First of all, sorry about the lateness. This week has been crazy in the Gloveheadverse, and I just couldn't squeeze in enough time to finish this until now. I promise to do my best not to make you wait around too long for the conclusion.
Secondly, I just want to let you know that this is the first time that I'm not working off of an American Top 40. This is because at this moment in time, there was no such thing. This week's list comes from Casey Kasem's countdown Casey's Top 40. However, Casey wasn't in on this particular week, so the show was hosted by some guy named David Perry.
Now that that's out of the way....
This week we're in 1995. The verdict in the O.J. Simpson murder trial had come down earlier in this month, and let's just say there was still some debate about it. But when Americans weren't talking about that, many of them were listening to these songs:
40 - "Can I Touch You...There?" Michael Bolton
39 - "I Hate U," Prince
38 - "Pretty Girl," Jon B.
37 - "Automatic Lover," Real McCoy
36 - "Can't Cry Anymore," Sheryl Crow
35 - "Someone to Love," Jon B. and Babyface
34 - "Solitude," Edwin McCain
33 - "Every Little Thing I Do," Soul for Real
32 - "Water Runs Dry," Boyz II Men
31 - "I'd Lie for You (And That's the Truth)," Meat Loaf
We'll start with the four solo men who appear in this section only once. Michael Bolton had one of his last pop hits with this intimate query. There's this Japanese flute motif in there that's sort of interesting, but otherwise, it's his usual mehness. And the answer to your question, Mike, is hell no. The man who had changed his name to an unpronouncable symbol but I still called Prince had his last significant hit for Warner Bros. with this ballad on which he airs his conflicted feelings about a cheating lover. In one verse, he pretends he has this woman on a witness stand in a courtroom, and threatens violence upon her if she doesn't tell the truth. Yeah, I think he was a little bit...off at this point in time. South Carolina singer Edwin McCain had his first hit with this rock ballad that tells the tale of his friend Tim, who was sent to rehab by his mother as a youth and kept there for longer than he felt was necessary. Tim returns home with a healthier mind and attitued, and yet is bitter toward Mom, who he feels "enjoyed the convenience of my solitude" during his years away. This probably wouldn't have gotten much airplay if not for the fact that the song features a cameo from Darius Rucker, the lead singer of Hootie and the Blowfish. They were quite popular at the time, as I recall. And Meat Loaf had his biggest non-Bat Out of Hell-associated hit with this this ballad that sounds like a pale Steinman imitation. It was, in fact, written by Diane Warren. That explains it. But the Meat redeems it, somewhat.
Then we have the first two hits for the R&B singer born Jonathan David Buck. First, he's on his own with this ballad on which he declares "when you come to my room tonight, I'll make you come through the night." Can't fault him for having confidence in his abilities. Then he contributes a thankful ballad with the help of Kenneth Edmonds. He sounds like a male Toni Braxton on that one.
What's left here are three groups and a solo female. Real McCoy are here again with another soul-singer/growly man dance number. Nothing special. Sheryl Crow had another Tuesday Night Music Club hit with this bluesy lament about relationship, money, and family problems. Decent enough. R&B quartet Soul for Real had their last pop hit with this okay groover about a woman whose always on their mind. And Boyz II Men continued their run of ubiquity with this ballad about confronting a relationship's problems before it's too late. Slick, smooth, superior. That describes pretty much all of these guys' best stuff.
30 - "Good Intentions," Toad the Wet Sprocket
29 - "Don't Take it Personal (Just One of Dem Days)," Monica
28 - "Gangsta's Paradise," Coolio featuring L.V.
27 - "This House is Not a Home," The Rembrandts
26 - "Crazy Cool," Paula Abdul
25 - "I'll Be There for You," The Rembrandts
24 - "Shy Guy," Diana King
23 - "I Wanna Be With U," Fun Factory
22 - "Name," Goo Goo Dolls
21 - "Ants Marching," Dave Matthews Band
We'll start with the four groups here that weren't named after a Dutch painter. Toad the Wet Sprocket are here with their last major hit, a mild rocker about how having one's heart in the right place isn't always enough. I hadn't thought of this song in seventeen years, and I probably won't think of it again for a very long time. Germany's Fun Factory are here with some sunny reggae-lite in the Ace of Base vein. They aren't quite that good at it, but I prefer this to the Real McCoy school of Eurodance. Buffalo band Goo Goo Dolls had their breakthrough hit with this acoustic ballad about friendship that lasts throughout the ups and downs. I think that's what it's about. It's decent enough, although it does nothing to dispel the notion that they were a poor man's Replacements. Replacements replacements, if you will. And if you don't know the Repl.acements, look 'em up. I think you'll be glad you did. And South Aftican-born Dave Matthews and the eponymous band he formed in Charlottesville, Virginia, are here with one of their early hits, a jaunty tune about getting too caught up in the monotony and routine of life. It makes good use of violin and saxophone. I probably like it more than anything they've put out since, but I do prefer the hit they had before this, "What Would You Say."
Next we have three female singers and a male rapper. R&B singer Monica Brown had her first hit with this nice little groove about needing to take a little time away from one's lover in order to sort things out. She had quite a few hits after this, but this is the one I know best, and I probably imagine it would be my favorite no matter what. Coolio had his biggest hit by far with this tense tale of the perils of thug life that originally appeared on the soundrtack of the Michelle Pfeiffer movie Dangerous Minds. Listening with fresh ears, it's a powerful song, lifted by singer L.V.'s reinterpretation of lines from the Stevie Wonder song "Pastime Paradise." A worthy smash. Paula Abdul had her last major radio hit with this number where she tries to go in a funkier, sexier direction. The song itself is good, but Paula's performance seems like a weak Janet Jackson impersonation. And Jamaican singer Diana King had her biggest American hit with this reggae-pop tune about being attracted to more withdrawn, less aggressive men. She proves to be equally adept at singing as she is at dancehall-style toasting. A solid showcase for her talent.
We finish with two songs by the L.A duo of Phil Solem and Danny Wilde. They had been in various bands both together and apart for over a decade when they scored a Top 20 hit in 1991 with "Just the Way it Is, Baby" (still my favorite of theirs), They seemed destined not to reach that height again until they were tapped to perform the theme song to a new sitcom called Friends. The show was a smash, and the theme proved almost as popular, so they re-recorded it with an extra verse and a bridge, and it became a huge hit on its own. It's been blunted a little by overexposure, but still, it's a relentless earworm, and it's theme of being able to rely on your friends through the roller coaster ride that is life is pretty timeless. And two spots below "I'll Be There for You," they appear with another track with a plea for reconciliation with a lover that sounds like a pale imitation of Squeeze. Not that that's necessarily a bad thing in and of itself, but this one I could take or leave.
Tomorrow: Old movies, natural wonders, and the song that turned a teen-pop footnote into one of the biggest stars in the world.
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