March 2, 20169 yr Author Apollo 440 - Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Dub http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c32/tonyttt31/a440.jpg Date 9th Feb 1997 1 Week Official Chart Run 7-13-18-29-40-45-70 (7 weeks) *Positions in red are the weeks when the track would be number 1 if just dance music was chart eligible. Formed in 1990 in Liverpool by brothers Trevor and Howard Gray with Noko and James Gardner Apollo 440 released their first material in 1991. It was standard but playful rave-influenced stuff, showing a flare for invention and studious use of samples. Their first taste of chart success came in 1995 with an electronic adaptation of the Blue Öyster Cult’s classic Don’t Fear the Reaper. By 1996 the band had settled into a techno rock mould and released Krupa which improved their standing in the singles chart by hitting number 23. Having also built up a significant profile in 1996 by providing mixes to back up all four Manic Street Preachers’ singles off their Everything Must Go album under the guise of Stealth Sonic Orchestra, early 1997 was the time to strike big. They did this by releasing Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Dub which was an instant rush of crunchy, squealing Van Halen guitars and energetic drum and bass. It also contains one of the most used, if not THE most used sample of all time the Amen break from Amen, Brother by The Winstons. With a sweet breakdown and a Prodigy-aping middle eight it barrels along at frantic pace fitting in very well to the dance-rock scene that had been cultivated by The Prodigy, Chemical Brothers and unexpectedly by David Bowie’s Earthling album. The song would be a top 3 hit in both Sweden and Finland. We will see more from Apollo 440 later on. a8odjFsaKDg
March 2, 20169 yr Ain't Talking is an absolute classic for me, I am shocked it only reached #7 and then fell quickly. I remember it was quite big hit in Germany too.
March 2, 20169 yr Author Ain't Talking is an absolute classic for me, I am shocked it only reached #7 and then fell quickly. I remember it was quite big hit in Germany too. 1997 was a year of sky-scraping chart runs for a lot of singles.
March 2, 20169 yr Ain't Talking is an absolute classic for me, I am shocked it only reached #7 and then fell quickly. I remember it was quite big hit in Germany too. It was a decent hit but not a big hit (peaked at #13). The song was played to death though by MTV. German chart run: 84-51-31-23-16-16-15-13-15-16-18-19-20-25-35-41-44-60-63 [19 wks]
March 2, 20169 yr I really liked that Apollo 440 track at the time and it still sounds better than I expected it to today, it was a big step towards the 'current' sound after the interesting Krupa though.
March 5, 20169 yr Author Daft Punk - Da Funk http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c32/tonyttt31/dafunk.jpg Date 16th Feb 1997 1 Week Official Chart Run 7-14-25-34-52 (5 weeks) *Positions in red are the weeks when the track would be number 1 if just dance music was chart eligible. Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo met in 1987 while attending the Lycée Carnot, a secondary school in Paris. They formed rock band Darlin' in 1992. After reading a poor review in Melody Maker of the band and having decided that their guitar oriented music was no better than average they decided to disband Darlin'. But also from that review they would take their new name - Daft Punk, from the description of their music at the time "daft punky trash". In 1993 the boys met co-founder of the label Soma Quality Recordings, Stuart Macmillan, and gave him a demo of The New Wave which the label eventually gave a limited release in 1994. The single also contained a reworking of The New Wave, titled Alive, which became a track on their debut album. In 1995 the band returned to the studio to record Da Funk which sold well on 12" and gave them the attention that they needed to become a larger concern. They found a manager and signed to Virgin Records in 1996 and continued to record their debut album, Homework, for release in 1997. After the underground success of Da Funk there was a huge demand for a full commercial release of the track and it was given the task of lead single, although it was released a few weeks after the album was. The music in Da Funk is very brave in that it is limited to a handful of layers which must hold the listener's attention. The stark simplicity does an effortless job, nonetheless. It raises tension until that zipping Roland TB-303 synth line comes in half way through. Its minimalism is its strength and Da Funk joins the canon of classic dance tracks that stretches back to Computer Love, Blue Monday and Chime where the sheer brilliance of the hooks can stand on their own, almost unadorned and without unnecessary embellishment. The poignant promo clip directed by Spike Jones garnered MTV exposure - the visual element to their work remains as striking as their music until the present day. Da Funk was followed by Around the World less than three months later which was an even bigger hit but which wont feature here, unfortunately. They drew attention to French dance music too - which went through a purple patch and for a period it was the coolest sound on the dance floor. It's no stretch to say that the band went on to change the face of dance music and pop music. Kylie and Madonna would mine their filtered house sound many times. Their second album Discovery, widely seen as one of the greatest dance albums ever - and also one of the most fun - exploded their template with multicoloured 70s and 80s flavoured cheese. We will not see them as a unit in this countdown but we will see Thomas Bangaltar later in another act. mmi60Bd4jSs Edited March 6, 20169 yr by Colm
March 5, 20169 yr Absolutely brilliant - as you say, it is deceptively simple in its construction but manages to endure repeated listens. A killer bassline that became their trademark for a time during the Homework era!
March 5, 20169 yr I absolutely love pretty much everything from the Homework era, both the music and the fantastic visual treats they put together for their videos.
March 7, 20169 yr Author Sash! - Encore Une Fois http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c32/tonyttt31/euf.jpg Date 23th Feb 1997 4 Weeks Official Chart Run 2-4-4-5-6-9-9-14-15-20-33-38-48-52-72 (15 weeks) *Positions in red are the weeks when the track would be number 1 if just dance music was chart eligible. A major chart force during the final three years of the 1990s, Sash! formed in 1995 by members Sascha Lappessen, Thomas Lüdke, and Ralf Kappmeier. Their first product was a single It's My Life, released in 1996 but not charting anywhere. That story was all about to change, when they boys unleashed Encore Une Fois, on the continent in January 1997 and in the UK and Ireland in Feb 1997. The song is a not too subtle re-configuration of Faithless' Insomnia with a hollering Sabine Ohmes providing the vocal hook. The track really exemplifies dance music in 1997 - uncool, slightly annoying but a lot of fun. As is mandatory in any write up on Sash! these two facts must be stated - Sash! is one of only a handful of acts to have three consecutive UK number 2s (along with - at least - Kylie and the Manics) and secondly their first four chart hits were performed in four different languages. The Future Breeze edit was the version that received most airplay, as far as I can remember. Here, it sits at the top for 4 weeks righting so many wrongs! More, so much more, from Sash! later. fQ5nlsgNPG0 Edited March 7, 20169 yr by Colm
March 7, 20169 yr I can really live without Sash!'s 1997 singles but I do love forthcoming Tina cousins collaborations and a few of his early 00's releases.
March 8, 20169 yr Sash! is one of my favourite dance acts from the 90s. Encore Une Fois is fantastic. I love both the original and the Future Breeze edit. Sabine Ohmes tried also a career as Encore!, with less success. Le Disc Jockey nHZ5F2oeZFg
March 8, 20169 yr He's so unclucky, he had so many #2 and #3 without scoring #1. Encore Une Fois is really a classic but I like Mysterious Times and Stay more.
March 8, 20169 yr not as crazy as you guys about Sash, for me they were a poor version of Faithless (like someone said above) :(
March 8, 20169 yr not as crazy as you guys about Sash, for me they were a poor version of Faithless (like someone said above) :( Encore Une Fois was quite similar to the Faithless songs but not the others so I wouldn't say in general Sash is a poor version of Faithless -_-
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