An interesting - or so I thought - pattern emerging from this week in 1981's three new entries on the Kent Music Report beyond the top 100 list is that each one of the artists in question had more success with their releases in New Zealand. Shall we take a look?
Pop Mechanix: Jumping out of windows, but not into the top 100.
Beyond the top 100:
Position 22 "Jumping out a Window" by Pop Mechanix
Highest rank: 13th
Peak date: 15 June 1981
Weeks on below list: 3 weeks
New Zealand band Pop Mechanix formed in 1979. "Jumping out a Window" was the group's third single, and their last before they relocated to Australia. It was also Pop Mechanix's (what an awkward word to make a possessive form from, with that spelling) only single to (sort of) register a place on the Australian chart.
The group had greater commercial success on the other side of the Tasman Sea, where five of their singles peaked in the top 50 between 1980 and 1986. "Jumping Out a Window" reached number 21 on the New Zealand singles chart in March 1981, becoming their biggest hit there.
Oddly, the band do not seem to have released any albums during their heyday, although several compilations of their material have been released this century. Pop Mechanix split in 1988.
I had heard/seen this song before on a re-run of iconic Australian music TV program Countdown during rage retro month, but had forgotten about it. New Zealand really punched above their weight with musical talent from this era, with countless Kiwi acts Australia has tried to claim as our own. I am surprised that this song did not become a hit locally, and that the band did not have greater international success. If this had come out of the UK, I reckon we'd still be hearing about Pop Mechanix.
Position 27 "What Are We Doin' in Love" by Dottie West (with Kenny Rogers)
Highest rank: 12th
Peak dates: 29 June 1981, 6 July 1981, 13 July 1981, 20 July 1981 and 27 July 1981
Weeks on below list: 8 weeks
Dorothy West, known professionally as Dottie West, was an American country singer who began her recording career in the 1960s. Dottie was the first female country singer to win a Grammy in 1965. While Dottie landed a string of US Billboard Country Songs hits between 1963 and 1984, her duet with Kenny Rogers, "What Are We Doin' in Love", was the only one to reach the top 40 on the Hot 100, where it peaked at number 14 in June 1981.
Dottie's chart success in Australia was much more understated, and like Pop Mechanix above, this track was her only release to (sort of) register a place on the Australian charts. Interestingly, Dottie achieved a top 40 hit in New Zealand with another Kenny Rogers duet, "All I Ever Need Is You", in 1979, which did not chart in Australia.
Dottie passed away in September 1991, aged 58, after being involved in a car accident as a passenger. Dottie's car had broken down on the side of the road, and an elderly neighbour passing by offered her a lift. Dottie was running late to a concert and urged the neighbour to speed. The vehicle veered off the road after taking a turn at a too-high speed and collided with another car. The driver survived, but Dottie died during her third operation following the collision, five days later.
I hadn't heard of this song before, but somehow guessed from the title that it would be a country song. It is interesting that this single spent five consecutive weeks at its peak on the beyond number 100 list.
While we won't see Dottie again, Kenny will next join us in 1985. We have also seen Kenny in 1989 and 1990.
"Same Old Lang Syne" was lifted from Dan's seventh studio album The Innocent Age (number 38, June 1982). The single peaked at number 9 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in February 1981; one of four Dan Fogelberg singles to reach the top 10 on this chart. "Same Old Lang Syne" reached number 23 in New Zealand in May 1981, and number 25 in Ireland in December 1983. I am not sure why this single charted more than two years later in Ireland, or why the Irish chart success did not spill over into the UK.
As mentioned above, we will see Dan again in 1990.
Next week (8 June): Next week, there is just one new entry on the bubbling under chart that did not reach the top 100.
The top 150-peaking debuts this week in 1990 were another diverse lot, with metal, rock ballads, country, and... children's television puppets among them. But before diving in, let me bring to your attention that I have updated last week's post with a newly uncovered bubbling WAY down under entry from Carly Simon. Let's take a look at this week's debuts.
Agro's... chart connection?
Top 150 debuts:
Number 138 "Holy Wars... The Punishment Due" by Megadeth
Peak: number 138
Peak date: 5 November 1990
Weeks in top 150: 1 week
Chart run: 138
Weeks on chart: 1 week
For some reason, I had thought until now that Megadeth were British, but they actually formed in Los Angeles in 1983. The band had to wait until 1990 to land their first Australian chart entry, when their version of Alice Cooper's "No More Mr. Nice Guy" reached number 48 in March 1990.
"Holy Wars... The Punishment Due" was the lead single from Megadeth's fourth studio album Rust in Peace (number 47, November 1990). Internationally, the single peaked at number 24 in the UK in September 1990, and number 12 in Ireland. "Holy Wars..." did not chart in the band's native US.
In Australia, "Holy Wars..." performed strongest in Western Australia, where it reached number 105 on the state chart.
Clocking in at over 6 and a half minutes, "Holy Wars..." doesn't exactly scream 'single' to my ears.
Despite forming devil horns above his head in the "No More Mr. Nice Guy" music video, Megadeth lead singer Dave Mustaine is now a born-again Christian, and refuses to perform at festivals where there are bands who may be perceived as being satanic.
We shall see Megadeth next in 1995.
Number 140 "I Found Out" by The Christians
Peak: number 140
Peak date: 5 November 1990
Weeks in top 150: 1 week
Chart run: 140
Weeks on chart: 1 week
From born-again Christians, we now go to a band named The Christians; although it is due to the founding members of the band being brothers, with the surname Christian. We last saw the British band in April 1990.
"I Found Out" was the second single issued from The Christians' second album Colour (number 138, May 1990). The single peaked at number 56 in the UK in April 1990, number 69 in the Netherlands in May 1990, number 42 in the Flanders region of Belgium in May 1990, and number 22 in France in August 1990.
On the ARIA state charts, "I Found Out" performed strongest in Western Australia, where it reached number 115.
"I Found Out" was The Christians' highest-peaking single on the Australian chart, if we ignore their contribution to the Hillsborough disaster charity single "Ferry Cross the Mersey" (number 45, June 1989). I remember seeing the band in the UK pop magazine Number One, but never heard any of their music at the time; so, presumably, their Australian success was hindered by a lack of promotion.
Anthrax formed in New York City in 1981. Their fourth studio album State of Euphoria peaked at number 82 on the ARIA albums chart in late 1988. "Got the Time", the first release from the band's fifth album Persistence of Time (number 30, September 1990), was their first single to land within the Australian top 150.
Elsewhere, "Got the Time" peaked at number 16 in the UK in January 1991.
To my surprise, "Got the Time" is a cover version of a song written and originally recorded by Joe Jackson for his 1979 album Look Sharp! (number 20, July 1979). Joe doesn't seem like the kind of artist a metal band would cover.
Known chart run: 158-143-121-129-142-134. Re-entered 4 March 1991: 141-137-129-129-127-115-122-126-139-144
Weeks on chart: 18 weeks
American band Giant formed in 1987. "I'll See You in My Dreams" was their second single released in Australia, following "I'm a Believer" (June 1990, did not chart). Both tracks are lifted from the band's debut album Last of the Runaways.
"I'll See You in My Dreams" was released in Australia in mid-August 1990, and took two and a half months to break into the top 150. The single had two separate chart runs in Australia, initially peaking at number 121 in November 1990 and spending 5 weeks in the top 150, before re-entering in March 1991, climbing to a new peak of number 115 the following month, and spending another 10 weeks in the top 150. A reader has informed me that the second chart-run coincided with the song featuring in a scene in the TV series Twin Peaks.
In the band's native US, "I'll See You in My Dreams" reached number 20 in June 1990. The single also peaked at number 96 in the UK during the same month.
In Australia, "I'll See You in My Dreams" performed much stronger in Victoria/Tasmania than elsewhere, where it reached number 56 in April 1991. Its next-highest state chart peak was number 100 in South Australia/Northern Territory in November 1990. The single peaked on the remaining three state charts in November 1990, indicating the higher peak reached in 1991 was largely led by sales in Victoria/Tasmania. On the Australian Music Report singles chart, "I'll See You in My Dreams" peaked at number 82.
"I'll See You in My Dreams" was Giant's only charting release in Australia.
Number 145 "Love Is Strange" by Kenny Rogers Duet with Dolly Parton
Peak: number 145
Peak date: 5 November 1990
Weeks in top 150: 1 week
Chart run: 145
Weeks on chart: 1 week
Country music legends Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton teamed up for a Bee Gees-penned duet, "Islands in the Stream", which went all the way to number 1 on the Australian chart in December 1983. Kenny and Dolly paired up again on "Real Love" (number 45, December 1985), with much less success.
"Love Is Strange" was the third Kenny and Dolly duet single, and was a cover version of the Mickey & Sylvia song from 1956. The song was the title track from Kenny's Love Is Strange (number 155, November 1990) album. While the single was not a commercial success anywhere, it did reach number 21 on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in September 1990 - if that counts for anything.
On the ARIA state charts, "Love Is Strange" peaked highest in Queensland, where it reached number 124.
We last saw Kenny in July 1989, and he will join us next in 1995. Dolly will join us before then, in 1992.
While a-ha maintained a reasonable level of commercial success in Europe for the better part of a decade, in Australia, they are largely (and inaccurately) considered to be one-hit wonders, with none of their other singles peaking higher than number 19, which "The Sun Always Shines on T.V." reached in February 1986. A-ha amassed five top 40 singles in Australia, with the last one of those being the Bond theme "The Living Daylights" (number 29, August 1987). A-ha's last top 100 single in Australia was "Stay on These Roads" (number 56, June 1988).
"Crying in the Rain" was the first single released from a-ha's fourth studio album East of the Sun, West of the Moon (number 122, November 1990). The song is - unusually, for a lead single from an established act - a cover version, of a song originally recorded by The Everly Brothers.
Internationally, "Crying in the Rain" topped the Norwegian singles chart, and peaked within the top 10 in Germany, the Netherlands, and Ireland. The song was also a top 20 hit in the UK, Austria, France and Belgium.
Locally, "Crying in the Rain" performed strongest on the Western Australia state chart, where it reached number 110.
I admit that I didn't actually know any of a-ha's songs, other than "Take on Me", until I started following music, and the charts, intently in 1988. "Touchy!" (released in Australia in October 1988, did not chart) was the second song of theirs I was aware of, after seeing the music video on The Factory. I didn't hear any of their other music until catching "The Living Daylights" on a repeated episode of Countdown on rage in January 2005. While I am surprised the band did not enjoy more success in Australia, "Crying in the Rain" is not my favourite song of theirs.
For anyone who doesn't know, Agro is/was a puppet, voiced by Jamie Dunn, on Australian children's television during the 1980s and 1990s, on programs such as Wombat and Agro's Cartoon Connection.
While sometimes referred to as a talking bathmat, Agro was actually crafted from a puppet of the Muppets character Animal. Agro's brand of humour was typically more 'adult' than usual for a children's TV show character, as evident in this compilation. I could not imagine a character like Agro being on children's TV now.
"Living in a Child's Dream" was lifted from the imaginatively-titled The Agro Album (number 44, November 1990). The song was written by Mick Bower, who was the original guitarist in the Australian band The Masters Apprentices.
My impression is that anyone who bought this single - or the album, for that matter - wasn't getting it for the music itself, but rather, they liked Agro or the single/album sleeve, or thought it might make a nice Christmas present. I had never heard this song before, or any of Agro's other 'music'.
Despite The Agro Album's modest success, a second Agro album, Agro Too (number 100, December 1990), was released to cash-in on the Christmas market in 1991.
Bubbling WAY down under:
Number 152 "Feel That Beat" by 2 Static featuring Nasty Cat
"Feel That Beat" was the second and final 2 Static single released in Australia, this time featuring Nasty Cat. This one does not appear to have charted anywhere else. On the state charts, "Feel That Beat" performed strongest in Western Australia, where it reached number 127.
I hadn't heard this one until writing this post. Interestingly, it appears to be where the "dum, dum da da da dum, that's the way you got to go, now put your hands in the air when I say so" lines from Melodie MC's "Dum Da Dum" (number 5, April 1994) and "yo DJ, let's move those feet!" from DJ Darren Briais vs DJ Peewee Ferris' "I Feel It" (number 20, May 1996) were sampled from.
While we will not see 2 Static again, we shall see Martin Boer, who was behind 2 Static, behind another Dutch act, 2 Brothers on the 4th Floor, in 1994.
Number 156 "Reckless" by Weddings, Parties, Anything
Peak: number 151
Peak date: 3 December 1990
Weeks on chart: 3 weeks
As I write this post, I am slightly confused. While "Reckless" was issued as a single in its own right, it was also the lead track on Weddings, Parties, Anything's The Weddings Play Sports (And Falcons) EP, which reached number 93 on the ARIA singles chart in November 1990. My guess is that, perhaps, the six-track EP was more of a mini-album, from which "Reckless" (with a B-side not on the EP) was the single, and ARIA should have placed the EP on the albums chart instead. But it's certainly strange to have an EP and a single with the same lead track charting simultaneously on the singles chart.
We last saw Weddings, Parties, Anything in April 1990, and will next see them in 1994.
Next week (12 November): The new entries keep coming, with another eight top 150 debuts and one bubbling WAY down under entry.
Excluding the original release of one of this week's new entries, 5 of the 6 debuts (not counting the Bubbling WAY down under entry - though that too would qualify) charted no higher than number 61 anywhere in the world. Furthermore, four of the tracks I write about this week didn't chart anywhere else - on a real chart, I mean. Yay for Australia giving these flops a go! Let's take a look at this week's entries:
Yello: Of course I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to wear a bear suit in a music video.
Top 150 debuts:
Number 133 "Shakin' the Tree" by Youssou N'Dour & Peter Gabriel
Peak: number 131
Peak date: 14 August 1989
Weeks in top 150: 7 weeks
Chart run: 133-132-142-142-131-135-141
Weeks on chart: 7 weeks
Five years before his breakthrough duet hit with Neneh Cherry, Senegalese singer Youssou N'Dour made his Australian singles chart debut with another duet; this time with Peter Gabriel, who we last saw on the chart in 1987. "Shakin' the Tree" was lifted from N'Dour's album The Lion.It would also become the title of Gabriel's 'greatest hits' collection released the following year (albeit as Shaking the Tree) - although the title track wasn't exactly a chart 'hit' anywhere, with number 61 in the UK being its highest chart placing anywhere that I am aware of. Youssou N'Dour will join us again in 1994. Peter Gabriel will next join us in 1991.
Number 136 "Planet Texas" by Kenny Rogers
Peak: number 129
Peak date: 7 August 1989
Weeks in top 150: 6 weeks
Chart run: 166-(off chart for 2 weeks)-136-140-137-129-140-146
Weeks on chart: 7 weeks
The recently-departed Kenny Rogers was last on the Australian singles chart in 1985 with "Real Love", a duet with Dolly Parton. "Planet Texas" was the lead single from his album Something Inside So Strong, which peaked at number 133 on the ARIA albums chart in June 1989. Interestingly, this single did not chart anywhere else (I do not count the US and Canadian Country charts as real charts). We will see Kenny again in 1990.
Number 144 "Crescendo" by Tim Finn
Peak: number 120
Peak date: 24 July 1989
Weeks in top 150: 8 weeks
Chart run: 144-120-127-124-127-134-138-144
Weeks on chart: 8 weeks
Tim had scored four solo top 40 singles in Australia; the largest of those being 1983's "Fraction Too Much Friction", which peaked at number 8. The second single from Tim's self-titled album, "Crescendo" followed up his number 27-peaking "How'm I Gonna Sleep" from earlier in the year. "Crescendo" did not chart anywhere else, and Tim would never again score another solo top 40 hit in Australia. Tim will join us again in 1990.
Number 148 "Of Course I'm Lying" by Yello
Peak: number 123
Peak date: 14 August 1989
Weeks in top 150: 12 weeks
Chart run: 158-(off chart for 1 week)-148-(off chart for 1 week)-148-147-123-132-134-133-138-138-130-142-140
Weeks on chart: 13 weeks
Swiss duo Dieter Meier and Boris Blank formed Yello in 1979. The pair landed their first 'hit' on the Australian chart in 1985, when "Vicious Games" reached number 51 in September of that year. "Oh Yeah", Yello's biggest hit by far in Australia, peaked at number 9 in September 1988.
"The Race", the first single lifted from Yello's sixth studio album Flag (number 94, February 1989), spent three consecutive weeks at its peak of number 56 in September 1988. The album's second single, "Tied Up", was issued in Australia in March 1989, but failed to chart.
"Of Course I'm Lying", the third single from Flag, is a song about how much you love when your partner lies to you... and is just the kind of thing only Yello would think of doing.
"Of Course I'm Lying" fared much better in the UK, where it peaked 100 places higher, at number 23. The single also performed stronger on the Australian Music Report chart, where it peaked at number 86.
On the ARIA state charts, "Of Course I'm Lying" performed strongest in South Australia/Northern Territory, where it reached number 61. The single did not make the top 100 on any of the four other ARIA state charts.
Despite its low peak in Australia, "Of Course I'm Lying" had one of the longer chart runs for a single peaking outside the top 100, spending 12 weeks within the top 150. Yello are still going, and released a new single just recently.
Number 149 "Roadhouse Blues" by The Jeff Healey Band
Peak: number 146
Peak date: 24 July 1989
Weeks in top 150: 2 weeks
Top 150 chart run: 149-146
Lifted from the movie Road House, starring Patrick Swayze, "Roadhouse Blues" followed up The Jeff Healey Band's top 150 'hit' "Angel Eyes" from a mere month ago. This is another one that doesn't seem to have charted anywhere else, other than on Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks chart (which I don't consider a real chart). "Roadhouse Blues" had greater success on the Australian Music Report chart, where it peaked at number 97. We will see another song from the movie bubble down under in just over a month. The Jeff Healey Band will join us for a third time in October 1990.
Number 150 "Rock On” (Shep Pettibone Remix)" by David Essex
Peak: number 150
Peak dates: 17 July 1989 and 31 July 1989
Weeks in top 150: 2 weeks
Top 150 chart run: 150-(out for 1 week)-150
Later in July 1989, Michael Damian's cover version of this David Essex track from 1973 reached number 55 on the ARIA singles chart. Here we have the original, with a remixed version by Shep Pettibone, to update it for the late 1980s. David's original version of "Rock On" peaked at number 8 on the Kent Music Report chart. This remixed version of "Rock On" also charted in the UK, where it peaked at number 93 in March 1989. David Essex was last on the Australian singles chart in 1987 with "Mywanwy" (number 40, September 1987).
Bubbling WAY down under:
Number 158 "(He's Got) The Look" by Vanessa Williams
Peak: number 158
Peak date: 17 July 1989
Weeks on chart: 1 week
We saw Vanessa Williams back in April, with her first Australian chart 'hit' "Dreamin'", and here she was with the follow-up... locally, anyway. "(He's Got) The Look" was actually released before "Dreamin'" in the US, where it reached number 10 on the R&B chart (again, not a real chart in my book) in October 1988, and seems to have not charted anywhere else. We will see Vanessa next in 1991.
Next week (24 July): Among the seven new top 150-peaking entries next week, we have not one, but two singles that peak at number 101, and one that peaked at number 102! There is also one bubbling WAY down under debut. You can also follow my posts on facebook.
