Isn't Anything is the debut studio album by Irish-English rock band My Bloody Valentine, released on 21 November 1988 by Creation Records. Its innovative guitar and production techniques consolidated the experimentation of the band's preceding EPs and would make the album a pioneering work of the subgenre known as shoegazing. Upon its release, the album received rave critical reviews and reached #1 on the UK Independent Albums Chart.
"Push It" is a song by American hip hop group Salt-N-Pepa, who originated in Queens. It was first released as the B-side of the "Tramp" single in 1987. Then released by Next Plateau and London Records, it peaked at number 19 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in early 1988 and, after initially peaking at number 41 in the UK, it re-entered the charts after the group performed the track at Nelson Mandela's 70th birthday concert, eventually peaking at number two in the UK in July 1988. The song has also been certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The song is ranked number 446 on Rolling Stone's list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time" and was ranked number nine on VH1's "100 Greatest Songs of Hip Hop".
Strip-mine is the second studio album by English rock band James. It was released on 26 September 1988, through Sire and Blanco y Negro Records. After minimal touring and lack of success for their debut studio album Stutter (1986), the label was apprehensive about letting them record another album. Sessions for it were held in early 1987 at Rockfield Studios with Hugh Jones producing the majority of the album, except for "Are You Ready", which produced by Steve Power and Steve Lovell. After the recording, the release was delayed a number of times, until it was eventually remixed early the following year at London's Battery Studios. Described as a folk-pop album, the songs on Strip-mine tackled the topics of misinformation, addiction, and human mortality.
Gold Mother is the third studio album by English rock band James. It was released on 4 June 1990 on Fontana Records. With the addition of drummer David Baynton-Power, violinist/guitarist Saul Davies, and keyboardist Mark Hunter, James released the single "Sit Down" in June 1989, before going to record their next album. Sessions were held at Out of the Blue in Manchester, The Windings in Wrexham, Wales, with three band members and Nick Garside producing. Described as an arena rock and indie rock album, Gold Mother was compared to the likes of U2 and the Waterboys.
Seven is the fourth studio album by English rock band James. It was released on 17 February 1992, through Fontana Records. After writing new material in their practice space, the band began recording at The Manor Studios. The sessions lasted for several months, with the band producing the proceedings themselves. After a lack of progress, Fontana halted the sessions, and sent them to work at Olympic Studios with Martin "Youth" Glover. Half of the songs were produced by Youth, while the remainder was produced between James and Steve Chase. Described as a stadium rock album, Seven drew comparison to the likes of Simple Minds and U2.
"Heaven Is a Place on Earth" is a song recorded by American singer Belinda Carlisle for her second solo studio album, Heaven on Earth (1987). Written by Rick Nowels and Ellen Shipley, and produced by Nowels, the song was released as the album's lead single on September 14, 1987, and it topped the Billboard Hot 100 on December 5, 1987, becoming Carlisle's only No. 1 hit single in the United States to date. A month later it peaked at No. 1 in the United Kingdom, where it held the top spot of the UK Singles Chart for two weeks. "Heaven Is a Place on Earth" is widely considered to be Carlisle's signature song.
"Peek-a-Boo" is a song by English rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees. It was released in 1988 as the first single from the band's ninth studio album, Peepshow. Melody Maker described the song as "a brightly unexpected mixture of black steel and pop disturbance" and qualified its genre as "thirties hip hop". "Peek-a-Boo" was rated "Single of the Week" in both Sounds and NME. Sounds wrote that it was a "brave move", "playful and mysterious". NME described it as "Oriental marching band hip hop" with "catchy accordion." They then said : "If this nation was served by anything approaching a decent pop radio station, "Peek A Boo" would be a huge hit."
"Alright" is a song by British alternative rock band Supergrass. It was released with "Time" as a double A-side single from their debut album, I Should Coco (1995), on 3 July 1995 by Parlophone. It was concurrently released on the soundtrack of the 1995 movie Clueless, which helped it become a big hit for the band. "Alright" peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart, number six in Iceland, number eight in Ireland, number 30 in France and number 96 in Australia. The music video for the song was directed by Dom and Nic and filmed in North Wales.
"I Want You Back" is a song by English girl group Bananarama from their fourth studio album, Wow! (1987). It was released on 28 March 1988 by London Records as the album's fourth and final single. The track was co-written and produced by the Stock Aitken Waterman (SAW) trio. It became one of Bananarama's highest-charting singles, peaking at number five on the UK Singles Chart. It also climbed into the top three in Australia and the top 10 in New Zealand. The single was not released in the United States. Andy Morahan directed its accompanying music video.
The solo discography of Belinda Carlisle, an American pop singer, contains eight studio albums, 11 compilations and six video albums. Her singles discography features 32 physical releases, eight digital-only and five promotional releases. She has also made nine other appearances and 31 music videos.
Heaven on Earth is the second solo studio album by American singer Belinda Carlisle, released on October 5, 1987, by MCA Records. Three singles reached the Top 10 of the US Billboard Hot 100, including the No. 1 hit and Carlisle's signature song "Heaven Is a Place on Earth". Heaven on Earth has been certified triple Platinum in the United Kingdom and Platinum in many other countries, including the United States.
"It's Here" is a song by English singer-songwriter Kim Wilde, released as the first single from her seventh album, Love Moves (1990), and is also her first release of the new decade. Wilde was the most charted and biggest-selling British female soloist of the 1980s, and had ended that decade with the release of her biggest-selling album, Close, and its accompanying string of hit singles. Although the new single and album did not match that success, "It's Here" became a moderate hit in some countries. Both the single and its B-side, "Virtual World" were extended for the 12" and CD-single formats.
"I Get Weak" is a song by American singer Belinda Carlisle from her second studio album, Heaven on Earth (1987). Written by Diane Warren and produced by Rick Nowels, the song was released as the second single from Heaven on Earth in January 1988. "I Get Weak" reached number two on the US Billboard Hot 100, number four on Canada's RPM 100 Singles chart, and number 10 on the UK Singles Chart.
"Big Scary Animal" (titled "It's Too Real (Big Scary Animal)" in the United States and Japan) is a song written by American singer-songwriter Belinda Carlisle with Charlotte Caffey and Ralph Schuckett, and produced by Schuckett for Carlisle's fifth studio album, Real (1993). The song was released on September 13, 1993, as the album's lead single. The CD single includes two B-sides: "Windows of the World", also from the Real album, and "Change", which is an eight-track demo. "Big Scary Animal" peaked at number 12 on the UK Singles Chart, reached number 26 in Iceland, and became a minor hit in Australia, Canada, and Germany.
"Lay Down Your Arms" is a rock song which Charlotte Caffey, Ralph Schuckett, and Ellen Shipley wrote and composed, and which Shipley produced, for The Graces' album Perfect View (1989). Caffey was lead vocalist, and the song was released as the band's debut single. It charted at #56 in the Billboard charts.
"Makin' Happy" is a song by American singer and songwriter Crystal Waters, released in 1991 by Mercury and A&M as the second single from her debut studio album, Surprise (1991). It was the follow-up to Waters' hugely successful song "Gypsy Woman" and achieved moderate success in European countries. In the US, the song spent one week at number-one on the Billboard Dance Club Songs chart and it also reached the top of the Canadian RPM Dance/Urban chart. In the United Kingdom, the single peaked at number 18.
"Runaway Horses" is a song by American singer Belinda Carlisle. It was released as the fourth single from her third album, Runaway Horses (1989), in February 1990. "Runaway Horses" reached the top 50 in Australia and the United Kingdom. The music video was directed by Greg Masuak.
"Vision of You" is a song by American singer Belinda Carlisle, released as the fifth single from her third solo album, Runaway Horses (1989). The song was released on May 14, 1990, in the United Kingdom and reached number 41. A year later, it was remixed and re-released on 12-inch vinyl with a live version of "Heaven Is a Place on Earth", but this release charted lower, at number 71.
"Half the World" is a song by American singer Belinda Carlisle, released in 1991 as the third single from her fourth studio album, Live Your Life Be Free (1991). The song was written by Richard Feldman, Eric Pressly and Ellen Shipley, and produced by Feldman. It features backing vocals from Sheryl Crow.
"Can't Stay Away from You" is a song by Cuban-American singer and songwriter Gloria Estefan, credited to Estefan and her former band, the Miami Sound Machine. The song was released in November 1987 by Epic as the third single from their multi-platinum album, Let It Loose (1987). It became Estefan's fifth top 10 hit in the United States, peaking at #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart; it was their second #1 hit on the adult contemporary chart, following 1986's "Words Get in the Way". The song originally peaked at #88 on the UK Singles Chart in May 1988, however the song was re-released after the success of its follow-up, "Anything for You", peaking at #7 in March 1989.
