26 minutes ago, gooddelta said:

29. Oasis - All Around The World

Rank: 5/10

Reason: Oasis had some brilliant No.1 singles covered by Jester and Chez in their respective 1995/1996 and 2005 rates. Unfortunately their 1998 chart topper isn't one of them for me. All Around The World is the kind of song that sums up what I found a bit tedious about Be Here Now. With a near 10 minute long album version, it is too bloated and over the top without being a good enough song to have a reason to be. It just plods along a bit for me, with the three key changes and kitchen sink production not really improving it, and Liam doing his best parody of himself (the elongated shiiiiine). Safe to say this didn't make it to their tour setlist this summer, and it's a shame Stand By Me wasn't released in the quiet January period instead because that is one of their best post imperial phase (1994-1996) singles.

All Around The World would have been given an easier ride as a b-side perhaps, but wasn't great as a single, and it was not selected for Now 39 although did feature on New Hits '98 in the 4:50 edit, which I find more bearable although it isn't on Spotify. I'll give them that the video has some cool imagery - it's all very psychedelic and Beatles-esque. The song was swiftly forgotten about by many chart watchers after a 1-5-14-25-34 run in the top 40 although reappeared in discussions three years later when Hear'say's Pure and Simple appeared to borrow the melody somewhat.

Not on of their finest that’s for sure.

I’m just realising that there were 32 #1’s in 1998, is that correct?

That’s an awful lot, like more than one every two weeks.

Yeah, 2000 had 42!

The bubblegum pop era led to a lot of one week fanbase driven No.1s. Also at the start of the year there were three 1997 singles at the top. Too Much on its second week, the return of Perfect Day and Never Ever finally getting up there. So all will be reviewed at some point.

Edited 23 hours ago23 hr by gooddelta

17 minutes ago, gooddelta said:

Yeah, 2000 had 42!

The bubblegum pop era led to a lot of one week fanbase driven No.1s. Also at the start of the year there were three 1997 singles at the top. Too Much on its second week, the return of Perfect Day and Never Ever finally getting up there. So all will be reviewed at some point.

42, wow that’s a lot! Oh yes, that makes sense. I can recall how frequently I remember seeing a new #1 in the UK around that time when we got the UK charts in our weekly entertainment newspaper.

Bootie Call is OK, very much not as good as the follow-up, but I still like it best of the 3 so far, and I prefer Oasis to All Saints - it's very self-indulgent, but I like the video and the Hey Jude-ness of it. Tears For Fears beat them to it all first though, compare with Sowing The Seeds Of Love and it's not in the same league, but the crescendo guitar riff bit is great and the long fade-out is fun but it's not as singalongable as Hey Jude, All You Need Is Love or Sowing The Seeds Of Love. I do enjoy anthemic tracks though, so this would be much higher for me.

28. Billie - Because We Want To

Rank: 5/10

Reason: The first of 1998's bubblegum pop acts to fall, no doubt others would put Billie higher. This was certainly a statement of a debut single - only 15 at the time of release, Billie's track tapped into the growing pre-teen pop zeitgeist after months of hype on TV shows and magazines launching her as the next big teen star, more than six months before Britney hit the scene.

Unfortunately I always found the chorus highly annoying - I'm sure that was the point, for it to sound deliberately rebellious towards parents, but it brings the whole thing down for me because I don't mind the rest of it, the bridge in particular has a nice melody. I should have been the exact target market for this but it didn't hit me at all and Billie's first album singles don't therefore give me the same nostalgia as other pop of the era, apart from the lovely Honey To The Bee. The video was also curious, with CGI computer game style characters, a figure composed of water, and a rhino club bouncer - all very trippy but no doubt it looked cutting edge at the time... The track spent two months in the top 40, including its first month in the top ten, so while not a huge No.1, certainly not a 'non-No.1'.

Billie, when she was announced as the revamped Doctor "assistant", it made me roll my eyes, it sounded like a tweeny-pop forthcoming disaster. She was fabulous though. Unlike this track, still annoying thanks to that chorus. Could someone AI the annoying bit out and stick something else better in? I'd slot in above Spacedust and behind Mel B...

It's incredibly of its time, but I have good memories associated with it.

14 minutes ago, Popchartfreak said:

Billie, when she was announced as the revamped Doctor "assistant", it made me roll my eyes, it sounded like a tweeny-pop forthcoming disaster. She was fabulous though. Unlike this track, still annoying thanks to that chorus. Could someone AI the annoying bit out and stick something else better in? I'd slot in above Spacedust and behind Mel B...

Yes, was going to say in her next entry how good an actress she turned out to be.

Her first era singles got progressively better for me, each one also more mature than the last, she seemed to age five years in one era thematically 😆

3 hours ago, gooddelta said:

28. Billie - Because We Want To

Rank: 5/10

Reason: The first of 1998's bubblegum pop acts to fall, no doubt others would put Billie higher. This was certainly a statement of a debut single - only 15 at the time of release, Billie's track tapped into the growing pre-teen pop zeitgeist after months of hype on TV shows and magazines launching her as the next big teen star, more than six months before Britney hit the scene.

Unfortunately I always found the chorus highly annoying - I'm sure that was the point, for it to sound deliberately rebellious towards parents, but it brings the whole thing down for me because I don't mind the rest of it, the bridge in particular has a nice melody. I should have been the exact target market for this but it didn't hit me at all and Billie's first album singles don't therefore give me the same nostalgia as other pop of the era, apart from the lovely Honey To The Bee. The video was also curious, with CGI computer game style characters, a figure composed of water, and a rhino club bouncer - all very trippy but no doubt it looked cutting edge at the time... The track spent two months in the top 40, including its first month in the top ten, so while not a huge No.1, certainly not a 'non-No.1'.

I was a bit late to the party with Billie in a way. Because We Want To and Girlfriend kind of just passed be by but I adored Homey To The Bee. The previous singles did end up growing on me and I ended up getting her debut album.

I did read that Honey To The Bee was the biggest hit from her first album in Australia, getting to No.6. I suppose it takes longer to break a new pop act outside of their home country so it makes sense. Weirdly it re-entered the top 20 here in 2007 due to an early download sales campaign.

3 minutes ago, gooddelta said:

I did read that Honey To The Bee was the biggest hit from her first album in Australia, getting to No.6. I suppose it takes longer to break a new pop act outside of their home country so it makes sense. Weirdly it re-entered the top 20 here in 2007 due to an early download sales campaign.

I agree, she even did some promo over here from memory, but that was 1999. Oh yes I remember that. Was it Chris Moyles? It got to #17 from memory.

1 minute ago, Paddington James said:

I agree, she even did some promo over here from memory, but that was 1999. Oh yes I remember that. Was it Chris Moyles? It got to #17 from memory.

Yes Chris Moyles testing the theory that anything could now get into the charts. It worked!

Can’t fault the order so far!

I really don't like that Billie track, the chorus just goes too far into annoying territory. It's just so brattish, and not in a Charli XCX way!!

I don't mind the All Saints track, but like you I find it to be very mid for them and wouldn't ever choose to listen to it. The Oasis song is pretty dire imo, I didn't like it at the time and I'd say I like it even less these days as it's such a weak idea to string out over such a long track length.

I'm also going to say that it feels like everything is roughly in the right place so far, certainly no decent songs that have fallen.

I find that Billie song quite catchy - I think it would be much higher for me in this list. On the other listed songs I can quite agree, eventhough "Booty call" would be a bit higher in my list. Need to check out UK's #1's of 1998 tomorrow - got all of the original single-CD's.

Edited 12 hours ago12 hr by DaTilt

27. Billie - Girlfriend

Rate: 6/10

Reason: With apologies to poor Billie for turfing out both of her 1998 No.1s early on and in tandem, Girlfriend was a slightly more mature single from her and with better, more slick production than Because We Want To in my opinion, but it suffers from the same problem as the last single in that I actually think the verses and bridge are rather good but then the chorus is a bit naff for me 'do you have a girlfriend, you're looking real cool'.

Apart from Christmas novelties that were aimed at younger children like Mr Blobby and Teletubbies, it felt to me like 1998 was really the first time that music aimed squarely at the 9-15 kind of market was starting to hit the No.1 spot, and while some of that music had more layers and depth to it and crossed over to an older audience too, I'm not sure this one would have done. I was in this age bracket at the time however, and never saw the appeal myself, but my best friend at the time bought this.

Still, it did about as well as its predecessor, very nearly mirroring its chart run, with the same number of top ten and top 75 weeks, and a very similar path down the chart. Billie would have two (much better imo) No.3 singles from her debut album and then return in 2000 with a more mature Britney inspired sound, and another chart topper, before moving very successfully into the world of acting some years later. These opening two singles were fun and had their place, but are not songs I ever listen to. But kudos to Tin Tin Out for turning it into an unexpected trance banger on the remix on the single.

For me I'd have the Billie songs swapped over. Checking 'Girlfriend' now again and isn't particularly good whereas 'Because We Want To' is more fun at least.

Couldn't recall that Oasis song and listening to it I can see why oops.

I think I agree with the placement of both Billie songs. I enjoyed this a bit more than Because We Want To when they weee released, though I don’t often go back to either.

11 minutes ago, Roba. said:

For me I'd have the Billie songs swapped over. Checking 'Girlfriend' now again and isn't particularly good whereas 'Because We Want To' is more fun at least.

Couldn't recall that Oasis song and listening to it I can see why oops.

That's fair. They're relatively interchangeable for me but ultimately I wouldn't actively want to listen to either, whereas I occasionally check She Wants You and often play Honey To The Bee.