It also turned up in the Top 10 of VH1's "100 Greatest Songs of the 1990s." 1 and finished second on the year-end Hot 100.
But the depth of the lyrics is what ultimately makes this single stand out from the other songs here, starting with "A lonely mother gazing out of a window, staring at a son that she just can't touch." Despite actually making a point, the song spent seven weeks at No. The melody is timeless and the late great Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes looks adorable rocking a ponytail in the video. There's an undeniable echo of Prince at work here, from the slinky wah-guitar to T-Boz's pouty delivery. This was actually the second time an artist hit the Hot 100 with "I Swear." The first was John Michael Montgomery, who also took it to the top of Billboard's country chart. It sounds like it was made for proms and weddings, which is twice as nice for those who choose to spend forever with their prom date. The a cappella intro is practically doo-wop, but it soon settles into the sort of slightly soulful easy listening that helped make Lionel Richie a wealthy man. 1, it finished seventh on the year-end Hot 100. 1 both here (where Presley's version foundered at No. But it perhaps is the most commercially successful, hitting No.
#USHER CONFESSIONS PART 2 A CAPELLA CRACK#
And if you ranked them in order of artistic merit, UB40's version wouldn't even crack the Top 10. A hit for Elvis Presley in the early '60s, it's been done (to death) by everyone, from Patti Page and Doris Day to Chris Isaak, U2, the Pretenders, Bon Jovi, Bob Dylan and far too many more to list. This song has been around the block a time or two.
UB40, "Can't Help Falling in Love" (1993) It also finished second on the Billboard year-end Hot 100. "Baby Got Back" spent five weeks at the top, but really, it was more about the bottom. Sir Mix-a-Lot spends half the track mocking the women in Cosmo, rapping "To the beanpole dames in the magazines, you ain't it, Miss Thing/ Give me a sista/ I can't resist her/ Red beans and rice didn't miss her." And the video is just as entertaining as the song. Even the cast of "Friends" were not immune to saluting the decade's most durable novelty hit. So while you're waiting, here's a look back at the hits that dominated the summers leading up to "Blurred Lines," according to Billboard.Įverybody liked big butts in the summer of '92 - or liked rapping along with Sir Mix-a-Lot as he proudly extolled the virtues of well-rounded women. Last year, for example, it was Robin Thicke's "Blurred Lines." This year? Well, summer hasn't started yet. And for those who listen to pop radio, that soundtrack tends to have one song so unavoidable that hearing it years later can transport a listener right back to whatever else was going on that summer.