Gezza

29TH APRIL “Eternal Flame” flickers slightly at the top but still puts in a sterling performance of 78,387 copies, their previous biggest seller was of course “Walk Like An Egyptian” which sold 350,000 in late 1986 but their current single has shifted 286,229 copies to date and should overtake the latter within the next few weeks. Simply Red spend a third week at No 2 but slip back even further in sales terms, they were 5,000 copies behind The Bangles a fortnight ago, last week they were 29,000 adrift coming in at 48,654 in total, however “A New Flame” does return to the No 1 spot on the album charts meaning that both Flames are aloft of their respective charts. Transvision Vamp surprisingly hold the No 3 position (41,548) with a sales increase following a raunchy TOTP performance which featured James in a rather revealing outfit! Whilst Holly Johnson holds at No 4 (37,009) with just a minimal sales increase, he kept his clothes on for the show! 13 years after they formed and 19 singles later The Cure finally secure themselves a top 5 single, “Lullaby” flies 12-5 (24,582) and is the introductory single to the group’s 8th album “Disintegration” which is in shops in a fortnight. The group’s only prior entry in the top 10 was back in 1983 with the No 7 hit “Love Cats” with none of the interim 8 singles getting any higher than No 14. He’s been in the press as a badboy but Merlin also features on the new Beatmasters single “Who’s In The House?” for which he’s rewarded with a 23-8 (21,522) rise. The Beatmasters hit the top 10 with their debut “Rok Da House” last January but follow up “Burn It Up” missed out at No 14 despite a guest vocal by 60s singer PP Arnold. Morrissey is back and for a third time he debuts higher than the Smiths ever peaked, in this case “Interesting Drug” makes its debut at No 9 (20,995). Like his last single it features all the ex Smiths with the exception of Johnny Marr who’s moonlighting with The The at present, it also features backing vocals of Kirsty MacColl but there’s no word on that second Morrissey album, it seems like we’ll have to keep waiting. The single was delayed initially by producer Stephen Street who was claiming unpaid royalties from the singer's "Viva Hate" album and put an injunction on the release but the matter is seemingly cleared up! Along with Soul II Soul Inner City are probably one of the most talked about dance acts at present and both will be hoping will to shift some albums this year, “Club Classics Volume I” has already launched and holds at No 5 in its second week whilst “Paradise” is the debut Inner City album out in a fortnight and will now be home to three top 10 singles “Big Fun”, “Good Life” and “Ain’t Nobody” which lifts 20-10 (20,774) this week. Fine Young Cannibals surge 9-7 (22,916) just behind the slipping Kon Kan 5-6 (22,984), this week’s also sees the release of a new Kylie single which should indicate if the youngsters have moved from Minogue to Donovan in 1989 in the same way they moved from Astley to Minogue last year- fickle world pop. 1- ETERNAL FLAME- The Bangles (78,387) 2- IF YOU DON’T KNOW ME BY NOW- Simply Red (48,654) 3- BABY I DON’T CARE- Transvision Vamp (41,548) 4- AMERICANOS- Holly Johnson (37,009) 5- LULLABY- The Cure (24,582) 6- I BEG YOUR PARDON- Kon Kan (22,984) 7- GOOD THING- Fine Young Cannibals (22,916) 8- WHO’S IN THE HOUSE- Beatmasters Featuring Merlin (21,522) 9- INTERESTING DRUG- Morrissey (20,995) 10- AIN’T NOBODY BETTER- Inner City (20,774)

Not quite. "Brothers in arms" was the best selling album of the 80s so was certainly ahead of "Bad" at this point

Streaming has sorted that out! Think she has around 6 now

Madonna was down at No 6 on the album charts by this point, it was Deacon Blue at No 1.

The albums market had grown continuously (almost) since the 60s, in 1979 shipments were 97 million and 162 million in 1989 assisted I suspect by people replacing their vinyl versions with CD's which would last well into the 90s. At any rate the amount of albums sold went up in the 80s and so too opening weekly sales figures helped by the new phenomenon of marketing which also came into its own in the decade.

22ND APRIL It started off brightly only narrowly behind “Eternal Flame” but in the end Simply Red’s “If You Don’t Know Me By Now” ended up significantly behind the Bangles track selling 65,960 copies to the latter’s 86,717. The album chart may also help to explain why the two tracks did not end up in reversal of position, Simply Red drive 3-2 while The Bangles rise 25-11, “A New Flame” is fast approaching the 500,000 mark whilst the Bangles are yet to sell a fifth of that. With sales already over 900,000 “Rattle & Hum” is an unqualified success and now spawns a third top 10 single with “When Love Comes To Town” shooting 12-6 (25,670) for U2 in a remixed form, this time it features the talents of Blues legend BB King who makes his debut on the chart after he started his career over 30 years ago. It’s also a 9th top 10 hit for U2 and an 8th straight top tenner if we discount the import “In God’s Country” which made No 48. First appearing in the film “Tin Man” back in 1987 the Fine Young Cannibals kept “Good Thing” back for two years tweaking it in preparation for inclusion on their second album “The Raw And The Cooked” which topped the charts in February. The band have also cracked the US where “She Drives Me Crazy” was No 1 last week, in the UK the follow up shoots 19-9 (21,352)- it comes in a limited edition version in a circular tin- handy for your biscuits! Transvision Vamp shoot 7-3 (34,765) but won’t trouble the top 2 probably as Holly Johnson prowls 9-4 (33,558) and should overtake them next week as he leaves Kon Kan standing at No 5 (29,988) on a slight sales decrease. Paula Abdul topples 4-7 (24,395), Madonna ebbs 3-8 (23,766) and Donna Summer slides 8-10 (18,785). 1- ETERNAL FLAME- The Bangles (86,717) 2- IF YOU DON’T KNOW ME BY NOW- Simply Red (65,960) 3- BABY I DON’T CARE- Transvision Vamp (34,765) 4- AMERICANOS- Holly Johnson (33,558) 5- I BEG YOUR PARDON- Kon Kan (29,988) 6- WHEN LOVES COMES TO TOWN- U2 & BB King (25,670) 7- STRAIGHT UP- Paula Abdul (24,395) 8- LIKE A PRAYER- Madonna (23,766) 9- GOOD THING- Fine Young Cannibals (21,352) 10- THIS TIME I KNOW IT’S FOR REAL- Donna Summer (18,785)

Interestingly it was outsold by Now 14 in both weeks so had compilations not been excluded from the main chart since January 1989 it would never have topped the charts at all.

Rattle and hum opened on 320k so "Bad" remained the biggest opening week sale to this point in time.

Sorry I got it wrong it was 300,000 in a fortnight. I've estimated 184k to 114k as a breakdown over those weeks.

I would say that's perfectly reasonable for the period given it is April. Nothing amazing though.

The album sold 200k in the first fortnight of that helps.

15TH APRIL Their album bursts 44-25 and it now boasts a No 1 single, yes The Bangles are the country’s new No 1 act and “Eternal Flame” is the song, it sold 48,671 copies last week which is at least an improvement on last week's No 1 total and it’s likely to improve in sales in the near future at least being a new No 1 and all. It’s the fifth single by an all female group to top our charts (a group here meaning three or more members) and the first since Sister Sledge took “Frankie” to the top 4 years ago. The newness of the chart topper might be bad news, or a blessing in disguise, for Simply Red who charge 19-2 (42,806) with their cover of “If You Don’t Know Me By Now” which was a No 9 hit for Harold Melvin & The Bluenotes in 1973, the last cover of Melvin track was the Communards “Don’t Leave Me This Way” which of course spent a month at the top 3 years ago. It was originally written for Labelle who never recorded it but it seems that it was just the ticket for Simply Red who equal their highest placing ever which dates back to 1986’s “Holding Back The Years”, that was only denied by Dr & The Medics. It also makes up for the relative failure of “It’s only Love” which went to No 13 and is itself a cover of the Barry White song, not that the album needed it, “A New Flame” went straight to No 1 and has sold 400,000 copies so far making it the biggest album of the year! The song was the best selling record post TOTP but its progress was too late to deprive the Bangles. First release from Transvision Vamp’s second album “Velveteen”, which is due this summer, is “Baby I Don’t Care” and it has firmly re-established the band back in the public mind after the success of last year’s “I Want Your Love” which peaked at No 5. The band have been appearing everywhere on TV over the last few weeks with Wendy James typically giving forthright opinions on the popstars of the day, it’s all helped “Baby I Don’t Care” soar 16-7 (28,390). Gearing up to the release of “Blast” in just 3 weeks Holly Johnson is back with a second solo single and another top 10 to boot, “Americanos” is his homage to all things American and moves 14-9 (26,707). It will be hoping to get in a few good selling weeks before the album arrives but if it outpeaks Frankie’s last album “Liverpool” (No 5) then he should be happy. It’s a bad week for Madonna she loses the top spot on both charts with Deacon Blue taking over on the album listings and the single tumbling 1-3 (37,230) just keeping ahead of Paula Abdul who herself falls 3-4 (36,431) as her new album arrives at No 5. Big gainers of the week are Kon Kan who rise 8-5 (31,586) overtaking the falling Jason Donovan 2-6 (29,665). Donna Summer also trips 4-8 (27,013) and Soul II Soul are spent 6-10 (24,276). 1- ETERNAL FLAME- The Bangles (48,671) 2- IF YOU DON’T KNOW ME BY NOW- Simply Red (42,806) 3- LIKE A PRAYER- Madonna (37,230) 4- STRAIGHT UP- Paula Abdul (36,431) 5- I BEG YOUR PARDON- Kon Kan (31,586) 6- TOO MANY BROKEN HEARTS- Jason Donovan (29,665) 7- BABY I DON’T CARE- Transvision Vamp (28,390) 8- THIS TIME I KNOW IT’S FOR REAL- Donna Summer (27,013) 9- AMERICANOS- Holly Johnson (26,707) 10- KEEP ON MOVIN- Soul II Soul Featuring Caron Wheeler (24,276)

8TH APRIL With schools back and a day’s trading lost to Easter Monday sales take a harsh tumble this week with Madonna pulling off the double again but the single lost a mighty 40% cut in sales to just 43,367 this week a new low for 1989 and indeed the lowest sale needed to top the charts since the Pet Shop Boys Three years ago, it’s now sold 290,462 copies in its first month, where does that place it on the YTD list I hear you ask? Well here it is at the end of Q1: 1- SOMETHING’S GOTTEN HOLD OF MY HEART- Marc Almond & Gene Pitney 440,980 2- TOO MANY BROKEN HEARTS- Jason Donovan 356,796 3- LOVE CHANGES EVERYTHING- Michael Ball 337,875 4- THE LIVING YEARS- Mike + The Mechanics 333,928 5- LIKE A PRAYER- Madonna 290,462 6- BALLAD OF THE STREETS EP- Simple Minds 288,949 7- ESPECIALLY FOR YOU- Kylie Minogue & Jason Donovan 281,452 8- YOU GOT IT- Roy Orbison 278,035 9- STOP- Sam Brown 261,817 10- HELP- Bananarama & Lananeeneenoonoo 260,474 Almost a third of that list is produced by S/A/W which shows how much of a stranglehold they have on the charts at present, that includes the song at No 2 on the YTD list as well as this week’s chart, Jason Donovan’s “Too Many Broken Hearts” which sold another 35,054 in its most recent frame. It fades badly, 40% in fact week on week, but in all likelihood neither Donovan nor Madonna will be No 1 next week. Neither will Paula Abdul who does climb 4-3 but sold a reduced 34,051 copies to do so, nor Donna Summer who dips 3-4 (32,725), but it is likely to be The Bangles who were No 1 in the US last week (their second chart topper there) with “Eternal Flame”. From the pen of Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly (“Like A Virgin”, “True Colours”, “Alone”, “So Emotional”) The Bangles are banking on this track salvaging their third album “Everything” which saw its first single “In Your Room” falter at No 35 and the album peak at No 74 in the run up to Christmas. It’s done that alright with the song sprinting 13-5 (26,554) and the album reaching a new peak of No 44 as well, Hoffs (a co-writer here) states the inspiration comes from the eternal flame at Graceland which the group saw on a visit. Bananarama drop out of the top 10 this week but never fear that S/A/W’s current hot streak is coming to an end as Pat & Mick bound 16-9 (19,771) with their cover of Gonzales 1979 No 15 hit “I Haven’t Stopped Dancing Yet”. Just like last year’s “Let’s All Chant” it is of course for charity, Capital FM’s “Help A London Child”, the station is home to the two DJ’s at present, it is just ahead of S/A/W’s other hit, the Reynold’s Girls “I’d Rather Jack” which slides 8-10 (17,544). Kon Kan climb 10-8 (23,477) but above them Soul II Soul retreat 5-6 (26,163) and Guns N Roses slip 6-7 (23,698) with fans investing in their album which makes the top 10 for the first time. 1- LIKE A PRAYER- Madonna (43,367) 2- TOO MANY BROKEN HEARTS- Jason Donovan (35,054) 3- STRAIGHT UP- Paula Abdul (34,051) 4- THIS TIME I KNOW IT’S FOR REAL- Donna Summer (32,725) 5- ETERNAL FLAME- The Bangles (26,554) 6- KEEP ON MOVIN- Soul II Soul Featuring Caron Wheeler (26,163) 7- PARADISE CITY- Guns N Roses (23,698) 8- I BEG YOUR PARDON- Kon Kan (23,477) 9- I HAVEN’T STOPPED DANCING YET- Pat & Mick (19,771) 10- I’D RATHER JACK- Reynolds Girls (17,544)

They sure did Not S/A/W written or produced.

1ST APRIL Cliff did it at Christmas and now Madonna does it at Easter, yes she’s grabbed the double this week with “Like A Prayer” topping both the single and albums charts and in doing so she becomes the first lady to manage this feat twice with only Barbra Streisand and Whitney Houston ever managing it even once, her previous occasion was back in 1986 when “Papa Don’t Preach” and “True Blue” held sway, it also marks just the second time that a female solo act can claim three No 1 albums (Kate Bush did it first). It came at a price though, that price was singles sales with the single dropping to 72,097 copies bringing its three week tally to 247,095 copies, we’ll recap the ten best sellers of the year next week but expect to see it feature! Jason Donovan proves the naysayer’s wrong by clinging on to the runner up spot for another week selling 59,092 in the process and though the chasing pack in a static top 5 grow closer there shouldn’t be many changes next week with Donna Summer (48,586), Paula Abdul (44,727) and Soul II Soul (31,518) all way off beam. Indeed the only new track in the top 10 comes from Canadian duo Kon Kan, they’ve been inspired by the Pet Shop Boys remake of “Always On My Mind” coupled with the sampling trend on many of today’s biggest hits to create “I Beg Your Pardon”. It lifts the chorus of Lynn Anderson’s 1971 No 3 hit “Rose Garden” and throws in samples from Silver Convention and Spagna (!) to create one of the more unusual hits in the charts. It was a minor hit in Canada last year but when band member and DJ Barry Harris played the song at a club he was DJing at, it was heard by a record label worker who took copies back to New York and started spinning it and it is now a US top 20 single and a hit here as it lifts 17-10 (19,091) to enable the track to be the highest charting song by a Canadian act since Trans X four years ago. Some movement elsewhere, Guns N Roses continue to rise 8-6 (27,030) with the album “Appetite For Destruction climbing 25-14 to reach a new peak as well, Gloria Estefan & The Miami Sound Machine hold at No 7 for a third week selling 25,262 with a S/A/W double of Reynolds Girls climbing 10-8 (23,936) and Bananarama falling 6-9 (19,737) completing the big sellers. 1- LIKE A PRAYER- Madonna (72,097) 2- TOO MANY BROKEN HEARTS- Jason Donovan (59,092) 3- THIS TIME I KNOW IT’S FOR REAL- Donna Summer (48,586) 4- STRAIGHT UP- Paula Abdul (44,727) 5- KEEP ON MOVIN- Soul II Soul Featuring Caron Wheeler (31,518) 6- PARADISE CITY- Guns N Roses (27,030) 7- CAN’T STAY AWAY FROM YOU- Gloria Estefan & Miami Sound Machine (25,262) 8- I’D RATHER JACK- The Reynolds Girls (23,936) 9- HELP- Bananarama/ Lananeeneenoonoo (19,737) 10- I BEG YOUR PARDON- Kon Kan (19,091)

In other news I have 5 of the top 10 on 7" and let's just say it doesn't include Madonna, Gloria or Paula!

Haha- I was thinking that as i listened to it. It certainly has great elements of Italio dance music in it and musically it's great- the lyrics though....

25TH MARCH Putting up a surprisingly stubborn defence of his crown Jason Donovan just couldn’t keep the top spot with a mere 11% dip in sales to 82,195. He was toppled by Madonna who claims her 6th chart topper of her career and of the decade which puts her two clear of the competition, indeed only The Beatles, Elvis Presley (17), Cliff (12), Abba & The Rolling Stones (9) are now ahead of her in the all time list of acts with the most chart toppers. Parent album “Like A Prayer” is out this week so we’ll see if that can damper its sales but this week the title track sold 92,514 copies to take the crown. The top 2 are so far clear of the field that although Donna Summer climbs 4-3 (47,583) and Paula Abdul flies 6-4 (41,123) both are too far to pose a threat. Firstly a DJ collaboration, then a clothing line, and most recently a dance act, Soul II Soul were one of the most talked about acts of 1988 in certain circles of the music business but they disappointed with initial singles “Fairplay” No 63 and “Feeling Free” No 64 failing to become the big hits they expected. Third release “Keep On Movin” finally finds the spot for the band who also introduce us to vocalist Caron Wheeler who has already a host of backing vocals credits to her name including Elvis Costello, Erasure, Madness, Dexy’s, Special AKA, and Howard Jones but now gets star billing. “Keep On Moving” sprints 15-5 (30,658) with that debut album out in a month. Equally feted by the music press (though entirely in different circles) are US rock band Guns N Roses who have had an unusual path to fame, formed in 1985 in LA, signed in 1986, released their debut single and album in 1987 which weren’t hits until 1988 when the single “Welcome To The Jungle” was heard in the film “Dead Pool” in which the group had a cameo appearance. By that time the group’s first single “It’s So Easy” had made No 84 over here and “Jungle” hit at No 67, but the group’s third single “Sweet Child O Mine” changed everything making No 24 here and No 1 in the US and prompting a re-issue of “Jungle” which went to No 7 in the US and No 24 in the UK. That pretty much brings us up to speed with the band who now see “Paradise City” become their breakthrough Top 10 hit here rising 21-8 (27,744), parent album “Appetite For Destruction” has been a sleeper hit spending 32 weeks in the charts since 1987, peaking at No 15 to date, and selling just over 200,000 copies so far. Not had enough S/A/W? have no fear you only need to look at the record that climbs 12-10 (21,352) this week from sisters Linda and Aisling Reynolds otherwise known as the Reynolds Girls. One of the most discussed singles at present “I’d Rather Jack” is dividing opinion with its criticisms of radio DJ’s and groups Fleetwood Mac and Rolling Stones. The girls come from a talented family with their other sister Debbie playing Katie Rogers in “Brookside” at the moment so it’s no surprise that they hail from Liverpool and were discovered when they sent a demo tape to Pete Waterman who hosts a radio show there. Rather than a serious criticism of the music scene it seems to be a rather tongue in cheek response to critics of the S/A/W sound. Bananarama slide 3-6 (29,529) which completes the 40% of S/A/W produced hits in the top 10 at present, Gloria Estefan & The Miami Sound Machine hold at No 7 (28,305) but do see “Anything For You” finally make the No 1 spot on the album chart at the 19th time of asking, and Sam Brown drops 5-9 (25,143). 1- LIKE A PRAYER- Madonna (92,514) 2- TOO MANY BROKEN HEARTS- Jason Donovan (82,195) 3- THIS TIME I KNOW IT’S FOR REAL- Donna Summer (47,583) 4- STRAIGHT UP- Paula Abdul (41,123) 5- KEEP ON MOVIN- Soul II Soul Ft Caron Wheeler (30,685) 6- HELP- Bananarama/ Lananeeneenoonoo (29,529) 7- CAN’T STAY AWAY FROM YOU- Gloria Estefan & Miami Sound Machine (28,305) 8- PARADISE CITY- Guns N Roses (27,744) 9- STOP- Sam Brown (25,143) 10- I’D RATHER JACK- Reynolds Girls (21,352)

11TH OCTOBER It’s a good week to be Elton John, “Something About The Way You Look Tonight/ Candle In The Wind 97” not only debuts at No 1 in the US but also manages a 4th week on top here, and his album “The Big Picture” is new at No 3. Sales are off a whopping 46% though and a mere 572,000 buyers signalling that it may be vulnerable in a few weeks, the Spice Girls are taking no chances though- Originally planned to be released this week, “Spice Up Your Life” has been pushed back a week! Proving the only real challengers to Boyzone in the boyband stakes The Backstreet Boys continue to release hit after hit including new single “As Long As You Love Me” the highest new entry at No 3 (84,000). That figure makes it their quickest seller to date and the six top 10 singles they’ve crammed into just over a year must mean they are due for a chart topper shortly. From the boys to the girls….Eternal have been going for over 3 years now which means we get a “Greatest Hits” moment. The group are on a high at present following their first chart topper “I Wanna Be The Only One” in May which has since become their best seller with 600,000 sales and instead of plucking more singles from the “Before The Rain” album we get a new single “Angel Of Mine”. Debuting at No 4 (79,000) it becomes their 12th top 10 single from 14 releases, all of which will feature on the forthcoming best of. Christmas must be approaching with the amount of big names returning to the chart, include in that list Lighthouse Family whose first album “Ocean Drive” has been a constant presence on the chart for 18 months and never falling out of the top 50 on its way to sales of over 1.5 million. It gave us four hit singles with “Lifted” the biggest at No 4, so the second album is much anticipated and even more so now that first single “Raincloud” arrives at No 6 (62,000). Dario G is in decline at retail (85,000) but lifts back 3-2 as Oasis collapse 2-5 (71,000) and spare a thought for Chumbawamba who sell 60,000 and can only make No 7- how times have changed, at least it goes platinum! Will Smith similarly has been lingering around a while and indeed rebounds 9-8 (46,000) this week thanks in part to half term and has now sold 823,000 copies on the verge of moving past No Doubt on the YTD list. Two of last week’s new entries take unsurprising dips Janet Jackson 6-9 (42,000) and Louise 4-10 (41,000) but both will be focusing on their album releases this week. 1- CANDLE IN THE WIND 97/ SOMETHING ABOUT THE WAY YOU LOOK TONIGHT- Elton John (572,000) 2- SUNCHYME- Dario G (85,000) 3- AS LONG AS YOU LOVE ME- Backstreet Boys (84,000) 4- ANGEL OF MINE- Eternal (79,000) 5- STAND BY ME- Oasis (71,000) 6- RAINCLOUD- Lighthouse Family (62,000) 7- TUBTHUMPING- Chumbawamba (60,000) 8- MEN IN BLACK- Will Smith (46,000) 9- GOT TIL IT’S GONE- Janet Jackson Featuring Q-Tip (42,000) 10- ARMS AROUND THE WORLD- Louise (41,000)

4TH OCTOBER So did Oasis do it then? Of course not, Elton suffered a 31% sales decrease but still sold an incredible 1,067,000 to bring its 15 day total to 3,271,000 making it the biggest selling single in chart history ever! To confirm, here’s the YTD top 10 as we enter the last quarter: 1- SOMETHING ABOUT THE WAY YOU LOOK TONIGHT/ CANDLE IN THE WIND 97- Elton John 3,271,000 2- I’LL BE MISSING YOU- Puff Daddy/ Faith Evans 1,339,000 3- DON’T SPEAK- No Doubt 834,000 4- MEN IN BLACK- Will Smith 777,000 5- MMMBOP- Hanson 712,000 6- D’YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN- Oasis 668,000 7- I BELIEVE I CAN FLY- R Kelly 667,000 8- MAMA/ WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE- Spice Girls 658,000 9- I WANNA BE THE ONLY ONE- Eternal Featuring Bebe Winans 600,000 10- TUBTHUMPING- Chumbawamba 551,000 Elton’s “Big Picture” album is out this week which will feature “Something About The Way You Look Tonight” but not “Candle In The Wind 97” so may have limited effect on the single. Regardless with that sale Elton John pushes past Oasis as the biggest selling singles act of the 90s. Onto Oasis then and no third consecutive chart topper for them, “Stand By Me” understandably wasn’t up for unseating the Elton John juggernaut but does become their seventh straight top 3 single after selling 137,000 in the process. In 26 weeks of the year that would have been enough for No 1 but it misses out this week, under that though is a more worrying stat, it’s actually the lowest opening week sale for any Oasis single since “Whatever” in 1994- has the (admittedly huge) bubble finally burst? Only time will tell but it at least helps push “Be Here Now” back to No 1 and has sold 1.1 million in its first 6 weeks on sale. Interestingly while we noted that Elton John supersedes Oasis as the biggest singles act of the 90s they themselves only held the crown for a few days after they moved past Take That. Cruel game “Pop”! Louise is back with a second album “Woman In Me” and lead single “Arms Around The World” which is co-written by the woman herself. Her fifth top 10 single it becomes her biggest yet smashing in at No 4 (63,000) and you’ve got just a fortnight to wait for the album but for the time being a near constant presence in the lads mags is doing the business of keeping her in the limelight. Indeed the search for that Autumn big seller is really getting going with Janet Jackson also returning to the fray. Jackson’s album will go head to head with Louise in a repeat of the singles battle this week but Jackson lost round one “Got Til It’s Gone” debuts at No 6 (53,000), at least it is an 11th top 10 hit for the singer (depending how you view the remix of “Best Things” in 1995. Jackson of course renewed her contract with Virgin last year for $80 million in a record breaking deal and proves her worth with this Joni Mitchell sampling track which also features the rapping talents of former A Tribe Called Quest man Q-Tip. Experiencing their 19th top 10 hit the U2 bandwagon rolls on with another single from “Pop” doing the required business. Lyrically about the Northern Ireland situation the cover features pictures of Gerry Adams, David Trimble, Ian Paisley and John Hume as "Please" arrives at No 7 (46,000). It gives the group the honour of being the first act to score 4 top 10 singles in 97! Already an airplay No 1 M People return after two years away with a new album in the bag. “Fresco” will follow in a few weeks but for now you’ll have to be happy with “Just For You” which enters at No 8 (44,000) to become their 9th top flight hit. Dario G improve sales to 94,000 but falls 2-3 and Chumbawamba also improve at retail to 61,000 but fall 3-5, no such contradictory factors for Will Smith and The Verve who are out of favour in all respects 5-9 (40,000) and 4-10 (38,000). There's now been 174 new entries in the top 10- a new record as the charts continue to accelerate. 1- CANDLE IN THE WIND 97/ SOMETHING ABOUT THE WAY YOU LOOK TONIGHT- Elton John (1,069,000) 2- STAND BY ME- Oasis (137,000) 3- SUNCHYME- Dario G (94,000) 4- ARMS AROUND THE WORLD- Louise (63,000) 5- TUBTHUMPING- Chumbawamba (61,000) 6- GOT TIL IT’S GONE- Janet Jackson Featuring Q-Tip (53,000) 7- PLEASE- U2 (46,000) 8- JUST FOR YOU- M People (44,000) 9- MEN IN BLACK- Will Smith (40,000) 10- THE DRUGS DON’T WORK- The Verve (38,000)

18TH MARCH Firstly We’ll deal with the little matter of the No 1 record, that’s Jason Donovan who holds the top slot for a second week and increased his sales to 93,585 in the process, and he needed to as he was under pressure from the off by THAT record which in the end debuted at No 2. Yes Madonna is back with a level of controversy that only she can muster and it all started back in December when the new Coca Cola ad’s started showing with George Michael the star, Pepsi immediately announced that they had a popstar in the bag as well, and it was none other than Madonna, a teaser for the commercial aired during the Grammy’s this February with the full commercial being shown around the world on 2nd March including in the UK, the first time an artist had premiered a new song via a commercial, with Pepsi promising to sponsor the forthcoming world tour and MTV getting exclusive rights to air the promo for the next month. That was the plan until the following day when MTV aired the official full length video for “Like A Prayer” and needless to say religious groups were not impressed with the pope banning Madonna from touring Italy (allegedly) and middle America suitably outraged threatening a boycott of Pepsi, in turn Pepsi decided not to re-air the commercial and cancelled sponsorship of the tour but allowed Madonna to keep the $5 million dollars she had been paid, in effect, for one showing of the commercial. And that was all before the single hit the stores! Now it duly equals Kylie Minogue’s “The Loco-Motion” by entering the charts at No 2 after shifting 82,484 copies in its first week, the best start for any Madonna single to date and as noted the equal highest debut for a solo female act, it’s her 18th top 10 single which pulls her clear of Michael Jackson in terms of top tenners in the 80s though he has confirmed that another track from “Bad” will be released in the summer! Who’s as big as Madonna at the moment?- well not an act but a set of producers, S/A/W of course, they produce three of the top 4 records this week in a new high for the trio who it should be noted are “independents” in terms of distribution and operation making their achievement all the more noteworthy. Bananarama’s cover of “Help!” holds at No 3 (70,737) and was the biggest selling single on Saturday in the wake of Comic Relief day on Friday, whilst one place below notes the return of the queen of Disco, Ms Donna Summer. Summer had 7 top 10 singles in the 70s including the chart topper “I Feel Love”, in the 80s however she’s had 13 hits none of which have made it past the No 13 spot (“Dinner With Gershwin”), but all that was before she teamed up with the dream team of S/A/W who promptly wrote “This Time I Know It’s For Real” for the singer and which returns her to the top 10 after a ten year break in moving 11-4 (52,751). The demise of Disco coupled with some unfortunate comments about her gay audience are largely cited as the reasons for her career stalling in the decade but this seems to be rectifying it. In fact Jason Donovan must be feeling very henpecked at the top as the next 6 places are all female and that includes Paula Abdul whose “Straight Up” shoots 15-6 (35,037). Her pop career started when she was head choreographer for the Los Angeles Lakers when she caught the eye of The Jacksons who attended a game and they talked her into choreographing their “Torture” video which led to working with Janet Jackson and appearing in the “What Have You Done For Me Lately” video among others plus other movie work, before she attempted to become a pop star herself. Initial releases “Knocked Out” (No 98) and “It’s Just The Way You Love Me” (uncharted) didn’t impress us nor the US really, it’s the current hit “Straight Up” which has really made her a star spending 3 weeks at No 1 in the states last month- could it do the same over here? Those other ladies in the fray include Sam Brown who drops 4-5 (36,244) whilst moving 5-4 on the album chart, and Gloria Estefan & The Miami Sound Machine who climb 8-7 (32,164) whilst cooling at retail. At the bottom of the top 10 we have two fallers, Michael Ball hurtles 2-8 (31,688), S-Express drop 7-9 (30,141) but Living In A Box hold at No 10 (25,704). 1- TOO MANY BROKEN HEARTS- Jason Donovan (93,585) 2- LIKE A PRAYER- Madonna (82,484) 3- HELP- Bananarama/ Lananeeneenoonoo (70,737) 4- THIS TIME I KNOW IT’S FOR REAL- Donna Summer (52,751) 5- STOP- Sam Brown (36,244) 6- STRAIGHT UP- Paula Abdul (35,037) 7- CAN’T STAY AWAY FROM YOU- Gloria Estefan & Miami Sound Machine (32,164) 8- LOVE CHANGES EVERYTHING- Michael Ball (31,688) 9- HEY MUSIC LOVER- S Express (30,141) 10- BLOW THE HOUSE DOWN- Living In A Box (25,704)

11TH MARCH Another thrilling chart week which lead to a close race for the top this time the winning margin just 1,292 copies in it, but coming from behind Jason Donovan scores his second chart topper this week with “Too Many Broken Hearts” sneaking 9-1 (63,546). It becomes S/A/W’s 7th produced and fifth written No 1 in just 4 years which has seen them become the premier producers in the land. That’s all bad news for Michael Ball who led all week and looked like giving Andrew Lloyd Webber his first chart topper in 12 years with “Love Changes Everything”, it actually lost sales at 62,254 but still rose 3-2. Meanwhile Bananarama climb 5-3 (60,401) and are ideally placed to get a nice boost from Comic Relief this weekend, it’s already the trio’s equal highest placed hit emulating the peaks of “Robert De Nero’s Waiting” and “Love In The First Degree” but at just 3,000 copies away they have never been nearer the No 1 spot saleswise- can they do it next week? This also marks the first time we have two S/A/W tracks in the top 3 since last September and fourth in total in the last 2 years. The only new song in the top 10 comes from the returning Living In A Box who scored four top 50 hits from their first album and are now onto album two with the lead single “Blow The House Down”. It features a busy Brian May who guests on guitar here fresh from his special appearance on Holly Johnson’s “Love Train”, this track moves 17-10 (26,962). Sam Brown halts at No 4 (50,660) but she does debut at No 5 on the album charts to provide further cheer, that strong selling top 4 means there is no room for last week’s forerunners Michael Jackson and Simple Minds, they topple 2-5 (48,229) and 1-6 (47,804), that’s the biggest drop from the top spot since George Michael’s “A Different Corner” in 1986. Gloria Estefan & The Miami Sound Machine fly 10-8 (35,190) and nestle between two fallers, S Express 6-7 (40,205) and Texas 8-9 (33,422). Next week we’ll see if all that controversy for the new Madonna single can see it debut at No 1? 1- TOO MANY BROKEN HEARTS- Jason Donovan (63,546) 2- LOVE CHANGES EVERYTHING- Michael Ball (62,254) 3- HELP- Bananarama/ Lananeeneenoonoo (60,401) 4- STOP- Sam Brown (50,660) 5- LEAVE ME ALONE- Michael Jackson (48,229) 6- BALLAD OF THE STREETS EP- Simple Minds (47,804) 7- HEY MUSIC LOVER- S Express (40,205) 8- CAN’T STAY AWAY FROM YOU- Gloria Estefan & Miami Sound Machine (35,190) 9- I DON’T WANT A LOVER- Texas (33,422) 10- BLOW THE HOUSE DOWN- Living In A Box (26,962)

4TH MARCH All change this week as five new songs are in the top 10 but there’s no change at the top, Simple Minds remain there for a second week “Belfast Child” still convincing 64,447 people to spend their cash on it, it’s now sold 197,251 in its first 3 weeks making it their second biggest seller behind “Don’t You Forget About Me” though that is well clear on over 300,000 sales. Its victory was however very slim, just under 500 copies in fact from Michael Jackson’s “Leave Me Alone” which accelerates 4-2 (63,954) and even Michael Ball’s “Love Changes Everything”, though it dips 2-3, sold 62,492, both Michael’s outselling Simple Minds towards the weekend with the top 3 therefore just under 2k apart when the dust settled. The third single to assist fund raising for the Comic Relief cause rises 12-5 (49,215) this week for Bananarama who guest alongside Lananeeneenoonoo, they are in reality French & Saunders who have roped in Kathy Burke to provide “The Young Ones” to Bananarama’s “Cliff Richard”. Their cover of the Beatles classic “Help!” (No 1, 1965) also follows covers of “With A Little Help From My Friends”, “Twist & Shout” and “I Saw Him Standing There” into the top 10 in the course of the last year, this year’s red nose day is on March 10th so there’s plenty of scope for this to rise, it’s the girls 9th top 10 single and is a marked improvement on the last version of “Help” to chart, that would be Tina Turner’s No 40 hit in 1984. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5T_v_xSBcqI The S-Express story continues with a third top 10 hit on the trot, “Hey Music Lover” arrives 14-6 (38,896) and previews their debut album “Original Soundtrack” which finally hits the shops next month. The song is an update of the Sly & Family Stone track from 1968 and also includes a sample from the film "The Stepford Wives" Glasgow based band Texas are up next with debut single “I Don’t Want A Lover” rising 13-8 (25,534). The group feature former Altered Images guitarist Johnny McElhone and take their name from the 1984 film of the same name, they are also part of a growing contribution to the charts by Scotland who have placed Wet, Wet, Wet, Deacon Blue, Simple Minds, and The Proclaimers in the top 10 recently. Debut album “Southside” is out in three weeks for those who want to hear more. Meanwhile at No 9 is our highest new entry which comes from a certain Jason Donovan hot on the heels of his first chart topper “Especially For You” with (alleged) girlfriend Kylie Minogue. Again it’s written and produced by S/A/W and has certainly started off brightly with 23,324 buyers in week one, it comes from his first album “Ten Good Reasons” which has a May release date at present, his ascendancy in the teen mags so far this year points to it being a strong seller. Currently sitting at No 2 behind Simply Red on the album charts with “Anything For You” Gloria Estefan & The Miami Sound Machine have completed a dazzling resurgence in their UK chart fortunes with a fourth top 20 hit in just 8 months. Their new single “Can’t Stay Away From You” was originally released here last May and only made No 88 but it’s a much bigger hit now bounding 23-10 (22,627) though progress may be stinted due to the album flying off the shelves. Sam Brown grinds 5-4 (53,312) and Bobby Brown dips 6-7 (27,472) under the pressure of all those new hits. 1- BALLAD OF THE STREETS EP- Simple Minds (64,447) 2- LEAVE ME ALONE- Michael Jackson (63,954) 3- LOVE CHANGES EVERYTHING- Michael Ball (62,492) 4- STOP- Sam Brown (53,312) 5- HELP!- Bananarama/ LaNaNeeNeeNooNoo (49,215) 6- HEY MUSIC LOVER- S Express (38,896) 7- MY PREROGATIVE- Bobby Brown (27,472) 8- I DON’T WANT A LOVER- Texas (25,534) 9- TOO MANY BROKEN HEARTS- Jason Donovan (23,324) 10- CAN’T STAY AWAY FROM YOU- Gloria Estefan & Miami Sound Machine (22,627)

I don't know categorically but I assume that having had 5 US number one singles then two singles that missed the top over there, they assumed that any further releases would perform poorly. Plus CD sales were higher in the US than in Europe so more people would already know the song and further impact sales?

25TH FEBRUARY No doubt at all this week that Simple Minds would claim their first No 1 in addition to a fifth chart topper for producer Trevor Horn who introduced “She Moved Through The Fair” to Jim Kerr which resulted in the song “Belfast Child”. The song boosted its sales to 77,877 copies thanks to a newly issued 7” inch version of the single which was purchased by a fair number of completists this week though it has also sold 25,000 CD's in a fortnight to become at a stroke the biggest selling CD single of all time overtaking The Pet Shop Boys "Always On My Mind". At 6:39 in length it’s the second longest No 1 of all time behind “Hey Jude” by The Beatles, and is officially the third EP to hit the No 1 spot here after Demis Roussos and The Specials. Simple Minds are not assured a long reign however as an incredible 8th release from “Bad” debuts in the charts at No 4 (47,294) for Michael Jackson, the reason for the high debut of “Leave Me Alone” (it's his highest entry of his career!) is that the song is only available on the CD edition of the album and is thusly a “new” single for many buyers. Lyrically answering his critics and the press for the many false stories circulated over the years about his behaviour “Leave Me Alone” comes with a promo culled from “Moonwalker” and gives Jackson his 17th top single of the decade pulling him level with Madonna who, as we all know by now, is back with a new album next month so should re-assert her dominance in the forthcoming months. He is, however, the first US artist to debut in the top 10 since 1987 when he himself entered at No 5 with "Bad", and that despite 25 entries in the top 10 in the interim! Following in her famous father’s footsteps Sam Brown can finally hold her head high at the family reunion with a hit single of her own, her dad is Joe Brown who himself had three top 10 singles in the early 60’s with “Picture Of You” being the highest peaking at No 2 behind Mike Sarne’s “Come Outside”, Sam is the fourth solo female act to have a solo hitmaking father following Nancy Sinatra, Kim Wilde and Natalie Cole, and “Stop” is a hit at the second time of asking after peaking at No 52 last summer, It was subsequently a hit across Europe toward the end of the year and was No 1 in Belgium and Netherlands, and top 10 in 8 other countries, it now gets its chance to shine here as it powers 17-5 (40,602). She's an established backing singer too having already been on TOTP way back in 1986 on Jim Diamond's "Hi Ho Silver" The principle of diminishing returns seems to be the story of Rick Astley who nevertheless scores his 7th top 10 single from seven releases, but only just, as “Hold Me In Your Arms” struggles 11-10 (23,902). It’s the title track from his second album and is, like “She Wants To Dance With Me”, penned by Astley himself, the album has done 300,000 copies so far, not bad but not a patch on the 1.2 million plus “Whenever You Need Somebody”, he does however seem to be keeping his US career on track with “She Wants To Dance” currently at No 6 over there. Michael Ball follows Simple Minds towards the top spot, he notches 3-2 (49,895) jumping over the outgoing chart toppers Marc Almond & Gene Pitney who tumble 1-3 (49,487). Bobby Brown clings onto the No 6 position shifting 36,006 as both Mike + The Mechanics (4-7, 29,818) and Holly Johnson (5-8, 28,135) brush by on the way down and Yazz also remains static at No 9 (26,843) but is on her way out. 1- BALLAD OF THE STREETS EP- Simple Minds (77,877) 2- LOVE CHANGES EVERYTHING- Michael Ball (49,895) 3- SOMETHING’S GOTTEN HOLD OF MY HEART- Marc Almond & Gene Pitney (49,487) 4- LEAVE ME ALONE- Michael Jackson (47,294) 5- STOP- Sam Brown (40,902) 6- MY PREROGATIVE- Bobby Brown (36,006) 7- THE LIVING YEARS- Mike & The Mechanics (29,818) 8- LOVE TRAIN- Holly Johnson (28,135) 9- FINE TIME- Yazz (26,843) 10- HOLD ME IN YOUR ARMS- Rick Astley (23,902)