It was pretty random to watch Robin Thicke become such a talking point for a short while, after vaguely being aware of him through 2007's 'Lost Without U' via Now 67 and the song 'When I Get You Alone' which had been covered on Glee. Almost as retrospectively random as Kendrick Lamar scoring his first top 40 hit with a feature on Thicke's 'Give It 2 U'! I think I was a bit too young to properly grasp how inappropriate the lyrics of 'Blurred Lines' were at the time, plus it was a completely different era, pre-#MeToo - so it got a pass. My prom was in 2013 and everyone went wild for this song when it came on, as you'd expect for the biggest of the year. But what a fall from grace it has had since then. I agree that production-wise it is good but the lyrics do leave a bad taste, so it's not a song I'm in a rush to revisit nowadays.

The thumbnail of that 1D video is another time capsule! Nobody cared that the world's biggest boyband was goofing around with a Tory PM but there would definitely be discourse nowadays. Like Harry's 'RIP Baroness Thatcher x' tweet from the same year randomly getting dragged up from time to time. Musically, I adore the original 'One Way Or Another' (although triggered that it booted me out of the Pop Factor contest on this site when paired against Nelly Furtado's 'Maneater' ) and 'Teenage Kicks' is great too, but this mash-up falls flat.

I still dipped in and out of Saturday Night Takeaway at the time so recall that PJ and Duncan performance well! Musically it is pretty naff but I still loved the randomness of that chart moment

I dont mind the PJ & Duncan re-birth, but not an Ant n Dec watcher of anything they do on TV whereas I did like some of their 90's tracks after the name change, and Pink wuz robbed. Better than 1-D though on every level but not Blurred Lines, so an inbetweenie.

Thanks for all your comments so far guys, it’s much appreciated !

I just wanted to add something about Blurred Lines. I knew it would be my most controversial decision, putting it where I did. In hindsight, and after some thought, I admit I’ve probably been a bit overly harsh in my assessment, but I think I did it because I’ve always been angry that a song I superficially initially liked a lot turned out to be such a mess and felt ‘cheated’ by it all. Especially when one of the artists, Pharrell, is one on my musical heroes. A bit like I feel about Morrissey these days. But as some of you have pointed out, it was pre #metoo so I maybe should have given it a bit of slack.

Also Mack. is right, and I admitted myself in the post it was a cop out, I should have ranked and scored it. So I’ve decided to do that. I still hate it though, so it’s still last (31st) with a score 2/10.

Normal service with be resumed tomorrow!

When listening chronologically to the #1's, I have to say the worst came first. There are only 2-3 #1's from the first three months of 2013 I like a bit, but all no Top 10 songs. Afterwards it goes hit after hit. PJ & Duncan were #1 at the end of March - I have no hard feelings for this song, but find it quite forgettable. There are better 90's songs to be chosen for a #1 in 2013.

Now finished the listenthrough and ranking - a dance song annoyed me most. But this I reveal when Jaz brings it on the table. Here are my rankings of the so far mentioned songs:

24. Robin Thicke feat. T.I. & Pharrell Williams – Blurred Lines (31)
28. One Direction – One Way or Another (Teenage Kicks) (30)
29. PJ & Duncan – Let's Get Ready to Rhumble (29)

So far no big losses!

I like it as a 1994 song, but as a 2013 song to come back and block P!nk left a really bad taste in my mouth.

Never cared much for 'Blurred Lines' and I always found the lyrical premise and video rather nauseating, but I thought the production was decent. It nevertheless brought to a halt what I thought was a really good run of EOY #1s starting in 2009 (and I would include 'Love The Way You Lie' in that even though it feels more of its time than the other 3 songs), but I could accept its popularity. However its subsequent cancellation is quite extraordinary - I can't recall anything like it, to the point that even around the end of the decade, if MTV ran a countdown of biggest sellers or #1s, they would skip it but play everything else. I'd also find it very difficult to rank objectively, but I certainly haven't missed hearing it so I can't complain at it being last.

The One Direction single was naff - the original 'Teenage Kicks' especially is one of my favourite songs of all time, but the fact that it has appeared as part of a #1 single barely registers with me, as this mash-up seemed to be forgotten pretty quickly. In fact the main thing that sticks in my mind is David Cameron appearing in the video! Simon Cowell backed him for PM in the 2010 election, so perhaps all The X Factor alumni since then ought to have known what they might be getting themselves into... but politics aside, this was undoubtedly one of the weakest #1s of the year.

I started listening to the chart show and tracking the charts in 1994 so 'Let's Get Ready To Rhumble' was a huge guilty pleasure! Where do we start: "I'm Ant, I'm Declan, a duo, a twosome / So many lyrics, we're frightened to use 'em"... and following up "we'll never do time" with "A sentence for us has to end in a rhyme"... yep, Shakespeare's been quiet ever since, but it sounded a lot of fun at the time. It does stick out like a sore thumb in 2013 though, especially as it blocked 'Just Give Me A Reason', and again I'm not sure where I'd rank it - maybe slightly higher, but in the knowledge that it's one of those "had to be there" moments.

I fell into a bit of a rabbit hole looking up just how phased out 'Blurred Lines' has become, Radio 1 have not even played the song once since July 2014!

28 Talk Dirty - Jason Derulo Feat. 2 Chainz.

Number one for 2 weeks

Year end number 25

This was the second single from his third studio album Tattoos and features rapper 2 Chainz. It prominently contains a sample of ‘Hermetico’ by the Israeli band Balkan Beat and became Derulo's third number-one song in UK and 2 Chainz's first.

It was a bit of a change of direction for Derulo and I admire the attempt to get some unusual musical cultures into the song, especially the Middle Eastern vibe in the chorus and the honking horns, which funnily are similar to those in other (much better) 2013 chart toppers that we’ll hear later. He also brought in a rap collaborator for the first time.

However I just can’t get past Derulo himself and also his braggy sexualized lyrics and cultural ignorance, in this case claiming that even if he cannot speak the language of a foreign woman, her "booty don't need explaining".

Oh Jason, he’s certainly had a panning during these early 2010s countdowns hasn’t he? At least it’s a bit fun though, and he certainly made sure we know his name!

3

Quiz -

1. Answer - "Blurred Lines".

2. The song that became Miley Cyrus' "We Can't Stop" was originally intended for what other artist?

It's tacky, but it's an absolute banger.

"Got lipstick stamps in my passport" is the iconic line for me.

I believe this is the only Jason Derulo song I really love. The horns part is massive and it works perfectly for workouts. Therefore, I have checked it in at #10.

10. Jason Derulo Feat. 2 Chainz - Talk Dirty (28)

24. Robin Thicke feat. T.I. & Pharrell Williams – Blurred Lines (31)
28. One Direction – One Way or Another (Teenage Kicks) (30)
29. PJ & Duncan – Let's Get Ready to Rhumble (29)

23 hours ago, Jade said:

I think I was a bit too young to properly grasp how inappropriate the lyrics of 'Blurred Lines' were at the time, plus it was a completely different era, pre-#MeToo - so it got a pass. My prom was in 2013 and everyone went wild for this song when it came on, as you'd expect for the biggest of the year. But what a fall from grace it has had since then. I agree that production-wise it is good but the lyrics do leave a bad taste, so it's not a song I'm in a rush to revisit nowadays.

It could be worse, the big memorable song of my prom in 2003 was Ignition Remix, which was No.1 at the time. And Say Goodbye by S Club was No.2 and right there thematically (we were literally saying goodbye to school for good that evening) but all of my 'cool' peers were well past S Club by that point.

--

I like PJ and Duncan but agree with Jim, as a 1994 song, not 2013. Without the context of why it reappeared it looks ridiculous in the list, but on the other hand Ant & Dec have been such a cultural force for so long that it feels right they finally got a No.1 single to their name at some point, it's just a shame it didn't happen in the 90s or with We're On The Ball.

Talk Dirty is not for me, in fact I can't think of a Jason Derulo song I have enjoyed post 2010. Maybe Breathing, which ended up being a flop by his standards anyway, oops.

Can't believe 'Just Give Me a Reason' was denied the Number 1 spot by that kid's TV garbage.

I don't understand the hype of Jason Derulo either. I swear he is obsessed with sex. He never sings about anything else. 😆

Edited 6 hours ago6 hr by Charlielargepotatoes

Had to play Talk Dirty, I have no memory of it: I like the horn riff though that's been nicked from elsewhere. I didn't bother to put it into my perosnal charts of the time so I think Derulo was wearing out his welcome for me at this stage. I wouldnt call it much of a song though, and I would much rather hear PJ & Duncan, or One Direction, so we have a new bottom rung candidate from me....