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.
This was originally released the previous year worldwide for Monifah; however, it appears we Aussies were interested in this sex jam from the RNB singer and thus allowed it to become a massive hit when it finally hit our shores this year. It was such as success down under that she even scored a minor hit with her next release which is a double A-side of "Bad girl" and "Suga suga" before she faded into obscurity.
#24 for 1999 website
Given how inescapably popular Usher was quickly becoming throughout the world, it only makes sense there would be a British equivalent which came in the form of Craig David. This was his second single from his debut album and by far the biggest on said album here in Australia, mainly because it has a gimmick of detailing his sexual escapades on each day of the week hence the name of the song.
#39 for 2001 website
This was the third big hit in a row for Aqua in Australia, although in some parts of the world "My oh my" was the third single meaning that we were among the first to have this be a huge success for them. I guess if there was a reason to dislike this song, it would be that it began the trend of comparing sex to candy given how the lyrics are sexually driven if you're familiar with double entendres.
#25 for 1998 website
And who says that teen pop was dead by the midpoint of the decade? Granted it certainly didn't have a stranglehold of the music scene like it did at the start of the decade, but that didn't mean that songs such as this debut single from Jesse McCartney didn't have a chance at being a massive worldwide hit. Interestingly this flopped in his native America even though he would have massive success over there later in the decade.
#23 for 2005 website
This was the only hit to come from B2K even in their native America, I'm guessing P Diddy's desires of managing boy and girl bands would only last him for one song each as the female counterpart to these guys Dream (well white girl counterpart) only scored one hit two years prior with "He loves u not" before they too faded into obscurity (not here in Australia obviously.) These two acts were his only notable success in this regard.
#16 for 2003 website
This was the sixth consecutive chart topper that Delta Goodrem had here in Australia, I'm guessing the backlash she received at the time was what Mariah Carey went through in her native America in the early 90's given how it seemed like everything she released went straight to number one on Billboard at the time. In this case, it makes sense as it was the lead single to her second album Mistaken identity.
#22 for 2004 website
This is a song that was meant to be a tribute to Madonna who was quickly becoming less relevant in the mainstream by the time of its song's release, to do this the Androids compared her favourably to other female pop stars of the moment and how they couldn't hold a candle to the queen of pop's legacy. It was a surprise hit for the Australian band likely due to the video where the members cosplay as the different pop stars.
This was the only hit single to come from the Tony Rich project, an RNB group named after its lead singer who scored their one and only hit with this ballad that became a surprise hit here in Australia considering how uncommon it was for RNB hits to be successful this decade. No doubt this was one of the first signs of us Aussies becoming more tolerant of black music during the second half of the 90's.
#19 for 1996 website
Well it looks like this was an excellent year for European DJ's (or in this case a group of German DJ's) to dig up older songs and put their own spin on them for the clubs of the day, this time we have Scooter who dug up the Supertramp classic of the same name and scored a massive chart topper here in Australia with this formula much like DJ Otzi did earlier on this list.
#18 for 2002 website
If my American readers are confused as to where this song came from, that's because it wasn't released as a single over there as "Clap back" was released instead which was a massive flop for the rapper worldwide. This was a massive hit here in Australia which goes to show how much we Aussies loved him back in the day, although that love wouldn't last much longer thanks to his beef with 50 cent.
#14 for 2003 website
Given how she finally managed to score some much-needed success from her debut album with her earlier entry on this list, it appears that Sheryl Crow no longer had any issues with finding success with said album as this second single managed to be a huge hit for her here in Australia. This has a feel of a Fleetwood Mac track which is perhaps why she managed to connect with audiences here.
#30 for 1995 website
I should point out that TLC stands for the initials of the trio in question, that being T-Boz, Left eye Lopez and Chilli. I feel this is a good place to point that out as aside from this fourth single from Crazysexycool being a massive hit for the trio in Australia for some reason, there's not much I can say about it as it doesn't have the personality that defined them throughout the decade.
#42 for 1996 website
This is one of those songs like "Sweet dreams" from the Eurythmics that's meant to be hypnotic in its sound to make up for how repetitive it is when you look at it objectively, while it doesn't have that magic with me, it does with most people as it was not only a massive hit for the British group Starsailor back in the day, but also remains a critical darling in the music scene to this day.
#11 for 2004 website
There didn't seem to be any signs of Usher's popularity slowing down here in Australia or anywhere else in the world as he scored the biggest hit of his career (at this point at least) I guess it was because RNB was at the height of its popularity and that Usher had fully matured into an adult by the time he released this and his album 8701. Of course, his biggest hits were still to come much later in his career.
#22 for 2002 website
Batman forever is a film that divides audiences to this day, mainly because it has the same campy tone as the 60's TV series despite it being a sequel to the more serious Tim Burton flicks from earlier in the decade. The soundtrack was at least a huge success thanks to Seal's earlier entry on this list; however, the actual theme song was this contribution from U2 which was nominated for a Razzie for worst song.
#16 for 1995 website
While "Cup of life" was the first song that Ricky Martin released in English from the previous year, it was this song that finally got him a crossover hit in America as this become a Billboard chart topper for him. The lyrics describe a crazy night out with a woman and how it ruined his life, I'm guessing it was a man in real life but he gender swapped him to allow it to find a more mainstream audience.
#25 for 1999 website
Well, their earlier entry on this list was one of the biggest hits of all time moving from the 90's to the 00's, so it only seems fitting that this second single from Eiffel 65 would also be a big hit for the band right down to the music video continuing the story that their earlier entry had. They didn't have a third hit from their album, meaning that the Italian trio were a two-hit wonder worldwide.
#31 for 2000 website
It turns out that her cameo in Coyote ugly was meant to signify Leann Rimes transitioning from country to pop as the songs on the soundtrack also appeared on her album that year which flopped due to the soundtrack being a massive success. Here she is with the lead single to her second pop album which was also a massive success here in Australia and NZ, although it was a massive flop in her native America.
#34 for 2002 website
This fifth single from Innocent eyes sort of cheated in becoming a chart topper for Delta Goodrem as it came bundled with her cover of "Happy X mas" given how it was released during the Christmas period of 2003. Even so, it allowed her to become the only artist to score five chart toppers from a single album in Australia as no other album has spawned more than three chart toppers down under over the years.
One of the catchiest pop rock tracks to make it big in Australia, there was no way this wasn't going to be a success here even if the rest of the world unfairly ignored Smash mouth due to finding them too silly to listen to. It could also be due to this song never being released as a single over in America, which means much like many entries on these last few lists, it had to contend with charting well on their airplay charts.
#45 for 1998 website
This is another song that's relatively low on this list due to shenanigans with the ARIA charts of the 00's, however I've gone on long enough about how dodgy they were on this site already, so I won't dwell on it here. This was the theme to the Baz Lurhman flick Moulin rouge which was a jukebox musical that revived the musical genre in the mainstream after many years of it being restricted to Disney flicks and their knockoffs.
#12 for 2001 website
I'm just going to say it, Jeremy Jordan is an actor that really should stay away from music because the vocal performance he gives on this track is the type you'd expect from a reality show contestant who fails to make it past the first round of said competition. Apparently, this was taken from the Beverly Hills 90210 soundtrack which would explain its success given how that show was one of the most popular to air on TV this decade.
#47 for 1993 website
Given how UB40 managed to score a huge hit the previous year with a reggae cover of an Elvis Presley track, I suppose it makes sense that these guys would score a hit with their reggae cover of a Peter Frampton track a mere five years after Will to power made a soft rock cover of the song in question. This was commissioned for the film Reality bites which is one of the more critically divided films of the decade.
#19 for 1994 website
This was originally a track from Vitamin C's debut album from the end of the 90's, it was also included on her second album where it was decided to be released as its lead single where it became a hit for the American pop star due to it being the perfect theme to a graduation ceremony. It would've been an even bigger hit here in Australia were it not pulled from shelves in order to promote her second single "The itch."
#21 for 2000 website
I used to like this song, granted I was only nine years old when it came out, but there's a certain innocence to it that makes its popularity back in the day make sense to me. I do feel bad for it as it's often considered one of the worst songs of all time from an Australian artist, likely due to it being the rare, manufactured teen pop track from Australia in comparison to the rock and roll audiences are used to.
#21 for 2001 website
Oh, do I not like Simple Plan, this is coming from someone who feels that the likes of Good Charlotte and Nickelback receive too much flak from the internet which means I don't dislike them simply because the internet tells me to. Here we have their biggest hit, which was the lead single to their second album, an album that many have mocked over the years for how highly immature it is even for emo rock.
This was a mashup of "Numb" from Linkin Park and "Encore" from Jay Z that the two acts performed on MTV that was released as a single, it was a massive hit for both parties likely due to the popularity of the former who had already had a hit with their track the previous year as well as the latter's popularity steadily growing thanks to his relationship with Beyonce.
#27 for 2005 website
There were a lot of songs about jumping around during the early 90's weren't there? Here we have a hit from the Movement which was an American EDM group who scored a surprise hit here in Australia with this track given how EDM generally doesn't do well on the Billboard charts. The lack of success they had back home caused them to give up on music soon after this became a hit here.
(part of this song's success predates the OZ music charts, as such, I had to improvise with its placement on this list)
#48 for 1993 website
This was the first of two big hits that Jamaican singer Diana King managed to achieve worldwide that came from a Hollywood blockbuster, although this was an original track that was released to promote the Bad boys soundtrack as opposed to her other big hit which was a cover of a 60's classic. This proved to be a massive success for Diana across the world likely due to it being a catchy pop reggae track.
#26 for 1995 website
Well, this is a song where the boys wanted to get in on the rock crowd as this samples Joan Jett's "I love rock and roll" in order to help it compete with all the rock leaning teen pop that was getting big this year. Evidently this was the fourth single from the album internationally as we Aussies had to wait for the third single "Got the feeling" to be released the following year.
#29 for 1998 website
This was the third and final hit to come from Craig David's debut album in most parts of the world, it's a more standard RNB ballad from Craig as it's him walking out of a toxic relationship and indeed everything making his life worse than what it needs to be. No doubt the success of all of these tracks from his album led to the success of his American counterpart Usher later in the year worldwide.
#31 for 2001 website
Even though she had a bunch of hits with Ja Rule of all people (curious because she was going out with Nelly during the height of her career) this was her only hit as a lead artist here in Australia likely because of her voice juxtaposing nicely with the production in a way that really stood out from the competition back in the day. It was an even bigger hit in her native America where it topped the Billboard charts.
#20 for 2002 website
This was a massive flop in Nitty's native America, I'm guessing because his fellow Americans didn't appreciate the interpolation of the Archies "Sugar sugar" on the chorus. It appears we Aussies did as this was a number one hit over here, although it's often considered one of the least memorable chart toppers in recent memory down under due to most people (me included) often forgetting that it even exists.
#22 for 2005 website
Well, this was the decade of obvious sampling, so it makes sense that this short-lived Hispanic hip hop group would score a massive worldwide success with this track given how it samples the Champs classic from 1958. I will say that hip hop was able to find success down under back in the day provided it had a gimmick to go along with the rhymes, this happened to use nostalgia baiting.
(part of this song's success predates the OZ music charts, as such, I had to improvise with its placement on this list)
#37 for 1993 website
Although he already had success here in Australia as a member of Take that, this was the first big hit that Robbie Williams had as a solo artist despite him having huge success over in NZ and his native UK as the 90's was coming to an end. I have to assume this was due to the video which shows him literally peeling off layers of himself until only a skeleton remains, why else would this be the song that made him big here?
#33 for 2000 website
It feels weird that this song is Jessica Simpson's biggest hit here in Australia, mainly because it was tied to her reality show the Newlyweds where her and her (then) husband Nick Lachey were filmed in their day to day lives similar to what the Kardashians would be on Keeping up with the Kardashians. It also serves to present her as who she really is which people have criticised for it failing to do.
#13 for 2004 website
So, there was a phase one for the boy band wars of the decade, I don't blame my American readers for not knowing that as it largely took place in the UK between these guys and Take that. Even though Take that won the first round of the boy band wars in their homeland, these guys took home the prize in Australia likely due to the majority of their discography being more upbeat than their rivals.
#36 for 1993 website
This was originally released two years prior to deafening silence, as was the rest of their catalogue from Pocket full of kryptonite as like many albums released this decade, the album was initially poorly marketed by their label and only became a success through sheer determination from the band. I don't know how audiences took so long to gravitate towards this due to how incessantly catchy and memorably it is.
#20 for 1993 website
There were many popular EDM acts to make it big in Australia throughout the decade, one of the more popular being Urban Cookie Collective who achieved massive success both here and their native UK thanks to the dulcet vocals of Diane Charlemagne set to some pretty timeless production that connected with audiences back in the day. They would have one more hit after this before fading into obscurity.
#23 for 1993 website
You know that a trend is omnipresent in pop culture when there's more than one song promoting it becoming a massive success, such was the case for this Canadian group Los Del Mar who rode on the success of the Macarena and made their own song which became a success here in Australia.
#20 for 1996 website
This was the first of three hits that La bouche achieved in Australia, this was keeping in tradition of EDM artists scoring three hits from a highly successful album before the artist in question forever fades into obscurity. They were the most successful act to pull off this formula as they managed to find massive success on Billboard with their album which made their songs even bigger here in Australia.
#25 for 1996 website
This was the other Billboard chart topper that Savage Garden had, although it's worth noting that this wasn't a number one hit in Australia likely due to how inescapable the album itself was upon its initial release. Another fun fact about this song concerning the American charts is that it was the final chart topper for a while for anyone who wasn't from North America or Jamaica as the next person to top the Billboard chart outside these demographics was James Blunt with "You're beautiful" in 2006.
#31 for 1999 website
Much like their debut single from earlier on this list, this was another female empowerment anthem from Madison Avenue as Cheryl sings about how she feels like she's been mistreated by the person she's singing to and how they won't be treating her as such for much longer once she's done with them. It was another instant hit for the duo and a song that promised them so much success moving forward in the decade.
#15 for 2000 website
This was where it all began for Alecea Moore, even during her RNB phase she was all about female empowerment as her debut single was about her calling out her partners bad behaviour and how she wasn't going to tolerate it. Naturally it was a massive worldwide hit for her as female empowerment anthems were commonly accepted in the mainstream by this point in time.
#27 for 2000 website
Well, they may have been late to the party here in Australia compared to everywhere else in the world, however that didn't mean that the Real McCoy saw failure with their singles as evidence by this second hit from their album becoming a massive success here. This was the last song they released where they were credited as MC Sar and the Real McCoy, presumably because it was an unnecessarily long band name for them.
#31 for 1995 website
This was released mere months after the MTV music awards where Madonna kissed both Britney and Christina Aguilera on stage, meaning that moment was meant to hype up this lead single to Britney's fourth album In the zone which it did as it became the biggest hit of the decade for her in most parts of the world. Admittedly Madonna doesn't add much to the track as she's mostly there to bring up the lesbian aspect of the track.
#39 for 2003 website
This was a song that came out of nowhere this year, we have Tracy Bonham who scored a massive hit in Australia with this post grunge track that seemed to connect with us a mere two years after the death of Kurt Cobain. I feel that this is a companion piece to Meredith Brook's "Bitch" as both women seem to be unapologetic with airing out their grievances on both tracks which is why people love these women.
#28 for 1996 website
Much like James Blunt after him, Shawn Mullins was a singer/songwriter who began his career serving his country before making music that would appeal to the more pacifist leaning music lovers. Here we have his one and only hit made for people who seem to be down in the dumps, it's a song that like "Bad day" has been criticised for its faux positivity in the lyrics.
#29 for 1999 website
It looked like the album cycle for Dangerous had concluded when both "Heal the world" and "Who is it" failed to catch on here in Australia, however MJ had other plans as he wanted people to know that Slash provided the guitar solo for the one rock track on the album which seemed to be enough of an incentive for it to be a huge success from the album despite said album being over a year old at this point.
#24 for 1993 website
You'd think that this Italian group would've had more success here in Australia considering they saw massive success in the UK with their songs from earlier in their discography. This decade has been filled with surprises given how they weren't the only acts to make it big in the UK with songs that flopped here in Australia only to find success here with songs that weren't that big in the UK.
#44 for 1996 website
This was released as a song to cash in off of John Farnham's greatest hits trilogy that he released this year, although given how it has Human Nature on the track fresh off the success of their debut album, I feel there was little chance that this collaboration was going to fail upon its initial release here.
#25 for 1997 website
This was the second big hit to come from No Mercy this year, proving that Frank Farian had achieved his redemption arc following the disaster that was Milli Vanilli from earlier in the decade. The album these two big hits came from was a massive success here, which led audiences to wonder what was next for this trio. It turns out that their curiosity floundered when they released their next album.
#22 for 1997 website
If you think stoner culture is anything new, then you should probably know that this comedy track from Afroman was a huge worldwide chart topper despite being little more than a song about how him being a stoner had ruined his life (I personally don't find it funny but evidently a lot of people did.) This was his one and only hit despite being a legitimate rapper who's released several albums in his career.
#10 for 2001 website
It looked like that Pete Murray's debut album would only be a moderate success when it was released the previous year, however it become an overnight success this year thanks to the second single becoming a massive surprise hit for the Australian folk singer this year. I'm willing to bet if digital sales were legal this year, it would've easily been the biggest hit of the year given its ubiquity on the radio.
#17 for 2004 website
It looks like 2pac was still able to find success in the mainstream nine years after his death as Eminem decided to take one of his previously unreleased songs and pair it with "Indian sunset" by Elton John which helped it become the rappers biggest hit here in Australia as well as getting him out of the one hit wonder bin that "California love" had trapped him in months prior to his untimely demise.
#14 for 2005 website
Well, this is a surprise, I don't think anyone had expected the Backstreet boys to have a hit this far into the decade given how the boy band wars had come to an end by 2001 and that they were crowned the definitive champions of said wars. Even so, this finally gave them a chart topper here in Australia as none of their other songs managed to reach the top spot like this did down under.
#16 for 2005 website
This was the only hit single to come from RNB group Silk, I'm guessing this was so big here in Australia due to how sexually charged the lyrics are which made this the perfect soundtrack for baby making if you catch my drift. It was written and produced by Keith Sweat who would go on to have massive success later in the decade as a solo artist with equally sexually charged tracks.
#29 for 1993 website
Often considered to be one of the best songs from Mariah's catalogue, this second single from Music box tugged at the heartstrings of listeners back in the day due to its message of empowerment against the odds during a time where uncertainty was all around the world. It no doubt helped out a lot of people get through a rough patch in their respective lives which is why it was such a huge success.
#33 for 1994 website
This was initially a flop for the RNB girl group, likely because we Aussies weren't interested in RNB even if it was a huge success throughout Europe like this was. We eventually changed our minds on this track when it became a surprise hit over on Billboard which made us realise how catchy and vocally impressive this track was from the trio, although this was their only hit they had here as a quartet.
#32 for 1994 website
Much like the original from Diana Ross and Lionel Richie, this duet between Luther Vandross and Mariah Carey was a huge success this year even though I'm not sure why as it's not like it was attached to anything like the original was. Perhaps it was through the artistic momentum that Mariah had given how she could release anything this year and it would be a huge success for her worldwide.
#26 for 1994 website
This was the only noticeable hit single that Deni Hines managed to score in Australia without the assistance of the Rockmelons, it's a bit of a shame she didn't find more success on her own as this RNB jam it catchy as hell as well as how it displays her vocal range really well. There was international interest in her following the success of this track, however much like her mother, that interest didn't translate to success for her.
#43 for 1995 website
They did manage to have one of the most successful EDM albums of the decade with their breakthrough earlier in the decade, so it makes sense that the German trio would try to replicate that success with this song which they made a valiant attempt with as it was a huge hit for them here in Australia. Unfortunately, their time in the spotlight was up as newer EDM groups took over the mainstream.
#27 for 1997 website
Well, here's the debut single for one of my least favourite groups to find success this decade, I know the Corrs get flack for having Celtic influences in their music but at least it enhances their songs rather than it being a gimmick like it is on B*witched's music. Remove the Celtic sound and you're left with an ordinary teen pop group who were competing with the likes of the Spice girls and Cleopatra for success.
#42 for 1998 website
Again, I promised myself I was going to be nice with each and every entry on this site, so I'll have to put aside my very negative feelings towards this "parody" of the Lou Bega hit from two years prior and instead talk about how this got Bob the Builder out of the one hit wonder bin that his theme song threatened to trap him in. I guess this was a success due to it being less problematic than the song it's obviously ripping off.
#16 for 2001 website
This is the last hit that Shaggy was able to achieve anywhere in the world, mainly because there's two versions of the song floating around which helped it become a hit here albeit slowly as the remix was released much later than the original version. Both versions have Brian and Tony Gold handling the chorus while Shaggy himself raps about how the woman in question turns him on.
#21 for 2003 website
Following the tragic death of his infant son, Eric Clapton agreed to appear on MTV unplugged where he performed an acoustic version of "Layla" on the twentieth anniversary of that track being released. The performance was so raw and emotional that it was issued as a single which allowed the song to finally be a success in Australia where it wasn't all those years ago.
This was a fantastic year for Mya in Australia as she not only achieved two hits on her own, but also was part of a highly popular posse cut from the Moulin rouge soundtrack (which we'll get to in a bit.) Here she sings about being free from a toxic relationship, presumably the same one that she was in on her earlier entry on this list which makes this a compelling narrative if that's the case.
#32 for 2001 website
This was one of only two hits that Kanye West had as a lead artist here in Australia, the other would be "Stronger" from two years later which had him sampling Daft Punk of all people for a self-empowerment anthem. Here he recruits Jamie Foxx who was fresh off his Oscar winning performance as Ray Charles to provide him a chorus to connect his verses about a woman who's only into him for his wealth.
#18 for 2005 website
This is the final hit single that Billy Joel has been able to achieve in his career, although that might be due to him failing to release another album after the album this is named after despite said album being a huge success for him back in the day. I guess he wanted to end his non touring career on a high note as he's been touring extensively since he released this.
#19 for 1993 website
This was the only hit single that Blur were able to score in Australia, likely due to it quickly becoming a sporting anthem due to the "woo hoos" that Damon Albarn would shout throughout the track. Even though they lost against Oasis as the kings of Britpop, they won where it mattered which was with their critical acclaim with the Gallagher's were quickly losing this year with their third album.
#32 for 1997 website
This was the first of a string of hits that Ja Rule managed to achieve here in Australia, I think it's due to him having a bunch of features on his songs (in this case RNB singer Case) who usually bring him a catchy chorus to connect his verses with. In this sense, he was the predecessor to Flo Rida as that's exactly what the follow east coast rapper did once the hits for this guy dried up.
#19 for 2002 website
This will be Busta Rhymes one of only two appearances on the Australian side of my site as the rapper never had much success here for some reason, even so this isn't much of a hip hop track as the rapper instead sings on this song along with Mariah Carey who was still very much cancelled around this time due to her erratic behaviour around the time she starred in her first film Glitter.
#20 for 2003 website
This was the only notable success for the Canadian band Len, I'm guessing because they could only interest audiences with one summer jam about how both lead vocalists (who incidentally are brother and sister) missed out on hooking up with the love of their respective lives for one reason or another. They join a long line of one hit wonders who made it big with a summer jam before fading into obscurity.
#24 for 2000 website
Well, this is a song that's become divisive in recent years, mainly because like "Justify my love" from exactly a decade prior, the song is too Avant Garde for most mainstream audiences who likely feel alienated with how Madonna experimented with her sound on this track. I guess part of this song's success at the time comes from the music video which introduced the world to Sacha Baron Cohen's character Ali G.
#11 for 2000 website
You'd think that a reggae cover of a Marvin Gaye classic would be sacrilege, although you've also likely noticed that I've never had much of an issue with reggae covers of older tracks with the occasional exception. In any case, we have this reggae trio covering Marvin's only hit he had in Australia (shocking I know) where it became a huge success for them, more so than the original I might add.
#32 for 1996 website
This was the lead single to the girls second album Spiceworld, it was clearly meant to signify that the girls were bigger than ever complete with a video that in all honesty was better than anything found in their trainwreck of a film of the same name. Here they infused Latin influences onto the production in an attempt to appeal to the rising popularity of the Latin craze which no doubt added to the song's success.
This was the third and final hit to come from Backstreet boy's second album Backstreet's back, it's a ballad that showcases what the boys were about which was being a white equivalent of Boyz II men as many of their tracks throughout their career were indeed RNB ballads rather than the teen pop we've been affiliating them with. For some reason, this took its sweet time in becoming a hit in their native America.
#27 for 1998 website
It's easy to forget that Y2K was a thing leading up to the new millennium, for the uninitiated, this was a fear that the world would end due to a potential glitch involving the dates changing from 1999 to 2000 where technology would go haywire. This glitch was solved before that had a chance to happen, making this lead single from Silverchair's third album that much more hilariously dated.
#22 for 1999 website
I guess there was supposed to be a third round to the boy band wars this decade given how Blue were just the latest entry into the boy band genre to make it big with this track, although we Aussies sat out of it if there was as I don't remember there being many other contestants back in the day once the Backstreet boys faded into irrelevancy. Like many British acts of the decade, these guys were far more successful in NZ.
#26 for 2001 website
This was the first hit that Outkast managed to achieve outside of their native America, I'm guessing because people took an interest in the song's subject matter about how the narrator is apologising to the mother of his girlfriend and how he impregnated her during the relationship. Both rappers take a different approach to the song with Andre being more sympathetic whilst Big Boi isn't as such.
#14 for 2001 website
Boy was this a pain to do research on, apparently this is from an Italian trio whose initials make up the name of the project. It was a massive flop throughout Europe; however, it became a surprise hit here in Australia thanks to a popular remix from Nick Skitz as did many obscure dance tracks from this decade. Naturally I'm judging the songs by their original mixes, however I can't in this case because I don't know where to find the original.
#20 for 1995 website
Well, this is a song that music snobs love to make fun of, specifically how Alanis wrote an entire song about irony despite none of the situations she describes being ironic and more akin to simply bad luck. She's since admitted that was the point of the song given how deliciously ironic that she wrote a song with that title with not one ironic lyric in the song. I'm guessing this was what made the song so big worldwide.
#29 for 1996 website
It looked like the album cycle for J-Lo's debut album was finished when "Feeling so good" underperformed on the charts from the start of the year, however it looks like she had other ideas as she released this fourth single from the album which became a massive success here in Australia likely due to the Latin craze still being strong in our music scene. I'm not sure what took her so long to release this track as this felt like a natural single from the start.
Following the success of their first single on this list, Destiny's child released this female empowerment anthem about them having fun which is a bit of a contradiction to "Say my name" as that song is about them getting annoyed that their partner isn't spending enough time with them. Naturally these two songs aren't meant to be part of the same narrative, which is perhaps why they were both a massive success.
#13 for 2000 website
This was another song from Missy Higgins that was released as an E.P, as such it was able to become a massive hit for her despite coming from an already highly successful album that was still selling strong numbers when this first came out. It more or less made her the rival of Delta Goodrem who was another Australian pop diva who found previously unheard-of success from one album.
#32 for 2005 website
Well, I did promise myself and my readers I'll be nice to each and every entry I talk about on this site, so I will say that this did get a chuckle out of me when it first came out even if that was because I was twelve years old at the time. No doubt this was the reason why this lead single to Encore and the album itself was a success for Eminem as many people felt it was a giant drop off in quality back in the day.
#31 for 2004 website
This served as the world's introduction to Brian McFadden and Delta Goodrem as a couple given how this duet appears on both of their albums from around this time, it was the first hit that the former had as a solo artist and would've been the latter's seventh consecutive chart topper had it been released before "Mistaken identity" which finally broke her impressive record on the Australian charts.
#25 for 2005 website
This was one of only two hits that Darren Hayes had as a solo artist here in Australia, the other was "Popular" two years later which wasn't nearly as successful as this was for him. While it was unclear at the time why he chose to embark on a solo career during the height of Savage garden's popularity, it was later revealed that it was because he realised he was gay and that he needed to establish his own identity.
#26 for 2002 website
One of the most popular films of the decade was the first Mission impossible flick, a theatrical adaptation of the TV series which spawned a massive franchise as well as confirm Tom Cruise to be an action star which aside from Top gun from a decade prior he really wasn't at this point. The theme song is the films strongest asset, it was composed by members of U2 Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen.
#22 for 1996 website
This was the theme to the Leonardo Dicaprio flick The beach, a film that was critically panned for being little more than an excuse to see him stranded on a deserted island to be objectified by those who find him attractive. Indeed, the song remains the only part of the film that was well received as it became a massive hit for All saints who (in my opinion) greatly improved from their debut album two years prior.
#18 for 2000 website
This was the only hit from American RNB singer Mario Winans anywhere in the world, I'm guessing because it samples the Enya track "Boadicea" which is why she has a featuring credit on this track despite not having any vocals on here. Another featured artist was P Diddy who provides a guest verse to reinforce why Mario doesn't want anything more to do with the person he's singing about.
#18 for 2004 website
Considering this was the biggest hit of the decade over in America, you may be shocked to see how low this second single from Mariah Carey's comeback album the Emancipation of Mimi is on this list. Alas this isn't the result of its success being taken away due to illegal downloads, it just wasn't as inescapable here in Australia or indeed anywhere else in the world as it was on the Billboard charts.
#20 for 2005 website
I guess these kids were in it for the long haul, this was the second single to come from their debut album and one that proved to be equally as successful here as it was over in NZ. I guess the kiwis had access to Triple J's frequency as there were a bunch of hits that crossed over there that I could've sworn were only successful here thanks to the station. As for Silverchair, they were successful but slightly criticised for being a teenage equivalent of Pearl jam.
#21 for 1995 website
We've finally arrived at what many people consider to be the quintessential track from Green day as it doubles as both a breakup anthem as well as a song attacking the American political climate of the mid 00's. For me, I always felt this song was a rip off of Avril Lavigne's "My happy ending" mostly for the "oh oh's" feeling ripped from that song on this track, although many have argued it working better on here.
#36 for 2005 website
If you think that Australians being in Eurovision is a recent phenomenon, then think again as Gina G was based in Australia before she was approached by the UK comity of Eurovision to have her represent them this year with this EDM track of hers. While this didn't win the competition (it only came in eighth) it was by far the biggest hit from the show and even allowed her to crossover to America.
#24 for 1996 website
This was originally released at the start of the decade to deafening silence, mainly because it was considered to be too emo for a time that was meant to be a celebration of entering not only a new century but also new millennium. Of course, things quickly got sombre in society following the 9/11 attacks from the previous year, which allowed this sombre ballad to become a worldwide hit through that affiliation.
#25 for 2002 website
I hope you're used to seeing RNB ballads become a success much later in Australia than the rest of the world because that was a trend here this decade. One of the earlier examples was this ballad from Toni Braxton where despite it being a huge success in NZ and her native America, didn't crossover here until it became a huge hit for her in the UK. I'm not sure why she needed this circuitous route to find success here, but she did.
#24 for 1994 website
This was the only notable success from Quindon Tarver, a teenage RNB singer who score a huge hit here in Australia with his version of the Prince classic and nowhere else in the world. This came from the second volume of the soundtrack which was a huge hit here which would explain this cover's success.
#23 for 1997 website
This was the only hit single that Faith Hill managed to score in Australia, although it's worth noting that I do remember hearing her 00's songs on the radio quite a bit so it's possible she was the victim of digital piracy going forward into the new millennium. It could also be that this was the only song shoved in our faces from the radio that we were receptive to as it's a sweet upbeat ballad.
#34 for 1999 website
I think I'm in the minority when I say that this is my favourite song from Jewel, sure it's a sellout and a complete betrayal of what she had released prior, however I appreciate her trying to make a pop song and I think she did a fairly good job on this track. Of course, her justification for this song in particular is that it was supposed to be a parody of pop songs which many have felt had become vacuous by this point.
#23 for 2003 website
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