| This |
Tot
wks |
| Peak |
| Number One |
| Sureshot |
| 1 |
3 |
| VIVA FOREVER |
Spiceworld |
| Spice Girls |
|
1 |
| Apparently, the Spices should be a spent force now. Reduced to a four piece, lasting beyond their two-year sell-by date, and their last single barely made the top. Pah! This one shifts 425,000 (full-priced) copies in thirteen days to become the fastest selling single of the year, and storm to the top by a country mile. It becomes, of course, their eighth number one from as many releases, a track record that puts their popularity on a par with the Beatles' heyday in the early 60s. |
| 2 |
7 |
| GHETTO SUPERSTAR |
Ghetto Superstar |
| Pras Michel, ODB and Mya |
|
1 |
| The third member of the Fugees opens his solo career, and has the biggest solo hit - and first number one - of any of them. Wyclef Jean produces, while the Mya singing is no relation to the Maya of the chimney on her. She is, however, performing to the tune of Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton's hit "Islands in the stream". Pras is, we now find, the Fugee who enlivened every "Top of the Pops" performances by rhythmicly chanting "Top of the Pop! Top of the Pop!" at some point. |
| 3 |
6 |
| SAVE TONIGHT |
Desireless |
| Eagle-Eye Cherry |
|
4 |
| It's just possible that the guy got his record contract based on his sister's fame. You know, Neneh, heroine of "Buffalo stance", "Buddy X" and "Seven seconds". But this is a record good enough to stand on its own merits no matter whose brother made it. It combines a hard, almost grungy, beat with a fragility and delicacy that's a joy to behold. And it is one of the best records of this year. |
| 4 |
10 |
| THE BOY IS MINE |
Never Say Never |
| Brandy & Monica |
|
2 |
| This slow, sultry hit comes as something of a pleasant surprise. Neither Brandy nor Monica had had a significant UK hit until now. Their pairing is one of the most sublime - and successful - soul records to hit the stores in a very long time. It's now moving into Premier League status, staying in the top 5 for the second month and moving into the whole year Top 20. |
| 5 |
10 |
|
1 |
| The Irish four-piece feature Ronan from Boyzone's cousins (or something). On the strength of that, they got a record deal. On the strength of one of the most wonderful summer hits ever made, they appear on the lips of almost everyone able to hum, and in the heads of quite a few others. This is a total classic, with the most upbeat singalong for a good year. Denied a six-week run at the top by the football records, they did manage to bookend the World Cup at #1, and look set to sell well into the summer. |
| 6 |
10 |
| HORNY |
|
| Moose feat Hot and Wet |
|
4 |
| Two months on, this remains on of the worst records on the survey. Two women sing about how much they resemble rhinoceri, and 350,000 people pay good money to hear them do it. Has the world gone crazy? |
| 7 |
8 |
| LIFE |
Supernatural |
| Des'ree |
|
6 |
| This is Des'ree's biggest hit - and one of her greatest affronts to both punctuation and sensible lyrics, rhyming "thing I fear the most" with "have a piece of toast". It's workmanlike soul, not her best, but certainly not bad. |
| 8 |
5 |
| BECAUSE WE WANT TO |
|
| Billie |
|
6 |
| Child model is picked out by teen mag for advertising campaign. Based on her looks, record company signs her, and gives her songs to sing. Child records them, releases them, and has large hit. See also: Tiffany Darkowitz (now retired from the music business) and Debbie Gibson (formerly of London's Grease, now performing on Broadway's Beauty and the Beast - as Deborah Gibson). Billie would have one-git wonder stamped all over her, if the typist was more accurate. |
| 9 |
8 |
| LOOKING FOR LOVE |
|
| Karen Ramirez |
|
8 |
| Three years ago, Everything But The Girl were nonentities, known only for a Rod Stewart cover, and their status as perrenial student faves who never crossed into the mainstream. Then Todd Terry remixed "Missing" from their "Amplified Heart" album and turned it into a worldwide smash. On the same album was a track called "Looking for love", which has now been re-made by a rising British r&b singer. The effect is clearly meant to resemble "Missing", and it succeeds in doing that. The problem is that this isn't such a good song to start with, and the result is insipid. Radio seems to love it, though. |
| 10 |
5 |
| LIFE IS A FLOWER |
|
| Ace of Base |
|
3 |
| Back in 1993, Swedish act Ace of Base hit the top with the infernally catchy number "All that she wants", and very nearly followed it up the following year with the even more catchy "The Sign". Since then, they've been ominously quiet, until now. Back with another twee single, that might just be hiding humour behind the impenatrable accents, Ace of Base have a large - but slightly smaller than I expected - summer hit with this. |
| 11 |
4 |
| FREAK ME |
Another Level |
| Another Level |
|
4 |
| Everything that soul giants do right is done wrong here. This is leaden, clunky, poorly written, badly performed, and sounds like a dog. And someone tell them that one doesn't reproduce by "freaking". |
| 12 |
12 |
| STRANDED |
Lutricia McNeil |
| Lutricia McNeil |
|
2 |
| There's no shifting this one, is there. I wonder just how much she owes to the fact her record label is part-owned by one of the largest radio stations in the UK. |
| 13 |
3 |
| DEEPER UNDERGROUND |
Godzilla OST |
| Jamiroquai |
|
2 |
| There are a few bands who just can't put a foot right. Take Jamiroquai. Please. Just take them. This is yet another repetitive plank of repetitive, small-minded white boy funk, repetitive in the extreme, and advancing the cause of popular music not one iota. It's crap, taken from a rotten movie; the two kinda go together. |
| 14 |
4 |
| IMMORTALITY |
Let's Talk About Love |
| Celine Dion & Bee Gees |
|
10 |
| How does one follow up the biggest hit of the year so far? If you're Celine Dion, you book a studio session with the Bee Gees, and record a song about how you're never going to be forgotten. Well, I think that what the song's about, but I really can't remember it. In a year when the three biggest hits so far have all come from Commonwealth countries, this could be New Zealand's best chance for a big hit. |
| 15 |
7 |
| LOST IN SPACE |
Postcards from Heaven |
| Lighthouse Family |
|
4 |
| The masters of laid-back pop take the genre to its limits with a song that is totally somnolent, but still remarkably listenable. It's not got the anthemic intensity of "High", but it's still head and shoulders above much of the competition. |
| 16 |
8 |
|
12 |
| The British version of the Backstreet Boys return with a cheap rap track that just gives them an excuse to show off their bodies. The difference between them and the BBs is that the Yanks make good records. |
| 17 |
16 |
| UNDER THE BRIDGE / LADY MARMALADE |
All Saints |
| All Saints |
|
1 |
| The follow up to the mighty hit "Never Ever" is a double A sided cover. "Under the Bridge", a wimpish cover of the Red Hot Chili Peppers' original, continues to hold the lion's share of the limelight. |
| 18 |
5 |
| THE HEART'S LONE DESIRE |
Matthew Marsden Sings |
| Matthew Marsden |
|
17 |
| Just when you thought it was safe to come out of the cupboard, came another Coronation Street star turned singer. No relation to Gerry of the Pacemakers, this is a plodding downbeat dance number. A contradiction in terms, really, like quality singing from a Corrie star. |
| 19 |
15 |
| DANCE THE NIGHT AWAY |
Trampoline |
| Mavericks |
|
4 |
| This breakthrough record - once described as Matchbox crossed with the Travelling Wilburrys - has become a mainstay of adult hit radio, and looks to be ending a very long run. |
| Sureshot |
| 20 |
22 |
| YOU'RE THE ONE THAT I WANT |
Grease OST |
| John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John |
|
1 |
| Back in 1978, this track reigned supreme for nine weeks. Just think: nine weeks of having to watch Travolta - at the time, 35 passing for 20 in much the same way Scott Wolf does these days - wander around a fair with his tongue drooping out of his mouth. Yuck. In spite of such visual imagery, the song was a massive hit, and still sounds as fresh today as it did then. Re-issued to mark the 20th anniversary of "Grease" the movie. A stage version saw this song return to the chart in 93, performed by Debbie Gibson (now performing in "Beauty and the Beast" on Broadway) and Craig McLachlan (a former Neighbours star, now wishing he were Natalie Imbruglia). |
| July's Single Of The Month |
| 21 |
4 |
| BE CAREFUL |
Sparkle |
| Sparkle |
|
5 |
| I don't usually go much for soul tracks, but this is an absolute gem of a classic. A sensitive number, telling both sides of a disintegrating relationship, this features the vocals of R Kelly. It also features the production, percussion, song-writing and instrumental talents of young Bob. Yet his name doesn't appear on the cover or the disc. Such a self-effacing chap. Such a wonderful track. |
| 22 |
12 |
| DREAMS |
Talk On Corners |
| Coors |
|
6 |
| One of Ireland's better kept secrets, the Coors have been building a huge fan following amongst the Irish community and folk fans in general. Now, with the third single from their fifth album, success dawns for them. It's taken a cover of the classic Fleetwood Mac song to bring them success, but there's been movement forward for this family group for some little time now; substantial airplay is building behind their last - and next - single. |
| 23 |
4 |
| I THINK I'M PARANOID |
Version 2.0 |
| Garbage |
|
16 |
| The second single from Shirley and her boys' sophomore set. It's not their best, but it'll do. |
| 24 |
38 |
| TORN |
Left of the Middle |
| Natalie Imbruglia |
|
1 |
| Will you please give it up for the Longest Running Single Since "My Way"! The debut single from the former Australian soap star held the top slot for the first half of November, and is looking to still be haunting us a year on. A hard-edged ballad, "Torn" came in for some stick in January when tabloid newspapers "revealed" that a very similar arrangement of the song had already been recorded by a Norwegian act, as well as defending Eurosong winners Katrina and the Waves. In April, it became the second record in the rock era to sell a million without hitting the top of the weekly sales chart. It also slipped out of the Top 40 in April, though just for one week, left again at the end of May, but has popped back twice since. Nine months (NINE MONTHS!) later, her debut single is still proving to be insanely popular. "Torn" now moves within seven days of equallingthe 39 week run of Frankie Goes To Hollywood's "Relax" back in 1983-4. It's now outplacing both of her follow-up records. And it's now in its highest slot since the end of April. An outside bet for this year's Number One? Maybe not, but I'm not going to rule it out. |
| 25 |
2 |
| JUST THE TWO OF US |
Big Willie Style |
| Will Smith |
|
4 |
| Sometimes, the venom with which I hate a certain record surprises even me. A case in point is this record. It's by Will Smith, which isn't the best of starts, but that's a minor detail. It's been held up for something like three months - ostensibly, while the greatest hits package of (DJ) Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince - Smith taking the latter role - came and went, and just happens to be released in the aftermath of the birth of his lover's (or is it wife-of-the-week's) child. It's based on Grover Washington Junior's very minor hit (#34, believe it or not) from 1981. It's a love song with a sick twist: from New Rapping Father to Unsuspecting And Hugely Embarrassed Child, with absolutely no mention of the mother in all of this. And the whole thing makes me want to hurl. It's just the most insufferably abysmal, tuneless, hypocritical track. Now, where did I leave my copy of "Forget-me-nots"? |
| 26 |
9 |
| THREE LIONS '98 |
|
| Baddiel, Skinner and the Lightning Seeds |
|
1 |
| How the mighty fall! Last month's Number One, a combination of two comedians and one established Scouse star re-makes a two year old track. It took massive sales and airplay support for exactly as long as England lasted in the tournament. After their early exit - on the last day of June - support dropped like a stone, and slumped right down. |
| Single Of The Month for March 1985 |
| Sureshot |
| 27 |
12 |
| THE BOYS OF SUMMER |
Building the Perfect Beast |
| Don Henley |
|
12 |
| Believe it or not, the ex-Eagle has only had one solo hit in the UK. This heavily nostalgic tribute to a book about the Brooklyn Dodgers of the mid-50s just missed the top 10 on first release in 1985. Thirteen long years later, it's re-released for no apparent reason, and still sounds as wonderful as it did then. |
| 28 |
3 |
| NEW KIND OF MEDICINE |
Situation: Critical |
| Ultra Nate |
|
14 |
| You know what fowl medicine is like. Heavy, sticky, and tastes icky. Reminds me a lot of this track. It's a leaden 70s disco pastiche, with none of the nous and charm of "Free".
|
| March's Single Of The Month |
| 29 |
23 |
| HOW DO I LIVE |
You Light Up My Life |
| Leann Rimes |
|
4 |
| When this first came out in March, I remarked on Leann's 26 week residence in the US top 10, and pointed out that she probably wouldn't repeat the feat in the UK. She's gonna do it, you know! Still selling enough to make the top 20 after six months. The 15 year old American sensation has become the biggest act best described as country for a very long time, and looks certain to become the biggest breakthrough act of this year. |
| 30 |
14 |
| FEEL IT |
|
| Tamperer feat Maya |
|
1 |
| Still not going away. Sampling the bass and chimes of the Jacksons' "Can you feel it" from 1972, and the "what's she gonna look like with a chimney on her" line from the well known #51 Urban Discharge hit "Wanna drop a house (On that bitch)" from 1996. |
| 31 |
22 |
| TRULY MADLY DEEPLY |
Savage Garden |
| Savage Garden |
|
1 |
| Savage Garden's hit had an interesting career. A soft, plaintive ballad that had already been massive across the developed world, before its UK release back in February. The song started big, slipped a little, then rebounded in early April with increasing confidence to become a very unlikely Number One for a very long time. The follow-up single - their previous release, "To the Moon and Back" - is also picking up strong play ahead of its release. |
| 32 |
31 |
| ANGELS |
Life Thru a Lens |
| Robbie Williams |
|
3 |
| Just when you thought it was safe to come out of the cupboard, Robbie returned with the big hit he'd been promising for some time. Seven months (SEVEN MONTHS!) later, it's still proving to be insanely popular. And it's back, just behind the follow-up. Both this and "Torn" have come in for a lot of flack amongst radio professionals, for being a little too omnipresent all year. Yet they remain utterly wonderful records... |
| 33 |
4 |
| INTERGALACTIC
| Hello Nasty
|
| Beastie Boys |
|
16 |
| Oh gawds, we thought we'd got rid of them. Ten years ago, this trio had a slew of Top 20 hits and tabloid headlines, centred around their reputations as bad (white) boys putting out third-rate rap. This reputation was somewhat tarnished when they turned out to be rather nice lads from Brooklyn, and ruined when they were made the butt of "Stutter Rap" find out more. After expanding to a four piece and staging a small return in 94, they're now back in a larger way. It's still trite, crass and poor quality, though. Still, what does one expect from Noo Yawkers? |
| 34 |
10 |
| RAY OF LIGHT |
Ray Of Light |
| Madonna |
|
3 |
| Second single from the comeback queen is a fast, uptempo number that's positively breathless in comparison with the ice slab that was "Frozen". |
| 35 |
5 |
|
3 |
| The track from Keith Allen ("comedian" and writer of 1990's Englandneworder record), Alex James of Blur and some other journeymen of rock plummets 32 places this month. They've made something that pays homage to the favourite food of the new-lad England supporter: curry. The crucial difference between this and "Three Lions" is that this isn't stylish. Nor did it pick up the support that would take it to the top this month, always falling beind the competitor. But it does score one more than Fatboy. |
| 36 |
6 |
| ROCKERFELLER SKANK |
|
| Fatboy Slim |
|
19 |
| aka ex-Housemartin, ex-Beat International, ex-Cornershop remixer, ex-Pizzaman Norman Cook. This is a rather dull track, that doesn't go anywhere. |
| 37 |
9 |
| WISHING I WAS THERE WITH YOU |
Left of the Middle |
| Natalie Imbruglia |
|
11 |
| The former soap star turned singer releases a third single from her well received debut album. It's not the soft ballad that was "Torn", nor is it the Alanis clone of "Big mistake". Instead, it's a gentle rocker, that laments a lost love. On its first release, it missed the top ten, after her two previous releases peaked at 1 and 2 respectively. |
| June's Single Of The Month |
| 38 |
5 |
| CARNIVAL DE PARIS |
Sunmachine |
| Dario G |
|
5 |
| The follow-up to last year's smash "Sunchyme" is a truly multi-cultural affair, sampling bagpipes, bozouki, trumpet and strings on a sublime instrumental. The tie-in with the world cup is primarily through the video, which features children painted to look like national flags playing footy. |
| 39 |
2 |
|
26 |
| Ronaldo's tv commercial soundtrack + dance beat = crap single and big hit. |
| 40 |
2 |
|
21 |
| In 1988, husband and wife team Womack and Womack had the biggest hit that didn't make Number One with this simple yet highly effective song. No-one's dared cover it since, as it's darned hard to improve on it. But, a decade later, Lovestation do pretty much a note for note cover. It won't be anything more than a footnote in history, but it does remove the song from the list of Classics Without A Cover. |