Have you ever wondered what the Australian charts would look like if you were to combine the AMR charts with the ARIA charts? Between 1993 to 2007, a group of music historians did just that on their website known as Oz net music charts which sadly went defunct in 2008 due to ARIA completely taking over the music charts (although this was nine years after David Kent stopped releasing his charts publicly.) You can access the site through here to see what our music landscape would look like had ARIA not parted ways with David Kent throughout most of the 90's and 00's.
In honour of this site's achievements, I've decided to rank the biggest hits of this time period according to their charts (although I won't include songs from 2006 and 2007 as they would dominate the upper regions of this list and have also seen representation on my digital lists for the 00's.) As usual, I won't be making any new commentary here as there's nothing more, I can add to each of these entries I didn't cover when looking at them previously on this site. Also, this will differ from the site's official recap as A: they didn't update it after mid-2002 and B: it only covered songs popularity while they were in the top ten.
For the longest time, this was the best charting song in Australia given how it slowly but surely managed to win over every possible demographic in our music scene during its time in the spotlight. I guess it started off as a fan favourite from the alternative scene before getting massive appeal from the dance floors before finally finding its way into several commercials for more mainstream audiences.
#3 for 1997 website
This was the debut single for the very first band to be "unearthed" by Triple J, the band in question would go on to see several ups and downs in their career mainly due to the antics of their frontman Daniel Johns, however they do remain one of the more fondly remembered Australian bands to emerge from the decade for a good reason.
#3 for 1994 website
#17 for 1995 website
While I can't say that I've ever particularly cared for this remix of the 1983 hip hop classic from Run DMC by Jason Nevins, I will admit that it does bring me joy that everywhere in the world outside of their native America hopped on board with this track and finally allowed the men who broke down barriers between rock and hip hop a decade prior with "Walk this way" finally became megastars.
#4 for 1998 website
This was the first big hit that the Black-Eyed Peas had in most parts of the world, likely due to the inclusion of Justin Timberlake on the chorus as well as it being their first single where they included Fergie as an official member of the group. The song is also one of their rare conscious hip hop tracks given how it's about the racial injustice of the world and them pleading for there to be racial harmony.
#1 for 2003 website
The Use your illusion era of Guns n roses career was already a huge success by the time they unveiled the video to this song, which fun fact was released months prior to deafening silence likely due to it being one of the more long-winded songs on both albums. The video was such as success that it quickly became not just their biggest hit but also one of the biggest hits of the twentieth century.
(part of this song's success predates the OZ music charts, as such, I had to improvise with its placement on this list)
#25 for 1993 website
Well, here's a nostalgia bomb for everyone who grew up during the late 90's, we have the breakthrough single for the Italian trio Eiffel 65 as well as one of the first hit singles to incorporate egregious usage of autotune which even at the time seems to have driven people up the wall. Then there's the strange music video complete with the awful CGI used for the aliens.
#20 for 1999 website
#25 for 2000 website
I've always felt that the name the Goo goo dolls was a comical one, after all that sounds like a name that should be affiliated with all of the teen pop that was becoming big this year. Alas this band was instead somewhere between grunge and post grunge and managed to score their one and only hit outside their native America with this theme to the Nicolas Cage and Meg Ryan flick City of angels.
#1 for 1998 website
Personally, I've always preferred the Dolly Parton version of this ballad, however there's no denying that Whitney Houston made it her own when she starred in the poorly reviewed romantic thriller the Bodyguard opposite Kevin Costner and had this rendition of her track play over the emotional climax of the film.
(part of this song's success predates the OZ music charts, as such, I had to improvise with its placement on this list)
#2 for 1993 website
I know Britney isn't exactly what you would call a seasoned performer, however I can't help but admit this was a fantastic debut single for her thanks to how amazing it sounds even to this day. Her career has seen many ups and downs over the years, however it's clear that she still commands a loyal fanbase even to this day.
#1 for 1999 website
While I am a massive fan of this iconic Australian duo, I have to admit that I kind of agree with the criticism that people have given this track over the years. It does feel like an Air supply track if that duo existed past the early 80's and believe me, I'm no fan of those guys. That said, it does remain their biggest hit in their career worldwide, so obviously this had massive appeal to millions around the world.
#1 for 1997 website
From what I've heard, Dangerous minds is a mediocre film looking to cash in off the success of Dead poet's society only with Michelle Pfeiffer in the lead instead of Robin Williams. At least it had a killer theme song courtesy of Coolio who did a 180 from his previous hit "Fantastic voyage" with this song that goes into brutal detail about the struggles he and people like him face on a day-to-day basis.
#6 for 1995 website
#46 for 1996 website
So, it's come to this, what's often considered to be one of the worst songs of the decade which was indeed also one of the biggest worldwide. I unfortunately agree with the consensus which is that this is an annoying song with lyrics some of the corniest lyrics known to man, however it does have its merit as it did spear head the line dancing craze that would persist throughout the decade in America.
(part of this song's success predates the OZ music charts, as such, I had to improvise with its placement on this list)
Does anyone even remember the film, Loser? True to its title, the film follows two teenagers who feel like outcasts in the world and eventually find and fall in love with each other. The theme song from American band Wheatus basically describes the plot of the film in the lyrics, which I'm guessing is why it managed to be more popular even at the time than the film was as it contained its premise in a short amount of time.
#3 for 2000 website
#27 for 2001 website
This was originally a hit for the Mindbenders back in the mid 60's, however it was covered by Wet wet wet for the Hugh Grant flick Four weddings and a funeral where it became a massive success for the Scottish band largely due to how successful the film was worldwide.
#1 for 1994 website
Now here's a song that brings me great joy that the internet expects me to hate with every fibre of my being (see how I was initially hostile towards music I didn't like?) we have this debut single from the Spice girls which is so much joyous fun that I don't even care that the lyrics don't make much sense once you read into them.
#5 for 1996 website
#39 for 1997 website
Many consider this to be the sellout of the century as Steven Tyler and company, while known for their sentimental side, are best known for their often-aggressive rock and roll numbers. Here we have their theme to the Bruce Willis flick Armageddon which happens to star Steven's daughter Liv Tyler, thus explaining why they contributed to the films soundtrack to begin with.
#2 for 1998 website
This was a huge surprise for Pearl jam given that they hadn't had a hit since their initial breakthrough from the other side of the decade, although many people feel this was the start of their sellout period given that they had long abandoned their grunge roots in favour of an adult contemporary sound.
#2 for 1999 website
To think this was originally commissioned for the terrible (in my opinion at least) film adaptation of the Daredevil comics starring Ben Affleck, specifically for the scene where Elektra Natchios (played by Jennifer Garner) is training in her mansion with sandbags. At least the song was effective in the scene it was used in as it single handedly launched Evanescence into the mainstream as their debut single.
#2 for 2003 website
This was a humungous hit for Boyzone, possible due to it being written by both Jim Steinman and Andrew Lloyd Webber meaning that this was the boys attempt at appealing to fans of rock operas which would explain why their last album was so successful in NZ as well as their native UK. They decided to end things on a high note which meant that they broke up shortly after this became their biggest hit.
#5 for 1999 website
So, Sonia dada, a band from America most of my American readers will be unfamiliar with due to them failing to score any success on Billboard managed to score one of the biggest hits of the decade in Australia with this track. I guess this does fit into the theme that this year was going for, however it's little surprise that it doesn't have the same fanfare that many other entries do on this list.
#1 for 1993 website
This served both as the lead single to Celine Dion's album Falling into you (well in America at least, it was the second single here in Australia after the title track) as well as the theme to the Michelle Pfeiffer flick Up close and personal. It also came with a B-side "The power of a dream" which Dion performed at the summer Olympics this year at Atlanta, which no doubt boosted the sales of this track.
#1 for 1996 website
This was a huge comeback success for the Offspring following the mediocre reception of their previous album, it appears fans wanted to hear these guys talk about how much of a loser they believed to be so much that it not only became one of the biggest hits of the decade down under but also topped the Triple J year end charts for 1998.
#48 for 1998 website
#19 for 1999 website
Although the Irish band did achieve sound success with their debut album throughout the year in Australia (mainly due to "Linger" becoming a surprise hit for them in America) this was the song that made them a household name here thanks to its politically charged lyrics delivered by Dolores O'Reidon's powerful vocals.
#41 for 1994 website
#7 for 1995 website
I feel that even though both of these tracks from Green day contributed to the band's success with their album Nimrod, it was "Time of your life" that boosted the albums sales, specifically when it was used in the series finale of Seinfeld which only caused further upset with their fanbase who already felt it was a sellout from the trio. In Australia, rather than simply rereleasing the (at this point) one year old track, it was bundled with "Redundant" as a two for one deal that proved to be a wise decision for the band.
#7 for 1998 website
This was the big hit off of Shania Twain's biggest album Come on over in Australia, admittedly this is mainly due to how long this ballad about Shania being there for the love of her life stuck around on our charts upon its initial release more than anything. I'm guessing this ballad was what encouraged her to release a pop version of her album.
#11 for 1998 website
Although these guys achieved massive success in NZ and their native America with "It's so hard to say goodbye to yesterday," this track which was originally released as the theme song to the Eddie Murphy flick Boomerang (which isn't among his better films sadly) was what broke the RNB boy band into a wider market thanks to their vocal harmonies and Nathan's spoken word verse.
(part of this song's success predates the OZ music charts, as such, I had to improvise with its placement on this list)
#26 for 1993 website
Well, if you ever wanted to hear what the Macarena would sound like if it were written and performed by women, then you're in luck because that's the best way to describe this track from the Spanish trio Las Ketchup who scored a massive worldwide hit with this track that seems to be recorded in Spanish, English and Portuguese and even comes with some random words that aren't from any language.
#5 for 2002 website
I feel this song winning the academy award for best original song was what sunk Titanic's reputation back in the day, admittedly it did nothing to prevent the film from becoming the highest grossing movie of the twentieth century as people flocked to theatres to watch the film, but it did start this annoying backlash towards it and Celine herself that I'm glad the internet has long since moved on from.
#3 for 1998 website
Given how Eminem was at the height of his popularity this year, it only seems fitting that a protegee of his would find massive success worldwide which was the case for Curtis Jackson AKA 50 cent. Here we have his club banger which became a massive success for the east coast rapper (despite it being produced by Dr Dre) which led to him having massive success from the album it came from.
#3 for 2003 website
This was originally released earlier in the decade in the aging duo's native Spain to critical and commercial success, however when it was released to the English-speaking parts of the world, it was given a remix which includes additional verses from the titular Macarena which makes her out to be a bit of a diva that nonetheless connected with audiences thanks to the ridiculous dance attached to the song.
#2 for 1996 website
This is one of quite a few double entries we'll be looking at on this list, although in this case both singles bundled together could easily be separated into two entries given how they both appeared to be as equally as popular as each other here in Australia. This is particularly curious as punk rock was never that big here, let alone from local artists and yet these guys broke down those barriers.
#9 for 1998 website
If you ever wondered why the lyrics on this breakthrough single from Shakira were strange, that's because it's an English version of a song that was popular in the Spanish speaking parts of the world that was given a one for one translation of the lyrics. This didn't prevent this song from being a massive hit for the Columbian star worldwide as it introduced her to a wider audience.
#1 for 2002 website
So UB40 were still a thing this far into the 90's, granted this is due to their cover of the Elvis Presley classic being chosen to close out the critically panned film Sliver starring Sharon Stone and William Baldwin, but it goes to show this was the most popular aspect of the film upon its initial release. This would be the last most people would hear from Ali Campbell and company in Australia.
#3 for 1993 website
Following the success of their breakthrough single "Set you free," this British trance group decided to remix the Bee gees classic from Saturday night fever by recording several rap verses to replace the verses from the original which allowed this to become their biggest hit in several parts of the world. This wasn't even the last time they achieved a hit with this feat as "Da ya think I'm sexy" was also a massive success for them.
#5 for 1995 website
This was a huge success for All saints all around the world, so much so that it became one of the few non-American RNB ballads to become a huge success on Billboard later in the year albeit with a different music video there than the one used everywhere else in the world. I always felt these girls didn't reach their full artistic potential until their second album released in the new millennium.
#8 for 1998 website
This was the first of a string of hits that American singer Anastacia had in Australia, I bring this up because she curiously never had a hit on the Billboard charts despite being a massive success throughout Europe. I guess this was due to her fellow Americans confusing her for a woman of colour initially and being taken aback when they saw she wasn't, she does admittedly have a lot of soul in her vocals.
#1 for 2000 website
I'm usually the type of person to get annoyed whenever someone cries sellout to an artist's biggest hit in their catalogue, however in this case I'm on board with those who consider this to be a sellout from Bon Jovi despite it not being that far off musically from their earlier efforts such as "Wanted dead or alive" or "Bed of roses." I think the issue here for me is how painfully earnest they are even compared to their earlier work, but that's just me.
#6 for 1994 website
#49 for 1995 website
This was the only noticeable hit for the English duo Lighthouse family outside their homeland, likely due to it sounding like something Simply red would've released earlier in the decade and that band's popularity dwindling out by this point in time. Strangely this wasn't among the biggest hits of the year in their native UK despite it easily being one of the biggest hits of the year in Australia.
#5 for 1998 website
While this was far from the first song to combine hip hop with EDM, nor was it even the most successful as this would become common place throughout the decade, it tends to be the song most people think of when you tell them to name a song that is synonymous with this trend. Curiously this took its sweet time in getting a physical release in Australia, heck even America caught on to this before we Aussies did, and we're supposed to be the EDM crowd of the decade.
#3 for 1995 website
This was the theme to Eminem's autobiographical film about his rise to the height of his popularity, it was released during the album cycle of his biggest and (in my opinion) best album the Eminem show where it dominated the charts worldwide due to how big it became in the rap scene. It was also the first hip hop number to win an academy award due to how it resonated with audiences back in the day.
#7 for 2003 website
This was the only noticeable success from Jennifer Paige throughout the world, which I find to be a shame because this was such a breath of fresh air from all of the kiddie pop of the day that I'm sure that was the reason why it was so big for her. I'm guessing this made it big due to an endorsement from the Lilith Fair crowd given how popular music made by women was around this time.
#14 for 1998 website
One of the sillier films to be released this decade is Con air, so much so that the Razzies hilariously gave it a special award for worst reckless disregard for human life and public property, to give you an idea of how insane the action and plot get in the film. Another aspect they didn't like was the theme song, even though it was also nominated for an academy award for Trisha Yearwood despite it originally being a song from Leann rimes.
#17 for 1997 website
Given the overwhelming success of Boyz II men this decade, I guess it's only fitting that there would be a slew of other boy bands of colour to cash in off their success. Enter these guys, who managed to achieve a hit bigger than anything Nathan Morris and company would achieve worldwide with this cover of an obscure country track from around the same time.
#2 for 1994 website
Technically this is the biggest hit of Bryan Adams career in Australia given how "Everything I do for you" was pulled from shelves here in order to promote his (then) most recent album Waking up the neighbours. Here he provides the theme to a little remembered film Don Juan de Marco which sees Johnny Depp as a romantic lead in a Spanish setting, no wonder no one seems to remember this film.
#2 for 1995 website
This may be the best-selling song of all time worldwide; however, I'm ranking these songs based on their chart runs rather than actual sales. With that out of the way, this touching tribute to the (then) recently deceased Diana Spencer proved to be the final hit single that Elton John managed to achieve in his career.
#4 for 1997 website
This seems completely out of place compared to everything else on this list, after all pub rock was a massive success throughout the 70's and 80's but by the 90's it had fallen out of favour for whatever reason. I think the people who were most surprised by this being a success was the band itself who never particularly displayed any desire to have any mainstream appeal.
#12 for 1997 website
#28 for 1998 website
It had been two decades of silence from Santana when they released this lead single to their comeback album Supernatural this year, it's hard to say if the album would've been a success without this track given that many people attribute this as a Rob Thomas solo project more than a Santana track with Rob's vocals on it. What I do know is that it made both Santana and Matchbox 20 international superstars.
#18 for 1999 website
They were often described as the Abba of the 90's, although I can only see that connection superficially as last I checked, Abba never once resorted to incorporating reggae music into their sound which they easily could've done in their heyday. I feel this is how Ace of base were able to craft an identity of their own which led them to being even more successful in America than their predecessors ever were.
#9 for 1993 website
#46 for 1994 website
Here's a bit of a fun fact for you, this was Bryan Adams biggest hit in Australia that wasn't a tie in for a film, in this case it was a success due to it being the hit single from his highly successful greatest hits album So far so good which serves as a perfect gateway for getting into his work from the 80's and early 90's.
#15 for 1993 website
#23 for 1994 website
This is another contender for the worst song of the decade according to the internet (no arguments from me) largely thanks to the lyrics being much creepier than you would otherwise expect as well as James Blunt's performance being highly irritating to many listeners. It was also the first Billboard chart topper to not come from an American, Canadian or Jamaican artist since Savage Garden from the start of the decade.
#2 for 2005 website
This is a song many people like to label as problematic due to all of the ladies Lou Bega mentions throughout the song, personally I feel that this song is too harmless to find any offense with as the charisma and catchiness of the production more than make up for any problematic nature of the lyrics here.
#3 for 1999 website
This song and the album that it serves as the lead single to almost didn't happen, mainly due to the girls needing to declare bankruptcy from their previous album despite how much of a success it was worldwide due to poor management of their earnings. Fortunately, the girls pulled through from that stumble and came back with what I and many others consider to be their best song.
#4 for 1999 website
One of the catchiest female empowerment anthems to ever be released, this debut single from Madison Avenue created plenty of international success, so much so that it managed to top both the NZ and UK charts despite it getting stuck behind Eiffel 65's entry from earlier on this list here in Australia. Sadly, the duo ruined their good will at the 2000 ARIA awards when Cheyne Coates appeared to be intoxicated while performing on stage.
#26 for 1999 website
#32 for 2000 website
Another comeback to come in Cher's very rocky career, this time it comes with the introduction of autotune in the music industry as this becomes the first hit single anywhere in the world to incorporate the vocal effect which helped it stand out from its contemporaries back in the day. Nowadays this is known as the Cher effect, primarily by her haters who believe that she was never a good singer.
#14 for 1999 website
Well, this was certainly a different side of Will Smith we weren't used to seeing prior to this songs release, apparently this was recorded in an attempt for him to adapt into the gangster rap which was quickly taking over the mainstream around this time to mixed results. Somehow this became his biggest hit with his partner in crime DJ Jazzy Jeff in Australia and NZ, likely due to the hilarity factor back then.
#16 for 1993 website
#28 for 1994 website
This was the only big hit to come from the Italian DJ Spiller, although the song is better known for having British model turned singer Sophie Ellis Bextor on vocals who would go on to have massive success with her own album later in the decade. I'm not sure why this was Spiller's only hit given how much success Sophie would have, perhaps it was seen as a novelty track at the time.
#7 for 2000 website
This was the signature track from Wendy Matthews given hot it easily remains her biggest hit in her career, admittedly it does showcase her vocal talents quite nicely even though I'm a much bigger fan of her more upbeat tracks such as "Let's kiss" and "Token angels." This song did lead her to having a widely successful album which goes to show how much love it had from Australian audiences.
(part of this song's success predates the OZ music charts, as such, I had to improvise with its placement on this list)
This had a bit of a slow rise to success here in Australia as it was originally released in the previous year to deafening silence for Merril Bainbridge, presumably due to no one wanting to hear a sex jam sex to a beat boxing err.... beat. They eventually changed their minds this year which led to it becoming a huge success for her, this in turn sparked international interest in her debut album which resulted in this song becoming a huge success over in America the following year.
#1 for 1995 website
Well, they did score a massive hit earlier in the decade by adding hip hop verses to a Bee gees classic, so why not repeat the formula by replacing "Staying alive" with one of Rod Stewart's more upbeat tracks from the 70's? The results were equally successful for the band as this too was a massive hit for them throughout the world.
#28 for 1997 website
#38 for 1998 website
Shania had already created massive buzz in Australia from her previous album with the surprise success of "If you're not in it for love," so it makes sense that the lead single to her next album Come on over would spawn a massive hit for her in the form of this ballad which can best be describes as the solo version of Sonny and Cher's "I got you babe." It looked like this would be the only hit single from the album, but that changed towards the end of the year.
#6 for 1998 website
This was originally released as the second single from Seal's second self-titled album, however it for some reason was a huge flop for him despite it easily being his best work (in my opinion of course.) Fortunately, it was given a second chance this year when it played over the end credits of Batman forever, a film that divides audiences to this day due to its campy tone clashing with the previous Batman flicks.
#4 for 1995 website
This was the debut single for the Pussycat dolls, a former burlesque troupe turned girl band who scored massive success with this track where even upon its initial release I remembered being widely mocked for how overconfident the lyrics are. I'm not that familiar with the Busta Rhymes feature as they never played it on the radio back in the day, I'm guessing to promote the song as a sexual fantasy for those attracted to the band members would have.
#1 for 2005 website
It's strange to think that the original version of this RNB track from Earth wind and fire wasn't a huge success in Australia back in the day, in fact even if you were around during the early 80's and the mid 90's, this is likely your introduction to this classic which I guess is better than nothing as the Australian quartet do a decent job updating the track for a (then) modern audience.
#14 for 1995 website
#41 for 1996 website
This was not only the second single from Nelly's sophomore album Nellyville, but also confusingly the lead single to Kelly Rowland's solo debut Simply deep which is weird because she doesn't contribute much to the song as it's mainly from Nelly's perspective. The dilemma in question is that Nelly is in love with Kelly, but Kelly is currently in a relationship even though she also has feelings for him.
#9 for 2002 website
This was initially a flop in Australia, presumably because with rare exceptions, non-English tracks tend to be failures in our music scene. That changed however when this became bundled with "Cup of life" which was the theme to the FIFA world cup for this year which in turn put Ricky Martin on the map and set him up as the leader of the Latin craze that happened.
#32 for 1998 website
This is the last hit that Jessica Simpson had in her career, mainly because this cover of the Nancy Sinatra classic serves as the theme song to the theatrical adaptation of the Dukes of hazard which was a critical failure due to its outdated depictions of the redneck culture. She happens to star in the film as Daisy Duke which earned her a Razzie for worst actress due to how bad her performance was.
#6 for 2005 website
This is one of those songs that people mistake the meaning of what appears to be a song about lying to cover up getting caught cheating turns out to be a song denouncing these types of tracks in the third verse. The complaint people have about this track nowadays is that they consider it false advertising, after all, the featured artist Rikrok has far more presence on here than Shaggy does.
#6 for 2001 website
If this feels like a victory single to anyone, rest assured that it isn't as it's in fact the debut single from Delta Goodrem who took a circuitous route in becoming a successful musician as she first appeared on Neighbors as Nina Tucker before translating the popularity she had on the show into her music career. I guess you can argue this is a victory single in that regard, although the rest of the album has more personality to it.
#36 for 2002 website
#25 for 2003 website
This was all set to become another flop for Enrique Iglesias given how it had such a slow climb to the top of the charts worldwide, however it received a sudden boost when it was chosen as the unofficial theme song to the 9/11 attacks as it would play over news coverage of the aftermath of the disaster. This allowed the album it serves as the lead single for to become a massive success for the Latin crooner.
#45 for 2001 website
#13 for 2002 website
It does amuse me that this guy is a one hit wonder in America given how inescapably popular he was for the remainder of the 00's internationally, this was his second hit from his debut album which proved to be as successful as hit one and only Billboard hit here in Australia. People have made jokes about how much of a wimp he is on record, however it's worth noting that he's a former Captain in the British army.
Coyote ugly gets a bit of a bad rep these days, mainly because people don't find it campy enough to be a so bad it's good film whilst also finding it to be too tired and cliched to be a genuinely good film. I personally like it mainly for its uplifting story about a songwriter finding success in the music industry, this theme song from the film being one of the songs she wrote in universe and what transitioned Leann Rimes from country to pop music.
#2 for 2001 website
It seemed like Anastacia would be a one album wonder given how her second album was a massive flop throughout the world, that wasn't the case given how her third album was a big comeback for her in Australia and throughout Europe largely thanks to its lead single which blended gospel with pop rock in a way that no one had done around this time. It proved to be a massive hit here in Australia more than anywhere else.
#1 for 2004 website
It's funny how Joel Turner failed to make it onto Australian idol during its first season (something to do with him being "unsuitable" for the series) and yet he would have massive success with this track he released about the youth of the day being lost with what the mainstream is pushing onto them. It was a massive hit for the rapper and beatboxer, but unfortunately it was the peak of his success.
#4 for 2004 website
This is another song that should be much higher on this list due to its sales alone but isn't because it was pulled from shelves to promote the album (or in this case soundtrack) it came from. I honestly think it was for the best as I doubt many people would've even checked out the Men in black soundtrack if this theme song from the film's star Will Smith were able to remain on shelves indefinitely.
#6 for 1997 website
This was the only noticeable success that this brother duo had in Australia, although for what it's worth they were more popular in NZ given how the kiwis loved their RNB ballads this decade. I'm guessing this was a huge success here due to the rise in popularity of the genre itself rather than us making an exception to these two former members of Jodeci.
#10 for 1998 website
OK I have a question for my readers, has anyone ever been able to understand a single word while listening to this song besides "likey boom boom down?" I guess it's lucky for Darrin O'Brien AKA Snow that A: he has a really good flow on this track B: the production is catchy as hell and C: that he had a rough upbringing that brought credibility to the rap game. Sadly, this was all cancelled out by unfair comparisons made between him and Vanilla ice at the time.
#6 for 1993 website
When the Notorious B.I.G (or Biggie Smalls if you prefer) was tragically gunned down this year, Puff daddy (now known as P Diddy) released this track that was an obvious tribute to his fallen friend that tugged at the heartstrings of audiences worldwide. I would be more moved with this track if A: the Police sample wasn't so egregious and B: if Diddy were on the same level as his former friend in terms of rapping.
#5 for 1997 website
I'm guessing this was an instant success in Australia despite it failing to be released as a single in the trio's native America due to us Aussies having fond memories of the song this track sampled from 1973 of the same name. Of course, the three rappers take the song in a different direction which is more than I can say for many future hip hop tracks which relied on nostalgia for their success.
#3 for 1996 website
This was the debut single for a band who would go on to have massive respect in the indie crowd but not when they initially broke through, mainly because two of the three brothers hadn't gone through puberty yet and as such people felt they were a bunch of teenage girls singing about their love rather than teenage boys. It's a stupid criticism I know because either way, they were a family act who played their own instrument singing about their love for their significant other.
#2 for 1997 website
This was the last hit single that Will Smith had anywhere in the world, although by this stage he was more well known as an actor than a rapper given how he only released two albums in the new millennium. I know I'm far from the first person to make this observation, but I feel this was meant to be the theme to his film Hitch which has him playing a love doctor for Kevin James in a rare rom com he stars in.
#5 for 2005 website
Just a fair warning that you won't be seeing "Thank you" from Dido on this list, this is because that song wasn't released as a single here in Australia to avoid it stealing success from this haunting track from Eminem about an obsessed fan of his which has since become the term used for these types of people in fandoms. For what it's worth, this song underperformed in NZ where Dido's track was released as a single.
#3 for 2001 website
To think there was a time where this ballad wasn't a meme and instead a genuine hit single for Vanessa Carlton, nowadays it's become a meme due to it being ridiculed in the film White chicks and people struggling to take it seriously since that movie came out. I guess this is why there haven't been a lot of heartfelt piano ballads from female singer/songwriters to make it big in recent years which is a shame.
#2 for 2002 website
This is one of many hit singles this decade that saw massive success despite it never charting on Billboard, it goes to show you how out of touch the American charts were this decade when this signature track from Lenny Kravitz fails to dent their charts. In any case, we have one of the more iconic songs on this list primarily due to that guitar lick that is instantly memorable the second you hear it.
#7 for 1993 website
This was originally a hit for Brenton Wood in 1967, so it makes sense that Peter Andre would make this his debut single given how he clearly wanted to make a name for himself in the music industry following his loss in a dance competition to Wade Robson and thus him missing out on the chance to meet MJ. I guess Peter got the last laugh as he managed to achieve quite a number of hits worldwide.
#13 for 1993 website
There were a lot of post grunge songs to become hits this year, one of the more prominent tracks comes to us from Lifehouse who managed to have the biggest hit of the year in their native America despite this failing to reach number one on Billboard. This is the second time this has happened as the previous year had "Breathe" by Faith Hill claim the top spot despite that also failing to reach number one.
#1 for 2001 website
While this wasn't the debut single from Vanessa Amorosi (that honour goes to "Have a look") it was the song which made her a household name given how it was considered to be the unofficial anthem for the 2000 Sydney Olympics with how inescapable it was upon its initial release. This resulted in the song being a huge success over in NZ and even sparked interest for Vanessa throughout Europe.
#48 for 2000 website
Although these guys had earlier singles and even albums in their native Canada, this was the song which introduced the world to what many regard as one of the worst bands to come from the new millennium. I personally feel these guys get too much hate as there's certainly worse bands and artists out there, although I can't help but notice how much quicker we Aussies were into making this a hit than the rest of the world.
#9 for 2001 website
Given that Janet Jackson was now a household name in Australia following her duet with Luther Vandross from the previous year, it makes sense that this lead single from her biggest album Janet would have no issue in finding an audience here like it did internationally. A bit of a fun fact is that the video features the first on screen appearance of Jennifer Lopez in pop culture.
#8 for 1993 website
This was the lead single to Eminem's album the Eminem show, an album that's meant to be a display for all of the rapper's thought process given how his previous two albums had been criticised for the way it influenced the youth of the day. This is far more light-hearted compared to the rest of the album (complete with a wacky music video) however it does fit in the theme of him making art and not propaganda on the album.
#3 for 2002 website
This was one of only two hits that Atomic Kitten had here in Australia, I'm guessing because we Aussies weren't that interested in the UK pop scene as you've likely noticed a lack of British artists on these lists so far compared to our local scene and American artists. Still, they were quite big in NZ and their native UK given how they managed to score multiple hits in those countries with this type of ballad.
#15 for 2001 website
As far as I can tell, this wasn't the theme to a theatrical film, meaning that these guys were instantly trying to recreate the success they had with their breakthrough single "End of the road" from two years prior. I guess this paid off for them as the lead single to their second album II was a huge success worldwide for the RNB boy band, and indeed the replaced themselves at number one on Billboard with their next single.
#8 for 1994 website
This was a surprise hit for the Offspring in Australia, mainly because this flopped in their native America as did most of their catalogue unfortunately. I guess you can thank Triple J for heavily promoting this and the album it came from which resulted in both becoming some of the biggest hits of the decade down under, that and the track itself is catchy as hell set to lyrics that resonated with audiences.
#48 for 1994 website
Well, this was certainly a song that stirred up drama back in the day due to its title, true the word bitch has been stigmatised over the years as a derogatory term for a woman who's perceived to be a horrible person, however over the years women have claimed the word as their own in order to destigmatise it. That's clearly what Meredith is going for on this track whilst sounding like she's the mother of Alanis Morissette, that's me dunking on her age as she was pushing forty when this came out.
#9 for 1997 website
Well, this is something else entirely, that famous quote from Stanley Kubrick's the Shining from 1980 received a dance remix from the duo who brought us a dance remix of the Charleston the previous year. This became one of the biggest hits not just of the year but of the entire decade in Australia, I guess we really had a lot of nostalgia for the Jack Nicholson flick.
#8 for 1995 website
This is one of many songs to never be released as a single in America and thus, wasn't able to chart on Billboard back in the day. I'm guessing this was to promote the album Tragic kingdom which I feel was unnecessary as the song was a huge chart topper everywhere else in the world as well as the album itself still being one of the most successful of the decade. Admittedly the song is more sombre than everything else on the album.
#7 for 1997 website
Even though Ace of base were still making music during this point of the decade, it appears this German trio decided they wanted to steal the crown from the Swedish quartet of fusing reggae with europop which resulted in this huge success for them. It took a little while for this to take off in Australia, however once it did it felt like it would never leave the airwaves.
#46 for 1997 website
#47 for 1998 website
Well, this is a song that has novelty written all over it, admittedly the reggae craze of this year was a bit of a silly one that was meant to be uplifting to the increasingly troubled times the world was facing this decade, however I don't think many people have ever been able to take this track seriously due to its silly lyrics and campy tone. If you can believe it, these guys were among the most successful artists of the decade in NZ.
#12 for 1993 website
This is one of the more bombastic tracks to come out of the American hip hop scene, although it may surprise you to learn that this wasn't a hit in the duo's native America but rather throughout Europe due to this and their other hit "Don't stop" being huge chart toppers in the UK for some reason. Naturally we Aussies followed suit in making these songs a huge success, likely due to how catchy they were for our dance floors.
#18 for 1995 website
#43 for 1996 website
Although these guys did have minor success earlier in the decade with their debut album, it was this lead single to their second album which made them an international household name likely due to the endorsement of De la soul who provide a guest verse on certain versions of this track (that admittedly I'm unfamiliar with to this day.) It even allowed the band to crossover to America due to how funky it is.
#4 for 2005 website
To think these two had been active for almost fifteen years when they released this track two years prior to deafening silence, likely because it was too much of an underground hit for even Triple J to notice at the time. It was given a remix from Todd Terry which helped it crossover to the dance floors around the world which is how this song finally took off for the husband-and-wife duo.
#11 for 1996 website
No comments:
Post a Comment