK FOR GOOD Take That

 

 

11 ( 3 ) DREAMER Livin' Joy

12 ( 6 ) SKY HIGH Newton

13 ( 59 ) RIGHT IN THE NIGHT Jam And Spoon featuring Plavka

14 ( 7 ) SCATMAN (SKI-BA-BOP-BA-DOP-BOP) Scatman John

15 ( 14 ) HURT SO GOOD Jimmy Somerville

16 ( 18 ) COMMON PEOPLE Pulp

17 ( 64 ) REVEREND BLACK GRAPE Black Grape

18 ( 19 ) (EVERYBODY’S GOT TO LEARN SOMETIME) I NEED YOUR LOVIN’ Baby D

19 ( NEW ) LOVE WILL TEAR US APART/ ’95 Joy Division

20 ( 44 ) WE’VE ONLY JUST BEGUN Bitty McLean

 

 

21 ( 16 ) BEST IN ME Let Loose

22 ( 11 ) TWO CAN PLAY THAT GAME Bobby Brown

23 ( 9 ) LOVE CITY GROOVE Love City Groove

24 ( 40 ) A WHITER SHADE OF PALE Annie Lennox

25 ( 13 ) GUAGLIONE Perez ‘Prez’ Prado and His Orchestra

26 ( 8 ) NOCTURNE Secret Garden

27 ( 36 ) NAKED Reef

28 ( 12 ) SOME MIGHT SAY Oasis

29 ( 21 ) LOVE AND DEVOTION Mc Sar and The Real McCoy

30 ( NEW ) STAYING OUT FOR THE SUMMER ’95 Dodgy

 

 

31 ( 30 ) IF YOU LOVE ME Brownstone

32 ( 23 ) EVERYDAY Incognito

33 ( 25 ) BUDDY HOLLY Weezer

34 ( 34 ) I’LL BE AROUND Rappin 4 Tay Featuring The Detroit Spinners

35 ( 24 ) CHAINS Tina Arena

36 ( NEW ) DON’T MAKE ME WAIT Loveland featuring Rachel MacFarlane

37 ( 22 ) MADE IN ENGLAND Elton John

38 ( 38 ) THIS IS HOW WE DO IT Montell Jordan

39 ( 20 ) I BELIEVE Blessid Union Of Souls

40 ( NEW ) THINK OF YOU Whigfield

 

41 ( 26 ) KEEP ON MOVING Bob Marley And The Wailers

42 ( 27 ) WHEN DO I GET TO SING ‘MY WAY’ Sparks

43 ( 29 ) ADORED AND EXPLORED Marc Almond

44 ( NEW ) SEARCH FOR THE HERO M People

45 ( 50 ) UNCHAINED MELODY Robson Green and Jerome Flynn

46 ( 35 ) BEGGAR ON A BEACH OF GOLD Mike + The Mechanics

47 ( 37 ) FREEDOM Michelle Gayle

48 ( 31 ) CAN’T CRY ANYMORE Sheryl Crow

49 ( 46 ) TAKE A BOW Madonna

50 ( 68 ) YOUR LOVING ARMS Billie Ray Martin

 

 

51 ( NEW ) THIS AIN’T A LOVE SONG Bon Jovi

52 ( 33 ) FAKE PLASTIC TREES Radiohead

53 ( 32 ) BIG YELLOW TAXI Amy Grant

54 ( 39 ) ALICE WHO THE F*** IS ALICE Gompie

55 ( 43 ) GOD SHUFFLED HIS FEET/ THE BALLAD OF PETER PUMPKINHEAD Crash Test Dummies

56 ( 53 ) NO MORE ‘I LOVE YOU’S Annie Lennox

57 ( 49 ) HYPNOTISED Simple Minds

58 ( 71 ) HOLD MY BODY TIGHT East 17

59 ( 61 ) TURN ON TUNE IN COP OUT Freak Power

60 ( 48 ) HOLD MY HAND Hootie And The Blowfish

 

61 ( 42 ) I KNOW Dionne Farris

62 ( 63 ) DANCING QUEEN/EAGLE Abba

63 ( 60 ) BELIEVE Elton John

64 ( 45 ) KEY TO MY LIFE Boyzone

65 ( 65 ) MISS YOU NIGHTS/ ALL I HAVE TO DO IS DREAM Cliff Richard and Phil Everley

66 ( 51 ) I ONLY WANT TO BE WITH YOU Barry White

67 ( 67 ) YOU’VE LOST THAT LOVING FEELING The Righteous Brothers

68 ( 72 ) SURRENDER YOUR LOVE Nightcrawlers

69 ( 56 ) LET IT RAIN East 17

70 ( NEW ) ONLY ONE ROAD Celine Dion

 

71 ( 52 ) WHEREVER WOULD I BE Dusty Springfield and Daryl Hall

72 ( NEW ) I WANNA BE DOWN Brandy

73 ( 73 ) RIGHT BESIDE YOU Sophie B. Hawkins

74 ( 54 ) YOU’RE THE STAR Rod Stewart

75 ( NEW ) DON’T WANNA FORGIVE ME NOW Wet Wet Wet

 

OLDIES PLAYLIST

1. SUKIYAKI - Kyu Sakamoto

2. I PLAY AND SING - Dawn

3. MAKING OUR DREAMS COME TRUE - Cyndi Greco

 

In my oldies playlist, the classic Sukiyaki from 1963, Dawn’s flop from 1972, and the theme tune to TV show Laverne And Shirley, an amiable spin-off of Happy Days, which was a great 60’s girl-group styled joyous singalong.

 

18th June 1995

After 37 weeks Edwyn Collins finally gets to the top of the charts, which is something of a record for my charts. Plenty of tracks hit my top spot on reissue, after a suitable gap during which I get to fall in love with them again, but few hang around my charts for 9 months without me suffering from overplay syndrome and opting for something fresher. A Girl Like You is terrific though, and still sounds great. It also means Edwyn had to wait 12 years from his Orange Juice debut to topping. Duran Duran and U2 both add another top 5 to the lengthening lists of top 5’s, and Shaun Ryder gets another top 10 outside the Happy Mondays.

 

Rappin’ 4-Tay helps The Detroit Spinners have a run of 22 years of top 20 hits, while Annie Lennox lengthens hers to 16 years. Highest new entry at 24 is a fab cover version of Grand Funk’s Bad Time, which made my charts 20 years earlier, and it really should have been a bigger hit for The Jayhawks than UK chart peak of 70. Bah! That leads the cover version charge of new entries: at 29 comedians Vic & Bob join with EMF to bring I’m A Believer back into my chart for the 4th time - The Monkees topped my chart with it twice (1974, 1980) and Robert Wyatt did a version in 1974, but the Neil Diamond song would also have topped in the 60’s had I been charting then. Vic also covered Dizzy, my first ever singles purchase, and had been grabbing occasional hits for 4 years, EMF for 5. Unbelievable!

 

Carole King’s classic It’s Too Late gets yet another cover version, and not too badly, from Gloria Estefan, while Whoomp There It Is gets the frantic cheesy dance treatment from Clock, and not improving on the Tag Team’s version. Shaggy keeps his singles run going with an unlikely cover of Mungo Jerry - In The Summertime also not quite improving on the original.

 

At 31, grunge popmetal band The Offspring debut without a lack of Self Esteem, ahead of their great rebirth in 1999 following a decent haircut. At 71 Dr Dre gets a solo debut, ahead of his rebirth in 1999 as godfather to Eminem and others, and a new hip solo career en route to being a multi-millionaire Beats promoter - Keep Their Heads Ringin’, pops in briefly, though he had already charted 5 years earlier with N.W.A. and been overshadowed a bit by band mate Ice Cube in the interim. Boom Boom Boom, it’s the Outhere Brothers shouting it up at 64, while altogether more subtle is the New Age Deep Forest back with Marta’s Song.

 

 

1 ( 2 ) A GIRL LIKE YOU Edwyn Collins

2 ( 3 ) SCREAM Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson

3 ( 1 ) YES McAlmont & Butler

4 ( 7 ) WHITE LINES (DON’T DON’T DO IT) Duran Duran featuring Grandmaster Flash

5 ( 6 ) HOLD ME THRILL ME KISS ME KILL ME U2

6 ( 5 ) MY LOVE IS FOR REAL Paula Abdul featuring Ofra Haza

7 ( 4 ) FILLING UP WITH HEAVEN Human League

8 ( 17 ) REVEREND BLACK GRAPE Black Grape

9 ( 8 ) THAT LOOK IN YOUR EYE Ali Campbell featuring Pamela Starks

10 ( 13 ) RIGHT IN THE NIGHT Jam And Spoon featuring Plavka

 

11 ( 9 ) SWING LOW SWEET CHARIOT Ladysmith Black Mombazo featuring China Black

12 ( 15 ) HURT SO GOOD Jimmy Somerville

13 ( 14 ) SCATMAN (SKI-BA-BOP-BA-DOP-BOP) Scatman John

14 ( 19 ) LOVE WILL TEAR US APART Joy Division

15 ( 10 ) BACK FOR GOOD Take That

16 ( 16 ) COMMON PEOPLE Pulp

17 ( 18 ) (EVERYBODY’S GOT TO LEARN SOMETIME) I NEED YOUR LOVIN’ Baby D

18 ( 34 ) I’LL BE AROUND Rappin 4 Tay Featuring The Detroit Spinners

19 ( 25 ) GUAGLIONE Perez ‘Prez’ Prado and His Orchestra

20 ( 24 ) A WHITER SHADE OF PALE Annie Lennox

 

21 ( 12 ) SKY HIGH Newton

22 ( 11 ) DREAMER Livin' Joy

23 ( 20 ) WE’VE ONLY JUST BEGUN Bitty McLean

24 ( NEW ) BAD TIME The Jayhawks

25 ( 27 ) NAKED Reef

26 ( 21 ) BEST IN ME Let Loose

27 ( 22 ) TWO CAN PLAY THAT GAME Bobby Brown

28 ( 23 ) LOVE CITY GROOVE Love City Groove

29 ( NEW ) I’M A BELIEVER Vic Reeves & Bob Mortimer with EMF

30 ( 30 ) STAYING OUT FOR THE SUMMER ’95 Dodgy

 

 

31 ( NEW ) SELF ESTEEM The Offspring

32 ( 29 ) LOVE AND DEVOTION Mc Sar and The Real McCoy

33 ( NEW ) IT’S TOO LATE Gloria Estefan

34 ( 31 ) IF YOU LOVE ME Brownstone

35 ( 40 ) THINK OF YOU Whigfield

36 ( 44 ) SEARCH FOR THE HERO M People

37 ( 53 ) BIG YELLOW TAXI Amy Grant

38 ( 35 ) CHAINS Tina Arena

39 ( 39 ) I BELIEVE Blessid Union Of Souls

40 ( 58 ) HOLD MY BODY TIGHT East 17

 

41 ( 26 ) NOCTURNE Secret Garden

42 ( 36 ) DON’T MAKE ME WAIT Loveland featuring Rachel MacFarlane

43 ( 32 ) EVERYDAY Incognito

44 ( 33 ) BUDDY HOLLY Weezer

45 ( 28 ) SOME MIGHT SAY Oasis

46 ( 51 ) THIS AIN’T A LOVE SONG Bon Jovi

47 ( 42 ) WHEN DO I GET TO SING ‘MY WAY’ Sparks

48 ( 43 ) ADORED AND EXPLORED Marc Almond

49 ( 41 ) KEEP ON MOVING Bob Marley And The Wailers

50 ( 50 ) YOUR LOVING ARMS Billie Ray Martin

 

51 ( NEW ) IN THE SUMMERTIME Shaggy

52 ( 37 ) MADE IN ENGLAND Elton John

53 ( NEW ) WHOOMP THERE IT IS Clock

54 ( 45 ) UNCHAINED MELODY Robson Green and Jerome Flynn

55 ( 38 ) THIS IS HOW WE DO IT Montell Jordan

56 ( 49 ) TAKE A BOW Madonna

57 ( NEW ) MARTA’S SONG Deep Forest

58 ( 57 ) HYPNOTISED Simple Minds

59 ( 56 ) NO MORE ‘I LOVE YOU’S Annie Lennox

60 ( 75 ) DON’T WANNA FORGIVE ME NOW Wet Wet Wet

 

 

61 ( 62 ) DANCING QUEEN/EAGLE Abba

62 ( 55 ) GOD SHUFFLED HIS FEET/ THE BALLAD OF PETER PUMPKINHEAD Crash Test Dummies

63 ( 47 ) FREEDOM Michelle Gayle

64 ( NEW ) BOOM BOOM BOOM The Outhere Brothers

65 ( 65 ) MISS YOU NIGHTS/ ALL I HAVE TO DO IS DREAM Cliff Richard and Phil Everley

66 ( 59 ) TURN ON TUNE IN COP OUT Freak Power

67 ( 67 ) YOU’VE LOST THAT LOVING FEELING The Righteous Brothers

68 ( 63 ) BELIEVE Elton John

69 ( 70 ) ONLY ONE ROAD Celine Dion

70 ( 64 ) KEY TO MY LIFE Boyzone

 

71 ( NEW ) KEEP THEIR HEADS RINGIN’ Dr. Dre

72 ( 46 ) BEGGAR ON A BEACH OF GOLD Mike + The Mechanics

73 ( 73 ) RIGHT BESIDE YOU Sophie B. Hawkins

74 ( 61 ) I KNOW Dionne Farris

75 ( 60 ) HOLD MY HAND Hootie And The Blowfish

 

 

OLDIES PLAYLIST

1. GREATEST HITS - Tommy James And The Shondells

2. LISTEN WITHOUT PREJUDICE - George Michael

3. HITS - Sonny & Cher

 

My oldies playlist is albums this week, Tommy james still ranking, while George Michael’s 5-year-old Listen Without Prejudice still impressed, Sonny & Cher’s Greatest Hits though was also grabbing me, a CD I’d bought in Cairns, and this track in particular, with it’s gypsy rhythms a sort of follow-up to Cher’s Bang Bang and a pre-cursor to Gypsies Tramps And Thieves, and Dark Lady: Little Man is fantastic.

 

 

25th June 1995

 

 

I always say something can always be improved with a spaceship in it. It’s one of my major criticisms of Coronation Street: no spaceships. Scream is a case in point, the duet between sis n bruv Michael and Janet gets to number one ahead of much better tracks from both of them. Considering who they are, it should have been an epic collaboration, rather than the decent enough jam that it is. It was the fab video, though, mostly. Janet has panda eye make-up, which also helps. With a sudden spurt from 72 to 8, after pottering about a few weeks, Mike And The Mechanics get a belated 2nd top 10 track some 9 years after the first (Silent Running), though of course Mike Rutherford (ex-Genesis) and Paul Jones (ex-Sad Cafe) had done it before then in previous bands. More importantly, it had taken them 6 weeks but Pulp’s all-time classic Common People finally makes the top 10 and proves that sometimes I under-appreciate a classic for some reason - it eventually topped my chart in reissue stylee in the 21st Century, and quite right too.

 

Amy Grant takes Big Yellow Taxi into the top 20, emulating Joni Mitchell’s original 25 years earlier, while back at 28 re-entering at a new peak it’s Dusty and Daryl, Wherever Would I Be. Also back, Oasis and Live Forever at 35, and in at 38 it’s Menswear and Daydreamer with some nice guitar riffing Britpop stylee. Oasis invade the chart as they become huge and the singles sell into the UK singles chart, which means a re-entry from chart-topper Whatever at 54, and Shakermaker at 73. At 56, a debut from Supergrass, and it’s the perennially fab Alright, upbeat, cheerful and delicious. At 59, Black Box return with Not just Anyone, and other newies from Jay Kay, D:Ream, A.D.A.M. and Sean Maguire round off the rest.

 

 

1 ( 2 ) SCREAM Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson

2 ( 1 ) A GIRL LIKE YOU Edwyn Collins

3 ( 9 ) THAT LOOK IN YOUR EYE Ali Campbell featuring Pamela Starks

4 ( 3 ) YES McAlmont & Butler

5 ( 4 ) WHITE LINES (DON’T DON’T DO IT) Duran Duran featuring Grandmaster Flash

6 ( 6 ) MY LOVE IS FOR REAL Paula Abdul featuring Ofra Haza

7 ( 5 ) HOLD ME THRILL ME KISS ME KILL ME U2

8 ( 72 ) BEGGAR ON A BEACH OF GOLD Mike + The Mechanics

9 ( 16 ) COMMON PEOPLE Pulp

10 ( 18 ) I’LL BE AROUND Rappin 4 Tay Featuring The Detroit Spinners

 

 

11 ( 7 ) FILLING UP WITH HEAVEN Human League

12 ( 10 ) RIGHT IN THE NIGHT Jam And Spoon featuring Plavka

13 ( 8 ) REVEREND BLACK GRAPE Black Grape

14 ( 11 ) SWING LOW SWEET CHARIOT Ladysmith Black Mombazo featuring China Black

15 ( 20 ) A WHITER SHADE OF PALE Annie Lennox

16 ( 29 ) I’M A BELIEVER Vic Reeves & Bob Mortimer with EMF

17 ( 13 ) SCATMAN (SKI-BA-BOP-BA-DOP-BOP) Scatman John

18 ( 57 ) MARTA’S SONG Deep Forest

19 ( 37 ) BIG YELLOW TAXI Amy Grant

20 ( 24 ) BAD TIME The Jayhawks

 

21 ( 19 ) GUAGLIONE Perez ‘Prez’ Prado and His Orchestra

22 ( 15 ) BACK FOR GOOD Take That

23 ( 12 ) HURT SO GOOD Jimmy Somerville

24 ( 17 ) (EVERYBODY’S GOT TO LEARN SOMETIME) I NEED YOUR LOVIN’ Baby D

25 ( 14 ) LOVE WILL TEAR US APART Joy Division

26 ( 30 ) STAYING OUT FOR THE SUMMER ’95 Dodgy

27 ( 36 ) SEARCH FOR THE HERO M People

28 ( RE ) WHEREVER WOULD I BE Dusty Springfield and Daryl Hall

29 ( 21 ) SKY HIGH Newton

30 ( 26 ) BEST IN ME Let Loose

 

 

31 ( 27 ) TWO CAN PLAY THAT GAME Bobby Brown

32 ( 22 ) DREAMER Livin' Joy

33 ( 33 ) IT’S TOO LATE Gloria Estefan

34 ( 23 ) WE’VE ONLY JUST BEGUN Bitty McLean

35 ( NEW ) LIVE FOREVER Oasis

36 ( 40 ) HOLD MY BODY TIGHT East 17

37 ( 53 ) WHOOMP THERE IT IS Clock

38 ( NEW ) DAYDREAMER Menswear

39 ( 38 ) CHAINS Tina Arena

40 ( 64 ) BOOM BOOM BOOM The Outhere Brothers

 

41 ( 35 ) THINK OF YOU Whigfield

42 ( 28 ) LOVE CITY GROOVE Love City Groove

43 ( 32 ) LOVE AND DEVOTION Mc Sar and The Real McCoy

44 ( 46 ) THIS AIN’T A LOVE SONG Bon Jovi

45 ( 60 ) DON’T WANNA FORGIVE ME NOW Wet Wet Wet

46 ( 34 ) IF YOU LOVE ME Brownstone

47 ( 25 ) NAKED Reef

48 ( 39 ) I BELIEVE Blessid Union Of Souls

49 ( 31 ) SELF ESTEEM The Offspring

50 ( NEW ) FLY AWAY Haddaway

 

51 ( 51 ) IN THE SUMMERTIME Shaggy

52 ( 44 ) BUDDY HOLLY Weezer

53 ( 42 ) DON’T MAKE ME WAIT Loveland featuring Rachel MacFarlane

54 ( RE ) WHATEVER Oasis

55 ( 43 ) EVERYDAY Incognito

56 ( NEW ) ALRIGHT Supergrass

57 ( 47 ) WHEN DO I GET TO SING ‘MY WAY’ Sparks

58 ( 58 ) HYPNOTISED Simple Minds

59 ( NEW ) NOT ANYONE Black Box

60 ( 48 ) ADORED AND EXPLORED Marc Almond

 

 

61 ( 61 ) DANCING QUEEN/EAGLE Abba

62 ( 49 ) KEEP ON MOVING Bob Marley And The Wailers

63 ( 59 ) NO MORE ‘I LOVE YOU’S Annie Lennox

64 ( 56 ) TAKE A BOW Madonna

65 ( 41 ) NOCTURNE Secret Garden

66 ( NEW ) WATER RUNS DRY BoyIIMen

67 ( 65 ) MISS YOU NIGHTS/ ALL I HAVE TO DO IS DREAM Cliff Richard and Phil Everley

68 ( 67 ) YOU’VE LOST THAT LOVING FEELING The Righteous Brothers

69 ( 45 ) SOME MIGHT SAY Oasis

70 ( NEW ) STILLNESS IN TIME Jamiroquai

 

71 ( NEW ) SHOOT ME WITH YOUR LOVE D:Ream

72 ( NEW ) ZOMBIE A.D.A.M. Featuring Amy

73 ( NEW ) SHAKERMAKER Oasis

74 ( NEW ) NOW I’VE FOUND YOU Sean Maguire

75 ( 73 ) RIGHT BESIDE YOU Sophie B. Hawkins

 

2nd July 1995

 

It’s a surprise chart topper from UB40’s Ali Campbell, in duet with Pamela Starks, doing what UB40 never did - go higher than 2 in my chart, despite many tracks better than this one. That said this is a sweet enough duet and song, mellow reggae lovers rock, well almost - it’s more mellow dance than mellow reggae. Up to 4, The Jayhawks version of Grand Funk’s Bad Time way outdoes the original, and ditto Clock’s version of Tag Team’s Whoomp, up to 9. One I’d forgotten I liked so much! At 10, Deep Forest get another top 10, but not rainforest this time, more Eastern European traditional music with a new age dance shuffle.

 

A huge leap into the 20 for A.D.A.M. and Amy - no I don’t know they are either, I’ll just google. Ah, still no idea, but it’s a dance cover of the Cranberries Zombie, a song I wasn’t that fond of in it’s original version. Hey ho. A better record is at 18 for Menswear, Daydreamer leaping, as the highest new entry at 23 is a wonderful emotional ballad from Boy George, Il Adore, 13 years since his debut in Culture Club. For anyone thinking there aren’t enough cover versions in my chart already, well you’re in luck, Tippa Irie has done The Bee Gees Stayin’ Alive and pops in at 29. It’s not in the same league. Supergrass’ Alright, however is fab, still sounds great and hits the 40, along with Bon Jovi (meh), Haddaway (meh), Wet Wet Wet (meh) and Shaggy doing Mungo Jerry (s’OK), and new entries for Foo Fighters, Dave Grohl carrying on the Nirvana torch with a Call, Blondie get remixed as Heart Of Glass returns 16 years after topping my chart, and Ultimate Kaos also enter, Right Here.

 

Outside the 40, Gary Moore does a blues cover of a song Fleetwood Mac covered, a 50’s Little Willie John blues classic, I Need Your Love So Bad, while at 57 Bjork covers an obscure B side from 1951 by American movie musical star Betty Hutton, and she does it musical stylee, in total contrast to her body of work before and since - and gets a bonafide crossover pop hit still good for a singalong. It’s Oh So Quiet is fun, and the video is great. Which leaves an actual (gasp!) new song from Paul Weller, You Do Something To Me, at 60, a nice love song, and a fair ways away from The Jam circa 1977!

 

 

 

 

1 ( 3 ) THAT LOOK IN YOUR EYE Ali Campbell featuring Pamela Starks

2 ( 1 ) SCREAM Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson

3 ( 2 ) A GIRL LIKE YOU Edwyn Collins

4 ( 20 ) BAD TIME The Jayhawks

5 ( 5 ) WHITE LINES (DON’T DON’T DO IT) Duran Duran featuring Grandmaster Flash

6 ( 4 ) YES McAlmont & Butler

7 ( 12 ) RIGHT IN THE NIGHT Jam And Spoon featuring Plavka

8 ( 6 ) MY LOVE IS FOR REAL Paula Abdul featuring Ofra Haza

9 ( 37 ) WHOOMP! THERE IT IS Clock

10 ( 18 ) MARTA’S SONG Deep Forest

 

 

11 ( 10 ) I’LL BE AROUND Rappin 4 Tay Featuring The Detroit Spinners

12 ( 16 ) I’M A BELIEVER Vic Reeves & Bob Mortimer with EMF

13 ( 8 ) BEGGAR ON A BEACH OF GOLD Mike + The Mechanics

14 ( 7 ) HOLD ME THRILL ME KISS ME KILL ME U2

15 ( 19 ) BIG YELLOW TAXI Amy Grant

16 ( 15 ) A WHITER SHADE OF PALE Annie Lennox

17 ( 72 ) ZOMBIE A.D.A.M. Featuring Amy

18 ( 38 ) DAYDREAMER Menswear

19 ( 21 ) GUAGLIONE Perez ‘Prez’ Prado and His Orchestra

20 ( 17 ) SCATMAN (SKI-BA-BOP-BA-DOP-BOP) Scatman John

 

 

21 ( 9 ) COMMON PEOPLE Pulp

22 ( 11 ) FILLING UP WITH HEAVEN Human League

23 ( NEW ) IL ADORE Boy George

24 ( 14 ) SWING LOW SWEET CHARIOT Ladysmith Black Mombazo featuring China Black

25 ( 56 ) ALRIGHT Supergrass

26 ( 40 ) BOOM BOOM BOOM The Outhere Brothers

27 ( 13 ) REVEREND BLACK GRAPE Black Grape

28 ( 22 ) BACK FOR GOOD Take That

29 ( NEW ) STAYIN’ ALIVE Tippa Irie

30 ( 44 ) THIS AIN’T A LOVE SONG Bon Jovi

 

31 ( 24 ) (EVERYBODY’S GOT TO LEARN SOMETIME) I NEED YOUR LOVIN’ Baby D

32 ( 27 ) SEARCH FOR THE HERO M People

33 ( NEW ) THIS IS A CALL Foo Fighters

34 ( 36 ) HOLD MY BODY TIGHT East 17

35 ( 32 ) DREAMER Livin' Joy

36 ( NEW ) RIGHT HERE Ultimate Kaos

37 ( NEW ) HEART OF GLASS (REMIX) Blondie

38 ( 50 ) FLY AWAY Haddaway

39 ( 51 ) IN THE SUMMERTIME Shaggy

40 ( 45 ) DON’T WANNA FORGIVE ME NOW Wet Wet Wet

 

41 ( 31 ) TWO CAN PLAY THAT GAME Bobby Brown

42 ( 41 ) THINK OF YOU Whigfield

43 ( 23 ) HURT SO GOOD Jimmy Somerville

44 ( 26 ) STAYING OUT FOR THE SUMMER ’95 Dodgy

45 ( 30 ) BEST IN ME Let Loose

46 ( 29 ) SKY HIGH Newton

47 ( 70 ) STILLNESS IN TIME Jamiroquai

48 ( 33 ) IT’S TOO LATE Gloria Estefan

49 ( 25 ) LOVE WILL TEAR US APART Joy Division

50 ( 39 ) CHAINS Tina Arena

 

51 ( 28 ) WHEREVER WOULD I BE Dusty Springfield and Daryl Hall

52 ( 42 ) LOVE CITY GROOVE Love City Groove

53 ( 34 ) WE’VE ONLY JUST BEGUN Bitty McLean

54 ( 35 ) LIVE FOREVER Oasis

55 ( NEW ) I NEED YOUR LOVE SO BAD Gary Moore

56 ( 43 ) LOVE AND DEVOTION Mc Sar and The Real McCoy

57 ( NEW ) IT’S OH SO QUIET Bjork

58 ( 46 ) IF YOU LOVE ME Brownstone

59 ( 71 ) SHOOT ME WITH YOUR LOVE D:Ream

60 ( NEW ) YOU DO SOMETHING TO ME Paul Weller

 

 

61 ( 61 ) DANCING QUEEN/EAGLE Abba

62 ( 58 ) HYPNOTISED Simple Minds

63 ( 63 ) NO MORE ‘I LOVE YOU’S Annie Lennox

64 ( 52 ) BUDDY HOLLY Weezer

65 ( 54 ) WHATEVER Oasis

66 ( 66 ) WATER RUNS DRY BoyIIMen

67 ( 68 ) YOU’VE LOST THAT LOVING FEELING The Righteous Brothers

68 ( 67 ) MISS YOU NIGHTS/ ALL I HAVE TO DO IS DREAM Cliff Richard and Phil Everley

69 ( 74 ) NOW I’VE FOUND YOU Sean Maguire

70 ( 64 ) TAKE A BOW Madonna

 

71 ( 48 ) I BELIEVE Blessid Union Of Souls

72 ( 57 ) WHEN DO I GET TO SING ‘MY WAY’ Sparks

73 ( 55 ) EVERYDAY Incognito

74 ( 49 ) SELF ESTEEM The Offspring

75 ( 75 ) RIGHT BESIDE YOU Sophie B. Hawkins

 

Yes, this week I saw Jim Kerr and mates in concert, it was a good gig, though obviously he must have missed out some of my early faves as they don't feature in this top 6. Normally I'd be listing Up On The Catwalk, Speed Your Love To Me, Promised You A Miracle as well...!

 

SIMPLE MINDS LIVE AT BOURNEMOUTH INTERNATIONAL CENTRE

1. Alive And Kicking

2. Don’t You (Forget About Me)

3. She’s A River

4. Belfast Child

5. Hypnotised

6. Sanctify Yourself

9th July 1995

 

The Jackson siblings are back on top for a second week, Scream about it! The Jayhawks are having a Bad Time cos they’re so close at 2 when they should have gone to 1. In at 3, Seal’s back with his rose, having hit the top 5 with it in 1994, and now is Batman powered, and Vic & Bob make the top 10 with The Monkees cover.

 

Supergrass and Shaggy climb into the 20, and Oasis rocket to 20 with the fabulous Live Forever. In at 22, Diana King has her shy guy in mind for a spot of classy reggae and in at 25 Bobby Brown is back humpin’ around, as you do. New at 28 is the lovely Stars from the lovely Dubstar, while Sheryl Crow is back with Run Baby Run - sadly, not the fab Newbeats 60’s single, but happily a decent ballad.

 

While at 58, Rednex lend a hand to some puppets - not sure who came out of it with credibility damaged, but the kids loved it! Kylie’s posing a question, where is the feeling, to which the answer is err in the previous single. I need to refresh my memory for this one (it’s a heavily remixed dancefloor buzzer )! The Rolling Stones go wild at 70, or at least as wild as they could for someone that had living the high life for 30-odd years, while Del Amitri and MN8 are back with new singles, rollin’ and happy.

 

 

1 ( 2 ) SCREAM Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson

2 ( 4 ) BAD TIME The Jayhawks

3 ( NEW ) KISS FROM A ROSE Seal

4 ( 1 ) THAT LOOK IN YOUR EYE Ali Campbell featuring Pamela Starks

5 ( 3 ) A GIRL LIKE YOU Edwyn Collins

6 ( 5 ) WHITE LINES (DON’T DON’T DO IT) Duran Duran featuring Grandmaster Flash

7 ( 6 ) YES McAlmont & Butler

8 ( 7 ) RIGHT IN THE NIGHT Jam And Spoon featuring Plavka

9 ( 9 ) WHOOMP! THERE IT IS Clock

10 ( 12 ) I’M A BELIEVER Vic Reeves & Bob Mortimer with EMF

 

 

11 ( 11 ) I’LL BE AROUND Rappin 4 Tay Featuring The Detroit Spinners

12 ( 8 ) MY LOVE IS FOR REAL Paula Abdul featuring Ofra Haza

13 ( 10 ) MARTA’S SONG Deep Forest

14 ( 17 ) ZOMBIE A.D.A.M. Featuring Amy

15 ( 15 ) BIG YELLOW TAXI Amy Grant

16 ( 25 ) ALRIGHT Supergrass

17 ( 18 ) DAYDREAMER Menswear

18 ( 13 ) BEGGAR ON A BEACH OF GOLD Mike + The Mechanics

19 ( 39 ) IN THE SUMMERTIME Shaggy featuring Rayvon

20 ( 54 ) LIVE FOREVER Oasis

 

 

21 ( 14 ) HOLD ME THRILL ME KISS ME KILL ME U2

22 ( NEW ) SHY GUY Diana King

23 ( 20 ) SCATMAN (SKI-BA-BOP-BA-DOP-BOP) Scatman John

24 ( 19 ) GUAGLIONE Perez ‘Prez’ Prado and His Orchestra

25 ( NEW ) HUMPIN’ AROUND Bobby Brown

26 ( 30 ) THIS AIN’T A LOVE SONG Bon Jovi

27 ( 27 ) REVEREND BLACK GRAPE Black Grape

28 ( NEW ) STARS Dubstar

29 ( 29 ) STAYIN’ ALIVE Tippa Irie

30 ( 37 ) HEART OF GLASS (REMIX) Blondie

 

 

31 ( 24 ) SWING LOW SWEET CHARIOT Ladysmith Black Mombazo featuring China Black

32 ( 16 ) A WHITER SHADE OF PALE Annie Lennox

33 ( 21 ) COMMON PEOPLE Pulp

34 ( 23 ) IL ADORE Boy George

35 ( 40 ) DON’T WANNA FORGIVE ME NOW Wet Wet Wet

36 ( 28 ) BACK FOR GOOD Take That

37 ( 26 ) BOOM BOOM BOOM The Outhere Brothers

38 ( 31 ) (EVERYBODY’S GOT TO LEARN SOMETIME) I NEED YOUR LOVIN’ Baby D

39 ( 47 ) STILLNESS IN TIME Jamiroquai

40 ( 33 ) THIS IS A CALL Foo Fighters

 

41 ( 22 ) FILLING UP WITH HEAVEN Human League

42 ( 35 ) DREAMER Livin' Joy

43 ( 59 ) SHOOT ME WITH YOUR LOVE D:Ream

44 ( 60 ) YOU DO SOMETHING TO ME Paul Weller

45 ( 32 ) SEARCH FOR THE HERO M People

46 ( 46 ) SKY HIGH Newton

47 ( 41 ) TWO CAN PLAY THAT GAME Bobby Brown

48 ( 48 ) IT’S TOO LATE Gloria Estefan

49 ( 42 ) THINK OF YOU Whigfield

50 ( NEW ) RUN BABY RUN Sheryl Crow

 

51 ( 45 ) BEST IN ME Let Loose

52 ( 44 ) STAYING OUT FOR THE SUMMER ’95 Dodgy

53 ( 34 ) HOLD MY BODY TIGHT East 17

54 ( 36 ) RIGHT HERE Ultimate Kaos

55 ( 66 ) WATER RUNS DRY BoyIIMen

56 ( 38 ) FLY AWAY Haddaway

57 ( 57 ) IT’S OH SO QUIET Bjork

58 ( NEW ) HANDS UP Zig & Zag featuring Rednex

59 ( 43 ) HURT SO GOOD Jimmy Somerville

60 ( RE ) BABY IT’S YOU/ I’LL FOLLOW THE SUN The Beatles

 

61 ( 61 ) DANCING QUEEN/EAGLE Abba

62 ( 52 ) LOVE CITY GROOVE Love City Groove

63 ( 63 ) NO MORE ‘I LOVE YOU’S Annie Lennox

64 ( 62 ) HYPNOTISED Simple Minds

65 ( 67 ) YOU’VE LOST THAT LOVING FEELING The Righteous Brothers

66 ( 50 ) CHAINS Tina Arena

67 ( NEW ) WHERE IS THE FEELING Kylie Minogue

68 ( 56 ) LOVE AND DEVOTION Mc Sar and The Real McCoy

69 ( 68 ) MISS YOU NIGHTS/ ALL I HAVE TO DO IS DREAM Cliff Richard and Phil Everley

70 ( NEW ) I GO WILD The Rolling Stones

 

 

71 ( 70 ) TAKE A BOW Madonna

72 ( 58 ) IF YOU LOVE ME Brownstone

73 ( NEW ) ROLL TO ME Del Amitri

74 ( NEW ) HAPPY MN8

75 ( 75 ) RIGHT BESIDE YOU Sophie B. Hawkins

 

OLDIES PLAYLIST

1. HisTory - Michael Jackson

2. There’s A Ghost In My House - R. Dean Taylor

3. The Sun Ain’t Gonna Shine Anymore - The Walker Brothers