This
month |
Chart
weeks |
| Peak
position |
| Number One |
| 1 |
4 |
| MY HEART WILL GO ON |
Titanic OST |
| Celine Dion |
|
1 |
| The most expensive movie in the history of the world has spawned a number of spin-off industries. One is spot the factual error that $200 million should have avoided. Another is wonder if the film, soundtrack album and lead single can all top their respective charts at the same time. And yet another is wonder why a poor ballad that isn't as good as much of Celine's work can somehow rise above all contenders and hit the top of the chart. Part of the explanation is the tie in with the film, which extends to incorporating snatches of the film sound track on the single. But part of it is some very sensible marketing, that puts this track on the same CD single as "Because you loved me" from Up Close and Personal and the title from Beauty and the Beast. If you're looking for a decent single release from the album, let me recommend "Southampton", a catchy ditty that a) doesn't feature any proper vocals, just Sissel's aaah-ing, and b) doesn't have Celine all over it.
|
| 2 |
16 |
| NEVER EVER |
All Saints |
| All Saints |
| 1 |
| The second single off the 4-piece girl band's debut album. It took nine weeks to climb to the top slot, selling an unprecedented 750,000 copies before getting there. The follow-up, a cover of the Red Hot Chili Peppers' "Under the Bridge" was due for release in mid January, but has now been put back till March at the earliest. Indeed, the single is still selling well over three months after first release. Probably the closest thing to a half-British half-Canadian En Vouge, All Saints have a bright future ahead of them. |
| 3 |
5 |
|
2 |
| Just when we thought it was safe to go back to the music store, the most popular Danes since Claire came back. If anything, this is even more insanely catchy than "Barbie Girl" - it's bright, breezy, cheery, happy and has a delicious chorus. Unlike their previous record, I do actually like this track. Must be the added gherkins. |
| 4 |
13 |
| ANGELS |
Life Thru a Lens |
| Robbie Williams |
|
3 |
| Alarmingly, it's the fifth single from his debut album, but the first to be much cop. A sweet, touching ballad with a chorus that sounds a lot like a tampon commercial (!), Williams has finally proven that he can write songs as well as his erstwhile Take That colleague, Gary Barlow, and has now outsold every Barlow composition by quite some distance. Rather than fading away in the new year, this song has actually continued to press its claim to a Number One position well into February, a claim helped by his performance with Tom Jones at the Brit awards. This makes interesting listening, as the radio edit features the sound of sleigh bells, and the b-side is a Christmas spoof entitled Walk This Sleigh. It got some spins in December, but feels more than a little out of place in March. |
| Single Of The Month |
| 5 |
4 |
| BRIMFUL OF ASHA |
When I was Born for the 7th Time |
| Cornershop |
|
1 |
| Back in 1992, the music press heralded this two-piece as the great hopes of British music. Above everything, they were totally politically correct; of Asian extraction, railing against racism and other forms of disadvantage. Sadly, the pair suffered from a debut album disadvantaged by its being almost unlistenable; after that, the inkies atoned for their mistake by ignoring the group to death. Until Norman Cook came along and remixed a single from their fifth album. It did nothing first time round in Britain, but has already been sizy in the US and continental markets. This track - now almost 50% faster, but with no other significant change - has more hooks than a fishing tournament, and radio has finally been falling over itself to play the track. Buyers also like it a lot. |
| 6 |
12 |
| HIGH |
Postcards from Heaven |
| Lighthouse Family |
|
2 |
| The second single from their second album, and quite possibly the best thing they've ever done. A swooping, soaring vocal, underpinned by a string arrangement even more lush than usual contribute to a wonderful, magical atmosphere, and has helped keep the single riding high for many weeks. Listening to some old records, I was struck by the comparison between this act and the late 80s Liverpool stars the Christians. Both had soulful harmonies, set over wonderful arrangements. |
| 7 |
6 |
| GETTIN' JIGGY WITH IT |
Big Willy Style |
| Will Smith |
|
6 |
| After the flop of "Jus Crusin" before Christmas, Smith was looking for a more substantial single to follow up last summer's massive "Men In Black". This has given him that hit, albeit a somewhat insipid slab of rap that namechecks his first Top 10 hit, 1991's Summertime. |
| 8 |
13 |
| TOGETHER AGAIN |
The Velvet Rope |
| Janet Jackson |
|
4 |
| The second single from Janet's fourth studio album, "Together again" is an funk workout remarkable only for its longevity. |
| 9 |
6 |
| YOU MAKE ME WANNA... |
My Way |
| Usher |
|
2 |
| A sizy hit for the American teen sensation, known as much for his televisual strip-tease as his music. This is the sort of visual gimmick that a good single wouldn't need. |
| 10 |
4 |
| ALL I HAVE TO GIVE |
Backstreet's Back! |
| Backstreet Boys |
|
5 |
| The third single from their second British release is a catchy enough number, with a rather wonderful bridge. The chorus somewhat lets the song down, however, and leaving it little more than a chunk of interesting if unfilling pop. I've heard worse, but it's not as good as their last two singles. |
| 11 |
7 |
| MULDER AND SCULLY |
International Velvet |
| Catatonia |
|
9 |
| The third single from the Welsh band's breakthrough second album, this angst-ridden song about unrequited love has finally given them the hit they were threatening for much of the last year. And, no, it's not a geeky reference to any tawdry American show. |
| Sureshot |
| 12 |
2 |
| TRULY MADLY DEEPLY |
Savage Garden |
| Savage Garden |
|
4 |
| After the sizable hit "I want you" last June, it looked as though Savage Garden were going to fall into that worst of all camps, a one-hit wonder that should have broken big. The fourth release from their UK debut album provides the top 10 entry they threatened those months ago. It's a soft, plaintive ballad that's already been massive across the developed world, and ends its travels by becoming a hit in the UK. The timing was poor, though; originally slated for release on Feb 9, but it slipped to the 16th. After Valentine's day. |
| 13 |
4 |
| CLEOPATRA'S THEME |
|
| Cleopatra |
|
8 |
| You remember Hanson, surely. Three brothers from the Mid-West USA, all cotton candy, but producing the best pop album of last year. Now turn to three sisters from Manchester, one actually called Cleopatra, writing relatively formulaic R&B-based rap. They can sing, but they just don't quite have the instant hooks and catches that their foes from Tulsa have. On the other hand, this is a record that seems to become more and more catchy with each listening. Incidentally, does the squeal at the beginning remind you of Stock Aitken and Waterman's 1987 hit "Roadblock", the one that was sampled for MAARS's "Pump up the volume"? No? So it is just me... |
| 14 |
18 |
| AIN'T THAT JUST |
|
| Lutricia McNeil |
|
5 |
| An unremarkable funk / r&b / soul single that provides the UK debut for a female singer. This radio-friendly track - somewhat over-exposed since release last November - has one hit wonder stamped over it, though that one hit has now featured in four monthly charts. Enjoy it while it lasts... |
| 15 |
21 |
| TORN |
Left of the Middle |
| Natalie Imbruglia |
|
1 |
| The debut single from the former Australian soap star kept "Barbie Girl" from the top slot during November. A hard-edged ballad, "Torn" came in for some stick in January when tabloid newspapers "revealed" that a very similar arrangement of the song had already been recorded by a Norwegian act. Personally, I don't find that at all interesting, as the record is already something of a classic, and is only the second record in the rock era to sell a million without hitting the top of the weekly sales chart. The wonderful follow up single, "Big mistake" emerged in the first week of March, and should be in this survey next month... |
| 16 |
1 |
| FROZEN |
Ray of Light |
| Madonna |
|
1 |
| Finally, the Queen of Pop returns. It's 14 years since she first entered the UK music scene with the catchy bubblegum hit "Holiday". Through the mid-80s the hits flowed in a way we've scarcely seen since - five classic number ones in the space of just two years turned her from a one-time dancer to the biggest pop act on the planet. But since 1989's stupendous Like a Prayer album, and the following year's Immacculate Collection, Madonna's star has been in a slow decline. 1992's Erotica was a poor album by her standards, while 1994's Bedtime Stories, although a masterpiece, fell through the critical floor. Now, after a stopgap collection of ballads, and the birth of child Lourdes, Madonna returns. And she's gone all spiritual on us. A tv rendition of this single looked like a cross between Tori Amos, Kate Bush and a wind tunnel. The song itself is a marvellous sheer ice sheet, immense in its stucture, almost forbidding in its coldness, and a thing of fragile beauty to behold. Or, to summarise, it's great. The best thing she's done since "Like a prayer" the single. |
| Sureshot |
| 17 |
4 |
|
17 |
| This seems to be just about the most uplifting track to chart for a very long time. It's based on an old African inspirational chant and is light years away from the guff put out as ambient world music a few years back. |
| 18 |
11 |
| ALL AROUND THE WORLD |
Be Here Now |
| Oasis |
|
1 |
| Two words. Why. The overblown - and almost irredemably overhyped - third album has now produced three massive hit singles. This is as pompous, overblown and tiresome as any they've produced in a very long time. What's worse is that - at nine minutes - it's the longest record ever to take the top slot. Originally scheduled for release before Christmas, Creation records held back, knowing they couldn't beat the Spice Girls, or the Teletubbies. With any justice, this will be the last release from them. |
| 19 |
7 |
|
2 |
| Effectively, a re-make of KC & the Sunshine Band's 1975 hit "Get Down Tonight". The video is lifted straight from 1920s cartoons, in a similar way to Steve 'Silk' Hurley's 1987 list leader, "Jack your body". Like that, this debut track will not provide the foundations for any lasting career. |
| 20 |
5 |
| AMNESIA |
Tubthumper |
| Chumbawumba |
|
9 |
| After the monster that was Tubthumping, the Leeds anarchists return with a single that isn't quite as catchy, but still screams out to be sung along with. Lamenting the loss of the socialism from Britain's Labour party, the nine-piece succeed in writing the first hit protest song about a left-wing government in British history. This song also goes down as the first played on the TV Pepsi Chart show, the first serious rival to Top of the Pops in many years. |
| Sureshot |
| 21 |
2 |
| YOU'RE STILL THE ONE |
Come On Over |
| Shaina Twain |
|
11 |
| Here's a bit of a novelty. An American country singer that hits big in that most painfully hip of charts, the British. Lest we forget, there is just one country station in the UK, broadcasting on a poor AM frequency in London. But this track has crossed straight onto mainstream radio, where she's viewed more as a pretty (and married) lady with a good voice. And a great track, without vocal gymnastics. It's the first country track to be this large since 1992's "Achey Breaky Heart". Quite what that statistic says, I'm not sure. |
| 22 |
4 |
|
17 |
| For three minor hits, Jay-Z's worked with Foxy Brown. Now, he teams up with the lead singer from Rose Royce and has his biggest hit yet. The original was a number 3 hit during 1970, and returned to the top 10 in a cover by Fresh 4 during 1989. Gwen's last appearance was with KWS on 1994's
remake of 'Ain't Nobody'. This is a sweet if insubstantial record that stands only on Gwen's vocals. |
| January's Single Of The Month |
| 23 |
7 |
| AVENGING ANGELS |
Tin Planet |
| Space |
|
8 |
| The first single from the Scousers' sophomore set, "Avenging Angels" is a subtle rock workout with a clear sensitive edge. Dedicated to friends and relatives who have died previously, the single features an interlude straight out of the 1920s, and gained massive airplay prior to release over Christmas. The follow-up brings these guys together with someone in this month's Top 20... |
| 24 |
3 |
|
18 |
| Sometimes, it's just impossible to find anything to say about a record. This is one of those occasions. The record is just totally immemorable; it drifts in one ear and straight out again. |
| Sureshot |
| 25 |
2 |
| TREAT INFAMY |
|
| Rest Assured |
|
14 |
| In the beginning, there was "The Last Time". It was a 1965 #1 hit for the Rolling Stones. Producer Andrew "Moog" Oldham made an orchestral arrangement of the track. Fast forward to 1997, and a desperate northern band, the Verve, are looking out for a catchy hook to sling their careers onto. By chance, they find Oldham's recording, and construct a fifth-rate song around it. That song, "Bittersweet symphony", somehow propels them to megastardom, and me to sleep. Now up pops an anonymous DJ, who obtains clearance from Oldham to use the same sample on a dance record. It's one of three using the riff in the clubs, and the first to chart. It's also the only one of all the records mentioned in this paragraph to advance the frontiers of popular music in any way. It merges ambient house with ubercool indie and subdued but firm rapping. Wonderful!
|
| 26 |
5 |
| SOMEBODY ELSE'S GUY |
Greatest Hits... |
| Cecille Peniston |
|
13 |
| The woman responsible for inflicting "Finally" on an unsuspecting planet three times this decade has decided the market is right to tolerate her greatest hits album, in spite of a distinct lack of hits (two top 10, another 5 making the forty), never mind the great ones (er, nil). This is a cover of Jocelyn Brown's #13 hit of 1983, spookily peaking at the same place. |
| 27 |
14 |
| BABY CAN I HOLD YOU TONIGHT |
|
| Boyzone |
|
2 |
| Released in ample time for the Christmas market, this Tracey Chapman cover provided the Irish quintet with their 11th Top 5 hit from as many releases. Three of the first ten were covers, but only "Words" was well-known before this lot got their paws on it. |
| 28 |
2 |
| BE ALONE NO MORE |
|
| Another Level |
|
17 |
| It's a four piece, young, British R&B act. None of these qualities is likely to endear a single to me, although this one does have a little potential. Fans of this genre are falling over themselves to give it plaudits.
|
| 29 |
14 |
| PERFECT DAY |
|
| Various Artists |
|
1 |
| Originally the b-side to Lou Reed's "Walk on the wild side", "Perfect Day" was resurrected by the BBC for a self-promoting commercial during 1997. It features 30 artists, including Suzanne Vega, Evan Dando and Bono performing a line or two from the song. Due to massive public demand, the song was released as a single in November, becoming the first record to enter at No 1 since May. Following further exposure, it returned to the top after Christmas. |
| 30 |
1 |
| HOW DO I LIVE |
You Light Up My Life |
| Leann Rimes |
|
8 |
| The 15 year old American country sensation becomes the second act best described with the c-word to appear this month. Like Shania at number 21, Leann has broken through with an absolutely wonderful record that is going to be on British radio lists for a long time to come. Whether it's there for over six months, as has been the case in the US, is another matter. But it's another brilliant song. |
| 31 |
2 |
| IT'S A BEAUTIFUL THING |
Marchin' Already |
| Ocean Colour Scene |
|
20 |
| 60s soul legend PP Arnold features on this track, a tedious ballad that fails to lift the band above their usual level of retro-hogwash. |
| 32 |
2 |
| WHEN I NEED YOU |
Will Mellor |
| Will Mellor |
|
18 |
| Back in 1995, Phil Redmond (Grange Hill, Brookside...) launched a new teen soap, Hollyoaks. As well as taking talents from those two shows, the Oaks launched a number of careers. Jambo, slightly better known as Will Mellor, was one of them. This is his debut single, following in the footsteps of Kylie Minouge, Jason Donovan, Sean Maguire, John Alford, and more recently Steven Houghton and Natalie Imbruglia. All those were soap stars who had some career as pop stars. It's worth noticing that the only ones to turn into credible successes, with long careers, were a) female, b) Australian, and c) capable of recording songs that most of their audience hadn't heard before. As this is an almost note-perfect cover of a Leo Sayer chart topper from 1977, Mellor fails on all three counts. |
| 33 |
1 |
| THE BALLAD OF TOM JONES |
Tin Planet |
| Space |
|
10 |
| And then there were two. This record brings together the talents of Space with those of Cerys Matthews, lead singer with Catatonia, in a plaintive song about a feuding couple who found some form of solace in the recordings of legendary Welsh singer Tom Jones. Every possible cliche is packed into the lyrics of this sweet song, which does work on two levels. For foreign consumption, it's a wonderful, soaring track, that plays both vocalists to their full extent. For British listeners, it's a humourous take on the mad legends that have grown up around a baritone from the valleys. Brilliant either way. |
| 34 |
3 |
| PLANET LOVE |
Bellissima |
| DJ Quicksilver |
|
19 |
| The man who had a couple of smashes with ambient Euro-house last year finds that the law of diminishing returns does apply to singles, and he is not exempt from it. A fact not helped by this track not being a patch on "Bellissima", his massive hit last spring. |
| 35 |
1 |
| SHOW ME LOVE |
Robyn Is Here |
| Robyn |
|
12 |
| The Nordic invasion continues, with the perky little singer from Sweden who had a minor hit last summer with "What it takes (to love me)". Now she returns with another dance number that still is best described as perky. |
| 36 |
2 |
| RECOVER YOUR SOUL |
The Big Picture |
| Elton John |
|
18 |
| And so life continued. After being one of the main beneficiaries from some traffic accident in Paris back in August, Elton's career returned from hiatus with the second single from his new album. Sadly, it's not anything to write home about - it's pretty, yes, but it's totally unspectacular. |
| 37 |
2 |
| ONLY THE STRONGEST WILL SURVIVE |
|
| Hurricane #1 |
|
12 |
| Another of the poor quality, so hip it's not funny bands, Hurricane #1's sole claim to fame is that one of their members used to be in seminal 1991 shoegazers Ride. They were pisspoor then, and, shockingly, not much has changed since. This starts, mumbles, has a few chords, and then finishes. |
| 38 |
5 |
|
16 |
| The fourth single for the Irish band billed as the new Boyzone. They've had two hit covers and one minor hit original; this is another original and becomes as sizy a success as they've had. It's totally unremarkable though, in spite of being co-written with Spice Girls producer Richard Stannard. |
| 39 |
2 |
|
35 |
| Just when you thought it was safe to turn the radio back on again, this lot leap back out with the dull fourth single from their woefully over-rated album. |
| 40 |
2 |
|
23 |
| An atmopheric dance hit provides the French act with their first hit single, albeit after the release of its album. They've been touted as the future of dance music, but I doubt they'll rate much more than an intriguing footnote. |