This week we're in December of 2002. As the Bush Administration was ratcheting up the case for their eventual invasion of Iraq, American pop radio was playing the following:
40 - "Come Into My World," Kylie Minogue
39 - "Through the Rain," Mariah Carey
38 - "Strength of a Woman," Shaggy
37 - "Starry-Eyed Surprise," Paul Oakenfold featuring Shifty Shellshock
36 - "Don't Know Why," Norah Jones
35 - "Cry Me a River," Justin Timberlake
34 - "Heaven," DJ Sammy and Yanou featuring Do
33 - "Dirrty," Christina Aguilera
32 - "'03 Bonnie and Clyde," Jay-Z featuring Beyonce
31 - "What's Your Flava," Craig David
We begin with four solo women. Kylie Minogue's return to the American charts after fourteen years had begun at the start of the year with the fantastic dance track "Can't Get You Out of My Head," and was back on the charts with a third single from her Fever CD. It's okay, but it's so similar to that better, earlier hit as to be unnecessary. Mariah Carey is here, arguably at the low point of her career. The previous year, she had signed a $100 million record deal with Virgin, the first album of which was the soundtrack of her movie Glitter. But both the film and the album flopped spectacularly, to the point where Virgin paid her $50 million to get out of the contract. At this point, she was signed to Island, and her first single for them was this ballad about having the strength to make it through hard times. It's pretty much what you'd expect from her, and decent enough as that goes. But unfortunately, the hard times would continue, as neither this song nor its parent album performed up to her lofty standards. But things would turn around, eventually. Brooklyn-born, Texas-raised Norah Jones, the daughter of Indian sitar star Ravi Shankar and an American concert promoter, burst on the scene this year with her laid back jazz-pop stylings, a shining example of which is this stylish loneliness ballad. It's an okay song, but her rich, smoky voice makes it rise above. And Christina Aguilera is here with the first single from her second album. It's a somewhat cacophonous dance number about how Aguilera wants to "sweat until my clothes come off," but it's best remembered for its then-scandalous video that introduced the world to her more provocative "Xtina" image. And furries.
Three solo men are in this section. Shaggy unveils his softer side by actually trying to sing this ode to the power of the "fairer sex." Much of it comes off as reverent, and he even starts off by saying "I wonder if God is a woman." But then he talks about how despite their frequent nagging, he can't resist them because "those hips got me whipped." I'm not sure his bid for feminist cred worked as well as he might have hoped. Justin Timberlake's second hit from his first solo album was this massive-sounding breakup ballad supposedly inspired by the end of his relationship with Britney Spears. It's a big production, with lots of different elements (including Gregorian chants, of all things), but Timberlake's aching vocal doesn't get lost. Fine stuff. And Craig David had his final significant American hit with this soul-popper that compares women to ice cream flavours. It's pleasant enough, but it gets a little creepy when he sings "they got me dribbling hot fudge sauce on the soles of my Timberlands." Ew.
We close off this section with three collaborations. Veteran producer and DJ Paul Oakenfold had his only American hit with this swirly dance tune featurning a rap from Shifty Shellshock of briefly popular nu-metallers Crazy Town ("Butterfly") It's a cool little song that puts you in a nice headspace. Spain's DJ Sammy teamed up with German producer Yanou and a Dutch singer simply known as Do to produce a Eurodisco version of Bryan Adams' 1985 charttopper. They also put together the "Candlelight Mix" that Casey played, which was basically just piano and voice. I wasn't impressed by either version. And Jay-Z hooked up with future wife Beyonce on a track where he not only compares the couple to the legendary 1920s bank robbers, he also declares them to be "the new Bobby and Whitney." Fortunately, he was wrong about that, at least so far. And Beyonce breaking off a few lines from Prince's "If I Was Your Girlfriend" was a nice touch.
30 - "A Moment Like This," Kelly Clarkson
29 - "Picture," Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow
28 - "Po' Folks," Nappy Roots
27 - "Spin," Lifehouse
26 - "Gimme the Light," Sean Paul
25 - "Girl Talk," TLC
24 - "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous," Good Charlotte
23 - "Air Force Ones," Nelly
22 - "I'm With You," Avril Lavigne
21 - "Disease," Matchbox Twenty
Just two solo ladies in this group. In the summer of 2002, America was gripped by a new singing competition called American Idol, and millions tuned in to see a big-voiced Texan named Kelly Clarkson crowned the winner and awarded a recording contract. The song she sang immediately after her victory, this ballad about finally arriving somewhere you've always wanted to be, became her first single. It's an okay song, but you can immediately tell she's way better than this material. And she's borne that out, for in spite of the odd stumble (From Justin to Kelly, a public battle with music industry legend Clive Davis), she's put together a pretty solid career, and was even able to put together a legitimate Greatest Hits collection. I'm not sure how many people would have predicted that. And Avril Lavigne, the pride of Napanee, Ontario, continued her big year with her third single, a ballad about loneliness and depending on the kindness of strangers. It might be her best song.
There's a duet and two solo men in this batch. Kid Rock picked up his biggest hit with this country ballad on which he and Shery Crow portray a separated couple who are trying to relieve their respective miseries with alcohol, drugs, and sex with various partners. But those things don't fill the emptiness, and they are forced to admit that by the end of the song. A solid C&W weepie, and while Kid Rock's singing can't hold a candle to Crow's, he at least acts his part well. Jamaican toaster Sean Paul made his U.S. breakthrough with this song about weed and women. People liked it. I wasn't one of them. And Nelly gets some assistance from his St. Lunatics crew on this ode to a certain model of Nike sneakers. All the colors and styles they come in, the number of pairs they own, etc. I'm not sure I'd ever find a link between Nelly and Imelda Marcos, but there it is.
We'll end the first half with groups. Kentucky rappers Nappy Roots had their biggest hit.with this bluesy number about struggling with poverty. Their voices are ragged in lived-in, which makes for a cool, authentic vibe. Good stuff. Alt-rockers Lifehouse are here with a peppy track about how they "wouldn't change a thing" about their lives, no matter what they bring. I probably like these guys more than I should. Their biggest hit, "Hanging by a Moment" is a really good song. It's like if Creed could write a half-decent melody. TLC had their last major hit, and their only one following the death of Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes, with a song that's basically a warning to men that if they have small penises, the women they sleep with won't be shy in sharing that information with others. Juvenile, but fun, and featuring the line "Some of y'all be killin' me/Thinkin' you got powers like Austin, but you're more like Mini-Me." Mayland pop-punks Good Charlotte had their breakthrough hit with this beat-heavy rocker decrying celebrities who complain about the demands of stardom and gives the following suggestion: "If money is such a problem, well, they've got mansions. Think we should rob them." Of course, this song made the band's frontmen and main songwriters, twins Benji and Joel Madden, celebrities themselves. I wonder if that made them change their stance on therapeutic burglary. And finally, there are my bestest buddies Matchbox Twenty. On this addition to the pile of crap that is their catalogue, Rob Thomas sings "Don't pay no attention to me." I try, Rob. I try.
In Part Two: Bond, boards, and an unlikely Oscar winner.
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