Ranking #19 singles, U.S. edition: 1987-1991 (opens in new tab)

Did my readers know Salt-n-Pepa didn’t go top ten until 1993 with TLC? Smutty and catchy as fuck, “Push It” stopped at #19 despite an omnipresence in major cities; Miami played it as if Hurby Azor replaced Francis Scott Key. “Veronica,” my intro to Elvis Costello, ranks a close second. Maybe co-writer Paul McCartney tightened […]