Thursday, November 18, 2021

I Never Got To Tell My Nelson Encounter, Did I?/Throwback Thursday

 I was looking at my blog post from almost three years ago, when I noticed something that stuck out for me. When I went to flashback the top 40 songs from January 24, 1991, I said this regarding the artist at the number 5 position, Nelson.

 5. After the Rain by Nelson (Funny story involving what I think was Nelson in Fort Lauderdale in 1997 while I was in the Navy. I'll tell you at a later time).

To my knowledge, I don't think I ever got to tell that story. Well, here it is.


It was late spring 1997, I was in the Navy and the ship I was stationed aboard (USS Eisenhower) was making a port call to Port Everglades, just outside of Fort Lauderdale. As I recall, it was the last day of our port visit, and I took a bus to Sawgrass Mills Mall. It kinda smelled like used cat litter on the outside, but that's an entirely different story; some folks who follow me on Twitter know what I'm talking about😉. Well, on the way back to the ship from the mall area, myself and a few of my shipmates noticed to (we presumed) women with long blond platinum hair riding in a red convertible. To our surprise (and disappointment), it turned out to be two dudes with the long hair. I didn't realize it at the time (and quite frankly, neither did anyone else), but  would later realize some years later that they looked like early 90s rock group Nelson.











Now I couldn't actually confirm that it was actually Matthew and Gunnar Nelson that we saw in that convertible, but it sure looked like what is in the above picture. And that my friends, is my Nelson story from my Navy years.


Today I'm going to do something that I did on the aforementioned blog post that quite honestly I should make a regular feature on this blog; a throwback to the Top 40 charts on a certain year on this very date. For today, I'm going to choose 1994, and as an added bonus, I'm featuring both the Hot 100 AND the Radio & Records charts from that date, for they are markedly different. First, the Hot 100. 

40. Don't Turn Around by Ace of Base

39. Before I Let You Go by BLACKstreet

38. Juicy/Unbelievable by Notorious BIG

37. Circle of Life by Elton John

36. Playaz Club by Rappin 4-Tay

35. I Belong To You/How Many Ways by Toni Braxton

34. Get Over It by The Eagles

33. You Gotta Be by Des'ree

32. Short Dick Man by Gilette f/20 Fingers 

31. Far Behind by Candlebox

30. Sukiyaki by 4PM

29. Lucas With The Lid Off by Lucas

28. U Will Know by BMU (never heard this)

27. Stroke You Up by Changing Faces (R. Kelly sang backing vocals on this)

26. Thuggish Ruggish Bone by Bone Thugs N Harmony (never heard this either)

25. Creep by TLC

24. Wild Night by John Mellencamp w/Me'Shell Ndegeocello

23. Practice What You Preach by Barry White (until now, I didn't realize Barry had a BB Top 40 hit that late in his career)

22. Living In Danger by Ace of Base

21. What's The Frequency Kenneth? by R.E.M.

20. Endless Love by Luther Vandross & Mariah Carey

19. December, 1963 (Oh What a Night) by the Four Seasons (the remix; not the orignal)

18. I'll Stand By You by the Pretenders

17. When Can I See You by Babyface

16. At Your Best (You Are Love) by Aaliyah

15. 100% Pure Love by Crystal Waters

14. On Bended Knee by Boyz II Men

13. Turn The Beat Around by Gloria Estefan

12. Tootsie Roll by 69 Boyz

11. I'm The Only One by Melissa Etherdge

10. Flava In Ya Ear by Craig Mack (I don't recall hearing this one)

 9. You Want This? by Janet Jackson

 8. Never Lie by Immature

 7. I Wanna Be Down by Brandy

 6. Secret by Madonna

 5. Always by Bon Jovi

 4. Another Night by Real McCoy

 3. All I Wanna Do by Sheryl Crow

 2. Here Comes The Hotstepper by Ini Kamoze

 1. I'll Make Love To You by Boyz II Men


Now compare the above to what Radio & Records had published the same week:

40. When We Dance by Sting

39. Sun's Gonna Rise by Sass Jordan

38. Zombie by The Cranberries

37. Rain King by Counting Crows

36. Never Lie by Immature

35. The Sweetest Days by Vanessa Williams

34. Basket Case by Green Day

33. Lucas With The Lid Off by Lucas

32. Stay (I Missed You) by Lisa Loeb & Nine Stories

31. About A Girl by Nirvana

30. Blind Man by Aerosmith

29. Here Comes The Hotstepper by Ini Kamoze

28. Every Day Of The Week by Jade

27. Shine by Collective Soul

26. New Age Girl by Deadeye Dick

25. Interstate Love Song by Stone(d) Temple Pilots

24. Fade Into You by Mazzy Star

23. Wild Night by John Mellencamp w/Me'Shell Ndegeocello

22. Get Over It by The Eagles

21. You Gotta Be by Des'ree

20. Dance Naked by John Mellencamp

19. Sukiyaki by 4PM

18. Hold My Hand by Hootie and the Blowfish

17. Turn The Beat Around by Gloria Estefan

16. You Want This? by Janet Jackson

15. Something's Always Wrong by Toad The Wet Sprocket

14. December 1963 (Oh What A Night) by the Four Seasons

13. When Can I See You by Babyface

12. I'll Stand By You by The Pretenders

11. Allison Road by The Gin Blossoms

10. What's The Frequency Kenneth by REM

 9. 100% Pure Love by Crystal Waters

 8. On Bended Knee by Boyz II Men

 7. Living In Danger by Ace of Base

 6. I'll Make Love To You by Boyz II Men

 5. I'm The Only One by Melissa Etheridge

 4. All I Wanna Do by Sheryl Crow

 3. Always by Bon Jovi

 2. Secret by Madonna

 1. Another Night by Real McCoy


As you can probably tell, both top 40 charts were kind of disjointed, and radio was somewhat confusing at the time (I think I alluded to it here). Also, during this time I was overseas on deployment so I really had no idea what was going on outside of Navy World. But for the most part, the music of that era was pretty solid. 







More to come

CT

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