funky's journey through the 90s (again, again) (4 Viewers)

I had no idea M People were already charting in USA. They won't have a proper hit there until Moving on up, their only pop hit, but I believe they were regulars in the US dance chart.

I was never a fan of Voice Of The Beehive, but this single stood out for me after it popped up on the US charts this month, their first of only two Top 100 hits:



It was the lead single from their second album Honey Lingers, and eventually went #15 UK and #74 US.

I only know their 2 US hits, I assume the other you're talking about is Scary kisses? At least I remember it making some top 40 countdowns. I've seen a lot of talk here about this group but I know nothing about them. Edit: I checked and have another 4 songs on my ipod. For sure that has to be after reading something on Moopy and adding a few hits, I totally forgot about it or if I played them at all.

Notable new entries (US):

November 2

47 — KEEP COMING BACK –•– Richard Marx

The big comeback after 2 multiplatinum albums was not what I was expecting from him. This is so much mature, and has little to do with what he had released so far. I don't get this song as the first single, I never got it, I appreciate the effort but I find it a bit boring; it wasn't such a big hit, missing the top 10. Thankfully the follow up was a massive hit, with the help of a very clever video(s).
 
Growing up I always thought Kym Sims was a black R&B singer - I must never have watched the video or saw her perform live. But this came out at the same time as Ce Ce Peniston, Shanice, Sybil and other US R&B dance acts, and they all got muddled together. This had a good run to #38 in the US but was a huge hit in the UK, reaching #5 . Growing up I only knew this track from her really, but there's a discovery coming up shortly that I've decided is better than this.
I thought the same about Kym Sims, the single didn't have a picture and I don't remember watching the video back then. Btw, now that you put them in the same sentence, Kym Sims cowrote one of Ce Ce Peniston's biggest hits, coming up next year.

Michael Jackson returns after a two year hiatus and four years since the release of Bad, and this must have been a huge pop event. I have vague memories of the video being premiered in the UK, and lots of marketing and the video being on heavy rotation. I feel that a debut of #35, even in this era, feels a bit soft, but to be fair it did bounce up to #3 in its second week and was #1 by its third. This ended up being one of his biggest hits ever, hitting #1 all over the world including the UK. Personally I think it's one of his weakest ever singles, and that would be the story for me across the Dangerous album - a real mixed bag of hits and misses. The album didn't quite land as well as Bad or Thriller but that was purely relative - it was still a massive success.
The premiere of the video was such a thing, I remember a tv channel here stopping everything to air the complete video. The video is insane and 100% MJ, and it did all the promo for the single. The special effects used to morph faces into one another were such a wow moment, something never seen before, that was copied in other music videos in the coming years.
 
The special effects used to morph faces into one another were such a wow moment, something never seen before, that was copied in other music videos in the coming years.
MJ got the face morphing idea from the video to this mid 80s hit, although obviously done with a much bigger budget & better technology.

 
MJ got the face morphing idea from the video to this mid 80s hit, although obviously done with a much bigger budget & better technology.


Yes, and when I said it was copied by other music videos, I didn't mean the idea, but the technology to do that; probably copied was not the right word, they simply used the same programme to do high quality transformations. Terence Trent D'arby's Delicate, Coolio's Fantastic Voyage, and probably many more that I can't think of right now.
 
Top 5 1991 r&b hits that didn't get a (proper) mention and I think they deserve it:


(WARNING: this post contains heterosexual lyrics)


Sex Cymbal - Sheila E.




Recent Grammy winner Sheila E. totally flopped with her 1991 álbum; at least the lead single managed to make the top 40 in the r&b singles chart. Shame this wasn't a bigger hit. This short video is the ending for the music video, see the energy, what a woman :disco:




Written All Over Your Face - Rude Boys

a #1 r&b (didn't Billboard name this the #1 r&b song of 91?) that did crossover and made the top 20.




This house - Tracie Spencer

This was a massive hit, peaking at #3. Despite being only 15 back then, she already had another top 40 hit 3 years earlier :shock: Tracie had quite a few r&b hits from this album, most of them were moderate pop hits too. She then disappear only to make a brief comeback a decade later.




With you - Tony Terry

One of my favourite ballads of the year, and the only crossover hit for this sexy man. It barely made the top 20, but spent months and months in the chart, climbing slow and steady.





My heart is failing me - Riff

And last but not least, a favourite of mine, totally forgotten but still on heavy rotation on my ipod after so many years. The only crossover hit for this group, it made the top 30, and that pretty much was it for them.



To my total shock, the song was remade years later by one of the biggest female singers of all time in Spain, Luz Casal (you may know her from some Almodovar film music, I've seen someone posting here about her) and it became a massive hit here. I bet 99.99% has no idea it's a cover. No wonder, I think the original wasn't even released in Europe, even when I found the cd single in a record fair in London.

 
Top 5 1991 pop hits that didn't get a (proper) mention and I think they deserve it:

(kala-friendly list, no men found here)


Kiss them for me - Siouxsie & The Banshees

After so many years, Siouxsie Sioux finally has a top 40 hit in USA, her only one. Kiss them for me peaked at #26 in late 91.





Love me all up - Stacy Earl

I still don't get why they never bothered with a video, it would have been a much bigger hit. There is a video for another song that wasn't release as a single, so they probably changed their mind in the last minute about her debut single, god knows.Anyway, Love me all up is amazing, it peaked in the top 40 in early 92, and it wasn't her only hit: the follow up, Romeo & Juliet, that is LITERALLY Opposites Atract, also made the top 40.






Temple of love - Harriet

Most of you probably don't know this singer, but guess what, she's from England. Temple of love peaked at #39, I think the follow up made the AC chart, and that was it for her. Shame, because her album isn't that bad, and she has a fantastic voice. If you play it you're not going to be shocked if I tell you Temple of love made the r&b chart too. Btw, if you think you never listen to her music before, think again: she cowrote in the late 90s Tina Turner's Whatever you need.





Save some love - Keedy

This is pure joy and the video is camp as hell :disco: A total one hit wonder; the follow up to this, a ballad written by Diane Warren, flopped, and she never released another album. Pointless trivia: you can hear a few seconds of this song in a scene of Julia Robert's movie Dying young.





You don't have to go home tonight - The Triplets

Remember in 1990 when we had a few twins? Well we have now The Triplets, and they're real triplets. Born and raised in America, this latin trio (mexican father) were another one hit wonder, but left one of the best songs of the year, absolutely magnificent.

 
66 — STREET OF DREAMS –•– Nia Peeples

Actress Nia Peeples didn't have a long recording career and is somewhat forgotten; her 1991 album isn't on Spotify (except for the first single), which is a shame, because it's really good and I think very Moopy friendly. Street of dreams peaked at #12 and is fantastic. So is the follow up Kissing the wind, that unfortunately flopped.



 
Top 5 1991 r&b hits that didn't get a (proper) mention and I think they deserve it:




With you - Tony Terry

One of my favourite ballads of the year, and the only crossover hit for this sexy man. It barely made the top 20, but spent months and months in the chart, climbing slow and steady.



Tony Terry is definitely a singer I discovered from here - he did have 2 minor UK hits (neither of which were Hot 100 hits only R&B hits in the US) and more in the US, but I hadn't heard of him before I started doing this. I've enjoyed him, he has a smoother R&B sound which I always like.
 
DECEMBER 1991

#1s


US​
UK​
Dec-7Michael Jackson - Black Or White (1)George Michael & Elton John - Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me (1)
Dec-14Michael Jackson - Black Or White (2)George Michael & Elton John - Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me (2)
Dec-21Michael Jackson - Black Or White (3)Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody / These Are The Days Of Our Lives (1)
Dec-28(xmas)Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody / These Are The Days Of Our Lives (2)

Michael Jackson gets his eleventh (and penultimate) #1 in the US - he hit #1 for 2 weeks with in the UK in November before being toppled by George & Elton. He'd manage 7 weeks in the US, keeping Boyz II Men at #2 with "It's So Hard To Say Goodbye To Yesterday" for almost the entirety of that run. That song went platinum but didn't even chart in the UK at all - again, they were virtually unheard of pre-"End Of The Road". By next Christmas, Boyz II Men's success overseas will look entirely different. Songs climbing in December include Color Me Badd's All 4 Love (#3 by Christmas and Mariah Carey's "Can't Let Go" (#6) with "Finally" by Ce Ce Peniston climbing to #8. George & Elton take a slower route to success in the US with a relatively cool new entry at #72 at the start of the month.. the song will see better success in 1992.

Over in the UK, we continue to get better versions of Salt n Pepa tracks:



This is a big glow up on the album track, and very similar in style to the mammoth smash "Let's Talk About Sex". Not sure if this is the version that made it to US radio, but it went to #47, and managed #15 in the UK.

After spending the 80s establishing himself as one of the Godfathers of House, Frankie Knuckles finally released an album of original material in 1991. It included his house standard "The Whistle Song", but this is the highlight:



This hit #67 in the UK and #10 on US dance, but he was seeing much greater success as a producer and remixer, and would continue to do so his entire career.

Speaking of legendary DJs...



Another piano house classic, although you can hear the movement now shifting more to US influences than its italo roots. This would help it endure through the 90s as eurodance takes over.

And a couple more dance songs from this month to finish us off...




Discoveries:

Vanessa Williams
, it turns out, is more than just a famous ballad. Most people in the UK would consider her a one hit wonder (does anyone really remember that Pocahontas song?) as nothing came close to "Save The Best For Last" in sales. But in the US the album The Comfort Zone produced 5 hit singles, including this title track:



Love this. There's other good tracks still to come from Vanessa, with 13 Top 100 hits so I'm looking forward to digging deeper.

Anyone know who this is?



Never heard of them (it appears to be a duo with the guy as the lead), but this is a gorgeous Babyface-style smooth groove. In fact a quick check and yes this is indeed a Babyface/LA Reid production. Success was so short lived that I can't find where this song peaked, but it was not a major hit. Still a wonderful deep cut find though.

I didn't cover it last month as there was so much to cover, but Jody Watley is another US singer that I haven't delved into deeply enough (I know our @Ellie is a fan). I keep discovering deep cuts by her, and this track is great:



It peaked at #61 in the US and didn't chart in the UK, and with this being the lead single from her third album Affairs Of The Heart, her star was certainly fading. She would manage a Top 20 hit in 1992 from the same album (her last) but overall she has released 9 solo albums and I keep meaning to go further with her discography. There is a 1994 track coming up which I discovered in lockdown which is amazing...

And in keeping with the theme, this also popped up last month from Karyn White...



Her last big hit in the US, this would peak at #12 (#65 UK) and it's a real bop - the production is very Janet, but with a bigger vocal.

...and another one! This time it's the boys' turn:



This is a great example of New Jack morphing into hip-hop soul - still swing, but with a slightly smoother sound. I didn't think these songs were being produced as early as 1991, so it's interesting to hear the gradual shift. This went to #17 (UK #83) and a US R&B #1.

Notable Chart Entries (US):

December 7

40 — SMELLS LIKE TEEN SPIRIT –•– Nirvana
65 — THE UNFORGIVEN –•– Metallica
72 — DON’T LET THE SUN GO DOWN ON ME –•– George Michael & Elton John
84 — ADDAMS GROOVE –•– Hammer
86 — THE COMFORT ZONE –•– Vanessa Williams
88 — DIAMOND AND PEARLS –•– Prince & The N.P.G.
97 — IN PARADISE –•– Laissez Faire

December 14

83 — ALL THROUGH THE NIGHT –•– Tone-Loc
88 — UHH AHH –•– Boyz II Men
90 — EVERYBODY MOVE –•– Cathy Dennis
92 — INSATIABLE –•– Prince & The N.P.G.
93 — RIGHT DOWN TO IT –•– Damian Dame
100 — MOVE ANY MOUNTAIN –•– The Shamen

December 21

67 — I’M TOO SEXY –•– Right Said Fred
82 — TO BE WITH YOU –•– Mr. Big
86 — EVERY ROAD LEADS BACK TO YOU –•– Bette Midler
87 — THERE WILL NEVER BE ANOTHER TONIGHT –•– Bryan Adams
93 — GIVE IT AWAY –•– Red Hot Chili Peppers
95 — LIVE AND LET DIE –•– Guns N’ Roses

An important week there with the debut of "Smells Like Teen Spirit", formally ushering in the era of grunge and, more broadly, 90s alternative rock music, considering how much influence that one song is about to have on the industry. Being consumed by dance and R&B at the time I don't have much memory of this song coming out, and it no doubt took a few months to really take hold, and indeed nobody knew at the time how important it would become. But to fans of guitar music this must have been a gamechanger. Interesting that Metallica follow them into a high debut, as it's really the combination of their hard rock, alongside acts like Nirvana and Pearl Jam, that would devour 80s pop metal and soft rock and change the landscape in very short order. An exciting, transformational time for music.

It's slightly ironic that after the chat about the new chart methodology changeover in November will lead to more R&B and country filling the charts, that it's rock making the biggest dent on the charts in December. Alongside the above songs, RHCP return with "Give It Away" from their upcoming 5th album Blood Sugar Sex Magik. With some moderate success in the UK and the US rock charts in the late 80s, the group had moved from EMI to Warner Bros and were able to get themselves their first US hit, with this peaking at #73 in early 1992. But they were probably not prepared for what was about to happen next, with a follow up single becoming an enourmous success and taking the album and it's subsequent singles to 7x platinum and numerous awards. For whatever reason (and I can't remember) the album didn't do much at all in the UK... until 1993, when a delayed campaign and some re-released singles gave them similar success.

To round off the rock theme, Mr Big and Guns n Roses also debut big singles right before Christmas, with the former becoming one of the biggest hits of 1992.

Speaking of songs that would define 1992, Right Said Fred are another act you don't expect to do well in the US, but this one is less of a surprise because we all know this was a huge, uniquitous global smash. For some reason I thought it was a #1 in the UK but it was held off of course by Bryan Adams; it does however hit number one in the US (and Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and Austria).

Not sure what the deal is with "Instatiable" being released from Prince's Diamonds & Pearls album, given that the title track and third single was already storming up the charts on the heels of the former #1 "Creep". It was never released outside the US, and might have been a limited run? Nevertheless it was bound to chart, given that Prince was on a major return to form with the album.

Unexpected Hot 100 act of the month: The Shamen!

Decided to include this little known minor hit which I don't know and don't care for, but it's high camp freestyle and will find an audience here


They're not on Wiki so I have no idea how successful this was - I'm guessing it was more of a club hit.
 
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I’ll never complain about Vanessa Williams discussions :disco: The Comfort Zone is a great track but didn’t do a ton here in the US but her next release will be the biggie. Then one of my faves coming up later in 1993

Poor Jody. She’s got an amazing catalog but the charts were never that kind to her.
 
It took me a helluva long time to warm to Nirvana. Felt like every other kid had their hoodies at school to the point where they became a lazy byword for 'glum middle-class teen wants to rebel', and I hated how the entire music establishment was in such thrall to them during the 00s. I'm naturally-defiant of like everything, so it was easy to dismiss them as a brief blip in the history of music, particularly as I'm not that into grunge anyway (Pearl Jam have the odd moment, but I can easily live without Alice in Chains, Soundgarden, etc.). And I still think Nevermind is an overrated record.

Working through the charts like this really puts their arrival into context, though. While there's plenty of great music around, much of what's commercially successful is forgettably bland dreck (it says something that 'Cream' is probably my pick for 1991's best #1 - a song that likely wouldn't trouble my Prince top forty). Nirvana are a HUGE breath of fresh air in this environment imo; a much-needed jolt to the senses. Big-time rock had become staid, tired, soulless. 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' gets put out there and really feels like it has something to not just say but roar, channeling the angst, malcontent, and rage of an entire generation as it does so. Little wonder that it blew up the way it did. I've more than come around to it being a great song, and though I'm still not big on Nevermind outside its singles, I think Nirvana eventually deliver on all their promise with In Utero. They totally earned their moment.

While I'm here, can I give a quick shout-out to one of the greatest hip hop songs of all time which I don't think has been brought up yet but which I believe is in the charts at this point in time:



A damn fuckin' real one.

Can't stop for long because BOILER ROOM is here tonight and I have to pretend I'm young and cool again, but: mostly dislike RHCP (the opposite of Nirvana above, though I'll say different if you make it to 1999), that Salt-n-Pepa mix is a delight, 'It's So Hard to Say Goodbye' is cute, 'I'm Too Sexy' reminds me of being a child for some odd reason, and why is Prince pulling a U2 and releasing 'Insatiable' right after 'Diamonds and Pearls' wtf.
 
Jumping on the Jody bandwagon, are you aware of the ret conned remix of ‘When a man loves a woman’ turned into the gay friendly ‘When a man loves a man’? 🏳️‍🌈 it’s a couple of years off yet (1994] but a highlight for me.

 
#40 for Nirvana is an incredibly high place for a new band to debut back then. It must have been getting monster airplay on the rock & college radio stations from the word go. I think it's easy to forget what a kick up the backside it gave to a genre saturated with overblown hair metal & such.

AGOG to see a minor chart entry for Tonè Loc! I always class him as 2 hits in 1989 & THEN NOTHING ELSE. He didn't trouble the UK charts again after 1989 for sure.

I always felt that Mr Big song was a bit of a cynical cash-in on the success of "More Than Words" by Extreme. I do prefer it to the Extreme song but rock & metal bands turning their hands to weepy sadboi ballads has never been my GENRE OF CHOICE.
 
Jumping on the Jody bandwagon, are you aware of the ret conned remix of ‘When a man loves a woman’ turned into the gay friendly ‘When a man loves a man’? 🏳️‍🌈 it’s a couple of years off yet (1994] but a highlight for me.



Yep you’ve guessed it :D that song is an absolute career highlight. Although - it’s not the version that I’m referring to. This is a gorgeous deep house moment no doubt, but there’s another remix that is clearly influenced by M’Shell Ndegeocello that falls into this unique corner of alternative R&B in around 1993/1994 that eventually gave us the Bedtime Stories album. I’m looking forward to covering that sound very soon.
 
I always felt that Mr Big song was a bit of a cynical cash-in on the success of "More Than Words" by Extreme. I do prefer it to the Extreme song but rock & metal bands turning their hands to weepy sadboi ballads has never been my GENRE OF CHOICE.

And yet it is mine :D I don’t care for a lot of hard rock so I must be a total pleb to rock purists liking this blue eyed soul nonsense. But the main reason that I like the Mr Big song is that I’m a sucker for almost anything gospel influence. He takes that song to church!
 
I thought that ROBIN OWENS track was a bigger hit in 1997 but I AM WRONG AS USUAL

I shouldn’t really have passed over that song without commenting because it’s probably one of the most seminal dance tracks of all time. It certainly gave dear Robert a career - he pops up on my Spotify radar as a featured vocalist on new house tracks on an almost weekly basis
 
It was a bigger hit in 1997 - the remix reached the top 30 while the original release only got to #75.

Is the one I posted above the original? That’s really the only version I know. There is a Def mix which appears to be the default search result but it doesn’t sound that different…
 
@old spice I can’t actually remember if I’ve covered Geto Boys already, or if it’s still to come. But yes great song, although I know it better in present day than from the 90s. I don’t recall it being out back then but it’s definitely fed into my consciousness since then.
 
Is the one I posted above the original? That’s really the only version I know. There is a Def mix which appears to be the default search result but it doesn’t sound that different…
Yeah the DEF Mix you posted is I think from 1991, & it was remixed by Paul Oakenfold in 1997.
 

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