2002

 

14/16: DJ Sammy - Boys Of Summer (1 week at No.1)

 

 

Who else to finally see off DJ Sammy but...DJ Sammy. Another act replacing themselves at the top in 2002, Boys of Summer was lined up as the second single and again I'd already bought it on import ahead of its UK release that was a couple of months away still. A cover of Don Henley's iconic 80s classic, it could have gone so wrong but DJ Sammy had a real way of treating his covers with respect, and Boys of Summer really worked as a dance track too. This time featuring Dutch singer Loona on vocals, who also appeared on several other DJ Sammy album tracks and was already a huge star on the continent with a few solo German No.1 singles to her name, Boys Of Summer managed a week at the top for me, and also impressed upon its UK release where it got to No.2

2002

 

15/16: Girls Aloud - Sound Of The Underground (1 week at No.1)

 

 

I never got massively into the winners of UK TV reality shows - Hear'Say had a big hit for me with The Way To Your Love but none of their others charted, and Will Young (and Gareth for that matter) had never charted either. But Popstars: The Rivals provided something special in the band that would become Girls Aloud. The eventual quintent - Sarah (RIP, very much missed <3), Nicola, Nadine (Irish Popstars passportgate LEGEND who I voted for every week), Kimberley and Cheryl - beat out Javine, who had been tipped as a frontrunner, and were then in a famous 'buy girls, bye boys' tussle with boyband One True Voice for Christmas No.1. Boybands by nature have the upper hand in things like this, but unfortunately for them, the naff Sacred Trust - chosen by Pete Waterman - didn't suit them and they finished second in the charts, and fell behind Cheeky Girls a week later too - whoops.

 

Meanwhile, in surely the only moment of his career we are grateful for, Louis Walsh was behind Girls Aloud and they were given the effortlessly cool drum and bass/surf-pop monster Sound Of The Underground. Where many reality winners that go onto bigger and better things drop their cringey coronation single from their live sets quickly, there was no need to for Girls Aloud as the song quickly established itself as a 00s classic and was part of a revolution in pop music, the face and sound of which was changing in late 2002 thanks to them, Sugababes, and US stars like Christina Aguilera, Justin Timberlake and P!nk, moving from a cheesy sound to a more mature beat-driven style with slicker, more modern production. Had they released a cover of Stay Another Day, as had been mooted, you expect the boys would have won and Girls Aloud's career trajectory would have been very different indeed...

Whatever Wherever was a number one for me, and Girls Aloud was fab. Tell It To My Heart and Boys Of Summer also topped my charts, and Like A Prayer hit 2 - in the original versions :lol:

Crikey at the Mad'house track :lol: of course both the DJ Sammy songs are fab which were detailed enough about in the album thread of mine but 12 weeks is incredible for that.

 

I do admit that I'm not as big a fan of SOTU personally. I do like it, just they have many better songs over it. Was good to see a big girl group song storm Christmas #1 though after Spice Girls disbanded and never set the world on the fire again.

'Forever' by N-Trance and Kelly Llorenna is euphoric :music:

Whatever Wherever was a number one for me, and Girls Aloud was fab. Tell It To My Heart and Boys Of Summer also topped my charts, and Like A Prayer hit 2 - in the original versions :lol:

 

I guess if I'd been born/able to process music when the originals came out all three would have been big for me, particularly Like A Prayer!

 

Crikey at the Mad'house track :lol: of course both the DJ Sammy songs are fab which were detailed enough about in the album thread of mine but 12 weeks is incredible for that.

 

I do admit that I'm not as big a fan of SOTU personally. I do like it, just they have many better songs over it. Was good to see a big girl group song storm Christmas #1 though after Spice Girls disbanded and never set the world on the fire again.

 

Yeah I was so obsessed with Heaven. Oops at Girls Aloud, they have a few more chart toppers coming up for me. Don't let Beaver hear your Spice Girls comment!

 

'Forever' by N-Trance and Kelly Llorenna is euphoric :music:

 

It is <3

2002

 

16/16: Girls Aloud - Stay Another Day (1 week at No.1)

 

 

The third and final act to replace themselves at No.1 in 2002 - and my last No.1 of the year - was Girls Aloud. While clearly them releasing a cover of East 17's Stay Another Day would have been an extremely underwhelming way for them to have kicked off their chart career, I can't help but love their version of it. Despite the lack of bells that the original famously had, the sumptuous strings and lovely harmonies make it sound just as Christmassy as the original and brought it right into the 00s style of production. It's yet another song here that isn't on Spotify, despite them performing it on Top of the Pops where it was billed as a UK No.1 (it was the b-side to Sound of the Underground, not a double a-side as was stated by the presenter, so this isn't true).

Edited February 15, 20232 yr by gooddelta

2002 No.1s recap:

 

1. Minimalistix - Close Cover (2 weeks at #1)

2. Anjo - Tears In The Rain (3 weeks at #1)

3. Atomic Kitten - It’s OK (1 week at #1)

4. Shakira - Underneath Your Clothes (3 non-consecutive weeks at #1)

5. Shakira - Whenever, Wherever (1 week at #1)

6. Milk Inc - In My Eyes (1 week at #1)

7. Ian Van Dahl - Reason (1 week at #1)

8. Kelly Llorenna - Tell It To My Heart (4 non-consecutive weeks at #1)

9. Ira Losco - 7th Wonder (4 weeks at #1)

10. ATC - Around The World (La La La La La) (6 weeks at #1)

11. Mad’House - Like A Prayer (1 week at #1)

12. N-Trance feat Kelly Llorenna - Forever (1 week at #1)

13. DJ Sammy & Yanou feat Do - Heaven (12 weeks at #1)

14. DJ Sammy - Boys Of Summer (1 week at #1)

15. Girls Aloud - Sound Of The Underground (1 week at #1)

16. Girls Aloud - Stay Another Day (1 week at #1)

2002 No.2s:

 

1. DB Boulevard - Point Of View (2 weeks at #2)

2. Lasgo - Something (1 week at #2)

3. Tillmann Uhrmacher - On The Run (2 weeks at #2)

4. Ladies First - I Can’t Wait (2 weeks at #2)

5. Moony - Dove (I’ll Be Loving You) (2 weeks at #2)

6. Jessica Garlick - Come Back (1 week at #2)

7. Corinna May - I Can’t Live Without Music (1 week at #2)

8. Atomic Kitten - The Tide Is High (Get The Feeling) (2 weeks at #2)

9. Snap! vs. Plaything - Do You See The Light (1 week at #2)

10. Mad’House - La Isla Bonita (1 week at #2)

11. Milk Inc - Walk On Water (1 week at #2)

12. Milk Inc - Land Of The Living (1 week at #2)

13. Ira Losco - One Step Away (1 week at #2)

14. Shakira - Objection (Tango) (1 week at #2)

15. Kylie Minogue - Come Into My World (1 week at #2)

16. Sophie Ellis-Bextor - Music Gets The Best Of Me (2 weeks at #2)

17. Jan Wayne - Because The Night (1 week at #2)

18. Pascal feat Karen Parry - I Think We’re Alone Now (1 week at #2)

19. Lasgo - Pray (1 week at #2)

My top 20 of 2002

 

1. Flip & Fill feat Kelly Llorenna - True Love Never Dies (Peak #1)

2. DJ Sammy & Yanou feat Do - Heaven (Peak #1)

3. Shakira - Underneath Your Clothes (Peak #1)

4. ATC - Around The World (La La La La La) (Peak #1)

5. Shakira - Whenever, Wherever (Peak #1)

6. Ira Losco - 7th Wonder (Peak #1)

7. Kelly Llorenna - Tell It To My Heart (Peak #1)

8. Mad’House - Like A Prayer (Peak #1)

9. Kelly Llorenna - Brighter Day (Peak #2)

10. Milk Inc - Land Of The Living (Peak #2)

11. Milk Inc - In My Eyes (Peak #1)

12. Minimalistix - Close Cover (Peak #1)

13. N-Trance feat Kelly Llorenna - Forever (Peak #1)

14. Moony - Dove (I’ll Be Loving You) (Peak #2)

15. DB Boulevard - Point Of View (Peak #2)

16. Milk Inc - Walk On Water (Peak #2)

17. N-Trance feat Kelly Llorenna - Set You Free (Peak #1)

18. Anjo - Tears In The Rain (Peak #1)

19. Tillmann Uhrmacher - On The Run (Peak #2)

20. Jessica Garlick - Come Back (Peak #2)

 

10 biggest faves that didn't make my top 2

 

Aurora - The Day It Rained Forever

Daniel Bedingfield - If You're Not The One

Flip & Fill feat Karen Parry - Shooting Star

Future Breeze - Temple Of Dreams

Kylie Minogue - Love At First Sight

Milk Inc - For No Reason

Puretone - Addicted To Bass

Sahlene - Runaway

Shakira - Ready For The Good Times

Sophie Ellis-Bextor - Get Over You

 

Note: These end of year charts are presented as they were compiled at the time based only on the calendar year in question, DJ Sammy quickly moved ahead of Flip & Fill in my affections, while Set You Free appears again because it was still hanging around from Jan-March in my top three.

2003

 

1/24: Love Inc - You're A Superstar (3 weeks at No.1)

 

 

Into 2003, which at the time I really felt was a year I'd fell out of love with music a little, but looking back I think of it a lot differently. I was in my final year of school at the start, in the summer started my first ever job at Asda - one I would remain in for nearly eight years, and then in September started at college, so in terms of transition it was a very volatile time for me. Eurodance and cheesy pop started to fall out of favour in the charts and R&B, hip-hop and rock started to take their place, which at the time I wasn't happy about, but looking back the music industry changed in many ways for the better during this year and the new sounds and production styles of 2003 are really where it felt like we left the 1990s behind and - musically - the 2000s really kicked off and got their own identity. At the time I was kicking and screaming against this change, but when I look back, this year produced so many classics.

 

So, of course, I start with a reheated song from 1998. Canadian dance act Love Inc had a domestic hit with You're A Superstar years before the Sash-esque track finally emerged in the UK in late 2002. When I first heard it I didn't realise it was so old and was impressed with their devotion to the late 90s sound. Of course, the reason it sounded like a relic was because it was one, but what a relic it was. An uplifting, motivational dance anthem with crisp production, it was a great addition to the Christmas chart of 2002, where it curiously spent its first four weeks in a row at its peak of No.7. I loved it, and remember watching the video over and over again at school in my music classes on some YouTube predecessor, but it took until the Girls Aloud hype died down for it to finally top my chart in January 2003, where it spent three weeks at No.1.

Edited February 15, 20232 yr by gooddelta

2003

 

2/24: Christina Aguilera - Beautiful (1 week at No.1)

 

 

As you can see by her multiple No.1s in the early 00s, Christina was one of my favourite artists easily. But when she returned with Dirrty in autumn 2002 it wasn't my cup of tea and didn't make my chart at all. It scared me off buying Stripped for a few weeks but I eventually did, and thank god - one of the best albums released in the 00s. A career opus featuring so many incredible R&B anthems and power ballads, the biggest being self empowerment anthem Beautiful, which was written by 4 Non Blondes' singer Linda Perry. With an absolute powerhouse, emotional vocal from Christina, the song followed Dirrty to No.1 in the UK, showing off her diversity and setting the album up to be one of the biggest sellers of the year, and did what that song didn't in my chart - actually charting for one but also going all the way to the top.

2003

 

3/24: Jurgen Vries feat CMC - Brave New World (The Opera Song) (1 week at No.1)

 

 

Jurgen Vries had reached No.3 in my chart in late 2002 with great dance track The Theme but the act - an alias for British dance producer Darren Tate, a name presumably picked to make him sound more exotic and European - went two steps further with the follow up. Enlisting the vocals of 'CMC', this was actually Charlotte Church's first foray into commercial music, before her pop/R&B album of 2005, but was at least more recognisably her than that, with her vocals sung in the higher register and an operatic breakdown. Opera and trance proved a unique match made in heaven and the song went to No.3 in the UK in late January, complete with a fun animated video.

2003

 

4/24: Masai - Do That Thang (4 weeks at No.1)

 

 

The slick laidback MOR pop of Heaven & Hell and Kick Back didn't prove successful for Masai back in 2001, so for their 2003 relaunch they went down the R&B route, with this slick, catchy jam Do That Thang. The song actually got a fair bit of airplay in the UK and seemed set to become their first top 40 hit but sadly crashed out at No.42 in late February. Looking back, Masai probably weren't as comfortable performing a 'sexy', VERY of its time song like this as they were with the MOR pop they had done before. Either way, I was weirdly addicted to it and it was No.1 for me for four weeks, but would become their final ever hit - presumably, they were quickly dropped.

2003

 

5/24: Röyksopp - Eple (1 week at #1)

 

 

Crazy to think that Norwegian dance act Röyksopp has been around since the start of the century. They had already had a couple of UK top 40 hits in 2002 with various highlights from the legendary Melody AM album, but their biggest was to come in early 2003. No.16 hit Eple was an absolutely brilliant instrumental with lots of bleeps and bloops that sounds like it comes from outer space. But I think the reason I fell in love with it in the way I did was the absolutely excellent video, zooming in and out of various old photos and beautiful scenery - so clever.

I rated both Dirrty and Beautiful, for me it was peak Aguilera, barring obv the Maroon 5 interlude.

 

Eple (and Royksopp generally) is lovely. Some of the number 2/3's are faves of mine, notably Love At First Sight, Come Into My World, Sophie EB's tracks and a few other clubbing hits of that time. Those were my clubbing years, sigh, those were the days etc etc. :)

Another great list, not as many we double up on but I was going through a but of a phase in 2002/3 where I was losing interprets with music.

 

14. Shakira - Objection (Tango) (1 week at #2)

15. Kylie Minogue - Come Into My World (1 week at #2)

16. Sophie Ellis-Bextor - Music Gets The Best Of Me (2 weeks at #2)

 

Daniel Bedingfield - If You're Not The One

Kylie Minogue - Love At First Sight

Puretone - Addicted To Bass

Shakira - Ready For The Good Times

Sophie Ellis-Bextor - Get Over You

 

I rated both Dirrty and Beautiful, for me it was peak Aguilera, barring obv the Maroon 5 interlude.

 

Eple (and Royksopp generally) is lovely. Some of the number 2/3's are faves of mine, notably Love At First Sight, Come Into My World, Sophie EB's tracks and a few other clubbing hits of that time. Those were my clubbing years, sigh, those were the days etc etc. :)

 

Moves Like Jagger was the next time she would top my chart, eight and a half years later!

 

Glad you're liking a few of those, happy times.

 

Another great list, not as many we double up on but I was going through a but of a phase in 2002/3 where I was losing interprets with music.

 

14. Shakira - Objection (Tango) (1 week at #2)

15. Kylie Minogue - Come Into My World (1 week at #2)

16. Sophie Ellis-Bextor - Music Gets The Best Of Me (2 weeks at #2)

 

Daniel Bedingfield - If You're Not The One

Kylie Minogue - Love At First Sight

Puretone - Addicted To Bass

Shakira - Ready For The Good Times

Sophie Ellis-Bextor - Get Over You

 

My interest in chart music dropped a bit in 2003 too, in fact Beautiful was the only UK No.1 of the year that also topped mine.

'You're A Superstar', 'Beautiful' both good songs there. Crazy to think it flopped in 2000 and was originally out in 98. I didn't know that until just this week looking it up lol, re YAS!

 

Some other fab stuff in the 2002 End of Years 'Love At First Sight', 'Point Of View' and 'Addicted To Bass' all highlights here. Especially Kylie as that's my fave of her 00's hits :wub:

'You're A Superstar', 'Beautiful' both good songs there. Crazy to think it flopped in 2000 and was originally out in 98. I didn't know that until just this week looking it up lol, re YAS!

 

Some other fab stuff in the 2002 End of Years 'Love At First Sight', 'Point Of View' and 'Addicted To Bass' all highlights here. Especially Kylie as that's my fave of her 00's hits :wub:

 

Odd that yeah, must admit I never heard it in 2000, funny it made the top 100.

 

Oh fab yeah, Fever was a great album from Kylie, and all its singles.