Year In Dance 2001 Volume 3 | Top Dance Songs of 2001 - a podcast by Keith a.k.a. K j A M

I wanted to make reference to the last post where I mentioned that the Rui Da Silva track "Touch Me" did not have a mastered version available.  I stand corrected.  When you go to Beatport, you'll find two different versions.  One is a "dirty version" and the other is a "clean version".  Apparently, that's their way of telling you one is a vinyl rip and the other a mastered mix.  The only difference between the two (besides sound quality) is that the mastered version makes the percussion more prominent in the mix, whereas in the vinyl version it's more subdued.  I guess this is a ploy to get you to buy both, and it worked.  So, if anyone wants to take 3 with the "mastered" version of the song, let me know and I'll replace it in my Podbean account.

For whatever reason, I was able to get fourteen tracks in this mix and still keep it under the 80-minute mark.  I did a lot of editing, but nothing detracts from the originals of these songs.  I made one exception with Aubrey.  Why?  Because it's considered by many to be one of Hex's masterpieces.  Frankly, I think there are so many, it's difficult to name just one.  Nevertheless, to edit this down might be considered blasphemy by many of you, so I kept it intact.  Certainly, it is the anthem of anthems with its peaks and valleys and very memorable by those shaking it in the club at the time.  That being said, there are a ton of memorable classics in this mix.  Deborah Cox's ode to feminism "Absolutely Not", Madonna's "Don't Tell Me" of which the gargantuan Thunderpuss mix needed a little taming and the biggest song of the year by Sono "Keep Control" which remained number one on the club charts for an astounding four weeks.  As a companion to the previous 80s throwback from 1999 by Yaz (Situation '99) we also got an updated late eighties classic by Book of Love "Boy".  Once again, Peter Rauhofer (a.k.a. Club 69) did the honors and respectfully gave this awesome tune a much deserved millennium makeover.

While everything here has a purpose and was hot at the time of its release two of the songs require some additional explanation.  First, Kylie's "Can't Get You Out of My Head" which was an international smash and brought her back to the U.S. charts for the first time since the 1988 hit "Locomotion".  Unlike Pink's "Get the Party Started" her label did commission mixes for the single but they fell flat.  Nothing really stood out as far as the official remixes were concerned.  Instead, I went with the unauthorized remix by Mike Rizzo, which is probably the first remix he did that brought him some worldwide attention.  There were also Junior Vasquez and Eddie Baez remixes, but they didn't quite muster up the goods.  In fact, this probably would have never charted at all if it weren't for Mike's remix.





can be your hero baby

I can kiss away the pain

I will stand by you forever

You can take my breath away



The other song I wanted to mention was the abominable "Hero" by Enrique Iglesias.  Let's face it, the song would have gone nowhere without 9/11.  It was petering in the 20s on Billboards singles chart before the event.  Suddenly Enrique goes on to save the world and protect us from the axis of evil as people clung to the track and began requesting it.  Sad but true, because the vocals on this are painfully atrocious.  Nevertheless, Enrique always had his pulse on the dance scene and knew exactly who was hot at the moment, hence the Thunderpuss remix which launched it to the number one slot on the club charts.  Actually there were several songs that benefited from the September tragedy; namely the uplifting and fantastic "New York" by Ryan Adams, Five For Fighting's "Superman Song" which Rick always referred to as the "Kermit Song" and the beautiful "Only Time" by Enya which was used ad nausea in CNN's best wishes holiday commer...

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