Happy New Year!
31/12/81 (hosted by Mike Read)
Shakin’ Stevens – “This Ole House” (video)
Adam & The Ants – “Stand & Deliver” (video)
John Lennon – “Imagine” (video)
Roxy Music – “Jealous Guy” (video)
Aneka – “Japanese Boy” (rpt from 13/08/81)
The Police – “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic” (video)
The Specials – “Ghost Town” (rpt from 02/07/81)
Joe Dolce Music Theatre – “Shaddap You Face” (video)
Julio Iglesias – “Begin The Beguine” (video)
Bucks Fizz – “Making Your Mind Up” (rpt)
Dave Stewart & Barbara Gaskin – “It’s My Party” (video)
Michael Jackson – “One Day In Your Life” (stills)
Smokey Robinson – “Being With You” (video)
Shakin’ Stevens – “Green Door” (rpt from 13/08/81)
Soft Cell – “Tainted Love” (rpt from 13/08/81)
John Lennon – “Woman” (video)
Adam & The Ants – “Prince Charming” (video)
(1) The Human League – “Don’t You Want Me” (video)
Queen & David Bowie – “Under Pressure” (stills/credits)
Next up then is The Story of 1982, followed by Big Hits 1982, and then its January 7th 1982!
Instead of showing a bit more of the video for Under Pressure on the playout they just feature a few stills instead. So the glimpse of it on the 26 November show was the only bit that was aired. Oh well.
ReplyDeleteThey also edited out of the early evening show the sequence of Dave Stewart & Barbra Gaskin, Michael Jackson, Smokey Robinson and Shakin Stevens Green Door, in one fail swoop.
Deletei know it's a bit late in asking, but have the beeb actually offered any explanation or justification why they've now started broadcasting these shows at double speed?
ReplyDeleteMore like breakneck speed Wilberforce
DeleteGood Lord, just heard the devastating news that the lead singer of PM Dawn has just passed away at the mere age of 46, having suffered a massive stroke in 2005.
ReplyDeletehttp://hollywoodlife.com/2016/06/17/prince-be-dead-dies-pm-dawn-artell-cordes-diabetes/
PM Dawn were famous in 1990/91 for sampling Spandau Ballet's 1983 No.1 called True, to a new single in the 90s called Set Adrift On Memory Bliss.
There's not much to say about this rather perfunctory round-up of the year's chart-toppers, but a streamer-clad Mike Read makes things a bit more interesting with the facts and figures he provides in his links. Interesting to see that some songs almost got played in full, while others (especially Joe Dolce and Jacko), got cut off brutally early. It was nice to see Legs crop up in a couple of the repeat performances, though I'm amazed that they chose to show the Green Door clip with Master Bates leering on the big screen again! There was a major blunder on the end credits, with Gordon Elsbury apparently presenting the show rather than producing it...
ReplyDeleteOverall, there's no doubt that 1981 was a fantastic year for British pop, with synth sounds going mainstream and a host of exciting new acts bursting on to the scene. After a dodgy start the previous year, I think Michael Hurll largely moved the show in the right direction during '81, making TOTP much more of an event than it had been under Robin Nash, and choosing a great new theme in Yellow Pearl. I have yet to be convinced by Zoo, however, and towards the end of the year the party atmosphere started to feel rather contrived on a number of shows - it will be interesting to see if that trend continues into 1982.
For me, I really enjoyed Smokey Robinson's video for Being With You, which was No.1 this week 35 years ago in June 1981, so if BBC4 had kept in tandem with "this week in..." then our No.1 this week would have been Smokey Robinson, but instead we have raced to The Human League at Xmas 1981!
DeleteDidn't they used to have the 'Presented By' credit on some of these foreign kids shows the Beeb redubbed?
DeleteAm I the only one that likes the double editions?
Not much to add here, other than to note the Zoo member in the pith helmet who while Mike was sombrely introducing John Lennon's Imagine chose to fashion two balloons into a pair of plastic comedy breasts.
ReplyDeleteNot a bad show, Mike Read very good presentation with all his facts, the only thing missing was new studio performances.
ReplyDeleteThank goodness they got Mike Read to present this, as his links gave a bit of flavour to the songs, almost all of which I fast-forwarded through. Had we not seen them all already in the space of less than 6 months I might have felt differently!
ReplyDeleteJust to let you know, I'm still here and about to go on holiday for a couple of weeks so I'll be even further behind! Like Arthur, I set aside specific times of the week to sit down and watch TOTP, and even then sometimes I'm doing something else. If I didn't do this and watched every show as it became available it would quickly become a chore.
ReplyDeleteAs a result there's no point in me commenting on individual shows since by the time I've seen each one and read the blog post things have long since moved on and the last comment was anything up to a week ago! (And besides, as the 1980s and the Hurll era gets into its collective stride, shows tend to be a bit 'samey' for me anyway.)
But I always visit here after I've watched each show, so Angelo, please keep doing the blog posts and the rest of the gang keep going with the comments and critiques - it's appreciated.
Oh yes, and I've downloaded the Yewtree'd shows - they're in the queue!
And here's a little 'Christmas gift', in keeping with what we've seen this year (if nobody has posted this link already)... Now what you see here is technically illegal under railway byelaws, and if I was to come across a fat, pissed middle-aged woman and bald bloke with guitar like this - not to mention the stupid bint videoing the proceedings to put on YouTube - then it would certainly qualify as my ultimate Train Journey From Hell. But I don't live in Hertfordshire. Enjoy:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Ij8BpOa-Pg
20th sorry to hear you're struggling to keep up with the relentless schedule. but good to hear you're still with us, even if not contriburing as often as you might like
Deleteand angelo thanks again for continuing to provide a platform (espcially in the current circunstances) for the rest of us to contribute what i think of as "intellectual bollocks"!
by the way, the 80's-interest website "the sound of the crowd" has now sadly apparently given up the ghost with regard to reportage on the vintage totp re-runs. so it seems that once again it's up to us to keep the flame alive...
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ReplyDeleteNot much of note here other than 'One Day in your life' getting short shrift and happy 'Legs & Co' memories on 'Green Door'. I can't take my eyes off Lulu who just keeps staring at Shaky!
ReplyDeleteThat was the best part. Who exactly was looking at Shaky anyway?
DeleteWell, there’s not an ‘episode’ entry for the excellent 1982 Documentary so I’m posting this here; how many people spotted the review of the excellent and timeless Asia single ‘Only time will tell’ when they showed the ‘music press’ review for Culture Club’s ‘Do you really want to hurt me’. Read this and laugh…
ReplyDeleteCynically contrived by mass consumption by idiot Yanks with serious hearing deficiencies, this bloated ballad is unbearably twee, despite the brassy grandeur and vulgar swagger of Asia’s performance. Straining every sinew for significance, Asia howl and whinney; grappling with gruesome sentiments, boldly expressed. Asia really are quite unforgivably awful. Listening to them is like in the face by the glare of a spotlight; far from illuminating anything, it merely blinds, dazzles and confuses. This is the kind of music that probably congratulates itself as overwhelming: when it was over, I was pretty dammed whelmed; that much is certain.
It’s not clear who wrote this ‘review’. What is now fact is the eponymous debut album was a massive seller that clearly lots of people liked (not just ‘Yanks’) and Asia are still going strong today (albeit after a number of line-up changes, but having released 11 studio albums)….and I don’t think I’ve ever heard someone say ‘whelmed’ before either.
I think "whelmed" is a nautical term. Hello sailor!
DeleteFinally got round to seeing this show in full today. Not much to say really as not only is it made up of videos and repeats but they're only showing about 2 minutes of each one. And I don't like the planted fake crowd members standing alongside Mike Read who are all pretending to like every act and grin along with every dire joke he makes. This was how the show was going to be from now on, a bit too fake for its own good.
ReplyDelete