Top 30 in 1991 Reviewed - Week 18

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 1991 with my verdict on each record:

30. Bananarama - Long Train Running

This Doobie Brothers cover would be the final Top 40 hit for Banararama as a trio. I think most people thought they were finished by this point, but they still had further Top 40 hits as a duo. Can't say I think much of this one.

Verdict - Rubbish

29. Roachford - Get Ready (New)

There was a time when I didn't know Roachford had other hits apart from "Cuddly Toy". I have no recollection of this or any other Roachford hits. There were 8 Top 40 hits in total and this was the 3rd. It's not bad but its no "Cuddly Toy".

Verdict - OK

28. Mike And The Mechanics - Word Of Mouth

When I first heard this I thought this was a melody I'd had going round my head for a long time. Not sure if that was because I'd heard a song with a similar melody before or whether I'd come up with the same melody in my head. As I'm still yet to hear a song with a similar melody I suspect its the latter. 

Verdict - Good

27. Nomad - Just A Groove (New)

The 2nd and final Top 40 hit for Nomad which isn't anywhere near as well known as the first. That does mean it hasn't been played to death in the last 30 years. Although still a dance record it does sound different to it's predecessor which bucks the trend of having a follow up that sounds the same as the debut. 

Verdict - Good

26. The Clash - Rock The Casbah

This originally made number 30 in 1982. This was rereleased following the chart topping rerelease of "Should I Stay Or Should I Go". Another factor could have been because it was the first song to be played on the Armed Forces Radio during the recent Gulf War. Good choice.

Verdict - Good

25. Cathy Dennis - Touch Me (All Night Long) (New)

The first solo Top 40 hit for Cathy Dennis. Maybe its my age, but to me there's something a lot more acceptable about pop music from this era than there was at the end of the decade. Cathy Dennis is a prime example of this even though by the end of the decade she was writing songs for the likes of S Club 7. The ironic thing of Cathy Dennis going on to become a successful songwriter for others is that her solo debut was a cover.

Verdict - Good

24. Gloria Estefan - Seal Our Fate

One of many of Gloria Estefan's 90s hits I have no recollection of. This one has more of a rock vibe and includes a guitar solo. It does sound like the sort of song you'd expect to hear on "Saved By The Bell", I could almost imagine Zack Attack doing this. Which is never a good thing.

Verdict - Rubbish

23. Frances Nero - Footsteps Following Me (New)

This is the only Top 40 hit from Ian Levine's Motorcity records. The label had a number of former Motown artists signed to it. Frances Nero was one of these, but she never had a hit when she was on Motown. It's a fantastic record, one of my favourites of the year.

Verdict - Good

22. Mock Turtles - Can You Dig It?

I loved this record at the time and me and a friend at school used to sing it all the time. It was the only Top 40 hit for the Mock Turtles. I did however get pretty sick of it years later when it was used as the holding music for Vodafone and I was on hold for a long time listening to this over and over. 

Verdict - Good

21. Seal - Future Love (EP) (New)

The lead song from this ep is "Future Love Paradise". It partly reminds me of 1991 and partly reminds me of driving along the M3 which I did whilst listening to Seals album a few years ago. As you've probably gathered, I like it.

Verdict - Good

20. Rod Stewart - Rhythm Of My Heart

I was aware that Rod Stewart had a song called "Sailing" and at the time I thought this was it given it was the last word of the chorus. Like "Sailing" though, this is also a cover and like every Rod Stewart cover I've heard, its shit.

Verdict - Rubbish

19. EMF - Children

I wonder if lead singer James Atkin was already preparing for life as a teacher as he is now when he wrote this song. This ones got a nice flow to it.

Verdict - Good

18. Dannii Minogue - Love And Kisses

First we had Kylie Minogue appear on Neighbours before becoming a singer. Then her sister Dannii Minogue starting appearing on Home & Away so it seemed almost inevitable that she'd end up being and singer too and here she is with her Top 40 debut. It was also inevitable that her music would be crap, which it is.

Verdict - Rubbish

17. N-Joi - Anthem 

This was originally released in 1990 but didn't make the Top 40 until it was reissued in 1991. Not sure whether anthem bashing was a thing at the time, but a title like that is almost pleading for it to be played in the many anthem bashing sets that would come later on. Still a decent tune though.

Verdict - Good

16. The Wonder Stuff - The Size Of A Cow

This song partly reminds me of 1991 and partly reminds me of discovering YouTube for the first time as this was a song I'd listen to quite regularly at the time. The line "you know that I've been drunk a thousand times" made me question whether I'd been drunk a thousand times. At the time I'm not sure I had, but 15 years later I'm pretty sure I've been drunk over a thousand times now.

Verdict - Good

15. Gary Clail On-U Sound System - Human Nature

I've not heard this one for a very long time. What strikes me hearing it again after all this time is how slow it is, I remember it being quicker than this. Fortunately I no longer have that mindset that a record must be fast in order to be good so therefore I like it. I still think it would be better if it was a bit quicker though.

Verdict - Good

14. Quadrophonia - Quadrophonia

Technotronic had been flying the flag for Belgium in the UK charts throughout 1990 but despite their name it's not really techno music. Fellow Belgians Quadrophonia were techno music though and this was their 1st of 2 Top 40 hits, though the 2nd won't be featuring as it only made 40. This is a classic that hasn't fallen victim to anthem bashing so great to hear.

Verdict - Good

13. Madonna - Rescue Me

This was taken from "The Immaculate Collection", her first greatest hits album. I remember this record but don't think I've heard it for 30 years so listening to it now, it's not quite the same as I remember it. I think its pretty boring.

Verdict - Rubbish

12. Simpsons - Deep Deep Trouble

The 2nd Top 40 hit from the Simpsons which entered the Top 40 before "Do the Bartman" had dropped out. My memories of this record was thinking great video but rubbish song. I've since discovered this was written by Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince which explains a lot.

Verdict - Rubbish

11. Blur - There's No Other Way

The Top 40 debut for Blur. I think this was one of those songs I knew without knowing who it was, I certainly never made the connection when I first came across them as a band a couple of years later. It very much sounds like a Madchester song by someone that doesn't come from Manchester, just doesn't quite live up to it in my opinion.

Verdict - OK

10. De La Soul - Ring Ring Ring (Ha Ha Hey)

This sample made such an impact that few seem to remember it was originally sung by Curiosity Killed the Cat around 18 months earlier. It would be the last Top 10 hit for De La Soul, but that doesn't really surprise me as I know De La Soul more for their albums than singles. 

Verdict - Good

9. Electronic - Get The Message

This was the 2nd Top 40 hit for Electronic and their first Top 10. I find it ironic that Bernard Sumner would call his side project Electronic when this song seems much less electronic than your average New Order song. But its good to hear something a bit different rather than a New Order mark 2.

Verdict - Good

8. The Waterboys - The Whole Of The Moon

This originally came out in 1985 but was rereleased in 1991 ahead of their upcoming greatest hits album and ended up being their biggest hit. This is one of those records I've heard plenty of times without really taking any notice, but listening to it just now I realise that I quite like it.

Verdict - Good

7. Zucchero ft Paul Young - Senza Una Donna (Without A Woman)

I originally thought they were singing "sense of Madonna". It was the Top 40 debut for Zucchero and the final Top 10 hit for Paul Young. This was originally by Zucchero on his own and all in Italian. I regarded this as music for old people at the time, but now I'm probably as old as these old people were back then so I have no shame in liking it.

Verdict - Good

6. Vic Reeves And The Roman Numerals - Born Free

This one completely passed me by at the time as I have no recollection of Vic Reeves as a singer until he did "Dizzy" later on in the year. Put it this way, I can understand why "Dizzy" got to number one but this didn't.

Verdict - Rubbish

5. Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark - Sailing On The Seven Seas

This was the first OMD record to hit the Top 40 for 5 years. By now it was just Andy McCluskey on his own. On paper this should be 80s band trying to squeeze the last bit of life out of them in the 90s, but this was actually their joint highest charting hit. At the same time, because their last hit prior this came before my music memories began, I had no idea they were even around in the 80s at the time. 

Verdict - Good

4. James - Sit Down

At the time I thought the band Hello James had shortened their name to just James. Turns out I was thinking of Halo James who were a completely different band. This is one of those records everybody seems to like except me. To me it manages to be both annoying and boring at the same time.

Verdict - Rubbish

3. KLF ft The Children Of The Revolution - Last Train To Trancentral (New)

One thing I've realised whilst doing these reviews is that I lot of the music I listened to on YouTube when I first discovered it was from 1991. This was one of those tunes I'd regularly listen to. I've always liked it, but when I was listening on YouTube all those years later I realised just how good this tune really is. If I had to pick my favourite KLF single then this would probably be it.

Verdict - Good

2. Chesney Hawkes - The One And Only 

Believe it or not, I've actually seen Chesney Hawkes in concert. He played at the students union at university one Saturday night. The set consisted of a bunch of covers, then he announced he was going to play his last single, not this one though, one that never made the charts. After a few more covers he played this at the end of the set to a massive cheer. It is a bit crap though, but it found it's place at many cheese nights. 

Verdict - Rubbish

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

The most recent Top 40 hit for Cher prior to this was "Just Like Jesse James", a song I liked. Therefore my impression of Cher at the time was quite positive. Then this came out and I thought what the fuck is this. It's a cover and I'm not overly keen on the original but it's tolerable. This version just makes me angry though, absolutely awful.

Verdict - Rubbish

If we give the records which were good 1 point each and those which were OK half a point, the final score is 19/30, or 63%. Some cracking new entries this week.