TOP TENS
This week in 1999
1 When The Going Gets Tough Boyzone
2 ... Baby One More Time Britney Spears
3 We Like To Party (The Vengabus) Vengaboys
4 As George Michael & Mary J Blige
5 It’s Not Right But It’s Okay Whitney Houston
6 Tender Blur
7 Nothing Really Matters Madonna
8 Just Looking Stereophonics
9 What’s So Different? Ginuwine
10 Runaway The Corrs
‘When The Going Gets Tough’ was one of six UK number one hits for Boyzone. The song was originally co-written and recorded by Billy Ocean in 1985, with the longer title ‘When The Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going’. It gave Ocean a major international hit, reaching No. 1 in the UK (and Ireland) and number two in the Billboard Hot 100 in the US. Boyzone’s version was a charity release for 1999’s Comic Relief telethon. The video, arguably more memorable than the performance, featured Graham Norton, Jo Brand, Harry Hill, Mel Smith, Phill Jupitus, Davina McCall, Jimmy White and others. Boyzone had nine number ones in Ireland, but ‘When The Going Gets Tough’ wasn’t one of them. It stalled at No. 2 here, held off the top by Britney Spears whose ‘...Baby One More Time’ just couldn’t be dislodged from a six-week spell at number one.