ARIA Singles Top 50 Top Ten/Chart Review: 11th October. Alone with You Dry is Out Out

 So this week with the announcement that there's a new single from Adele on the way, it kind of feels lie everyone and everything just kind of went on hold or especially in the top half of the top ten, you would think so so let's start there where "Stay" by The Kid Laroi  featuring Justin Bieber snared a 13th week at number one but like I said last week, sales are nowhere near as good as they were anv the margins it was enjoying on streaming are narrowing thanks to "Cold Heart (Pnau remix)" by Elton John and Dua Lipa which remained at number two, the question is whether it can take number one next week knowing that Adele is likely going to sweep all before it away the week after...

"Bad Habits" by Ed Sheeran maintained it's hold at number three while the incredibly annoying "Heat Waves" by Glass Animals kept hold of number four.

"Shivers" by Ed Sheeran rebounded one spot to number five as streaming got a boost this week, it pushed past "Industry Baby" by Lil Nas X and Jack Harlow back one spot to number six.

Following behind is "That's What I Want" by Lil Nas X rebounding one spot to number seven as it got a boost on streaming this week..I'm pretty happy about that.

Then we have the viral hit "love nwantiti" by Ckay up five to number eight this thanks to traction on streaming. 

Speaking of boosts on streaming. "Happier than Ever" by Billie Eilish is back in the top ten up two spots to number nine thanks to the streaming success of the edited version of this song which sees the slow beginning stripped out and keeping the rock end of the song which for me does see the song lose a bit of it's pathos but hey regardless, I'm happy to see the song back in the top ten.

All this pushed "Good 4 U" by Olivia Rodrigo down one spot to complete the top ten at number ten.

Gains

Interestingly "Knife Talk" by Drake feat. 21 Savage and Project Pat climbed six places to 21...a song that looks like being a hit for Drake surprisingly.

"Blinding Lights" by The Weeknd up three to 35 and "Dreams" by Fleetwood Mac also up three to 36. 

Unfortunately the biggest gain of the week belongs to "Life Goes On" by Oliver Tree which jumped eight places to 41, also unfortunate is the three place gain for "Fancy Like" by Walker Hayes to 47.

Losers

Slipping seven places to 48 is "Friday" by Riton and Nightcrawlers feat. Mufasa and Hyperman while "Hurricane" by Kanye West feat. Lil Baby and The Weeknd was the biggest loser of the week down eleven to 40. 

Clinton Kane's "I Guess I'm in Love" slipped five places to 37 while "Without You" by The Kid Laroi feat. Miley Cyrus slumped five places to 29.

Then there's Drake album bomb tacks like "Way 2 Sexy" feat. Future and Young Thug falling four places to 27, "Girls want Girls" feat. Lil Baby down eight to 26 and "Fair Trade" feat Travis Scott sliding seven places to 23.

Finally "My Universe" by Coldplay feat. BTS skidded seven places to 14, yeah it's disappointing but not unsurprising.

Drop Outs

The three drop outs this week aren't surprising with "Like  I Can" by Sam Smith, "Visiting Hours" by Ed Sheeran and "Wildest Dreams (Taylor's Version)" all taking their expected exits.

New Entries

We've got three new entries this week, let's begin with...

50. "Out Out" by Joel Corry, Jax Jones, Charli XCX and Saweetie

Well it was only a matter of time before this turned up on the Australian charts, it is in the top ten in the United Kingdom even if I think the name recognition alone would have got the song charting eventually... just a shame the song is not very good...not even Charli XCX putting her standard excellent vocal performance can save this with the shrill instrumentation, it's not even got a groove that would get a person up on the dancefloor and I kind of blame both Joel Corry and Jax Jones for that...all of the artists involved in this song can do so much better. 

49. "Alone With You" by Aez

So this is a song I have seen hanging around the lower end of the Australian Spotify top 50, it comes from a 17 year old independent rapper calling himself Arz with "Alone with You" becoming a thing on the charts when the song went viral on Tik Tok as per most charting hits these days and well, it turns out this is a pretty sweet love song with Arz expressing his feelings about a girl but being an awkward 17 year old the easiest way for him  to do so is through music, what is sweet is how he wants to protect her because she's special and one of a kind. Yeah...I wouldn't mind this blowing up. Not bad!

17. "Dry" by Rancid Eddie

So now for the biggest new entry of the week...Rancid Eddie are a Melbourne backyard rock band that have been in the news lately for pissing off the neighbours with amount of noise they make even while Melbourne is supposed to be in lockdown, the band apparently have a rather cheeky and irreverent approach to song writing with this song about the sex not being very nice when the spark and love has gone out of the relationship so the sex doesn't feel as good. Overall the song reminds me of early Arctic Monkeys except its a rowdy singalong at a pub in Melbourne. I just wish the guitars roared a little more and I don't see it sticking around on the chart either way so ehh.

That wraps up the week with best and worst falling out easily here. Worst is going to "Out Out" by Joel Corry, Jax Jones, Charli XCX and Saweetie which really is just a massive waste of talent however the best of the week is going to "Alone with You" by Arz..

As for next week, possibly that debut solo single from former Little Mix member Jesy Nelson who brought Nicki Minaj along with her, possibly Spacey Jane but we'll have to see when the chart updates on Friday at 5pm

Good 1992 Vibrations. 4th October. Hey Hey Sometimes Love Just Ain't Good

 Ugh. This is one of those weeks that was better and worse in a lot of ways. Worse when you look at the top ten but on the better side some of the gains are at least better? But anyway let's not waste anymore time and get to the top ten where we have a new number one..."Achy Breaky Heart' by Billy Ray Cyrus surged to take the number one spot as sales kicked into gear hard with this song helping it climb the three places to the top of the summit.

However right behind it is "Life is a Highway" by Tom Cochrane up one spot to number two...it's sales have been really good but just not enough to match those of "Achy Breaky Heart" but it was enough to move part "Amigos Para Siempre (Friends for Life)" by Jose Carreras and Sarah Brightman which slipped down to number three as it gracefully starts to move out of the top ten.

Snap's "Rhythm is a Dancer" rebounded one spot to number four while "November Rain" by Guns 'n' Roses also rebounded one to number five however the reason both these songs rebounded is that "Humpin' Around" by Bobby Brown fell hardcore losing the number one spot and stumbling five places to number six.

Continuing it's rise is "Best Things in Life are Free" by Luther Vandross and Janet Jackson which got a three place boost to number seven. Nice!

It pushed "Sesame's Treet" by Smart E's down one to number eight, "Baby Got Back" by Sir Mix A Lot back one to number nine and "Please Don't Go" by K.W.S finishing the top ten down one at number ten. 

Gains.

Alright so let's deal with some of these gains, on the good to excellent side is the massive gains for "The Day You Went Away" by Wendy Matthews leaping from 30 to 17 this week...be nice to see this song hit the top ten eventually. I also welcome the gains for "Tennessee" by Arrested Development which climbed from 22 to 14.  I can even tolerate that "Do You Want Me" by Felix climbed from 36 to 29.

Hell, I'm even okay with "Ain't No Doubt" by Jimmy Nail gettin a five place gain to 38 and "Breaking the Girl" by Red Hot Chili Peppers rising six places to 38. 

I am not so happy that Kylie Minogue's "What Kind of Fool (Heard All That Before)" rose from 37 to 25. Kylie has done better, Australia. Come on.

Re entries

Just one new entry and it comes from Def Leppard who returned at 48 with "Have You Ever Really Needed Someone So Bad" 

Losers

Bryan Adams is thankfully on his way out of the top 50 with "All I Want Is You" down seven to 40, the same can be said for "Even Better Than The Real Thing" by U2 down eight to 49. 

Girlfriend's "Girl's Life" just utterly collapsed from 31 to 43 this week as it seems like they've turned their attention to promoting "Without You"

Former top ten hit "Too Funky" by Geore Michael dived from 24 to 37 this week while the wispy and insubstantial "Love How You Love Me" by Teen Queens fell ten places off their debut to hit 35. 

More top ten hits fell hard alongside "Too Funky" though with "This Used to Be My Playground" by Madonna slipped from 27 to 31 while "Everything's Alright" by John Farnham, Kate Ceberano and Jon Stevens fell ten places to 21 and "As Ugly As They Wanna Be" by Ugly Kid Joe slumped seven spots to 20.

New Entries

Three new entries this week, let's start with...

44. "Sometimes Love Just Ain't Enough" by Patty Smyth with Don Henley

Well this is a sombre way to start a review of the songs debuting on the chart this week but here we have this rock ballad duet between Patty Smyth and Don Henley. The song was co written by Smyth and Glen Burtnik with the lyrics referring to the end of a relationship where both people are looking to move on with their lives and make sense of the aftermath of the break up where love just wasn't enough to keep the couple together despite the residual feelings for each other being there but both people acknowledge that it's probably for the best the relationship ends, it's a dark and kind of harrowing song that yeah, hurts. If this makes the year end expect to see this on my best list somewhere. 

40. "Something Good" by Utah Saints

Now to lighten the mood here with English electronic duo Utah Saints (strange name for an English duo...I know) with "Something Good" being the first song from the EP. Now this song contains a sample of Kate Bush's song "Cloudbusting" (a UK top 20 hit in 1985 for Kate Bush) and when I say the Kate Bush sample is the best thing about this song if you can hear her over the noisy patter of drums and other electronic elements in the mix along with the voice screaming "Utah Saints" into shrill incoherence, yeah I have no tolerance for songs that sound like they'd be good for audio torturing somebody so yeah...PASS!

28. "Hey Hey We're The Broncos" by Ipswich Connection

So rugby league is on the ARIA singles chart courtesy of the Brisbane Broncos with a group known as Ipswich Connection that comprises of  Btoncos players Allan Langer and the Walters twins Kerrod and Kevin. Now this is a parody of the 1966 hit by The Monkees called "Hey Hey We're the Monkees". Look, I don't really have much to say about this song mostly because it is a parody and basically a hype song for the Brisbane Broncos rugby league team but I will say some of these lyrics are hilarious.."Hey hey, we're the Broncos and we're not horsin' around" just makes me giggle. Look, it's harmless, check it out.

That completes our surprisingly short week and both best and worst fall out easily here, with the worst going to "Something Good" by Utah Saints because yeah...that was intolerable however "Sometimes Love Just Ain't Enough" by Patty Smyth with Don Henley runs away with the best of the week and that wasn't a contest

ARIA Singles top 50 top ten/Chart Review. 4th October. My Universe Goes On for Life

So after the chaos of the last couple of weeks, we might have a couple of quiet weeks here because yeah, this week felt slower even if we have some moves in the top ten and our long running number one starting to show some signs of weakness so let's get to that top ten shall we? 

"Stay" by The Kid Laroi featuring Justin Bieber spends a 12th week at number one but it's starting to show signs of weakness on streaming, those margins aren't as strong as they once were a few weeks ago, this upcoming week could be telling about whether it gets any longer at number one.

"Cold Heart (PNAU remix" by Elton John and Dua Lipa rose one place to number two as it took the sales lead this week, just needs to start getting some strength together on streaming and it may well be a contender for number one if a certain female artist doesn't show up in the next few weeks or it could see it's run for number one neutered.

However it was enough to move past "Bad Habits" by Ed Sheeran, it's starting to suffer from having competition from his own songs for that presence on streaming especially from "Shivers"

"Heat Waves" renaissance continues for Glass Animals as it rose one spot to number four this week. I am really ready for this song to be gone but it did force "Industry Baby" by Lil Nas X and Jack Harlow back one spot to number five while "Shivers" by Ed Sheeran held it's place at number six.

A new arrival on the chart this week debuts in the top ten at number seven that being "My Universe" by Coldplay and BTS thanks to sales of multiple different versions of the song but the original version did sell well all week and has had some growing traction on streaming however it's usually almost always the second week where songs involving BTS fall back so we'll see if it has any longevity going forward.

It forced "That's What I Want" by Lil Nas X back to number eight and "Good 4 U" by Olivia Rodrigo back to number nine.

Finally "Beggin'" by Maneskin remained steady at number ten.

Gains

So a song that looks like it is going to be absolutely huge is "Love nwantiti (Ah ah ah)" by Ckay up ten places to number 13 while "Obsessed With You" by Central Cee also climbed ten places to number 31. 

"Blinding Lights" by The Weeknd climbed six places to 38. 

Losers

Sam Smith's "Like I Can" slipped seven spots to 47 while as I predicted last week "Visiting Hours"  by Ed Sheeran continues to make it's way out down 14 places to 46.

Unsurprisingly the biggest loser of the week was  "Wildest Dreams (Taylor's Version)" down 15 spots to 43. 

"Get Into It (Yuh)" by Doja Cat has lost all of it's momentum as it slipped nine to 42 and "Hurricane" by Kanye West feat. Lil Baby and the Weeknd slumped seven spots to 29. 

Drop Outs

Just the two drop outs this week with "Moon" by Kanye West and "I Wanna Be Your Slave" by Maneskin both leaving.

New Entries

Just the two new entries this week, let's start with

49. "Life Goes On" by Oliver Tree

So this is one of a couple of songs to go viral this week (there's another one likely debuting on the chart next week) with this one courtesy of TikTok although can I ask if we're going to have songs go viral and chart, can the song at least be good because this is really god damn annoying with Oliver Tree repeating "on and on and on" ad nauseum with the gang vocals chanting "yeah yeah" in the background. This is beyond asinine repetitive and the production sounds like elephants farting. Not good.

7. 'My Universe" by Coldplay and BTS

So here we have the latest single for Coldplay for their upcoming new album called "Music of the Spheres" which is due out later this month, this time bringing BTS on board for added traction and well it's about as synth pop as "Higher Power" with the lyrics playing the basic sentiment of the partner being the centre of the universe hence wanting to put them first. It's certainly better than "Higher Power" or even recent BTS singles. This is fine, check it out

:"My Universe" does take best of the week easily though. "Life Goes On" taking the worst of the week...that song is just intolerable to me. 

Good 1992 Vibrations: 27th September. Ain't No Doubt, Neighbour, Share How You Love A Fool?

Well then, this is an interesting week, feels like we've been on the verge of a week like this for awhile so let's get right to it with the top ten where we do have a new number one..,"Humpin' Around'" by Bobby Brown which finally garnered enough sales to take top spot as "Amigos Para Siempre (Friends for Life)" by Jose Carreras and Sarah Brightman slipped back to number two as the sales finally started to fall away months after the Barcelona Olympics, it's run though has been really impressive.

"Life is a Highway" by Tom Cochrane continues its rise up one place to number three...because of course it is but it gets worse..."Achy Breaky Heart" by Billy Ray Cyrus which climbed six places to number four and unfortunately looks like it might have enough momentum to challenge for the top spot...eww

Anyway all this pushed "Rhythm is a Dancer" by Snap down two places to number five while "November Rain" climbed one place to number six for Guns 'n' Roses which at least it pushed "Sesame's Treet" by Smart E's back one place to number seven. "Baby Got Back" by Sir Mix A Lot rose one spot to number eight.

On its way out of the top ten to my delight is "Please Don't Go" by K.W.S as it tumbled four places to number nine. Good, the sooner it's gone the better even if it's probably safe on the year end...unfortunately.

Finally there's a song spending it's first week in the top ten that being "Best Things in Life are Free" by Luther Vandross and Janet Jackson which rose seven places to number seven.

Gains

So I already have written about the major gains for "Achy Breaky Heart' and "Best Things in Life Are Free", let's find out what else gained this week,, John Paul Young 's "Love is in the Air" jumped eleven places to 14 thanks to momentum from featured in the movie "Strictly Ballroom"

Girlfriend's big ballad "Without You" jumped a massive twenty spots to 28 while "White Men Can't Jump" rose four to 32.

"Who is It" by Michael Jackson climbed six places to 34...I'm cool with that! I still like the song while "Don't You Want Me" by Felix climbed from 49 to 36 this week/

Re Entries

So there was one re entry and it came from the Black Sorrows with "Ain't Love the Strangest Thing" at number 46.

Losers

So let's begin with "Baby Don't Cry" by INXS down nine places to 50 while former number one hit 'Hazard" by Richard Marx slumped eleven spots to 45. while absolute garbage like "All I Want is You" by Bryan Adams takes  a well deserved eleven place hit down to 43.

Unfortunately Peter Gabriel's 'Digging in the Dirt" fell from 35 to 42 while "Even Better Than the Real Thing" by U2 fell ten to 41. 

"Heaven Knows' by Rick Price slumed from 28 to 35 while "Girl's Life" by Girlfriend slipped from 26 to 31.

"This Used to Be My Playground" by Madonna fell eight places to 27.

New Entries

Five new entries, let's begin with...

48. "Neighbor" by Ugly Kid Joe

Okay so here's Ugly KId Joe's newest single from the album "America's Least Wanted" and here's the issue I have with Ugly Kid Joe...rather than forging their own sound or having a sound that's unique to them and yet again with this song, Ugly Kid Joe sound more like a Guns 'n' Roses cover act rather than having any unique identifying qualities that make them as a band stand out. The content is about this trashy person who moves in next door and starts destroying the community which could be interesting if I could get invested in the lead singer but his anger sounds more like a kid angry that is being forced to eat his vegetables...so yeah this is try hard, cry baby rock. NEXT!

47. "Share This Wine" by Things of Stone and Wood

Oh another breanch of rock here...this time folk rock from Australian band Things of Stone and Wood, this song coming from the band's debut album called "The Yearning" and you know? I like the production here with the jangly guitars providing a solid melody with percussion woven through it. Here's the thing though the vocals feel a bit anonymous even with foreboding lyrics about sharing wine while they sit on the precipice of World War III. The song isn't bad but it's sure not memorable either.

38. "Ain't No Doubt" by Jimmy Nail

So I guess this is the novelty son of the week because this song is by English actor and singer songwriter Jimmy Nail and lordy does "Ain't No Doubt" has all the trimmings of most early nineties pop songs, it's pretty slick in that regard with the horns. The subject matter though is actually a bit darker than the bright colourful production implies as its about a failing relationship where he interpreting what she says as meaning something else entirely or that she's lying to him to spare herself from hurting him. Look, it's pretty memorable but I get the feeling that this could become a nice guys or incel anthem in the years ahead.

37. "What Kind of Fool (Heard That Before)" by Kylie Minogue

Now we have the first single from Kylie Minogue's greatest hits album and was co written by Minogue and two of the team from Stock, Aitken and Waterman, it's a high energy pop number but the problem is here that the song lacks coherent melody and quite often it feels like Kylie has to battle to be heard over all the instrumental elements clashing together, it feels like two songs meshed into one combine that with the lyrics about Kylie calling out a douchebag and I'm feeling not feeling this. It could have been better.

25. "Love How You Love Me" by Teen Queens

Another Teen Queens cover song this time, this is a cover of a 1961 Paris Sisters song and really want is there to say about this? It's not quite as bad as their cover of "Be My Baby" but the flat cooing vocals that show no passion, if you truly love how this dude is loving you then show some fucking passion in your vocal delivery instead of sounding like a giggling teenage girl who has just seen her first penis in the sealed section of some by gone magazine and then there's that production that isn't even vaguely close to being sexy...Yeah it might not be as bad as past efforts but it still sucks.

And that was our week and wow there's not a lot to choose from for the best...maybe "Ain't No Doubt" by Jimmy Nail.

As for the worst...that's going to "Neighbor" by Ugly Kid Joe but any one of about three songs could have gotten it...Kylie was pretty dang close. 

ARIA Singles Top 50 Top Ten/ Chart Review: 27th September. Obsessed With avoiding Fancy Like in my Wildest Dreams

 So this week felt less than I expected, I expected a Little Nas X album which we didn't get but a weird mish mash of new entries including from Lil Nas X but a re recording and one of the worst songs of the year in any genre but we'll get to that because we do need to discuss our top ten where for an 11th week, "Stay" by The Kid Laroi and Justin Bieber holds firm at number one, it's still incredibly strong on streaming and it doesn't appear that anything is getting near it right now...depending on numbers for that new Coldplay/BTS collab.

It held on ahead of "Bad Habits' by Ed Sheeran which remains at number two while "Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)" by Elton John and Dua Lipa stuck at number three, both have sales but their streaming is just not competitive with "Stay" right now.

Then we get to one of the stories of the week, the impact of Lil Nas X's album with "Industry Baby" feat. Jack Harlow up two places to number four thanks to an upsurge in streaming brought about by the release of the album, it's a matter of whether that streaming surge will last but it did push 'Heat Waves" by Glass Animals back to number five and "Shivers" by Ed Sheeran back to number six. 

There's a new entry at number seven, it comes from Lil Nas X with his latest single "That's What I Want" thanks to consistently solid streaming during the week but that streaming is nothing over the top right now.

Olivia Rodrigo's "Good 4 U" holds steady at number eight. 

Biggest gainer of the week does belong to Lil Nas X as "Montero (Call Me By Your Name)" surged back up ten places to number nine.

Finally "Beggin'" by Maneskin also held steady at number ten.

Gains

So I already mentioned "Montero (Call me By Your Name)" by Lil Nas X up ten to number nine this week thanks to the album release however the other big gain this week was for "Meet Me at Our Spot" by The Anxiety" up ten spots to 17 but that was it for the big gainers this week.

Losers

Unfortunately with the focus being on "Shivers" now, "Visiting Hours" by Ed Sheeran slipped eight places to number 32 this week, I expect this song to exit in the weeks ahead sadly.

Then there were the Drake cuts that continued to lose ground with "Knife Talk" feat. 21 Savage and Project Pat down eight to 26 and "Girls Want Girls" feat. Lil Baby down six to 13

Then  there's "Hurricane" by Kanye West feat. Lil Baby and The Weekend down ten to 22. 

Drop Outs

Five drop outs this week with there being one big one in "One Too Many" by Keith Urban and Pink making what will hopefully be its final exit...just a shame the song is probably locked on the year end list.

Unfortunately we did lose "Family Ties" by Baby Keem feat. Kendrick Lamar and "Higher" by Bella Taylor Smith...when you see the new entries you'll understand why these exits are unfortunate.

The others are from album bombs with "Champagne Poetry" leaving for Drake while "Off the Grid" feat. Playboi Carti and Fivio Foreign left for Kanye West

New Entries

Five new entries this week and we're starting in a rather gross and disgusting manner with...

50. "Fancy Like" by Walker Hayes 

I don't even know where to start with this or who to apportion blame to for this atrocity of a song being a thing in the first place or the fact it's in the ARIA singles top 50 this week to begin with but I'm not shocked by it, its hardly a surprise though and I'll explain why in a moment but first I'd better explain who Walker Hayes is, Hayes is basically a Nashville country by product churning out awful bro country slurry for the masses, he first charted on the US Billboard Hot 100 with the awful "You Broke Up With Me" in 2017 and is now having his biggest ever hit with "Fancy Like" hitting number five on the Hot 100 because the song became a viral hit thanks to TikTok and was used by a US restaurant chain that's mentioned in the damn song. 

This song has guitars with no tone, limp percussion and Walker Hayes faux rapping his way through a song and managing to sound even worse than his fucking predecessor Sam Hunt on "Drinking Too Much" and not managing to justify why he sounds so unbearably smug as he raps completely cringeworthy lyrics about his apparently low maintenance girlfriend wanting to dip him like the fries her frosty at Wendys (I'm fairly certain you can be arrested for having sex in public) but every now and then he has to treat her to an upgrade by taking her to Applebees...not a decent restauarant...just another fast food chain that's considered marginally more fucking snooty than Wendys and also features some of the most embarrassing product name dropping in years that makes me think that Walker Hayes is getting paid fucking endorsements for trash like this. 

So where does the blame lie for shit like this? With Sam Hunt's "Body Like a back Road" in 2017 becoming a hit? With people on iTunes buying "Fancy Like" which is how and why the song ended up in the top 50 this week? With the culture in Nashville that enables country music to continue to suffer embarrassments like this? We could have had KACEY MUSGRAVES or even Casey Barnes on the chart instead. Ugh.

It's the worst song to hit the ARIA singles chart since I started this blog. Fuck this song and fuck everything and everyone who enabled shit lie this song to chart.

41. "Obsessed With You" by Central Cee

Now to calm down and talk about British rapper Central Cee who has been chalking up an impressive number of hits in the UK with this being the first song of his to hit the Australian singles chart and well I like his delivery, he can keep a good flow and spit his bars out but those programmed female vocals really annoy the hell out of me, why are they so tinny and programmed on the hook. Central Cee also kind of paints himself as a bit of a stalker here, the lyrics point toward him being more than just obsessed with whatever it is his ex is doing and it kind of gives the song a weird vibe. It's better than "Fancy Like" but yeah I ain't coming back to this.

28. "Wildest Dreams (Taylor's Version)" by Taylor Swift

So this was a surprise release from Taylor Swift especially as she's preparing for the release of the "Red" re recording later this year so nobody was expecting her to release the re recording of a single from "1989" and honestly I was never a fan of the original song however I actually think the re record is much better, Taylor sounds less weirdly weedy on the chorus and overall the song feels lot more organic in the production with that orchestra picking up in the background. Yeah...I'll absolutely take this...nice job, Taylor...wonder if she can make "Shake It Off" somehow tolerable.

23. "love nwantiti (ah ah ah) by CKay feat. Joeboy and Kuami

Another newcomer to the chart with a remixed version of a 2019 song and quite frankly I wasn't expecting this to chart this week but none the less, CKay (real name Chukwuka Ekweani) is a Nigerian singer who has a flair for combining afrobeats, pop and psychedelia in his songs with this being the first to hit the ARIA singles chart and I will say it's a pretty sweet love song where CKay has found somebody he connects with and has fallen in love with and how she makes him feel when she is around him. It's a pretty intense love song if I am to be honest and yeah the Afrobeat elements shine here alongside that guitar. Yeah, I don't mind this...check it out if you are curious especially as its quite unusual to have a song from an African artist on the chart but it's great to see.

7. "That's What I Want" by Lil Nas X

So I've heard the new album from Lil Nas X and this song is actually one of my immediate favourites from the album with that bright guitar line, it's ridiculously catchy chorus and Lil Nas X's infectious personality bursting through every pore of this song as he goes through what he wants which is to find love with another man something that is often a struggle for a gay black man as being accepted by the black community for being homosexual is still a struggle and finding that acceptance and love is something Lil Nas X is still confronting to this day, he just wants somebody to love him. It's a song that shows how vulnerable Lil Nas X is despite the bright and rather bombastic production. Yeah, I love it...great song!

So that wraps up the week and yeah as it turns out the worst of the week is easy this week, it goes to "Fancy Like" by Walker Hayes because the song is just an absolute turd.

As for the best of the week is a little tougher because there are a two or three options here, I am going to give it to "That's What I Want" by Lil Nas X only because I've been going back to that song this week.

Next week is probably going to be a slow down week but I am expecting that Coldplay/BTS collab to debut high so we'll have to find out when the chart updates on Friday at 5pm. 

Good 1992 Vibrations. 20th September. Success Without You has Lead Me to White Men Digging in the Dirt

So here we go with another wild week with a ridiculous number of new entries this week all of them in the lower half of the chart as the top half of our top ten stalled...seriously nothing there changed so let's get to our top ten because for yet another week, it's "Amigos Para Siempre (Friends for Life)" by Jose Carreras and Sarah Brightman at number one but those margins are closing and it's going to be an open question of it can retain number one ahead of the strengthening competition behind it.


"Humpin' Around" by Bobby Brown looks the most likely to take number one should "Amigos Para Siempre (Friends For Life)" falter any further as it retained number two. "Rhythm is a Dancer" by Snap couldn't rein in the margin to the songs ahead of it hence remaining at number three while it was the same case for both '"Life is a Highway" by Tom Cochrane and "Please Don't Go" by K.W.S at number three.


Rising three places to number six is 'Sesame's Treet" by Smart Es up three places to number six...not a good sign that this is heading toward the top five...


Then there's the return to the top ten for "November Rain" by Guns 'n' Roses which rebounded from 41 to number seven...not sure what sparked this but pretty rare a song has that kind of rise after returning to the chart none the less it forced back "Everything's Alright" by John Farnham, Kate Ceberano and Jon Stevens back one to number eight and "Baby Got Back" by Sir Mix A Lot to number nine.


Arriving in the top ten this week is "Achy Breaky Heart" by Billy Ray Cyrus up seven to number ten. Looks like this is going to be a thing, folks. Joy.





Gains


So I already spoke about the big gains for "November Rain" and "Achy Breaky Heart" but there were some pretty significant gains outside the top ten this week especially for "Best Things in Life are free" by Luther Vandross and Janet Jackson breaking into the top 20 up from 23 to 17...this will rise further in the weeks ahead.


Then there's also the big gain for Company of Strangers song "Motor City (I Get Lost)" which jumped from it's debut of 48 to 27 this week which is really rather impressive, I am still kind of cold on the song sadly.


What I am not cold on is the excellent gain for "The Day You Went Away' by Wendy Matthews which climbed from 43 to 29...I still stand by this song being excellent however it dragged the not so excellent "Proove" by Radio Freedom up from 42 to 30 this week.


"Just Another Day" by Jon Secada saw a boost up from 47 to 33 while "Breaking the Girl" by Red Hot Chili Peppers climbed from 45 to 39.


Losers


We have a long list of losers this week as well so let's begin where we usually do because "Candyman" by Ratcat lost all it's gains as the candy went sour down from 38 to 50 while "Ain't 2 Proud 2 Beg" by TLC slumped down from 35 to 47.


"Save the Best for Last" by Vanessa Williams collapsed from 28 to 45 as it's best days on the look well and truly behind it. "Abba esque" by Erasure fell ten places to 44. Michael Jackson is in a sticky situation as "Jam" got stuck in reverse down from 32 to 43.


God also gave "God Gave Rock n Roll to You Part II" by Kiss a nine place fall to 42 while "Baby Don't Cry" by INXS cried it's way down eleven to 41.

Former chart topper "Hazard" by Richard Marx hit a hazard as it plummeted down from 25 to 34 while "Heaven Knows" by Rick Price tumbled seven to 28 as Girlfriend skidded down ten places to 26 with "Girl's Life"


"Too Funky" by George Michael slipped from 15 to 21 while "As Ugly as They Wanna Be" by Ugly Kid Joe finally took a well deserved five place hit to number 11...thank fucking god.




New Entries


Eight new entries this week, beginning with...



49. “Don’t You Want Me” by Felix

No, we don’t need a cover of The Human League’s “Don’t You Want Me”, 1992 has had enough bad covers to last for the rest of the year….okay…it’s not …thank goodness… it’s actually from a British DJ and producer Francis Wright otherwise known as his pseudonym Felix with “Don’t You Want Me” sampling Jomanda’s “Don’t You Want My Love” and is the latest techno/Eurodance dance song to hit the chart but all that aside, how is the song’s quality?

Well as it turns out, I was pleasantly surprised, the song isn’t the ear blasting sack of audio torture that previous hits in this subgenre have been this year, the groove feels more melodic and even if the lyrics do feel like they are being belted into the ground, it’s the same sentence over and over again but the song really pretty short and not all that bad…worth checking out if you are curious.



48. “Without You” by Girlfriend

So after two really rather perky and bright pop songs, Girlfriend have flipped the switch and gone with a piano ballad where Robyn Loau takes lead vocals on the verses and the group singing the chorus together. It’s your pretty standard pop piano ballad about how they’d be lost without their significant other and how heartbroken they’d be but the harmonies are probably the most on point they have been since they debuted and Robyn taking the lead vocal here is a good fit. I kind of like it, check it out if you are curious



46. “Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad” by Def Leppard

A new single from Def Leppard’s latest album and wow…I can’t be the only one who isn’t impressed at all, this song is trying to be all desperate and begging for somebody to keep them company and let the vocals sound relaxed and well honestly kind of horny and the production is pretty limp to, there’s no portraying of any urgency or desperation in their plight to not be alone, it feels like a rather desperate attempt to keep bad 80s hair metal alive well into the 1990s. I’m skipping this.





40. “Who Is It” by Michael Jackson

Kind of surprised we got a new single so soon from Michael Jackson especially so late in from his album “Dangerous’ and honestly I am kind of digging this even if Michael sounds odd vocally here like he is lacking the usual fire in his delivery but might make sense given the lyrics? The song plays to a man’s despair over his partner leaving him, he then learns she cheated on him and as result wants to know she was playing around with behind his back…the song doesn’t answer those questions and the production makes the song haunting because you just know the questions over who she cheated with and why she cheated on him in the first place will haunt this man. Yeah, this is pretty good.



38. “Lead Me to Water” by Southern Sons

Lead single from Southern Sons second album called “Nothing But the Truth” and honestly this is nothing special, he wants this girl to lead him to water which I am guessing is a metaphor for love or something. At least the guitar sounds pretty great on the middle eight but otherwise this is pretty disappointing and it kind of reminds me of a bad John Farnham B side.



37. “Success Has Made a Failure of Our Home” by Sinead O’Connor

What is with the song titles this week? Well none the less, here’s Sinead O’Connor with a cover of a song that was originally recorded and released as a single in 1962 and eventually became a hit for Lynn in the US country scene going on to peak at number six on the Billboard Hot Country songs chart. O’Connor has made the cover the lead off single for her third album “Am I Not Your Girl?” so how is this cover?

Honestly it only made me want to go back and hear Loretta Lynn’s version because my god why is Sinead O’Connor singing so bloody soft over orchestral arrangement, at least with the original I understood what Lynn is singing about but with the cover, I had to literally strain to understand what O’Connor is singing here especially as the song is reflecting on how success outside of the home is making life at home an absolute failure. I’m passing on this one but go back and hear the Loretta Lynn original…really good.



36. “White Men Can’t Jump” by Riff

Alright so here we have a song for a comedy film of the same name as the song from R’n’B group Riff and honestly, I’m fairly indifferent to this, it’s got a solid and pretty memorable groove and the production really is what makes the song work here but again it’s the vocals, the vocal delivery here is pretty darn forgettable until the rap verse kicks in, you can almost listen to the music and forget that any lyrics come attached with the song! I don’t hate this but I certainly don’t love it either.



35. “Digging in the Dirt” by Peter Gabriel

So not going to lie here, I don’t mind Peter Gabriel’s music, the guy has a solid knack for some solid hooks and memorable melodies so with “Digging in the Dirt’ being the lead single for his sixth album called “Us” I was curious to see what Gabriel would come up with and well…this is a pretty interesting art rock track where Gabriel explores his darker instincts and emotions, finding out what makes a person act the way they do and peeling back the layers within yourself, it’s a definitely a fascinating song that’s kind of grounded in a guitar that could have probably afforded to be more distorted but hey it’s not bad.

However, it’s only getting the honourable mention this week because best goes to “Who Is It” by Michael Jackson…I just love the production a little more on “Who Is It”

As for the worst? Ughh, I am giving to Southern Sons for “Lead Me to Water’…that song just didn’t do anything for me. Sinead O’Connor nets dishonourable mention for the cover of ‘Success has Made a Failure of Our Home” because its got absolutely nothing on the original which is a great song.

ARIA Singles Top 50 Top Ten/Chart Review. 20th September. Its not A OK so Meet Me At Our Spot with your Family Ties

 Ahh after two straight weeks of album bombs...we get a relative cool down week where most of the Drake nonsense left and A LOT flooded in to replace it. I'm glad for this cool down week before Lil Nas X rides in to bomb the chart next week.

Anyway let's dive straight into the top ten where of course there was no change at the top with "Stay" by The Kid Laroi at number one for a tenth week, its still got strong margins on streaming but there could be a challenger afoot.

That challenge won't come from "Bad Habits" by Ed Sheeran which rebounded two places to number four this week. sales will help it keep its place on the chart but rise no further.

The same goes for "Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)" by Elton John and Dua Lipa which does have some streaming strength and is a pretty dominant force on streaming, it might make a play for number one should "Stay" falter.

Rebounding six places to number four is "Heat Waves" by Glass Animals because it's got traction on streaming again...just lovely...not.

Then we have a new entry at number five and this one kind of surprised me, it's Ed Sheeran's second song in the top five this week, "Shivers"...now I will talk about the song's quality later but it's here on decent sales and rising streaming. 

Then there's "Industry Baby" by Lil Nas X feat. Jack Harlow which climbed five places to number six. I expect this song to make a play for number one when we get that "Montero" album bomb next week. 

Drake's "Girls Want Girls" feat Lil Baby plummets five places to number seven...this is not going to hang around hopefully.

"Good 4 U" by Olivia Rodrigo' rebounded seven places to number eight, this song is fading slowly on both sales and streaming, its about ready to leave.

Down six to number nine is "Fair Trade' by Drake feat. Travis Scott because like "Girls Want Girls", hype behind "Ceritified Lover Boy" faded.

Finally also leaping seven places on the rebound is 'Beggin" by Maneskin to number ten. 

Gains

Mostly everything that's not Drake or Kanye gained this week so we'll start with "Happier than Ever"
 by Billie Eilish up nine spots to 11 while "Kiss Me More" by Doja Cat feat SZA rebounds 7 to 14 while "Need to Know" also by Doja Cat jumped seven to 15 and "Woman" jumped thirteen to reach a new peak of 17 (I just wish the song was better). 

"Levitating" by Dua Lipa leaped nine places to 16. "Montero (Call Me by Your Name)" by Lil Nas X got a whopping thirteen place rebound to 19 (Look for this to return to the top ten next week). 

"Dreams" by Jolyon Petch returned to the top twenty up fourteen to 20 while "Save Your Tears" by The Weeknd climbed sixteen places to 21 and '2055" by Sleepy Hallow up thirteen to 22. "Without You" by The Kid Laroi climbed 19 places to 23. 

"Visiting Hours" by Ed Sheeran recovered seven places to 24. Clinton Kane's "I Guess I'm in Love" climbed seventeen places to to hit a new peak of 25 while 'Missing Piece" by Vance Joy rebounded nineteen places to 26. 

"Little Bit of Love" by Tom Grennan got some love to leap seventeen places to 32 while "Take My Breath" by The Weeknd jumped fourteen to 33. "Traitor" by Olivia Rodrigo rebounded thirteen places to 37 while "Drivers License" also by Olivia Rodrigo climbed seven places to 41.

Re Entries

It's an insane week for re entries, there's about thirteen of them. "Mood" by 24kGoldn feat. Iann Dior is back at number 50, "I Wanna Be Your Slave" by Maneskin returns at 48. "The Business" by Tiesto gets a second life on the chart at 46.

Unfortunately "One too Many" by Keith Urban and Pink came back at 45. "Blinding Lights" by The Weeknd rebounds back into the top 50 at number 43 while a Tik Tok meme saw the return of Sam Smith's 2014 single "Like I Can" at number 42.

Shouse's "Love Tonight" came back at number 40 while "Dreams" by Fleetwood Mac glides back in at 39 and "Friday" by Riton and Nightcrawlers feat. Mufasa and Hyperman in at 38

Then there's "Astronaut in the Ocean" by Masked Wolf" returns at 36 while "Peaches" by Justin Bieber feat. Daniel Caesar and Giveon back at 35.

"Leave Before You Love Me" back at 34 for Marshmello and the Jonas Brothers while finally "Get into it (Yuh)" by Doja Cat is back at 30. 

Losers

All of the losers are from either the Kanye or Drake album bombs so let's begin with the Kanye songs still on the chart: "Moon" down six to 49, "Off the Grid" feat. Fivio Foreign and Playboi Carti down 21 to 47 and "Hurricane" feat. Lil Baby and The Weeknd down three to 12.

Now for the Drake songs that fell but didn't fall off the chart: I already mentioned the losses for both "Girls Want Girls" and "Fair Trade" but "Way 2 Sexy" feat. Future and Young Thug fell six to 13, "Knife Talk" feat. 21 Savage and Project Pat down five to 18 and Champagne Poetry fell 23 places to 29.

Drop Outs 

No real notable drop outs here with the rest of  Drake's album bomb not already mentioned in the losers or top ten leaving but apart from that both ABBA's songs 'I Still Have Faith in You" and "Don't Shut Me Down" unfortunately also exited along with "Jail" by Kanye West feat. Jay Z.

New Entries

Five new entries this week, let's start with ..

44. "Family Ties' by Baby Keem feat. Kendrick Lamar

So of the new entries this week, two of these have already broken through on the US Hot 100 with this song being he better of the two with brassy production before Baby Keem's opening verse where he raps about Kendrick Lamar (his cousin) partnered with him, previously having worked with Kendrick's label TDE but didn't garner success until the pretty awful "Orange Soda' broke through in the USA in 2020.

Then Kendrick comes in and completely dominates in a completely braggadocious manner as only he can do where he insists on people no addressing unless it's with the acronym G.O.A.T and then gives an update on where he has been because it's pretty well documented that Kendrick has been incredibly quiet during the BLM protests last year, he even references Kanye's born again Christianity while nothing has changed for him. Kendrick just makes this song work because let's be real, Kendrick is who people are listening to this song for.

31. "Higher" by Bella Taylor Smith.

So full confession, I have not paid a shred of attention to The Voice Australia...the show hasn't really created any stars unlike what Australian Idol did for the first couple of seasons so imagine my surprise when going through the chart this week when the winner of the contest showed up on the singles chart this week. Bella Taylor Smith hails from Sydney and won the contest following her rather impressive performance of Andrea Boccelli's "The Prayer" so how is her debut single?

It's fine. Look, it's your standard let's climb every mountain together ballad that's been released time and again from reality TV shows but Bella's voice really does shine through here...the production works just enough to make space for her. in the mix and it's got enough swell to kind of work even if the lyrics are your standard cliches. Yeah you know...it's not bad...check this out.

28. "A OK" by Tai Verdes

So here's the other song only less good that hit the Hot 100 recently coming from American newcomer Tai Verdes who got big on TikTok somehow thanks to a song called "Stuck in the Middle" but "A OK" is the song that broke him on the charts and dear god, this song is AWFUL, for one thing the guitar and the overtly polished smarmy attitude from Verdes because he has a fucking acoustic guitar in his arms that makes me understand why the genre of guys with acoustic guitars has a pretty terrible reputation and then there's the lyrics that fall somewhere between Jason Mraz levels of gross and AJR being repulsively twee eg: "Hey little lady, I know your feeling crazy (woo!) All your other friends making babies (ew)" and inserting a lame cheerleader rhyme into the verse. Throw the smug overtly cheery delivery on the chorus and this song sinks to being worse than its older version from last year... "Sunday Best" by Surfaces, in other words if this becomes a hit, it's a definite contender for my worst list...NEXT!

27. "Meet Me at Our Spot" by The Anxiety

So Willow Smith has formed a new duo with her boyfriend Tyler Cole who also happens to be a musician called "The Anxiety with this being the first song from their debut album to hit the ARIA singles chart and look, I actually think there's a bit to like here...the drum groove is solid and Willow fits this song perfectly about meeting somebody for ice cream etc but Tyler wasn't the best choice to open the song, he sounds grating as hell here. Overall, I don't mind it but it could have been better. Just saying.

5. "Shivers" by Ed Sheeran.

What the fuck is Ed Sheeran's label doing? They've got "Visiting Hours" a truly excellent song that deserves to be a hit yet they decide to drop "Bad Habits" part 2 because this sounds so similar to "Bad Habits" its not funny and feels less like a song that Ed Sheeran is comfortable in but one that his label wanted him to make. rather than the heartfelt material Sheeran is good at making, there's something so cold and calculated about this song where its forcing Ed to do his own impression of The Weeknd's synthwave synthpop flourishes yet it just doesn't work here. Sorry but I just am not digging this.

That's the end of the week and the worst of the week fell out easily with that going to "A OK" by Tai Verdes...the first song this year to really completely piss me off. 

As for the best of the week...well that's harder but I'm going to give it to "Higher" by Bella Taylor Smith...I just kind of like it a little more than "Family Ties"

Next week...Lil Nas X album bomb so brace for that when the chart updates on Friday at 5pm