This week in 1992 was another busy week on the charts, with 12 new entries for me to write about. Before taking a look, I have updated the following earlier posts:
* 10 September 1990 - with a new bubbling WAY down under entry from Arthur Baker and The Backbeat Disciples;
* 1 October 1990 - with a new bubbling WAY down under entry from Adam Ant;
* 5 November 1990 - with a new bubbling WAY down under entry from 2 Static featuring Nasty Cat;
* 17 December 1990 - with a new bubbling WAY down under entry from Aswad.
That takes me up to the end of 1990 with updating my earlier posts - they should all now be up to date with added weeks on chart listings and state chart peaks where I have this information. I still have 1991 and the first couple of months of 1992 to update.
Now onto this week in 1992...
Gina G was too 'cultured' for the Australian charts in 1992.
Top 150 debuts:
Number 115 "I Need Love" by Olivia Newton-John
Peak: number 109
Peak date: 7 September 1992
Weeks in top 150: 11 weeks
Chart run: 115-110-114-117-113-119-113-109-119-117-125
Weeks on chart: 11 weeks
We last saw Olivia Newton-John in 1989.
"I Need Love" was recorded for inclusion on Olivia's Back to Basics: The Essential Collection 1971-1992 (number 15, September 1992) compilation, and released as its lead single. Unfortunately, Olivia was diagnosed with breast cancer in July 1992, on the weekend her father died from liver cancer, resulting in her cancelling her planned tour to promote the album while she underwent treatment. While Olivia survived her initial bout with the disease, it was discovered that the cancer had spread to her shoulder in 2013, following X-rays after a minor car accident. She would ultimately die from the disease in August 2022, aged 73.
Internationally, "I Need Love" peaked at number 74 in the UK in June 1992, and number 96 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in July 1992.
In Australia, "I Need Love" found greatest success in Victoria/Tasmania, where it reached number 64. The single also performed better on the Australian Music Report singles chart, where it reached number 89.
Interestingly, "I Need Love" spent the first ten weeks of its 11-week chart run hovering between numbers 109 and 119.
While I was aware of this release at the time, I don't think I heard the song or saw the video, probably partly because there was more media interest in Olivia's recent cancer diagnosis at the time than her new music. Olivia was very much women's gossip magazine fodder at this stage in her career.
We will next see Olivia in October 1992, and a cover version of this song (with a new title) will also bubble under in 1995.
Number 117 "Runaway" by Deee-Lite
Peak: number 112
Peak date: 27 July 1992
Weeks in top 150: 7 weeksChart run: 166-117-112-125-122-124-129-143
Weeks on chart: 8 weeks
Deee-Lite last graced our presence in 1991.
"Runaway" was issued as the lead single from Deee-Lite's second studio album Infinity Within (number 117, August 1992). Internationally, the single peaked at number 45 in the UK in June 1992, number 25 in Switzerland in July 1992, and number 70 in Canada in August 1992. While the single missed the US Billboard Hot 100, it topped the meaningless US Dance Club songs chart.
In Australia, "Runaway" performed strongest in New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory, where it reached number 94.
I remember catching the video for "Runaway" on rage as a new release, and the "why don't we, why don't we, why don't we..." lines sung by Lady Miss Kier at the start of the video got stuck in my head. I actually chose "Runaway" as one of my video selections when I won a competition to program an hour of the Australian music video show rage in 2010. I deliberately chose videos they had not aired in many years. The "we'd like to conduct a fax orgy" line always makes me laugh.
"Runaway" would be Deee-Lite's final single to chart in Australia, although they had later charting albums with Dewdrops in the Garden (number 140, September 1994), Sampladelic Relics & Dancefloor Oddities (number 151, December 1996), and The Very Best of Deee-Lite (number 416, January 2002).
While Deee-Lite would not trouble the ARIA singles chart again, band member Towa Tei would land a minor 'hit' with "GBI (German Bold Italic)" featuring Kylie Minogue (number 50, November 1998) in 1998, and would also chart with his albums Future Listening! (number 229, August 1995), Sound Museum (number 195, June 1998), and Last Century Modern (number 245, July 2000).
Number 134 "Evapor 8" by Altern 8
Peak: number 124
Peak date: 10 August 1992
Weeks in top 150: 6 weeksTop 150 chart run: 134-129-135-124-135-135
Rave-orientated dance tunes were slowly infiltrating the ARIA singles chart in 1991-2, even if they usually peaked outside the top 100. Here's another one of those, this time from British electronic duo Altern 8, who were Mark Archer and Chris Peat. While "Evapor 8" was their first, and seemingly only, Australian release, it was the duo's fifth charting single in the UK. "Activ 8 (Come with Me)" was Altern 8's biggest hit in the UK, reaching number 3 in November 1991. That song contains a vocal sample from Peech Boys' "Don't Make Me Wait", from 1982 - we will see another song later in the year that uses the same sample.
Internationally, "Evapor 8" peaked at number 6 in the UK in April 1992, and number 9 in Ireland during the same month. The track would appear on the duo's only album Full on... Mask Hysteria, and features the vocals of P.P. Arnold, whom we saw as a featured artist for another act in 1989.
In Australia, "Evapor 8" would be Altern 8's only release to trouble the top 150.
Number 140 "Love the Life" by Bass Culture featuring Geena
Peak: number 130
Peak date: 3 August 1992
Weeks in top 150: 6 weeksTop 150 chart run: 140-139-130-141-131-150
Weeks on chart: 21 weeks (1992 and 1996 releases combined)
Bass Culture were Australian production duo Mark James and David Berman. They roped in then-unknown Australian singer Gina Gardiner, who would be better known later on as Gina G, for this, their debut single, "Love the Life". Gina was credited as 'Geena' though for this release.
Despite promoting the single with a performance on light entertainment variety show Hey Hey It's Saturday, and the song being used prominently as background music in the Summer Bay Diner on Home and Away, "Love the Life" stalled outside the top 100 in Australia. Interestingly, the single also took nearly two months to dent the top 150, after debuting at number 160 on 25 May 1992.
On the state charts, "Love the Life" performed strongest in Victoria/Tasmania, where it reached number 99. The track appeared on Bass Culture's only album B.C. Nation (number 155, July 1995).
Gina G's vocals on "Love the Life" remind me of Cathy Dennis. Stupidly, the record company have blocked the music video for "Love the Life" on YouTube (it used to appear on one of my channels) - so I have had to resort to uploading it to embed within this post, below. In it, you can watch Gina running through a field of sunflowers...
Bass Culture would eventually land a top 100 entry, with their cover of Carole King's "You've Got a Friend" (number 100, August 1993), featuring Kate Ceberano on vocals.
Gina would, of course, go on to bigger and better things when she teamed up with Motiv 8 for her debut solo release, "Ooh Aah... Just a Little Bit" (number 5, June 1996), which was selected as the UK's entry in the 1996 Eurovision Song Contest. The success of that single prompted a remix and re-release of "Love the Life" in Europe and Australia in 1996, and we will see that release bubble under in 1996.
We shall next see Bass Culture in 1994, and Gina G solo in 1997.
Number 144 "I've Got Mine" by Glenn Frey
Peak: number 137
Peak date: 10 August 1992
Weeks in top 150: 6 weeksTop 150 chart run: 144-142-140-137-144-(out for 1 week)-140
Weeks on chart: 8 weeks
Glenn Frey (pronounced 'fry') was a member of Eagles, sharing lead vocal duties with Don Henley, as well as playing guitars and keyboard. The Eagles songs Glenn sings lead on that I am most familiar with are "Take It Easy" (number 49, 1972) and "New Kid in Town" (number 16, March 1977). I remember the latter being played regularly on radio in the early 1980s - so much so that I assumed it was a then-new/current song!
Glenn embarked on a solo career in 1982, landing two solo top 40 hits in Australia, with "The Heat Is On" (number 2, May 1985) and "You Belong to the City" (number 20, February 1986), taken from the Beverly Hills Cop soundtrack and Miami Vice, respectively.
"I've Got Mine" was the second single lifted from Glenn's fourth studio album Strange Weather (number 120, September 1992). It followed "Part of Me, Part of You" (number 97, August 1991), which also appeared on the soundtrack album for Thelma & Louise (number 76, October 1991).
Internationally, "I've Got Mine" peaked at number 91 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in August 1992, and number 51 in Germany during the same month.
In Australia, "I've Got Mine" performed strongest in South Australia/Northern Territory, where it reached number 99.
Sadly, Glenn passed away in January 2016, aged 67, from the combined effects of ulcerative colitis, rheumatoid arthritis and pneumonia.
We will next see Glenn in September 1992.
Number 150 "Kids Are Wired" by Strongheart
Peak: number 146
Peak date: 3 August 1992
Weeks in top 150: 3 weeksTop 150 chart run: 150-150-146
I couldn't find a whole lot of information about Strongheart online - surprisingly, they do not even have a Wikipedia page. They were an American band who relocated to the UK, and appear to have released a mere two albums and two singles, of which "Kids Are Wired" is obviously one. I also could not find evidence of this single, which I had not heard before, charting anywhere else.
"Kids Are Wired" was lifted from Strongheart's debut album Hard Wired, which was released in Australia in April 1993 but missed the top 150. A second single, "Smooth As Silk", was also released in Australia in April 1993 and missed the top 150.
Bubbling WAY down under:
Number 176 "Feel" by The Church
Peak: number 176
Peak date: 20 July 1992
Weeks on chart: 5 weeksAustralian band The Church formed in Sydney in 1980. Their first charting single was "The Unguarded Moment" (number 22, July 1981), and their highest-charting single was "Metropolis" (number 19, April 1990). My favourite single from The Church would be "Under the Milky Way" (number 22, May 1988), which was also their biggest international hit, reaching number 24 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in June 1988. Between 1981 and 1992, The Church placed 13 singles in the Australian top 100.
"Feel" was the second single issued from the band's eighth studio album Priest = Aura (number 25, May 1992). It followed "Ripple" (number 62, April 1992).
On the state charts, "Feel" performed strongest in Victoria/Tasmania, where it reached number 164.
We will next see The Church in 1994.
Number 181 "Rough Boy" by ZZ Top
Peak: number 165
Peak date: 27 July 1992
Weeks on chart: 3 weeksThis single originally peaked at number 85 in June 1986, spending 4 weeks in the top 100.
We last saw American bearded trio ZZ Top in 1991.
"Rough Boy" originally appeared on ZZ Top's ninth studio album Afterburner (number 6, December 1985). The track was released as the third single from that album, peaking at number 85 in Australia in June 1986. Having had recent success with their Greatest Hits (number 2, June 1992) compilation and the single "Viva Las Vegas" (number 28, May 1992), presumably the record label decided to re-release this older track that wasn't a hit here the first time around from it.
Internationally, the 1992 release of "Rough Boy" peaked at number 49 in the UK in June 1992, number 81 in the Netherlands in July 1992, and number 38 in Switzerland in July 1992.
Domestically, "Rough Boy" performed strongest on the Victoria/Tasmania state chart, where it reached number 148.
We shall next see ZZ Top in 1994.
Number 184 "Got to Be Free" by 49ers
Peak: number 182
Peak date: 10 August 1992
Weeks on chart: 4 weeksWe last saw Italian dance act 49ers in 1990.
Despite being a fan of the singles from 49ers' debut album, I hadn't actually heard "Got to Be Free" until listening to it/watching the music video while writing this post - although I remember seeing the CD single in the shops in 1992. It was the lead single from 49ers' second album Playing with My Heart (number 179, October 1992). The track features the vocals of Ann-Marie Smith, who would front the project from this point onwards.
Internationally, "Got to Be Free" peaked at number 46 in the UK in May 1992, and number 38 on the meaningless US Billboard Dance Club Songs chart.
In Australia, "Got to Be Free" performed strongest in Western Australia, where it reached number 150.
We shall next see 49ers in 1994.
Number 188 "The Sound of Crying" by Prefab Sprout
Peak: number 188
Peak date: 20 July 1992
Weeks on chart: 4 weeksWe last saw English band Prefab Sprout in 1990.
"The Sound of Crying" was one of two new songs recorded for the band's compilation album A Life of Surprises: The Best of Prefab Sprout (number 194, September 1992). The other new song, "If You Don't Love Me", was released locally in November 1992 but failed to chart. "If You Don't Love Me" would be covered by Kylie Minogue as a B-side on her "Confide in Me" (number 1 for 4 weeks in September-October 1994) single.
Internationally, "The Sound of Crying" peaked at number 23 in the UK in June 1992, and number 79 in Germany in August 1992.
In Australia, "The Sound of Crying" performed strongest in Queensland, where it reached number 161 on the state chart.
I hadn't heard this one before, but liked it. It doesn't sound terribly '1990s' though, to my ears.
"The Sound of Crying" would be Prefab Sprout's final single to chart in Australia, although they had a later low-charting album with I Trawl the Megahertz (number 1049, February 2019).
Number 207 "Two Worlds Collide" by Inspiral Carpets
Peak: number 177
Peak date: 24 August 1992
Weeks on chart: 5 weeksWe last saw English band Inspiral Carpets in May 1992.
"Two Worlds Collide" was released as the second single from the band's third studio album Revenge of the Goldfish (number 123, June 1993). Internationally, "Two Worlds Collide" peaked at number 32 in the UK in May 1992, and number 8 on the meaningless US Billboard Alternative Airplay chart.
Domestically, "Two Worlds Collide" was most popular in Western Australia, where it reached number 164 on the state chart.
I remember catching the video for this one on rage as a new release. It is one of my favourite Inspiral Carpets singles.
We shall see Inspiral Carpets next in October 1992.
Number 209 "Tired of Being Alone" by Texas
Peak: number 173
Peak date: 24 August 1992
Weeks on chart: 5 weeksWe last saw Scottish band Texas in 1990.
"Tired of Being Alone" was issued as the third and final single in Australia from the band's second studio album Mother's Heaven (number 74, November 1991). It followed the singles "Why Believe in You" (number 73, October 1991) and "In My Heart" (number 92, March 1992). The song is a cover version of a track originally recorded by Al Green in 1971.
Internationally, "Tired of Being Alone" peaked at number 19 in the UK in May 1992.
In Australia, "Tired of Being Alone" performed strongest in Western Australia, where it reached number 161.
The guitar riff on this track sounds very similar to my ears to the one Texas used on "Say What You Want" (number 11, June 1997).
Texas will join us next in 1994.
Next week (27 July): Five new top 150 entries and three bubbling WAY down under debuts.
