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 1992 with my verdict on each record:
30. KWS - Please Don't Go / Game Boy (New)
This was the first version of "Please Don't Go" that I heard. The original is by KC & the Sunshine Band, but it's basically a clone of a cover done the same year by Italian act Double You. I do like it, but the other tune "Game Boy" is better. Whilst "Please Don't Go" is a commercial dance record, "Game Boy" is very much a rave record.
Verdict - Good / Good
I remember this song and could clearly hear it in my head before playing it. But actually hearing it for the first time in 30 years it sounds a lot better than I remember it. It really couldn't sound any more early 90s which is probably why I find myself liking it.
Verdict - Good
This was a comic relief single that was around the time of the 1992 election. It's basically Bruce Dickinson doing a cover of "Elected" by Alice Cooper with Mr Bean doing a bit of comedy over the top of it. A dreadful record, but then that's the point.
Verdict - Rubbish
It's Swing Out Sister in the 90s. That's basically what I thought when this record came out, Swing Out Sister to me were 80s through and through and there seemed something quite odd about them having a hit in the 90s. Instead of moving with the times though, it was more back to the 60s with this being a cover of a 60s record by Barbara Acklin. That said I do quite like it. They would have one more Top 40 hit in 1994 with another 60s cover, "La La (Means I Love You)" but only made 37 so won't be featuring in these posts.
Verdict - Good
I've never been much of a Def Leppard fan. Even as a rocker in the early 90s they always seemed a bit wet. I did however think this record was a bit more interesting with the verses being a bit different. In fact I do remember randomly singing the verse but never the chorus. Despite the chorus being a bit crap though, the nostalgia factor makes me still quite like it.
Verdict - Good
This was her follow up to her big hit "Too Blind To See It". Like with many second hits in the 90s this sounds very similar to the first. They were also both written by Steve "Silk" Hurley. Normally the second hit sounds like an inferior version of the first, but I don't think that's the case here. I like both records and it's hard to say which one I prefer.
Verdict - Good
After 3 years away from the Top 40, Curiosity Killed the Cat were back with a shortened name and their final Top 40 hit to date. It seems a few 80s acts were having low charting and long forgotten 90s hits around this time, but this one made number 3. It's not for me though.
Verdict - Rubbish
The Top 40 debut for Praga Khan and his best known hit. It's certainly one of the anthems but it's not quite been played to death like other tunes so it's still good to listen to now. Like with a lot of the Belgian rave tunes that hit the Top 40 it has a harder edge to it than your average rave hit.
Verdict - Good
22. K-Klass - So Right (New)
This was the follow up to "Rhythm Is A Mystery". Although I do detect hints of it's predecessor in there, this certainly isn't a clone. In some ways it's better because it's long forgotten and therefore hasn't suffered from anthem bashing.
Verdict - Good
Although L7 don't come from Seattle, I would definitely consider this to be a grunge record. It was the Top 40 debut for L7 and record they're most famous for. In the UK though they are best known for their infamous appearance on The Word as opposed to any music. The fact the music is a bit rubbish may have something to do with it.
Verdict - Rubbish
This was the UKs Eurovision entry that year. The only previous Top 40 effort for Michael Ball had been "Love Changes Everything". What struck me about Eurovision when I first encountered it was how old fashioned the music all seemed. Picking someone known for musicals to represent the UK just strengthened that perception. The song itself sounds like something I could imagine Gary Barlow singing, which isn't a good thing.
Verdict - Rubbish
The lead track from this EP is "Never Stop". Like with their debut Top 40 hit, this was an older record and had been remixed by David Morales for the EP. You may expect it to be a house version, but it's still an acid jazz record that doesn't sound too different from the original. It's not as good as their debut, but that's because of how good their debut was.
Verdict - Good
In 1992 I was liking pretty much everything that got into the charts which explains why we've had decent scores week after week. I do however remember not liking this song. 30 years later I still haven't changed my mind.
Verdict - Rubbish
This record was written by Robert Clivilles and David Cole and therefore is more upbeat than the usual dreary ballads that Mariah Carey does. That doesn't mean it's a good record though, in-fact it's a very dull record for something that's quite upbeat.
Verdict - Rubbish
When Phil Collins started his solo career it was quite easy to distinguish between what was a Genesis record and what was a Phil Collins record. By the 90s though it was a lot more difficult to tell with this record being a prime example. It could have just as easily been a Phil Collins solo record. But I do generally like Phil Collins solo material.
Verdict - Good
When Club@Vision had their Ibiza special in 1999, they played an anthem from each year from 1989 onwards. Out of all the great tunes they could have picked for 1991, they picked this. I've always found this tune annoying, it's probably the over the top vocals that does it. This was the Top 40 debut for Ce Ce Peniston and she had more hits that you'd think.
Verdict - Rubbish
Although we were still in the Stock, Aitken & Waterman era of Kylie Minogue minus Aitken, this was a preview of what was to come in the future for Kylie Minogue with Brothers In Rhythm on remix duties. This one isn't even catchy though.
Verdict - Rubbish
Although they still had several more Top 40 hits, this is the last Top 10 hit to date for Soul ii Soul. When they'd last been in the Top 40 in 1990 there seemed to be a lot of acts who adopted their sound. Things had since moved on and so had Soul ii Soul with this comeback record, though at the same time it still sounds like a Soul ii Soul record.
Verdict - Good
I remember this video appearing on Top of the Pops and I was excited to hear a song from the band who appear last in the British Hit Singles book. The song sounded familiar though so I must have heard the Elvis version before this.
Verdict - Good
The penultimate Top 40 hit to date from Altern 8 who were probably the biggest rave act around at this point in time. Still sounds a tune made for the dance floor rather than the charts which is a good thing.
Verdict - Good
I'm a big fan of Dutch music of the 90s in general. The trouble I have with this record though is that it doesn't sound very Dutch or very 90s for that matter. By my reckoning this is the only Top 40 hit of the 90s by a Dutch act that is neither dance music or a novelty record. That doesn't make it a bad record though
Verdict - Good
This is the final Top 10 hit to date for Marc Almond. Like with all his other Top 10 hits, this is a cover with the original being by David McWilliams. As Marc Almond is a songwriter, this fact is probably quite annoying for him. I would say though that generally speaking I prefer his covers to his original compositions.
Verdict - Good
This is the only Top 10 hit to date for Carter The Unstoppable Sex Machine. I wouldn't say it's their best known record though, it's likely because they were now established and this was the lead single from what was their yet to be released new album. It's a decent tune too.
Verdict - Good
For some reason I associate Curtis Stigers with late 1992 instead of early 1992 which he had his two big hits, this being the second. It's not that it took me a while to discover him as I remember him appearing on Top of the Pops. The nostalgia factor means that I do quite like this record.
Verdict - Good
This reminds me of a time when I really cared about how the records I liked were doing in the charts. I loved this record at the time and it was probably my favourite song at that point in time. After it had spent 3 weeks at number 3 and hearing that Shakespear's Sister were no longer at number one I thought surely this was the record that had replaced it. I was therefore rather annoyed that it was Right Said Fred who topped the charts instead whilst this had fallen to number 4.
Verdict - Good
When Siobhan left Bananarama and formed Shakespear's Sister they had a Top 10 hit with "You're History" in 1989. By the end of 1991 it looked like they were history have failed to reach the Top 40 with any of their other singles. Then came this, which topped the charts and stayed there for what seemed like an eternity. I do think that the contrast between the vocals of Marcella and Siobhan is a good concept, but I've never been able to bring myself to like this record.
Verdict - Rubbish
I always imagined this record to be sung by someone who was old, but it was recorded in 1990 when Vanessa Williams would have been 26 or 27. Maybe I just thought it was music for old people, and it's inclusion on the Bisto adverts more or less confirmed that for me.
Verdict - Rubbish
I loved this record at the time and still do now. The odd thing is that this was before the scene split into happy hardcore and jungle and this sounds like it's gearing towards what would become jungle yet Slipmatt of SL2 would become one of the pioneers of happy hardcore. The only downside is that after "On A Ragga Tip 97" came out which was faster, it makes this record sound a bit slow.
Verdict - Good
One thing I've often said is that for an Iron Maiden song to be any good, it needs to be quick. Fortunately this record does live up to it's title and is a quick one. I wouldn't say this is one of the better known Iron Maiden singles, but it's their 2nd highest charting one.
Verdict - Good
I remember getting really annoyed that this record made number one and Mr Big hadn't. I absolutely hated this record as a result of that. However I've not really cared how the records I like do in the charts for the bulk of the last 30 years and I still think this record is crap and would have still thought that if Mr Big got to number one instead.
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%. All either good or rubbish this week.
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