Yes indeed, and like so many dance songs of this period and beyond that people no doubt thought were entirely creditable to the artist billed as having the hit, the most accomplished and recognisable element of the track was in fact a total rip-off - and, as it was the early '90s, a James Brown rip-off: check out 'I'm Shook' from his 1969 LP 'It's A Mother'. Carries the whole thing, and it's a shame more people weren't aware of the lack of originality of some dance acts at that time, whether or not they liked the end result or thought that the re-inventions of other people's work was an artform in itself. This track also contains numerous other samples, from obscure sources, interwoven so that it's pretty tough to establish which parts of it were created from scratch by C&C. But I guess to most clubbers musical pedigree or origin counts for very little.

 

This is a nostalgic thread though, and for all my critique about the recycling and repetition in dance by this time, I can't deny that I have a considerable number of these hits in my Top 40 singles selections somewhere... Keep up the no-doubt time and labour-intensive work on it. Only eight years or so to go.. ^_^

 

Good spot - I have tried to reference the samples where they have been taken but completely overlooked that James Brown one! Sorry, hope you are enjoying the dance rundown though! :D

The Shamen - Move Any Mountain (Progen ’91)

 

http://i294.photobucket.com/albums/mm82/TheMagicPosition86/rsz_shamen_zpsawnj5gdg.png

 

Date 3rd August 1991

4 Weeks

Official Chart Run 9-4-4-4-6-16-20-24-42-62 (10 weeks)

*Positions in red are the weeks when the track would be number 1 if just dance music was chart eligible.

 

August 1991 is the month when dance music starts to properly explode on the UK singles chart, leading the first of three separate dance surges in the 1990s. The first begins then with Scottish group The Shamen achieving an instant Top 10 with “Move Any Mountain” (originally titled “Pro>Gen”), the Beatmasters 7” mix of their debut chart hit which reached #55 in April 1990. “Move Any Mountain” immediately climbed to #4 where it remained for 3 consecutive weeks and gave eclectic indie label One Little Indian their biggest hit to-date, though the success was bittersweet as only 3 months earlier when recording the video in the Canary Islands, bassist and keyboardist Will Sinnott tragically drowned whilst swimming off the coast of La Gomera. By the end of the month another iconic British chart rave act would score their debut Top 10 hit (more on that very soon) and there would be further chart debuts for unknown dance acts like Utah Saints - the momentum (like the tempo of the music) only picking up as we head towards the autumn of ’91.

 

There is a lot to talk about when reviewing The Shamen's career (and this will be covered as we move into 1992). They were, perhaps unfairly, discarded by their original fan base and seen as relics of a dying genre as their music lost its original depth and they pursued success at any cost in the UK whilst at the same time a general backlash, that had started to gain momentum in the middle of ’92, ensued as the chart became invaded by countless novelty acid house records that quickly wore thin. However, they were possibly one of the most diverse electronic bands around in the late 80s/early 90s providing an accessible pop edge to underground dance sounds like rave, trance and techno. The original guitar band line-up evolves in 1988 with politico bassist/keyboardist Will Sinnott arriving and the band moving to immerse themselves in the nascent London acid-house scene, with 1989s In Gorbachev We Trust marking the transition point... later in 1990 infamous cheeky frontman Richard West (‘Mr C’ - so named because he supports Chelsea) joins and gradually the group experimented with synthesizers and computerised rhythms, creating memorable and consistently great pop records that had mainstream appeal (thanks partly to the Beatmasters). This scored them 5 consecutive Top 10s, a 100% singles chart Top 10 success rate in 1992 that was matched by few other bands, let alone dance acts! We are far from done with The Shamen yet!

 

Move Any Mountain, a total 11 out of 10. :wub:

I have a strange relationship with the Shamen. My favourite Shamen song is the William Orbit mix of Hypereal. While I like Bossdrum and Phorever People Mr C's rapping always had a slight tinge of novelty about it and while I am not against my dance music having an element of fun, I felt that they never achieved the creativity of other dance bands.

Pro>Gen is blimmin' brilliant. Guess what? I had it on 7" too.

 

They were right to rename it Move Any Mountain on re-release. The name Pro>Gen is all very in keeping with their shamanic noodling I'm sure, but it's not easy to remember when you're looking in the record shop.

 

They never bettered it before or after but they really improved the top 10 in general over the next couple of years.

As I say, I prefer Hyperreal

Edited July 23, 20159 yr by AntoineTTe

The Prodigy - Charly

 

http://i294.photobucket.com/albums/mm82/TheMagicPosition86/rsz_charly_zpscphi4cih.png

 

Date 31st August 1991

3 Weeks

Official Chart Run 9-4-3-3-6-9-18-31-53-70 (10 weeks)

*Positions in red are the weeks when the track would be number 1 if just dance music was chart eligible.

 

“Charly” is one of, if not THE definitive rave anthems of early 1990s, becoming synonymous with the drug fueled British rave scene and firmly launched the Braintree lads into the mainstream when Mark Goodier announced it as a new entry straight in at #9 on 18th August 1991. It served as the introduction to a group that would dominate the British dance scene over the next 8 years, a group who adapted with ease to the fast moving dance music landscape throughout the entire 1990s, always remaining both relevant and exciting - they managed to navigate the fine line between artistic merit and mainstream visibility, with far more flair than most, if not all other dance groups.

 

The group, the brainchild of then 18 year-old Liam Howitt, was formed in 1990 when Liam met nominal frontman Keith Flint at a rave in the nearby club in Braintree called ‘The Barn’, and it was the rave scene from which the band, in its first forms, emerged into the UK singles chart later during the following year. The group were quickly snapped up by indie label XL at Christmas and although “Charly” was their first hit single, “What Evil Lurks” was the first actual release and went on to sell over 7,000 copies and made #31 on the UK dance chart - impressive for a virtually unknown band.

 

“Charly” was the first single from the band’s 1992 debut Experience, a unique and original blend of old-skool jungle, breakbeat and hardcore techno. The track itself was famously built around the sample taken from the 'Charley Says - Stranger Danger' public information films for children, broadcast in the 1970s and 1980s, however this novelty factor merely detracts from the excellent production on the track. Liam's hip-hop roots are clear with the use of the bassline from Meat Beat Manifesto’s white label “Radio Babylon” (also later used by Future Sound of London on 1992’s “Papua New Guinea”) the breakbeat from Bobby Byrd’s “Hot Pants” and opening vocal from James Brown’s “Godfather Runnin' the Joint”. In August 1992, the group were essentially blamed for ‘killing rave’ by Mixmag, in retaliation the band burned stacks of the magazine in the music video for “Fire”. Mixmag eventually apologised 10 years later…

 

Edited July 23, 20159 yr by Doctor Blind

Charly is still a fantastic track - and we're bound to see them multiple times in this thread.

Charlie only got better with time. The music in it is just fantastic. The beats are phenomenal. It's a 10/10 for me and it's only my 5th favourite Prodigy single.

Edited July 25, 20159 yr by AntoineTTe

'charly' ~ got to :heart: those alley cat vibez :music:

If I recall correctly "Charly" was popularly thought to be "novelty- esque" when it was released and they were blamed for opening the floodgates to the plethora of kids tunes turned into rave anthems in the next few years (Urban Hype, Smart E's, Ambassadors Of Funk, Dr Spin etc). Their subsequent output of course proved they were more than that.

I still think Charly is kinda novelty, although I agree that the music is great so I kinda wish it didn't have the sample.

 

By the way guys, this thread is absolutely top notch - really enjoying the idea and write ups from both of you.

Not a fan of 'Charlie' but I imagine how phresh it sounded back in 1991!

I would also stand up for the quality of Smart Es and Urban Hype. Just because something is novelty doesn't mean there isn't technical ability put into it.

There's a great quote from a 1991 newsgroup, shortly after Charly was released, calling "The Prodigy" just another in a long line of faceless rave acts that'll be gone after one hit and never heard from again. If only they knew :P

 

This is the start of an astonishing few months for dance music, up there with mid-1996 and 1999-2000 as a golden age. The rave explosion lasting the rest of 1991 into early 1992 features some of the best, weirdest tracks of the decade, ones that seem absolutely astonishing how high they were able to chart - dunno if we'll see 'The Bouncer' by Kicks Like A Mule here, but it's easily one of the oddest and most leftfield songs to ever make the top 10!

 

For so many years I only knew The Prodigy as those dudes who sung Firestarter, I was amazed when I first heard their earlier stuff about a decade ago. Charly's awesome, their whole first two albums are - this must have sounded mindblowing in 1991 to anyone unfamiliar with rave listening to the chart! I think I'm right in saying that the Alley Cat 7" mix isn't actually available on CD, the only radio edit that isn't? Only the full-length mix is.

Edited July 23, 20159 yr by BillyH

For so many years I only knew The Prodigy as those dudes who sung Firestarter, I was amazed when I first heard their earlier stuff about a decade ago. Charly's awesome, their whole first two albums are - this must have sounded mindblowing in 1991 to anyone unfamiliar with rave listening to the chart! I think I'm right in saying that the Alley Cat 7" mix isn't actually available on CD, the only radio edit that isn't? Only the full-length mix is.

 

Yes - you're correct - it was only available on the 7” vinyl. This was the CD single track listing with only the full length mix, and the album had the Trip Into Drum and Bass Version. The Original mix was the one that BBC Radio 1 played, I have the chart on tape from when “Charly” was at No. 3 with Tommy Vance - and it sounded not only mind-blowing but totally different to the rest of the Top 10.

 

http://i294.photobucket.com/albums/mm82/TheMagicPosition86/UKchart_zpsy2pmtidm.png

Indeed - and guess who bought it on 7"?

 

Interesting fact about Charly is that it was the first record to feature vocals by Kenny Everett since 'Snot Rap' in 1983 (Kenny famously provided the voice of Charly the killjoy cat in the adverts)

 

I'd also agree that, stupid though they are, the Smart E's and Urban Hype hits had some aaardcore merit. Tetris (an Andrew Lloyd Webbr project!) and Super Marioland did not. It's wrong to blame The Prodigy for the death of rave - as it became more accessible, younger and sillier fans (like me) loved the stupid samples while the original ravers had already moved on to jungle and drum 'n' bass. Hardcore was always a little bit silly - so it didn't matter if it was a cartoon cat, the magic roundabout, a piss-take of MOR records like Marc Cohn or giant, blaring "hoover" synths (cf. Dominator by Human Resource) - you couldn't take it too seriously.

 

 

Indeed - and guess who bought it on 7"?

 

Interesting fact about Charly is that it was the first record to feature vocals by Kenny Everett since 'Snot Rap' in 1983 (Kenny famously provided the voice of Charly the killjoy cat in the adverts)

 

I'd also agree that, stupid though they are, the Smart E's and Urban Hype hits had some aaardcore merit. Tetris (an Andrew Lloyd Webbr project!) and Super Marioland did not. It's wrong to blame The Prodigy for the death of rave - as it became more accessible, younger and sillier fans (like me) loved the stupid samples while the original ravers had already moved on to jungle and drum 'n' bass. Hardcore was always a little bit silly - so it didn't matter if it was a cartoon cat, the magic roundabout, a piss-take of MOR records like Marc Cohn or giant, blaring "hoover" synths (cf. Dominator by Human Resource) - you couldn't take it too seriously.

 

 

As usual, richie, you're talking sense. I especially agree that Tetris and Super Marioland were far from rave.

Oceanic - Insanity

 

http://i294.photobucket.com/albums/mm82/TheMagicPosition86/rsz_oceanic_zpsyvvmbpqp.png

 

Date 21st September 1991

5 Weeks

Official Chart Run 21-11-8-5-4-3-3-3-5-7-8-14-21-41-58 (15 weeks)

*Positions in red are the weeks when the track would be number 1 if just dance music was chart eligible.

 

One of the few examples of a regional break-out hit, “Insanity” with David Harry on production duties, and its memorable chorus belted out by Jorinde Williams, was somewhat of a slow-burner. Initially breaking the clubs of Warrington and Oceanic's native Liverpool (at 123 BPM, forming an early predecessor of the 'Scouse House' movement popular in NW England and Glasgow in the early 90s), it began to be played in Manchester and was put out on Cheshire indie label Dead Dead Good records. The week that it debuted at joint-number 21 around 60% of its sales were from Lancashire alone - but the track soon spread to the south to become a national hit and slowly but surely climbed as high as #3 and spent over 2 months in the Top 10 - no mean feat in the fast chart turnover of ’91.

 

With its cheesy key change, stadium crowd sounds and thin tinny synths, the track was not to everyone's taste, however it did become a mainstream floor filler. What really started to scare the established record labels was how a group of unknowns with cheap equipment on a tight budget could in their bedroom knock-up a Top 3 hit with ease. “Insanity” finished as the 9th biggest single of 1991 in the UK, outselling #1s by Color Me Badd, the KLF ( :( ), and Michael Jackson.

 

Debut album inventively titled That Album By Oceanic was a year in the making and flopped to #49 - meanwhile “Insanity” threatened to overshadow their entire body of work and render them as one-hit-wonders, they had just two more Top 40 follow-up hits. These were “Wicked Love” (#25 in October ’91) and “Controlling Me” (#14 in June ’92)

 

I swear I remember a version of Insanity that I actually enjoyed back in 1991 but every one I find online seems poor. Perhaps I just did like the poor version back in 1991.

 

Sept 1991 was a pretty high selling period in that 8 of the Top 10 singles in the 22nd Sept made the End of Year Top 40. They were

 

Everything I Do

Let's Talk About Sex

Insanity

Love To Hate You

I'm too Sexy

Sunshine on a Rainy Day

Everybody's Free to Feel Good

Charlie

 

And the other two - Peace and What Can You For Me weren't far outside it. In fact What Can You Do for Me outsold Queen's Innuendo and probably other number 1s too.