Rating the number ones on my birthday Part 1: 1987 to 1999

So I thought this would be fun to do, I trawled back through to the day I was born which was 16th February 1987 and listed the songs that were at the top of the Australian singles chart the week of my birthday from 1987 to now and because it is so long, I do need to do this in parts so 1987 to 1999 is up first before we hit up 2000 through to 2020. Most of the comments are kept short so this isn't too long.

So let's keep it moving and dig into 1987 first...!

1987: “You keep Me Hangin’ on” by Kim Wilde

The production has aged badly on this one but hey it is still a solid cover of the Supremes song, one of several covers that Kim Wilde has done in her music career. 7/10.

1988: “(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life” by Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes

Another song where the production hasn’t aged well but this one has become a classic thanks to the movie “Dirty Dancing”. I don’t really love it but I don’t hate it either. 6/10

1989: “Teardrops” by Womack and Womack

This year had two number ones on my birthday, mainly because the Australian Music Report and ARIA were both publishing charts at the time but I elected to talk about this one because this is probably the best of the three songs from the 80s, I love the groove and this feels like it hasn’t aged as badly as “You Keep Me Hangin’ On”. 8/10

1990: “Love Shack” by The B-52s

A BONAFIDE PARTY CLASSIC AND I WILL HEAR NO SLANDER OF THIS SONG! Although the female vocals can get a little annoying but damn this song is a party and a half. 9/10

1991: “I’ve Been Thinking about You” by Londonbeat

Oof. Early nineties R ‘n’ B and an early hint of the R ‘n’ B explosion of the mid-nineties, that said “I’ve Been Thinking About You” is the sort of song with groove and spark that most songs today can only dream of and I do love the vocal harmonies 8/10

1992: “Let’s Talk about Sex” Salt-n-Pepa

A song that probably got common use in classrooms as an inroad to sex education with teenagers. Again…this song is a load of fun but sends an important message to have that conversation about the birds and the bees…7/10

1993: “I Will Always Love You” by Whitney Houston

A cover of Dolly Parton’s “I Will Always Love You” that rips away the understated nature of the original to instead come across as incredibly cheesy and overwrought. I know they wanted to show off Whitney’s powerful vocals but come on there was no need to turn a Dolly Parton song into making me want to vomit. 3/10

1994: “Give It Up” by Cut ‘n’ Move

I think I prefer the KC and the Sunshine band original and can somebody answer the phone that’s ringing in the back of the mix on the chorus? Pass. 5/10

1995: “Another Night” by The Real McCoy

Ooh a dance song from the big beat era that is not completely annoying. I like this a lot. Just wish I could understand what the man is singing about, he is a way too low in the mix or trying to impersonate the lead vocalist from Right Said Fred but yeah this song has a groove and energy that is a lot of fun  7/10

1996: “Wonderwall” by Oasis

I honestly always have mixed feelings about this one. Yeah, the Gallagher brothers were dicks around that time, but “Wonderwall” is nigh on a 90s classic. 8/10

1997: “Don’t Speak” by No Doubt

While still good, this wasn’t No Doubt’s best song from the Tragic Kingdom album,” Sunday Morning” was much better but “Don’t Speak” is still a good song and Gwen Stefani proved a really good front woman for the band. 7/10

1998: “My Heart Will Go On” by Celine Dion

This song from the overdramatised James Cameron movie “Titanic” is in the same category as “I Will Always Love You” by Whitney Houston and the fact I heard it at year end school assembly two years running is enough to make me want to never hear this song again while actively vomiting into a toilet. 3/10

1999: “Believe” by Cher

We finally come across a song where the cover done in 2017 by Australian group The DMAs is much better than the original. The production on the original by Cher has not aged well and Cher shrieking “Do you believe in life after love” gets stale damn fast. 4/10