We have...unmitigated chaos on the chart this week, a LOT happened so we better get right to it, the only thing that didn't change was that "Blue (Da Ba Dee)" by Eiffel 65 spent a ninth week at number one.
Madison Avenue climbed one place to number two with "Don't Call Me Baby" but from there? Well at number three is the first of several songs to climb into the top ten, Will Smith's "Will 2K" which rocketed up 13 places to number 3 somehow.
Jennifer Lopez has another top 5 hit with "Waiting for Tonight" jumping 5 places to number 4 while M2M up seven places with "Don't Say You Love Me" to number five (the song is off the Pokemon movie soundtrack)
UK boyband Five have climbed five places to claim the number six slot with "Keep On Movin'" wile making the biggest move of the week is Aussie band Killing Heidi as "Mascara" flies into the top ten from 38 to to number 7, its shaping as a potential future number one.
S Club 7 were one of the victims of all the shuffling with 'Bring It All Back" dropping four places to number 8 while Cliff Richard's "The Millennium Prayer" was hit the hardest this week as it fell seven places to number 9
Finally "I Try" by Macy Gray drops three places to round out this week's top ten at number ten.
Gains
Already talked about some of the big gains in the top ten but the big gains were also in amongst the rest of the chart especially as "I See You Baby" by Groove armada has hit 27 from 40 this week while "Better off Alone" by Alice Deejay has hit 11 from 24 and "Steal My Sunshine" by Len hit 12 from 28!.
ATB's "Don't Stop" is up to 17 from 34 this week while "Pray" by Tina Cousins is one of the smaller gains this week up to 16 from 23
Losers
A lot of the losers are 1999 songs on their way out so "Sister" by Sister2Sister hit 15 from 6 and "Smooth" by Santana feat. Rob Thomas dropped to 14 from 5.
Meanwhile "Burning Down the House" by Tom Jones and The Cardigans burnt its way down from 13 to 20.
"That's the Way It is" by Celine Dion is going in the wrong direction by dropping eight places to 22.
"Weir" by Killing Heidi got hit hard dropping 14 places to 24 as did former chart topper "Last Kiss" by Pearl Jam which stumbled 12 places to 32.
Savage Garden's "I Knew I Loved You" hit the skids to 34 from 21 while Ricky Martin is shaking his bon bon all the way down nine places to 36 with "Shake Your Bon Bon"
Dropping eight places is The Vengaboys holiday song "We're going to Ibiza" to 38 while Backstreet Boys drop from 22 to 43 with "Larger than Life" and "I Got a Girl" by Lou Bega loses all its momentum to 46.
New Entries
So we have a lengthy list of new arrivals with the highest debut of the week belonging to Christina Aguilera's "What a Girl Wants", her follow up to "Genie In a Bottle" which was huge in 1999. "What A Girl Wants" is in at 21.
Speaking of second singles, S Club 7 are back with their new single "S Club Party" at 28 as "Bring It all Back" prepares to leave the top ten.
It was a hit in 1987 but Europe are trying to repeat their success with "The Final Countdown 2000" in at number 33.
TLC's new single "Dear Lie" is in at number 37 while American DJ/producer Paul Johnstone is in at 39 with "Get Get Down"
Aussie popstar Aleesha Rome hits the ARIA chart at number 49 with 'Search My Heaven".
Finally British DJ Moby is in at 50 with "Why Does My Heart Feel so Bad?"
Thursday 9 January 2020
Saturday 4 January 2020
Saturday Song Review: "Yummy" by Justin Bieber...a gastronomic disaster of a song
Justin Bieber is back with
a new single entitled “Yummy” after spending some time away from music…okay,
not completely away, he has been a guest artist on others songs like
“Despacito” by Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee, the two DJ Khaled songs/posse cuts
that I’ve completely forgotten about and “10,000 Hours” by Dan and Shay last
year, “Yummy” is the first single from the new album that’s supposed to be
coming this year and with Bieber looking to go down the R ‘n’ B lane, I was kind
of interested so what did we get from the Biebs on “Yummy” and was it a delight
to the ears?
Honestly, “Yummy’ is the sort
of song that leaves you with that feeling in the pit of your tummy that this meal
is not at all yummy and a complaint needing to be delivered to the chef or the
chefs that cooked this up because what Justin Bieber has served up as his lead
off single for a brand new album is some of the most bargain barrel and lazy
trend hopping I’ve seen in some time, there is no creativity on display in the
instrumentation AT ALL with pop fused with trap that fucking Post Malone did
better on “Hollywood’s Bleeding”. “Yummy’ doesn’t even give have a satisfying
pay off within the instrumentation among the pop/trap drear.
Although considering those
behind the production include Sasha Sirota (featured artist on Zac Brown’s atrocious
song “Swayze”) and Poo Bear (also has a credit on the last Zac Brown Band
album) its not really surprising the instrumentation and production on this
song suck.
The boring instrumentation means
we’re forced to focus on the lyrics and honestly? The lyrics are terrible with
that chorus being one of of the most bargain barrel and lazy I’ve heard in some
time, he repeats “yummy-yum” six times and ‘babe’ six times, I mean come on THREE
people (In this case Bieber, Ashley Boyd and Poo Bear) sitting around a table
should be able to come up with a better chorus than this:
“Yeah, you got that yummy-yum
That yummy-yum, that
yummy-yummy
Yeah, you got that
yummy-yum
That yummy-yum, that
yummy-yummy
Say the word, on my way
Yeah babe, yeah babe, yeah
babe
Any night, any day
Say the word, on my way
Yeah babe, yeah babe, yeah
babe
In the mornin' or the late
Say the word, on my way”
Also I can’t help but think
that “Yummy-yum” is rhyming slang for “eating out’ and I don’t mean at a
restaurant or fast food (think sexual innuendo and then be completely grossed
out)
Also if the song is about his
wife Hailey then why the hell does he call her a stallion in the first verse? A
stallion is a male horse!.
The prechorus contains the
proverbial bragging about money with Justin begging Hailey to help him spend the
millions they have between him (like his fans could connect to having millions of
dollars and yet again the instrumentation doesn’t much that feeling of that
much god damn luxury.
So the instrumentation and
the lyrics are garbage, what about Justin Bieber himself? Well, it doesn’t help
Bieber sings the chorus with the same amount of enthusiasm or passion that I
have for putting on still damp socks, he sounds bored out of his mind, if this
is a love song you’d think Bieber would insert some passion into his vocals
especially on the chorus where midway through he leaps into a Post Malone
cadence because somehow he has to make the song INTERESTING.
If Justin Bieber wants to go
down the R’n’ B lane, he could do better by getting in contact with Usher or at
least stars within the R’n’B fold that can make the songs smooth as all hell
and sexier than this mess rather than working with Poo Bear who seems to get
around as much as bloody Marshmello.
"Yummy" isn't a good sign for what we might get on this new album because if it's more garbage like this than...oh dear.
Avoid this song like its got
a food poisoning warning over it because you’ll end up with a bad tummy ache in
the end.
Rating; 1/10
Friday 3 January 2020
ARIA Singles Chart top ten: 30th December
So as per last year, I am only going to do the top ten because the chart this week the chart was invaded by Christmas songs which honestly I'd say is a good argument for the chart to go back to having a break over the Christmas/New Year period especially as all of the Christmas music will disappear next week.
However because we did get a chart this week, lets at least talk about the top ten where for the second year in a row, "All I Want for Christmas Is You" by Mariah Carey is the number one song having leapt nine places to take the top spot but it will be gone next week.
The most likely scenario is "Dance Monkey" by Tones and I which dropped to number two because of Christmas BUT will re-take the number one spot barring any slip ups because somehow this song is still very strong on streaming and digital sales.
Wham leap 23 places to number 3 with "Last Christmas" while "It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas" by Michael Buble also made a climb from 32 to 4.
Dua Lipa slipped from number two to number five with "Don't Start Now". This like the rest of the top ten will rebound next week.
'Roxanne' by Arizona Zervas dropped three places to number six, "Memories" by Maroon 5 dropped three places to number seven and "Circles" by Post Malone which slipped three places to number right
Also taking a plunge this week was "Ride It" by Regard which hit number nine and "Never Seen the Rain" by Tones and I round out the top ten at number ten.
So back to normal next week with the chart. ARIA look to have had a slip up on Twitter this afternoon but those tweets have been deleted, the updated chart will be released at 5pm AEDT tomorrow.
However because we did get a chart this week, lets at least talk about the top ten where for the second year in a row, "All I Want for Christmas Is You" by Mariah Carey is the number one song having leapt nine places to take the top spot but it will be gone next week.
The most likely scenario is "Dance Monkey" by Tones and I which dropped to number two because of Christmas BUT will re-take the number one spot barring any slip ups because somehow this song is still very strong on streaming and digital sales.
Wham leap 23 places to number 3 with "Last Christmas" while "It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas" by Michael Buble also made a climb from 32 to 4.
Dua Lipa slipped from number two to number five with "Don't Start Now". This like the rest of the top ten will rebound next week.
'Roxanne' by Arizona Zervas dropped three places to number six, "Memories" by Maroon 5 dropped three places to number seven and "Circles" by Post Malone which slipped three places to number right
Also taking a plunge this week was "Ride It" by Regard which hit number nine and "Never Seen the Rain" by Tones and I round out the top ten at number ten.
So back to normal next week with the chart. ARIA look to have had a slip up on Twitter this afternoon but those tweets have been deleted, the updated chart will be released at 5pm AEDT tomorrow.
Thursday 2 January 2020
2000 Sound: January 2nd. Eiffel 65 sit on top but challengers coming
Happy New Year and welcome to the new millennium, folks and taking a look at the very top of our chart this week...nothing changed because for an eighth week Eiffel 65 sit at number one with "Blue (Da Ba Dee)", now this song has some challengers coming which we will get to further down the top ten but this song still is solid on sales to keep it ahead of "The Millennium Prayer" by Cliff Richard number two...seriously.
Madison Avenue is one of Four Australian acts inside the top ten this week with their former number two smash "Don't Call Me Baby" stuck at number three again this week but it remained ahead of TV/pop group S Club 7 and their debut hit "Bring It All Back" which remains at number four.
Santana and Rob Thomas US smash number one single "Smooth" jumped one place to number five. Great song, would like to see this go to number one, it jumped past Aussie pop sisters Sister 2 Sister and their hit "Sister" dropping on place to number six.
"I Try" by Macy Gray remains at number seven while "Absolutely Everybody" by Vanessa Amorosi remains at number eight.
Now we have two songs that make their appearance inside the top ten with Jennifer Lopez jumping up two places for the very appropriate New Years Eve song "Waiting for Tonight" at number nine.
Rounding out the Top Ten is Killing Heidi's "Weir' which also climbed two places to number ten.
Gains
Lou Bega's follow up to "Mambo No. 5", "I Got A Girl" umped from 44 to 31 this week which is interesting to say the least.
Also interesting Len's "Steal My Sunshine" climbed from 34 to 28 this week while Pearl Jam's "Last Kiss" is up six places to 20.
Finally Celine Dion's "That's the Way It Is" (her most modern pop song) is reaping rewards its up to 14.
Re- Entries
Just the one re-entry this week and it comes from Foo Fighters with "Learn to Fly" back at 48.
Losers
I mentioned Lou Bega in the gains, well his massive number one hit "Mambo No. 5" fell ten places to 44 this week while "Venus Or Mars" by Jackson Mendoza dropped 8 places to 49.
Aussie group Ilanda are also on the slide with "Tasty" hitting 35 down ten places from last week while Joanne BZ's "Are You Ready?" dropped eight places to 50
No new entries this week being the first week of the year, looking forward to hearing what 2000 has to offer.
Monday 30 December 2019
Top Ten Best Hit Songs of 1996
Let’s flip the script a bit and talk about the best songs of 1996, okay? Now, this year despite some of the awful I already talked about, was a really good year, a sign of that was I had to make some really painful cuts to get to this list of ten songs and I will warn ya all now that there will be picks you disagree with, this is just my personal opinion of the music in 1996.
As per usual, the songs had to be on the year end list for 1996 and these are just my picks, feel free to share your thoughts on 1996 in popular music and share your top ten songs of the year.
First up we get to the one Australian act on this list, in a year where boy bands started coming out of the woodwork to appear on the charts, an Aussie act got to me the most with this…
10. “Wishes” by Human Nature
This is not my favourite Human Nature song; they would have better results in 1998 but there’s still plenty to like here with this piano ballad where Human Nature realize they have done wrong by the ladies in their lives and are desperately hoping that she’ll forgive them, there’s a genuine raw contrition to this song that makes it work so damn well for me in the lyrics. I just love the harmonies and the music that fit the energy of the song for once unlike many songs from this 2019 which I will talk about once ARIA release the year end list.
Damn great song that deserved to be a top ten hit in 1996. Looking forward to an opportunity to talk about at least one other Human Nature song from 1998 down the track.
Here’s one of the more contentious picks, this was a UK girl group that exploded onto the pop music scene late this year courtesy of Simon Fuller. Five rather brash young women and this song was our introduction to them…
9. “Wannabe” by Spice Girls
I get it, the song doesn’t make any sense whatsoever but “Wannabe” is an incredibly catchy Eurodance pop rap song that doesn’t hide behind it’s no bullshit are you on board with us or not ideal and boy don’t the personalities shine through with Melanie Brown whose loud and somewhat wild/scary (even though I doubt Mel has a scary bone in her body) persona plays off well with Geri Halliwell’s also very wild and vivacious delivery which makes the call and response between the pair fun which explodes into Melanie Chisholm, Emma Bunton, Mel B and Geri sharing a line on the opening verse….anyway you get the picture.
This song is in your face, somewhat obnoxious but my god this song is a LOT of fun. The Spice Girls would go on to be the biggest name in pop music until the eventual split in 1999.
8. “Runaway” by The Corrs
Irish family act The Corrs emerged in 1996 and would carve a solid niche for themselves and this solid little debut single found its way into my heart, it’s a sweet song about being alone with that one other special person in your life and hoping he or she feels the same way and wanting to do everything that you can to be with this other person, it’s to a point rather dreamy especially with the music and production which builds into the chorus and again like Human Nature, the harmonies between the sisters are incredible and in a year full of Eurodance pop and the last vestiges of grunge, this song was a pretty unique sound.
Check this song out if you haven’t already.
However, if you are looking for something that vents its anger and frustration then this song maybe up your alley.
7. “Mother Mother” by Tracy Bonham
I’ve always felt this song would be on in the background of the image of the dog sitting at a table saying “Everything is just fine” as his house burns down around him except this song is full of pent up rage and frustration around being an adult in the world having just left home and Bonham is making a call home to let her mother know what is happening and then in the chorus Bonham let’s rip with the chorus ending with her screaming “EVERYTHING’S FINE!”
This song is a perfect frustration venter and I do like The Veronicas cover of this song as well but Tracy Bonham for a short moment in 1996 produced a hit that connected for me and deserves to be on this list.
So this is the first of two country songs on this list and when you consider that in 2019, you’d struggle to find a country song being a hit unless it’s apart of a meme or considered to be country rap but in 1996, this woman was starting out her career and boy, she dropped a beauty…
6. “(If You’re Not In It for Love) I’m Outta Here” by Shania Twain
This song snuck up on me, I didn’t really love it at first and that remix didn’t help things however Shania Twain’s vocals are what makes this song really work and that incredible guitar chuck in that harmonica and this song is a bunch of fun as Shania is busy telling this guy that she isn’t interested in what he has got unless he loves her and if he doesn’t to get the hell out, Shania isn’t going to be used by ANY man, she’s got the attitude to show it.
I just love how insanely fun the song is and the groove is fantastic. Great song. Am so happy this was a hit.
While we’re on love, we’re hitting up some heartbreak for this next song.
5. Give Me One Reason by Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman was one of the more unique songwriters in the 90s and this song is just perfect with its chilled guitar driven melody as Chapman begs her partner to give her one good reason that she should stay in the relationship with the last line being the real kicker with the reply appearing to come from the partner “Said I told you that I love you and there ain’t no more to say” but the question of whether Chapman stays or not is never directly answered.
I love Chapman’s soulful delivery and the storytelling on display in this song plus that guitar in the middle 8 of the song is awesome!
My worst hit songs of 1996 came down hard on really bad cover songs but there was one cover that knocked it out of the park in 1996, this song is a classic and there was no god damn way I could leave it off this list.
4. “Killing Me Softly (With His Song)” by Fugees
The Fugees take the originally recorded by Lori Lieberman in 1971 and Roberta Flack’s 1973 classic “Killing Me Softly (With His Song)” and made it their own courtesy of Lauryn Hill’s moving lead vocals and a sample of A Tribe Called Quest’s 90s song called “Bonita Applebum” and even then they’d sampled “Memory Band” by 60s group Rotary Connection.
However, while the music works so well, it’s Lauryn Hill that just elevates this song into something special and makes it all the more powerful and reminds of the power of live performance because Lieberman’s original came out after she saw Don McLean perform a song called “Empty Chairs” at the Troubador Club and wrote a poem about it which spawned this song.
This deserved its long run at number one, it’s a classic for good reason.
Now we hit the second of the two country songs on this list and the placing of this one is contentious given I asked Twitter which one was better, and they placed Shania Twain above it but for me, this song hits just that little bit harder and is also a cover…
3. “Blue” by LeAnn Rimes
Leann Rimes was one of the most exciting young talents in country music in 1996 before she’d go on to making tepid pop music later but “Blue” is a shining example of what Rimes was capable of. She was 11 years old when she first recorded “Blue” a song originally released by song writer-country artist and country radio DJ Bill Mack.
“Blue” takes a lonely man’s feelings of heartache and loss, he wonders why his lover doesn’t seem feel sad or lonely over him like he does only to find that his lover had been whispering lies in his ear, it’s a total punch to the stomach and one that Leann Rimes captures so remarkably well at the age of just 13 at the time (really for a 13 year old, she had a quite the incredible voice) and pair her voice with that guitar, it just makes for that perfect country song, it’s actually one of my favourite country songs ever quite honestly.
So yeah the next two songs are songs that getr me emotionally, this first one especially hits close to home.
2. “Nobody Knows by Tony Rich Project
Yeah I am not sure how much I can talk about this song especially as when I hear it, I tear up, “Nobody Knows” is a ballad about lost love and Tony Rich knowing deep down inside that he is missing this girl but can’t bring himself to talk about it with other people in the most immediate days after she’s gone, he is realizing all the things he never got to say to her before she left, the song is just raw and heartbreaking.
I won’t go into why it cuts so deep for me but yeah this held some emotional weight for me and you know what, I feel Tony’s pathos too. Great song and for a while would have topped this list but…
So when I set out to make this list, I was certain that “Nobody Knows” was going to top it until I heard this song and realized it was the right pick for number one for a lot of reasons and that song is…
1. “Change the World’ by Eric Clapton
Yeah, I couldn’t let this song not top and this isn’t the best Eric Clapton song, “Tears in Heaven” would probably top my 1992 best hit songs list if I was doing that but this is so damn good. Originally recorded by country artist Wynonna Judd in the early part of 1996 which is slightly more groove driven than Clapton’s but man, I couldn’t ignore the passionate delivery by Clapton on his version of the song, it genuinely sounds lovestruck in both the instrumentation and the lyrics where Clapton is communicating his feelings to this girl but is scared that the feelings won’t be reciprocated and therefore his love will go unrequited if things in his life don’t change.
It’s yet again another raw honest gut punch of a song that yeah I had to put on top of this list.
So that wraps up 1996, if you want to share your top ten favourite hit songs from 1996, feel free to comment.
To here these songs, I have put together a playlist of all ten to check out
Coming up just an ARIA singles top ten this week, no chart review as most of the chart is just Christmas music, Will have 2019 year end worst and best hits lists whenever ARIA decide to put out the year end chart. This week we turn to the first year of the new millennium...2000 and see what chaos reigned on the charts during that year. See ya soon/
As per usual, the songs had to be on the year end list for 1996 and these are just my picks, feel free to share your thoughts on 1996 in popular music and share your top ten songs of the year.
First up we get to the one Australian act on this list, in a year where boy bands started coming out of the woodwork to appear on the charts, an Aussie act got to me the most with this…
10. “Wishes” by Human Nature
This is not my favourite Human Nature song; they would have better results in 1998 but there’s still plenty to like here with this piano ballad where Human Nature realize they have done wrong by the ladies in their lives and are desperately hoping that she’ll forgive them, there’s a genuine raw contrition to this song that makes it work so damn well for me in the lyrics. I just love the harmonies and the music that fit the energy of the song for once unlike many songs from this 2019 which I will talk about once ARIA release the year end list.
Damn great song that deserved to be a top ten hit in 1996. Looking forward to an opportunity to talk about at least one other Human Nature song from 1998 down the track.
Here’s one of the more contentious picks, this was a UK girl group that exploded onto the pop music scene late this year courtesy of Simon Fuller. Five rather brash young women and this song was our introduction to them…
9. “Wannabe” by Spice Girls
I get it, the song doesn’t make any sense whatsoever but “Wannabe” is an incredibly catchy Eurodance pop rap song that doesn’t hide behind it’s no bullshit are you on board with us or not ideal and boy don’t the personalities shine through with Melanie Brown whose loud and somewhat wild/scary (even though I doubt Mel has a scary bone in her body) persona plays off well with Geri Halliwell’s also very wild and vivacious delivery which makes the call and response between the pair fun which explodes into Melanie Chisholm, Emma Bunton, Mel B and Geri sharing a line on the opening verse….anyway you get the picture.
This song is in your face, somewhat obnoxious but my god this song is a LOT of fun. The Spice Girls would go on to be the biggest name in pop music until the eventual split in 1999.
8. “Runaway” by The Corrs
Irish family act The Corrs emerged in 1996 and would carve a solid niche for themselves and this solid little debut single found its way into my heart, it’s a sweet song about being alone with that one other special person in your life and hoping he or she feels the same way and wanting to do everything that you can to be with this other person, it’s to a point rather dreamy especially with the music and production which builds into the chorus and again like Human Nature, the harmonies between the sisters are incredible and in a year full of Eurodance pop and the last vestiges of grunge, this song was a pretty unique sound.
Check this song out if you haven’t already.
However, if you are looking for something that vents its anger and frustration then this song maybe up your alley.
7. “Mother Mother” by Tracy Bonham
I’ve always felt this song would be on in the background of the image of the dog sitting at a table saying “Everything is just fine” as his house burns down around him except this song is full of pent up rage and frustration around being an adult in the world having just left home and Bonham is making a call home to let her mother know what is happening and then in the chorus Bonham let’s rip with the chorus ending with her screaming “EVERYTHING’S FINE!”
This song is a perfect frustration venter and I do like The Veronicas cover of this song as well but Tracy Bonham for a short moment in 1996 produced a hit that connected for me and deserves to be on this list.
So this is the first of two country songs on this list and when you consider that in 2019, you’d struggle to find a country song being a hit unless it’s apart of a meme or considered to be country rap but in 1996, this woman was starting out her career and boy, she dropped a beauty…
6. “(If You’re Not In It for Love) I’m Outta Here” by Shania Twain
This song snuck up on me, I didn’t really love it at first and that remix didn’t help things however Shania Twain’s vocals are what makes this song really work and that incredible guitar chuck in that harmonica and this song is a bunch of fun as Shania is busy telling this guy that she isn’t interested in what he has got unless he loves her and if he doesn’t to get the hell out, Shania isn’t going to be used by ANY man, she’s got the attitude to show it.
I just love how insanely fun the song is and the groove is fantastic. Great song. Am so happy this was a hit.
While we’re on love, we’re hitting up some heartbreak for this next song.
5. Give Me One Reason by Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman was one of the more unique songwriters in the 90s and this song is just perfect with its chilled guitar driven melody as Chapman begs her partner to give her one good reason that she should stay in the relationship with the last line being the real kicker with the reply appearing to come from the partner “Said I told you that I love you and there ain’t no more to say” but the question of whether Chapman stays or not is never directly answered.
I love Chapman’s soulful delivery and the storytelling on display in this song plus that guitar in the middle 8 of the song is awesome!
My worst hit songs of 1996 came down hard on really bad cover songs but there was one cover that knocked it out of the park in 1996, this song is a classic and there was no god damn way I could leave it off this list.
4. “Killing Me Softly (With His Song)” by Fugees
The Fugees take the originally recorded by Lori Lieberman in 1971 and Roberta Flack’s 1973 classic “Killing Me Softly (With His Song)” and made it their own courtesy of Lauryn Hill’s moving lead vocals and a sample of A Tribe Called Quest’s 90s song called “Bonita Applebum” and even then they’d sampled “Memory Band” by 60s group Rotary Connection.
However, while the music works so well, it’s Lauryn Hill that just elevates this song into something special and makes it all the more powerful and reminds of the power of live performance because Lieberman’s original came out after she saw Don McLean perform a song called “Empty Chairs” at the Troubador Club and wrote a poem about it which spawned this song.
This deserved its long run at number one, it’s a classic for good reason.
Now we hit the second of the two country songs on this list and the placing of this one is contentious given I asked Twitter which one was better, and they placed Shania Twain above it but for me, this song hits just that little bit harder and is also a cover…
3. “Blue” by LeAnn Rimes
Leann Rimes was one of the most exciting young talents in country music in 1996 before she’d go on to making tepid pop music later but “Blue” is a shining example of what Rimes was capable of. She was 11 years old when she first recorded “Blue” a song originally released by song writer-country artist and country radio DJ Bill Mack.
“Blue” takes a lonely man’s feelings of heartache and loss, he wonders why his lover doesn’t seem feel sad or lonely over him like he does only to find that his lover had been whispering lies in his ear, it’s a total punch to the stomach and one that Leann Rimes captures so remarkably well at the age of just 13 at the time (really for a 13 year old, she had a quite the incredible voice) and pair her voice with that guitar, it just makes for that perfect country song, it’s actually one of my favourite country songs ever quite honestly.
So yeah the next two songs are songs that getr me emotionally, this first one especially hits close to home.
2. “Nobody Knows by Tony Rich Project
Yeah I am not sure how much I can talk about this song especially as when I hear it, I tear up, “Nobody Knows” is a ballad about lost love and Tony Rich knowing deep down inside that he is missing this girl but can’t bring himself to talk about it with other people in the most immediate days after she’s gone, he is realizing all the things he never got to say to her before she left, the song is just raw and heartbreaking.
I won’t go into why it cuts so deep for me but yeah this held some emotional weight for me and you know what, I feel Tony’s pathos too. Great song and for a while would have topped this list but…
So when I set out to make this list, I was certain that “Nobody Knows” was going to top it until I heard this song and realized it was the right pick for number one for a lot of reasons and that song is…
1. “Change the World’ by Eric Clapton
Yeah, I couldn’t let this song not top and this isn’t the best Eric Clapton song, “Tears in Heaven” would probably top my 1992 best hit songs list if I was doing that but this is so damn good. Originally recorded by country artist Wynonna Judd in the early part of 1996 which is slightly more groove driven than Clapton’s but man, I couldn’t ignore the passionate delivery by Clapton on his version of the song, it genuinely sounds lovestruck in both the instrumentation and the lyrics where Clapton is communicating his feelings to this girl but is scared that the feelings won’t be reciprocated and therefore his love will go unrequited if things in his life don’t change.
It’s yet again another raw honest gut punch of a song that yeah I had to put on top of this list.
So that wraps up 1996, if you want to share your top ten favourite hit songs from 1996, feel free to comment.
To here these songs, I have put together a playlist of all ten to check out
Coming up just an ARIA singles top ten this week, no chart review as most of the chart is just Christmas music, Will have 2019 year end worst and best hits lists whenever ARIA decide to put out the year end chart. This week we turn to the first year of the new millennium...2000 and see what chaos reigned on the charts during that year. See ya soon/
Thursday 26 December 2019
ARIA Singles Chart top ten/ Chart Review: 23rd December. Harry's Mini Fine Line album bomb
So my intention is to breeze through this pretty quickly because honestly I do want to get back to work on my Best hit songs of 1996 list as this week really wasn't that interesting but I guess it's good enough before all the Christmas songs inevitably swamp the chart next week.
For a 21st week, it's "Dance Monkey" by Tones and I at number one, it's a bit of a dicey battle as to whether it will get a 22nd week at number one especially as Mariah's streaming numbers are strong.
"Don't Start Now" by Dua Lipa holds on to number two. I really would like to see this song be the next number one song but its been swallowed up by Christmas music on streaming while sales are doing well, I doubt this is going to go number one.
The rest of the top six is pretty much the same with "Roxanne" by Arizona Zervas at number three, "Memories" by Maron 5 at number four (can we fuck this garbage off the charts NOW please), "Circles" by Post Malone at number 5 and "Ride It" by Regard at number six.
Riding the wave off the release of his album "Fine Line", Harry Styles single "Adore You" climbed 7 places to number seven, it pushed "Never Seen the Rain" by Tones and I back to number eight. I don't expect "Adore You" to stick around in the top ten tbh.
Breaking into the top ten is "Blinding Lights" by The Weeknd rising five places to number nine. Excellent news because the song is fucking fantastic
Finally, "All I Want for Christmas Is You" by Mariah Carey has finally hit the top ten rising one place to number ten.
Gains
We have a lot of Harry Styles to talk about and he is the leading big gainer this week with "Watermelon Sugar" jumping twenty places to number 12.
"Before You Go" by Lewis Capaldi rose nine places to break into the top 20 at number seventeen because of course we need more dull sappiness on the chart.
Then we have Wham's "Last Christmas" up seven to twenty three and "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas" by Michael Buble rose six places to number thirty two.
Re-Entries
Just the one re-entry with Harry Styles "Lights Up" back at 34
Losers
Taylor Swift's "Lover" hit 50 (this song should still make year end list I hope) while "Old Town Road" by Lil Nas X down to 27 from 18. Those were the only really significant losses this week.
Dropouts
Some significant ones here although they were all returns a few weeks ago with "Shallow" by Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper, "Wow" by Post Malone, "How Do you Sleep?" by Sam Smith and "Rans$om" by Lil Tecca gone. All will comfortably make year end chart.
They also took with them "Robbery" by Juice WRLD and "Up All Night" by Khalid,
New Entries
I wish Tik Tok would go the hell away because the highest debuting single belongs to Trevor Daniel's "Falling" at number 14...it's not a good song.
Harry Styles saw two album tracks hit the chart with "Falling" debuting at 35 and "Golden" at number 46
Forgettable at best, terrible at worst is the debut at number 36 which is "My Oh My" by Camila Cabello feat. Dababy..
A massive hit in the UK right now is "Owned it" by Stormzy feat. Ed Sheeran and Burna Boy, it's debuted on the ARIA singles chart at number 40.
Not sure I am going to cover next week's chart as it is likely to be swamped with Christmas music...joy....may just do the top ten and move on. Best hit songs of 1996 is coming soon. Don't forget the ARIA Chart updates at 5pm AEDT on Saturday.
For a 21st week, it's "Dance Monkey" by Tones and I at number one, it's a bit of a dicey battle as to whether it will get a 22nd week at number one especially as Mariah's streaming numbers are strong.
"Don't Start Now" by Dua Lipa holds on to number two. I really would like to see this song be the next number one song but its been swallowed up by Christmas music on streaming while sales are doing well, I doubt this is going to go number one.
The rest of the top six is pretty much the same with "Roxanne" by Arizona Zervas at number three, "Memories" by Maron 5 at number four (can we fuck this garbage off the charts NOW please), "Circles" by Post Malone at number 5 and "Ride It" by Regard at number six.
Riding the wave off the release of his album "Fine Line", Harry Styles single "Adore You" climbed 7 places to number seven, it pushed "Never Seen the Rain" by Tones and I back to number eight. I don't expect "Adore You" to stick around in the top ten tbh.
Breaking into the top ten is "Blinding Lights" by The Weeknd rising five places to number nine. Excellent news because the song is fucking fantastic
Finally, "All I Want for Christmas Is You" by Mariah Carey has finally hit the top ten rising one place to number ten.
Gains
We have a lot of Harry Styles to talk about and he is the leading big gainer this week with "Watermelon Sugar" jumping twenty places to number 12.
"Before You Go" by Lewis Capaldi rose nine places to break into the top 20 at number seventeen because of course we need more dull sappiness on the chart.
Then we have Wham's "Last Christmas" up seven to twenty three and "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas" by Michael Buble rose six places to number thirty two.
Re-Entries
Just the one re-entry with Harry Styles "Lights Up" back at 34
Losers
Taylor Swift's "Lover" hit 50 (this song should still make year end list I hope) while "Old Town Road" by Lil Nas X down to 27 from 18. Those were the only really significant losses this week.
Dropouts
Some significant ones here although they were all returns a few weeks ago with "Shallow" by Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper, "Wow" by Post Malone, "How Do you Sleep?" by Sam Smith and "Rans$om" by Lil Tecca gone. All will comfortably make year end chart.
They also took with them "Robbery" by Juice WRLD and "Up All Night" by Khalid,
New Entries
I wish Tik Tok would go the hell away because the highest debuting single belongs to Trevor Daniel's "Falling" at number 14...it's not a good song.
Harry Styles saw two album tracks hit the chart with "Falling" debuting at 35 and "Golden" at number 46
Forgettable at best, terrible at worst is the debut at number 36 which is "My Oh My" by Camila Cabello feat. Dababy..
A massive hit in the UK right now is "Owned it" by Stormzy feat. Ed Sheeran and Burna Boy, it's debuted on the ARIA singles chart at number 40.
Not sure I am going to cover next week's chart as it is likely to be swamped with Christmas music...joy....may just do the top ten and move on. Best hit songs of 1996 is coming soon. Don't forget the ARIA Chart updates at 5pm AEDT on Saturday.
Charting 1996: 22nd December: What is Macarena Christmas doing in the TOP TEN?
So here we are the final chart week of the year before the chart goes into a recess over the Christmas/New Year period ahead of 1997 and for yet another week "Wannabe" by the Spice Girls remains at number one, now this song looks to be losing ground but it's not under any threat from pur returning number two "Where Do You Go?" by No Mercy which is slowly also starting to lose steam especially as it is a close race for number two but it held off "What's Love Got to Do With It" by Warren G feat. Adina Howard which slipped back to number three.
Savage Garden remained steady at number four with "To the Moon and Back", this song is still on track to be a number one hit next year, you watch.
Then we have a surprise at number five, because the "Macarena" won't go the hell away, we have "Macarena Christmas" by Los Del Rio up from thirty seven. Did anyone really want or NEED this in the top ten. Geez.
At number six is Shania Twain's "(If You're Not In it for Love) I'm Outta Here" which is up three places this week. Good. I really like this song and am glad to see it doing well, it helped to push "Breathe" by The Prodigy back two places to number seven (I am surprised it's still in the top ten)
It also had the same effect on "Wishes" by Human Nature which dropped one place to number eight. Again another good song, just a shame it lost ground this week.
Toni Braxton climbs one place to number nine with "Un-Break My Heart", this song looks to be on track to achieving similar success to "You're Makin' Me High";
Finally the big loser is "Don't Stop Movin'' by Livin' Joy which dropped four places to number ten. Good.
Gains
The gains this week outside of "Macarena Christmas" in the top five are mostly new songs set to be hits in 1997 with Whigfield's "Sexy Eyes" up 12 to 38, "Lemon Tree" by Fool's Garden up to 35 from 47 and Unique II's "Break My Stride" up to 26 from 45 and looks to be the big mover of the week.
The only other big gainer is a case of continued momentum and that came for "Twisted" by Keith Sweat which broke into the top 20 at number 19 this week.
Re-Entries
Two re-entries this week and honestly I am not sure why with the best of them being "You Spin Me Around (Like a Record) ('96 Remix)" by Dead or Alive back at 46 and "Down" by 311 back at 48.
Losers
Former top ten hit "I'll be There For You" by The Remembrandts dropped from 35 to 44 while Tori Amos hit 42 from 34 with "Hey Jupiter/Professional Widow".
However, they weren't the biggest losers this week with "Mama Said" by Metallica dropping hard from 24 to 39. Ouch.
The Symbol (Prince) dropped from 18 to 30 this week with "Betcha by Golly Wow!" while "I Love You Always Forever" by Donna Lewis fell eight places to 20.
New Entry
It's a fairly muted week on the new entry side of things with just one new song entering the top 50 with No Doubt's new single "Don't Speak" in at number 50 and considering how big "Just A Girl" was in 1996, I wouldn't be surprised if this song is huge in 1997
That wraps up the final edition of Charting 1996, don't forget you can check out my top ten worst hit songs of 1996 here. My top ten best hit songs are coming soon as is this week's ARIA Chart top ten/review which should be on here sometime today.
As far as retro chart reviews go? I believe I am going to be covering the year of the Sydney Olympics and the turn of the millennium next year so that is going to be fun!.
Savage Garden remained steady at number four with "To the Moon and Back", this song is still on track to be a number one hit next year, you watch.
Then we have a surprise at number five, because the "Macarena" won't go the hell away, we have "Macarena Christmas" by Los Del Rio up from thirty seven. Did anyone really want or NEED this in the top ten. Geez.
At number six is Shania Twain's "(If You're Not In it for Love) I'm Outta Here" which is up three places this week. Good. I really like this song and am glad to see it doing well, it helped to push "Breathe" by The Prodigy back two places to number seven (I am surprised it's still in the top ten)
It also had the same effect on "Wishes" by Human Nature which dropped one place to number eight. Again another good song, just a shame it lost ground this week.
Toni Braxton climbs one place to number nine with "Un-Break My Heart", this song looks to be on track to achieving similar success to "You're Makin' Me High";
Finally the big loser is "Don't Stop Movin'' by Livin' Joy which dropped four places to number ten. Good.
Gains
The gains this week outside of "Macarena Christmas" in the top five are mostly new songs set to be hits in 1997 with Whigfield's "Sexy Eyes" up 12 to 38, "Lemon Tree" by Fool's Garden up to 35 from 47 and Unique II's "Break My Stride" up to 26 from 45 and looks to be the big mover of the week.
The only other big gainer is a case of continued momentum and that came for "Twisted" by Keith Sweat which broke into the top 20 at number 19 this week.
Re-Entries
Two re-entries this week and honestly I am not sure why with the best of them being "You Spin Me Around (Like a Record) ('96 Remix)" by Dead or Alive back at 46 and "Down" by 311 back at 48.
Losers
Former top ten hit "I'll be There For You" by The Remembrandts dropped from 35 to 44 while Tori Amos hit 42 from 34 with "Hey Jupiter/Professional Widow".
However, they weren't the biggest losers this week with "Mama Said" by Metallica dropping hard from 24 to 39. Ouch.
The Symbol (Prince) dropped from 18 to 30 this week with "Betcha by Golly Wow!" while "I Love You Always Forever" by Donna Lewis fell eight places to 20.
New Entry
It's a fairly muted week on the new entry side of things with just one new song entering the top 50 with No Doubt's new single "Don't Speak" in at number 50 and considering how big "Just A Girl" was in 1996, I wouldn't be surprised if this song is huge in 1997
That wraps up the final edition of Charting 1996, don't forget you can check out my top ten worst hit songs of 1996 here. My top ten best hit songs are coming soon as is this week's ARIA Chart top ten/review which should be on here sometime today.
As far as retro chart reviews go? I believe I am going to be covering the year of the Sydney Olympics and the turn of the millennium next year so that is going to be fun!.
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