Week commencing 29 January 1990

This week marks a year since ARIA extended the Australian singles chart beyond number 100, and when I started writing these recaps.  If you're just discovering this blog, you've got some reading to catch up on!  But if trawling through a year's worth of posts isn't your thing, there's a search box you can use on the right to search for specific artists or songs, to see whether they've charted outside the ARIA top 100 so far.  Alternatively, I made a post earlier this month which just lists the singles that peaked between number 101 and number 150 for 1989.

 

I can't identify a common thread among this week's new entries, other than I hadn't heard five of the six debuts before.  Let's take a look at them.

 

Lisa Stansfield: doing home haircuts since 1990.

 

 

Top 150 debuts:

 

Number 119 "All That You Have Is Your Soul" by Tracy Chapman

Peak: number 119

Peak date: 29 January 1990

Weeks in top 150: 6 weeks

Weeks on chart: 6 weeks

Tracy Chapman's chart career in Australia started off promisingly, with "Fast Car" peaking at number 4 in June 1988.  Subsequent singles from her Tracy Chapman album (number 2, July 1988) fared less well on the chart, with "Talkin' 'bout a Revolution" peaking at number 67 in September 1988 (it would eventually peak one place higher in 2011), and "Baby Can I Hold You" peaking at number 68 in February 1989.

Now onto her second album, Crossroads (number 4, October 1989), "All That You Have Is Your Soul" was the album's second release, following the title track, which peaked at number 58 in October 1989.  Tracy would have to wait until 1995 to score a second decent-sized hit single down under, with "Give Me One Reason" (number 3, February 1996).

 

Although "All That You Have Is Your Soul" - which I had not heard until writing this - failed to set the Australian charts alight, it does not appear to have charted anywhere else.  On the state charts, "All That You Have Is Your Soul" performed best in South Australia/Northern Territory, where it peaked at number 86.

Tracy will bubble down under again in 1996.

Number 141 "Hold Me" by Wildland

Peak: number 141

Peak date: 29 January 1990

Weeks in top 150: 1 week

Australian band Wildland scored their first chart entry, and biggest hit, in 1989 with their debut single "One for Unity" (number 53, August 1989).  "Hold Me" was the follow-up, released back in October 1989, but somehow took until now to dent the lower region of the chart.  Both singles were lifted from the band's In This Lifetime album (number 80, June 1990).

We will see Wildland on two more occasions this year, with the next time being in March.

Number 145 "Lean on You" by Cliff Richard

Peak: number 107

Peak date: 12 February 1990

Weeks in top 150: 8 weeks

 

"Lean on You" was the third single from Cliff's Stronger album (number 16, April 1990), following "The Best of Me" (number 59, August 1989) and the Stock Aitken Waterman-produced "I Just Don't Have the Heart" (number 100, October 1989).  Listening to this track for the first time as I write this post, it reminds me a little bit of Cliff's "Some People" (number 7, April 1988), only not as good.

"Lean on You" fared significantly better in Cliff's native UK, where it peaked at number 17 in October 1989.  "Lean on You" also performed stronger on the Australian Music Report singles chart, where it peaked at number 93.

Cliff will become a regular visitor to this section of the chart in the coming months, with this being the first of three of his singles to peak outside the top 100 in 1990.  Cliff would need to wait until 1995 to score another top 100 hit down under, with his live duet with Phil Everly "All I Have to Do Is Dream" (number 93, March 1995), and until 1999 to score another (his last) top 50 single in Australia with "The Millennium Prayer" (number 2, December 1999).

We will next see Cliff in April.

 

 

Number 146 "This Is the Right Time" by Lisa Stansfield

Peak: number 138

Peak date: 28 May 1990

Weeks in top 150: 4 weeks

Weeks on chart: 6 weeks

 

Before embarking on a solo career, Lisa scored a minor 'hit' down under with her former band Blue Zone, "Jackie" (number 99, February 1989).  Yes, the same "Jack-Jack-Jackie" song that became a hit for B.Z. featuring Joanne in 1998.  Despite only peaking at number 99, "Jackie" spent 15 weeks in the top 150.  Then, Lisa scored another minor hit in Australia as the featured vocalist on Coldcut's "People Hold On" (number 78, June 1989).

Lisa then struck out on her own... well, kind of.  You see, although Blue Zone was her "band", the other members of the group, Andy Morris and Ian Devaney, continued to collaborate with Lisa throughout her solo career.  Ian and Andy were more than OK with Lisa being the sole representative of the 'band', doing promotional work/interviews etc. while they remained out of the spotlight.  So "Lisa Stansfield" is, essentially, a 'band' - but Lisa is the only visible member.  Make sense?

Lisa's "solo" career was launched with "This Is the Right Time", produced by recent collaborators Coldcut.  The single peaked at number 13 in the UK in August 1989.  Released in Australia in October 1989, it was finally the right time for this single to make a dent on our chart, spurred on by the ascent of Lisa's second solo single, "All Around the World" (number 9, February 1990), which was at number 13 this week.

 

But if you thought that was complicated, "This Is the Right Time" wouldn't actually peak on the ARIA chart until the end of May 1990, after a re-release following the next single, "Live Together" (number 62, March 1990).  All three of these singles were lifted from Lisa's Affection album (number 7, February 1990) - an album I purchased on the strength of "All Around the World", although "This Is the Right Time" was my favourite song on it.  A fourth single from Affection, "What Did I Do To You?" was released in Australia in July 1990, but failed to chart.

 

On the state charts, "This Is the Right Time" performed strongest in New South Wales/A.C.T., where it peaked at number 117.

Two music videos were filmed for "This Is the Right Time" - the original 1989 version, filmed for the UK market, is currently blocked on YouTube.  A second video was filmed for the single's US release in 1990 (it peaked at number 21 there in June 1990), embedded below, and memorably shows Lisa snipping off her trademark 'kiss curl' with a pair of scissors at the start.

Lisa will become a regular visitor to this region of the chart in the coming years - no fewer than nine of her singles charted outside the ARIA top 100 during the 1990s!  The next time we see Lisa will be in 1992.

 

  

Number 149 "Shanghaid" by J.J. Cale

Peak: number 149

Peak date: 29 January 1990

Weeks in top 150: 1 week 

J.J. Cale, real name John Weldon Cale, is best known for his 1977 single, "Cocaine", which I am shocked to discover only peaked at number 45 in Australia in June 1978.  The song did, however, top the New Zealand singles chart in March 1977.

"Shanghaid" was lifted from the album Travel-Log (number 102, January 1990), Cale's first studio album since 1983.  "Shanghaid" does not appear to have charted elsewhere.

J.J. Cale passed away in 2013, aged 74, due to a heart attack.

 

 

Bubbling WAY down under:

 

Number 161 "So Sorry, I Said" by Liza Minnelli

Peak: number 161

Peak date: 29 January 1990

Weeks on chart: 1 week

 

Liza Minelli scored her first chart hit in 1989 with "Losing My Mind" (number 72, November 1989), despite already being a familiar name, through her work as an actress and stage performer, and being Judy Garland's daughter.  Liza was aged 43 at this point, which seemed 'old' to me - for a pop star, as an 11 year-old boy.

Like "Losing My Mind", "So Sorry, I Said" was another track from the Pet Shop Boys-produced album Results (number 94, January 1990).   In the UK, "Don't Drop Bombs" was issued as the second single from the album, but did not receive a local release.  I was going to surmise that "Don't Drop Bombs" was skipped because it flopped there (number 46, October 1989), but "So Sorry, I Said" performed even worse (number 62, December 1989) - so who knows what the record company's rationale was.

A fourth single from Results, "Love Pains", was released as the album's third single locally in April 1990, but failed to chart here.  "So Sorry, I Said" would become Liza's second and final single to chart in Australia.

 

 

Next week (5 February): a bumper week with eleven new top 150 debuts and one bubbling WAY down under entry!  You can also follow my posts on instagram and facebook.

 

< Previous week: 22 January 1990                                      Next week: 5 February 1990 >

Week commencing 22 January 1990

One thing I can tell you about all of the songs I write about this week is that I didn't hear any of them at the time... and there are a few tragic stories about the artists in question!  Let's take a look.

 

Natalie Cole: Wild women... sometimes take their time to peak, and sometimes they miss the top 150 altogether.

 

 

Top 150 debuts:

 

Number 127 "Fever" by Joe Cocker

Peak: number 112

Peak date: 5 February 1990

Weeks in top 150: 8 weeks

 

I wasn't aware until now that Joe had covered this song, which was originally recorded by Little Willie John in 1956, with the most-famous version recorded by Peggy Lee in 1958.

 

Released as the second single from Joe's One Night of Sin album (number 32, October 1989), following "When the Night Comes" (number 39, November 1989), "Fever" only charted in Australia and New Zealand, where it peaked at number 46 in February 1990.

We lost Joe Cocker in December 2014 from lung cancer, aged 70.

Joe will be a regular visitor to this region of the chart in the coming years, notching up no fewer than five singles that peaked between numbers 101 and 150 in the coming three years.  We will see Joe again twice this year, with the next occasion being in May.

 

 

Number 136 "That's What They Always Say" by Chris Rea

Peak: number 123

Peak date: 5 February 1990

Weeks in top 150: 6 weeks 

A quick aside - the title of this track, which I hadn't heard before, makes me think of Mary Roach's legendary American Idol audition, where she says "'that's what they always say in theatre" in response to someone saying 'break a leg' to her, before she entered the audition room.  If you haven't seen that audition, it's worth checking out...  Ah, bless Mary and her white flares.

Now onto the Chris Rea song.  "That's What They Always Say" was the second single lifted from Chris's The Road to Hell album (number 35, November 1989), following "The Road to Hell (Part 2)" (number 78, November 1989).  "That's What They Always Say" peaked at number 83 in the UK in December 1989, and number 35 in France in May 1990.

Sadly, 69 year-old Chris has endured a number of major health problems over the years, including multiple surgeries for pancreatic cancer, diagnosed in 2000, and a stroke in 2016.  In a Daily Mirror article in 2014, Chris revealed that he takes thirty-four tablets and has seven injections a day, following the complete removal of his pancreas and part of his digestive tract.

We will see Chris again in 1991, where he narrowly misses the top 100.

Number 145 "Big Talk" by Warrant

Peak: number 111

Peak date: 19 February 1990

Weeks in top 150: 10 weeks

Weeks on chart: 10 weeks

 

Warrant first bubbled WAY down under in July 1989, and hadn't had much chart success in Australia with any of the singles from their debut album, Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich (number 72, November 1989).  "Heaven" was the biggest of the bunch, peaking at number 54 in October 1989.  "Big Talk" had marginally more success in the band's native US, where it peaked at number 93 on the Billboard Hot 100 in November 1989.

 

On the state charts, "Big Talk" performed strongest on the Victoria/Tasmania state chart, where it peaked at number 70.

One notable thing about the music video for "Big Talk" is that the 'dirty rotten filthy stinking rich' record company fat cat type depicted on the album sleeve comes to life.  The video is worth watching for that alone.

Warrant singer Jani Lane sadly passed away from acute alcohol poisoning in August 2011, aged 47.  Jani was never comfortable with being known as "the 'Cherry Pie' guy" - after Warrant's biggest hit (number 6, January 1991), as evident in this interview on YouTube, in which he ominously says, "I could shoot myself in the f**king head for writing that song."

Warrant will join us again in March.

Number 150 "Call It Love" by Poco

Peak: number 150

Peak date: 22 January 1990 and 5 February 1990

Weeks in top 150: 2 weeks

 

Poco are (they are still active, according to Wikipedia) an American country rock band formed in 1968 (!).  Although I'd never heard of them before, they actually placed two singles on the Australian chart in the 1970s, with the biggest one being "Rose of Cimarron" (number 51, February 1977).  They also had six charting albums in Australia between 1971 and 1980.

"Call It Love", as you might expect, performed much better in the US, where it peaked at number 18 in April 1989.  Released in Australia on 6 November 1989, "Call It Love" took over two months to dent the top 150, where it spent two non-consecutive weeks at number 150.  While it's not the usual sort of thing I listen to, I did enjoy the minor chord (or perhaps it's just a key change - I'm not quite musically-gifted enough to know for sure) guitar bridge leading into the chorus.

To my surprise, this song was also a hit of sorts in the Dutch-speaking world, peaking at number 20 in the Netherlands in November 1989, and number 38 in the Flanders region of Belgium (Belgium has two separate charts: one each for the Dutch and French-speaking regions) in December 1989.

"Call It Love" was lifted from the band's Legacy album (number 136, February 1990).  Another single from the album, "Nothin' to Hide", was released locally in February 1990, but missed the top 150.

Bubbling WAY down under:

Number 162 "As a Matter of Fact" by Natalie Cole

Peak: number 162

Peak date: 22 January 1990

Weeks on chart: 1 week

Natalie's previous single, "Miss You Like Crazy" (number 34, October 1989), was a slow burner on the Australian chart, taking six weeks to crack the top 100, 13 weeks to break the top 50, and 20 weeks to reach its peak.  Nat would perform a similar feat with subsequent single, "Wild Women Do" (number 37, September 1990), which took 5 weeks to crack the top 100, and 24 weeks to both break the top 50 and reach its peak.

Released as the second single from her Good to Be Back album (number 87, September 1989) in Australia, "As a Matter of Fact" had a much shorter chart life, spending just one week on the chart, outside the top 150.  Curiously, the single took two months to dent the charts, being released locally on 20 November 1989.  "As a Matter of Fact" failed to chart elsewhere.

Poor Nat had inconsistent success on the Australian charts, with each of her seven top 100 singles in Australia being from a different album.  To add insult to injury, her 1988 single "Everlasting" made each of the state top 100 charts at different times in September-October 1988, but failed to dent the national top 100 (this was before ARIA extended the chart beyond number 100).

Unfortunately, Natalie is no longer with us, having passed away from heart failure at the end of 2015, aged 65.

Natalie will join us again in 1991.

Next week (29 January): Five new top 150 entries, including the belated appearance of the debut solo single from a new act who had a big hit on their hands, and one bubbling WAY down under debut.  You can also follow my posts on instagram and facebook.

< Previous week: 15 January 1990                               Next week: 29 January 1990 >

Week commencing 15 January 1990

Of the five songs I write about this week, I had only heard one of them at the time (the Malcolm McLaren one), which I barely remembered.  Two of this week's debuts - from overseas artists, no less - failed to chart anywhere else.  Let's take a look at them.

 

Adeva sings "we're almost there"... if 'there' is the top 150 this week.

  

Top 150 debuts:

 

Number 130 "Another Chance" by The Georgia Satellites

Peak: number 126

Peak date: 5 February 1990

Weeks in top 150: 6 weeks 

American band The Georgia Satellites scored two top 40 singles in Australia - "Keep Your Hands to Yourself" (number 20, March 1987) and "The Hippy Hippy Shake" (number 37, January 1989).   A third single, "Battleship Chains" (number 82, July 1987), dented the top 100.  "Another Chance" was lifted from the band's third album, In the Land of Salvation and Sin (number 132, January 1990), and failed to chart anywhere else.  This would be the band's final top 150 singles chart appearance in Australia.

 

 

Number 147 "Thrash" by Underworld

Peak: number 147

Peak date: 15 January 1990

Weeks in top 150: 1 week

Weeks on chart: 1 week 

Underworld's chart career in Australia started off promisingly, with "Underneath the Radar" peaking at number 5 in June 1988.  Subsequent singles from their Underneath the Radar album (number 32, August 1988) missed the top 50: "Glory! Glory!" (number 64, September 1988), "Show Some Emotion" (number 88, December 1988), and "I Need a Doctor" (released in Australia in February 1989, failed to chart).

"Thrash" was the second single released from the band's second album, Change the Weather (number 64, October 1989), following "Stand Up" (number 79, October 1989).  "Thrash" failed to chart anywhere else.  The title track was released as the third single from the album in late January 1990, but failed to chart.

One thing that is evident when looking at Underworld's Australian chart history is that the band were notably more popular in Western Australia than in other states.  "Underneath the Radar", for example, topped the Western Australian state chart, and "Glory! Glory!", "Show Some Emotion" and "Stand Up" all made the state top 40, despite missing the national top 60.  "Thrash" similarly peaked higher on the Western Australian state chart than in other states, peaking at number 105.

Underworld would undergo a metamorphosis and change in sound in the early 90s, and would eventually score their second (and last) hit single down under with "Born Slippy" in 1996 (number 20, January 1997).

We will see Underworld next in 1994.

 

 

Number 148 "I'll Be Good to You" by Quincy Jones featuring Ray Charles and Chaka Khan

Peak: number 148

Peak date: 15 January 1990

Weeks in top 150: 2 weeks

Weeks on chart: 2 weeks

 

Quincy Jones is perhaps best known for being the producer of Michael Jackson's Off the Wall, Thriller and Bad albums.  When it comes to charting under his own name, however, Quincy only landed one top 100 single in Australia - "Ai No Corrida" (number 74, July 1981).

 

"I'll Be Good to You" was originally recorded by The Brothers Johnson in 1976, but was produced by Quincy.  Chaka Khan, whom we last saw in September 1989, and Ray Charles provide vocals on this new version of the track, and appear in the music video embedded below.  "I'll Be Good to You" peaked at number 18 in the US in January 1990, and number 21 in the UK in February 1990.

On the ARIA state charts, "I'll Be Good to You" performed strongest in New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory, where it reached number 36.

We will next see Quincy in 1996, but before then, we will see a project he was involved with in 1991.

 

 

 

Number 150 "House of the Blue Danube" by Malcolm McLaren and The Bootzilla Orchestra

Peak: number 150

Peak date: 15 January 1990

Weeks in top 150: 1 week

 

"House of the Blue Danube" was the third single lifted from Malcolm's Waltz Darling album (number 60, August 1989), and followed "Waltz Darling" (number 65, August 1989) and "Something's Jumpin' in Your Shirt" (number 95, November 1989).  "House of the Blue Danube" peaked at number 73 in Malcolm's native UK in November 1989.

 

Malcolm scored six top 100 hits under his own name (not counting associated acts, such as World's Famous Supreme Team) in Australia, all up, with the biggest of those being "Double Dutch" (number 14, September 1983).  However, arguably the Malcolm McLaren single that had the biggest cultural impact missed the top 100, and will be coming up later in the year.

 

 

 

Bubbling WAY down under:

 

Number 157 "Musical Freedom (Free At Last)" by Paul Simpson featuring Adeva

Peak: number 151

Peak date: 29 January 1990

Weeks on chart: 2 weeks

 

"Musical Freedom (Free At Last)" was first released in Europe in 1988, and featured Adeva - whom we saw back in July 1989 - on vocals.  It did not chart, however, until getting a re-release in 1989, following the success of "Respect" in the UK.  Interrupting an otherwise-consecutive run of three solo Adeva singles peaking at number 17, "Musical Freedom" peaked at number 22 in the UK in April 1989, and number 43 in the Netherlands in May 1989.

 

Released in Australia in September 1989, "Musical Freedom" took four months to dent the lower end of our chart, probably spurred on by the belated simultaneous ascent of "Warning!" (number 38, February 1990) and "I Thank You" (number 30, February 1990) on the charts in early 1990.

"Musical Freedom" deals with the subject of racial equality for African Americans, with upbeat lyrics such as "throw your hands up in the air, 'cause we're almost there".  Thirty plus years later, you have to wonder about that, given the current state of things in the USA.

 

One of the verses of "Musical Freedom" begins with the lyrics, "Lord knows I feel like throwing my hands up in the air", which bears a close resemblance - lyrically and melodically - to the opening lines of The Source featuring Candi Staton's "You Got the Love" ("Sometimes I feel like throwing my hands up in the air").

 

This would be Paul Simpson's - whom we saw in November 1989 - last foray onto the Australian charts.  Adeva will join us again in a few months' time.

 

 

Next week (22 January): Next week mirrors this week's chart, with four new top 150 debuts, and one bubbling WAY down under entry.  Among them is the first of five singles to bubble down under between 1990 and 1992 for a veteran artist.  You can also follow my posts on instagram and facebook.

 

< Previous week: 8 January 1990                                      Next week: 22 January 1990 >

Week commencing 8 January 1990

Hey, it's the 90s!  Those of you who lived through the 90s may remember that expression being bandied about, as evidenced by this video.  And so this week, we enter the 1990s decade on the ARIA chart.

 

But before I start writing about that, I feel compelled to ask... where were you when the 90s clocked over?  I was 11 years old and about to start my final year of primary school, which in my state is grade 6.

The 90s are often - lazily, and somewhat inaccurately, in my view - summed up as being the decade where 'alternative' music became mainstream, and grunge music ruled.  While there's a kernel of truth there, the 90s was in no way just about that - dance music and rap also increased in popularity throughout the decade, and there were also plenty of schmaltzy, over-produced ballads that performed well on the charts.

But this blog isn't exactly focused on what was popular back then, right?  No, instead I'll be writing about the songs that didn't do so well on the chart - the songs you might have completely forgotten about, or simply weren't even aware of in the first place.

 

ARIA commenced producing The ARIA Report, a weekly chart publication only available via subscription (what the 'for detailed weekly chart information... send $100...' blurb on the printed top 50 charts - as embedded below - alluded to) in January 1990.  Although, this blurb was not printed on the top 50 charts until the end of April 1990:

If I'd had a clue that the 'detailed chart information' was the full top 100 charts, I would have cobbled enough pocket money together to subscribe in a jiffy!  Only, I remained clueless until late 1997, when I got the interwebz at home and quickly discovered Sarch's email list (were any readers out there also on that?), which sent out the top 100 singles chart every week (for free), until he stopped in early 1999.

In 1990, there were 272 singles that peaked between numbers 101 and 150 on the Australian singles chart.  Interestingly (well, if you're a stats nerd like me), none of these singles peaked at number 135, and only one peaked at number 113.  Let's take a look at the first instalment of them.

 

Katrina and The Waves: After 'Sunshine', Katrina and her pals didn't exactly make 'waves' on the Australian charts.

 

  

Top 150 debuts:

 

Number 123 "Harvest Moon" by James Reyne

Peak: number 122

Peak date: 15 January 1990 and 5 February 1990

Weeks in top 150: 6 weeks

 

"Harvest Moon" was James' tenth solo single, the fourth and final release from his Hard Reyne album (number 7, May 1989), and the first to miss the top 100.  If a music video exists for this track, it has not been uploaded to YouTube, and also does not appear on the withdrawn-soon-after-its-release-and-subsequently-sells-for-silly-prices The Definitive Collection DVD shared with James' former band, Australian Crawl.  I have no recollection of hearing this song before, so it can't have been promoted too well.

James will next visit us in 1995.

 

 

 

Number 140 "Washaway" by The Shivers

Peak: number 104

Peak date: 5 February 1990

Weeks in top 150: 9 weeks

 

This is another track I have no recollection of - a common theme among this week's new entries.  While I can't muster many facts about this group, what I can tell you is that The Shivers were an Australian band, and their lead singer, Wendy Morrison, sang the theme song for the Australian TV series Sea Change in 1998 with Richard Pleasance, formerly of Boom Crash Opera.  I can also tell you that this single was released in early November 1989, and that the album it is lifted from, Big Love, missed the top 150.  "Washaway" performed better on the Australian Music Report singles chart, where it peaked at number 81.

The Shivers will visit us again in July.

 

 

 

Number 141 "You're the Reason" by Gene Pitney

Peak: number 103

Peak date: 5 February 1990

Weeks in top 150: 8 weeks 

Another recurring theme this week seems to be songs that don't have music videos - at least, not on YouTube, anyway.  I also didn't think I knew this one, but the melody seems vaguely familiar... and, to my surprise, I don't mind it!

Gene Pitney was 49 at this point in time, but seemed so old to me (for a pop star, anyway), when his duet with Marc Almond, "Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart" (number 24, April 1989) was on the chart.  That song had been Gene's first charting single in Australia since 1975.  Gene's biggest hits in Australia both peaked at number three - 1962's "(The Man Who Shot) Liberty Valance", and 1963's "Twenty Four Hours from Tulsa".

 

Gene gave a rather infamous TV performance of "You're the Reason" on UK TV in 1989, where he missed his cue, miming the song outdoors on a boat, and is wildly out of sync for the entirety of the song.

 

"You're the Reason" was lifted from the album You're the Reason (number 133, March 1990), and performed better on the Australian Music Report singles chart, where it peaked at number 81.

 

Had I been more clued-in to The ARIA Report, which I mentioned in the long intro blurb to this week's post, I would have noticed "You're the Reason" listed on the state chart summary, with a national HP (=High Point, aka highest position) of 119 on the ARIA Report dated week ending 28 January 1990:

 

These lists only seldom contained singles that were not within the national top 100, and such singles almost never had national HP's outside the top 100 listed.  Had I seen this in 1990, it would have alerted me to there being ARIA chart positions beyond number 100 - about 24 years earlier than I discovered this fact!  As you can see in the table above, "You're the Reason" did much better on the South Australia/Northern Territory state chart, where it peaked at number 21, than anywhere else.

 

Gene passed away in 2006, aged 66.

 

 

Number 146 "Rock 'n' Roll Girl" by Katrina and The Waves

Peak: number 146

Peak date: 8 January 1990

Weeks in top 150: 2 weeks

 

Finally we have a song with a music video on YouTube!

 

If you were not following the charts like a hawk in the 1980s, odds are, like me, you would have thought Katrina and The Waves had one song, "Walking on Sunshine" (number 4, June 1985), and that was it.  But they actually had a second top 40 hit in Australia, with "Do You Want Crying" (number 38, September 1985).

"Rock 'n' Roll Girl" was the second single lifted from the band's Break of Hearts album (number 127, January 1990), following "That's the Way" (number 58, November 1989).  "Rock 'n' Roll Girl" also charted in the UK, where it peaked at number 93 in November 1989.

 

 

 

Bubbling WAY down under:

 

Number 157 "Baby Come to Me" by Regina Belle

Peak: number 157

Peak date: 8 January 1990

Weeks on chart: 2 weeks

American singer Regina Belle landed a major hit in Australia with her duet with Peabo Bryson, and theme song to Disney's 1992 movie Aladdin, "A Whole New World (Aladdin's Theme)", which reached number 10 in June 1993.  Unfortunately for Regina, none of her other releases - album or single - made the top 150 in Australia.

"Baby Come to Me" had greater, albeit modest, success in Regina's native US, where it peaked at number 60 in November 1989.

On the ARIA state charts, "Baby Come to Me" performed strongest in Western Australia, where it peaked at number 127.

Regina will join us again in 1993.

 

 

Next week (15 January): Four new top 150 debuts - three of which peak between numbers 147 and 150!  Plus the first bubbling WAY down under entry for 1990.  You can also follow my posts on instagram and facebook.

 

< Previous chart: 18 December 1989                                   Next week: 15 January 1990 > 

1989 - the chart year in review

Below is a list of all of the singles debuting in 1989 that peaked within the 101 to 150 region of the ARIA singles chart, conveniently in one location:

ARTIST	TITLE	PEAK	DEBUT DATE	WEEKS IN
10,000 MANIACS	Trouble Me	102	3/07/1989	17
2 BRAVE	Stop That Girl	142	13/03/1989	2
ABC	One Better World	122	4/09/1989	7
ADEVA	Respect	150	3/07/1989	1
ADULT NET	Take Me	137	24/07/1989	7
ALBIE WILDE & THE DAYGLOS	Hey Ciao	101	29/05/1989	7
ANDREW CASH	Smile Me Down	109	10/04/1989	7
ANDY PAWLAK	Secrets	141	29/05/1989	6
BACHELORS FROM PRAGUE	Get Smart	118	30/10/1989	5
BARBRA STREISAND	We're Not Makin' Love Anymore	111	13/11/1989	11
BB STEAL	I Believe	128	30/01/1989	4
BEASTIE BOYS	Hey Ladies	141	21/08/1989	3
BEE GEES	Ordinary Lives	131	15/05/1989	6
BEE GEES	One	101	24/07/1989	12
BEE GEES	Tokyo Nights	124	30/10/1989	7
BETTE MIDLER	I Know You By Heart	118	23/10/1989	7
BIG BAM BOO	Shooting From My Heart	122	17/04/1989	5
BIGSTORM	Rubber Love	117	30/01/1989	5
BILL MEDLEY	I'm Gonna Be Strong	114	30/01/1989	1
BILLY BRAGG	She's Got a New Spell	116	13/03/1989	6
BLACK	The Big One	123	6/03/1989	6
BLONDIE	Denis ('88 Remix)	139	20/02/1989	3
BUCKWHEAT ZYDECO	Why Does Love Got To Be So Sad	129	13/03/1989	7
CATFISH	Hiwire Girl	146	20/03/1989	1
CHAKA KHAN	I'm Every Woman (Remix)	147	18/09/1989	1
CHEAP TRICK	Never Had a Lot To Lose	118	24/04/1989	6
CHOSEN FEW	Rise	120	15/05/1989	7
CINDERELLA	Don't Know What You Got (Till It's Gone)	145	8/05/1989	1
CLIFF RICHARD & SARAH BRIGHTMAN	All I Ask of You	130	29/05/1989	6
CLIMIE FISHER	This Is Me	128	30/01/1989	2
CLIMIE FISHER	I Won't Bleed For You	124	27/02/1989	5
CLIVE YOUNG	Naturally	102	24/07/1989	10
CONCRETE BLONDE	God Is a Bullet	146	2/10/1989	1
CROSBY, STILLS, NASH & YOUNG	Got It Made	134	8/05/1989	4
CURIOSITY KILLED THE CAT	Name and Number	131	11/12/1989	8
CYNDI LAUPER	A Night To Remember	145	23/10/1989	1
CYNDI LAUPER	Heading West	117	18/12/1989	10
D.J. JAZZY JEFF & THE FRESH PRINCE	Girls Ain't Nothing But Trouble	142	26/06/1989	1
DAMIAN	The Time Warp II	114	4/12/1989	7
DAVID CROSBY	Drive My Car	137	1/05/1989	4
DAVID ESSEX	Rock On	150	17/07/1989	2
DE LA SOUL	Say No Go	143	20/11/1989	4
DEBORAH HARRY	Liar, Liar	141	30/01/1989	4
DEL SHANNON	Walk Away	124	15/05/1989	6
DIANA ROSS	Paradise	117	25/09/1989	8
DON HENLEY	The Last Worthless Evening	120	27/11/1989	10
DORA D	Casanova Baby	150	6/11/1989	1
DREAMS SO REAL	Rough Night In Jericho	148	15/05/1989	1
DUSTY SPRINGFIELD	Nothing Has Been Proved	145	5/06/1989	1
EDDIE MONEY	Walk On Water	126	6/02/1989	8
EIGHTH WONDER	Cross My Heart	116	30/01/1989	1
EIGHTH WONDER	Baby Baby	113	6/03/1989	9
ELECTRA	Jibaro	150	10/04/1989	1
ELLIOT GOBLET	Friday On My Mind	119	25/09/1989	4
ELVIS COSTELLO	This Town	123	10/07/1989	7
ENYA	Evening Falls...	104	10/04/1989	7
ERIC CARMEN	Reason To Try	133	30/01/1989	5
ERIC CLAPTON	Pretending	106	4/12/1989	11
EXPLODING WHITE MICE	Make It	149	31/07/1989	1
EXTREME	Kid Ego	138	18/09/1989	3
E-ZEE POSSEE	Everything Begins With an 'E'	120	25/09/1989	6
GAIL ANN DORSEY	Wasted Country	109	30/01/1989	8
GARY MOORE	Ready For Love	113	10/04/1989	8
GIPSY KINGS	Djobi Djoba	131	30/10/1989	6
GLENN MEDEIROS	Long and Lasting Love (Once In a Lifetime)	113	30/01/1989	7
GRACE JONES	Love On Top of Love (Killer Kiss)	121	27/11/1989	9
GRAEME CONNORS	A Little Further North	125	30/01/1989	1
GRAEME CONNORS	Cyclone Season	135	20/02/1989	5
GREAT WHITE	Once Bitten Twice Shy	144	11/09/1989	1
HANK WILLIAMS, JR.	There's a Tear In My Beer	118	19/06/1989	6
HENRY LEE SUMMER	Hey Baby	142	21/08/1989	2
HIPPOS	Time and Motion	128	9/10/1989	7
HIPSWAY	Your Love	103	3/07/1989	7
HITHOUSE	Jack To the Sound of the Underground	129	20/02/1989	6
HUEY LEWIS & THE NEWS	World To Me	113	6/02/1989	7
HUMANOID	Stakker Humanoid	145	11/09/1989	1
HURRICANE	I'm Onto You	148	5/06/1989	1
ICE TIGER	Turn To Fantasy	121	9/10/1989	5
ICE TIGER	All I Need Is a Friend	146	20/11/1989	1
IGGY POP	High On You	114	30/01/1989	6
JABULANI	Want My Love	104	6/02/1989	9
JAMES	Sit Down	141	16/10/1989	3
JANZ	Picture	119	30/10/1989	6
JEFF DUFF	Walk On the Wild Side	150	8/05/1989	1
JEFFERSON AIRPLANE	Planes	148	27/11/1989	1
JERRY LEE LEWIS	Great Balls of Fire	101	28/08/1989	7
JIGSAW UK	Sky High (1989 remix)	101	29/05/1989	8
JIM CAPALDI	Something So Strong	126	17/04/1989	5
JIMMY SOMERVILLE featuring JUNE MILES KINGSTON	Comment Te Dire Adieu	122	11/12/1989	9
JODY WATLEY	Friends	146	14/08/1989	1
JOE CAMILLERI	Angel Dove	129	20/11/1989	10
JOE JACKSON	Down To London	126	31/07/1989	6
JOHN FARNHAM	We're No Angels	108	1/05/1989	7
JOHN KILZER	Memory In the Making	114	30/01/1989	9
JOHNNY KEMP	Birthday Suit	117	12/06/1989	7
JOHNNY O'KEEFE	Shout (Parts 1 & 2)	146	6/03/1989	1
JUDSON SPENCE	Yeah, Yeah, Yeah	133	3/04/1989	6
JULIA FORDHAM	Happy Ever After	147	30/01/1989	1
KENNY ROGERS	Planet Texas	129	17/07/1989	6
KING SWAMP	Is This Love	109	27/02/1989	3
KISS	(You Make Me) Rock Hard	101	24/07/1989	6
KOOL & THE GANG	Raindrops	123	7/08/1989	7
LEVEL 42	Heaven In My Hands	115	27/02/1989	7
LEVEL 42	Tracie	134	22/05/1989	7
LIVING COLOUR	Open Letter (To a Landlord)	116	12/06/1989	9
LIVING IN A BOX	Gatecrashing	104	21/08/1989	9
LL COOL J	I'm That Type of Guy	148	7/08/1989	1
LONDON BOYS	Requiem	149	4/09/1989	1
LUCINDA WILLIAMS	I Just Wanted To See You So Bad	122	14/08/1989	9
MACHINATIONS	Cars & Planes	105	27/02/1989	9
MARC ALMOND	Tears Run Rings	128	5/06/1989	5
MARCUS MONTANA	Tell Him I'm Your Man	146	16/10/1989	1
MARSHALL CRENSHAW	Some Hearts	140	18/09/1989	5
MARTIN KAYE	Quit This Joint	131	6/02/1989	1
MARTIN STEPHENSON	Wholly Humble Heart	136	27/03/1989	6
MASTERS APPRENTICES	Birth of the Beat	132	30/01/1989	4
MELISSA ETHERIDGE	The Angels	116	18/12/1989	8
MICHAEL BALL	Love Changes Everything	123	14/08/1989	7
MICHELLE SHOCKED	When I Grow Up	108	3/04/1989	6
MICHELLE SHOCKED	On the Greener Side	118	18/12/1989	9
MICK JONES	Everything That Comes Around	150	5/06/1989	1
MORRISSEY	Interesting Drug	111	10/07/1989	10
NEIL MURRAY	Calm and Crystal Clear	107	1/05/1989	12
NO FACE	Hump Music	132	18/09/1989	4
ON THE BALL	Let's Go Broncos	144	31/07/1989	3
ORDINARY MORTALS	Lost Souls	139	20/02/1989	2
OZ ART FOR OZONE	Our Children's World	123	4/12/1989	10
PANDORA'S BOX	It's All Coming Back To Me Now	133	13/11/1989	10
PAT & MICK	I Haven't Stopped Dancing Yet	130	29/05/1989	4
PATRICK SWAYZE	Raising Heaven (In Hell Tonight)	131	28/08/1989	6
PAUL CARRACK	I Live By the Groove	105	13/11/1989	11
PAUL KELLY AND THE MESSENGERS	Careless	116	30/10/1989	7
PAUL McCARTNEY	This One	113	21/08/1989	8
PAUL RUTHERFORD	Get Real	132	27/03/1989	1
PETE TOWNSHEND	A Friend Is a Friend	113	24/07/1989	8
PETER COMBE	Chopsticks	125	9/10/1989	5
PHILIP BAILEY/LITTLE RICHARD	Twins	116	6/02/1989	6
POP WILL EAT ITSELF	Very Metal Noise Pollution (EP)	121	18/12/1989	5
PRETENDERS	Windows of the World	117	13/03/1989	5
PRINCE with SHEENA EASTON	The Arms of Orion	108	4/12/1989	10
PRISCILLA'S NIGHTMARE	She Ain't No Woman	111	14/08/1989	7
PUBLIC IMAGE LTD	Warrior	114	28/08/1989	4
QUEEN	The Invisble Man	118	2/10/1989	7
RAINBIRDS	Blueprint	149	27/03/1989	3
RANDY CRAWFORD featuring ERIC CLAPTON AND DAVID SANBORN	Knockin' On Heaven's Door	116	30/10/1989	10
RAZE	Break 4 Love	147	22/05/1989	1
RICHARD CLAPTON	Deep Water	147	10/07/1989	1
RICHARD CLAPTON	Ace of Hearts	122	25/09/1989	7
ROBBEN FORD	Talk To Your Daughter	108	6/02/1989	9
ROBERT PALMER	Tell Me I'm Not Dreaming	117	20/11/1989	4
ROBERT PALMER	Bad Case of Loving You (Doctor, Doctor)	106	27/11/1989	4
ROBIN BECK	First Time	148	26/06/1989	2
ROBYNE DUNN	My Spark and Me	122	15/05/1989	5
ROD STEWART	Crazy About Her	130	7/08/1989	7
ROSE BYGRAVE	Maybe Midnight	139	1/05/1989	6
ROY ORBISON AND FRIENDS	Oh Pretty Woman	112	6/11/1989	9
ROY ORBISON/K.D. LANG	Crying	143	3/04/1989	2
SALT 'N' PEPA	Get Up Everybody (Get Up)/Twist and Shout	111	6/03/1989	5
SAM BROWN	This Feeling	115	18/09/1989	6
SCARY BILL	Western World	106	12/06/1989	8
S-EXPRESS	Mantra For a State of Mind	141	20/11/1989	2
SHANE HOWARD	Back To the Track	148	13/03/1989	2
SHERIFF	When I'm With You	117	13/03/1989	6
SIGUE SIGUE SPUTNIK	Success	141	6/03/1989	3
SIMPLY RED	You've Got It	127	18/12/1989	7
SINEAD O'CONNOR	Jump In the River	134	6/02/1989	7
SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES	Peek-a-Boo	149	30/01/1989	1
SKID ROW	Youth Gone Wild	148	24/07/1989	1
SKID ROW	18 & Life	126	11/12/1989	5
SPANDAU BALLET	Be Free With Your Love	110	18/09/1989	7
STEVE EARLE	Back to the Wall	115	10/04/1989	6
STEVE HOY	Raindance	107	19/06/1989	11
STEVE STEVENS	Atomic Playboys	138	6/11/1989	1
STRAY CATS	Bring It Back Again	109	3/07/1989	5
STRYPER	I Believe In You	109	3/04/1989	5
SWING OUT SISTER	You On My Mind	114	26/06/1989	7
SWINGSHIFT	No Matter What	126	5/06/1989	11
SYDNEY YOUNGBLOOD	If Only I Could	122	20/11/1989	4
TANITA TIKARAM	Good Tradition	142	30/01/1989	2
TANITA TIKARAM	Cathedral Song	120	3/07/1989	7
TEN WEDGE	Me and Mrs Jones	127	15/05/1989	7
THE ALARM	Sold Me Down the River	148	30/10/1989	1
THE ART OF NOISE	Paranoimia '89	103	3/07/1989	6
THE B-52's	Channel Z	145	28/08/1989	2
THE BEATMASTERS with MERLIN	Who's In the House	137	12/06/1989	2
THE BEAUTIFUL SOUTH	Song For Whoever	145	18/09/1989	1
THE BIBLE	Honey Be Good	144	27/03/1989	4
THE BLUE NILE	The Downtown Lights	148	16/10/1989	1
THE BOMBERS	Running In the Shadows	130	23/10/1989	7
THE CALL	Let the Day Begin	111	11/09/1989	11
THE CELIBATE RIFLES	Johnny	128	13/03/1989	7
THE CELIBATE RIFLES	O Salvation	123	26/06/1989	4
THE DARLING BUDS	Hit the Ground	147	24/04/1989	1
THE ESCAPE CLUB	Shake For the Sheik	114	30/01/1989	8
THE EVERLY BROTHERS	Don't Worry Baby	114	20/02/1989	10
THE FIXX	Driven Out	123	17/04/1989	6
THE FOUR TOPS	Loco In Acapulco	141	13/03/1989	1
THE GRACES	Lay Down Your Arms	127	9/10/1989	5
THE HAPPENING THANG	I Don't Wanna Go To Work	134	1/05/1989	1
THE HUMAN LEAGUE	Love Is All That Matters	113	30/01/1989	2
THE JEFF HEALEY BAND	Angel Eyes	115	19/06/1989	12
THE JEFF HEALEY BAND	Roadhouse Blues	146	17/07/1989	2
THE JESUS AND MARY CHAIN	Head On	102	18/12/1989	11
THE MAD TURKS	Tempers Fire	127	22/05/1989	8
THE PARTY BOYS	Follow Your Heart	107	13/03/1989	11
THE POGUES	Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah	111	20/03/1989	6
THE PONY	The Big Picture	125	27/03/1989	6
THE RAMONES	Pet Sematary	149	20/11/1989	1
THE REELS	Forever Now	135	30/01/1989	6
THE ROBERT CRAY BAND	Acting This Way	136	30/01/1989	4
THE SEEKERS	How Can a Love So Wrong Be Right	118	31/07/1989	7
THE STATE	So Lonely Now	150	27/02/1989	1
THE STYLE COUNCIL	Promised Land	106	24/04/1989	6
THE SUGARCUBES	Regina	141	18/09/1989	1
THE SUNNYBOYS	Sinful Me	105	12/06/1989	8
THE THE	Gravitate To Me	147	14/08/1989	1
THE ZIMMERMEN	What Really Hurts	148	1/05/1989	1
TIFFANY	All This Time	120	20/03/1989	7
TIM FINN	Crescendo	120	17/07/1989	8
TINY TIM	Highway To Hell	150	15/05/1989	1
TOMMY EMMANUEL	Guitar Concierto De Aranjuez	138	4/12/1989	8
TOMMY PAGE	A Shoulder To Cry On	149	8/05/1989	1
U2	Where the Streets Have No Name	138	27/11/1989	1
UB40	I Would Do For You	121	10/07/1989	6
VAN HALEN	Finish What Ya Started	123	30/01/1989	4
VANESSA WILLIAMS	Dreamin'	108	24/04/1989	8
VIOLENT FEMMES	Nightmares	146	8/05/1989	2
VIXEN	Cryin'	111	27/03/1989	11
VIXEN	Love Made Me	149	14/08/1989	1
WANDA JACKSON	Let's Have a Party	145	25/09/1989	1
WANG CHUNG	Praying To a New God	127	26/06/1989	10
WEDDINGS, PARTIES, ANYTHING	Streets of Forbes	113	25/09/1989	8
WHEN IN ROME	The Promise	103	30/01/1989	14
WHEN THE CAT'S AWAY	Melting Pot	103	17/04/1989	5
WHITE LION	Little Fighter	136	24/07/1989	5
WHITE LION	Radar Love	117	4/12/1989	10
WILLIE NELSON with JULIO IGLESIAS	Spanish Eyes	121	30/01/1989	2
WOMACK & WOMACK	Life's Just a Ballgame	126	22/05/1989	7
YELLO	Of Course I'm Lying	123	17/07/1989	12
YOTHU YINDI	Mainstream	115	1/05/1989	9
YOUNG MC	Bust a Move	139	18/09/1989	2
YOUSSOU N'DOUR & PETER GABRIEL	Shakin' the Tree	131	17/07/1989	7
ZAN	Good Love	134	4/12/1989	9