Savage Garden, Shania Twain, and Next Scored Biggest Hits Of 1998

1998 was a great year for the economy, but was an awful year for Bill Clinton, who was impeached for having an affair with Monica Lewinsky. Who can ever forget Clinton’s impeachment interview while drinking a Diet Coke?

It was the year George Michael was forced out of the closet after being arrested for attempting sexual interactions with an undercover police officer. It was the year Madonna released the most critically acclaimed album of her career, Ray of Light. It was also the year Lauren Hill released her groundbreaking album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.

Let’s take a look at the top five hits of 1998, as reported by Music Outfitters and compiled by Billboard.

5. LeAnn Rimes, “How Do I Live”

“How Do I Live” was actually released in mid 1997, but became such a big hit that it lasted in the top 10 all the way though early 1998. It was yet another hit written by songwriter Diane Warren, who also scored with Aerosmith’s No. 1 hit “I Don’t Want To Miss a Thing.”

According to Songfacts, “How Do I Live” spent a record-breaking 32 weeks in the top 10 on Billboard‘s charts. It also spent 58 weeks in the top 50 and 69 weeks in the top 100. Unfortunately, “How Do I Live” also lived without ever hitting No. 1. Instead, it peaked at No. 2 for several weeks in 1997 and 1998.

4. Savage Garden, “Truly Madly Deeply”

Savage Garden’s “Truly Madly Deeply,” often considered the band’s signature song, hit No. 1 in January of 1998, and stayed there for two weeks. It was such a big hit that you were guaranteed to hear it every time you shuffled through radio stations that winter. “Truly Madly Deeply” was a crossover hit in so many categories.

According to Songfacts, it was the first No. 1 hit by an Australian band since 1983, when Men at Work hit No. 1 with “Down Under.” Billboard has ranked “Truly Madly Deeply” as its biggest hit ever on the Adult Contemporary chart.

3. Shania Twain, “You’re Still the One”

Shania Twain’s biggest hit spent nine weeks at No. 2. Even though it never hit the pole position on Billboard, “You’re Still The One” is considered one of the biggest crossover hits of all time.

According to Songfacts, Shania’s song won the 1998 Grammy Awards for Best Female Country Vocal Performance and Best Country Song. It is still played a lot on adult contemporary and country stations today.

2. Brandy and Monica, “The Boy Is Mine”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Va1Y6uAgNJY

Usually, when two major superstars hook up for a duet, the results are considered mediocre. However, this wasn’t the case with “The Boy Is Mine,” which spent 13 weeks at No. 1 in the Summer of 1998. It practically spent the rest of the year on the charts as well.

According to Songfacts, “The Boy Is Mine” was inspired by Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney’s 1982 hit “The Girl Is Mine,” which was the first No. 1 hit of off Jackson’s Thriller. The song has been attempted several times by other acts without any type of success whatsoever. The hot duet won the 1998 Grammy Award for Best Rhythm & Blues Performance by a Duo.

1. Next, “Too Close”

“Too Close” by Next is considered not only one of the best R&B songs of all time, but one of the sexiest hits as well. It was a late Spring 1998 No. 1 hit that influenced a lot of other songs, even though “Too Close” was pretty much a one-hit wonder for Next.

According to Songfacts, “Too Close” was actually the biggest selling single in the United States in 1998. Despite the sexual content and the fact that it was released during a time when the religious right still had influence, “Too Close” received loads of airplay.

[Photo by Victoria Arocho/AP Images]