Tuesday, 12 October 2021

UK Number 40s: Julian Lennon - Because (1985)

 


We have another first in our look at number 40s in the UK charts. The first father and son to score a number 40. First we had John Lennon score a number 40 in 1981 with "I Saw Her Standing There" and how here's his son Julian doing the same in 1985.

Julian Lennon's Top 40 career began in 1984 with "Too Late For Goodbyes". His following two singles however failed to reach the Top 40. This was his next.

It was originally recorded by the Dave Clark Five in 1964 and written by group members Dave Clark and Mike Smith. This Julian Lennon cover was recorded for the Dave Clark musical "Time". The other Top 40 hits from this musical were "Time" and "In My Defence" by Freddie Mercury.

Julian Lennon also recorded the songs "Time Will Teach You All" and "If You Only Knew" for the musical but neither were Top 40 hits. 

Two more albums and several singles followed before we'd see Julian Lennon again in the Top 40 with his final Top 40 hit to date "Saltwater" in 1991.

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Sunday, 10 October 2021

Top 30 in 1991 Reviewed: Week 41

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 1991 with my verdict on each record:


A dance version of what was originally an Ike & Tina Turner record. The remix was done by former members of M/A/R/R/S CJ Mackintosh and Dave Dorrell. Sounds quite unusual for a Tina Turner record of that era, but not a bad one.

Verdict - OK


As far as Morrissey singles go, this is one of his better ones. Most are instantly forgettable, but I remember this one and can sing it in my head. It doesn't make it a good record though.

Verdict - Rubbish


A bit like it's predecessor "Gett Off", this is a record that had no impact on me at the time and has sounded a bit boring when I've heard it since but listening to it 30 years later it's starting to grow on me.

Verdict - OK


For years I had no idea who this record was by and really wanted to know. What didn't help was that I misheard the lyrics as "too many roads and bridges between us". I can't actually remember how I found out. This is my favourite Cathy Dennis record.

Verdict - Good


Bryan Adams was still at number one when this, his follow up entered the Top 40. He was also still at number one when this left the Top 40. The title suggests it could almost be about not being able to stop the reign of "(Everything I Do) I Do It For You" at the top of the charts. It's alright but nothing special.

Verdict - OK


The penultimate Top 40 hit for Voice Of The Beehive which is a cover of the Partridge Family song. I think "Monsters & Angels" which came before this and "Perfect Place" which came after are great pop records, but this just doesn't do it for me.

Verdict - Rubbish


The Top 40 debut for Carl Cox. He was probably the biggest rave DJ at the time and this is his highest charting single to date. As someone who's enjoyed many Carl Cox set, my verdict on this record is almost inevitable.

Verdict - Good


The 4th Top 40 hit in 1991 for REM having had just a solitary Top 40 hit prior to the beginning of the year. Unlike the other 3 though, this is a re-issue of a record that failed to make the Top 40 when first released in 1987. 

Verdict - Good


Believe it or not, this was the first Public Enemy single to make the Billboard 100 reaching number 50. It's the lead single from "Apocalypse 91... The Enemy Strikes Black". You can't go wrong with a bit of Public Enemy.

Verdict - Good


PJB stands for Pete John Bellotte, who previously had numerous hits as a songwriter alongside Giorgio Moroder. Quite ironic that the only Top 40 hit he has as an artist is a cover. It's a dance version of the Simon & Garfunkel record. Not sure what to make of it really, on one hand it sounds a bit cheesy and crap but on the other hand I don't actually mind it.

Verdict - OK


The Top 40 debut for Utah Saints, the so called "Stadium House" act. It samples "There Must Be an Angel (Playing with My Heart)" by Eurythmics and "Ain't Nothin' Goin' on But the Rent" by Gwen Guthrie. A common criticism of samples in dance music is they sometimes sound nothing more than the original song with a dance beat on it. This though is a prime example of how sampling should be done in dance music. 

Verdict - Good


The Top 40 debut for 2 Unlimited, though they had a Top 40 hit the previous year as Bizz Nizz. I did like this at the time, but my memory has been somewhat tainted by the crap they released after this. I also remember hearing it a few years later for the first time in a while and it sounded much slower than I remembered. 

Verdict - OK


I liked this one at the time, unaware it was a cover. I don't think much of the original though, it's one of those records that needs a dance beat to sound any good.

Verdict - Good


The only Top 40 hit for Brothers In Rhythm as artists, but they had other hits as producers and remixers. Member Dave Seaman (not the footballer) is also a big name house DJ who I've seen play before. 

Verdict - Good


This was the first single from the hugely successful "Stars" album. My memories of hearing this for the first time was seeing Mick Hucknall's hair had got much longer and loving the bit that follows the chorus. The best single from that album in my opinion. In fact probably the best Simply Red single ever.

Verdict - Good


The Top 40 debut for Bizarre Inc and not to be confused with the Brother In Rhythm record with a similar name that entered the Top 40 the same week. This is the Bizarre Inc hit I've most likely heard the least for the simple fact its not on any of their albums, the rest are either on "Energique" or "Surprise", both of which I own. It's a shame it's not on "Energique" really.

Verdict - Good


The lead single from the album of the same name. This record reminds me of The Chart Show, I'm therefore guessing that's where I first heard it. It's one of those records that's not as good as I remember it being.

Verdict - OK


The 3rd Top 40 hit for Kenny Thomas which was a cover of a Booker T Jones record. To be fair it sounds quite different to the original, but it's in a generic watered down sort of way. 

Verdict - Rubbish


At the time I thought of this as being a poor mans "Hippy Chick" but there isn't much resemblance really. Years later there was a happy hardcore version by Slipmatt & Eruption which all the DJs seemed to play but I couldn't stand it. You may have gather I don't think much of this.

Verdict - Rubbish


At the time I thought how the fuck did a record like this get into the Top 40. An opera song sung by someone I'd never heard of who wasn't exactly young. Many years later I discovered it was the song for the Rugby World Cup, I never knew there was such a thing until England won it.

Verdict - Rubbish


This record reminds me of when me and a friend quite ambitiously decided to compile a Top 200 following the realisation that the charts went up to a Top 100. We didn't know who this was by at the time so simple listed it as "Peace". It's not one you really hear anymore but this was definitely as big as the Rozalla record at the time. The Top 200 never did get compiled in the end due to many disagreements between me and my friend regarding what songs should be in it.

Verdict - Good


I remember being at some kids club on holiday at the time and we had to dance along to this multiple times. I thought why, this song is fuckin shit. My opinion still hasn't changed.

Verdict - Rubbish


This failed to chart when first released 12 years earlier, but thanks to Simon Mayo and his revival of old novelty records this was re-released. I did quite like it at the time admittedly, but its one of those songs that's supposed to be shit. Therefore a verdict of OK seems appropriate.

Verdict - OK


This is one of several records I associate with starting a new year at school. It was the Top 40 debut for Rozalla and by far the best known. It's been played to death over the years but I've never stopped liking it.

Verdict - Good


The 3rd and final Top 40 hit for Julian Lennon which came 6 years after his previous effort. People give Julian Lennon stick for not being John, but with records like this does it really matter? I loved this record at the time and it still sounds great 30 years later. 

Verdict - Good


I remember Simon Mayo playing this pretty much every day on the breakfast show when on my way to school but I never got bored of it. 

Verdict - Good


This record really irritated me at the time. My view hasn't really changed, it's a truly awful record. It was one that Bryan Adams kept off number one.

Verdict - Rubbish


There was a happy hardcore version of this in the mid-90s by DNA, Breeze & Munchie which I listened to quite a bit. When I heard this for the first time in years it seemed so slow given I'd got used to the happy hardcore version. That was a long time ago though, nowadays I can take the relative slowness.

Verdict - Good


The biggest hit to date for The Scorpions who had last been in the Top 40 in 1979 with their debut. My memories of this record at the time was that whenever it got played it never seemed to get played till the end and I was always intrigued as to how it ended. 

Verdict - Good


Summer holidays are on the way, this so reminds me of the summer holidays of 1991 where it was number one the whole time and beyond. Quite remarkable for a 31 year old 80s singer who'd failed to even make the Top 40 with most of his prior singles. I got pretty sick of this at the time like most people, but I actually quite 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 19.5/30, or 65%. Slight decrease on last week.
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Thursday, 7 October 2021

Bonkers Part 10

 


Bonkers 10 had been out for around a year or so when I purchased it. The scene seemed to be in a healthy place and I had started going to upfront events again. That said, it seemed nowhere near as big as it's 90s heyday and if an event had an old skool room I'd probably spend more time in there.

The opening track on the Hixxy mix is a spoken word piece called "Thou Shalt Not Forget" which was basically a dig at those who had previously written hardcore off but have changed their tune now it's popular again. In some ways I was one of those people, though I did stick with it up to it starting to get popular again.

The first actual tune is a Hixxy remix of "Bullet In The Gun" by Planet Perfecto. Then comes "Punk" by UFO which I'm surprised wasn't labelled Ferry Corsten - Punk (UFO Remix) because that's basically what it is. Then it's "The Beat Kicks" by Breeze & Styles which sounds like it should be a hardcore version of a Ferry Corsten tune but it isn't. You can see what angle the Hixxy mix is taking though with these tunes.

A slight change in direction for the next track, it's UFO and MC Marley with another tune that makes me cringe, "Underground". It doesn't really sound too different to "Connection" from Bonkers 9, just different lyrics with a bit of autotune. Then it's the Hixxy, Styles and Breeze remix of "Pretty Green Eyes" by Ultrabeat which seems a bit strange given Styles was one of the original composers.

For the 3rd time in a row "You're Shining" by Breeze & Styles makes an appearance as part of a mash up with "Future Set" called "Future Shining". We also have a remix of "Tekno Harmony" which itself is a rip off of "Sweet Harmony" by Liquid. 

For the first time since Bonkers came back there is a tune in the Hixxy mix which isn't on one of the big 6 hardcore labels or one of the bigger non-hardcore labels which is "Ultimate High" by Stargazer. The fact it's the Breeze & Styles remix probably helped get it on there. But after what I find quite an uninspiring mix up to this point, it suddenly comes to life with this tune. 

The next track is "Starlight" by Dowster which is the best tune in the mix. The last 2 tracks are also a big improvement over the earlier tracks in the mix. For the 3rd time in a row the Hixxy mix gets better at the end, the challenge is getting that far.

The Sharkey mix is the opposite. It begins with 3 breakbeat tunes from Ham which are all decent. The trouble is once the kickdrum comes in on track 4 I'm just wanting more breakbeat tunes. It would have probably alienated the freeform fans though if Sharkey did an entire mix of breakbeat tunes.

Once again though the best mix is the Scott Brown one. Like with Bonkers 9, it's 15 tracks with the first 10 being hardcore and last 5 gabber. Track 1 is what I think of as being the warm up for track 2 which is "Commence" by Plus System aka Scott Brown which has one of those great riffs.

I'm also a big fan of track 3 "Sunrise" by Deejay Bee & Overflow ft Vision, one of just two non-Evolution tracks in the first 10 with both being on Essential Platinum. The fourth track "I'm In Heaven" by Scott Brown sounds like I've heard a similar tune without the vocals. It's cheesy but I find myself singing along to it so it must be doing something right.

The rest of the hardcore part has a lot of what I would call evil voice type samples which can be a bit "what the fuck?" but at the same time the great thing about hardcore is you're not supposed to take it seriously. 

Maybe this was done on purpose to warm us up for the gabber section. Again no stand out tracks as such but good to have a bit of gabber in the mix.

Along with other newer Bonkers albums at the time, I found myself listening to the Scott Brown mix more than the Hixxy & Sharkey ones. But in the case of Bonkers 10 I would say I prefer the end of Hixxys mix and the start of Sharkeys mix to the middle of Scott Browns mix. 

I honestly can't remember if I bought Bonkers 11 before or after Bonkers 10, I did buy them close together. More on Bonkers 11 next week. 

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UK Charts Best Year Search: 1998

What's this all about?

Top 40

Best Song: Fatboy Slim - The Rockafeller Skank

When I first heard this record, I liked it. Then I started to hate it from hearing it all the time but started to like it again when the hype around Fatboy Slim started to die down. It was his 2nd Top 40 hit but the first that really made people notice, I remember his debut "Everybody Needs A 303" but that was only really big amongst the dance music fans.

Worst Song: Leann Rimes - How Do I Live

As far back as I can remember, country music has been big in America but widely hated in the UK. Aside from "Achy Breaky Heart" by Billy Ray Cyrus which seemed more of a piss take, there was very little in the way of big country hits in the late 80s/early 90s. Then along came country pop which is basically generic bland pop music done country style. This is a great example of country pop, it's fuckin awful.

Top 40 Review

In 1998 I opened myself up to music that wasn't rave, though this happened a little later in the year than the Top 40 I'm looking at. Around a decade later a work colleague of mine won a CD in a raffle and wasn't happy with the prize because it was from 1998. I on the other hand saw that as a good think so I saved it from being thrown in the bin. I happened to like the CD, helped by the fact it was a dance music one. But was 1998 a golden year chart wise?

If we begin with dance music, just under a third of this Top 40 then the next best thing to my best song choice is the 98 remix of "Naked In The Rain" by Blue Pearl. There is also "Dreams", the Top 40 debut for The Corrs that's been remixed by Todd Terry. Getting half marks purely because I quite like the main riff is "Feel It" by The Tamperer ft Maya, but the rest are all crap. They include the likes of "Looking For Love" by Karen Ramirez and "Horny" by Mousse T Vs Hot 'N' Juicy, basically dance music that many dance music fans would hate.

Approximately a third of it is simply pop music. From this we have "Got The Feelin'" by Five which is pretty dreadful but also a guilty pleasure of mine. There's "Lost In Space" by the Lighthouse Family which is OK, but the rest are crap. Other contenders for worst song in there included "C'est La Vie" by B*Witched and "Last Thing On My Mind" by Steps, truly dreadful stuff.

R&B wise there's "The Boy Is Mine" by Brandy & Monica, a song I liked enough to buy both artists albums only to realise that was the only decent song on both albums. Public Announcement, long after R Kelly left had their only Top 40 hit with "Body Bumpin' (Yippie-Yi-Yo)" which is OK.

Rap wise there's "Ghetto Supastar (That Is What You Are)" by Pras Michel ft ODB And Mya, a record I heard on the radio one morning at the time and thought this is good. The other rap record is "Intergalactic" by Beastie Boys which is OK.

There are 3 records there courtesy of the World Cup which are "Three Lions '98" by Baddiel, Skinner & the Lightning Seeds, "Vindaloo" by Fat Les and "World Cup '98 - Pavane By Faure" by Wimbledon Choral Society, the latter of which gets half marks but the others get zero.

The remaining records not to get zero are "Begin Again" by Space and "Circus" by Eric Clapton which both get half marks.

When I did open myself up to non-rave music I predominantly started listening to older music in the beginning. Looking at this Top 40, I can see why. Just 6 records with full marks which include a remix, a remix of a cover and a guilty pleasure.

The fact I've also mentioned all those with half marks means the overall score is pretty poor.

Score: 9.5

Table

Keep scrolling, 1998 is level with 1960 and only 1961 and 1962 are below it:



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Tuesday, 5 October 2021

UK Number 40s: The Alarm - Strength (1985)

 


The next number 40 is so obscure that it isn't listed on everyhit.com. At the same time it is 1 of just 3 UK number 40s of the 80s to make the Billboard 100 and was the bands 2nd highest charting single in America.

The Alarms highest charting single in the UK was their debut "68 Guns" in 1983 which made number 17. They had 8 Top 40 hits overall with their final one coming in 2006, some 23 years after their debut. 

This was their 4th Top 40 hit and 2nd in 1985, the only year they had more than one Top 40 hit. It came from the album of the same name. The album reached number 18 which was higher than all of it's singles.


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Monday, 4 October 2021

R Kelly's Music

Back in the late 90s when Gary Glitter was jailed, his music stopped being played as a result. No doubt he had his fans, but popular opinion amongst my peers when he was appearing on Top of the Pops again in the mid-90s was that his music was a bit naff and should stay in the 70s. The fact his re-release of "Hello Hello I'm Back Again" failed to make the Top 40 implied the record buying public tended to agree.

Now R Kelly has been found guilty of his crimes will his music stop being played?

Some will have no doubt boycotted his music long before now and some were probably waiting to hear the verdict before making a decision. On the other end of the spectrum I read that some of his fans were blasting his music outside court. There will of course be others who will continue to listen to his music regardless.

I'm one who likes to think the music itself is the important thing, but I know it's not that simple. When Alisha's Attic were my favourite music act it wasn't because I considered their music alone to be better than anything else I'd ever heard, it was a combination of me loving their music and the fact they were 2 attractive females. 

If you do want to boycott his music though, where do you draw the line? It goes without saying that you won't be listening to any of his albums anymore. But what about Aaliyah's debut album that was written and produced by R Kelly? or any songs that involved R Kelly? what about albums where one track features R Kelly?

Do you boycott films like "Space Jam" or "Batman & Robin" which feature R Kelly's music?

When you consider those people in music who have been found guilty of a serious crime, boycotting anything they're associated with means boycotting a lot of music. Even then, you could be listening to a song with an orchestra on it where a member of it may have committed a serious crime but you don't even know the person is even playing on it let alone their crime.

In the early to mid-90s one of the biggest raves was Dreamscape and they had tape packs for all their events bar the first one. In the early days there was an MC who would frequently appear in sets called Eze Vibe. What I discovered maybe 5 years ago was that he was convicted in 1999 of murdering his 4 year old stepson and had subjected him to torture prior to that. A pretty horrific crime you'll no doubt agree.

However these Dreamscape tapes are an important part of rave history and I'm not going to stop listening to them because of this. For me this is all about the music, back in the 90s the DJs and MCs were generally just names on the flyer. Some still are even in the age of the internet.

Back to R Kelly, and as owner of all his albums up to and including "TP3 Reloaded" I won't be boycotting his music. The fact of the matter is that I've never seen R Kelly as anything other than a musician. I can't think of any R Kelly lyrics I can relate to and there has never been anything about R Kelly's image I've admired. Furthermore the controversy surrounding his private life has always been there for as long as I've been listening to his music.

One argument is that as long as R Kelly's music is alive he'll continue to make money from it. This may be true with streaming, but he's not going to be making any money from me playing his CDs.  

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Sunday, 3 October 2021

Top 30 in 1991 Reviewed: Week 40

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 1991 with my verdict on each record:


This failed to chart when first released 12 years earlier, but thanks to Simon Mayo and his revival of old novelty records this was re-released. I did quite like it at the time admittedly, but its one of those songs that's supposed to be shit. Therefore a verdict of OK seems appropriate.

Verdict - OK


The first single from "Use Your Illusion 1". Initially I found the song to be a bit soft, but it was all part of the build up and once the final verse/chorus comes in it's fantastic. I also love watching the video, a reminder of just how fucked up the band were. The part where Slash crashes the car and then plays the guitar before throwing it up in the air is amazing.

Verdict - Good


Another old record getting a new lease of life thanks to it's inclusion on a Levi's advert. Generally speaking I'm not a fan of 70's glam rock, but T Rex for some reason seem a bit better than the other glam rock bands. 

Verdict - OK


The final Top 40 hit to date for Bros. I think this one passed a lot of people by, I don't remember it myself. The bass on this record was played by Mark King of Level 42 which seems a strange choice in an attempt to keep yourself relevant in the 90s.

Verdict - Rubbish


The lead single from the "Martika's Kitchen" album which was co-written and produced by Prince. This apparently introduced a more mature sounding Martika but I think that does her previous hits a disservice. 

Verdict - Good


The penultimate Top 40 hit for Voice Of The Beehive which is a cover of the Partridge Family song. I think "Monsters & Angels" which came before this and "Perfect Place" which came after are great pop records, but this just doesn't do it for me.

Verdict - Rubbish


This was the lead single from the "Diamonds & Pearls" album. Prince wrote some great tunes and some that are questionable. This one fits the latter, but as I listen to it for the first time in years it's starting to grow on me. Only taken 30 years.

Verdict - OK


A dance version of what was originally an Ike & Tina Turner record. The remix was done by former members of M/A/R/R/S CJ Mackintosh and Dave Dorrell. Sounds quite unusual for a Tina Turner record of that era, but not a bad one.

Verdict - OK


The 3rd Top 40 hit for Kenny Thomas which was a cover of a Booker T Jones record. To be fair it sounds quite different to the original, but it's in a generic watered down sort of way. 

Verdict - Rubbish


PJB stands for Pete John Bellotte, who previously had numerous hits as a songwriter alongside Giorgio Moroder. Quite ironic that the only Top 40 hit he has as an artist is a cover. It's a dance version of the Simon & Garfunkel record. Not sure what to make of it really, on one hand it sounds a bit cheesy and crap but on the other hand I don't actually mind it.

Verdict - OK


The lead single from the album of the same name. This record reminds me of The Chart Show, I'm therefore guessing that's where I first heard it. It's one of those records that's not as good as I remember it being.

Verdict - OK


A bit like it's predecessor "Gett Off", this is a record that had no impact on me at the time and has sounded a bit boring when I've heard it since but listening to it 30 years later it's starting to grow on me.

Verdict - OK


The Top 40 debut for The Prodigy. This has been ridiculed over the years along with other "Toytown Techno" records because of the samples. I will concede that whenever I listen to this tune I listen to the album version where the sample doesn't go beyond "Charly says". But I'm sure if the album version didn't exist I'd listen to this, it really isn't as bad as it's made out to be.

Verdict - Good


I liked this one at the time, unaware it was a cover. I don't think much of the original though, it's one of those records that needs a dance beat to sound any good.

Verdict - Good


The 4th Top 40 hit in 1991 for REM having had just a solitary Top 40 hit prior to the beginning of the year. Unlike the other 3 though, this is a re-issue of a record that failed to make the Top 40 when first released in 1987. 

Verdict - Good


Bryan Adams was still at number one when this, his follow up entered the Top 40. He was also still at number one when this left the Top 40. The title suggests it could almost be about not being able to stop the reign of "(Everything I Do) I Do It For You" at the top of the charts. It's alright but nothing special.

Verdict - OK


The only Top 40 hit for Brothers In Rhythm as artists, but they had other hits as producers and remixers. Member Dave Seaman (not the footballer) is also a big name house DJ who I've seen play before. 

Verdict - Good


The Top 40 debut for Bizarre Inc and not to be confused with the Brother In Rhythm record with a similar name that entered the Top 40 the same week. This is the Bizarre Inc hit I've most likely heard the least for the simple fact its not on any of their albums, the rest are either on "Energique" or "Surprise", both of which I own. It's a shame it's not on "Energique" really.

Verdict - Good


The Top 40 debut for Utah Saints, the so called "Stadium House" act. It samples "There Must Be an Angel (Playing with My Heart)" by Eurythmics and "Ain't Nothin' Goin' on But the Rent" by Gwen Guthrie. A common criticism of samples in dance music is they sometimes sound nothing more than the original song with a dance beat on it. This though is a prime example of how sampling should be done in dance music. 

Verdict - Good


This was the first single from the hugely successful "Stars" album. My memories of hearing this for the first time was seeing Mick Hucknall's hair had got much longer and loving the bit that follows the chorus. The best single from that album in my opinion. In fact probably the best Simply Red single ever.

Verdict - Good


The 3rd and final Top 40 hit for Julian Lennon which came 6 years after his previous effort. People give Julian Lennon stick for not being John, but with records like this does it really matter? I loved this record at the time and it still sounds great 30 years later. 

Verdict - Good


At the time I thought of this as being a poor mans "Hippy Chick" but there isn't much resemblance really. Years later there was a happy hardcore version by Slipmatt & Eruption which all the DJs seemed to play but I couldn't stand it. You may have gather I don't think much of this.

Verdict - Rubbish


This record reminds me of when me and a friend quite ambitiously decided to compile a Top 200 following the realisation that the charts went up to a Top 100. We didn't know who this was by at the time so simple listed it as "Peace". It's not one you really hear anymore but this was definitely as big as the Rozalla record at the time. The Top 200 never did get compiled in the end due to many disagreements between me and my friend regarding what songs should be in it.

Verdict - Good


I remember being at some kids club on holiday at the time and we had to dance along to this multiple times. I thought why, this song is fuckin shit. My opinion still hasn't changed.

Verdict - Rubbish


This is one of several records I associate with starting a new year at school. It was the Top 40 debut for Rozalla and by far the best known. It's been played to death over the years but I've never stopped liking it.

Verdict - Good


The biggest hit to date for The Scorpions who had last been in the Top 40 in 1979 with their debut. My memories of this record at the time was that whenever it got played it never seemed to get played till the end and I was always intrigued as to how it ended. 

Verdict - Good


I remember Simon Mayo playing this pretty much every day on the breakfast show when on my way to school but I never got bored of it. 

Verdict - Good


There was a happy hardcore version of this in the mid-90s by DNA, Breeze & Munchie which I listened to quite a bit. When I heard this for the first time in years it seemed so slow given I'd got used to the happy hardcore version. That was a long time ago though, nowadays I can take the relative slowness.

Verdict - Good


This record really irritated me at the time. My view hasn't really changed, it's a truly awful record. It was one that Bryan Adams kept off number one.

Verdict - Rubbish


Summer holidays are on the way, this so reminds me of the summer holidays of 1991 where it was number one the whole time and beyond. Quite remarkable for a 31 year old 80s singer who'd failed to even make the Top 40 with most of his prior singles. I got pretty sick of this at the time like most people, but I actually quite 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 20/30, or 67%. Decent score given none of the new entries were good.
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