25 Years Since....November 1999

Wow 25 years since the last year of the 20th century, these were the tunes I was enjoying then:

Bob Marley Vs Funkstar De Luxe - Sun Is Shining

Bob Marley seems an unlikely name to have a big dance record in the summer of 1999 given he died 18 years prior and never lived to witness house music being a thing. Obviously this wasn't how the record sounded when he recorded it, Danish producer Funkstar De Luxe made it the record it became. 

The Honeyz - Never Let You Down

It had been just over a year since we had the Top 40 debut from the Honeyz. In that time we'd seen Heavenli leave the group and get replaced by Mariama. This was the first single to feature Mariama but a year later she would have left the group herself and Heavenli would return. This was all about the breakdown, when my and one of my housemates would have a conversation whilst listening to this we would be silent for the breakdown. Turns out lead singer Celena isn't a fan of this record, but I am.

Five - Keep On Movin'

Normally I would listen to tapes in my car at the time instead of the radio, but one Saturday morning for some reason I opted to listen to the radio instead. This appeared on the radio that day, it wasn't the first time I'd heard it but listening to it at that moment I realised this is actually a pretty good tune. You could probably say guilty pleasure, but seems like many agree.

Planet Perfecto - Bullet In The Gun

After reviving "Not Over Yet" by Grace earlier on in the year this was the follow up record for Planet Perfecto. It was all basically Paul Oakenfold using different names. Whilst a lot of the dance records I'm featuring at this latter stage of the year are tunes I remember from the summer that charted later, this is a record that I remember being after the summer was over.

Mauro Picotto - Lizard

Many of the Italian dance hits of the 90s had some involvement of Gianfranco Bortolotti. This record is no exception but this time the artist is Mauro Picotto who had previously been a writer on other hits Gianfranco Bortolotti had been involved in. This however was the first that felt like an authentic trance record.

Top 30 in 1997 Reviewed: Week 48

Here's my weekly look at the Top 30 from 27 years ago. The plan is for these posts to go out at 17:30 on a Friday.

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 1997 with my verdict on each record:

30. Gary Barlow - Open Road

This was the last solo Top 40 hit from Gary Barlow that anyone remembers. He seemed to have the edge over Robbie Williams at this point, but then Robbie Williams did "Angels" and Gary Barlow's solo career nosedived. On reflection people were probably noticing how bad his solo records were.

Verdict - Rubbish

29. Finley Quaye - It's Great When We're Together (New)

The 3rd Top 40 hit for Finley Quaye and we're into obscure territory. I would say his music is an acquired taste, it's pretty unique and he has a funny way of singing. It's not something I could really take to though.

Verdict - Rubbish

28. N-Trance ft Rod Stewart - Do You Think I'm Sexy?

Just when you thought N-Trance were back to making good music they come up with this crap. After Rod Stewart released so many singles that were covers, here's somebody else covering Rod Stewart for a change. It kept Rod Stewarts run of a Top 40 hit in every year of the 90s to this point going. 

Verdict - Rubbish

27. Pulp - Help The Aged

I don't think I've heard the whole song since 1997. What I have listened to many time though is Jarvis Cockers appearance on Da Ali G Show where Ali G makes it sound less crap. Therefore I can't get the Ali G rapping "help the motherfuckin aged" out of my head when I hear it. I'm inclined to agree it makes it sound less crap.

Verdict - Rubbish

26. Moby - James Bond Theme

Moby's career had taken a bit of a nose dive by this point. He'd released the album "Animal Rights" which was a move away from dance music and making guitar based music instead. I once assumed this to be on "Animal Rights" as it fits that story to me, but it wasn't.

Verdict - Rubbish

25. The Woolpackers - Line Dance Party (New)

A year after some Emmerdale actors charted with their novelty line dancing record, they were back again. With Steps in the charts doing the same thing I guess it sort of made sense, but they'd already had their time and it wasn't funny anymore. 

Verdict - Rubbish

24. Salt-N-Pepa - R U Ready (New)

The penultimate Top 40 hit to date for Salt-N-Pepa who still had more Top 40 hits to this point than any other rap act with this being number 13. They were now joined by LL Cool J in double figures whilst other rappers were starting to get more prolific with their Top 40 hits. They were starting to lose their grip.

Verdict - Rubbish

23. Ocean Colour Scene - Better Day

The wheels had fallen of for Cast in terms of Top 10 hits, but Ocean Colour Scene were still going strong with this being their 6th Top 10 hit in a row with only their debut "The Riverboat Song" failing to reach the Top 10. The difference though is that Ocean Colour Scene had some decent hits, I like this one.

Verdict - Good

22. Steps - 5, 6, 7, 8

I remember this record being played for what I think was the first time on Children in Need. It's a novelty line dancing mixed with eurodance record. Of course this turned out to be many hits for Steps. It goes without saying this song is shit. As a side note I have no problem with the cheesy holiday rep type image they're portraying here, it serves a purpose I suppose. The issue is them now being stuck up celebrities complaining about it but are happy to still milk it with their nostalgia tours.

Verdict - Rubbish

21. Sash! ft La Trec - Stay

I remember the intesting fact that "Encore Une Fois" was in French, "Ecuador" was in Spanish and "Stay" was in English but Sash! was German. Those first 2 hits were very commercial sounding and whilst I didn't mind them they weren't really my cup of tea. I'm not going to pretend this is anything other than commercial dance, but its found the formula to appeal to me.

Verdict - Good

20. Spice Girls - Spice Up Your Life

At the time I remember somebody saying that they actually like the new Spice Girls single even though they felt they shouldn't. I told him he was on his own there. It was the lead single from their 2nd album and given the whole Spicemania nonsense going on it was always going to top the charts.

Verdict - Rubbish

19. Mary J Blige - Missing You (New)

Yet another Babyface composition in the Top 40. This was Top 40 hit number 42 for Babyface as a songwriter. To put that into perspective, there were only 9 acts to have more than 42 Top 40 hits as artists at that point. Inevitably some would be good and some not so good. This is the latter. 

Verdict - Rubbish

18. The Firm ft Dawn Robinson - Firm Biz (New)

This is what Dawn Robinson did next after leaving En Vogue. She wasn't collaborating with the novelty act who did "Star Trekkin" though, it was a rap supergroup whose members included Foxy Brown. You'd think people would have had enough of Foxy Brown by this point.

Verdict - Rubbish

17. The PF Project ft Ewan McGregor - Choose Life

I was aware this record was from the "Trainspotting" film and that said film was out in 1996. I was therefore wondering why this wasn't released until the end of 1997. Turns out the film and soundtrack were so popular they released a second soundtrack of records that failed to make the first. I'd say there's a good reason this didn't make the first.

Verdict - Rubbish

16. Backstreet Boys - As Long As You Love Me

This was the 3rd number 3 for the Backstreet Boys. They'd also had a number 2 prior to this and all 4 of these record were the ones that had been written by Max Martin. An early sign that by the time I'm writing this post only Paul McCartney would have more Top 40 hits to his name as songwriter.

Verdict - Rubbish

15. Robert Miles ft Kathy Sledge - Freedom (New)

After a year away from the Top 40 Robert Miles was back with his final Top 40 hit to date. He'd decided to stick with the vocal record with Kathy Sledge. This record is nothing special, but I will say that Kathy Sledge is a better vocalist than Maria Nayler.

Verdict - OK

14. Hanson - I Will Come To You

The 3rd Top 40 hit and that means almost inevitably it's a ballad. It was also the last of their big hits, though they did manage a Top 10 comeback single in 2005. I'm sure this record wouldn't have made the Top 10 had it not been 1997 though.

Verdict - Rubbish

13. Shola Ama - Who's Loving My Baby (New)

The 3rd Top 40 hit for Shola Ama. Guess what? yes that's right, this is a ballad. I did buy the "Much Love" album on which this appeared based her 2 big hits and the fact it was only 50p. I've not really listened to the album much though.

Verdict - Rubbish

12. Hot Chocolate - You Sexy Thing

When I saw Hot Chocolate performing this on Top of the Pops in 1997 I thought there must have been renewed interest in this record due to the Clock cover. Turns out that wasn't the case. Instead it was because it was used in the film "The Full Monty". It's overplayed and a bit cheesy but I do quite like it. That's the song, never seen the film and unlikely to ever watch it.

Verdict - Good

11. Elton John - Something About The Way You Look / Candle In The Wind 1997

The biggest selling single of all time thanks to it being a charity record and a tribute to Princess Diana. I can picture the video clip of loads of people piling into the record shops as soon as it opened with one woman going and picking up a massive pile of CDs to buy. This blog is all about the music though and not the sentiment and musically it's not to my liking.

Verdict - Rubbish / Rubbish

10. Louise - Let's Go Round Again (New)

The post-Louise era of Eternal was more or less finished by this point, but the solo career of Louise carried on. It was probably helped by the fact that by this point she was the girlfriend and soon to be wife of footballer Jamie Redknapp. The is a karaoke version of the Average White Band record.

Verdict - Rubbish

9. Aaron Carter - Crush On You (New)

With the Backstreet Boys now established as the biggest American boy band, it was time to unleash the pop career of Backstreet Boys Nick Carters 9 year old brother Aaron Carter. It's a cover of the record by The Jets and is basically music by a kid for kids.

Verdict - Rubbish

8. The Prodigy - Smack My Bitch Up (New)

It had been a year since The Prodigy topped the charts with "Breathe" in the time that had passed since, the "Fat Of The Land" album had come out. Then came this single which was famous for it's notorious video. It distracts from the fact this record isn't very good.

Verdict - Rubbish

7. Barbra Streisand And Celine Dion - Tell Him

When it comes to dreary ballads, few can claim to be as prolific as Barbra Streisand and Celine Dion so it only seemed logical that they would do a collaboration. To top it off they did a song written by Walter Afanasieff, the man who wrote many of Mariah Careys records and Linda Thompson and David Foster who wrote "I Have Nothing" by Whitney Houston. I'm really struggling to think of anything that can sound worse.

Verdict - Rubbish

6. Lutricia McNeal - Ain't That Just The Way (New)

Lutricia McNeal is from America but she relocated to Sweden and launched her music career. Then the Swedish songwriters started taking over the pop world and this, her debut Top 40 hit became a worldwide success. It's always irritated me for some reason. 

Verdict - Rubbish

5. All Saints - Never Ever

When the All Saints first came about I was amazed to find that I liked their debut Top 40 hit. I was even more amazed to find I also liked this, their follow up. It's one of those records I'd felt I'd heard before but hadn't. As a result of me liking these first 2 singles I went on to do something I'd not done in a long time, bought an album that wasn't rave which was their debut album.

Verdict - Good

4. Natalie Imbruglia - Torn

I was watching Live & Kicking in 1994 and Natalie Imbruglia was a guest on the show having just left Neighbours. She was asked if she was planning to launch a music career to which she said no which shocked Andi Peters. 3 years later here she is launching a music career and I was shocked. I wasn't shocked to find it was shit though.

Verdict - Rubbish

3. Steven Houghton - Wind Beneath My Wings (New)

In 1996 we saw the beginning and end of the Top 40 career of singing actor John Alford. Then at the end of 1997 we had this, the Top 40 debut for another London's Burning actor Steven Houghton. A poor cover of a poor record.

Verdict - Rubbish

2. Aqua - Barbie Girl

I remember someone telling me there was a song about Barbie that had just come out which had some sexual references between Barbie and Ken. I thought he was taking the piss, but then I heard this. When I heard they were from Denmark, the same country as Whigfield, it made more sense. Remember the lyrics "I need you inside me tonight"?

Verdict - Rubbish

1. Various Artists - Perfect Day (New)

If you were watching the BBC in late 1997 then you would have heard this record many times. It seemed to be on between every TV show. It's a long list of singers who would sing a line each and I got absolutely sick of it.

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 4.5/30, or 15%. Back down to being the joint worst week of the 90s so far.

2003: The Good Old Days? - November

We're only 2 months into our lookback at 2003 and already it's looking like it was the year of pop music. One could argue it's all pop because it's the pop charts but what I'm talking about is boy bands, girl groups, former members of said groups and singers from reality shows have a huge presence in the charts. Alex Parks (Fame Academy), Atomic Kitten, Blazin Squad, Blue, Busted, David Sneddon (Fame Academy), Girls Aloud (Popstars: The Rivals), Javine (Popstars: The Rivals), Kelly Clarkson (American Idol), Kym Marsh (Popstars), Lemar (Fame Academy), Liberty X (Popstars), Mark Owen, Matt Goss, Mel C, Phixx (Popstars: The Rivals), Robbie Williams, Ronan Keating and Westlife all have new entries this month plus others (e.g. Britney Spears & Madonna) who can only really be considered as pop. The collective score for all these records is zero.

This brings us onto the worst record which goes to Alex Parks with "Maybe That's What It Takes". The only time I ever watched Fame Academy was the final show of the final series which Alex Parks won. One of my housemates at the time was impressed and bought her album and played it repeatedly. I thought it was a pile of crap personally.

The dance music of the month had a few sub genres such as house, trance and techno represented by a solitary record. However the only decent ones were "Born Slippy Nuxx" by Underworld and "Twist" by Goldfrapp whilst I thought "Stand Back" by Linus Loves was OK.

Rap wise we have Mark Ronson when he was good (well made a good record) with "Ooh Wee". There was also "Into You" by Fabolous which featured Tamia on the single version as opposed to Ashanti on the album version which didn't really make any difference truth be told and is a good record.

Speaking of Ashanti she had a record of her own in the Top 40 with "Rain On Me" which gets full marks. Outkast get full marks with "Hey Ya!" even if I did think what the fuck when I first heard it. Then there's full marks to R Kelly with the double a-side "Step In The Name Of Love / Thoia Thong".

One has to look at dancehall to find the best record which goes to Elephant Man with "Pon De River Pon De Bank". I bought the album and if anything I like the way I have no idea what he's saying on any of the records. Another Jamaican dancehall record is "Bounce Along" by Wayne Wonder and once again I own the album.

Pet Shop Boys had a new entry with "Miracles", not a popular one amongst fans but I like it. Dave Gahan from Depeche Mode has a solo hit with "Bottle Living" which is OK. Speaking of Depeche Mode, we have a cover of "Personal Jesus" by Johnny Cash but it's all about the other side of this double a-side "Hurt" which is excellent.

Here's a list of the records with the best on top, worst at the bottom and the good ones in green, OK ones in amber and rubbish ones in red (and in no particular order):

Score: 19%

Here's a look at the chart:

Again not great but it is the best November we've had so far.

Top 30 in 1998 Reviewed: Week 48

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:

30. Billie Piper - Girlfriend

The 2nd Top 40 hit for Billie Piper and her 2nd chart topper, though this would be her last. I do remember making a point at the time that her music was always going to have limitations given she was only 15 but then someone pointed out that she'd just turned 16. It's very much music for kids though.

Verdict - Rubbish

29. Alanis Morissette - Thank U

It had now been over two years since the excellent "Head Over Feet" by Alanis Morissette which is by far her best hit. This didn't have the same impact though, it's not a bad record but not one I'd go out and buy like I did her previous hit.

Verdict - OK

28. The Beautiful South - Perfect 10

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

27. George Michael - Outside

I can't say I was particularly keen on this song at the time. Listening to it now though it actually sounds better than I remembered it being. It's no "Careless Whisper" though.

Verdict - OK

26. The Cardigans - My Favourite Game

In 1998 I was a big fan of formula one to the extent that I'd get up at stupid hours to watch the grand prix live. The final grand prix of that season was the Japanese Grand Prix and at the end of the coverage they had a montage of the seasons highlights with this song playing over the top. It worked really well and probably helped me to like this record. Also as a result this record reminds me of Martin Brundle.

Verdict - Rubbish

25. Culture Club - I Just Wanna Be Loved

I don't remember Culture Club the first time round but I do remember the solo career of Boy George and had assumed the likes of "Karma Chameleon" were by him rather than Culture Club. In the 90s he became a House DJ which brought him a new set of fans, myself included, so I questioned why after becoming an established House DJ would he want to bring back Culture Club. That said this song isn't bad.

Verdict - OK

24. Sham Rock - Tell Me Ma

Oh dear, after a promising start I'm greeted with this rubbish. A children's song given a cheesy Irish Folk meets Euro Dance make over. I found this really irritating at the time and remember hearing it down the pub a lot but now this weird combination of music styles is reminding me of Ed Sheeran.

Verdict - Rubbish

23. Stars On 54 - If You Could Read My Mind (New)

Not to be confused with early 80s medley group Stars On 45. This was Amber, Jocelyn Enriquez, and Ultra Nate doing a disco version of the Gordon Lightfoot song and taken from the movie "54" about the Studio 54 nightclub. It's not great if I'm honest.

Verdict - Rubbish

22. Queen/Wyclef Jean  ft Pras And Free - Another One Bites The Dust

The record which put Hip Hop on the world stage, "Rappers Delight" famously sampled "Good Times" by Chic. The bassline to "Another One Bites the Dust" is basically the same and nearly 2 decades later it gets sampled on a Hip Hop track. Except this is more "Another One Bites the Dust" with a bit of rapping in-between. It's not bad, but the original Queen song is much better.

Verdict - OK

21. Eagle-Eye Cherry - Falling In Love Again

Neneh's brother with a song that isn't "Save Tonight" that surprisingly made the top ten. To me it just sounds like a watered down version of "Save Tonight", not for me.

Verdict - Rubbish

20. Mike Koglin - The Silence (New)

The Top 40 debut for Mike Koglin who was yet another trance producer from Germany. It's a remake of "Enjoy The Silence" by Depeche Mode but it's just the main riff being used so it's nothing like the cheesy trance remakes we became used to. Done in a good way.

Verdict - Good

19. Pras Michel - Blue Angels

This was the second hit for Fugees member Pras after "Ghetto Supastar (That Is What You Are)" which I liked. This follow up is a rework of "Grease" by Frankie Valli, doesn't quite have the same impact but it's ok.

Verdict - OK

18. Faith Hill - This Kiss

There is no doubt Country Music is hugely popular in America but us Brits have generally written it off as a load of American rubbish. The solution to crack the British market therefore is to give us a watered down version of Country Music like this. Can't say I'm a fan.

Verdict - Rubbish

17. 2Pac - Happy Home (New)

2Pac made it into double figures in terms of Top 40 hits when this record hit the Top 40. The only other rap acts to reach that milestone at that point were Salt-N-Pepa and LL Cool J. That's quite something when you consider he only had 2 Top 40 hits to his name when he died. It was from the yet to be released "Until The End Of Time" album and is a solid effort once again.

Verdict - Good

16. Clock - Blame It On The Boogie (New)

This was the final Top 40 hit to date for Clock which was a cover of the Mick Jackson record. Stu Allan said in an interview that Clock had run it's natural course when they called it a day. 13 Top 40 hits isn't a bad run and it did it's job of shifting records even if the music was a bit iffy. 

Verdict - Rubbish

15. James - Sit Down

This was the biggest Top 40 hit for James which originally made the Top 40 back in 1991. It was back in the Top 40 in 1998 with this remix from Apollo 440. I will concede it does liven up the record somewhat, but I've never thought much of the original and it was always going to be a difficult task to make it sound any good.

Verdict - Rubbish

14. Stereophonics - The Bartender And The Thief

This was the first Top 10 hit for Stereophonics and was also the first single that I identified as being a Stereophonics record. They had truly arrived then, and I remember a number of people loving them. Really did get what the fuss was myself.

Verdict - Rubbish

13. Touch And Go - Would You?

This was massive at the time but I don't think I've actually heard it since 1998. I remember this being around the same time as "Up and Down" by the Vengaboys which indeed come out a couple of weeks later. Both were overplayed, but I wasn't really keen on this in the first place and hearing it all the time made it annoying. It's less annoying 20 years later but I still don't like it.

Verdict - Rubbish

12. E17 - Each Time

We all remember Brian Harvey making his comments on Ecstasy at the start of 1997. He was sacked from the band but then was let back in and Tony Mortimer quit. They changed their name to E17, maybe Brian's discrete way of standing by the comments on ecstasy he made, and became an R&B group. The result is this song which is pretty good.

Verdict - Good

11. Aerosmith - I Don't Want To Miss A Thing

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

10. Ruff Driverz Presents Arrola - Dreaming (New)

The 3rd Top 40 hit for Ruff Driverz and their only Top 10 hit. Ruff Driverz were Chris Brown and Brad Carter who were both involved in the hardcore scene a year earlier before moving onto speed garage. With this record they've moved away from speed garage to flamenco inspired house music. They did a decent job of that too.

Verdict - Good

9. Shania Twain - From This Moment On (New)

The 3rd Top 40 hit for Shania Twain and she follows the path of many others with this being a ballad. It was originally written for Celine Dion but then Shania Twain decided to do it herself instead. Apparently it was written when she was bored at a football match and I really feel that boredom.

Verdict - Rubbish

8. Sash! ft Shannon - Move Mania (New)

Sash! score 4 number 2's and a number 3 with their first 5 Top 40 hits. This one, their 6th only made number 8 though. Yet it was the best one they did in my opinion. The Shannon on this record was the same Shannon of "Let the Music Play" fame. 

Verdict - Good

7. The Tamperer ft Maya - If You Buy This Record Your Life Will Be Better

The Tamperer ft Maya had scored a number one back in the summer by having the hook of an 80s song as the chorus. Follow that success they released a follow up which had the hook of an 80s song as the chorus, making number 3 this time. This wasn't as overplayed as its predecessor "Feel It" so I could tolerate it more.

Verdict - OK

6. The Corrs - So Young (New)

The Corrs had their first Top 40 hit remixed by Todd Terry, their 2nd by Tin Tin Out and then this their 3rd Top 40 hit remixed by K-Klass. The problem with writing a record about being so young is that it doesn't age very well with members of the band now being between 50 and 60. I was so young myself when this came out and continued to be for some time until I blinked and suddenly I wasn't anymore. It's not a bad record though, just not as good as it's predecessors. 

Verdict - OK

5. Steps - Heartbeat / Tragedy

This was the first chart topper for Steps and it's the Bee Gees cover that is arguably their best known song. "Heartbeat" was apparently sitting in the drawer for years before it was given to Steps. Both are terrible as usual.

Verdict - Rubbish

4. Vengaboys - Up And Down (New)

The Top 40 debut for the Vengaboys and little did we know what was to come from them. This is a catchy number that caught my attention initially and I didn't mind but very quickly it started to irritate me. It's cheesy, but nowhere near as bad as the crap we'd get from them in future releases.

Verdict - Rubbish

3. Celine Dion And R Kelly - I'm Your Angel (New)

I never saw this coming, a Celine Dion record that I actually like. OK that's not strictly true, I always knew this would come up at some point. It's not like Celine Dion had a complete makeover, this is a ballad still. A ballad though can be good if done well, and R Kelly was someone who could do it well.

Verdict - Good

2. Five - Until The Time Is Through (New)

This was the 5th Top 40 hit for Five. No rapping on this record, they've gone all Backstreet Boys. That can be explained by the fact this was written by Swedish songwriters Max Martin and Andreas Carlsson with the latter making his songwriting debut in the UK Top 40. At least they waited until the 5th record for the ballad, maybe that was on purpose given their name.

Verdict - Rubbish

1. Cher - Believe

This was number one for an eternity and I knew quite a few people who liked this. I however thought it was rubbish and still do. It set the scene for the music we'd come to expect from Cher for the forseeable future following the success of this.

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 11.5/30, or 38%. Same as last week.