A Journey Through Stock Aitken Waterman

By: Chart Beats
  • Summary

  • 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)
    © 2024 A Journey Through Stock Aitken Waterman
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Episodes
  • FINALE: Ultimate Stock Aitken Waterman Singles Countdown top 20
    Feb 1 2025

    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' favourite 20 singles from the list of 200 we have discussed on the podcast. What will be number 1?

    (Subscribers, numbers 50-21 are counted down in the bonus material at chartbeats.com.au/saw-bonus)

    Support the show

    Subscribe for bonus material at chartbeats.com.au/saw
    Instagram: @chartbeatsau
    Threads: @chartbeatsau, @matthew_denby360
    Bluesky: @chartbeatsau, @matthewdenby.bsky.social
    Facebook: Chart Beats: A Journey Through Pop
    Email: chartbeats.au@gmail.com

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    1 hr and 11 mins
  • Epilogue 2: Love This and beyond
    Dec 21 2024

    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, over the next few years, the duo would release many more cover versions than original songs, having success with the likes of Nicki French, Jocelyn Brown & Kym Mazelle, John Alford, Newton (in Australia) and Robson & Jerome. Mike Stock joins us for one final time to recap the highlights from the Love This era and give his rationale for the emphasis on remakes, He also discusses working with Simon Cowell on quite a few projects, including the theme to kids' TV show Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers and how the problems plaguing Love This, such as a dispute with the London Underground over rail work that compromised his studios and issues surrounding the release of "Santa Maria" by Tatjana, resulted in the label being shut in 1997. Mike goes on to talk about some of the work he's done since, such as tracks by pop acts Scooch and Girls@Play, and what he would like his overall musical legacy to be. Matt Aitken, Miriam Stockley and Julian Gingell also feature to share their memories of this era.

    Support the show

    Subscribe for bonus material at chartbeats.com.au/saw
    Instagram: @chartbeatsau
    Threads: @chartbeatsau, @matthew_denby360
    Bluesky: @chartbeatsau, @matthewdenby.bsky.social
    Facebook: Chart Beats: A Journey Through Pop
    Email: chartbeats.au@gmail.com

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    1 hr and 18 mins
  • Epilogue 1: PWL 1994-96
    Dec 8 2024

    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 after the demise of Stock Aitken Waterman. Former PWL MD David Howells joins us to discuss the challenges of starting afresh with new talent to replace Mike and Matt, and talks about what prompted his own departure from the business he had helped steer since the mid-'80s. With a strong focus on dance music at PWL in the '90s, one of the more consistent acts — in terms of quality and chart success — was Loveland. Paul Taylor returns to explain how the group behind hits like "Let The Music (Lift You Up)" and "I Need Somebody" came about, and how PWL's Manchester business received much of Pete Waterman's attention at this point. Paul also discusses his own unceremonious exit from the group. Meanwhile. Slamm remained signed to PWL and were put to work with Gary Miller on increasingly poppy music, with singer Johnny Wilks recapping that era of the band's journey for us. Then, we finish by looking at how Pete's initial run with PWL ended in 1996 and who the songwriters and producers were that would provide him with a second wave of success in the following years with acts like Steps, Tina Cousins and Westlife.

    Support the show

    Subscribe for bonus material at chartbeats.com.au/saw
    Instagram: @chartbeatsau
    Threads: @chartbeatsau, @matthew_denby360
    Bluesky: @chartbeatsau, @matthewdenby.bsky.social
    Facebook: Chart Beats: A Journey Through Pop
    Email: chartbeats.au@gmail.com

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    1 hr and 4 mins

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Outstanding walk through SAW

The hosts are extremely passionate & knowledgeable about every single SAW release. A joy to listen to...bravo!

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