Great Moments In Pop – The 90s Part 37.

I have decided to feature this group, because even though they did have some mainstream success at first, their career then took a rather bizarre and unexpected turn, and I always find stories behind 90s hits fascinating. Sixpence None The Richer were a group from Texas, and their frontwoman was Leigh Nash. In May 1999 “Kiss Me” was released, and this was their first and only Top Ten hit single in the UK (and also in America).

Now this was one of those songs that really could be described as “radio-friendly”, and this is probably still played on Heart ten times a day to this day. Don’t forget to bring your flowered hat. And this led to their second album making the Top 30 around the same time. But although “Kiss Me” didn’t get me too excited, what they did next was something of a surprise.

In September 1999, “There She Goes” was released, to become their second and final Top 40 hit single in the UK (and again, also in America). This was a cover of a song by the English indie band The La’s. The original version was first released in 1988, and this seemed to be re-released about every other week until this finally was a success and became a deserved Top 20 hit in 1990.

This has since become one of the most acclaimed hits of its era in the indie genre, although their rather enigmatic frontman Lee Mavers meant that they only ever released one album, but John Power would find further fame in the late-90s as the frontman of Cast (and indeed this entered the chart yet again in October 1999 after the success of the cover).

But there was always much tittering from critics who wondered if this rather religious group hadn’t released that “There She Goes” has often been said to be about heroin addiction (although the members of The La’s have constantly denied this over the years). Well either way, although I doubt that this one was ever on Heart that frequently, it earned them another appearance on Top Of The Pops.

But even better than that, “There She Goes” also featured on the “Hits 2000” compilation, bringing us into the new millennium apparently. Sixpence None The Richer would go on to have one more minor hit in America with their cover of Crowded House’s “Don’t Dream It’s Over”, and they split in 2004. They reformed a few years later, and they have now made six albums.