Twostepcublog

    " Don't Cry For Me Argentina " - Madonna from the album Evita (Original Soundtrack) (1996) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #8 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 7 Today's song of the day is from Madonna , whose starring turn in the film adaptation of the Broadway musical Evita had gotta rave reviews and the best audience reception of any of her movies to date. The "new" song added to the work, " You Must Love Me ", which was released as the first single, had reached the top-20 on the American pop chart in the fall of 1996, as well as gifting the film with an Oscar and a Golden Globe for Best Original Song and soundtrack, respectively. To follow that up, Madonna released the most well-known song from the show, the climactic "Don't Cry For Me Argentina", written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice. Released as a CD and cassette single with remixes for the dancefloor, the sales for this were through the roof, with radio preferring the dance ...

Friday's here, and it's time to run down my top 100 "hit" tunes from the previous week. Taylor Swift claims a fourth week at #1, while Lana Del Rey (pictured above) takes her Sublime cover into the top ten. Former big hits from Kane Brown, Lee Brice, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike, and Maddie Poppe drop off my chart, while songs from Rob Thomas, Keith Urban, and Pink make the biggest jumps (moves of 10+ places highlighted in red ). Happy Friday the 13th mwahahaha! This Week              Song/Artist (last week's position in parentheses) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. You Need To Calm Down - Taylor Swift (1) 2. Alligator - Of Monsters And Men (3) 3. Bad Guy - Billie Eilish (2) 4. Truth Hurts - Lizzo (6) 5. Talk - Khalid (5) 6. Hey Look Ma, I Made It - Panic! At The Disco (4) 7. Someone You Loved - Lewis Capaldi (7) 8. Senorita - Shawn Mende...

" I'm The Only One " - Melissa Etheridge from the album Yes I Am (1993) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #8 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 29 Today's song of the day comes from rock singer/songwriter Melissa Etheridge , who got her big pop breakthrough in the summer of 1994 with the Grammy-winning song " Come To My Window ". That track was actually the second single promoted to rock radio, so with the success of that, Etheridge re-released the first, "I'm The Only One", to mainstream pop stations, and by this time, they were ready. Not even a flinch was given to her coming out of the closet back in 1993, and finally a woman's voice is back on roots rock radio with the biggest hit of her career... "I'm Not The Only One" became Melissa's second top-40 hit and sole entry to reach the top ten in January of 1995. Besides going to #10 on the Mainstream Rock radio chart in Billboard , the song spent two weeks at #1 on their...

Friday's here, and it's time to run down my top 100 "hit"* tunes from the previous week. Scottish newcomer Lewis Capaldi takes over at #1, while the Lumineers (pictured above) make a giant leap into the top ten. Songs from Katy Perry, AJR, and Maddie Poppe make some of the biggest jumps (moves of 10+ places highlighted in red ), while former big hits from Imagine Dragons, Calvin Harris/Rag N' Bone Man, Old Dominion, Sigrid, Scotty McCreery, Jade Starling, and Oliver Heldens drop out. Happy Pride Weekend, New York! *generally meaning making the top-15 on the Hot 100, top-30 on the Adult Top-40 chart, top-20 on the Country Airplay and Dance Club Play charts, top-10 on the Rock Airplay, Alternative, Triple A, Dance Airplay, British singles and British Radio Airplay charts, and top-5 on the Mainstream Rock and Adult R&B charts, and #1 on the Adult Contemporary and R&B/Hip Hop Airplay charts. This Week             Song...

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 , Puerto Rican singer Luis Fonsi and rapper Daddy Yankee spend a second week on top with " Despacito " featuring Justin Bieber... Miley Cyrus is back with the highest debut of the week at #11 with "Malibu". It previews her upcoming sixth album... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

Let's head across the Atlantic one more time to check out the notable songs and albums reaching the chart in the UK this week... On the official singles chart in Britain , Clean Bandit releases its hold on #1 after one week as another song takes over. This time, it's DJ/producer DJ Khaled, as he lands his first chart-topping hit in this country with "I'm The One", featuring Justin Bieber along with rappers Quavo (from Migos), Chance the Rapper, and Lil' Wayne. It's only his second time in the top-40; last year he peaked at #25 with " For Free " with Drake... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

" Cold Hearted " - Paula Abdul from the album Forever Your Girl (1988) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #1 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 15 Today's song of the day is from dancer/singer Paula Abdul , who had finally made her mark on the American music world with the third single from her debut album, " Straight Up ", followed by the title track to Forever Your Girl , both reaching #1 on Billboard 's Hot 100 pop chart. Her next single from the record was the slinky and seductive cattiness of "Cold Hearted". Written by producer Elliot Wolff, the song's video had Paula and a gaggle of dancers perform for record company execs (possibly a throwback to Paula's work as a choreographer before her own fame). And the mid-track rap interlude is a drag queen's graduation test... "Cold Hearted" became Paula's third consecutive #1 pop hit in the U.S. in September of 1989. The 12" remixed version climbed to #19 on Billboard ...

Friday's here, and it's time to run down my top 100 tunes from the previous week. Justin Timberlake takes over on top, while the Red Hot Chili Peppers (pictured above) leap into the top-10. Songs from KUNGS/Cookin' On 3 Burners, Florida Georgia Line, and Guordan Banks make the biggest jumps (moves of 10+ places highlighted in red ), while former big hits from the Struts, Philip George/Dragonette, Meghan Trainor, and Lalah Hathaway drop out of my list. Good luck, Bennet! This Week       Song/Artist (last week's position in parentheses) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Can't Stop The Feeling! - Justin Timberlake (2) 2. Ophelia - The Lumineers (3) 3. Cake By The Ocean - DNCE (1) 4. Dark Necessities - Red Hot Chili Peppers (12) 5. Cheap Thrills - Sia f/Sean Paul (9) 6.  7 Years - Lukas Graham (4) 7. T-Shirt - Thomas Rhett (5) 8. Ride - twenty-one pilots (6) 9. Send My Love (To...

Friday's here, and it's time to run down my top 100 tunes from the week. DNCE takes a second turn on top, while Justin Timberlake (pictured above) dances into the top 5. Songs from Alex Newell, blink-182, and OneRepublic make some of the biggest jumps (moves of 10+ places highlighted in red ), while former big hits from Rascal Flatts and Matt Simons drop out. Happy birthday, Christopher! This Week          Song/Artist (last week's position in parentheses) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Cake By The Ocean - DNCE (1) 2. 7 Years - Lukas Graham (2) 3. Spirits - The Strumbellas (3) 4. Can't Stop The Feeling! - Justin Timberlake (8) 5. Ophelia - The Lumineers (5) 6. Ride - twenty-one pilots (4) 7. T-Shirt - Thomas Rhett (9) 8. I Took A Pill In Ibiza - Mike Posner (10) 9. Never Forget You - Zara Larsson & MNEK (12) 10. Off The Ground - The Record Company (11) 11. P...

Friday's here, and it's time to run down my top 100 tunes from the previous week. I have a new #1 song with Joe Jonas' DNCE project, while the Strumbellas (pictured above) take their first hit to the top-3. Former big hits from James Bay, Elle King, and Troye Sivan drop off my chart, while songs from blink-182, OneRepublic, and Justin Timberlake make the biggest jumps (moves of 10+ places highlighted in red ). Happy birthday, lil' nugget (and lil' older nugget...) This week         Song/Artist (last week's position in parentheses) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Cake By The Ocean - DNCE (2) 2. 7 Years - Lukas Graham (1) 3. Spirits - The Strumbellas (5) 4. Ride - twenty-one pilots (4) 5. Ophelia - The Lumineers (7) 6. Something In The Way You Move - Ellie Goulding (6) 7. Piece By Piece - Kelly Clarkson (3) 8. Can't Stop The Feeling! - Justin Timberlake (28) 9. T-Shirt - Thomas...

Let's wrap up the last of this week's 'music sweeps', checking out the songs making their debut on the various charts in Billboard magazine , with the latest dance jams in the clubs and on the radio... On the DJ-polled Dance Club Songs chart, house music legend Stonebridge makes it to #1 with " If You Like It " featuring Elsa Li Jones... Malaysian "J-pop" singer Che'nelle has her first club hit in the States with "Strut (Fierce)" at #43. Grade: B (Click below to see the rest of the post)

" (I've Had) The Time Of My Life " - Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes from the album Dirty Dancing (Original Soundtrack) (1987) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #1 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 15 Today's SOTD comes from the pairing of two veteran singers for a movie about a summer resort in the 60s, Dirty Dancing . Starring newcomers Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey along with stage veteran Jerry Orbach, the film had a makeshift Romeo/Juliet-style romance with class warfare and generation-gap conflict. It ended up an unexpected success, eventually raking in over 200 million dollars (for a movie that cost under 10 mil). Amongst the oldies commissioned for the soundtrack was the love theme, "(I've Had) The Time Of My Life", written by Franke Previte (of the rock band Franke & The Knockouts) along with John Dinicola and Donald Markowitz. Recruited to record the song was Bill Medley, formerly one-half of the 60s pop duo the Righteous Brothers, and sof...

" Bad " - Michael Jackson from the album Bad (1987) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #1 (two weeks) Weeks in the Top-40: 11 Today's SOTD is by the King of Pop himself, Michael Jackson , who previewed his seventh solo studio album Bad with the soft ballad " I Just Can't Stop Loving You ". Although that song raced to the top of the pop charts, interest faded quickly in favor of the just-released title track, which was much more upbeat and in-your-face in attitude. And in true Jackson fashion the music video was a spectacle, with the original 15 minute mini-movie directed by Martin Scorcese (whose full-length film The Color of Money came out that year as well) and featuring Wesley Snipes condensed for repeated MTV play... "Bad" climbed to the #1 spot in America in October of 1987, earning Michael his seventh pop chart-topper. The single also went to the top of the R&B chart in Billboard magazine, while the extended remix did the same on t...

Friday is here, and I'm ready to run down my top 100 tunes from the previous week. Andy Grammer hangs in at #1 for a second week, while the Weeknd (pictured above) slides into my top-5. Former big hits from Imagine Dragons, Calvin Harris/Ellie Goulding, Salt Ashes, and Cole Swindell drop off my list, while songs from Duke Dumont, Axwell & Ingrosso, and Little Big Town make the biggest jumps (moves of 10+ places highlighted in red ). This Week                 Song/Artist (last week's position in parentheses) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Honey, I'm Good. - Andy Grammer (1) 2. Believe - Mumford & Sons (4) 3. Shut Up And Dance - Walk The Moon (3) 4. Love Me Like You Do - Ellie Goulding (2) 5. Earned It - The Weeknd (7) 6. Style - Taylor Swift (5) 7. Congregation - Foo Fighters (8) 8. Lay Me Down - Sam Smith (6) 9. Hollow Moo...

Friday is here, and it's time to run down my top 100 tunes from the previous week. This week Ellie Goulding spends a second week at #1, while Sam Smith (pictured above) moves into the top-5 with his third single. Former big hits from Sheppard, Joe Bermudez, Lilly Wood & The Prick, and Sam Smith drop off the list, while songs from Carrie Underwood, Dirty Disco, and Meghan Trainor make the biggest jumps (moves of 10+ places highlighted in red )... This Week                 Song/Artist (last week's position in parentheses) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Love Me Like You Do - Ellie Goulding (1) 2. Honey, I'm Good. - Andy Grammer (4) 3. Shut Up And Dance - Walk The Moon (2) 4. Lay Me Down - Sam Smith (6) 5. Style - Taylor Swift (5) 6. Believe - Mumford & Sons (8) 7. Sugar - Maroon 5 (3) 8. Thinking Out Loud - Ed Sheeran (7) 9. ...

The weekend is coming to a close, and it's time to check out the songs making their debut on the official singles chart in the UK this week, as OMI spends a second week at #1 with " Cheerleader "... The top debut of the week comes from British neo-house duo Blonde, as their former " Song You Should Know About " on my blog becomes their second top-10 hit and highest rank to date as "All Cried Out" enters at #4. The song features vocals from former Glee star Alex Newell, who played the transgender "Unique" on the show, and it's my " Brit Pick of the Week "... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

Today's SYSKA comes from British neo-house band Clean Bandit , who ruled the airwaves in England and America with their Grammy-winning jam " Rather Be ". Since then, they've had two more top-ten hits in the UK, but haven't yet been able to repeat in America. There's new hope with their winning set at the Coachella Festival, which included their new single, "Stronger". Originally an album cut featuring Years & Years singer Olly Alexander (who pulls a decent performance himself), the group redid the track with new vocals from Glee cast member Alex Newell and Sean Bass. Alex may not appear in the very entertaining video, but his vocal fireworks on the chorus are unmistakeable. And the positive-vibe lyrics remind me of the glee (NPI) I felt with "Rather Be"... You can pick up the new version of "Stronger" on Amazon MP3 by clicking here , or on iTunes...

Today's Song You Should Know About is by the British neo-house duo Blonde , who scored a top-10 hit in England last year with " I Loved You ". Adam Englefield and Jacob Manson are back with a new track featuring former Glee cast member Alex Newell, who proves this year he may very well have the best voice in the whole show. With turns on Clean Bandit's "Stronger" and his own remake of "Show Me Love", the new single, "All Cried Out" should follow the former into the British top ten. This would've killed on the dance floor in Chicago in 1986 just like it should be here today... You can pre-order "All Cried Out" on AmazonMP3 by clicking here , or on iTunes (it arrives in the States on May 5)...

It's time to check out the songs making their debut on the official singles chart in Britain this week, as Wiz Khalifa spends a second week at #1 with " See You Again "... British neo-house act Clean Bandit have the highest new entry as "Stronger", my " Brit Pick of the Week " arrives at #4. Alex Newell from Glee sings on this record along with Sean Bass. It's their fourth top-5 hit; the classic " Rather Be " went to #1 for four weeks here... (Click below to see the rest of the post)

Part Two of this week's "album sweep" is here, sampling the records making their debut on the Top Album Sales chart in Billboard magazine. You can check out part one by clicking here , and as before I've included highlighted links to buy any of the new sets when possible... Pastor Charles Jenkins and his Fellowship Chicago rise to #43 with Any Given Sunday ... (Click below to see the rest of the post)