Sunday 1 May 2022

Top 30 in 1992 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 1992 with my verdict on each record:


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


My memory of Texas was them doing "I Don't Want A Lover" in 1989 then disappearing until 1997 when they reappeared with "Say What You Want". Turns out they had a few minor hits in between, none of which I remember. I did however become aware of this Al Green cover when it appeared on a love songs compilation around 20 years ago. My thoughts were why would you put this on there instead of the Al Green version.

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


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


Kim Wilde in the 90s? That's right, this was her first Top 40 hit of the 90s and it wasn't her last. It was written by Rick Nowels and Ellen Shipley who had written several hits for Belinda Carlisle. As a result it sounds like it should be a Belinda Carlisle record but has Kim Wilde singing on it instead.

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


This was the 2nd Top 40 hit for The Black Crowes. Surprisingly their debut "Hard To Handle" only made number 39 the previous year. This is their highest charting single to date. I'm liking the rock and soul combination here. 

Verdict - Good


As a rule I find it more difficult to identify a tune by the intro than by the chorus. With this record though it's the opposite. The intro with chimes from the clock is how I remember it, the rest of it is forgettable eurodance cheese.

Verdict - Rubbish


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


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


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


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


The lead track from this EP is "Getting Through". I'd say there's more emphasis on the guitar on this record than their previous efforts. I want to like this record, it sounds like an EMF record and I can totally understand why they went in this direction. Doesn't quite have enough about it though.

Verdict - OK


This was the final Top 40 hit from the "Pornograffitti" album and in my opinion the best one. It's a ballad, but given the acoustic nature of "More Than Words" and "Hole Hearted" it probably hasn't received the same level of criticism as other rock ballads get from the purists. I'm not a purist though and sometimes I think the rock ballads are better then the heavier ones.

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


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


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


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 used to get stick for saying my favourite Metallica song was "Nothing Else Matters". People were baffled I didn't prefer any of the heavier ones. One person even speculated it was the only Metallica song I knew. I stand by this opinion though, it is my favourite Metallica song.

Verdict - Good


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


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 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


This song is probably better remembered for having Naomi Campbell in the video than for the actual song. It was written and produced by Teddy Riley and it was around this time he took The Neptune's under his wing. Part of me wonders whether it was really The Neptune's who produced this as it does very much sound like them. Then again maybe this provided inspiration for future Neptune's productions.

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


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


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 originally failed to chart when first released in 1983. It was re-released to promote a compilation album. The Sisters Of Mercy were a band I never really liked but tried to like because they were one of the cool bands to like amongst the rock crowd at school. Then they were considered to be 80s crap and no longer cool which to me was a relief. 

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


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 18.5/30, or 63%. Standards are slipping, but we've not had a bad score for 1992 yet.
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