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 1994 with my verdict on each record:
I remember going on holiday in 1995 and going to a restaurant the first night which was almost empty. As I dined it became apparent why nobody went there. The restaurant manager seemed to love this song, playing it multiple times that evening and encouraging diners to get up and dance to it with him. Needless to say I never went back. A boring depressing record.
Verdict - Rubbish
This was released to promote the greatest hits album "Big Ones". The video for "Crazy" is probably more famous than the song itself, least of all because it features Steven Tylers daughter Liv Tyler. I do believe I heard the song before I saw the video and always liked it. "Blind Man" is the lesser known of the 2 but again I can't fault it.
Verdict - Good / Good
I was expecting a cover of the Fleetwood Mac record, but it isn't. Then again Chris Rea had been the sole composer of all his Top 40 hits so why would he do a cover. This was his final Top 40 hit prior to "Driving Home For Christmas" making it's annual visit to the Top 40 at Christmas. It's a pretty boring record.
Verdict - Rubbish
The 2nd Top 40 hit for Eastenders actor Sean Maguire. It's a reggae style record and I wonder whether this became the inspiration for the pop career of John Alford who was another singing actor. Anyway this record is predictably awful.
Verdict - Rubbish
The good thing about acid jazz music is that more often than not it has a good groove that instantly gets you hooked. The rest of the music could literally be anything, but the groove keeps it going. I got that instant hook I described as soon as I started playing this.
Verdict - Good
The Top 40 debut for Corona. What I remember about this record what it came about was there was lots of eurodance about and I thought oh no not another sodding eurodance record. It summed up everything I was hating in music at the time. Listening now I have to say it's not aged very well.
Verdict - Rubbish
In 1994 I went on a ferry to Ireland and saw some guitars in the main area which implied we were getting some music which I was excited me. Then a couple of blokes started to play the guitars, but instead of the rock music I was expected it was traditional Irish music they played and I was disappointed. That experience was replicated when I first heard The Saw Doctors.
Verdict - Rubbish
The penultimate Top 40 hit to date for Rozalla which has Lamont Dozier and Rick Nowels amongst it's songwriters which implies it's across between the Four Tops and Belinda Carlisle. It isn't though, it's actually a great bit of dance music.
Verdict - Good
This was the lead single from the "Bedtime Stories" album where Madonna was jumping on the R&B bandwagon. The man behind this record was Dallas Austin. He's a credible producer but he's wrote a lot of crap too and this is an example of the crap he's written.
Verdict - Rubbish
The final Top 40 hit to date for Donna Summer. Her most recent hits at this point were from the Stock Aitken & Waterman era 5 years prior to this which were a bit crap. This time she'd turned to Clivilles and Cole and to be honest it wasn't much of an improvement.
Verdict - Rubbish
I remember a Champions League question on Popmaster one year was to name a China Black Top 40 hit that wasn't "Searchin". I think I could name all 3 of them. This was their 2nd Top 40 hit and doesn't hold the same nostalgia factor as it's predecessor.
Verdict - Rubbish
Salt-N-Pepa were still the only rap act who's number of Top 40 hits had hit double figures by this point with this being hit number 11. All 11 have been shit but this has to be the worst one of them all. I'm just thinking shut the fuck up.
Verdict - Rubbish
The only Top 40 hit for Lisa Loeb and also the only record of hers that I've ever heard. I don't want to ruin my perception by hearing any of her other songs. A great bit of 90s pop and they don't make them like this anymore.
Verdict - Good
I've said this before and I'll say it again, my view is that Sting was such a big name that he would release any old crap in the knowledge that people would buy it regardless. This bland record released to promote his greatest hits is a prime example of this.
Verdict - Rubbish
This was Elton John's other song from the "Lion King". It really just sounds like an inferior version of "Can You Feel The Love Tonight". As "Can You Feel The Love Tonight" only just scraped a half mark this record isn't going to get any.
Verdict - Rubbish
15. REM - Bang And Blame (New)
I think the best way to describe this record is "Losing My Religion" part 2. It does change in the chorus but that can't really disguise the fact this sounds an inferior version of "Losing My Religion". Seems like they were out of ideas by this point.
Verdict - Rubbish
I thought The Beautiful South were about to call it a day when this record came out. It's from their greatest hits album and the title implies this will be their last song. It wasn't though, they were far from finished. What I do remember about this record was you were more likely to hear it on Radio 2 than Radio 1 at the time. That wasn't cool back then.
Verdict - Rubbish
In order to promote her greatest hits album, Cyndi Lauper returned with a reggae style remix of her debut hit. It samples "Come and Get Your Love" by Redbone. It sounds very cheesy, even more so than the original which is really saying something.
Verdict - Rubbish
12. Warren G - This DJ (New)
The 2nd Top 40 hit for Warren G. It's easy to forget that despite Warren G being the half brother of Dr Dre, he was doing his own productions instead of rapping over those of Dr Dre. I get the impression this is the point he's making on this record.
Verdict - Good
Tom Jones to me was the 60s singer who never went away when I was younger. I was therefore surprised to learn this was just his 2nd Top 40 hit of the 90s and it would be another 5 years until he'd have his next Top 40 hit. I do remember this one and my initial thought was old duffer trying to be down with the kids. Maybe a bit harsh, but I still maintain it's not a very good record.
Verdict - Rubbish
The Top 40 debut for the Simon Cowell created boy band Ultimate Kaos who really were still boys when this came out. On paper this should be a really shit record and I'm not going to pretend for a minute that it has an ounce of credibility. At the same time though it's a guilty pleasure of mine.
Verdict - Good
I knew this record would be appearing soon after "Yesterday When I Was Mad" by the Pet Shop Boys hit the charts. This record came on the radio all the time when it sounded like it could be the Pet Shop Boys for the first couple of seconds. I hate it as a result, but now I can listen at my leisure I'm actually quite liking this.
Verdict - Good
The Top 40 debut for Sheryl Crow which did have quite an impact, though some seemed to be more into Sheryl Crow herself rather than her music. When these conversations were going on I knew the song but didn't know what Sheryl Crow looked like. Not a bad record and certainly better than the shite she did in years to come.
Verdict - OK
The majority of eurodance music that I've heard is shit. That's not to say I'm anti-eurodance, if a eurodance record is made well then it can be a really good record. This is an example of one of those records. No idea what exactly makes this so much better than your average eurodance record. I own the album and I remember it helping me through a stressful journey down the A1 one time.
Verdict - Good
I would call this a good representation of everything that was naff about the 90s. I think of it as the sort of record that Andi Peters would like. At the time I remember finding this record painfully slow and when I heard it years later I was reminded of what a poor record it was.
Verdict - Rubbish
I first came across this record via someone singing it at school. I heard her singing the "be my baby" part initially thinking she was trying to sing "I'll Be Your Baby Tonight", but it wasn't long before I was hearing this everywhere. Once the hype had died down I remember hearing it on holiday a couple of years later for the first time in while and was thinking how badly it had aged already, it was sounding far too slow.
Verdict - Rubbish
When I was a Honeyz fan I was asked by a few people whether I liked Eternal. I know where they were coming from with that question, but the answer was no. I've always lumped them in with the naff things of the 90s such as Andi Peters. I don't think I've heard this one since the 90s, but it's more boring than I remember it being. I guess it hasn't aged well.
Verdict - Rubbish
The 3rd Top 40 hit for R Kelly which was really his breakthrough record in the UK giving him his first Top 10. It was taken from his first album "Born into the 90s" which he did with Public Announcement which came out in 1991. A great record which was the only track I knew on said album prior to buying it.
Verdict - Good
I hated this record at the time. Bon Jovi had become the rock band for people not into rock music and releasing this ballad which became their biggest hit didn't do them any favours in that respect. A few years later though I realised that I actually like this song. I knew someone who had their greatest hits and I borrowed it just to tape this song which then got regularly played in my car.
Verdict - Good
I remember at the time learning that this was a cover of a 60s number one by The Equals. When I asked my mum if the original was a reggae tune she said no, there was no such thing back then. Well actually there was. I also remember people singing the "CD collection of Bob Marley" part thinking that was just a piss take not realising that was actually part of the lyrics. I think it's also worth pointing out that this also features Ali and Robin Campbell from UB40 who I think do more singing in it that Pato Banton. Anyway its a good bit of reggae pop.
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 11.5/30, or 38%. We're slipping again.
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