Week commencing 2 March 1992

This week in 1992's new entries peaking outside the top 100 are an eclectic bunch.  Let's take a look at them.

 

Tori Amos: what's so amazing about really low chart positions?

 

Top 150 debuts:

 

Number 135 "After the Watershed (Early Learning the Hard Way)" by Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine

Peak: number 124

Peak date: 23 March 1992

Weeks in top 150: 8 weeks

Top 150 chart run: 135-140-137-124-132-137-125-141

English indie punk band Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine formed in 1987.  While "After the Watershed..." was their first single to dent the ARIA top 150, an earlier album 30 Something (number 138, April 1991), had charted in Australia.

"After the Watershed..." was a non-album track, and peaked at number 11 in the UK in November 1991, and number 21 in Ireland.

The single fared better on the Australian Music Report singles chart where it reached number 97.

The Rolling Stones did not approve of the use of the "goodbye Ruby Tuesday" chorus lyrics or bassline resembling "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction", and successfully sued the band... because they didn't already have enough money, right?  They now receive a co-writing credit on this track.

 

We'll next see Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine in August.

Number 139 "Silent All These Years" by Tori Amos

Peak: number 128

Peak date: 23 March 1992

Weeks in top 150: 6 weeks

Top 150 chart run: 139-135-132-128-135-139

Weeks on chart: 8 weeks

 

Occasionally, though not very often, I write about an artist I almost need to do no research for... because I know all about them already.  Here's one such example.

 

I was an obsessive fan of Tori Amos, born Myra Ellen Amos, between 1994 and about 2002.  I first became aware of her in early 1992 through her appearance on the cover of one of those free monthly Brashs magazines that were available in-store.  I skimmed the article, saw her mention God a few times, and assumed she was a God botherer (i.e. I wouldn't have liked her music).

When Tori's second Australian single, "Winter" (number 49, June 1992), crept into the lower region of the rage top 60 chart, it fell on a week that I had set my VCR to record the chart, rather than watch it live.  Going through the tape, I didn't bother listening to the song, and remember thinking, "Oh, her."

Fast forward a couple of weeks later, I eventually heard "Winter" in full on one of its weeks in the top 60, and realised that I liked it.  I decided that I was going to record it onto a tape where I kept music videos for songs I liked, the following week... except it fell out of the top 60.  I remember sometimes getting the chorus for "Winter" stuck in my head while walking my dog, but other than that, I pretty much forgot about Tori until "Cornflake Girl" (number 19, March 1994) was released.

Taking a chance with a Brashs gift voucher I had, I bought Tori's second album Under the Pink (number 5, March 1994) soon after hearing "Cornflake Girl", and was blown away by the album.  Less than a week later, I decided to buy Tori's debut album Little Earthquakes (number 14, June 1992), from which "Silent All These Years" is lifted, and liked it even more (at the time... Under the Pink nudges it out slightly for me now).

 

Well, strictly speaking, Little Earthquakes was not Tori's debut.  Her band Y Kant Tori Read (pronounced "why can't Tori read?"), containing future Guns N' Roses drummer Matt Sorum, released a self-titled album in the US in 1988 which was a commercial failure, selling only 7000 copies.  Tori's image for this project was rather different to her later solo work - she looks like a metal chick, complete with big hair, pouty lips and skin-tight spandex pants, and she is wielding a sword.  But Y Kant Tori Read is well worth checking out if you like Tori and have not heard it before, with my personal faves from the album being "Fire on the Side" and "Etienne Trilogy".

My mum bought the sheet music book for Under the Pink for me later in 1994, and it contained an illustrated discography of Tori Amos' releases up until March 1994.  My mission in life then became to track down all of her earlier singles with umpteen non-album track B-sides on them, with interesting titles like "Flying Dutchman" and "Ode to the Banana King (Part One)".  It took almost a year, discovering Record Collector magazine, and having my mum telephone the UK at night to buy out of print limited edition CD singles using her credit card, but I succeeded with that quest.

The first concert I ever went to was Tori's first show in Melbourne on the Under the Pink tour in December 1994.  In fact, the only concerts I have been to have been Tori Amos ones - the others being her two Melbourne shows in May 2005.  I'm not really one for live music, but Tori's live shows are something else, with the setlist varying wildly each night.

As for "Silent All These Years"... it originally appeared as the lead track on the Me and a Gun EP, which was Tori's debut release in the UK, where her solo career was launched, in October 1991.  The single artwork was altered later with the title changed to "Silent All These Years", and the re-issued single peaked at number 51 in the UK in November 1991.

 

Domestically, on the state charts, "Silent All These Years" performed strongest in Victoria/Tasmania, where it reached number 108.

Following further singles "China" (not released in Australia), "Winter" and "Crucify" (number 83, August 1992), "Silent All These Years" was re-issued as a single in the UK (but not Australia), with new artwork and B-sides, in August 1992.  The re-released single reached a new peak of number 26 in the UK in August 1992.

 

"Silent All These Years" was Tori's debut solo single in her native US, and did not dent the Billboard Hot 100 upon its original release, but reached number 27 on the Alternative Airplay chart in May 1992.  The single was re-issued in 1997, to raise funds for RAINN - the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network anti sexual-assault organisation Tori was involved in setting up.  The 1997 release of "Silent All These Years" peaked at number 65 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in May 1997.

While I like "Silent All These Years", particularly the "years go by, will I still be waiting for somebody else to understand..." middle-8 section, it's not among my top-tier Tori tracks.  The partly animated video, though, is quite striking.

We shall next see Tori in 1994.

 

 

Number 141 "My Girl" by The Temptations (re-issue)

Peak: number 104

Peak date: 13 April 1992

Weeks in top 150: 12 weeks

Top 150 chart run: 141-137-136-136-124-115-104-121-126-110-130-115

 

Originally released in 1964, The Temptations' "My Girl" was re-released as a single as the title track of the late 1991 movie My Girl, starring Macaulay Culkin.  The accompanying soundtrack album peaked at number 4 in Australia in July 1992.  I assume, therefore, that the film had a later cinematic release here.

The 1992 release of "My Girl" peaked at number 2 in the UK in February 1992, number 2 in Ireland, and number 66 in Germany in March 1992.

 

 

Number 147 "Sweetheart" by Died Pretty

Peak: number 129

Peak date: 6 April 1992

Weeks in top 150: 7 weeks 

Top 150 chart run: 147-150-146-(out for 1 week)-130-129-141-140

Weeks on chart: 11 weeks

 

We last saw Australian band Died Pretty in 1991.

 

"Sweetheart" was the third and final single lifted from the band's fourth studio album Doughboy Hollow (number 24, September 1991).

 

On the state charts, "Sweetheart" performed strongest in South Australia/Northern Territory, where it reached number 99.

 

We'll next see Died Pretty in 1994.

  

 

Bubbling WAY down under:

Number 161 “Shut ’em Down” by Public Enemy

Peak: number 161

Peak date: 2 March 1992

Weeks on chart: 3 weeks 

American hip-hop group Public Enemy formed in New York in 1985.  Between 1990 and 1998, they placed nine singles on the ARIA top 100, although only two of those peaked within the top 50; namely, "Give It Up" (number 16, September 1994) and "He Got Game" (number 25, June 1998).  Despite the lack of hits in Australia, a boy two years below me at my small primary school wore a Public Enemy t-shirt to school on a couple of occasions in 1990!

“Shut ’em Down” was issued as the second single from Public Enemy’s fourth studio album, Apocalypse 91… The Enemy Strikes Black (number 11, October 1991), following “Can’t Truss It” (number 55, November 1991).  Internationally, the single peaked at number 21 in the UK in January 1992, and number 30 in New Zealand in March 1992.  The song registered on several of the US Billboard genre-specific charts, reaching number 33 on the Dance Singles Sales chart in February 1992, number 26 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart in March 1992, number 1 on the Hot Rap Songs chart in March 1992, and number 16 on the Dance Club Songs chart in April 1992.

Locally, “ Shut ’em Down” was most popular in Western Australia, where it reached number 155.

We will next see Public Enemy in May 1992.

Number 165 "Driven by You" by Brian May

Peak: number 162

Peak date: 9 March 1992

Weeks on chart: 7 weeks

 

Queen's guitarist Brian May launched his solo career in 1983 with the Brian May + Friends mini-album, though only one single, "Star Fleet", which was released in Australia in February 1984 but did not chart, was issued from it.

 

"Driven by You" was the first single from Brian's first solo album proper, Back to the Light (number 94, December 1992).  Coincidentally, the single was released in the UK the day after Queen frontman Freddie Mercury's death.

Internationally, "Driven by You" peaked at number 6 in the UK in December 1991, number 14 in Ireland in December 1991, number 10 in the Netherlands in February 1992, number 35 in the Flanders region of Belgium in May 1992, and number 70 in Canada in April 1993.

Within Australia, "Driven by You" was most popular in Western Australia, where it reached number 122.

Brian would score a hit in Australia - his only solo one - with his next release, "Too Much Love Will Kill You" (number 18, November 1992); a song he co-wrote but was originally recorded by Queen in 1988 for possible inclusion on The Miracle (number 4, June 1989).

We shall next see Brian in 1993.

 

 

Number 178 "Sex with Love" by Lee Aaron

Peak: number 164

Peak date: 6 April 1992

Weeks on chart: 7 weeks

 

Canadian rock chick Lee Aaron last paid us a visit in 1991.  "Sex with Love" was the lead single from her sixth studio album Some Girls Do (number 189, April 1992).

 

Internationally, "Sex with Love" peaked at number 55 in Canada in October 1991.

 

In Australia, "Sex with Love" was most popular in South Australia/Northern Territory, where it reached number 137 on the state chart.

 

This would be Lee's final single to chart in Australia.

 

 

Number 184 "Groove On" by Yo Yo Honey

Peak: number 184

Peak date: 2 March 1992

Weeks on chart: 2 weeks

 

Yo Yo Honey were a UK R&B/Soul band, containing Anna Ross, Mani Shoniwa, and Anita Jarrett on vocals.  "Groove On" was their debut single, lifted from their only album Voodoo Soul (number 173, October 1992).

 

Internationally, "Groove On" peaked at number 108 (number 83 on the compressed chart) in the UK in November 1991, and number 51 in the Netherlands in February 1992.

 

Locally, "Groove On" performed strongest in New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory, where it reached number 168 on the state chart.

 

This was Yo Yo Honey's only charting single in Australia.  I cannot find any details about it, but vocalist Anita Jarrett has apparently since passed away.

 

"Groove On" received a second lease of life in 1997, where a remixed version peaked at number 81 (number 77 on the compressed chart) in the UK in July 1997.

 

 

Next week (9 March): Another four top 150 debuts, plus three bubbling WAY down under entries.

 

< Previous week: 24 February 1992                                     Next week: 9 March 1992 >

Week commencing 23 September 1991

One thing all of this week in 1991's new entries outside the top 100 have in common is that I did not hear any of them at the time.  Perhaps they are new for you, too?  Let's take a look (or listen) together.

 

George Michael attracted few listeners without prejudice for this single in 1991.

  

Top 150 debuts:

 

Number 131 "Only Time Will Tell" by Nelson

Peak: number 124

Peak date: 14 October 1991

Weeks in top 150: 6 weeks

Chart run: 131-138-135-124-131-132

Weeks on chart: 6 weeks

 

We last saw the Nelson twins in August 1991.  "Only Time Will Tell" was the fourth and final single lifted from the band's debut album After the Rain (number 100, October 1990).

 

Internationally, "Only Time Will Tell" peaked at number 28 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in August 1991.  Wikipedia says it peaked at number 81 in Canada, but no supporting reference has been cited.

Locally, "Only Time Will Tell" performed strongest in Queensland, where it reached number 99.

While I quite enjoyed Nelson's previous single, this one I find a bit lacking.

Nelson will join us for one last time in 1995.

 

 

Number 141 "D.C." by Died Pretty

Peak: number 124

Peak date: 21 October 1991

Weeks in top 150: 7 weeks

Known chart run: 159-141-137-134-129-124-133-137

Weeks on chart: 10 weeks

 

Australian band Died Pretty last joined us in June 1991.

 

"D.C." was the second single lifted from the band's fourth studio album Doughboy Hollow (number 24, September 1991).  On the state charts, the single was most popular in Western Australia, where it reached number 71.

 

You may be wondering - who or what is "D.C."?   Died Pretty singer Ron Peno revealed to Triple J in 1996 that "the lyric is about the passing of someone, and coming to terms with it."  It was written about a friend named David Cox, who died while the band were touring Europe.

 

"D.C." is a decent song, but not something I would actively seek out.

We'll next see Died Pretty in 1992.

 

 

 

Number 142 "The Last to Know" by Céline Dion

Peak: number 134

Peak date: 14 October 1991

Weeks in top 150: 6 weeks

Known chart run: 165-142-147-143-134-144-140

Weeks on chart: 8 weeks

Hailing from Quebec, Céline Dion commenced her recording career in 1981, at the age of just 13.  During the 1980s, she released eight albums recorded in French.

Céline's English language debut came in 1990, with the release of the album Unison (number 117, April 1991).  Céline's first Australian release was the lead single from it, "Where Does My Heart Beat Now" (number 62, April 1991).

 

"The Last to Know" was the third single lifted from Unison in Australia.  It followed "(If There Was) Any Other Way", which was released locally in June 1991 but failed to chart.  I hadn't heard or seen the music video for "(If There Was) Any Other Way" until now - it's a time capsule of early 90s bad fashion and hair-don'ts!

"The Last to Know" was originally recorded by Sheena Easton for her 1987 album No Sound but a Heart, which did not chart in Australia.

 

Internationally, "The Last to Know" peaked at number 16 in Canada in May 1991.  The song also reached number 22 on the US Billboard Adult Contemporary chart in August 1991.

Within Australia, "The Last to Know" performed strongest in South Australia/Northern Territory, where it reached number 113.

I didn't hear this one at the time, but assume it might have been playlisted on Melbourne's TT FM (pronounced double-T FM), who loved this kind of current but something your mum would like more than 'the kids' music in the 90s.

Céline's commercial breakthrough in Australia came in 1992, with her Disney theme duet with Peabo Bryson, "Beauty and the Beast" (number 17, July 1992).

Céline will next join us in 1993.

 

 

Number 143 "The Sound of Your Voice" by 38 Special

Peak: number 133

Peak date: 21 October 1991

Weeks in top 150: 6 weeks

Top 150 chart run: 143-150-144-136-133-145

Weeks on chart: 8 weeks

 

Named after a revolver cartridge (thanks Wikipedia!), American band 38 Special formed in Jacksonville, Florida in 1974.  The band would have to wait 15 years to land their first - and really only - hit in Australia, with "Second Chance" (number 14, September 1989).  I remember "Second Chance" receiving heavy airplay at the time, and while it's a song I like, it seems to be virtually forgotten in Australia now.

38 Special also placed one album on the Australian chart, with Rock & Roll Strategy (number 74, September 1989).

 

"The Sound of Your Voice" was the first, and only, single issued in Australia from 38 Special's ninth studio album Bone Against Steel (released in Australia in July 1991, did not chart).

"The Sound of Your Voice" peaked at number 33 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in September 1991.

Domestically, "The Sound of Your Voice" performed strongest in South Australia/Northern Territory, where it reached number 109.

 

"The Sound of Your Voice" has a rousing chorus, but sounds more '80s' than '90s' musically.  It was the band's final release to chart in Australia.

 

Number 149 "Ordinary Miracles" by Julie Anthony

Peak: number 141

Peak date: 14 October 1991

Weeks in top 150: 2 weeks

Top 150 chart run: 149-(out for 3 weeks)-141

 

Australian singer Julie Anthony is known for her theatre, cabaret and variety show performances, as well as for singing the national anthem at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney together with Human Nature.  Well, I care so little about sport that I didn't know that last fact until researching this post.

On the Australian charts, Julie had placed two singles and five albums in the top 100 between 1978 and 1986.  Her biggest single was "China Blue" (number 34, March 1982).

"Ordinary Miracles" was recorded for the soundtrack album for the 1991 Australian animated movie The Magic Riddle.  The soundtrack missed the ARIA top 150.

 

I must thank a kind soul, Thibault, whom I messaged on discogs to obtain a rip of the audio for this track - without which, we would not be able to hear it.

 

 

Number 150 "House on Fire" by Club Hoy

Peak: number 134

Peak date: 28 October 1991

Weeks in top 150: 8 weeks

Top 150 chart run: 150-148-145-144-139-134-143-140

Australian band Club Hoy formed in Sydney in 1989.  During the band's tenure, they only released one album, Thursday's Fortune (number 96, March 1992).

 

"House on Fire" was Club Hoy's third single release, following "On and On" (February 1990) and "Da Da Da" (January 1991).  It was the band's first release to crack the ARIA top 150. 

Club Hoy would eventually land a top 100 single with the Trumpets EP (number 88, November 1992), led by the track "The Other Side of You".

I didn't hear this one at the time.  It sounds a bit like something you'd hear on Triple J Unearthed rather than a chart 'hit', to me.

We'll see Club Hoy again in 1992.

Bubbling WAY down under:

Number 171 "Cowboys and Angels" by George Michael

Peak: number 164

Peak date: 7 October 1991

Weeks on chart: 3 weeks

 

As the vocalist in Wham!, George Michael (born Georgious Kyriacos Panayiotou) together with Andrew Ridgeley amassed 11 top 100 singles on the Australian chart between 1983 and 1986, with all but two of those reaching the top 10.  "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" made it all the way to number 1 in Australia for seven non-consecutive weeks between July and September 1984.

At the height of Wham!'s fame, George launched his solo career with "Careless Whisper", which also went to number 1 in Australia for four weeks in September-October 1984.

Wham! split in 1986, and George released his debut solo album Faith (number 3, March 1988) the following year.  I am surprised that the Faith album did not top the Australian albums chart, though it was eventually certified five times platinum in 2004.

George's second solo album Listen without Prejudice Vol. 1 (number 2, September 1990) came three years later.  Unlike the singles from the Faith era, which were promoted heavily around George's image, George refused to appear in the music videos from Listen without Prejudice Vol. 1.  Perhaps, as a result, the singles were not as successful, overall, as those from Faith.

"Cowboys and Angels", George's fourteenth solo single to register a position on the Australian chart, was the fifth and final single lifted from Listen without Prejudice Vol. 1.  It followed "Praying for Time" (number 16, September 1990), "Freedom" (number 18, February 1991), "Waiting for That Day" (number 50, May 1991), and "Soul Free" (number 95, July 1991).

 

Internationally, "Cowboys and Angels" peaked at number 15 in Ireland in March 1991, number 45 in the UK in April 1991, number 20 in the Netherlands in May 1991, number 26 in the Flanders region of Belgium in May 1991, and number 36 in France in July 1991.

On the ARIA state charts, "Cowboys and Angels" performed strongest in Queensland, where it reached number 143.

I've checked out "Cowboys and Angels" on YouTube before, out of curiosity.  It's not terribly exciting, and not at all the kind of thing that would have appealed to George's once gaggle of screaming school girls fan-base.  I guess he tried to deliberately alienate this demographic with the Listen without Prejudice Vol. 1 era.  Fair enough, but, frankly, I find the song a bore.  Mercifully, the single version, embedded below, has been edited down from the 7 minute plus album version.

Of course, we tragically lost George on Christmas day in 2016, from heart disease, aged 53.

 

Given my interest in charts and current music severely wanes by the early 2000s, I doubt I will be writing these chart recaps when it comes to 2009.  But, in the unlikely event that I am, we'll next see George then!

 

Number 175 "I Feel" by The Cruel Sea

Peak: number 175

Peak date: 23 September 1991

Weeks on chart: 1 week

 

Aussie band The Cruel Sea formed in Sydney in late 1987.  Their debut album Down Below (number 133, April 1991) was released in December 1990, but no singles were issued from it.

"I Feel", the lead single from the band's second album This Is Not the Way Home (number 62, October 1992), was The Cruel Sea's first single release.  I didn't hear this one until music video TV program rage aired the video in 2015 as part of their tribute to James Cruickshank (born James Watson), the band's guitarist and keyboard player, who died from bowel cancer that year, aged 53.

 

I imagine that Triple J would have loved this track in 1991.  I like the song.  Lead singer Tex Perkins' (real name Gregory Perkins) vocals on it remind me a little bit of Crash Test Dummies singer Brad Roberts, with his deep voice.

 

I first became aware of The Cruel Sea via their first ARIA top 50 single, "Black Stick" (number 25, May 1993), which was lifted from their breakthrough album The Honeymoon Is Over (number 4, June 1993).

On the state charts, "I Feel" performed strongest in New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory, where it reached number 164.

We shall next see The Cruel Sea in August 1992, but, before then, we'll see Tex Perkins fronting Beasts of Bourbon in February 1992.  Tex was a busy boy, fronting both bands as well as later having his own solo career.

 

 

Number 182 "Dreams to Remember" by Robert Palmer

Peak: number 182

Peak date: 23 September 1991

Weeks on chart: 1 week

 

Robert Palmer last graced our presence in February 1991.

 

"Dreams to Remember", a cover version of Otis Redding's "I've Got Dreams to Remember" from 1968, was released as the fourth and final single in Australia from Robert's tenth studio album Don't Explain (number 29, January 1991).

 

"Dreams to Remember" peaked at number 68 in Robert's native UK in June 1991.

 

Domestically, "Dreams to Remember" was most successful in New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory, where it reached number 168.

 

I half-expected this song to be a cover version of the Milli Vanilli album track "Dreams to Remember".  Unfortunately, the music video embedded below is low quality, and I do not currently have a better source for it.  You can hear the audio more clearly on this official upload.

 

We will next see Robert in 1992.

Next week (30 September): Four top 150 debuts, and four bubbling WAY down under entries.

 

< Previous week: 16 September 1991                                  Next week: 30 September 1991 >

Week commencing 10 June 1991

I have no amazing insight into what connects this week in 1991's debuts peaking outside the top 100, so let's just dive straight in.  But before we do, I have updated last week's 1991 post with the following:

• 3 June 1991 - a new bubbling WAY down under entry from The Real Milli Vanilli.
   

Pat Benatar: she used to be somebody's rock chick.

  

Top 150 debuts:

 

Number 121 "True Love" by Pat Benatar

Peak: number 107

Peak date: 17 June 1991

Weeks in top 150: 4 weeks

Top 150 chart run: 121-107-117-114

Weeks on chart: 5 weeks

 

American singer Pat Benatar placed fourteen singles on the Australian chart during the 1980s, with three of those making the top ten.  Of these, "Love Is a Battlefield" (number 1, February 1984) was the biggest, with "All Fired Up" (number 2, September 1988) coming a close second.  We last saw Pat in April 1989.

"True Love" was the title track and only single issued in Australia from Pat's eighth studio album True Love (number 53, June 1991).  Known for her powerful rock voice, "True Love" was a radical departure from Pat's usual sound, dipping her toe into the jump blues genre.  Pat also had a make-over, displaying a softer image than typical for her (an evening dress!) in the music video.

"True Love" was only a hit in the Netherlands, where it reached number 21 in June 1991.  I cannot find evidence of this single registering on any other chart outside of Australia.

I hadn't heard "True Love" until writing this post, and was not aware of this album's existence at the time.  Pat seemed to disappear off the radar after "All Fired Up", with that song being her last major hit anywhere.  I have written before - and I am by no means the only person to make this observation - that a lot of artists associated with the 1980s fell on commercial hard times once the 1990s clocked over.

 

Within Australia, "True Love" performed strongest on the South Australia/Northern Territory state chart, where it reached number 77.

 

Pat would only land one further charting single in Australia, with "Somebody's Baby" (number 90, September 1993) in 1993.  That song deserved to do much better, and was as good as any of Pat's 80s hits in my view, but I guess Pat's time as an artist with hit singles was well and truly over by that point.

 

Pat placed a number of later albums on the ARIA albums chart - although all of them missed the top 100.  Her 1987 compilation Best Shots (number 19, February 1988) re-entered the chart in February 1992, reaching number 155.  Pat's next studio album Gravity's Rainbow peaked at number 130 in September 1993, Greatest Hits reached number 345 in January 2006, and 2 Classic Albums - Best Shots/Wide Awake in Dreamland peaked at number 344 in August 2011.

 

 

Number 135 "Falling" by One-Eyed Jacks

Peak: number 135

Peak date: 10 June 1991

Weeks in top 150: 2 weeks

Top 150 chart run: 135-137

 

I didn't watch Twin Peaks when it aired in Australia in early 1991, but you couldn't escape it.  Even my great uncle used to repeat the "she's wrapped in plastic!" line from the TV ads promoting the series.  Then, Julee Cruise's "Falling" topped the ARIA singles chart in April 1991.

It seemed obligatory for any big ballad hit in the 90s to have a cheap dance cover version recorded somewhere in continental Europe, featuring a singer whose primary language was probably not English, and here is the one for "Falling".

You can almost check the items off a list.  Cheap music video - check.  Woman with 'model' looks who may or may not be the actual singer (although surely they would have selected a better vocalist if she is only lip syncing) - check.  Sample from a recent dance/pop hit to give it a contemporary sound - check (in this instance, it's George Michael's "Freedom! '90").

 

Despite having said all of the above, I don't actually mind this version of "Falling".  I had not heard it before.

Danish DJ Kjeld Tolstrup was behind One-Eyed Jacks.  This track was their only release.  Oddly, I cannot find evidence of the single charting anywhere else.  Kjeld died in 2011, aged 45.

 

 

Number 146 "Keep It to Yourself" by Paul Kelly and The Messengers

Peak: number 146

Peak date: 10 June 1991

Weeks in top 150: 1 week

Top 150 chart run: 146

Weeks on chart: 4 weeks

We last saw Australian singer-songwriter Paul Kelly, with his then backing band The Messengers, in March 1991.  Here he is again, his fourth appearance in the 101-150 region of the ARIA singles chart in the space of twenty months.  While Paul might have snagged airplay and critical acclaim, commercial success usually eluded him on the Australian singles chart.

"Keep It to Yourself" was the second single lifted from the album Comedy (number 12, May 1991).  The single was most popular in Western Australia, where it reached number 121.

We shall next see Paul Kelly and The Messengers in October 1991.

 

 

 

Bubbling WAY down under:

 

Number 176 "What Is This Thing Called Love?" by Alexander O'Neal

Peak: number 176

Peak date: 10 June 1991

Weeks on chart: 1 week

 

American singer Alexander O'Neal last joined us in March 1991.  "What Is This Thing Called Love?" was the second and final single released in Australia from Alex's All True Man (number 108, April 1991) album.

 

Internationally, "What Is This Thing Called Love?" peaked at number 53 in the UK in March 1991, and number 81 in the Netherlands in April 1991.

 

Within Australia, "What Is This Thing Called Love?" performed strongest on the New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory state chart, where it reached number 160.

 

I hadn't heard this one before, but enjoyed it.  I think with a greater promotional push, Alex could have landed some commercial success in Australia during the late 1980s and early 1990s.

 

Alex will pay us another visit in 1997.  Before then, he placed another two albums on the ARIA albums chart: the compilation This Thing Called Love (number 214, July 1992), which took its name from this song despite it not being one of Alex's bigger hits, and Alex's next studio album Love Makes No Sense (number 192, April 1993), from which no singles charted in Australia.

 

 

Number 184 "Stop Myself"/"Godbless" by Died Pretty

Peak: number 163

Peak date: 5 August 1991

Weeks on chart: 6 weeks

 

Oh joy.  A double A-side single (which means I have to listen to two tracks) from a band I don't really care for: Australia's Died Pretty.  Alright, after listening to both tracks, they are not that bad; they're just not something I would intentionally seek out.  "Stop Myself" is my pick of the two.

 

We last saw Died Pretty in March 1990.  "Stop Myself" and "Godbless" were both lifted from the band's fourth studio album Doughboy Hollow (number 24, September 1991).  The single was most successful in Western Australia, where it reached number 126.

We will next see Died Pretty in September 1991.

Number 187 "Ruby Tuesday" (live) by The Rolling Stones

Peak: number 157

Peak date: 17 June 1991

Weeks on chart: 2 weeks

If I'm being brutally honest, I find it difficult to think of The Rolling Stones without thinking of how much Mick Jagger resembles The Joker from Batman, in my mind.  Why has he never played the role?!  OK, that aside and onto their music, we last saw British rock fossils The Rolling Stones in April 1990.

 

This live rendition of The Stones' 1967 song, recorded in Japan in 1990, appeared on their Flashpoint (number 12, April 1991) album.  It followed the single "Highwire" (number 54, April 1991), which was one of two new studio recordings included on the otherwise live album.

 

Internationally, this release of "Ruby Tuesday" peaked at number 59 in the UK in June 1991, number 34 in the Netherlands in July 1991, and number 27 in Switzerland in July 1991.  The original 1967 studio version of "Ruby Tuesday" peaked at number 1 in the US in March 1967, and number 6 in Ireland.

 

Domestically, this live version of "Ruby Tuesday" peaked highest on the Victoria/Tasmania state chart, where it reached number 141.

 

We shall next see The Rolling Stones in July 1991. 

Number 190 "Sing Your Life" by Morrissey

Peak: number 190

Peak date: 10 June 1991

Weeks on chart: 1 week

English singer-songwriter Steven Morrissey last joined us in March 1991.  "Sing Your Life" was the second single lifted from Moz's second solo studio album Kill Uncle (number 45, March 1991).  With this track, Morrissey makes his fifth appearance in the 101-150 region of the ARIA singles chart, in the space of just under two years.

 

"Sing Your Life" found greater success in Moz's native UK, where it peaked at number 33 in April 1991, although it was his lowest-peaking solo single there to date.  "Sing Your Life" did even better in Ireland, where it reached number 21 in April 1991.

 

Within Australia, "Sing Your Life" was most popular in Western Australia, where it reached number 156.

 

While I enjoy some singles by Morrissey and The Smiths, I am only a casual fan at best, and I hadn't actually heard this one before.  I liked it and would listen to it again.

One thing I have in common with Morrissey, which I didn't realise until now (the age when he started), is that we have both been vegetarians since age 11!  Well, kind of, for me, since I still ate chicken (I never cared for fish) until I was 15... and then once had a little bit of chicken fillet 'to be polite' at my grandparents' when I was 16.  Not eating meat for me is primarily a taste/texture issue - I find the taste and texture revolting.

 

Morrissey will next join us in November 1991.

 

Next week (17 June): A whopping nine new top 150 debuts and two bubbling WAY down under entries.

 

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Week commencing 5 March 1990

I thought that this was going to be a dull week to write about, based on my personal music tastes (I mean, I like some Duran, but this?!), but I was pleasantly surprised by one of this week's entries.  To quote the wisdom of the French woman in Kylie Minogue's "Je Ne Sais Pas Pourquoi" music video - do not be so sure.  I re-discovered a track I really like and hadn't heard in years.  One, er, other interesting thing about this week's debuts is that they are all at number 145 or below, which probably hasn't happened before.  Let's take a look at them.

 

The Triffids: decked out like this, you'd think they worked in a bank, rather than being favourite Australian indie darlings.
 

 

Top 150 debuts:

 

Number 145 "Burning the Ground" by Duran Duran

Peak: number 145

Peak date:  5 March 1990

Weeks in top 150: 2 weeks

Chart run: 156-(off chart for 3 weeks)-145-148

Weeks on chart: 3 weeks

Up until this point, Duran Duran had placed 17 singles within the top 100 on the Australian charts, with the most recent of those being "All She Wants Is" (number 74, January 1989).  Eight of the band's singles had reached the top 10 in Australia, with the highest-peaking of those being "The Wild Boys" (number 3, December 1984).  However, by this point in their careers, the band were perceived as being a bit old hat, despite modernising their sound for 1988's Big Thing album (number 46, November 1988).  Duran Duran had not had a top 20 single in Australia since "Notorious" (number 17, December 1986).  Their last single, "Do You Believe in Shame?", released in Australia in July 1989, did not even chart.

So... what does a band do when their career is a bit in the doldrums?  Release a greatest hits package.  And that's exactly what Duran Duran did, issuing Decade (number 89, February 1990) towards the end of 1989.  "Burning the Ground", whose title was lifted from "Hungry Like the Wolf" (number 5, July 1982), was a megamix - of sorts - of earlier hits.  It was issued to promote the compilation, which peaked at number 5 on the band's native UK albums chart in November 1989.  "Burning the Ground" fared less well on the UK singles chart, where it peaked at number 31 in December 1989.  Oddly, "Burning the Ground" was not included on Decade.

I said that "Burning the Ground" was a megamix 'of sorts', because it consists mainly of instrumental elements of the band's hits, including "Hungry Like the Wolf", "Rio" (number 60, October 1982), "Save a Prayer" (number 56, September 1983), "The Reflex" (number 4, June 1984), "The Wild Boys", "A View to a Kill" (number 6, July 1985) and the camera shutter sound from "Girls on Film" (number 11, February 1982).  Vocal samples from "Planet Earth" (number 8, August 1981), "The Reflex", "Notorious" and "I Don't Want Your Love" (number 23, November 1988) are layered on top of this.

Duran Duran would spend a few more years in the wilderness on the Australian charts, with "Violence of Summer (Love's Taking Over)" (number 59, October 1990) being the biggest hit from their 1990 studio album Liberty (number 86, October 1990).  The band would eventually have a resurgence in 1993, scoring two further top 20 hits down under.

 

We shall next see Duran Duran in 1991.

Number 147 "Save Me" by 21 Guns

Peak: number 129

Peak date: 19 March 1990

Weeks in top 150: 4 weeks

Top 150 chart run: 147-150-129-(out for 2 weeks)-134

You may, if you're old enough, recognise 21 Guns' lead singer Andy McLean (thanks discogs - I would never have remembered his surname) from co-hosting Countdown Revolution in 1989... as part of a trio of hosts who were all a bit too enthusiastic, if you ask me.  It's doubtful you'll remember his music - that is, if you were even aware of it in the first place.  Though I do recall a later 21 Guns single, which I won't name, as I'll come to write about it in August this year.

Sounding like the kind of non-descript 'pub rock' you could hear in just about any live venue at the time, "Save Me" doesn't exactly boast a '90s' sound.  Granted, the catchy chorus redeems this one a little bit.

"Save Me" was the first of three singles lifted from the 21 Guns album (number 140, August 1990).  Nothing the band released dented the top 100.  I assume that they split soon afterwards.

Number 149 "Melt" by The Someloves

Peak: number 119

Peak date: 16 April 1990

Weeks in top 150: 9 weeks

Top 150 chart run: 149-(out for 1 week)-132-129-128-126-119-121-124-133

The Someloves were another Australian band.  They had previously 'charted' on the Australian Music Report 'singles receiving significant sales reports beyond the top 100' lists (before the ARIA chart extended beyond number 100) with "Know You Now", where they reached tenth place on this list in November 1988.

 

Despite the '(1989)' tag added by the YouTube uploader of the music video embedded below, I can inform you that this single was not released until 19 February 1990.  That's about all I can tell you about this track, other than it performed better on the Australian Music Report singles chart, where it reached number 98.  The band's bass player, Christian Houllemare, died in 2014, aged 53.

I wasn't previously familiar with this one, though have a copy of the video in my collection.  The chorus is catchy.  "Melt" is lifted from the album Something Or Other (number 80, April 1990).

We will see The Someloves again in July.

Number 150 "Falling over You" by The Triffids

Peak: number 150

Peak date: 5 March 1990

Weeks in top 150: 1 week

Top 150 chart run: 150

Australian band The Triffids, originating from Perth, appear to have been youth-orientated 'alternative' radio station Triple J (or Double J, as it was probably then known) darlings during the 1980s.  Accordingly, commercial success largely eluded them, although they placed four singles within the national top 100; the biggest of those being "Bury Me Deep in Love" (number 48, March 1988), which was used as the theme song for Harold and Madge's wedding on Neighbours (yes, really!  Skip to 4:25).  That's one way to shatter your 'indie' credibility...

Although it wasn't their biggest chart hit, The Triffids are probably best known for their rousing 1986 single "Wide Open Road" (number 64, April 1986).  The band last visited the ARIA singles chart with "Goodbye Little Boy" (number 83, July 1989).  Both that single and "Falling over You" were lifted from their The Black Swan album (number 52, July 1989).

OK... I have to ditch the train of thought I was on, as I now just pressed play on the video embedded below, and am having an "Oh my goooooddddddd!  It's that song!  I love that song!" moment.  I had forgotten that this song was by The Triffids... though I didn't actually know "Falling over You" at the time.

 

I discovered this song via the now sadly-defunct Home and Away: The Early Years repeats on Channel 7TWO, in June 2012 (I sourced the date from my downloads folders), on a repeat of a 1990 episode of Home and Away where this was used as background music.  The song grabbed my attention, and I paused my recording (I used to record it and view it when I got home from work, you see) to google some of the lyrics, and found it.  I don't think I had listened to the track since about 2014, so it's nice to re-discover it.   Ah, that's one of the reasons I write this blog...

Band member David McComb sings lead vocal on this track, and, sadly, he passed away in 1999 at the age of 36.  This would be The Triffids' last proper single.  Their Wikipedia discography tells me that the band released a promotional single in 2007, titled "Save What You Can".

Bubbling WAY down under:

Number 155 "Whitlam Square" by Died Pretty

Peak: number 155

Peak date: 5 March 1990

Weeks on chart: 1 week

We last saw Australian band Died Pretty in April 1989.  "Whitlam Square" was issued as the lead single from the band's third studio album Every Brilliant Eye (number 79, April 1990).  "Whitlam Square" performed strongest on the New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory state chart, where it reached number 148.  We will next see Died Pretty in 1991.

Number 163 "Whenever God Shines His Light" by Van Morrison with Cliff Richard

Peak: number 163

Peak date: 5 March 1990

Weeks on chart: 1 week

Northern Irish singer-songwriter and guitar maestro Van Morrison, real name George Ivan Morrison, began his solo career on the Australian chart in 1967.  Between then and 1990, he amassed nine top 100 singles in Australia, with "Wild Night" being the 'biggest' of those, though only peaking at number 66 in 1972 on the calculated-years-after-the-fact (so I don't consider them official charts, as they weren't published at the time) Kent Music Report charts that pre-date May 1974 (when the Kent Music Report was first published).  Van's biggest hit in Australia would come in 1993, with his solo version of "Gloria" (number 22, July 1993); originally recorded by his former band Them in 1964.  Van was last on the chart with "Have I Told You Lately" (number 93, August 1989).

"Whenever God Shines His Light", a collaboration with God-botherer Cliff Richard, was the second single from Van's nineteenth studio album Avalon Sunset (number 30, July 1989).  Internationally, the single peaked at number 89 in Canada in July 1989, number 20 in the UK in December 1989, and number 3 in Ireland in December 1989.

In Australia, "Whenever God..." performed strongest in Western Australia, where it reached number 136 on the state chart.

We shall next see Van in October 1990, and Cliff in April 1990.

Next week (12 March): The quiet weeks continue (don't worry, we'll be making up for that soon), with just three new top 150 debuts - although they couldn't be more different from one another if they tried, and one bubbling WAY down under entry.  You can also follow my posts on instagram, facebook and twitter.

< Previous week: 26 February 1990                                    Next week: 12 March 1990 >

Week commencing 24 April 1989

When it comes to having an illustrious chart career, timing is everything - and we'll witness that among this week's new entries.  Included among them is an act whose best charting years were well behind them, one who had come back after a lull but was now struggling again, one who might have had more success if their music was out a few years later, and one whose time was yet to come.  Plus we'll also see an already two years-old single and another by an artist whose two hits were four years apart (and this obviously wasn't one of them) in the bubbling WAY down under section.

Vanessa Williams could only dream of landing a hit down under in 1989.

Top 150 debuts:

Number 106 "Promised Land" by The Style Council

Peak: number 106

Peak date: 24 April 1989

Weeks in top 150: 6 weeks

Chart run: 106-114-109-112-120-124

Weeks on chart: 6 weeks

The Style Council charted ten singles on the Australian singles chart between 1983 and 1988, with the biggest of those being "Shout to the Top", peaking at number 4 in early 1985.  They hadn't placed a single in the top 40 though since 1985, when "Boy Who Cried Wolf" peaked at number 38 in September of that year.  A mere three and a half years since then, music styles had changed quite a bit, and The Style Council had updated their sound with this more dance-orientated single - a cover version of a pioneering house track from 1987, by Joe Smooth.  The sound didn't quite connect as well with audiences as The Style's earlier releases, peaking at number 27 in their native UK, and just outside the top 100 down under.  If comments on the video on YouTube are to be believed, the record company were not happy about the band's stylistic change in direction, and did not want them to diversify their sound.  It's a shame, as I think this is quite a good track.

On the ARIA state charts, "Promised Land" performed equally-strongest in New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory and Victoria/Tasmania, where it reached number 94.

The Style Council split in 1989.  We'll see the band's lead singer, Paul Weller, going solo in 1992.

 

Number 122 "Never Had a Lot to Lose" by Cheap Trick

Peak: number 118

Peak date: 1 May 1989

Weeks in top 150: 6 weeks 

Chart run: 154-122-118-138-130-132-133

Weeks on chart: 7 weeks

After a nearly six-year absence from the Australian singles chart, Cheap Trick were back in a big way in 1988, with back-to-back number 1 and number 4 hits.  However, the third and fourth singles from the album languished in the 60s, and this fifth and final single from the album performed even worse.  "Never Had a Lot to Lose" had a rockier vibe to it than earlier singles from the album. 

Internationally, "Never Had a Lot to Lose" peaked at number 75 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in March 1989.  Locally, the single performed strongest in Western Australia, where it reached number 88.

We will see Cheap Trick again in 1990.

 

Number 147 "Hit the Ground" by The Darling Buds

Peak: number 147

Peak date: 24 April 1989

Weeks in top 150: 1 week

Chart run: 158-147

Weeks on chart: 2 weeks

To my ears, this track is just the kind of jangly indie pop with female vocals that might have dented our top 50 anywhere between 1991 and 1993; but alas, "Hit the Ground" was perhaps a bit too 'alternative' for Australian tastes in 1989.  It was also, oddly, the Welsh band's only charting single in Australia, and also their biggest hit in the UK, where it peaked at number 27 in January 1989.  On the state charts, "Hit the Ground" was most popular in Western Australia, where it reached number 64.

 

Number 150 "Dreamin'" by Vanessa Williams

Peak: number 108

Peak date: 15 May 1989

Weeks in top 150: 8 weeks 

Chart run: 150-131-112-108-114-120-122-124

Weeks on chart: 8 weeks

Speaking of sounds that Australia wasn't quite ready for, Vanessa Williams made her understated debut on the Australian chart with "Dreamin'" this week in 1989.  At this point, she was mainly known for being crowned Miss America 1984 - a title she had to relinquish a year later after it was revealed that Penthouse magazine would be publishing nudes of her.  Oo-er.  Vanessa would, of course, go on to score a number one hit down under in 1992, but for now she would have to settle for merely bubbling under - something she would do again later in the year, and again in 1991, before scoring that breakthrough hit.  She literally did save the best for last!

Internationally, "Dreamin'" peaked at number 74 in the UK in March 1989, number 8 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in April 1989, number 40 in the Netherlands in April 1989, and number 19 in New Zealand in August 1989.

Locally, "Dreamin'" performed strongest in Western Australia, where it reached number 73.

Bubbling WAY down under:

Number 161 "We'll Be Right Back" by Steinski & Mass Media

Peak: number 161

Peak date: 24 April 1989

Weeks on chart: 1 week

This single was released at the end of 1986 in America, and in early 1987 in the UK, where it peaked at number 63 in January of that year.  Quite why it took another two plus years to get released in Australia, I don't know.  Perhaps the record label thought now was the right time, given that some rap songs were finally crossing over into the mainstream?  I caught this one once on Channel 7's Saturday morning music video program of the time, Saturday Morning Live, and recorded it onto my first VHS of music videos recorded from the TV.  I liked that the song sampled TV commercials, and that the video was made up of old commercials from (I assume) the 1950s and 1960s.

On the state charts, "We'll Be Right Back" was most popular in Western Australia, where it reached number 95.

 

 

Number 162 "Everybody Moves" by Died Pretty

Peak: number 154

Peak date: 19 June 1989

Weeks on chart: 3 weeks

 

Australian band Died Pretty formed in Sydney in 1983.  Their fist taste of ARIA chart 'success' came in 1988, when their second studio album Lost registered a place on the South Australia/Northern Territory (number 86, July 1988) and Western Australia (number 100, July 1988) state albums charts.  Lost missed the national chart, however, as it ended at number 100 at that point in time.  The band's 1986 debut album Free Dirt belatedly peaked at number 185 in August 1992.

 

"Everybody Moves" was a non-album single, released in mid-March 1989.  On the state charts, "Everybody Moves" performed strongest in Queensland, where it reached number 121.

 

We will next see Died Pretty in 1990.

 

 

Number 165 "Willow Tree" by Not Drowning, Waving

Peak: number 165

Peak date: 24 April 1989

Weeks on chart: 1 week

 

Melbourne band Not Drowning, Waving formed in 1983.  They released their first recorded material in 1985, although had to wait until 1989 to land their first chart 'hit' with "Willow Tree", the first single from their second album Claim (number 80, June 1989).

 

"Willow Tree" was most popular in Victoria/Tasmania, where it reached number 138 on the state chart.  We shall see Not Drowning, Waving again in 1991.

Number 176 "Somebody Like You" by Robbie Nevil

Peak: number 176

Peak date: 24 April 1989

Weeks on chart: 1 week

Robbie scored a number 4 hit down under in March 1987 with "C'est La Vie".  It looked, at this point, that he was going to be a one-hit wonder, with nothing else he released peaking higher than number 38.  That, of course, would all change in 1991, when "Just Like You" matched the peak of "C'est La Vie", though he would never again score a major hit after that.  Listening to this for the first time, it's not bad, but is missing that extra something his hit singles had.

 

"Somebody Like You" was the second single lifted from Robbie's second album A Place Like This (number 154, May 1989).  It followed "Back on Holiday", which was released in Australia in December 1988 but failed to chart. 

Internationally, "Somebody Like You" peaked at number 63 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in April 1989.

Locally, "Somebody Like You" performed strongest in Western Australia, where it reached number 164.

Next week (1 May): a whopping eight new entries - among them is the flop fourth single from a number one album from 1988, and the chart arrival of a native Australian group.  You can also follow my posts on facebook.

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