I always enjoyed Kenny's laid-back soulful vibes, still do when he drops new tracks, and Madonna - I wonder how many sales were atually for True Blue - I know I was pissed off True Blue wasnt on the album so refused to buy it, and then this CD version was overpriced - I wanted it as the single mix was different from the original album mix (which I had already), but in the end I was still sulking and didnt buy that either. I donwloaded it 38 years late last year, and got charity shop copies of Immaculate along the way. Principles matter! 😄

22ND JUNE



Just 48 copies separated the top two this week but Color Me Badd just hold on to the top slot selling 52,176 copies of “I Wanna Sex You Up” bringing its haul to 224,256 enough to place it in the top 10 for the year.

The song it was under threat from comes from someone who many had written off as yesterday’s popstar, Jason Donovan. The decision by Donovan to accept a role in the west end production of “Joseph And His Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat” was seen by many as an admittance that his pop star days were over, but he turns it around with the release of a single “Any Dream Will Do” a song already familiar to millions who’ve seen the production in the 20 odd years the musical has been performed. It’s never been a hit before however and Donovan has deserted S/A/W for Nigel Wright on production credits and sees himself debut at No 2 (52,128), not bad when you consider his last two singles peaked at No 22 and 17.

We’ve not heard much from Salt N Pepa since their 1988 success but they return with a greatest hits this year and a remix of “Do You Want Me” a single which was a US release only last year. The single features a sample of James Brown’s “Say It Loud, I’m Black, I’m Proud” and becomes the trio’s third top 10 single as it rushes 13-6 (20,432).

Last year there were two competing versions of “From A Distance” in the chart which pitted Cliff Richard against Bette Midler with Richard running out the winner peaking at No 11 to Midler’s No 45. Since then Midler’s version went on to hit No 2 in the US at the end of last year and with Richard’s version out of the way the record company have given it another whirl and it powers 25-7 (18,800) to end up the bigger version after all, it was first recorded by Nanci Griffith in 1987 but this is the first time it’s hit the top 10. Midler’s album “Some People’s Lives” will be getting a re-issue in a few weeks time as has become the norm in recent times, but this single is boosted by the appearance of both “Wind Beneath My Wings” and “The Rose” on the CD version.

We’ve already seen that leaving the S/A/W stable can revitalise a career with Jason Donovan, also see: Sonia, she secured five top 20 singles from her first album (a record for a UK Female Act) before splitting with her record company and S/A/W as producers. She’s back though with the song “Only Fools (Never Fall In Love)” which was originally penned with Diana Ross in mind but secured for Sonia, she’s not parted entirely with her old friends at PWL though, this is remixed by Pete Hammond, it extends her top 20 run as it scuttles 11-10 (17,904).

Jason’s arrival means that Amy Grant is knocked 2-3 (32,240) and Cher moves 3-4 (24,496) but “The Shoop Shoop Song” is now the best seller of the year!. Kenny Thomas rises 10-5 (23,984) but it’s all over for Beverley Craven as she drops 4-8 (18,496) and R.E.M who reverse 6-9 (18,464).

Finally from now on the maximum number of formats allowed per position on the charts gets reduced from 5 to 4 which accounts for why a mighty 23 new entries were on the chart this week in a last gasp attempt by record companies to get out the larger number of formats.


1- I WANNA SEX YOU UP- Color Me Badd (52,176)
2- ANY DREAM WILL DO- Jason Donovan (52,128)
3- BABY BABY- Amy Grant (32,240)
4- THE SHOOP SHOOP SONG (IT’S IN HIS KISS)- Cher (24,496)
5- THINKING ABOUT YOUR LOVE- Kenny Thomas (23,984)
6- DO YOU WANT ME- Salt N Pepa (20,432)
7- FROM A DISTANCE- Bette Midler (18,800)
8- PROMISE ME- Beverley Craven (18,496)
9- SHINY HAPPY PEOPLE- REM (18,464)
10- ONLY FOOLS (NEVER FALL IN LOVE)- Sonia (17,904)

6 hours ago, Popchartfreak said:

I always enjoyed Kenny's laid-back soulful vibes, still do when he drops new tracks, and Madonna - I wonder how many sales were atually for True Blue - I know I was pissed off True Blue wasnt on the album so refused to buy it, and then this CD version was overpriced - I wanted it as the single mix was different from the original album mix (which I had already), but in the end I was still sulking and didnt buy that either. I donwloaded it 38 years late last year, and got charity shop copies of Immaculate along the way. Principles matter! 😄

I was very happy that True Blue wasn't on the album! 😂

Although at the time I was unhappy that Dear Jessie wasn't on it as that was a big childhood favourite of mine

48 copies?!

This really was quite the turnaround for Jason Donovan. I was surprised when I listened to the chart show and it debuted so highly as he'd really seemed to fall off from Hang On To Your Love onwards

Quite funny if Diana Ross had got that Sonia song, seeing as she already had 'Why Do Fools Fall In Love' a few years earlier

4 hours ago, dandy* said:

I was very happy that True Blue wasn't on the album! 😂

IMO the album version was far better than the awful single release, even thought it did hit No.1 for a week.

'Thinking About Your Love' is a very good and summery sounding (it was June after all) halfway-between-R&B-and-house song, really like the backing vocals!

The Salt n Pepa track is catchy and well produced too - hip house vibes.

Edited Tuesday at 00:042 days by TheSnake

16 hours ago, dandy* said:

I was very happy that True Blue wasn't on the album! 😂

Although at the time I was unhappy that Dear Jessie wasn't on it as that was a big childhood favourite of mine

Hah! Actually I was also annoyed about Dear Jessie, I'd forgotten that one, but I had the album version that was a hit so not quite so annoyed! 😄

Jason Donovan, I'd left Primary School when the original Joseph was unleashed so it was unknown to me in 1991 - and I wasnt impressed with any songs from it, and this biggie was a plodder that I got bored with very quickly. I even went to see Jospeh in the 2000's with Gareth Gates in the lead and my opinion was just reinforced not changed. It's no Jesus Christ Superstar! Jason was good in Priscilla though. I was in that show. Not intentionally - we'd got "bargain" last minute cheap seats, in the Royal Box it turns out - and we got the piss taken out of us by a drag queen show-star on a camper-van hoist hovering over the audience. They were cheap seats, we werent hob-nobbing it!! 😄

Sonia's was a good 60's girl-group sort of vibe, I liked that one. Salt n Pepa was a good 'un too, bizarre it didnt come out the previous year, but this was quite a regular thing in those days - US hits not getting a UK release at all, or late.

Never heard that Salt N Pepa tune before , surprised this even made the top 10!!

Always loved thinking about your love!

29TH JUNE



Jason Donovan’s “Any Dream Will Do” sold a sterling 97,520 copies last week to hold a massive advantage over the rest of the field almost as much as the rest of the top 4 combined! Indeed you have to go back to Cliff Richard's festive No 1 last year to find a bigger weekly seller, and among his individual songs only “Especially For You” can boast a bigger 7 day tally and that had Christmas to help it. Outgoing chart topper by Color Me Badd sold a mere 41,456 in its 1-2 drop.

The highest new entry of the week comes from a returning Erasure, their fifth album will be called “Chorus” and the lead single is also the titular track which sold 31,648 to debut at No 3. That’s the highest ever debuting Erasure single and 9th top 10 hit, it is so far behind Jason Donovan that it may not challenge him seriously and if it doesn’t it means that Vince Clark has had more top 5 hits without a No 1 than anyone else if you include his hits with Depeche Mode, Yazoo, and Assembly.

Taken from the forthcoming film “Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves” Bryan Adams new single “Everything I Do (I Do It For You)” debuts at No 8 (19,024) immediately outpeaking all his previous singles in the UK. It’s produced and co-written by Robert “Mutt” Lange who has been helming Def Leppard and Heart in recent years so is well versed in modern day AOR.

Written and recorded for the film “Quicksilver” in 1986 by Larry John McNally, Rod Stewart has once again plucked an obscure record and made it into a hit with some help from the Temptations on backing vocals. “The Motown Song” comes with a part animated video courtesy of the same people that did Madonna’s “Dear Jessie” promo, she incidentally appears in the video albeit animated. The track improves 12-10 (16,976) to give Rod his 4th straight top 10 hit something he’s not done since 1978.

Kenny Thomas is still climbing 5-4 (29,520) and keeps ahead of the improving Salt N Pepa 6-5 (23,472) and Bette Midler 7-6 (23,232). Amy Grant is pushed back 3-7 (23,136) and Cher plummets 4-9 (18,480) as her album “Love Hurts” arrives at No 1 selling over 80,000 in the process.


1- ANY DREAM WILL DO- Jason Donovan (97,520)
2- I WANNA SEX YOU UP- Color Me Badd (41,456)
3- CHORUS- Erasure (31,648)
4- THINKING ABOUT YOUR LOVE- Kenny Thomas (29,520)
5- DO YOU WANT ME- Salt N Pepa (23,472)
6- FROM A DISTANCE- Bette Midler (23,232)
7- BABY BABY- Amy Grant (23,136)
8- (EVERYTHING I DO) I DO IT FOR YOU- Bryan Adams (19,024)
9- THE SHOOP SHOOP SONG (IT’S IN HIS KISS)- Cher (18,480)
10- THE MOTOWN SONG- Rod Stewart (16,976)

Chorus <3

One of my favourite singles of the year, from my favourite album of the year too

The Rod Stewart song is good and upbeat but he has better songs!

The Bryan Adams song first verse in particular is undoubtedly emotive.

Listening to it, The Erasure song doesn't sound that dated as Tony Di Bart would borrow that style of instrumental in three years time!

Edited Tuesday at 19:461 day by TheSnake

On 10/11/2025 at 18:21, dandy* said:

Although at the time I was unhappy that Dear Jessie wasn't on it as that was a big childhood favourite of mine

I love Dear Jessie, very catchy, like a little nursery rhyme.

That Erasure performance is actually pretty amusing - I assume that really is Vince but he definitely makes a good mannequin!

'Chorus' is quite an out there song to be one of Erasure's highest charting singles (although I suppose that's also true of 'Blue Savannah')

Chorus is another good Erasure track, but I was more into Bryan Adams at the time - hard to believe it took him 6 years to get a big UK hit, Run To You was amazing when that came out, so it was nice he got a monster. Didn't see the film though, but I was a later convert to the ballad as a grower before saturation did it in for everybody really. On paper I should have loved the Temptations guest spot on Rod's, I'd seen them in concert a couple of years previous as one of the great Motown acts - and yet this song really wasn't worthy of them or Rod. It's no My Girl, Get Ready, Cant Get Next To You, Ball Of Confusion or Papa Was A Rolling Stone! It's also no Maggie May, You Wear It Well, Baby Jane, Do Ya Think I'm Sexy, Killing Of Georgie etc....

6 hours ago, Popchartfreak said:

Chorus is another good Erasure track, but I was more into Bryan Adams at the time - hard to believe it took him 6 years to get a big UK hit, Run To You was amazing when that came out, so it was nice he got a monster.

and yet this song really wasn't worthy of them or Rod. It's no My Girl, Get Ready, Cant Get Next To You, Ball Of Confusion or Papa Was A Rolling Stone! It's also no Maggie May, You Wear It Well, Baby Jane, Do Ya Think I'm Sexy, Killing Of Georgie etc....

Really like Run To You, both charting versions, Bryan Adams and Rage! Prefer it to Everything I Do... but can sense the emotion in the latter first verse especially!

For Rod yes I prefer his early-80s songs!

6TH JULY



As expected Jason Donovan retains the top spot this week, “Any Dream Will Do” can’t maintain its frenetic pace of last week but it only trails off 4% to a still impressive 93,056, that makes total sales of 242,704 after just three weeks on sale, as we’re half way through the year let’s see if that’s enough for the YTD Top 10:

1- THE SHOOP SHOOP SONG (IT’S IN HIS KISS)- Cher 503,216
2- DO THE BARTMAN- The Simpsons 457,312
3- THE ONE AND ONLY- Chesney Hawkes 383,424
4- 3AM ETERNAL- The KLF Featuring The Children Of The Revolution
328,512
5- I WANNA SEX YOU UP- Color Me Badd 295,776
6- SHOULD I STAY OR SHOULD I GO- The Clash 244,480
7- ANY DREAM WILL DO- Jason Donovan 242,704
8- THE STONK- Hale & Pace 239,376
9- SIT DOWN- James 238,944
10- (I WANNA GIVE YOU) DEVOTION- Nomad Featuring MC Mikee Freedom
237,280


So Jason shoots in at No 7, meanwhile Cher sells her 500,000th copy of “The Shoop Shoop Song” and Color Me Badd are almost at 300,000 as they drop 2-4 (30,064).

Erasure cannot progress any further and stall at No 3 (40,816) as Kenny Thomas drops 4-5 (29,264) but much better news for Bryan Adams as he rockets 8-2 (54,912) with sales up 185% and could topple Jason next week if that's replicated this week. Further down Salt N Pepa slip 5-6 (24,416) and Bette Midler is fading 6-8 (19,088).

Three new hits to discuss, firstly Paula Abdul who has gone with her first ballad to make it as a single. “Rush Rush” comes with an expensive promo featuring Keanu Reeves in which they try to recreate the film “Rebel Without A Cause”, the single is currently No 1 in the US, it’s also written by two members of The Family Stand who were in the top 10 last year with “Ghetto Heaven”. The song races 14-7 (21,120) to become her 3rd top 10 hit as she seems to be only able to score a big hit once every year. Second album is out in three weeks.

Incognito were formed when the group Light Of The World disbanded in the early 80s with some members forming Beggars & Co and others going into the aforementioned Incognito but their only hit was the No 73 song “Parisienne Girl” in 1980. They’ve gotten Jocelyn Brown in to record vocals on the 1975 Ronnie Laws track “Always There” and it has become the hit they sought all these years and even credited Brown this time around as they climb 26-9 (18,032) though of course Brown has been in the top 20 before with "Somebody Else's Guy" in 1984, and provided vocals on two chart toppers ("I Want To Know What Love Is" and in sampled form on last year's Snap! track "The Power".

Australian act Divinyls have been going strong for 11 years with little international success until the release of “I Touch Myself” which despite its rather suggestive lyrics seems to be a hit at airplay and even made it past the censors in the US where the song made No 4, it now nudges 12-10 (18,016) here. It’s taken 8 weeks to make the top 10 which is unusual in a chart which is becoming increasingly focused around songs peaking 2 or 3 weeks after release.

This week sees the release of a new Bros single with the press gunning for the twins can they pull it out of the bag? It will also need to battle the first new material from Guns N Roses in 4 years!


1- ANY DREAM WILL DO- Jason Donovan (93,056)
2- EVERYTHING I DO) I DO IT FOR YOU- Bryan Adams (54,912)
3- CHORUS- Erasure (40,816)
4- I WANNA SEX YOU UP- Color Me Badd (30,064)
5- THINKING ABOUT YOUR LOVE- Kenny Thomas (29,264)
6- DO YOU WANT ME- Salt N Pepa (24,416)
7- RUSH RUSH- Paula Abdul (21,120)
8- FROM A DISTANCE- Bette Midler (19,088)
9- ALWAYS THERE- Incognito Ft Jocelyn Brown (18,032)
10- I TOUCH MYSELF- Divinyls (18,016)