This week's Official UK Singles Chart
[Here it is, the very first one. I've told the origin story far too many times to waste too much space on it here. Long story short: this was my way of making a contribution to the music discussion scene online. So here debuts and indeed begins the Usenet era of what I originally termed the "weekly chart analysis". Be warned: it took a while for the style to settle down.]
No. 40: NEW ENTRY. First of 10 on this weeks chart. PM Dawn - I'd Die Without You.
Yet another track from the soundtrack of the film 'Boomerang' makes its appearance. Unbelievably this is PM Dawn's first Top 40 hit since Set Adrift On Memory Bliss back in August 1991. Recent singles have fared less well and by their standards, this is a comparatively low entry.
No. 39: NEW ENTRY. East 17 - Gold.
East 17 are the latest teen sensation to hit the UK charts. Gold is a followup to House Of Love their debut hit which made the Top 10 back in September. With their tracks having a harder dance feel to them unlike most teen bands their future looks set to follow soundalikes EMF. Watch this climb.
No. 36: NEW ENTRY. Inspiral Carpets - Bitches Brew.
A mixed year so far for the Inspiral Carpets, their only top 20 entry this year was Dragging Me Down back in March. You get the feeling they are only selling at present to their existing fan base and this new track will not change this. Expect it to progress no further.
No. 33: NEW ENTRY. Cher - Oh No Not My Baby.
Currently enjoying her biggest run of UK success, Cher enters with the first track to be released from her forthcoming Greatest Hits collection in time for Christmas. The song itself, although being a new recording by Cher, is an old one. Written by Goffin/King it has already been a UK chart success twice, reaching No.11 for Manfred Mann in 1965 and being taken to No.6 by Rod Stewart in 1973.
No. 31: NEW ENTRY. Gary Clail - Who Pays The Piper.
Clail, best known for his 1991 hit Human Nature returns to the charts with another typically storming dance track. Like his previous ventures, the record features the On-U Sound System, one of the countries most celebrated underground dance troupes. ["Dance troupes". I'm kind of hoping that kind of phrase was unique to 1992 James]
No. 30: NEW ENTRY. INXS - Taste It.
The third hit from the latest album Welcome To Wherever You Are from the Aussie rockers. They too have been experiencing mixed fortunes of late and have yet to crack the Top 20 this year. 'Taste It' may well change everything and makes a strong debut thanks to a live performance on the BBC's Top Of The Pops on Thursday night...
No. 27: CLIMBER. Rotterdam Termination Source - Poing.
Possibly one of the quirkier records in this weeks chart, Poing is the brainchild of two DJs from Amsterdam. Imagine the sound 'Poing' coupled with a dance beat and you have this record in a nutshell. Yes, that is literally all it does for 3.5 minutes! [yes its a Gabba track you naive fool, that's kind of the point] Most would have expected it to climb further than 8 places this week but its showing may well improve as radio airplay increases and the clubs finally work out how to dance to it... (have you tried?)
No. 23: NEW ENTRY. Wedding Present - Queen Of Outer Space.
The Wedding Present continue to keep their new years' resolution of releasing a single every month for the whole of 1992. Logically enough this one is No.11. As each one is only available in a limited edition of 100,000 copies which sell out within days, the position they enter gives a reasonable view of the state of the charts. The higher they enter, the poorer sales are, as typified by Aprils effort which made No.10 first week out. You will be pleased to know this is one of the lowest-peaking so far.
No. 22: NEW ENTRY. Extreme - Stop The World.
The second single from the Boston Band from the album Three Sides To Every Story. Extreme always do well in the UK charts, public perception of them as a rock band has not been clouded by More Than Words, unlike America where their only chart success has them classed as acoustic balladeers. [True story, More Than Words inspired old ladies across America to seek out the album by those "nice young men" and to recoil in horror when they were directed towards the metal section.]
No. 12: NEW ENTRY. Whitney Houston - I Will Always Love You.
Mrs Bobby Brown makes her first chart entry for over a year. The song was written by Dolly Parton and features in the soundtrack of the film 'Bodyguard'. At a stroke, this becomes her biggest hit since I'm Your Baby Tonight back in October 1990, a reflection perhaps of her status as a classic artist let down recently by bad material. Time was when a Whitney Houston track was guaranteed a Top 20 place. Now she requires a massive promotional effort just to get her to chart. [...and thus begins the chart run of one of the most famous hits of all time. Glad I was there from the start, even if I spent the next month insisting it was rubbish.]
No. 8: CLIMBER. Ambassadors Of Funk - Supermarioland.
Riding high in the Top Ten is the second example of the latest craze to hit the British charts, dance versions of Nintendo themes. This track follows on from the success of Dr Spin's Tetris (down this week at No. 26) and yet unbelievably is totally unconnected to it predecessor. Did both acts have the same idea at the same time? In case you are wondering the track features a rap by 'MC Mario' to the backing of the Mario Brothers Theme sounding as if it has been sampled directly from a Gameboy.
No. 7: NEW ENTRY. Undercover - Never Let Her Slip Away.
The second single from this band becomes the highest new entry this week. Undercover are a studio aggregation that set out to do just as the name suggests - perform dance versions of classic hits. First up was a cover of Gerry Rafferty's Baker Street and their new single is a version of the song by Andrew Gold. Gold's original made No. 5 in 1978 and was his only Top 10 hit in the UK. It remains to be seen if Undercover can eclipse this.
No. 2: HIGHEST CLIMBER. Charles and Eddie - Would I Lie To You.
The fastest selling single so far this year makes another massive improvement. So far this track has moved 92-34-14-2. That first leap would line them up for the biggest ever leap within the UK charts, was it not for the fact that records in the 76-100 range are weighted upwards and so are not counted for record statistical purposes. Few records with momentums like that fail to make No.1 but they have some stiff competition before them.
No. 1: THIRD WEEK AT THE TOP. Boyz II Men - End Of The Road.
Just as Bryan Adams swept all before him in 1991 this record looks set to do the same. Its list of achievements is incredible: aside from its 12 week run at the top of the US charts, in the UK it outsold last weeks No.2 by a margin of 2:1; its 10 week climb to the top within the Top 40 was the slowest since John Denver's Annies Song in 1974 and it is Motown Record's first UK No.1 since Stevie Wonder's I Just Called To Say I Love You back in 1984. Charles and Eddie may well make a strong assault on the No.1 slot next week but the phenomenal sales of the band over the last two weeks will take some beating. Watch out for an appearance soon of Motownphilly the boys' debut track from last year as Motown try for the third time to make it a hit over here.