Good 1992 Vibrations. 28th June. We Will Make Love Like a Man in Winter

 Another stupid busy week on hand here and its just not in the top ten, it's all the way down the chart where we somehow managed to get six new songs lower down the chart so let's get stuck into the biggest story where as I predicted Kriss Kross took number one with "Jump", it was just a matter time as it overtook its rivals sales pushing past "Take It From Me" by Girlfriend which got pushed back to number two as it just couldn't go with "Jump" on sales anymore.

Jumping three places to number three is "Save The Best For Last" by Vanessa Williams...deat god...why is this bland piece of nonsense, it pushed back "Clunk (EP)" by Frente one spot to number four along with "That Word (L.O.V.E)" by The Rockmelons feat. Cutty Ranks, Nardo Ranks and Deni Hines down one to five and "To Be With You" by Mr Big down one to number six.

Remaining steady amidst all this chaos is "One In A Million" by Euphoria stuck at number seven but it's facing a challenge from "Too Funky" by George Michael which had the biggest gain of any song on the chart this week up from its debut last week of 50 to number eight. Crazy!

Also rising into the top ten is "Hazard" by Richard Marx which climbed from 17 to number nine this week, guess this is going to be a hit also....

Finally, Radio Freedom was a victim of all the top ten chaos as it tumbled two places to number ten.

Gains

So I already mentioned the enormous gain for "Too Funky" by George Michael and the smaller gain for Richard Marx's "Hazard so what else gained? 

Unfortunately "As Ugly as They Wanna Be" by Ugly Kid Joe climbed seven places to 13 for some inexplicable reason.  In better news, "The One" by Elton John climbed from 30 to 19 this week while "Man Alive" by Diesel jumped from 27 to 21.

"Damn, I Wish I Was Your Lover" by Sophie B. Hawkins climbed seven places to 28 while the bore that is "Beauty and the Beast" by Celine Dion and Peabo Bryson leapt from 46 to 31...I'll blame the movie for this.

"Fathers Day" by Weddings Parties Anything rebounded from 42 to 34 is good news but when it's bringing with it  "Just Take My Heart" by Mr Big with it up from 44 to 38...that's not a good sign.

In better news "Friday, I'm in Love" by The Cure jumped seven places to 41.

Losers. 

Alright, we have quite a few big losers to get through so let's begin with "Kiss Me" by Indecent Obsession finally on the way out as it slipped from 43 to 48.

"Alive" by Pearl Jam is also heading for the exit as it plunged from 31 to 44 this week as did "Tears In Heaven" which took a dip from 37 to 43. "She's got that Vibe" by R. Kelly & Public Announcement is losing that vibe as the vibes faded eight places to 40. 

"Kickin' to the Undersound" by Sound Unlimited Posse was dragged down twelve places to 37...I cannot believe that it's hung around for this long quite honestly. "I Love Your Smile" by Shanice slipped from 28 to 33. 

While former top ten hit "Be My Baby" by Teen Queens slumped nine places to 30 while "Mistadobolina" by Del Tha Funkee Homosapien plunged seven places to 18 and former number one "Under the Bridge" by The Red Hot Chili Peppers took a leap from 9 to 16.

New Entries

Six new entries this week, let's for some inexplicable reason start with...

50. "We Will Rock You" by Warrant

A cover of a fantastic Queen song that didn't really need to happen but because its on the soundtrack for a Cuba Gooding Jr film called "Gladiator", it's now on the ARIA singles chart and it is awful, there's a huge difference between the swagger that Freddie Mercury used to sell the song and give its aggressive pump up vibe meanwhile Warrantt have all the transgressive power in their voices as seven week old kittens still hoping mum cat will still let them have milkbar, it's pretty fucking pathetic and no guitar solo is going to change that. NEXT!

49. "Winter" by Tori Amos

So this song was recorded for Amos album "Little Earthquakes", a piano ballad about a little girl's relationship with her father and the father teaching her everything he knows about life because yeah he isn't going to always be around and he recognising that it's his role as a parent to teach his daughter those lessons before he can't anymore.

Yeah, this gorgeous and Tori Amos voice over a production that brings in orchestra for the final part of the song is really haunting. Check this out because this is great!

46. "Make Love Like a Man" by Def Leppard

I saw the title and instantly had the dread racing through my body. Here's the follow up to "Let's Get Rocked" from Def Leppard, it comes from their album "Adrenalize" and its just a bit of silly hair rock where the band urges man to make love to their girls like men to "make the girls feel better", the song is pretty stupid but I can't deny it's catchy and a lot of fun. The video is also pretty hilarious.

Check it out if you want a laugh, I probably enjoyed the silly double entendres in the video more than I should though.

45. Do It For Me" by Lionel Ritchie. 

And here we have Lionel Ritchie trying to get sexy with the lead single from his album "Back to Front"...even bringing in a saxophone on the intro and then Lionel starts singing and it's more than clear that Lionel is trying to make his own version of Marvin Gaye's "Sexual Healing" for the 90s and dear god it was corny when Captain and Tennille asked their lovers to to do it to them 'one more time' and that chorus is just full of corny cliches that you can tick off. Oh and apart from that amazing saxophone that punctuates the song, the song is as boring as tar and for a sex song that's a problem.

42. "Senza una Donna (Without A Woman" by Zucchero & Paul Young

Okay so bare with me here..."Senza Una Dona" was originally recorded in Italian by Zucchero in 1987 before it was re recorded in English by Paul Young and than was given this elongated title and released as a single and look, it's a song inspired by heartbreak in which the narrator is trying to get through the days following a rough break up and yeah I think both sell the heart break well here even if I think the production could have amplified the loneliness of the song a tad more. It's nothing amazing but I enjoyed this for what it is. 

36. "We Got a Love Thang" by CeCe Peniston

Well, we "Finally" got the follow up single, it's from the album called "Finally" and again, it's CeCe Peniston's charisma that sells this song because that production is pretty standard for 1992 with pianos, bass and drums that seems designated to go off at Fannys nightclub. It's a smooth sultry song where Peniston is singing about this connection she has to her partner and wants to show hm what they have together...It's fine, check it out if you are curious.

That was our week and it turned out a fair bit better than I thought I looked at the chart this week...best is going to "Winter" by Tori Amos...hey if a song can make me cry than it's an easy contender for the best of the week.

As for the worst, it falls out easily because Warrant are getting that for their worthless cover of "We Will Rock You"

ARIA Top 50 Singles Top Ten/ Chart Review. 28th June. Beggin for a Late At Night Holiday with the Angel of 8th Ave

 So this week was interesting to say the least especially as it seems like the "SOUR" album is finally starting recede hard and the new entries are a rather eclectic mix of rock and hip hop so let's rip into the top ten and honestly, the top three didn't change, "Good 4 U" by Olivia Rodrigo remains at number one for the fifth week in a row but next week could see it challenged by Ed Sheeran's new single (pending streaming numbers). 

"Kiss Me More" by Doja Cat feat. SZA remains at number two and while it will get the album boost next week (it was tacked on to the end of "Planet Her" despite sounding completely out of step with the rest of the album) and again streaming numbers are going to be the indication here but I still don't see this song getting to number one.

It still stayed above "Save Your Tears" by The Weeknd which remained steadying thanks to streaming that isn't dying quite yet but its facing a challenge from the rejuvenated "Levitating" by Dua Lipa feat. DaBaby returning to its peak of number four up two spots from last week, this song's run has been quite remarkable even if I get the feeling this week's rise is on the back of the weakness of the songs below it.

It pushed "Body" by Russ Millions and Tion Wayne down one spot to number five, it just doesn't have the streaming traction to stick around, the same goes for "Deja Vu" by Olivia Rodrigo which slipped one spot to number six

Then there's "Heat Waves" by Glass Animals falling back a spot to number seven and "Astronaut in the Ocean" by Masked Wolf doing likewise back to number eight,

"Traitor" by Olivia Rodrigo looks to be falling away as it slipped two places to number nine while finally on the back of a rebound in streaming "Montero (Call Me By Your Name)" by Lil Nas X returned to the top ten climbing one spot to number ten...happy to see it back...Lil Nas X on the charts is a good thing.

Gains

Lots of smaller gains this week, mostly songs just regaining lost ground finally as the "SOUR" album bomb continues to recede although "Favourite Crime' by Olivia Rodrigo did gain a place to 15 this week. 

The biggest gain of the week came for "Little Bit of Love" by Tom Grennan up 16 places to 30 this week! This looks like being a hit...not sure I want that to happen...

On a better note "Leave Before You Love Me" by Marshmello and the Jonas Brothers is up 12 spots to 38...I'd be fine with this becoming a hit. 

Vance Joy's "Missing Piece" continues on it's upward trajectory as it rises six places to 23 (this song is doing really well on streaming. Seems like the Australian music industry has finally figured out that in order to get hits they need to leverage streaming.

Losers

So let's blow through the Olivia Rodrigo tracks that lost this week like "1 Step Forward, 3 Steps Back" which dropped six places to 44, "Enough for You" slipped eight places to 36, "Jealousy, Jealousy" tumbled five to 32 and "Brutal" down four to 25, 

But there were some heavy losses across the board this week starting with "Lost Cause" by Billie Eilish down thirteen to 45, "Need to Know" by Doja down twelve off it's debut last week to 43 (should rebound next week because of the album...unfortunately) while "Solar Power" by Lorde slipped 13 spots to 27 (kind of expected that to be honest.

Down seven places to 50 is "Beautiful Mistakes" by Maroon 5 feat. Megan Thee Stallion...can't we just make "Thot Shit" by Megan a hit? Would be so much better than giving her a hit through featuring on a Maroon 5 song.

"Butter" by BTS also slipped seven places to 31 because basically it's lost most of it's traction on streaming.

Drop Outs

Two long running hits dropped out this week, those being "Streets" by Doja Cat (will return next week) and "Love Songs Ain't for Us" by Amy Shark and Keith Urban, The other two drop outs are kind of expected with "No Return" by Polo G feat. The Kid Laroi and Lil Durk and the first of the "SOUR" album tracks to drop out that being "Hope Ur Ok"

New Entries

Four new entries that are either trap/hip hop or some form of rock so this could be fun, let's start with...

49. "Late At Night" by Roddy Ricch

So I was looking forward to this especially since Roddy Ricch has been showing some impressive signs of being something good going forward after the breakout year he had last year however this ain't it...yeah it sounds like its got the late night vibe and all but it sounds really clunky and Roddy Ricch is doing nothing in his delivery to suggest that there's being any growth. I don't know, it's really not doing anything for me so I think it's best if we moved on...

48. "The Angel of 8th Ave" by Gang of Youths

So this is Gang Of Youths second appearance on the ARIA singles chart, they first reached the singles chart in February 2017 with "Let Me Down Easy" peaking at 49 so how's the new single? Well if you liked that last Killers album, this is right up your alley as this song signals a change up in sound for Gang of Youths, it sounds more heartland rock which I'm fine with and hearing this kind of rock back on the charts is more than welcome even if I think it's not going to last long. It's a song that explores finding love and settling down in a new city...I think this is a pretty great song...check it out.

24. "Holiday" by KSI

You know I'm kind of surprised I haven't dealt with KSI before, a British rapper and Youtube who is better known in the UK than he is in Australia but none the less we have the first song he has charted on the ARIA singles chart and what we get is a pop trap song riding a gentle acoustic guitar groove where KSI is singing about his girl being his holiday...it's an odd song that I'm not sure I love but for what it's worth it's kind of cute? I don't hate it but I certainly not love it...ehh...I guess?

22. "Beggin" by Maneskin.

Okay so we get Italian rock on the charts courtesy of Eurovision winners Maneskin but this is not the song they won the song contest with, this song is a cover of a song by The Four Seasons that was recorded in 1967 and became popular in the English northern soul scene and the original version reached a peak of 16. Maneskin performed their cover on Italy's version of The X Factor before it was added to the band's album "Chosen" in 2017, the song reached a peak of 39 on the Italian charts despite not being released as a single so I can only imagine that the Eurovision win saw a lot of people around the world with a sudden curiosity so how's the song?

Well those vocals take some getting used to it, they don't quite have the punch that would sell a song like this and the instrumentation is a little clunky sounding. I don't know, it's not really all that good but in a week like this one...it's fine I guess.

Wow...what a strange old week..."The Angel of 8th Ave" by Gang of Youths get best of the week and that really isn't a contest. Unfortunately I think worst of the week goes to "Late At Night" by Roddy Ricch mostly because of how disappointing that song is.

Next week is like to see a Tyler the Creator album bomb along with a mini album bomb from Doja Cat. Ed Sheeran also returns with his lead single and that might challenge for number one so we'll have to see when the chart updates at 5pm AEST on Friday.

Good 1992 Vibrations. 21st June. Beauty is too Funky to Just Take My Heart: Beast

 Mercifully we have a slightly quieter week but it was still busy and the race for number one is well and truly on despite the fact "Take It From Me" by Girlfriend held onto number one fo another week, it's not a strong number one by any matter of means, it only barely held onto number one ahead of "Jump" by Kriss Kross which climbed one spot to number two and at this point everything points to "Jump" taking the number one spot as it has the momentum on sales to get there. 

Frente jumped three places to number three with "Clunk (EP)", it's not quite a player for the top spot just yet. 

"That Word (L.O.V.E)" by The Rockmelons feat. Cutty Ranks, Nardo Ranks and Deni Hines rebounded one spot to number four, it's definitely not a player for the top and mostly rebounded due to the fact "To Be With You" by Mr Big took a three place hit to number five as it fades out.

At number six, we have the first three songs arriving in the top ten this week and this is probably the worst of the three with "Save the Best for Last" by Vanessa Williams up from 15 to arrive in the top ten...I mean...really...we're really going to reward bland pop music now...come on...

Anyway, it pushed past "One in a Million" by Euphoria which plummeted three places to number seven as it also heads for the top ten exit.

The second of the new arrivals to the top ten is "I Can Feel it" by Radio Freedom which jumped ten places to number eight! Was not expecting this at all but anyway good to them, the song is catchy.

Also staring at the top ten exit is "Under the Bridge" by Red Hot Chili Peppers as it slipped two places to number nine.

Finally, the third and final new arrival to the top ten is Lisa Edward's cover of "Cry" which jumped from 34 to hit the top ten at  number ten...okay...I can tolerate this...there's a bit to like about it.

Gains

So what else gained outside of the big gains for Vanessa Williams, Radio Freedom and Lisa Edwards? Well...there was a ten place gain to 17 for "Hazard" by Richard Marx because that's a hit in waiting.

Ugly Kid Joe broke into the top twenty with "As Ugly as They Wanna Be" rising six places to number 20 while "Even Flow' by Pearl Jam climbed six places to 23. Also off its debut last week, "Damn, I Wish I was Your Lover" by Sophie B. Hawkins climbed big off it's debut of 50 to 35 this week, I would not be surprised if this song is a hit, the hook is a monster.

"Smells Like Nirvana" by Weird Al Yankovic jumped six spots off its debut last week to number 24 while "This Road" by James Blundell climbed twelve places off its debut to 26. 

Diesel's "Man Alive" got a jump from 31 to 27 and "She's Got That Vibe" by R, Kelly & Public Announcement jumped eight to 32. 

"Tears In Heaven" by Eric Clapton climbed from 44 to 37 this week while "God Gave Rock 'n' Roll to You Part 2" by Kiss jumped from 46 to 39 somehow.

Losers

Let's start with The Cure because "Friday, I'm In Love" slipped from 42 to 48. Bit of a shame because the song is great!

The same goes for "Weather With You" by Crowded House which plunged from 39 to 47 this week and looks likely to miss the year end list.

Indecent Obsession's "Kiss Me" slipped from 43 to 37 while " Fathers Day" by Weddings Parties Anything dropped nine places to 42.

"Get Ready for This" by 2 Unlimited is getting ready to make its exit as it tumbled from 24 to 38 while Melissa's "Skin to Skin" slipped thirteen to 34 while "Way Out West" by James Blundell and James Reyne collapsed from 19 to 33. 

"Alive" by Pearl Jam got hit with a nine place drop to 31 while "Be My Baby" by Teen Queens dropped from 16 to 21 and "Nothing Else Matters" by Metallica dropped six places to 14

New Entries

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

50. "Too Funky" by George Michael

So this is a single that I wasn't expecting from George Michael but hey given I liked what he did with Elton's "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" earlier this year, lets see what "Too Funky" offers and it turns out its the most basic of dance pop jams that...uh...works? Yeah there's a solid groove here which makes sense as the song samples "Somebody Else's Guy" by Jocelyn Brown (released in 1984) as Michael pleads rather animalistically for sex and man, George Michael does have the charisma to deliver such a song. Check this out!

46. "Beauty & The Beast" by Peabo Bryson and Celine Dion

So this unlikely duet is for Disney's animated feature film "Beauty and The Beast, it was first recorded by "Murder, She Wrote" star Angela Lansbury in her role in the film as Mrs Potts. The song describes the relationship between the two lead characters, Belle and this Beast and how the pair have learned to accept each other so can anyone explain why the producers thought it s a good idea to pair Peabo Bryson and Celine Dion together for a duet where it's clear that there is no chemistry and the song is overall as boring as tar? It's got all the appeal of going to a god damn funeral...not pleasant.

44. "Just Take My Heart" by Mr. Big

Well with "To Be With You" being a smash hit, it was only going to be a matter of time before we got a follow up from Mr Big, it's the fourth and final single from "Lean Into it" and it sounds like something straight out of late 80s hair rock, its not exactly bad but those vocals just don't do anything to sell the emotion of the song and I think given the production here, there's a risk this could become dated and kind of forgettable.

Anyway that's our week and "Beauty & The Beast" by Peabo Bryson and Celine Dion runs away with the worst of the week while "Too Funky" by George Michael easily takes best of the week it's not even close either.

Next week, we'll find out if Kriss Kross can finally take that number one spot. 

ARIA Singles top 50 top ten/Chart Review. 21st June. Need to Know if Solar Power has No Return

 So this week wasn't all that surprising, all in all it was calm and what new songs that did turn up didn't cause many surprises except for some things in our top ten which gave me a reason for a bit of surprise but that isn't our number one, "Good 4 U" by Olivia Rodrigo which held the top spot for a 5th week because it still has a massive streaming margin over it's opposition and mostly definitely has stronger sales.

Which again leave "KIss Me More" by Doja Cat feat. SZA in a weird spot because its just not really doing enough to dent the margins to "Good 4 U" and again I do not see this getting to number one. 

The first surprise was The Weeknd's "Save Your Tears" jumping two places to number three, this song is on it's second wind now but again I don't see this challenging for number one, the same goes for "Body" by Russ Millions and Tion Wayne..it's not going to go back to number one as it's on its way slowly out of the top ten.

All this meant that "Deja Vu" by Olivia Rodrigo slipped two places back to number five as the "Sour" album bomb finally showed signs of receding properly.

Rebounding back to number six is "Levitating" by Dua Lipa feat. Dababy thanks to a sudden surge on streaming while "Traitor" by Olivia Rodrigo also rebounded one spot to seven, this helped push "Heat Waves" by Glass Animals back two spots to number eight and is continuing to be an annoying presence in the top ten.

As are both "Astronaut in the Ocean" by Masked Wolf steady at number nine and "Without You" by The Kid Laroi feat. Miley Cyrus stuck at number ten...really the sooner the last trio of songs leave the top ten the best for all concerned.

Gains

"Rapstar" by Polo G returned to the top twenty thanks to the release of his album "Hall of Fame" last Friday, "Rapstar" climbing six places to 18...am fine with that...the song is really damn good.

Up four places to 26 this week is "Blinding Lights" by The Weeknd because it refuses to leave.

Re Entries

The release of the album "Jordi" last week saw "Beautiful Mistakes" by Maroon 5 feat. Megan The Stallion return to the top 50 at 43...lovely...I guess.

Losers

We got a fair few losers here but we'll go through Olivia Rodrigo tracks that lost hard first because there were a few this week like "Hope Ur Ok" down fifteen to 48 and "1 Step Forward 3 Steps Back" down eleven to 38, "Enough for You" plunged six places to 28 while "Brutal" slumped four to 21, "Happier" doing same as "Brutal" to hit 20 while "Favourite Crime" dropped three places to 16.

There were other major losers to with "Lost Cause" by Billie Eilish collapsing fourteen places to 32 while "Build a Bitch" by Bella Poarch slumped nine places to 40 as the hype for that died pretty quickly.

Finally "Heartbreak Anniversary" by Giveon fell six places to 45...ugh was hoping this song could make a run for the top ten at one point..oh well not to be.

Drop Outs

Sadly we lost "Your Power" by Billie Eilish from the top 50 this week but it took "We're Good" by Dua Lipa and "Falling Up" by Dean Lewis with it. 

The other exit belonged to "Up" by Cardi B (Time for that second single, Cardi...)

New Entries

Three new entries this week, starting with...

33. "No Return" by Polo G feat. The Kid Laroi and Lil Durk

So this song was the other impact as a result of that new Polo G album and...it's...fine. The best The Kid Laroi has sounded in a long time on the hook as Polo G, Lil Durk and Kid Laroi rap about how much better their lifestyles are now that they are out of the way things were for them growing up and that violin sample sounds gorgeous tbh, kind of adds to the vibe of hard living with a mother on drugs and how they don't want to go back to the ways things were. 

It's not bad. Check it out if you are curious

31. "Need to Know" by Doja Cat

So here's the latest single for Doja Cat's album out next week and its yet another sex song yet the content sounds like a darker version of "Say So" with trap beats and Doja Cat cooing although that cooing sounds worse when she says "Need it in me like a Chuck E. needs cheddar"...just YIKES. It's a sex sog that's not as sexy as Doja likes to think it is...if anything it makes it seem more uncomfortable and makes the justification for this guy rejecting her on "Say So" reasonable. 

Also considering how right they got the production on "Kiss Me More", you'd think Dr Luke would give Doja Cat something more to work with that a rinky dink trap beat that sounds incredibly clunky. Ugh. Not good.

14. "Solar Power" by Lorde

Lorde is finally back after four years away (pretty standard for Lorde) and she returns with....a conventional pop song that is a lot brighter in tone and more colourful than any of her past work. All about having fun at the beach in the sun and boy you can tell it was made for the American summer with Clairo and Phoebe Bridgers supplying backing vocals. It's the kind of song that makes you smile and groove. Yeah, it's pretty conventional but I'd argue it's nice to see Lorde back and releasing brighter and happier music. This is pretty good.

I am going to give "Solar Power" by Lorde best of the week. I really do like it a fair bit. Worst of the week goes to "Need to Know" by Doja Cat.

Next week could be a fairly quiet one, we could get new entries from Maneskin (!), Tyler the Creator and maybe KSI but we'll find out on Friday when ARIA updates the chart at 5pm AEST.

Good 1992 Vibrations: 14th June. Damn! The One Lover Smells Like Nirvana on This Road

Ahh stability at last in 1992...just kidding...we got another wild week here which resulted in a new number one and absolute chaos across the board and a messy chunk of new entries that hit mostly down in the lower half of the chart that we'll get to all of that because as I mentioned before we do have a new number one and it's the first for this group of girls...that's right...Girlfriend's "Take It From Me" has snared the number one spot this week and I am not really sure that it's set up to be a long term number one mostly because it got there on the weakness of the songs in front of it.

Hell, it would have been a tight go even if Girlfriend hadn't got there, "To Be With You" by Mr Big would have returned to number one even with the weakening sales however what is presenting a bigger challenge to both songs is "Jump" by Kriss Kross which climbed four places to number three and really it's only a matter of time before it takes the number one spot as it has all the momentum with it. 

This all pushed "One In a Million" by Euphoria back three places to number four as it wasn't a strong number one to begin with. 

The same goes for The Rockmelons with "That Word (L.O.V.E)" feat. Cutty and Nardo Ranks and Deni Hines which got pushed back one to number five, basically pushed back due to the strength of "Jump".

None of these effected "Clunk EP" by Frente which got a two place boost to number six while former chart topper "Under the Bridge" by Red Hot Chili Peppers slid back to  number seven as it fades away gracefully. 

The first of two songs returning to the top ten is Metallica's "Nothing Else Matters" up four spots to number eight while "In The Closet" by Michael Jackson rebounds two places to number nine.

If you were wondering what happened to "Stay" by Shakespear's Sister, it fell five places to finish out the top ten at number ten. 

Gains

So what gained outside of the top ten? Unfortunately "Save the Best for Last" by Vanessa Williams looks like its going to be a ting as it climbed six places to number 15...I mean come on...I know 1992 has felt kind of bland for pop but we really don't need sleepy corny lovesick nonsense becoming a hit. 

Also breaking into the top twenty is "I Can Feel It" by Radio Freedom which rose six places to 18...I can tolerate this...I guess.

Richard Marx's "Hazard" looks a hit in the making as it climbed from 33 to 27 while Pearl Jam's "Even Flow" jumped from 36 to 29. 

Lisa Edwards is making everyone else "Cry" as her Godley & Creme cover rises from 41 to 34. 

Losers

Let's do what we usually do and start at the bottom and work our way up, unfortunately "Why" by Annie Lennox slipped six places to 49 as it likely heads for the exit. "Innocence" by Deborah Blando slides from 38 to 45 this week because the song is completely forgettable garbage.

Def Leppard got rocked with "Let's Get Rocked" down eleven to 41 while the vibe is disappearing for R. Kelly and Public Announcement as "She's Got that Vibe" slipped six places to 40

Sadly one of the big losers this week was "Weather With You" by Crowded House which plunged twelve places to 39 while "Remedy" by The Black Crows slipped five places to 36.

Former top ten hit "Not a Day Goes By" by Rick Price suffered a ten place drop to 35, this is safe on the year end so not much to worry about there.

"Suck My Kiss" by Red Hot Chili Peppers collapsed seven places to 20 while "Way Out West" by James Blundell and James Reyne dropped out of the top ten to hit 19.

New Entries

So we have six new entries this week...I'm going to endeavour to keep the reviews pretty short from now on especially with weeks like this one...the new entries are all over the shop, it's an eclectic bunch this week!

50. "Damn, I Wish I Was Your Lover" by Sophie B. Hawkins

Okay so first off the rack is this song from American singer and songwriter Sophie B. Hawkins, it comes from her debut album "Tongues and Tails" and this song is really dark, it tells the story of the narrator observing another woman in an abusive relationship and how the narrator wishes and dreams she could rescue this woman from being chained up and beaten black and blue and making her feel better and happier. What is also interesting is Hawkins has described herself as ominisexual (sexuality of her lover) doesn't matter to her) and the lyrics encourage the end to homophobia and to be open minded about sexuality. 

I'm fine with it, there's nothing egregiously bad about it, the hook is what makes this song stand out though...I mean..."Damn, I wish I was Your Lover" is one hell of a way to open a chorus!

48. "It Must Be Love" by Madness

Uh okay... Madness covered a Labi Siffre song from 1979 and released it themselves as a single in 1982 peaking at number six on the Kent Music Report charts. Originally I thought the song charted again because of a Huggies commercial but turns out that Madness reissued the single which caused it chart all over again...(should have realized that Huggies commercials don't have that power) but here's the thing...yes, the song is a classic Madness song, it just doesn't do anything for me, I just don't care for it  because that hook is so darn repeititve...yes it's fucking love...we get it already and the bare bones production doesn't feel much like love but there's worse...much worse...

46. "God Gave Rock 'n' Roll To You Part 2" by KISS

Did we really need a part two for what was already a bad song? It's a cover of Argent's 1973 song and it blows...not even just allowing for the religious aspect (I'm not offended by the suggestion God made rock 'n' roll as I am agnostic bordering atheist) but this is guitar by numbers with Gene Simmons bragging about how "God gave us rock 'n' roll", it's not as impressive as KISS seem to think it is. This part two is completely pointless. NEXT!

38. "This Road" by James Blundell

So here's the follow up to "Way Out West" and I'm not sure about this one, the guitars and drums sound fantastic but the vocals could have been mixed a bit better. Ehh...this could have been better, check it out if you are interested but I'll stick with "Way Out West" for now.

32 "The One" by Elton John

Okay so this is the lead single and title track for Elton John's album and it's a gentle ballad that I actually kind of like. Elton proved on "Sacrifice" that he sounds amazing on a ballad and this song has enough smarts to feel big but not drown out Elton John. Sure it's not up there as classic Elton John but this is still pretty great as a love song. Definitely check this out.

30. "Smells Like Nirvana" by Weird Al Yankovic.

In a week as eclectic and weird as this one, it feels almost utterly appropriate to be ending it with a parody song from Weird Al Yankovic...this time he is parodying Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" and...it's a Weird Al parody...its ridiculous but absolutely hilarious. Weird Al nails a pretty good impression of Kurt Cobain on the verses before using the chorus to mock the song. Pretty funny.

However best of the week is going to "The One" by Elton John, the worst is going "God Gave Rock 'n' Roll to You II" by KISS because its utterly pointless and didn't need to be released.

ARIA Singles top 50. June 14th. Favourite Crime for a Lost Cause is Falling Before You Love Me

 So this week was a good one, the new entries are all reasonably good and even if I am not completely happy with a few shifts, there's not that much to complain about this week which leads into the top ten where for yet another week, Olivia Rodrigo's "Good 4 U" holds number one for yet another week thanks to dominance on streaming and solid sales..next week might see a challenge to it coming from the new song from Lorde but if those numbers don't add up for "Solar Power" than I can see this song ruling the chart for at least another two weeks. 

Now this places "Kiss Me More" by Doja Cat featuring SZA, stuck at number two, in an awkward spot because it's only a little more than half the streaming that "Good 4 U" has and it's not got the sales...I just don't see how this song gets to number one when you look at how strong "Good 4 U" is and the fact there's an Ed Sheeran song being released soon.

There's stability for both "Deja Vu" by Olivia Rodrigo at number three and "Body" by Russ Millions and Tion Wayne at number four.

"Save Your Tears" by The Weekend moved back up one spot while "Heat Waves" by Glass Animals rebounded two places to number six as the delayed post album bomb recover begins, the same goes for "Levitating" by Dua Lipa feat. DaBaby which bounced back three places to number seven (Can we just make "Love Again" a hit now?)

All this occurred because "Traitor" by Olivia Rodrigo slipped three places to number eight as "Sour" finally shows signs proper that the album bomb is starting to recede.

Remaining steady at number nine is "Astronaut in the Ocean" by Masked Wolf and Without You" by The Kid Laroi feat. Miley Cyrus returned to top ten up one to number ten...both these songs can go away any time they like now.

Gains

The biggest gain of the week belongs to Vance Joy's "Missing Piece" up twelve place to 32 as this looks like it might have the legs to be a hit so we'll have to see. 

"Watermelon Sugar" by Harry Styles rebounded five spots to 45 while "Little Bit of Love" by Tom Grennan jumped four to 43 off it's debut last week. 

Losers

Let's deal with the Olivia Rodrigo "Sour" album bomb fallers this week, "Hope Ur Ok" slipped eight places to 33, "1 Step Forward, 3 Steps Back" slid down six places to 27, "Jealousy Jealousy" tumbled four places to 26, "Enough for You" down six to 22 while "Brutal" was down three to 17 and "Happier" fell back one spot to 16, Finally "Drivers License" fell four spots to hit number 11.

Outside of that though...it was a busy week on this front as sadly "Your Power" by Billie Eilish dropped seven places to 40 (I'm really sad that it seems like this song doesn't have much staying power. It's a damn great song.

"Butter" by BTS slipped seven places to 21 despite releasing two new remixes last week, it's not surprising as BTS songs debut high and fall off hard over the weeks following. BTS need to find a formula to give their songs some stability on the Australian charts.

Drop outs

The only significant news drop out wise that the last of the J Cole album bomb dropped out with "My Life" feat. 21 Savage and Morray and "Pride is the devil" feat Lil Baby left taking "Lucid Dreams" by Juice WRLD and "All I Know So Far" by Pink with them.

New Entries

Four new entries and they are all pop songs to some degree so let's dig in and start with...

50. "Leave Before You Love Me" by Marshmello and Jonas Brothers

I groaned when I first heard about this collaboration and mostly because Marshmello seems to work with anyone who'll keep him relevant in the mainstream, also it just seems like Marshmello's production more often than not sees him trip over his own feet however that's not the case here? Yeah, this is solid without being great mostly because that chorus is squeakier than it needs to be and the melody does remind a lot of "Lost in Love" by Air Supply but the verses have a good build and the Jonas Brothers finally sound good on something so yeah this is fine...I'll take it.

48. "Falling Up" by Dean Lewis

Well it had to chart eventually given the massive radio push this song has had, it and one or two other songs have been getting a severe push on radio without much success until now and here's the thing, the song is decent and Dean Lewis's nervous vocal delivery matches the content of the song which is about the nerves and anxiety of matching the success that came with having a breakout hit which happened for Lewis with "Be Alright" in 2018. That guitar is doing a lot of heavy lifting as far as the melody of the song goes. I just wish Lewis didn't sound like he is whining on the bridge of the song...ehh...it's not bad but not good either.

18. "Lost Cause" by Billie Eilish 

So "Your Power" is shaping to be one of my favourite songs of the year...hits or otherwise so I have some renewed enthusiasm for the rollout of her sophomore album "Happier Than Ever" and we;;;///this feels a bit more clunky than I would have expected coming from Finneas and Billie and that line about this lost cause getting a job can look pretty darn out of touch given the current situation with the pandemic but there's enough here with this song actually being about a relationship that is heading south in pretty quick time judging by the lyrics where this guy isn't making time to spend with Billie despite Billie making all the effort. This is decent but I'll stick to "Your Power" for the time being. 

13. "Favourite Crime" by Olivia Rodrigo

About time this showed up here, probably should have entered the ARIA singles chart with the rest of "Sour" a few backs but for reasons only known to ARIA, it's debuting this week and I am glad it did debut because this is one of the best songs from "Sour", here Olivia is wondering if she brought on her current heartbreak on herself and questioning whether or not she is partly responsible for own heartbreak, it's a song that displays Olivia's own self awareness and just how vulnerable she is given she still wants to be remembered fondly by her ex. 

So yeah "Favourite Crime" by Olivia Rodrigo is the best of the week. As for the worst of the week, there is no bad song here as I like all of them but I think it'll go to "Falling Up" by Dean Lewis because it's just merely okay. 

Next week: Lorde, Megan Thee Stallion and others, it could be quite the busy week, ARIA updates the chart on Friday at 5pm Australian Eastern Standard time. 

Good 1992 Vibrations: 7th June. Be Quick and Be Thankful for One in A Million

 Oh, we got a cool down week here but is it really a cool down week? That's an open question as we begin this week's edition of Good 1992 Vibrations with the top ten where have a brand new number one with Euphoria snagging their second number one this year with "One In A Million", it got there on the back of strong sales this week which made it more than a match for "To Be With You" by Mr Big which slipped back to number two and isn't really a threat of going back to number one.

In fact the biggest threat to Euphoria is coming from Aussie girl group Girlfriend with their debut single "Take It From Me" up one spot to number three...this song has momentum behind it and that music video is kind of fun...*shrugs*

What caught my eye was the five place gain to number four for "That Word (L.O.V.E)" by The Rockmelons feat. Cutty Ranks, Nardo Ranks and Deni Hines, this could also be a player in the weeks ahead.

Shakespears Sister's "Stay' is really just a bystander at this point as it watches the chaos in front of it but one of the bigger casualties in the top ten of the chaos was Red Hot Chili Peppers as "Under the Bridge" slipped three places to number six.

Then we have one of the big gainers of the week with "Jump" by Kriss Kross leaping from 20 to seven this week, this song is going to be a smash hit, it's riding a huge wave of momentum, it wouldn't surprise me if this took  number one.

Also riding into the top ten is "Clunk (EP)" by Frente up from 15 to 8 this week as "Ordinary Angels" is adored by the radio...I just don't get the appeal of that song...I'm sorry.

Finally there's two songs that are on their way out to complete the top ten, "James Brown is Dead" by L.A. Style down one to nine and "Way Out West" by James Blundell and James Reyne down three places to number ten but its place is secured on year end list so I'm happy about about...not so happy about "James Brown is Dead"...

Gains

So I already mentioned the big gains for Kriss Kross and Frente this week so let's look outside the top ten to see what else is on it's way up...well there's the awful "Twilight Zone" by 2 Unlimited which broke through the top twenty up from 23 to 16 this week and the sickeningly sappy "Save The Best for Last" by Vanessa Williams up nine to 30 (WHY?)

In much better news, "Weather With You" by Crowded House rose six places to 27 but it brought with it "As Ugly as They Wanna Be" by Ugly Kid Joe which climbed from it's debut of 47 to 29 and "Remedy" by The Black Crowes which jumped from 43 to 31.

"She's Got That Vibe" by R. Kelly and Public Announcement jumped twelve places to 34 and "Even Flow" by Pearl Jam climbed nine to 36. 

Finally Lisa Edwards cover of 'Cry" jumped nine places to 41

Losers

Mariah Carey's "Make It Happen" just isn't going to happen as it slipped from 36 back to 50 this week (kind of annoyed about that too, it's one of Mariah's better ones).

Then there's "Help Yourself" by Julian Lennon which really needs to take it's own advice as it plunged from 35 to 48. 

It's almost goodnight for Wet Wet Wet's "Goodnight Girl" as it slips eight to 46 this week while a song that's already on the downward trend, "Money Don't Matter 2 Night" by Prince and The New Power Generation skidded down another eleven places to 45.

"Why" by Annie Lennox collapsed from 28 to 43 while "Innocence" by Deborah Blando lost seven places to 38. 

Finally "Be My Baby" by Teen Queens left the top ten by sliding eight places to 18 and "In the Closet" by Michael Jackson dropped five spots to 11.

New Entries

Just the two new entries this week, lets start with...

49. "Be Thankful for What You've Got (Paul Oakenfold Remix)" by Massive Attack

So this one has a long history so let's deal with that first, this song was originally recorded by William DeVaughn under the title of "A Cadillac Don't Come Easy" but was re written to become "Be Thankful For what You've Got" in 1972, it was given development agreement money whereby if it was approved the company was able to reserve the track for recording an initial demo f the song and the company could reserve the right to extend the arrangement for Philadelphia based production house, Omega Sound.

A session band recorded the song before it was eventually Frank Roxbury secured the song's release in March 1974 where it peaked at number four on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 3 on the Canadian US RPM Top Singles chart.

So I was curious to see what Massive Attack did with this especially considering they brought Paul Oakenfold in on a remix of the song and...yeah...this is pretty darn good, I like how they managed to maintain the sound of the song and still able to make it sound smooth as a soul song and put Massive Attack's own spin on the song which is something not often seen in cover songs...yeah check this out...pretty damn good.

47. "Be Quick Or Be Dead" by Iron Maiden

So I'll straight up say this...prog rock that borders on metal isn't really my thing so I was dreading checking this out but none the less, it's the lead single from Iron Maiden's ninth studio album called "Fear of the Dark" and look, objectively the song is fine, it's lyrics are aimed at the political scandals of the time eg: Robert Maxwell banking cases, the BCCI case and also the European stock market crashes, I just can't behind those vocals which really don't do anything for me at all but if it's your thing, you may like this more than I did.

I'm not going to give it worst of the week because it's not that bad at all however I'm going to give best of the week to "Be Thankful for What You've (Paul Oakenfold remix)" by Massive Attack because yeah, I enjoyed that song a lot.

ARIA Singles Top 50 Top Ten/ Chart Review: 7th June. Little bit of love for Olivia's SOUR continues

 Well this week was definitely a cool down week but we got plenty of movement as well which might say something about what has staying power with the eyes of the public and right now it seems like all anyone wants to do is listen to "Sour" by Olivia Rodrigo because her album bomb receded marginally if that, we even had an album track or two rise which in it's second week is really extraordinary but none the less for a second week, "Good 4 U" by Olivia Rodrigo maintains the top spot as it has a ridiculous margin on streaming that unless streaming for this song completely collapses, this song is assured of number one for a couple of weeks which for a pop/rock song on the charts these days is wild.

That kind of leaves "Kiss Me More" by Doja Cat & SZA in an awkward spot because while streaming still loves it, its sales have been wobbling so we'll have to see what happens with this song, I'm not sure it's going to be the one to catch "Good 4 U"

That challenge won't come from "Deja Vu" by Olivia Rodrigo which remained at number three and is holding onto it's gains rather impressively and could challenge for number two even if it's not really gaining on "Good 4 U"

What won't be challenging is "Body" by Russ Millions and Tion Wayne which slipped two places to number four. 

Rising two places to number five is "Traitor" by Olivia Rodrigo...mostly due to solid as hell streaming while The Weeknd rebounded ten places to number six with "Save Your Tears" thanks to a small boost on streaming.

All this pushed "Drivers License" by Olivia Rodrigo back two places to number seven and "Heat Waves"  by Glass Animals back one place to number eight. 

"Astronaut In the Ocean" by Masked Wolf slipped one place back to number nine as streaming finally starts to ebb away ( thank fucking god) while "Levitating" by Dua Lipa feat. DaBaby returns to the top ten up one to number ten

Gains

Unfortunately our big gains came from two of the worst tracks that debuted last week that being "Rasputin" by Majestic and Boney M up ten places to 37 and "Build a Bitch" by Bella Poarch up eight to 28 because somehow this song has viral momentum...lovely...not.

The other debut from last week to gain was "Missing Piece" by Vance Joy up four places to 44.

Re Entries

So there are two returns this week with the first of them being for Juice WRLD with "Lucid Dreams" because the song got a remix courtesy of Lil Uzi Vert for Juice's recently released anniversary edition of "Goodbye & Good Riddance"

The only other return was "Watermelon  Sugar" by Harry Styles at number 50.

Losers

J Cole's "My Life" feat. 21 Savage and Morray slipped 12 places to 45 while "Pride is the Devil" feat. Lil Baby tumbled eight to 36.

Pink's "All I Know So Far" stumbled 10 places to number 49.

"Butter"  by BTS slipped eight places to 14 because sales died and it didn't have the streaming to support it staying in the top ten so it got muscled out however we will see if it returns to the top ten with the release of these remixes.

As for the Olivia Rodrigo album bomb? It didn't really recede with "Hope Ur Ok" only slipping two places to 25,  "1 Step Forward, 3 Steps Back" down three spots to 21, "Enough for You" sliding two to 16, "Brutal" down one to 1. "Jealousy Jealousy" and "Happier" held their ground. at 22 and 15 respectively/

Drop Outs

The drop outs aren't a surprise with "Amari" by J Cole gone following the receding of the "The Off Season" album bomb but it took two rather big hits with it in "So Done" by The Kid Laroi and "Fly Away" by Tones and I.

New Entries

Just the one new entry this week and unfortunately it's...

47. "Little Bit of Love" by Tom Grennan.

2021 appears to be the year of the break through of Tom Grennan, I've been aware of this guy for a few years now, he is a British singer/songwriter who has been around the British music scene for awhile with this song breaching the top ten in the UK before it hit the ARIA singles chart courtesy of digital sales and wow this song sounds overproduced to the point it feels like Grennan is shouting at you and what's worse here is the production sounds confused because on the hook it sounds like its going for a spiritual anthemic vibe that it just can't quite reach to lift the song from being mediocre at best. Pass!

That wraps up the week. Next week, Billie Eilish and maybe something from that Lil Durk and Lil Baby collab..find out at 5pm AEST on Friday when ARIA updates the singles chart.

Revisiting Favourite Albums of My Youth: S01E01: "Follow Your Heart"

 So as I've mentioned previously on here, I was a top 40 snob when I was a teenager in that the music I preferred was only the stuff that was charting and it's a mentality that I have struggled to rid myself of so what I thought would be fun is to see if albums I listened to as a teenager still hold up for me to this day and I decided to start with "Follow Your Heart" by Nikki Webster (mostly because kind of follows on from last year's 2000 Sound episodes.

Now "Follow Your Heart" was Nikki Webster's debut album and featured the singles "Strawberry Kisses" and "Depend on Me"...two songs I will confess that I don't really revisit all that often but why not revisit them today however we're going to go track by track and begin with...

Strawberry Kisses

Well it makes sense to start the album with your big hit and yeah there's no doubting "Strawberry Kisses" is cute and rather catchy even if the production has not aged as well as you'd remember it and Nikki's "I'll be missing, wishing your strawberry kisses" is kind of creepy now however what redeems the song is that it's ridiculously catchy however there's definitely a reason that I don't revisit this song a lot.

Depend On Me 

So when "Follow Your Heart' came out, I liked this song more than "Strawberry Kisses" basically because this song connect for me more than "Strawberry Kisses" ever did and that keyboard and guitar sound good and the lyrics paint Nikki as a shoulder for an upset best friend to cry on but that last line on the hook "Can't you see that's the way best friends should be" kind of doesn't sit well with me for some reason now...ehh...the song is still pretty good.

Mirror Mirror

So this song sonically sounds darker than both the two previous songs but it definitely also sounds like a turn of the millennium pop song. It's also a pretty innocuous song about growing up, learning right from wrong and believing in yourself. It's very typically what's you'd expect from Nikki given when she recorded this she was a pre teen. Again it's fine even if I am not sure if the production works as well as I remembered it when I first the album.

The Best Days

Oh here's the third single from the album and funnily enough it reminds me a lot of Kylie Minogue's "On a Night Like This" with that guitar and much like "Mirror Mirror", its about growing up and being around another person and spending 'the best days' of their lives together. It's a bit corny but I guess kind of have to expect that given on reflection this album is feeling a bit like I am eating large lumps of unrefined sugar.

Boy Inside My Heart

Oof wow...this sounds like a 2000s version of "Wishing on the Same Star" that was recorded by Girlfriend in 1993 and much like that song, this is a piano ballad except written for a schoolgirl as Nikki Webster was at the time and the lyrics are about this boy that Nikki has inside her heart and hoping that he will speak to her or spend time with her because he is that special boy inside Nikki's heart. It's cute but that Girlfriend link isn't going to leave any time soon

Heavenly

A much more upbeat pop song where Nikki sings about everyone being in love and angels teaching Nikki to fly....this was one of those songs that I actually didn't like when I first heard the album as a kid and as an adult I'm reminded of why, the writing never quite connected for me. Pass.

Friends 4 Ever

So this might be the most typically teenage girl song on the album...all about boys, having crushes and spilling other people's secrets to friends but doesn't matter if a guy breaks Nikki's heart because she has her friends 4 ever...given my experience of high school if you go spilling others secrets it can result in some pretty bad fights...Also Nikki is being quite the sweetpea on the second verse by telling this friend that she can have first dibs on the new guy in the school and Nikki won't get in the way. Also hanging out with a 'real bad guy' is probably not a good idea regardless of having your friends or not, Nikki.

Individuality

This was my favourite song on the album when I was twelve so I'm kind of devastated that the production hasn't aged so well with that noise that's kind of shrill and flat. Again it's another aspirational song about being 'true to yourself' and being "who you wanna be and not what the crowd wants you to be'. Kind of a weird song to sing when a record company kind of packages you as something they want to you to be rather than yourself. Also the backing vocals sometimes can be heard of over the top of Nikki at points. Also can that awful flat noise that guides the melody just stop already.

All Come Back

Ahh we're back to that turn of the millennium song about giving and receiving love, the production sounds like something Liberty X or one of those bands might have used. Really it's a pretty standard pop song about it not mattering what you do as long as 'your heart' is true, just give love and you'll get love back. It's still decent.

Red Light, Green Light.

Whoa! This might be the closest to the absolute hormone charged song we get on the album...Nikki sees this guy glancing at her over the shoulder and knows he fancies her, it's a shame she's got to turn his interest in her into a game of "Red Light, Green Light"...red light as in he shouldn't cross her boundaries but when she gives him the green light, he is welcome to kiss her and take it slow. Yeah this hasn't aged as well as I remembered it.

I Will be Your Friend

The second last song on the album is another friendship song and really kind of is a much slower version of "Depend On Me" just with different lyrics and a vow by Nikki that she will be your friend. Then again it probably is one of the better songs on the album but one thing I will stress here: there's no such thing as forever ending unless it was just a creative way to say 'until the world ends' and you didn't want to scare the target audience.

Follow Your Heart

The album closer where Nikki sends out the message over keyboards and drums to everyone everywhere to follow their heart and follow their dreams. It's kind of cute but in that same way that eating way too much sweet stuff can make you feel. "Fairytales come true" sings Nikki (the irony being that there's a song called "Fairytale Believer" on her next album "Bliss"). Look if you like a sugar overdose, this is a song for you...I guess.

Final Thoughts

So yeah that was pretty sugary and I do feel now what my parents must have felt when I listened to the album an awful lot...like I've had a sugar overdose and feel sick...it's definitely an album aimed at pre teens...granted there are songs that still work for me.

Best

Depend on Me, Mirror Mirror, All Come Back

Worst

Individuality, Heavenly