Twostepcublog

Friday's here, and it's time to run down my top 100 tunes from the previous week. British singer Rag 'N' Bone man makes it 10 weeks on top, while Bruno Mars (pictured above) rolls into the top ten. Former big hits from Donna Summer/Barbra Streisand, The 1975, and DJ Snake/Justin Bieber drop off my list, while songs from the Chainsmokers/Coldplay, the Pretty Reckless, and Kelsea Ballerini make the biggest jumps (moves of 10+ places highlighted in red ). It's only been 1/4 of the year so far? It feels like a decade! This Week                   Song/Artist (last week's position in parentheses) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Human - Rag N' Bone Man (1) 2. Shape Of You - Ed Sheeran (2) 3. I Feel It Coming - The Weeknd f/Daft Punk (3) 4. Chained To The Rhythm - Katy Perry f/Skip Marley (6) 5. Rockabye - Clean Ban...

" Rub You The Right Way " - Johnny Gill from the album Johnny Gill (1990) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #3 (two weeks) Weeks in the Top-40: 16 Today's song of the day comes from R&B singer Johnny Gill , who had started out as a solo singer as a teenager in the early 80s, releasing a self-titled debut album in 1983 for Cotillion Records. His first single,  the bubbly " Super Love ", reached the top-40 on Billboard 's R&B chart (#29). The following year, he recorded a "duet" album with pre-fame friend Stacy Lattisaw Perfect Combination , which not only reached the albums chart, but landed him his first pop hit single with the title track , which also went all the way to #10 on the R&B list.  Another track from the set, " Block Party ", got them into the club chart at #48. Another solo set, Chemistry , followed, with another R&B top-40 solo hit in the ballad " Half Crazy " (#26). Two years later, in 1987, after t...

It's time to head Down Under to check out the local artists making the charts in Australia this week... On the Australian Artists Singles chart , dance act Pnau remains on top with " Chameleon "... Indie-rock singer/songwriter Amy Shark from Queensland enters at #6 with "Weekends". She's also in the #2 spot with "Shark"... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

" Enjoy The Silence " - Depeche Mode from the album Violator (1990) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #8 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 12 Today's song of the day comes from the British new wave band Depeche Mode , who had proven their popularity in the States with their triumphant sold-out show in the Rose Bowl in 1988, which was documented in their live documentary and album 101 . In the spring of 1990 the first single from their next album, the jump-blues thump of " Personal Jesus ", became their second top-40 pop hit in the U.S., introducing their classic record Violator . The next single from the set would end up being their biggest American success so far, "Enjoy The Silence". Written by Martin Gore and sung by Dave Gahan, it was moody but still joyful synthpop song that was the goth's go-to love song had the dark picture it painted in the lyrics culminate in the chorus "all I ever wanted, all I ever needed was in your arms..."... ...

Here's the top ten hits in Germany this week, according to their official singles chart , as Ed Sheeran remains on top for an eleventh week... 1. " Shape Of You " - Ed Sheeran (1) 2. " Tuesday " - Burak Yeter featuring Danelle Sandoval (3) 3. " It Ain't Me " - Kygo & Selena Gomez (2) 4. " Something Just Like This " - The Chainsmokers & Coldplay (4) 5. "You Don't Know Me" - Jax Jones featuring RAYE (6) 6. " Galway Girl " - Ed Sheeran (5) 7. "Nummer 1" - Zuna featuring Azet & Noizy (DEBUT) 8. " Chained To The Rhythm " - Katy Perry featuring Skip Marley (8) 9. " Castle On The Hill " - Ed Sheeran (7) 10. " Paris " - The Chainsmokers (10) Zuna, a Lebanese-born rap artist who hails from the eastern city of Dresden, scores his first top ten hit at #7 with "Nummer 1" featuring Azet and Noizy... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

" Step By Step " - New Kids On The Block from the album Step By Step (1990) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #1 (three weeks) Weeks in the Top-40: 11 The song of the day from this hump-day comes from the New Kids on the Block , who had dominated the pop market with their legion of tween girls (and a sprinkle of boys) at the end of the 1980's. Their second album Hangin' Tough had spun off five top ten pop hits, and with that momentum they scored two more with a recycled track from their debut album as well as " This One's From The Children " from their Christmas album. After a grueling five months, in the spring of 1990 the guys came back with a new single, "Step By Step". Written and produced by their svengali Maurice Starr, the frenetic disco-style number tried to straddle the line between kiddie-pop innocence and gruffier posturing... "Step By Step" became the New Kids' third and so-far final #1 pop hit in June of 1990. Th...

Here's the top-10 hits in France this week, according to their official singles chart , as Ed Sheeran spends an eleventh week at #1... 1. " Shape Of You " - Ed Sheeran (1) 2. " I Feel It Coming " - The Weeknd featuring Daft Punk (3) 3. " Human " - Rag N' Bone Man (2) 4. " Way Down We Go " - Kaleo (7) 5. " Be Mine " - Oferbach (5) 6. "Despacito" - Luis Fonsi featuring Daddy Yankee (DEBUT) 7. " Chained To The Rhythm " - Katy Perry featuring Skip Marley (10) 8. " Sunset Lover " - Petit Biscuit (6) 9. " Peine & Pitie' " - Vitaa (4) 10. " Je M'en Vais " - Vianney (8) Puerto Rican singer Luis Fonsi climbs into the top 10 with his first chart entry, "Despacito", at #6. It features rapper Daddy Yankee, who had previously gone to #12 with his own " Gasolina " in 2005... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

" Deadbeat Club " - The B-52's  from the album Cosmic Thing (1989) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #30 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 4 Today's song of the day comes from the B-52's , who parlayed their quirky underground fame to pop radio love in 1989 with back-to-back top-3 pop singles in " Love Shack " and " Roam ". The third single from their Cosmic Thing album was the snarky mid-tempo alternative rock of "Deadbeat Club". Written by the band and produced by Nile Rodgers, the single was a cool nostalgic piece for that post-80s generation... "Deadbeat Club" became the third top-40 pop hit from Cosmic Thing in June of 1990. Internationally, the single reached the top-40 in New Zealand (#21) and Canada (#35). (Click below to see the rest of the post)

" Oye Mi Canto (Hear My Voice) " - Gloria Estefan from the album Cuts Both Ways (1989) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #48 This week's "robbed hit" comes from Cuban-American pop star Gloria Estefan , whose first album with solo billing, Cuts Both Ways , had rewarded her with a #1 pop hit with " Don't Wanna Lose You ", along with hit follow-ups " Get On Your Feet " and " Here We Are ". The fourth single from the record brought her back to her pre-pop fame, with the "Spanglish" (part Spanish and part English) single "Oye Mi Canto (Hear My Voice)". Written by Gloria with nominal "Miami Sound Machine" members Clay Ostwald and Jorge Casas, the single dared to stray from the middle-of-the-road path she was taking, and she did have musical "capital" to spend at the time. And the combination of Latin rhythm and house music bass and groove notes add to the freshness of the final track... While...

" Always And Forever " - Whistle from the album Always and Forever (1990) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #35 Weeks in the Top-40: 4 Today's song of the day comes from the group Whistle, who started out as a rap act from Brooklyn in the mid-1980's. Releasing their self-titled debut album in 1986, their first single " Nothing Serious (Just Buggin') ", was a moderately successful R&B hit in the U.S. at #17 and on the dance list at #18, but despite the fact that it missed the pop chart altogether, the single became big overseas, landing at #7 on the British singles chart. Another song from the set, the freestyle/hip-hop mesh of " Barbara's Bedroom ", also made the R&B top-40 at #31. Changing out a couple members to go from a trio to a foursome, they re-emerged as a predominantly singing group on their second effort Transformation , which landed three songs on the R&B chart with the third, the break-up ballad " Right Next To M...

" Getting Away With It " - Electronic from the album Electronic (1991) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #38 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 2 Today's song of the day comes from Electronic, a new-wave "supergroup" led by New Order lead singer Bernard Sumner and the guitarist from the Smiths, Johnny Marr. With the Pet Shop Boys' Neil Tennant also on board, as well as ABC drummer David Palmer, the band recorded a one-off single, "Getting Away With It". Written and produced by Sumner, Marr, and Tennant, and with the Art of Noise's Anne Dudley arranging the lush string section behind the dance track, this was probably the first all-star collaboration I remembered being really excited about on its initial release... "Getting Away With It" became the collective's sole pop hit in the U.S., reaching the top-40 in May of 1990. The single also climbed to #4 on Billboard 's Modern Rock radio chart, while the 12" remixes went to ...

I'm ready to cross the Atlantic yet again to check out the notable songs and albums reaching the official charts in the UK this week... On their singles chart , Ed Sheeran is unstoppable as he holds at #1, #2, and #3 with " Shape Of You ", " Galway Girl ", and " Castle On The Hill ". It's the former's 11th week at the top... Drake's new "playlist" album, More Life , did major bank, with twenty-one tracks debuting on the top 100, and two entering the top-10, "Passionfruit" (#4) and "KMT" (#9), but unlike Sheeran, none of them are on YouTube (which explains also why his are doing much better). The radio single "Fake Love" rebounds to #43 after peaking at #10... Neo-house act Clean Bandit follow up their #1 hit "Rockabye" with the song at #6, "Symphony". It featured Swedish singer Zara Larsson and a powerful music video... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

" I'll Be Your Shelter " - Taylor Dayne from the album Can't Fight Fate (1989) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #4 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 12 Today's song of the day comes from dance-pop singer Taylor Dayne , whose sophomore effort Can't Fight Fate had given her a #1 pop hit with the ballad " Love Will Lead You Back ", along with a top-5 club jam in " With Every Beat Of My Heart ". The third single from the record would be a mid-tempo song with a rock-ish edge, "I'll Be Your Shelter". Written by song doctor supreme Diane Warren, who also penned "Love Will Lead You Back", this release showed a different side to her beside a club diva or balladeer... "I'll Be Your Shelter" became Taylor's seventh consecutive top-10 pop hit in July of 1990. The single also climbed to #15 on Billboard 's Adult Contemporary (or "easy listening") radio chart. Internationally, the song topped th...

Friday's here, and it's time to run down my top 100 tunes from the previous week. Rag N' Bone Man hangs tight for a ninth week on top, while Katy Perry (pictured above) bounds into the top 10. Songs from Imagine Dragons, Cold War Kids, and Kelsea Ballerini make the biggest jumps (moves of 10+ places are highlighted in red ), while former big hits from John Legend, Sia, Joe, and Lukas Graham drop off my list. OK, spring, melt this snow already... This Week          Song/Artist (last week's position in parentheses) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Human - Rag N' Bone Man (1) 2. Shape Of You - Ed Sheeran (2) 3. I Feel It Coming - The Weeknd f/Daft Punk (5) 4. Rockabye - Clean Bandit f/Anne-Marie & Sean Paul (3) 5. Still Breathing - Green Day (6) 6. Chained To The Rhythm - Katy Perry f/Skip Marley (12) 7. Scars To Your Beautiful - Alessia Cara (7) 8. Water U...

" Cruising For Bruising " - Basia from the album London Warsaw New York (1989) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #29 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 4 Today's song of the day comes from Polish jazz-pop singer/songwriter Basia , who had gone solo in the mid-80's from her old band Matt Bianco to find success in the U.S. with her single " Time and Time " in the fall of 1988. A year later, she released her second album, London Warsaw New York , name-checking the capital of her birth country as well as that of her adopted home at the start of her success. The first single from the record was "Cruising For Bruising", written by the singer about the falling out of her romantic relationship with Danny White, who was also her producer and former Matt Bianco bandmate. But the lush mid-tempo number classed up the tears to almost make break-ups seem downright seductive... "Cruising For Bruising" became Basia's second and so-far most recent Am...

It's time to go Down Under to check out the songs and albums from local artists making their way onto the charts in Australia this week... On the Australian Artists Singles chart, dance act Pnau remains on top with " Chameleon "... Brisbane-based indie-pop band Sheppard return at #4 with "Keep Me Crazy". Back in 2014 they had international success with "Geronimo"... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

" Children Of The Night " - Richard Marx from the album Repeat Offender (1989) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #13 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 10 Today's song of the day comes from pop singer/songwriter Richard Marx, whose sophomore album Repeat Offender had racked up four big hits on the American singles chart with " Too Late To Say Goodbye ", " Angelia ", and a pair of #1's with " Satisfied " and " Right Here Waiting ". The fifth single released from the album would be dedicated to runaway and homeless children, "Children Of The Night". Proceeds from the single went toward a Los Angeles charity helping these kids, some of who sang background vocals... "Children Of The Night" became the fifth top-20 pop hit from Repeat Offender in June of 1990. The single also climbed to #6 on Billboard 's Adult Contemporary (or "easy listening") radio chart. Internationally, the song was a minor hi...

Here's the top ten hits in Germany this week, according to their official singles chart , as Ed Sheeran takes a tenth week at #1... 1. " Shape Of You " - Ed Sheeran (1) 2. " It Ain't Me " - Kygo & Selena Gomez (2) 3. " Tuesday " - Burak Yeter featuring Danelle Sandoval (6) 4. " Something Just Like This " - The Chainsmokers & Coldplay (4) 5. " Galway Girl " - Ed Sheeran (8) 6. "You Don't Know Me" - Jax Jones featuring RAYE (DEBUT) 7. " Castle On The Hill " - Ed Sheeran (3) 8. " Chained To The Rhythm " - Katy Perry featuring Skip Marley (7) 9. " I Don't Wanna Live Forever " - Zayn & Taylor Swift (5) 10. " Paris " - The Chainsmokers (9) British DJ/producer Jax Jones climbs into the top ten with "You Don't Know Me" featuring singer RAYE. Jones previously was a featured artist on Duke Dumont's "I Got U", which went to #22...

" Hold On " - En Vogue from the album Born To Sing (1990) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #2 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 17 The song of the day for this "humpday" comes from the vocal group En Vogue , who were put together by the production/songwriting team of Denzil Foster and Thomas McElroy. Foster & McElroy, who had been original members of Club Nouveau, who had scored a #1 hit with their remake of "Lean On Me" in 1987, and even released an album of their own in 1989. But their biggest success was behind the scenes, becoming one of the biggest forces in the new jack swing genre (along with the Teddy Riley/Guy crew). Assembling the four female singers about that same time, Terry Ellis, Dawn Robinson, Cindy Herron, and Maxine Jones could have been strong solo singers in their own right, but put together they were miles above any of the current "girl-groups" of the time. Releasing their debut album, Born To Sing , at the start of the new...

Here's the top ten hits in France this week, according to their official singles chart , as Ed Sheeran makes it to double digits on top... 1. " Shape Of You " - Ed Sheeran (1) 2. " Human " - Rag N' Bone Man (2) 3. " I Feel It Coming " - The Weeknd featuring Daft Punk (4) 4. " Peine & Pitie '" - Vitaa (3) 5. " Be Mine " - Ofenbach (5) 6. " Sunset Lover " - Petit Biscuit (RE-ENTRY) 7. " Way Down We Go " - Kaleo (7) 8. " Je M'en Vais " - Vianney (6) 9. " Rockabye " - Clean Bandit featuring Anne-Marie & Sean Paul (RE-ENTRY) 10. " Chained To The Rhythm " - Katy Perry featuring Skip Marley (9) Further down the chart, rapper Niska from the Parisian suburb of Évry enters the top-40 at #35 with "B.O.C."... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

" Turtle Power " - Partners In Kryme from the album Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Original Soundtrack) (1990) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #13 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 8 Today's song of the day was the theme to the first incarnation of the movie adaptation of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon, which came out in 1990, and ended up making huge bank in the top 10 films of that year. With no major stars and an independent production, the movie ended up reaping over 200 million at the box office. For the big song from the movie, "Turtle Power", two New Yorkers, rapper Richard Usher and DJ James Alpern came together as Partners In Kryme for the single they wrote and produced themselves... "Turtle Power" climbed all the way into the pop top 20 in June of 1990. The single also made it to #23 on Billboard 's R&B chart as well. But as well as it did here (and the album also reached the top-20 on the charts in America), the novel...

" Hurting Kind (I've Got My Eyes On You) " - Robert Plant from the album Manic Nirvana (1990) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #46 This week's "robbed hit" comes from rock legend Robert Plant , who had a rather successful solo career in the 1980's following the disbandment of Led Zeppelin. He racked up four top-20 albums in the U.S. as well as four top-40 solo pop hits (along with a pair from his Honeydrippers project), including the 1988 hit " Tall Cool One ". In 1990, Plant released his fifth album, Manic Nirvana , and the first single from the set, "Hurting Kind (I've Got My Eye On You)", was another loud and rollicking hard rock number written by Plant with his backing bandmates Phil Johnstone, Doug Boyle, Charlie Jones, and Chris Blackwell, and fit in with the pre-grunge rock radio sound of the beginning of the new decade... While "Hurting Kind" climbed all the way to #1 on Billboard magazine's Mainstream R...

" Time After Time " - Timmy T from the album Time After Time (1990) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #40 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 1 Today's song of the day comes from Latin freestyle dance music artist Timmy T (T for Torres), who hails from Fresno, California, where he recorded and independently distributed his first single, "Time After Time". After regional success, Quality Records picked him up nationwide, and dance music stations gave Timmy his first hit single... "Time After Time" became Timmy's first top-40 pop hit in May of 1990. (Click below to see the rest of the post)

" Do You Remember? " - Phil Collins from the album ...But Seriously (1989) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #4 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 13 Today's song of the day comes from Phil Collins , whose fourth solo album apart from Genesis ...But Seriously had scored him a #1 pop hit single with " Another Day In Paradise " as well as a top-5 follow-up in the ballad " I Wish It Would Rain Down ". The third single pulled from the record in America was yet another downtempo track, "Do You Remember?". Written by Collins who produced it with Hugh Padgham, the lyrics portray a guy whose been jilted by the love of his life, while the music video was another cinematic nostalgia concocted for MTV "special presentation" status... In the U.S., "Do You Remember" became the third top-5 hit from ...But Seriously in June of 1990. The single spent five weeks at #1 on Billboard 's Adult Contemporary (or "easy listening"...

It's time to cross the Atlantic yet again to check out the notable songs and albums reaching the charts in the UK this week... On the official singles chart in Britain , with Ed Sheeran claiming nine of the top ten spots, and " Shape Of You " at #1 for a tenth consecutive week... Pop vocal group Steps reunite at #37 with their new single, "Scared Of The Dark". It's the first single from their much-anticipated first full non-seasonal album since 2000's Buzz . The last time they were in the top-40 in the UK was in 2001 with " Words Are Not Enough "/" I Know Him So Well ", the last in their string of 14 top-10 hits... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

" I'll See You In My Dreams " - Giant from the album Last Of the Runaways (1989) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #20 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 8 Today's song of the day comes from the hard rock band Giant, who came together in the mid-80s under two brothers, Dann and David Huff, who were Christian rock artists originally in the band White Heart at the beginning of the decade. With keyboardist Alan Pasqua and bass player Mike Brignardello, the Nashville-based group released their debut album Last Of The Runaways in 1989. The first single from the album, " I'm A Believer " was I guess a pun on their religious background, since it was by far not that but a raucous womanizing glam-metal-ish number, and it climbed to #13 on Billboard 's Mainstream Rock radio chart and #56 on the American pop Hot 100. They followed with " Innocent Days ", which came across like a Richard Marx outtake, which missed the pop chart but did do a little better...

Friday's here, and it's time to run down my top 100 tunes from the previous week. Rag N' Bone Man's "Human" reigns for an eighth week, while the Weeknd (pictured above) climbs into the top-5. Former big hits from blink-182, Mary J. Blige, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, DNCE, and k. flay drop off my list, while songs from twenty-one pilots, Bruno Mars, and LP make the biggest jumps (moves of 10+ places highlighted in red ). Erin Go Bragh! This Week              Song/Artist (last week's position in parentheses) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Human - Rag N' Bone Man (1) 2. Shape Of You - Ed Sheeran (3) 3. Rockabye - Clean Bandit f/Anne-Marie & Sean Paul (2) 4. Better Man - Little Big Town (5) 5. I Feel It Coming - The Weeknd f/Daft Punk (7) 6. Still Breathing - Green Day (5) 7. Scars To Your Beautiful - Alessia Cara (4) 8. Water Under The Bri...