Dan that's really useful thanks! Is there anything beyond #64 or is that all I goes up to?

Funky house is getting far too many mentions :D

Rui Da Silva and Cassandra - Touch Me

 

 

Date 07/01/2001

4 Weeks

Official Chart Run 1-2-2-4-10-15-21-32-36-47-61-56-57-57 (14 weeks)

 

This track is from Portuguese producer Rui da Silva with vocals from Cassandra Fox, from North London. The vocals are very similar in style and sound to those on Toca's Miracle by Fragma, and are from the distinctive style of female vocals used on a lot of trance tracks in the early 2000s. Cassandra and Rui both wrote the song together in Rui's studio. They had both met after Rui was watching a performance by Cassandra in the West End of London.

 

This track is a mixture of trance influences (in some of the synths) and funky house (disco style guitar), and is one of the few tracks which incorporates both of these popular early 2000s genres into the song. It went straight to number 1 upon release and sold over 300,000 copies in the UK.

 

Both these two genres together means it is probably from the genre progressive house and so is our first progressive house track on the thread. Progressive house would be more popular in 2003 to early 2006 with producers such as Deepest Blue (2 tracks) and Deep Dish (3 tracks) getting hits and from 2008 to 2009, the former having a massive saxophone including progressive house hit at the end of it, the latter being when former disco house producer Calvin Harris turned progressive (mostly, the exception being Ready For The Weekend) and Deadmau5 emerged.

 

Originally there was a guitar part inspired by a Spandau Ballet song in the track, but it had to be removed as it couldn't get clearance. This delayed the release of the track from December 2000 to January 2001. When it was released, the track also went to number 1 in Portugal and Ireland, top 20 in Belguim, Italy, Netherlands and Romania and top 30 in Australia.

 

It was Rui da Silva's only hit in the UK. Rui da Silva has a total of 12 aliases, almost as many as Hi_Tack have. He started producing in 1992.

 

I will finish with the most important fact of the song. The most important fact is that the cover of the single has silhouetted figures on a blue background. I think we have found Lady Buzzjack's inspiration. ohmy.gif

 

Edited August 13, 20168 yr by TheSnake

What a tremendous start to 2001! :heart: 'Touch Me' took a while to grow on me but then just suddenly HIT and I've never looked back since. The vocals are just so sensual - I feel like I am almost mesmerised throughout. The way it slowly builds up to the chorus and then passionately ends with the elongated 'youuuuu' is so satisfying and wonderful to listen to. The production is stellar also.

Great tune, similar to Toca's Miracle (similar sounding vocalist) but I think i prefer it because of the funky house in it.

 

I do remember it, and I did like it at the time, unlike most dance music.

 

What a tremendous start to 2001! :heart: 'Touch Me' took a while to grow on me but then just suddenly HIT and I've never looked back since. The vocals are just so sensual - I feel like I am almost mesmerised throughout. The way it slowly builds up to the chorus and then passionately ends with the elongated 'youuuuu' is so satisfying and wonderful to listen to. The production is stellar also.

 

It's kind of like how the later track by Angel City - Love Me Right ends with 'ah-ahhh-ahhh' after the build up. Although that track didn't make the top 10 at the time so it may not be appearing on this thread.

 

Funky house is getting far too many mentions :D

 

Well you are not going to like the next few track posts then, FH was big in early 2001. :rolleyes:

Before you came a long I had never heard of the term funky house.

2001 had a fabolous start with Rui Da Silva - Touch Me the official number 1 too :wub:

Before you came a long I had never heard of the term funky house.

 

That's despite funky house being big in the late 90s (Ultra Nate, Phats and Small (who came back as the Freemasons in the mid and late 2000s), Bucketheads etc)

Edited August 12, 20168 yr by TheSnake

Yep.

The only UK#1 by a fellow countrymate of mine! And what a fabulous tune it is.

Planet Funk - Chase The Sun

 

http://cdandvinyl.co.uk/images/ebaypics/141526.JPG

 

Date 04/02/2001

2 Weeks

Official Chart Run 5-12-23-34-48-55-x-63-68-55-57 (10 weeks)

 

This track is from Italian sextet Planet Funk. Quite why they need so many personnel is unknown, especially to create a minimalistic chilled house track like this. I would also imagine there would be differences in musical opinion between members of such a large group of musicians, and that organizing a track in such a big group was no easy feat. It is also quite weird that such a summery track was released in February.

 

Anyway you could call this an early example of tropical house, it has the Robin Schulz style acoustic guitar before the chorus and the song also sounds very 'tropical ' too. It is also a bit trancey too with the synths in it and also has a progressive house part in it too (0:45 to 1:24 in the video), but has a funky house beat. The melody of the song is sampled from 1969 Italian film soundtrack Alla luce del giorno.

 

This is the only big hit in the UK for Planet Funk, although they had a minor number 32 hit with Who Said, appropriately subtitled (Stuck in the UK).

 

This the first track on the list to get a week at dance number 1 (its second week) outside the top 10. By the way the next track on the list is also a chilled out house track so there seems to be a trend for chillout dance tracks with Fragma's chilled out trance follow-up Everytime You Need Me also making the top 10 at this time. Perhaps dance fans wanted something more relaxing after the unsubtleness of Operation Blade

 

Finally a personal note, this track seemed to be everywhere at the time but weirdly only spent 4 weeks in the top 40. I liked it as it wasn't too heavy and still do. :)

 

Edited August 13, 20168 yr by TheSnake

I'm surprised it didn't have a longer top 40 run, especially with its #5 peak. It sounds big, though perhaps it only got its lasting popularity from being used in sporting events.

 

Love the song anyway, good addition to this thread.

Yes I liked it at the time and still like it a lot, it is much better than todays tropical house chillout tracks I think.

 

Now its over to you danG, you have an INCREDIBLE disco house song (one of the best ever imo) on your next four.

Edited August 13, 20168 yr by TheSnake

Oh I had no idea that Planet Funk was made up of so many people!

 

I heard the instrumental of 'Chase The Sun' on the darts and wondered what it was. I was only able to put a name to the song after finding it out on the One Hit Wonders show on R1 last year! Gorgeous song. :heart:

Now its over to you danG, you have an INCREDIBLE disco house song (one of the best ever imo) on your next four.

Is that another reference to the 'group named after a shop'? :heehee:

 

I'd say that one is my third-favourite of the next four.

 

The song that appears next in this rundown is very interesting, stay tuned.

Is that another reference to the 'group named after a shop'? :heehee:

 

I'd say that one is my third-favourite of the next four.

 

The song that appears next in this rundown is very interesting, stay tuned.

 

It's sad Fragma's follow up didn't make the chart, I remember hearing it a lot at the time, sadly I don't remember the one made by the group named after the shop much at the time it is only recently I discovered it and it is an absolute classic.

 

The song is partly named after an item of food you may find at a well known fast food restaurant too. :lol:

Touch Me is excellent and really has endured well, I think I prefer it more now than I did back in 2001. I remember buying Chase The Sun but I can't for the life of me remember how it goes and with youtube embedding not working properly for me right now I will not be remembering any time soon...

 

 

Planet Funk - Chase The Sun

 

Finally a personal note, this track seemed to be everywhere at the time but weirdly only spent 4 weeks in the top 40. I liked it as it wasn't too heavy and still do. :)

Oh, only 4 weeks, never noticed that because as you said I heard it also everywhere.

 

Fantastic track though, really chilled out, still love it. :wub:

 

PS: shame for Fragma. I think it was Everytime You Need Me that can't chart. I guess it was always behind Rui Da Silva. Loved that track too!

Fragma was indeed unlucky. 'Everytime You Need Me' will make an appearance in the end of year top 10 despite only peaking at #2 in the dance chart. Their other follow-up 'You Are Alive' didn't do so well but maybe that'll be a dance #1..

Just realised I was quite a big trance fan actually :lol:

 

Shame Fragma didn't manage to chart with later singles like Time and Time Again or Man In The Moon (with the Energy 52 - Cafe Del Mar sample)

 

 

If trance could come back it would be very much appreciated :D