Charting 1997: 4th October

Some big names this week, and even a couple of climbers. No change at the top of course.

01. (1) Elton John - Something About The Way You Look/Candle In The Wind
In percentage, or indeed nominal, terms there was a big sales decrease from the previous week, but it was still in seven figures, and demand was still at least keeping pace with supply if not outstripping it. 
02.(NE) Oasis - Stand By Me
The week's biggest new single and a big seller by most standards at 137,000, but obviously no match for Elton. Ironically, it's probably the most loved of the three singles from Be Here Now but the only one not to top the chart.
03. (2) Dario G - Sunchyme
Actually sold more this week than last, but was still overtaken by Oasis.
04.(NE) Louise - Arms Around The World
Launching her second album with her highest chart peak to date on a song where somebody's pressed the button marked "ethnic" on a synthesiser. 
05. (3) Chumbawamba - Tubthumping
06.(NE) Janet Jackson - Got 'Til It's Gone ft Q-Tip And Joni Mitchell
Joni's second singles chart appearance comes via a sample of her first ('Big Yellow Taxi' of course). I always thought this record was a bit of a mess but then I've never got what the fuss was about with Janet Jackson.
07.(NE) U2 - Please
It only seems like a couple of weeks since 'Last Night On Earth', but here's the fourth single from Pop, a song about the Northern Ireland peace process. Yep, Bono's saving the world again. 
08.(NE) M People - Just For You
Another big comeback act. I actually thought this was an OK single, atypically subtle. 
09. (5) Will Smith - Men In Black
10. (4) The Verve - The Drugs Don't Work
11. (9) Tina Moore - Never Gonna Let You Go
12. (8) Bellini - Samba De Janeiro
13.(NE) 2 Eivissa - Oh La La La
Dance record sampling 'Gypsy Woman'. I suppose it had to happen. 
14.(13) Sly And Robbie - Night Nurse ft Simply Red
15. (7) Blackstreet - Fix
16.(NE) No Doubt - Spiderwebs
Their third UK hit, which I'd totally forgotten about. Mind you, I don't remember hearing much of it at the time either, I think it was selling on reflected glory. It does mean that this Top 40 features alumni of both my primary and secondary schools. 
17.(10) Ricky Martin - (Un, Dos, Tres) Maria
18.(12) Puff Daddy And Faith Evans - I'll Be Missing You
19. (6) George Michael - You Have Been Loved
20.(11) Hanson - Where's The Love
21.(16) Boyz II Men - 4 Seasons Of Loneliness
22.(NE) The Rolling Stones - Anybody Seen My Baby?
The first single from their last album of the century, Bridges To Babylon. The chorus is so similar to kd lang's 'Constant Craving' that she (and co-writer Ben Mink) get a credit and share of the royalties. It also features former Beach Boy Blondie Chaplin on backing vocals and percussion. Still not really any good though.
23.(NE) Pixies - Debaser
Reaching their highest chart position five years after they'd split (and another five or six before they reunited).  This was a belated single release of the opening track from their 1989 album Bossanova, promoting a best-of compilation. Each of the three formats lead with a different version of 'Debaser' itself - a radio mix on one CD, a live version on the other and a demo on the 7".
24.(NE) House Traffic - Every Day Of My Life
Italian house music. You kind of know what to expect.
25.(18) Mariah Carey - Honey
26.(17) All Saints - I Know Where It's At
27.(NE) Super Furry Animals - Play It Cool

I'm not making a point of embedding all the Super Furries videos, but this one is so brilliant I couldn't resist it. The track itself isn't their best to be honest, although it's re-recorded from the album version. I still bought it on 7" in a poster-bag sleeve.
28.(NE) Sleeper - She's A Good Girl
The comeback lead single from their third album which was probably expected to be a lot bigger. It's not bad - and it's certainly better than that weird soap about a female rock band that Louise Wener's had on Radio 2 this week in 2012 - but people were obviously starting to lose interest. Many of the other Britpop acts were about to find themselves in the same position. 
29.(35) Chris De Burgh - So Beautiful
Creeping into the (singles) Top 30 for only the fourth time in his career, though two of the others had made the Top 3.
30.(NE) Daft Punk - Burnin'
The point where they crossed the line from exciting dance music to sounding like a fire alarm. 
31.(19) Mark Morrison - Who's The Mack!
32.(24) Gala - Freed From Desire
33.(37) Third Eye Blind - Semi-Charmed Life
Unusual for a single to climb from such a low entry in those days.
34.(NE) Mrs Wood - Joanna {1997 mix}
Remix of a Number 40 from two years earlier. She was really called Jane Rolink, I don't know whether there was a Mr Wood.
35.(34) Shola Ama - You're The One I Love
36.(20) Adam F - Circles
37.(32) DJ Quicksilver - Free
38.(30) Backstreet Boys - Everybody (Backstreet's Back)
39.(31) The Sundays - Summertime
40.(14) Robbie Williams - South Of The Border

54.(NE) Rangers FC - Glasgow Rangers (Nine In A Row)
How times have changed.
58.(NE) Pierre Henry And Michel Colombier - Psyche Rock

62.(NE) T2 - You Got The Love ft Robin S
Apparently not the same song as the Candi Staton/Source one.
63.(NE) Mint Condition - Let Me Be The One
64.(NE) Black Science Orchestra Vs Lisa Stansfield - The Line/D Disco
Another remix granted her a fourth chart single of the year. 
68.(NE) Rootjoose - Long Way

Charting 1997: 27th September

01. (1) Elton John - Something About The Way You Look/Candle In The Wind
Its first full week of sales and the biggest weekly sale in UK chart history: 1,546,688.
02.(NE) Dario G - Sunchyme
As a result, this record holds the unenviable record for biggest ever losing margin by a Number 2 single; it "only" sold about 86000. I was never a fan but I can deny it made its mark - if you're trying to remember it, it's the dance track that samples 'Life In A Northern Town' by Dream Academy.
03. (5) Chumbawamba - Tubthumping
04. (3) The Verve - The Drugs Don't Work
05. (4) Will Smith - Men In Black
06. (2) George Michael - You Have Been Loved
07.(NE) Blackstreet - Fix
Not one I remember at all from the time, but it proves to be a soul-rock-rap crossover featuring Ol' Dirty Bastard and Slash. Despite that it's actually not bad, although one of Blackstreet keeps shouting over it annoyingly.
08.(NE) Bellini - Samba De Janeiro
Very much the era of the vaguely Latin dance track.
09.(12) Tina Moore - Never Gonna Let You Go
10. (6) Ricky Martin - (Un, Dos, Tres) Maria
11. (7) Hanson - Where's The Love
12.(11) Puff Daddy And Faith Evans - I'll Be Missing You
13.(14) Sly And Robbie - Night Nurse ft Simply Red
Not sure why this climbed. It hadn't got any better.
14.(NE) Robbie Williams - South Of The Border
Missing the Top 10 for the first time in his solo career (and the last time until 2006) with this poor-even-by-his-standards Oasis pastiche. The title would fit neatly with the Bellini song were it not blatantly about blowjobs.
15.(NE) Blur - MOR

Also the end to a long run of Top 10s: their previous seven singles had got there and only one missed the Top 5. That's despite this being heavily re-worked from the album version - though confusingly, the video is cut to the US single version, which is different again. The original idea for the video was for the stuntmen to be wearing realistic masks of the band members, but apparently when they arrived on set they were so unconvincing they had to be covered by balaclavas, which rather ruined the concept. I still like it though. 
Though not Blur's biggest hit, it did attract attention from lawyers for David Bowie and Brian Eno, who pointed out that the composition is not entirely unlike 'Boys Keep Swinging' and resulted in a change to the writing credit.
16.(10) Boyz II Men - 4 Seasons Of Loneliness
17. (9) All Saints - I Know Where It's At
18.(16) Mariah Carey - Honey
19.(13) Mark Morrison - Who's The Mack!
20.(NE) Adam F - Circles
Alvin Stardust's son with a dance track I actually do remember from the time. It's aged pretty well, better in my opinion than all the shouty rap records he made a few years later.
21.(NE) Brownstone - Kiss And Tell
This week's forgotten RnB girlgroup hit..
22.(NE) Joe - The Love Scene
...And this week's forgotten RnB loverman hit. Ever consider a more exciting stage name?
23.(19) N-Tyce - We Come To Party
24.(20) Gala - Freed From Desire
25.(NE) Wyclef Jean - Guantanamera ft Refugee Allstars
I'm not sure whether the Refugee Allstars actually existed or were just a subtle way to remind you which band Wyclef and Lauryn Hill came from, but either way his second solo hit was a version of the Cuban song known to football fans as 'There's only one [insert name here]'.
26. (8) Portishead - All Mine
27.(25) Finley Quaye - Even After All
28.(NE) TJR - Just Gets Better ft Xavier
Another anonymous dance act, but an OK song. 
29.(NE) Genesis - Congo
Their first single since the departure of Phil Collins. The two remaining original members recruited replacement singer Ray Wilson, previously of chart-topping grunge cash-in act Stiltskin, though he wasn't granted full band membership. I presume they brought in a new drummer too, but nobody ever mentions him.
Either way, this was the only Top 40 hit by this incarnation of the act, and the album performed poorly, particularly in America (it had entered at 2 here but tailed off fast) so they called it a day. They did of course reconvene a decade later with Collins for a tour but no more new material.
30.(27) Backstreet Boys - Everybody (Backstreet's Back)
31.(15) The Sundays - Summertime
32.(23) DJ Quicksilver - Free
33.(24) Cast - Live The Dream
34.(26) Shola Ama - You're The One I Love
35.(NE) Chris De Burgh - So Beautiful
His last Top 40 single, barring a guest vocal on a charity single at the back end of 2010.
36.(29) Dannii Minogue - All I Wanna Do
37.(NE) Third Eye Blind - Semi-Charmed Life
One of those irritating US frat-boy hits that would make minor but persistent incursions to the UK chart around this time.
38.(28) The Notorious BIG - Mo Money Mo Problems
39.(36) Meredith Brooks - Bitch
40.(18) Jaydee - Plastic Dreams

44.(NE) Eat Static - Interceptor
46.(NE) Fluke - Squirt
48.(NE) Vicki Sue Robinson - House Of Joy
50.(NE) Mike Scott - Love Anyway
During the brief period when the only constant member of the Waterboys wasn't using the name. You can tell he wasn't keen on making videos.
55.(NE) Savage Garden - To The Moon And Back
For a while they looked like one-hit-wonders. We should have enjoyed it while it lasted.
61.(NE) JDS - Nine Ways
65.(NE) Niagra - Cloudburst

68.(NE) Freakyman - Discobug '97
69.(NE) The Adventures Of Stevie V - Dirty Ca$h {1997 remix}
Good song, poor mix. Can't remember whether there was any good reason for this.
74.(NE) China Drum - Somewhere Else