There isn't much I can find linking this week's debuts together, so let's just jump straight in... But, before we do, I want to highlight that I have now added all of the 'peak date' data to my 1989 chart recaps - a reader requested I do that some time ago. Also, I have updated a post from September 1989 with a newly-uncovered bubbling WAY down under entry from Bonnie Raitt.
Belinda Carlisle: the runaway horses have bolted from the ARIA top 100.
Top 150 debuts:
Number 123 "All I'm Missing Is You" by Glenn Medeiros
Peak: number 101
Peak date: 29 October 1990
Weeks in top 150: 7 weeks
Top 150 chart run: 123-102-101-104-108-113-125
Hawaiian singer Glenn Medeiros made an appearance on the first ARIA singles chart that extended beyond number 100, in January 1989. Glenn landed two major hits in Australia, "Nothing's Gonna Change My Love for You" (number 10, February 1988) and "She Ain't Worth It" (number 8, August 1990), which sound quite different to each other. The latter track featured Bobby Brown as a guest rapper, and the former took just over 6 months from its release to reach its eventual peak on the Australian chart.
"All I'm Missing Is You", produced by Ray Parker Jr., was the second single lifted from Glenn's third album Glenn Medeiros (number 69, September 1990), which was actually his second self-titled album! Glenn's 1990 self-titled album performed better in Australia than 1987's Glenn Medeiros (number 98, February 1988) and Not Me (number 124, March 1989).
In the US, "All I'm Missing Is You" peaked at number 32 on the Billboard Hot 100 in October 1990. The single also reached number 70 in Germany in November 1990.
"All I'm Missing Is You" performed slightly better on the Australian Music Report singles chart, where it reached number 95.
This would be Glenn's last ARIA top 150 entry. Glenn is now employed as a school principal in Honolulu.
Number 125 "(We Want) The Same Thing" by Belinda Carlisle
Peak: number 103
Peak date: 29 October 1990
Weeks in top 150: 8 weeks
Chart run: 125-112-103-116-112-112-113-120
Weeks on chart: 8 weeks
We saw Belinda Carlisle appear as a featured artist in May 1990.
Belinda's chart career started when she was the lead singer of Go-Go's (technically there is no 'the' in their name!). Their 1981 single "Our Lips Are Sealed" reached number 2 on the Australian singles chart in January 1982. Three other Go-Go's singles, "We Got the Beat" (number 29, May 1982), "Vacation" (number 43, August 1982) and "Head Over Heels" (number 60, July 1984) registered on the Australian chart.
To my surprise, "Our Lips Are Sealed" was much bigger in Australia than it was in the Go-Go's native US, where it only reached number 20, in December 1981. "Our Lips Are Sealed" also bombed in the UK at number 47 in June 1982. The Fun Boy Three version of the track (the song was co-written with Terry Hall from the group) was a UK number 7 hit, though, in May 1983.
While the group would later reform, Go-Go's disbanded in 1985, and two of its members, Belinda Carlisle and Jane Wiedlin (who wrote "Our Lips Are Sealed" with Terry Hall), launched solo recording careers.
Jane Wiedlin's only solo release to (kind of) register on the Australian chart was her single "Rush Hour", which did not chart nationally, but reached number 88 on the New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory state chart, and number 63 in Western Australia in November 1988. If the ARIA chart extended beyond number 100 in 1988, "Rush Hour" probably would have peaked just outside the top 100.
Belinda's first solo release, "Mad About You", peaked at number 9 on the Australian singles chart in October 1986. A second single from the Belinda (number 42, November 1986) album, "I Feel the Magic" (released in Australia in October 1986), failed to chart.
Belinda achieved greater, and more-consistent, commercial success after switching record labels in 1987. "Heaven Is a Place on Earth" topped both the US (December 1987) and UK (January 1988) singles charts, and also went to number 1 in New Zealand, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland. In Australia,"Heaven..." peaked at number 2 in February 1988.
Subsequent singles from Belinda's second album Heaven on Earth (number 13, March 1988) were less-successful, but both "I Get Weak" (number 34, April 1988) and "Circle in the Sand" were top 10 hits in the US and UK. "Circle in the Sand", issued in Australia in May 1988, missed the national chart (when it ended at number 100), but registered on the Queensland and Western Australia state charts, where it peaked at numbers 97 and 84, respectively, in July 1988. A fourth single from Heaven on Earth, "World without You", was issued in Australia in September 1988, but did not chart.
That brings us to Belinda's third solo album Runaway Horses (number 6, June 1990). While the album was Belinda's most successful in Australia, being certified double platinum, it did not perform as well as Heaven on Earth in the US or UK, and marked the start of Belinda's commercial decline, particularly in the US, where the album peaked at number 37 in December 1989, and only two singles from it charted.
Six singles were issued from Runaway Horses in Australia, with "(We Want) The Same Thing" being the last of those. It followed "Leave a Light On" (number 5, January 1990), "La Luna" (number 21, January 1990), "Summer Rain" (number 6, May 1990), "Runaway Horses" (number 44, July 1990), and "Vision of You" (number 84, August 1990).
Despite its lack of success in Australia, "(We Want) The Same Thing" gave Belinda a career resurgence in the UK, where it peaked at number 6 in November 1990, following a string of underperforming singles that peaked at numbers 38, 40, and 41. The UK follow-up release of "Summer Rain" propelled the Runaway Horses album back into the top 10, more than a year after its release.
"(We Want) The Same Thing" was remixed for its single release, and sounds quite different to the original album version. The music video for "(We Want) The Same Thing" is a bit of a botched job, using live footage as well as excerpts from earlier Belinda Carlisle videos.
"(We Want) The Same Thing" peaked at number 22 in Ireland in November 1990, and number 53 in Germany in December 1990. On the ARIA state charts, "(We Want) The Same Thing" performed strongest in Victoria/Tasmania, where it reached number 69. The single also peaked within the top 100 on the New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory (number 99) and South Australia/Northern Territory (number 83) state charts.
One memory I have regarding this track is that my dad heard it on the radio when moving our car from the driveway into the garage, liked it, and asked me about it - not that this helped the song become a hit in Australia.
Belinda will bubble under four more times between now and 1997, with the next occasion being in 1992.
Number 132 "In the Evening" by Girl Overboard
Peak: number 130
Peak date: 12 November 1990
Weeks in top 150: 6 weeks
Top 150 chart run: 132-133-140-134-130-135
Weeks on chart: 7 weeks
Australian band Girl Overboard formed in 1985, although were named Separate Tables until the second half of 1989. As Separate Tables, the group issued three singles: "When the World Came Down" (number 82, February 1988), "Change My Sex" (released in May 1988, did not chart), and "Wrap Your Arms Around Me" (number 71, April 1989). The latter track ended up on Girl Overboard's debut album Paint a Picture (number 18, March 1990).
Following a name change, the first Girl Overboard single, "I Can't Believe" (number 43, December 1989), was released in October 1989. The second Girl Overboard single, "The Love We Make", became the band's biggest hit, reaching number 23 in March 1990. Then followed "Permanent Friend"/"Some Things Never Change" (number 85, June 1990), which didn't fare as well on the chart.
"In the Evening" was the fourth... or sixth, if you count "Wrap Your Arms Around Me" and the titles from the previous double A-side release separately, single from Paint a Picture, and its final release. "In the Evening" performed strongest in Queensland, where it reached number 95.
Lisa Schouw, the band's lead singer, later became a psychotherapist, but sadly died in October 2020, aged 62, from melanoma.
We shall next see Girl Overboard in 1992.
Number 144 Rollercoaster E.P. by The Jesus and Mary Chain
Peak: number 110
Peak date: 19 November 1990
Weeks in top 150: 9 weeks
Chart run: 144-132-131-122-117-110-128-122-(out for 4 weeks)-144
Weeks on chart: 9 weeks
Led by the title track "Rollercoaster", The Jesus and Mary Chain's Rollercoaster E.P. was the Scottish band's second single to dent the Australian top 150, following "Head On" back in December 1989.
The EP peaked at number 46 in the UK in September 1990, number 25 in Ireland in September 1990, and number 28 in New Zealand in October 1990.
Locally, the Rollercoaster EP performed strongest in South Australia/Northern Territory, where it reached number 84 on the state chart.
"Rollercoaster" eventually appeared on the band's fourth studio album Honey's Dead (number 44, April 1992).
One thing I always remember about The Jesus and Mary Chain is that Australian Democrats senator Natasha Stott Despoja said they were her favourite band, though I don't remember where I read or heard this... perhaps during a Triple J radio interview.
We shall next see The Jesus and Mary Chain in 1993.
Number 148 "Your Love Takes Me Higher" by The Beloved
Peak: number 148
Peak date: 15 October 1990
Weeks in top 150: 1 week
Chart run: 148
Weeks on chart: 1 week
There are artists who are underrated, and then there are artists who are criminally underrated. British group The Beloved fall into the latter category when it comes to the Australian charts. Nothing the band released locally - and they did try, with 10 singles and 4 albums issued locally between 1990 and 1996 - peaked higher than number 88 on Australian charts.
The Beloved formed in 1983, and had been releasing music independently in the UK since 1986. Their first major label album Happiness (number 104, June 1990) landed them three top 40 hits in their homeland.
The first release of "Your Love Takes Me Higher" in the UK, promoted with an earlier music video showcasing singer Jon Marsh's dancing... talents, peaked at number 91 there in February 1989. The track achieved a new peak of number 39 in the UK in March 1990 when re-issued, with a higher budget video (embedded below).
In Australia, "Your Love Takes Me Higher" was the third single released from Happiness, following "Hello" (number 94, May 1990) and "Time After Time" (released in Australia in June 1990, did not chart). I am surprised that "Time After Time", one of my favourite Beloved singles, did not chart at all in Australia, given that the music video received at least two airings on Countdown Revolution during prime-time viewing. I also feel that "Your Love...", which received exposure via Countdown Revolution too, should have done much better.
On the state charts, "Your Love Take Me Higher" performed strongest in South Australia/Northern Territory, where it reached number 124.
The Beloved bubbled under on the Australian singles chart no fewer than seven times between 1990 and 1996. We will next see The Beloved in January 1991.
Number 149 "Dr. Dynamite" by Mighty Big Crime
Peak: number 121
Peak date: 29 October 1990
Weeks in top 150: 6 weeks
Chart run: 151-149-(off chart for 1 week)-121-127-122-124-133
Weeks on chart: 7 weeks
Mighty Big Crime were the Melbourne-based hip-hop duo Tricky J (real name Julien Lodge) and Gumpy (Andrew Phillips). Between 1987 and 1991, the pair released six singles, although none of these made the top 100. Their cover of Alice Cooper's "School's Out" did, however, make the Australian Music Report's list of singles receiving significant sales reports beyond the top 100, reaching fourth place on the list in December 1988.
The Wikipedia page for the group mentions a 1989 album titled Get Outta My Face, but this is not listed in the weekly Australian Music Report or The ARIA Report lists of new release titles I have, and there does not seem to be any trace of the album's existence online. Similarly, at the time of writing this, there is no trace of "Dr. Dynamite" online either, other than vinyl copies of the single listed for sale (I don't care for vinyl at all). This sort of thing seems to happen a lot to Australian artists, unfortunately.
I do, however, remember the song, as from memory it made the voted-for-by-listeners Top 8 at 8 radio show hosted by John Peters, which aired on Triple M in Melbourne. A music video for "Dr. Dynamite" does exist, and was nominated for best video at the 1991 ARIA Awards. Just, it hasn't made its way onto YouTube or other video streaming sites... yet!
On the state charts, "Dr. Dynamite" performed strongest in Queensland, where it reached number 81.
Tricky and Gumpy went on to form Freaked Out Flower Children, who scored a top 40 hit with "Spill the Wine" (number 31, February 1992); but before then, we will see Mighty Big Crime bubble under again in 1991.
Number 150 "To Sir with Love" by Ngaire
Peak: number 150
Peak date: 15 October 1990
Weeks in top 150: 1 week Top 150 chart run: 150
Ngaire Fuata, not to be confused with the second series of Australian Idol contestant Ngaiire, was a New Zealand-based soul-pop singer who was born in the UK. I say 'was' because she now works as a television producer for TVNZ, New Zealand's public broadcasting station.
"To Sir with Love", a cover of the Lulu song, was released as Ngaire's (pronounced ny-ree) debut single, and went to number 1 in New Zealand for five weeks in October and November of 1990. In Australia, Ngaire wasn't so fortunate, and the single just scraped into the top 150 for a solitary week.
While "To Sir with Love" was Ngaire's only foray into the Australian top 150, she landed another five top 50 singles in New Zealand between 1991 and 1996 - although none of these peaked higher than number 18.
Bubbling WAY down under:
Number 155 "Rebel Music" by Rebel MC
Peak: number 155
Peak date: 15 October 1990
Weeks on chart: 2 weeks
UK rapper Rebel MC has visited us on two prior occasions, in March 1990 with Double Trouble, and in July 1990 on his own. Here he is for the third, and final, time, on his own again.
"Rebel Music" was the fourth and final single issued from the Rebel Music (number 98, July 1990) album. The track features guest vocals on the chorus from Jenni Evans, who became the female vocalist in Matt Bianco after Basia left. Jenni died around five years ago if what I am reading on discogs.com is correct.
In the UK, "Rebel Music" peaked at number 53 in June 1990. On the ARIA state charts, "Rebel Music" performed strongest in South Australia/Northern Territory, where it reached number 139.
I don't remember hearing this track at the time, but veteran Australian music video program rage aired the clip in 2020 during a dance music from 1990-themed vault episode.
"Rebel Music" would be Rebel MC's last release to chart in Australia, although another single, "Tribal Base", was released locally in September 1991. We will see his former collaborative partners Double Trouble next week.
Next week (22 October): A bumper week with nine new top 150-peaking debuts.
