The US and UK music scenes had diverged quite a lot by the mid-1990s, so while 'Take a Bow' might have been catnip on the US charts (her longest-running #1 there I think, although that achievement was largely airplay-driven, as it never topped the sales chart), it was out of sync with the UK music scene at the time. I'd completely forgotten about 'I'll Remember' (how ironic). Probably because it sounded like a rewrite of 'Rain'.
I'm just catching up on these, and "Disappointed" has "nailed on #1 smash" written all over it, so thank you ONCE AGAIN to the great British public for cockblocking it with a shit interpolation, a shit cover, a murder ballad, a shit cover and an EP of shit covers.
That US/UK chart divergence is so true – it's no surprise that the biggest British hit from Bedtime Stories was the house-style title track. LA & Babyface may have been guaranteed smash makers in the US but they really weren't here (look no further than TLC's brilliant 'Red Light Special', which had a meagre four week chart run peaking at its debut position of number 18, whereas it reached number 2 in the Billboard Hot 100).
Thanks to this thread I discovered after 30 years that the female vocal on Ain't No Doubt was Sylvia Mason-James! Mind blown! I love her work with Pet Shop Boys, and this is her crowning glory for me
The 3 & 10 September 1992 editions of TOTP will be shown on Friday 25 March. "Anyone got any underlay? Sorted!" "It was a rug reference, Mark" https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0015nq0 https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0015nq2
And here's The Story of 1992! An extra two hours of 1990s TOTP a week for the next 9 weeks - I'm so perched! https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0015nx8 The early 90s continued to be an interesting musical mix on the long-running pop music show. Still getting used to its new TV home at Elstree, having been relaunched at the end of the previous year, shows were a mix of ravers and indie rockers rubbing shoulders with the popstars of the day, with the emergence of live satellite performances from across the globe upping the star quota on the weekly show. Dance music was still dominating the charts, The Orb and The Shamen were causing chaos and controversy on the show with their performances and lyrics. New guitar groups were starting to make waves, with Manic Street Preachers debuting with lipstick, scissor kicks and of course bubbles. The Wedding Present releasing a single each month of the year, and Carter USM had a number one album. In a year of only 12 new number ones, the lowest since 1962, one of the biggest sellers was duo Shakespears Sister with their gothic anthem Stay. Throw in Stereo MC's, Wet Wet Wet and Crowded House and you have tales of performing chess on the show, crashing the Eastenders set, the emergence of Take That and the shift to live singing on the show. Contributors include Nicky Wire and James Dean Bradfield of Manic Street Preachers, Mr C from The Shamen, Rob Birch, Nick Hallam and Cath Coffey of Stereo MC's, Siobhan Fahey and Marcella Detroit, Marti Pellow and Graeme Clark of Wet Wet Wet, David Gedge of The Wedding Present, Alex Patterson of The Orb, Nick Seymour of Crowded House, Jim Bob and Fruitbat of Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine, journalist Sian Pattenden and presenter Tony Dortie. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0015nxb The Top of the Pops vaults are opened up to relive some of the classic and biggest songs of 1992. Featuring the hip hop and dance of Kris Kross, SL2, Bizarre Inc and Felix to the rock stylings of Manic Street Preachers and Primal Scream, as well as the emergence of boy band royalty Take That, Miley’s dad Billy Ray getting the line dancing going, divas in the form of Annie Lennox and Mariah Carey - and, of course, Jimmy Nail. Plus many more.
Sunscreem just sang the line “You can turn wine into water as fathers rape their daughters” - what is that song about?
I was surprised that lyric was allowed on TOTP tbh, I was waiting to see if she'd sing it like the record or change it
I never noticed that lyric before. Sir Mix-a-lot only managed number 56 in the U.K. quite rightly after that performance.
Baby Got Back being on there was a surprise. It was never really a hit in the UK, was it? and I was more aware of Sir Mix A Lot due to a feature on The Word about him and the melontastic follow up Put Em On The Glass.
