3 The KLF feat. The Children Of The Revolution - 3AM Eternal

2 weeks in January / February 1991: 5-2-{1}-1-2-3-7-11-27-40-72->11

Kept off #1: none

#12 in EOY 1991

Weekly sales at #1: 52k; 66k

The last of the triple whammy of new #1s at the start of 1991 is another one we've alluded to already, with The KLF's two #2s later in the year. This was their only #1 under that name, however the British duo of Bill Drummond and Jimmy Cauty had already topped the charts in 1988 under the guise of The Timelords with 'Doctorin' The Tardis', which they documented in a book The Manual (How To Have A Number One The Easy Way). While this could be dismissed as novelty - even more so given the unfortunate association to one of the songs it samples - their 90s return saw them take the world by storm, becoming the biggest selling singles act globally in 1991. The first single from their album The White Room, 'What Time Is Love?' had reached UK #5 in 1990, but the follow up picked up where this left off and ascended for a fortnight at the top, while it reached #5 in the US to become their biggest hit there too. Dubbed "Live at the S.S.L." as a reference to the Solid State Logic mixing desk which created the impression of a live recording, it features rapper Ricardo da Force, and opening vocals by veteran soul singer P.P. Arnold.

I'd already had my mind blown by 'Last Train To Trancentral' by the time I first heard this, but it's similarly high octane and best played loud. On the surface it isn't far removed from the burgeoning Eurodance template of rapped verses and a big chorus, but there's acid house touches as well with some of the beeps and bloops as well as the stadium rock guitars. Lyrically it's full of self-reference to their lore, with their biggest calling cards: "K-L-F! ah-ha ah-ha / Ancients of Mu Mu!" and "The K, the L, the F and the ology", and they turned such whimsy into the biggest, most exciting prospect around. Although I didn't experience any of this at the time, The KLF certainly commanded their stage, coming between the height of acid house in the late 80s and invasion of grunge later in 1991. With 1992's remixed 'America: What Time Is Love?' becoming their final single, they quit while they were ahead, subsequent non-musical publicity stunts notwithstanding, and it's fair to say we haven't seen their like again since.

So as with my 2009 #1s rate, my final two for 1991 are a new song released that year, and a returning song which had originally charted during the previous decade. Both songs are by one of my favourite bands - but who has come out on top? I'll wrap this up on Saturday!

Another great #1 and yes cooler than Eurodance as you say!

That's the other one of my top 2 gone now! The KLF were just so much fun, I still really enjoy all of their 1991 singles and play them quite regularly.

Glad the holy trinity of back to back brilliance made #3, #4 and #5. I haven’t quite decided how my own top 5 would shake out but they might even be the top 3.

One of your top 2 I’m thinking I would have around #7, and the other would be high but it’s tricky to place as it’s older.

This would be top 2 for me, shame it’s not your winner.

I love the KLF, they were so fresh at the time.

I love Drummond and Cauty, the KLF, and all their other various iterations, with their ‘all killer no filler’ singles. Especially the 1991 run, they really should have had more number ones. Also the book, ‘The Manual (How to Have a Number One the Easy Way)’ was great for a chart nerd like me.

3am Eternal is excellent, maybe just edged for me by What Time Is Love? in its various forms, though I have a soft spot for It’s Grim Up North coming from that part of the world!

Two songs left, my numbers 3 and 1 from 1991!

3 AM Eternal clearly my favourite #1 of 1991. The KLF were and are still so unique - this was my favourite group in 1991 and each of their singles and the whole "White Room" album was awesome. A pity they had only one #1. KLF is gonna rock ya!

'Innuendo' is one of my favourite Queen songs (probably top three alongside 'The Show Must Go On' and 'Bohemian Rhapsody') so I'm pleased to see it doing well here. It certainly feels like a non-#1 but a standout, refreshing chart-topper all the same. I particularly love the flamenco guitar solo and layered vocals.

'3AM Eternal' is another contender for my own #1 their singles catalogue is bulletproof - my favourite is probably 'Justified & Ancient' but this is another 10/10, agreed the acid house sounds mixed with a stadium rock atmosphere is a pleasing combination. Just epic all while those lyrics are a fun time! I was so pleased when their stuff was finally added to streaming services at the start of 2021, albeit repackaged. One day I will get a copy of the manual, one day.

Love KLF, they were just perfect dancepop in 1991 and act of the year for me then and now. 3a.m. is fab top 3 for me, though the genius single of all is Justified & Ancient, should have been a number one, and quite possibly top single of the year for me. I'm going to blow my own horn and say I bought Kylie Said To Jason in the 80's before they took off under that guise, so I had already been won over with that and Doctorin' The Tardis and Jimmy Cauty's stint in Brilliant, their run of singles was under-rated. Still wish they had given it another couple of singles, they had plenty of life left in them to produce some more money to burn.

2 The Clash - Should I Stay Or Should I Go

2 weeks in March 1991: 62-33-24-24-{17}-18-25-37-72 // 5-{1}-1-2-9-13-24-47-73 // 42-{40}-46-54-62->9+9+5

Kept off #1: Madonna - Crazy For You

#19 in EOY 1991

Weekly sales at #1: 56k; 60k

And just like my 2009 #1s rate, the song at runner-up spot is the one which was originally a hit in the previous decade! The Clash were arguably the most important band to arise from punk, given their relative longevity (compared to The Sex Pistols), influence and international recognition. They are one of my favourite bands of all time, and I recommend especially their 1977 self-titled debut album and 1979's expansive London Calling, as well as any "best of" or singles compilation of theirs. In all, they had 15 UK Top 40 hits in the 70s and 80s without quite breaking into the Top 10 - the title track from 'London Calling' came closest at #11. By 1982, under the established line-up of Joe Strummer, Mick Jones, Paul Simonon and Topper Headon, they had become an internationally successful stadium band. Their 5th studio album Combat Rock reached #7 in the US as well as #2 in the UK, from which the singles included this Jones-penned song on a double A-side with Strummer's 'Straight To Hell' (whose riff was later sampled throughout M.I.A's 'Paper Planes') which had peaked at #17. Tensions within the band were taking their toll however, resulting in Jones leaving the band as well as Headon who had provided the project's other sizeable hit in 'Rock The Casbah'. Strummer and Simonon continued the band with new members for one further album before calling it a day in 1986.

Then in the early 90s, jeans company Levi's asked the former band members' permission to use 'Should I Stay Or Should I Go' on one of their UK commercials. These had been notable for reviving a number of older songs in the late 80s and 90s, often resulting in their re-releases and in many cases charting higher than they had originally. Despite the band's stance for prioritising creativity and idealism over commercial exploitation, they nominated Jones as the song's main writer to make the final decision, to which he agreed. Following the exposure of the adverts, the song was re-released as a single A-side and duly became their first to go Top 10 in the UK. The following week it ascended to the top, becoming the third song to hold Madonna's 'Crazy For You' (also an 80s re-release at that point) to #2 in the process. It has since become far and away The Clash's most commercially successful song in the digital era, and earlier this month attained triple platinum status, having featured in the final series of Stranger Things earlier in the year.

I would say this song isn't one of my absolute top favourites by The Clash, and lyrically it isn't really representative of most of their output. However as a vehicle for their ongoing legacy, it has performed miracles and has surely introduced them to more people than any other song. I vaguely remember this being played at a friend's house in 1991 as another friend was learning it on the guitar, though it wasn't until the 2000s that I started to delve into them, first the London Calling album and then a singles collection on which I came back around to this. It almost feels like it exists in a different sphere to the rest of their hits, but I absolutely enjoy it for that and it remains one of the great UK #1 rock songs, especially from a band rooted in punk (have there been any others?) Lead guitarist Jones is the star player - the opening and triple-pluck intro, the bluesy continuation of the crunching riff, the faster chorus - and his vocals strike a fine balance between defiance and the vulnerability at the subject of the song's question, although he has denied that it is about him leaving the band. The stomping singalong and memorable rhymes "If I go there will be trouble / If I stay there will be double" are accompanied with little ad libs - the prophetic shout of "Split!", the howling and Spanish backing vocals - and the committed playing from the rest of the band belies any underlying tension.

In Gezza's 2021 poll of Buzzjack's Favourite UK #1 Single of the 90s (here - the full ranked list is on p.44), I was the only one to vote for this in my 30 songs, placing it 10th for the decade - I think it has a few more fans now (though I also acknowledge some didn't feel it fit into a 90s rate). There were just two other voters for the song that's left, although all three of us put it in our top 10s - 7th in my case, and I have been consistent with its top placing here...

1 U2 - The Fly

1 week in October 1991: {1}-2-5-27-52-62R(5)->6

Kept off #1: none

#54 in EOY 1991

Weekly sales at #1: 66k

So this countdown concludes, unlike 'Bad Romance' in my 2009 rate, with a song which I'm aware will not be among the favourites for many of you! Irish band U2 had bestrode the 80s, with four UK #1 albums, the latter two having reached #1 virtually across the board - 1987's The Joshua Tree and 1988's Rattle And Hum. The first of those remains much-loved in their monumental sound and houses three huge singles including two US #1s. However the latter - a hybrid studio and live album conceived as a tribute to their musical heroes - did not have as favourable reception, despite containing their first UK #1 in 'Desire'. At the end of 1989, in a concert in their hometown of Dublin, lead singer Bono remarked that it was "the end of something for U2" and they had to "just dream it all up again". And that they did.

For their first album of the 90s, Achtung Baby, the band worked in Berlin with producers Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno. Drawing on an influence of alternative rock, industrial and electronic dance music, they constructed an earthier and darker record, frequented by a more flippant tone but more personal and introspective than previously. The lead single from this project encapsulates their new sound, and was conceived as the persona making a phone call from hell. As a hugely anticipated release, it instantly became their 10th UK Top 10 hit in a row (excluding an import) and their second #1, ending the 16-week reign of Bryan Adams (although not single-handedly as his single dropped to #4 that week). It charted higher than the other four singles from the album in the UK, but conversely in the US it was the lowest charting at #61. The band had intended for the single to be available for three weeks only, to allow for a second single before Christmas in 'Mysterious Ways', therefore it fell down the chart quickly, and in fact shared the accolade with Iron Maiden's #1 and 'Innuendo' as the only UK #1s to have spent only 4 weeks in the Top 40 for a while. The album was released after those 4 weeks to a huge opening sale, although landing as it did in the same week as Michael Jackson's similarly awaited 90s comeback Dangerous, it had to settle for #2 in the UK album chart.

When I was asked about which year I wanted to review, I was drawn to 1991 as I knew it would have a great mix of #1s near the top end, with two of my biggest favourites from the years not yet covered, however I was aware that this one in particular would be quite a difficult one to sell. I have two big favourites from 1992 as well, but I know those are more in line with the forum in general. I don't remember this one from the time, as it wasn't until 1997 that my curiosity to discover U2's catalogue after finding most of the singles from Pop, their album of that year, a little underwhelming - so Achtung Baby was their first album I bought. It quickly became one of my favourite albums of all time, and my later purchase of The Johsua Tree couldn't shake that - this sounded like where it all fell into place for them. Except to begin with, this was my least favourite of the five singles - I liked it, but more or less bought into its non-#1 status that it only got there by fanbase fervour. It has taken a long time for me to shift that view - but, with the benefit of the digital era when I effectively reappraised my entire CD collection with regular rotation on my iPod, I started to come back around to it. Now it only trails two other of the album's singles for me - 'Who's Gonna Wild Your Wild Horses' is up there with my all-time favourite songs, and although 'One' has been heavily appraised over the years it certainly earned it. Of the other tracks, 'Until The End Of The World' and 'So Cruel' are definite U2 highlights and could easily have been singles too, but for 'The Fly' to make even the top five of such a classic album has demonstrated incredible tenacity.

Larry Mullen Jr's drumming gives it a danceable sheen, while The Edge embodies the light and shade with the bassy riffing through the verses and ascension in the chorus, alongside Bono as he switches from the hushed tones of the protagonist to an elegant falsetto, as if playing both devil and angel. An organ enters the mix on the bridge as we drop back to the second verse, and distorted effects ground The Edge's guitar as it tries to break free for a solo in his trademark playing style. However it is Bono's hell-bound persona who senses the inevitable: "It's no secret that our world is in darkness tonight" and that mankind's attempts to escape are fleeting. The song ends with one of my all-time favourite closing rhymes, backed against the last squeals of guitar: "Look I gotta go, yeah I'm running outta change / There's a lot of things if I could I'd rearrange". And on that note, so ends my reviewing of 1991!

My full list:

1 U2 - The Fly

2 The Clash - Should I Stay Or Should I Go

3 The KLF feat. The Children Of The Revolution - 3AM Eternal

4 Queen - Innuendo

5 Enigma - Sadeness Part I

6 Bryan Adams - (Everything I Do) I Do It For You

7 Queen - These Are The Days Of Our Lives

8 Michael Jackson - Black Or White

9 Cher - The Shoop Shoop Song (It's In His Kiss)

10 Chesney Hawkes - The One And Only

11 George Michael and Elton John - Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me

12 Vic Reeves and The Wonder Stuff - Dizzy

13 Iron Maiden - Bring Your Daughter... To The Slaughter

14 Jason Donovan - Any Dream Will Do

15 The Simpsons - Do The Bartman

16 Hale And Pace and The Stonkers - The Stonk / Victoria Wood - The Smile Song

17 Color Me Badd - I Wanna Sex You Up

Thank you to everyone who has commented or followed this thread! I wasn't originally planning to write as much in these commentaries as I did for 2009, and even then I hadn't expected activities like The Pop Factor, RotD and the quiz season to spring up simultaneously once I had started, so it has been a struggle to keep finding time for this, even with the break in the 80s listening sessions which resume tomorrow! However once I started, these reviews just felt like the natural amount I wanted to write about each song. I've enjoyed reading all your thoughts on them as well, and finding out, as ever, where you would have rated songs higher or lower, so I look forward to seeing many of your finished lists now!

Oh I love The Fly, it’s definitely one of U2’s best singles!

Would definitely be top 5 for me as well, possibly third

On 25/09/2026 at 10:01, Popchartfreak said:

Love KLF, they were just perfect dancepop in 1991 and act of the year for me then and now. 3a.m. is fab top 3 for me, though the genius single of all is Justified & Ancient, should have been a number one, and quite possibly top single of the year for me. I'm going to blow my own horn and say I bought Kylie Said To Jason in the 80's before they took off under that guise, so I had already been won over with that and Doctorin' The Tardis and Jimmy Cauty's stint in Brilliant, their run of singles was under-rated. Still wish they had given it another couple of singles, they had plenty of life left in them to produce some more money to burn.

And they actually burnt the money rather than giving it to charitable causes, tone deaf has-beens that they were.

Likewise The Clash are one of my all time favourite bands with such a consistently high standard across their whole career. Like you, I lean a bit towards their early career as my favourite songs and albums. If I had to choose now then maybe I Fought The Law, Tommy Gun or White Riot might be tops. However that’s not to say I don’t absolutely love Should I Stay…. as you say it’s one of their best stadium rock songs. At the time it felt a bit odd seeing its resurgence in ‘91, but I was very happy they finally had a number one, even if it was off the back of another jeans advert!

Absolutely not a difficult sell for me Jim….The Fly would also be my #1 of this 1991 ranking! In fact I was actually surprised that you chose it too, kept waiting for you to announce it earlier, but here we are, like minds and all that!

It was a blast of energy anyway, but especially after that 16 weeks of Bryan Adams at number one it felt some kind of chart saviour to me! Powerful and melodic at the same time, the guitars are especially fantastic. One of U2s 5 best singles anyway but absolutely their best number one, from by far their best album Achtung Baby. Still topped by the magnificent Mysterious Ways for me though!

Loved your ranking as always Jim, excellent commentary, and may I say great taste too😆! Thanks so much!

Here’s my ranking:

1. The Fly – U2

2. 3 a.m. Eternal – The KLF feat. The Children of the Revolution

3. Should I Stay or Should I Go – The Clash

4. Black or White – Michael Jackson

5. Sadeness (Part I) – Enigma

6. These Are the Days of Our Lives – Queen

7. Dizzy – Vic Reeves & The Wonder Stuff

8. The One and Only – Chesney Hawkes

9. (Everything I Do) I Do It for You – Bryan Adams

10. Innuendo – Queen

11. Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me – George Michael & Elton John

12. Bring Your Daughter... to the Slaughter – Iron Maiden

13. I Wanna Sex You Up – Color Me Badd

14. The Shoop Shoop Song (It's in His Kiss) – Cher

15. Any Dream Will Do – Jason Donovan

16. Do the Bartman – The Simpsons

17. The Stonk – Hale & Pace & The Stonkers

The top 2 aren’t my thing but they are decent songs.

I think my top 5 would be:

1. KLF - 3AM Eternal

2. Enigma - Sadeness (Part 1)

3. Queen - innuendo

4. Jason Donovan - Any Dream Will Do

5. Michael Jackson - Black or White

Thanks for a great countdown Jim