Post by Hervard on May 19, 2018 16:27:56 GMT -5
Are you ready to dive into the musical mainstream? Well, we're ready to do just that, with my sixth edition of the Shadoe Stevens era of American Top 40! When Billboard changed their figuring system for the Hot 100, the staff at American Top 40 decided to dump that chart as the show's basis, due to all the songs that made the Top 40 almost exclusively on sales figures, with very little, if any, airplay. They went with the Top 40 Radio Monitor, which alleviated the problem somewhat, but not all the way. The chart still seemed to favor dance, hip-hop, and rap music, so Billboard's Michael Ellis, whose idea it was to switch to that chart invented two charts that were subsidiary to the T40RM. One was the Rhythmic chart, which used airplay from rap- and R&B-oriented stations and the other, the Mainstream chart, was compiled using spins from Top 40 stations that generally excluded heavy metal, rap and hip-hop. The latter, of course, was what AT40 started using as of the first of 1993 to the show's end in early 1995. As I pointed out several times in the 1992 commentary, I was glad that they switched to this chart, since I'm not a fan of rap and hip-hop (and never really dug heavy metal either).
Anyway, in this commentary, as always, each song is listed in order of appearance on the chart. The number after each song represents its debut position on American Top 40. For songs that charted in 1993 but debuted in 1992, including several songs that made their first appearance on the Mainstream Top 40 chart in 1993, check out this topic. Also, since I used magenta ink to write down the charts (though the cap of the pen misled me into thinking that the ink was purple), I've decided to post my 1993 commentary in magenta font. If it's too dark for you to read, just highlight the text and it will show up better.
JANUARY
ORDINARY WORLD - DURAN DURAN (19) - What with the chart switchover and the two-week break that AT40 took to do their year-ender, there were lots of new entries to list - nine of them, to be exact (although I did cover one of them ("A Whole New World", at #34), in the 1992 commentary). A special thanks to dth1971 for PM'ing me a list of all the debuts! The highest of those was by a band who had been absent from the charts for four years. It was worth the wait, however, as this was their biggest hit, spending seven non-consecutive weeks at #1 (interrupted only by the aforementioned theme from Aladdin). It was also one of my all-time favorites from them!
STEAM - PETER GABRIEL (22) - This song had been on the Mainstream chart for several weeks, but it didn't make the T40RM chart until a few weeks afterward. That will account for its unusually high debut. The song, Gabriel's first Top 40 hit since "Big Time" in 1987, got as high as #13 a few weeks later and, unfortunately, would be his final Top 40 hit.
I LOVE YOU PERIOD. - DAN BAIRD (29) - The lead singer of the Georgia Satellites, who had a big chart hit in early 1987 with "Keep Your Hands To Yourself", had his first and only Top 40 single with this punctuation lesson of sorts. It was a pretty good song, though I slightly preferred said Georgia Satellites song.
WHO'S GONNA RIDE YOUR WILD HORSES - U2 (32) - Since this song never hit the Top 40 Radio Monitor chart, its only chart action on AT40 came from its last two weeks on the Mainstream chart, where this song peaked at #29 two weeks before. This was the fifth and final single from Achtung Baby (the fourth, "Even Better Than The Real Thing", just missed the Top 40, peaking at #43). It was a good song, but I preferred a few others from them.
STAND UP (KICK LOVE INTO MOTION) - DEF LEPPARD (33) - The fourth release from Adrenalize, and the second of two to hit AT40 (the last release, "Tonight" didn't quite make it, but I'll bet it didn't miss by much). As mentioned in my 1992 commentary, I preferred "Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad", but this was a good one as well.
I DON'T CARE - SHAKESPEAR'S SISTER (38) - Well, "Stay" was a respectable chart hit, but this one only got as high as #33. Unsurprisingly, this was their last Top 40 hit. I myself prefer this song over "Stay", as it was not whiny like that song. At the same time, I can see why this song didn't do quite as well as their first.
NO MISTAKES - PATTY SMYTH (39) - This song, like the first song from her self-titled album, featured Don Henley singing back-up, though he doesn't receive label credit in this song as he did in "Sometimes Love Just Ain't Enough", which I preferred over this song, though it was still a great song.
THESE ARE DAYS - 10,000 MANIACS (40) - This was all the further the song got on the Mainstream chart, though it did demonstrate tenacity, holding at the anchor position of the chart for five weeks. Too bad it didn't do better, as it was one of my favorite songs from the band.
No debuts to report for the week of January 16 - just the re-entry of "Rump Shaker", which was making its first appearance on the Mainstream chart.
HEAL THE WORLD - MICHAEL JACKSON (38) - This was the fifth release from Jackson's Dangerous album and I am shocked that it didn't do any better than it did, given its great message. It looked like the song had peaked this week, as it dropped out the following week and was already done on the R&R chart, but apparently, the song began getting renewed airplay in mid-March and had a second chart run, during which it peaked at #21. It was a great song, IMO!
I'M EVERY WOMAN - WHITNEY HOUSTON (40) - One of two Rufus/Chaka Khan remakes to chart in 1992 (the other one, "Sweet Thing" first appeared on the American Top 40 chart at the end of 1992 and would debut on the Mainstream chart the last weekend in February). This was the more successful of the two, peaking at #3. This, the second single from the Bodyguard soundtrack, was a good song, with Whitney giving Chaka a name drop near the end.
BED OF ROSES - BON JOVI (33) - This power ballad was the second of three Top 40 hits from Bon Jovi's album Keep The Faith. Of the three, this was by far my favorite! It is also one of my all-time favorites from this New Jersey band.
(The other two new entries on this week's chart, "Mr. Wendal" and "Here We Go Again" made their first AT40 appearance in 1992).
FEBRUARY
THAT'S WHAT LOVE CAN DO - BOY KRAZY (28) - The first of two Top 40 hits for this New York City based girl group, as well as the most successful. The song hit number one for a pair of weeks on the R&R chart, but fell short on the AT40 chart, getting as high as #2, behind "Two Princes". I thought it was a cool song.
GET AWAY - BOBBY BROWN (36) - The third Top 40 hit from the Bobby album, which sampled "Knee Deep" by Funkadelic. I thought this was a good song, but not quite as good as "That's The Way Love Is", the final release from the album. Too bad that one didn't quite make the chart.
IRRESISTIBLE - CATHY DENNIS (37) - The second single from Into the Skyline was quite a lot better than the first, IMO, but still, neither song compared to "Moments Of Love", a Top Ten AC hit during late spring.
THE RIGHT KIND OF LOVE - JEREMY JORDAN (39) - As the first hit from the soundtrack to the Beverly Hills 90210 TV series, "Saving Forever For You" was entering the Top Ten, the second entered the Top 40 and it, too, would end up hitting the Top Ten. Of the three singles from the soundtrack, this was my least favorite, but it was still a great song - my favorite of Jeremy's two Top 40 singles.
TWO PRINCES - THE SPIN DOCTORS (32) - This song, of course, would wind up as AT40's top hit of 1993. Frankly, if I never hear this overplayed song again, it'll be too soon!
CAT'S IN THE CRADLE - UGLY KID JOE (39) - A remake of the Harry Chapin classic from nearly two decades before. Of course, nothing will compare to the original, but this cover was not bad.
MAN ON THE MOON - R.E.M. (40) - The second of three Top 40 hits from Automatic For The People, as well as my favorite. Glad this song made the Top Ten, as it was one of their best, IMO.
DON'T WALK AWAY - JADE (34) - They had a Top Ten hit in the late summer of 1992 called "I Wanna Love You" and their second hit also hit the Top Ten - number five, to be exact. It wasn't bad, but quite overplayed. I preferred said 1992 hit, as well as their slow jam "One Woman", which, unless I overlooked it, just barely missed the Top 40 that summer.
ANGEL - JON SECADA (35) - His first two hits made the Top Ten, as would this song. Not sure if I prefer this song or "Do You Believe In Us", the latter of which was easing its way down the chart, but would not fall off until May, at which time the recurrent rule, which, I believe, limited songs below #20 to 26 weeks, was implemented.
STAND - POISON (40) - This hard-rock band hadn't had a chart hit since 1991, when they peaked at #35 with "Life Goes On", which was exactly where this mid-tempo song peaked a week later. Unfortunately, this would turn out to be their last Top 40 hit. I really liked this one and felt it was totally underrated.
IF I EVER LOSE MY FAITH IN YOU - STING (32) - This was the lead-off single from Sting's fourth solo album Ten Summoners Tales. Of the three songs that made the Top 40, this was my favorite, but the best song on the entire album was "Shape Of My Heart". Not sure if that one was ever released as a single, but I remember hearing it on WHFB, an AC station in St. Joseph, MI, every now and then in the spring of 1994.
LITTLE BIRD - ANNIE LENNOX (39) - The third and final Top 40 hit from Lennox's Diva album, and possibly my favorite. A great song indeed!
FOREVER IN LOVE - KENNY G (40) - This was one of the biggest AC songs of 1993 and it performed respectably on the AT40 chart, peaking at #18. A beautiful song - one of two instrumentals by Kenny G to hit the Top 40, and by far my favorite of those (though "Songbird" is also a decent song).
MARCH
LOVE IS - VANESSA WILLIAMS & BRIAN McKNIGHT (32) - The third release from Beverly Hills 90210 and, at the time, by far the best (I've since grown a little tired of it, but it's great to hear again). I remember being pleasantly surprised that this song hit #1 on the R&R chart, as it was stalled out at #2 in its twelfth week. Even though the charts moved notably slower, no songs had even still been still sitting at the top in their 13th week, never mind just arriving at #1. "I Have Nothing" by Whitney Houston had been at #1 for the past month and I figured she'd fall out (and indeed she did, to #3). "Looking Through Patient Eyes" by PM Dawn had been racing up the chart at a fast pace. The song wasted absolutely no time hitting the Top Ten and, since it was at #3 the week before, I figured that it was no question it would hit #1 the following week, but "Love Is" was strong enough to manage a week at #1. The song did not quite make it to the top on the AT40 chart, but it did spend five weeks at #2, held out of the top by "Two Princes". A great song indeed!
BAD GIRL - MADONNA (33) - Not one of her biggest hits by any means - presumably because of the dark subject matter. The song only got as high as #26 on AT40 and fell off soon after. I myself thought it was a pretty good song - not overplayed like many of her others.
I HAVE NOTHING - WHITNEY HOUSTON (30) - The third single from the Bodyguard. As stated earlier, the song hit #1 on the R&R chart, as did the first two. I thought this was a great song when it first came out, but I got tired of it, since it was way overplayed. Now that you seldom hear it anymore, it's good to hear every now and again. Here on the AT40 chart, the song got as high as #3, behind the Spin Doctors and the Vanessa/Brian duet.
INFORMER - SNOW (34) - A song with very unintelligible lyrics in the chorus - lyrics that were actually the subject of one of Rick Dees' Weekly Top 40 Challenges (I wonder how many people wrote in with the correct answer?) Anyway, Snow was a reggae artist from Canada and this was his signature hit - afterwards, people were like Snow who? I thought this song was OK, but a little gimmicky. I'm surprised that this song only got as high as #12, as it was overplayed on the stations I listened to back then.
BEAUTIFUL GIRL - INXS (35) - This was the final single released from Welcome To Wherever You Are, an album that had been out for over a half a year, so most INXS fans owned it. As a result, this song did not perform as well as their other songs (though it did make the Top Ten on the Modern Rock chart, just like the other three singles from the album (released here in the States, that is).
SIMPLE LIFE - ELTON JOHN (39) - Elton must have felt guilty for depressing everyone with "The Last Song", and released this upbeat, positive song, which performed respectably on the chart, peaking at #17. It fared much better on the AC chart, hitting #1 for three weeks. Of the three songs from The One, this would be a close second to the title track as my favorite song.
LOVE U MORE - SUNSCREEM (36) - This Essex, England techno band was very successful on the US Dance chart, and managed to have one hit that made the Mainstream chart, where the song peaked at #16. It spent two weeks atop the dance chart around the time it began its climb at Top 40. A great song that I felt should have gotten higher on the charts!
TELL THE TRUTH - JUDE COLE (40) - The third hit from Jude's third studio album Start The Car (the title track and "It Comes Around" performed well on the Mainstream Rock chart, and the former actually spent a week on the Top 40 chart, but that was several months before AT40 started using it). This song matched the peak of the first single, but it was more of an AC hit than anything. I remember hearing it on "Countdown America" in early 1993.
THE CRYING GAME - BOY GEORGE (33) - The lead singer of the Culture Club, who were on hiatus at the time, had a minor solo hit on the Top 40 chart in 1988 called "Live My Life", from the 1987 film Hiding Out and was back with his second solo effort, which performed significantly better, peaking at #11 in late April. I liked both of his solo songs about the same.
NOTHIN' MY LOVE CAN'T FIX - JOEY LAWRENCE (37) - Known mainly as an actor, starring on shows like Gimme A Break, Blossom and Brotherly Love, he did have a Top 40 hit when he was about seventeen. The song peaked at #10 and, though he released a follow-up called "Stay Forever", that song just missed the chart. I preferred this one by a fair margin.
APRIL
LOOKING THROUGH PATIENT EYES - PM DAWN (26) - I mentioned earlier that this song was in the running for the top spot on the Radio & Records chart (where it did end up spending a pair of weeks at #1). Here on the AT40 chart, the song almost made it, spending four weeks in the runner-up position, behind "That's The Way Love Goes" by Janet Jackson. This song, which heavily samples George Michael's "Father Figure" was a good song, but I preferred their two other Top Ten songs (I have a feeling I would have held a grudge against this song if it had beaten "Love Is" to the punch, LOL!)
WHAT YOU WON'T DO FOR LOVE - GO WEST (37) - Originally a #9 hit for Bobby Caldwell (which I just heard a little while ago on WMGN's Magic Sunday Morning program), Go West recorded a cover that didn't sound much different from the original. The song only got as high as #36 on the AT40 chart, but did very well at AC radio, where it peaked at #3.
FREAK ME - SILK (40) - Given some of the lyrics to this song (especially "Let me lick you up and down..."), I'm surprised that this song did not get a ban advisory like several other songs like "I Want Your Sex", "Baby Got Back" and so forth (well, it might have (as it peaked at #7, versus #3 on the R&R chart) but it was not edited out by U93). Anyway, this was the only Top 40 hit from this R&B act from Atlanta, GA. Despite its questionably lyrics, I thought it was a good song.
WHO IS IT - MICHAEL JACKSON (27) - "Heal The World" was still in the midst of its second chart run as the sixth hit from Dangerous was released. This song, of course, hit the Top Ten in no time and spent virtually the entire month of May at its #6 peak. It was a pretty good song, but I preferred many others from Jackson.
THE MORNING PAPERS - PRINCE & THE NEW POWER GENERATION (32) - The final single from Prince's Love Symbol album, this song peaked at #18 and spent nine weeks in the Top 40, but that was good enough for it to place on the year-end Top 100 countdown - in fact, this was the song that kicked it off! It was a good song - my favorite song from the album!
COMFORTER - SHAI (36) - Their first Top 40 hit was sung a capella, but they decided to add in instruments for their follow-up. This song, however, came nowhere near equalling the success of the first hit, as it peaked at #31. The song was pretty good - though I preferred said first hit, I did prefer this slightly over "Baby I'm Yours", which was a Top 20 hit in late summer of that year.
BUDDY X - NENEH CHERRY (37) - She had a pair of Top Ten hits in 1989 and seemed to be making a comeback four years later. It didn't last long, however, as this turned out to be her last Top 40 hit and only got as high as #22. I myself wasn't a huge fan of the song.
LOVE DON'T LOVE YOU - EN VOGUE (40) - This was the fifth and final hit from the Funky Divas album. The song wasn't as successful as the first few, peaking at #28, but spent eleven weeks on the chart. The song had a very catchy chorus, but that's about it.
No debuts to report on April 17 - not even any re-entries. Kind of a slow chart, especially down in the lower reaches.
CONNECTED - THE STEREO MC'S (29) - This British hip-hop/electronic dance group had a minor hit in the summer of 1991 with "Elevate My Mind". This song, which I preferred by a wide margin, was also a lot more successful, peaking at #11 in late spring. This was the first of two Top 40 hits for them during 1993.
LIVIN' ON THE EDGE - AEROSMITH (32) - They were back with their first album since Pump and, like that album, it spawned four Top 40 hits. All of these hit the Top 20, including this song, which got as high as #19. I thought this was a pretty good song, though I preferred the other three singles from Get A Grip.
COME UNDONE - DURAN DURAN (35) - They were spending a 14th and final week in the Top Ten with their former #1 "Ordinary World" as the follow-up came onto the chart. The song would peak at #2 for four weeks as Janet Jackson had a hammerlock on the top spot.
SLEEPING SATELLITE - TASMIN ARCHER (39) - The sole Top 40 hit for this Bradford, Yorkshire native. The song fared decently on the chart, peaking at #16 in June. I really liked this song - I even have it on a mix tape that I made during the spring/summer of 1993.
MAY
THAT'S THE WAY LOVE GOES - JANET JACKSON (29) - She was back with janet, her fifth studio album, which would be released two weeks later. The first single was released a few weeks earlier and roared up the chart, reaching the Top Ten the following week and reached #1 very soon after, where it spent nine weeks. I felt the song was a little overrated, but at the same time, I would have rather this had been the #1 song of 1993 instead of that annoying Spin Doctors song, but let's not go there again...
I'M SO INTO YOU - SWV (32) - Their first of three AT40 hits, all of which charted during 1993. This was typical hip-hop music of its time, so I wasn't very impressed with it, but I did like their next two hits.
SOMEBODY TO LOVE - GEORGE MICHAEL & QUEEN (36) - One of two Queen songs included on George's Five Live album, both of which were recorded at the Freddie Mercury Tribute concert several months after he died. This was actually a great rendition of the song and I did prefer it over the original, even though it didn't sound much different.
TELL ME WHAT YOU DREAM - RESTLESS HEART f/WARREN HILL (38) - Their latest crossover proved to be more successful than the one in 1987, as their first hit from Big Iron Horses fared much better on the chart and their second also reached the Top 40, even though this was all the higher the song got. The song did much better at AC radio, where it hit #1.
HAVE I TOLD YOU LATELY - ROD STEWART (33) - A studio version of this song had been receiving sporadic radio airplay, mainly at AC radio, but that version was left for dead as this live version, from his upcoming new album Unplugged...And Seated, was released. This song was huge on the AC chart, where it spent five weeks on top. The song didn't do bad on the pop chart either, becoming his biggest hit in two years. I didn't like this song at first, but this version sort of grew on me.
I'LL NEVER GET OVER YOU (GETTING OVER ME) - EXPOSE (36) - In my 1992 critique, I mentioned that the last three songs released from Expose's self-titled album were ballads. This was the first of those, as well as the only one to hit the Top 40 ("As Long As I Can Dream" and "In Walked Love" were AC-only hits). This song peaked at #3, becoming one of their biggest hits - in fact, it was their second-highest peaking song behind the #1 "Seasons Change", and deservedly so, as it was a great song!
SILENCE IS BROKEN - D@MN YANKEES (38) - Now THIS was one underrated song! This is all the higher the song got, which I felt was sick and wrong! It should have been as big a hit as "High Enough", if not bigger. The song was one of my favorite songs of all of 1993, and by far the best song by this supergroup ever IMO. It was a small consolation that this song peaked at #8 on the Gavin Report Top 40, far removed from its #24 peak on R&R. I guess a lot of the small market stations, which Gavin's reporting panel consisted largely of, played the heck out of this song. I do know that U93 played it on a regular basis.
BAD BOYS (THEME FROM C.O.P.S.) - INNER CIRCLE (40) - I had been hearing this song on a regular basis on Saturday nights for several years, since I watched C.O.P.S. almost religiously. Since the song was reggae, the producers of the show were probably apprehensive about releasing it at first, but it proved to be worthwhile, as the song peaked at #7.
IN THESE ARMS - BON JOVI (35) - This song, the third and final U.S. release from Keep The Faith, was a mid-tempo song, somewhat like "Keep The Faith". I thought it was pretty good, but it didn't hold a candle to "Bed Of Roses".
WANNAGIRL - JEREMY JORDAN (37) - His first hit "The Right Kind Of Love" originated on the soundtrack to Beverly Hills 90210, but he also included it on his album Try My Love, which had come out in April, and yielded this second hit. It looked like this song might go Top Ten as well, but the song fell one spot short. The song was OK, but I preferred his first hit.
REGRET - NEW ORDER (36) - Up until now, all the songs I'd heard by them had that club beat to them (like "Blue Monday" and "True Faith". This one had sort of alternative feel to it. It apparently worked, as it became their biggest hit, reaching #7. It was a very good song, IMO.
I'M GONNA GET YOU - BIZARRE INC. f/ANGIE BROWN (39) - This song had spent two weeks on the R&R chart (peaking at #39 for two weeks, like this song) back in March! One would think no way is it going to hit the AT40 chart, especially since its run on the Top 40 Radio Monitor was pretty much done, but the song apparently had enough airplay to just barely hit the chart. The song was OK, but nothing I'd go out of my way to listen to.
MORE AND MORE - CAPTAIN HOLLYWOOD PROJECT (36) - This song sounded almost exactly like "Rhythm Is A Dancer", Snap's big hit from the previous year. I liked this one a little better - the only Top 40 hit for this Eurodance act from Germany.
WHAT'S UP - 4 NON BLONDES (37) - Another one-hit wonder - this one, a band from San Francisco who formed in 1989 and disbanded five years later. I thought it was a good song - had almost a heavy metal feel to it.
JUNE
CAN'T GET ENOUGH OF YOUR LOVE - TAYLOR DAYNE (26) - A cover of Barry White's #1 hit from the fall of 1974, only Taylor removed the word "babe" from the title. This was actually a great remake - she did a good job of singing Barry's spoken-word part at the beginning of the song and then she really belts it out.
CAN'T HELP FALLING IN LOVE - UB40 (35) - Wow, two covers that start with the same word debuted the same week - what are the chances? This song, originally a ballad by Elvis Presley, is worked into a dance/reggae version. Although nothing can compare to The King's original, this was actually a good remake - and the most successful of all the versions of the song, as it spent five weeks at #1!
BY THE TIME THIS NIGHT IS OVER - KENNY G w/PEABO BRYSON (37) - Like with his Duotones album, he went with a vocal track as the second hit from Breathless. Peabo Bryson was indeed a great choice, as he had recently come off of his biggest hit ever. This song, which enjoyed the most success on the AC chart, was a good song, but I slightly preferred "Forever In Love".
WEAK - SWV (38) - Kind of odd that their first hit, "I'm So Into You" was still on its way up the chart when this song debuted. Perhaps that's why the former peaked so soon, as this song wasted absolutely no time hitting the Top Ten. Looked like a possible number one, but the song fell one spot short; it just couldn't seem to unseat the aforementioned UB40 remake. The song did, however, top the R&R chart for four weeks.
SHOW ME LOVE - ROBIN S (40) - Her only hit to make AT40 (The follow-up, "Love For Love", didn't quite make it). This was a pretty good song, IMO. Jason Derulo must have liked it, as he heavily sampled it in his 2011 hit "Don't Wanna Go Home" Four years later, a singer named Robyn released a song of the same title, causing a little confusion. I preferred that song over this one by a sizable margin.
GIRL I'VE BEEN HURT - SNOW (37) - This song obviously rode the coattails of his first hit "Informer" earlier in the year, as it only got as high as #25. Indeed, he'd already had his fifteen minutes of fame, as he never hit the chart after this. I preferred this song, since it wasn't as gimmicky as "Informer" - and less overplayed, in addition.
GOOD TIMES WITH BAD BAD BOYS - BOY KRAZY (38) - Here's another example of the above phenonmenon - "That's What Love Can Do" was a huge hit earlier in the year and this song, which was also THEIR only additional hit, ran out of gas quickly, peaking at #31. It was pretty good, but I preferred said first hit.
FIELDS OF GOLD - STING (37) - This song was very dull and boring. Blah blah blah, the fields of barley, Blah blah blah the fields of gold. The melody was rather monotonous as well. Overplay on AC stations didn't help matters any, but at least this only got as high as #24 at Top 40.
I'M GONNA BE (500 MILES) - THE PROCLAIMERS (40) - The only Top 40 hit for this Scottish duo, composed of identical twin brothers Charlie and Craig Reid. This song was OK, but nothing exceptional. The song did make for a funny "flashback" moment on Family Guy.
RUNAWAY TRAIN - SOUL ASYLUM (33) - The first of three Top 40 hits for this Minneapolis rock band. The video for this song, which featured photos of missing children, some of which were found after they were featured in the video. This would have been an ideal benefit song for missing/runaway youths.
I DON'T WANNA FIGHT - TINA TURNER (37) - From the soundtrack of her biographical film What's Love Got To Do With It, this song brought her back to the Top 40 after an absence of nearly four years. It was also one of her bigger hits, peaking at #6 in August. I thought it was a great song. Too bad it was her final Top 40 hit.
IF I HAD NO LOOT - TONY! TONI! TONE! (40) - They'd had two hits during the 1990-91 winter, and were back with what became their biggest hit ever. There's a funny misheard lyric in this song - during the chorus, when someone yells "and do the New Jack Swing comin' atcha", it sounds like the "comin' atcha" part sounds like "on my nuts". Even though I don't generally like this kind of music, I did rather like this song.
JULY
I'M FREE - JON SECADA (37) - The fourth and final single from his self-titled album was the only one that did not hit the Top Ten, though it didn't miss by much, reaching #12, so the song did well - it even placed on the year-end chart at #85. I was never a huge fan of the song, though I did prefer it over "Just Another Day", if only ever so slightly.
BABY I'M YOURS - SHAI (39) - This song peaked at #12 as well, but lasted almost twice as long on the chart as the above song - 23 weeks, to be exact. The song was OK, but I didn't like it as much as their first two hits. This, by the way, was their final chart hit.
KNOCKIN' DA BOOTS - H-TOWN (39) - This R&B vocal group from Houston had only one Top 40 hit. This was the second Top 40 hit to refer to having sex as "knockin' boots" (The first was the song of that title by Candyman, which hit the Top Ten in 1990. This song only got as high as #34 - perhaps because some stations opted not to play it due to the subject matter. I know that I never heard it outside of countdown shows on U93. The song was more or less just there, though I did kind of like it.
RUN TO YOU - WHITNEY HOUSTON (40) - This was Whitney's fourth hit from The Bodyguard. It's kind of odd that the first three made the top three, yet this one couldn't push past #32. Too bad, as this was my favorite song from the soundtrack, but I guess that, since pretty much all fans of Whitney already had the soundtrack and, hence, there was no need to call in and request the song. Radio programmers were probably also getting fed up with the soundtrack as well - some may not have even bothered to add this one.
This was the week that the Top 40 Radio Monitor became the Hot 100 Airplay chart. This was also the week that the AC chart became a monitored airplay chart, so its airplay was also figured in, causing huge moves and high debuts of AC hits on that chart. It would have indeed been an interesting week on AT40 had they still been using that chart.
OOH CHILD - DINO (30) - For what turned out to be his final Top 40 hit, he decided to do a remake of this song originally done by the Five Stairsteps. It was a good rendition of the song and I actually preferred it over the original.
WILL YOU BE THERE - MICHAEL JACKSON (39) - The final single from Jackson's Dangerous album was also the main theme of Free Willy, which had been released this same weekend. I always thought this song was quite cheesy and never really liked it at all. Even though it was the last of seven Top 40 American singles from Dangerous, there were actually an additional two songs that were released outside the U.S. - "Give In To Me", which was released in February after "Heal The World" and "Gone Too Soon", which was dedicated to Ryan White, a teenager from Kokomo, IN who died of AIDS in 1990.
PLUSH - STONE TEMPLE PILOTS (40) - The first of two Top 40 hits from this San Diego band who were much more successful at Alternative and Mainstream Rock. The song fared pretty well on the AT40 chart, peaking at #18. The song was OK, but I preferred their singles from their Purple album, which was released the following year.
RAIN - MADONNA (31) - After the under-performance on the chart of the third single from Erotica, "Bad Girl", she returned to the Top Ten with this song. Though I preferred the other three singles from Erotica (that made the Top 40, anyway), this one was pretty good as well.
BREAK IT DOWN AGAIN - TEARS FOR FEARS (37) - This song, from their fourth studio album, turned out to be their last one to hit the Top 40. At least this one managed to hit the Top Ten, albeit barely (spent a single week at #10 in mid-September). It was a good song, but my favorite Tears For Fears song would be "Advice For The Young At Heart", an AC hit in 1990.
ONE LAST CRY - BRIAN McKNIGHT (39) - His first hit, his duet with Vanessa Williams "Love Is", was winding down on the chart as he debuted with his first solo entry. The song, which was reminiscent of "There's No Easy Way To Break Somebody's Heart" by James Ingram, did not quite equal the success of said duet, but it didn't do too bad, peaking at #19 and lasting 14 weeks on the chart, good enough for it to rank #86 on the Top 100 year-end countdown. I thought it was a great song - my favorite of his Top 40 solo hits, of which he'd have four more in the late-90s and early 2000s.
IF - JANET JACKSON (25) - The first single from janet was dropping out of the top spot as this song debuted on the countdown (I wonder if said #1 song would have stayed on top longer if they'd held off on this one). This song itself came close to hitting #1, peaking at #2 behind "Dreamlover" by Mariah Carey.
THE WAYS OF THE WIND - PM DAWN (28) - Wow, it had been awhile since there were two debuts in the Top 30! Despite this song's healthy start, the song wore out rather quickly, peaking at #21. It was OK, but I preferred the two Top Tens from The Bliss Album.
STEP IT UP - THE STEREO MC'S (40) - The second single from Connected, which also appeared in the film Wayne's World 2 (though it was not included on the soundtrack), didn't do quite as well as the title track, but did peak at #30, nine spots higher than their 1991 debut hit "Elevate My Mind". I liked this song, but preferred said title track.
AUGUST
THE RIVER OF DREAMS - BILLY JOEL (35) - His album of the same name was on scheduled for release the following Tuesday, and the title track was already on its way up the charts. The song peaked at #2 on the AT40 charts (edged out of #1 by "Dreamlover" by Mariah Carey), and it spent twelve weeks atop the AC chart, setting a new record. I wasn't a big fan of this one at all, for some reason - one of my least favorites from him. I much preferred the Glenn Frey song of the same name, which was a minor AC hit the previous autumn.
HAPPY - LEGACY OF SOUND (36) - The only Top 40 hit for this Swedish dance group was a catchy ditty that you just can't help but sing along with. The song peaked at #29, which I thought was a shame, but then again, I have a feeling that I might have gotten tired of the song had it been real popular and played no less than ten times a day.
NUMB - U2 (39) - The first song from their eighth studio album featured guitarist The Edge on vocals rather than Bono, who generally sang lead on their songs. Due to his monotonous mantra chantings, I didn't like the song as much as their others. Apparently, the general Top 40 audience felt the same, as this was all the further the song got; it dropped to #40 the following week and then was gone. It ended up being their only Top 40 single, as the next two releases didn't quite make the Top 40. I have a feeling that they were concentrating primarily on promoting their albums at this point, and making singles a secondary priority, since their last Top Ten was "One", from their last album, Achtung Baby.
DREAMLOVER - MARIAH CAREY (12) - Wow! With a debut that high, it was clear where this song was going! This was the first single from her upcoming album, Music Box, which would be released at the end of August. The song hit #1 and stayed there for eight weeks. It spent one more week at #1 on the R&R chart, becoming the longest-running #1 hit in the publication's twenty-year history. The song was so/so, but very overplayed. My favorite song on the album was the title track, which sadly, was not released as a single.
RIGHT HERE/HUMAN NATURE - SWV (34) - Based on the song title, it looks like it would be a medley, but it is one song - the second title is a salute to the Michael Jackson song from his Thriller album that was heavily sampled in the song, which I thought was a good one - not sure if I prefer this or "Weak".
LATELY - JODECI (37) - A live, unplugged version of Stevie Wonder's third single from his 1980 album Hotter Than July. His version only got as high as #64, but I've heard it's one of his more popular concert songs. Jodeci's version got as high as #17. This would probably be my favorite song by them before they were reduced to a duo later in the decade.
SWEAT (A LA LA LA LA LONG) - INNER CIRCLE (38) - They proved that they were more than a TV show theme one-hit wonder by releasing a follow-up, which also hit the Top Ten like said TV show theme, which I preferred slightly over this song, which definitely had a Bob Marley sound to it.
CRYIN' - AEROSMITH (34) - Their second single from Get A Grip fared a little better than "Livin' On The Edge", though it didn't quite reach the Top Ten - in fact, it just narrowly missed, peaking at #11 for two weeks. I liked this song a little better than "Livin' On The Edge", since it was more mellow, such was the case with the next two singles from the album.
WHOOMP! (THERE IT IS) - TAG TEAM (39) - You knew that it would only be a matter of time before we got to this party song, right? Well, the thing is, it just barely made it; the song climbed only a spot higher. The song had been around for several months; in fact, it was already on its way down the Top 40 Radio Monitor, having peaked at #9 in July. The song initially was played mainly on Rhythmic Top 40 stations, and eventually spilled over onto a few Mainstream Top 40 stations that possibly should have been reporting as Rhythmic Top 40. I wasn't a big fan of this song and the fact that a girl I worked with once brought in the Maxi CD of the song on a night she and I were working until closing and played it all night long. I was about ready to send the d@mn thing through the oven!
TWO STEPS BEHIND - DEF LEPPARD (32) - The first single from Def Leppard's compilation album Retro Active, which contains new versions of B-sides and previously unreleased recordings that the band recorded over the past ten years. This song was most successful on the AT40 chart and Billboard's Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, peaking at #5 on both lists. It was a great power ballad - I preferred the acoustic version, which was the one that got the most Mainstream Top 40 airplay, over the electric version.
ANOTHER SAD LOVE SONG - TONI BRAXTON (36) - She had been a featured artist on Babyface's "Give U My Heart" the previous year and launched her solo career in 1993 with the first hit from her self-titled album. The song peaked at #7 on the AT40 chart in October and I thought it was a pretty good song, but my favorite single from the self-titled album was "You Mean The World To Me", which charted the following spring.
REASON TO BELIEVE - ROD STEWART (39) - The second hit from Unplugged...And Seated was a cover of the B-side of Rod Stewart's first hit "Maggie May", which also received airplay back in 1971 (in fact, I believe it was originally the "A" side). The live version of this song peaked at #24, so it definitely did better than the original, which peaked at #62 on the Hot 100. I liked the song, but preferred the other two charted singles from the Unplugged...And Seated album.
CREEP - RADIOHEAD (40) - The only hit for this English alternative rock band who have what could be possibly the most disturbing music video (for 1997's "Paranoid Android") that I've ever seen. Then again, I think the last time I saw a music video (other than on YouTube) was way back in the Ice Age. Anyway, this song was pretty good.
SEPTEMBER
HEY JEALOUSY - GIN BLOSSOMS (35) - This rock band from Tempe, AZ had a decent pop career of nearly three years, with seven hit singles. This song, which peaked at #20 in October, lasted 19 weeks on the chart (including its two-week encore in early 1994). It was a great song that may have done better had it been released several months earlier, as it had that late spring type sound to it.
WHEN I FALL IN LOVE - CELINE DION w/CLIVE GRIFFIN (40) - From the Tom Hanks/Meg Ryan film Sleepless In Seattle came this cover of the Nat "King" Cole classic (although Doris Day did the original, Cole's song is more widely remembered, I believe). This one didn't sound much different from the Cole's version. The song didn't do too well at Top 40, as this was all the further it got (it dropped out for two weeks and re-entered at #40 before disappearing for good), but it did much better at AC radio, where it peaked at #6. I liked this song, which won the MTV 1994 Movie Award for Best Movie song, but my favorite version is Natalie Cole's solo version, which was a Top 20 AC hit in 1988.
RUNAWAY LOVE - EN VOGUE (33) - This song, from the second edition of Funky Divas released in the UK, was only available on EP, which was released two months later. As a result, it became their first single to fail to crack the Top 40 on the Hot 100. This might have also affected its performance on the Mainstream Top 40 chart, where it only got as high as #19. The song was OK, but I preferred the Funky Diva singles.
WHAT IS LOVE - HADDAWAY (36) - The first of two Top 40 singles for this Trinidadian-German singer, as well as the biggest, peaking at #4 in November. The song was OK at first, but it was quite overplayed on the Top 40 stations I listened to back in the day.
BETTER THAN YOU - LISA KEITH (38) - This Christian Contemporary/Pop singer was a featured artist on Herb Alpert's two 1987 Top 40 hits "Diamonds" and "Making Love In The Rain", and had her first solo Top 40 with this upbeat song, which reminds me a little of something Amy Grant might do - in fact, the following year, Amy herself released a song, featuring Lisa on background vocals, called "Lucky One", which sounded a lot like this song, which was one of my favorite songs from 1993. I'm surprised that the song only got as high as #29 on the AC chart, as it was quite radio-friendly for that format (in fact, several years later, it would surely have been a Top Ten hit there). Here on AT40, it got as high as #12, matching it peak on the R&R chart. Too bad this was her only solo Top 40 hit.
TOO MUCH INFORMATION - DURAN DURAN (39) - A phrase that has become a popular saying (often in its abbreviated form TMI) when a person is divulging personal details that are better kept to themselves. This song, which talks about the commercialization of the music industry, was a classic example of Third Single Syndrome. The first two hits from their self-titled album aka "The Wedding Album" hit the top three, but this song, on the other hand, didn't even crack the Top 30. The song was so/so, but I preferred said first two hits.
NO RAIN - BLIND MELON (32) - For some reason, I never got into this song, by this LA Band. Their only Top 40 hit, the song is about someone who is so depressed, they hate to get out of bed. That, along with the melody, likely contributes to my dislike for the song.
HOPELESSLY - RICK ASTLEY (36) - He was pretty much a has-been at Top 40 radio as this song, the lead single for his first new album in over two years, only got as high as #31. The song fared much better on the AC charts, where it peaked at #4 (and was #1 for four weeks on R&R's AC chart, which was more mainstream, whereas Billboard's also consisted of Hot AC stations). This was definitely my favorite of the two singles released ("The Ones You Love" was the other) from Body And Soul, as well as one of his best songs ever IMO.
SUNDAY MORNING - EARTH, WIND & FIRE (37) - This R&B/Pop band were all over the charts in the 1970s, but fizzled out in the 80s. This was their first Top 40 entry in over ten years. Their comeback, however, was short-lived, as this song tanked rather quickly, peaking at #34. Apparently, they're still active, although Maurice White the founder and lead singer of the band died back in early 2016.
SOUL TO SQUEEZE - RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS (39) - They had a huge #3 hit the summer before with "Under The Bridge", to which this was on the B-side of the CD single. The song was released as a single in late July to coincide with its inclusion on the soundtrack of the film Coneheads. It was a good song - one of my favorites from the band.
OCTOBER
ALL THAT SHE WANTS - ACE OF BASE (26) - Abba and Roxette were indeed hot on the charts, but this Swedish group topped them both, with their first three number one hits (within the span of eight months) hitting #1, all for multiple weeks. This, their debut hit, wasted no time hitting #1 and stayed there for nine weeks! The song was OK, but man, did they overplay it!
I'D DO ANYTHING FOR LOVE (BUT I WON'T DO THAT) - MEAT LOAF (38) - He had three chart hits in the 1970s, with the only really big one being "Two Out Of Three Ain't Bad", which peaked at #11 in the summer of 1978, but this was the song that finally brought him into the Top Ten. A Jim Steinman production, like Meat Loaf's other hits, this song almost made it to #1, but was locked out of the top spot by the Ace Of Base song above. I liked the song at first, but overplay wore it out kinda fast. My favorite song by Meat Loaf is said 1978 hit.
AGAIN - JANET JACKSON (39) - Wow - all three debuts this week peaked at #2 or better. This song had been getting sporadic airplay for several weeks (mainly on Rhythmic Top 40 stations), but when it was officially released as a single, it really took off. It looked like it was going to sail right into the top spot, but, like the Meat Loaf song, it had to settle for second best, as Ace Of Base really had a lock on the top spot. Of the singles from the janet album, this beautiful ballad would most likely be my favorite.
EVERYBODY HURTS - R.E.M. (40) - The third and final single from Automatic For The People. I never cared much for this song, due to its maudlin sound. I much preferred the other two singles from the album.
PINK CASHMERE - PRINCE (37) - The previous week, Prince released three compilation albums: The Hits 1, The Hits 2 and The Hits/B Sides. This was from the last of those and it tanked rather quickly, peaking at #30 the following week and lasting only four weeks on the chart. It wasn't bad, but not one of my favorite songs from him.
WILD WORLD - MR BIG (40) - In 1989, Maxi Priest charted with a reggae remake of this Cat Stevens classic. Its third Top 40 incarnation was a power ballad. Of course, the original will always be the best, but this was a relatively close second.
No debuts to report the week of October 16.
ANNIVERSARY - TONY! TONI! TONE! (33) - The first two Top 40 hits for this new jack swing act were upbeat songs, but this song was a slow jam. It was pretty good, but I actually preferred said Top 40 hits (yes, I know that sounds odd coming from someone who's not a big R&B dance fan).
HUMAN WHEELS - JOHN MELLENCAMP (35) - This is a song that, at first, I got confused with "Hey Jealousy" by the Gin Blossoms, since they sounded somewhat alike, especially at the beginning (although this song has more acoustic guitar, while the Gin Blossoms song uses electric guitar). I actually liked this song a lot and felt it was underrated, as it only got as high as #28.
JIMMY OLSEN'S BLUES - THE SPIN DOCTORS (36) - It may have been hard to top or even equal the success of "Two Princes", but none of their successive songs came anywhere close. This song ran out of gas at #34. That's OK with me; I was never a huge fan of them anyway.
NOTHIN' 'BOUT ME - STING (39) - The third and final single from Ten Summoner's Tales (that saw any chart action). I do prefer this over the ho-hum "Fields Of Gold", but, as I said before, "Shape Of My Heart" is my absolute favorite song from the album.
PLEASE FORGIVE ME - BRYAN ADAMS (23) - His second Greatest Hits album contained two bonus new tracks, one of which was released as a single. The song performed quite well on the chart, getting as high as #2 in January, 1994. It was a nice song, though definitely not his best.
HERO - MARIAH CAREY (39) - And look what we have here - the very song that kept Bryan Adams from collecting his third chart topper. This, on the other hand, was Mariah's eighth number one song (and the last of a record-breaking streak of ten Mariah number ones on the R&R chart). I seem to recall that this became a popular LDD/R&D request on AT40 and Casey's Top 40, respectively, as well as AT40 when Casey was back hosting it. It was a great thing - I don't think I ever got tired of the song.
NOVEMBER
BOTH SIDES OF THE STORY - PHIL COLLINS (31) - The title track (well, sort of) to his fifth album Both Sides, which would be coming out two days later, sort of came and went. The song hit the Top Ten, peaking at #8 its third week on, and then fell fast after that, which was too bad, as I thought this was a great song - one of his best!
CAN WE TALK - TEVIN CAMPBELL (32) - Now almost sixteen years of age (or eighteen, according to Wikipedia), Tevin's voice had changed and he was able to sing instead of whine. This was a typical R&B slow jam of its time. I liked it, but preferred his next hit, "I'm Ready".
HEY MR DJ - ZHANE (35) - The first of three Top 40 hits for this R&B/hip-hop duo from Philadelphia, as well as the most successful, peaking at #16. It wasn't bad, but I wasn't generally a huge fan of them.
JUST KICKIN' IT - XSCAPE (40) - The first act ever to hit the Top 40 whose name started with the letter "X" (and the only one for over 20 years, until X Ambassadors came along in the late summer of 2015). This was their only Top 40 hit (as "Understanding", their next release, just missed the Top 40 in early 1994, which I thought was a shame, as that song was great. This one wasn't bad, either.
SAID I LOVED YOU...BUT I LIED - MICHAEL BOLTON (31) - A song that some people called "the mean song", until they found out the true meaning of the song. The first single from The One Thing, the song did quite well on the AT40 chart, peaking at #8 in January, 1994, but that was nothing compared to its performance on the AC chart, where it spent twelve weeks on top, matching the record of weeks at #1 set by its predecessor at #1, "The River Of Dreams" by Billy Joel. Needless to say, I preferred this song, whose chorus is a dead ringer for that of Bryan Adams' "Thought I'd Died And Gone To Heaven".
I CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW - JIMMY CLIFF (36) - This Jamaica native had been a one-hit wonder for well over 20 years, with his early 1970 hit "Wonderful World, Beautiful People". This song bested the #25 peak of that song quickly and climbed all the way to #7 by year's end with this Johnny Nash cover. Since it sounded so much like the original, I'm not even sure which of the two songs I prefer. Both are good, in any case.
ALL ABOUT SOUL - BILLY JOEL (38) - The title track from The River Of Dreams was still hanging around in the Top Ten when the second hit from the album debuted. This song was nowhere near as successful, but it did peak at #17. It did much better on the AC chart, peaking at #6. This song would turn out to be the final Top 40 hit from River Of Dreams (as the next single, "Lullabye (Goodnight My Angel)" was an AC-only hit).
MR. VAIN - CULTURE BEAT (40) - Like "More And More" by Captain Hollywood Project, this song bore a striking resemblance to "Rhythm Is A Dancer" by Snap (coincidentally enough, all three songs peaked at #10 on the R&R chart). I rather liked the first two songs, but I did not like this song at all. The chorus is kind of annoying.
BECAUSE THE NIGHT - 10,000 MANIACS (33) - Their first Top 40 hit, "These Are Days", couldn't manage to push past #40, but with their second, an unplugged cover of this 1978 hit by the Patti Smith Group, the Maniacs managed to get their very first Top Ten hit. I liked this song at first, but I seem to remember getting tired of it rather quickly. Though it didn't differ much from the original, I preferred that version by a fair margin.
LINGER - THE CRANBERRIES (34) - The first Top 40 hit for this Irish band, led by the late Dolores O'Riordan, was their biggest, and only Top Ten, peaking at #7 in February. It was a really good song, though I preferred a few others from them.
SOMETHING IN COMMON - BOBBY BROWN & WHITNEY HOUSTON (35) - Many people thought that his near-miss single "That's The Way Love Is" would be the final single from Bobby, but he surprised us by releasing a final single from the album - a duet with his then-wife Whitney Houston, which sounded somewhat like said near-miss song. It was pretty good.
BREATHE AGAIN - TONI BRAXTON (38) - As big as this song, the second single from Braxton's self-titled album, was, I was simply never able get into this song.
DREAMS - GABRIELLE (38) - The first of two hits for this singer from London, as well as the biggest. Though the song never got past #20, the song managed to spend 26 weeks on the chart (dropping off via the recurrent rule), so it must have gotten sporadic airplay, but did well wherever it was played. I liked this song and the follow-up, "I Wish" about the same
ALL FOR LOVE - BRYAN ADAMS, ROD STEWART & STING (40) - This song, from the soundtrack of the film The Three Musketeers, may have debuted on the chart's anchor position, but it still had no problem making it to the Top Ten in its third week. Adams' solo hit, "Please Forgive Me" was up near the top of the chart at the same time as this song, so he was basically competing with himself. This song was slightly more successful, hitting #1 for a week in early 1994. This was my favorite of the two hits. Sort of off-topic - back around the time this song on the charts, I oftentimes rented the Super Nintendo game Legend Of Zelda: A Link To The Past from the local video store. Before I'd return it, I would erase all three game files, replacing them with empty ones, using the names "Bryan, Rod & Sting", just for the heck of it.
DECEMBER
HIGHER GROUND - UB40 (34) - Based on their tendency to chart with covers of previous hits, one would guess that this was a reggae remake of the Stevie Wonder classic from 1973, but in fact, this was actually a hit of their own. As their cover of the King's "Can't Help Falling In Love" was removed from the chart via the recurrent rule, this song virtually replaced it. This song, though it didn't equal the success of that song, it did manage to climb to #16. This ended up being their final Top 40 hit.
FOUND OUT ABOUT YOU - THE GIN BLOSSOMS (37) - Their second hit fared significantly better than their first, as this song hit the Top Ten, peaking at #6 in March. Many people who followed the R&R charts remember how this song re-appeared on the chart at #17 the week they switched over to the plays-per-week system, and then mysteriously disappeared the following week (which was probably an oversight, as no other long-standing songs that had recently fallen off the chart re-entered the chart). Here on AT40, this song stayed on for a total of 30 weeks, lasting until the mid-point of 1994.
DAUGHTER - PEARL JAM (40) - The chart success for this rock band from Seattle was chiefly at Mainstream Rock and Alternative, but they did manage to have three Top 40 hits. This was their first, and it peaked at #29 (they wouldn't hit the Top Ten for another five years). It was a pretty good song, IMO.
JESSIE - JOSHUA KADISON (34) - The first of two Top 40 singles from this Los Angeles native's debut album Painted Desert Serenade. It is a story song depicting the narrator's haphazard relationship with a girl that, based on the lyrics, he'd be much better off without. Reminds me a lot of the Lifetime movies I used to like to watch about 20 years ago (though I sure have no idea why I liked them so much, as I now avoid them like the plague).
SHOOP - SALT-N-PEPA (39) - They were back on the chart after a two-year absence with their highest-charting hit thus far, peaking at #16. It wasn't bad, but I preferred their two 1991 hits.
MISS YOU IN A HEARTBEAT - DEF LEPPARD (38) - Their second hit from Retro Active, which, like the first hit, had both an acoustic and an electric version. The former is the one that became the hit, which peaked at #17 and became their final hit during the AT40 era. I liked it and "Two Steps Behind" about the same.
AMAZING - AEROSMITH (39) - They went with another power ballad as the third single from Get A Grip. Unlike the first two, this song hit the Top Ten, and stuck around for awhile. It was a great song, but my favorite single from the album was the next one, "Crazy".
NEVER SHOULD'VE LET YOU GO - HI-FIVE (40) - Their fourth and final Top 40 hit - a slow jam that didn't do anywhere near as well as the first three, peaking at #37 and lasting but three weeks on the chart. I liked the song a little, but preferred said first three hits.
CHOOSE - COLOR ME BADD (39) - They had a great year in both 1991 and 1992, but were quiet during most of 1993. Their first hit from their album Time And Chance, the title track, didn't quite make the Top 40, but the second song was the final new song for the year and, of course, would make a big splash in 1994. Of the two Top 40 hits from Time And Chance, I preferred this one.
Anyway, in this commentary, as always, each song is listed in order of appearance on the chart. The number after each song represents its debut position on American Top 40. For songs that charted in 1993 but debuted in 1992, including several songs that made their first appearance on the Mainstream Top 40 chart in 1993, check out this topic. Also, since I used magenta ink to write down the charts (though the cap of the pen misled me into thinking that the ink was purple), I've decided to post my 1993 commentary in magenta font. If it's too dark for you to read, just highlight the text and it will show up better.
JANUARY
ORDINARY WORLD - DURAN DURAN (19) - What with the chart switchover and the two-week break that AT40 took to do their year-ender, there were lots of new entries to list - nine of them, to be exact (although I did cover one of them ("A Whole New World", at #34), in the 1992 commentary). A special thanks to dth1971 for PM'ing me a list of all the debuts! The highest of those was by a band who had been absent from the charts for four years. It was worth the wait, however, as this was their biggest hit, spending seven non-consecutive weeks at #1 (interrupted only by the aforementioned theme from Aladdin). It was also one of my all-time favorites from them!
STEAM - PETER GABRIEL (22) - This song had been on the Mainstream chart for several weeks, but it didn't make the T40RM chart until a few weeks afterward. That will account for its unusually high debut. The song, Gabriel's first Top 40 hit since "Big Time" in 1987, got as high as #13 a few weeks later and, unfortunately, would be his final Top 40 hit.
I LOVE YOU PERIOD. - DAN BAIRD (29) - The lead singer of the Georgia Satellites, who had a big chart hit in early 1987 with "Keep Your Hands To Yourself", had his first and only Top 40 single with this punctuation lesson of sorts. It was a pretty good song, though I slightly preferred said Georgia Satellites song.
WHO'S GONNA RIDE YOUR WILD HORSES - U2 (32) - Since this song never hit the Top 40 Radio Monitor chart, its only chart action on AT40 came from its last two weeks on the Mainstream chart, where this song peaked at #29 two weeks before. This was the fifth and final single from Achtung Baby (the fourth, "Even Better Than The Real Thing", just missed the Top 40, peaking at #43). It was a good song, but I preferred a few others from them.
STAND UP (KICK LOVE INTO MOTION) - DEF LEPPARD (33) - The fourth release from Adrenalize, and the second of two to hit AT40 (the last release, "Tonight" didn't quite make it, but I'll bet it didn't miss by much). As mentioned in my 1992 commentary, I preferred "Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad", but this was a good one as well.
I DON'T CARE - SHAKESPEAR'S SISTER (38) - Well, "Stay" was a respectable chart hit, but this one only got as high as #33. Unsurprisingly, this was their last Top 40 hit. I myself prefer this song over "Stay", as it was not whiny like that song. At the same time, I can see why this song didn't do quite as well as their first.
NO MISTAKES - PATTY SMYTH (39) - This song, like the first song from her self-titled album, featured Don Henley singing back-up, though he doesn't receive label credit in this song as he did in "Sometimes Love Just Ain't Enough", which I preferred over this song, though it was still a great song.
THESE ARE DAYS - 10,000 MANIACS (40) - This was all the further the song got on the Mainstream chart, though it did demonstrate tenacity, holding at the anchor position of the chart for five weeks. Too bad it didn't do better, as it was one of my favorite songs from the band.
No debuts to report for the week of January 16 - just the re-entry of "Rump Shaker", which was making its first appearance on the Mainstream chart.
HEAL THE WORLD - MICHAEL JACKSON (38) - This was the fifth release from Jackson's Dangerous album and I am shocked that it didn't do any better than it did, given its great message. It looked like the song had peaked this week, as it dropped out the following week and was already done on the R&R chart, but apparently, the song began getting renewed airplay in mid-March and had a second chart run, during which it peaked at #21. It was a great song, IMO!
I'M EVERY WOMAN - WHITNEY HOUSTON (40) - One of two Rufus/Chaka Khan remakes to chart in 1992 (the other one, "Sweet Thing" first appeared on the American Top 40 chart at the end of 1992 and would debut on the Mainstream chart the last weekend in February). This was the more successful of the two, peaking at #3. This, the second single from the Bodyguard soundtrack, was a good song, with Whitney giving Chaka a name drop near the end.
BED OF ROSES - BON JOVI (33) - This power ballad was the second of three Top 40 hits from Bon Jovi's album Keep The Faith. Of the three, this was by far my favorite! It is also one of my all-time favorites from this New Jersey band.
(The other two new entries on this week's chart, "Mr. Wendal" and "Here We Go Again" made their first AT40 appearance in 1992).
FEBRUARY
THAT'S WHAT LOVE CAN DO - BOY KRAZY (28) - The first of two Top 40 hits for this New York City based girl group, as well as the most successful. The song hit number one for a pair of weeks on the R&R chart, but fell short on the AT40 chart, getting as high as #2, behind "Two Princes". I thought it was a cool song.
GET AWAY - BOBBY BROWN (36) - The third Top 40 hit from the Bobby album, which sampled "Knee Deep" by Funkadelic. I thought this was a good song, but not quite as good as "That's The Way Love Is", the final release from the album. Too bad that one didn't quite make the chart.
IRRESISTIBLE - CATHY DENNIS (37) - The second single from Into the Skyline was quite a lot better than the first, IMO, but still, neither song compared to "Moments Of Love", a Top Ten AC hit during late spring.
THE RIGHT KIND OF LOVE - JEREMY JORDAN (39) - As the first hit from the soundtrack to the Beverly Hills 90210 TV series, "Saving Forever For You" was entering the Top Ten, the second entered the Top 40 and it, too, would end up hitting the Top Ten. Of the three singles from the soundtrack, this was my least favorite, but it was still a great song - my favorite of Jeremy's two Top 40 singles.
TWO PRINCES - THE SPIN DOCTORS (32) - This song, of course, would wind up as AT40's top hit of 1993. Frankly, if I never hear this overplayed song again, it'll be too soon!
CAT'S IN THE CRADLE - UGLY KID JOE (39) - A remake of the Harry Chapin classic from nearly two decades before. Of course, nothing will compare to the original, but this cover was not bad.
MAN ON THE MOON - R.E.M. (40) - The second of three Top 40 hits from Automatic For The People, as well as my favorite. Glad this song made the Top Ten, as it was one of their best, IMO.
DON'T WALK AWAY - JADE (34) - They had a Top Ten hit in the late summer of 1992 called "I Wanna Love You" and their second hit also hit the Top Ten - number five, to be exact. It wasn't bad, but quite overplayed. I preferred said 1992 hit, as well as their slow jam "One Woman", which, unless I overlooked it, just barely missed the Top 40 that summer.
ANGEL - JON SECADA (35) - His first two hits made the Top Ten, as would this song. Not sure if I prefer this song or "Do You Believe In Us", the latter of which was easing its way down the chart, but would not fall off until May, at which time the recurrent rule, which, I believe, limited songs below #20 to 26 weeks, was implemented.
STAND - POISON (40) - This hard-rock band hadn't had a chart hit since 1991, when they peaked at #35 with "Life Goes On", which was exactly where this mid-tempo song peaked a week later. Unfortunately, this would turn out to be their last Top 40 hit. I really liked this one and felt it was totally underrated.
IF I EVER LOSE MY FAITH IN YOU - STING (32) - This was the lead-off single from Sting's fourth solo album Ten Summoners Tales. Of the three songs that made the Top 40, this was my favorite, but the best song on the entire album was "Shape Of My Heart". Not sure if that one was ever released as a single, but I remember hearing it on WHFB, an AC station in St. Joseph, MI, every now and then in the spring of 1994.
LITTLE BIRD - ANNIE LENNOX (39) - The third and final Top 40 hit from Lennox's Diva album, and possibly my favorite. A great song indeed!
FOREVER IN LOVE - KENNY G (40) - This was one of the biggest AC songs of 1993 and it performed respectably on the AT40 chart, peaking at #18. A beautiful song - one of two instrumentals by Kenny G to hit the Top 40, and by far my favorite of those (though "Songbird" is also a decent song).
MARCH
LOVE IS - VANESSA WILLIAMS & BRIAN McKNIGHT (32) - The third release from Beverly Hills 90210 and, at the time, by far the best (I've since grown a little tired of it, but it's great to hear again). I remember being pleasantly surprised that this song hit #1 on the R&R chart, as it was stalled out at #2 in its twelfth week. Even though the charts moved notably slower, no songs had even still been still sitting at the top in their 13th week, never mind just arriving at #1. "I Have Nothing" by Whitney Houston had been at #1 for the past month and I figured she'd fall out (and indeed she did, to #3). "Looking Through Patient Eyes" by PM Dawn had been racing up the chart at a fast pace. The song wasted absolutely no time hitting the Top Ten and, since it was at #3 the week before, I figured that it was no question it would hit #1 the following week, but "Love Is" was strong enough to manage a week at #1. The song did not quite make it to the top on the AT40 chart, but it did spend five weeks at #2, held out of the top by "Two Princes". A great song indeed!
BAD GIRL - MADONNA (33) - Not one of her biggest hits by any means - presumably because of the dark subject matter. The song only got as high as #26 on AT40 and fell off soon after. I myself thought it was a pretty good song - not overplayed like many of her others.
I HAVE NOTHING - WHITNEY HOUSTON (30) - The third single from the Bodyguard. As stated earlier, the song hit #1 on the R&R chart, as did the first two. I thought this was a great song when it first came out, but I got tired of it, since it was way overplayed. Now that you seldom hear it anymore, it's good to hear every now and again. Here on the AT40 chart, the song got as high as #3, behind the Spin Doctors and the Vanessa/Brian duet.
INFORMER - SNOW (34) - A song with very unintelligible lyrics in the chorus - lyrics that were actually the subject of one of Rick Dees' Weekly Top 40 Challenges (I wonder how many people wrote in with the correct answer?) Anyway, Snow was a reggae artist from Canada and this was his signature hit - afterwards, people were like Snow who? I thought this song was OK, but a little gimmicky. I'm surprised that this song only got as high as #12, as it was overplayed on the stations I listened to back then.
BEAUTIFUL GIRL - INXS (35) - This was the final single released from Welcome To Wherever You Are, an album that had been out for over a half a year, so most INXS fans owned it. As a result, this song did not perform as well as their other songs (though it did make the Top Ten on the Modern Rock chart, just like the other three singles from the album (released here in the States, that is).
SIMPLE LIFE - ELTON JOHN (39) - Elton must have felt guilty for depressing everyone with "The Last Song", and released this upbeat, positive song, which performed respectably on the chart, peaking at #17. It fared much better on the AC chart, hitting #1 for three weeks. Of the three songs from The One, this would be a close second to the title track as my favorite song.
LOVE U MORE - SUNSCREEM (36) - This Essex, England techno band was very successful on the US Dance chart, and managed to have one hit that made the Mainstream chart, where the song peaked at #16. It spent two weeks atop the dance chart around the time it began its climb at Top 40. A great song that I felt should have gotten higher on the charts!
TELL THE TRUTH - JUDE COLE (40) - The third hit from Jude's third studio album Start The Car (the title track and "It Comes Around" performed well on the Mainstream Rock chart, and the former actually spent a week on the Top 40 chart, but that was several months before AT40 started using it). This song matched the peak of the first single, but it was more of an AC hit than anything. I remember hearing it on "Countdown America" in early 1993.
THE CRYING GAME - BOY GEORGE (33) - The lead singer of the Culture Club, who were on hiatus at the time, had a minor solo hit on the Top 40 chart in 1988 called "Live My Life", from the 1987 film Hiding Out and was back with his second solo effort, which performed significantly better, peaking at #11 in late April. I liked both of his solo songs about the same.
NOTHIN' MY LOVE CAN'T FIX - JOEY LAWRENCE (37) - Known mainly as an actor, starring on shows like Gimme A Break, Blossom and Brotherly Love, he did have a Top 40 hit when he was about seventeen. The song peaked at #10 and, though he released a follow-up called "Stay Forever", that song just missed the chart. I preferred this one by a fair margin.
APRIL
LOOKING THROUGH PATIENT EYES - PM DAWN (26) - I mentioned earlier that this song was in the running for the top spot on the Radio & Records chart (where it did end up spending a pair of weeks at #1). Here on the AT40 chart, the song almost made it, spending four weeks in the runner-up position, behind "That's The Way Love Goes" by Janet Jackson. This song, which heavily samples George Michael's "Father Figure" was a good song, but I preferred their two other Top Ten songs (I have a feeling I would have held a grudge against this song if it had beaten "Love Is" to the punch, LOL!)
WHAT YOU WON'T DO FOR LOVE - GO WEST (37) - Originally a #9 hit for Bobby Caldwell (which I just heard a little while ago on WMGN's Magic Sunday Morning program), Go West recorded a cover that didn't sound much different from the original. The song only got as high as #36 on the AT40 chart, but did very well at AC radio, where it peaked at #3.
FREAK ME - SILK (40) - Given some of the lyrics to this song (especially "Let me lick you up and down..."), I'm surprised that this song did not get a ban advisory like several other songs like "I Want Your Sex", "Baby Got Back" and so forth (well, it might have (as it peaked at #7, versus #3 on the R&R chart) but it was not edited out by U93). Anyway, this was the only Top 40 hit from this R&B act from Atlanta, GA. Despite its questionably lyrics, I thought it was a good song.
WHO IS IT - MICHAEL JACKSON (27) - "Heal The World" was still in the midst of its second chart run as the sixth hit from Dangerous was released. This song, of course, hit the Top Ten in no time and spent virtually the entire month of May at its #6 peak. It was a pretty good song, but I preferred many others from Jackson.
THE MORNING PAPERS - PRINCE & THE NEW POWER GENERATION (32) - The final single from Prince's Love Symbol album, this song peaked at #18 and spent nine weeks in the Top 40, but that was good enough for it to place on the year-end Top 100 countdown - in fact, this was the song that kicked it off! It was a good song - my favorite song from the album!
COMFORTER - SHAI (36) - Their first Top 40 hit was sung a capella, but they decided to add in instruments for their follow-up. This song, however, came nowhere near equalling the success of the first hit, as it peaked at #31. The song was pretty good - though I preferred said first hit, I did prefer this slightly over "Baby I'm Yours", which was a Top 20 hit in late summer of that year.
BUDDY X - NENEH CHERRY (37) - She had a pair of Top Ten hits in 1989 and seemed to be making a comeback four years later. It didn't last long, however, as this turned out to be her last Top 40 hit and only got as high as #22. I myself wasn't a huge fan of the song.
LOVE DON'T LOVE YOU - EN VOGUE (40) - This was the fifth and final hit from the Funky Divas album. The song wasn't as successful as the first few, peaking at #28, but spent eleven weeks on the chart. The song had a very catchy chorus, but that's about it.
No debuts to report on April 17 - not even any re-entries. Kind of a slow chart, especially down in the lower reaches.
CONNECTED - THE STEREO MC'S (29) - This British hip-hop/electronic dance group had a minor hit in the summer of 1991 with "Elevate My Mind". This song, which I preferred by a wide margin, was also a lot more successful, peaking at #11 in late spring. This was the first of two Top 40 hits for them during 1993.
LIVIN' ON THE EDGE - AEROSMITH (32) - They were back with their first album since Pump and, like that album, it spawned four Top 40 hits. All of these hit the Top 20, including this song, which got as high as #19. I thought this was a pretty good song, though I preferred the other three singles from Get A Grip.
COME UNDONE - DURAN DURAN (35) - They were spending a 14th and final week in the Top Ten with their former #1 "Ordinary World" as the follow-up came onto the chart. The song would peak at #2 for four weeks as Janet Jackson had a hammerlock on the top spot.
SLEEPING SATELLITE - TASMIN ARCHER (39) - The sole Top 40 hit for this Bradford, Yorkshire native. The song fared decently on the chart, peaking at #16 in June. I really liked this song - I even have it on a mix tape that I made during the spring/summer of 1993.
MAY
THAT'S THE WAY LOVE GOES - JANET JACKSON (29) - She was back with janet, her fifth studio album, which would be released two weeks later. The first single was released a few weeks earlier and roared up the chart, reaching the Top Ten the following week and reached #1 very soon after, where it spent nine weeks. I felt the song was a little overrated, but at the same time, I would have rather this had been the #1 song of 1993 instead of that annoying Spin Doctors song, but let's not go there again...
I'M SO INTO YOU - SWV (32) - Their first of three AT40 hits, all of which charted during 1993. This was typical hip-hop music of its time, so I wasn't very impressed with it, but I did like their next two hits.
SOMEBODY TO LOVE - GEORGE MICHAEL & QUEEN (36) - One of two Queen songs included on George's Five Live album, both of which were recorded at the Freddie Mercury Tribute concert several months after he died. This was actually a great rendition of the song and I did prefer it over the original, even though it didn't sound much different.
TELL ME WHAT YOU DREAM - RESTLESS HEART f/WARREN HILL (38) - Their latest crossover proved to be more successful than the one in 1987, as their first hit from Big Iron Horses fared much better on the chart and their second also reached the Top 40, even though this was all the higher the song got. The song did much better at AC radio, where it hit #1.
HAVE I TOLD YOU LATELY - ROD STEWART (33) - A studio version of this song had been receiving sporadic radio airplay, mainly at AC radio, but that version was left for dead as this live version, from his upcoming new album Unplugged...And Seated, was released. This song was huge on the AC chart, where it spent five weeks on top. The song didn't do bad on the pop chart either, becoming his biggest hit in two years. I didn't like this song at first, but this version sort of grew on me.
I'LL NEVER GET OVER YOU (GETTING OVER ME) - EXPOSE (36) - In my 1992 critique, I mentioned that the last three songs released from Expose's self-titled album were ballads. This was the first of those, as well as the only one to hit the Top 40 ("As Long As I Can Dream" and "In Walked Love" were AC-only hits). This song peaked at #3, becoming one of their biggest hits - in fact, it was their second-highest peaking song behind the #1 "Seasons Change", and deservedly so, as it was a great song!
SILENCE IS BROKEN - D@MN YANKEES (38) - Now THIS was one underrated song! This is all the higher the song got, which I felt was sick and wrong! It should have been as big a hit as "High Enough", if not bigger. The song was one of my favorite songs of all of 1993, and by far the best song by this supergroup ever IMO. It was a small consolation that this song peaked at #8 on the Gavin Report Top 40, far removed from its #24 peak on R&R. I guess a lot of the small market stations, which Gavin's reporting panel consisted largely of, played the heck out of this song. I do know that U93 played it on a regular basis.
BAD BOYS (THEME FROM C.O.P.S.) - INNER CIRCLE (40) - I had been hearing this song on a regular basis on Saturday nights for several years, since I watched C.O.P.S. almost religiously. Since the song was reggae, the producers of the show were probably apprehensive about releasing it at first, but it proved to be worthwhile, as the song peaked at #7.
IN THESE ARMS - BON JOVI (35) - This song, the third and final U.S. release from Keep The Faith, was a mid-tempo song, somewhat like "Keep The Faith". I thought it was pretty good, but it didn't hold a candle to "Bed Of Roses".
WANNAGIRL - JEREMY JORDAN (37) - His first hit "The Right Kind Of Love" originated on the soundtrack to Beverly Hills 90210, but he also included it on his album Try My Love, which had come out in April, and yielded this second hit. It looked like this song might go Top Ten as well, but the song fell one spot short. The song was OK, but I preferred his first hit.
REGRET - NEW ORDER (36) - Up until now, all the songs I'd heard by them had that club beat to them (like "Blue Monday" and "True Faith". This one had sort of alternative feel to it. It apparently worked, as it became their biggest hit, reaching #7. It was a very good song, IMO.
I'M GONNA GET YOU - BIZARRE INC. f/ANGIE BROWN (39) - This song had spent two weeks on the R&R chart (peaking at #39 for two weeks, like this song) back in March! One would think no way is it going to hit the AT40 chart, especially since its run on the Top 40 Radio Monitor was pretty much done, but the song apparently had enough airplay to just barely hit the chart. The song was OK, but nothing I'd go out of my way to listen to.
MORE AND MORE - CAPTAIN HOLLYWOOD PROJECT (36) - This song sounded almost exactly like "Rhythm Is A Dancer", Snap's big hit from the previous year. I liked this one a little better - the only Top 40 hit for this Eurodance act from Germany.
WHAT'S UP - 4 NON BLONDES (37) - Another one-hit wonder - this one, a band from San Francisco who formed in 1989 and disbanded five years later. I thought it was a good song - had almost a heavy metal feel to it.
JUNE
CAN'T GET ENOUGH OF YOUR LOVE - TAYLOR DAYNE (26) - A cover of Barry White's #1 hit from the fall of 1974, only Taylor removed the word "babe" from the title. This was actually a great remake - she did a good job of singing Barry's spoken-word part at the beginning of the song and then she really belts it out.
CAN'T HELP FALLING IN LOVE - UB40 (35) - Wow, two covers that start with the same word debuted the same week - what are the chances? This song, originally a ballad by Elvis Presley, is worked into a dance/reggae version. Although nothing can compare to The King's original, this was actually a good remake - and the most successful of all the versions of the song, as it spent five weeks at #1!
BY THE TIME THIS NIGHT IS OVER - KENNY G w/PEABO BRYSON (37) - Like with his Duotones album, he went with a vocal track as the second hit from Breathless. Peabo Bryson was indeed a great choice, as he had recently come off of his biggest hit ever. This song, which enjoyed the most success on the AC chart, was a good song, but I slightly preferred "Forever In Love".
WEAK - SWV (38) - Kind of odd that their first hit, "I'm So Into You" was still on its way up the chart when this song debuted. Perhaps that's why the former peaked so soon, as this song wasted absolutely no time hitting the Top Ten. Looked like a possible number one, but the song fell one spot short; it just couldn't seem to unseat the aforementioned UB40 remake. The song did, however, top the R&R chart for four weeks.
SHOW ME LOVE - ROBIN S (40) - Her only hit to make AT40 (The follow-up, "Love For Love", didn't quite make it). This was a pretty good song, IMO. Jason Derulo must have liked it, as he heavily sampled it in his 2011 hit "Don't Wanna Go Home" Four years later, a singer named Robyn released a song of the same title, causing a little confusion. I preferred that song over this one by a sizable margin.
GIRL I'VE BEEN HURT - SNOW (37) - This song obviously rode the coattails of his first hit "Informer" earlier in the year, as it only got as high as #25. Indeed, he'd already had his fifteen minutes of fame, as he never hit the chart after this. I preferred this song, since it wasn't as gimmicky as "Informer" - and less overplayed, in addition.
GOOD TIMES WITH BAD BAD BOYS - BOY KRAZY (38) - Here's another example of the above phenonmenon - "That's What Love Can Do" was a huge hit earlier in the year and this song, which was also THEIR only additional hit, ran out of gas quickly, peaking at #31. It was pretty good, but I preferred said first hit.
FIELDS OF GOLD - STING (37) - This song was very dull and boring. Blah blah blah, the fields of barley, Blah blah blah the fields of gold. The melody was rather monotonous as well. Overplay on AC stations didn't help matters any, but at least this only got as high as #24 at Top 40.
I'M GONNA BE (500 MILES) - THE PROCLAIMERS (40) - The only Top 40 hit for this Scottish duo, composed of identical twin brothers Charlie and Craig Reid. This song was OK, but nothing exceptional. The song did make for a funny "flashback" moment on Family Guy.
RUNAWAY TRAIN - SOUL ASYLUM (33) - The first of three Top 40 hits for this Minneapolis rock band. The video for this song, which featured photos of missing children, some of which were found after they were featured in the video. This would have been an ideal benefit song for missing/runaway youths.
I DON'T WANNA FIGHT - TINA TURNER (37) - From the soundtrack of her biographical film What's Love Got To Do With It, this song brought her back to the Top 40 after an absence of nearly four years. It was also one of her bigger hits, peaking at #6 in August. I thought it was a great song. Too bad it was her final Top 40 hit.
IF I HAD NO LOOT - TONY! TONI! TONE! (40) - They'd had two hits during the 1990-91 winter, and were back with what became their biggest hit ever. There's a funny misheard lyric in this song - during the chorus, when someone yells "and do the New Jack Swing comin' atcha", it sounds like the "comin' atcha" part sounds like "on my nuts". Even though I don't generally like this kind of music, I did rather like this song.
JULY
I'M FREE - JON SECADA (37) - The fourth and final single from his self-titled album was the only one that did not hit the Top Ten, though it didn't miss by much, reaching #12, so the song did well - it even placed on the year-end chart at #85. I was never a huge fan of the song, though I did prefer it over "Just Another Day", if only ever so slightly.
BABY I'M YOURS - SHAI (39) - This song peaked at #12 as well, but lasted almost twice as long on the chart as the above song - 23 weeks, to be exact. The song was OK, but I didn't like it as much as their first two hits. This, by the way, was their final chart hit.
KNOCKIN' DA BOOTS - H-TOWN (39) - This R&B vocal group from Houston had only one Top 40 hit. This was the second Top 40 hit to refer to having sex as "knockin' boots" (The first was the song of that title by Candyman, which hit the Top Ten in 1990. This song only got as high as #34 - perhaps because some stations opted not to play it due to the subject matter. I know that I never heard it outside of countdown shows on U93. The song was more or less just there, though I did kind of like it.
RUN TO YOU - WHITNEY HOUSTON (40) - This was Whitney's fourth hit from The Bodyguard. It's kind of odd that the first three made the top three, yet this one couldn't push past #32. Too bad, as this was my favorite song from the soundtrack, but I guess that, since pretty much all fans of Whitney already had the soundtrack and, hence, there was no need to call in and request the song. Radio programmers were probably also getting fed up with the soundtrack as well - some may not have even bothered to add this one.
This was the week that the Top 40 Radio Monitor became the Hot 100 Airplay chart. This was also the week that the AC chart became a monitored airplay chart, so its airplay was also figured in, causing huge moves and high debuts of AC hits on that chart. It would have indeed been an interesting week on AT40 had they still been using that chart.
OOH CHILD - DINO (30) - For what turned out to be his final Top 40 hit, he decided to do a remake of this song originally done by the Five Stairsteps. It was a good rendition of the song and I actually preferred it over the original.
WILL YOU BE THERE - MICHAEL JACKSON (39) - The final single from Jackson's Dangerous album was also the main theme of Free Willy, which had been released this same weekend. I always thought this song was quite cheesy and never really liked it at all. Even though it was the last of seven Top 40 American singles from Dangerous, there were actually an additional two songs that were released outside the U.S. - "Give In To Me", which was released in February after "Heal The World" and "Gone Too Soon", which was dedicated to Ryan White, a teenager from Kokomo, IN who died of AIDS in 1990.
PLUSH - STONE TEMPLE PILOTS (40) - The first of two Top 40 hits from this San Diego band who were much more successful at Alternative and Mainstream Rock. The song fared pretty well on the AT40 chart, peaking at #18. The song was OK, but I preferred their singles from their Purple album, which was released the following year.
RAIN - MADONNA (31) - After the under-performance on the chart of the third single from Erotica, "Bad Girl", she returned to the Top Ten with this song. Though I preferred the other three singles from Erotica (that made the Top 40, anyway), this one was pretty good as well.
BREAK IT DOWN AGAIN - TEARS FOR FEARS (37) - This song, from their fourth studio album, turned out to be their last one to hit the Top 40. At least this one managed to hit the Top Ten, albeit barely (spent a single week at #10 in mid-September). It was a good song, but my favorite Tears For Fears song would be "Advice For The Young At Heart", an AC hit in 1990.
ONE LAST CRY - BRIAN McKNIGHT (39) - His first hit, his duet with Vanessa Williams "Love Is", was winding down on the chart as he debuted with his first solo entry. The song, which was reminiscent of "There's No Easy Way To Break Somebody's Heart" by James Ingram, did not quite equal the success of said duet, but it didn't do too bad, peaking at #19 and lasting 14 weeks on the chart, good enough for it to rank #86 on the Top 100 year-end countdown. I thought it was a great song - my favorite of his Top 40 solo hits, of which he'd have four more in the late-90s and early 2000s.
IF - JANET JACKSON (25) - The first single from janet was dropping out of the top spot as this song debuted on the countdown (I wonder if said #1 song would have stayed on top longer if they'd held off on this one). This song itself came close to hitting #1, peaking at #2 behind "Dreamlover" by Mariah Carey.
THE WAYS OF THE WIND - PM DAWN (28) - Wow, it had been awhile since there were two debuts in the Top 30! Despite this song's healthy start, the song wore out rather quickly, peaking at #21. It was OK, but I preferred the two Top Tens from The Bliss Album.
STEP IT UP - THE STEREO MC'S (40) - The second single from Connected, which also appeared in the film Wayne's World 2 (though it was not included on the soundtrack), didn't do quite as well as the title track, but did peak at #30, nine spots higher than their 1991 debut hit "Elevate My Mind". I liked this song, but preferred said title track.
AUGUST
THE RIVER OF DREAMS - BILLY JOEL (35) - His album of the same name was on scheduled for release the following Tuesday, and the title track was already on its way up the charts. The song peaked at #2 on the AT40 charts (edged out of #1 by "Dreamlover" by Mariah Carey), and it spent twelve weeks atop the AC chart, setting a new record. I wasn't a big fan of this one at all, for some reason - one of my least favorites from him. I much preferred the Glenn Frey song of the same name, which was a minor AC hit the previous autumn.
HAPPY - LEGACY OF SOUND (36) - The only Top 40 hit for this Swedish dance group was a catchy ditty that you just can't help but sing along with. The song peaked at #29, which I thought was a shame, but then again, I have a feeling that I might have gotten tired of the song had it been real popular and played no less than ten times a day.
NUMB - U2 (39) - The first song from their eighth studio album featured guitarist The Edge on vocals rather than Bono, who generally sang lead on their songs. Due to his monotonous mantra chantings, I didn't like the song as much as their others. Apparently, the general Top 40 audience felt the same, as this was all the further the song got; it dropped to #40 the following week and then was gone. It ended up being their only Top 40 single, as the next two releases didn't quite make the Top 40. I have a feeling that they were concentrating primarily on promoting their albums at this point, and making singles a secondary priority, since their last Top Ten was "One", from their last album, Achtung Baby.
DREAMLOVER - MARIAH CAREY (12) - Wow! With a debut that high, it was clear where this song was going! This was the first single from her upcoming album, Music Box, which would be released at the end of August. The song hit #1 and stayed there for eight weeks. It spent one more week at #1 on the R&R chart, becoming the longest-running #1 hit in the publication's twenty-year history. The song was so/so, but very overplayed. My favorite song on the album was the title track, which sadly, was not released as a single.
RIGHT HERE/HUMAN NATURE - SWV (34) - Based on the song title, it looks like it would be a medley, but it is one song - the second title is a salute to the Michael Jackson song from his Thriller album that was heavily sampled in the song, which I thought was a good one - not sure if I prefer this or "Weak".
LATELY - JODECI (37) - A live, unplugged version of Stevie Wonder's third single from his 1980 album Hotter Than July. His version only got as high as #64, but I've heard it's one of his more popular concert songs. Jodeci's version got as high as #17. This would probably be my favorite song by them before they were reduced to a duo later in the decade.
SWEAT (A LA LA LA LA LONG) - INNER CIRCLE (38) - They proved that they were more than a TV show theme one-hit wonder by releasing a follow-up, which also hit the Top Ten like said TV show theme, which I preferred slightly over this song, which definitely had a Bob Marley sound to it.
CRYIN' - AEROSMITH (34) - Their second single from Get A Grip fared a little better than "Livin' On The Edge", though it didn't quite reach the Top Ten - in fact, it just narrowly missed, peaking at #11 for two weeks. I liked this song a little better than "Livin' On The Edge", since it was more mellow, such was the case with the next two singles from the album.
WHOOMP! (THERE IT IS) - TAG TEAM (39) - You knew that it would only be a matter of time before we got to this party song, right? Well, the thing is, it just barely made it; the song climbed only a spot higher. The song had been around for several months; in fact, it was already on its way down the Top 40 Radio Monitor, having peaked at #9 in July. The song initially was played mainly on Rhythmic Top 40 stations, and eventually spilled over onto a few Mainstream Top 40 stations that possibly should have been reporting as Rhythmic Top 40. I wasn't a big fan of this song and the fact that a girl I worked with once brought in the Maxi CD of the song on a night she and I were working until closing and played it all night long. I was about ready to send the d@mn thing through the oven!
TWO STEPS BEHIND - DEF LEPPARD (32) - The first single from Def Leppard's compilation album Retro Active, which contains new versions of B-sides and previously unreleased recordings that the band recorded over the past ten years. This song was most successful on the AT40 chart and Billboard's Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, peaking at #5 on both lists. It was a great power ballad - I preferred the acoustic version, which was the one that got the most Mainstream Top 40 airplay, over the electric version.
ANOTHER SAD LOVE SONG - TONI BRAXTON (36) - She had been a featured artist on Babyface's "Give U My Heart" the previous year and launched her solo career in 1993 with the first hit from her self-titled album. The song peaked at #7 on the AT40 chart in October and I thought it was a pretty good song, but my favorite single from the self-titled album was "You Mean The World To Me", which charted the following spring.
REASON TO BELIEVE - ROD STEWART (39) - The second hit from Unplugged...And Seated was a cover of the B-side of Rod Stewart's first hit "Maggie May", which also received airplay back in 1971 (in fact, I believe it was originally the "A" side). The live version of this song peaked at #24, so it definitely did better than the original, which peaked at #62 on the Hot 100. I liked the song, but preferred the other two charted singles from the Unplugged...And Seated album.
CREEP - RADIOHEAD (40) - The only hit for this English alternative rock band who have what could be possibly the most disturbing music video (for 1997's "Paranoid Android") that I've ever seen. Then again, I think the last time I saw a music video (other than on YouTube) was way back in the Ice Age. Anyway, this song was pretty good.
SEPTEMBER
HEY JEALOUSY - GIN BLOSSOMS (35) - This rock band from Tempe, AZ had a decent pop career of nearly three years, with seven hit singles. This song, which peaked at #20 in October, lasted 19 weeks on the chart (including its two-week encore in early 1994). It was a great song that may have done better had it been released several months earlier, as it had that late spring type sound to it.
WHEN I FALL IN LOVE - CELINE DION w/CLIVE GRIFFIN (40) - From the Tom Hanks/Meg Ryan film Sleepless In Seattle came this cover of the Nat "King" Cole classic (although Doris Day did the original, Cole's song is more widely remembered, I believe). This one didn't sound much different from the Cole's version. The song didn't do too well at Top 40, as this was all the further it got (it dropped out for two weeks and re-entered at #40 before disappearing for good), but it did much better at AC radio, where it peaked at #6. I liked this song, which won the MTV 1994 Movie Award for Best Movie song, but my favorite version is Natalie Cole's solo version, which was a Top 20 AC hit in 1988.
RUNAWAY LOVE - EN VOGUE (33) - This song, from the second edition of Funky Divas released in the UK, was only available on EP, which was released two months later. As a result, it became their first single to fail to crack the Top 40 on the Hot 100. This might have also affected its performance on the Mainstream Top 40 chart, where it only got as high as #19. The song was OK, but I preferred the Funky Diva singles.
WHAT IS LOVE - HADDAWAY (36) - The first of two Top 40 singles for this Trinidadian-German singer, as well as the biggest, peaking at #4 in November. The song was OK at first, but it was quite overplayed on the Top 40 stations I listened to back in the day.
BETTER THAN YOU - LISA KEITH (38) - This Christian Contemporary/Pop singer was a featured artist on Herb Alpert's two 1987 Top 40 hits "Diamonds" and "Making Love In The Rain", and had her first solo Top 40 with this upbeat song, which reminds me a little of something Amy Grant might do - in fact, the following year, Amy herself released a song, featuring Lisa on background vocals, called "Lucky One", which sounded a lot like this song, which was one of my favorite songs from 1993. I'm surprised that the song only got as high as #29 on the AC chart, as it was quite radio-friendly for that format (in fact, several years later, it would surely have been a Top Ten hit there). Here on AT40, it got as high as #12, matching it peak on the R&R chart. Too bad this was her only solo Top 40 hit.
TOO MUCH INFORMATION - DURAN DURAN (39) - A phrase that has become a popular saying (often in its abbreviated form TMI) when a person is divulging personal details that are better kept to themselves. This song, which talks about the commercialization of the music industry, was a classic example of Third Single Syndrome. The first two hits from their self-titled album aka "The Wedding Album" hit the top three, but this song, on the other hand, didn't even crack the Top 30. The song was so/so, but I preferred said first two hits.
NO RAIN - BLIND MELON (32) - For some reason, I never got into this song, by this LA Band. Their only Top 40 hit, the song is about someone who is so depressed, they hate to get out of bed. That, along with the melody, likely contributes to my dislike for the song.
HOPELESSLY - RICK ASTLEY (36) - He was pretty much a has-been at Top 40 radio as this song, the lead single for his first new album in over two years, only got as high as #31. The song fared much better on the AC charts, where it peaked at #4 (and was #1 for four weeks on R&R's AC chart, which was more mainstream, whereas Billboard's also consisted of Hot AC stations). This was definitely my favorite of the two singles released ("The Ones You Love" was the other) from Body And Soul, as well as one of his best songs ever IMO.
SUNDAY MORNING - EARTH, WIND & FIRE (37) - This R&B/Pop band were all over the charts in the 1970s, but fizzled out in the 80s. This was their first Top 40 entry in over ten years. Their comeback, however, was short-lived, as this song tanked rather quickly, peaking at #34. Apparently, they're still active, although Maurice White the founder and lead singer of the band died back in early 2016.
SOUL TO SQUEEZE - RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS (39) - They had a huge #3 hit the summer before with "Under The Bridge", to which this was on the B-side of the CD single. The song was released as a single in late July to coincide with its inclusion on the soundtrack of the film Coneheads. It was a good song - one of my favorites from the band.
OCTOBER
ALL THAT SHE WANTS - ACE OF BASE (26) - Abba and Roxette were indeed hot on the charts, but this Swedish group topped them both, with their first three number one hits (within the span of eight months) hitting #1, all for multiple weeks. This, their debut hit, wasted no time hitting #1 and stayed there for nine weeks! The song was OK, but man, did they overplay it!
I'D DO ANYTHING FOR LOVE (BUT I WON'T DO THAT) - MEAT LOAF (38) - He had three chart hits in the 1970s, with the only really big one being "Two Out Of Three Ain't Bad", which peaked at #11 in the summer of 1978, but this was the song that finally brought him into the Top Ten. A Jim Steinman production, like Meat Loaf's other hits, this song almost made it to #1, but was locked out of the top spot by the Ace Of Base song above. I liked the song at first, but overplay wore it out kinda fast. My favorite song by Meat Loaf is said 1978 hit.
AGAIN - JANET JACKSON (39) - Wow - all three debuts this week peaked at #2 or better. This song had been getting sporadic airplay for several weeks (mainly on Rhythmic Top 40 stations), but when it was officially released as a single, it really took off. It looked like it was going to sail right into the top spot, but, like the Meat Loaf song, it had to settle for second best, as Ace Of Base really had a lock on the top spot. Of the singles from the janet album, this beautiful ballad would most likely be my favorite.
EVERYBODY HURTS - R.E.M. (40) - The third and final single from Automatic For The People. I never cared much for this song, due to its maudlin sound. I much preferred the other two singles from the album.
PINK CASHMERE - PRINCE (37) - The previous week, Prince released three compilation albums: The Hits 1, The Hits 2 and The Hits/B Sides. This was from the last of those and it tanked rather quickly, peaking at #30 the following week and lasting only four weeks on the chart. It wasn't bad, but not one of my favorite songs from him.
WILD WORLD - MR BIG (40) - In 1989, Maxi Priest charted with a reggae remake of this Cat Stevens classic. Its third Top 40 incarnation was a power ballad. Of course, the original will always be the best, but this was a relatively close second.
No debuts to report the week of October 16.
ANNIVERSARY - TONY! TONI! TONE! (33) - The first two Top 40 hits for this new jack swing act were upbeat songs, but this song was a slow jam. It was pretty good, but I actually preferred said Top 40 hits (yes, I know that sounds odd coming from someone who's not a big R&B dance fan).
HUMAN WHEELS - JOHN MELLENCAMP (35) - This is a song that, at first, I got confused with "Hey Jealousy" by the Gin Blossoms, since they sounded somewhat alike, especially at the beginning (although this song has more acoustic guitar, while the Gin Blossoms song uses electric guitar). I actually liked this song a lot and felt it was underrated, as it only got as high as #28.
JIMMY OLSEN'S BLUES - THE SPIN DOCTORS (36) - It may have been hard to top or even equal the success of "Two Princes", but none of their successive songs came anywhere close. This song ran out of gas at #34. That's OK with me; I was never a huge fan of them anyway.
NOTHIN' 'BOUT ME - STING (39) - The third and final single from Ten Summoner's Tales (that saw any chart action). I do prefer this over the ho-hum "Fields Of Gold", but, as I said before, "Shape Of My Heart" is my absolute favorite song from the album.
PLEASE FORGIVE ME - BRYAN ADAMS (23) - His second Greatest Hits album contained two bonus new tracks, one of which was released as a single. The song performed quite well on the chart, getting as high as #2 in January, 1994. It was a nice song, though definitely not his best.
HERO - MARIAH CAREY (39) - And look what we have here - the very song that kept Bryan Adams from collecting his third chart topper. This, on the other hand, was Mariah's eighth number one song (and the last of a record-breaking streak of ten Mariah number ones on the R&R chart). I seem to recall that this became a popular LDD/R&D request on AT40 and Casey's Top 40, respectively, as well as AT40 when Casey was back hosting it. It was a great thing - I don't think I ever got tired of the song.
NOVEMBER
BOTH SIDES OF THE STORY - PHIL COLLINS (31) - The title track (well, sort of) to his fifth album Both Sides, which would be coming out two days later, sort of came and went. The song hit the Top Ten, peaking at #8 its third week on, and then fell fast after that, which was too bad, as I thought this was a great song - one of his best!
CAN WE TALK - TEVIN CAMPBELL (32) - Now almost sixteen years of age (or eighteen, according to Wikipedia), Tevin's voice had changed and he was able to sing instead of whine. This was a typical R&B slow jam of its time. I liked it, but preferred his next hit, "I'm Ready".
HEY MR DJ - ZHANE (35) - The first of three Top 40 hits for this R&B/hip-hop duo from Philadelphia, as well as the most successful, peaking at #16. It wasn't bad, but I wasn't generally a huge fan of them.
JUST KICKIN' IT - XSCAPE (40) - The first act ever to hit the Top 40 whose name started with the letter "X" (and the only one for over 20 years, until X Ambassadors came along in the late summer of 2015). This was their only Top 40 hit (as "Understanding", their next release, just missed the Top 40 in early 1994, which I thought was a shame, as that song was great. This one wasn't bad, either.
SAID I LOVED YOU...BUT I LIED - MICHAEL BOLTON (31) - A song that some people called "the mean song", until they found out the true meaning of the song. The first single from The One Thing, the song did quite well on the AT40 chart, peaking at #8 in January, 1994, but that was nothing compared to its performance on the AC chart, where it spent twelve weeks on top, matching the record of weeks at #1 set by its predecessor at #1, "The River Of Dreams" by Billy Joel. Needless to say, I preferred this song, whose chorus is a dead ringer for that of Bryan Adams' "Thought I'd Died And Gone To Heaven".
I CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW - JIMMY CLIFF (36) - This Jamaica native had been a one-hit wonder for well over 20 years, with his early 1970 hit "Wonderful World, Beautiful People". This song bested the #25 peak of that song quickly and climbed all the way to #7 by year's end with this Johnny Nash cover. Since it sounded so much like the original, I'm not even sure which of the two songs I prefer. Both are good, in any case.
ALL ABOUT SOUL - BILLY JOEL (38) - The title track from The River Of Dreams was still hanging around in the Top Ten when the second hit from the album debuted. This song was nowhere near as successful, but it did peak at #17. It did much better on the AC chart, peaking at #6. This song would turn out to be the final Top 40 hit from River Of Dreams (as the next single, "Lullabye (Goodnight My Angel)" was an AC-only hit).
MR. VAIN - CULTURE BEAT (40) - Like "More And More" by Captain Hollywood Project, this song bore a striking resemblance to "Rhythm Is A Dancer" by Snap (coincidentally enough, all three songs peaked at #10 on the R&R chart). I rather liked the first two songs, but I did not like this song at all. The chorus is kind of annoying.
BECAUSE THE NIGHT - 10,000 MANIACS (33) - Their first Top 40 hit, "These Are Days", couldn't manage to push past #40, but with their second, an unplugged cover of this 1978 hit by the Patti Smith Group, the Maniacs managed to get their very first Top Ten hit. I liked this song at first, but I seem to remember getting tired of it rather quickly. Though it didn't differ much from the original, I preferred that version by a fair margin.
LINGER - THE CRANBERRIES (34) - The first Top 40 hit for this Irish band, led by the late Dolores O'Riordan, was their biggest, and only Top Ten, peaking at #7 in February. It was a really good song, though I preferred a few others from them.
SOMETHING IN COMMON - BOBBY BROWN & WHITNEY HOUSTON (35) - Many people thought that his near-miss single "That's The Way Love Is" would be the final single from Bobby, but he surprised us by releasing a final single from the album - a duet with his then-wife Whitney Houston, which sounded somewhat like said near-miss song. It was pretty good.
BREATHE AGAIN - TONI BRAXTON (38) - As big as this song, the second single from Braxton's self-titled album, was, I was simply never able get into this song.
DREAMS - GABRIELLE (38) - The first of two hits for this singer from London, as well as the biggest. Though the song never got past #20, the song managed to spend 26 weeks on the chart (dropping off via the recurrent rule), so it must have gotten sporadic airplay, but did well wherever it was played. I liked this song and the follow-up, "I Wish" about the same
ALL FOR LOVE - BRYAN ADAMS, ROD STEWART & STING (40) - This song, from the soundtrack of the film The Three Musketeers, may have debuted on the chart's anchor position, but it still had no problem making it to the Top Ten in its third week. Adams' solo hit, "Please Forgive Me" was up near the top of the chart at the same time as this song, so he was basically competing with himself. This song was slightly more successful, hitting #1 for a week in early 1994. This was my favorite of the two hits. Sort of off-topic - back around the time this song on the charts, I oftentimes rented the Super Nintendo game Legend Of Zelda: A Link To The Past from the local video store. Before I'd return it, I would erase all three game files, replacing them with empty ones, using the names "Bryan, Rod & Sting", just for the heck of it.
DECEMBER
HIGHER GROUND - UB40 (34) - Based on their tendency to chart with covers of previous hits, one would guess that this was a reggae remake of the Stevie Wonder classic from 1973, but in fact, this was actually a hit of their own. As their cover of the King's "Can't Help Falling In Love" was removed from the chart via the recurrent rule, this song virtually replaced it. This song, though it didn't equal the success of that song, it did manage to climb to #16. This ended up being their final Top 40 hit.
FOUND OUT ABOUT YOU - THE GIN BLOSSOMS (37) - Their second hit fared significantly better than their first, as this song hit the Top Ten, peaking at #6 in March. Many people who followed the R&R charts remember how this song re-appeared on the chart at #17 the week they switched over to the plays-per-week system, and then mysteriously disappeared the following week (which was probably an oversight, as no other long-standing songs that had recently fallen off the chart re-entered the chart). Here on AT40, this song stayed on for a total of 30 weeks, lasting until the mid-point of 1994.
DAUGHTER - PEARL JAM (40) - The chart success for this rock band from Seattle was chiefly at Mainstream Rock and Alternative, but they did manage to have three Top 40 hits. This was their first, and it peaked at #29 (they wouldn't hit the Top Ten for another five years). It was a pretty good song, IMO.
JESSIE - JOSHUA KADISON (34) - The first of two Top 40 singles from this Los Angeles native's debut album Painted Desert Serenade. It is a story song depicting the narrator's haphazard relationship with a girl that, based on the lyrics, he'd be much better off without. Reminds me a lot of the Lifetime movies I used to like to watch about 20 years ago (though I sure have no idea why I liked them so much, as I now avoid them like the plague).
SHOOP - SALT-N-PEPA (39) - They were back on the chart after a two-year absence with their highest-charting hit thus far, peaking at #16. It wasn't bad, but I preferred their two 1991 hits.
MISS YOU IN A HEARTBEAT - DEF LEPPARD (38) - Their second hit from Retro Active, which, like the first hit, had both an acoustic and an electric version. The former is the one that became the hit, which peaked at #17 and became their final hit during the AT40 era. I liked it and "Two Steps Behind" about the same.
AMAZING - AEROSMITH (39) - They went with another power ballad as the third single from Get A Grip. Unlike the first two, this song hit the Top Ten, and stuck around for awhile. It was a great song, but my favorite single from the album was the next one, "Crazy".
NEVER SHOULD'VE LET YOU GO - HI-FIVE (40) - Their fourth and final Top 40 hit - a slow jam that didn't do anywhere near as well as the first three, peaking at #37 and lasting but three weeks on the chart. I liked the song a little, but preferred said first three hits.
CHOOSE - COLOR ME BADD (39) - They had a great year in both 1991 and 1992, but were quiet during most of 1993. Their first hit from their album Time And Chance, the title track, didn't quite make the Top 40, but the second song was the final new song for the year and, of course, would make a big splash in 1994. Of the two Top 40 hits from Time And Chance, I preferred this one.