NME Top Singles of 1990

[Darkness_Fish]

I must admit, I thought this would be baggy heavy, but there's a surprisingly aimless feel to it. You could argue that Betty Boo is the real outlier, though the real scandal is the presence of New Order, a particularly dull Pet Shop Boys track, and the ever shit Primal Scream.

1. Deee-Lite - Groove is in the Heart


2. Happy Mondays - Step On


3. Sinead O' Connor - Nothing Compares 2 U


4. Betty Boo - Where Are You Baby


5. Primal Scream - Loaded


6. Pet Shop Boys - Being Boring


7. Dream Warriors - My Definition Of a Boombastic Jazz Style


8. James - Come Home


9. England/New Order - World In Motion


10. The Lemonheads - Different Drum

[Darkness_Fish]

Long list:

1. Groove Is In The Heart - Deee-Lite
2. Step On - Happy Mondays
3. Nothing Compares 2 U - Sinead O' Connor
4. Where Are You Baby - Betty Boo
5. Loaded - Primal Scream
6. Being Boring - Pet Shop Boys
7. My Definition Of A Jazz Style - Dream Warriors
8. Come Home - James
9. World In Motion - England/New Order
10. Different Drum - The Lemonheads
11. In The Day Before Rock 'N Roll - Van Morrison
12. Doin' The Do - Betty Boo
13. Kinky Afro - Happy Mondays
14. There She Goes - The La's
15. The Only One I Know - The Charlatans
16. It's On - Flowered Up
17. This Is How It Feels - Inspiral Carpets
18. Groovy Train - The Farm
19. Only Love Can Break Your Heart - St Etienne
20. The Storm - World Of Twist
21. Unbelievable - Emf
22. I'm Free - The Soup Dragons
23. Mad Love Ep - Lush
24. Message In A Box - World Party
25. My Boyfriends Back - Alice Donut
26. Come Together - Primal Scream
27. Vogue - Madonna
28. Everything Flows - Teenage Fanclub
29. Fall EP - Ride
30. Glider EP - My Bloody Valentine
31. Bonita Applebum - A Tribe Called Quest
32. So Hard - Pet Shop Boys
33. Welcome To The Terrordome - Public Enemy
34. Getting Away With It - Electronic
35. God Knows It’s True - Teenage Fanclub
36. The Only Rhyme That Bites
37. Kill Your Television - Ned’s Atomic Dustbin
38. Hey Venus - That Petrol Emotion
39. Soccer Fan - The Real Sounds Of Africa
40. Hello Hello Hello Hello (Petrol) - Something Happens!
41. Velouria - Pixies
42. The Ship Song - Nick Cave
43. Wash Your Face In My Sink - Dream Warriors
44. One Love - The Stone Roses
45. The Power - Snap
46. Probably A Robbery - Renegade Soundwave
47. What Time Is Love? - The KLF
48. The Boomin’ System - Ll Cool J
49. It Wasn’t A Dream - The Ruthless Rap Assassins
50. Sway - Ocean Colour Scene

Surprising that the immense Alice Donut are present, given how much the NME detested them back when I used to read it.

[naughty boy]

New Order singing a football song. Oh joy.

[Darkness_Fish]

C'mon, the John Barnes rap is a cultural milestone. Like The Mrs Browns Boys of rap.

[WG Kaspar]

Wow! They really didn't like Depeche Mode.

[naughty boy]

C'mon, the John Barnes rap is a cultural milestone. Like The Mrs Browns Boys of rap.

Ugh.

Actually much of the long list is great - only the inept Farm and Soup Dragons let it down.

These would be my picks:


12. Doin' The Do - Betty Boo
13. Kinky Afro - Happy Mondays
14. There She Goes - The La's
15. The Only One I Know - The Charlatans
16. It's On - Flowered Up
17. This Is How It Feels - Inspiral Carpets
19. Only Love Can Break Your Heart - St Etienne
20. The Storm - World Of Twist
21. Unbelievable - Emf
27. Vogue - Madonna
28. Everything Flows - Teenage Fanclub
29. Fall EP - Ride
30. Glider EP - My Bloody Valentine
34. Getting Away With It - Electronic
35. God Knows It’s True - Teenage Fanclub
38. Hey Venus - That Petrol Emotion
41. Velouria - Pixies
42. The Ship Song - Nick Cave
43. Wash Your Face In My Sink - Dream Warriors
44. One Love - The Stone Roses
45. The Power - Snap
47. What Time Is Love? - The KLF
48. The Boomin’ System - Ll Cool J

[never/ever]

Surprised Glider didn't make the top 10....it was such a huge hype at the time.

From the list I do like that Dream Warriors-track the best. Why don't they make Hip Hop like that anymore?

[Diamond Dog]

Dee-Lite, Sinead and Dream Warriors.

[Dayodead]

Voted Deee-Lite and Happy Mondays...

Long List:
Groove Is In The Heart - Deee-Lite
Step On - Happy Mondays
Kinky Afro - Happy Mondays
There She Goes - The La's
The Only One I Know - The Charlatans
Only Love Can Break Your Heart - St Etienne
My Boyfriends Back - Alice Donut
Fall EP - Ride
Glider EP - My Bloody Valentine
Bonita Applebum - A Tribe Called Quest
Welcome To The Terrordome - Public Enemy
Velouria - Pixies
What Time Is Love? - The KLF

My Top singles of 1990:
1. Sonic Youth- Kool thing
2. The Cure- Pictures of you
3. Massive Attack- Daydreaming
4. Kitchens of Distinction- Drive that fast
5. Coil- Windowpane
6. Lush- De-Luxe
7. Deee-lite- Groove is in the heart
8. The Cramps- Bikini Girls with machine guns
9. Superchunk- Slack Motherfucker
10. Lubricated Goat- Meating my head
hms:
Yo la Tengo- Here comes my baby
Ride- Taste
Galaxie 500- Fourth of July
Pixies- Velouria
My Bloody Valentine- Soon / Glider
The Trash can Sinatras- Only tongue can tell
The Charlatans- The only one I know
Happy Mondays- Step on
Saint Etienne- Only love can break your heart
A Tribe called Quest- Can I kick it?
Pulp- My legendary girlfriend
Unsane- Vandal X
The Residents- Don't be cruel
Dinosaur Jr.- The Wagon
Brainbombs- Anne Frank
Cows- Slap Back
Ice Cube- Amerkkka's most wanted

[Ranking Ted]

Have very fond memories of that year and the list holds up pretty well. From the 50, I can still dig these:

1. Groove Is In The Heart - Deee-Lite
4. Where Are You Baby - Betty Boo
5. Loaded - Primal Scream
6. Being Boring - Pet Shop Boys
7. My Definition Of A Jazz Style - Dream Warriors
8. Come Home - James
10. Different Drum - The Lemonheads
12. Doin' The Do - Betty Boo
13. Kinky Afro - Happy Mondays
14. There She Goes - The La's
15. The Only One I Know - The Charlatans
16. It's On - Flowered Up
17. This Is How It Feels - Inspiral Carpets
19. Only Love Can Break Your Heart - St Etienne
20. The Storm - World Of Twist
21. Unbelievable - Emf
23. Mad Love Ep - Lush
24. Message In A Box - World Party
26. Come Together - Primal Scream
27. Vogue - Madonna
28. Everything Flows - Teenage Fanclub
29. Fall EP - Ride
30. Glider EP - My Bloody Valentine
31. Bonita Applebum - A Tribe Called Quest
32. So Hard - Pet Shop Boys
33. Welcome To The Terrordome - Public Enemy
34. Getting Away With It - Electronic
35. God Knows It’s True - Teenage Fanclub
38. Hey Venus - That Petrol Emotion
40. Hello Hello Hello Hello (Petrol) - Something Happens!
41. Velouria - Pixies
42. The Ship Song - Nick Cave
43. Wash Your Face In My Sink - Dream Warriors
44. One Love - The Stone Roses
46. Probably A Robbery - Renegade Soundwave
47. What Time Is Love? - The KLF
48. The Boomin’ System - Ll Cool J

Bolded ones are the 3 picks from the top 10 - despite Primal Scream being utter throbbers, that one, hackneyed and flogged to death as it is/was, was absolutely 1990 in a nutshell.

[ChrisB]

The Pet Shop Boys is magnificent. For 5 years, they were untouchable.

[BARON CORNY DOG]

I only feel the need to vote for Dee Lite and Sinead O'Connor. The rest does not interest me. An epidemic of that terrible British dance music fake-gospel piano thing.

[Darkness_Fish]

The Pet Shop Boys is magnificent. For 5 years, they were untouchable.

84 - 89?

[naughty boy]

1813 - 1818

[ChrisB]

1813 - 1818

No, that was the Stones.

[naughty boy]

[The Modernist]

Dee-lite, PSB and Loaded for me.
Weren't James terrible?

[naughty boy]

Dee-lite, PSB and Loaded for me.
Weren't James terrible?

I was never a fan, but I wouldn't go that far.

What makes them 'terrible' rather than just 'average', G?

[Goat Boy]

Dee-Lite, obviously. Betty and Primal Scream.

O'Connor screws up that song royally.

Really?

I think it's pretty definitive.

[The Modernist]

Dee-lite, PSB and Loaded for me.
Weren't James terrible?

I was never a fan, but I wouldn't go that far.

What makes them 'terrible' rather than just 'average', G?

It's just got that horrible MTV polished rock 'dance' sound -and the singer always came across like some earnest, over eager drama teacher.