My first post about Joanne went down like a lead balloon but I'm not discouraged. Joanne's contribution to Australian pop music is overwhelmingly fabulous and I'm going to keep shouting her praises - even if I'm the only one listening! Today's post will concentrate on Joanne's second and third singles. The former, "Pack Your Bags", is a gorgeous piece of late 90s pop that should have been massive. The latter, "Are You Ready?", is perhaps Joanne's weakest single but is just corny enough to be endearing. Dust off your disco whistle, Joanne really will get you dancing like its 1999!After the massive success of her debut single, Joanne was briefly considered to be the next big thing. While none of Joanne's subsequent singles reached the same lofty heights as "Jackie", they were all moderate hits. In fact, Joanne's album spawned an impressive six hit singles and she deservedly developed a large club following. Joanne's sublime second single perfectly illustrates her appeal. "Pack Your Bags" is a bright, shiny pop anthem about nothing in particular, which fabulously hitches a ride on the late 90s disco revival. Unfortunately, the song stalled at #54, becoming Joanne's biggest flop.
"Pack Your Bags" was followed by "Are You Ready?", Joanne's rave anthem. "Are You Ready?" sounds unusually dated for a song released in 1999 but fans of 90s dance music will love it. "Are You Ready?" is my least favourite Joanne single but it is still a cut above the rubbish that was flooding the airwaves at the time. The song was a club favourite and peaked at #41. After two relative failures, Joanne's sound and tragic image was given something of an overhaul and her next three singles represent some of the best pop music made in Australia in the early part of this decade. I'll cover those hits and Joanne's stunning album in my next few Joanne posts. Stay tuned!
Unfortunately, Joanne's music is still not available on itunes. However, most of singles regularly turn up on Australian Ebay.
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