Yay! I musta been predicting it's 90's No.1 victory :lol:

 

Just wish it was released during a higher sales period :(

OK a quick update of current positions up to the first new entry - my sales charts change constantly! The second batch of numbers are the position they held when I did my first million sellers at the final week in 1999, the new entries are those that have gained since (or else gained when I retrospectively decided that my Oldies Charts in 1974-7 also counted, as they were quite full of classics. Obviously that means tracks predating 1977 have a distinct advantage in my list, but I felt it was unfair to not count great records which predated my first chart just cos I didn't start early enough (aged 10) :lol:

 

5 have now dropped out of the 800...

 

764 487 MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE Police 1979 973200

765 488 TORCH Soft Cell 1982 972950

766 NEW STAY Shakespears Sister 1992 972250

767 489 THE WAR SONG Culture Club 1984 971150

768 NEW HOLLABACK GIRL Gwen Stefani 2005 970900

769 NEW TIME IN A BOTTLE Jim Croce 1974 969050

770 NEW MOVE YOUR FEET Junior Senior 2003 968250

771 NEW PERSONAL JESUS Depeche Mode 1989 968200

772 491 HOME LOVIN' MAN Andy Williams 1970 968000

773 NEW SWEET CHILD 'O MINE Guns 'N' Roses 1988 967350

774 NEW JOHNNY REGGAE The Piglets 1971 966750

775 492 SUNDAY GIRL Blondie 1979 966650

776 493 AGAIN Janet Jackson 1994 966600

777 NEW GOLDEN BROWN The Stranglers 1982 966600

778 NEW WAY DOWN Elvis Presley 1977 964907

779 495 OPEN YOUR HEART Human League 1981 963500

780 NEW OUR HOUSE Madness 1982 963350

781 496 SOFTLY WHISPERING I LOVE YOU Congregation 1971 963200

782 NEW IN A MOMENT LIKE THIS (Denmark) Chanee & N'evergreen 2010 963000

783 497 BRANDY Scott English 1971 962840

784 498 ALANE Wes 1998 962700

785 NEW EMPIRE STATE OF MIND/ PART 2 Jay-Z/ Alicia Keys 2009 962000

786 NEW THIS TIME I KNOW IT'S FOR REAL Donna Summer 1989 961450

787 NEW I WANT TO KNOW WHAT LOVE IS Foreigner 1984 961150

788 NEW SOLDIERS Abba 1981 961050

789 499 MY OH MY Slade 1983 960700

790 NEW HEARTACHE AVENUE The Maisonettes 1982 959950

791 NEW HERE I GO AGAIN Archie Bell And The Drells 1969 959900

792 500 SINGLE BILINGUAL Pet Shop Boys 1996 959400

793 NEW BAD ROMANCE Lady Gaga 2009 959350

794 NEW YOU'LL NEVER WALK ALONE Gerry & The Pacemakers 1963 959300

795 NEW STARLIGHT Supermen Lovers 2001 958650

796 NEW WHEN YOU'RE GONE Bryan Adams/ Melanie C 1998 958100

797 NEW MAKE IT WITH YOU Let Loose 1996 958050

798 NEW EVERYWHERE Fleetwood Mac 1988 957950

799 NEW FANTASY Mariah Carey 1995 957300

800 NEW (I NEVER PROMISED YOU A) ROSE GARDEN Lynn Anderson 1971 956700

801 NEW A HARD DAY'S NIGHT The Beatles 1964 956650

802 NEW SHORLEY WALL Ooberman 1998 954300

803 NEW SHAME Eurythmics 1988 953700

804 NEW ONLY YOU CAN Fox 1974 952650

805 NEW TWILIGHT E.L.O. 1981 952050

 

....and this one has entered at ...

763. STOP THE CAVALRY - Jona Lewie 974,050

 

 

I always loved Jona Lewie tracks, from his Terry Dactyl days right through to this christmas annual classic. I say christmas - actually the only thing christmassy about it is a mention of it, and a few bells amongst the brass band backing, it's much more of a sorta sad jolly anti-war record set in the Great War trenches in the video. It was a christmas hit however, and lost a lot of sales in my chart due to the John Lennon tracks dominating my charts following his murder. It keeps popping back occasionally though, cos it's brilliant, at christmas-time and here it is at last. It may well go up higher next year...!

731 467 HOLD ON TIGHT E.L.O. 1981 994000

732 469 HE AIN'T HEAVY... HE'S MY BROTHER Hollies 1969 992450

733 NEW TO SIR WITH LOVE Lulu 1967 991650

734 NEW OUTLINES Mike Mago and Dragonette 2015 991400

735 470 DO YOU REALLY WANT TO HURT ME Culture Club 1982 991300

736 471 CRAZY HORSES Osmonds 1972 990800

737 NEW (TO BE) YOUNG, GIFTED AND BLACK Bob & Marcia 1970 990750

738 472 DA YA THINK I'M SEXY Rod Stewart 1978 990600

739 NEW WALKING ON THIN ICE Yoko Ono 1981 990600

740 NEW LAST FRIDAY NIGHT (TGIF) Katy Perry 2011 988750

741 473 CONSTANT CRAVING k.d.Lang 1992 987900

742 474 FOX ON THE RUN Sweet 1975 987850

743 475 HAPPY NEW YEAR/THE WAY OLD FRIENDS DO Abba 1980 986900

744 NEW SHOULD I LAUGH OR CRY Abba 1982 986550

745 476 HI HO SILVER LINING Jeff Beck Group 1967 986350

746 477 THE SIGN Ace Of Base 1994 985800

747 478 I'M MANDY FLY ME 10CC 1976 984900

748 NEW BETTER Cat And The Menagerie 2013 984600

749 NEW 3 WORDS Cheryl Cole/ will.i.am 2009 983050

750 NEW GHOSTTOWN Madonna 2015 981800

751 NEW REPTILIA The Strokes 2004 980600

752 479 BEACH BABY First Class 1974 980258

753 480 MIRROR MAN Human League 1982 979850

754 NEW LOVE RUNS OUT OneRepublic 2014 978650

755 482 ON THE BIBLE Deuce 1995 978200

756 483 (KEEP FEELING) FASCINATION Human League 1983 975400

757 NEW STAND BY ME Ben E. King 1961 975150

758 NEW PRAY Take That 1993 975000

759 NEW RADIOACTIVE Imagine Dragons 2012 975000

760 484 NIGHT BOAT TO CAIRO Madness 1980 974600

761 490 UNPRETTY TLC 1999 974500

762 NEW GOOD LUCK Basement Jaxx/ Lisa Kekaula 2004 974400

763 NEW STOP THE CAVALRY Jona Lewie 1980 974050

730. DON'T TELL ME - Madonna (2000) 994,450

 

 

Madonna's second entry on the rundown is the follow-up to gimmicky Music, a much better, acoustic-tinged uptempo EDM pop song with a country-themed video. Don't Tell Me was Madonna continuing the Ray Of Light album return to form and she really was sounding mature and confident and still keeping relevant in the ever-changing world of dance-pop. Perhaps a little flattered here, considering Like A Prayer has yet to broach the million (It needs a re-chart for a few weeks to push it over! Shock!), but not TOO flattered.

729. OH PITY - Cashier No. 9 (2011) 995,600

 

 

A band that have never made the big time, or even the middling time, but this record just grabbed me 4 years and so insistent I never grew tired of it. I love the construction of it, the chugging nature interspersed with so many musical little intricacies and harmonies, and around 3 and a half minutes in comes the fab guitar and harp. It's galling that such a marvellous little record hasn't reached a wider appreciation. The West Coast American-sounding but Belfast band have now changed name to EXMAGICIAN. Fingers-crossed lads!

728. OBSESSION - Animotion (1985) 997,250

 

 

One-hit wonders, as American bands inspired by the New Romantic/Futurist MTV video invasion started to wake up and smell the future, and it was synth and techno dance pop. I loved synths from the first time I heard them in 1972, and through to 2015, so many possibilities for new sound and new excitement. The video sound quality is a bit suspect on the original video so this out-of-synch better-quality dub is worth looking at instead,: the record here is like the Human League's missing classic, a terrific song and great raunchy full-bodied production.

727. BLUE MONDAY - New Order (1983) 997,850

 

 

Talking of synths, talking of ground-breaking, talking of voting on this or True Faith as New Order's best record, well shh I can't give the game away but this is the first of two New Order tracks in the rundown from the former Joy Division lads and new lass. I always liked this but never loved it to bits, probably cos I got annoyed when records weren't available in 7-inch vinyl versions (I refused to buy full-price 12-inch), but it just kept on going and going, and just as in the UK sales charts, all the various re-entries, reissues and remixes pushed it over the million - it just needs one more week at 75 in my chart to do it! :lol:

OK, do I pause while I'm on a street-cred high...?

 

Oh sod it, here's 3 to destroy it! :lol:

 

726, I LOST MY HEART TO A STARSHIP TROOPER - Sarah Brightman And Hot Gossip (1978) 997, 950

 

 

Look, it had sci-fi references from all my fave sci-fi obsessions, it had Star wars sound effects, it had naughty Kenny Everett dancers smack-bang when he was the funniest thing on British TV, and it had future Opera mega-star Sarah Brightman hiding her talent behind cheesy disco music. I remain unashamedly fond of this poptabulous bit of throwaway cash-in disco. :lol: First of 2 from Sarah, and the other couldn't be more different

725. END OF THE ROAD - Boyz II Men (1992) 998,250

 

 

For a time in 1992, I found this sweet soul ballad a bit of a 70's soul throwback, which was fine by me, I adore 70's soul. Boyz II Men were HUGE, a boyband with soul appeal, and then they stayed on top of the radio-dominated US singles charts for years and years and years and the novelty quickly wore-off for me. They capped it off with a Mariah Carey overblown monstrosity and I just haven't been able to recapture the charm of the moment for this track ever since, the band's simpering, off-key and constipated vocal style just rubs me the wrong way. This is by far their best record, though.

724. SWEET CAROLINE (GOOD TIMES NEVER SEEMED SO GOOD) - Neil Diamond (1969) 998,450

 

 

Back in the 60's Neil was cool, he wrote great pop songs for pop acts and for himself, loads of 'em, but he didn't quite break through as a solo act in the UK until 1970 with Cracklin' Rosie, which he followed up with this re-issued pop singalong classic in 1971 - which is when I loved it, in tropical boyhood Singapore. Imagine my surprise when it belatedly became a huge 21st century singalong party classic, after Neil had sabotaged his songwriting street cred career circa 1974 and opted for bland MOR superstardom. Neil is cool again now, and quite right too, but I still divide his career into love (pre-1973) and at-best-like (post-1972). First of three for Neil...

723. RESCUE ME - Madonna (1991) 991,100

 

 

Single to push The Immaculate Collection hits remix set, this new track was really Enjoy Yourself/Vogue/Open Your Heart dance House stylee with a touch of gospel, and a perfectly good single, though not quite the freshness of the earlier tracks and no video either. Which sort of lacklustre attitude summed up the album for me: needless tinkering with the original single versions, and not even including all of the big hits such as True Blue. The 2 new singles should have been held back for the next album, no tinkering, and a full track list. So there! That's why I never bought the mega-selling album until it was in a second-hand bargain bin. Third of many from Ms. Ciccone, anyway!

722. FOUR LETTER WORD - Kim Wilde (1989) 999,150

 

 

Kim and bruv Ricky (not to mention dad Marty) were a real family unit New Romantic-era pop delight, almost glam-rock for the 80's, after Ricky's teenpop career didn't happen (Teen Wave was great). Rick did it right for his sis Kim, who was one of the few British solo female pop stars around amongst all the synth bands. Kids In America, Cambodia, and loads of other great hits followed one after another and then it all seemed to die down in the mid-80's. Kim left Mickie Most's RAK Records, switched to MCA and came out with a more adult sound and a great album in Close, her most complete work, including Four Letter Word. In retrospect I'm more fond of her earlier stuff, but it's still very pleasant. First of two, and her latest album is still very much a family affair, and she still features in my top 10 singles chart with Isobel's Song as I write (Jan 2016). I love Kim.

721. SUNRISE - Simply Red (2003) 999, 300

 

 

Sometimes Mick Hucknall got on my nerves, especially during his mega-selling Stars period, and sometimes Simply Red bunged a single I really liked, and once in a while one I loved. Long after the party seemed to be over Mick cheekily borrowed Hall & Oates' I Can't Go For That, wrote a new melody over the top of it, kept a bit of the hook, and had a new song that just appealed to me (big Hall & Oates fan). It's not remembered much, but it's pretty smooth enough for me to rate it as the highest-selling track to fail to quite hit one million. Mick does, of course, have the advantage of a great singing voice, which never hurts in pop music. First of two for Simply Red.

720. BACK IN THE USSR - The Beatles (1968) 1,000,000

 

 

Back in '68 The Beatles sprawling double album came out, and there were no singles taken off it - this was good news for all those doing cover versions and getting hits, but it was a lost opportunity for this certain-chart-topper, though it eventually came out in 1976 and duly made the top 20 in the UK. It's the Fabs doing a Beach Boys supercharged parody essentially, and it really rocks the groove, still sounds fab loud in a club. As A Hard Day's Night has just been pushed down to 801, you can call this the Beatles' first of dozens in the rundown - but who has the most, Beatles, Abba or Pet Shop Boys. I'll try and keep count!

719. JOHN WAYNE IS BIG LEGGY - Haysi Fantayzee (1982) 1,000,400

 

 

I always love anything that sounds unusual and endearingly quirky, so that's why this cowboy-yee-haw piss-take did so well in my charts. Jeremy Healy later resided in the dance club scene, but this was just pure fun, and ever so naughty and irreverent to national treasure John Wayne. Don't ask about Big Leggy and standing so high, it's a bit rood, but great fun. Showdown!

718. DREAMS - Fleetwood Mac (1977) 1,001,162

 

 

The biggest hit off the classic, eternal, mega-selling Rumours album, and Stevie Nicks at her ethereal, lacy, atmospheric, haunting best. The album was huge at College, and it's huge now, constantly finding new fans and passing down the generations. There are Mac and Stevie songs I love more these days, but that may be down to the Corrs sucking the mystery out of the song for me and overdosing on the melody. Stevie is a poet of imagery, and I love her voice, image and songs. Second of four.

717 is a David Bowie song that is going to chart on Sunday in my new charts (there is going to be an invasion, as there is on itunes at the moment) so it will be going up and I'm going to assume it's jumping over the next few tracks when I do the next batch...

 

Previous artist chart invasions*:

Beatles

Elvis Presley

John Lennon

Beatles

Abba

Beatles

Pet Shop Boys

Michael Jackson

Abba

 

Justin Bieber is not going to join this list. David Bowie is.

 

(* at least 6 at a time)

717. IN THE CROSSFIRE - Starsailor (2005) 1,001,500

 

 

I haven't heard this in a decade, Starsailor being as they are one of the unfairly under-rated rock bands of the noughties, so it's almost new and fresh to me as I play it now - great riffs, and I always liked the vocal range and angst stylings of singer James Walsh, and of course the song is pretty good too. Sort of a more intense, uptempo Coldplay. Not their most well-known track, I think, and they had quite a few goodies, and are long overdue for some appreciation and a comeback.

716. RUN BOY RUN - Woodkid (2012) 1,0001,600

 

 

The first Buzzjack classic track for me, I noticed it in the multi-chart long before I discovered the BJSC and took a look-see, and oh. my. word! Fantastic horror-cum-Fritz Lang Metropolis video, and just a brilliant record, nowadays much used in sporting ads and the like, despite never cracking the UK top 40. First off, it's that hypnotic frantic rhythm, then there's those stirring sweeping synth-strings, and the urgent, insistent low-key song in between them. Woodkid is French video-artist, graphic designer and singer-songwriter Yoann Lemoine, and all those elements go towards the whole that is this brilliant video-record.