Omitted this month so added in now..
Pluto at Disney World with my niece & nephew on the right, 1990
1st July 1990
Only a top 40 for 3 weeks, as I foolishly decided to join the modern world and switch to a long-dead PC format for my charts, and print out my top 75. After 3 weeks I decided I didn’t like it and reverted back, just as well as I can’t find the print-outs for the full top 75 at the mo, so I only have the top 40 in pencil notepad format. There’s a lot to be said for pencil!
So anyway, joining the dance remix party, and straight in at 1, it’s the classic Timmy Thomas 1973 UK hit, Why Can’t We Live Together. The original is still the best, and had peaked at 2, but that gooooorgeous organ sound and sentiment are still on show here with Soul II Soul shuffles, and mixed with sound footage of Martin Luther King Jr classic speeches for added impact. Sadly, both the original video and record are subject to copyright disputes (I assume) as the versions online have removed all of the MLK speeches – yes, in the true spirit of unity, MLK’s family feel that the speeches designed to bring equality to all, are not historical news items for the betterment of mankind, they need paying first, even though the writer has been dead nearly 50 years. I’m sure it’s what he would have wanted….
Timmy Thomas is still alive, and I’m sure Drake has given him credit for sampling the classic organ riffs, speeding them up and still end up being the best part of current hit Hotline Bling. Jeff Lynne goes top 5, with Every Little Thing, just ahead of the Something In The Air remake at 6, 60’s TV show theme Thunderbirds Are Go remake at 7, and a new peak for the joint UK and US mix of Alright for Janet Jackson. The UK dance scene was splitting away from the US in a big way, meaning big names like Janet had to remix album tracks to get a hit, this time with Heavy D rap. The Jam & Lewis original is the best. Meanwhile Double Trouble go top 10 with an update of Rose Royce.
At number 12 it’s an original song! It was a flop, sadly, but it’s gorgeous, a cowboy themed ethereal harmonic gem. Ms Inga Humpe is German, and Trevor Horn is on production duties, so it is of course immaculate. In the UK Inga and her older sis Annette were known as Swimming With Sharks, and had charted in 1988 with Careless Love. Meanwhile, don’t worry, it’s another soul cover Soul II Soul style as Joanna Law does a good version of Roberta Flack at 18, First Time Ever – no face to see in the title though. Maureen Walsh goes top 20 with her Sister Sledge cover, Luciano Pavarotti goes top 40 with his rousing cover of Nessun Dorma, and we finally get 3 actual new songs: Aztec Camera’s Crying Scene at 33, An Emotional Fish Celebrate at 35 and The Rolling Stones join their own classic Paint It Black, at 38 with Almost Hear You Sigh. Almost hear me sigh when comparing 60’s classic to 90’s MOR. Doh!
1 ( NEW ) WHY CAN’T WE LIVE TOGETHER (1990 TK REMIX) Timmy Thomas
2 ( 1 ) YOU’VE GOT A FRIEND Big Fun and Sonia featuring Gary Barnacle
3 ( 4 ) IT MUST HAVE BEEN LOVE Roxette
4 ( 2 ) SACRIFICE/ HEALING HANDS Elton John
5 ( 10 ) EVERY LITTLE THING Jeff Lynne
6 ( 20 ) SOMETHING IN THE AIR Promised Land
7 ( 13 ) THUNDERBIRDS ARE GO FAB featuring MC Parker
8 ( 29 ) ALRIGHT (UK/USA versions) Janet Jackson
9 ( 3 ) PAINT IT BLACK The Rolling Stones
10 ( 28 ) LOVE DON’T LIVE HERE ANYMORE Double Trouble
11 ( 17 ) I’M STILL WAITING (REMIX) Diana Ross
12 ( NEW ) RIDING INTO BLUE Inga
13 ( 5 ) IT’S MY LIFE Talk Talk
14 ( 7 ) HOLD ON Wilson Philips
15 ( 16 ) OOOPS UP Snap!
16 ( 11 ) DOIN’ THE DO Betty Boo
17 ( 9 ) DON’T WANNA FALL IN LOVE Jane Child
18 ( NEW ) FIRST TIME EVER Joanna Law
19 ( 21 ) THINKING OF YOU Maureen Walsh
20 ( 6 ) I STILL HAVEN’T FOUND WHAT I’M LOOKING FOR The Chimes
21 ( 8 ) VENUS Don Pablo’s Animals
22 ( 12 ) KILLER Adamski featuring Seal
23 ( 27 ) U CAN’T TOUCH THIS MC Hammer
24 ( 15 ) DIRTY CASH Adventures Of Stevie V
25 ( 14 ) ROAM The B52’s
26 ( 18 ) WOULDN’T IT BE NICE The Beach Boys
27 ( 50 ) NESSUN DORMA Luciano Pavarotti
28 ( 31 ) NOBODY’S CHILD The Traveling Wilburys
29 ( 40 ) CLOSE TO YOU Maxi Priest
30 ( 35 ) SPRINGTIME FOR THE WORLD Blow Monkeys
31 ( 38 ) THE ONLY RHYME THAT BITES MC Tunes vs 808 State
32 ( 22 ) REPUTATION Dusty Springfield
33 ( NEW ) THE CRYING SCENE Aztec Camera
34 ( 19 ) WALK LIKE AN EGYPTIAN The Bangles
35 ( 36 ) MONA Craig McClaghlan
36 ( NEW ) CELEBRATE An Emotional Fish
37 ( 24 ) STILL GOT THE BLUES Gary Moore
38 ( NEW ) ALMOST HEAR YOU SIGH The Rolling Stones
39 ( 25 ) BETTER THE DEVIL YOU KNOW Kylie Minogue
40 ( 63 ) MESSAGE IN THE BOX World Party
41 ( 32 ) BLACK VELVET Alannah Myles
42 ( 33 ) ESCAPADE Janet Jackson
43 ( 26 ) TIME Kim Wilde
44 ( RE ) ANOTHER NIGHT Jason Donovan
45 ( 41 ) LET IT BE The Beatles
46 ( 34 ) BODYGUARD The Bee Gees
47 ( NEW ) SHE AIN’T WORTH IT Glen Medeiros and Bobby Brown
48 ( 48 ) YER SO BAD Tom Petty
49 ( 47 ) PERSONAL JESUS Depeche Mode
50 ( 44 ) THE POWER Snap!
51 ( 42 ) ALL I WANNA DO IS MAKE LOVE TO YOU Heart
52 ( 23 ) THE ONLY ONE I KNOW The Charlatans
53 ( 43 ) VOGUE Madonna
54 ( 39 ) WON’T TALK ABOUT IT Beats International
55 ( 30 ) ALL THE YOUNG DUDES Bruce Dickinson
56 ( 56 ) ENJOY THE SILENCE Depeche Mode
57 ( 57 ) JUST LIKE JESSE JAMES Cher
58 ( 59 ) OH GIRL Paul Young
59 ( 54 ) BLUE SAVANNAH Erasure
60 ( 53 ) GHETTO HEAVEN The Family Stand
61 ( 72 ) GREAT SONG OF INDIFFERENCE Bob Geldof
62 ( 55 ) LOADED Primal Scream
63 ( 45 ) TEXAS Chris Rea
64 ( 71 ) MOVE AWAY JIMMY BLUE Del Amitri
65 ( 65 ) HEY JUDE The Beatles
66 ( 46 ) PAPA WAS A ROLLING STONE Was (Not Was)
67 ( 66 ) LOVE SHACK The B52’s
68 ( 64 ) HERE WE ARE Gloria Estefan
69 ( 37 ) TIME AFTER TIME The Beloved
70 ( 58 ) OPPOSITES ATTRACT Paula Abdul featuring The Wild Pair
71 ( NEW ) BIRD ON A WIRE The Neville Brothers
72 ( 52 ) THE MASTERPLAN Diana Brown and Barrie K. Sharpe
73 ( 73 ) THIS WOMAN’S WORK Kate Bush
74 ( 60 ) KINGSTON TOWN UB40
75 ( NEW ) TREAT ME RIGHT Yazz
OLDIES/PLAYLIST
1 REPUTATION (LP) Dusty Springfield
2 ANGIE The Rolling Stones
3 LOOK SHARP (LP) Roxette
In my world, lots of checking and sorting stuff in the parks and schools of the Council, in my new role as contracts supervisor, at home I tried to get the niece and nephew into DC Comics. It didn’t work, though more recent ones like Batman, at least! On TV The Terminator, a film I’d avoided cos it had Arnold Schwarzenegger in it, turned out to be rather good, and has improved with age.
8th July 1990
2 weeks on top for Timmy Thomas’ remix, presiding over a deluge of covers and remixes and reissues in the top 40 – there’s another week of missing chart data to go before normal top 75 service is resumed! Jeff Lynne is up to 3, beating a host of ELO big hits, with Every Little Thing, and months late Janet Jackson’s Alright at 4 as it becomes a UK hit. Inga Humpe (to give her full name) is into the top 10 with the brilliant Trevor Horn Riding Into Blue, and Nessun Dorma brings opera into the top 20.
Aztec Camera have 7 years of top 20 entries as The Crying Scene leaps to 19, and Maxi Priest has 6 years as Close To You hits 20. River City People cover The Mamas & The Papas 60’s classic and are rewarded with the highest new entry – it’s not a patch on the original, witness it finally going into the UK top 10 in 1997, and topping my chart for 15 consecutive weeks, still a record. Bob Geldof finally stops being indifferent and enters the 40 4 years since he last did it, and 13 years since he first hit the Boomtown. Tom Petty, also of the Class of ’77, adds to his growing list Yer So Bad, Michael Bolton whacks off another entry, one of his better ones, and Glenn Medeiros makes my charts where his big UK chart-topper failed, with a bit of an assist from Bobby Brown, another Class Of ’83, along with Aztec Camera.
1 ( 1 ) WHY CAN’T WE LIVE TOGETHER (1990 TK REMIX) Timmy Thomas
2 ( 2 ) YOU’VE GOT A FRIEND Big Fun and Sonia featuring Gary Barnacle
3 ( 5 ) EVERY LITTLE THING Jeff Lynne
4 ( 8 ) ALRIGHT (UK/USA versions) Janet Jackson
5 ( 3 ) IT MUST HAVE BEEN LOVE Roxette
6 ( 4 ) SACRIFICE/ HEALING HANDS Elton John
7 ( 7 ) THUNDERBIRDS ARE GO FAB featuring MC Parker
8 ( 10 ) LOVE DON’T LIVE HERE ANYMORE Double Trouble
9 ( 12 ) RIDING INTO BLUE Inga
10 ( 6 ) SOMETHING IN THE AIR Promised Land
11 ( 11 ) I’M STILL WAITING (REMIX) Diana Ross
12 ( 9 ) PAINT IT BLACK The Rolling Stones
13 ( 18 ) FIRST TIME EVER Joanna Law
14 ( 19 ) THINKING OF YOU Maureen Walsh
15 ( 13 ) IT’S MY LIFE Talk Talk
16 ( 27 ) NESSUN DORMA Luciano Pavarotti
17 ( 14 ) HOLD ON Wilson Philips
18 ( 15 ) OOOPS UP Snap!
19 ( 33 ) THE CRYING SCENE Aztec Camera
20 ( 29 ) CLOSE TO YOU Maxi Priest
21 ( 31 ) THE ONLY RHYME THAT BITES MC Tunes vs 808 State
22 ( 23 ) U CAN’T TOUCH THIS MC Hammer
23 ( 22 ) KILLER Adamski featuring Seal
24 ( 16 ) DOIN’ THE DO Betty Boo
25 ( 35 ) MONA Craig McClaghlan
26 ( NEW ) CALIFORNIA DREAMIN’ River City People
27 ( 17 ) DON’T WANNA FALL IN LOVE Jane Child
28 ( 38 ) ALMOST HEAR YOU SIGH The Rolling Stones
29 ( 36 ) CELEBRATE An Emotional Fish
30 ( ? ) GREAT SONG OF INDIFFERENCE Bob Geldof
31 ( 24 ) DIRTY CASH Adventures Of Stevie V
32 ( 32 ) REPUTATION Dusty Springfield
33 ( 20 ) I STILL HAVEN’T FOUND WHAT I’M LOOKING FOR The Chimes
34 ( 26 ) WOULDN’T IT BE NICE The Beach Boys
35 ( ? ) YER SO BAD Tom Petty
36 ( 40 ) MESSAGE IN THE BOX World Party
37 ( NEW ) SHE AIN’T WORTH IT Glen Medeiros and Bobby Brown
38 ( 21 ) VENUS Don Pablo’s Animals
39 ( NEW ) BACK ON MY FEET AGAIN Michael Bolton
40 ( 25 ) ROAM The B52’s
41 ( 41 ) BLACK VELVET Alannah Myles
42 ( 44 ) ANOTHER NIGHT Jason Donovan
43 ( 42 ) ESCAPADE Janet Jackson
44 ( RE ) I WANNA BE RICH Calloway
45 ( 45 ) LET IT BE The Beatles
46 ( 28 ) NOBODY’S CHILD The Traveling Wilburys
47 ( 39 ) BETTER THE DEVIL YOU KNOW Kylie Minogue
48 ( 58 ) OH GIRL Paul Young
49 ( 34 ) WALK LIKE AN EGYPTIAN The Bangles
50 ( 30 ) SPRINGTIME FOR THE WORLD Blow Monkeys
51 ( 49 ) PERSONAL JESUS Depeche Mode
52 ( 50 ) THE POWER Snap!
53 ( 37 ) STILL GOT THE BLUES Gary Moore
54 ( NEW ) I’M FREE The Soup Dragons featuring Junior Reid
55 ( 56 ) ENJOY THE SILENCE Depeche Mode
56 ( NEW ) SHE COMES IN THE FALL The Inspiral Carpets
57 ( 46 ) BODYGUARD The Bee Gees
58 ( 57 ) JUST LIKE JESSE JAMES Cher
59 ( NEW ) THIS CAN BE REAL Candy Flip
60 ( 51 ) ALL I WANNA DO IS MAKE LOVE TO YOU Heart
61 ( 60 ) GHETTO HEAVEN The Family Stand
62 ( 59 ) BLUE SAVANNAH Erasure
63 ( 53 ) VOGUE Madonna
64 ( NEW ) NAKED IN THE RAIN Blue Pearl
65 ( 65 ) HEY JUDE The Beatles
66 ( 62 ) LOADED Primal Scream
67 ( NEW ) I LOVE MUSIC Daryl Pandy
68 ( 54 ) WON’T TALK ABOUT IT Beats International
69 ( 67 ) LOVE SHACK The B52’s
70 ( 43 ) TIME Kim Wilde
71 ( 68 ) HERE WE ARE Gloria Estefan
72 ( NEW ) KNOCKED OUT Paula Abdul
73 ( 73 ) THIS WOMAN’S WORK Kate Bush
74 ( NEW ) ONLY YOUR LOVE Bananarama
75 ( 70 ) OPPOSITES ATTRACT Paula Abdul featuring The Wild Pair
playlist
1 DAYDREAMING Dusty Springfield
2 WINDY The Association
3 DOWNEASTER ALEXA Billy Joel
At work, in Bournemouth’s coastal cliffside Alum Chine Tropical Gardens, I picked up some Trachycarpus fortunei (Chusan Palm) seeds, took ‘em home, and indulged my new hobby of growing exotic plants from seeds – one of them sprouted, shooted, lived happily indoors in a pot for a few years and then stepped outside into the back garden. It’s now 30 years old and 30 foot high, hooray!
Played Peter at tennis, unlike squash where he thrashes me, t’other way around for tennis – 6-0, 6-1, 2-1. England lost to West Germany in the World Cup, and on TV it was Sticky Moments With Julian Clary, MASH, Top Of The Pops, LA Law, and Blackadder II, while at Wimbledon Steffi Graf went out to Zina Garrison.
15th July 1990
3 weeks for Timmy Thomas’ classic on top, albeit remixed, and Inga rides the top 5, as the highest new entry is in at 10, and it’s another Rolling Stones song, covered baggy rave stylee by Soup Dragons, I’m Free Mr. Humphreys, and it’s rather fab, irreverent, joyful and lively, with a bit of toasting to boot. River City People dream into the 20, and Paul Young finally gets his Chi-Lites cover of Oh Girl into the top 20 after a few weeks pottering about outside the 40.
The Beloved pop back to a new peak, Time After Time, 22, and new at 24 Suzanne Vega is back after a while away, but she’s been remixed! Of course she has, it’s 1990, everything was remixed, but this one took the slightly annoying acapella original and added groovy dance beats, so improving Tom’s Diner. Blue Pearl debut with the great danceclub soul of Naked In The Rain at 28, and Inspiral Carpets return with follow-up She Comes In The Fall at 30. At 35, Go West come back after a break for 5 years of hits, with a song from the Pretty Woman soundtrack, a ballad, and their best song, the fabulous King Of Wishful Thinking. I still haven’t seen the movie so I have not been swayed by the soundtrack, it’s just a great record, and still sounded good when they did it a couple of months ago in concert, late 2015! That leaves only new entry Lovely Thing from the Reggae Philharmonic Orchestra, who are what they say on the label, and why not?!
1 ( 1 ) WHY CAN’T WE LIVE TOGETHER (1990 TK REMIX) Timmy Thomas
2 ( 3 ) EVERY LITTLE THING Jeff Lynne
3 ( 2 ) YOU’VE GOT A FRIEND Big Fun and Sonia featuring Gary Barnacle
4 ( 4 ) ALRIGHT (UK/USA versions) Janet Jackson
5 ( 9 ) RIDING INTO BLUE Inga
6 ( 5 ) IT MUST HAVE BEEN LOVE Roxette
7 ( 8 ) LOVE DON’T LIVE HERE ANYMORE Double Trouble
8 ( 6 ) SACRIFICE/ HEALING HANDS Elton John
9 ( 7 ) THUNDERBIRDS ARE GO FAB featuring MC Parker
10 ( NEW ) I’M FREE The Soup Dragons featuring Junior Reid
11 ( 13 ) FIRST TIME EVER Joanna Law
12 ( 19 ) THE CRYING SCENE Aztec Camera
13 ( 12 ) PAINT IT BLACK The Rolling Stones
14 ( 26 ) CALIFORNIA DREAMIN’ River City People
15 ( ? ) OH GIRL Paul Young
16 ( 16 ) NESSUN DORMA Luciano Pavarotti
17 ( 20 ) CLOSE TO YOU Maxi Priest
18 ( 21 ) THE ONLY RHYME THAT BITES MC Tunes vs 808 State
19 ( 10 ) SOMETHING IN THE AIR Promised Land
20 ( 25 ) MONA Craig McClaghlan
21 ( 17 ) HOLD ON Wilson Philips
22 ( ? ) TIME AFTER TIME The Beloved
23 ( 15 ) IT’S MY LIFE Talk Talk
24 ( NEW ) TOM’S DINER DNA featuring Suzanne Vega
25 ( 11 ) I’M STILL WAITING (REMIX) Diana Ross
26 ( 39 ) BACK ON MY FEET AGAIN Michael Bolton
27 ( 35 ) YER SO BAD Tom Petty
28 ( NEW ) NAKED IN THE RAIN Blue Pearl
29 ( 14 ) THINKING OF YOU Maureen Walsh
30 ( NEW ) SHE COMES IN THE FALL The Inspiral Carpets
31 ( 23 ) KILLER Adamski featuring Seal
32 ( 24 ) DOIN’ THE DO Betty Boo
33 ( 37 ) SHE AIN’T WORTH IT Glen Medeiros and Bobby Brown
34 ( 18 ) OOOPS UP Snap!
35 ( NEW ) KING OF WISHFUL THINKING Go West
36 ( 22 ) U CAN’T TOUCH THIS MC Hammer
37 ( 27 ) DON’T WANNA FALL IN LOVE Jane Child
38 ( NEW ) LOVELY THING Reggae Philharmonic Orchestra
39 ( 31 ) DIRTY CASH Adventures Of Stevie V
40 ( 34 ) WOULDN’T IT BE NICE The Beach Boys
41 ( 41 ) BLACK VELVET Alannah Myles
42 ( NEW ) THE DOWNEASTER ALEXA Billy Joel
43 ( 29 ) CELEBRATE An Emotional Fish
44 ( 43 ) ESCAPADE Janet Jackson
45 ( 45 ) LET IT BE The Beatles
46 ( 40 ) ROAM The B52’s
47 ( 72 ) KNOCKED OUT Paula Abdul
48 ( 28 ) ALMOST HEAR YOU SIGH The Rolling Stones
49 ( 32 ) REPUTATION Dusty Springfield
50 ( 33 ) I STILL HAVEN’T FOUND WHAT I’M LOOKING FOR The Chimes
51 ( NEW ) WEAR YOU TO THE BALL UB40
52 ( 38 ) VENUS Don Pablo’s Animals
53 ( 42 ) ANOTHER NIGHT Jason Donovan
54 ( 44 ) I WANNA BE RICH Calloway
55 ( 51 ) PERSONAL JESUS Depeche Mode
56 ( 30 ) GREAT SONG OF INDIFFERENCE Bob Geldof
57 ( NEW ) GIMME SOME LOVIN’ Thunder
58 ( 55 ) ENJOY THE SILENCE Depeche Mode
59 ( 59 ) THIS CAN BE REAL Candy Flip
60 ( 52 ) THE POWER Snap!
61 ( 58 ) JUST LIKE JESSE JAMES Cher
62 ( NEW ) MORE THAN ONE KIND OF LOVE Joan Armatrading
63 ( 61 ) GHETTO HEAVEN The Family Stand
64 ( 65 ) HEY JUDE The Beatles
65 ( NEW ) VISION OF YOU Belinda Carlisle
66 ( 62 ) BLUE SAVANNAH Erasure
67 ( 47 ) BETTER THE DEVIL YOU KNOW Kylie Minogue
68 ( NEW ) STRUNG OUT Wendy & Lisa
69 ( 69 ) LOVE SHACK The B52’s
70 ( NEW ) MEGACHIC – CHIC MEDLEY Chic
71 ( 73 ) THIS WOMAN’S WORK Kate Bush
72 ( 66 ) LOADED Primal Scream
73 ( NEW ) I CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW The Hothouse Flowers
74 ( NEW ) ONE LOVE The Stone Roses
75 ( NEW ) LOVING YOU Massivo featuring Tracie
playlist
1 DAYDREAMING Dusty Springfield
2 BAMBOLEO Gypsy Kings
3 I JUST WANT TO STAY HERE Dusty Springfield
PRINCE AT WEMBLEY ARENA
1 Take Me With U
2 1999
3 Nothin’ Compares 2 U
4 Kiss
5 Batdance
At home, I decided I didn’t like how time-consuming doing my charts on the computer was, so that was that for 7 years until technology caught up enough to speed things up, and I went back to paper and pencil, fortunately, as the technology is long dead. I’m still trying to convert Microsoft Works spreadsheets and documents from 1997 through 2014 to so-called Microsoft 360. 360 is the number of days it takes to open your old files cos Works is also a dead system apparently. The PC biz, like the music biz, like to keep changing formats to keep their profits healthy, very annoyingly.
At Wimbledon, Martina Navratilova beat Zina Garrison, Edberg over Becker, and on Monday it was a day in London, at art gallery’s (David Shepherd, among others), Virgin Records (Magnum, the band, were signing records) before tubing it to…
PRINCE IN CONCERT AT WEMBLEY ARENA, LONDON, JULY 9TH 1990
It got off to a bad start as I had my radio-cassette taken off me by security, having to check it in. Prince, even in those days, was and is obsessive over copyright, even shittily-recorded tinny souvenir copies, and photographs taken from a mile away. This anti-fan attitude eventually killed his career on record (having gone media insane with squiggle/TAFKAP), I think I only bothered buying one more Prince album after this Graffiti Bridge tour. To his credit Mavis Staples was the support, and terrific to hear 18-years-old fave of mine I’ll Take You There, and Respect Yourself. Less creditable was the long, bloody wait for Prince to hit the stage, but once he did….! Everything written about Prince and his brilliant live performances is true, he’s charismatic, visually impressive, inventive, professional, a great dancer, an erotic mover, and great sets.
Nothing Compares 2 U, 1999, both highlights, Housequake funky, Purple Rain (never a fave of mine) sounded like a real Stadium Anthem in it’s natural environment, and the mostly-young audience were well into the whole mood by now. Take Me With U was instantly a new fave of mine, I was converted to it’s appeal, Kiss was excellent, though his newer piano-ballads were less appealing to me. Alphabet Street, Batdance, Partyman and that was that. “Probably the best concert I’ve seen” was my closing remark – and this is despite NOT doing When Doves Cry, Sign O The Times, Let’s Go Crazy, U Got The Look and so on. Had he done those and dropped the more forgettable album tracks, the “probably” would have become “definitely”.
At work, we had yet another reorganisation (this happens all the time in local government, at regular intervals every few years) which meant some would be moved out of the Town Hall, but not me. At home I did some drawings with young Gavin, and mate Jason popped round to organise our Paris trip. We met up again last week, it’s rather reassuring to find some things can last 25 years, yay! I now do drawings for Gav’s kids, he’s kinda grown out of that himself…
22nd July 1990
4 weeks of Timmy Thomas topping, as the full 75 countdown comes back, without any last week figures for those outside the top 40, except the new entries, or those that entered inside the 40 for the first time (which are treated as new entries). Highest new entry is Cher in rockin’ mode at 2, with an album track I already loved, You Wouldn’t Know Love, keeping Janet Jackson at 3, and both already having topped the chart in 1990. I never thought it would happen, but Michael ‘Mullet’ Bolton shoots into my top 10 with a good single, as Paula Abdul reissues Knocked Out to improved chart position, in at 17.
Fresh from the concert, Prince enters at 23 with the fab Thieves In The Temple – no youtube obviously – and Thunder roar in at 24 with a cover of The Spencer Davis Group’s Gimme Some Lovin’, a Steve Winwood song. Calloway finally make the 40, Candy Flip follow-up at 39, and The Stone Roses hit 40, with One Love. Lower down, UB40 are wearing us to the ball, at 45, Gun shoot in at 52, some superhero leatherbacks pop in with a kiddie tune at 59, Sinead O’Connor baldly follows up her classic cover, and Dream Warriors are apparently wearing our face, albeit tunefully, in their sink. It sounds distasteful, but isn’t at all. ZZ Top return with a song from fab classic movie Back To The Future III – they perform it old-western-style in the fillum, to boot – Doubleback, and finally Madonna is also in a new movie, the fairly dull Dick Tracy with beau Warren Beatty, and treats us all to her worst-ever single, the awful Hanky Panky. It is supposed to be pastiche 40’s, but is just childishly annoying – I have the soundtrack album, and there are actually really nice 40’s pastiche tracks like Now I’m Following You or Sooner Or Later which might not have sold as much but would have left no nasty after-taste!
1 ( 1 ) WHY CAN’T WE LIVE TOGETHER (1990 TK REMIX) Timmy Thomas
2 ( NEW ) YOU WOULDN’T KNOW LOVE Cher
3 ( 4 ) ALRIGHT (UK/USA versions) Janet Jackson
4 ( 3 ) YOU’VE GOT A FRIEND Big Fun and Sonia featuring Gary Barnacle
5 ( 2 ) EVERY LITTLE THING Jeff Lynne
6 ( 6 ) IT MUST HAVE BEEN LOVE Roxette
7 ( 5 ) RIDING INTO BLUE Inga
8 ( 26 ) BACK ON MY FEET AGAIN Michael Bolton
9 ( 10 ) I’M FREE The Soup Dragons featuring Junior Reid
10 ( 8 ) SACRIFICE/ HEALING HANDS Elton John
11 ( 14 ) CALIFORNIA DREAMIN’ River City People
12 ( 7 ) LOVE DON’T LIVE HERE ANYMORE Double Trouble
13 ( 9 ) THUNDERBIRDS ARE GO FAB featuring MC Parker
14 ( 15 ) OH GIRL Paul Young
15 ( 28 ) NAKED IN THE RAIN Blue Pearl
16 ( 22 ) TIME AFTER TIME The Beloved
17 ( NEW ) KNOCKED OUT Paula Abdul
18 ( 20 ) MONA Craig McClaghlan
19 ( 24 ) TOM’S DINER DNA featuring Suzanne Vega
20 ( 11 ) FIRST TIME EVER Joanna Law
21 ( 12 ) THE CRYING SCENE Aztec Camera
22 ( 13 ) PAINT IT BLACK The Rolling Stones
23 ( NEW ) THIEVES IN THE TEMPLE Prince
24 ( NEW ) GIMME SOME LOVIN’ Thunder
25 ( 30 ) SHE COMES IN THE FALL The Inspiral Carpets
26 ( 35 ) KING OF WISHFUL THINKING Go West
27 ( 21 ) HOLD ON Wilson Philips
28 ( 18 ) THE ONLY RHYME THAT BITES MC Tunes vs 808 State
29 ( 23 ) IT’S MY LIFE Talk Talk
30 ( 17 ) CLOSE TO YOU Maxi Priest
31 ( 19 ) SOMETHING IN THE AIR Promised Land
32 ( 16 ) NESSUN DORMA Luciano Pavarotti
33 ( RE ) I WANNA BE RICH Calloway
34 ( 38 ) LOVELY THING Reggae Philharmonic Orchestra
35 ( 33 ) SHE AIN’T WORTH IT Glen Medeiros and Bobby Brown
36 ( ? ) LOVE WILL LEAD YOU BACK Taylor Dayne
37 ( 31 ) KILLER Adamski featuring Seal
38 ( 25 ) I’M STILL WAITING (REMIX) Diana Ross
39 ( NEW ) THIS CAN BE REAL Candy Flip
40 ( NEW ) ONE LOVE The Stone Roses
41 ( ? ) BLACK VELVET Alannah Myles
42 ( 32 ) DOIN’ THE DO Betty Boo
43 ( ? ) ESCAPADE Janet Jackson
44 ( 40 ) WOULDN’T IT BE NICE The Beach Boys
45 ( NEW ) WEAR YOU TO THE BALL UB40
46 ( 36 ) U CAN’T TOUCH THIS MC Hammer
47 ( ? ) LET IT BE The Beatles
48 ( 39 ) DIRTY CASH Adventures Of Stevie V
49 ( ? ) VISION OF YOU Belinda Carlisle
50 ( 27 ) YER SO BAD Tom Petty
51 ( 37 ) DON’T WANNA FALL IN LOVE Jane Child
52 ( NEW ) SHAME ON YOU GUN
53 ( 34 ) OOOPS UP Snap!
54 ( ? ) ALMOST HEAR YOU SIGH The Rolling Stones
55 ( NEW ) HANKY PANKY Madonna
56 ( ? ) REPUTATION Dusty Springfield
57 ( ? ) ROAM The B52’s
58 ( ? ) PERSONAL JESUS Depeche Mode
59 ( NEW ) TURTLE POWER Partners In Kryme
60 ( ? ) ENJOY THE SILENCE Depeche Mode
61 ( 29 ) THINKING OF YOU Maureen Walsh
62 ( ? ) THE DOWNEASTER ALEXA Billy Joel
63 ( ? ) JUST LIKE JESSE JAMES Cher
64 ( ? ) THE POWER Snap!
65 ( ? ) HEY JUDE The Beatles
66 ( ? ) I STILL HAVEN’T FOUND WHAT I’M LOOKING FOR The Chimes
67 ( NEW ) EMPEROR’S NEW CLOTHES Sinead O’Connor
68 ( ? ) GHETTO HEAVEN The Family Stand
69 ( NEW ) WEAR YOUR FACE IN MY SINK Dream Warriors
70 ( ? ) LOVE SHACK The B52’s
71 ( ? ) THIS WOMAN’S WORK Kate Bush
72 ( NEW ) ROCKIN’ OVER THE BEAT Technotronic featuring Ya Kid K
73 ( NEW ) UNSKINNY BOP Poison
74 ( ? ) LOADED Primal Scream
75 ( NEW ) DOUBLEBACK ZZ Top
OLDIES CHART
1 THE LEGEND OF XANADU Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich
2 SECRET LOVE Kathy Kirby
3 GREEN GREEN GRASS OF HOME Tom Jones
On my oldies chart, I’ve clearly reverted to childhood, as all 3 would have been chart-toppers in the 60’s when I loved them to bits, and Xanadu actually did top my chart in the 21st century. Kathy Kirby’s uptempo cover of Doris Day’s brilliant Secret Love was gloriously OTT, and I was mad on Kathy Kirby when I was 5 or 6 years old. Tom’s dark execution ballad Green Grass is still well known, and high-time I charted it! A new greatest hits CD please Tom!
The weather this week was scorching hot, and we had friends of mum’s down, Pat, Gary & Nathan, while at the cinema I went to see the final part of the Back To The Future trilogy, a near-perfect trio of films that I love to this day, NEVER tire of seeing them. The western setting of the 3rd slightly disappointed me at the time, but as a Western romp these days I love it. Lots of college friends getting in touch a decade on, Alan, Sue rang me, and Paul & Sheila arranged to come down next week. In my pond, I noticed one of the river-caught fish was still alive, and HUGE – I watched it eat a wasp! At work, I was surveying schools in Bournemouth, and on TV an episode of Cheers I’d seen in Florida in March aired in the UK.
29th July 1990
It’s a new entry at 1 for Roxette – or 2 re-entries, depending on how you view it – as 2 previous American big hits that didn’t hit in the UK, but made my charts, are issued together. Dangerous was the one I preferred, but Listen To Your Heart grew on me more. That gives Roxette 3 tracks in my top 6, not bad! Fresh off seeing him live, Prince shoots up to 3, while his Mavis Staples track enters at 60, her first chart action since 1974! Suzanne Vega remixed hits the top 5, while Sting remixed by top remixer Ben Liebrand enters at 52, improving on the more laid-back original song about gay cultural icon Quentin Crisp – well, at the time it seemed like an improvement, the original sounds good these days.
Paula Abdul gets a 3rd top 10, knocked out she is, while old-timers Elton and Phil go straight into my 20 with fairly average tracks, for some reason, at 20 and 19 respectively. For another mystifying reason, some Turtles shoot up to 25, and Technotronic go top 40, as do the much more welcome Human League having a comeback minor UK hit with Heart Like A Wheel, and I was very happy to see ‘em back. Heart, Blow Monkeys, and Jon Bon Jovi’s solo cowboy movie theme all pop in fresh, but the best of the new bunch lower down is Bananarama’s Only Your Love – essentially a cheeky nick of the Rolling Stones Sympathy For The Devil’s “woo-hoo”s grafted over a new dance track, and it works beautifully.
1 ( NEW ) LISTEN TO YOUR HEART/ DANGEROUS Roxette
2 ( 1 ) WHY CAN’T WE LIVE TOGETHER (1990 TK REMIX) Timmy Thomas
3 ( 23 ) THIEVES IN THE TEMPLE Prince
4 ( 2 ) YOU WOULDN’T KNOW LOVE Cher
5 ( 19 ) TOM’S DINER DNA featuring Suzanne Vega
6 ( 6 ) IT MUST HAVE BEEN LOVE Roxette
7 ( 9 ) I’M FREE The Soup Dragons featuring Junior Reid
8 ( 4 ) YOU’VE GOT A FRIEND Big Fun and Sonia featuring Gary Barnacle
9 ( 3 ) ALRIGHT (UK/USA versions) Janet Jackson
10 ( 17 ) KNOCKED OUT Paula Abdul
11 ( 7 ) RIDING INTO BLUE Inga
12 ( 15 ) NAKED IN THE RAIN Blue Pearl
13 ( 8 ) BACK ON MY FEET AGAIN Michael Bolton
14 ( 5 ) EVERY LITTLE THING Jeff Lynne
15 ( 11 ) CALIFORNIA DREAMIN’ River City People
16 ( 13 ) THUNDERBIRDS ARE GO FAB featuring MC Parker
17 ( 10 ) SACRIFICE/ HEALING HANDS Elton John
18 ( 26 ) KING OF WISHFUL THINKING Go West
19 ( NEW ) THAT’S JUST THE WAY IT IS Phil Collins
20 ( NEW ) CLUB AT THE END OF THE STREET/ WHISPERS Elton John
21 ( 12 ) LOVE DON’T LIVE HERE ANYMORE Double Trouble
22 ( 16 ) TIME AFTER TIME The Beloved
23 ( 14 ) OH GIRL Paul Young
24 ( 24 ) GIMME SOME LOVIN’ Thunder
25 ( 59 ) TURTLE POWER Partners In Kryme
26 ( 72 ) ROCKIN’ OVER THE BEAT Technotronic featuring Ya Kid K
27 ( 20 ) FIRST TIME EVER Joanna Law
28 ( 27 ) HOLD ON Wilson Philips
29 ( 34 ) LOVELY THING Reggae Philharmonic Orchestra
30 ( 18 ) MONA Craig McClaghlan
31 ( 29 ) IT’S MY LIFE Talk Talk
32 ( 36 ) LOVE WILL LEAD YOU BACK Taylor Dayne
33 ( 25 ) SHE COMES IN THE FALL The Inspiral Carpets
34 ( 21 ) THE CRYING SCENE Aztec Camera
35 ( NEW ) DOIN’ OUR OWN DANG The Jungle Brothers
36 ( 22 ) PAINT IT BLACK The Rolling Stones
37 ( 40 ) ONE LOVE The Stone Roses
38 ( 37 ) KILLER Adamski featuring Seal
39 ( NEW ) HEART LIKE A WHEEL Human League
40 ( NEW ) I DIDN’T WANT TO NEED YOU Heart
41 ( 41 ) BLACK VELVET Alannah Myles
42 ( 43 ) ESCAPADE Janet Jackson
43 ( 33 ) I WANNA BE RICH Calloway
44 ( 39 ) THIS CAN BE REAL Candy Flip
45 ( 38 ) I’M STILL WAITING (REMIX) Diana Ross
46 ( 67 ) EMPEROR’S NEW CLOTHES Sinead O’Connor
47 ( 47 ) LET IT BE The Beatles
48 ( 44 ) WOULDN’T IT BE NICE The Beach Boys
49 ( 45 ) WEAR YOU TO THE BALL UB40
50 ( 28 ) THE ONLY RHYME THAT BITES MC Tunes vs 808 State
51 ( 31 ) SOMETHING IN THE AIR Promised Land
52 ( NEW ) ENGLISHMAN IN NEW YORK (BEN LIEBRAND REMIX) Sting
53 ( 55 ) HANKY PANKY Madonna
54 ( NEW ) ONLY YOUR LOVE Bananarama
55 ( 60 ) ENJOY THE SILENCE Depeche Mode
56 ( 51 ) DON’T WANNA FALL IN LOVE Jane Child
57 ( 35 ) SHE AIN’T WORTH IT Glen Medeiros and Bobby Brown
58 ( 58 ) PERSONAL JESUS Depeche Mode
59 ( 42 ) DOIN’ THE DO Betty Boo
60 ( NEW ) MELODY COOL Mavis Staples
61 ( 48 ) DIRTY CASH Adventures Of Stevie V
62 ( 46 ) U CAN’T TOUCH THIS MC Hammer
63 ( 69 ) WEAR YOUR FACE IN MY SINK Dream Warriors
64 ( 63 ) JUST LIKE JESSE JAMES Cher
65 ( NEW ) LA PASSIONARA The Blow Monkeys
66 ( 65 ) HEY JUDE The Beatles
67 ( 75 ) DOUBLEBACK ZZ Top
68 ( NEW ) LET LOVE RULE Lenny Kravitz
69 ( NEW ) POISON Bell Biv Devoe
70 ( 64 ) THE POWER Snap!
71 ( 30 ) CLOSE TO YOU Maxi Priest
72 ( 71 ) THIS WOMAN’S WORK Kate Bush
73 ( NEW ) CAN’T STOP THE RAP Smiley Culture
74 ( 32 ) NESSUN DORMA Luciano Pavarotti
75 ( NEW ) BLAZE OF GLORY Jon Bon Jovi
I’ve mislead my diaries again from here-on, hooray! So little in the way of gossip of the time, for now. It was, however, the week I went to see a Blonde Ambition Tour….
MADONNA LIVE AT WEMBLEY STADIUM 21st/22nd July 1990
I went mate Bob, we got their early and spent the day standing in the elements on the steps of Wembley Stadium to make sure we got good seats. I wanted no repeat of the previous tour, where we stood and were surrounded by piss-heads chucking bottles of piss at little kiddie Madonna lookalikes sitting on their dad’s shoulders and blocking everybody’s view behind. This one, we got seats not to far from the stage, half-way down, and it was a whole new experience, we had an overview of the whole stadium, which at times was electric, most of all on Like A Prayer, which had the whole place singing along joyously and movingly, ciggie lighters glowing – I’ll be honest I got goosebumps and it became my new Greatest Moment At A Live Concert Ever. A clip of another evening off the Truth Or Dare movie is attached.
Sadly, I can’t give any insights of the moment, except to say, Madonna put on a show that took on Prince (seen a week or so earlier) and won. Raunchy, controversial, great sets and costumes, and the list of the best tracks goes as:
1. Like A Prayer
2. Papa Don’t Reach
3. Holiday
4. Open Your Heart
5. Express Yourself
6. Live To Tell
7. Like A Virgin
8. Vogue
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