LOVED the late 90s for dance. Children is an all time favourite, always makes me feel so emotional and still sounds very fresh to this day. I agree with dandy though that it doesn't sound like such an obvious hit so I'm surprised it was as big as it was, not complaining though! The video with the child in the car that I saw on the music channels, used to always creep me out a bit, not sure why. Hoping a certain other 1996 song can ~slip to the number 1 spot later on too ;)

 

Sorry I've not been commenting, but I've loved reading and listening to some of these, and the commentaries have educated me well!

 

 

'children' is a hauntingly divine masterpiece :wub:

 

'firestarter' is ikonik *__*

 

'keep on jumpin'' still racking em club spins up to this very day~ :dance:

Klubbheads - Klubbhopping

 

http://i294.photobucket.com/albums/mm82/TheMagicPosition86/rsz_e9252_zpsqjiuoife.png

 

Date 5th May 1996

1 Week

Official Chart Run 10-13-18-29-40-56 (6 weeks)

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

 

Though they recorded under a wide array of pseudonyms throughout the 1990s, their most famous moniker by which they were mainly known was arguably Klubbheads, on which they broke through and scored a Top 10 hit in the UK. Initally starting out as a duo in 1988 with bedroom mixes that were field tested when they DJ’d together at their local club, Addy van der Zwan (aka Itty Bitty), and Koen Groeneveld (aka DJ Boozy Woozy) scored some minor success in their homeland of the Netherlands under the name The Ultimate Seduction - however it wasn’t until 1994 that they were joined by Jan Voerman (Greatski) who became the third permanent member of the group just as they started writing their own hits and in January 1995 started a new recording project as Klubbheads.

 

The distinctive rasping baritone saxophone from the intro to Madness’ “Night Boat to Cario” (in which it was cleverly made to replicate a ship’s foghorn), is sampled to sound the impending arrival of “Klubbhopping” which then cuts in on a hard hitting bassline. “Klubbhopping” is an eclectic mix of house beats and hip-hop samples, which in many ways echo the work produced by The Prodigy much earlier in the decade. Indeed the Madness sax sample was also used by Liam on 1991 debut “What Evil Lurks” and “Klubbhopping” was clearly inspired by the same hip-hop influences, in this case - sampling the opening rap from Game’s 1991 track “U Turn Me On” for the catchy vocal hook with misheard lyrics that carry the track. Though the production on it doesn’t quite employ the technical prowess displayed by Liam Howlett.

 

Though it was a success in the UK, the single failed to capture the attention of the rest of the European market - two Top 40 hits followed “Discohopping” in 1997 and “Kickin’ Hard” in 1998 which sailed to 35 and 36 respectively. However their biggest hit to-date in the UK was scored 10 years later when recording as Hi_Tack and a remix of Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson collaboration “Say Say Say (Waiting 4 U)” blasted to #4.

 

I have no recollection of that song at all.

I can't place the song, but do remember the name.

JX - There’s Nothing I Won’t Do

 

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

 

Date 12th May 1996

3 Weeks

Official Chart Run 7-4-7-9-12-17-17-20-26-31-41-56-63 (13 weeks)

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

 

South Londoner Jake Williams was just 16 years-old when his demos caught the attention of Red Jerry at the appropriately named Hooj Choons label in 1993. Going by the name ‘JX’ - which was just the make of keyboard that Jake used to compose melodies for his tracks and in his words provided a more raw and unprocessed sound - the most impressive of these demos: “Son Of A Gun” was released in March 1994 and stormed into the Top 20 at 13. That track sampled little-known American 1970s R&B group Ecstasy, Passion & Pain and their biggest hit “Touch and Go” featuring the aggrieved vocals of Barbara Roy, and it was testament to Williams’ skill at creating dance hits that the track went Top 10 in Australia in the autumn, and became an enduring club favourite through ’94, eventually leading to a re-release whereupon it hit the Top 10 (#6) a year later.

 

Though he never made an album, Jake continued to score 100% singles success - with biggest hit “There’s Nothing I Won’t Do” scorching to #4 in May 1996. The single very much built upon the techniques crafted on “Son Of A Gun” whereby a small part of a relatively unknown American R&B single (in this case Seduction’s 1990 #75 hit “Heartbeat”) was sampled to create a completely different relentlessly catchy and uplifting anthem which chimed simple synth sequences that built around the vocals. In the final third of the song the vocals drop out for a time, and you can sense that the track would have worked equally well without vocals driven by such a strong melody - indeed we were starting to see instrumentals light up the UK Top 10 (see: Robert Miles) and the early signs of chillout and trance breaking through to the mainstream. The vocals on track were re-recorded by Reading born Shèna, who had already worked with Jake on previous Top 20 hit - the twisted and slightly disturbing “You Belong To Me” in 1995, and continued to work with him until his extended hiatus in 1997 which started after follow-up “Close To Your Heart” (#18).

 

Always rather reclusive and shying away from the public eye, Jake would return briefly in 2004 with “Restless” charting at #22, however since 2004 he has continued to record and mix music under the much acclaimed guise of Rex the Dog.

 

That first 29 seconds is so euphoric. I don't mind the vocals at all but I'd love to get my hands on an instrumental. Deffo my favourite JX song.

I can't remember on that Klubbheads track at all, but JX :wub: (although I prefer Son Of A Gun from them)

Son of a Gun was a great record. TNIWD was much cheesier in sound but fit the time I guess.

The JX song is wonderful. :wub:

Great track!

JX was great both this one and Son of a Gun

Only word for it - MASTERPIECE

Oh I loved both of those at the time, the Klubbheads track was everywhere in clubs at the time and on pretty much every dance compilation that year too if I recall correctly.

 

The JX track is of course great although, as Tony intimates, the intro is where it's at.

Oh I loved both of those at the time, the Klubbheads track was everywhere in clubs at the time and on pretty much every dance compilation that year too if I recall correctly.

 

The JX track is of course great although, as Tony intimates, the intro is where it's at.

 

 

You're allowed to call me Colm (which is my real name) :D

Edited January 19, 20169 yr by Colm

No it's not, it's Tony!

No it's not, it's Tony!

 

 

:lol:

'You Belong To Me' was my personal fave of the 3 big JX singles and also the biggest hit of the 3 in Australia too.

Edited January 19, 20169 yr by girlsaloudjunkie

Robert Miles - Fable

 

http://i294.photobucket.com/albums/mm82/TheMagicPosition86/rsz_1robert_miles_zpsklenqwv1.png

 

Date 2nd June 1996

1 Week

Official Chart Run 7-11-22-28-33-47-64-XX-71-80-77-XX-69-79-83 (9 weeks)

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

 

Never written with a hit in mind, previous single “Children” was an emotional piano-led melody wrapped up in a stomping continuous dance beat and was actually inspired by the tragedies surrounding the war-torn former Yugoslavia in the early 1990s. Whilst “Children” dipped 22-29 then to 54 (mainly because of BMG’s decision to delete it) and reached a total of 700,000 sales - the follow-up “Fable” concurrently secured a week as top dance track in the UK, though it achieves this through heavy resting on the coattails of the many factors that made “Children” a huge favourite - and quickly dived away thereafter.

 

Essentially the structure of “Fable” is very similar to its predecessor - why mess with a winning formula? - and it uses almost exactly the same backing dance beat, overlaid by a similarly heartfelt emotional piano ballad with breakdowns in which the beat comes to the fore before breaking once more into the almost euphoric piano. The difference here is that whilst the instrumental was the main single (the ‘Dream version’) there was another version sent out to UK radio and was included on his debut Dreamland which featured the uncredited vocals of Fiorella Quinn who hauntingly pleads someone to tell me a fable. The reason being that “Children” (despite being played by Kiss) was snubbed by Radio 1 due to it being entirely instrumental.. however they did have to relent when the undeniable pressure of its success and its popularity in the clubs became too much.

 

“Fable” was a #1 in his nominal homeland of Italy and went Top 10 right across Europe - far from fading away Miles would return in the autumn with another huge hit. More on that later...

 

Although quite distant from the brilliance of Children, Fable is a great listen as well.

 

At the time I thought Robert Miles would become a huge DJ/producer of say, David Guetta proportions and he would be remixing everyone and his dog just like Todd Terry after Missing.