THE 50th ANNIVERSARY OF THE BILLBOARD HOT 100

SPEAKING IN TONGUES h ay ,.JO Tough c C al- Language European Acts By Paul Sexton

In February, French -Israeli pop singer Yael ABBA to Germany's Scorpions -the Náim logged the highest Hot loo chart po- language of the Hot ioo has generally sition fora French artist in 40 years -but been English. But a select band of Euro- to get there, she had to sing in English. peans has enjoyed moments of incon- While Latino acts often take Spanish - gruous glory, rarely more so than in De- language material onto the Hot 100, most cember 1963 when Belgium's Singing European artists find that their native Nun (Sister Luc -Gabrielle), held the tongue keeps them off the chart. Indeed, Kingsmen's epochal "Louie Louie" off MIKE POST'S the highest -charting French act on the the top slot with "Dominique." Some- themes, such as

Hot loo remains Paul Mauriat's No. 1 what predictably, she never reached 'The Rockford Files' and 'Hill "Love Is Blue" (1868)-an instrumental. the Hot ioo again. Street Blues,' Italy had its own fleeting moment of have been a U.S. validation in the late'5os. Although staple of prime - time TV for "Volare" is Dean usually associated with decades. Martin, his version stalled at No.12 while Domenico Modugno's original, "Nel Blu Dipinto di Blu," topped the Hot loo for five weeks in 1958. Orders, "is sanguine about the de- Modugno's hit is the only foreign -lan- OverAnd Out cline of the original TV theme. guage track among Billboard's top 5o "With the reduction of main titles, Even Los Del Rio's alt- conquering Hot ioo songs by non -U.S. artists, but Popularity Of Synchs Leads To Demise Of in some cases to nothing, some "Macarena" had English -language the singer/actor logged just one subse- Traditional TV Themes By Kamau High genuine songs have less time to verses -and Europe's foreign -lan- quent week on the chart. get traction," he says. guage Hot loo entries generally remain Nena's 1884 anti -nuclear protest "gg Billboard's Top 10 Original Tele- frequently takes the form of a com- One song surprisingly not on one -hit wonders. Luftballons" became the biggest Ger- vision Theme Songs make it clear posed score. Thomas Newman did the list is the Rembrandts' "I'll Be Naïm's "New Soul" (Atlantic) hit No. man- language Hot ion hit when it that popular TV theme songs the haunting music that opened There for You," better known as 7, but, Warner Music France managing peaked at No. 2. U.S. acceptance of the have slowly disappeared from the HBO's "Six Feet Under" while the theme to NBC's "Friends." Co- director Alain Veille admits, "Cracking track, fueled in part by an MTV video, landscape, leaving a world of cold Danny Elfman composed the written by Allee Willis, the song the Hot ioo with a French -language sin- seemed even more remarkable when a opens and licensed music as the spritely music to ABC's "Desper- was initially shorter, as it was writ- gle has been absolutely impossible over hurriedly recut version hit No. 1 in the signature sound to many people's ate Housewives." It's just that those ten specifically as a TV theme. the last 3o years; successful French pro- United Kingdom as "99 Red Balloons." favorite shows. songs haven't escaped beyond their After a DJ in Tennessee recorded ductions have been in English." Germany's latest U.S. chart break- "The ponderous question is al- intended audience to become part the show's opening and began air- Veille says the international depart- through came in May when pop act Tokio ways,'Why ?'" says Doreen Ringer of the pop culture landscape like ing the track, the group recorded ments of record labels seeking U.S. re- Hotel's album "Scream" peaked at No. Ross, VP of film /TV relations at their predecessors. (Part of that rea- a full -length version and released leases for original- language local reper- 39 on the Billboard zoo. But that was an BMI, which represents songwrit- son, of course, is due to orchestral it on its 1995 album "LP," as well toire face a tough sell. "U.S. companies," English- language release and the band ers and composers whose music scores rarely selling well unless as the B -side to the group's single Veille says, "don't see an interest in ag- has yet to crack the Hot ioo. Universal is used for themes. "The answer is they are included on a soundtrack "This House Is Not a Home." It gressively working a French -language Music Germany director of international money. "Ringer points to mid -90's with traditional songs.) peaked at No. 17 on the Billboard song to radio -and who could blame exploitation Cornelius Ballin says early teen soap "Dawson's Creek" as hav- The Top 10 list bears this out. Hot 100 after spending eight them, if we look at the track record of U.S. fan interest came through Internet ing kick -started the trend of forgo- The most recent entry is the theme weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100 Air- French radio hits there ?" postings of its German-language mate- ing an opening theme song and to 1992's "The Heights," a short- play chart. However, he admits French labels rial and suggests that the Web may be- instead licensing a track. "Daw- lived drama about a band of the "Once someone cut [the length have also "gradually limited [their] am- come a useful staging -post for the Hot son's Creek" used Paula Cole's "I same name. of] a theme song to where it bitions in the U.S. and only work acts loo for foreign-language tracks. Don't Want to Wait" as its opening Mike Post's music appears on merely served to intro the show as which recorded songs in English." "With Tokio Hotel," he says, "we've theme. Today such shows as "CS I" the Top 10 list three times: opposed to setting up the show Paris -based Náim says she hopes "to seen how the Internet can be the place use the Who, "Scrubs" employs "Theme from 'Hill Street Blues,' " and providing a mood, the market be able to find my words in French [on] to spread the buzz, unhampered by Lazlo Bane's "Superman" and "The "The Rockford Files" and "Theme went out the window," Willis says. the next album." She notes that, grow- gatekeepers [at U.S. radio and labels]." O.C." used Phantom Planet's "Cal- From 'Greatest American Hero,' " "A lot of these shows just use writ- ing up in Israel, she listened to a staple Looking forward, Warner's Veille ifornia" during its run. which he co-wrote. ers that write scores and have a li- diet of English- language music and in- sees Hot ioo potential by teaming acts Not that the original theme song Post, whose most current work braries. It's not about engaging sists that her choice of English -or even from France's booming domestic is completely dead, but now it more includes scoring all three "Law & the audience." Hebrew, in which she also sings and R &B /hip -hop scene with U.S. rappers. writes -is "always for artistic reasons," "We do it in France for some U.S. acts," not to boost her chances at U.S. radio. he says, "but these collaborations are 1 THE HEIGHTS 4 JOHN SEBASTIAN 7 DAVID NAUGHTON "I don't think of airplay when I write only released domestically . I'd be How Do You Talk To An Welcome Back Makin' It ( "Makin' It ") a song [or] when I'm in the process of happy to develop a mutual str ategy." Angel ( "Welcome Back 1979 recording music," Naïm says. And Ballin is that th e Hot too optimistic ( "The Heights ") Kotter ") a INNER CIRCLE

._ 1992 1976 Occasionally, Los Del Rio's mix'n'- can still speak in more tongues, with "the Bad Boys ( "Cops ") match approach works for such Euro- right song, the right artist and the right 2 MFSB s JOEYSCARBURY 1993 pean acts as Austrian Falco's 1986 No.1 time to make the exception to t he rule." 10 TSOP (The Sound of Theme From "Greatest g MIKE POST O p Philadelphia) American Hero" "Rock Me Amadeus" (German /English) "It might be very difficult," he con The Theme From ( "Soul Train ") ( "Greatest American "Hill Street Blues" or Spaniard Enrique Iglesias' 1999 chart- cedes, "but it's not impossible Original 1974 Hero ") ("Hill Street Blues ") topper "Bailamos" (Spanish /English). JAN HAMMER 1981 1981 For Iglesias -like father Julio and Eu- Additional reporting by Aymeric TV Theme Miami Vice Theme JOHNNY RIVERS MIKE POST ropean acts ranging from Sweden's Pichevin in Paris. ( "Miami Vice ") Secret Agent Man The Rockford Files 'Songs 1985 ( "Secret Agent ") ("The Rockford Files ") 1966 1975

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