Altern 8 happy just to get in chart after Facebook campaign
He may not have been able to stop X Factor winner Sam Bailey storming to number one but a dance music producer was today celebrating reaching the charts with a re-release of an early 1990s hit.
Friends Mark Archer and Chris Peat, from Gnosall, just failed to reach the top spot as Altern 8 back in 1991 when their Activ 8 song got to number three.
And this time round, they have made it to number 33 after a campaign was launched by fans to stop the talent show winner being the festive best seller by re-releasing their biggest hit.
Mr Archer said today: "Irrespective of chart positions, I'd just like to thank everyone for their support for the campaign.
"It's truly appreciated. The support was more than I could have wished for 22 years on – the charts is a brilliant bonus."
A Facebook page attracted 25,000 'likes', and hopes were high that the track could make an unlikely entrance at the top of the charts. A series of remixes were commissioned by fellow DJs, all of which count towards a chart placing.
The record featured the voice of three-year-old Clair Rushton, of Burntwood, whose phrase 'nice one, top one, get sorted' became a mantra for the rave scene.
It was the band's most successful song – kept off the top spot by Michael Jackson's comeback single Black and White and, at No 2, Vic Reeves and the Wonder Stuff's version of Dizzy – and stayed in the charts for almost three months.
Altern 8 had been performing as Nexus 21 and started Altern 8 as a side project.
They appeared on Top Of The Pops and were famed for performing in chemical warfare suits and dust masks. But the pair split over professional differences and have not been in contact for years.
