The Top Ten Best Hit Songs of 1980

So 1980, a tumultuous year in many respects not least of all for music where AC/DC's lead vocalist Bon Scott would be found having passed out in a car and later pronounced dead on arrival at hospital which later saw the band bring in Brian Johnston, John Lennon was shot dead by an obsessed fan outside his apartment building in New York but beyond the world of music...there was a federal election, whatever the hell happened to baby Azaria Chamberlain on that fateful night at Uluru and the controversial Olympics in Moscow. 

So anyway let's get back to the matter at hand because we're here to talk about the best of the popular music in 1980 and in 1980, pop music was in transition moving away from its obsession with disco and into the new wave sound that had planted it's seeds the year before and was beginning to become dominant, disco was still notching success but not quite to the same degree as it had in the years previous while soul and funk had a small amount of success but I still managed to find plenty of fantastic songs for this list (the top five of the year end is stunning)

Rules are this.

1. A song is eligible for this list if it appears on the Kent Music Report's year end list for 1980 or debuted on the 1979 year end list but is higher on the 1980 year end.

2. This list is my opinion so no abuse please!

So without further delays, lets get this top ten best hit songs of 1980 underway!

So there is not going to be too many Australian songs on this list...mostly because a lot of the music the Australian acts were releasing covers like John Farnham with "Help", cliched ballads like Colleen Hewitt's "Dreaming My Dreams With You" or the song is good but stiff competition ultimately meant they missed out but thankfully I did find an ballad from an Australian band I actually liked and it's this...

10. "Downhearted" by Australian Crawl

Full confession...I've never been 100% into Australian Crawl, "Boys Light Up" drives me up the wall and "Reckless" does nothing for me but "Downhearted" is the sort of song I can get behind, it's a song about heartbreak and everything that comes with it. James Reyne frets about the fact love is getting him down because there's no end to his own heartbreak in sight because this girl has stolen his heart...in a way it's a song that's got this kind of 'nice guys' vibe to it (if you've seen the nice guys sub reddit on Reddit, you'll know what I'm talking about) and while that kind of did mean I couldn't put the song any higher on the list, I definitely get what it's trying to do and respect it all the more for it. Good song.

I have a weird relationship with this artist, I don't really particularly care for his music for the most part but there's something about this song I find utterly charming...

9. "More Than I Can Say" by Leo Sayer

If there's anything that could make me lose all credibility...it's admitting that I find this cover of the original The Crickets 1959 version to be utterly charming, yeah it's a cloying and kind of obsessive pop song but there's a sincerity to Leo Sayer's vocals that sells the song for me, he doesn't quite have the words to explain just how much he loves and misses this girl when she's away and questions if she's feeling the same about him. Throw in that guitar and you have me hooked. While I've never really cared for Sayer's other songs, this one will always have a place in my heart, glad it was a number one hit in Australia more than I can say,

Meanwhile there was one band who were more upfront about it and had all the words for love...

8. "What I Like About You" by The Romantics

I got to be honest here, the reason why this song is in the top ten is because of that ridiculously catchy hook coupled with guitars and that handclap as the lyrics rattle off everything he likes about this girl including her dancing and keeping him warm at night. It's just this fun bouncy song that demands your attention and even if you don't mean to, you can find yourself singing along with it. Hey, The Romantics can keep on whispering the things I wanna hear in my ear because yeah ain't going to stop it. It's way too much fun and an easy contender to be on a list like this. Remember when rock music was fun? Can we get back to this because I miss songs like this.

Speaking of having fun, you thought there wouldn't be any disco on this list...wellll...

7. "Blame It On the Boogie" by Jackson 5

Look, this song has a lot in common with The Romantics "What I Like About You", it's catchy and Michael Jackson's energy in his vocal delivery here is as infectious as anything he released solo (I still hare "Don't Stop Til You Get Enough") and the song just has this easy get up and dance energy to it that make the lyrics "I just can't control my feet" ring true  given its a song with an infectious spirit that does make me want to dance also Michael taking lead vocals is inspired because his charisma sells this song so damn well and its part of the reason Michael had a pretty great 1980 within the Jackson 5 and solo.

So I wasn't about to leave Debbie Harry and her cohorts off this list now was I....

6. "Call Me" by Blondie

So this song is probably one of the catchiest pop/rock songs of the 80s, Debbie Harry is killing it at the front of Blondie acting as this prostitute calling on guys to call her any time for love...yes it might surprise you to know that "Call Me" is a song about a prostitute in 1980 film American Gigolo. "Call Me" much like "Blame It On the Boogie" doesn't give you much of a reason to not be on your feet dancing and jumping around to it, with "Call Me" having punchy grooves and that killer middle eight back into the final chorus. Debbie Harry is one hell of a front woman though.

So one of the biggest groups to emerge from the 1970s was UK act Queen following the massive success of "Bohemian Rhapsody", 1980 would turn out to be another fantastic year for them as "Another One Bites the Dust" was huge but there was another Queen song that was even bigger in 1980 and it's on this list...

5. "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" by Queen

Look, it was a tough choice between this one and "Another One Bites the Dust" (that riff is fucking ICONIC!) but in the end "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" won out because...Freddie Mercury's charisma and personality just shines through so much more here and sure the guitar work here is sensational and of the standard you would expect from an act like Queen who by that point had almost perfected their sound, throw in the handclaps and you have the sort of perfect love song that isn't too saccharine and knows when to show off it's cool to the point its effortless especially as Freddie is describing what this crazy emotion called love is doing to him. Great song. 

However if you want the complete opposite of a love song, here's a surprisingly dark song from one of the world's most popular pop acts that in 1980 were falling apart in their private lives and boy, if ever there was a gut punch in 1980, it was this song.

4. "The Winner Takes It All" by ABBA

The first time I heard this piano ballad, I was shocked, people just don't write mature songs about divorce/break ups this way anymore, this is mature and a rather adult way of looking at things, it's a song written by Bjorn Ulvaeus about his break up fellow band member Agnetha but also included a mix of emotions from what Benny and Frida had gone through with their separation, the lyrics are brutally stoic and honest about the end of the relationship and when you realize that there's not really any winners in divorce (according to Bjorn, there were no winners in his divorce from Agnetha) and the fact that proceedings have come to an end and the moment of moving on faced without complaint and not wanting to go back over old ground other than to wish the ex well. Heartbreaking stuff but it's the best song ABBA ever wrote.

Earlier on I mentioned Freddie Mercury as being incredibly charismatic, in 1980, there was a woman in rock music who was more than capable of letting her charisma shine through her vocals and this song was the breakout hit for the band she was in so who needs a little brass and bottle in pocket, right now?

3. "Brass in Pocket" by The Pretenders.

Yes, we can't go without talking about the sensational Chrissie Hynde here because my god she is selling this song with everything and it's kind of what a song like this needs (the irony being that Chrissie actually didn't like the song and hated that it was a number one hit in the UK) and why I cannot stand that Teddy Geiger cover that was done for Spotify, its a song about having the money and courage enough to go out and wanting to be accepted but it just being a front he/she is putting up. I just connect so much with this song and love just how the confidence radiates from Hynde's vocals, I know she doesn't like "Brass in Pocket" but it's a song I just can't get enough of. 

Well... it was the biggest hit song of 1980 and for damn good reason...

2. "I Got You" by Split Enz

Split Enz snuck onto the 1979 year end with "I See Red" but 1980 would see the Tim Finn led band have the biggest song in Australia for 1980 with Tim's brother Neil penning the new wave sounding "I Got You" in 1979, the song spent eight weeks at the top of the Kent Music Report charts in 1980 and what a delight this song is as the narrator ponders how having this significant other with him keeps anxiety and fear at bay but when she isn't around anymore, the anxiety and fear return causing the narrator to retreat back to his room...this song was the moment that new wave really showed that it was ready to dominate the early part of the 80s and this one is still a new wave classic to this day.

Before we get to our number one how about some honourable mentions?

HM1: "Rock With You" by Michael Jackson

For me, 1980 was an off year for Michael Jackson and of his solo songs that made the 1980 year end...this was the song from the lot that got to me the most and connected in a few ways for me (Not like I was ever going to pick "Don't Stop Til You Get Enough"...its the one MJ song I cannot stand). Like most songs on this list, it's a love song that yeah is a bit gooey but it still works 

HM2: "Another One Bites The Dust" by Queen

Iconic guitar riff and Freddie Mercury throwing himself around vocally...what more could you want? There's a reason that this song is a god damn classic...just missed out because well...there was a better Queen song in 1980 that made the list.

HM3: "Working My Way Back to You" by The Spinners

So this one is a bit of a surprise...I wasn't expecting to like this, what would have sounded very much like a pastiche to the early 70s with it's Motown sounding grooves for what is a pretty simple love song and while I am nota fan of some of the spoken word parts, this still works for me. Good song.

HM4: "Romeo's Tune" by Steve Forbert

This song is one of those they play on the radio and they never tell you the name of it when the DJ is on the air but despite some production problems, this song is still pretty cute. Just couldn't justify putting this in the top ten because of the production problems

HM5: "The Wanderer" by Donna Summer

So this grew on me a far bit to the point I nearly replaced "Downhearted" with this song, it's was a sound shift for Donna Summer at the time as she transitioned from disco to a pretty neat pop/r'n'b act and this song does it pretty well...consider it my number eleven.

Back to the list proper, it's time to get to the number one and I will say, it was close between my number one pick, I Got You and Brass in Pocket...all three were number one at some point during the list drafting process but you know....it's all still rock and roll to me...

1. "It's Still Rock 'n' Roll to Me" by Billy Joel

It might surprise you but I dig Billy Joel's music...he'd probably have at least one song on a couple of year end lists for certain years if I really wanted to get down to making those lists for those years (granted I am not a fan of "Uptown Girl"..not a fan of the cover Westlife did either) but "It's Still Rock 'n' Roll to Me" is a damn great song, for one thing Joel is making comment that at the time the new wave sound was arriving thanks to The Police and The Cars however to Joel, it sounded like power pop which to him was nothing new as power pop had been around since the 60s, he didn't like the way the sound had been categorised hence it's all still rock and roll to him and yeah, this song is kind of forward in it's discussion of genre and the blurring of the lines when it comes to genre and look, I just love how catchy and honestly how challenging the song is, does it really matter what genre the song is, as long as you enjoy, the genre shouldn't matter.

"It's Still Rock 'n' Roll to Me" by Billy Joel is the best hit song of 1980. 

Good 1992 Vibrations. 24th May. Man Alive, Fathers Day was Simply The Best.

 So this week feels weird mostly because it doesn't feel like a lot happened but yet there's still a lot to talk about mostly because there's SEVEN new entries to deal with this week but let's begin with the top ten where for yet another depressing week "To Be With You" by Mr Big holds onto the the number one and right now I don't see what is going to challenge for that number one spot.

It's not going to be "Under the Bridge" by Red Hot Chili Peppers which remained at number two but its sales are slowing down which means it's facing a threat from "Stay" by Shakespears Sister up one to number three as it's starting to do better on sales. 

It pushed past "Way Out West" by James Blundell and James Reyne which slipped back to number four, again this is weakening on sales but it still held on over "In the Closet" by Michael Jackson stuck at number five because it couldn't close the margin which was the same case for "Be My Baby" by Teen Queens at number six.

We have the first of three new arrivals to the top ten at number seven and this is the one I'm not happy about..."James Brown is Dead" by L.A. Style which climbed four places to do so...yikes...I'll save my thoughts for the year end worst list with regard to this song but when you see what left the top ten just so this piece of garbage could worm it's way in is all the more infuriating.

Luckily the other two are infinitely more palatable with "Suck My Kiss" by Red Hot Chili Peppers up from 25 to number eight this week..this could be a player for number one if it keeps this momentum up and "That Word (L.O.V.E)" by The Rockmelons feat Cutty Ranks, Nardo Ranks and Demi Hines which climbed five places to number nine this week..I'm very happy about this. 

All of this pushed "Not a Day Goes" by Rick Price down three to number ten as it's on its way out naturally.

Gains

I already mentioned the major gains for "Suck My Kiss" by Red Hot Chili Peppers as it scaled its way up from 25 to 8 but there were a few other scattered major gains like "Clunk (EP)" by Frente as it rose from 23 to break into the top twenty at 19.

Del Tha Funkee Homosapien climbed ten places to 22 with "Mistadobolina'  while 2 Unlimited climbed five places to 25 with "Twilight Zone" 

Indecent Obsession continued its climb as "Kiss Me" bounded from 33 to 27 however the weird run of "Dream Alone" by Killing Time continued as it jumped suddenly from 41 to 32 this week, this song has seen some spikes and troughs lately!

Finally, I'm happy to see "Make It Happen" by Mariah Carey climb eleven places to number 35. 

Losers

So let's start with "Baby Love" by Dannii Minogue which isn't getting a lot of love as it fell from 42 to 49 this week while "I Can't Dance" by Genesis continues to be all out of rhythm down six to 40 and Julian Lennon's "Help Yourself" can't help falling from 38 to 45.

One of the larger tumbles this week was for Voice of The Beehive's cover of "I Think I Love You" which collapsed down from 26 to 44 this week...ouch.

"Sister's Crazy" by Candy Harlots slipped from it's debut of 37 to number 41 while "Insanity" by Oceanic tumbled nine places to 40.  "Dizzy" by Vic Reeves & The Wonder Stuff is spinning out of control as its down eleven to 39. 

What's not so "Marvellous" is The 12th Man feat. MCG Hammer's nine place decline to 33 (probably blame that on the Cricket World Cup having long since finished) however in better news " Thought I'd Died and Gone to Heaven" by Bryan Adams is down nine to 31...good, the sooner it's gone the better for the charts.

Prince & The New Power Generation slipped six with "Money Don't Matter 2 Night" to 24 while "Lets Get Rocked" by Def Leppard got pummelled back from 17 to 21.

"Get Ready for This" by 2 Unlimited was ready to free fall seven places to number 17. 

New Entries

There's seven new entries this week beginning with...

48. "Joy" by Soul II Soul

So this is the latest single from Soul II Soul, a group that I've honestly never really cared for all that much, but none the less this song is the first single from the group's new album Volume III Just Right and well this kind isn't anything out of the ordinary or doing much to impress me, it feels like your standard by the numbers R'n'B song with standard inspirational/empowerment lyrics about joy and spreading it around the world except that melody and beat do nothing to be as joyful as the lyrics suggest. It's fine...there's nothing aggressively wrong with it...it's just not for me.

47. "As Ugly as They Wanna Be" by Ugly Kid Joe

So this is an EP from an American metal band called Ugly Kid Joe, the title of their debut EP is a play on 2 Live Crew's album name "As Nasty As They Wanna be" and my god this is some of the lamest so called metal I've ever heard, "Everything About You" is just literal whinging over a limp guitar that wouldn't even knock the milk out of your tea when it played, really most of this EP is pretty mediocre to down right bad. NEXT please.

43. "Hazard" by Richard Marx

Ahh Richard Marx is back with the second single from his third studio album "Rush Street" and for a single this song is pretty dark, for one thing the song tells the story of the relationship between the narrator and a woman named Mary. Mary disappeared in suspicious circumstances which resulted in the narrator being shunned in the village since he was a small boy at the age of seven and is now the main suspect in the disappearance of Mary and narrator continues to plead his innocence through out the song, it's got all the similar hallmarks to Bobbie Gentry's 1967 hit 'Ode to Billie Joe" where the answers are left open to interpretation by the listener but "Hazard" isn't better than "Ode to Billie Joe" and there's certainly others that are better in this lane but if this works for you, it'll do the job.

38. "Man Alive" by Diesel

Well its about time we got a new single from Diesel and it comes in the form of this barn burner of a catchy song.There's not much that can be said here, it's really a pretty simple love song with guitars all doing their thing and Diesel has all the charm to try to rope this girl to be with him because he wants to be her lover. I enjoyed this a fair bit. Check it out if you are curious. 

37. "Save The Best for Last" by Vanessa Williams

Well 1992's charts always seem to have room for one complete snoozer of a song on the chart and here we have this week's piece of blandness, this time from American singer Vanessa Williams, "Save the Best for Last" is the third single from her second album and look, there's always room on the charts for songs about being in love and how this guy is saving his absolute best for last for her but I mean come on when your song is so overloaded with cliches, it becomes a bit laughable eg: "Sometimes the sun goes round the moon" and "Just when I thought our chance had passed..." I mean even the title is a fucking cliche. It's not even like the music here is interesting either with the piano and organ...this song is for late night Love Songs and Dedications somewhere between Foreigner and Meatloaf, they would mostly play Meatloaf after playing this boring cliched slog of a song!

29. "Fathers Day" by Weddings Parties Anything

Oh thank god...a song that is good and to boot INTERESTING anyway believe it or not, this is my first time hearing Weddings, Parties, Anything and holy shit, this song does tug at the heartstrings a bit with this song inspired by one of the band's roadies and this really is an ode to being a dad in spite of frontman Mick Thomas not being a dad at the time but my god he nails the emotion of this song, he delivers the lyrics with a passion and intensity of somebody who is a dad and how you don't need one day of the year celebrate being dad, every day can be a Fathers Day. I love the sentiment here...great song.

18. "Simply The Best" by Tina Turner and Jimmy Barnes

Okay so this is an odd case, this was a song that was a hit in 1988 for Bonnie Tyler in Norway and the UK (if you've heard it, you can understand why it wasn't a hit in Australia) before Tina Turner would get hold of the song and released it as a single in 1989 where it would peak at number four and now the New South Wales Rugby League have brought in Jimmy Barnes and the song is now a duet, Jimmy and Tina are a good match too vocally, they can go toe for toe and have some really good chemistry here. Oh and the song is still the best anthem that rugby league has had.

So yet worst of the week is that Ugly Kid Joe EP...we don't need any more lame shit on the charts. As for the best, "Fathers Day" by Weddings Parties Anything just nudges out Diesel's "Man Alive" and Tina and Jimmy's "Simply The Best" collab.

ARIA Top 50 Singles Top Ten/Chart Review. 24th March. Good 4 J Cole's Off Season

Aaaggghhh. I usually pride the Australian charts on the fact that we rarely ever see album bombs but oh boy we got the mother of all album bombs from J Cole's "The Off Season" of all things where ALL twelve songs are currently in the ARIA top 50 either having debuted last week or this week, I didn't realize that J Cole was so popular here however let's first begin with the one place J Cole didn't touch which was...the top ten where "Body" by Russ Millions and Tion Wayne held on to number one for a second week however I don't see it getting a third week at the top...yes, it still has decent streaming but that decent streaming isn't really much of a match for the competition behind it.

Which brings us to our highest new entry of the week that being "Good 4 U" by Olivia Rodrigo...this song took the streaming lead and looks set to be the most likely to take the number one spot depending on the streaming numbers for that new BTS song that will likely hit the chart next week (this week's New Music Friday was absolutely bonkers) but right now "Good 4 U" is a streaming behemoth and with the album released today...this song will definitely make a run at number one next week.

That pushed "Kiss Me More" by Doja Cat feat SZA back to number three, I don't like saying this but I think this song's challenge for number one is done at this point. "Good 4 U" has a lot better streaming and while it might return to number two next week...I won't be surprised if it's blocked from number one for the rest of its run.

"Without You" by The Kid Laroi and the remix with Miley Cyrus slipped one spot to number four this week as did "Heat Waves"  by Glass Animals to number five, both are pretty much done at this point.

Hanging around like the lingering smell of soiled underpants is "Astronaut in the Ocean" by Masked Wolf at number six for some reason....this song has worn out its welcome for me badly.

Up two places to number seven is "Levitating" by Dua Lipa feat. DaBaby on the back of renewed strength on streaming and the ongoing meme that is DaBaby.

The song that seems to have suffered most here is "Montero (Call Me By Your Name" by Lil Nas X which slipped three places to number eight as the song suffered from slips on streaming.

Actually the same could be said for "Peaches" by Justin Bieber feat. Daniel Caesar and Giveon down two to number nine and "Save Your Tears" by The Weeknd down two to number ten.

Gains

There were none apart from the already mentioned "Levitating" by Dua Lipa and DaBaby rising two places to seven

Losers

To save my sanity here, I am going to go through the double digit losers here first beginning with "Calling My Phone" by Lil Tjay feat. 6lack down sixteen to 48, "Runaway" by Aurora down twelve places to 47, "We're Good" by Dua Lipa plunging twelve to 45, "Love Songs Ain't for Us" by Amy Shark feat. Keith Urban tumbled fourteen places to 40, Pink's "All I Know So Far" got brained down thirteen to 38 and Cardi B's on her way down with "Up" sliding 11 to 35. 

Now to some of the many single digit losers like "You Broke Me First" by Tate McRae which dropped nine spots to 50, "So Done" by The Kid Laroi down seven to 44, "Dreams" by Fleetwood Mac down seven to 43, "Fly Away" by Tones and I grounded down eight places to 42, "Streets" by Doja Cat hit a pothole down eight to 37, "Hold On" by Justin Bieber can't live up to it's name this week as it fell nine to 31, "Heartbreak Anniversary" by Giveon slipped eight places to 29 (Hoping this song has a recovery) and unfrortunately 'Your Power" by Billie Eilish down nine places to 23.

Drop Outs 

As you can imagine in a week like this one where there's a lot of new entries we have a long list of drop outs that include long running hits like "Dance Monkey" by Tones and I, "Don't Start Now" by Dua Lipa and "Watermelon Sugar" by Harry Styles 

Then there are songs that have likely locked themselves onto the year end list for this year like "Good Days" by SZA (this song deserved better), "Anymore" by Justin Bieber, "My Head & My Heart" by Ava Max. and "Paradise" by Meduza feat. Dermot Kennedy

Then there are the non starters and last week's new arrivals that fell off like "Miss the Rage" by Trippie Redd feat. Playboi Carti (Good riddance to bad garbage), "Higher Power" by Coldplay, "Best Friend" by Saweetie feat. Doja Cat, "Beautiful Mistakes" by Maroon 5 feat. Megan Thee Stallion and sadly, "Martin & Gina" by Polo G

New Entries

Album bomb rules are in effect this week so the J Cole songs that don't qualify or aren't the best or worst of the week are as follows (and no I will not be doing it in the stupid way J Cole has it): "95 South" at 22, "Let Go My Hand" feat Bas and 6lack at 27, "100 Mil" feat. Bas at 30, "Punchin' The Clock" at 33, "The Climb" back at 39, "Hunger on the Hillside" feat. Bas at 46 and "Close" at 49.

That leaves us with five new entries to discuss...four of them being J Cole so I don't blame anyone if they want to scroll past all the J Cole but we begin with...

28. "Applying Pressure" by J Cole

So I am going to keep my thoughts on the J Cole songs pretty brief as I don't think any of them will stick around much long than two weeks and we're starting this with the worst song on "The Off Season" where  J Cole uses this cheap sound meat processing noise to rap about how broke rappers should flaunt wealth they don't have (weird coming from the guy who said "money don't make you real" but anyway) and then spends the rest of the flexing his skills behind the microphone which at best really aren't on show here so NEXT...

15. "Pride is the Devil" by J Cole feat. Lil Baby

So thankfully the highest three charting songs from the J Cole album are all pretty decent cuts starting with this one which features Lil Baby, it's got a nice guitar lick while J Cole raps about one of the seven deadly sins that being pride and how pride has contributed to his behaviour and the behaviour of others around him while Lil Baby raps about money and how he has left the desperate need for money sex behind in order to keep inind the bigger picture which I can definitely get behind. I will note that some have said that this song sounds similar to Amine's "Can't Decide" so it does lower it a little but I'll take it...it's decent.

14. "Amari" by J Cole

So hete's another trap inflected song and again it's about J Cole's come up in the hip hop game (I swaear to god, rappers need more subject matter) and basically bragging about his lifestyle over the beat that can be attributed to his rise in hip hop (can't really be argued given he got an album bomb in Australia and will have multiple songs in the top ten on the US Hot 100 when that's announced on Tuesday morning Australian time). The song is decent, check it out if you are curious.

11. "My Life" by J Cole feat. 21 Savage and Morray

So for the final J Cole album cut on the list, J Cole has brought on board 21 Savage and a rising US rapper named Morray who is having a breakout year in the US thanks to his song "Quicksand" and yeah this may well be the best cut on the album, I like the sampling of Styles P and how it is used as J Cole, 21 Savage and Morray explore hardships and how tough times bring people closer together along with the eventual success that comes with coming out of hard times. The flows are pretty damn awesome too. If Morray is the future star of hip hop, I'm on board!

2. "Good 4 U" by Olivia Rodrigo

So here's the biggest new entry of the week and my god, I didn't expect a third single from "SOUR" to debut so god damn high but hey, I am not complaining because this song kicks some major BUTT, this is Olivia in sarcastic mode saying its good that he moved on but hey, what about her? You know, the one he left heartbroken and crying on her bathroom floor. I love the guitars that have some serious crunch on the hook and Olivia has plenty of charisma enough to pull off this incredibly sarcastic song, yes it's catty and the lyrics are a little cringey but she's eighteen! I kind of  expect lyrics from a teenager to be a little cringey. Great song!

So no surprise "Good 4 U" by Olivia Rodrigo gets best of the week but the worst is going to "Applying Pressure" by J Cole. 

Next week...we could see J Cole's album bomb replaced by an album bomb from Olivia Rodrigo, BTS could make a play for a top ten debut with their new single...like I say there was PLENTY of new music released on Friday so we'll find out what happens when the chart updates on Friday at 5pm AEST.

New Music Friday Review. 14th May. Bitch Damaged Sleep

 "Won't Sleep" by Tones and I

I don't really have much to say about this but if this is the direction that Tones and I is taking her music in than it's a hard yikes from me because I don't like this AT ALL. That oddly way too heavy knock of the beat and the fact it sounds like a song she had already done eg: "Bad Child" so yeah this was a major disappointment across the board. Tones and I, you can do so much better than this.

Rating: 4/10

"Build a Bitch" by Bella Poarch

Another week, another person famous on Tik Tok releases a song and again I don't have much to say about this other than ask "Who the fuck asked for this?" and for Bella Poarch to start writing some better songs if she's serious about a music career because this song is half assed and lazy

Rating: 3/10

"Damaged" by Miiesha

Oh finally, something that is actually excellent. Miiesha is an indigenous Australian R'n'B act, hailing from remote Queensland, that attracted my attention last year courtesy of the 2020 ARIA awards where she got plenty of acclaim for her album called "Nyaaringu", decided to check it out and was impressed as she wrote about life, family and herself so with "Damaged" being the first single since the album, how did it turn out?

Uhh...really damn great...Miiesha explores the broken relationship between her and her mother ad how everything she's tried to do to fix the relationship hasn't worked and just left her more heart broken which is an absolutely devastating thing to feel especially when that disconnect is with the person who brought you into the world or have that feeling with a person you thought was a friend...this is a really damn good song check it out.

Rating: 9/10

Good 1992 Vibrations. 17th May. Sister's Got That Crazy Suck My Kiss Vibe.

So this week is interesting to say the least maybe in good and bad ways especially if you look right at the very top like I did and thought "Oh fuck no" because we do have a new number one that being "To Be With You" by Mr Big, it got there because somehow people love this cornball train wreck of a song, it pushed "Under The Bridge" by Red Hot Chili Peppers down to number two as it couldn't match the sales of "To Be With You".

"Way Out West" by James Blundell and James Reyne at number three and "Stay" by Shakespears Sister at number four couldn't bridge the gap to the songs above them but they both managed to stay above the big gainer of the week...that being "In the Closet" by Michael Jackson up from it's debut of 21 to number five...I get why but I really do still prefer "Remember The Time"/ 

Rising one place to number six is Teen Queens cover of "Be My Baby"...who wants this putrid cover still? Seriously?.

The above was enough to push "Not A Day Goes By" by Rick Price down two places to number seven. Kind of disappointed but it's done well to stick around in the top ten for so long given the competition around it.

"Nothing Else Matters" by Metallica rose one spot to number eight swapping with "I Love Your Smile" by Shanice down one spot to number nine.

While "Get Ready for this" by 2 Unlimited fell four places to number ten this week, it's fading naturally.

Gains

I already mentioned "In the Closet" by Michael Jackson rising to the top five so what else rose outside the top ten...well there is "Take It From Me" by Girlfriend which climbed five places to 15...this is top ten bound, folks, it's catchy enough to get there. 

"Skin to Skin" by Melissa jumped from 26 to 19 this week while "Clunk (EP)" by Frente climbed from 30 to 23 (Again I am not sure either of these two rising is all that much of good news).

Nor is the big gain for "Twilight Zone" by 2 Unlimited up from 49 to 30 or "Insanity" by Oceanic up from 38 to 31.

"Mistadoblina" by Del Tha Funkee Homosapien jumped from 46 to 32 this week! Again another song set to become a hit while "Kiss Me" by Indecent Obsession climbed from 50 to 33. 

Losers

Alright lets start from the bottom with "Diamonds & Pearls" by Prince & The New Power Generation down from 37 to 49 as it makes it's way out along with "Give Me Just A Little More Time" by Kylie Minogue (this one has never really caught on) down eight to 44 while Kylie's sister Dannii slipped ten places to 42 with "Baby Love".

Killing Time's "Dream Alone" lost most of it's gains in recent weeks to plunge from 35 to 41 while "I Can't Dance" by Genesis plunged nine places to 40 and "Sometimes (Live)" by Midnight Oil toppled six places to 39.

Artsy wank that is "Sound" by James slipped eight places to 36 while The Cure's "High" hits a low of 35 down from 29 last week.

Unfortunately "One" by U2 slipped eleven to 29 and "Dizzy" by Vic Reeves and The Wonder Stuff spun down six to 28 while "Marvellous" by The 12th Man feat. MCG Hammer slipped nine places to 24 and "Let's Get Rocked" by Del Leppard rocked down six places to 17.

New Entries

Four new entries this week, starting with...

50. "She's Got That Vibe" by R. Kelly and Public Announcement

Here's the debut single from American R'n'B act Robert Sylvester Kelly aka: R Kelly and his backing band Public Announcement, tt's his first for the debut album called "Born into the 90s" and yeah...this song is too much fun! For one thing, R.Kelly and Public Announcement lean into the silliness of the song although the chorus of this song interpolates "My Prerogative" by Bobby Brown so yeah this has a pretty damn good groove and while the lyrics are the stock standard wanting to hook up with a girl sort, doesn't change that this song is a lot of fun. 

47. "Tears in Heaven" by Eric Clapton

Now we go from silly to really sad and I am going to endeavour to keep this short because this song makes me cry and talking it about it is tough, Eric Clapton and Will Jennings collaborated to write this song about the death of Clapton's then four year old son Conor who died after he fell out of a window and yeah this song breaks your heart as Clapton asks if Conor 'would know his name if he saw him in heaven" and how time can break you down and bend your knees, it's a song that leaves its mark on you that's for sure.

37. "Sister's Crazy" by Candy Harlots.

So here's the latest song from Candy Harlots, a song that verges into alternative rock  but yet again my problem with this band, I don't like the vocals at all...if I want a band trying to redo Guns 'n' Roses sound I would just listen to Guns 'n' Roses...if you actually gave this song to Axl Rose, he could probably do a lot better with it....next!

25. "Suck My Kiss" by Red Hot Chili Peppers

So here's the latest single from "Blood Sugar Sex Magic" and while I don't think it's better than "Under the Bridge", it's still pretty good...the riffs come through nice and there's an energy about the way Anthony Kiedis delivers the lyrics from the point of view of a man being so in love with this woman that he will let her do anything she wants to him including her sucking his kiss...haha. I appreciate the song isn't corny or crude in it's sexual overtures and for a love song in 1992...this feels fresh and different. This is fine.

So yeah that's the week...not all that bad if I am to be honest but the worst of the week is going to "Sister's Crazy" by Candy Harlots while the best of the week goes to "Tears in Heaven by Eric Clapton

ARIA Singles Chart Top Ten/Chart Review. 17th May. Miss the Interlude of Higher Power Rage is All I know so far

 So this week was surprising more so for what of the new songs hit the chart including one song I absolutely did not expect but before we get to the new entries, let's look at the top ten where we have a new number one and it's not the song I expected because unfortunately "Body" by Russ Millions and Tion Wayne rode streaming to number one. Streaming is all it's got because it's not a player on digital sales right now however streaming is going to probably mean this has got a few weeks at number one in it. Lovely.

It leaped past "Kiss Me More" by Doja Cat feat. SZA which was all set to take the number one spot until it got overtaken on streaming and while it's got some sales, it's stuck at number two for the time being. 

All of this pushed last week's number one "Without You" by The Kid Laroi and the remix feat. Miley Cyrus (which ARIA somehow decided to credit this week which would likely piss stans off if they'd noticed) down to number three as it wasn't a strong number one anyway and got to number on inflated numbers from the remix release.

Rebounding one spot is "Heat Waves" by Glass Animals to number four but this song is starting to fade away gradually however it did enough to move past "Montero (Call Me By Your Name)" by Lil Nas X which stumbled back to number five as streaming slowed down granted it could get a boost with the new single "Sun Goes Down" coming next week,

"Peaches" by Justin Bieber feat. Daniel Caesar and Giveon slipped one place to number seven mostly because it hasn't got the same steam on streaming and sales dipped. The same could be said for "Save Your Tears" by The Weeknd down one to number eight as streaming wavers.

Riding on the back of renewed streaming and the meme of DaBaby and the favourite for the Billboard Hot 100 number one next week, "Levitating" by Dua Lipa feat. DaBaby returned to the top ten up two places to number nine...this song has had a very weird run. 

Finally also returning to the top ten is "The Business" by Tiesto up two spots to number ten and I'd argue that's more because streaming remembered this song. Thing is it's not really a net gain for the top ten that this song is back but anyway...

Gains

"Bed" by Joel Corry, Raye and David Guetta jumped four places to 23 but that was really about it as gains were pretty slow. across the board this week.

Losers

We're also slim on the major losers front this week, there were six place losses for "Anyone" by Justin Bieber to 42 and "Calling My Phone" by Lil Tjay and 6lack to 32.but other than that it's a bit of a slower week on that front.

Drop Outs

Three hits last year dropped out those being "Holy" by Justin Bieber feat. Chance the Rapper, "WAP" by Cardi B feat. Megan Thee Stallion and "Lemonade" by Internet Money and Gunna feat Don Toliver and NAV

The only other drop out was "Mr Brightside" by The Killers.

New Entries

So four new entries this week, beginning with...

44. "Higher Power" by Coldplay

When I saw that this charted in the top 50 this week, I was shocked, nothing from "Everyday Life" charted so why would I expect this to chart? Well as it turns out, Coldplay have spent a lot of time listening to a playlist that includes "Blinding Lights" by The Weeknd and "Let's Love" by David Guetta and Sia but lacks the anthemic swell that is so desperately needed for a song about somebody having a higher power or the tightness that makes "Blinding Lights" work, it's not bad per se but it's not really something I'd go back too all that often. 

31. "Miss the Rage" by Trippie Redd feat. Playboi Carti

I should have expected this one to show up however and I wish it hadn't because the song is garbage, Trippie Redd's first verse is all video game references before in the second verse, Carti brags he is going to drug this girl/"hoe" and then have sex with her before the end of the weekend before the usual bragging about their typical wealth, cars and this girl pleasuring Carti, the "She got me drippin'" is just ewww.

Then there's the awful production, this song sounds like it was lazily recorded and released without any proper mixing done whatsoever because it sounds terrible with that squealing annoyance under a trap beat and game sound effects louder than both Trippie and Playboi Carti so yeah...AVOID THIS SHIT.

25. "All I Know So Far" by Pink.

So it's not surprising we've got a new song from Pink following the surprise success of "Cover Me in Sunshine" with her daughter and here, this is the title track for her documentary and designed to be an empowerment song to her daughter which hotyeah you can definitely tell but in terms of songs in the cannon of empowerment songs, it's fine, it's a bit of a "Fuck the haters, they can do what they want to you but you be you" sort of song, it's basically Pink putting all the lessons she's learnt in life into a song for her daughter and sound wise, it's edging closer to the pop/rock sound Pink is awesome at so yeah while I'm not hugely keen on the fact it's an empowerment song, I get what it's trying to do. 

20. "Interlude" by J Cole

Oh boy, I'll say this...I find J Cole to be incredibly over rated and found "Middle Child" to be the sort of intensely annoying track that was basically Cole blowing hot air about being at the top of his game. Here though, well it's really just an extended verse from J Cole as he raps about gun violence in southern US, his come up as a successful rapper and how the music industry manipulates the charts etc. It's kind of what I've come to expect from J Cole really but ehh, again I don't think I will be returning to it.

So that was our week...the worst fell out easily with "Miss the Rage" by Trippie Redd and Playboi Carti nabbing that but I'm giving best of the week to "All I Know So Far" by Pink, I'm only lukewarm on the song at best but on a week like it...it gets it. Next week: Olivia Rodrigo, Tones and I and others likely hit the chart but we'll see when the chart updates on Friday at 5pm. 

Good 1992 Vibrations: 10th May. Viva Make Mistadoblina Happen in Las Vegas

 So this week feels like one of those weeks where the chart rakes on a serious influx of new entries and the top ten calms down a little although there's signs of a shift at the top however "Under The Bridge" by Red Hot Chili Peppers remains at number one for another week but those sales margins are getting shaky which leaves it open to the threat that's coming from "To Be With You" by Mr Big up one place to number two this week. Now "To Be With You" has momentum on it's side unfortunately so this could be number one next week.

It was enough to surpass "Way Out West" by James Blundell and James Reyne down one spot to number three, it's coming under pressure from "Stay" by Shakespears Sister stuck at number four.

The next three songs also held their positions this week with " Not A Day Goes By" by Rick Price at number five, "Get Ready for this" by 2 Unlimited at number six and "Be My Baby" by Teen Queens at number seven.

Racing up from 24 all the way to number eight is "I Love Your Smile" by Shanice and yeah I am happy to see this song here. I still like the song a lot and hope it rises higher in the weeks to come.

Also rising into the top ten is "Nothing Else Matters" by Metallica which climbed three places to number nine. Now that is just fucking awesome.

Completing the top ten is "Alive" by Pearl Jam which slipped one place to number ten.

Gains

So I already mentioned the big gain for "I Love Your Smile" by Shanice but there were some major gains lower down the chart as well like "Djapana (Sunset Dreaming)" by Yothu Yindi up six to 13 and "That Word (L.O.V.E)" by The Rockmelons feat Cutty Ranks, Nardo Ranks and Deni Hines which climbed 12 places to 14 which is just awesoe. 

"Why" by Annie Lennox rose from 21 to break into the top twenty at 17, it brought Girlfriend's "Take It From Me" with it as the girl group's debut single climbed eight spots to number 20. 

Sound Unlimited Posse somehow got a ten place boost to number 23 with "Kickin' to the Undersound" while "Sound" by James also got a big boost up from 43 to 28...yay...not.

In really awesome news, "Weather With You" by Crowded House climbed ten places to number 34. 

Finally "America: What Time is Love" by The KLF climbed eight places to 40.

Losers

This week was a busy one so let's begin with "Tip Of My Tongue" by Diesel which recoiled down from 27 to 44 this week while "Come As You Are" by Nirvana slipped over from 34 to 41 sadly.

"November Rain" by Guns 'n' Roses is finding the sun shining as it fell nine places to number 39 whie "Diamonds & Pearls" by Prince and The New Power Generation stumbled six places to 37 and Australia isn't giving Kylie Minogue any more time with "Give Me Just a Little more time" collapsing from 29 to 36.

Killing Timr's "Dream alone" lost all it's momentum from last week as it tumbled twelve places to 35 while "I Can't Dance" by Genesis is loosing groove down eleven to 31. "High" by The Cure getting lower as it slipped from 16 to 29.

Bryan Adams nauseating "Thought I'd Died and Gone to Heaven" plunged eleven to 25 while "I Think I Love You" by Voice of the Beehive also stumbled eleven to 24 while former top ten hit "Dizzy" by Vic Reeves and The Wonder Stuff slipped ten to 22.

Finally "Marvellous" by The 12th Man feat. MCG Hammer tumbled out of the top ten down from 8 to 15.

New Entries

50. “Kiss Me” by Indecent Obsession

This is the lead single from Brisbane pop/rock band Indecent Obsession’s second album “Indio” and honestly, I am not sure what to make of this…mostly because this sounds confused sound wise, it’s almost as though the song is trapped in the 80s but wanting to take leap into a more conventional 90s route, think of a mix of Glass Tiger’s “Don’t Forget Me When I’m Gone” and Roxette’s material last year. Then there’s the lyrics which are corny as hell…seriously “Excuse me for staring, your looks have me blinded” and then he wants her to kiss him already. 

Look, the song is catchy but so are most STDs. If you want to feel like the 80s haven’t gone away than this might be your thing more than it was for me.

49. “Twilight Zone” by 2 Unlimited

I tolerate “You Ready for this?” more because I can see it’s value as a hype anthem for sports events etc and I was kind of interested to hear something new from 2 Unlimited however I wasn’t expecting what we got which was clattering noises, somebody screaming “Woo!” every couple of seconds and rapping that reminded me more of “Pump up the Jam” by Technotronic. Yeah, this can join “James Brown is Dead” by L.A. Style on the audio torture noise pile. Yuck.

48. “Viva Las Vegas” by ZZ Top

In this week’s edition of “Cover Songs in 1992”, we get ZZ Top with a cover of Elvis Presley’s 1964 hit “Viva Las Vegas” which they recorded for their Greatest Hits album and I don’t know what to say about it except the vocals are buried under neath the guitars and the whole cover sounds like it’s rooted in about 1984 or they may as well have asked New Kids On the Block to record a cover. It’s certainly strange and probably not that bad but it’s not something I’m keen on coming back to any time soon. 

46. “Mistadobalina” by Del Tha Funky Homosapien

Alright so this song is the second single from American hop hop artist Del Tha Funky Homosapien’s debut album and features a sample of The Monkees song “Zilch” and is about a guy who thinks he is so hip and cool but isn’t and yeah it’s the sort of behaviour that can lead to intense annoyance and frustration however I cannot help but laugh to a degree, it’s the delivery of the lyrics here that cracks me up however I will say it’s the best of the new entries so far mainly because at least he sounds like he is rapping with some taste for the groove of the song and that at least can hook me into the song. Check this out if you are curious. 

45. “Make It Happen” by Mariah Carey

Here is the final single from Mariah Carey’s album “Emotions” and honestly while I didn’t like the title track (a cover of Samantha Sang’s “Emotions”), this song is pretty solid as Mariah tells the story of her rise in fame and how her faith in God kept her going in spite of all the struggles she faced. What I also appreciate about the track is that the music is upbeat and includes a mix of pop, r’n’b, dance and even elements of trance to create a vibe. I do wish the backing vocals did not sound like they were whispering but that’s a minor nitpick, I enjoyed this a lot. 

21. “In the Closet” by Michael Jackson

So, here’s the third single from Michael Jackson’s album “Dangerous” and while “Remember The Time” is still a darn great song, I’m really not feeling this one and I’m not sure why. I just feel like the song is a little over produced to a degree. Yes, the chorus is catchy but again I think for a song called “In the Closet” there is almost too much happening to the point where the omnipresent beeps and drums overwhelm any sense of melody the song has. It’s not precisely bad but like a couple of other songs, it’s not one I am really all that keen to revisit. 

16. “One in a Million” by Euphoria

So here’s the biggest new entry of the week and it’s from Euphoria, the song being their second single from the upcoming debut album and yeah while this does feel pretty generic and standard lyrics about love, there’s none of that screeching that makes “Love You Right” a pain to listen to and credit to the group for attempting a saxophone solo and while I can’t shake the thought that this song sounds like something that could be used for a TV station promo, it’s fine enough. 

That wraps up our week and the best and worst fall out easily in the end, the worst of the week is going to 2 Unlimited for “Twilight Zone” an unlistenable dud which is kind of unforgivable. Mariah’s getting the best of the week for “Make It Happen”.