1992 Points Chart

[Panda]

1992 was a very strange year for music in the UK. Typical pop music was in a slumber (though the emergence of Take That would lead to a stream of boy bands hitting the charts), the Britpop revolution was yet to happen though the seeds were being planted, and the force dance music had become took a turn for the worse with a host of cheap and nasty covers featuring prominently in the charts. This combination of circumstances often left the UK chart in something of an MOR purgatory during 1992.

Just 12 singles reached the top of the charts, the fewest since 1962, with only two spending fewer than three weeks at the top. It was also a year in which British acts dominated for the most part. We didn't have a non-British act at the top of the chart until August and it wasn't until October that an American act reached no.1. That said, plenty of American acts still managed to have big hits without reaching the top of the chart. By contrast, there was something of a drought for British acts in America. Right Said Fred's "I'm Too Sexy" reached no.1 in the US in March but it would be more than a year before another British act topped the Billboard chart and that would be followed by a two-year wait for another British chart-topper stateside.


A reminder of the points system: 1 point for no.40 in the singles chart, 2 points for no.39, all the way up to 37 points for no.4, then it's 40 points for no.3, 45 points for no.2 and 50 points for no.1.


Before the countdown, here are some of the songs that didn't make the top 40:

(position in end-of-year sales chart in brackets)


43(43) PRODIGY - Out Of Space (217 points)



A no.6 hit just before Christmas, after they'd reached no.2 earlier in the year with "Everybody In The Place". At this stage, the group in a musical sense was still all about Liam Howlett. It would be several years before dancers Keith Flint and Maxim Reality took centre stage and turned the Prodigy into a cultural phenomenon.


55(61) KISS - God Gave Rock And Roll To You II (194 points)



A re-working of Argent's 1973 track, this was taken from the film Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey, featuring on the end credits and gave Kiss their second UK top 10 hit.


61(78) CROWDED HOUSE - Weather With You (189 points)



Not their best track by any means but this song gave Crowded House their sole UK top 10 appearance.


67(55) VANESSA PARADIS - Be My Baby (184 points)



Five years after "Joe Le Taxi" became a huge Europe-wide hit, the French singer/actress/model achieved a second UK hit with this track, written and produced by her then-boyfriend Lenny Kravitz. It reached no.6 in the UK but deserved much better.


72(74) GENESIS - I Can't Dance (174 points)



Taken from their album "We Can't Dance", which spoke of an increasingly superficial and greed-driven world (see the excellent "Jesus He Knows Me"), this was the group's final top 10 hit, aside from a live version of "Invisible Touch" released towards the end of the year. It was also the group's final album with Phil Collins. He would later be replaced by Stiltskin singer Ray Wilson but the new line-up would have just one top 40 hit.


88(91) EAST 17 - House Of Love (152 points)



The debut single for the boys from Walthamstow, this set out their stall as the anti-Take That. As the next couple of years rolled on, their paths would slowly converge as East 17 focused on mainstream ballads, while Take That went for all-out sex appeal to compliment Gary Barlow's songwriting.


103(-) THE CURE - Friday I'm In Love (134 points)

(FLASHING IMAGES)


A rare big(ish) indie hit in 1992, this gave The Cure their 4th top 10 hit after "High" had reached no.8 a couple of months earlier.


104(-) BON JOVI - Keep The Faith (133 points)



The band's return after three years away (during which time Jon Bon Jovi released a solo album), this was the lead single from the album of the same name.


116(-) THE ORB - Blue Room (112 points)



A couple of record breakers to finish this post. This track is the longest ever to reach the UK singles chart. Chart rules had recently been changed, increasing the maximum length of a single from 25 to 40 minutes. That led the Orb to release a version of their track "Blue Room" that clocked in at 39:57. Thankfully, a 4-minute radio edit was also produced. A few years later, the limit was reduced to 20 minutes, meaning it's unlikely the Orb's record will ever be broken.


118(-) GUNS 'N ROSES - November Rain (109 points)



This single saw GnR at their most decadent and over-the-top. The song still holds the record for the longest top 10 hit in the history of the Billboard chart. The video, directed by Andy Morahan, was the most expensive music video ever made at the time and was also the first video made before YouTube existed to reach 1 billion views on the site.

[Panda]

Part 1 (40-36):

40(9) MICHAEL JACKSON - Heal The World (220 points)
Top 40 run: 3-2-2-2-2



This bork-a-thon was the Christmas no.2 and the sixth of nine singles from his "Dangerous" album. 220 points is the lowest score so far to reach the top 40 on the points list. The previous lowest was 233 in 1988 and 1991. The highest score required to reach the top 40 is 261 in 1985.


39(34) GUNS 'N ROSES - Knockin' On Heaven's Door (221 points)
Top 40 run: 2-3-4-10-11-16-28



It's somewhat sad that the biggest UK hit for a band that produced so much great material was this solid, if unspectacular Bob Dylan cover. Covers would soon become the norm for Guns 'N Roses as Axl Rose hit the start of a decade-long case of writer's block with the band slowly disintegrating around him.


38(25) KRIS KROSS - Jump (222 points)
Top 40 run: 4-2-3-7-9-17-31



The young hip-hop duo of Chris Kelly and Chris Smith were a breath of fresh air and sparked a short-lived trend for wearing clothes back-to-front. Their early success landed them a spot supporting Michael Jackson on his Dangerous world tour. The success would be short-lived, with just two more top 40 hits in the UK. As an adult, Kelly later lapsed into drug abuse and died in 2013, at the age of 34.


37(40) MARIAH CAREY - I'll Be There (227 points)
Top 40 run: 11-2-2-5-11-15-26



While Mariah had had previous UK hits, this was the single that really put her on the map over here. The Jackson 5 cover was a duet with Trey Lorenz (uncredited, because that's how the music business worked in 1992) recorded during Carey's MTV Unplugged appearance months earlier.


36(54) ROY ORBISON - I Drove All Night (229 points)
Top 40 run: 26-15-11-8-7-9-12-21-31



A posthumous top 10 hit for Orbison, reaching no.7 three and a half years after his death. Written by Steinberg and Kelly, it was originally intended for Orbison, who recorded the song the year before he died. However, after his untimely passing, it was then recorded by Cyndi Lauper who had a top 10 hit on both sides of the Atlantic with her version. The release of Orbison's version was coupled with a video starring teen heart-throb of the time Jason Priestley and future Oscar-winner Jennifer Connelly.

[Panda]

Part 2 (35-31):

35(39) UGLY KID JOE - Everything About You (231 points)
Top 40 run: 15-5-5-3-8-9-18-36



Big movie hits were very common in the 90s and here's another one. This was featured in Wayne's World and was the debut hit for Californian band Ugly Kid Joe. They went on to have four more top 40 hits in the UK, including a top 10 hit in 1993 with a cover of Harry Chapin's "Cat's In The Cradle".


34(27) SMART E'S - Sesame's Treet (235 points)
Top 40 run: 3-2-3-4-8-15-27



This was the most successful of a string of 1992 hits that combined rave with kids' TV shows. We also saw tracks hit the top 10 featuring samples from Trumpton and the theme from Roobarb And Custard.


33(53) VANESSA WILLIAMS - Save The Best For Last (236 points)
Top 40 run: 36-11-8-3-4-5-11-20-37



The first UK top 40 hit for the former beauty queen-turned singer and actress. Williams was crowned Miss America in 1983 but was later forced to relinquish her title after nude photos of her were published in Penthouse magazine. She subsequently began a music career and had considerable success in the US in the late 80s but it wasn't until this single that she broke into the top 40 over here. It reached no.3 but while she continued to have success in the US, her only other top 40 hit in the UK would be "Colors Of The Wind", taken from Disney's animated film, Pocahontas.


32(44) WAS (NOT WAS) - Shake Your Head (241 points)
Top 40 run: 20-13-10-5-4-5-10-20



So here's a slightly strange story. "Shake Your Head" was originally a track on the band's 1983 album "Born To Laugh At Tornadoes". It featured guest vocals from Ozzy Osbourne, while a not-yet-famous Madonna also recorded vocals for the track but the latter's were left off the finished version. In 1992, the band re-worked the track with Osbourne re-recording his vocals and they planned to include Madonna's as well, except she refused permission. That led to actress Kim Basinger being asked to sing Madonna's part and she also appeared in the video. Versions of the track with Madonna's vocals have accidentally been released twice - on some formats of the Now Dance 92 compilation and as a b-side on the band's follow-up single "Somewhere In America (There's A Street Named After My Dad)".


31(36) UTAH SAINTS - Something Good (248 points)
Top 40 run: 9-6-6-4-5-7-14-29



After reaching the top 10 in 1991 by sampling Eurythmics for "What Can You Do For Me?", Utah Saints repeated the trick to even greater effect a year later by sampling Kate Bush's "Cloudbusting" for this track, which reached no.4 in June. They completed the hat-trick of top 10 hits in 1993, sampling the Human League's "Love Action" on "Believe In Me". A re-working of "Something Good" (which didn't sample Kate Bush) reached no.8 in 2008, spending 15 weeks inside the top 40, thanks in part to its award-winning video.

[Panda]

Part 3 (30-26):

30(59) CURTIS STIGERS - You're All That Matters To Me (249 points)
Top 40 run: 28-15-9-7-6-8-9-16-23-40



This was the second top 10 hit for the US singer/saxophonist. It peaked at no.6, which was one place lower than his previous hit "I Wonder Why" but it spent 10 weeks inside the top 40, helping it appear on this list. He continues to record and perform today, releasing a new album "Gentleman" last year.


29(33) FELIX - Don't You Want Me (254 points)
Top 40 run: 14-9-6-6-7-10-14-19-30



A summer dance hit for English producer Francis Wright. It had several subsequent remixes and re-releases, including in 1996 on the back of an ad for blackcurrant Tango.


28(28) PASADENAS - I'm Doing Fine Now (255 points)
Top 40 run: 12-4-4-4-4-7-11-27



This cover of a 70s track by New York City was the biggest hit of the group's career and came four years after their only previous top 10 hit (aside from their appearance on the Band Aid II single, alongside the mighty Big Fun).


27(26) 2 UNLIMITED - Twilight Zone (257 points)
Top 40 run: 9-3-2-3-8-11-17-29-40



This follow-up to "Get Ready For This" matched their previous peak and was the second of eight top 10 hits for the Dutch duo. This video features Ray's rapping but more often than not, it was left out of the UK radio edits of their tracks, with the focus placed on Anita's vocals instead.


26(29) BIZARRE INC FT ANGIE BROWN - I'm Gonna Get You (282 points)
Top 40 run: 17-6-4-3-4-5-9-16-25



Not held in the same regard as their 1991 classic "Playing With Knives" but this track was the biggest of the group's career and featured vocals from Angie Brown who would later appear on The Voice, performing this track.

[Panda]

Part 4 (25-21):

25(21) BILLY RAY CYRUS - Achy Breaky Heart (284 points)
Top 40 run: 36-13-6-4-3-3-4-5-15



From the early 80s until the mid 90s, big country hits were rare in the UK but this track bucked the trend, reaching no.3 in August. The Kentucky Fried Mullet (I may have made that nickname up) would only have one more top 40 hit before fading into chart obscurity (apart from the US country chart, where he's appeared regularly over the last 28 years). His daughter Miley would become a much bigger star in her own right, first starring in Hannah Montana, then becoming one of the most successful pop acts of the last decade.


24(24) SHANICE - I Love Your Smile (290 points)
Top 40 run: 7-3-3-2-2-7-10-21-40



Shanice Wilson was just 18 when this track reached no.2 in both the US and UK, having missed the top 40 when first released in 1991. She won a Grammy for this track and would have further hits in the US but didn't reach the top 40 again over here. The track was later ripped off by professional waste of space Chris Brown.


23(31) MR. BIG - To Be With You (291 points)
Top 40 run: 21-8-3-3-3-4-6-14-22



In something of a recurring theme for 1992, this was the first hit for the band but they would only have one more top 40 hit after that. This song reached no.1 in the US but subsequent success there was also limited. However, they continued to have regular hits in Japan throughout the decade and into the 00s. In one of the flats I used to live in, the people in the flat on the other side of the alleyway would get stoned on a weekend and play this song full blast with the window open. However, their CD was damaged and when it reached the end of the song it would jump back 30 seconds and play again. The people in the other flat were too stoned to notice.


22(15) QUEEN - Bohemian Rhapsody/These Are The Days Of Our Lives (291 points)
Top 40 run: 1-1-2-4-10-16-13-21-36



A rare example of a Christmas no.1 continuing to perform well after New Year. This was partly down to the rising popularity of "These Are The Days Of Our Lives", which gained increasing airplay as the weeks went on and ended up winning Best Single at the Brit awards. That is also where the band's surviving members announced the tribute concert at Wembley in April, which would see some of the biggest names in music pay tribute to Freddie Mercury. Despite no acts being confirmed when the 72,000 tickets went on sale, the show sold out in just three hours, with proceeds going to the newly-founded HIV/AIDS charity the Mercury Phoenix Trust.


21(22) TEMPTATIONS - My Girl (300 points)
Top 40 run: 13-5-2-2-3-3-13-15-29



Another big movie hit, taken from the film of the same name starring Macauley Culkin. While it was always regarded as a classic song, having topped the US chart in 1965, this was the first time it had appeared in the top 40 in the UK. Culkin had become a megastar on the back of Home Alone, so it was no surprise both the film and song would be a success. NOT THE BEES!!

[Panda]

Part 5 (20-16):

20(32) LIONEL RICHIE - My Destiny (302 points)
Top 40 run: 30-16-11-11-8-8-7-8-14-20-23-34



This track returned Richie to the top 10 after a six-year absence. It only reached no.7 but its 12 weeks in the top 40 help it reach the top 20 on this list. The track was one of several new songs on featured on his greatest hits collection "Back To Front". Its success was helped further by a number of remixes (one of which seemed to get more airplay than the original version on some UK radio stations).


19(23) ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT - People Everyday (332 points)
Top 40 run: 10-6-2-3-3-7-10-19-22-24-23



The first top 40 hit for the US hip-hop group, taken from their acclaimed debut album "3 Years, 5 Months & 2 Days In The Life Of...". The album and this single were big successes on both sides of the Atlantic but later chart success would elude them. The group later appeared on the US version of Hit Me Baby One More Time and continues performing today.


18(19) JON SECADA - Just Another Day (338 points)
Top 40 run: 27-12-8-5-5-5-7-7-10-15-20-33



I remember hearing this months before it came out over here because my sister used to listen to Rick Dees' Weekly Top 40 show, which was syndicated on commercial radio after the Network Chart. It was a no.5 hit on both sides of the Atlantic for the Cuban-born singer and his eponymous debut album won Best Latin Pop Album at the Grammys. He continued to have minor chart hits over the next few years but never came close to matching this song's success.


17(16) TASMIN ARCHER - Sleeping Satellite (351 points)
Top 40 run: 37-13-4-3-1-1-2-4-13-20-30



Another act who seemingly peaked too soon (answering her own question that she posed in the lyrics). This was the debut hit for the singer-songwriter from West Yorkshire, reaching no.1 in October. The success of this and her debut album "Great Expectations" led to her winning Best Newcomer at the Brits, becoming the latest in a string of winners of the award to fade into obscurity. She managed four more top 40 hits in just over a year but hasn't troubled the charts since the mid 90s.


16(17) LUTHER VANDROSS & JANET JACKSON - The Best Things In Life Are Free (353 points)
Top 40 run: 7-4-2-2-4-6-9-12-15-18-31



This track was taken from the Damon Wayans film Mo' Money, which was released in the US during the summer, around the same time this single was released. It reached no.10 in the US but fared much better in the UK, reaching no.2 (as with Lionel Richie, helped by the growing appetite for remixes). This was remarkable for a couple of reasons: firstly, the film wasn't released in the UK until December (and was generally critically-panned). Secondly, there was virtually no promotion for the single, with Vandross and Jackson not appearing in the video and no live TV appearances made. Instead, the video featured Wayans and co-star Stacey Dash. The song gave Vandross his first UK top 10 hit and was Jackson's first since 1987. It also featured cameos from Bell Biv Devoe (whose members Michael Bivins and Ronnie DeVoe wrote the track) and their former New Edition bandmate Ralph Tresvant.

[Smurfie]

Sleeping Satellite is excellent, so is the parent album. Not quite sure what went wrong there but she seemed to appear and disappear really quickly!

[Earl Purple]

1992 was a strange year in the charts. Some singles were already starting the trend of high first week entry then dropping like a stone, but there were others than hung around for ages, and there were far fewer number ones this year than average, and other singles also hung around the chart for a long time.

In addition these hits came "from anywhere", i.e. not major stars having them, many didn't have any other big hits.

"Stars" by Simply Red was the biggest selling album for the second year running, yet they had just one top 10 hit in the year with "For Your Babies" reaching #9. R.E.M's "Automatic For The People" was one of the top 20 selling albums of the year and went on to be even bigger in 1993 yet both their singles missed the top 10.

Alan Jones said it was partly a shift of format as CD was becoming far more popular for albums but hadn't really taken off for singles yet, plus the fact that video games were competing with music sales, in fact many music stores were also selling video games.

I guess the popularity of the "Now.." albums were meaning that some simply bought those for the big hit singles. I don't know if such people would then buy singles missing from the compilations and thus those could hang around the chart, but I guess most of the long chart running hit singles were on one of the compilations and there is no such correlation.

The first Lionel Richie top 10 hit for 6 years tied in with a Greatest Hits compilation (Back To Front), which also included his 4 top 10 hits with the Commodores, plus "You Are My Destiny" as a new track, as it was common to add a couple of new songs to such a compilation. The album stayed at number one for a lot of weeks and was one of the biggest selling albums of the year.

[Panda]

Part 6 (15-11):

15(20) SL2 - On A Ragga Tip (355 points)
Top 40 run: 7-3-2-2-2-3-7-7-15-29



The first really big ragga hit, spending three weeks at no.2 in the spring. The genre combined reggae and dance and became popular for a while during the early 90s. This was SL2's second hit, after "DJs Take Control", which reached no.11 in 1991. A remixed version of this track reached the top 40 in 1997 and it was later used during the opening ceremony for the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.


14(18) DR. ALBAN - It's My Life (356 points)
Top 40 run: 18-8-4-2-2-2-5-7-12-21-32



Dr. Alban is Nigerian-born Swede Alban Uzoma Nwapa. This track was a huge hit across Europe. Alban would only have one more top 40 hit in the UK, the no.16 hit "Sing Hallelujah", which badly exposed his limitations when he performed it live on Top Of The Pops.


13(1) WHITNEY HOUSTON - I Will Always Love You (361 points)
Top 40 run: 12-4-2-1-1-1-1-1



It's rare for Christmas no.1s to appear in these lists as they're usually released too late in the year to accumulate enough points. This track, however, was released at the start of November, climbing to no.1 in its fourth week and staying there, not just until the end of the year but into February 1993, spending a total of 10 weeks at the top and meaning the song will achieve the rare feat of appearing in the top 40 points list in two separate years. This Dolly Parton cover was taken from the soundtrack of the hit film The Bodyguard, in which Houston starred alongside Kevin Costner. It was her fourth UK no.1 single but would prove to be her last.


12(13) SHAMEN - Ebeneezer Goode (365 points)
Top 40 run: 6-2-1-1-1-1-3-8-29

(Flashing images)


A song that exists purely for the purpose of trying to get away with multiple references to ecstasy. Apparently shouting "E's are good!" was too subtle for many and the track received widespread airplay. It eventually fell rapidly down the charts and there are conflicting stories about whether it was withdrawn after the press finally cottoned on to its meaning or whether the band deleted it because they wanted to release two more singles ("Boss Drum" and "Phorever People") before the end of the year. The latter would actually make sense as the timing of their releases allowed them to remain ever present in the top 40 from early July until the end of the year with four separate singles. The video features Scottish comedian Jerry Sadowitz as the non-existent Ebeneezer Goode.


11(10) WET WET WET - Goodnight Girl (371 points)
Top 40 run: 9-3-1-1-1-1-2-7-21



Released at the end of 1991, this track entered the chart at no.20 before climbing into the top 10 at the start of 1992 (those extra 21 points would have put it at no.7 on this list). This was the second of three no.1s for Marti Pellow's boys but the only one they wrote themselves.

[Smurfie]

Ebeneezer Goode totally put me off The Shamen - I loved their En Tact album.

[SheriffFatman]

I think Ebeneezer Goode was a great record in its own right, a really fun moment in pop, it was just such a different direction to that the Shamen had taken previously that it put off all their fans. Very similar story to Frankie by Sister Sledge in a way.

[Panda]

Part 7 (10-6):

10(7) ERASURE - Abba-esque EP (372 points)
Top 40 run: 1-1-1-1-1-4-9-12-21-37



The only new entry at no.1 during 1992 and Erasure's first chart-topper after seven previous top 5 hits. This was a four-track EP of ABBA covers, with "Take A Chance On Me", picking up a lot of airplay, especially on TV, thanks to its video which saw Andy Bell and the usually-shy Vince Clarke camping it up as Anni-Frid and Agnetha. The other tracks on the EP were "Lay All Your Love On Me" (which was actually the EP's opening track), "SOS" and "Voulez-Vous" and all had their own video. The Top 40 show on Radio 1 varied the tracks played during its chart run, though I don't recall hearing "SOS". "Take A Chance On Me" featured a guest appearance by MC Kinky, who'd previously featured on E-Zee Possee's controversial top 20 hit "Everything Starts With An E".


9(8) JIMMY NAIL - Ain't No Doubt (382 points)
Top 40 run: 5-1-1-1-2-3-7-10-15-23-39



Seven years after his only previous hit, the geordie actor revived his music career on the back of the BBC drama Spender. This track, co-written with, among others, Guy Pratt, spent three weeks at no.1 and would ultimately lead to Nail combining his acting and music careers with "Crocodile Shoes", which saw him play an aspiring country singer and would later feature in Alan Parker's film adaptation of Evita.


8(14) RICHARD MARX - Hazard (384 points)
Top 40 run: 36-22-12-10-5-5-4-3-3-4-10-14-25



The soft rock stalwart looked like being something of a one-hit wonder in the UK, having made just one minor top 40 appearance since his no.2 hit "Right Here Waiting". That was until this song became an unlikely sleeper hit, spending 13 weeks inside the top 40. It told the story of an outcast who falls in love, only for his lady friend to disappear, leading the Nebraska natives to hound him with torches and pitchforks.


7(3) CHARLES AND EDDIE - Would I Lie To You? (384 points)
Top 40 run: 34-14-2-1-1-2-3-3-3-3



Charles Pettigrew and Eddie Chacon reportedly met on a New York Subway train in 1990, immediately bonding over their love of music due to one of them carrying a Marvin Gaye album. This track quickly climbed the UK chart, reaching no.1 in November and was still inside the top 3 at the end of the year. The duo was more successful in Europe than the US and they would have three more UK top 40 hits. Pettigrew died of cancer in 2001, aged just 37. Chacon spent a long time away from music but released a new album in 2020.


6(11) UNDERCOVER - Baker Street (412 points)
Top 40 run: 17-9-4-3-3-2-3-3-5-10-15-28-33



Godawful cover of the Gerry Rafferty classic. It reached no.2 (going one better than the original) but was mercifully kept off the top spot by "Ebeneezer Goode".

[Earl Purple]

Jimmy Nail: This was really the start of what became a full music career in addition to acting, as he released a whole album which got to #2, and had more hit albums later. I wasn't generally that keen on his music apart from "Big River" which I think is a great song.

Undercover: I met John Matthews, who had recorded proper dance music before but had been commercially unsuccessful, at the start of 1992 when he came to a karaoke as he had many friends in the pub I used to go to. I think I even knew his girlfriend at the time. He performed "Your Song" by Elton John there, I also sang and he said I was quite good (I almost certainly was not). Fortunately I never met him again after he'd done this, as it was terrible, as were the other covers they did. The original Baker Street reached #3 on two separate weeks behind a different top 2, the first time behind "Wuthering Heights" and "Denis", so one of the greatest top 3s of all time, if not the greatest, and that was the top 3 on my 13th birthday, when I became a teenager. I don't recall if the DJ as my pub actually played Undercover's Baker Street that much though they were hoping it would get to #1. They never played Ebeneezer Goode and I suggested that was out of jealousy, but the DJ said the pub wouldn't let them play music that might incite drug taking.

[Panda]

Part 8 (5-1):

5(12) RIGHT SAID FRED - Deeply Dippy (433 points)
Top 40 run: 16-4-4-2-1-1-1-3-5-14-21-25



After their huge no.2 hit with "I'm Too Sexy" the brothers Fairbrass finally hit the top in 1992 with this track, which was something of a departure from their early singles, swapping pop-dance for acoustic guitars and brass and managing to once again be cheesy and cool at the same time. The follow-up "Those Simple Things" kept the acoustic feel but was probably a bit loo laid back and stalled at no.29.


4(5) KWS - Please Don't Go (510 points)
Top 40 run: 30-9-1-1-1-1-1-2-3-5-7-12-20-30-40



An abominable cover of an abominable cover of a song that wasn't even that good in the first place. The KC & The Sunshine Band original was covered by Italian dance act Double You and was a hit across Europe but distribution issues in the UK delayed its release over here. Seeing its potential, Network Records and KWS made their own version, which was almost a carbon copy of the Double You version. It hit UK shelves a week before the Double You version, flying to no.1 in its third week - with Double You reaching a peak of no.41 at the same time. It spent five weeks at the top and reached no.6 in the US. The official double A-side "Game Boy" was much more interesting, sounding quite similar to some of The Prodigy's early work. Knowing where the money was, KWS focused on cheap and nasty covers going forward, returning to the top 10 later in the year with a version of "Rock Your Baby".


3(6) BOYZ II MEN - End Of The Road (564 points)
Top 40 run: 36-31-22-14-6-4-2-2-1-1-1-2-3-6-18-23-27-25



The slow burner hit of the year, taking nine weeks to climb to no.1, having been released at the end of August. It spent three weeks at the top and was still in the top 30 at the end of the year. It was the group's debut UK hit but they'd already enjoyed considerable success in the US and this single took them to a whole new level, spending 13 weeks at the top of the Billboard chart - a record at the time, though it would be broken months later by Whitney Houston. It also represented an upturn in fortunes for the struggling Motown label, which hadn't had a US no.1 since 1985. The single was actually taken from the soundtrack of the Eddie Murphy film Boomerang, but the performance of the song far outweighed that of the film.


2(4) SHAKESPEARS SISTER - Stay (628 points)
Top 40 run: 27-10-6-2-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-2-5-19



The longest-running no.1 of the year comes in at no.2 on the points chart. Shakespears Sister was the project of former Bananarama member Siobhan Fahey, who was subsequently joined by US singer Marcella Detroit. This song spent eight weeks at no.1 between February and April and reached the top 5 in the US, with its memorable video winning Best Video at the 1993 Brit awards. It fell out of the charts very quickly after its run at the top, which I can only assume was due to it being deleted. The single's success should've launched the duo to bigger and better things. However, tensions were rising, largely due to Fahey's jealousy at Detroit's increasing spotlight and within a year they had split. Fahey continued to use the Shakespears Sister name and released the excellent single "I Can Drive" in 1996 but its disappointing chart performance led the record label to shelve the release of album "#3" and it wouldn't see the light of day until Fahey released it online in 2004. After 26 years, Fahey and Detroit finally buried the hatchet in 2019 and performed a successful UK tour, which was accompanied by the release of brand new material.


1(2) SNAP! - Rhythm Is A Dancer (658 points)
Top 40 run: 13-6-3-2-2-1-1-1-1-1-1-3-4-10-14-20-32



After their spectacular success in 1990, German dance outfit Snap! returned in 1992 with this track, which showed off a (slightly) more sophisticated sound. It wasn't intended to be a single originally, but positive reactions in clubs persuaded them it had selling potential. Rapper Turbo B didn't originally like the track but eventually changed his mind and added a verse (which compliments the track much better than his efforts on "The Power"). This was the group's sixth top 10 hit and they would enjoy further success in 1993.

[Panda]

Top 100:

1(2) Snap! - Rhythm Is A Dancer
2(4) Shakespears Sister - Stay
3(6) Boyz II Men - End Of The Road
4(5) KWS - Please Don't Go
5(12) Right Said Fred - Deeply Dippy
6(11) Undercover - Baker Street
7(3) Charles And Eddie - Would I Like To You?
8(14) Richard Marx - Hazard
9(8) Jimmy Nail - Ain't No Doubt
10(7) Erasure - Abba-esque EP
11(10) Wet Wet Wet - Goodnight Girl
12(13) Shamen - Ebeneezer Goode
13(1) Whitney Houston - I Will Always Love You
14(18) Dr. Alban - It's My Life
15(20) SL2 - On A Ragga Tip
16(17) Luther Vandross & Janet Jackson - The Best Things In Life Are Free
17(16) Tasmin Archer - Sleeping Satellite
18(19) Jon Secada - Just Another Day
19(23) Arrested Development - People Everyday
20(32) Lionel Richie - My Destiny
21(22) Temptations - My Girl
22(15) Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody/These Are The Days Of Our Lives
23(31) Mr. Big - To Be With You
24(24) Shanice - I Love Your Smile
25(21) Billy Ray Cyrus - Achy Breaky Heart
26(29) Bizarre Inc & Angie Brown - I'm Gonna Get You
27(26) 2 Unlimited - Twilight Zone
28(28) Pasadenas - I'm Doing Fine Now
29(33) Felix - Don't You Want Me
30(59) Curtis Stigers - You're All That Matters To Me
31(36) Utah Saints - Something Good
32(44) Was (Not Was) - Shake Your Head
33(53) Vanessa Williams - Save The Best For Last
34(27) Smart E's - Sesame's Treet
35(39) Ugly Kid Joe - Everything About You
36(54) Roy Orbison - I Drove All Night
37(40) Mariah Carey - I'll Be There
38(25) Kris Kross - Jump
39(34) Guns 'N Roses - Knockin' On Heaven's Door
40(9) Michael Jackson - Heal The World
41(48) Ce Ce Peniston - Finally
42(41) Heaven 17 - Temptation
43(43) Prodigy - Out Of Space
44(65) Curiosity - Hang On In There Baby
45(63) Ten Sharp - You
46(42) Madonna - This Used To Be My Playground
47(38) Curtis Stigers - I Wonder Why
48(35) Nick Berry - Heartbeat
49(49) Undercover - Never Let Her Slip Away
50(30) Freddie Mercury & Montserrat Caballe - Barcelona
51(45) Brian May - Too Much Love Will Kill You
52(50) Kylie Minogue - Give Me Just A Little More Time
53(46) Prodigy - Everybody In The Place
54(51) En Vogue - My Lovin'
55(61) Kiss - God Gave Rock & Roll To You II
56(56) Eric Clapton - Tears In Heaven
57(69) Take That - A Million Love Songs
58(-) U2 - Even Better Than The Real Thing
59(66) Simply Red - Montreux EP
60(75) Doctor Spin - Tetris
61(78) Crowded House - Weather With You
62(58) Rage - Run To You
63(60) Opus III - It's A Fine Day
64(64) Shamen - LSI
65(72) Erma Franklin - (Take A Little) Piece Of My Heart
66(52) George Michael - Too Funky
67(55) Vanessa Paradis - Be My Baby
68(76) Take That - It Only Takes A Minute
69(68) Bob Marley - Iron Lion Zion
70(71) Annie Lennox - Walking On Broken Glass
71(57) Shamen - Boss Drum
72(74) Genesis - I Can't Dance
73(70) Urban Hype - A Trip To Trumpton
74(99) 2 Unlimited - Workaholic
75(67) Madonna - Erotica
76(73) Rod Stewart - Tom Traubert's Blues (Waltzing Matilda)
77(89) Elton John - The One
78(-) Diana Ross - One Shining Moment
79(-) Marc Almond - The Days Of Pearly Spencer
80(85) Ce Ce Peniston - We Got A Love Thang
81(86) Simply Red - For Your Babies
82(87) Jose Carreras & Sarah Brightman - Amigos Para Siempre
83(82) Def Leppard - Let's Get Rocked
84(79) Annie Lennox - Why
85(81) KLF & Tammy Wynette - Justified And Ancient
86(62) Michael Jackson - Remember The Time
87(97) Ambassadors Of Funk - Supermarioland
88(91) East 17 - House Of Love
89(88) Madness - It Must Be Love
90(94) Soul II Soul - Joy
91(93) Diana Ross - If We Hold On Together
92(47) WWF Superstars - Slam Jam
93(90) Kym Sims - Too Blind To See It
94(77) Boney M - Boney M Megamix
95(84) KLF - America: What Time Is Love?
96(-) Shakespears Sister - I Don't Care
97(37) Take That - Could It Be Magic?
98(95) Cliff Richard - I Still Believe In You
99(100) KWS - Rock Your Baby
100(-) Bryan Adams - Thought I'd Died And Gone To Heaven

[Earl Purple]

Right Said Fred were a surprise act having released what appeared to just be a summer novelty hit in going on to not only have more big hits but also a number one album, which stayed in the chart for quite a few weeks.

[rubcale]

Love Achy Breaky Heart and Would I Lie To You.

Great to see two Diana Ross tracks in the top 100 with If we Hold On actually ouselling Shining Moment.