Week of Sept. 27, 2009

Three new songs in the Top 40 this week, including the first hit for All-4-One since 1996. The four-man vocal group, best known for the No. 1 hits "I Swear" and "I Can Love You Like That," are back at No. 39 with "If Your Heart's Not In It."

Meanwhile, Leona Lewis returns to the countdown with "Happy" at No. 37. It's the second song with that title to chart; Legacy of Sound featuring Meja went to the Top 10 in 1992 with a dance song of the same title.

The Fray's "Never Say Never" is shaping up as a contender for No. 1. After last week's 15-point move, it's also this week's top mover, up 10 from 19 to 9. Meanwhile, the Top 3 keep their stranglehold. These songs -- Uncle Kracker's "Smile," Whitney Houston's "I Look to You" and Colbie Caillat's "Fallin' for You" -- have been the top three in some configuration for six weeks, with this particular configuration four of the six weeks. That's some staying power.

Week of Sept. 20, 2009

In the days before Mariah and Whitney, Madonna and Janet, gay men might identify by their fondness for either Liza Minnelli or Barbra Streisand. One glance at my charts could tell you which camp I fall in: Ms. Minnelli has had one song hit my chart over the years (and one near-miss with Donna Summer), while Ms. Streisand has had more than 20 (including a hit with Donna Summer). This week, Barbra enters the Top 40 solo for the first time in nine years with "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning." Her take on the Hilliard-Mann standard enters at No. 37 from her new collection, "Love Is the Answer."

Meanwhile, on the other end of the pop spectrum, Weezer enters at No. 40 with "(If You're Wondering If I Want You To) I Want You To." That song title is the longest to hit my chart with the parenthetical portion at the beginning. I'll get back in future weeks with other parenthetical hit titles.

The Fray have the week's biggest mover, with "Never Say Never" rocketing 34-19. Why the group decided to go with this as the song's title rather than "Don't Let Me Go," I don't know. Could be that they thought the latter might sound too emo?

Week of Sept. 13, 2009

Last year, Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova went to No. 3 in May with "Falling Slowly" from the movie "Once." This week, they make their second Top 40 appearance with "Low Rising" at No. 36. It's their first hit credited to their group The Swell Season, from the group's new CD "Strict Joy."

Most of this week's new entries are ballads or midtempo numbers, with one significant exception: Cascada's "Evacuate the Dancefloor" at No. 37. It's the first time Cascada has hit my charts with an original song. The group's previous hits were remakes of Patti Smith's "Because the Night" (No. 10 earlier this year) and Savage Garden's "Truly Madly Deeply" (No. 3 in 2007).

Up at the top of the charts, looks like a battle going on for longevity. Uncle Kracker's "Smile" bounces back to No. 1 after taking a back seat to Whitney Houston last week. Whitney's not far behind, with "I Look to You" at No. 2. Meantime, Colbie Caillat's former No. 1, "Fallin' for You," hangs in at No. 3, and three other former No. 1 songs -- Pet Shop Boys' "Did You See Me Coming?" Sean Kingston's "Fire Burning" and Kings of Leon's "Use Somebody" -- continue to remain in the Top 10. With all of those songs holding forth, what songs in the lower part of the chart will break through that logjam and become number ones this fall?

Week of Sept. 6, 2009

It's nine years to the week since Whitney Houston has had chart action like this. The week of Sept. 10, 2000, was the last week of her run with two separate hits from her greatest hits collection. "Same Script, Different Cast," a former Top 10 hit with Deborah Cox, dropped 6-13, while her duet with George Michael, "If I Told You That," dropped 20-24. This week is even better, as Houston's two chart hits are on the rise. "Million Dollar Bill," co-written by Alicia Keys, enters at No. 38, while the title track of Whitney's new CD, "I Look to You," moves up 2-1. It's Whitney's first time at the top since "Heartbreak Hotel" with Faith Evans and Kelly Price spent a week there in April 1999.

Elsewhere in the Top 10, we have back to back country crossovers by Tim McGraw and George Strait in positions 8 and 9. The last time two country songs crossed to pop's Top 10 was July 13, 2008, when Darius Rucker was No. 3 with "Don't Think I Don't Think About It" and James Otto was No. 9 with "Just Got Started Lovin' You." That was the final week of a six-week concurrent run for those songs.