10
|
Basement Jaxx - Where's Your Head At
Artist link: 13
Bit of a bruiser this one. Coming on like Lydon's P.I.L. meets twisted house, this shouty punk-inspired number guarantees a dancefloor audience. Nice to see a band wearing its influences on its sleeve. Quite where the video is coming from is anyone's guess, but it's clearly barmy enough to indicate by the time this one gets on the decks you should be off your box. Do we have a Gary Numan revival on at the moment?
Paul H
No of votes: 10, Score:
39, Highest vote: 1st
|
 |
|
9
|
S Club 7 - Don't Stop Movin'
Artist link: 14
Those pop svengalis must have thought they'd hit upon a really original idea when creating S Club 7 - a girl/boy band (with more girls than boys obviously!) who can sing, dance and have their own TV programme! How fab. A load of number 1s and 2s followed that were pretty OK, and S Club slipped
nicely into the pop niche held for groups with far too many members for their own good. Then they released Don't Stop Movin' and suddenly everyone liked them. A classic pop/disco song which'll get them all grooving at those family parties held in athletics clubs up and down the country!!
Kat B
No of votes: 11, Score:
64, Highest vote: 1st
|
 |
|
8
|
Stereophonics - Have A Nice Day
Artist link: 30  37
A band whose success rests squarely on the shoulders on its much admired lead man, the other members of the Stereophonics must have buried their head in their hands when they discovered Kelly Jones was going to go off on a crusade against the music press. It was okay though, once he got that off his chest he was ready to follow up with this, the soundtrack to summer Sunday picnics in the park. Lyrically it's reaching Stipe-ean levels of obscurity - "I drive around all day, and kill processed fish" - but when you're gazing at the sky with the rays beating down on you, it doesn't matter anyway.
Jason M
No of votes: 11, Score:
65, Highest vote: 1st
|
 |
|
7
|
Dido - Thank You
Artist link:17 19
Following the enormous success of "Stan" last year, you'd need to take out all of Arista's record plants with Scudd missiles to prevent this from hitting the shops (and with 2 Brits, you can see why). Like "White Ladder", the album is another coffee table classic (yes, I do have it, since you ask), but look in the inlay card - yes that really does say 1999. Take yourself back to the first time you heard this in full, were you surprised when you got beyond the "Stan" sample and into the song proper? Full credit to the woman for bringing that rare breed - the British female solo artist - to the fore again.
Jason M
No of votes: 11, Score:
76, Highest vote: 3rd
|
 |
|
6
|
Gorillaz - Clint Eastwood
Artist link:3 15 15 28
Will we look back on last year and remember Gorillaz as the definitive 2001 phenomomen? This single is definitely the finest hour (so far) for Albarn and friends' latest project - a good radio tune, indeed, but everyone's favourite virtual musicians are best seen and heard on their cartoon videos. This particular episode features (breathes in) fearsome dancing apes summoned by a spirit concealed beneath the drummers hat but ultimately despatched by the karate kicking oriental guitarist. "No squealing remember, coz it's all in your head".
Isaac H
No of votes: 12, Score:
73, Highest vote: 3rd
|
 |
|
5
|
Daft Punk - Digital Love
Artist link:36
Having revolutionised House music with the disco workouts of Homework, Thomas and Guy-Man's second album turned to 80's kitsch for inspiration. This was the pinnacle of their achievement, achingly fragile whilst
remaining irresistably funky. Just a great electronic love song. Why didn't you play the game? Derek K Another ad song, though at least it was a cool one thanks to the presence of the duo themselves (note to Gap - if you force any more MOR American stars singing fucking Supertramp on us any you will DIE!) This has also been over-used on TV but it still sounds fantastic to me.
Andrew S
No of votes: 13, Score:
94, Highest vote: 1st
|
 |
|
4
|
The Dandy Warhols - Bohemian Like You
Artist link:50
My, what a fickle bunch we are. The holy grail of mass appeal does basically consist of either a movie or an advert tie-in. Whether Vodafone reaped the rewards I don't know, but it worked wonders for this song from last year (which narrowly missed the Top 50). Rant over. As for the song, it's clearly plundered the riff from the Stones "Brown Sugar" and whilst it was at it, nicked Keith Richards smokes too. The Dandy's may be a bunch of complete stoners but they sure know how to take their drug induced high to the masses.
Jason M
No of votes: 13, Score:
95, Highest vote: 3rd
|
 |
|
3
|
The Strokes - Last Nite
Artist link:33  33 49
Although the third single to be taken from their critically and publicly celebrated album (Is This It), Last Nite was the first big hit for New York's finest, The Strokes. A song, like the album, with its influences heavily rooted in sounds of The Ramones and Velvet Underground, Last Nite's feel good, retro rifts and lyrics made it an A list track for the likes of Radio 1 and Virgin. For once, the media hype was spot on. The Strokes had a genuinely exciting record and Last Nite was the jewel in its crown. Perfect for playing before going on a night out.
James B
No of votes: 15, Score:
102, Highest vote: 2nd
|
 |
|
2
|
Wheatus - Teenage Dirtbag
Anthemic and full of bluster yet somehow fantastically understated, Teenage Dirtbag was geek rock at its purest and finest. Which other guitar-based romp has united indie kids, 9 year-old pop fans and Iron Maiden enthusiasts to such devastating effect and chart success? Although the song was all over
the radio, it was crucially boosted commercially by a star-studded video. The promo was seemingly tailored perfectly around the insecure fairytale but in fact it was the other way around, as both the song and the video clips were ripped straight from American Pie stars Jason Biggs and Mena Suvari's largely unknown (other) high-school flick 'Loser'. Whilst the world's teenage outsiders flocked clan-like in 2001 to learn the faux moves of Nu-Metal, it was Wheatus that made us twentysomethings believe there is fight in the dirtbags yet.
Danny G
No of votes: 18, Score:
98, Highest vote: 1st
|
 |
|
1
|
Kylie - Can't Get You Out Of My Head
Artist link: 29 34
If you were a gambler, you wouldn't even have bothered to put money on this one romping home, would you? The smart money would have been put down last year on Kylie's resurgence in 2000 being set to continue. Undeniably the sound of 2001, it is the kind of classy yet infectious pop that Kylie has been striving to replicate ever since "Confide In Me" emerged in the mid-1990s. At last she's made the Madonna-like transition from tenny bopping pop star to female solo artist - partly thanks to songwriter (and ex-popstar) Cathy Dennis, but also due to her new image (which has keeps her profile in the lads mags high), and some sellotape (see the video). Every diminutive inch a modern classic.
Jason M
No of votes: 27, Score:
147, Highest vote: 1st
|
 |
|
Thanks go to the following people for assisting with getting together our comprehensive aide-memoire: Danny G, Paul M, Kat B, Caz T
A MASSIVE THANKS also to all those who slaved over a hot keyboard to produce the write ups: Danny G, Paul H, Paul M, Kat B, Andrew S, Angela T, Isaac H, Milly H, P Shoo, Dan Mc, James B, Ana L, Derek K, Harley R