The Ten Best Selling Songs in Austria in 1999

Although we're drifting further into millennial pop music by 1999, there are also the first few examples of the renaissance of eurodance that wasn't among the most successful songs in the past three years. It however changed a bit: the pop elements now outweigh the rave and hip hop, and the songs sometimes fuse with italo disco.
Source: https://austriancharts.at/1999_single.asp, Created on 2/18/2019
The Top Ten
1 Mambo No. 5 (A Little Bit of...) - Lou Bega

Next to "The Ketchup Song (Aserejé)," this is my favorite summer hit. It has the light-hearted feel of an upbeat swing (or rather mambo) song but still elements of late 90s production, such as bass drums and sketches.

I really like how it mixes old and (then) new so fluently and how the result is just a song that will get everyone to dance no matter their age.

Peak position: 1
Having spent 9 weeks on top of the charts, the mambo dance song was also the biggest number 1 hit of the year.

2 A klana Indiana / Uiiii tuat des weh! - A klana Indiana

This has to be one of my least favorite songs and most unpleasant listening experiences of all time. The beat is basically just hard kicks, bass, and open hi-hats. There's barely a melody or flow, and the lyrics are horrible.

It's about a "little Indian, an obese, fat, chubby one" who frequently hurts his genitals, e.g., by getting an arrow shot into it or getting a b.j. by a woman who ate spicy food. It's just plain stupid and not even funny - and sexual humor can be funny. But just listen to the audio sample: even the vocalist sounds bored. This is just plain annoying with no redeeming value.

3 ...Baby One More Time - Britney Spears

This is one of the greatest upbeat pop songs of the turn of the millennium. Each segment is a maximum earworm: the verses, pre-chorus, chorus, background vocals, the simple piano loop, even the drum pack.

Britney Spears is perfectly suited to perform it, playing the role of the lolita with a certain innocence. I think it's sad they drown her expressive vocals in such thick layers of autotune on recent albums.

4 Blue (Da Ba Dee) - Eiffel 65

Speaking of autotune: I liked it when autotune was used to make the voice sound futuristic. The eurodance/italo disco track is a fun club banger, and despite the overwhelming use of the vocoder seeming a bit out of control nowadays, it feels fitting how it is used as a robotic effect.

5 Narcotic - Liquido

Liquido's only really big hit feels like the love child of Weezer (the main instrumental), HIM (the vocal style), and an 80s synth-pop earworm (the main keyboard melody). This is simply a great pop-rock song, in which all parts work together well, and which has one of the most memorable leitmotifs.

6 My Love Is Your Love - Whitney Houston

It is Whitney Houston, one of the greatest singers there ever was. This RnB jam may not be her greatest work, but it's definitely very nice to listen to.

7 Big Big World - Emilia

Every once in a while, a pop song is written with a premise that sounds simple on paper but sounds magical when heard. The music of "Big Big World" sounds little and tender, but that's why you listen all the closer to what is there and let it sink into you.

8 Uiii is des bled! - A klana Indiana

Be glad there is no audio sample. You aren't missing much. Essentially, it is very much like "Ui tuat des weh!," except that this time the Native American is impotent.

I am glad this group was completely forgotten. The inclusion on this list is probably the most attention they got in 15 years.

9 Genie in a Bottle - Christina Aguilera

The introduction of one of the greatest artists the pop landscape of the new millennium would get. She is arguably the best female singer alive, and although "Genie in a Bottle" is mainly chart-oriented, it's still an instantly recognizable and intimate tune with wonderful singing.

10 Pretty Fly (For a White Guy) - The Offspring

This punk song must have been a clever satire back in 1999, but 20 years later, it's nothing but outdated. Many popular and acclaimed rappers, no matter the ethnicity, play a tough persona in any form.

I think it's funny that after Bushido's arrival in 2003, white German rappers slowly took over the album charts. Kollegah is basically everything this song criticizes and is still one of the biggest and most acclaimed rappers of all time due to his advanced lyrical ability.