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. Go West - Faithful (New)
This is a song my memory places in 1993 for some reason. Quite strange seeing how this is an 80s band doing a song that sounds like it belongs in the 80s. Go West are one of those bands who have always irritated me and this record is no exception.
Verdict - Rubbish
Yet another Gloria Estefan hit of the 90s I have no recollection of. It was a charity single where proceeds were donated to victims of Hurricane Andrew. It's a ballad and a pretty boring one.
Verdict - Rubbish
28. Liberation - Liberation (New)
Liberation was an alias of The Rapino Brothers who would go on to have success as pop music producers most notably for Take That. Don't let that put you off though, this is a house record and a pretty good one too.
Verdict - Good
This was the 2nd Top 40 hit for both artists and perhaps an unlikely Top 40 hit too. I can only imagine this was riding on the success of the opera influenced Olympic records which had recently charted. Not the sort of thing I would normally listen to, but I quite like it.
Verdict - Good
A collaboration between John McEnroe's wife and the drummer from the Eagles. There was a place I once worked at that would have the same tape on repeat for a period of time and this was on that tape. I'm not sure I'd heard it prior to that, but I don't think I've heard it since said job and have no desire to hear it ever again.
Verdict - Rubbish
After Erasure did their Abba covers, here's an Abba tribute band doing Erasure covers in the style of Abba. It really is as awful as it sounds, but in a way I think that was the whole point.
Verdict - Rubbish
Having very much heard of Bob Marley and seeing he had quite a few hits from looking in my British Hit Singles book, I'd not knowingly heard a Bob Marley record until this song came out. There was something oddly familiar about it. Obviously it was recorded long before it came out but this was the first time it had seen light of day.
Verdict - Good
The 2nd Top 40 hit for Felix which isn't as well remembered as his first. It has more of a eurodance feel to it than its predecessor which may explain why it enjoyed more success on the continent. Fortunately it doesn't cross the line into annoying cheesy territory that many eurodance records do.
Verdict - Good
This was the 2nd solo Top 40 hit for Dina Carroll which peaked at the same position as the first. This time the songwriting duties went to Robert Clivilles and David Cole. The result is something that doesn't sound all that different to her previous effort.
Verdict - OK
A record from 1967 which was given a new lease of life in 1992 when it featured on the Levi's advert. Erma Franklin was the sister of Aretha and had more or less retired from the music business long before this. It's the only record of hers I've ever heard so my impression of her as a singer is a positive one.
Verdict - Good
This record seems a bit out of place in 1992. It's one of those I feel I've always known but it's most likely that when I first heard it in 1992 I just assumed it was an old record. It was the 2nd single released for his greatest hits album, the first not making the Top 40 and prior to that he hadn't been in the Top 40 since 1986. Quite surprisingly he was still having Top 40 hits as late as 2004 but this is the last one I actually remember. It's your typical naff Lionel Richie record.
Verdict - Rubbish
The Farm are best known for "Groovy Train" and "All Together Now" and many would struggle to name a 3rd record of theirs. Chart wise this was the 3rd most successful and yes it's a cover of the Human League record. On paper this should be awful and listening to it I can confirm it is awful.
Verdict - Rubbish
Sunscreem weren't your typical dance act. Normally it would be one or two people using the latest technology to make a tune whereas Sunscreem were a group who played instruments. With technology changing the way it does, many dance tunes from 1992 were already sounded dated by the late 90s. This tune though doesn't even sound dated now. It's a great example to show those into EDM nonsense what proper dance music is.
Verdict - Good
It's funny that Prince wrote a record called "My Name Is Prince" and then the following year he would change his name to a symbol. This is the closest I've heard Prince come to making a rap record. He seems pretty angry in it too. Somehow it works.
Verdict - Good
I remember this one being played on Top of the Pops and having a ridiculously long guitar intro. Once the singing finally happened I realised that the guitar intro was the best bit of the song.
Verdict - OK
Being a London resident, I pass though Baker Street a lot and still to this very day I get this record going through my head more often than not when I do so. It was the Top 40 debut for Undercover and their best known. I'd not heard the Gerry Rafferty original at the time so this is my default version.
Verdict - Good
Believe it or not, this record failed to reach the Top 40 when first released in 1979. The original recording had Bon Scott on vocals but this live version had been recorded at Donington the previous year and therefore had Brian Johnson on vocals. I personally think his singing sounds like a cat being strangled therefore this version is worse than the original, and I don't like the original.
Verdict - Rubbish
I used to own the "Countdown to Extinction" album this was on, but always found the album to be a disappointment because for a band who were supposed to be really heavy didn't sound heavy at all.
Verdict - Rubbish
In 1992 The Orb released the album "UFOrb" but this tune wasn't on it or any of their albums for that matter. Given the standard of dance music in the charts in the modern era it's hard to believe that interesting tunes like this could make the Top 40 back in the day.
Verdict - Good
To promote their greatest hits album Simple Minds released this double a-side of older songs. "Love Song" was first released in 1981 but failed to make the Top 40 the first time round. "Alive and Kicking" made number 7 when released in 1985 but goes one place better here. Given that their 1991 efforts were nowhere near as good as their earlier efforts, this re-issue is very much welcome. "Alive and Kicking" is amongst my favourite Simple Minds record.
Verdict - Good / Good
In 1992 there were just 2 rap records which made the Top 10, "Jump" by Kris Kross and this record. It was the Top 40 debut for Arrested Development. It was the weird noises that I always liked about this record at the time.
Verdict - Good
I think we're reaching the point here where the rules were getting established in that if you were female you liked Take That and if you were male you didn't. I should point out I no longer subscribe to that way of thinking, I like what I like. What I will say about this song is that it showcases Gary Barlow's credentials as a songwriter. It's a proper song, nothing particularly cheesy about it unlike their previous efforts. That doesn't mean I like it though.
Verdict - Rubbish
One memory I have of this record is that someone who I would regularly get lifts from would turn the radio off when this would come on. At the time I thought they simply could stand it but it's more likely they knew what the lyrics meant and didn't want kids listening to it. I still managed to hear it a lot though not knowing what the lyrics really were. I liked it because it's a good tune.
Verdict - Good
This was the beginning of Sweden taking over the music world. Dr Alban was a Nigerian based in Sweden and wrote this with Denniz Pop who founded Cherion Studios. There were a number of songwriters who have since been very prolific with their songwriting including Max Martin who at the time of writing only has Paul McCartney ahead of him in terms of most Top 40 hits as songwriter. Given how much dreadful music has been created as a result of this I should hate it. However it probably would have still happened with or without this record and I do like it in a 90s nostalgia sort of way.
Verdict - Good
The era of toytown techno in the Top 40 was now over and rave was giving way to eurodance. The theme for the novelty side of eurodance was versions of computer game music with this being the first. Quite surprisingly the man behind this record was Andrew Lloyd Webber. I prefer this to pretty much everything else he's done but that's because I really don't like his music.
Verdict - Rubbish
5. Bon Jovi - Keep The Faith (New)
This was the comeback single for Bon Jovi after 3 years away from the Top 40. The big news surrounded this at the time though was that Jon Bon Jovi had a haircut. Music wise I loved this record at the time and there came a point when Bon Jovi were my 2nd favourite band.
Verdict - Good
This was single number 28 for Madonna which was the lead single off what was only her 5th album. It somehow manages to be both irritating and boring. It was controversial at the time and the video was banned on MTV, but it's really a nothing song.
Verdict - Rubbish
This is a tune which reminds me of the beginning of a school year. I loved this tune at the time and still do. It was the 3rd Top 40 hit for Bizarre Inc but it was a change in direction compared to it's predecessors. The story is that the record label wanted them to make more of a pop record and this was the result.
Verdict - Good
When it comes to Boyz II Men I can't look past the comparison that's often made between them and Jodeci which is basically Jodeci were the bad boys of R&B whereas Boyz II Men were the clean cut group. Behind the scenes though Babyface was one of the writers and he has also written for K-Ci & Jojo of Jodeci. That doesn't mean this song is good though.
Verdict - Rubbish
I recall a few years ago watching a "Forgotten Gems of the 90s" show on one of the music channels. It was a welcome change to the usual anthem bashing you get on retro channels. If memory serves me correctly this was number one. My initial thought was is this really forgotten, but then I guess I've not heard it much since the 90s. That may be a reason why I still like it.
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 17/30, or 57%. I thought the score would go down given some of the new entries, but its stayed the same.
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