The History Of Pop Part 38 aka My baby's got no money, he's got his true belief

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

The last of 1997, and if you think some of the big hits are being held over until next time...you'd be right. But the nation was in NO MOOD for pop party fun as - sob! bawl! - DI DIED, and weren't we all glad that Sir Richard Ashcroft was there to help us through it. There's no sign of Elton on this Now, by the way, even though he bossed the charts - to sully such a beautiful track by including it on a compilation would of course be unthinkable, so you'll have to save your ticks.

Hanson's "Mmmmbop" won Now 37 at a canter, after tying with the Spice Girls for a long time. The Cardigans ended up in third. And now, over to you lot.


[Poll #713593]


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Comments

[awesomewells.livejournal.com]

MY PRINCE HAS GOT NO MOTHER, HE'S GOT HIS STRONG BELIEFS.

Ahem.

Gala is the best thing on here, although that All Saints single is terrific. Better than the Spice Girls one (shark-jumping moment right here).

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

Yellow man in Timbuktu
Colourful both me and you

Oh dear Geri. I still love it though.

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

i always thought it was 'Colour phobos me and you' - granted this makes not an lick of sense

[mostlyconnect.livejournal.com]

I don't understand the lyrics to freed from desire actually! Like, if his strong beliefs are so great, why is she freed from desire at all?

[awesomewells.livejournal.com]

It's about a eunuch.

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

In Goa.

[jauntyalan.livejournal.com]

he's got his strong valise

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

is there a whip in it?

[byebyepride.livejournal.com]

He is so holy that he has purified himself of all desire. It is an holy song.

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

No, 'Viva Forever' and 'Stop' are around the corner!

All Saints' real peak also still in The Future, 'I Know Where It's At' is vg but the sound of a group yet to find their real forte ('Never Ever' and 'Black Coffee').

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

"I Know Where It's At" is them being The Next Spice Girls and doing it very well - they hadn't found their voice yet but let's not forget that voice also brought us "Booty Call" and "Under The Bridge".

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

I love both of those! I like basically ever All Saints single without exception (unless they went crap right at the end and I don't remember cos it's not on the Greatest Hits).

I don't know why I typed 'forte' when I clearly meant 'voice', yes I agree about this being them on a Next Spice Girls tip.

[awesomewells.livejournal.com]

Also that All Saints record is the SHINING LIGHT in the Terrible State Of Pop because it paved the way for Actual Chart Pop It's Okay To Like that made the Sugababes possible (and the re-emergence of Kylie).

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

Yes I remember they positioned themselves as 'credible' in relation to Spice Girls, then again East 17 did that wrt Take That and, well, yeah.

Re-emergence of Kylie how, though? Sugababes definitely daughters-of-Shaznay, but I think Kylie's disco relaunch was something rather different.

BACKSTREET BOYS are an elephant in this pop-room! 'As Long As You Love Me' is one of their standards but people are skirting around it.

DAUGHTERS OF SHAZNAY

[katstevens.livejournal.com]

So who is the SON OF ROBBIE?

[awesomewells.livejournal.com]

Yes Kylie was different but this has less do with what the music sounded like and more to do with whether people were willing to take it seriously. It seemed like there was a sea-change in attitudes towards pop that started with All Saints that meant people who would never have admitted to liking the Spice Girls were able to go "hang on, this is great" to later stuff. Which meant Kylie could finally become credible doing PROPER DISCO POP rather than through appearing on Nick Cave albums.

(It's not immediate, of course, didn't that Impossible Princess album flop?)

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

This is a BAD THING though! Inasmuch as both All Saints and Sugababes were justified in an "Oh they're different though, they write their own songs" way, they allow for the position (much taken in my experience) that they're great despite being Actual Pop. cf "Back For Good" which everyone agreed was a Great Song as they queued up for their copies of Mosely Shoals.

Whereas the Spice Girls - who were *very* widely liked, if not among students - couldn't be admired in that way, and nor could DiscoKylie.

[(Anonymous)]

Where does "We like this because Kara DioGuardi wrote it" fit in?

Inquisitive Spice

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

my fave All Saints single is one of their last ones (War Of Teh NervXors)

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

Oh yes that one is lush and gorgeous. Surely there was a 2-step rmx of it?

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

All Saints/Spice Girls would make good choices for the Canon!

[katstevens.livejournal.com]

Dude we had Spice Girls the other week!

[plumsbitch.livejournal.com]

Thank god for The Spice Girls/All Saints being around the corner.

I was losing the will to live.

[boyofbadgers.livejournal.com]

I never much liked Never Ever, but Black Coffee is obv aces.

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

'Never Ever' is really divisive, I think, I know a few people who absolutely loathe it (the weird submissive-needy narrative) but I think it's perfect in every way (for possibly the same reasons).