There’s a school of thought out there that all dance music post 1998 is, frankly, fairly rubbish – you know who you are…

While this is only partly true (!), it gives 909originals the chance to revive a countdown of the 100 ‘best club tunes ever’, which was compiled in 1998 by DJ Mag.

Published in the April 1998 edition, and featuring input from both readers and international DJs, it’s a snapshot of how far dance music had come, ten years after 1988 and all that followed…

I’ll publish the bottom half of the list today, and the top half tomorrow, so stay tuned!

The Bottom 50:
As you might expect from a list compiled towards the end of dance music’s formative period, the bottom half of the list is an eclectic mix of house, acid, range belters and a few soul and disco classics – note Curtis Mayfield’s Move On Up at 73, and Chic’s Good Times at 70.

There are, inevitably, also tracks on there that perhaps haven’t stood the test of time that well – hello Ecuador, by German production team Sash!

Nonetheless, it makes for an interesting read….

51 Nuyorican Soul Featuring India – Runaway
52 Phuture – We Are Phuture
53 Raze – Break 4 Love
54 187 Lockdown – Gunman
55 Jamie Principle – Your Love
56 Hardfloor – Acperience
57 Ten City – That’s The Way Love Is
58 Hashim – Al-Naafiysh (The Soul)
59 The Prodigy – Out Of Space
60 Congress – 40 Miles / Better Grooves
61 MAW – To Be In Love
62 Tina Moore – Never Gonna Let You Go
63 B.B.E – Seven Days And One Week
64 Ce Ce Peniston – Finally
65 Phuture – Acid Tracks
66 Jimi Polo – Better Days
67 The Space Brothers – Forgiven (I Feel Your Love)
68 My Bloody Valentine – Soon (Andy Weatherall Mix)
69 Sash ! Feat. Rodriguez – Ecuador
70 Chic – Good Times
71 House Of Pain – Jump Around
72 BT – Remember
73 Curtis Mayfield – Move On Up
74 Dionne – Come Get My Lovin’
75 Grandmaster & Melle Mel – White Lines (Don’t Don’t Do It)
76 Inner Life – Ain’t No Mountain High Enough
77 Jam & Spoon – The Complete Stella
78 Orbital – Belfast
79 Primal Scream – Come Together
80 Pulse Featuring The Voice Of Antoinette Roberson – The Lover That You Are
81 Rufus And Chaka Khan – Ain’t Nobody
82 The Sabres Of Paradise – Smokebelch II
83 The Dream Team – The Dream Team Theme
84 The Future Sound Of London – Cascade
85 Heller And Farley Project – Ultra Flava
86 Sash ! Featuring La Trec – Stay
87 Son’z Of A Loop Da Loop Era – Far Out
88 The Prodigy – Everybody In The Place
89 Chaka Khan – I Feel For You
90 Corporation Of One – The Real Life
91 Kristine W – Feel What You Want
92 New Order – Blue Monday
93 Nightcrawlers – Push The Feeling On
94 Stetsasonic – Talkin’ All That Jazz
95 Kenny “Dope” Presents The Bucketheads – The Bomb! (These Sounds Fall Into My Mind)
96 Brainbug – Nightmare
97 Crescendo – Are You Out There
98 DJ Quicksilver – Bellissima
99 LFO – LFO
100 Way Out West – Ajare

[Original list published in DJ Mag, April 1998]