Singles of 2007

[P-Bal]

We have the album version, now let's hear it for the singles.

It's been a mainly crap year, but some gems have emerged! NAME AND SHAME THEM!!!

I shall return with my top ten very shortly!

[SiHart]

Stop Me by Mark Ronson was my personal favourite single of last year.

Si xx

[Si Hunt]

1. "The Great Divide" by Hanson
2. "Better Get To Livin'" by Dolly
3. "No One" by Alicia Keys
4. "It Means Nothing" by Stereophonics
5. "Bouncing Off Clouds" by Tori
6. "Rule The World" by Take That
7. "1973" by James Blunt
8. "On The Verge of Something Wonderful" by Darren Hayes
9. "Gimme More" by Britney
10. "She's Madonna" by Robbie

Si.

[Pip Madeley]

Notable songs to hit the charts for me...

• Roisin Murphy - Let Me Know (#28, October)
• Bloc Party - I Still Remember (#20, April)
• Jarvis Cocker - Don't Let Him Waste Your Time (#36, January)
• Keane - A Bad Dream (#23, February)
• Muse - Map Of The Problematique (#18, July)
• Girls Aloud - Call The Shots (#3, December)
• Beyonce - Green Light (#12, August)
• Sophie Ellis-Bextor - Me And My Imagination (#23, May)
• Sugababes - About You Now (#1, September)
• Rihanna - Umbrella (#1, May To December, bu'dum-tish!)
• Phil Collins - In The Air Tonight (#14, September)
• Nelly Furtado - Say It Right (#10, February)

[Matthew T]

23 songs that rocked my world this year in order from best to least best:

01 With Every Heartbeat - Robyn with Kleerup
02 Umbrella - Rihanna ft Jay-Z
03 Bleeding Love - Leona Lewis
04 Beautiful Liar [Freemasons Remix] - Beyonce & Shakira
05 Let Me Think About It - Ida Corr vs Fedde Le Grande
06 Perfect (Exceeder) - Mason vs Princess Superstar
07 LoveStoned / I Think She Knows - Justin Timberlake
08 Apologize - Timbaland & One Republic
09 What Goes Around...Comes Around - Justin Timberlake
10 Destination Calabria - Alex Gaudino Featuring Crystal Waters
11 Sure Feels Good - Ultrabeat Vs Darren Styles
12 Heartbroken - T2 feat Jodie Aysha
13 If That's OK With You - Shayne Ward
14 Rise Up - Yves LaRock
15 About You Now - Sugababes
16 Counting Down The Days - Sunfreakz featuring Andrea Britton
17 The Creeps (Get On The Dancefloor) - Freaks
18 Song 4 Mutya (Out of Control) - Groove Armada featuring Mutya
19 I Found U - Axwell feat Max'C
20 Big Girl (You Are Beautiful) - Mika
21 Uninvited - Freemasons
22 The Heart Never Lies - McFly
23 Call the Shots - Girls Aloud

Eat it.

[P-Bal]

I am shocked that Lady Hunt ignored I Want Candy, This Time, Carolynna and The Moment You Believe!

[P-Bal]

I am back with my ten favourite singles, apologies to J-Lo, Take That, Dame Shirley and Tash B who just missed it. There are pretty pictures too, to keep you entertained!


10. SOPHIE ELLIS-BEXTOR - Me And My Imagination
Blistering disco strings and a saucy set of lyrics. Loveable and classy, like the lady herself!


9. MELANIE C - I Want Candy
OK, so covers are cheap and nasty horse cum in your tummy and it’s nasty. But Melanie went catsuit dance routine crazy and gave the first indication that she was ready to embrace the power of Spice Force Five once more. Jaunty!


8. JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE - What Goes Around… Comes Around
This is actually, pretentious and overlong video with dodgy acting aside, a rather nifty little number. With a great arm movement to do when you hear it.


7. SCOOCH - Flying The Flag (For You)
Camp old bollocks, but loveable for it. And filthy too. And Eurovision. I mean it’s got to be a song of the year!


6. SHAYNE WARD - No U Hang Up/If That’s OK With You
This was a grower, not a shower, with P•Bal. The No U Hang Up is deffo the better of the two. Smooth and cool, but the Ace Of Base sounding other half is a poppy delight.


5. KYLIE MINOGUE - 2 Hearts
Min is a controversial old moose when she picks her lead off singles. Again, this was a grower, and a strutty slutty treat once it grew on you. The increased BPM for the Jools Holland performance show’s the life in this one bubbling under the surface!


4. MELANIE C - This Time
Bizarrely, were I to pick a favourite track of the album of the same name, then this would be it. Quite why is only scraped into the charts at #92 is beyond me. The public are stupid. This is a beautiful little ballad, albeit a slightly depressing one. As Melanie is want to produce.


3. SOPHIE ELLIS-BEXTOR - Today The Sun’s On Us
This is a haunting and melancholic little number, again cruelly shunned by the Great British record buying public. Or download buying. The acoustic version could actually break your heart beyond repair.


2. SPICE GIRLS - Headlines (Friendship Never Ends)
It’s bizarre and slightly cruel that history has rewritten this single as a flop. Admittedly it didn’t set the charts ablaze, but it did the job in most respects. I agree with Geri, it is a classic sounding Spice ballad, saved my Melanie cranking it up three gears and making a dash with the baton in the second verse.


1. EMMA BUNTON - All I Need To Know
Standing proud and tall in pole position is Dame Emma Lee Bunton. Again, not a chart topper, or even a top forty hit, but so beautiful and spine tingling, it’s almost too fragile to be a single. Classy and adorable, it’s a proud end to Emma’s solo career for now.



And we all join in on the zig-a-zig-ah.

[Si Hunt]

"Headlines" was bubbling just under my Top 15.

Si.

[P-Bal]

I wanna say one thing Dallas. No Headlines, no outrageous top hats for Melanie C's promo performances. Think on that Mordred.

[cullsoft]

I'm stuck thinking of any popular ones...

But a special nod goes to Erasure's "I Could Fall In Love With You" for reviving my love of them. Sadly I never got hold of the single, but soon as I heard it in HMV I was straight to the shelves to pick up the album!

Also, I'm not sure if it was a single this year, but whilst at the hairdressers earlier in the year I remember hearing a cover of Coldplay's "Clocks"... by a salsa band! And although you wouldn't think it, it worked! Sadly I forgot who did the cover, and never got round to finding a copy of it...

[Jim]

LoveStoned / I Think She Knows - Justin Timberlake
Stop Me - Mark Ronson
Song 4 Mutya (Out of Control) - Groove Armada featuring Mutya
Just Fine - Mary J Blige
Be Without You (Moto Blanco version) - Mary J Blige
Fallin - Sadie Ama (not sure it was ever released)
With Every Heartbeat - Robyn
What Goes Around - Justin
No One - Alicia Keys
Uninvited - Freemasons
Call the shots - Girls Aloud
Don't Stop the music - Rhianna
Happy Ending - Mika
2 Hearts - Kylie
I Want Your Soul - Armand Van Helden
Back to Black - Amy Winehouse
Headlines - Spice Girls (just because!)

[P-Bal]

You missed Dannii Minogue vs Jason Nevins off.

[Simon R]

Here's my top 10 pop pickers!

10. Natlie Imbruglia – Glorious
This screams radio friendly yet was only a minor hit for the former Beth Brennan/Wilis. A safe but likeable country flavoured little ditty. I can’t remember much about the video but there’s a jeep and Kym Marsh’s hair.

9. Christina Aguilera – Candyman

There’s a hint of “Hanky Panky” about this camp 40s pastiche. Worth celebrating purely for the line “makes my panties drop.” Sauce! Good video which might well have influenced the Spice Girls’ "Children in Need" performance.

8. Kylie Minogue – 2 Hearts

I disagree with people that say this is a grower. For me that’s it’s problem. It doesn’t really go anywhere and there’s very little to grow on you. That’s not to say it’s without merit though and it was a brave and wise choice to do something different than the dancey pop that people expect from her. This is very much one of those songs I like more when I hear it than in hindsight, d’yaknowotimean? The video is pretty dull though.

7. Girls Aloud – Call The Shots.

The Aloud are one of the UK’s most reliable singles act and this was a true to form dancey delight that made up for previous single “Sexy! No, No. No” being rather tuneless and uninspired. Classy video too. For once

6. Siobhan Donaghy – Don’t Give It Up

A minimalist, haunting, Kate Bush like chunk of ambient, spooky, withchy pop. A real grower that flopped like Bella Emberg’s funbags. The arty video is good too.

5. Sugababes- Change

This has been unlucky in the hit parade and didn’t break the top 10 but has hung around long enough to not be classed as a flop. A heart breaking big ballad with a sweet sentiment. False eyelashes from heaven in the video!

4. Mutya Buena ft Groove Armada– Out Of Control (Song 4 Mutya)

The highlight of her rather average solo album. A fun slice of electro pop which suits Mutya’s distinctive voice. Could it be about Amelle? Probably not but it’s amusing how the lyrics fit. Awful video!

3. Sugababes – About You Now

Or "Now About You" as Wogan called it on Brat's In Need. They always pick their lead singles wisely and this was no exception. Apparently rejected by Smelly Kelly Clarkson (probably for being too melodic) the Babes made this guitary, electro stormer their own. Dreary video though.


2. Britney Spears – Gimme More

This track is very much of the hear and now and with production by Timberland’s second in command Danja. The epitome of modern American pop with beats galore, distorted vocals and the producer himself popping up for a cameo. It’s sleazy, it’s funky and it makes you want to dance like a slut. Shame about the video.


1. Spice Girls – Headlines (Friendship Never Ends)

Number one because I must have listened to it a million times, if only to see if it gets better! That's not true as I genuinely like it but the first time I heard this alarm bells rang in my head that it wasn’t quite number one material. However I could not have predicted quite how bad it would fare in the charts! Mel B should have had a verse, Mrs Beck’s should have done the middle 8 and there should have been more instrumental bits but this still a nice song that goes down very well when they perform it in concert. The video is cheap and basic but it’s nice to see them. Shame on Mrs Beck’s and Geri for making it slutty!

Follow this you bitches!

[Rob McCow]

Also, I'm not sure if it was a single this year, but whilst at the hairdressers earlier in the year I remember hearing a cover of Coldplay's "Clocks"... by a salsa band!

That'd be the Mark Ronson version, probably, from 'Version'.

Apart from the Kylie one I didn't like any of the singles that Mr.Rayner has listed. I'm out of step with the kids, I guess.

[Si Hunt]

How can you not like "Gimme More" or "About You Now"? They're world class pop choons!

Si.

[P-Bal]

The lack of Chisholm in Lady Rayner's selection is haunting.

[Simon R]

I fingered Chis long and hard but in truth the three UK singles didn't do it for me. "The Moment You Believe" was better and so as "Understand" from the album.

I don't like Groovejets, Builder Bob or "Can't Get You Out of My Knickers" either.

Pure Tor.

[P-Bal]

And no Dame Emma Lee Bunton.

For shame, it's not natural.

[Pip Madeley]

On the subject of Dame Emma, my sis & I were watching an episode from series 5 of Ab Fab. We both agreed that Miss Bunton is a shockingly bad actress, bizzarely even when it comes to playing herself.

[Simon R]

Just as well she's a singer and not an actress then.

[Pip Madeley]

But she trained at drama school, didn't she?

[Si Hunt]

I did A-Level Chemistry, doesn't mean you'd want me to prescribe you something. Which is fine, because I'm a pensions analyst.

Si.

[Pip Madeley]

Anal is in your job title then?

But seriously, if you could prescribe me two paracetemol for this cold, I'd be grateful, cause we've run out here.

[Simon R]

Emma went to a thearte school and not a drama school. Presumably her talents were in singing and dancing and not so much with the acting although I'm not sure I've seen the offending episode of "Ab Fab".

[P-Bal]

I don't think she's all that bad in AbFab with Nokky, especially as she's essentially playing a version of herself and is the stooge. And she calls Edina a "scrotum" which is a delight.