12/08/01

PTS	2W	LW	TW	TITLE: ARTIST	WKS	#PK/#WKS	NOTES
	22	34	50	Butterfly: Kylie Minogue	19	8.1w
+6			49	The Dream Within: Lara Fabian	1
	23	24	48	Sexy: French Affair	7	23.1w
+7			47	Words Are Not Enough: Steps	1
	18	33	46	Sweet Baby: Macy Gray	11	14.1w
+12			45	Paid My Dues: Anastacia	1
+8	----	47	44	Tragedy: Marc Anthony	2
+12	----	48	43	I Wish I Knew How it Would Feel to Be Free: The Lighthouse Family	2
+16			42	I Know Him So Well: Steps	1
+18			41	The Moon and the Sky: Erasure	1
+4	48	42	40	Crying in the Discoteque: Alcazar	3
	35	38	39	River Divides: Kristine W	24	1.5w
	34	37	38	Ain't it Funny: Jennifer Lopez	17	5.3w
	11	26	37	Crush: Mandy Moore	14	8.1w
	20	21	36	I Feel Loved: Depeche Mode	8	20.1w
	28	27	35	Say That You're Here: Fragma	6	27.1w
+23	----	46	34	Break 4 Love: Peter Rauhofer featuring the Pet Shop Boys	2
+10	43	36	33	Neverending Story: Creamy	3
+20	----	41	32	Who Do You Love Now?: Riva featuring Danni Minogue	2
+26	----	44	31	Rapture: IIO	2
+16	47	39	30	60 Miles an Hour: New Order	3
	32	30	29	Standing Still: Jewel	6
	19	23	28	You Set Me Free: Abigail	24	1.1w
+16	44	35	27	Free Love: Depeche Mode	3
+11	37	32	26	Family Affair: Mary J. Blige	5
	17	19	25	Chain Reaction: Steps	11	2.2w
	6	7	24	Sleeping (Remix): Rick Astley	9	6.1w
+7	31	28	23	Shower the People (Remix): Kristine W	5
+15	39	29	22	I'm A Survivor: Reba	4
	25	22	21	AM to PM: Christina Milian	8
	24	20	20	Strange Little Girl: Tori Amos	6	20.2w
+19	40	31	19	Kids in America 2001: Kim Wilde	3
	4	4	18	Drowning: Backstreet Boys	11	4.2w
+16	38	25	17	Ride Like the Wind 2001: Christopher Cross	3
+7	27	18	16	Can't Get You Out of My Head: Kylie Minogue	17	1.3w
	9	9	15	I'm A Slave 4 U: Britney Spears	8	9.2w
+2	15	15	14	Hero: Enrique Iglesias	10
+4	21	16	13	Calling: Geri Halliwell	6
+11	26	17	12	New Year: The Sugababes	5
+3	14	13	11	That Day: Natalie Imbruglia	9
+4	13	12	10	Makin' Oooh Oooh (Talking About Love): Melanie Thornton	8
+5	12	11	9	Come On (It's Only Love): Love Inc.	6
+11	16	14	8	Hit 'Em Up Style (Oops!): Blu Cantrell	7
+2	8	8	7	Insanity: Culture Beat	7
	5	5	6	Out of Reach: Gabrielle	37	1.4w
+9	10	10	5	Impressive Instant: Madonna	6
+4	7	6	4	Get the Party Started: Pink	8
	3	3	3	Don't Need the Sun to Shine (To Make Me Smile): Gabrielle	9	3.4w
	2	2	2	The Music's No Good Without You: Cher	9	2.4w
	1	1	1	Stand Still: Aubrey	11	1.7w	tied with "Your Disco Needs You" by Kylie Minogue as longest #1 hit of 2001

Stepping up to bat...Steps loses two positions in the Top 50 this week as "Wouldn't Hurt So Bad" and "Careless Whisper (Live)" fall off of the chart, but Steps also gains two positions as the debut two tracks from their latest single...at #47 is the A-side to the single, "Words Are Not Enough," a nice poppy ballad...at #42 is another ballad--the B-side to the "Words..." single..."I Know Him So Well" last charted when Whitney Houston and Cissy Houston recorded the song for her WHITNEY album...now Steps will attempt to make this a hit once again (the Houstons' version made it to the top 10)...Steps has charted in 2001 with ten chart entries--clearly more than any other artist--"Stomp," "Heartbeat," "It's the Way You Make Me Feel," "You'll Be Sorry," "Here and Now," "Wouldn't Hurt So Bad," "Chain Reaction," "Careless Whisper (Live)," "Words Are Not Enough," and "I Know Him So Well"...the group charted eight entries in 2000--"One for Sorrow," "Tragedy," "Deeper Shade of Blue," "Better the Devil You Know," "Love's Got a Hold on My Heart," "Stay With Me," "Stomp," and "Heartbeat"...as you can see, some 2000 charters were 1999 holdovers, as were 2001 charters 2000 holdovers...

Out of Reach?...As Aubrey's "Stand Still" ties Kylie Minogue's "Your Disco Needs You" as the longest running #1 hit of 2001, Cher and Gabrielle maintain strongholds on the rest of the top 3 with "The Music's No Good Without You" and "Don't Need the Sun to Shine (To Make Me Smile)," respectively...this is the longest in the Top 50 chart history that the top 3 has gone unchanged (four weeks and counting)...it's really hard to tell which song will be at the top next week as they are all so close in airplay and two new top 5 entries are making an aim for the pole position next week...

Party at #4...Pink's "Get the Party Started" hits #4 this week, which happens to tie Pink's highest chart position with "Most Girls," her 2000 top 20 finisher...in an impressive move, Madonna's "Impressive Instant" leaps to #5 from #10 in a very crowded top 10...both of these tunes are closing in on the solid top 3 and could very well dislodge the forces that have been ruling the charts for four weeks...next week's top 5 challenge should be quite interesting...

Oops! A Top 10...Blu Cantrell reaches the top 10 this week with her debut hit "Hit 'Em Up Style (Oops!)"...the song makes a great move in a crowded area of the chart--jumping from #14 to #8 this week...the Billboard top 5 hit made an impressive finish for the year on the Billboard charts and is now generating the buzz on the Top 50 that is long overdue...

All About Love...Love Inc. scores its third top 10 hit this year with "Come On (It's Only Love)" as it moves from #11 to #9...the song follows the #1 smash "Broken Bones" and the #9 hit "Into the Night"...Love Inc. scored a top 3 hit in 1999-2000 with "You're A Superstar"...speaking of love, Melanie Thornton scores her first top 10 solo hit posthumously with "Makin' Oooh Oooh (Talking About Love)"...the singer, who recently passed away in a Swiss plane crash, certainly was no stranger to top 10 success...she can be heard on lead vocals on the LaBouche top 10 hits "Be My Lover," "Sweet Dreams," "Fallin' in Love," "Where Do You Go" (yes, the song made into a US top 10 hit by No Mercy--LaBouche's version is far superior and one of my faves by the duo), and "You Won't Forget Me"...listen for Thornton's latest single in Coca-Cola promos this holiday season...

Hits for the New Year...as the top 20 remains very crowded with potential smash hits, I expect to see little movement next week...however, some songs make decent chart moves this week including The Sugababes' "New Year"...recently, I discovered that the song was actually a single last year in the UK (I was charting it as an album track)...it is the fifth Top 50 hit from ONE TOUCH, the girls' debut album...Geri Halliwell makes a decent three-place move with her first charting ballad called "Calling"...I still haven't heard the dance mixes to this which may help boost the song a bit in such a packed chart...

Blowing into the Top 20...Christopher Cross would have done incredibly well on my charts had I been charting in the early 80's...this week, he makes his top 20 debut with an update of one of his #1 smashes..."Ride Like the Wind 2001" darts from #25 to #17 this week...speaking of the early 80's, "Kids in America 2001" by Kim Wilde not only takes SALES HIT, but also manages a twelve notch move into the #19 position...it is the first time Wilde has seen the top 20 since she hit #1 with "If I Can't Have You"...

"Rapture" by IIO makes a thirteen place move this week and takes COMBO HIT...this song is sure to make it to the top 10 in no time as it's growing on me more and more with each listen...probably one of the best dance records of 2001, look for this one to stick around well into 2002...the Pet Shop Boys are featured on this week's AIRPLAY HIT at #34..."Break 4 Love" by Peter Rauhofer is another great dance record (although John Keith would beg to differ, I've found a remix featuring PSB that I love)...another British synth-pop duo appear on the chart at #41 as this week's DEBUT HIT..."The Moon and the Sky" is the latest Erasure single...

Anastacia, who charted with the #1 smash and 2000 top 10 finisher "I'm Outta Love" and in 2001 with "Made for Lovin' You" and the #11 smash "Love is Alive," returns to the chart this week with "Paid My Dues," the title track to her second album...the soulful Taylor Dayne-ish (cute, eh?) singer has a shot to recapture the success of her first single with this great tune...Lara Fabian also returns to the chart this week--Fabian charted in 2000 with the #2 smash "I Will Love Again" and the #3 hit "I Am Who I Am," both fueled by powerful house mixes...she also charted in 2001 with "Love By Grace," a modest hit that charted in its original ballad format...this week, she enters the chart at #49 with another ballad called "The Dream Within"...