Twostepcublog

Here's the top ten hits in Germany this week, according to their official singles chart , as Rag N' Bone Man holds on top for a ninth week... 1. " Human " - Rag N' Bone Man (1) 2. " Rockabye " - Clean Bandit featuring Anne-Marie & Sean Paul (2) 3. " Would I Lie To You? " - David Guetta & Cedric Gervais featuring Chris Willis (3) 4. " Starboy " - The Weeknd featuring Daft Punk (4) 5. " Chöre " - Mark Forster (6) 6. " Say You Won't Let Go " - James Arthur (8) 7. " My Way " - Calvin Harris (5) 8. " The Greatest " - Sia featuring Kendrick Lamar (9) 9. " The Sound Of Silence " - Disturbed (7) 10. " Closer " - The Chainsmokers featuring Halsey (10) There are no entries in the top ten this week; further down the chart, Berlin-based DJ/producer Alle Farben reaches the top-40 at #30 with "Bad Ideas". It's the follow-up to his former top-ten hit...

" Another Day In Paradise " - Phil Collins from the album ...But Seriously (1989) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #1 (four weeks) Weeks in the Top-40: 14 Today's song of the day comes from singer/drummer/curmudgeon Phil Collins , who had been oscillating between his stint in the progressive rock-turned-pop rock group Genesis and his own hugely successful solo career. After his solo album in 1985, No Jacket Required , Phil rejoined his bandmates in 1987 for the Invisible Touch album and tour. He spent the next year acting in the British caper movie Buster , and even scored a pair of #1 pop hits in the U.S. with " Two Hearts " and a cover of the Mindbenders' " A Groovy Kind Of Love ". Phil closed out the decade with a more somber and reflective album, ...But Seriously , which included some pop fluff but (for him) a large amount of heavier lyrical material. And instead of going flashy, the first single from the record was the downtempo guilt-trip on...

Here's the top ten hits in France this week, according to their official singles chart , as Bruno Mars returns to the top of the chart, where he started with this song... 1. " 24K Magic " - Bruno Mars (2) 2. "Black Beatles" - Rae Sremmurd (DEBUT) 3. " Tchikita " - Jul (8) 4. " Heathens " - twenty-one pilots (9) 5. " Human " - Rag N' Bone Man (RE-ENTRY) 6. " Starboy " - The Weeknd featuring Daft Punk (10) 7. " Lost On You " - LP (5) 8. " I Feel So Bad " - KUNGS featuring Ephemerals (4) 9. " My Way " - Calvin Harris (RE-ENTRY) 10. "I Feel It Coming" - The Weeknd featuring Daft Punk (DEBUT) After conquering the American charts with the back-door trick of the internet meme (the "Mannequin Challenge"), rap duo Rae Sremmurd leaps into the top 10 of the French sales chart with "Black Beatles" featuring Gucci Mane. It's the sibling's first time...

" Don't Ask Me Why " - Eurythmics from the album We Too Are One (1989) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #40 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 1 Today's song of the day comes from the British new wave duo Eurythmics , who had last scored a top-40 pop hit in the U.S. in 1986 with their modern rock jam " Missionary Man ". The following year, they released their stellar album Savage , though they just missed the American Top-40 with the loud and racy " I Need A Man ". Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart toned it back to their synthpop start on their eighth album We Too Are One . While internationally the bouncy "Revival" came as the first single, reaching #30 in the UK and top-10 in Sweden and Switzerland, in America the more subdued "Don't Ask Me Why" was promoted as the lead track. With a start that hearkened to their "Here Comes The Rain Again" with string flourishes and a restrained vocal from Annie, the single brought the...

" Baby Come To Me " - Regina Belle from the album Stay With Me (1989) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #60 This week's 'robbed hit' comes from soul singer Regina Belle , who like today's SOTD artist Sybil grew up in northern New Jersey (Englewood). Developing her musical skills in school as well as church, she got her break opening for vocal group the Manhattans, appearing on their 1986 single " Where Did We Go Wrong? ", which just missed the R&B top-40 at #42. Landing her own solo record deal (as the Manhattans were ending their tenure at Columbia), Regina released her debut album a year later. The first single from the set, " Show Me The Way ", climbed to #2 on Billboard 's R&B chart and #68 on their pop Hot 100. Later that year, she teamed up with Peabo Bryson for the first time for a soundtrack duet, but this time it would be for one of the worst mainstream films of all time, Bill Cosby's Leonard, Pt. 6 . Nevertheless, th...

" Don't Make Me Over " - Sybil from the album Sybil (1989) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #20 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 9 Today's song of the day comes from R&B/dance singer Sybil (Lynch), a native of the northern New Jersey city of Paterson, who released her debut album Let Yourself Go in 1987. It contained her first single " Falling In Love ", which was a minor club hit at #29 and even popped on to the British pop chart at #68. The title track did even better overseas, reaching #32 in the UK (and #23 on the American dance list). A third single from the album, the house music jam " My Love Is Guaranteed ", scored Sybil her first top ten club hit in America at #4. However, none of these songs touched the pop list in the U.S., with a sound more suited to strict R&B stations and dance clubs with freestyle and soul inclinations. But for her next self-titled release, Sybil would be the first to have mainstream success with a beat bro...

" With Every Beat Of My Heart " - Taylor Dayne from the album Can't Fight Fate (1989) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #5 (four weeks) Weeks in the Top-40: 13 Today's song of the day comes from New Yorker dance/pop sensation Taylor Dayne , whose debut album Tell It To My Heart spun off four top-ten pop singles in the U.S. with the title track , " Prove Your Love ", " I'll Always Love You ", and " Don't Rush Me ", spending between them over a year on the chart. At the close of the decade, Taylor released her sophomore effort, Can't Fight Fate . The lead single, "With Every Beat Of My Heart", was a brash, punchy dance-pop anthem that showed off her pipes pretty well. Written by club master Arthur Baker along with Tommy Faragher (who appeared on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack) and songwriter Lotti Golden (another New Yorker who had a lot of critical acclaim), the single was commercial to the core but oh, so booty...

Let's head across the Atlantic one more time to check out the notable singles and albums reaching the charts in the UK this week... On the British singles chart , Clean Bandit spends a third week on top with " Rockabye ". There are two songs entering the top-40, and both are non-radio-promoted album tracks from the just-released album from The Weeknd: "I Feel It Coming" at #18 and "Party Monster" at #33. Neither is available to hear on YouTube as yet... The sixth track from British R&B/pop singer Craig David's stellar "comeback" album to reach the chart is the official BBC Children In Need charity single, "All We Needed", which enters at #42. " When The Bassline Drops " got to #10... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

" Living In Sin " - Bon Jovi from the album New Jersey (1988) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #9 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 12 Today's song of the day comes from Bon Jovi , whose album named for their home state New Jersey had already become like a Bad to their previous album Slippery When Wet being Thriller , not getting as much praise but spinning off hit singles like nobody's business, already scoring four top-ten songs with " Lay Your Hands On Me ", " Born To Be My Baby ", " Bad Medicine " and " I'll Be There For You ", the latter two going all the way to #1. The fifth single from the record would be "Living In Sin", the "let's wait to get married" screed written by Jon Bon Jovi and produced by Bruce Fairbairn... "Living In Sin" became the fifth top ten hit from New Jersey in December of 1989. The song also climbed to #37 on Billboard 's Mainstream Rock radio chart. Int...

Friday's here, and I'm ready to run down my top 100 tunes from the previous week. Bruno Mars lands in the #1 spot in just five weeks, while Kings of Leon (pictured above) leap into the top-5. Former big hits from Coldplay, Alicia Keys, Pink, and Joseph drop off my chart, while songs from John Legend, Little Mix, and Cole Plante make the biggest jumps (move of 10+ places highlighted in red ). Happy Thanksgiving weekend... This Week              Song/Artist (last week's position in parentheses) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. 24K Magic - Bruno Mars (3) 2. Good Grief - Bastille (1) 3. Setting The World On Fire - Kenny Chesney f/Pink (4) 4. Waste A Moment - Kings Of Leon (8) 5. Starboy - The Weeknd f/Daft Punk (6) 6. Bang Bang - Green Day (2) 7. Heathens - twenty-one pilots (5) 8. Move - Luke Bryan (10) 9. Closer - The Chainsmokers f/Halsey (9) 10....

" Sugar Daddy " - Thompson Twins from the album Big Trash (1989) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #28 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 4 Today's song of the day comes from the Thompson Twins, who became a true duo when Joe Leeway left the group in the mid-80s, leaving Tom Bailey and Alannah Currie to front their top-40 hit from the spring of 1987, " Get That Love ". They also topped the dance chart the following year with a club rework of the early single " In The Name Of Love ". After switching record labels to Warner Brothers, the pair recorded their seventh studio album, Big Trash . The first single from the set was the bouncy dance-pop track "Sugar Daddy", written and produced by Bailey and Currie... "Sugar Daddy" became the Twins' seventh and so-far final top-40 pop hit in the U.S. in November of 1989. The song also climbed to #16 on Billboard 's Modern Rock radio chart, while the 12" single of remixes went al...

It's time to head Down Under to check out the local musicians making the charts in Australia this week... On the Australian Artists singles chart , Guy Sebastian climbs to #1 with " Set In Stone "... Sebastian was a long-running mentor/judge on the X Factor Australia after winning Australian Idol way back in the day. Now this week the winners of the fourth and seventh seasons of X Factor , Samantha Jade and Cyrus (Villanueva), come together at #7 with "Hurt Anymore"... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

" Funky Cold Medina " - Tone Lōc from the album Lōc-ed After Dark (1989) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #3 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 11 (Ed. Note: wouldn't you know I forgot this one back in July, so I'll use Thankgiving to catch up...) Today's Song of the day comes from Los Angeles rapper Tone Lōc, who had been one of the biggest pop successes in the genre, landing a #1 album and a #2 double-platinum single with " Wild Thing ".  His second single from the album was a similar comedic bit of un-PC storytelling, "Funky Cold Medina". Written by Young MC (who had his own success later with "Bust A Move") along with Delicious Vinyl label heads/producers Matt Dike and Michael Ross, the single threw a pre-illegal trove of samples (most noticeably Foreigner's "Hot Blooded") to a joke about a drink that makes you do unspeakable things, like a bro'd-up "Love Potion #9", with a touch of transphobia mixed in...

Here's the top ten hits in Germany this week, according to their official singles chart , as blues-rocker Rag N' Bone Man racks up an eighth week at #1... 1. " Human " - Rag N' Bone Man (1) 2. " Rockabye " - Clean Bandit featuring Anne-Marie & Sean Paul (3) 3. " Would I Lie To You? " - David Guetta & Cedric Gervais featuring Chris Willis (2) 4. " Starboy " - The Weeknd featuring Daft Punk (4) 5. " My Way " - Calvin Harris (6) 6. "Chöre" - Mark Forster (DEBUT) 7. " The Sound Of Silence " - Disturbed (5) 8. " Say You Won't Let Go " - James Arthur (9) 9. " The Greatest " - Sia featuring Kendrick Lamar (7) 10. " Closer " - The Chainsmokers featuring Halsey (8) Singer/rapper Mark Forster lands in the top 10 with a song I featured last week when it leaped into the top-40, "Chöre" ("Choir"). It's his fourth top-10 hit now, following...

" Leave A Light On " - Belinda Carlisle from the album Runaway Horses (1989) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #11 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 10 Today's song of the day comes from Belinda Carlisle , whose second album after leaving the Go-Go's, Heaven On Earth , was wildly popular, scoring her three top-10 pop hits in the US with " Circle In The Sand ", " I Get Weak ", and the titular " Heaven Is A Place On Earth ". (A fourth single, a cover of Cream's " I Feel Free ", was a minor hit in America at #88, while another track from the album, " World Without You ", became a top-40 hit in the UK and Ireland.) She also guested on a British top-40 hit from alt-rock band Then Jerico, " What Does It Take " (#33, UK). After a successful world tour, Belinda released her third solo album Runaway Horses in 1989. The first single from the record was "Leave A Light On", written by producer Rick Nowels and...

Here's the top ten hits in France this week, according to their official chart , as a musical and artistic legend is honored in his passing... 1. "Hallelujah" - Leonard Cohen (DEBUT) 2. " 24K Magic " - Bruno Mars (4) 3. "Suzanne" - Leonard Cohen (DEBUT) 4. " I Feel So Bad " - KUNGS featuring Ephemerals (3) 5. " Lost On You " - LP (2) 6. " This Girl " - KUNGS vs. Cookin' On 3 Burners (5) 7. " Heartbeat " - Richard Orlinski & Eva Simons (1) 8. "Tchikita" - Jul (DEBUT) 9. " Heathens " - twenty-one pilots (10) 10. " Starboy " - The Weeknd featuring Daft Punk (7) Canadian poet and singer/songwriter Richard Cohen sadly passed this world on November 7th, and no one better than the French love a melancholy observer of life like he was. He had never reached the top-40 on the singles chart, but now has five entries, including what may be his masterpiece, "Hallelujah...

" Don't Know Much " - Linda Ronstadt with Aaron Neville from the album Cry Like A Rainstorm, Howl Like The Wind (1989) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #2 (two weeks) Weeks in the Top-40: 16 Today's song of the day comes from songstress Linda Ronstadt , who had transformed from the hip rock chick of the 70s that converted oldies to fresh radio hits to the soft-pop siren of the 80s, as encaptured in her trilogy of standards albums and her huge hit from spring of 1987, " Somewhere Out There ". That single from the animated movie An American Tail paired her with rising soul singer James Ingram, and took her to just missing the top of the pop chart by a notch at #2. She also dabbled in other genres, with her excellent country music collaboration with Dolly Parton and Emmylou Harris on the original Trio album in 1987, and then her "back to my roots" heritage set Canciones de Mi Padre later that year. Two years later, Linda returned to pop music with ...

" Talk To Myself " - Christopher Williams from the album Adventures In Paradise (1989) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #49 This week's "robbed hit" comes from R&B singer Christopher Williams , who hails from the Bronx and released his debut album Adventures in Paradise right at the beginning of the "new-jack-swing" style phenomenon. With a growling voice like Keith Sweat, it was easy to mistake that artist for the singer on Williams' debut single "Talk To Myself", written by Timmy Gatling of the band Guy and Alton Stewart... While "Talk To Myself" became Willliams' first top-ten R&B hit at #4, the song stopped short at about the halfway mark on the American pop Hot 100 in October of 1989. The 12" remix made it to #18. It would be his highest rank on the pop chart, though he followed this song with another soul top-tenner, " Promises, Promises " (#7). In 1991, Christopher acted in the movie New Ja...

" We Didn't Start The Fire " - Billy Joel from the album Storm Front (1989) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #1 (two weeks) Weeks in the Top-40: 15 Today's song of the day comes from singer, songwriter, and "piano man" Billy Joel , who had taken a relatively long break since his 1986 album The Bridge , which wasn't as huge a financial success as his previous albums, but still spun off two top-10 pop hits in the U.S. with " Modern Woman " and " A Matter Of Trust " along with a track that topped Billboard magazine's Adult Contemporary radio chart, " This Is The Time ". The following year he traveled to Russia for a series of landmark concerts that ended up being documented on the Концерт album which made the top 40 on the albums sales chart in America and sold over a million copies. But it wasn't until almost the end of the decade for his next studio album to be released. Storm Front was a more mature album in the ve...

" My Heart Skips A Beat " - Cover Girls from the album We Can't Go Wrong (1989) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #38 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 2 Today's song of the day comes from the Latin freestyle dance music trio the Cover Girls , whose debut album Show Me sent five singles into the American pop chart, including two that reached the top-40; " Because Of You " and " Promise Me ". In 1989, Angel Clivillés, Caroline Jackson, and newer member Margo Urban recorded their second album, We Can't Go Wrong . The first single, "My Heart Skips A Beat", was another slice of freestyle magic written by David Cole (of the soon to be C+C Music Factory), who produced it with Robert Clivillés, her husband... "My Heart Skips A Beat" became the trio's third top-40 pop hit in the U.S. in October of 1989. The 12" club mix matched their debut "Show Me" as their highest-charting single on the Dance Club Play list...

It's time to cross the Atlantic yet again to check out the notable songs and albums making the charts in the UK this week... On the official singles chart in Britain, Clean Bandit spend a second week at #1 with " Rockabye " with Anne-Marie and Sean Paul... London-based indie-pop band the xx return with the highest debut of the week at #38 with "On Hold". It's the first single from their upcoming third album I See You . The song is their second British top-40 hit; they went to #34 in 2010 with " Islands "... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

" Don't Close Your Eyes " - Kix from the album Blow My Fuse (1988) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #11 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 13 Today's song of the day comes from the heavy metal band Kix , who came together in the Appalachian northwestern Maryland city of Hagerstown in the late 70s, with Steve Whiteman taking over lead vocals from lead guitarist Brian Forsythe before they released their eponymous debut album in 1981. Their second, the slightly more mainstream Cool Kids , slipped them on to the albums chart in Billboard for the first time in 1983. However, it wasn't until their fourth release, Blow My Fuse , that eventually found them unlocking the power-ballad puzzle that got them to pop radio. After three uptempo singles that missed the Mainstream Rock radio chart, "Don't Close Your Eyes", written by the band's bassist Donnie Purrell with members of two other bands, Bob Halligan and John Palumbo, had the dark aura (this time with ly...

Friday's here, and it's time to run down my top 100 tunes from the previous week. Bastille holds tight for a second week at #1, while Bruno Mars (pictured above) looks ready to challenge them for next week by strutting into the top-3. Songs from Jessica Sanchez, Mary J. Blige, and Crystal Waters make the biggest jumps (moves of 10+ places highlighted in red ), while former big hits from twenty-one pilots, Bishop Briggs, and the Chainsmokers/Daya (all who have a good chance of making my top 100 of the year) drop out. It isn't getting any easier... This Week             Song/Artist (last week's position in parentheses) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Good Grief - Bastille (1) 2. Bang Bang - Green Day (2) 3. 24K Magic - Bruno Mars (7) 4. Setting The World On Fire - Kenny Chesney f/Pink (4) 5. Heathens - twenty-one pilots (3) 6. Starboy - The Weeknd f/Daft P...

" Me So Horny " - 2 Live Crew from the album As Nasty As They Wanna Be (1989) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #26 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 9 Today's song of the day comes from the lascivious rap group 2 Live Crew , who originally came together in California under producer David Hobbs (DJ Mr Mixx) and Chris Wong Won (Fresh Kid Ice), but moved to Florida upon their early regional success there. Recruiting Miami locals Luther Campbell, aka "Luke Skyywalker", and Mark Ross, aka "Brother Marquis", they released their debut album As Nasty As They Want To Be in 1986. With foul-mouthed lyrics and song titles like "Throw The Dick" and "We Want Some Pussy", they quickly gained a reputation for the go-to rap group for the stripper bars (like those in Tampa, Florida) that would provide inspiration for the Crew. The album went Gold, and set them up for their sophomore (or sophomoric ) effort Move Somethin' . With a little more com...

Let's head Down Under to check out the songs and albums from local artists making the charts in Australia this week... On the Australian Artist Singles Chart , dance act Peking Duk climbs to #1 with " Stranger "... Electronica artist Nick Murphy, who is now using his birth name instead of the moniker Chet Faker he had been in the past, slips in at #20 with "Stop Me (Stop You)"... (Click below to see the rest of the post)