A Journey Through Stock Aitken Waterman
Hosts Gavin Scott (from Chart Beats: A Journey Through Pop) and Matthew Denby work their way through all the singles produced by Mike Stock, Matt Aitken and Pete Waterman (SAW), starting in 1984 with "The Upstroke" by Agents Aren't Aeroplanes and taking in hits by Dead Or Alive, Hazell Dean, Bananarama, Princess, Mel & Kim, Rick Astley, Kylie Minogue, Sinitta, Jason Donovan, Divine, Sonia and more, as well as lesser known chart misses. Bonus interviews and discussion: chartbeats.com.au/saw (Theme music: Switch Me On by Shane Ivers at www.silvermansound.com)
Episodes
90 episodes
FINALE: Ultimate Stock Aitken Waterman Singles Countdown top 20
To mark reaching the end of the journey through every single produced by Mike Stock, Matt Aitken and Pete Waterman from 1984-1993, Gavin and Matt celebrate the music of the Hit Factory by counting down our listeners' favour...
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Season 1
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Episode 83
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1:10:50
Epilogue 2: Love This and beyond
Shortly after Mike Stock left PWL in 1993, he purchased a building to house a brand-new studio complex and record label, Love This, and reunited with Matt Aitken to resume their songwriting and production work together. Although, ...
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Season 1
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Episode 82
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1:17:52
Epilogue 1: PWL 1994-96
Although both Matt Aitken and Mike Stock had left the building, PWL Records continued to release music — and in this epilogue episode, we look at some of the artists who succeeded and some that didn't hit the mark in the few years...
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Season 1
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Episode 81
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1:03:52
Ep 80: Free To Love Again to Virginia Plain and Mike Stock's departure
Every journey has an ending, and in this episode, we reach the final three singles produced by Mike Stock and Pete Waterman in 1993 — and discuss the events surrounding the termination of the partnership as Mike left PWL. Former M...
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Season 1
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Episode 80
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1:20:59
Ep 79: Looks Like I'm In Love Again to Energize
The top 40 resurgence was over, with the next few Stock and Waterman singles released in 1993 struggling on the UK chart. But it wasn't for want of trying. Tapping into the same piano house sound that had yielded hits for Sybil...
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Season 1
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Episode 79
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1:16:30
Ep 78: More, More, More, When I'm Good And Ready, Wrestlemania and One Voice
The commercial resurgence at PWL continued in 1993, with all four of the singles covered in this episode becoming UK hits. Still on her hot streak following the success of "The Love I Lost" with West End, Sybil returned to the top...
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Season 1
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Episode 78
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48:45
Ep 77: The Love I Lost
Things were looking up at the Hit Factory in early 1993. Mike Stock and Pete Waterman found themselves in the UK top 5 with back-to-back singles — something that hadn't happened in three years. And the latest of those big hits cam...
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Season 1
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Episode 77
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51:51
SNEAK PEEK: 1993 preview and Greatest Hits by Kylie Minogue track-by-track teaser
Before we begin our journey through Mike Stock's final year working with Pete Waterman at PWL, we have a preview of what's still to come. Plus, we share the first 10 minutes of our recent Greatest Hits by Kylie Minogue...
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Season 1
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15:36
Ep 76: Did I Say Ti Amo, Last Thing On My Mind, Celebration and Slam Jam
To wrap up 1992, Stock and Waterman worked with two new artists and two returning favourites. In the case of Kylie Minogue, it was to be her final single released with PWL. Fittingly, her version of "Celebration" was lifted...
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Season 1
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Episode 76
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1:00:24
Ep 75: Summer Holiday, What Kind Of Fool (Heard All That Before), Higher And Higher and Movin' On
Summer 1992 didn't yield much in the way of Stock and Waterman productions. But in August that year, there was a sudden rush of releases, kicked off by a curious novelty record: a remake of "Summer Holiday" by Fat Slags, character...
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Season 1
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Episode 75
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52:59
Ep 74: All You Have To Do to Finer Feelings
In early 1992, Boy Krazy were still a year away from their belated massive success in the US with "That's What Love Can Do" and they followed up that debut single in the UK with "All You Have To Do". Now a four-piece, the girl group shif...
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Season 1
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Episode 74
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1:15:28
BONUS: Get Ready For This — The 2 Unlimited Story with Ray Slijngaard
Following their launch in 1991 with debut single "Get Ready For This", Eurodance duo 2 Unlimited enjoyed a string of more than a dozen hits around the world. What does that have to do with Stock Aitken Waterman? Well, in the UK, t...
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Season 1
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49:45
Ep 73: Keep On Pumpin' It to Give Me Just A Little More Time (and Do You Dare)
There was no denying the popularity of rave and techno in the UK in 1991, and Stock and Waterman went all clubby as the year drew to a close — with help from some key collaborators. DJs Paul Taylor and Danny Bennett ...
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Season 1
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Episode 73
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1:06:59
Ep 72: Make This A Special Night to So Proud Of You
Late in 1991, PWL was trying all sorts of things to get back in the charts on a regular basis, including working with '80s funk/soul band Cool Notes. Single "Make This A Special Night" harked back to some of SAW's earliest releases when ...
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Season 1
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Episode 72
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1:07:33
Ep 71: Happy Together to Word Is Out
They were the pop stars that changed everything for the Hit Factory — and in this episode we discuss pivotal singles for Jason Donovan and Kylie Minogue. In Jason's case, his remake of "Happy Together" was his final single with PW...
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Season 1
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Episode 71
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59:14
BONUS: Remixing The Hits with Tony King
To mark the third anniversary of A Journey Through Stock Aitken Waterman, former PWL remixer Tony King joins us to share his story of going from Phil Harding's assistant to being responsible for a Billboard Hot 1...
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Season 1
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45:34
Ep 70: That's What Love Can Do
The Boy Krazy story is one of the most interesting — and complicated! — in the SAW history. The American girl group was put together through auditions in New York, going through a few line-up changes before the final five-piece, Johnn...
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Season 1
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Episode 70
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1:04:58
Ep 69: Roadblock 91 to All Mixed Up and Matt Aitken's departure
It had to happen at some point. In May 1991, the Stock Aitken Waterman era ended when Matt Aitken walked away from his role as one third of the songwriting and production trio. In this episode, he explains what prompted his decisi...
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Season 1
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Episode 69
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56:35
Ep 68: Shocked
The fourth in arguably the best singles run in pop music history was also a first for Stock Aitken Waterman, as external mix team DNA took care of the 7" remix of "Shocked" by Kylie Minogue, Neal Slateford from DNA t...
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Season 1
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Episode 68
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1:12:40
Ep 67: Better Off Without You to R.S.V.P.
She was our very first interviewee back in Episode 1 — and we finally reach the conclusion of Hazell Dean's Stock Aitken Waterman journey with her version of "Better Off Without You", which was released in 1991. The Queen of Hi-NR...
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Season 1
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Episode 67
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1:06:14
Ep 66: What Do I Have To Do Part 2: the styling and video
While "What Do I Have To Do" by Kylie Minogue stands on its own two feet as a song, the impact of the single was increased greatly due to the striking imagery on display on the single cover and in the music video. Celebrity stylist Da...
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Season 1
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Episode 66
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48:21
Ep 65: What Do I Have To Do Part 1: the song and mixes
In 1991, it was another bold step forward for Kylie Minogue, and in the decades since, "What Do I Have To Do" has cemented its place among fans' all-time favourites from her extensive back catalogue. But the third single from R...
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Season 1
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Episode 65
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47:13
BONUS: Promoting PWL — Sharp End's Ron McCreight on Kylie, Jason, Sinitta, The Reynolds Girls and more
You can have the best single in the world, but there's little chance of it being a hit if no one hears it. That's where pluggers come in — taking songs to radio and convincing programmers to playlist them. In 1987, Ron McCreight and his ...
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Season 1
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46:29
SNEAK PEEK: Kylie by Kylie Minogue and Youthquake by Dead Or Alive track-by-track previews
Check out previews of two of our most popular bonus track-by-track episodes. Gavin and Matt discuss Kylie, the debut album by Kylie Minogue, and, with special guest Barry Stone, talk about the first SAW-produced al...
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Season 1
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20:55
Ep 64: If I Have To Stand Alone to Breakaway
What a tumultuous year 1990 had been for the Hit Factory — and the final four singles produced by Stock Aitken Waterman that year certainly highlight that. What should have been Lonnie Gordon's second SAW-produced single, "If I Ha...
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Season 1
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Episode 64
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57:40