Here's my weekly look at the Top 30 from 30 years ago. The plan is for these posts to go out at 17:30 on a Sunday.
Here is the
Top 40 in full.
Obviously some of the records will be the same as last week so therefore the review will be the same for these. I've indicated which ones are new so you can skip the others if you read last weeks post.
Once again my opinions are inevitably going to differ from other people, but I'm not trying to convince anyone something is good or rubbish, I'm simply giving my opinion.
So this is the top 30 from this week in 1990 with my verdict on each record:
Del Amitri have a couple of good records, but also have a lot of generic rubbish. This one falls into the latter, there is just nothing to it. Take away the bit where he sings the title and it could be anything.
Verdict - Rubbish
After a couple of hits with MC Tunes, 808 State released this double a-side by themselves. Despite the heavy guitar presence on "Cubik" it's still very much a dance record, though maybe it could get the rock crowd interested, but great tune nonetheless. "Olympic" is perhaps best known as the theme tune to The Word, that's how I first came across it and always liked it.
Verdict - Good / Good
Another Jimmy Somerville record that's a cover, this time of a Bee Gees record. This is done in a reggae style and I think this was the first version I heard. It's not bad.
Verdict - OK
Captain Hollywood got his name after being based in Germany as a captain in the US Army. He formed Twenty4Seven with Dutch producer Ruud Van Rijen and this was their debut single. It's not a cheesy as your average euro dance tune.
Verdict - OK
When I first heard that this song existed, I wondered if it was the theme music to the breakfast TV show on ITV. I was quite disappointed when I heard it wasn't as I quite liked that theme tune. However that disappointment was short lived when I heard this song. It's quite funny how it has the line "10 long years and we've still got her" in reference to Margaret Thatcher, then a month or so later she resigned.
Verdict - Good
The normal way to wear a cap was with long bit to the front, but it was cool to wear a cap backwards. EMF singer James Atkin on the other hand wore his cap to the side. Everyone was singing this at the time, but I don't recall the cap wearing style catching on. I was one of those singing it, good record.
Verdict - Good
Take 3 soul singers in their 40s, put them together with a guitarist to make dance music. That was basically the formula of Londonbeat. Amongst it's singers was Jimmy Helms who had a hit in the 70s with "Gonna Make You An Offer You Can't Refuse". It wasn't the debut hit for Londonbeat, but it was their most successful and best known. I was reminded of this tune on the music channels about 15 years ago and then saw their greatest hits in the record shop on offer, and bought it.
Verdict - Good
Also known as the "you're a fool boy" song to me. It's based on "You Can't Always Get What You Want" by the Rolling Stones. It's actually more uplifting than I remember it, only just though. It's bordering on good, but doesn't quite do it for me.
Verdict - OK
I remember when I first heard this record, I thought Jason Donovan has finally made a decent record. Listening to this for the first time in 30 years I'm thinking who was I trying to kid, this is rubbish. I guess as far as Jason Donovan records go this is probably as good as it gets, but it's still your usual Stock Aitken & Waterman rubbish.
Verdict - Rubbish
Just in case we hadn't had enough of Technotronic in 1990, here they are with a megamix. It's just overkill, I feel just doing these reviews I've heard too much Technotronic.
Verdict - Rubbish
The only Top 40 hit for The La's which originally was released in 1988 but failed to make the Top 40. They were always a band I associated with Madchester for some reason, even though they were from Liverpool and didn't really sound like the other bands musically either. In the days you could go into Our Price and listen to a CD at the counter, I once listened to The La's album simply because I wanted to listen to this song. I didn't bother with the rest of the album, I simply listened to this.
Verdict - Good
A-ha have had quite an odd career in a way. To some their only song is "Take On Me", even though their singles discography also includes a number one and a James Bond song. Regular listeners of Popmaster will also know their chart career went beyond the 80s, with questions about their 90s/00s hits being asked more regularly than one would expect. This is the first of those 90s hits, a cover of the Everly Brothers song. Recently I did ask myself whether I like any A-ha song apart from "Take On Me", the answer is no.
Verdict - Rubbish
Another Roxette record that failed to reach the Top 40 when released the previous year, but made the Top 40 when re-released in 1990. At the time this was probably my favourite Roxette record to date, but I prefer "Listen To Your Heart" these days. Still like it though.
Verdict - Good
The 2nd Top 40 hit who's title is a colour followed by the word velvet and 2nd to making number two, following "Black Velvet" earlier on in the year. This song was written in 1950 and this version originally recorded in 1963, but it never made the UK Top 40. It's appearance in a Nivea advert prompted a re-release in 1990 and it finally charted. I'm not sure if I was aware it was an old song at the time, but I liked it.
Verdict - Good
The critics likened this to Jive Bunny. I guess it's the same idea, put a bunch of old songs into a megamix. Except Status Quo did it with instruments and made the songs sound like Status Quo. It would be their last Top 10 hit, but there had plenty more Top 40 hits to go.
Verdict - OK
The only Top 40 hit of the 90s for Paul Simon. The only solo hit from Paul Simon that I like is "You Can Call Me Al", the rest are pretty dull.
Verdict - Rubbish
Like their previous single "Step On", this was produced by Paul Oakenfold and Steve Osbourne. It also peaked at number 5. Again it's a good dance/rock crossover record.
Verdict - Good
A remix of a record that originally charted in 1985. The Cure have had some pretty good tunes over the years, and this is one of them. I do prefer the original admittedly, but at least they've kept the good bits in this remix for me to still like it.
Verdict - Good
This song was a decade or so old by the time it charted. It's the unofficial miners anthem, and I assumed it charted thanks to the end of Margaret Thatcher's reign as Prime Minister, but this was actually a month or so before that happened, so I have no idea why it charted at this particular time. Lyrically it's good, but musically it's just not my cup of tea.
Verdict - Rubbish
I've said this before and I'll continue to say this, football and music just don't mix. Here is Gazza attempting to rap on a remake of a 70s record with the 70s band who made it. Absolutely terrible.
Verdict - Rubbish
Before I first heard "Saturday Night" by Whigfield, a girl at school kept singing the words "be my baby". I thought she was trying to sing this, but wondered why as it was 4 years old by then. This was originally a Bob Dylan song covered in typical UB40 style. Which probably explains why I like it.
Verdict - Good
A cover of the Earth Wind & Fire record. I used to like it, but over time it's started to make me cringe. Had I not bought a Black Box CD several years ago I may have still liked it, but I just can't listen to it anymore.
Verdict - Rubbish
Confession time. At the time I thought Maria McKee and Mariah Carey were the same person, either I thought this song was by Mariah Carey or I thought Maria McKee did "Vision Of Love". Both were ballads and their names are similar(ish) and both were not well known prior to these records. I do feel I was being a bit harsh on Maria McKee though, this is nowhere near as dreary as your average Mariah Carey record. I wasn't keen on it at the time, but have got to like it more thanks to the Happy Hardcore versions a few years later. I don't like it that much though.
Verdict - OK
This song had an American version and a European version. As this is the UK charts I'm going to be reviewing the European version. It was written by L.A. Reid and Babyface and remixed by Yvonne Turner. It's more dancey than the American version, presumably because that's what was more popular in Europe at the time. Doesn't really work for me though.
Verdict - Rubbish
This was the 5th single from the "Runaway Horses" album. The 1st, "Leave A Light On" peaked at 4, but the next 3 failed to reach the Top 30. This one fared better than the previous 3. I remember my young self wondering how does one dream the same dream as somebody else? I don't mind this record, but it's not one I particularly like either.
Verdict - OK
Ever wondered what Craig Logan did after he left Bros? Well here's your answer, he was co-writer on this record. Kim Appleby was of course one half of Mel & Kim, something I didn't realise at the time. Mel had died earlier on in the year and this was Kim's solo debut. She no longer had involvement with Stock Aitken & Waterman, which explains why I quite like this.
Verdict - Good
I've noticed that there are quite a few old records hitting the charts around this time, so in a way it's quite funny that Kylie Minogue would release a record called "Step Back In Time". It's the usual Stock Aitken & Waterman type crap.
Verdict - Rubbish
Originally a number one in 1986, this charted again in 1990 thanks to it featuring on the Peugeot advert. For obvious reasons I keep thinking of Berlin as being a German band, but they're not, they're American. This song basically launched and killed their career at the same time. It was the only song of theirs people wanted to hear but it was also the only song of theirs they didn't write, that honour going to Giorgio Moroder and Tom Whitlock. Never been a fan of this song myself.
Verdict - Rubbish
This was the only number one hit for The Beautiful South, quite surprising really given they have better known songs. This song really irritated me at the time, I can tolerate it a bit more now but still don't like it. Despite it's success, The Beautiful South would have another Top 10 hit until 1996 after this.
Verdict - Rubbish
I remember seeing this video on Top of the Pops and what confused me was that they were called The Righteous Brothers but there was only one of them. I soon discovered there were two of them, but only Bobby Hatfield featured on this particular record. It was originally released in 1965 but was re-released thanks to it featuring in the movie "Ghost". There are lots of versions of this song, but this is the best one in my opinion.
Verdict - Good
If we give the records which were good 1 point each and those which were OK half a point, the final score is 15/30, or 50%. The slip under 50% was temporary.
