Sardonicus
HELL IS OTHER PEOPLE
The album version of "Mind Body & Soul" has nothing on this MAJESTIC remix from the "Escaping" single
funky's journey through the 90s (again, again)
- Thread starter funky
- Start date
I'm glad I'm not the only one. I know far too many Canadians who hail him as their GOAT without actually having survived any of his records! I concur with the idea of Petty being a more palatable version, but 'American Girl' aside, I'm not a fan at all tbh. 'Learning to Fly' in particular might be one of the most lyrically trite things I've ever heard. It's stuff like that which gave me a major aversion to Dad Rock as a youngster (only to then realise in my 20s that the genre's actually a very comfortable space for spiritually-old bores like me
).Lord Dylan has the dual accolades of being a Nobel Laureate and finding himself on spicey's musical Mt. Rushmore, both of which he thoroughly deserves, so I'm choosing to ignore the slander there in order to maintain my continuing affection for our host. (I will confess that the brutalised CROAK that he's been sputtering out for the latter half of his career is something that even I find difficult to tolerate, but his acclaim rests on what he achieved in the 60s and 70s and his voice back then is flawless in its flaws imo.)
I went through a phase of listening to every 'classic' album I could get my hands on in my youth and I was v. eager to get into Joni seeing as she's beloved by a lot of my faves - but ottomh I think I've spun Blue, Court and Spark, and this one, with only the first making a positive impression (a very strong one tbf). My reluctance to step back into her world has been compounded by finding out about all the blackface stuff a few years back. IIRC I felt she wasn't a pure racist, just really fucking dumb, and I'm not at all convinced that she's the insightful poetess that reputation suggests. Still, if you have individual songs rather than albums to recommend I'd be willing to listen and perhaps use them as a stepping stone for something more later on.
VoR
Take it or leave it
From that album, Song for Sharon and the title track (Hejira) are two of her all-time best for me.
funky
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if it’s any consolation I mentioned the same thing in passing to my bestie a couple of weeks ago and she almost ended the friendship then and there.
funky
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MARCH1993
#1s
It took 14 weeks to topple Whitney, and it took Peabo Bryson & Regina Belle a number of weeks at #2 to be the ones to do it, but it took a one hit wonder just one week to unseat them. "Informer" was one of those one hit wonder sensations that the 90s became known for - I'm not sure the intention was "rap novelty" but that's essentially what it became after crossing over to a million youth clubs and pop compilations. A total earworm, total marmite and a song that has lived on a lot longer than the artist who made it. Snow managed 7 weeks at the top, which is more than just a simple crossover hit, and ended up the 10th biggest song of 1993.
In the UK, we had 2 Unlimited unseated by what everyone probably thought would be a one hit wonder at the time, except Shaggy would go on to have quite a successful (albeit sporadic) chart career, including four massive global smash hits over the course of a decade. Incidentally, this particular one didn't travel well in the US, and only reached #59. He'd have to wait until his second global smash in 1995 to succeed there. Strange, as pop-reggae was doing very well in both markets at the time.
CHART HIGHLIGHTS:
A sign of hip-hop really crossing over now was the Top 10 featuring 4 big smashes in March - Dr Dre, Naughty By Nature, Arrested Development and Snow. Dr Dre looks the most likely to topple Snow from the top spot, although he's being chased by R&B boyband Silk and Jade climb to a new peak of #4.
In the UK, 2 Unlimited actually prevented Michael Jackson from another #1 with "Give In To Me", and it still surprises me that that song in particular did so well in the UK, given how late into the Dangerous run we were, how it didn't do so well in the US and how uncommercial it is compared to some of the other songs on the album. Personally, it's my favourite track on the album. Maybe sales were slow in January or maybe they put out a good singles package, does anyone remember? Interesting note on the last week of March - the top 3 were Shaggy, Shabba Ranks and Snow, and I'm not sure if there's ever been any occasion in the history of the UK chart were reggae has owned the top 3 places. And a final anecdote - I'd forgotten all about that random Iron Maiden strategy were they would release a single in January and nab themselves an unusually high chart placing for a metal band, but it gave them a #1 in 1991 if anyone remembers. Well they tried it again in 1993 and only managed to reach #14.
I don't know why, but no singles were released from the Diana Ross album The Force Behind The Power other than it notes that she had different record labels at this point - EMI in the UK released 5 singles and they all went Top 40, including "Heart (Don't Change My Mind)" which was the last release and peaked at #31. Don't recall this at all, and it's okay. "When You Tell Me That You Love Me" was the big single from this album. I wasn't really following Diana Ross at this point, but she does have a couple of singles coming up in the decade that I really do like, and no big surprises what they are, but no spoilers please.
Jamiroquai releases his second single from the debut album and nabs his first Top 10 with "Too Young To Die", which would go on to become one of his signature hits. I remember not liking Jamiroquai at this time, and I can only assume it's because I needed my funky acid jazz to have a female vocal so I could closely associate it with its house music cousin - I compared the likes of Incognito closer to Alison Limerick and Jocelyn Brown than anything else. I have since grown to love Jamiroquai, and this track. Emergency On Planet Earth would generate 4 hit singles and go platinum. He wouldn't see success in the US until album #3, however.
Clearly, Gloria Estefan's record label would consider her Greatest Hits set released at the end of 1992 a big deal, because they released FOUR singles from it - most GHs don't even have that many new songs. "Go Away" would be the last of those but was a UK hit at #13, however it only managed to go "bubbling under" in the US at #3. I don't care for this at all, but I suppose objectively it's a fun camp bop. You could argue Gloria's biggest days were behind her - and they were - but it only really tells half a story, because she would still have a further 10 Billboard hits and 13 UK Top 40 hits!
Now always give me some Mica Paris! "I Never Felt Like This Before" was the first single from her 3rd album Whisper A Prayer and it felt like a departure from her smoother, jazzier UK Soul sound and more commercial, US sound, evoking the likes of Anita Baker, Toni Braxton and Karyn White. It's a treasure, and it reached #15 in the UK, her biggest hit since her debut "My One Temptation" in 1988.
In the US, Madonna's label were still trying to make "Bad Girl" work, but in the UK they very quickly moved on to "Fever", which somewhat turned things around for her and peaked at #6, her THIRTY SECOND Top 10 single and she wasn't even a decade into her career yet... I might have been flagging a bit on Madonna at this point too because I really don't ever remember this song being released. She did promote it in the US though - here she is on Letterman in 1993, looking and sounding gorgeous:
#1s
US | UK | |
| Mar-6 | P Bryson & R Belle - A Whole New World (1) | 2 Unlimited - No Limit (4) |
| Mar-13 | Snow - Informer (1) | 2 Unlimited - No Limit (5) |
| Mar-20 | Snow - Informer (2) | Shaggy - Oh Carolina (1) |
| Mar-27 | Snow - Informer (3) | Shaggy - Oh Carolina (2) |
It took 14 weeks to topple Whitney, and it took Peabo Bryson & Regina Belle a number of weeks at #2 to be the ones to do it, but it took a one hit wonder just one week to unseat them. "Informer" was one of those one hit wonder sensations that the 90s became known for - I'm not sure the intention was "rap novelty" but that's essentially what it became after crossing over to a million youth clubs and pop compilations. A total earworm, total marmite and a song that has lived on a lot longer than the artist who made it. Snow managed 7 weeks at the top, which is more than just a simple crossover hit, and ended up the 10th biggest song of 1993.
In the UK, we had 2 Unlimited unseated by what everyone probably thought would be a one hit wonder at the time, except Shaggy would go on to have quite a successful (albeit sporadic) chart career, including four massive global smash hits over the course of a decade. Incidentally, this particular one didn't travel well in the US, and only reached #59. He'd have to wait until his second global smash in 1995 to succeed there. Strange, as pop-reggae was doing very well in both markets at the time.
CHART HIGHLIGHTS:
A sign of hip-hop really crossing over now was the Top 10 featuring 4 big smashes in March - Dr Dre, Naughty By Nature, Arrested Development and Snow. Dr Dre looks the most likely to topple Snow from the top spot, although he's being chased by R&B boyband Silk and Jade climb to a new peak of #4.
In the UK, 2 Unlimited actually prevented Michael Jackson from another #1 with "Give In To Me", and it still surprises me that that song in particular did so well in the UK, given how late into the Dangerous run we were, how it didn't do so well in the US and how uncommercial it is compared to some of the other songs on the album. Personally, it's my favourite track on the album. Maybe sales were slow in January or maybe they put out a good singles package, does anyone remember? Interesting note on the last week of March - the top 3 were Shaggy, Shabba Ranks and Snow, and I'm not sure if there's ever been any occasion in the history of the UK chart were reggae has owned the top 3 places. And a final anecdote - I'd forgotten all about that random Iron Maiden strategy were they would release a single in January and nab themselves an unusually high chart placing for a metal band, but it gave them a #1 in 1991 if anyone remembers. Well they tried it again in 1993 and only managed to reach #14.
I don't know why, but no singles were released from the Diana Ross album The Force Behind The Power other than it notes that she had different record labels at this point - EMI in the UK released 5 singles and they all went Top 40, including "Heart (Don't Change My Mind)" which was the last release and peaked at #31. Don't recall this at all, and it's okay. "When You Tell Me That You Love Me" was the big single from this album. I wasn't really following Diana Ross at this point, but she does have a couple of singles coming up in the decade that I really do like, and no big surprises what they are, but no spoilers please.
Jamiroquai releases his second single from the debut album and nabs his first Top 10 with "Too Young To Die", which would go on to become one of his signature hits. I remember not liking Jamiroquai at this time, and I can only assume it's because I needed my funky acid jazz to have a female vocal so I could closely associate it with its house music cousin - I compared the likes of Incognito closer to Alison Limerick and Jocelyn Brown than anything else. I have since grown to love Jamiroquai, and this track. Emergency On Planet Earth would generate 4 hit singles and go platinum. He wouldn't see success in the US until album #3, however.
Clearly, Gloria Estefan's record label would consider her Greatest Hits set released at the end of 1992 a big deal, because they released FOUR singles from it - most GHs don't even have that many new songs. "Go Away" would be the last of those but was a UK hit at #13, however it only managed to go "bubbling under" in the US at #3. I don't care for this at all, but I suppose objectively it's a fun camp bop. You could argue Gloria's biggest days were behind her - and they were - but it only really tells half a story, because she would still have a further 10 Billboard hits and 13 UK Top 40 hits!
Now always give me some Mica Paris! "I Never Felt Like This Before" was the first single from her 3rd album Whisper A Prayer and it felt like a departure from her smoother, jazzier UK Soul sound and more commercial, US sound, evoking the likes of Anita Baker, Toni Braxton and Karyn White. It's a treasure, and it reached #15 in the UK, her biggest hit since her debut "My One Temptation" in 1988.
In the US, Madonna's label were still trying to make "Bad Girl" work, but in the UK they very quickly moved on to "Fever", which somewhat turned things around for her and peaked at #6, her THIRTY SECOND Top 10 single and she wasn't even a decade into her career yet... I might have been flagging a bit on Madonna at this point too because I really don't ever remember this song being released. She did promote it in the US though - here she is on Letterman in 1993, looking and sounding gorgeous:
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funky
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MARCH 1993 (continued)
DISCOVERIES:
I have no memory of this simple but sublime and addictive deep house track from The Reese Project, which peaked at #54 in the UK. Very US House with gospel influences, it's obviously right up my lane.
NOTABLE CHART ENTRIES (US):
March 6
68 — NOTHIN’ MY LOVE CAN’T FIX –•– Joey Lawrence
70 — I FEEL YOU –•– Depeche Mode
89 — IT WAS A GOOD DAY –•– Ice Cube
94 — CANDY EVERYBODY WANTS –•– 10,000 Maniacs
March 13
70 — THE CRYING GAME –•– Boy George
89 — BORN 2 B.R.E.E.D. –•– Monie Love
90 — GIVE IT UP TO YOU –•– Martha Wash
92 — WHAT YOU WON’T DO FOR LOVE –•– Go West
95 — ROMEO –•– Dolly Parton & Friends
March 20
55 — LOOKING THROUGH PATIENT EYES –•– P.M. Dawn
67 — DOWN WITH THE KING –•– Run-D.M.C.
77 — EASY –•– Faith No More
92 — KISS OF LIFE –•– Sade
100 — LOVE ME THE RIGHT WAY –•– Rapination & Kym Mazelle
March 27
67 — LOVE DON’T LOVE YOU –•– En Vogue
87 — FUNKY CHILD –•– Lords Of The Underground
90 — BUDDY X –•– Neneh Cherry
92 — I’LL NEVER GET OVER YOU (GETTING OVER ME) –•– Expose
93 — CONNECTED –•– Stereo MC’s
I always think of Depeche Mode as a classic 80s band - and they were - but they were actually way more commercially successful in the 90s, particulary internationally. It's largely thanks to the huge success of Violator in 1990, their biggest album, and here they were coming off the momentum of that album and probably with high expectations. "I Feel You" was the lead single to 8th album Songs of Faith and Devotion which ended up being another successful global release. The single went to #37 in the US, but #3 on alternative, #1 on dance and #8 in the UK, and was a Top 10 hit around the world.
"It Was A Good Day" was the breakout single for Ice Cube after struggling with hits from his first 3 albums after his breakaway from NWA and acrimonious split from Dr Dre (the albums all sold well). It went #15 on the Hot 100, as well as #7 R&B and #1 Rap. Interestingly it went to #27 in the UK but has since been certified platinum, signifying its longevity as a hip-hop classic. It would help 4th album The Predator go 4x platinum in the US. Success seemed to do good things for both Ice Cube and Dre as they patched things up not long after this, even collaborating and recording together again for future singles.
Interesting to see Boy George get the highest new entry in a week in March 1993 because his solo career in the US had been virtually non existent following his break from Culture Club. Might have been on the back of some film publicity as this was the title track of the film out at the time, and is a well known cover of 60s song from Dave Berry. The song would eventually peak at #15 (#22 UK) but he'd never have a hit in the US again.
For whatever reason I really don't recall much of PM Dawn as a teenager aside from the big debut hit, but I've grown to love a handful of their songs over time, especially this lead single from their second album, "Looking Through Patient Eyes", which sticks to their tried and tested formula of utilising a sample well - in this case George Michael's "Father Figure". I used to think they were a one hit wonder but couldn't be more wrong. Sure, they fell off a cliff by the mid 90s, as the 3rd album was not a big success, but this song went to #6 in the US and #11 in the UK, and the album The Bliss Album...? even went Top 10 here.
Sade's follow up to huge global hit "No Ordinary Love" was "Feel No Pain", and it was a bit of a disappointment, going #56 in the UK and not charting in the US. But the track "Kiss Of Life" turned things around somewhat - while only reaching #44 in the UK, it went to #20 in the US and no doubt helped prop up 4th album Love Deluxe which would eventually go 4x platinum there. In fact her UK single success has always been quite soft - typical of any jazz-pop or adult-R&B singer - but the US has always embraced her songs, with 8 Top 20 hits.
That Kym Mazelle track seems like a strange choice to be a crossover dance hit in the US given the number of European hits that never did - however it did only peak at #97. In the UK it would reach #22. It's familiar to me, probably because it was released again in 1996, but I don't have any major memory of it. It's a nice slice of commercial handbag. Amazingly to me, Kym has actually achieved 12 Top 75 hits over her career.
En Vogue round off the hugely successful Funky Divas campaign with a 5th single, "Love Don't Love You", which would peak at #36 (UK #64). I can't think of another US R&B girl group in the 90s that would have 5 separate single releases from an album. In the UK I'm sure Eternal did it with the debut, and All Saints would have 5 singles from 4 releases (included a double A) but that's it. Funky Divas would be certified 3x platinum in the US, and gold in the UK.
DISCOVERIES:
I have no memory of this simple but sublime and addictive deep house track from The Reese Project, which peaked at #54 in the UK. Very US House with gospel influences, it's obviously right up my lane.
NOTABLE CHART ENTRIES (US):
March 6
68 — NOTHIN’ MY LOVE CAN’T FIX –•– Joey Lawrence
70 — I FEEL YOU –•– Depeche Mode
89 — IT WAS A GOOD DAY –•– Ice Cube
94 — CANDY EVERYBODY WANTS –•– 10,000 Maniacs
March 13
70 — THE CRYING GAME –•– Boy George
89 — BORN 2 B.R.E.E.D. –•– Monie Love
90 — GIVE IT UP TO YOU –•– Martha Wash
92 — WHAT YOU WON’T DO FOR LOVE –•– Go West
95 — ROMEO –•– Dolly Parton & Friends
March 20
55 — LOOKING THROUGH PATIENT EYES –•– P.M. Dawn
67 — DOWN WITH THE KING –•– Run-D.M.C.
77 — EASY –•– Faith No More
92 — KISS OF LIFE –•– Sade
100 — LOVE ME THE RIGHT WAY –•– Rapination & Kym Mazelle
March 27
67 — LOVE DON’T LOVE YOU –•– En Vogue
87 — FUNKY CHILD –•– Lords Of The Underground
90 — BUDDY X –•– Neneh Cherry
92 — I’LL NEVER GET OVER YOU (GETTING OVER ME) –•– Expose
93 — CONNECTED –•– Stereo MC’s
I always think of Depeche Mode as a classic 80s band - and they were - but they were actually way more commercially successful in the 90s, particulary internationally. It's largely thanks to the huge success of Violator in 1990, their biggest album, and here they were coming off the momentum of that album and probably with high expectations. "I Feel You" was the lead single to 8th album Songs of Faith and Devotion which ended up being another successful global release. The single went to #37 in the US, but #3 on alternative, #1 on dance and #8 in the UK, and was a Top 10 hit around the world.
"It Was A Good Day" was the breakout single for Ice Cube after struggling with hits from his first 3 albums after his breakaway from NWA and acrimonious split from Dr Dre (the albums all sold well). It went #15 on the Hot 100, as well as #7 R&B and #1 Rap. Interestingly it went to #27 in the UK but has since been certified platinum, signifying its longevity as a hip-hop classic. It would help 4th album The Predator go 4x platinum in the US. Success seemed to do good things for both Ice Cube and Dre as they patched things up not long after this, even collaborating and recording together again for future singles.
Interesting to see Boy George get the highest new entry in a week in March 1993 because his solo career in the US had been virtually non existent following his break from Culture Club. Might have been on the back of some film publicity as this was the title track of the film out at the time, and is a well known cover of 60s song from Dave Berry. The song would eventually peak at #15 (#22 UK) but he'd never have a hit in the US again.
For whatever reason I really don't recall much of PM Dawn as a teenager aside from the big debut hit, but I've grown to love a handful of their songs over time, especially this lead single from their second album, "Looking Through Patient Eyes", which sticks to their tried and tested formula of utilising a sample well - in this case George Michael's "Father Figure". I used to think they were a one hit wonder but couldn't be more wrong. Sure, they fell off a cliff by the mid 90s, as the 3rd album was not a big success, but this song went to #6 in the US and #11 in the UK, and the album The Bliss Album...? even went Top 10 here.
Sade's follow up to huge global hit "No Ordinary Love" was "Feel No Pain", and it was a bit of a disappointment, going #56 in the UK and not charting in the US. But the track "Kiss Of Life" turned things around somewhat - while only reaching #44 in the UK, it went to #20 in the US and no doubt helped prop up 4th album Love Deluxe which would eventually go 4x platinum there. In fact her UK single success has always been quite soft - typical of any jazz-pop or adult-R&B singer - but the US has always embraced her songs, with 8 Top 20 hits.
That Kym Mazelle track seems like a strange choice to be a crossover dance hit in the US given the number of European hits that never did - however it did only peak at #97. In the UK it would reach #22. It's familiar to me, probably because it was released again in 1996, but I don't have any major memory of it. It's a nice slice of commercial handbag. Amazingly to me, Kym has actually achieved 12 Top 75 hits over her career.
En Vogue round off the hugely successful Funky Divas campaign with a 5th single, "Love Don't Love You", which would peak at #36 (UK #64). I can't think of another US R&B girl group in the 90s that would have 5 separate single releases from an album. In the UK I'm sure Eternal did it with the debut, and All Saints would have 5 singles from 4 releases (included a double A) but that's it. Funky Divas would be certified 3x platinum in the US, and gold in the UK.
Sardonicus
HELL IS OTHER PEOPLE
Even nostalgia can't save that godawful Snow song. Truly DETESTABLE. The Jim Carrey In Living Color parody was SPOT ON.
I'm surprised the MJ song hit number 2 but it is one of his best. Gloria's isn't, but I do enjoy its ridiculous FUN FOR LATINO vibes.
I loved that Mica Paris song & was willing it to the top 10. Is the album any good, I vaguely remember the flop follow-ups being decent too.
Funks did you know the Reese Project is him off Inner City? Between this gospel influenced tune, plus Inner City hitting with "Hallelujah" & "Pennies From Heaven" in 1992, he was clearly going through something of a PIOUS PHASE.
Monie Love's song was penned with Prince I think? I do love it, especially the ridiculous dramatic backing vocalist HONKING AWAY throughout
Depeche Mode were SO GOOD in 1993. Every single fantastic, a great album, a progression of their sound from 80s synths to a more stadium rock sound but still notably them. It's a shame that the drug use was completely out of control & would almost kill Dave Gahan at this point.
Sade & En Vogue both releasing killer tunes off killer albums in 1992/93 - as I sashay around the bedroom pretending I'm a sophisticated type in a girl group to both
I'm surprised the MJ song hit number 2 but it is one of his best. Gloria's isn't, but I do enjoy its ridiculous FUN FOR LATINO vibes.
I loved that Mica Paris song & was willing it to the top 10. Is the album any good, I vaguely remember the flop follow-ups being decent too.
Funks did you know the Reese Project is him off Inner City? Between this gospel influenced tune, plus Inner City hitting with "Hallelujah" & "Pennies From Heaven" in 1992, he was clearly going through something of a PIOUS PHASE.
Monie Love's song was penned with Prince I think? I do love it, especially the ridiculous dramatic backing vocalist HONKING AWAY throughout
Depeche Mode were SO GOOD in 1993. Every single fantastic, a great album, a progression of their sound from 80s synths to a more stadium rock sound but still notably them. It's a shame that the drug use was completely out of control & would almost kill Dave Gahan at this point.
Sade & En Vogue both releasing killer tunes off killer albums in 1992/93 - as I sashay around the bedroom pretending I'm a sophisticated type in a girl group to both
Ellie
Super talented triple threat
Sardonicus
HELL IS OTHER PEOPLE
I'd forgotten that was at this time! Most watched interview ever? In fact I think it still might be?
Shirley
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Oh Lord this is about when I started frequenting The Scene (late as ever)
GO AWAY is THE Gloria Estefan song! In the same way as VIBEOLOGY is THE Paula Abdul song. I LOVE IT BEST OF ALL
The Crying Game is a PSB production which probably gave it a SLIGHT WELLY. Let's face it George is a cut above CICERO
I went on a date with a guy who was going on about how good that MICA PARIS track is. Why I remember that 30 years later I have no idea but he was RIGHT.
GO AWAY is THE Gloria Estefan song! In the same way as VIBEOLOGY is THE Paula Abdul song. I LOVE IT BEST OF ALL
The Crying Game is a PSB production which probably gave it a SLIGHT WELLY. Let's face it George is a cut above CICERO
I went on a date with a guy who was going on about how good that MICA PARIS track is. Why I remember that 30 years later I have no idea but he was RIGHT.
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jyxz
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Interestingly, the next single release for both PM Dawn and Boy George was a collaboration between the two! Only hit the heady heights of #40 in the UK charts though. Nice enough song.
Sheena
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I’ve never thought of this before but that’s ENTIRELY true.
Sheena
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Also entirely valid
Sheena
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Madonna’s Fever was an odd one. They released the album version here, without a video. It did ok, but was a fan release- high debut and tanked.
They then remixed it for the (much delayed) video a few months later and released it only as a promotional single in the US. That video version is FABULOUS and appeared on the Rain single in the (I think) US and Australia and in some European countries. It’s a shame as the video and the remix were so good and so much more commercial, though at that point I don’t know what would have stuck in the UK as her stock was pretty low.
It also might be why you don’t remember it- though the video was all over MTV Europe at the time, it didn’t get any UK airplay as the single was long gone by that point. I don’t even remember it being on The Box much.
They then remixed it for the (much delayed) video a few months later and released it only as a promotional single in the US. That video version is FABULOUS and appeared on the Rain single in the (I think) US and Australia and in some European countries. It’s a shame as the video and the remix were so good and so much more commercial, though at that point I don’t know what would have stuck in the UK as her stock was pretty low.
It also might be why you don’t remember it- though the video was all over MTV Europe at the time, it didn’t get any UK airplay as the single was long gone by that point. I don’t even remember it being on The Box much.
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Sheena
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Love Don’t Love You really was the only option left on Funky Divas, (bar Hooked on Your Love, which was too similar to Giving Him Something He Can Feel (both Curtis Mayfield covers)), but it wasn’t really a single. Evidenced by the fact that they would reissue the album with the addition of Whatta Man and (the criminally underrated) Runaway Love a while after the album campaign had seemingly wrapped.
Sardonicus
HELL IS OTHER PEOPLE
I'd like to thank @funky for not only reintroducing me to that utterly forgotten but absolutely Mica Paris song, but inspiring me to listen to the album which is just as fab if you're a fan of the early 90s pop/R&B sound It's a shame it wasn't a big hit because it certainly sounds built for commercial success.
Mica Paris song, but inspiring me to listen to the album which is just as fab if you're a fan of the early 90s pop/R&B sound It's a shame it wasn't a big hit because it certainly sounds built for commercial success.
VoR
Take it or leave it
I feel like maybe I posted this already last time she came up in this thread, but You Put A Move On My Heart from that Mica Paris album went on to become a US RnB hit for Tamia a couple of years later. Good song in both forms.
Sardonicus
HELL IS OTHER PEOPLE
Also not helped by being signed to useless 4th & Broadway, who made the same mistake that they had with Don-E the previous year, by releasing the obviously summery hit single several months before summer.
Sardonicus
HELL IS OTHER PEOPLE
What's the CONSENSUS on the Monie Love song? I love it but can't help but CHORTLE at both the ridiculous gabbling before the chorus & the backing vocalist SCREAMING HER HEAD OFF even as the song fades out
Shirley
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I hardly ever agree with anything you say IF I CAN EVEN BE BOTHERED TO READ IT ALL but you're ON THE MONEY HERE
DON'T DO YOURSELF DOWN BBZ WE ALL ARENot a song that I ever listen to - I am decidedly not every woman, alas
Sardonicus
HELL IS OTHER PEOPLE
Ooh Shirl as it's April 1993 up next we might get some more HOT POSITIVE GANG CHAT
Sheena
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OMG!
Inner Smile
Honest and real
This is some journey
Sheena
CALL IT HOUSE
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Nah, you’re right. Runaway Love was an EP in the US with a few new songs. It tanked there too.
Shirley
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I MEAN IT IN A CARING WAYOMG!
funky
(OMF)
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APRIL 1993
#1s
Not a particularly pretty picture at the summit on either side of the pond this month... Snow getting 7 weeks is quite an achievement for a song given that radio was still a bit more conservative in the 90s towards sexual lyrics and difficult-to-decipher vocals - I have to assume that sales were huge and it never reached #1 on airplay, but who knows... it must have crossed over enough to manage 7 weeks. Silk's smash R&B ballad "Freak Me" joins them at #2 for the entire month, hoping to be the next in line for a #1 but Dr Dre, Whitney Houston and Jade are still hovering close by and SWV's first smash "I'm So Into You" is climbing in the Top 10.
The Silk track is interesting because R&B ballads had always been traditionally slushy and romantic affairs, and those ballads were still doing big numbers for the likes of Boyz II Men - the sexy and suggestive lyrics were usually reserved for funky dancefloor numbers. But "Freak Me" was setting the tone for a new movement of "bedroom R&B" that would dominate the mid to late 90s. I'm in two halves about this genre - some of it influenced the best albums of the 90s, notably TLC's CrazySexyCool (not exclusively bedroom R&B but certainly a theme) and Toni Braxton's Secrets (a bedroom R&B sound to the point of it being a concept album)... and of course Madonna's Bedtime Stories, to name a few. It would also create sounds that would help, alongside Hip-Hop and Jazz, propel the birth of neo-soul. So it certainly had its place. But on the flip side of that came a saturation point of whiny, drony, oversung songs with overused innuendos about sex that became so ubiquitous that R&B had to shift quickly in the late 90s into fresh new sounds (largely thanks to the likes of Pharrell, Missy Elliott, Timbaland and Rodney Jerkins). All to come of course, but yeah "Freak Me" I think is quite a landmark track for the US.
Moving off topic completely - the UK took a break from the dance domination and decided to play homage to a decade-old Celtic-Country cover of a Bananarama song that had already previously gone Top 10 in 1984, but was re-released due to a VW Golf Advert. Nothing says British chart music history like that last sentence. The Bluebells covered it not long after Bananarama released it in 1983 on their debut album (that was something I had completely forgotten about) but had split up long before the song was re-released. It didn't do much outside of UK and Ireland, although Wiki tells me that it went to number 3 in Portugal...
CHART HIGHLIGHTS:
So Rap has pretty much exploded at this point in the US - no longer tied to novelty pop-rap songs or the big politically-charged collectives like Public Enemy or powerhouse producers like Dr Dre, the charts is full of up and coming, independent acts competing for a place in the mainstream and creating a much broader landscape of Hip-Hop, from gangsta rap to G-funk to southern rap and backpack hip-hop and jazz-hop, it was changing the face of the charts fast. I haven't covered them all below, but in April there were Hot 100 entries from LL Cool J, Onyx, Flavour Unit MCs, Brand Nubian, Prince Markie Dee, Funkdoobiest and Boss, and in the last week of the month, 9 songs in the Top 40 were Rap. That's a huge shift from just 12 months ago.
In the UK, dance was still king, with April seeing Top 10 hits from Sybil, Robin S, Madonna, 2 Unlimited, Sub Sub featuring Melanie Williams, Cappella and New Order.
Also in the UK... what is this Betty Boo track??
Forget Lil Nas X and Shaboozey... Betty Boo invented Country Rap! It's... not good. How far the mighty have fallen since that debut album. Is Grrr... It's Betty Boo any good? It was the third single taken from that album and reached #50 - it didn't chart anywhere else. That would be it for Miss Boo... until Boomerang some 30 years later.
So I don't remember this being out at the time but it turns out I quite like it...
I remember the garage remix in 1999 which I largely ignored. But the original is great! Neneh Cherry's 2nd album Homebrew largely went over my head, even though I love both the albums that bookend it. It was the last single from the album and reached #35, but it also charted in the US at #43, her only single from this album to do so.
For a long time I thought Terence Trent D'Arby was British, probably because he really fit that UK Soul mode, but also the UK stayed fond of him long after the US moved on. He didn't do much after the massive debut album there, but in the UK he was still getting hits into his 3rd album Symphony Or Damn, with 4 Top 20 singles. The lead single "Do You Love Me Like You Say" does feel like an attempt to return to the magic of the debut, and it peaked at #14. For those who don't know, TTD has long since been going by his real name Sananda Maitreya, and has now licensed all his songs back to his real name, hence the video tag below.
Everything But The Girl would release somewhat of a compilation album in 1993, a bit premature considering the career shift that would happen in a couple of years, but they treated us with 2 new gems, including this cover of the Simon & Garfunkel classic. It reached #42. They have a good track record with covers as Tracey Thorn has one of those voices that could sing anything.
Lindy Layton swaps groovy beats for the soul-pop-dance hybrid that was everywhere in the UK at this time, and it's nice enough. She also gets a makeover for the video... and I swear I thought at first they'd drafted in Raquel from Corrie (a young Sarah Lancashire). It reached #38 but it was a last gasp attempt and there would be no album to follow.
DISCOVERIES:
Well this is fabulous. Stephanie Mills doing contemporary R&B in the 90s is something I didn't know I needed, and it makes me think I need to check out more adult R&B acts from the 70s and 80s updating their sound to the fabulous classic 90s R&B... Chaka Khan and Diana Ross had some gems during this time, and this is something we need to talk about MORE. There's a few coming up that I do know about... This comes from a Greatest Hits album and charted at #57 in the UK, and #33 on US R&B.
OK so we covered the wonderful "Ordinary World" a few pages ago, a genuine comaback single for the 80s supergroup Duran Duran, but this follow up single that I don't think I remember is also... REALLY GOOD? Should I be checking out the album? This was another global smash going #13 UK and #7 US.
I didn't pay much attention to this track by Lo-Key? the first time I heard it for the first time this year, but has since grown on me massively, it's so catchy in an early 90s Color Me Badd kind of way, maybe one of the last of its swing-influenced sound as the genre evolves, but this is so smooth and funky with a great vocal. This group were one of the boybands that didn't cross over internationally, and this song did nothing in the UK. It was their last hit in the US, going #91 on Pop and #13 on R&B.
#1s
US | UK | |
| Apr-3 | Snow - Informer (4) | The Bluebells - Young At Heart (1) |
| Apr-10 | Snow - Informer (5) | The Bluebells - Young At Heart (2) |
| Apr-17 | Snow - Informer (6) | The Bluebells - Young At Heart (3) |
| Apr-24 | Snow - Informer (7) | The Bluebells - Young At Heart (4) |
Not a particularly pretty picture at the summit on either side of the pond this month... Snow getting 7 weeks is quite an achievement for a song given that radio was still a bit more conservative in the 90s towards sexual lyrics and difficult-to-decipher vocals - I have to assume that sales were huge and it never reached #1 on airplay, but who knows... it must have crossed over enough to manage 7 weeks. Silk's smash R&B ballad "Freak Me" joins them at #2 for the entire month, hoping to be the next in line for a #1 but Dr Dre, Whitney Houston and Jade are still hovering close by and SWV's first smash "I'm So Into You" is climbing in the Top 10.
The Silk track is interesting because R&B ballads had always been traditionally slushy and romantic affairs, and those ballads were still doing big numbers for the likes of Boyz II Men - the sexy and suggestive lyrics were usually reserved for funky dancefloor numbers. But "Freak Me" was setting the tone for a new movement of "bedroom R&B" that would dominate the mid to late 90s. I'm in two halves about this genre - some of it influenced the best albums of the 90s, notably TLC's CrazySexyCool (not exclusively bedroom R&B but certainly a theme) and Toni Braxton's Secrets (a bedroom R&B sound to the point of it being a concept album)... and of course Madonna's Bedtime Stories, to name a few. It would also create sounds that would help, alongside Hip-Hop and Jazz, propel the birth of neo-soul. So it certainly had its place. But on the flip side of that came a saturation point of whiny, drony, oversung songs with overused innuendos about sex that became so ubiquitous that R&B had to shift quickly in the late 90s into fresh new sounds (largely thanks to the likes of Pharrell, Missy Elliott, Timbaland and Rodney Jerkins). All to come of course, but yeah "Freak Me" I think is quite a landmark track for the US.
Moving off topic completely - the UK took a break from the dance domination and decided to play homage to a decade-old Celtic-Country cover of a Bananarama song that had already previously gone Top 10 in 1984, but was re-released due to a VW Golf Advert. Nothing says British chart music history like that last sentence. The Bluebells covered it not long after Bananarama released it in 1983 on their debut album (that was something I had completely forgotten about) but had split up long before the song was re-released. It didn't do much outside of UK and Ireland, although Wiki tells me that it went to number 3 in Portugal...
CHART HIGHLIGHTS:
So Rap has pretty much exploded at this point in the US - no longer tied to novelty pop-rap songs or the big politically-charged collectives like Public Enemy or powerhouse producers like Dr Dre, the charts is full of up and coming, independent acts competing for a place in the mainstream and creating a much broader landscape of Hip-Hop, from gangsta rap to G-funk to southern rap and backpack hip-hop and jazz-hop, it was changing the face of the charts fast. I haven't covered them all below, but in April there were Hot 100 entries from LL Cool J, Onyx, Flavour Unit MCs, Brand Nubian, Prince Markie Dee, Funkdoobiest and Boss, and in the last week of the month, 9 songs in the Top 40 were Rap. That's a huge shift from just 12 months ago.
In the UK, dance was still king, with April seeing Top 10 hits from Sybil, Robin S, Madonna, 2 Unlimited, Sub Sub featuring Melanie Williams, Cappella and New Order.
Also in the UK... what is this Betty Boo track??
Forget Lil Nas X and Shaboozey... Betty Boo invented Country Rap! It's... not good. How far the mighty have fallen since that debut album. Is Grrr... It's Betty Boo any good? It was the third single taken from that album and reached #50 - it didn't chart anywhere else. That would be it for Miss Boo... until Boomerang some 30 years later.
So I don't remember this being out at the time but it turns out I quite like it...
I remember the garage remix in 1999 which I largely ignored. But the original is great! Neneh Cherry's 2nd album Homebrew largely went over my head, even though I love both the albums that bookend it. It was the last single from the album and reached #35, but it also charted in the US at #43, her only single from this album to do so.
For a long time I thought Terence Trent D'Arby was British, probably because he really fit that UK Soul mode, but also the UK stayed fond of him long after the US moved on. He didn't do much after the massive debut album there, but in the UK he was still getting hits into his 3rd album Symphony Or Damn, with 4 Top 20 singles. The lead single "Do You Love Me Like You Say" does feel like an attempt to return to the magic of the debut, and it peaked at #14. For those who don't know, TTD has long since been going by his real name Sananda Maitreya, and has now licensed all his songs back to his real name, hence the video tag below.
Everything But The Girl would release somewhat of a compilation album in 1993, a bit premature considering the career shift that would happen in a couple of years, but they treated us with 2 new gems, including this cover of the Simon & Garfunkel classic. It reached #42. They have a good track record with covers as Tracey Thorn has one of those voices that could sing anything.
Lindy Layton swaps groovy beats for the soul-pop-dance hybrid that was everywhere in the UK at this time, and it's nice enough. She also gets a makeover for the video... and I swear I thought at first they'd drafted in Raquel from Corrie (a young Sarah Lancashire). It reached #38 but it was a last gasp attempt and there would be no album to follow.
DISCOVERIES:
Well this is fabulous. Stephanie Mills doing contemporary R&B in the 90s is something I didn't know I needed, and it makes me think I need to check out more adult R&B acts from the 70s and 80s updating their sound to the fabulous classic 90s R&B... Chaka Khan and Diana Ross had some gems during this time, and this is something we need to talk about MORE. There's a few coming up that I do know about... This comes from a Greatest Hits album and charted at #57 in the UK, and #33 on US R&B.
OK so we covered the wonderful "Ordinary World" a few pages ago, a genuine comaback single for the 80s supergroup Duran Duran, but this follow up single that I don't think I remember is also... REALLY GOOD? Should I be checking out the album? This was another global smash going #13 UK and #7 US.
I didn't pay much attention to this track by Lo-Key? the first time I heard it for the first time this year, but has since grown on me massively, it's so catchy in an early 90s Color Me Badd kind of way, maybe one of the last of its swing-influenced sound as the genre evolves, but this is so smooth and funky with a great vocal. This group were one of the boybands that didn't cross over internationally, and this song did nothing in the UK. It was their last hit in the US, going #91 on Pop and #13 on R&B.
Last edited:
funky
(OMF)
- Joined
- Apr 30, 2004
- Messages
- 103,941
APRIL 1993 (continued)
NOTABLE NEW ENTRIES (US):
April 3
57 — HOW I’M COMIN’ –•– LL Cool J
77 — THE MORNING PAPERS –•– Prince
91 — TONIGHT –•– Def Leppard
95 — SHOW ME LOVE –•– Robin S
98 — IF I COULD –•– Regina Belle
April 10
44 — WHO IS IT –•– Michael Jackson
67 — LIVIN’ ON THE EDGE –•– Aerosmith
91 — KNOCKIN’ DA BOOTS –•– H-Town
April 17
84 — ALIBIS –•– Tracy Lawrence
86 — COME UNDONE –•– Duran Duran
89 — SLEEPING SATELLITE –•– Tasmin Archer
90 — YOU’RE THE LOVE OF MY LIFE/THE LOVE I LOST –•– Sybil
95 — SO CLOSE –•– Dina Carroll
April 24
58 — WEAK –•– SWV
66 — LET’S GO THROUGH THE MOTIONS –•– Jodeci
84 — THAT’S THE WAY LOVE IS –•– Bobby Brown
86 — HAVE I TOLD YOU LATELY –•– Rod Stewart
91 — SWEET ON U –•– Lo-Key?
93 — IT’S MY LIFE –•– Dr. Alban
96 — WHAT’S UP –•– 4 Non Blondes
LL Cool J was still having hits into his 5th album 14 Shot To The Dome, and this lead single "How I'm Coming" went #57 on Pop, #28 on R&B and #1 on Rap. This was nothing though - he was one album removed from a big commercial breakthrough and career peak.
Prince (well, WB really, Prince/Symbol was unlikely to be involved - although he did give us a video) releases "The Morning Papers", the 3rd and final track from The Love Symbol album, which reached #44 (#52 UK which was uncharacteristically low for him here). I like the track but this album is massively underrated IMO and there were many other superior tracks to choose from, including "The Max", "Sweet Baby", "And God Created Woman" and "I Wanna Melt With U". Thus begins a very messy period for Prince, and in spite of it all, still some serious commercial success.
We've covered the Robin S track on here already but to mention again that despite its humble start on the chart at #95 it would eventually peak at #5 and spend most of the year on the chart.
While MJ was having a big hit in the UK with "Give In 2 Me", the next single in the US was Who Is It", and despite a topsy-turvy singles run this next track did manage to peak at #14 and go #1 Dance / #6 R&B.
I love this Aerosmith track! I don't recall it being released at the time but have discovered it since. As a rock act I don't love everything Aerosmith do, but they have a much better hit rate than me than a lot of their contemporaries, as I think they have the advantage of being rooted in their 70s beginnings, as opposed to the Bon Jovis of the world which don't have any authenticity for me. This was the lead single from Get A Grip, and reached #18 (UK #19). This was a huge commercial period for Aerosmith, as this was the second straight album to go 7x Platinum in the US.
Interesting to see Tasmin Archer and Dina Carroll having a go at the US, and you have to wonder whether it was a full campaign backed by a US label or just a "throw it to radio and see what happens" kind of approach. "Sleeping Satellite" would go on to be a genuine hit and reach #32, whereas "So Close" wouldn't go any further than #95 and would be her only Hot 100 entry.
While they were enjoying great success with "I'm So Into You", SWV release their third single "Weak", which was actually not that well known in the UK (it did peak at #33) but would go on to be one of the biggest songs of 1993, eventually hitting #1.
While I've moaned about Jodeci being overrated and mostly about the whiny, oversung ballads, this track is a decent funky swing number that I quite like. The video however has not aged well - they open with an invitation to a party by Puff Daddy
This reached #65.
"It's My Life" by Dr Alban was another one of those 90s international hits, that would sometimes carry enough momentum to even cross over in the difficult terrain of the US pop charts. This one however struggled and only reached #88.
And finally, I have to mention Regina Belle, whose follow up single to the massive Aladdin duet was this soppy ballad
Which is neither here nor there for me, but notably when I first heard it all I could think of was this...
That key change. If you know you know.
NOTABLE NEW ENTRIES (US):
April 3
57 — HOW I’M COMIN’ –•– LL Cool J
77 — THE MORNING PAPERS –•– Prince
91 — TONIGHT –•– Def Leppard
95 — SHOW ME LOVE –•– Robin S
98 — IF I COULD –•– Regina Belle
April 10
44 — WHO IS IT –•– Michael Jackson
67 — LIVIN’ ON THE EDGE –•– Aerosmith
91 — KNOCKIN’ DA BOOTS –•– H-Town
April 17
84 — ALIBIS –•– Tracy Lawrence
86 — COME UNDONE –•– Duran Duran
89 — SLEEPING SATELLITE –•– Tasmin Archer
90 — YOU’RE THE LOVE OF MY LIFE/THE LOVE I LOST –•– Sybil
95 — SO CLOSE –•– Dina Carroll
April 24
58 — WEAK –•– SWV
66 — LET’S GO THROUGH THE MOTIONS –•– Jodeci
84 — THAT’S THE WAY LOVE IS –•– Bobby Brown
86 — HAVE I TOLD YOU LATELY –•– Rod Stewart
91 — SWEET ON U –•– Lo-Key?
93 — IT’S MY LIFE –•– Dr. Alban
96 — WHAT’S UP –•– 4 Non Blondes
LL Cool J was still having hits into his 5th album 14 Shot To The Dome, and this lead single "How I'm Coming" went #57 on Pop, #28 on R&B and #1 on Rap. This was nothing though - he was one album removed from a big commercial breakthrough and career peak.
Prince (well, WB really, Prince/Symbol was unlikely to be involved - although he did give us a video) releases "The Morning Papers", the 3rd and final track from The Love Symbol album, which reached #44 (#52 UK which was uncharacteristically low for him here). I like the track but this album is massively underrated IMO and there were many other superior tracks to choose from, including "The Max", "Sweet Baby", "And God Created Woman" and "I Wanna Melt With U". Thus begins a very messy period for Prince, and in spite of it all, still some serious commercial success.
We've covered the Robin S track on here already but to mention again that despite its humble start on the chart at #95 it would eventually peak at #5 and spend most of the year on the chart.
While MJ was having a big hit in the UK with "Give In 2 Me", the next single in the US was Who Is It", and despite a topsy-turvy singles run this next track did manage to peak at #14 and go #1 Dance / #6 R&B.
I love this Aerosmith track! I don't recall it being released at the time but have discovered it since. As a rock act I don't love everything Aerosmith do, but they have a much better hit rate than me than a lot of their contemporaries, as I think they have the advantage of being rooted in their 70s beginnings, as opposed to the Bon Jovis of the world which don't have any authenticity for me. This was the lead single from Get A Grip, and reached #18 (UK #19). This was a huge commercial period for Aerosmith, as this was the second straight album to go 7x Platinum in the US.
Interesting to see Tasmin Archer and Dina Carroll having a go at the US, and you have to wonder whether it was a full campaign backed by a US label or just a "throw it to radio and see what happens" kind of approach. "Sleeping Satellite" would go on to be a genuine hit and reach #32, whereas "So Close" wouldn't go any further than #95 and would be her only Hot 100 entry.
While they were enjoying great success with "I'm So Into You", SWV release their third single "Weak", which was actually not that well known in the UK (it did peak at #33) but would go on to be one of the biggest songs of 1993, eventually hitting #1.
While I've moaned about Jodeci being overrated and mostly about the whiny, oversung ballads, this track is a decent funky swing number that I quite like. The video however has not aged well - they open with an invitation to a party by Puff Daddy
This reached #65."It's My Life" by Dr Alban was another one of those 90s international hits, that would sometimes carry enough momentum to even cross over in the difficult terrain of the US pop charts. This one however struggled and only reached #88.
And finally, I have to mention Regina Belle, whose follow up single to the massive Aladdin duet was this soppy ballad
Which is neither here nor there for me, but notably when I first heard it all I could think of was this...
That key change. If you know you know.
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Sardonicus
HELL IS OTHER PEOPLE
Marge was a huge fan of GRR IT'S BETTY BOO. She called it criminally ignored & was trying to sign OUR BET to Maverick at the time.
Agree on the bedroom slow jam sound becoming DULL AS quickly. About half of Jade's 2nd album consisted of it, which ruined things for them, especially as the other half was all bops.
I think you'd like Neneh's 2nd album. Still some fantastic tunes even if not as many immediate hits as the debut.
Agree on the bedroom slow jam sound becoming DULL AS quickly. About half of Jade's 2nd album consisted of it, which ruined things for them, especially as the other half was all
bops.I think you'd like Neneh's 2nd album. Still some fantastic tunes even if not as many immediate hits as the debut.
jyxz
User
Homebrew is a great album
funky
(OMF)
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- Messages
- 103,941
I am becoming more and more aware of the fact that, for whatever reason, I just wasn’t paying much attention to pop music in 1993. I was so into dance music. Or maybe partly distracted by other things… so may acts that have albums that I’m not familiar with with even though I did enjoy albums before and after. I think 1994 is largely the same. 1995 was a huge year for music for me and in 96 I started working in Woolies so from then on there won’t be many gaps, but I’m actually enjoying quite a deep discovery period at this particular stage.