Pretty Fly (For 1999) 21st March. Every Morning As a DooDah Doodah

 So I am going to skip the preamble again this week mostly because I do have a bit to do in real life and I still have three year ebd lists that I need to write and get out however it's also a good thing that the top ten didn't change all that much with "...Baby, One More Time" by Britney Spears remaining a dominant number one.

"That Don't Impress Me Much" by Shania Twain just cannot bridge the gap and remains at number two, similar applies for the next four songs, those being "Anthem for the Year 2000" by Silverchair, "This Kiss" by Faith Hill at number four. "Touch It" by Monifah at number five and "The Animal Song" by Savage Garden at number six. 

The movement happens in the lower half of the top ren with "Lullaby" by Shawn Mullins up two slots to seven, it helped push "Jackie" by BZ and Joanne back one slot to number eight.

"No Matter What" by Boyzone rebounded done spot to number nine while "Doo Wop (Dat Thing" by Lauryn Hill slipped two places to number ten. 

Losers

"Tender" by Blur is feeling a bit tender this week after getting bashed ten slots to forty two. 

People have stopped sticking Chef's "Chocolate Salty Balls" in their mouthes and sucking them so it's down from twenty nine to thirty six. 

Emilia's "Big Big World" is actually becoming smaller, smaller as it shrunk eight to thirty one/

Five's "Got the Feelin'" has lost some feeling down ten slots to twenty nine. 

Gains

Thrilled to see "Changes" by 2Pac up eight slots to twelve this week. The party is kicking into gear for The Vengaboys as 'We Like to Party (The Vengabus)" climbed twenty two spots to fourteen.

"Fly Away" is unfortunately taking off for Lenny Kravitz up eight to eighteen while Dru Hill's "How Deep is Your Love" is realizing the love for that song is truly deep up ten to twenty four. 

The New Radicals are getting what they give with "Get What You Give" rising from forty one to twenty e

Finally Propellerheads "Crash!" jumped from forty nine to forty one. 

New Entries

Three new entries this week beginning withh...

47. "DooDah!" by Caetoons

First up is a Danish band called Cartoons and...oh dear god... this is basically a dance version of "Campdown Races" just with vocals going "Everybody sung this song, doo dah doo dah". Its Eurodance trash that is the epitome of annoying and obnoxious as hell, it's even missing the fiddle or banjo that could have given this song some country vibes, instead it's just chintzy and somewhat crappy attempt at Eurodance. Skip it!.

45. "As" by George Michael and Mary J. Blige

So this is a collaboration that I was not expecting on any kind of level, ome of the biggest pop acts of the 80s and 90s collaborating with American r'n'b star Mary J. Blige, I was interested in how this would turn out and rurns out its a smoother r'n'b love song with prominent finger snaps with George and Mary trading verses on the song, I actually really like this as they both sound awesome and there's some decent chemistry here. My only nitpick is the lack of harmonies on the hook and it can feel like it's being shouted at me which is not something I tend to like in music but otherwise good song!

43. 'Every Morning" by Sugar Ray

Third single from the album "14:59" and this on the surface sounds like some of the most breezy pop rock ever with that guitar riff that is at least memorable and the vocal delivery sounds light almost to a level comedic but these lyrics are dark, it's about this girl cheating on him and all that happens when somebody commits infidelity and when there is a temptation to cheat. I actually don't mind this, I do like the guitar lick and the vocal delivery here. I've heard worse in this vein

So that means best of the week is awkward but Ill give the edge to "Every Morning" by Sugar Ray. Worst of the week is not so hard...that's going to "Doo Dah!" by Cartoons...I hope that song does not become a thing because geezus fucking christ. 

ARIA Top 50 Singles Chart Review: 16th Match The one where I'd rather be listening to anything else...

So yeah, the Harry Styles album bomb for "Kiss All the time. Disco Occasionally" did happen and honestly while I do not like the album I am grateful for the disruption it caused on the chart even if it didn't get as far as disrupting our current runaway number one which yet for another week is "Man I Need" by Olivia Dean, now it just absolutely rules streaming to a ridiculous degree at this point, it really doesn't even need sales or Youtube to keep the number one.

It held up over "Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean which remained at number two, mostly because streaming and sales took a bit of a dip this week and it just didn't have enough to compete with "Man I Need". 

The first sign of Harry Styles impact is at number three with "American Girls" entering the chart. More on this song later but this song is here thanks to decent rather than outright impressive streaming.

Rising three spots to number four is "IloveitIloveitIloveit" by Bella Kay, this song is getting some serious streaming traction now, whether or not it challenges 'Man I Need" remains to be seen. 

All of this pusbed the next four songs down two places, those being "Stateside" by PinkPantheress and Zara Larsson at number five, "So Easy (To Fall in Love)" by Olivia Dean at number six, "Ordinary" by Alex Warren at number seven and "Where is My Husband" by Raye at number eight,

Rising three spots to return to the top ten is "12 to 12" by Sombr at number nine and finally rising twenty eight spots to number ten on the back of the album bomb is "Aperture" by Harry Styles (I still fundamentally hate this song).

Losers

So we had a whole raft of double digit losers this week beginning with the ten place slide to forty seven for "Manchild" by Sabrina Carpenter...I cannot wait to see this song gone permanently from the chart.

I also don't mind that "I Run" by HVN and Kaitlyn Aragon slipped eleven spots to forty six...I can live with this song disappearing too...just quietly.

Justin Bieber's "Daisies" took a thirteen place wilting to forty four while "Birds of a Feather" by Billie Eilish lost ten places to forty three like wise for "A Bar Song (Tipsy)" by Shaboozey which slumped ten to forty two,, 

"Baby Steps" by Olivia Dean got sat on it's bum down thirteen to forty one while "Just the Way You":by Milky and Mallgrab got a thirteen spot disfiguring to forty. 

Sombr's "Undressed" is nearly naked down thirteen to thirty nine while "DTMF" by Bad Bunny slumped nineteen to thirty seven (it's done well to be on the chart this long). 

Sieena Spiro's "Die On this Hill" hopefully will die off the charts as it slumped eleven to thirty six and "Fever Dream" by Alex Warren got a cold wet wipe to the face as it suffered a fifteen place drop to thirty five.

A rough week for Olivia Dean continued as "A Couple Minutes" dipped eleven to thirty four while "Opalite' by Taylor Swift got booted eleven to thirty three.

"Homewrecker" by Sombr got wrecked eleven spots to twenty.  

Drop Outs

So I am going to do the drop outs this way:

Gone and not coming back are "Deadline" by Blackpinkm "4 Raws" by EsdeeKid and "Be By You" by Luke Combs

Might come back with album release: "The Great Divide" by Noah Kahan

Might return should streaming return for them: "Nuevayol" and "Baile Involidable" both by Bad Bunny, "Midnight Sun" by Zara Larsson. "Let Alone the One You Love" by Olivia Dean. 

Long running hits that should have been gone ages ago but will probably return: "I Had Some Help" by Post Malone and Morgan Wallen, "Sports Car' by Tate McRae and "Die with a Smile" by Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars.

Gains

Outside of "Aperture" returning to the top ten thanks to the album dropping. The only other gain was for "Dracula" by Tame Impala up two to fifteen.

New entries

We are in album bomb territory for Harry Styles so I am only covering the best, worst and what made the top twenty this album is not interesting enough to cover the whole damn thing) so "Paint By Numbers" painted itsself in at thirty eight, "Carla's Song" is being sung at thirty one, "Dance No More" stalled at twenty nine, "The Waiting Game' waits to plunge next week at twenty seven,  "Pop" at twenty four and "Coming Up Roses" sprouting at twenty one. 

So that still leaves us with a meaty porton of this Harry Styles album to cover..unfortunately beginning with...

22. "Are You Listening Yet?" by Harry Styles

These reviews are going to be quite short because there's only so much you can say about an album that gives you very little to say except to call out the "Harry only wishes he could make music as good as LCD system and this one might be the worst example of this yet with the badly blended instrumentation not fitting in with anything on the album including the random guitar and hand claps while Harry sings "Are You Listening Yet?" repeatedly because he thinks that is what passes for a hook these days. Blergh. Never want to hear this again. 

13. Ready, Steady, Go" by Harry Styles

At least this song has a pulse and a bit of energy that doesn't make me want to turn it off and actually listen to LCD Soundsystem and Harry Styles actually seems to have an energy to his voals that is barely present on most of these songs and there's a nice guitar lick that really works at least until the sound effect on the song annoy me enough. Look, there are elements of the production that annoy me but I'll take this...its one of the better specimens on this album. 

12. "Taste Back" by Harry Styles 

The problem with this album is that it's more an LCD Soundsystem worship album that feels very devoid of any actual personality from Harry Styles if you cna hear him at all over the the production because half the time he sounds like he recorded the vocals in a nearby council toilet as the production reminds me a lot of one of the more dramataic Sega Megadrive games made for 2026. The song goes on about somebody reappearing in Harry's life and I am sorry but this isn't interesting or justifiies the annoyingly bad production on the vocals. Next. 

3.  "American Girls" by Harry Styles.

We bring this exploration of Harry Styles new album to a close with the second single and really, almost got to ask why because this really isn't anything other than LCD Soundsystem worship again complete with garbage vocal production, seriously..whoever was responsible for Harry recording thi song from possibly his toilet  or the bathroom should be fired immediately then again maybe when the song revolves around his friends dating American girls, it's probably better to ignore how banal the lyrics or bettter yet? Go and actually listen to some fucking LCD Soundsystem instead.

That was our week and boy that sucked,worst of the week is going to "Are You Listening Yet?" becaus I just cannot stand that song. "Ready, Steady. Go" gets the best of the week for being somewhat decent rather than just boring. 

Next week,, probably Noah Kahan. 

Pretty Fly (For 1999): March 14th. Enjoy Tender Shazam Changes

Let's not waste any time here and jump straight into things beginning wth our top ten and nothing really changed with our top two with "...Baby, One More Time" by Britney Spears holding station at number one ahead of "That Don't Impress Me Much" by Shania Twain holding steady ar number two,

Rebounding two positions is Silverchair's "Anthem for the year 2000" to number three while "This Kiss" continues it's inexecrable run up three to number four. 

Speaking up inexecrable runs, Monifah's "Touch It" climbed twelve spots this week to number five because that's what the charts need...not. 

All this caused "The Animal Song" by Savage Garden to slide three to number six while "Jackie" by BZ and Joanne recovered one spot to number seven. 

"Doo Wop (Dat Thing)" by Lauryn Hill jumped two places to number eight. Finally, 'Lullaby" by Shawn Mullins stumbled three spots to number nine and "No Matter What" by Botzone fell one to number ten. 

Losers

The hits of 1998 are making their way out slowly but surely with "Hands" by Jewel losing it's grip down nine to fifty.

"Finally Found" by Honeyz is slowly finding it's way to the exit down eight spots to forty seven while "Time Of Your Life (Good Riddance" by Green Day has had the time of it's life on the chart but it fell ten spots to forty four.

"Slide" by Goo Goo Dolls lived up to its name sliding nine to thirty eight while "Body Movin'" by Beastie Boys slipped seven to thirty seven. Meanwhile Spice Girls continue their "Goodbye" tour down ten to thirty five. 

The biggest story though is that Cher's "Believe" collapsed out of the top ten down seven to eleven this week. 

Gains

So I already mentioned the big gain for "Touch it" by Monifah and outside that we only saw one or two other big gains...just a shame most of them aren't on the good side, "Fly Away" by Lenny Kravitz flew smoothly from forty three to twenty six. 

I guess points to "We Like to Party (The Vengabus)" by The Vengaboys which climbed nine to thiry six. 

New Entries

Five new entries this week, beginning with...

46. "Shazam!" by Spiderbait

Always nice to start the week's reviews with an Aussie act, this is the lead single from Spiderbait's lead single from their fourth album "Grand Slam" and its a fucking slapping banger of a song that doesn't let up from start to finish with it's fuzzy guitars, drums and handclaps which makes senses when it's considered that the song is about smiling and breaking free of feelings of being overwhelmed by dancing and smiling. Damn good song, nice to kick things off on a positive note. 

32. "Tender" by Blur

Another lead single this time from British band Blur, I was curious given how abrasive yet catchy "Song 2" was but turns out that this song is about the break up of Damn Albarn's relationship and all ip is a pretty vulnerable song that really hits some bittersweet notes especiallt with the gospel touches aroound the song and the interplay between Albarna dn Graham Coxon, Again, this is another pretty good song that is worth your time. 

31. "Enjoy Yourself" by A+

Switching from rock to hip hop for these next two songs and the first song we're dealing with is from American rapper going by the name A+ and this song sampling "A Fifth of Beethoven" by Walter Murphy which was a prettry sizeable Billboard Hot 100 hit in 1976 with the content of the song being about having fun and living it up while they are young...its fine enough if you want some dumb party music. Check it out. 

20. "Changes" by 2Pac

So this might be bit a more complex but bare with me here, this song was recorded in 1992 before being remixed and released for 2pace's Greatest hits record in 1998 with the remix including a US r&b group called Talent who somehow don't get a featuring vredit on this but anyway I do love the cleverly flipped sample of 1986 hit "The Way It Is" by Bruce Hornsby and The Range as 2pac raps about the struggles of African American communities where police brutality, racism, poverty etc are prevalent and 2pac urges unty and personal responsibility while urging change in how black communities in the USA view and treat each other. It's an incredibly emotional song and my god it hits hardl. Check this out!

15. "Nothing Really Matters" by Madonna

The final single from Madonna's successful "Ray of Light" album and I have to be honest here I am not really all that impressed with Madonna's vocals fighting through layers of effects but she does sound good here, strident as she sings about finding fufillment and joy in motherhood and love rather than in her fame and public image. If it weren't for some of the more more egregious effects, this is also pretty good,

That was our week and wow, I am nixing worst of the week here because nothing here is worthy of that slot however "Changes" by 2pac is getting best of the week because yeah that song hitsin a way nothing else here does, 

ARIA Singles Top 50 Chart Review: 9th March

 I am a bit torn about whether to say this is a good or bad week because what does it truly matter with a likely Harry Styles album bomb (and given how forgettable the album is, I am not looking forward to covering that in any case) on the way but we do have a reasonable week here so let's start with the top ten where for yet another week "Man I Need" by Olivia Dean keeps the number one spot, it's just a monster on streaming tight now that not even Harry Styles can get near at this point. 

It held up over "Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia which held on to number two but with it's streaming already seemingly on the downward slide, its going to come under some pressure from "Stateside" by Pink Pantherress feat. Zara Larsson which climbed a massive eight spots to number three this week but Harry Styles next week might curb some of that momentum for this song. 

So as a result we saw "So Easy (To Fall in Love)" by Olivia Dean fall back one to number four, "Ordinary" by Alex Warren back one to number five and "Where is My Husband" by Raye slipped one spot to number six.

The second big arrival to our top ten is "IloveitIloveitIloveit" by Bella Kay which raced up thirteen places to number seven, this song has some momentum behind it, it will be interesting to see what happens to this in the weeks ahead post Harry Styles bomb.

An album boost saw "I Just Might" by Bruno Mars rise six spots to number eight,

All of this saw Sombr's "Homewrecker" slide three spots to number nine and "Raindance" by Dave and Tems down two to number ten, 

 Losers

So we do have a chunk of songs that lost hard this week like "Let Alone the One You Love" by Olivia Dean which slipped eight to forty eight and "4 Raws" by EsDeeKid which tumbled twelve spots to forty seven. 

Sadly, "The Great Divide" by Noah Kahan had one of the biggest losses of the week down fourteen places to forty four, sad about that one because it's a really damn good song and deserves better. 

We also had some losses for songs that are country or country adjacent with "I Had Some Help" by Post Malone and Morgan Wallen down seven to forty three and "Be by You" by Luke Combs down eight to forty two. I wouldn't mind if the Post Malone and Morgan Wallen song left already...it's had a great run and really is just clogging room on the charts at this point.

Closing in on the end of it's lap is "Victory Lap" by Fred Again, Skepta and Plaque Boy Max down seven to thirty six and while "I Run" is running in the run direction for HVN and Kaitlyn Aragon down seven to thirty five,

Drop Outs

Four songs dropped out this week and I am not really complaining about any of thhese to a degree with "Tit For Tat" by Tate McRae, "Sapphire" by Ed Sheeran, "I've Seen It" by Olivia Dean and...yet again.."Good Luck, Babe1' by Chappell Roan. 

Gains

Not much in the way of big gains outside our top ten although "Neuvayol" by Bad  Bunny up twelve spots to thirty four.

What I was disappointed with is the nineteen place gain for "White Keys" by Dominic Fike to twenty nine. Australia, seriously, we can do better than this nasal discharge.

Re-Entries

Just the one return this week with "Baile Involidable" by Bad Bunny back at forty nine. 

New Entries

Three new entries, starting with...

30. "Go" by Blackpink

Look, be glad that nothng else from Blackpink's recent EP broke through this week because it could have been so much worse than this and even then, "Go" isn't exactly anything to write home about, "Go" still features unnecessary noise that takes away from the song and it's not helped that Blackpink just sound incredibly nasal and like they have colds or something. As i said, it's probably one of the better songs on "Deadline" but that is about it. 

20. "Fever Dream"  by Alex Warren

My views on Alex Warren are mixed while I don't hate "Ordinary" with anywhere near the energy others have reserved for the song but its definitely become a song I have grown sick of and if "Eternity" had of made the year end list for 2025 than that would have made my worst hit songs list however I do like "Bloodline" with Jelly Roll so I was hoping this song was more "Bloodline" than "Eternity" and yeah...I think we got there! 

There's a bounce to the production on this song that makes it feel summery even though we're now past summer in Australia even if the lyrics are a bit naff, he is having this fever dream where he is seeing this girl everywhere  and knows he is damned if she loves him and damned if she doesn't, it plays a bit in dicey territory but I'll take it, it's one of his better efforts.

13. "Risk It All" by Bruno Mars

Bruno Mars just releasing his latest wedding song from his new album and I do find it interesting that this is the only new song from this album to hit the singles chart this week but we did get this pretty sweet piano ballad that throws in a latin flair (inspired by Bad Bunny, Bruno) thanks to the horns as Bruno declares he'd risk everything for this woman in his life with a sincerity that seems genuine enough. I like it. Check it out if you are curious,

That's our week. Best and worst fall out easily enough, I am going to give worst of the week to "Go" by Blackpink and the best of the week to "Risk It All" by Bruno Mars, it's just slightly better than "Fever Dream" by Alex Warren. 

Next week...yeah...Harry Styles album bomb...yay?

Pretty Fly (for 1999): How Deep is Your Vengabus, Animal?

 So we have a relatively busy week at hand here with changes in our top ten including a new entry breaking through rather high and another that song unfortunately broke into the top ten (much to my annoyance). but anyway let's jump straight into the top ten where "...Baby, One More Time" by Britney Spears remains solid at number one for another week thanks to another excellent week on sales.

The sales were good enough to hold off something of a charge from "That Don't Impress Me Much" by Shania Twain which jumped two spots to number two this week on the back of sales. 

New entry at number three from Savage Garden courtesy of "The Animal Song" which I will talk about the quality of the song later but this did some nice numbers which dod help to push "Believe" by Cher back two spots to number four and "Anthem for the Year 2000" by Silverchait back two spots to number five. 

Shawn Mullins saw "Lullaby" fall back one spot to number six and howled "Eveeerrryything's gonna be alright"

Now I am less than thrilled about the four place gain for "This Kiss" by Faith Hill.to number seven...come on, we can do better but it saw the rest of our top ten fall with "Jackie" by BZ and Joanne down two spots to number eight, "No Matter What" by Boyzone down two to number nine and "Doo Woop (Dat Thing)" by Lauryn Hill down one to number ten. 

Losers

It was a pretty soul crushing week for a lot of older songs with the lack of faith hitting Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston's "When You Believe:" ten spots to fifty. 

The night is proving not to be so everlasting for Danni Minogue on the charts as "Everlasting Night" slumped six spots to forty eight.

B*Witched stumbled from thirty three to forty six as its chart run is seemingly being cut short. 

Former chart topper "Crush" by Jennifer Paige is finally being crushed down eight to forty two while "Finally Found" by Honeyz slipped from thirty two to thirty nine. 

*NSYNC want their place in the top twenty back as "I Want You Back' tumbled ten spots to twenty six. 

Gains

Our gains are a mixed bag because on one hand I am thrilled tnat "Get What You Give" by New Radicals got a nice eleven place boost to thirty five however we unfortunately saw the creepiness that is "Touch It" by Monifah jump from twenty four to seventeen. 

New Entries

Five new entries beginning with....

49. "Crash" by Propellerheads.

Propellerheads are an English electronic duo who first firmed in 1995 with this song coming from an EP called "Extended Play" (imaginative naming...not) and really this is just an instrumental reworking of "At the Sign of the Swinging Cymbal"  but hey, it's pretty good., worth checking out if you are curious.

45. "We Like to Party! (The Vengabus)" by The Vengaboys

Time to turn our attention to Dutch Eurodance mixed group The Vengaboys who are making their debubt on the Australian charts with this song and honestly this song is hilarious in some ways especially with that horn that does sound like a bus on the way and is about to reach the station but come 0n the voice ad nauseum saying "We like to party" is kind of forced at this point however I do like the vocals on the verses and the song does make use of it's goofiness in a way that's endearing. Cute wau to introduce the group. 

32. "How Deep Is Your Love" by Dru Hill

So I was getting ready for this to be a god awful cover of the Bee Gees song of the same name but turns out American r'n'b group Dru Hill pulled out a pretty decent r'n'b song if the song didn't place the damn percussion at the front of the mix and bury the vocals to the point they are barely audible The content of this song is this guy is messing with a woman who also has other men on the side and she's left him questioning how deep her love is for him...it's pretty generic and when the the mixing is this ass, I think we can skip this safely.

14. "Whiskey in the Jar" by Metallica

So Metallica have tjurned to covering Thin Lizzy's "Whiskey in the Jar" which tells the story of an outlaw robbing a government or military official only for his wife to go behind his back to report him to authorities and take the money for herself. Now this cover is done well by Metallica, the band sounds great and James Hetfield certainly tells the story with a lot of fire in his belly, I like this. Check it out. 

3. "The Animal Song" by Savage Garden

So the latest single for Savage Garden's latest album "Affirmation" and a song that was written for the soundtrack of film called "The Other Sister" and honestly this is a song that doesn't leave me with much to say because yeah, there's some nice harmonies here and Darren Hayes mostly sounds really good. it's a song that delves into how someone with mental health and how someone dealing with depression etc finds it difficult tp express emotions and how to deal with a colourful and confusing rules with rules that stifle a person's personality. I get what this song is going for but I do think this song is somewhat forgettable even with the subject matter, it just doesn't quite hit hard enough for me. 

That leaves us with a weird week as a wbole. Worst of the week is going to "How Deep Is Your Love" by Dru Hill for that botch job on the mixing. Best of the week is tougher because there weren't that many stand outs...I'll give it to "Whiskey in the Jar" by Metallica but The Vengaboys in their Vengabus were close.

Top Ten Best HIt Songs of 1994

So as I said on the worst list...1994 was a damn great year for the charts if you didn't look at the very top and that remains true. I had a hell of a time putting together this list in that there were so many damn great songs that deserved recognition such was the strength of pop, rock and even r'n'b and hip hop, Even more importantly it felt like the 90s in terms of the music finally woke up and finally found some sounds that didn't feel dated to the eighties and that can only be a good thing. 

Now just a reminder that "Zombie" by The Cranberries charted higher on the 1995 year end so I'll talk about that song when I get around to making a 1995 best hit songs list, now that I've cleared that up...let's get stuck into the ten best hit songs of 1994.

Number Ten

In 1993, this band released a cover of Carly Simon's 'You're So Vain" that really isn't all that good so imagine my shock and delight that they released this song...and it was better than I could have ever expected...

"Mountain" by Chocolate Starfish

For awhile this was my number one favourite hit of the year but ultimately that weird beeping noise in the back of the mix pushed this back to here for me but god, this song still hits like a hammer with the instrumentation feeling rugged yet comforting and the content hits hard too all about a relationship where one person wants the other to be their mountain and settle down but the other person isn't ready and really just wants to spend more time flowing like that river doing whatever it is they have a passion for rather than settling down and getting that sensible steady job like the partner asked them to get. I get the pathos...great song!

Number Nine.

Sp we're staying Australian and dealing with the first of two Aussie pop divas to make this list and maan...what a delight this song is...

"Chains" by Tina Arena

If you are looking for a powerhouse vocal performance from a woman in 1994 than look no further than this song from Tina Arena, this is an incredibly impassioned love song where Tina realizes that she is so in love with this guy that she is in metaphorical chains for him and this song makes use of it's dramatic swell so well that I almost felt like I was also tied in chains to this dude and Tina sells this song so well its convincing. 

Number Eight

Sometimes there's no denying that a pop song is this good....

"The Sign" by Ace of Base

I don't know what you want me to say about this song when the song's broad appeal is so dang obvious, that catchy hook that will be left stuck in your head for days on end especially given the hook is that ridiculously catchy and earwormy, it's pretty much what good pop music especially out of Sweden (one of the homes of great pop music) should be.

This song deals with someone that is seeing the sign that their relationship is finally done and it's time to find the strength inside to move on to hopefully something better and happier, I love the messaging of this song and it deserves its place as one of the best pop songs of the 90s

Number Seven

You all know I rather harsh on terrible cover versions of songs...well, this time around, here's a cover song that gets things right for a change.

"Ain't Nobody" by Jaki Graham

This is a cover that took the original by Chaka Khan (that was already great) and decided not to mess with it too much but added sosme more 90s big beat bounce and groove that Jaki Graham is effortlessly able to play to in order to sell this song to a newer generation. Now Jaki is definitely over singing on the hook a little but I kind of pin that down to selling the idea that nobody other than her lover could make her feel so good and happy. It's a cute song that I was happy to place on this list.

Number Six

Then there's the alternative, a relationship on the brink and one pushes the other out the door and the regret hits almost immediately...well we got a song about that in 1994...

"Stay (I Missed You)" by Lisa Loeb & Nine Tales

There's something about this jittery emotional song that hits all the right notes with me, Lisa Loeb delivers this song as though she's nervously trying to convince this person she knows she pushed away to come back into her orbit and she regrets what she did to push this person who was genuinely in with her away even though this lover had issues with her talking too much etc. I also love the simplicity of the production here, it's just a spare guitar, Loeb's voice and some restrained backing vocals, it's only not higher because...

Nnumber Five

I like hip hop when it's breezy, the samples are bright and colourfjul, having fun and laying down some bars, Trap drudge does nothing for me so when this song turned up on the year end list...I was thrilled

"Hip Hop Holiday" by 3 The Hard Way

The minute that flip of "Dreadlock Holiday" by 10cc gets going where they rap "We don't like hip hop...we love it!" just makes me smile combine that with that reggae breakdown that reminds me suspiciously of "Inoformer" by Snow and this might well be more of the more infectious hits of 1994. The group get verses off bragging about the rhymes and swagger they bring to their music. This is fun, funky and sure does feel like one hell of a breezy hip hop holiday. 

Number Four

I know people are going to be shocked that more of the "Seattle Sound" aka grunge is not featured more prominently on this list and I there's a part of me that wishes I did find room for Soundgarden amd others but if there was a song from the Seattle scene that hit...it was this one...

"Daughter" by Pearl Jam

I don't know what it is about this song that just works for me, is it Eddie's more restrained vocal delivery that just hits like a train when he does let loose into the middle eight of the song, the instrumentation especially that damn guitar riff that kicks so much arse but somehow I think it all boils down to the content of the song...it's about this poor child who has a learning disability and because not much was known about learning difficulties at the time...the kids that struggled at school due to ADHD were always pinned as the ones misbehaving so got 'beaten"

What is chilling about the ending of this song is the line "the shades go fown" and it's never expressly said what happened to the girl at the centre of this song although you can guess from what I said earlier. 

Number Three

I asked social media if this song was this artist's best work...the overwhelming response was yes.

Not like I am about to disagree.

"Confide in Me" by Kylie Minogue

There's not too many songs like "Confide In Me" that blend elements of western and eastern pop music so damn well like this, it just blows my mind how absolutely flawless this production is that swells and ebbs with Kylie's voice so damn well but let's not mince words here...Kylie is the star of the show here, it's her vocals that make this song the absolute power house it is as she urges this other person to share the problem they are facing with her reminding them that a problem is meant to be shared so others can help and support the person to fix it. This is just a great pop song and could have been my number one in a weaker year. 

Number Two

I am not shocked this is so high, the artist behind this song has a habit of making songs that get to the core of the matter in question and this song was no different...

"Streets Of Philadelphia" by Bruce Springsteen

This song can be summed up in one word: devastating, it comes from the first major film at the time called "Philadelphia" which was the first film to seriously tackle the AIDS issue on the silver screen and this song from Bruce Springsteen realizes the seriousness and really underlines the impact that the AIDs crisis had on people who had the virus at the time, citing the loneliness and social isolation of a man who is dying of AIDS face and the desperate search for connection with others.

Bruce just nails the complexity here, it's not even just social connection, it's the loss of identity and that production also provides that haunting atmosphere that just broke me. It's a haunting song that emotionally hits all the right notes...it's not number one though...what could that be?

Number One

Nothing else was ever going to be number one on this list, this number one pick was fate...it was meant to be. This song is special in ways that take my breath away and thus...

"Can You Feel the Love Tonight?" by Elton John

Nothing else felt right at number one...nothing...this song hits so hard and powerfully I just break down and sob like a baby to the point I couldn't imagine anything else topping this list, there's a magic to "Can You Feel the Love Tonight?" that I don't think anything else from 1994 can match from Elton's vocal delivery that's just warm and comforting and that orchestral in instrumentation that just sounds so full its overwhelming and maybe it just hits even harder given we are years removed from 1994 and the world hasn't exactly gotten better. 

It's the perfect song for one of the best Disney movies ever "The Lion King" (nothing beats it...outside of maybe Peter Pan) and maybe the perfect song that provides an escape from the troubles of the world as Elton sings to open the song "There's a calm surrender to the rush of dayWhen the heat of the rolling world can be turned away". Maybe it's just the ultimate comfort song for me alongside "Don't Dream It's Over" by Crowded House.but whatever the case it's the number one best hit song of 1994.

ARIA Singles Top 50 Chart Review: March 2nd.

 This feels like a really quiet week which I will take considering that Bruno Mars and Blackpink are likely to both make an impact on the chart in a big way next week however let's dive into this week's top ten where for a fifteenth week, it's "Man I Need" by Olivia Dean, it's dominant on sales and streaming but not yet on Youtube. 

What did shock and thrill me is the four place gain to number two for "Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean thanks to major streaming gains but it was enough for "So Easy (To Fall in Love)" by Olivia Dean to be pushed back to number three, "Ordinary" by Alex Warren back to number four and "Where is My Husband" by Raye back to number five.

Sombr's katest top ten hit "Homewrecker" climbed  two places to number six thanks to streaming.  Taylor Swift's "The Fate of Ophelia" held steady at number seven which is interesting for reasons you'll see why later. 

"Raindance" by Dave and Tems rebounded one spot to number eight and Sombr's '12 to 12" returned to the top ten up two spots to number nine while "Golden" from K-Pop Demon Hunters also returned to the top ten up two spots to number ten. 

Losers

"Good Luck, Babe" bv Chappell Rean is  back on the cusp of leaving the chart (again) down fourteen spots to fifty. 

Bad Bunny's "Nuevayol" tumbled twenty places to forty six (Frankly I am surprised this song is still on the charts at all)

It will rebound in a couple of weeks time but "Aperture" by Harry Styles continues to fall in the mean time down ten places to thirty seven. 

Finally "Opalite" by Taylor Swift collapsed twelve places because an artificial boost via gaming the charts only nets rewards for so long and when there are other songs that do what this song is trying to do better,...yeah...

Drop Outs

Djo's "Back to beginning" returned to the On Replay Singles chart after it's ten week stint on the chaet thanks to virality. 

Long running hit "Yukon" by Justin Bieber took it's exit this week along with "Baile Involidable" by Bad Bunny ad "Sally, When the Wine Runs Out" by Role Model. 

Gains

So I am going to get to the big gain of the week in a moment but I do want to mention "Stateside" by Pink Pantheress which jumped six places to number eleven and looks likely to climb even higher in the weeks ahead thanks to the song being used by American ice skater Alysa Liu during her gold medal winning skate at the Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina.

However the biggest gain of the week is "IloveitIloveitIloveit" by Bella Kay up a massive twenty two spots to twenty,

"4 Raws" by EsDeeKid rebounded eight spots to thirty five and "I've Seen It" by Olivia Dean up eight to forty one. 

Re-Entries

Three returns this week with "Just Keep Watching" by Tate McRae back at forty four and "I Had some Help" by Post Malone and Morgan Wallen returning at thirty nine.

Finally back at number twenty seven is a 2002 song from Italian house music group Milky that originally peaked forty seven at the time, this time a remix with Mallgrab ensuring it returned to the chart,,,I don't see this lasting long on the chart but we'll have to see.

New Entries

Just the one new entry this week...

47. "White Keys" by Dominic Fike

Oh god, we're not giving Dominic Fike another hit again, are we? We've been lucky in that the new rules kept the terrible "Baby Doll" off the charts but we did get this and so I guess I do need to talk about in some capacity...and it meets my very low expectations of being alternative shlock that pop radio would accept as transgressive, who told Fike that his vocal delivery needed to be so inexecrably annoying to the point I had to turn the song off at multiple points? Also this bare bones production is unmitigated amounts of ass as that guitar sounds like it was in the middle of being fucking neutered. 

As for the content, its about a failed relationship and Fike musing on his early years geowing up in Florida and given how obnoxious he sounds on this sound, I don't blame the girl for leaving him because nooo, this song is not worth it. 

That was our week and geezus, I hope Bruno strikes in a big way to get ass like "White Keys" off the charts.

Pretty Fly (For 1999) February 28th Get What You Give Away in an Anthem for 2000

 So we have on the surface a pretty standard week here if you can call it that, three new entries and plenty of movement but remember last week that the showdown for the number one spot was on? That happened and we wound up with a brand new chart topper because Britney Spears did it as sales pushed "Baby, One More Time" to the top, this song has legs right now to be a long term chart topper. 

It pushed "Believe" by Cher back to number two as the numbers weighing in Britney's favour meant it couldn't hang on much longer. 

There's a new entry at number three coming from Silverchair with "Anthem for the Year 2000" having an impressive sales week to lodge itself this high although I would argue Silverchair arguably have the profile to do that. 

Rising on spot off the debut is "That Don't Impress Me Much" by Shania Twain at number four likewise for "Lullaby" by Shawn Mullins which jumped one to five although both those gains could be on the back of increasing weakness for the fading "Jackie" by BZ and Joanne.

What's not going away like an extremely virulent case chlamydia is "No Matter What" by Boyzone which remains stubbornly at number seven no matter how much spray and wipe I use to try to remove this godawful song from the chart.

That cannot be said for The Offspring's "Pretty Fly (For a White Guy" which slipped four places to number eight, its fading gracefully now. 

I am happy to see a one place gain for "Doo Wop (Dat Thing)" by Lauryn Hill to numner nine. I just wish itb wasn't at the expense of "How do I Deal" by Jennifer Love Hewitt down one to number ten. 

Losers

Celine Dion and R. Kelly need three busloads of angels to save "I'm Your Angel" exiting the chart, this week it slipped from forty two to forty nine.

Grinspoon are pushing all the wrong buttons as their EP "Pushing Buttons" slumped from thirty six to forty one. 

"Finally Found" by Honeyz is on its way out as it slipped ten spots to number thirty two while "From this Moment On" by Shania Twain slumped from twenty four to thirty one. 

Gains

We don't have that much in the way of big gains, unfortunately it seems more than enough people do want to touch Monifah's "Touch It" so that got an eight place boost to twenty four off of it's debut last week.

However it looks like some people want to go a long way together with "Praise You" by Fatboy Slim rising from it's debut of forty one to thirty five.

Will Smith's "Miami" is up eight to thirty six which is nice to see. I still like that song. 

New Entries

Three new entries and all some variation of rock this weekbeginning with....

46. "Get What You Give" by New Radicals

So New Radicals are an American pop/rock act with with song being their first to hit the ARIA singles chart and you know what? I actually really love this! It's a song about finding hope  and connection in a world that has become cold, cynical and corporate with the song reminding everyone that you only get back as much as you put into life. Throw in that guitar, the rather passionate delivery of the lyrics and you have a pretty damn great song, Check it out

44. "Fly Away" by Lenny Kravitz

The fourth single from Lenny Kravitz album "5" and boy, I wish I liked this more than I do especially as this song really is limited in soaring to any kind of great height by that production where thr guitars are choked that they cannot soar or fly away like Lenny Ktavitz wants to do and honestly, I'm not buying Kravitz's performance on the hook either, this song just isn't doing anything for me so I'm going to skop it more often than not. 

3. "Anthem for the Year 2000" by Silverchair

Lead single from "Neon Ballroom" and again, I am not feeling this song as much as I probably should, this has a pretty damn good hook and the instrumentation and production feel so by the numbers for a song that's aimed at rebelling against authority or even vaguely speaking truth to power (even if meant to be taken sarcastically) even Daniel Johns sounds less punchy and the song just lacks that punch that the best anthemic rock songs have. 

Best and worst fall out easily this week with "Get What You Give" by New Radicals the best this week. The worst going to "Fly Away" by Lenny Kravitz.

"Pop" Country Gone Haywire: Lee Brice's "Country Nowadays" is the height of entitled, privileged whining

There are moments where country music just nails the mood and strikes the right tone, I have examples of how great the genre can be on my best of 2026 playlist already (See Carter Faith and William Beckmann's collab from earlier this year and Emily Scott Robinson's beautiful new album "Appalachia" but every so often the genre hits a turd like in 2017 with "Body Like a Backroad" by Sam Hunt which unfortunately became a staple of the genre that year and this year it's Lee Brice's "Country Nowadays"

Firstly, let's do a little background on Lee Brice, he originally worked behind the scenes as a songwriter for Jason Aldean and even co wrote Garth Brooks song "More than a Memory" amd from there was signed to Curb Records in 2007 and has since released several albums and even collaborated with Carly Pearce on "Hope You're Happy Now".so yes, you can absolutely say that Brice was apart of the instigation of the worst period for mainstream country in years where all the male artists wanted to do was drink beer off the back of tailgates and leer at women although Brice was on the decidedly more tasteful side of the nonsense, he did have one or two songs I liked. '

All that brings me to his new song enttled "Country Nowadays" that he performed at the "alternate" Superbowl half time show much to the amusement of the internet, there already several Youtube Poops mocking this song and honestly I am not sure they go far enough to underline just how extraordinarily privileged this song comes across so I am going to breakdown the fundamentals of this song's lyrics (I am not going to discuss the actual music because I am not giving this song a click)

"I just wanna catch my fish, drive my truck, drink my beer
And not wake up to all this stuff I don't want to hear
Like the same kind of gun I hunt with, just killed another man
When the only thing mine ever shot was a deer from my deer stand"\

You can go catch your fish, drive your truck and drink beer, Lee, NOBODY is stopping you. Also if you don't want to wake up to the news of another school shooting in America, you can just not turn the TV on in the morning and avoid social media but the real reason you don't want to wake up to the news of another school shooting or another innocent person being murdered is that you don't want your thoughts on gun ownership and putting bullets through an animal challenged by people who actually want gun reform.

"I just want to grow my corn, feed my dogs, wear my boots

Not turn the TV on, sit and watch the evenin' news
And be told if I tell my own daughter that little boys ain't little girls
I'll be up the creek in hot water in this "cancel your ass" world"

Trans people simply existing do not stop Lee from growing vegetables and feeding his dog nor are anyone else's private parts or lack there of anyone's concern and shouldn't be in the news anyway...who cares if somebody wants a penis instead of a vagina..how does their decision affect Lee Brice or Fox News?.

As for complaining about "cancel culture" since when was Lee ever cancelled? Again, two of his biggest hits have been fairly  recent with "One of them Girls" and the collab with Carly Pearce that I mentioned earlier. Also if cancel culture was actually a fucking thing, Chris Brown wouldn't still be gaining hits and relevance on the charts to this fucking day. It looks pretty myopic and incredibly privileged for somebody like Lee Brice who has had a modicum of success on the charts to be whining about cancel culture.

" It ain't easy being country in this country nowadaysThe direction the fingers point when everything goes up in flames
Sayin' I'm some right-wing devil 'cause I was small town, Jеsus raised
It ain't easy being country in this country nowadays"

Oh wow, whining it's hard to be country nowadays when the genre is actually having the biggest boom in terms of success on the Hot 100 and around the world, there's actually never been a better time to be an artist making real country music eg: Ella Langley, Luke Combs etc not that Lee would know what actual drums are that aren't borrowed from a drum machine are. 

As for the religious implications here, can I suggest Lee go spend some more time with his bible and learn how to be humble because this entitled privileged whining in song form does not imply that he understands what God and Jesus meant by modesty and humility...yes, modesty is not just dress standards for women, they apply in terms of behaviour for everyone.

"I just wanna cut my grass, watch my gamе, say my prayers
Not get a picture of a flag up in flames as people cheer
Yeah, the same one my grandaddy fought for being stepped on like it's trash
And I'm a downright hateful monster if I back the blue and badge"

Okay, I do agree flag burning is not a good thing and it's something that peaceful protest should not resort to but again...nobody is stopping Lee Brice from praying, watching football or mowing his overgrown lawn that probably has more weeds than any actual realisation from Lee Brice that this privileged whining is just not going to cut it, he is free to do all that shit he names in this song but the real world is going to keep being the real fucking world..is Lee Brice even cognisant of the fact that ICE have murdered innocent people, that his president Donald Trump is in the Epstein files and as a result Trump is threatening to start a WAR with Iran...where's the song talking about the actual real shit that is happening, Lee?

As for support the police, he is free support whoever he wants just as long he is aware that people are allowed to disagree. We all face consequences for things we say and do, we are not free from the consequences of our free speech like so many entitled and privileged people seem to believe they are.

Final part of this shit show of a song is this:

"All I do is mind my business, live my life the best I can
Try to be a real good husband, a real good daddy, a real good man
But because I have my morals and a small town point of view
You assume that you don't like me means that I don't like you, too"

Minding his own business when he was complaining about trans people earlier in his own song? I would suggest none of that was minding his own business. Now I am not going to judge him as a husband or as a parent however morals do come into question when you sign up to perform as part of what is fairly blatantly a Donald Trump and Republican suppprting grift like Turning Point USA while Trump is still in the Epstein Files and may possibly  be deeply involved, eyeing bombing other countries and pushing US democracy to the brink of extinction, Lee may well have bigger issues to worry about that trans kids and school shootings in the news on his small town home TV. 

This isn't escapism from Lee Brice, this is just privileged shitlord material that doesn't have the good sense to have some balance and acknowledge that there are real problems in the US and the world that need to be dealt with such as the pedophiles in positions of power (which is wild Lee doesn't acknowledge that given he has kids) and when we have this sort of worthless art in country, it actually hurts the genre and those artists in country trying to speak truth to power.

Fuck this song.

ARIA Top 50 Singles Chart Review: 23rd February

So there have been some shifts on the chart this week that I did not see coming and some of them on the absolutely amazing side but let's set sail with the top ten because remaining at number one for a fourteenh week, it's "Man I Need" by Olivia Dean at number one, it's got massive streaming margins ahead of "So Easy (Tio Fall In Love)" also by Olivia Dean, she's still a dominant presence in the top ten right now.

Holding steady at number three is "Ordinary" by Alex Warren. Streaming and sales are mostly done with this song but Youtube is not letting this song go away. Rebounding one spot to number four is "Where is My Husband" by Raye (a song I am kind of sick of at this point, I wouldn't mind if it started to lose some traction)

Rising two to number five off the back of a sales boost is "Opalite" by Taylor Swift, we'll see how long the sales boost and traction from the video hold up because streaming is dine for this song, what's getting ready to move past it is "Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean which climbed eight places to reach a new peak of number six, it pushed "The Fate of Ophelia" by Taylor Swift back one to number seven.

"Homewrecker" by Sombr is the second new arrival to our top ten rising ten spots off its debut to number eight, this song is looking to be absolutely huge in the next few weeks. 

Holding steady at number nine is "Raindance" by Dave and Tems, tbe fact this song is still doing great on streaming is impressive to me. Finally in no surprise to anyone, "DtMF" by Bad Bunny fell six places to number six...I would be surprised if this song doesn't leave quickly.

Losers

"Yukon" bty Justin Bieber couldn't make much of it's return so it slipped thirteen places to fifty this week. 

"Baile Involidable" by Bad Bunny slipped seven places to number forty one while "Aperture" by Harry Styles contiinues to free fall down seven to twenty seven. 

Drop Outs

 Six drop outs this week and I am not complaining about any of these being gone with long running hits like "Espresso" by Sabrina Carpenter, "I Had Some Help" by Post Malone and Morgan Wallen, "Gabriela" by Katseye and "Just Keep Watching" by Tate McRae gone

Also gone are "Fame is a Gun" by Addison Rae and "The Days (Notion Remix)" by Chrystal. Massive net win here!

 

Gaiuns

Not much in the way of gains outside the two already mentioned in the top ten. The biggest gain unfortunately comes from "Die On this Hill" by Sienna Spiro up six to twenty two sadly.

Re-Entries

Two returns this week, Ed Sheeran in the country at the moment meant that "Sapphire" returned at forty seven while "I've Seen It" by Olivia Dean made it's return for the third time at fifty. 

New Entries

Four new entries this week, lets start with...

45. "Sally, When the Wine Runs Out" by Role Model

So this finally turns up in the top 50, for those who are unaware, Role Model is a former rapper turned singer/songwriter hailing from the USA with this song released as a single in February last year and having some viral traction without ever really breaking through in Australia, this song got some renewed interest this past week thanks to Robert Irwin playing the role of Sally at Role Model's appearance at Laneway Festival in Perth and yeah this song has something of a charm that would net an audience over on Triple J with it's electric guitars and stompy bassAnother  as Role Model tells Sally that he'll buy her couple of drinks but begs her not to fall in love with him or to leave when the wine runs out only for him to realize that he is catching feelings for her. 

Definitely a cute summer song that I wouldn't mind sticking around. 

42. "IloveitIloveitIloveit" by Bella Kay

Another new name on the charts this week in the form of nineteen year old Bella Kay, an American singer who was born in Texas but is now living in Florida with this song coming from her yet to be named second album and I am not sure how to feel about this one especially given the themes running in the lyrics where she is acknowledging that she is in a toxic and possibly abusive relationship but she loves it because the drama associated with such a horrifically bad relationship is giving her validation and a visceral thrill from all the drama of it even though she knows it's bad for her...now that 

Also this song feels very bare bones in the production with just an acoustic guitar and some backing vocals supporting Bella. I want to like this because we do need more guitar driven songs on the charts...check this out if you are curious but I am not going to be surprised if the content of this song gets some pushback. 

39. "Midnight Sun" by Zara Larsson

Oh I am not surprised to see this here what with the revisit Australia and the rest of the world seems to be giving Zara Larsson's music amidst this bizarre obsession with 2016 (2016 was a terrible year for the world in general), "Lush Life" would be in the top ten of this chart if it were not for ARIA"s new rules and with this song being the title track from Zara's album last year that was generally well recieved, I was curious.

Well turns out that Zara is playing into the Pink Pantheress lane of pop music with more than a few glances at Charli XCX's notes and that dtop into the chorus does feel very computer music but it's not terrible and I have heard worse. Decent song...that's about all I have to say about this one

33. "Be By You" by Luke Combs

So I cannot be the only one feeling a sense of trepidation over this new Luke Combs album that's coming next month, right? The singles for this album have at best been underwhelming to outright mediocre so I went into this song with some very limited expectations given the disappointment of the past singles nad much to my very welcome surprise, Combs swings back toward neo traditional country with this ballad dedicated to his wife and how he wants to spend every moment he can with her and their three children.

It's a pretty sweet love song that definitely works for Valentines Day hence why it chaeted. 

It's also tbe best song of the week. As for the worst...nothiing outright terrible here and I actually like all four to some degree...I think I am going to go with "IloveitIloveitIloveit" by Bella Kay mostly because I do think the lack of pushback on some of the themes expressed in the song just don't sit well. 

Pretty Fly (For 1999): 21st February. Everlasting Touch Night Don't Impress Me Much

No horses were actually harmed in the making of this week's look back on the charts of 1999.

Yippee yo kiyay! We are down for a showdown for the number one at high noon...Cher riding the horse "Believe" hangs on to the number one spot this week but it's a margins game becasuse Britney Spears riding "...Baby, One More Time" is making a play cantering up two spotss to number two and is within a short half head of the number one spot. 

"Jackie" with BZ and Joanne riding her held steady at number three but it's coming under pressure which won't be coming from The Offspring all riding "Pretty Fly (For A White Guy)" as it bucked two positions to number four. A new entry rides into town at number five thanks to Shania Twain riding "That Don't Impress Me Much"...more on this new filly later but she racked up an impressive pedigree in sales.

It;'s just as well Shawn Mullins isn't singing to put his horse "Lullaby" to sleep as it trotted up a cautious one spot to number six. 

The next three are bucking and are seeking pastures at the Past Hits Retirement home with Boyzone on "No Matter What" down two to number seven, "When You're Gone" by Bryan Adams and Melanie C tossing it's head around so much it's down two to number eight and "How Do I Deal" didn't like what it was seeing and walked back one spot taking it's rider Jennifer Love Hewitt with it. 

Lauryn Hill has entered the top ten showdown ring with :"Doo Wop (Dat Thing)" up eagerly observing up one spot to number ten.

Losers

Smash Mouth apparently are tired of the charts because "Can't Get Enough of You Baby" slipped from thirty seven to forty three. 

People are not convinced anymore by Stardust's "The Music Sounds Better with You" so it's taken a six place stumble to thirty seven. 

Jennifer Paige's former chart topper "Crush" got crushed nine places to twenty nine while Honeyz might be losing their grip with "Finally Found" down from sixteen to twenty two. 

"Goodbye" by Spice Girls is beginning it's goodbye as it slipped seven to seventeen. 

Re-Entries

So I am reasonably happy with the return of "Miami" by Will Smith at number forty six. 

Gains

Wish I could be that nice about our two big gains this week though. When the best of them is "Have You Ever" by Brandy up nine to fifteen...that's not a good sign.

The other big gain is "This Kiss" by Faith Hill up ten to number twelve. 

New Entries

Three new entries beginning with...

46. "Everlasting Night" by Danni Minogue

So this song was the theme for the 1999 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras and you know what? Apart from the title being blasted into your head harder than an a nail being hit into wood by a hammer but for what it's worth, this is a pretty fun disco track that calls upon the late seventies in sound so yeah, it's a little dated but it somewhat works in the song's favour.

What doesn't work in the song's favour is how low Danni sounds on the verses in the mix. it just takes away from the song but at least it's not...

32. "Touch It" by Monifah

Oh god, this song is just levels of creepy and that synth that sounds like a dying cow passing it's final fart before death does not help things especially as the mood of the song is supposed to be all about Monifah showing this guy what he is doing to her wrong in the bedroom...yet this song has all the sexual appeal of spending a night at the cheapest brothel in the world. i

This song is just yikes all over and no amount of Monifah cooing over it saves it. 

5.  That Don't Impress Me Much" by Shania Twain

So we are ending off the week with some Shania Twain and I'll be honest here, I don't care for Shania's ballads "From this Moment On" is definitely a weddidng song and wil end up walking so many people down the aisle but it stripped one feature that I think is the key tit Shania;'s songs working...her charisma, she can sell songs like "If You're Not in it (For Love)" with a cheeky wink etc and thankfully this song gives us back the charismatic Shania because this song is Shania wanting a man who is himself and can keep her warm ar night, being a rocket scientist or having delusions that he is Brad Pitt is not going to impress her at all. Great song. Check this out

It easily takes best of the week. The worst also falls out easily...it's "Touch It" by Monifah.

ARIA Top 50 Singles Chart Review 16th February

 We got a Spanish influx this week thanks to Bad Bunny and his performance at the Superbowl and as a result we mght see some interesting times ahead on the chart especially if Bad Bunny can challenge in the weeks ahead. although he isn't challenging Olviia Dean right now as "Man I Need" comfortably holds number one with bumper streaming. 

It held up over her second top ten hit "So Easy (To Fall In Love)" which remained at number two but it may well start coming under heat from songs below it in the weeks ahead. 

Why is "Ordinary" by Alex Warren back up two slots to number three? Australia, I thought we came to a mutual understanding that we were just going to let this song fade away gracefully? Hmph!

A new arrival in the top ten this week at number four, it's "DtMF" by Bad Bunny, now I will talk about this song later but it's here thanks to insane streaming following that Superbowl performan ce...there's a whole load of discourse going on right now that I kind of really don't want to get into because it involves a whole lot of stupid. 

The above did have the affect of pushing "Where is My Husband" by Raye back two places to number five and "The Fate of Ophelia" by Taylor Swift also back two to number six.

Taylor also has one of the biggest gains of the week with "Opalite" up twenty spots to number seven but that was due to the release of the music video on streaming services Spotify and Apple Music. I doubt it's going to stick around and I honestly hope it doesn't. 

Sombr's new single is one we'll get to in the new entries however "12 to 12" is down two spots to number eight. "Raindance" by Dave and Tems remains steady at number nine. Finally "Golden" from K-Pop Demon Hunters slipped two spots to be on the cusp of leaving the top ten at number ten.

Losers

So it was a rough week for a few older songs like "I Had Some Help" by Post Malone feat. Morgan Wallen which collapsed eight spots to number forty six,. 

It was a rough week for Tate McRae with "Tit for Tat" down seven to forty three and "Sports Car" down nine to forty two. 

EsdeeKid's "4 Raws" got rawdogged down ten to forty while Olivia Dean's "Let Alone the One You Love" slipped seven to thirty six. Fred Again's "Victory Lap" with Skepta annd Plaqueboy Max slipped seven to thirty three,

"I Run" by HVN and Kaitlyn Aragon has not quite caught on in the same way so it's down ten to thirty two. 

"The Great Divide" by Noah Kahan had the biggest fall of the week down twelve to twenty seven...I do expect this song to recover though,

The fall of "Aperture" by Harry Styles continues, this week down eight to twenty. 

Drop Outs

So we have some big ones in this category with "APT" by Rose and Bruno Mars and "Messy by Lola Young again departing.

More recent arrivals "Sleepless in a Hotel Room" by Luke Combs, "Folded" by Kehlani and "Chanel" by Tyla also took their exits.

Gains

Some of these gains just don't make any sense at all like "Good Luck, Babe!" by Chappell Roan up eight to thirty six and "Dracula" by Tame Impala up ten to twenty two although in the latter's case, it got a remix with Jennie so that explais that. 

Re-Entries

And that befuddlement remains because our one return is "Yukon" by Justin Bieber at  number thirty seven. HIs Grammys performance can't have been that good especiially when this song is one of the more underwhelming cuts on "SWAG"

New entries

We have four new entries this week with three of them being from Bad Bunny, let's begin with

34. "Baile Involidable" by Bad Bunny

So parsing my way through these Bad Bunny songs is going to be tough given I do not speak a word of Spanish but this is one of my favourites from the album with it's thumping dancefloor ready grooves and Bad Bunny rapping about a past love who clearly left her mark on him. the relationship fleeting but beautiful and that no one compares to her and he realizes he was the one who so stupidly threw that good thing away. Good song. Glad that's it is here. 

25. "Nuevayol" by Bad Bunny

One of the songs that explores one of the biggest themes of the album from Bad Bunny and it's a song that vividly celebrates Latin American culture especially Bad Bunny's home of Puerto Rico in New York City and how the latino/latinx culture plays out in a city like New York. It's definitely a fun jam even it's in political subtext (fighting for immigrants and against modertnisation). I just wish I liked this as much as "Baile Involidable" but I do appreciate what it's going for. 

18. "Homewrecker by Sombr

Was not expecting a brand new Sombr song but from everything I have been seeing on social media, people have ebeen rushing to praise this song even people I respect so what did we get? Yeah, this is a great song even if yet again its about a relationship gone wrong except this time the morality is framed as him having cheated on her which actually makes the song even more interesting. I just wish the hook didn't sound so weird but otherwise, I'm taking this. 

4. "DtMF" by Bad Bunny

Now to end the week with the album title track and this one is actualy a really sad and kind of profound track where Bad Bunny regrets not taking more photos of special moments in his life especially moments with family and friends who have died. It's also a rather sweet celebration of Puerto Rican culture but definitely more restrained. Sweet song and Benito, keep celebrating Latino/latinx cuture loud and proud. 

That ends our week on a somber note. I'm scrapping worst of the week because nothing here is worth that. I'm giving a tie for best of the week to "DtMF" by Bad Bunny and "Homewrecker" by Sombr. Fuck ICE.

Pretty Fly (For 1999): 14th February. Ooga-Chaka Indeed.

Look, I am going to take a slower week here given the past couple of weeks and given that I'm so far behind in list content right now, I'm gonna take this so let's not waste any more time and dive straight into our top where the top three didn't channge with "Believe: by Cher holding the number one spot ahead of "Pretty Fly (For a White Guy)" by The Offspring at number two and "Jackie" by BZ feat. Joanne at number three.

As I said last week, the obvious challenger for the number one slot is "...Baby, One More Time" by Britney Spears which moved up three slots to number four, it's got rising momentun behind this and is looking the closest threat to Cher.

"No Matter What" by Boyzone continues hang at number five like a malaodorous dwarf fart while "When You're Gone" by Bryan Adams and Mel C is finally beginning it's descent down the charts down two number six. "Lullaby" by Shawn Mullins climbs one spot to number seven because people love trashy sleazy songs where the singer comes off sounding like a horny sleazebag. 

What I am happy to see is "How Do I Deal" by Jennifer Love Hewitt rising three spots to number eight this week. Still a damn great song. 

Finally, we have two songs that are at the end of their run in the top ten with "Got the Feelin'" by Five down three to number nine and "Goodbye" by Spice Girls waving goodbye to the top ten down one to number ten.

Losers

The charts are sadly about to become less sexually excited because "Horny '98" by Mousse T. vs Hot 'n' Heavy is down seven bad sex positions to number fifty. 

It's a definitely been a hard knock life for Jay-Z on the chart with "Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)" down from forty nine to forty two while it seems Ultinaate Kaos are giving people what they want...an impending exit from the chart as "Anything You Want (I Got It)" slumped hard from thirty four to forty eight. 

Monica's "The First Night" got an eight place shove down to forty seven while U2's "Sweetest Thing" is seeing it's chart life turn sour down seven spots to forty three. I still love the elephant in the music video...just saying. 

Seems Australia is no longer able to read minds because former top five smash "If You Could Read My Mind" by Stars on 54 hit a nine place brainfade to thirty eight. Grinspoon's "Pushing Balloons" is actually popping balloons now down seven to thirty five.

Seems the big diva collab between Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey has the problem of people not believing this song because "When You Believe" did a faith u-turn is now down nine to thirty two. 

FInally seems some disagree with Stardust's debating point "The Music Sounds Better With You" as that slipped from twenty five to thirty one.

Gains

Let's start off with the new entries from last week that saw continued traction because we did see the excellent "Praise You" by Fat Boy Slim up eleven to thirty nine and "Save Tonight" by Eagle Eyed Cherry saving it's time on the chart up ten to thirty four. 

I say this because wooow...the rest of our gains are kind of...tragic..."Body Movin'" by Beastie Boys seems to have found a part of Australia that gets jiggling to this song somehow so it moved up eight to twenty nine. 

Faith Hill's ode to getting face sucked "This Kiss" is unfortunately our biggest gain this week because it got tonsil hockeyed up from forty one to twenty two!.

Maybe considering the last two gains "Have You Ever" by Brandy gets a pass, it climbed nine to twenty four. 

Re Entries

The song that has been bouncing on and off the chart and asks the important question of what she's going to look like with a chimney on her is back at  number forty six...yes, it's "If You Buy This Record, Your Life Will be better" by The Tamperer feat. Maya.

New Entries

Just one new entry this week.

33. "Dancing Baby (Ooga Chaka)" by Trubble

Oh really? Come on...ya all really want to hear a flipped sample of "Hooked on a Feeling" by Blue Swede, a giggling baby saying "Dancing baby" at points through out the song and the UK group Trubble with a front woman who is doing her best to try to deliver the lyrics with energy but who is listening to the words being rapped here? I get can't past the hilarious stupid vocal delivery of "Ooga Chaka" and that giggling baby just makes ne want to slap someone so no this is obnoxious and frankly one of the stupidest things I have seen on the chart in years.

No best or worst this week because we only had one song but geezus...for the love of all things good music...don't make stupid shlock like this a hit. 

ARIA Singles Top 50 Chart Review: 9th February

 So look, the Grammys happened this week and it kind of explains a lot of what happened here. Olivia Dean now has a duopoly at the very pointy end of the chart with "Man I Need" holding strong at number onem, it's not giving up it's streaming lead any time soon, the margins were a little too much for Dean's other major smash "So Easy (To Fall in Love)" which jumped two spots to number two thanks to gains on streaming. 

Raye's "Where Is My Husband" remains steady at number three while "The Fate of Ophelia" by Taylor Swift rebounded one spot to number foour. 

Alex Warren also rebounded but just five places up to number five, I am ready for this song to disappear. Sombr's got "Homewrecker" coming to the chart soon but for now "12 to 12" continues to hang on in the top ten up three spots to six (it's original peak).

The virality of "End of Beginning" by Djo is beginning to fade so it's down one to number seven. "Golden" from K-Pop Demon Hunter remains at number eight. 

"Raindance" by Dave and Tems  returns to the top ten up two to number nine while "No Broke Boys" bu Disco Lines and Tinashe slumped three places to number ten...please we can end this song's time on the chart sooner rather than later. 

Losers

Now you may have noticed that there was no mention of Harry Styles song "Aperture' in that top ten, that is because the song tumbled ten spots to twelve...this song is NOT going to stick around, its losing momentum on streaming. Another single is going to have to come if they are going to save this album cycle at this rate. 

"I Run" by HVN and Kaitlyn Aragon down seven to twenty one while :"Victory Lap" by Fred Again, Skepta and PlaqueboyMax down ten slots to twenty six. 

"The Days (Notion Remix)" by Chrystal slipped eight spots to forty two while "Fame is a Gun" by Addison Rae slumped eight to forty seven.

Finally the biggest loser of the week is Tyla's "Chanel" which is on the way out down twelve to fifty

Drop Outs

Drop outs were "Dancing 2" by Keli Holiday and 'Phantoms" by EsdeeKid and Rico Ace

Gains

Look, I am going to pin the thirteen place gain to thirty four for "Manchild" by Sabrina Carpenter to a boost after the Grammys because otherwise I am bewildered at the massive gain for this song...I am done with it!

Outside of that, there no other major gains this week although "Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean is up four places to sixteen. 

Re-Entries

Grannys also likely responsible for the return of Lola Young's "Messy" at forty five

New Entries

One new entry this week, let's dive into...

15. "The Great Divide" by Noah Kahan

Okay, Noah Kahan is somebody I respect more than I like. "Stick Season" is okay and I do think he is a better collaborator than anything he has done solo so I haf low expectations for this song which is the lead single from his upcoming album and yeah, this might be the first song from Kahan that I actually like but it's mostly for the subject matter of the song where he is with this person who is desperately trying to find relief and escape from trouble be it an addiction or family trouble but in a reckless way and Kahan's there as the helpless passenger trying to remind this person that they have so much stil to live for without doing all the reckless things they are doing eg: getting married, finding joy in the mundane little moments. I do like that this song sounds like it could push into heartland rock if it wanted to as well. I'll take this. 

That wraps our week. No best or worst this week as we only had the one song. Nrxt week...Sombr and a shit tonne of Bad Bunny...

Pretty Fly (For 1999): 7th February You Instant Save Praise Moment Tonight

There's less and more to say about this week, our top four in the top ten didn't move at all but we have a song that's climbed into the top ten and looks like being a challenger for the top spot...oh, let's just get to it because for yet another week, it's "Believe' by Cher at number one, she's got sales on lock...right now but that's likely to change. 

At numbet two os "Pretty Fly (For A White Guy)" by The Offspring remains at number two, "Jackie" by BZ featuring Joanne stalled at number three and "When You're Gone" by Bryan Adams feat Mel C glued to number four. 

Rising one spot to number five is unfortunately "No Matter What" by Boyzone because of course people like gooey say nothing garbage while for some reason the still incredibly amateur "Got The Feelin'" jumped one spot to six for Five.

However done of the above is set to shake Cher's "Believe" for number one so here is Cher's nearest competitor, rising from the debut of twenty to number seven is "...Baby One More Time" by Britney Spears...folks, this song has a head of steam like I've not seen before, there are some weaker songs above it that should be damn worried.

Gaining one spot to number eight is "Lullaby" by Shawn Mullins, I sure hope this isn't going to stick around because ugh..

What is not sticking around is "Goodbye" by Spice Girls down four to number nine while rising into the top ten for the first time is "A Little Bit" by Pandora up two spots to nnumber ten. 

Losers

Metallica's "Turn the Page" is about to reach the end of its chart run down nine to fifty this week, outside of that, there's not much in the way of big time losers this week with songs dropping mostly one to four places if they dropped at all. 

Maybe :"Have You Ever" by Brandy taking a tumble from twenty six to thirty three and "Habds: by Jewel sliding from twenty seven to thirty two.

Gains

Big big gain for Emilia's "Big Big World" as it jumped ten spots to twenty two while "Got The Life" by Korn jumped fourteen to twenty six.

Finally much to my annoyance "This Kiss" by Faith Hill climbed eght to forty one.

New Entries

Three new entries this week beginning wuth...

49. "Instant Moments" by R.O.O.S

Starting with a Dutch trance group and holy hell, I cannot even begin to tell you all the ways I found this a punish to listen to, its remarkably unyielding in how obnoxious it sounds and honesty makes me think of monkeys playing hurdy gurdys and not doing it very well...next! 

48. "Praise You" by Fatboy Slim

So the third single from Fatboy Slim's album "You've Come Along Way" with this song featuring nine samples ranging from Isaac Hayes to Camille Yarbrough whose vocals were sampled here and I have to say I think enjoy this a lot, there's this positive uplifting vbe this song radiates in its production and in its lyrical sentitment where he has to praise his baby like he should, it's cute but fuck, it feels very Twitter stan lingo come early! Great song.

44. "Save Tonight" by Eagle Eye Cherry

So we're ending this week off with this lead off single from a Swedish singer who goes by the stage name of Eagle Eyed Cherry and honestly? I think this song is pretty damn cute, it's a more soulful song thanks to Eagle Eyed Cherry's delivery but the production has some bounce and swell to it that I appreciate, it also helps that Eagle Eyed Cherry has some solid charisma that can make the lyrics feel a bit less clingy because this song is about a desperate last minute night of sex before the relationship finishes for real the next morning. 

It's a good song but not the best of the week, that's going to "Praise You" by Fatboy Slim.

The worst falls out easily as well, R.O.O.S is getting that for "Instant Moment"

 

ARIA Top 50 Singles Chart Review: 2nd February

 So let's rip and tear into this week on the ARIA singles chart because yeah, we finally saw some real change in the top ten just not at number one where for yet another week, Olivia Dean's "Man I Need" ruled the roost, it's got streaming on board hard where it got boosted alongside its sales thanks to the impact of Triple J's Hottest 100 ( a common story for a lot of what we saw on the chart this week).

It held up over a new entry at number two...yep, it's "Aperture" by Harry Styles which had a strong start on sales and streaming but tumbled backwards during the week, we'll discuss why in the new entries a bit later. 

"Where is My Husband" by Raye held firm at number three while "So Easy (To Fall in Love)" by Olivia Dean rebounded two spots to number four. 

Songs like "The Fate of Ophelia" by Taylor Swift suffered a three place fall to number five as it did not benefit from placement on the Hottest 100, the same applies to "End of Beginning" by Djo which slipped two places to number six. 

"No Broke Boys" by Disco Lines and Tinashe climbed two spots to number seven thanks to it's placement in the top ten of the Hottest 100 while "Golden" by K-Pop Demon Hunters slumped three places to number eight.

"12 to 12" by Sombr got a two place rebound back into the top ten up to number nine. It's really obvious what made the Hottest 100 and what wasn't shortlisted or voted in just by what gained or lost this week)

Finally "Ordinary" by Alex Warren slipped three places to number ten and at this point, I have to kind of hope people are done with this song.

Losers

It was a rough week for EsDeeKid with "Phantom" featuring Rico Ace down ten to fifty while "4 Raws" slumped ten to thirty one. 

Luke Combs suffered continued losses with "Sleepless in a Hotel Room" slumping thirteen spots to forty four. 

Finally "Opalite" by Taylor Swift could do with a boost from a music video sometime soon because it's down seven to twenty two. 

Drop Outs

You won't find me complaining too hard about the drop outs this week because we finally saw the permanent exit of "Beautiful Things" by Benson Boone to the On Replay singles chart. Good fucking riddance.

Also gone are "Soda Pop" from K-Pop Demon Hunters and "Messy" by Lola Young, both have had very good runs on the chart...I'm fine with them both being gone.

The only one I am bit unhappy about is the exit of "Plastic Cigarette" by Zach Bryan

Gains

Again these big gains were fuelled by Hottest 100 so we had "Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean up nine to break the top twenty at twenty! I am so happy to see this becoming a genuine hit.

"Victory Lap" by Fred, Again, Skepta and Plaqueboy Max up eleven spots to sixteen.

Re-Entries

Two returns this week with neither song being all that good, "Fame is a Gun" by Addison Rae back at thirty nine and "Dracula" by Tame Impala somehow back at twenty six.

New Entries

Two new entries this week, starting with...

24. "Dancing 2" by Keli Holiday

So Keli Holiday is actually just a psuedo name for Adam Hyde who is one half of Australian electronic duo Peking Duk with this song written about his unexpected connection and love...radio star Abbie Chatfield and yeah, I am going to lie I like it...A LOT, it's a song that just hits in all the right places even if I think there's some Gang of Youths "Angel in Real Time" vibes going here but it works to the song's favour because Holiday is absolutely selling the shit out of this song, he has found that connection and joy in his life and it's felt in the way the strings played high and happy singing the praises of love found. Pretty good song...hope it sticks around. 

2. "Aperture" by Harry Styles

So the big new single from Harry Styles, the first from his new album "Kiss All The Time. Disco Occasionally" (horribly clunky and honestly terrible album title) and I will admit some curiosity...I was hoping Harry would lean back into the more rock sound from his self titled debut but instead what we got was a electronic song that honestly is incredibly underwhelming in a number of ways, for one thing, where's a defiantly memorable melody to this, it's full of buzzy noises that just lead to nothing....what is Kid Harpoon doing on the production here? Then there's the writing which again, it's giving nothing memorable for me to grip onto or a reason to go back to this song.

If Harry wants to make electronic music, can he actually work with producers who understand electronica? Maybe Calvin Harris or someone becauxe this song does not work for me whatsoever.

Yeah, easy worst of the week for "Aperture" by Harry Styles. Best of the week is easily going to "Dancing 2" by Keli Holiday. I hope "Aperture" does not stick around, that song is really disappointing coming from Harry. Next week...I suspect Noah Kahan but otherwise we could be in for a quiet week...oh wait...the Grammys are on on Monday afternoon.

Pretty Fly (For 1999): January 31st. How Do I Kiss Chocolate Salty Balls One More Time?

 So we have what might rank as one of the busiest weeks of 1999 so far with SEVEN new entries and a pile of movement on the chart which let's face it is always going to happen when there are seven new songs on the chart, 

Let's start with our top ten because at least the number one is stable for now that being "Believe" by Cher which is stable on sales right now and holding foirm against "Pretty Fly (For A White Guy)" by The Offspring at number two. 

"Jackie" by B.Z feat.Joanne climbed three spots to number three., this song's rebound has to be seen to be believed this pont. It got past "When You're Gone" by Bryan Adams and Mel C which held strong at nnumber four and "Goodbye" by Spice Girls down two spots to number five, it's chart run looks to be done at this point so we can probably expect to see this gracefully exit the top fifty over the weeks ahead.'

Much to my annoyance "No Matter What" by Boyzone is up one to number six and the amateur hour "Got the Feelin'" by Five is iup three to number seven...we really need the Backstreet Boys back.

It was a rough week for "Finally Found" by Honeyz as it stumbled three spots to number eight and it could stumble further because we do have a new entry at number nine courtesy of "Lullaby" by Shawn Mullins, I will talk about this song later but this has groundswell and traction behind it on sales so it could move toward the top spot over the weeks ahead.

What's going the other way is "From This Moment On" by Shania Twain which slipped two spots to number ten. 

Losers

"I'm Your Angel" is down nine spots to forty five for Celine Dion and R.Kelly...it's in desperate need of an angel to lift it back up the chart. 

"Horny '98" by Mousse T vs Hot 'n' Juicy has been well and truly satiated by it's chart run so it's down ten spots to forty two

Metallica's "Turn the Page" is starting to close the book on it's time in the top fifty as it utterly collapsed from twenty seven to forty one while 'Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)" by Jay-Z slumped seven places to thirty eight.

"I Don't Want to Miss A Thing" by Aerosmith got a thirteen place skid down to thirty seven while "Music Soounds Better with You" by Stardust slipped from twenty two to twenty nine

Ultimate Kaos stumbled twelve places to thirty two with "Anything You Want (I've Got It)" 

Re-Entries

Just the one new entry this week with "If You Buy this Record, Your Life will be Better" by The Tamperer feat. Maya back at forty because WHAT SHE GONNA LOOK LIKE WITH A CHIMNEY ON HER?

Gains

Two debuts from last week that got decent gains this week with "Have You Ever?" by Brandy rising from thirty nine to twenty six and "To You I Belong" by B*Wtched up ten to twenty five,, 

New Entries

Seven new entries this week, unfortunately beginning with...

49. "This Kiss" by Faith Hill

We're starting off the week with some country and why the hell not? That's at least what I thought until I heard this song which yeah okay, it sounds country enough in the instrumentation but dear god, what the hell is with these lyrics? She starts out going on how she doesn't want her heart broken on the first verse and this guy coming along and doting on her the next and then describing this guy's kiss as "centrifugal motion" which doesn't even begin to make sense in terms of 'love' or kissing. Second verse references an imaginary conversation between Snow White and Cinderella wbich would even have Walt Disney having fucking coniptions on the floor so no...this song is complete fucking ass not helped by how not lovestruck Faith Hill sounds.. Skip it!

47. "I Don't Like The Drugs (But The Drugs Like Me)" by Marilyn Manson

I was dreading writing about this song mostly because of how controversial (that's putting it nicely) Marilyn Manson is and yeah this sounds like a weird ass semi pop concession of a song from Manson, this just sounds incredibly messy even coming from him. This doesn't work at all for me, it just sounds like more nightmare fuel to add to a bonfire somewhere. Next!

34. "Heartbeat" by Steps

The breakout group of 1998 are back on the charts out of the UK alongside Five with this being the latest single off their debut album which somehow got paired with a godawful cover of Bee Gees "Tragedy" which is a shame because this song is pretty damn good with some more restrained instrumentation that allows the girls vocals to shine here and it sounds good. I do wish the vocals were a bit louder in the mix but hey after the last two songs, I'll take this, good song. 

20. "...Baby One More Time" by Britney Spears

One of a couple of new faces on the chart this week, this one coming from Britney Spears who is a teenager hailing from the state of Louisiana, USA with this song being her big break out single and holy hell, there is going to be something crook with the public if this song is not absolutely massive...a ridiculous catchy hook, instrumentation that actually supports Britney Spears rather than working against her and yeah that piano lick at the start...daaamn. As for the lyrics, well..it's pretty much a song where Britney just wants her ex boyfriend to call her one last time and just wanting a sign he'll return. 

Damn near great pop song, check this out!

19. "Chocolate Salty Balls" by Chef

So now we're getting characters from South Park netting charting hits on the singles chart with this one coming from the character Chef which is voiced by the late singer, songwriter, composer and actor Isaac Hayes and let's put this bluntly, this is NOT a song for children because this is as hilariously adult as it gets with Chef describing a recipe for 'chocolate salty balls' in the verses before he sings "Ooh...suck on my chocolate salty balls...just stick them in your mouth and suck 'em" which cracked me up, it also helps that the song has a pretty terrific funk groove and melody reminiscent of 70s funk. Damn good adult fun even if the novelty this may wear off. I'll suck on those balls any darn day!

13. "How Do i Deal?" by Jennifer Love Hewitt

So what I forgot to mention with Britney is that she she emerged from Disney, well...I say that because Jennifer Love Hewitt started out with Disney via Kids Incorporated before going on to appear on the hit TV show Party of Five and now she has this song for the soundtrack of the film "I Know what You Did Last Summer" and...I just love this song, its a pop rock banger where Hewitt is dealing with this ridiculously complicated relationship and yet she barely knows what she wants, how she feels or whether she can trust herself  when she's got not just him but everyone else telling her what she should do. Definitely check this one out.

9. "Lullaby" by Shawn Mullins

Ending off with a song from American newcomer Shawn Mullins and I am going to say this right off the bat, this song sounds weird coming from a guy given the subject material is about a woman who is tired of living the high life among the Hollywood elite and just wants a release and an espcape from all the glitz,glamour and pressure of being within those circles for awhile. I think this song would sound better coming from a woman than from a guy who isn't living within that realm and whose vocal delivery coming off as sleazy rather than actually telling the story. At least the guitar solo in the middle eight is decent.

That ends our week and the best and worst fall out easily with the worst going to 'This Kiss" by Faith Hill. Best is going to "...Baby One More Time" by Britney Spears, it just beat out "How do I deal" by Jennifer Love Hewitt.