This week in 1998
1 Perfect Day Various Artists
2 Never Ever All Saints
3 Too Much Spice Girls
4 Together Again Janet Jackson 5 High Lighthouse Family
6 Avenging Angels Space
7 Angels Robbie Williams 8 Teletubbies Say Eh-Oh! Teletubbies 9 Torn Natalie Imbruglia
10 Barbie Girl Aqua
Lou Reed’s ‘Perfect Day’, No. 1 this week 20 years ago, originally featured on his second solo album ‘Transformer’ in 1972. It was released with ‘Walk On The Wild Side’ as a double-A sided single, peaking at number 10 in the UK and 16 in the Billboard charts in the US. The song finally made No. 1 in late 1997, replacing Aqua’s Barbie Girl at the top in late November and staying there for seven weeks, through Christmas and into the New Year. This was a charity release for Children In Need, featuring an array of music stars (including Reed himself) and originally recorded as a promo for the BBC. The star-studded line-up included Bono, Elton John, David Bowie, Tom Jones, Shane McGowan, Emmylou Harris, Tammy Wynette, Suzanne Vega, Joan Armatrading, and Boyzone.