Here's my weekly look at the Top 30 from 26 years ago. The plan is for these posts to go out at 17:30 on a Wednesday.
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 1998 with my verdict on each record:
This was the Top 40 debut for Sarah McLachlan and yes this was the same Sarah McLachlan who provided vocals on trance anthem "Silence" by Delerium. This ones not a dance record at all though, it's one of those boring acoustic guitar and vocals type records.
Verdict - Rubbish
Memories of the students union are coming back with this record. It was played pretty much every time I went there with the whole room drunkenly dance along to it. The intro to it is the same as "I Love Rock N Roll" meaning some people are expecting that when it starts to play and it's always amusing to see their reaction. Given how good it sounded after a few beers I'm going to give it half a mark.
Verdict - OK
28. Ultra - The Right Time (New)
The 3rd Top 40 hit for the boy band with instruments and it's low chart position was showing there was perhaps no demand for that sort of thing. That said their highest charting hit was yet to come so more on that when we get there.
Verdict - Rubbish
I would put this record in the category of bigger in America than in the UK. It reminds me a bit of "Delilah" by Tom Jones in terms of how the tune goes. It was the only Top 40 hit for Fastball. Another category I would put this record in is one that doesn't really go anywhere.
Verdict - Rubbish
This is one of those records that's hugely popular amongst dance music fans but largely ignored outside of that. I don't think I've ever met a dance music fan who doesn't like this record and I certainly count myself amongst those who like it. A highlight of the "Kiss Anthems 98" compilation.
Verdict - Good
In this era of me opening myself up to music that wasn't rave, Alisha's Attic were back with the lead single from their 2nd album. It reminded me that Alisha's Attic were something I liked and this single carried on the good form and led to me buying their 2nd album before I bought their debut album. It's also by far the best song on their 2nd album.
Verdict - Good
24. Binary Finary - 1998 (New)
This is where it all began with Binary Finary who had this tune remixed each year and the title changing accordingly. In addition to Dave Pearce's Dance Anthems on a Sunday night on Radio 1, Dave Pearce used to do the mix selector at 7pm on weeknights. This record reminds me more of that, partly because a tape recording I had of this has "You choose them, we mix them, the mix selector, on Radio 1" on it.
Verdict - Good
In the late 90s you were more likely to hear a Cypress Hill tune from their "Black Sunday" album than one of what was their current tunes. They had been evolving though and the music they were still making was solid. This record is an illustration of that.
Verdict - Good
This was a cover of a country record from the 70s by Johnny Rodriguez. It was the 3rd Top 40 hit for Lutricia McNeal making it 3 out of 3 to make the Top 10, though none of her other hits made it. One of those records that's made to say rather than be any good musically.
Verdict - Rubbish
The penultimate Top 40 hit of the 90s for the Lighthouse Family whose commercial peak now appeared to be behind them. As such you would hear this being played as much as their other hits. It's still a pretty soothing record though and the fact I've not heard it too many times helps it in a way.
Verdict - Good
This was the only Top 40 hit for Jennifer Paige and it was huge at the time. The chorus is pretty catchy but the verses sound like they were written just to fill the time between choruses. Overall though I find it pretty cringeworthy.
Verdict - Rubbish
Few would argue that this was the biggest dance record of 1998. It was everywhere at the time. It was a one off side project by Daft Punks Thomas Bangalter along with Alan Braxe. I wasn't impressed when I first heard it, I thought it was too repetitive. It did manage to grow on me eventually though after hearing it for maybe the 100th time.
Verdict - Good
The 3rd Top 40 hit for Steps. Whilst on their 2nd hit you wouldn't know any of the males were on it, on this song you wouldn't know anyone but Claire Richards was on it. Once again they've very much gone for the Abba sound and once again it's absolutely dreadful.
Verdict - Rubbish
When I first heard this I thought that Sweetbox were back with a follow up single. It wasn't though, it was Dee-Tah who was a Chilean rapper based in Sweden. The fact I thought it was Sweetbox along with how much I liked the Sweetbox record tells you how much I thought of this record. It's one that takes me to my own little world again.
Verdict - Good
One day in 1998 I got a lift from someone with a modified Ford Fiesta with a fancy stereo system. He turned it on and a tune with an electronic sounding intro came on. I was expecting it to turn into a dance record that you were likely to hear blasting out of these cars at the time, but no it was "To The Moon And Back" by Savage Garden. When "I Want You" by Savage Garden came on next it confirmed he was playing their album and not the radio. I found it hilarious, but at the same time I realised I actually quite like this record too.
Verdict - Good
Geri Halliwell had left the Spice Girls, but it was Mel B who was the first to start their solo career. this record was made for the biopic of Frankie Lymon and I could only imagine Frankie Lymon turning in his grave at this. Nothing good about this record at all.
Verdict - Rubbish
What this record now reminds me of was the time a friend of mine tortured me with it on the way home from a Nelly Furtado concert. He agreed to go to the concert without being familiar with Nelly Furtado and decided he didn't like it so I figure playing this repeatedly on the way home was his act of revenge. I do question why he had it on tape though, but then again his taste in music was very questionable.
Verdict - Rubbish
I'm not sure whether Bryan Adams was ever considered cool, but in the early 90s I do remember people at least giving him some credibility as a musician. By the late 90s though it seemed his sole aim was to target the pop market. This record is an illustration of that.
Verdict - Rubbish
12. 4 The Cause - Stand By Me (New)
The only Top 40 hit for Germany based American R&B group 4 The Cause who were all teenagers at the time. Best known for their association with R Kelly these days but I'll say no more on that. It's a cover of the Ben E King record and is fuckin terrible.
Verdict - Rubbish
This was the Top 40 debut for The Honeyz and British R&B music at its finest. The bit of the chorus where Celena sings "It's always been you" is second to none. I was a big Honeyz fan for a period of time and considered myself pretty clued up on them, but I've only just discovered now that this was written by Henry Binns of Zero 7.
Verdict - Good
10. UB40 - Come Back Darling (New)
UB40 were back doing what they were best known for, the cover version. This was the lead single from their "Labour of Love III" album and was their 35th Top 40 hit and last Top 10 hit to date. They'd long had that formula perfected. The original was by Johnny Osbourne.
Verdict - Good
In the summer of 1998 Robbie Williams appeared as a pundit for the World Cup where Martin O'Neill told him the he thought he'd struggle with a solo career because he couldn't write songs or play an instrument. His solo career had taken another step up with this record giving him his first number one. It samples "You Only Live Twice" by Nancy Sinatra and is simple but effective.
Verdict - Good
8. Ace Of Base - Cruel Summer (New)
Ace Of Base have gone back to the dance music formula with this record which was a cover of the Bananarama record. It would be their final Top 10 hit. They generally did a good job of making pop records that are easy on the ears, but I can't really take to this one. The fact I'm not keen on the original probably doesn't help.
Verdict - Rubbish
T-Spoon had previous had a Top 40 hit with "Coco Jamboo"....oh wait that wasn't T-Spoon. It was by German group Mr. President and T-Spoon were basically a Dutch version i.e. one male and two females with a very cheesy record. The lyrical content upset a few people which helped it to sell records.
Verdict - Rubbish
We'd had the solo Top 40 debuts as lead artists of fellow Fugees members Wyclef Jean and Pras. Now it was time the the debut of Lauryn Hill whose solo career was just as brief as the Fugees. Once again though it's something different and I remember I'd reached the point of openly admit to liking music that wasn't rave because I openly admitted to liking this.
Verdict - Good
Placebo managed to score their joint highest charting hit with their previous Top 40 record which was the lead single from their yet to be released album. They followed up with this, their 3rd highest charting hit also helped by the album still not being out by this point. Once again I'm not a fan.
Verdict - Rubbish
Imagine that you are a songwriter in a band with varying degrees of success over the years but still await you first US Number 1 or your first UK Top 10. Then 28 years later you finally achieve both with a song written by somebody else, not just anybody else, but Diane Warren who's written shit loads of hits for other people. That's exactly what happened to Steve Tyler. Aerosmith were described as a blues-based hard rock band when they formed in 1970 but by the 90s their style was more Rock Music for people who aren't into Rock Music. The guitars are so discrete in this song you would question whether this is even Rock Music at all even if Wikipedia describes it as being "Hard Rock". I'm not one to shy away from ballads by Rock bands but this seems a step too far. Despite this though, I can't help but like it.
Verdict - Good
When the Beautiful South revival happened in 1996 they had 2 hits where Jacqui Abbot did the entire lead vocals and 1 where Paul Heaton did. Around 18 months after that last hit they were back with a record where both singers shared lead vocals. On a personal note I remember walking one wet Sunday afternoon with this record going round my head. It was in a good way though.
Verdict - Good
After Brandy scored a number 2 with her duet with Monica, she teamed up with Mase and achieved the same again. It was also written by Rodney Jerkins, Fred Jerkins and LaShawn Daniels. I would however say it's probably the most obscure number 2 of the year as I don't remember it first time round. If I had then I may have thought twice about buying Brandy's "Never Say Never" album.
Verdict - Rubbish
The 2nd Top 40 hit and 2nd chart topper for B*Witched. On thing they had over their girl group rivals the Spice Girls was they went straight into number one with their first 2 hits whereas the Spice Girls climbed to number one with their first. To rub it in further, they knocked Spice Girl Mel B off the top. Musically though they were still just as bad as each other.
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 14.5/30, or 48%. We stay on that familiar score.
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