Lookin' Fine '89. 19th March: Love Train Got A Hold Of My Prayer Chained To The Wheel

Ahh remember when I said last week that there was going to be a disruption to the top ten...well that disruption happened and it looks like being the most significant challenge our number one has faced for awhile so let's get right into it because for another week, "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)" by The Prcolaimers spends another week at number one, it's still mostly pretty strong but it's going to need to be to withstand the challenger coming in the next few weeks.

That challenger is not going to be "Tucker's Daughter" by Ian Moss as it's starting to show signs of weakness and is coming under severe pressure from stronger songs below it. 

This brings us to our highest new entry of the week and the most likely challenger to our current number one "Like A Prayer" by Madonna, we'll talk about the song's quality later but it's here thanks to good sales that will only get better with the controversy around the music video. 

"She Drives Me Crazy" by Fine Young Cannibals rose one spot to number four this week, it's momentum has kind of stalled a bit but all this was enough to push both "You Got It" by Roy Orbison back to number five and "Teardrops" by Womack & Womack back to number six.

Now I'm happy to see a new arrival in the top ten with "The Living Years" by Mike + the Mechanics rising five places to number seven this week! Awesome stuff.

It pushed the naturally fading "Kokomo" back one place to number eight for the Beach Boys. The sooner this song is gone the better.

Also rising into the top ten this week (the top ten actually almost awesome!) is "Soukl Revival" by Johnny Diesel and the Injectors which climbed two spots to number nine.

Finally falling two places os "Kiss" by The Art of Noise feat. Tom Jones to number ten.

Gains

Wll the gains outside the top ten are an interesting and kind of mixed in terms of quality bunch because on the one hand you have "Belfast Child" by Simple Minds rising ten places to number 12, "End of the Line" by Traveling Wilburys rising five places to number 13 and "You'll Never Know" by 1927 leaping up twelve places to 15 but on the other you have "I'm On My Way" by The Proclaimers rising tweny slots to 16. "Stop!" by Sam Brown up seven to 21 and more infuriatingly, "Your Mama Don'y Dance" by Poison up from 42 to 29 this week.

Losers

Pleased to see "I Want Your Love" by Transvision Vamp down ten places to 47...that song has just gotten painful to listen to in recent months. 

Not a good week for Robert Palmer as "Early in the Morning" slimped twelve places to 46 and "She Makes My Day" down from 14 to 27. 

On the way out is "Every Rose Has It's Thorn" by Poison because that plunged eleven spots to 43 while "Copperhead Road" by Steve Earle dropped from 35 to 41.

'Bring Me Some Water" by Melissa Etheridge slipped five places to 38 and "Love Bites" by Def Leppard copped a six place hit to 36. There was a nine place fall for New Order with "Fine Time"...a song that seems to be fizzling out.

Former top ten hits also took falls this week with "Especially for You" by Kylie Mimogue and Jason Donovan slipping from 17 to 30. "Handle With Care" by The Traveling Wilburys taking a hard hit down from number nine to 25 (ouch!) , "Rock And Roll Music" by Mental As Anything slipped six places to 19 and "Orinoco Flow" by Enya fell five to number eleven ending it's way too god damn long tenure at number six (I was beginning to think the flow had rented the number six slot).

New Entries

Four new entries this week beginning with...

39. "Love Train" by Holly Johnson

So this song comes from English singer Holly Johnson and comes from his debut album "Blast" so how's the song? It's a pretty enetgetic, bouncy pop song that really does soak in a lot of the late 80s pop music tropes and even if the lyrics are pretty cliche, this is still a lot of fun. Holly sounds really damn good and that guitar solo works well for what it is even if it doesn't really fit with the rest of the song...I liked this more than I expected. Check it out

37. "Chained to the Wheel" by The Black Sorrows.

About time we got a new single from The Black Sorrows with this being the third single from their fifth studiio album "Hold On To Me" and what's even better is that this song is AWESOME. Joe Camilleri trades verses with Vika and Linda Bull before the songs bursts into a hook that is just a massive sing a long about doing it tough and knowing what you want enough to make ends meet and feed the family and oh that guitar riff is fucking iconic. Great song!

34. "Something's Got a Hold of My Heart" by Marc Almond feat. Gene Pitney

And now for your regularly scheduled charting cover song this week coming from English singer-writer Marc Almond who recorded a version of "Something's Got a Hold of My Heart" alongside Gene Pitney, the man who recorded the song in 1967 and sadly this song really doesn't do much for me especially as the vocals feel somewhat buried in the orchestral priduction and the song feels like it should be apart of a musical theatre production...yeah no, this one kind of bored me...not completely bad but it's not a song I'll go back to. 

3. "Like a Prayer" by Madonna

Well, here we have the lead single from Madonna for her album "Like A Prayer" and let's just skip past the video controversy because we know Madonna's team is fantastic at whipping up controversys for those who get their knickers too easily into a twist, let's get right to the music because "Like A Prayer" is a damn fantastic pop song with how airy and open the song is with a gospel choir adding an incredible element to the end of the song on the hook as Madonna sings about this young girl who is so in love with God or the idea of a God to the point where she believes this God to be the pre eminent male figure in her life this the relationship between this girl and God.-Now while I am agnostic, I do understand what Madonna is trying to do with this song and it winds up being pretty damn great. Check it out.

And that ends a great week to the point where I'm not having a worst of the week this week but giving a tie for the best of the week between "Like a Prayer" by Madonna and "Chained to The Wheel" by The Black Sorrows.

ARIA Top 50 Top Ten/Chart Review: 14th March. Bam Bam is Freaky Deaky in MIddle Of The Night

 So this week might just be the busiest for awhile, we got a slew of new rntries to the chart and some big moves but all of that happened outside our top ten...sigh...let's deal with the incredibly uniteresting top ten because still at number one is "Heatwaves" by Glass Animals thanks to streaming which is the only thing holding this song up right now.

The exact same can be said for "Stay" by The Kid Laroi feat. Justin Bieber which remained at number two, it's continuing to refuse to go away on streaming unfortunately.

Rebounding one place to number three is "Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)" by Elton John and Dua Lipa which has sales and streaming plus some Youtube because of course it did...I am so tired of this song.

It pushed past "Bad Habits" by Ed Sheeran which slipped to number four because it's not got any sales but it does have streaming and a little Youtube but that's about it.

Steady at number five is "abcdefu" by Gayle with whatecver streaming it has left, it's still good on sales. Also steady is "Where Are You Now" by Lost Frequenicies feat. Calum Scott at number six mostly because it seems like while sales are doing well, its stalled on streaming and Youtube isn't giving the song much assistance.

Ed Sheeran's second song in the top ten, "Shivers" mioved up one place to number seven thanks to a streaming push which is odd but it did push back "We Don't Talk About Bruno" by The Cast of Encanto back to number eight (nobody talks about how increasingly annoying this song has become) mostly because the big push for it on streaming hasn't come and I get the feeling people are moving on from Encanto as it is. 

"Industry Baby" by Lil Nas X feat. Jack Harlow moved up one place to number nine but that might be because "That's What I Want" by Lil Nas X lost hard this week on streaming and as a result slipped to number ten.

Gains

There's not a lot in the way of gains here but "Numb Little Bug" by Em Beihold rose three places to number 33 while "Light Switch" by Charlie Puth rebounded five places to number 34 but that's about it.

Losers

Well because we got quite a lot of new entries this week, there were plenty of losers with the biggest being "Pushin' P" by Gunna and Future feat. Young Thug, "Missing Piece" by Vance Joy slumped eleven places to 41. 

"The Family Madrigal" by The Cast of Encanto fell nine places to 50 while "Happier Thna Ever" by Billie Eilish tumbled eight to 45, "Dreams" by Fleetwood Mac slipped six to 44 and most sadly, "Edamame" by bbno$ fell nine to 43.

"One Right Now" by Post Malone and The Weeknd slid seven places to 42 while "To The Moon" by Jnr Choi slipped seven to 39.

The underwhelming "Say Nothing" by Flume feat. MAY-A collapsed nine places to 37 while "She's All I Wanna Be" by Tate McRae slumped nine to 32.

Drop Outs

So the big ones this week are "Drivers License" by Olivia Rodrigo, "Need to Know" by Doja Cat (good) and "On My Knees" by Rufus Du Sol

Also gone are the short lived "Oh My God" by Adele and "The Joker and The Queen" by Ed Sheeran feat Taylor Swift.

Taking their exits as well are "We Run The Night" by Havana Brown and "All For Us" by Labrinth and Zendaya

New Entries

So after a heap of slow weeks to start the year, we have SEVEN new entries, let's start with..

48. "Infinity" by Jaymes Young

So we're starting with this first timer...an American singer/songwriter who has toured with Vance Joy with this song being his first to hit the ARIA singles chart and well, it's not all that good apart from the vocal production sounding like complete ass, Jaymes Young sounding like he cannot pronounce the word 'infinity' to save himself and the song is the done to death cliche of loving another person forever over this hollow sounding beat...yeah I ain't a fan of this...NEXT!

35. "Starlight" by Dave

Okay so next up is UK rapper Dave, this being his latest single that debuted at number one in the UK and I got to be honest here but I'm not feeling this at all especially that sample which sounds closer to a cat yowling in the middle of the night and when the content is mostly bragging about women and his lifestyle in London...yeah I think I'll move on because I don't see this sticking around.

31. "Middle of the Night" by Elley Duhey

Okay so this is something of a surprise, you might remember Elley Duhey for her 2017 song "Happy Now" that she recorded with Zedd and was a pretty good song that peaked at number 27 in Australia, well in 2022, she's returned on her own with a new single and well, I'll give the song credit as it really does sound like it's in the middle of the night and there's enough atmosphere to make the song sound kind of spooky even if I don't think it works well with Elley Duhey's voice which is very similar to that of Ellie Goulding either way it's probably well worth checking out. 

29. "Freaky Deaky" by Tyga and Doja Cat

Did anyone really want this? Well they did given it  wound up on the charts this week so we've got Tyga and Doja Cat together here and for one thing, Doja Cat actually works well on the song and probably should have been her song alone because she works nicely over that guitar although I do have to ask why they included the snaps overt the latter part of Doja's hook but it's some of the cringeworthy bars from Tuga "Body like December, ass like summer time" and "Let me slide it in, Wayne Gretzky"...geezus. It's not completely cringe but this could have been a really great Doja Cat song...as it is? It's okay but it's not anything I'll come back to.

27. "Following The Sun" by SUPER-Hi feat. Neeka

Alright so this is a song that was released in 2020b and up until now has only charted in Germany, Austria and New Zealand so now that it looks like being a hit in Australia, how is the song? You know, I actually think this is pretty good! It's a warm summer song with guitars that are bright and really feel warm with Neeka bringing a somewhat blissed out summer tone with her vocals. It's definitely a song to get lost in the hear of summer too and as a result, I actually like this more than I thought I would. Check it out it.

21. "I'm Tired" by Labrinth and Zendaya

Our second song connected with the TV show "Euphoria" in as many weeks so I am hoping this one is better than last week's effort...welll sadly this song kind of falls into the oppsite end of the spectrum of being a slow somewhat limp ballad that really isn't all that interesting and doesn't match any of the teenage angst of the actual show not to mention, I am not convinced that Labrinth and Zendaya have all that much chemistry on the song so yeah I ain't feeling this one

19. "Bam Bam" by Camila Cabello feat. Ed Sheeran

I was pretty disappointed that "Don't Go Yet" wasn't a hit in 2021, it was one of Camila's better songs since "Havana" and kind of deserved to be absolutely huge but regardless here's the latest single from "Familia" bringing along a feature from Ed Sheeran for added appeal (even if I think Ed Sheeran's appeal is waning a bit right now) and well, it turns out that this song is really good! It's got a really solid latin pop flavour that's consistent through out the song and finally Camila's got some production that supports her more limited delivery to the poujt she really sounds good here. The song may allude to her relationship break up with fellow singer Shawn Mendes but regardless I enjoyed this song a lot even if Ed does feel kind of superfluous on the song. 

"Bam Bam"  is also the best of the week with honourable mention going to "Following the Sun" by SUPER-Hi feat. Neeka.

As for the worst, well that falls out easily with "Infinity" by James Young getting that with dishnourable mention going to "I'm Tired" by Labrinth and Zendaya.

Next week..should see that collab between Megan Thee Stallion and Dua Lipa enter along with good knows what else when the chart updates at 5pm AEDST on Friday.

Lookin' Fine '89. 12th March. Waiting For A Voice Of Reason for Your Mama

 Another busy week here with some wild turn over so let's get right into it with the top ten where as has been the morm for the past couple of weeks, "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) by The Proclaimers keeps hold of the number one and really for the moment, it seems like its safe where it is and I say for the moment because there's a new Madonna release coming that's likely to shake up the top of the charts a bit.

It kept "Tucker's Daughter" by Ian Moss at number two as it couldn't bridge the margins, nor could "You Got It" by Roy Orbison at number three or "Teardrops" by Womack & Womack stuck at number four.

Continuing it's push up the charts is the insanely catchy "She Drives Me Crazy" by Fine Young Cannibals up two places to number five. Looks an ermerging challenger for the number one.

Enya's "Orrinoco Flow" has been stuck at number six for the past couple of weeks and continues to stay there like a god damn beached whale.

Regardless of the blockage, it caused "Kokomo" by The Beach Boys to slip two places to number seven.

"Kiss" by The Art of Noise feat. Tom JOnes rose one place to number eight while returning to the top ten is "Handle With Care" by The Traveling Wilburys up five places to number nine!

Finally wrapping up the top ten is "If I Could" by 1927 which remains stalled at number ten.

Gains

"The Living Years" by Mike + The Mechanics got massive boost this week up from 45 to number 12. I expect this song to be absolutely huge.

In more good news, "One Summer" by Daryl Braithwaite climbed from 38 to 15 this week which is really nice to see as that song still bangs.

What I am not thrilled about is "What I Am" by Edie Brickell & New Bohemians rising from 40 and breaking into the top 20 at 19 or the gain for the utter crap that is "Baby, I Love Your way - Free Bird" by Will to Power which rose four places to 20.

The mediocre "Stop" by Sam Brown climbed nine places to 28 while the decent "The Music Goes Round My Head" by The Saints got a ten place boost to 39

Losers

All the big moves down are mostly at the lower end of the chatrt with "Don't Worry Be Happy" by Bobby McFerrin down eight to 49 and "The Only Way is Up" by Yazz and The Plastic Popilation slipping ten places to 46.

Collapsing is "Orange Crush" by R.E.M which is utterly dying now down from 29 to 44 while "Put a Little Love in Your Heart" by Annie Lennox & Al Green down from 28 to 43.

"Armaggedon It" by Def Leppard lost all it's gains last week to slip from 34 to 41. "I Want Your Love" by Trabsvision Vamp slimped twelve places to 37 while "Copperhead Road" by Steve Earle fell nine places to 35

"You'll Never Know" by 1927 fell eight to 27  while "Real Gone Kid" by Deacon Blue slumped down from 18 to 23/

New Entries

50. 'Voice of Reason" by Noiseworks

So we're starting with the group led by New Zealand based frontman Jon Stevens with this particular song being the second single from their second studio album "Touch", now I have to be honest and say that I'm really not feeling the guitar tone or the production here mostly because Stevens vocals sound like they are buried in the mix behind the guitars which is kind of an asinine decision considering the song is about insane situations and the need for somebody to act as a voice of reason in that situation so this ain't doing it for me...next!

42. "Your Mama Don't Dance" by Poison

And just like that we have your regularly scheduled cover song, this time it's Poison covering Loggins and Messina's 1972 hit "Your Mama Don't Dance" for their album called "Open Up and Say...Ahh" and right from the get go I have to ask who was asking for this? It's just more proof really that this brand of hair metal is sounding well and truly washed out because this is really kind of chintzy and naff especially as there's no cheeky edge that sells the song from Poison. The best I can say about this is at least they kept the catchiness of the hook but that's it...I'm skipping this.

40. "Waiting For a Star to Fall"  by Boy Meets Girl

So this is a single from American pop duo Boy Meets Girl which was released in mid 1988 *wgucg rauses the question as to why it took so long for it chart to in Australia tbh) after the song was rejected for Whitney Houston by Arista CEO before Belinda Carlisle recorded it and left it off her 1987 album meaning this song fell to Boy Meets Girl duo Shannon Rubicam and Greg Merrill who pretty much recorded and released this song themselves and you know I am so glad they did because this is just really adorably cute and really catchy pop love song!

I love the vocals with Boy Meets Girl harmonising on the hook and Merrill sounding fantastic on the verses, there's a certain charm that makes the song work and sound big without being overwhelming. All up it made me smile, check it out

36. "I'm On My Way" by The Proclaimers

Well I figurred we'd be getting follow up to the current number one soon enough from The Proclaimers and "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)" is a good song so I was curious to see how The Proclaimers would follow it up and well...I'm not sure I like this as much mostly because that vocal delivery kind of drives me insane, it's the sort of nasal delivery that doesn't work for me at all and even if I do like how jaunty the song sounds overall and get what the song is trying to do...just that one element just takes me out of the song, it's not precisely bad but it's not anything I'd go back to in a hurry

31/ "It's Only Love" by Simply Red

So I have a mixed relationship with Simply Red, I think they've released some really damn good songs however they've also released some mediocre to forgettable mush and unfortunately this song, taken from the album "A New Flame" and is a cover of a 1978 Barry White song called "It's Only Love Doing It's Thing", falls into the latter category of being kind of forgettable, sure Mick Hucknall sounds love struck and blissed out but dear god, the instrumentation does not much the blissed out, love struck/sexy vibe that the song is going for here, Simply Red can do better.

However it's not the worst of the week because that's going to Poison's pretty terrible cover of "Your Mama Don't Dance", Best of the week is going to Boy Meets Girl for "Waiting for A Star to Fall".

                                                                                                                                                                       

ARIA Top 50 Top Ten/Chart Review: 7th March. Adding Youtube All For Us

 So the big story this week really isn't on the chart but a change that has been long in coming with ARIA announcing this week that they are finally going to be factoring in Youtube when they put together the weekly charts with that change beginning this week so I was kind of curious to see if the change would shake up our very stale top ten...and really, it kind of did but only ensured that we have another new/old number one in the form of "Hrat Waves" by Glass Animals a year after it first went to number one and it got there thanks to streaming.

However right behind it is "Stay" by The Kid Laroi and Justin Bieber which returned to number two on the back of both streaming and some Youtube.

The big surprise this week was the continued resurgence for "Bad Habits" by Ed Sheeran as it rose two places to number three. I guess that rock version with Bring Me The Horizion is holding up nicely for him.

All of this sent "Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)" by Elton John and Dua Lipa down three to number four as it had a rough week on sales and streaming but Youtube kept it stable enough so it didn't freefall. 

It also pushed "abcdefu" by GAYLE down one despite it being a sales leader, those streams or Youtube aren't holding up.

Staying steady at number six is "Where Are You Now" by Lost Frequencies and Calum Scott which has sales, steady streaming but Youtube isn't quite on board with this yet.

The Youtube leader lies at number seven with "We Don't Talk About Bruno" by The Cast of Encanto, I say this because while it's got sales still, it's falling back on streaming so ARIA adding Youtube this week came at the right time for it.

All of this pushed "Shivers" by Ed Sheeran back to number eight because it's showing signs of weakness all over.

Which might well be good news for the future for "That's What I Want" by Little Nas X which remained steady at number nine, it's still growing on streaming but needs sales and Youtube to get on board.

Also holding steady is "Industry Baby" by Lil Nas X feat. Jack Harlow at number ten and is pretty much now just waiting to be unseated.

Gains

Much to my surprise there was a six place gain for "Save Your Tears" by The Weeknd back up to 15 somehow while "Blinding Lights" also by The Weeknd climbed ten places to number 33

Breaking into the top 20 is a song from the soundtrack of "Encanto" with "Surface Pressure" by Jessica Darrow up four to 19.

One of the biggest gains of the week belonged to Jack Harlow with "Nail Tech" up fourteen places off it's debut last week to 22...I can see this becoming a hit.

The other debutant from last week "Numb Little Bug" by Em Beihold climbed twelve places to 36

Losers

Most of our big losers come lower down the chart with "The Joker and The Queen" by Ed Sheeran feat. Taylor Swift the biggest loser of the week plunging twenty places to number 40.

"The Family Madrigal" by The Cast of Encanto slipped six to 41 while "Light Switch" by Charlie Puth slumped six places to 39.

"On My Knees" by Rufus Du Sol slipped seven places to 46

Drop Out

Just the one drop out this week with "Lose Yourself" by Eminem leaving as expected.

New Entries

Just the one new entry this week so let's dive into...

49. "All For Us" by Labrinth feat Zendaya

 Well it's been awhile since Labrinth has seen the inside of the the top 50 on the Australian chart, last time this British singer songwriter was on the charts was in 2015 when "Jealous" peaked at number 18 so up until now it's been a quiet stretch for him as far as chart success goes. Well it turns out this song is from the soundtrack for hit TV series "Euphoria" and I expect more songs from it to chart so what's this like...I'm sorry I'm not a fan as this feels so overproduced that it actively distracts from Labrinth and Zendaya's talents as singers especially those synths, it almost feels like you need to hope that both shout the lyrics in order for you to hear them especially as the synths are almost way too loud so yeah I hope there is better from the Euphoria sound track coming because this ain't it.

That's a wrap for this week...next week potentially...more Euphoria songs, Camila Cabello's collab with Ed Sheeran and 5 Seconds of Summer but we'll have to see when the chart updates at 5pm AEDST

Lookin' Fine '89. 5th March. What I Am in The Living Years

So this week was a busy one especially in the top ten which is absolute chaos so let's get through all of that nonsense beginning with one of the few calm things this week.. "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)" by The Proclaimers spending another week at number one and right now its sitting pretty comfortable.

Although moving up three places to number two is "Tucker's Daughter" by Ian Moss! Now I was not expecting this but it's got some nice sales traction with it, it dragged "You Got It" by Roy Orbison up one spot to number three. I am pretty happy about that.

It pushed "Teardrops" by Womack & Womack back two places to number four and likewise for "Kokomo" by The Beach Boys back to number five. 

Staying where it is like the boring piece of annoyance it is is "Orinoco Flow" by Enya at number six. 

Now here's where the chaos hits because rising from 21 to number seven is "She Drives Me Crazy" by Fune Young Cannibals, I expected this to be a hit but I didn't expect it to move up this quick. Might need to keep an eye on it as a player for the top spot soon.

Then there's the sudden and pretty surprising two place resurgence for "Rock and Roll Music" by Mental As Anything up two to number eight on the back of sales.

All this meant "Kiss" by The Art of Noise feat. Tom Jones fell one spot to number nine and "If I Could" by 1927 stumbled three places to complete the top ten at number ten.

Gains

So I already mentioned "She Drives Me Crazy" by Fine Young Cannibals leaping into the top ten but the news is still pretty good outside of the top ten with "End of The Line" by The Traveling Wildburys leaping twenty places to 16!

"You'll Never Know" by by 1927 jumped eight places to break into the top twenty at 19 however it unfortunately brought the awful "Where Did I Go Wrong" by UB40 up eleven to 20...geezus.

"Armaggeddon It" by Def Leppard climbed from 41 to 34 somehow.

Re-Entries

Two 1988 hits returned with "Don't Worry, Be Happy" by Bobby McFerrin back at 41 and "Groovy Kind of Love" by Phil Collins in at 47

Losers

So let's do what we normally and begin at the bottom of the chart because "Nobody's Perfect" by Mike + The Mechanics slipped fifteen places to 50 this week...thank goodness...more on Mike + The Mechanics in the new entries.

"Don't Walk Away" by Toni Childs slipped ten to 43 while "Early in the Morning" by Robert Palmer slipped nine places to 35.

Poison's "Every Rose Has It's Thorn" slipped eight to 32 while "Don't Need Love" by Johnny Diesel and The Injectors fell seven to 30.

Unfortunately "Orange Crush" by R.E.M lost all of its momentum to tumble from 15 to 29 this week...ouch.  "Put a Little Love in Your Heart" by Annie Lennox and Al Green slipped eleven to 28 while "I Want Yiur Love" by Tranvision Vamp fell from 18 to 25.

Finally down five to 14 is "Handle with Care" by The Traveling Wilburys.

New Entries

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

49. "The Music Goes Round My Head" by The Saints

We're starting this week with a cover of The Easybeats 1967 song "The Music Goes Round My Head", a song written by legendary song writers Harry Vanda and George Young.

Now it's worth pointing out the original probably isn't the best Easybeats song in terms of the production but you can tell that lyrically the song is a catchy one so what The Saints do to improve on it? Well yeah it's definitely a nice upfate on the song opting for somewhat cleaner rock instrumentals over the bubblegum pop sound the Easybeats used. It's still as catchy as hell and worth checking out if you are interested.

45. "The Living Years" by Mike + The Mechanics

Brand new single from Mike + The Mechanics and I got to be honsst given how much I dislike "Nobody's Perfect", I was dreading this one...only to discover this one is excellent? Yeah, I am not kidding here, the production is on point and the choral vocals that back up or more effectively sing the chorus are incredibly powerful especially when you realize that the song is written from the perspective of a son who hasn't had the best relationship with his father and then realizes that he has a stronger connection to his dad than he ever realized only that the moment of realization has come too late, his father has died and all that stuff the son wanted to say to his father, he can't and now regrets not saying what he needed to when his father was alive, it's a sad song with one hell of a powerful message, nice way to get back on track for Mike + The Mechanics after a bad previous single.

44. "Tell That Girl to Shut Up" by Tranvsion Vamp

New single from Transvision Vamp following up the success of "I Want Your Love" and "Baby, I Don't Care" and turns out this song is a cover of Holly and The Italians 1979 original so does the Transvision Vamp improve on the Holly and the Italians version? 

In this case, no...on the original, the guitars are angrier and Holly is delivering the lyrics with a little bite and some intensity but on the Transvision Vamp version, it's just flat, there's no anger or frustration there in wanting this girl to just shut up, there's about as much intensity in this as when my sister wants to break wind..yeah, I am skipping this...time to move on.

40. "What I Am" by Edie Brickell & New Bohemians

Alright, let's see if we can get some quality here, in this case this song comes from Texan alternative rock jam band group Edie Brickell with this song coming from the group's debut album "Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars" and unfortunately, this song is one of those that's trying to say a lot without really conveying much at all and really doesn't resonate with me at all not helped by Edie Brickell's vocal delivery which really does get annoying at points, sure the pruduction is good with the guitars and keyboard sounding nice but man alive I just don't care for this at all. Next.

23. "Belfast Child" by Simple Minds.

We're ending this week's reviews of the new entries on a sombre note courtesy of this new single from Simple Minds which is taken from the EP "Ballad of the Streets" with this song in particular inspired by a traditional Irish folk song called "She Moved Through the Fair" which Simple Minds frontman Jim Kerr heard while watching a memorial service for the 12 people sadly killed after an IRA bombing in Enniskillen during a Remembrance Day service and the images that were shown during that service made Kerr feel ill before in the second part of the song, he tries to connect and relate with the people of Northern Ireland, he doesn't have any answers to the horrible scenes bu like them is asking questions, it's an incredibly haunting song and when the guitars come in...it makes it a moving and really touching song.

And yeah, of course "Belfast Child" is getting best of the week but I'm making it a tie because "The Living Years" by Mike + The Mechanics is also excellent. Two very emotional songs in different ways

As for the worst, yeah, it's going to "Tell That Girl to Shut Up" by Tranvision Vamp because that really was not good at all.

The Top Ten Best Hit Songs of 2002

I thought it might be fun to go back twenty years and look back on the music of 2002, this was the year of the female pop rock boom, suddenly the charts were being flooded with young women picking up guitars or playing piano with a heap more angst and attitude than the popular music scene had been used to in some time meanwhile hip/hop and R'n'B were picking up noticeably more success while rock...ugh, this was a rough year for the genre but I did manage to find some quality there that will appear on this list. 

2002 was also the last year before Australian Idol burst onto the scene in 2003 and created it's own brand of messiness on the charts. but anyway let's get stuck into this however quick reminder of the rules, for a song to make this list, it must have made the year end for 2002 or be a 2001 year end song that peaked higher on the 2002 year end. No abuse as this is my list, I am picking the songs I like from the 100 that made the 2002 year end list...got that? Good...let's goooo....

Number Ten

So as I said R 'n' B had a pretty good year in 2002 with there being plenty to choose from on the year end for 2002 but I certainly won't be picking the sloppily produced "Dilemma" by Nelly and Kelly Rowland or the forgettable "Foolish" by Ashanti but you know the R'n'B love song that did it well in 2002? It was this...

"U Got It Bad" by Usher.

Usher in the early 2000s was one of those R'n'B acts who could pull off the smooth, suave love songs like this one in his sleep and while his 2001 hit "U Remind Me" was decent, "U Got It Bad" is on another level with Usher being o incredibly attracted to this girl that's in the studio where he and others are trying to record Usher's third album but after an argument she left causing those working with Usher at the time booting Usher from the studio due to Usher's apparent attraction to this girl and he does sound like a lovesick puppy on the song. Throw in some great production thanks to Jermaine Dupri and Bryan Michael Cox and we get something smooth and rather sophisticated for an r'n'b love song.

Number Nine

In 2002, the charts took on a latin tinge with Las Ketchup going on to have their big hit "The Ketchup Song (Asjere)" but that wouldn't be all as stars like Enrique Iglesias would impact the charts this year but there was one other Latin star who got her big break this year with this song being the opening salvo from a remarkably successful album...

"Whenever, Wherever" by Shakira.

It's taken me some time and space for me to get past the ridiculousness of the line "Lucky that my breasts are small and humble...so you don't confuse them with mountains" line which nearly tips the song into outright ridiculousness however with that time, I've come to appreciate that "Whenever, Wherever" is genuinely a fantastic pop song that allows Shakira's charisma and personality to shine through something that we didn't see that often in the carefully managed world of 2000s pop starlets like Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera (both had songs on the year but won't making this list) as the production sounds big around her and that guitar intro that opens the song is genuinely one of the best moments in pop music of the year. Also check out "Laundry Service'...an under rated gem of an album.

Number Eight

Here's another such case of me needing time and space to grow up and in that time realize what a masterpiece this particular song is...although if you have heard what he has released in recent years then hearing when he was at his best in 2002 would be a thing to behold and hence...

"Lose Yourself" by Eminem

Eminem had multiple songs make the ARIA singles year end for 2002 but it was "Lose Yourself" the biggest hit of the year taken from the soundtrack of the movie "8 Mile" that was Eminem's best moment of the year, a song with a coursing rock edge thanks to the guitar and Eminem describing those moments just before going on stage where the chorus is this triumphant encouragement from Enimem to just forget the nerves, forget the want to vomit and just lose yourself in the music and the moment because this is the only opportunity you might ever have to nail it in your lifetime. It's Eminem's best single and a reminder of what Eminem is capable of.

Number Seven

The 2000s are full of actresses who would try their hand at making pop music...and I kind of feel like there's one actress who turned pop singer that doesn't get the attention her music probably deserved at the time, well that lack of attention changes today because yeah, it's time to pay attention to Jennifer Love Hewitt..

"Barenaked" by Jennifer Love Hewitt

I must stress that this is not Jennifer Love Hewitt's best song and when I get around to making a best hit songs list for 1999, you'll see why but "Barenaked" still does a lot right, that great piano that does enough to lend support to Jennifer Love Hewitt's voice and makes me believe that she's had that kind of dream where everyone is staring at her as she walks down the street naked with all her insecurities and worries on display for everyone including strangers to see, its an feeling that's she is too tired to hide from anymore.

This song and Jennifer Love Hewitt as a musician are extremely under rated. I might have more to say about Jennifer's music when I get around to covering 1999 but for now this song is a classic and well worth your time.

Number Six

Well she's coming up so let's get this party started, ehh?

"Get The Party Started" by Pink

This is the song that sparked my recent disappointment (see my "Worst Hit Songs of 2021" list) at Pink's ongoing drift into easy listening garbage that radio plays to death because it's ultimately safe but also isn't fun to listen to or suits Pink's personality. "Get the Party Started" was the opening salvo from Pink's second album "Missunderstood" which spawned two year end hits however "Get the Party Started" is just a banger from start to finish, the song was written by 4 Non Blondes frontwoman and well renowned songwriter Linda Perry but Pink owns the song where she's making it all about her arrival at this party and you'd better make sure you are up for the party because she sure as hell is. It's the sort of dance pop that 2002 really did need and Pink provided it. 

Number Five

Here's where the rock music starts showing up, the first of them from a band that were only just starting their run of success...

"In the End" by Linkin Park

While I didn't mind Linkin Park's lead single "One Step Closer", it was the fourth single from "Hybrid Theory" that hit me the hardest with it's lyrics connected to Chester Bennington growing up and how he was bullied as a youth and how in the end his bullies never really made much of an impact on him and now to him it doesn't even matter especially after he tried and could only get so far, What I love here is how Mike Shinoda's rapping on the verses counters nicely with the chorus sung by Chester Bennington because you can feel the frustration that Bennington is feeling.

For me though? This song connects in a lot of god damn ways, most of them too personal for me to want to go into or even reopen some pretty horrible memories that I've kind of kept tucked away and tried to forget even happened and in 2002, this song helped a lot....that's all I'll say.

Number Four

So in 2002, Silverchair released this song as a single and yeah, it was one of the best hit rock songs of the year...

"The Greatest View" by Silverchair

Silverchair, by this point, were becoming a staple on the Australian singles charts to the point that it was a surprise if a song of theirs wasn't on the charts however I will say that of any hit that Silverchair had, that "The Greatest View" is easily the most under rated mostly because that hook is a monster and Daniel Johns sound absolutely awesome here and it's a song that earns that massive hook. I also love how the intro makes it sound like the music is weaving through a maze while the lyrics about a groiup of people have different perceptions of the same problem as they made sure Johns didn't go back into the same mess as before but Johns is aware of what is going and is able to ensure he doesn't fall back himself knowing that people have got eyes on him.

Damn terrific song that when people are revisiting Silverchair's discography doesn't get enough attention and kudos.. Nice work.

Number Three

It honestly feels weird to be talking the start of this artist's career with her new album out right now however I couldn't ignore her debut single...a song I always have loved....

"Complicated" by Avril Lavigne

Yeah, it was this song and not "Sk8er Boi" that made the top ten, I'll get to why when I talk about "Sk8er Boi" a bit later but "Complicated" is the sort of pop rock jam that sold Avril Lavigne to me instantly especially with her attitude (I don't buy she was the anti Britney of the time, I tend to think Avril was filling a gap in the mainstream)" and that music video where Avril and her band are causing charos at a shopping mall but I just love how "Complicated" sounds like a sharper singer/songwriter cut with Avril expressing frustration with how this dude is acting and why he is making every damn thing seem bigger than it really is which I actually kind of get especially in 2002 with everything especially on the internet magnified to be ten times bigger than it really is.

Nine the less, "Complicated" is fantastic and worthy of a place on this list.

Number Two

So in 2002, there was a boom in singer songwriting women and while the world focussed on Avril Lavigne in 2002, there was another young woman making something of her own breakthrough and she is on this list...

"All You Wanted" by Michelle Branch

So while Avril Lavigne was taking up most of the attention, Michelle Branch was carving a name out for herself following the release of her other big 2002 hit "Everywhere" but it was the ballad "All You Wanted" that captivated me with lyrics dealing with somebody that Michelle has looked up to shutting her out despite him wanting somebody to look out and care for them in the same way they did for others and Michelle offering to help them if they want her to with the guitar and drums feeding into that feeling of isolation and yeah just lately this song hits pretty god damn effectively. Great song from "The Spirit Room", an album that really does stand up quite well.

So what beat it for the number one spot? Well before I reveal the number one, here's five honourable mentions...

"Escape" by Enrique Iglesias

Here's a song that plays toward latin that like other songs that actually made the top ten, I needed time to learn to appreciate but this is arguably one of Enrique Iglesias better singles. It's tight and catchy plus Enrique's personality shines. The thing is I like it rather than love it and liking it wasn't enough to get it into the top ten.

"Not Pretty Enough" by Kasey Chambers

Again another case of like rather than love but there's a warm country feel as Kasey Chambers questions whether's she pretty enough for this guy even though she is just as human as he is and has been waiting long enough for love to come her way. Good song.

"Sk8er Boi" by Avril Lavigne 

Yeah I like "Complicated" more than this song. "Sk8er Boi" is still a good song with Avril telling the story of how this girl rejected a skater boy who went on to become big with his rock band and winds up performing on MTV (which does date the song a bit considering MTV's turn toward absolute reality trash over music but that's another discussion point for another day) however the song is still all kinds of kick ass with the raging guitars and Avril slipping between story teller mode and potentially her being this girl that the guy is dating. It's good just not the best song on "Let Go"

"Love At First Sight" by Kylie Minogue

So the last two are the two where the cuts where a bit painful and this song's case was helped by me having a urge to go back and listen to some of Kylie's big hits lately thanks to my love of songs like "Shocked" and "Better The Devil You Know" but "Love at First Sight" might be up there as one of Kylie's defining songs of the 2000s, that hook is truly incredible and that opening line does hit hard, it's a terrific song from a singer that everyone apart from Australia and the UK severely under rated

"Don't Let Me Get Me" by Pink

This so nearly made the list instead of "Get the Party Started" mainly because "Don't Let Me Get Me" was a move toward a more forward thinking pop/rock sound that she would prove to something of a leader of later in the 2000s during the pop/rock boom. "Don't Let Me Get Me" is Pink's moment where she realizes that she herself doesn't want have her personality get swallowed up by her fame and success or be forced to change who she is. Just a damn shame that she's turned to easy listening nonsense when the time is right for her to return to the pop/rock she was so good at.

So with all that done, let's get to the number one...

Number One

So I am well aware that this artist is considered a one hit wonder but I've never really been against putting artists who are deemed one hit wonders high up on my best list when the songs have been deserving and in this case, this is a song that is deserving of the number one slot and given we're in the midst of a 2000s revival, I think it might be time to look at this particular artist again and sooo

"A Thousand Miles" by Vanessa Carlton

In 2002, this was the little piano love drenched song that could from at the time a relative American no name, Vanessa Carlton that comes across as sincere as it's basically pop's answer to The Proclaimers "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)" where Carlton sings about missing a loved one so much so she'd walk a long distance just to be with that person, she is missing and it's a sentiment that I think is really sweet and sincere made all the more so by the strings kicking in on the back half of the song. Yes, I've made jokes abut the ridiculousness of the accompanying music video but I do genuinely love this song and it's only gotten better as time has gone on.

"A Thousand Miles" by Vanessa Carlton the best hit song of 2002.

ARIA Top Fifty Top Ten/Chart Review: 28th February. Little Numb Nail Tech Bug

So this week felt busier than I actually expected mostly thanks to impacts courtesy of the Superbowl and our two new entries most of which struck lower down the chart but anyway let's get stuck into our somewhat stale top ten where "Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)" by Elton John and Dua Lipa retook the number one spot mostly because it's still got some sales and streaming which thankfully meant it kept "Heatwaves" by Glass Animals back as it rebounded back to number two (time for this to be gone...honestly).

It did push "Stay" by The Kid Laroi feat. Justin Bieber back one spot to number three even though streaming is still propping it up a bit.

"abcdefu" by Gayle remains stuck at number four. I don't see this song rising any higher unless there is a major streaming surge for it soon. 

Rising three places off the back of a remix with rock group Bring Me the Horizion is "Bad Habits" by Ed Sheeran at number five, it did enough to push "Where Are You Now" by Lost Frequencies feat. Calum Scott back one spot to number six, "Shivers" by Ed Sheeran to number seven and "We Don't Talk About Bruno" by The Cast of Encanto back to number eight.

The last songs in the top ten come from Lil Nas X wuth "That's What I Want" holding steady at number nine and "Industry Baby" feat. Jack Harlow climbing two places at number ten.

Gains

As I expected "Boyfriend" by Dove Cameron gained 16 places to 15 this week because it looks like this is becoming a thing on the charts but other than that it's pretty damn quiet on the gains front

Re-Entries

Three returns this week with "Drivers License" by Olivia Rodrigo back at number 49 while the Superbowl half time performance caused two of Eminem's biggest hits to return with "Lose Yourself" back at 46 and "Without Me" at 44.

 Losers

Let's go through the songs that lost six places or more this week, there's not that many of them though with "The Joker and The Queen" by Ed Sheeran feat.Taylor Swift slipping nine places to 20 off it's debut last week but that is really about it which kind of says a lot about how slow the charts are right now./

Drop Outs

Now given the Eminem songs will drop out next week, I fully expect some of these might return as New Music Friday was pretty quiet on the singles front yesterday but none the less, we did get some big songs dropping out with "Meet Me At Our Spot" by The Anxiety gone along with "Montero (Call Me By Your Name)" by Lil Nas X and unfortunately "I Hate U" by SZA.

Not a good week for The Weeknd with "Sacrifice" leaving along with "Moth to a Flame" with Swedish House Mafia.

New Entries

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

48. "Numb Little Bug" by Em Beihold

Once again, we are talking Tik Tok virality with this song coming from Los Angeles based singer/songwriter Em Beihold who had released an EP via Republic Records in 2020 but "Numb Little Bug" being the first song of hers that has caught traction and...well, it's for good reason because this song is actually pretty good for what it is which is essentially a jittery song about being on medication to the point where she's just numb to it and general everyday life is getting to her but in spite of how tired of everythng she is, she's still perservering on in the hope that there's something better in the future...boy, given the last couple of years, this song encapsulates a lot of what I have been feeling...definitely a good song, check this out.

36. "Nail Tech" by Jack Harlow     

So here's the first single for Jack Harlow this year...a release I was curious about given how good he was on Lil Nas X's "Industry Baby" and well...it's fine...I guess...you can tell the song has been inspired by "Industry Baby" in the production with that opening where you can tell that Jack Harlow has been taking hints from Lil Nas X and "Industry Baby" but mostly because this song feels like a victory lap with those horns and that percussion while Jack Harlow raps about his guns, lifestyle and cars etc. I don't know/.I don't think this is that bad but it could be better,

No worst of the week this week as I don't think either song is that bad but best of the week is going to "Numb Little Bug" by Em beihold because yeah, that song hits a nerve for me.

Next week...we'll have to see but it looks like being quiet however we'll find out on Friday at 5pm AEDST.