14th May 1988 for one week

I can clearly remember hearing Perfect on the TV when I was a child. I remember quite liking the song.

I think I like the song less now than I used to. Probably because it was used in an advert that was used constantly, back in the days when you couldn’t skip adverts. I can’t remember what it advertised, but whatever it was meant that the song was overused and lost its appeal.

These days you never hear this song played anywhere. Shame, as it deserved better.

*Having said this, I’ve come back to edit the post before it goes live as I literally heard the song being played in Morrisons yesterday and noticed a few people singing along to it! Maybe there’s more affection for the song than I thought!

5/10

30th April 1988 for two weeks

I was completely unaware of this song until 1996 when the Theme From S’Express – The Return Trip reached Number 14. I was hugely into dance music time so went out of my way to buy dance singles as they were released. I loved the remix.

It was at this point, as the original version was a track on the CD that I finally heard it. It’s just a good song. 1980s hits seemed to enjoy sampling lots of other records and this was no exception. It is a great song, but, if I’m honest, I preferred the remix in 1996.

6/10

9th April 1988 for three weeks

Heart is not one of the better Pet Shop Boys songs. I don’t think I have heard it in decades.

It is pretty average compared to some of their songs.

2/10

26th March 1988 for two weeks

I can remember this song clearly when I was a child but have no specific memories of it. I didn’t know that Aswad’s version was a cover version. I can remember a few years later Ace Of Bass released a version of it. I liked them both.

It’s a nice song but it’s fairly average really. I don’t think it’s aged well.

4/10

20th February 1988 for five weeks

I have vivid memories of hearing I Should Be So Lucky for the first time when I was in my godfather’s pub and the song came on the radio. My mum said that this was the song from Charlene from Neighbours.

I Should Be So Lucky was a fabulous pop song that launched Kylie Minogue as a megastar. Our family were huge Neighbours fans and watched the show pretty much from when it first came out. Charlene was one of our favourite characters.

ISBSL reached Number 1 after being on sale for a few weeks, and then stayed there for five weeks! The song was everywhere. I can remember literally hearing it everywhere. Friends at school sang it. It was on the radio, the TV and played in shops. Everywhere.

Kylie began to dominate the charts. We will definitely meet her again on this blog, in 1989, but between now and then she will have three Number 2 hits – Got To Be Certain, The Loco-motion and Je Ne Sais Pas Pourquoi. I can remember them all. I can remember being on holiday when The Loco-motion was a big hit.

ISBSL was a sign that the Stock Aitken and Waterman producing team was beginning to get into their stride. They had enjoyed four Number Ones previously – You Spin Me Round, Respectable, Let It Be (this god-awful charity record shouldn’t really count as they didn’t write it) and Never Gonna Give You Up. I Should Be So Lucky would be their only one of 1988. They were really just warming up for a prolific 1989.

I Should Be So Lucky continues to sound great, but perhaps hasn’t aged as well as some of her other hits.

9/10

30th January 1988 for three weeks

Seeing the single’s cover for the first time just now, I have realised that I had absolutely no idea what Tiffany looked like. But I clearly remember the song I Think We’re Alone Now when I was nine years old. I remember really liking it.

45 years later and I can confirm that ITWAN still sounds fabulous. It’s a true Eighties power pop single. Tiffany absolutely smashes her vocals and the production on the song is great.

10/10

16th January 1988 for two weeks

1988 started with a bang – Heaven On Earth is an absolute massive power ballad. Wow, Belinda Carlisle started her solo career off with the perfect pop song.

Heaven On Earth is still a hugely popular song, featuring in TV shows, films and still played regularly on the radio. It is a total singalong song.

I cannot really recall this song when it came out. In 1989 I loved Leave A Light On, and can vividly remember refusing to move out of Woolworths until it had finished playing. But I don’t know at which point I discovered Heaven On Earth. The song still sounds fabulous 35 years later and is rightly considered a classic.

We won’t meet Belinda Carlisle again on this blog so it is worth saying that I bought a copy of her greatest hits album in 1999 and discovered that I loved pretty much every single song on there. She was a brilliant singer.

10/10

19th December 1987 for four weeks

Always On My Mind is such a beautiful song. I haven’t yet found a recording that I don’t like.

First made popular by Elvis Presley, the song is very moving and it makes me very reflective. I discovered the Willie Nelson version as an adult – again, it’s very thoughtful and deep.

The Pet Shop Boys took a beautiful ballad and turned it into a dance floor stormer! It’s almost a different song entirely, but yet it contains the same melody and lyrics. I absolutely love this version and it is no surprising that it made Number 1. The year ends on a high, for sure.

Always On My Mind still sounds fantastic 36 years later!

8/10

14th November 1987 for five weeks

China In Your Hand is a great record and I still like it, years later. I can remember it as a child as there was something unique about the song and the way it was sung that made it stand out. It’s hard to explain why it feels like it sounds a bit different. It’s in an unusual key compared to a lot of pop songs. I think it was as an adult that I learned to like it more. 

In doing some quick research for writing this post, it seems that China In Your Hand was the 600th Number 1. 

8/10

17th October 1987 for four weeks

The Bee Gees released some great songs over their time, and wrote some classics for other artists too.

This is the first time I’ve been able to discuss them on this blog since March 1979. An eight year gap between Number 1s is quite rare, although not a record. I think it’s the longest gap so far on this blog.

You Win Again is a fabulous pop song. It is a typical Bee Gees song, immediately sounding familiar but a bit different. It is a deserved Number 1 and it still sounds good today. This was probably the start of the era of Bee Gees that I prefer – the late Eighties and Nighties Bee Gees.

8/10