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.
Following the success of their Clunk E.P, Frente released their debut single which was another cutesy track that they had become known for during the first phase of their career. I bring this up because they did change with the times on their next album which resulted in them being more hardcore, an image that many people (me included) felt didn't suit them very well.
(part of this song's success predates the OZ music charts, as such, I had to improvise with its placement on this list)
#39 for 1993 website
This is a song that's more well known nowadays for the behind the scenes drama it caused as two of the original members of Destiny's child only found out they were fired and replaced from the band when the music video was unveiled this year, I guess that explains why it took them so long to release a second single from their sophomore album given that "Bills bills bills" was a Billboard chart topper for the quartet.
#10 for 2000 website
This was the debut single for Joanne, an Australian singer who discovered an obscure track from Bluezone who is nowadays best known as the band that launched Lisa Stansfield into the spotlight. In order to honour the original (given how there was another version by someone known as Redzone around this time) Joanne credited herself as a featured artist with Bluezone as the main artist.
#23 for 1999 website
There weren't any signs of these guys slowing down in round two of the boy band wars, heck they even had some support in America as they were able to achieve success on Billboard during a time that was becoming increasingly hostile towards British artists. Here they double down on their hip hop influences with the lead single of their second album which also remains their most successful in their career.
#15 for 1999 website
It looked like there were no signs of Britney Spears's career slowing down as this second single from her debut album proved to be a huge hit for her, that is except for her native America as funnily enough, she didn't have a huge hit on Billboard again until "Gimme more" almost a decade later. At least the rest of the world was here for her every step of the way, through both the good times and the bad.
#11 for 1999 website
Although this can easily be seen as a typical breakup song (which is highly unusual coming from a boy band) this was actually a diss track towards the group's former manager who had screwed them over with their royalties during the early phase of their career. Although they had a big hit here in Australia the previous year with "I want you back," this was the song that finally put them in the league of the boy band wars here.
#5 for 2000 website
This was the debut single from the Veronicas, one of the very few Australian artists to ever have the chance to work with the likes of Max Martin and Dr Luke which of course led to their eventual international fame with their second album. People seem divided on them as their fans (which includes me) praise them for the same reason their detractors despise them, that being their gimmick of singing in unison as if they were one person.
#7 for 2005 website
This was the first UK chart topper Mariah Carey had, I'm guessing because the Brits still had fond memories of the Harry Nilsson original who just so happened to pass away shortly before this song was released. In fact, there's a theory that this was not meant to be released as a single given how it was bundled with "Never forget you" but was in order to cash in on his recent passing.
#15 for 1994 website
This is a song whose popularity came right the heck out of nowhere, I'm guessing because it was the first time many people heard of a song from a female perspective sung by a man. The novelty of this allowed the song to be a massive worldwide success for White town, although it also sadly had novelty written all over it as they failed to find any success with their other singles and faded into obscurity.
#11 for 1997 website
Well, I guess the second round of the boy band wars officially begun this year given how these guys were able to compete with the Backstreet boys for the affection of the teenage girls of the late 90's. Here they incorporate hip hop elements to their sound as opposed to their American counterparts who settled with RNB elements, I guess this did create a contrast between the two discographies.
#19 for 1998 website
This was always meant to be the lead single to Destiny's child's third album Survivor, however it came out as such an empowering feminist anthem that it was selected as the theme to the theatrical adaptation of Charlie's angels which has received a mix reception over the years due to some praising it for its female empowerment while others feel that it's a campy remake of a property made at the height of misogyny in pop culture.
#44 for 2000 website
#41 for 2001 website
There were several songs that were delayed this year in order to allow the contestants of Australian idol to reign supreme on our charts, this third single from Evanescence's debut album was one of them and the song that suffered the least from this trend as it managed to be as successful as it would've been were it not for its delay. It's a good thing as it's a haunting ballad from the band showcasing Amy Lee's pain from a breakup.
#7 for 2004 website
This is another deeply personal ballad that came from Delta Goodrem's debut album, this time it's about her complicated feelings towards her partner which seems to go against "Lost without you" from earlier on this list which showcases the range of emotions she has throughout the album. It was her fourth consecutive chart topper, which meant that she already broke the record for most chart toppers from a single album in Australia with this entry.
#18 for 2003 website
While this was a decently big hit for Jamelia in her native UK the previous year, it was a massive success here in Australia likely due to us Aussies finding more love for this empowerment anthem that she made likely for her significant other. It allowed her to have a second hit down under (which we'll get to in a bit) before she sadly faded into obscurity here and the rest of the world.
#5 for 2004 website
I'm not sure why the album cycle for the Spice girls was delayed here in Australia, whatever the case the third single was able to be a massive success here likely due to it being one of their sweeter ballads despite the lyrics being more suggestive than you might otherwise think. It was a Christmas number one in the UK months prior to it being released here, and as such is widely regarded as a Christmas track.
#13 for 1997 website
Babyface never had that much success here in Australia even as a producer, so to see him score a massive success with this duet with Stevie Wonder was a bit of a surprise given how Stevie Wonder hasn't had a hit since 1985's "Part time lover." The collaboration helped his album become a moderate success here, although it unfortunately failed to make Babyface a household name in RNB down under.
#30 for 1997 website
This was the second hit that Steps managed to achieve this year in Australia, given how inescapable their debut single was due to every primary school teacher enforcing the choreography of that video onto their pupils, the band had little issues with finding success with their album here. At least none of their other videos had bizarre choreography to shove down the kids throats during P.E.
#23 for 1998 website
This will be the only entry that will have new commentary from me given how both versions of this song are appearing together, I don't know which version is ultimately more popular than the other but I'm assuming that the original version was what entered the charts here and the remix is what boosted its popularity in early 2002.
#48 for 2001 website
This was a huge surprise success for Shania Twain given how this failed even in her native Canada, I'm guessing we Aussies caught wind of by far one of the sexiest tracks in her catalogue and thus made it a huge success for her just as the rest of the world had given up in making her third album a commercial success. This no doubt led to her next album being a huge success here even before it received its pop treatment.
#37 for 1997 website
I guess it was only a matter of time before we had a new version of the Fugees make it big in the music industry, enter City high who scored a massive worldwide hit with this track five years after the original trio made it big worldwide. As this was a hip hop track, it was delayed here in Australia by several months before finally being released, and like most songs on this list, it was more popular here than anywhere in the world.
#23 for 2001 website
This is the first of two entries to come from Spanish DJ Sammy who took two tracks from 1985 specifically and made them into dance tracks for the (then) modern generation. Here he scoops up the Bryan Adams track which was already described as one of the cheesiest ballads of the 80's and turns it into a dance track which connected with audiences around the world including in America.
#17 for 2002 website
This is the first song that Shakira recorded in English given how her earlier entry on this list was originally recorded in Spanish before it was translated into English to sell to an English-speaking market. As such, the lyrics on here are more coherent as they weren't translated from Spanish, I'm guessing this is how it managed to become her second consecutive chart topper in most parts of the world.
#14 for 2002 website
He may not have won the second season of Australian idol; however, Anthony Callea can still take comfort in the fact that his cover of a showtune from a long forgotten animated film from 1998 was far bigger than the song that helped Casey Donovan claim victory over that season of the reality show.
#21 for 2005 website
From what I can gather, Triple X was a pseudonym for one Massimo Persona who was an Italian DJ who scored a massive hit with this remix of the X files theme that was made popular this year by the Mark Snow theme becoming a hit throughout Europe. I'm not sure why this remix outdid the original here in Australia, but it did which is why this is here and that isn't.
#14 for 1996 website
Stars on 54 were a supergroup comprised of Ultra Nate, Amber and Jocelyn Enriquez, only one of which managed to find success in Australia prior to this collaboration and yet it was a huge success here. I'm guessing it was due to it being attached to the film 54 which I haven't seen but I've heard isn't very good, that or it could also be due to it being a cover of a Gordon Lightfoot track.
#33 for 1998 website
Well leave it to Joan Osborne to ask the heavy questions in life with her one and only hit worldwide, although by this stage the stigma for addressing one's fate had long since been lifted given how the likes of Madonna and Sinead O'Connor normalised attacking religion throughout the decade. This did lead to her album being a moderate success even if it failed to give her a second hit.
#12 for 1996 website
This was the third mega hit in a row that Hanson were able to score in several parts of the world, although it's worth pointing out that this ballad was their second biggest hit in their native America as "Where's the love" sadly didn't do as well over there as it did internationally. I feel this was the song which sparked the backlash against these kids as the other two songs are at least a ton of fun to listen to.
#26 for 1997 website
I guess there was a tradition for the runner up of a season of Australian idol to have the bigger hit than the winner, although in this case Lee Harding cheated as he released a two for one deal as he has an original song he wrote for the competition as well as cover on here. Don't feel too bad for the winner Kate as she had more success than him both solo and as a member of the Young divas.
This was one of several hits that Jam and Spoon were able to achieve here in Australia, although I should point out that their later material would have them change their name to Tokyo Ghetto Pussy likely to cash in on the anime craze that was beginning to become a thing this decade. Here they recruit American vocalist Plavka who gives a performance that's very similar to that of what Madonna was doing at the time.
#16 for 1994 website
This was the third entry from Delta's debut album, this time it's the title track from said album which is a reflection of how far she came from when she began her long journey as a musician which obviously connected with audiences who likely initially felt she was the Australian equivalent of the likes of Mariah Carey or P!nk. It was her third chart topper in a row, although like the rest of her catalogue, audiences have since come around for this track.
#17 for 2003 website
It had been five years since Bon Jovi last troubled the charts with their material, although given how this was a return to form for the band, it may as well have been eight years as they hadn't released anything this hard hitting since "Keep the faith" from 1992. It was a welcomed comeback from the band who went on to have sound success throughout the 00's before becoming a nostalgia band by the end of the decade.
#19 for 2000 website
This is a song that reminds me of "Antmusic" from over two decades prior, mainly because it was a song boasting about how awesome the act in question was and how they were going to shape the culture of the music industry only to turn out to be a flash in the pan in the long run. In this case it's the British RNB group Big brovaz who did indeed make a huge splash with this track and two other songs much like Adam and the Ants did in the 80's.
#9 for 2003 website
Given the discourse that "Milkshake" by Kelis has had since its release in America, I'd hate to think of how the internet would react to this track from the Sugababes given how it's also built around a sexual innuendo that I doubt most of it would understand (here's a hint, the button in question isn't to an elevator like the video suggests.) They would only have one more hit in Australia after this before they faded into obscurity.
#41 for 2005 website
It seemed like it was open season when it came to EDM taking over the mainstream in Australia this year, as such we have this track from Dutch duo Twenty 4 Seven scoring a massive hit at the start of the year with this track that largely went ignored in the UK, NZ and America back in the day. Many other EDM artists throughout Europe would follow suit and find varying degrees of success here.
#14 for 1994 website
To think this signature track from Oasis failed to reach the top spot in their native UK, oh well it was a number one hit in most parts of the world, so I don't think the band minds too much in the long run. This has sadly received a ton of backlash in recent years due to people noticing how monotone Liam is on this track, I feel that only enhances the song as it allows the beauty of Noel's poetry and instrumentation to shine through.
#10 for 1996 website
We've seen plenty of success stories to emerge from Neighbours in the music industry over the years, however after Kylie Minogue and possibly Delta Goodrem, Natalie Imbruglia wins the award for having the most international success from the cast given how inescapable this ballad was over in America. She accomplished this by going the Alanis Morissette route on her album by channelling her inner angst for a wider audience.
#22 for 1998 website
This was meant to be the middle ground between P!nk's earlier material and her second album given how it's a hybrid of a pop rock jam and an RNB joint to bridge her early fans with the music she wanted to make. It paid off for her as the rest of her career saw her moving in a rock direction to the point where her first album feels like a complete black sheep from the rest of her catalogue.
#28 for 2002 website
"Goodies" wasn't that big of a success here in Australia due to its obvious absence on my previous list, however that didn't mean that Ciara was a no show in our music scene as her second single managed to be a huge success for her here. Admittedly this might be due to the presence of Missy Elliott as the two would collaborate twice this year, the second time being on "Lose control" which is still to come on this list.
#10 for 2005 website
This was the final hit single that Taylor Dayne managed to achieve in her career, hey if you're time was going to be up regardless of what you did, why not go out with a bang that is a cover of a Barry White track? This proved to be a huge success for her here in Australia, likely as penance for us ignoring the original back in the day but also likely due to us wanting to give her one final hit before she inevitably faded into obscurity.
#18 for 1993 website
This was the song that saved Ricky's earlier entry on this list from being a flop here in Australia, although I should point out that while the AMR charts considered these to be two separate entries, ARIA bundled them together presumably to save up space on their charts to allow for one more song to chart on their charts. As I said earlier, this was the official theme to the FIFA world cup hence its success.
#20 for 1998 website
In case you were wondering, this is indeed a remix of a track from R Kelly's album Chocolate factory that he released due to the song having some of the stranger lyrics in his catalogue. Somehow, the troubled RNB singer (I won't go into why that is on this site) is a two-hit wonder here in Australia with this remix and one other song on this list as none of his other songs managed to become a hit like they did internationally.
#10 for 2003 website
This was the debut single from Savage Garden and one that has a different music video depending on where in the world you're from. The original is a low budget clip which is basically Darren Hayes poorly green screened onto a car driving around the country whilst the international version is more visually striking as it has Darren singing in front of a camera and then has the footage play on a girl's TV.
#15 for 1996 website
This was the first song that Akon had a hit with outside of his native America, I'm guessing due to the countless jokes that have been made that involve him duetting with Alvin and the Chipmunks as that's what it sounds like to most people whenever they listen to this ballad. The chorus is a sped-up version of "Mr. lonely" from Bobby Vinton released forty years prior to when this became a huge international chart topper.
#12 for 2005 website
This was the first song from the Rogue Traders to have Natalie Bassingthwaighte on lead vocals, Natalie of course being a former cast member of Neighbours making this another example of the show launching a pop star in Australia. Naturally this would eventually become a huge success in the UK for the band, although aside from NZ, the rest of the world wouldn't take to the band's music.
#8 for 2005 website
It may surprise you to learn that Rednex weren't the first group to combine country with EDM as that honour (at least as far as I know) goes to this British group who scored a massive hit worldwide with this track complete with the nonsensical music video depicting anthropomorphic CGI TV sets. Obviously, this wasn't meant to be taken that seriously, and yet it was critically acclaimed at the time.
#12 for 1994 website
This was both the lead single to No Doubt's breakthrough album Tragic kingdom as well as the theme song to the cult classic Clueless, this inevitably made the song into a huge success worldwide but didn't translate into album sales for the album or soundtrack. A bit of a fun fact with this song, its success in the UK only came when "Don't speak" became one of the biggest hits of the decade worldwide.
#17 for 1996 website
Well, this certainly took its sweet time in finding success here in Australia, heck even in NZ it was a hit upon its initial release the previous year due to it being among the last rock tracks to top the Billboard charts. I guess the consolation for its tardy success was that it was arguably bigger here than it was anywhere else in the world, after all it's the kind of Christian rock that while cheesy, can still comfort audiences.
#24 for 2001 website
This was the lead single to Backstreet boy's third album Millennium, an album that was meant to signify the beginning of a new era given how they felt confident that they had won the boy band wars before they were even over (to be fair they absolutely did win the wars overall.) The lyrics are a bit strange on this track, however I don't think many people care about that anymore and I doubt many people did to begin with.
#16 for 1999 website
This is one of those songs that many people feel is one of the worst of the decade, I can't say I disagree mainly because I don't have a lot of patience for songs that are about forced positivity which this song exemplifies. Still, enough people back in the day were touched by Daniel's reassurance that things will get better that it was a massive worldwide hit for him, heck it even topped the Billboard charts the following year.
#15 for 2005 website
Even though this was only a moderate success in Donna's native UK, it proved to be a massive hit over on Billboard likely due to her combining new age with RNB on this track which makes it one of the most unique songs to ever become a hit. It's a bit of a shame she's a one hit wonder with this track as I feel her voice is unique and could easily chart along the likes of Jewel and Sheryl Crow.
#13 for 1996 website
It took a while for these guys to find an audience with their debut album Yourself or someone like you, however once they did, they managed to achieve one of the biggest albums of the decade with how much radio latched onto their songs. This was the only song from the album to have that airplay translate to sales here in Australia, although admittedly even in their native America they didn't sell any copies of their singles because they weren't released as singles there.
Wow is this song so much more over hated than it has any right to be, granted the meaning of the lyrics is lost as Lene's delivery fails to highlight just how sarcastic these lyrics clearly are (this is a diss track towards Matel in case you didn't know) however it's just so much innocent fun for people to get mad at. It could've easily appeared much higher on this list were it not pulled from the shelves in order to promote the band's debut album.
#8 for 1997 website
It looked like the Counting crows would only be known for their debut album from 1993, however their fortunes changed when this cover of the Joni Mitchell classic was chosen to be the theme to the rom com Two weeks' notice which stars Sandra Bullock and Hugh Grant. The film isn't very good as it hinges on the premise that they'll end up together despite him being a thorn in her side.
#12 for 2003 website
Well, who needs to come in first place on a reality show to find success in the mainstream of music anyway? Here we have Paulini who came in third place on the first season of Australian idol and was able to score a massive hit with her cover of a Jeff Healy ballad from the late 80's which was far more successful here than the original was anywhere in the world combined.
#15 for 2004 website
So, this is the song which introduced the world to Prince as an unpronounceable symbol, this was such a conundrum when it came to printing this songs placement on the charts worldwide that the UK charts hilariously referred to him as the Artist formerly known as Prince. The song itself is a step down from his earlier work, mainly because it's your typical RNB ballad that would fit in with Boyz II men's catalogue.
#18 for 1994 website
This was the only notable success to come from Robert Miles, a Swiss DJ who managed to take the world by storm with this instrumental track that has become popular for soundtracking special moments in one's life. Indeed, this was a modest success over in America, proving that even they could appreciate the beauty of this track during the height of its popularity.
#26 for 1996 website
This was the lead single to BEP's (that's Black Eyed Peas for short) second album with Fergie, and it seems that she had more creative control over this project as we have her providing a chorus to how each of the original members would treat her which is further emphasised with the music video of them being in a reality show where she was the prize the members was trying to win.
#13 for 2005 website
Well so much for these kids being one hit wonders, this was the second single from Middle of nowhere and it's commonly accepted to be the best song from the album as it's neither juvenile nor a slow ballad which is commonly agreed upon as two major flaws from the album. Even so the trio are still regarded as a one hit wonder with their early entry to this day by modern music fans.
#10 for 1997 website
This wasn't released as a single here in Australia until a full year after its initial release worldwide, I'm guessing we Aussies didn't want to hear Robbie Williams sing about his complicated feelings towards God but changed our minds around the time he released his swing album. This would be the first of many songs from him to explore his complicated relationship with religion.
#32 for 2002 website
Following the staggering success he had with Matchbox 20, Rob Thomas decided to embark on a solo career which began with the lead single to his solo album that was a massive worldwide success for him. Unlike most lead singers of popular bands in this vein, there's a distinct difference between his solo material and his work with Matchbox 20 which means that there was a vision he had that differed from his band.
#19 for 2005 website
I'm sure we're all familiar with "The girl is mine" from MJ and Paul McCartney, so here's the female equivalent which sees 90's child stars Brandy and Monica fight over this guy they both believe to be hers respectively in a way many feel Paul and MJ should've done sixteen years prior. It proved to be a massive success for the both of them as well as both of their first Billboard chart toppers.
#17 for 1998 website
So, we all remember "Bitch" from Meredith Brooks, right? Well Australian comedian Chris Franklin decided to release a version of that song from the perspective of an Australian bloke which became such a success for him that it even out charted the original on our charts. Naturally this was a song that only we Aussies would find any appeal from, which means it was never released internationally.
#9 for 2000 website
One of the more critically divided films of the decade was Disney's adaptation of the Three musketeers, mainly due to it watering down the novel it's based on for a more mainstream audience while still being messed up enough to make you wonder why Disney made the film. Even its theme song divides audiences as though it was a huge success back in the day like the film, it features three rock legends who were admittedly past their prime inserting themselves as the titular musketeers on the track.
#10 for 1994 website
So, you all know the song from Smokie "Living next door to Alice" right? Well, this EDM group decided to make a remix to the 70's classic which ponders the question as to who the f**k she actually is, which really connected with audiences back in the day. This isn't even the only remix to use this formula this year as Smokie themselves got on board with the joke and had an authorised remix of their track become a success in the native UK.
#12 for 1995 website
Well, this was certainly a change in direction that Kylie made following her departure from working with Stock Aiken and Waterman, I know she had to move away from bubble-gum pop eventually, but I don't think anyone was expecting her to gravitate towards indie this soon after her first phase of her career. This paid off massively for her as she not only won respect from the music snobs but even scored a massive hit with this track.
#17 for 1994 website
This was the final hit that S club 7 managed to score outside their native UK, it was hailed as their "coolest yet" thanks to it having a rap verse during a time where a rap verse from a non-rapper was still considered a selling point. The song is also known as the band's one and only foray into disco as they were clearly cashing in on 70's nostalgia on this track the same way their other hits were cashing in on 50's nostalgia.
#13 for 2001 website
This was another RNB track that was released fairly late here in Australia compared to the rest of the world, again it was for the best as it proved to be a bigger hit here for Debelah Morgan than even her native America likely due to it having Latin elements to the track that appeased those who wanted more of the Latin craze down under. She's a one hit wonder with this track which is a shame because she was a good singer.
#19 for 2001 website
It feels weird that Kelly Rowland was the first member of Destiny's child to release a solo album given how she's long since faded into obscurity since the demise of the girl group, here she is with her first solo single which is an ode to her fallen friends she lost during her teenage years that she felt she should've been there for. It remains a highly poignant track from her to this day and was a guaranteed hit for her back then.
#19 for 2003 website
This by all accounts should be much higher on the list given how inescapable it was on the radio in Australia back in the day, however it was unfortunately pulled from shelves as were the other singles from Avril's debut album to encourage album sales which I guess worked out as the album was a massive success for her. Still, it drives me insane that this song is much lower than it should be on this list, but rules are rules.
#12 for 2002 website
This is often considered as one of the worst songs of the decade, mainly for how repetitive it is as well as how awful the lyrics are. Basically, it's a song that serves more as a warmup to Fergie's solo album as it can be considered the predecessor for that album's single "Fergalicious" which also has her and Will I am gawking at how attractive she is.
#43 for 2005 website
Although she's appeared in many Disney products over the years, it turns out Mandy Moore was never a product of Disney herself and was instead a child star who scored massive success starting out with her debut single that she's long since distanced herself from due to it sounding like something that would come out of the Disney machine at the time. Indeed, it turns out that much like Hanson, her later music would become more respectable as she got older.
#23 for 2000 website
Well, this is certainly something different from Alecea Moore AKA P!nk, she would become known as a pop rock chick as early as her second album and yet here we are with her second single from an album which is more in the RNB genre. Although I and many others still have love for her early work, she's since disowned her debut album as she admitted to being forced to make it by her management.
#14 for 2000 website
This is another song I don't particularly care for, mainly for the vocals as Ann Lee seems to be completely devoid of any joy or happiness on this track which would be fine if it wasn't for the fact that this is meant to be a dance track presumably meant for the dance floors. Obviously, I'm in the minority here as this remains a classic to this day even if it's Ann's only hit single anywhere in the world.
#27 for 1999 website
Even though the album cycle for Evanescence's debut album was well and truly done by the time Amy Lee collaborated with the south African band Seether, that didn't mean that the world was tired of her music as she was able to make this a worldwide smash for the band largely thanks to her presence as well as the song feeling like it belongs on her album.
#8 for 2004 website
This was the second hit that JX managed to achieve in Australia, although just like his first hit "Son of a gun," this was a huge flop in his native UK which gives you an idea of how well loved EDM was down under this decade. His third hit "There's nothing I won't do" finally broke him through in his homeland, and hilariously it wasn't a huge hit here like his other two entries were.
#19 for 1995 website
This was the second single to be released from the Vengaboys which just like their debut from earlier on this list it was a massive success for the Dutch group due to the song continuing their gimmick of their music being the best the world has ever seen. The album itself was a huge success for them, proving that at least at the time, this was a band to whose music was considered the coolest to exist.
#21 for 1999 website
This was the last big hit that Ronan Keating had anywhere in the world both solo and as a member of Boyzone, although he would become a pop crooner on his later work along the likes of Michael Bublé and Michael Crawford so it's not like his popularity dwindled as far as his career was concerned. Here we have a cover of one of Garth Brook's earliest songs which suggests he was experimenting with country music.
#16 for 2002 website
It looked like that Bryan Adam's time in the spotlight had come to an end when he released his third album this decade, mainly because he really did take his sweet time in releasing new music this decade despite him easily being one of the biggest artists of the 90's. This managed to take off for him more due to the presence of Sporty Spice who was all of the news around this time due to the drama going on with her band the Spice girls.
#28 for 1999 website
This was one of two collaborations that Eve had with Gwen Stefani, the other would come later in the decade when the latter released her solo debut to establish herself away from No doubt. In the meantime, we have this sex jam where both of them feel confident in being the love of the listeners lives and how irresistible they feel they are, audiences naturally agreed as it was a huge hit for them.
#28 for 2001 website
You know I was once a naive young child who thought this song was literally about making milkshakes, yeah it turns out this song is much raunchier than that the video would have you believe. All I'll say is that the clue comes from where milk tends to come from and the line "I can teach you, but I'd have to charge" and let my readers figure out the rest from there. It was a massive hit here in Australia likely due to us Aussies instantly figuring out the true meaning of the song and feeling titillated by it.
#12 for 2004 website
This is where it all started for Rihanna, although you wouldn't be able to tell that she would become one of the most inescapable artists of the next decade given how this was the type of club banger that many of her contemporaries would have a hit with before fading into obscurity shortly after its success. Indeed, she would evolve from this sound whilst still keeping her commanding presence she provides on here.
#28 for 2005 website
This is one of the stranger songs to become a hit this decade, mainly because it does indeed use alien metaphors in order to talk about a sexual encounter that the singer had with this person. The unique sound of the song helped it find an audience for the British band Babylon Zoo, although it also firmly put them in the one hit wonder camp even in their homeland which is why this was their only hit.
#16 for 1996 website
Even though their album Angel dust was already a huge success here in Australia, it was this cover of the Commodores classic that made Faith no more a household name for the second album in a row due to how well it did on our charts. In all honestly, I could never tell these two songs apart despite knowing that this has a more rock sound to it as opposed to the original which was more RNB leaning.
#14 for 1993 website
This was a triumphant return to the mainstream from the Brothers Gibb as it had been ten years since they last troubled the charts here with "You win again," although it's worth noting that they came back with the type of adult contemporary they were competing against in their prime two decades prior. This was their last hit single before the tragic death of Maurice in 2003.
#42 for 1997 website
This gospel track from the sister duo Mary Mary was a massive flop in their native America, I'm not sure why as it was a massive hit for them everywhere else in the world including here in Australia where gospel music usually doesn't do so well as evidence by the absence of Mary J Blige on this site. For what it's worth, we Aussies were much more receptive to musicians of colour going forward in the 00's.
#16 for 2000 website
We've now entered a new decade where we have these guys making it big worldwide thanks to their kid friendly dance pop as well as their TV show which was taking the world by storm. With all of this success, you'd think that they would have massive crossover appeal in America, aside from a ballad that didn't even chart here, you'd be wrong with that assessment.
#20 for 2000 website
The last time Kim Wilde had any impact on the Australian charts was with her cover of the Supremes "You keep me hanging on," so to see her return to the mainstream with a cover of the Yvonne Elliman classic from the Saturday night fever soundtrack was a welcome surprise for her fans. This was released in conjunction with her greatest hits package which was also a decently huge success for her here.
#28 for 1993 website
Given how two of the members had released highly successful albums between the trio's third and fourth album, the fact this was able to pick up where the singles from Survivor left off three years prior is impressive as you'd think fans would've gravitated away from the group by this point. Indeed, Destiny fulfilled was their final album as a unit as they would go their separate ways after its album cycle was done.
#32 for 2004 website
He already saw success with his cover of "Sky high" from the previous year, now we have this firefighter turned pop star covering another 70's classic in the form of this update of the Dan Hill track from 1977. Newton's version proved to be more successful than the original here in Australia, likely due to the campy nature of this cover as well as it being a danceable track compared to the original which was a soft rock track.
#23 for 1996 website
For a little while, this was my favourite hip hop track, this didn't last long as I quickly discovered the Eminem show shortly after, but I feel that if you found Eminem too problematic with his subject matter, then Nelly was a decent alternative as he was a good rapper without coming off as corny. Audiences worldwide agreed as this lead single to Nellyville was a massive hit for him due to being a club banger.
#15 for 2002 website
From what I can gather, JoJo was the first artist born in the 90's to have a hit single anywhere in the world, that's impressive considering this is a song about a teenager essentially telling her partner to get out of her life for misleading her in the relationship in one of the cleverest ways possible. She does this by initially making this about how in love she is with them only to quickly turn it into her breaking up with them.
#9 for 2004 website
There were no signs of these girls slowing down in the music industry as their second single managed to become a massive worldwide hit for them, this time it's with one of their ballads which showcases a more restrained side of them which I'm sure also titillated their audiences the same was as their other songs did.
Although this song has a relatively low placement on this list, this is mainly because it was slightly delayed here in Australia and then released where it became Kylie's biggest hit in her career despite having a relatively short chart run. This was a practice that had ruined the Billboard charts throughout the 90's and would have similar damage to the ARIA charts throughout the 00's.
#11 for 2001 website
This was one of two tracks to be included on the deluxe edition of Sophie's debut album, it was a massive success around the world likely due to the bizarre music video where she pays homage to the film Mannequin by portraying herself as one. It could also be due to the message of perseverance in the lyrics as while she's not over the breakup she's going through, she assures the listener that she will be.
#11 for 2002 website
While it was a little late to the party in the southern hemisphere, this debut single from Chris Brown was a massive success in Australia and NZ and ushered in one of the most divisive RNB singers of all time. This was even prior to his string of controversies as a person as even from the beginning, people felt he was little more than an Usher wannabe and later on would refer to him as a Justin Bieber of colour.
This was one of only two hit singles this sister duo managed to achieve in Australia, although it's easy to see why this succeeded given how it's an affectionate track about how they'll always be there for each other. Unfortunately for them, their legacy has since been overshadowed by another duo from Australia comprising of twin sisters that since went on to have massive international success, that of course being the Veronicas.
#30 for 1999 website
"Let's get married" was originally released the previous year to deafening silence here in Australia, however it was a moderate success in Jagged Edge's native America due to it being an RNB ballad in the vein of a Boyz II men track from the 90's. It was remixed and rereleased with "Promise" this year where it became an even bigger hit down under than it was in their homeland.
#18 for 2001 website
We looked at their previous collaboration on the 2004 list, so now let's look at the second collaboration between Baby Bash and Frankie J only with their roles reversed on this track as Baby Bash is now playing second fiddle to the RNB singer for his one and only hit internationally. I mean it when I say that their roles were reversed as this is essentially the same song as "Suga suga" when it comes to the subject matter.
#17 for 2005 website
This is one of the stranger collaborations to come out of the decade, mainly because I don't think anyone was expecting Neneh Cherry to do a duet with a west African musician considering she was best known for being a rapper whilst Youssou N'Dor is more in line with new age and traditional Arabic music. The collaboration was a huge success for the pair likely due to it fitting in with the new age trend of the decade.
#25 for 1994 website
We have another entry from a cast member of Neighbours on this list, this time it's Holly Valance who managed to score a massive hit worldwide with this English language cover of a Turkish sex jam from the late 90's. It was the first of four hit singles the Australian singer/actress managed to achieve down under, although she remains a one hit wonder everywhere else in the world with this sex jam.
#21 for 2002 website
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