5 April 1990 In the absence of Bela from Fair City and Tadhg from Ros na Rún duetting on 'Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now', we have this. Soap stars becoming pop stars were a common feature in the singles charts by now, so it was a promotional no-brainer that the Irish soaps would follow suit. … Continue reading Mick Lally – ‘The Byroad To Glenroe’
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Jive Bunny and the Mastermixers – ‘That Sounds Good To Me’
22 March 1990 You're kidding, right? The Berlin Wall had fallen, Nelson Mandela was free, but we still have Jive Bunny records at number one? So much for the end of history. Wait: it gets worse. Amazingly, the sweatshop owners behind this wretched enterprise have found the formula to make a Jive Bunny single that … Continue reading Jive Bunny and the Mastermixers – ‘That Sounds Good To Me’
Various Artists – ‘The Brits 1990 (Dance Medley)’
15 March 1990 Like that Internet meme of Stephen Rea with his notebook out, I'm taking names for the Castle: who in Ireland in St Patrick's Day week in the year of our lord 19-Italia-90 was buying a record called 'The Brits'? Anyway, this was a compilation of snippets of well-known recent dance singles to … Continue reading Various Artists – ‘The Brits 1990 (Dance Medley)’
The B-52s – ‘Love Shack’
8 March 1990 Firstly and most importantly, I'm relieved to see that, as per their official website, this band have finally dropped the grammatically-incorrect possessive apostrophe from their name. If the outlaw glamour of sticking it to the punctuation police is how you roll, you can still savour their original name styling on the 'Love … Continue reading The B-52s – ‘Love Shack’
Sinéad O’Connor – ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’
25 January 1990 You know in the video for 'Nothing Compares 2 U' where Sinéad O'Connor is walking in a park? That's the Parc de Saint-Cloud on the edge of Paris; for most of my eight years in Paris I lived near there. It has two front fields right on the bank of the Seine … Continue reading Sinéad O’Connor – ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’
New Kids On The Block – ‘Hangin’ Tough’
18 January 1990 The first new Irish and UK number one of the '90s ushers in the era of the boyband. New Kids On The Block beget Take That, who beget Boyzone, who beget Westlife, each also spawning their own local pretenders and chancers. Thanks Donnie, Danny, Dinny and the other two! NKOTB's hits were … Continue reading New Kids On The Block – ‘Hangin’ Tough’
Band Aid II – ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’
14 December 1989 Only two singers appear on both the original 1984 Band Aid and the 1989 Band Aid II: Sara Dallin and Keren Woodward of Bananarama. Looking around the room in 1984 they would have seen hi-wattage superstars like George Michael, Boy George, Simon Le Bon, Sting and Bono. In 1989 the ambient light … Continue reading Band Aid II – ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’
Jason Donovan – ‘When You Come Back To Me’
7 December 1989 No surprise that one half of 'Especially For You', our first chart-topper of 1989, goes on to be Ireland's favourite pop star that year; the only surprise was which half. Yes, this is Jason's fifth Irish number one single in 1989, far more than Kylie or anyone else. 'When You Come Back … Continue reading Jason Donovan – ‘When You Come Back To Me’
Linda Ronstadt ft. Aaron Neville – ‘Don’t Know Much’
16 November 1989 I know now about Linda Ronstadt's '70s back catalogue of Laurel Canyon-style country rock, and about Aaron Neville's R&B vocal harmonies with his brothers Gary and Phil. At the time, though, to young me these were just two random middle-aged people with yet another schmaltzy romantic ballad that seemed to be played … Continue reading Linda Ronstadt ft. Aaron Neville – ‘Don’t Know Much’
Kylie Minogue – ‘Never Too Late’
9 November 1989 Spoiler alert: Kylie goes on to have an eclectic '90s, a triumphant '00s, and pop icon status ever since. Even so, and knowing all that, I listen to 'Never Too Late' and start to wonder if she's even going to be around until the end of the record. I also wonder if … Continue reading Kylie Minogue – ‘Never Too Late’
