309. Patti Austin and James Ingram, “Baby, Come to Me” 312. Prince & the New Power Generation, “Cream” 315. Mariah Carey, “I Don’t Wanna Cry” 319. Milli Vanilli, “Blame It on the Rain”
At the time of Milli Vanilli’s lip-syncing scandal, resulting from the discovery that the duo didn’t sing a word on their album, it seemed like were being laughed ofgf the face of the earth. And yet their music, to a small degree lives on: None of their three No. 1’s placed in this list’s bottom 10. Not bad for a pair of frauds who had to give up their Grammy!322. Paula Abdul, “Opposites Attract” 325. New Kids on the Block, “Hangin’ Tough” 328.
It might be hard to believe it now, but “Justify My Love,” released during the imperial phase of one of the biggest icons in pop music history, marked an instance where hand-wringing, controversy, and widely expressed fears of going to far all aided in the creation of a cultural landmark.
Justice for “Batdance” is my hill to die on. I get the sense that this song is mostly regarded as a joke , but it sounds to me like a furious burst of creativity. It’s about a half a dozen songs in one, and its surreal video finds the duality-obsessed Prince taking on the Batman myth by inhabiting a character who is both Batman and Joker. It might be goofy, but who else other than this diehard gemini could have come up with something like this?363. Surface, “The First Time” 366.
This song sounds like precisely what it is: a lesser Bobby Brown hit. You can do far worse than a bouncy dash of MOR new jack swing, but something had to be last place and this is it.