This week in 1992 saw a meager three new entries peaking in the 101-150 region of the Australian singles chart. Before taking a look at them, I have updated the following previous posts:
* 11 February 1991 - with a new bubbling WAY down under entry from Adamski;
* 13 January 1992 - with a new bubbling WAY down under entry from Adamski.
Nina Hagen got her body, but not really a 'hit' with this track.
Top 150 debuts:
Number 132 "Hang on in There Baby" by Curiosity
Peak: number 127
Peak date: 15 June 1992
Weeks in top 150: 5 weeks
Top 150 chart run: 132-127-135-147-133
Weeks on chart: 8 weeks
We last saw British band Curiosity Killed the Cat in 1989. Since then, bass player Nick Thorpe had quit the group, and the remaining members shortened the band's name to just Curiosity.
"Hang on in There Baby", a cover version of a song originally written and recorded by Johnny Bristol (number 37, December 1974), was issued as the first single from the band's third album Back to Front, which does not appear to have been released in Australia.
Internationally, "Hang on in There Baby" peaked at number 3 in the UK in May 1992, number 10 in Ireland in May 1992, number 26 in Austria in June 1992, number 42 in Germany in June 1992, number 31 in Sweden in July 1992, number 38 in the Flanders region of Belgium in July 1992, and number 32 in New Zealand in July 1992.
Within Australia, "Hang on in There Baby" performed strongest in Western Australia, where it reached number 81.
Curiosity would release one further single in Australia, "I Need Your Lovin'", in October 1992, but it failed to chart. "Hang on in There Baby" would be the band's final release to chart within Australia.
Number 134 "Feel So Real" by Dream Frequency featuring Debbie Sharp
Peak: number 113
Peak date: 29 June 1992
Weeks in top 150: 7 weeks
Top 150 chart run: 134-140-116-113-122-131-126
Weeks on chart: 10 weeks
Dream Frequency were English musician Ian Bland and American singer Debbie Sharp, although the latter was credited as a featured artist on this release. "Feel So Real" was the act's third single release in the UK, but their first in Australia, following two minor UK top 100 singles with "Live the Dream" (UK number 99, May 1990) and "Love, Peace and Harmony" (UK number 71, January 1991).
Internationally, "Feel So Real" peaked at number 23 in the UK in February 1992, and number 26 in Ireland in February 1992.
In Australia, "Feel So Real" was most popular in Western Australia, where it reached number 70 on the state chart.
The track was lifted from Dream Frequency's debut album One Nation (number 160, January 1993). Dream Frequency would land their biggest 'hit' in Australia with their next single, "Take Me", which reached number 62 in September 1992. We shall see a remixed version of that track bubble under in August 1992.
Number 135 "Get Your Body!" by Adamski featuring Nina Hagen
Peak: number 114
Peak date: 22 June 1992
Weeks in top 150: 5 weeks
Known chart run: 165-135-118-114-129-130
Weeks on chart: 8 weeks
We last saw English artist Adamski in January 1992. "Get Your Body!" was the second single lifted from Adamski's second album Naughty (number 186, July 1992).
For this track, Adamski collaborated with German singer-songwriter Nina Hagen, who had been releasing material since 1978, but had never landed a charting release in Australia until now. If you're unfamiliar with Nina (real name Catharina Hagen), I recommend checking out the crazy video for her 1982 single "Smack Jack", which is one of the videos I chose when I won a competition to program an hour of the Australian music video program rage in 2010.
Internationally, "Get Your Body" peaked at number 68 in the UK in March 1992. Within Australia, the single performed strongest in Queensland, where it reached number 92.
This would be Adamski's final single to chart in Australia.
Next week (15 June):Five top 150 entries and four bubbling WAY down under debuts.
Among this week in 1992's debuts peaking outside the top 100, we have two acts who had limited chart success in Australia, and a band who scored a decent number of hits but only ever had one top 10 single. Shall we take a look?
Kirsty MacColl: all she ever wanted was a hit in Australia!
Top 150 debuts:
Number 139 "Fly Girl"/"Nature of a Sista'" by Queen Latifah
Peak: number 110
Peak date: 20 January 1992
Weeks in top 150: 7 weeks
Top 150 chart run: 139-110-112-117-115-113-116
American rapper, actress and singer Queen Latifah was born Dana Elaine Owens. Her first taste of Australian chart success - of sorts - came in 1990, when she was a featured rapper on the B-side mix of David Bowie "Fame 90" (number 85, May 1990).
"Fly Girl"/"Nature of a Sista'" was the lead single from Queen Latifah's second album Nature of a Sista. Surprisingly, this release was Queen Latifah's only ARIA top 150 entry in her own right.
Internationally, "Fly Girl"/"Nature of a Sista'" peaked at number 67 in the UK in August 1991, and number 38 in New Zealand in March 1992. The single also had some success on the dubious US Billboard Hot Rap Songs chart, where it peaked at number 19 in October 1991, and on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, where it reached number 16 in November 1991.
The Queen Latifah song I am most familiar with, owing to catching the video several times on music TV program rage, is "U.N.I.T.Y." from 1994.
Number 145 "Castles in the Air" by Hoodoo Gurus
Peak: number 113
Peak date: 20 January 1992
Weeks in top 150: 6 weeks
Chart run: 145-113-119-116-123-124
Weeks on chart: 6 weeks
Australian band Hoodoo Gurus formed in Sydney in 1981. Between 1983 and 1991, the group placed 17 singles on the Australian top 100, with "What's My Scene" (number 3, May 1987) being their biggest hit and only top 10 single.
"Castles in the Air" was issued as the fourth and final single from Hoodoo Gurus' fifth studio album Kinky (number 4, May 1991). It followed the singles "Miss Freelove '69" (number 19, April 1991), "1000 Miles Away" (number 37, July 1991), and "A Place in the Sun" (number 89, August 1991).
On the state charts, "Castles in the Air" performed strongest in Queensland, where it reached number 95.
There does not appear to have been a music video filmed for "Castles in the Air".
Hoodoo Gurus will next join us in 1994.
Bubbling WAY down under:
Number 167 "Never Goin' Down!" by Adamski + Jimi Polo
Peak: number 164
Peak date: 20 January 1992
Weeks on chart: 2 weeks
We last saw Adamski in 1991. "Never Goin' Down!" was the first release from Adamski's second album Naughty (number 186, July 1992). For this track, Adamski joined forces with Jimi Polo on vocal duties.
Internationally, "Never Goin' Down!" peaked at number 51 in the UK in November 1991. Locally, the single was most popular in Western Australia, where it reached number 136.
Interestingly, this single was a double A-side in the UK (not in Australia) with another Adamski collaboration - this time with Soho, whom we saw in April 1991, with "Born to Be Alive!", which surprisingly is not a cover version of the Patrick Hernandez track!
I didn't know "Never Goin' Down" at the time, but like it. We'll next see Adamski in June 1992, collaborating with another artist.
Number 173 "All I Ever Wanted" by Kirsty MacColl
Peak: number 154
Peak date: 27 January 1992
Weeks on chart: 3 weeks
We last saw English singer-songwriter Kirsty MacColl in 1989.
"All I Ever Wanted" was released as the third single - though second in Australia - from Kirsty's third studio album Electric Landlady (number 86, October 1991). It followed "Walking Down Madison" (number 58, September 1991), which was Kirsty's only solo top 100 single in Australia.
Kirsty's collaborations with other artists have landed her some minor success on the Australian charts. She sang backing vocals and appeared in the music video for Billy Bragg's "Sexuality" (number 46, September 1991), and also played a prominent role on The Wonder Stuff's "Welcome to the Cheap Seats" (number 64, May 1992), on which she also features in the video.
More-recently, Kirsty's duet with The Pogues, "Fairytale of New York", which never charted in Australia upon its original release in December 1987, has gained popularity around Christmas time, and to date has reached a peak of number 45 locally, in January 2023.
"All I Ever Wanted" missed the top 75 in Kirsty's homeland, where "My Affair" was issued as the second Electric Landlady single, peaking at number 56 in the UK in August 1991.
On the ARIA state charts, "All I Ever Wanted" was most popular in New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory, where it reached number 142.
We shall next see Kirsty in 1993.
Next week (20 January): Seven new top 150 debuts and one bubbling WAY down under entry. Also, stay tuned for my 1983 recaps, commencing on Tuesday 17 January 2023.
One thing tying all of this week in 1991's new entries together is that all but one of them has a male lead vocal. Let's take a look.
New Order: how does it feel... to keep charting with the same song?
Top 150 debuts:
Number 129 "I Wanna Get with U" by Guy
Peak: number 129
Peak date: 11 February 1991
Weeks in top 150: 2 weeks
Top 150 chart run: 129-140
Going by the artist name, I was expecting Guy to be a solo artist, but it's actually a trio, made up of Teddy Riley, Aaron Hall and Damion Hall. Damion replaced original band member Timmy Gatling after the band's first album Guy, released in 1988.
"I Wanna Get with U" was the lead single from Guy's second album The Future (number 129, February 1991). Annoyingly, for me, the song was titled just "Wanna Get with U" (no "I" at the start) on the album and on the single artwork in the band's native US. Elsewhere, it was titled "I Wanna Get with U" on the single sleeve.
Internationally, "I Wanna Get with U" peaked at number 50 in the US in December 1990, and number 28 in the Netherlands in January 1991.
Top 150 chart run: 139-141-144-145-126-125-122-128-128
Weeks on chart: 10 weeks
One-time New Edition member Johnny Gill joined us previously in December 1990 with the second single from his second solo album titled Johnny Gill (number 110, September 1990), and here he is with the third - in Australia, anyway. "My My My" was the second single from the album in Johnny's native US.
I would have heard "My My My" on the American Top 40 radio show at the time, but couldn't remember how it went. Listening to the song again now, it has that stereotypical early 90s 'lurve' ballad saxophone on it, and sounds like an obvious L.A. Reid/Babyface production.
Internationally, "My My My" peaked at number 10 in the US in September 1990, number 31 in New Zealand in October 1990, number 89 in the UK in October 1990, and number 37 in the Netherlands in November 1990.
On the ARIA state charts, "My My My" performed strongest in New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory, where it reached number 94.
We will see Johnny again as a solo artist in 1996, but before then, he will bubble under as both a featured artist and as part of his former group in 1992.
Number 141 "Heartbreaker (At the End of Lonely Street)" by Dread Zeppelin
Peak: number 138
Peak date: 18 February 1991
Weeks in top 150: 5 weeks
Top 150 chart run: 141-138-139-142-146
I have heard this one before, once, as it's my rip of the video (which is blocked in Australia on YouTube) embedded below. But I had no recollection of the song. Prior to listening to it again, two things sprung to mind, going by the band name: it's no doubt by a 'joke' act, and it's almost certainly going to be 'dread'-ful (ho ho). I was right on both accounts.
Surprisingly, for once the UK exercised some restraint, and this steaming pile of novelty rubbish did not become a massive hit there, stalling at number 83 in August 1990. And also, for once, the Kiwis displayed poorer musical taste than their Aussie counterparts, as this single went all the way to number 40 there in February 1991. Oh, New Zealand!
"Heartbreaker..." is lifted from the album Un-Led-Ed, which reached number 93 in Australia in April 1991. The group also had another charting album in Australia, 5,000,000*, which peaked at number 150 in July 1991. Oh, Australia!
Number 144 "Hotel California" by Jam on the Mutha
Peak: number 144
Peak date: 11 February 1991
Weeks in top 150: 1 week
Top 150 chart run: 144
Speaking of things you can tell about a song before ever hearing it, I assume that this track is a (probably cheap and nasty) dance cover version of the Eagles song "Hotel California". Well, I was right on that assumption, though it's slightly better than I was expecting. My expectations, however, were low.
One interesting thing - for me, anyway, is that the vocalist on this track, Andy Caine, is a name I recognise as co-writing Yazz's "Fine Time" (number 60, March 1989).
This version of "Hotel California" peaked at number 62 in the UK in August 1990.
Number 146 "Inside Out" by Traveling Wilburys
Peak: number 117
Peak date: 18 February 1991
Weeks in top 150: 6 weeks
Chart run: 170-146-117-133-126-142-137
Weeks on chart: 7 weeks
Supergroup Traveling Wilburys burst onto the scene in late 1988 with "Handle with Care" (number 3, January 1989) and the album Volume One (number 1, February 1989). Their debut album was the highest-selling album of 1989 in Australia, and was on heavy rotation in my family car's cassette deck, thanks to my dad picking up the album.
Surprisingly, both "Handle with Care" and Volume One were much bigger in Australia than in the UK, where two-fifths of the band's original five members are from. Of course, Roy Orbison died in December 1988, about six weeks after Volume One was released. Two further singles were issued from the album, "End of the Line" (number 12, April 1989) and "Heading for the Light" (number 88, June 1989).
The band's second album, minus Roy, was titled Vol. 3 (number 14, November 1990), to "confuse the fuckers", to quote George Harrison. Arguably, band member Tom Petty's 1989 album Full Moon Fever (number 13, June 1989), was Vol. 2, as all of the then-surviving Wilburys appear on it.
"Inside Out" was the second single lifted from Vol. 3, and followed "She's My Baby" (number 58, November 1990). The band also landed a minor 'hit' on the Australian chart with the charity single "Nobody's Child" (number 66, September 1990).
Internationally, "Inside Out" also charted in Canada, where it reached number 50.
Locally, "Inside Out" performed strongest on the South Australia/Northern Territory state chart, where it reached number 76.
My dad didn't buy Vol. 3, so I never heard this one at the time.
Two more Wilburys have died since Vol. 3, their last studio album. George Harrison succumbed to lung cancer in 2001, aged 58, and Tom Petty died in 2017 following a heart attack, aged 66.
We shall see Traveling Wilburys again in April 1991.
Number 148 "The First Time" by Surface
Peak: number 103
Peak dates: 1 April 1991 and 8 April 1991
Weeks in top 150: 10 weeks
Top 150 chart run: 148-(out for 1 week)-148-124-115-114-107-103-103-105-121
Weeks on chart: 13 weeks
Here's another one I would have heard on American Top 40 at the time, but have no recollection of. It also sounds like another Babyface production to my ears, but isn't.
"The First Time" is lifted from Surface's third studio album 3 Deep (number 146, April 1991). While the group had been releasing material since 1983, "The First Time" was the band's first single to chart in Australia. Surface never landed a top 100-peaking single or album in Australia.
Internationally, "The First Time" topped the US Billboard Hot 100 in January 1991, and peaked at number 60 in the UK in January 1991, number 18 in Canada in March 1991, and number 7 in New Zealand in March 1991.
On the ARIA state charts, "The First Time" performed much stronger in New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory, where it reached number 54, than on any of the other state charts. The single missed the top 100 on three of the four remaining state charts, peaking at number 89 in Western Australia, which was its second strongest state. I can only assume, therefore, that the single received a lot more airplay in New South Wales than in other states.
On the Australian Music Report singles chart, "The First Time" peaked at number 78.
While I've never compiled a list of my favourite songs of all time, New Order's "Blue Monday" would land somewhere on it. The 1983 single originally peaked at number 13 in Australia in August 1983, spending 26 weeks on the chart. It then re-entered in March 1987, presumably due to renewed interest following the success of "Bizarre Love Triangle" (number 5, March 1987), climbing to number 69 in April 1987 and spending another 9 weeks in the top 100.
"Blue Monday" had similar chart longevity in the UK, where it initially peaked at number 12 in April 1983, before falling to as low as number 82 in July 1983, before rebounding back up to a new peak of number 9 in October 1983, in an unbroken chart run lasting 38 weeks. Between 1983 and 1988, "Blue Monday" notched up 69 weeks in the UK top 100, becoming the best-selling 12" single of all time in the process.
Clocking in at seven and a half minutes, a single/7"-friendly edit of "Blue Monday" was not produced until Quincy Jones remixed the track in 1988, resulting in another single release. "Blue Monday 1988" reached number 3 in Australia in June 1988, on the first (unpublished) singles chart produced in-house by ARIA. You will otherwise see a number 4 Australian peak listed for "Blue Monday 1988" on sites such as Wikipedia and australian-charts, which is technically incorrect.
Worth noting here, also, is that "Blue Monday 1988" topped the Victorian/Tasmanian state singles chart in June 1988, as did New Order's "Bizarre Love Triangle" (number 5, March 1987) for four weeks in February and March 1987. New Order did not otherwise score a number one single in Australia.
"Blue Monday 1988" re-charting in 1991 is presumably due to the single being issued on CD, for the first time, in Australia in January 1991.
While number 151 may not seem terribly impressive, it is somewhat 'good' for a re-issued single in Australia at that time. Re-issued singles of songs that were hits the first time around generally did not chart at all in Australia, back then, unlike in the UK, or now when any old track is eligible to chart. Furthermore, this release of "Blue Monday 1988" presumably happened without any promotion. I certainly was not aware of its re-release at the time, as a casual New Order fan.
The re-issue must have caught on in Western Australia, as this release of "Blue Monday 1988" peaked at number 70 on the Western Australian state chart.
Another incarnation of "Blue Monday" will bubble under in 1995, but, before then, we shall next see New Order in 1994.
Number 163 "Wow Wow-Na Na" by Grand Plaz
Peak: number 153
Peak date: 18 February 1991
Weeks on chart: 9 weeks
Now this track is a bit of an oddity. Produced by Stock Aitken Waterman, though production credits are given to the pseudonym DJ Crazyhouse (because SAW were not deemed 'cool' at the time), the track is heavily inspired by Together's "Hardcore Uproar" (which was not not released in Australia, but peaked at number 12 in the UK in August 1990), and featured the still-unreleased vocals from the chorus of Kakko's (a Japanese singer SAW failed to land any success with) version of "Na Na Hey Hey (Kiss Him Goodbye)". "Na Na Hey Hey..." being a cover of the Steam song from 1969, which peaked at number 21 on the Go Set chart in March 1970. Bananarama also landed a minor hit in Australia with their version of "Na Na Hey Hey..." peaking at number 38 in May 1983.
Internationally, "Wow Wow-Na Na" peaked at number 41 in the UK in September 1990.
Locally, "Wow Wow-Na Na" performed strongest in Western Australia, where it reached number 94 on the state chart.
Number 174 "Flashback Jack" by Adamski
Peak: number 174
Peak date: 11 February 1991
Weeks on chart: 1 week
We first saw Adamski in May 1990. "Flashback Jack" was the third single released in Australia from Adamski's debut album Doctor Adamski's Musical Pharmacy (number 144, November 1990).
Internationally, "Flashback Jack" peaked at number 46 in the UK in November 1990. In Australia, the single performed strongest in Queensland, where it reached number 143.
English singer Paul Young has visited us twice previously, in May 1990 and September 1990, with the first two singles from his fourth studio album Other Voices (number 102, July 1990). "Heaven Can Wait" was issued as the third, and - in Australia - final, single from the album.
Internationally, "Heaven Can Wait" peaked at number 71 in the UK in October 1990.
On the ARIA state charts, "Heaven Can Wait" performed strongest in Victoria/Tasmania, reaching number 142.
A fourth single from Other Voices, "Calling You", was released in the UK, peaking at number 57 there in January 1991.
We will next see Paul on his own in October 1991, but before then, we will see him duet with another artist in September.
Number 178 "Wap Bam Boogie" by Matt Bianco
Peak: number 178
Peak date: 11 February 1991
Weeks on chart: 1 week
Matt Bianco, despite the name, is a group and not a solo artist. Hailing from the UK, the group landed two minor 'hits' in Australia during the 1980s, "Whose Side Are You On?" (number 57, June 1985) and "Yeh Yeh" (number 64, March 1986). We have previously seen Basia, who was once part of the group, bubble under.
"Wap Bam Boogie" was issued as a single in its own right to promote the release of the compilation album The Best of Matt Bianco (number 147, November 1990).
Internationally, "Wap Bam Boogie" peaked at number 76 in the UK in December 1990.
While "Wap Bam Boogie" would become Matt Bianco's final single to chart in Australia, the group landed two further charting albums: Samba in Your Casa (number 172, February 1992), and The Things You Love (number 1224, November 2016).
Next week (18 February): Four top 150 debuts, and five bubbling WAY down under entries.
This week is the second in a three-way tie for the most top 150-peaking debuts in 1990, tied with 19 March 1990 and 17 September 1990, with ten new top 150 entries. Of the ten new debuts, six of them are at their peak position next week, which is an unusual occurrence. There are also three debuts that spent more than one week at their highest position. Seven of this week's debuting acts contain artists who are no longer with us. Let's take a look at them.
Somehow, Seal's 'killer' song flopped not once, but twice in Australia.
Top 150 debuts:
Number 131 "Counting Every Minute" by Sonia
Peak: number 118
Peak date: 28 May 1990
Weeks in top 150: 8 weeks
Top 150 chart run: 131-118-123-126-129-128-124-136
Weeks on chart: 10 weeks
"Counting Every Minute" was another Stock Aitken Waterman composition/production for Sonia, and another single of hers to flop in Australia, peaking one place higher than the last one, which we saw back in February. "Counting Every Minute" was also the fourth release from her then-yet-to-be-released-in-Australia album Everybody Knows (number 144, September 1990).
This single was also the fourth in a string of top 20 hits in the UK for the Liverpudlian songstress and future Eurovision Song Contest entrant, peaking at number 16 in April 1990. "Counting Every Minute" also dented the top 20 in Ireland, peaking at number 18. Within Australia, "Counting Every Minute" performed strongest on the Victoria/Tasmania state chart, where it reached number 88.
I'm not sure why, but 'single' (as in the chorus lyric "counting every single minute") has been omitted from the song's title, just as 'from' was omitted from the title of Sonia's "You'll Never Stop Me Loving You" (number 29, October 1989). These little things bother me! I suppose you can understand 'from' being omitted from the title of the latter, though, as it is a longer title already.
Peak dates: 4 June 1990, 25 June 1990 and 9 July 1990
Weeks in top 150: 9 weeks
Top 150 chart run: 137-128-110-114-117-110-111-110-122
I am a little bit confused, and there doesn't seem to be a clear answer online (please help me out if you know), but Ecco Homo were an Australian collective of musicians, centred around Peter "Troy" Davies, who was a close friend of Richard Lowenstein, director of many INXS music videos. Over the years, Troy had appeared in a couple of film clips for other artists, including Flame Fortune's "Sex Symbol" (number 76, June 1985) and Frente!'s' "No Time" (number 50, March 1993).
I don't believe Troy performed much of the vocals on the two Ecco Homo singles released, however. The 'group' also contained Ollie Olsen - whose Max Q project was fronted by Michael Hutchence of INXS - Gus Till (who I think performed the majority of the vocals), Bill McDonald and Michael Sheridan.
Whatever Ecco Homo were, they managed to place one single within the ARIA top 100, "Motorcycle Baby" (number 66, March 1989), which featured Michael Hutchence and Sherine Abeyratne from Big Pig (who also performed vocals on the track) in the music video.
"New York, New York" was the second and final Ecco Homo release, and features Bono from U2 singing a few lines and appearing in the music video (!). U2's The Edge also performs on the track. Apparently, Bono and U2 happened to drop by the recording studio where Ollie Olsen and Michael Hutchence were jamming, after a live show in Melbourne; it was not a planned collaboration.
Despite featuring two members of U2, "New York, New York" flew under the radar, peaking outside the ARIA top 100. It did, however, manage to spend three non-consecutive weeks at its peak of number 110, which is not bad for a single that missed the top 100. "New York, New York" crept into the Australian Music Report top 100 singles chart, reaching number 85.
Big Fun were another Stock Aitken Waterman-produced act, consisting of Mark Gillespie, Phil Creswick, and Jason John (real name Jason Herbert). Although a trio, the group's vocals were mostly performed by Mark, with the other two providing occasional backing vocals, rather than singing in unison or sharing lead vocal duties. Yet we see all three of them mouthing the words to Mark's vocals in the videos... Hmmm.
Following a low-key single release in early 1989 with "Living for Your Love", Big Fun recorded a cover version of Carole King's "I Feel the Earth Move", produced by Phil Harding and Ian Curnow, the Stock Aitken Waterman Hit Factory 'B' team. Their version of "I Feel the Earth Move" was set to be released in the UK in June 1989, and a music video was filmed to promote it. However, it was pulled from released after Pete Waterman saw the favourable reaction the group were receiving from the audience on tour with the Hitman Roadshow (for SAW-related acts). Pete instead wanted to launch the group with a Stock Aitken Waterman-produced track - a cover version of The Jacksons' "Blame It on the Boogie". Martika, of course, released her own version of "I Feel the Earth Move" (number 2, January 1990) later in 1989.
Big Fun crept into the lower region of the Australian top 40 with "Blame It on the Boogie" (number 37, December 1989), and into the top 100 with "Can't Shake the Feeling" (number 97, February 1990). These singles, in contrast, peaked at numbers 4 and 8, respectively, in the UK.
"Handful of Promises" was the third release from the group's only album A Pocketful of Dreams (released in Australia in July 1990, failed to chart), and peaked at number 21 in the UK in March 1990. The album - which takes its title from a chorus lyric of "Handful of Promises" - performed much better in the UK, where it reached number 7 in May 1990, and sold over 100,000 copies.
On the state charts, "Handful of Promises" performed best in South Australia/Northern Territory, where it peaked at number 85.
As with Sonia above, this track makes use of the James Brown "woo! yeah!" sample throughout. Big Fun will join forces with Sonia for a charity single, which we will see in September.
The group released one final single from the album in the UK - but not in Australia - "Hey There Lonely Girl", which peaked at number 62 in the UK in August 1990. This track was originally recorded by Ruby and The Romantics as "Hey There Lonely Boy". Following this release, the group parted ways with Jive Records.
One thing that was kept hush at the time - so as to not potentially alienate their target teen/tween girl audience - was that Mark and Phil were a couple. The pair would later release a cover version of The Brothers Johnson's "Stomp!", minus Jason, as Big Fun II. Their version of "Stomp!" reached number 12 on the US Billboard Dance Chart in May 1994.
Something I didn't know until a few years ago is that Mark is originally from Australia! Someone I have been in contact with via a music
forum lived next door to Mark in Canberra when he was growing up. Small world...
Following the demise of Big Fun and Big Fun II, Jason went into music management, managing the likes of Geri Halliwell from the Spice Girls during her solo career. Mark and Phil split, and Phil became a painter and decorator, before running into some legal troubles involving drugs in 2017. I have no idea what Mark is doing these days.
Jason sadly passed away in Brazil in April 2019, aged 51, although there is not much information available about this.
Number 142 "54-46 (That's My Number)" by Partners Rime Syndicate
Peak: number 142
Peak date: 21 May 1990
Weeks in top 150: 1 week
Top 150 chart run: 142
Here's a track I had never heard of before getting hold of these below #100 charts. Unfortunately, I cannot tell you much about this song, other than the chorus is a reworked version of "54-46 Was My Number" by Toots & The Maytals, from 1969. Elsewhere, this single peaked at number 119 (number 103 on the compressed chart) in the UK in November 1989.
Number 143 "Dançando Lambada" by Kaoma
Peak: number 143
Peak date: 21 May 1990
Weeks in top 150: 1 week
Top 150 chart run: 143
I'm guessing you thought French-Brazilian band Kaoma were one-hit wonders with "Lambada" (number 5, April 1990), right? Well, they did manage to place a second single on the ARIA chart... at number 143. The song in question, which translates from Portuguese as 'dancing Lambada', also imaginatively contains 'lambada' in the title...
"Dançando Lambada" was a hit across Europe, reaching the top 10 in Switzerland, France and the Netherlands, and the top 20 in Germany, Austria, Ireland, and the Flanders region of Belgium. The single flopped in the UK, however, where it only reached number 62. According to Wikipedia (no supporting reference is cited), "Dançando Lambada" topped the Brazilian chart.
This would be the last chart entry for Kaoma in Australia. Vocalist Loalwa Braz was sadly murdered in Brazil in 2017, aged 63; her body was discovered inside a burnt-out car.
Number 144 "I Will Live for You" by Joe Cocker
Peak: number 134
Peak dates: 28 May 1990 and 11 June 1990
Weeks in top 150: 4 weeks
Chart run: 144-134-140-134
Weeks on chart: 4 weeks
We saw the late Joe Cocker in January this year, and he returned to the 101-150 region of the Australian chart with this track, the third single from his One Night of Sin (number 32, October 1989) album. "I Will Live for You" does not appear to have charted anywhere else.
On the state charts, "I Will Live for You" was most popular in South Australia/Northern Territory, where it reached number 101.
Joe will next join us in July, with a third single to peak in the 101-150 region of the ARIA chart in 1990.
Number 146 "Killer" by Adamski
Peak: number 112
Peak date: 2 July 1990
Weeks in top 150: 8 weeks
Chart run: 154-146-124-113-124-115-127-112-(off chart for 8 weeks)-145
Weeks on chart: 9 weeks
As much as I like Sonia, I have to concede that this track is the best song debuting this week - in my opinion, anyway. It seems the record-buying public in the UK held a similar view, as this track stopped Kylie Minogue's iconic "Better the Devil You Know" from reaching number 1 there.
"Killer" spent 4 weeks on top of the UK singles chart, and 16 weeks in the top 40, which was quite a long chart run for a single there at this point time. "Killer" also topped the Flemish chart in Belgium, and was a top 5 hit in Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden and Ireland. On this side of the globe, "Killer" nudged into the New Zealand top 30, peaking at number 29 there in August 1990.
In Australia, "Killer" was most popular in Western Australia, where it reached number 62.
"Killer" started out as an instrumental track by keyboard whizz Adamski (real name Adam Tinley), originally titled "The Killer", as he felt it sounded like the soundtrack to a murder scene in a movie. Following a chance meeting with Seal (real name Henry Samuel) at a nightclub on New Year's Eve 1989, Seal was invited to lay down vocals to some of Adamski's instrumental tracks he had been playing as a DJ.
Although Seal sang and co-wrote the song, he is not credited as a featured artist, due to Adamski's record company wanting to promote the single as solely an Adamski release. Seal's working relationship with Adamski subsequently soured.
Seal would go on to have a successful solo career, placing two singles within the Australian top 10 - "Crazy" (number 9, April 1991), and "Kiss from a Rose" (number 1, August 1995). Adamski placed one single within the ARIA top 100, "The Space Jungle" (number 70, November 1990), on which he performed vocals.
The Adamski album in which "Killer" and "The Space Jungle" are lifted from, Doctor Adamski's Musical Pharmacy, peaked at number 144 in November 1990.
Seal would re-record "Killer" for his debut album Seal (number 22, June 1991). It was released as the album's fourth single, peaking at number 8 in the UK in November 1991, and number 95 in Australia in December 1991. Seal also recycled the "racism in among future kings can only lead to no good, and besides, all our sons and daughters already know how that feels" lyric from "Killer" in "Future Love Paradise" (number 46, July 1991).
"Killer" would eventually become a top 40 hit in Australia, when ATB released a version of it titled "Killer 2000" (number 33, March 2000).
British pop group Five Star were five siblings from the same family, all with the surname Pearson. The group placed 15 singles within the UK top 40 between 1985 and 1988, with six of those reaching the top 10. In Australia, it was a different story, with only "System Addict" (number 66, May 1986) registering within the top 100.
It is quite surprising, then, to see that "Treat Me Like a Lady" dented the top 150, particularly considering it only reached number 54 in their homeland, in March 1990.
"Treat Me Like a Lady" was the first single - and only Australian release - from the album Five Star.
The group would release another single in Australia, "Shine", in 1992, but it did not make the top 150.
Number 149 "Have a Heart" by Bonnie Raitt
Peak: number 149
Peak dates: 21 May 1990 and 28 May 1990
Weeks in top 150: 2 weeks
Top 150 chart run: 149-149
Weeks on chart: 3 weeks
Last week, Bonnie Raitt made her first appearance in the top 150, and here she is a mere week later with the third single from her Nick of Time (number 58, April 1990) album.
"Have a Heart" was a middling success for Bonnie in her native US, where it peaked at number 49 on the Billboard Hot 100 in July 1990. "Have a Heart" was the theme song for the 1990 movie Heart Condition, from which several clips are used in the music video below.
On the ARIA state charts, "Have a Heart" performed strongest in South Australia/Northern Territory, where it reached number 58.
Listening to this track for the first time as I write this, I can't help but hear a similarity in the backing music to James Reyne's "One More River" (number 22, August 1989), though I am sure it is coincidental.
Bonnie will join us next in 1994.
Number 150 "Message" by Go 101
Peak: number 131
Peak date: 28 May 1990
Weeks in top 150: 8 weeks
Chart run: 150-131-132-135-139-138-141-138
Weeks on chart: 8 weeks
Australian band Go 101 scored minor success in 1988 when their debut single "Build It Up" reached number 55 in September 1988. Two further singles also made the ARIA top 100: "Room for Love" (number 88, March 1989) and "Jealous Heart" (number 66, November 1989).
"Message" was the fourth and final single from the band's only album Tempting Fate (number 73, November 1989). Interestingly, the song was titled "Message (To a Broken Heart)" on the album, but not on the single sleeve. The song was remixed for its single release, but only the album version, embedded below, is available on YouTube. On the state charts, "Message" performed strongest in Victoria/Tasmania, where it reached number 102.
I didn't think I knew this song, but it sounds familiar listening to it as I write this week's post.
Although we won't see Go 101 again, their lead singer David Wilson will front another band we shall see bubble under in 1992.
Bubbling WAY down under:
Number 159 "Moonlight on Water" by Laura Branigan
Peak: number 159
Peak date: 21 May 1990
Weeks on chart: 2 weeks
As hinted in the blurb for this week's post last week, the first album I ever bought was recorded by one of this week's debuting artists. The artist in question was Laura Branigan, and the album was Self Control (number 29, August 1984).
Between 1982 and 1988, Laura placed 9 singles within the Australian top 100, with 4 of those reaching the top 10. "Gloria" (number 1, February 1983) went all the way to number one, for 7 weeks, becoming the third best-charting single of 1983.
Laura's last single to reach the top 40 in Australia was "Spanish Eddie" (number 24, October 1985). Like many recording artists strongly associated with the 1980s, Laura struggled to achieve major commercial success once the 90s clocked over; although her chart career had been on the decline for most of the second half of the 80s.
"Moonlight on Water" was an exception to this usual pattern of others scoring hits with Laura's flops - instead, it was a cover version of a song originally released by Kevin Raleigh in 1989. Kevin's version peaked at number 81 in Australia in July 1989, and at number 60 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in June 1989. The song was co-written by Steve Kipner, who co-wrote Olivia Newton-John's "Physical" (number 1, November 1981).
In Laura's native US, "Moonlight on Water" peaked 100 places higher than it did in Australia, at number 59, in April 1990, although it would be her last Billboard Hot 100 entry. Within Australia, "Moonlight on Water" performed strongest on the Western Australia state chart, where it reached number 132.
The album "Moonlight on Water" is lifted from, Laura Branigan, peaked at number 143 in Australia in June 1990. Although Laura would have no further ARIA singles chart success, two later albums charted in Australia: Over My Heart (number 151, September 1993) and Greatest Hits (number 476, October 2007).
Laura sadly died from a brain aneurysm in her sleep in 2004, aged 52.
Number 162 "Blue Period" by The Smithereens featuring Belinda Carlisle
"Blue Period" was issued as the second and final single in Australia from their third studio album 11 (number 96, April 1990). On this track, the band teamed up with Belinda Carlisle, whom we will see bubbling under on her own in October 1990.
Internationally, "Blue Period" peaked at number 99 in the UK in May 1990. On the state charts, "Blue Period" performed strongest in Western Australia, where it reached number 125.
This would be The Smithereens' final single to peak outside the top 100 in Australia. They would go on to land two further ARIA top 100 singles, with "Top of the Pops" (number 77, February 1992) and "Too Much Passion" (number 87, March 1992). Later charting albums in Australia from The Smithereens include Blow Up (number 68, February 1992), A Date with The Smithereens (number 210, July 1994) and The Smithereens Play "Tommy"! (number 1041, June 2009).
Number 165 "96 Tears" by The Stranglers
Peak: number 165
Peak date: 21 May 1990
Weeks on chart: 1 week
Between 1978 and 1986, English band The Stranglers placed five singles on the Australian top 100. Three of those made the top 40: "Golden Brown" (number 10, May 1982), "Skin Deep" (number 11, February 1985), and "Always the Sun" (number 21, March 1987). "Big in America" also bubbled under on the Kent Music Report's list of singles receiving significant sales reports beyond the top 100, reaching fifth place on the list in April 1987.
"96 Tears" was the lead single from The Stranglers' tenth studio album 10 (number 142, April 1990). The single reached number 17 in the UK in February 1990, and number 9 in Ireland during the same month.
I don't recall hearing this song before, and while I think it's OK (not brilliant), it's not a patch on "Always the Sun", which is one of my favourite songs of all time, even though I only know a few Stranglers singles. I've also had a crack at trying to play "Golden Brown" on the piano, not being in possession of a harpsichord.
A second and final single from 10, "Sweet Smell of Success", was issued in Australia in May 1990, but failed to chart. It did, however, peak at number 65 in the UK in April 1990.
Following the release of the compilation Greatest Hits 1977-1990, which oddly did not chart in Australia, the group were dropped by their record label. The band's lead singer, Hugh Cornwell, also quit the group. The Stranglers continued on, however, with new vocalist Paul Roberts on vocals.
Since it's extremely unlikely that I will be writing these chart recap posts once I get around to 2014 (2004 is probably a stretch, though you never know), I might as well reveal the spoiler now that The Stranglers had one later 'charting' single in Australia: "Peaches", which originally peaked at number 54 in February 1978, re-charted at number 947 (!) in April 2014. Yes, the chart is really calculated that low... and lower, in the digital era.
Next week (28 May): Next week we have six new top 150-peaking debuts, and three bubbling WAY down under entries.
