25 Years Since....August 1992

Ok 25 years and 1 day to be exact, I think even the Barcelona Olympics seemed to last longer than 2017 has so far. Here is what I was enjoying back then:
Freddie Mercury & Montserrat Caballé - Barcelona

We began with the song of the Barcelona Olympics called Barcelona. 1992 was my year as a Queen fan and that included solo material such as this.

It originally came out in 1987 but was released again in 1992 for the Olympics. I don't think I've ever followed an Olympics as closely as I followed this one and watched it on an almost daily basis. As such I think it's safe to say this was the song I heard the most during August 1992 but I don't recall ever getting sick of it.

Later on in life I thought this would be the perfect song to send to Man United fans after they lost in the Champions League final to Barcelona!

Jon Secada - Just Another Day

In 1991, Jon Secada co-wrote and sang backing vocals on Gloria Estefan's "Coming Out of the Dark". Then in 1992 that's exactly what he did with this record.

I love the way the record begins with the piano and sounds like its going to be a happy tune, then he starts singing and you realise it isn't. There's no build up in his singing, he comes straight out with it but somehow manages to give it more welly in the chorus, genius.

He is incorrectly remembered as a one hit wonder, but he had a further four singles including "Angel" which I like just as much as this and yes it's not a happy song either.

Undercover - Baker Street

Yet another cover I heard before the original, a record from a group who's Top 40 hits are all covers.

At the time I do recall thinking it was a bit strange seeing a group on Top of the Pops with a saxophone player, but I liked it.

They managed a further two hits and I just assumed they went back to the day job after that. However it turns out they had several less successful covers and were still going as late as 2004.

Even more remarkable is that band member Steve Mac has written and produced many many pop hits since the 90s and still continues to this very day including being one of the writers on Ed Sheerans "Shape Of You" this year. Look at the list on his Wikipedia page, it's huge. Not bad for someone who was in a covers band.

Felix - Don't You Want Me

A record that I loved at the time and still like it now, although I am a bit sick of it now due to it's "anthem" status.

Like Jon Secada, people remember Felix to be a one hit wonder but he actually had a further two Top 40 hits with "It Will Make Me Crazy" and "Stars".

Thunder - Low Life In High Places

Thunder, the band all rock fans of a certain age seem to love and that everyone else say's who the hell are they? there are some exceptions to that rule including myself.

They do however have 18 Top 40 hits to their name, though none of them reached the Top 10. I think this record caught my attention at the time because I interpreted the singer moving the microphone around on it's stand was him attempting to do a Freddie Mercury with it but it was too big for him to successfully do it.

I did like the song itself too and have grown fonder of it from getting older and understanding the lyrical content of it and it's particularly relevant in this day and age.

Top of the Pops: 31/08/2017

Here is the Top 40 Countdown

No full show this week, just six eligible records this week. We have the same number one from Dua Lipa for a second week. The number two is one of the artists on "Despacito", Justin Bieber, with a new entry.

None of the climbers are eligible this week, they are either not at their peak positions or were on last week so it's all new entries plus the number one.

So a bit reminiscent of the 90s when records climbing the charts were rare except we only have 5 new entries rather than 25.

New (37) Camila Cabello ft Young Thug - Havana
New (36) Macklemore ft Skylar Grey - Glorious
New (21) Chris Brown - Questions
New (5) CNCO ft Little Mix - Reggaeton Lento
New (2) Justin Bieber ft Bloodpop - Friends
(1) Dua Lipa - New Rules

Record of the Year 1988: Nitro Deluxe - Let's Get Brutal

There were plenty of good house records in the charts in 1988 and it's been quite difficult to pick one, but have gone with "Let's Get Brutal" by Nitro Deluxe.

There are certain house records from this era that always get into Top 10 dance anthems type countdowns and on many compilations and as good as they are, I find myself getting quite sick of them after a while. Although anyone who knows a thing or two about the history of house music should know this, it isn't quite one of these anthems you'll hear a million times.

It was actually from 1986 and was released in the UK in 1987 as "This Brutal House" but didn't make the Top 40, but then a remixed version made the charts in 1988.

This was the only Top 40 hit for Nitro Deluxe who's real name was Young Manny Skretching Jr. He went blind and had kidney failure later on in life and sadly passed away in 2012.

UK Singles Chart: 1988

We're now in the penultimate year of the 80s, but there is no shortage of 80s acts making their debut this year. There are two acts who could claim to be the success story of the year, both of whom debuted in January.

Bros made their debut with "When Will I Be Famous" which reached number two. They scored a number one with their third single "I Owe You Nothing" and also scored a futher two number twos and a number four.

The other act was Kylie Minogue who reached number one with her debut "I Should Be So Lucky". She had three further solo singles which all reached number two.

So with Kylie now in the charts its inevitable that Jason Donovan will soon follow and he did this year in September with "Nothing Can Divide Us" which reached number five. The Kylie and Jason collabaration "Especially For You" came out at the end of the year and was Christmas number two before topping the charts the next year.

The Christmas number one went to Cliff Richard who scored his 12th number one with his 91st Top 40 hit "Mistletoe & Wine".

For the first time since 1971 there was no David Bowie on the charts this year but he remained in third place with 44 hits. Elton John had two hits this year and remained in fourth with 39. Stevie Wonder also had two hits, both duets which were "Get It" with Michael Jackson which was the only new Motown Top 40 hit this year, and "My Love" with Julio Igelesias which brought his total to 37.

However Status Quo overtook Stevie Wonder into fifth place having had four Top 40 hits this year which brought their total to 38. Paul McCartney remained seventh with 33 and Frank Sinatra remained eighth with 32 with neither act charting this year.

Rod Stewart had one hit this year putting him in ninth with 31 whilst Lonnie Donegan and Queen both remained tenth with neither of them charting this year.

The act who now held the record for the longest current streak of hits every year was Siouxsie & the Banshees who had a hit every year since 1978 and had a hit this year with "Peek-a-Boo" . Despite an 11 year long streak, they only had 15 Top 40 hits to date and hadn't had more than two hits in any of those years.

Both Sisters of Mercy and The Mission would continue to have hits this year and they were now joined by Fields of the Nephilim who debuted with "Moonchild". Also from the gothic scene came All About Eve who debuted with "Wild Hearted Woman" and it was also the year they made that infamous appearance on Top of the Pops with "Martha's Harbour".

On the Glam Metal side of things, we continued to have his from Bon Jovi, Europe and Motley Crue. Joining them was Poison who made their debut with "Nothin' But A Good Time".

Having had a year off, Iron Maiden were back single handidly keeping Heavy Metal going in the charts whilst from the Thrash Metal camp we had a single each from Metallica and Anthrax.

There was notably more hard rock in the charts this year from the likes of Def Leppard, Whitesnake and AC/DC amongst others. Most notable though was the debut of Guns N Roses with "Sweet Child O Mine". However this only managed number 24, as did their follow up "Welcome To The Jungle / Nightrain", but would fare better when it was rereleased the following year.

The first number one of the year came from The Go-Go's singer Belinda Carlisle with her debut solo hit "Heaven Is A Place On Earth". It was infact her first time ever in the Top 40 as The Go-Go's were yet to have a Top 40 hit. She had a further two top ten hits with "I Get Weak" and "Circle In the Sand" and a number 34 with "World Without You". We also saw the first and only appearance from fellow Go-Go Jane Wiedlin who scored a number 12 with "Rush Hour".

The second number one of the year came from Tiffany with "I Think We're Alone Now". Many inccorectly assume she was a one hit wonder, but she actually had a further three hits including two top tens which all came in 1988. We also saw her main rival Debbie Gibson for the first time with "Shake Your Love" which reached number 7. She had a further five solo hits, three this year and the other two in 1989.

Kylie and Jason weren't the only Australians making their debut this year. We also had the debut of INXS with "New Sensation" and they also had their only top ten hit with the number two "Need You Tonight". We also had the only hit for Angry Anderson with "Suddenly" which was the wedding song for Kylie and Jason on Neighbours.

We also had the only hit to date for an act from Guinea which was "Yeke Yeke" by Mory Kante.

Kylie and Jason weren't the only Stock Aitken & Waterman acts making their debut this year. We had Brother Beyond debut with "The Harder I Try" and Pat & Mick debut with "Let's All Chant". Joining the Stock Aitken & Waterman camp were Sigue Sigue Sputnik with "Success" and Sabrina with "All Of Me (Boy Oh Boy)".

We continued to have hits from Banamarama, Rick Astley and Sinitta and having their final hits this year were Hazel Dean with "Turn It Into Love" and Mel & Kim with "That's the Way It Is".

Once again their was no shortage of funk and soul music in the charts. Amongst them was the return for the first time in seven years for the Four Tops with "Loco In Acapulco". We also had the debuts of two of the best known names from the New Jack Swing era, Keith Sweat with "I Want Her" and Bobby Brown with "My Prerogative".

I was the turn of Aztec Camera to jump on the Sophisti pop bandwagon this year most famously with their only top ten hit "Somewhere In My Heart". George Michael also had a go with "Kissing A Fool". There were also debuts from Deacon Blue with "Dignity", Danny Wilson with "Marys Prayer" and the only appearance from Breathe with "Hands To Heaven".

This was the year we saw the KLF for the first time as the Timelords who scored a number one with "Doctorin the Tardis".

There was no shortage of House music in the charts which included the number one "Theme From S'Express" by S'Express, "We Call It Acieed" by D Mob and "Good Life" by Inner City. New Order also had a house record with "Fine Time".

We also had some House/Hip Hop crossover music known as Hip House which began with "Rok Da House" by Beatmasters featuring The Cookie Crew. We also had the debut of Bomb the Bass with "Beat Dis" amongst others.

Now in it's tenth year in the charts we had more Rap/Hip Hop music in the charts this year than we had before. It was the year Derek B had his only two hits with "Goodgroove" and "Bad Young Brother". We also had the debut of Salt n Pepa with "Push It / Tramp". The Fat Boys brought Chubby Checker back to the charts after a 25 year absence with a rap version of "The Twist" which would be his final hit.

Also returning to the charts for the final time was the Hollies who had a number one with a rerelease of "He Ain't Heavy He's My Brother".

From the Freestyle scene we had Jellybean have his final hit with "Just A Mirage" and a couple more hits from Joyce Sims. We also had Samantha Fox collabarate with Full Force on the record "Naughty Girls (Need Love Too)".

In October we had the debut of Milli Vanilli with "Girl You Know It's True" and they followed up in December with "Baby Don't Forget My Number".

So just one more year to go this decade, will we see signs of the 90s coming in 1989?

Top of the Pops: 24/08/2017

Here is the Top 40 Countdown

No comeback for "Despacito" this week, we have yet another new number one this time coming from Dua Lipa.

We have a full show which picks itself this week with 9 eligible records. The rest consists of four new entries and four climbers. Amongst the new entries is Pink who appeared on actual Top of the Pops back in the day and Axwell who did chart when Top of the Pops was still on but not sure he actually appeared on it.

So that's three full shows in a row, maybe it should just make a comeback in August each year.

⬆ (27) Kesha - Praying
New (32) Avicii ft Sandro Cavazza
⬆ (21) Yungen ft Yxng Bane - Bestie
New (38) Axwell & Ingrosso - More Than You Know
⬆ (13) Jax Jones ft Demi Lovato & Stefflon - Instruction
New (16) James Hype ft Kelli-Leigh - More Than Friends
⬆ (12) J Balvin ft Willy William - Mi Gente
New (5) Pink - What About Us
⬆ (1) Dua Lipa - New Rules

Record of the Year 1987: Pet Shop Boys - It's A Sin

There were a few candidates, but given it was the first year I remember the charts it only seemed right that I pick what was my favourite song back in 1987.

I would always get excited when it would come on the radio at the time. It was purely from a musical perspective, being so young I had no idea what it was about and was yet to encounter music genres or what's cool or uncool. In fact this was how I learned there was a word called "sin" but never knew what it meant until some time later.

As I got older I started to appreciate the lyrics more but it is still first and foremost about the music.

Later on that year the Pet Shop Boys taught me another word via their music, "rent". Again it wasn't until some time later I knew what that meant. It was also their version of "Always On My Mind" that I heard first and I absolutely loved it, but this one just pips it.

Their chart record is a lot better than many would think. They had four number ones and were regularly having Top 40 hits up till 2009 and not too many acts have had more Top 40 hits than them. They continue to release new albums and stay relevant to the present day rather than sounding like they're still in the 80s.

UK Singles Chart: 1987

A few years ago I was watching a BBC documentary of Synth Pop. They said the end of Synth Pop as we knew it in the early 80s came when the Pet Shop Boys came along with a different image.

They had a point, the Pet Shop Boys were the success story of 1987 whilst there were very few early 80s Synth Pop acts left. The Pet Shop Boys had two number ones this year with "It's a Sin" and the Christmas number one "Always On My Mind". They also had a number two with "What Have I Done To Deserve This" featuring Dusty Springfield returning to the Top 40 after a 17 year absence. Their other hit was "Rent" which reached number 8.

It was a solid year for Erasure who had three hits this year including two top tens. New Order scored just their second top ten hit with "True Faith" and had another hit at the end of the year with "Touched By the Hand of God". The only other survivor of the Synth Pop from the early 80s was Depeche Mode who's sound was getting darker as the decade progressed and they had a couple of hits lower down the charts this year.

Having seen House Music in the charts for the first time in 1986, the year began with the first House number one in "Jack Your Body" by Steve Silk Hurley. Also charting at the start of the year was Raze with "Jack the Groove".

However we wouldn't see another House record in the charts until September when we had the number on record "Pump Up the Volume" by Marrs, which would be the only House record of the year not to contain the word "house" or "jack". Also in September we had the hit "House Nation" by Housemaster Boyz & The Rude Boy Of The House. Chic returned for the first time in 8 years with a House version of "Le Freak" called "Jack Le Freak". Then in December we had "House Arrest" by Krush.

We saw the brief return of the medley courtesy of Nigel Wright of Enigma fame who released a couple of House inspired melodies under the name Mirage with "Jack Mix II / III" and "Jack Mix IV".

Having seen the last of Wham! and Culture Club in the 80s in 1986, this year saw the inevitable solo careers. Having already scored two solo number ones in his Wham! days, George Michael hit number one again with "I Knew You Were Waiting For Me" alongside Aretha Franklin. This made him the third act to hit number one with their first three releases. He then scored a number three with "I Want Your Sex" and a number two with "Faith".

Boy George also got off to a good start with his solo career scoring a number one with his debut "Everything I Own". His following three singles however all failed to reach the top ten and that would be the last we'd see of him this decade.

It was the end of the road for Spandau Ballet with the single "How Many Lies" which reached number 34. They would have further single releases but none of them would reach the Top 40.

Wham! backing singers Pepsi & Shirlie started their post Wham! career with the number two hit "Heartache" which was from the Stock Aitken & Waterman camp. Their follow up "Goodbye Stranger", which wasn't Stock Aitken & Waterman, also reached the top ten, but that would be the last we'd see of them in the Top 40.

The group who gave Stock Aitken & Waterman their first number one, Dead Or Alive, had their final hit this year with "Something In My House". Their second number one came this year from Mel & Kim with "Respectable". Mel & Kim would have another top ten hit with "FLM".

The third Stock Aitken & Waterman number one knocked off their second. It was a collective of musicians calling themselves Ferry Aid and did a cover of "Let It Be".

Joining the Stock Aitken & Waterman camp this year was Samantha Fox with "Nothing's Gonna Stop Me Now" and Sinitta with "Toy Boy" and "GTO". We also had Stock Aitken & Waterman have hits of their own with "Roadblock" and "Mr Sleaze" which was a double a side with "Love In the First Degree" by Bananarama.

The fourth Stock Aitken & Waterman number one came from debutant Rick Astley with "Never Gonna Give You Up". He followed it up with the number three "Whenever You Need Somebody" and the number two "When I Fall In Love" which prompted the rerelease of Nat 'King' Coles version that reached number four.

There was another record which entered the charts following a cover, although it didn't chart originally. This was "I Found Lovin" by the Fatback Band which was covered by radio DJ Steve Walsh. It was the original that fared better reaching number seven compared to the cover reaching number nine.

Cliff Richard had three hits this year bringing his total to 89 hits. David Bowie kept up his streak of hits every year since 1972 having three hits and bringing his total to 44 and remaining third.

Elton John, Stevie Wonder and Status Quo all had no hits this year and remained fourth, fifth and sixth with 37,35 and 34 respectively. Now in seventh with one hit this year is Paul McCartney with 33.

Then in eighth was Frank Sinatra with 32, and ninth with 30 was Lonnie Donegan, Queen and Rod Stewart with none of these acts charting this year.

The only Motown act to have new Top 40 hits this year was actor Bruce Willis. He had his only two hits with "Respect Yourself" and "Under the Boardwalk".

There was no shortage of Funk and Soul music in the charts though. We saw some examples of New Jack Swing make its way into the charts with "Lean On Me" by Club Nouveau and "Casanova" by Levert.

From the Freestyle scene we had the second hit from Joyce Sims with "Lifetime Love". We also had former Shalamar singer Jody Watley score her debut solo hit with "Looking For A New Love". Jellybean made is debut with "The Real Thing" and followed up with "Who Found Who" and "Jingo".

Jumping on the Sophisti-pop bandwagon this year was ABC with the hits "When Smokey Sings" and "The Night You Murdered Love". We had debuts from the Christians with "Forgotten Town", Living In A Box with "Living In A Box", Johnny Hates Jazz with "Shattered Dreams", Wet Wet Wet with "Wishing I Was Lucky", Hue & Cry with "Labour Of Love" and Climie Fisher with "Rise To The Occasion".

Whitesnake returned to the Top 40 this year with "Still of the Night" and followed up with their only top ten hits to date, "Is This Love" and the 1987 remake of "Here I Go Again". We had the debut of Heart with "Alone" and Def Leppard with "Animal", both quite surprisingly late debuts for bands which formed in the 70s.

For the first time this decade there was no Iron Maiden in the charts. But keeping Heavy Metal music in the charts was WASP who debuted with "I Don't Need No Doctor" and followed up with "Scream Until You Like It".

The gothic sound was kept going by Siouxsie & the Banshees, who had now had a hit every year for 10 years, the Mission, the Cult and the Damned who would have their final year in the Top 40 this year. Joining them was Sisters Of Mercy who's debut hit was "This Corrosion".

Bon Jovi and Europe kept the glam sound going and were joined by Kiss who returned to the charts after a four year break with "Crazy Crazy Nights". We also had the debut of the Motley Crue with "Girls Girls Girls".

There was a new sound making its way into the charts from the world of metal though, Thrash Metal. Anthrax were the first Thrash act to have a hit with "I Am The Law", then came Metallica with "The $5.98 EP - Garage Days Re-visited". Anthrax then followed up with "I'm The Man" which mixed metal music with rap.

It was the strongest year to date for Rap/Hip Hop music. Having debuted the previous year, we had follow ups from Mantronix with "Who Is It" and Run DMC with "It's Tricky". Debuting this year was the Beastie Boys with "(You Gotta) Fight For Your Right (To Party)" and followed up with "No Sleep Till Brooklyn", "She's On It" and "Girls / She's Crafty".

LL Cool J made his debut with "I Need Love", Eric B & Rakim made their debut with "Paid In Full" and Public Enemy made their debut with "Rebel Without A Pause".

Collaborating with the Beach Boys was the Fat Boys with a rap version of "Wipeout". Finally we had Morris Minor & The Majors with "Stutter Rap (No Sleep 'Til Bedtime)" which was a comedy version of the Beastie Boys "No Sleep Till Brooklyn".

Having been the second act from New Zealand to have a UK hit in 1980 with Split Enz, Neil Finn would also become part of the third act this year as part of Crowded House with their debut hit "Don't Dream It's Over". There was a new nationality on the charts too, Judy Boucher became the first act from St Vincent to have a hit with "Can't Be With You Tonight" and followed up with "You Caught My Eye" which were her only two hits.

So that was 1987, which is also the first year I remember following the charts. What I didn't know at the time was the number of acts who were new to the charts, I assumed many of them had been around for a while. It does certainly seem that the two halves of the 80s are 80-86 and 87-89. The only acts to have had a hit every year so far this decade are David Bowie, Siouxsie & the Banshees, Cliff Richard, Shakin Stevens and UB40. Will they all manage hits in 1988?