More more more, how do you like it?
20 - "Got the Feelin'," Five
Second of nine Top Fives for the homegrown boy band. A lot of very white rapping. And that's about it.
19 - "Boys of Summer," Don Henley
The ex-Eagle's rumination on love and aging hit #12 here in 1985, and on its re-release thirteen years later, it...hit #12 again. Still his best solo number.
18 - "Be Careful," Sparkle featuring R. Kelly
The Chicago singer born Stephanie Edwards had her biggest success duetting with mentor Kelly on this track on which a feuding couple air their grievances with each other. It doesn' seem like there's a winner here. Though you do tend to worry about anyone who adopts Mr. Kelly as a "mentor" more than Kelly himyself, for a number of reasons.
17 - "Gunman," 187 Lockdown
The first of four hits for the London "speed garage" duo of Danny Harrison and Julian Jonah was this dance track. Doesn't do much for me. Old white man ears strike again.
16 - "Horny," Mousse T featuring Hot n' Juicy
The first hit for Turkish-German DJ Mustafa Gundogdu was this team up with a British singing duo that is about sexual desire, and features horns. Clever. And very fun,
15 - "Looking for Love," Karen Ramirez
Londoner Ramirez had her first and biggest hit with a cover of a 1993 Everything but the Girl song about unexpected romance. A very good song given a classy performance.
14 - "New Kind of Medicine," Ultra Naté
First of all, yes, that is the name this Maryland dance-pop singer was given at birth. Her third hit was this number about finding someone to treat her right. The lady was made for club tracks.
13 - "The Boy is Mine," Brandy and Monica
The romantic tug-of-war between two divas at the top of their game was a #1 at home, but fell one spot short here. An unjustly denied transatlantic charttopper, if you ask me.
12 - "Cafe del Mar '98," Energy 52
The most successful of three chart runs for this German duo's trance track. More of that blippy-bloopy stuff that I just don't get. Do you actually need to take Ecstasy to get it? If so, it's just never gonna happen for me.
11 - "Immortality," Celine Dion with The Bee Gees
The Canadian pop queen's followup to "My Heart Will Go On," saw her teaming up with this song's composers, the Brothers Gibb. It's a big ballad about destiny and time less love and all that. Not my favorite moment from either, but still, it's what you'd expect.
Top Ten heading your way like Zidane to the Brazilian goal.
10 - "Mas Que Nada," Echobeatz
Can't find info on the group, but the song was written by Brazilian Jorge Ben in 1963, and is apparently about dancing the samba. It's familiar, it's sunny, it's nice.
9 - "Kiss the Girl," Peter Andre
The Aussie got his seventh Top Ten by covering a song from The Little Mermaid. Don't care.
8 - "Because We Want To," Billie
Our second Billie on this week's chart is Swindon native Leian Piper, who went right to the top with her first single, this dance-pop declaration of female agency. An okay offshoot of the Spice Girls' sound and vibe.
7 - "Save Tonight," Eagle-Eye Cherry
Transatlantic Top Ten from Neneh's half-brother. Still meh easy listening alternatives to me.
6 - "C'est La Vie," B*Witched
The Irish female quartet scored the first of four straight #1s with their debut, this playful flirting song. It's catchy and charming enough to still hold up as a very good pop song, and there's a little Irish flavor in the backing track that makes it stand out even more.
5 - "Life is a Flower," Ace of Base
The Swedes' fourth and final Top Five was this midtempo ballad of positivity with references to "Mr. Jailer," "Mr. Agony," and The Catcher in the Rye. That kind of randomness cements their place in my heart.
4 - "You're the One That I Want," John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John
A dance remix of the Grease hit for the film's 20th anniversary. Wrong, but not awful.
3 - "Ghetto Supastar (That is What You Are)," Pras Michel featuring ODB and Mya
The third-string Fugee's only major hit came when he teamed up with Mya and the Wu-Tang Clan's Ol' Dirty Bast ardent on this song from the Warren Beatty movie Bulworth. It's about the Gulf between the haves and have-nots. It's good, but the most memorable parts are ODB's verses and Mya singing the hook to the tune of Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton's "Islands in the Stream." Even on his own song, Pras is "the other guy."
2 - "Freak Me," Another Level
Another boy band. This one had seven hits in two years, and a #1 in the form of this cover of a very libidinous 1993 U.S. charttopper by R&B group Silk. Somehow, these guys don't sound as convincing singing about licking and whipped cream. They just don't.
And at #1 a mere 19 years ago was...
1 - "Deeper Underground," Jamiroquai
Jay Kay's only #1 was his contribution to the soundtrack of that year's version of Godzilla. It's exuberant funk that seems to be sung from the monster's point of view ("I'm better off standing in the shadows, far from humans with guns.") It's probably my favorite thing of his I've heard so far.
Done again. I will be back soon, with a bit of a twist. Intrigued? I'd like to think so.
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