I actually think Chesney Hawkes is my #1 for 1991, together with Oceanic-Insanity, but that's it.

 

for 1990, my #1 would be Sinead by miles. But Killer is great too.

Killer is a deserved number one for 1990. Both Unchained Melody and Sacrifice topped my charts (as did Healing Hands, the other side of Sacrifice) in 1989 for both Elton tracks, but oddly I'd move them down the list a bit these days to around about Sinead O'Connor level.

 

1991, oh dear oh dear oh dear. What a motley crew! I'd give Bryan Adams top slot, with Queen behind (ignoring Bo Rap which is 1975) & Chesney at 3. Cher is OK but not a patch on the frantic hi-energy disco 1975 Linda Lewis version, and colour me shocked, but I quite like Colour Me badd too. The original Tommy Roe version of Dizzy is way better (first record I bought, and sampled for Bassomatic's brilliant Fascinating Rhythm) but Vic & Bob are OK, Right Said Fred are having a laugh and on that basis it's acceptable. I'm playing Oceanic now as I havent heard it in 29 years. it's a nursery rhyme set to a plodding dance backing track, and so less good than The Simpsons which at least isn't pretending to be anything other than it is. I would rather hear any of the other 9 tracks. Yes, it's that bad.... :lol:

 

And just to note that all of them are a zillion times better than actual chart-toppers The Stonk and Bring Your Daughter :puke2:

 

In a year when 3am Eternal, The Fly, Innuendo, Sadeness and others all topped the chart one can only shake one's head......

I'm playing Oceanic now as I havent heard it in 29 years. it's a nursery rhyme set to a plodding dance backing track, and so less good than The Simpsons which at least isn't pretending to be anything other than it is. I would rather hear any of the other 9 tracks. Yes, it's that bad.... :lol:

 

 

Are you putting Insanity at the bottom?

 

In a year when 3am Eternal, The Fly, Innuendo, Sadeness and others all topped the chart one can only shake one's head......

 

Now that you mention those amazing songs that made it to number 1, it makes the year look so much more inconsistent. Sadness/Innuendo/3AM Eternal is probably my favourite triple of number 1s ever, although You Win Again/China in Your Hand/Always On My Mind must run it close.

 

 

I'm surprised at the Chesney support, in general.

Edited September 16, 20204 yr by Colm

On to 1992 where we have a split between lots of decent stuff and 3 all time greats.

Oceanic is the best from 91 by miles. What an appealing list to choose from though!

Are you putting Insanity at the bottom?

Now that you mention those amazing songs that made it to number 1, it makes the year look so much more inconsistent. Sadness/Innuendo/3AM Eternal is probably my favourite triple of number 1s ever, although You Win Again/China in Your Hand/Always On My Mind must run it close.

I'm surprised at the Chesney support, in general.

 

 

I'm afraid I don't get the appeal of Insanity at all, so yes behind Jason Donovan & The Simpsons & Right Said Fred! :o

 

Chesney has a large deal of residual affection from people around then, I've seen it in party situations and it always gets a good reaction. One noticeable missing ingredient from any Buzzjack music forum is a 50/50 proportion of female voices, for the most part it's male opinions about music (albeit many like myself who also like girl-appealing music) and it's undeniable that some acts appeal more to one sex than the other, sometimes almost entirely one-sided. You can see it at concerts, I went to see New Order a decade or more ago and it was almost entirely middle-aged balding men, David Essex was mostly middle-aged women plus a few reluctant hubbies. Chesney's is more teen-of-the-time female-leaning, but younger kids of the time also liked him, and we never stop having affection for our first loves in music :D

I've scored them all for scale of contempt.

Edited September 17, 20204 yr by Colm

10th place - Wet Wet Wet - Goodnight Girl

 

4.1

 

 

The weakest of a ballad heavy Top 10 and certainly no where nearly the best Wet Wet Wet song - this is really dreary.

 

This was the third single to be released from the, at that point unavailable, album High on the Happy Side. It vastly out performed the previous two singles which got to numbers 56 and 37. Its success must surely have been a surprise for everyone, managing 4 weeks at the top.

 

 

 

 

I bought that at the time, quite liked it but haven’t heard it since

9th place - Jimmy Nail - Ain't No Doubt

 

4.9

 

 

Such a strange number 1. Any ideas why or how it happened? Lyrically, it not bad and the female vocalist is rather sweet. Was there a TV tie thing?

Edited September 17, 20204 yr by Colm

8th place - Charles feat. Eddie - Would I Lie To You?

 

5.0

 

 

I always thought this was rather ploddy and repetitive. And when it ended up outselling Shakespears Sister's Stay, I could never forgive it.

 

In retrospect, it's not as awful as I remembered.

7th place - Whitney Houston - I Will Always Love You

 

5.1

 

 

 

 

Well, I can't fault the vocals but this is so over-wrought that I strained my neck just listening to it. I remember loving it at the time, though. The electric piano near the end really dates it.

6th place - KWS Please Don't Go

 

5.8

 

 

 

Before re-listening to these 10 tracks for ranking purposes, I fully expected this to be at least as low as 9th place. I remember becoming very irritated by the repetitive nature of this song, in 1992, after quite liking it for a while.

 

Of course, this hit version was a very close facsimile of the Europe-wide hit by a band called Double U, which KWS rush-recorded while a record companies (Network Record) attempted and failed to secure the rights to release the Double U version in the UK.

 

It finished in 5th place in the end of year chart.

ooh very different views this time! :lol:

 

Whitney is bottom. "Histrionic" where Dolly's original was sensitive. Movie seller.

 

I love the other three, Wet Wet Wet hardly ever made great records after their fab debut single, but this one was much more stylish & understated than their usual OTT warbling - that said I don;t rate it as much as I did at the time. I think we were all dazzled by Marti Pellow's handsome smile. :lol:

 

Charles & Eddie was a retro funk soul charmer with it's roots in the 60's & 70's, and tapped into that market while adding a bit of multi-cultural 90's panache and frightening amount of hair. :D

 

Jimmy Nail is an oddity and the only one I bought at the time. He was popular in the 80's but this came out of nowhere just because of the strength of the song and everyone's mouth dropping that he somehow had turned in a great pop single, great pop production and a good vocal. Still love it, still gives me tingles that chorus hook after the spoken dialogue.

5th place - Boyz II Men - End Of The Road

 

6.2

 

 

 

I really disliked this as a kid, or perhaps I was just baffled at how it ended up at number 1. It's quality stuff, though.

 

It was industry opinion, at the time, that this had missed its chance to hit the top spot as its sales had started to shrink by the time in climbed to number 2 behind Tasmin Archer's Sleeping Satellite. But a Top of the Pops appearance reversed its decline the following week and the week after that the release of Tasmin's album stole sales from potential buyers of her single and the Boyz were elevated to 1st place.

Edited September 18, 20204 yr by Colm

My three favourites are still yet to appear so it’s looking good!

Although I’ve just realised what the 4th one is and that’s waaaayyyyy too high!!!

Although I’ve just realised what the 4th one is and that’s waaaayyyyy too high!!!

 

 

:lol:

 

I dont love it - I don't love any of these songs so far. I know most people around here would have put it below Charles and Eddie.

If it's KWS and it's any place other than bottom the penance is to sit and listen to the KC & Sunshine Band original on repeat for 4 hours.... :P

KWS has passed :D

Edited September 18, 20204 yr by Colm