Weeks 9 and 10:

 

Samantha Mumba - Always Come Back To Your Love – one of the best pop debuts of the 00's / Nelly Furtado - I'm Like A Bird / Ricky Martin With Christina Aguilera - Nobody Wants To Be Lonely – this is a lovely collab, shame it doesn't have much positive on it from what I saw in the survivor too / Kaci – Paradise – I was very into Kaci's teen pop then and have one or both of the CD's too. It doesn't sound too out of place now either, sure dated but a competent pop track. Her track 'Crazy Possessive a decade later is probably more tackier actually which topped my personal chart but I still like that as well / Outkast - Ms Jackson / Semisonic - Chemistry – not heard this one before but it's another great tune / Mario Piu Presents DJ Arabesque - The Vision / The Divine Comedy - Love What You Do - sounds very Muse and some other bands like that, a decent discovery / Melanie B - Feels So Good / Stuntmasterz - The Ladyboy Is Mine – interesting mashup / Manic Street Preachers - Found That Soul – do prefer this one but both are solid. / Manic Street Preachers - So Why So Sad / Marilyn Manson - The Fight Song / Human Nature - He Don't Love You – a NSYNC ripoff sound but actually like it more than pretty much all their output :kink: / Caprice - Once Around The Sun – remember this playing on CD:UK back in the day and thought it must be cause it was top 10 or outside but nope 24 oops. Nothing overly exciting but it's also okay. / A1 - No More – what a comedown from SOBNY, very meh / King Adora - Suffocate / Mystikal Featuring Nivea - Danger (Been So Long) / Ja Rule Featuring Christina Milian - Between Me And You / Dane - Shut Up And Forget About It

Definitely the correct top 3 this week Julian, I approve!

 

Regeneration was my favourite Divine Comedy album, it's such a lovely record and some of the lyrics are great. Perfect Lovesong was an even better single, although I'm not sure whether it was actually released in the UK or not. Ms Jackson was fantastic, I wasn't a huge fan of this style of music at the time but this really was something different and cool. And Nelly Furtado was such a welcome addition, a really distinctive pop star whose first album had some really strong songs... I liked the follow up single even more than her debut one.

I've forgotten that Divine Comedy track but I rated it an 8/10. I mean I always like everything they do, but I've never LOVED any track in particular, always whimsical class. Ms Jackson was a goodie, can still sing that one, also an 8. Nelly Furtado is my fave though, a chart-topping 10/10 still sounds great.

 

Manics was a fave, a strong 9/10 - they've always alternated between really great and meh singles for me and they wouldnt grab a triple goodie until 2010 around the time I saw them live and bought the album, and barring the earlier Design For Life period. Found That Soul was the meh part of this double, 5/10. Also saw Semisonic back in the day, and Chemistry was very catchy 8/10.

 

Always Come Back To Your Love was nice poppy upbeat fun, a borderline 8 or 9, prob an 8. A lot of the rest I didn't chart, but Marilyn Mansun was no doubt one I loathed, as I tended to do with the gobby goth-stealing attention-seeking shouty metal wannabe idol. Recent events have only reinforced my view, oops.

 

Mystikal was a 5/10, Stuntmasterz one I recall liking and a firm 7/10. Kaci's Paradise also a 7, Mel B's best record by some distance, I loved Feels So Good, 9/10, classy. A1's was OK, 7/10, Dane a forgettable 6/10, Ricky & Christina a more memorable 8/10, and that concludes those I can rate!

 

I looked at Wikipedia for the genre definition of “Clint Eastwood” and it says alternative rock, alternative hip hop, trip hop, rap rock, dub, and indie dance. And I think that’s the point: it’s genre defying perfection and it has to receive my 2nd 10 of the year. It sold 86,000 in its first week and had a very long chart run for the time, possibly making it the unluckiest #4 of the decade.

 

Also well done to David Gray for another superb single: “This Year’s Love” is one of the most powerful ballads of its kind.

 

10 Gorillaz Clint Eastwood Debut hit for this cartoon band and utter perfection: chorus and backing sound like the jungle and the rap has great presence

9 David Gray This Year's Love A 3rd brilliant hit from "White Ladder": the lyrical story in this and the way the sad hopefulness comes across are sublime

8 Artful Dodger Featuring Michelle Escoffery Think About Me Only credited hit for Michelle and a real beauty of a garage track: the tenderness of the piano and vocals on this is gorgeous

8 Dream He Loves U Not 1st hit for this US group and it's an excellent slice of pop: the propeller-like beat gives the confrontational lyrics real attitude

7 Xzibit X 1st hit for him and 1 of only 8 Top 40s to date beginning with X; this is a really strong, enjoyable and catchy hip hop track

6 DJ Luck And MC Neat Piano Loco A clever track here that's quite different from their other hits, centred around a Latin piano riff coupled with an energetic rap

5 Aerosmith Jaded Only hit this century for the US rock band: it's nothing really unexpected but an enjoyable and spirited radio friendly number

4 Westlife Uptown Girl 892nd #1: this cover is quite well done and maintains the cheeky character of the original, but there's very little originality

3 Lionel Richie Tender Heart Another very unchallenging Lionel song but I do prefer this to many of his others as it does have a genuine soulful energy to it

2 Jonathan Wilkes Just Another Day Only hit for "Robbie's mate" as he was introduced: the "round and round…" chorus is slightly naff and it has no real individuality

2 D12 Shit On You 1st hit for this Eminem led band: a decent track but I find the lyrics so horrendously crude and the singing so bad I can't enjoy it

1 BM Dubs Presents Mr Rumble Featuring Brasstooth And Kee Whoomp! There It Is All those artists just for this amateurish sounding cover of the tag team hit, and the "Dooms Night" sample doesn't add much

 

 

 

2001 Week 12:

 

#642 24/03/2001 Hear'Say Pure And Simple 1 {1}-1-1-3-5-12-20-24-26-28-35-38-41-44-48-53-50-52-42-36-36-49-64-66-67->25

#643 24/03/2001 Chocolate Puma I Wanna Be U 6 {6}-10-13-18-22-31-43-67-68R(3)->9

#644 24/03/2001 Muse Plug In Baby 11 {11}-29-44-56-64->5

#645 24/03/2001 Beenie Man Featuring Mya Girls Dem Sugar 13 {13}-22-33-39-51->5

#646 24/03/2001 Alisha's Attic Push It All Aside 24 {24}-40-49-69->4

#647 24/03/2001 Rod Stewart I Can't Deny It 26 {26}-53->2

#648 24/03/2001 The Three Amigos 25 Miles 2001 30 {30}-52->2

#649 24/03/2001 Sister Bliss Featuring John Martyn Deliver Me 31 {31}-57->2

#650 24/03/2001 Roni Size And Reprazent Featuring MC Dynamite Dirty Beats 32 {32}-46-66->3

#651 24/03/2001 Jaheim Could It Be 33 {33}-50-74->3

#652 24/03/2001 Flip And Fill Featuring Kelly Llorenna True Love Never Dies 34 {34}-47-71->3

#653 24/03/2001 Disco-Tex Presents Cloudburst I Can Cast A Spell 35 {35}-60->2

'Do You Think About Me' is lovely with the classical piano and sweet vocal :wub:

 

'Clint Eastwood' is good fun and the David Gray song is downbeat but very good, I remember a lot from the time as my dad was a big fan of the album.

 

Clock have my favourite version of 'Whoomp There It Is', but then I am a big eurodance fan, interested to know what you think of their version.

Edited June 28, 2024Jun 28 by TheSnake

Robbie's mate :lol:

 

Will post tomorrow probably but seems we share the same lowest scorer!

Week 11

 

Aerosmith – Jaded – know Gorillaz will be top for everyone else but I always loved 'Jaded'.

David Gray - This Year's Love – a really moving ballad, easy second best from him behind 'Babylon'.

Gorillaz - Clint Eastwood

Dream - He Loves U Not – this sounds recognisable and sounds great right now too.

Xzibit - X

DJ Luck And MC Neat - Piano Loco – think considering I wasn't mad on their other stuff, this is the best they've done for me. Catchy.

Westlife - Uptown Girl – I don't mind this actually but it is also very naff, do prefer the Billy Joel version.

D12 - Shit On You

Artful Dodger Featuring Michelle Escoffery - Think About Me

Jonathan Wilkes – Another Day – well isn't this naff but for some reason musically is sticking with me so must be doing something right, the round and round chorus is lame though. Bless him for trying I guess and I'm sure Robbie ribs him over it now too ha.

Lionel Richie - Tender Heart

BM Dubs Presents Mr Rumble Featuring Brasstooth And Kee Whoomp! - There It Is

Clint Eastwood is a def 8 or borderline 9/10, and my 2nd-fave cartoon band of all-time (after The Archies - not sorry, it's nostalgia!). They had even better later tracks though. David Gray's was nice, touching 7/10. Artful Dodger were never top faves of mine, but a decent 6/10 for this one.

 

Dream was a Florida track, loved it, 10/10 chart-topper for me, obv I was a bit early on it, US hits tended to take weeks or months to register here still. X, surprisingly (cos I dont recall it) was a top 20 for me, so that'll be an 8/10. DJ Luck was really pushing his luck by now, 2 or less. Jaded another US smash and a chart long-runner for me, so 9/10.

 

Uptown Girl was great for Billy Joel's bank account, but otherwise a 2/10. Lionel had long descended into terminal blandness, another 2/10. Just Another Day, a barely better 3/10, and the D12 title says it all, 1/10. and an unnecessary cover of a previous US hit from the 90's that I liked long before it became a UK hit can also have a 1/10. Harsh! Very harsh but whoomp! There it is.... :lol:

Correct top 2 again this week Julian, I'm impressed! ^_^

'Teenage Dirtbag' and 'This Year's Love's both made my top 10 of the year - it was rare for a rock song to have such a long run near the top of the chart, and the latter maybe has some extra meaning for me but it's certainly a heartfelt ballad. 'Ms Jackson' is probably my pick of the rest. I'd only heard 'The Crystal Lake' once or twice before, but from the same album, 'Underneath The Weeping Willow' is one of my lasting favourites from the time.

Not such a stellar group here. Muse continue to do no wrong for me; I’ve given them 2 8s and 2 9s so far.

 

8 Muse Plug In Baby A stonking sophomore album leas: I think their classical background shows on this as the riff could almost be a piano exercise

7 Roni Size And Reprazent Featuring MC Dynamite Dirty Beats Not quite as arresting as "Who Told You" but another thumping track from them: the violin riff and rhythm of the rap are great

7 Flip And Fill Featuring Kelly Llorenna True Love Never Dies 1st hit for this UK electronic duo featuring the N-Trance singer: it's a really strong pop dance hit that will go Top 10 on re-issue

6 Chocolate Puma I Wanna Be U This Dutch DJ duo had hits under some different names: the beat sounds quite early 00s but it's a strong and punchy track

6 The Three Amigos 25 Miles 2001 2nd and final cover hit for this group: I really like what they've done with this Edwin Starr song; feels like a proper reinvention

5 Hear'Say Pure And Simple 893rd #1 and debut for the "Popstars": the performance feels very carefully manufactured, but it's a strong and rousing song

5 Beenie Man Featuring Mya Girls Dem Sugar 1st hit for 3 years for Mr "sim simma": his style isn't entirely to my taste but it's individual and I really like Mya's chorus here

4 Sister Bliss Featuring John Martyn Deliver Me Last hit for this Faithless DJ: the "deliver me" vocal part is enjoyable but overall I'm not finding this track worth the 7 minutes

4 Alisha's Attic Push It All Aside Their only Top 40 this century: this has a clever little chorus and is sweet and moderately enjoyable, but certainly not exciting

3 Disco-Tex Presents Cloudburst I Can Cast A Spell Only hit for these acts, turning a portion from "I'm Every Woman" into a dance hit: it works fine but can take it or leave it

2 Jaheim Could It Be 1st hit for this mononymous US RnB singer: maybe it's more to the US taste but to me it's dull, plodding and not memorable

2 Rod Stewart I Can't Deny It His only Top 40 this century: it's not unpleasant but a very bland and unoriginal slice of Radio 2 fodder with uninspiring lyrics

 

 

2001 Week 13:

 

#654 31/03/2001 Stereophonics Mr Writer 5 {5}-10-16-28-37-49-55-59-38-40-62-70->12

#655 31/03/2001 Craig David Rendezvous 8 {8}-14-20-27-32-38-49-57-55-72->10

#656 31/03/2001 Damage Still Be Lovin' You 11 {11}-21-29-37-47-73-74R(2)->7

#657 31/03/2001 Tweenies Best Friends Forever 12 {12}-15-22-23-34-40-58-64R(2)-60-56->10

#658 31/03/2001 LeAnn Rimes I Need You 13 {13}-22-27-39-50-71-75R(2)->7

#659 31/03/2001 The Offspring Want You Bad 15 {15}-24-25-34-45-71R(3)-49-34-67->9

#660 31/03/2001 R. Kelly The Storm Is Over Now 18 {18}-28-34-42-54-61->6

#661 31/03/2001 Blackout {2001} Mr DJ 19 {19}-27-32-43-57-72-60->7

#662 31/03/2001 Rhythmkillaz Wack Ass MF 32 {32}-53->2

#663 31/03/2001 Mark Ryder Joy 34 {34}-55->2

#664 31/03/2001 Savage Garden The Best Thing 35 {35}-60-74R(4)->3

#665 31/03/2001 Simon Free At Last 36 {36}-58->2

2001 week 11:

 

I knew the Westlife version of 'Uptown Girl' before the original, like 'Never Had A Dream Come True' it was also used in my year 6 leavers' assembly, so I don't mind its existence too much - it's at least a break from the drippy Westlife ballad formula. It is the one music video of theirs that I remember quite well too.

 

'Clint Eastwood' is my top pick of this batch as well :wub: I knew the Ed Case/Sweetie Irie remix version first, as that one was included in the track list of Now 48, so it was a bit of a shock to discover the tempo of the original for the first time! But I got used to it eventually and now it is my preferred version.

Plug In Baby is th first Muse track I recall liking, a good 7/10. Better was to come though. Dirty Beats pounded away without me noticing. Ditto Flip n Fill. Choccy Puma never did a thing for me, and I'll stick with Edwin Starr thanks all the same Amigos.

 

Pure & Simple was a monster hit, worth a 5/10 for a few weeks before it gets on one's nerves. Beenie Man always worth slagging off and a zero rating, and I'm getting really negative with this batch, 1 good, 1 OK! Even Sister Bliss didn't get a chart entry, I'm beginning to think I must have been in Florida, hang on while I check...

 

No I don' t think so. Just into other stuff outside the top 40: BBMak, Everclear's AM Radio, Lucky Town Butterfly, tracks from Robbie & Kylie's albums, Toploader back, Sarah Maclaclan and more. Alisha's Attic grab a 7/10 hooray, one I like! I was mad on Disco Tex. Not this one obviously, the chart-topping ultra-camp Get Dancing disco party of late 1974 (for me) with his sex-o-lettes.

 

Jaheim was a nice 7/10 r'n'b track too pour moi, and Rod's was my record of this batch no question, written by the fab Gregg Alexander, I Can't Deny It getting a top 5 9/10 from me, as I got further and further from the UK top 40, fairly obviously. I remember commenting at the time that it was my least-fave chart period to date, my older friends joyfully turning my own words against me and returning "you're just getting old" as I'd been defending chart music for 3 decades at this point. :lol: (They'd lost interest long long ago). I wonder if my clubbing days (end of 2001 onwards) will make a difference..... :D

'True Love Never Dies' is fab, if from late 2001 were your clubbing days, you must have charted it on re-release in 2002, popchartfreak?

 

The Muse song is anthemic even if the chorus lyrics are rather weird and disturbing.

 

'I Wanna Be U' is good, even if it is rather repetitive.

 

 

 

Week 12:

 

Muse - Plug In Baby / Flip And Fill Featuring Kelly Llorenna - True Love Never Dies / Chocolate Puma - I Wanna Be U / The Three Amigos - 25 Miles / Sister Bliss Featuring John Martyn - Deliver Me / Beenie Man Featuring Mya - Girls Dem Sugar – sounds like Sean Paul, not bad / Alisha's Attic - Push It All Aside / Hear'Say - Pure And Simple / Roni Size And Reprazent Featuring MC Dynamite - Dirty Beats / Rod Stewart - I Can't Deny It / Disco-Tex Presents Cloudburst - I Can Cast A Spell – boring and repetitive.

'True Love Never Dies' is fab, if from late 2001 were your clubbing days, you must have charted it on re-release in 2002, popchartfreak?

 

The Muse song is anthemic even if the chorus lyrics are rather weird and disturbing.

 

'I Wanna Be U' is good, even if it is rather repetitive.

 

Afraid not, no listing in my chart at all, though Kelly Llorenna will be back for a couple of covers :o It was down to the DJ's at the clubs what they played so I think they just went big banger pop mode as the ones that stick in my mind are Kylie, Pink, Anastacia, Missy Elliot, Alcazar, Sophie, Mary J, Sandstorm and stuff like that. I'm looking forward to being reminded of ones I havent heard for yonks though, cos the big ones still get played :D

I was too young to remember Popstars at the time, but a recent viral tweet about the show alerted me to the fact that it's been uploaded in its entirety on YouTube, so I have been watching it over the past few weeks :lol: it is crazy how much initial hype was behind Hear'Say, e.g. dolls being manufactured before any music had been released. 'Pure & Simple' is... fine but doesn't particularly excite me, I much preferred Liberty X's direction.

 

'I Wanna Be U' is my favourite from this section - love the house production and its manic energy :music:

I have a soft spot for that Alisha’s Attic song, although I preferred the follow up from later in the year. I liked their style and I always was willing them to go top 10 even though it never happened for them.

 

Muse definitely the best of the week though.

Four batches to catch up on so lets do the first two.

 

Here With Me is a great song, I remember it was also the theme to the TV show Roswell High at the time. Shining Light was used in the same show. A very stirring piece.

 

Don't recall that song by The Orb and wasn't too blown away by it when I just listened to it.

 

I loved Can't Keep Me Silent, that was the only one of the batch I bought on single, it's definitely similar to their debut but another solid track.

 

Airhead isn't one I loved at the time but I do revisit it more these days, it's very fun bubblegum pop with a big chorus.

 

The Call is one I always forget about from Backstreet Boys, but yes it was an interesting track lyrically, and with a phone being central to the narrative.

 

I actually really love Forever As One, I listen to this a lot. As I recall, it was their farewell single at the time and I suppose the convention was that if you knowingly did that you put out a ballad with lyrics that reflected the sentiment (see also Spice Girls, Five, S Club). But yes, it felt a bit odd for them because it may as well have been a different band altogether.

 

Dance With Me is a strong forgotten one hit wonder I think!

 

In the next group, the only one I bought myself - sorry - was Ricky and Christina, which has quite a soaring, catchy melody to my ears and a strong vocal from Christina.

 

Oh I bought The Vision on single too but only when it was in Asda's bargain bin for 10p or something, so not sure it counts as much. A solid but unspectacular dance song.

 

I remember Manics had been expected by some quarters to go in at No.1 and No.2 with those singles so No.8 and No.9 felt very underwhelming, although an interesting strategy. So Why So Sad is definitely my preferred track but I wouldn't call either song a classic.

 

Ms Jackson and I'm Like A Bird are the classics here, both brilliant tracks. I prefer the former to Hey Ya myself, the verses especially are impressive. Nelly's was an unusual debut that was very striking, and with an uplifting chorus.

 

I hadn't heard the song by The Divine Comedy but it sounded very nice there. I need to listen to more of their stuff outside the five or six songs I know, I listen to their Father Ted theme a lot, and National Express.

 

Chemistry was decent indeed, Semisonic had a brace of very strong singles and they should have at least landed in the top ten once really.

 

I remember The Ladyboy Is Mine being quite a cool mash-up, they weren't exactly common in the charts at the time so it did stand out.

 

I think the Ja Rule track is better than Mystikal's myself. Both feature shouty rapping but Mystikal's bassline is boring, whereas Ja Rule's has a kind of interesting Eastern flavour.

 

Love the Samantha Mumba song, her joint best for me alongside Gotta Tell You, a really strong chorus on that and good production for the time.

 

The rest of the pop, I agree, is terribly basic. Paradise was quite charming, as was Kaci, Mel B's was ok but not one I would go back to, A1's is their worst single so far for me - album filler, Caprice and Dane's were both crap, and Human Nature are a curious act to be Australia's longest running boyband, everything I've heard from them is either naff covers or naff originals.

Edited July 2, 2024Jul 2 by gooddelta

The next batch, I was so pleased to see a high score for He Loves U Not, this was a No.1 in my own chart, a huge hit in the US, and sorely underrated here, an incredibly strong girlband song that deserved much more.

 

Clint Eastwood was a bit of a masterpiece and totally unexpected project at the time, it felt very fresh. I like the remix that was on Now 48, as Jade mentioned, and always on the radio, just as much as the original.

 

This Year's Love is a classic ballad too, all the singles from White Ladder were very memorable.

 

Think About Me is a lovely track, I always forget about that one.

 

Jaded was a strong hit for Aerosmith, big chorus, stirring strings, a big top ten in the US, should have done better here.

 

Of the rest, I think Uptown Girl is probably the best, a really well produced cover and video, good fun for Comic Relief. As far as Westlife covers go, it's one of the better ones.

 

Don't care much for the rest of this group. X is fine but he had better, Piano Loco was an interesting sound for Luck and Neat but not one I love, Lionel's song is dull, BM Dubs was pointless, the word naff was surely invented for the Jonathan Wilkes single, riding on Robbie's coat tails and industry contacts but with a song that he wouldn't have considered as a b-side.

 

And Shit On You lives up to the first word of its title, it's absolutely awful. Thankfully they had a lot better to come.

 

In the next set my easy favourite is True Love Never Dies, which spent a huge 10 weeks at No.1 in my chart. They are very similar but the 2001 original just lacked a bit of the stripped back production finesse of the 2002 mix for me. Such a sublime dance track though, clearly inspired by Rank 1's Airwave, and a strong vocal from Kelly. My No.1 song of 2002 at the time (although DJ Sammy's Heaven topped it eventually).

 

My second favourite of this group, personally, is Alisha's Attic. I always loved them, and I can't believe they kept missing the top ten so narrowly so often. At least both went on to bigger hits (another top 15 for Shelley on Borderline and Karen being an in-demand songwriter that has still had huge hits very recently with Becky Hill and Mae Muller etc). And Amy Studt back in the day, you can really hear their influence all over her music. Push It All Aside was such a charming song, with a great elevating chorus.

 

Pure and Simple was just crazy big at the time, for what is basically an ok pop song, it's hardly Baby One More Time level, yet had comparable first week sales thanks to Popstars. The follow up was a much better pop track for me, but this was catchy enough and I always think it's weird it was co-written by Betty Boo. What a cash cow for her.

 

Plug In Baby was definitely my favourite Muse hit so far, another one I picked up for cheap in the Asda bargain bin! Strong vocal as ever from Matt.

 

I Wanna Be U was a decent dance track, I Can Cast A Spell definitely wasn't, Deliver Me was pretty good, the three minute hit mix that was also on a Hits compilation at the time is a lot tighter than the seven minute version.

 

I'd completely forgotten about Girls Dem Sugar, I try and avoid Beenie Man where possible. It's not that great anyway listening back.

 

And that Rod song I do remember, but was bland indeed.

Edited July 2, 2024Jul 2 by gooddelta