One thing this week in 1992's debuts peaking outside the top 100 have in common is that I did not hear any of them at the time. Perhaps they are new to you, too? Let's take a look/listen together.
Toni Childs: 'big in Australia', though not so much with this single.
Top 150 debuts:
Number 106 "Hearts Don't Think (They Feel)!" by Natural Selection
Peak: number 106
Peak dates: 10 February 1992 and 2 March 1992
Weeks in top 150: 7 weeks
American group Natural Selection formed in Minneapolis in 1988. Their debut single "Do Anything" (number 10, December 1991), which featured Madonna backing singer Niki Harris on the spoken female vocal bits, crept into the Australian top 10 towards the end of 1991.
"Hearts Don't Think (They Feel)!", with it's Shania Twain-esque title - some years before her time - complete with brackets and an exclamation mark, was the second single lifted from the group's only album Natural Selection (number 120, January 1992). It was also the group's final release in Australia.
Internationally, "Hearts Don't Think..." peaked at number 28 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in February 1992, and at number 47 in New Zealand during the same month.
"Hearts Don't Think..." managed to just scrape into the Australian Music Report singles chart, peaking at number 100 on it.
A third Natural Selection single, "It's Sweet" was released in the US in 1992, but not in Australia.
Number 110 "I Want to Walk with You" by Toni Childs
Peak: number 110
Peak date: 10 February 1992
Weeks in top 150: 6 weeks
Weeks on chart: 7 weeks
"I Want to Walk with You" was American singer Toni Childs', now based in Australia, eighth single to register on the Australian chart, and the first to miss the top 100. It was the third single lifted from her second album House of Hope (number 4, September 1991), following "I've Got to Go Now" (number 5, September 1991) and "House of Hope" (number 39, December 1991). Toni's chart career started in Australia with a pair of number seventeen hits, "Stop Your Fussin'" (number 17, October 1988) and "Don't Walk Away" (number 17, December 1988).
Throughout her career, Toni had more commercial success in Australia than in other countries. "I Want to Walk with You" did not register on any other countries' national charts that I can find, though it also does not appear to have been commercially released as a single anywhere else. Locally, the single was most successful in Queensland, where it reached number 74 on the state chart.
I don't recall hearing this one before, which is odd, given that Australian radio generally played Toni's singles at the time.
A fourth single from House of Hope, "Heaven's Gate", was released in Europe, but not Australia.
Number 119 "Money Makes the World Go Round" by Technotronic featuring Reggie
Peak: number 117
Peak date: 17 February 1992
Weeks in top 150: 5 weeks
Weeks on chart: 6 weeks
"Money Makes the World Go Round" was Belgian dance music act Technotronic's ninth single to chart in Australia, and the first to miss the top 100. The group burst onto the scene in late 1989 with "Pump Up the Jam" (number 4, February 1990), featuring model Felly lip syncing to Ya Kid K's vocals.
For this track, Reggie (real name Réjane Magloire) was on vocal duties. It was the third and final single released from the second Technotronic studio album Body to Body (number 86, September 1991), following "Move That Body" (number 27, September 1991) and "Work" (number 92, November 1991), both of which also featured Reggie on vocals. An interesting fact about Reggie is that she released a contemporaneous cover version of Madonna's "Into the Groove" as a single in 1985.
"Money Makes the World Go Round" did not chart anywhere else. Within Australia, it was most popular in Victoria/Tasmania, where it reached number 96.
Technotronic will next join us, with Ya Kid K back in the fold, in 1994.
Number 124 "Australia Land of Today" by Judith Durham
Peak: number 124
Peak date: 10 February 1992
Weeks in top 150: 5 weeks
Judith Durham came to fame as the lead singer of Australian band The Seekers, who scored several hits in the 1960s, such as "A World of Our Own" and "Georgy Girl". The group disbanded in 1968, and although they reformed in 1975, Judith did not re-join them until 1992. We saw The Seekers in 1989, though Judith was not part of the group then.
"Australia Land of Today" sounds like it was recorded for the soundtrack of a sporting event, such as the Olympics, but it charted about six months before the 1992 Olympics.
Judith passed away in August 2022, aged 79.
Number 138 "Never Give Up" by Ian Moss
Peak: number 128
Peak date: 24 February 1992
Weeks in top 150: 5 weeks
Ian Moss came to fame as the guitarist and occasional singer of the Australian band Cold Chisel in the late 1970s. Cold Chisel split in 1983, and Ian took some time to launch his solo career in 1989, with back-to-back top 10 singles "Tucker's Daughter" (number 2, March 1989) and "Telephone Booth" (number 7, August 1989), and the number one album Matchbook (number 1, August 1989).
Unfortunately for Ian, his commercial success dwindled after those initial few releases, and his second solo album Worlds Away (number 42, November 1991) peaked outside the top 40.
"Never Give Up" was issued as the third and final single from Worlds Away, following "Slip Away" (number 56, July 1991) and "She's a Star" (number 74, October 1991). While it would become Ian's final ARIA top 150 single, his 1996 album Petrolhead (number 101, August 1996) just missed the top 100.
Number 139 Just Right (EP) by Beasts of Bourbon
Peak: number 121
Peak date: 2 March 1992
Weeks in top 150: 11 weeks
Weeks on chart: 13 weeks
Australian band Beasts of Bourbon formed in 1983. Frontman Tex Perkins also sang lead vocals in The Cruel Sea, whom we saw in 1991.
The Just Right EP, led by the title track "Just Right" (embedded below), was the only Beasts of Bourbon single to register on the Australian charts. The title track appeared on the band's fourth studio album The Low Road (number 85, April 1992).
On the state charts, the Just Right EP was most successful in New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory, where it reached number 83.
Although Just Right was the only Beasts of Bourbon single to chart, the group placed several albums outside the ARIA top 100, including Black Milk (number 142, July 1990), Beyond Good & Evil (number 254, October 1999), and Box Set: The Axeman's Jazz + Sour Milk + Black Milk (number 431, August 2009).
Number 142 "Obsession" by Army of Lovers
Peak: number 108
Peak date: 9 March 1992
Weeks in top 150: 7 weeks
Weeks on chart: 7 weeks
I first became aware of Swedish group Army of Lovers in late 1991, after catching the music video for "Crucified" (number 56, January 1992) on Coca-Cola Power Cuts. It was certainly an experience! My first thought was that group member Jean-Pierre Barda (the one who speaks the verses) was Pete Burns from Dead or Alive's doppelganger.
"Crucified" was actually the band's second single released in Australia, however. "My Army of Lovers" was issued locally in May 1991, but failed to chart. "Obsession" was the band's third release from the Australian pressing (which added some tracks from their debut album Disco Extravaganza) of their Massive Luxury Overdose (number 126, March 1992) album, which was otherwise their second studio album.
Internationally, "Obsession" peaked at number 2 in Sweden in October 1991, number 8 in the Netherlands in December 1991, number 67 in the UK in December 1991, number 4 in the Flanders region of Belgium in December 1991, number 7 in Switzerland in February 1992, number 7 in Germany in February 1992, and number 7 in Austria in March 1992.
Domestically, Queensland was the state most 'obsessed' with "Obsession", with the single peaking at number 91 on their state chart.
I first heard "Obsession" some time in the mid 2010s, when the music video appeared on a VHS tape I was digitising. Watching Jean-Pierre mime the repetitive 'ah ah ah ah..." vocal throughout is certainly amusing.
We'll see Army of Lovers again in June.
Bubbling WAY down under:
Number 161 "Word to the Mutha!" by Bell Biv DeVoe featuring Bobby Brown, Ralph Tresvant, Johnny Gill
Peak: number 151
Peak date: 24 February 1992
Weeks on chart: 7 weeks
We last saw Bell Biv DeVoe in 1991. "Word to the Mutha!" was their fifth single to chart in Australia, and on it, they teamed up with their former New Edition bandmates Bobby Brown, Ralph Tresvant and Johnny Gill as featured artists. The track was recorded for their remix album WBBD-Bootcity!: The Remix Album (number 126, October 1991).
"Word to the Mutha!" was not released commercially as a single in the US, so was ineligible to chart on the Billboard Hot 100 as per the rules at the time. The single peaked at number 37 on the US Billboard Radio Songs chart in September 1991, and at number 11 in New Zealand in May 1992.
Domestically, "Word to the Mutha!" performed strongest in New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory, where it reached number 146.
Number 168 "Never Say Never" by Lisette Melendez
Peak: number 168
Peak date: 10 February 1992
Weeks on chart: 1 week
Lisette Melendez last graced our presence in 1991. "Never Say Never" was the third single from her debut album Together Forever (number 199, December 1991) to peak outside the ARIA top 100.
I cannot find evidence of "Never Say Never" charting elsewhere. The single was most popular in New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory, where it reached number 153.
Next week (17 February): Seven top 150 debuts and two bubbling WAY down under entries.
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