Gloria Gaynor's "I Never Knew" continued to dominate most NRG playlists through the fall but as we said before, the competition was heating up fast. First came Sinead O'Connor's resurrected "Troy (Phoenix From The Flame)", which seemed to be coming in with different mix variations from every territory on the planet. Thankfully, Radikal-USA finally collected them all into one definitive package in time to take advantage of the momentum, with finished copies due to reach store shelves as we go to press. Next came the one and only Vicki Shepard, whose slyly serviced, promo-only "I Got The Feeling" single began making lots of noise in Boystown just as the season's changed once again, returning her to #1 in November. The weeks preceding Vicki's return to the throne were filled with superstar chart-toppers from Ian Van Dahl (making it three-for-three with "Reason"), Lasgo ("Alone") and Cher ("Different Kind Of Love Song"). We couldn't imagine Vicki abdicating for anyone less than Madonna, and that's just who replaced her right before Thanksgiving weekend as "Die Another Day" blew everything else out of the water. "Die" seems a sure bet to take us right through into the new year although as we go to press there's some serious contenders waiting in the wings. Maybe Deborah Cox can give Madonna a run for the money with "Mr Lonely" although without a viable commercial configuration, it looks as though this promo-only mainstream monster may have to remain a bridesmaid. Maybe Ian Van Dahl will hit the grand slam with "Try" after loading the bases all year long. Maybe not. All we know for sure is that Van Dahl's record company, Robbins, has emerged as the premier American dance imprint in 2002, thanks to a carefully selected roster of Euro and trance-NRG superstars acts like DJ Sammy, Lasgo Van Dahl and Neja. No other dance label even comes close to Robbins in terms of chart prowess and momentum, so it's only fitting that the fine folks at Robbins Records have delivered a fairytale ending to the magnificent year 2002 and, just in the nick of time, too!
We're talking of course about Reina, and her spectacular but seemingly ill fated single "No One's Gonna Change You" single. It's a delightful Cinderella story to both close out the old year and ring in the new. As you know, the Reina single was orphaned in October when her record company, Groovilicious, was shuttered. Amazingly, the record continued to gather momentum on its own merits, building an enviable level of support from clubland spinners and dance radio programmers without the benefit of any label-funded promotion at all. Currently the #2 single on the NRG Top 50, this Cinderella story appeared destined for an unhappy ending. Then, just before Christmas, Robbins picked up the track along with Reina's complete Strictly Rhythm/ Groovilicious catalog, and promised to have finished, newly-minted commercial copies to the street on both 12" vinyl and CD maxi single by the time you read this. We love a happy ending, don't you? Till we talk again, here's to a great 2003 filled with nothing but FLM from start to finish. Cheers, and Happy New Year to all!
