Sadly, this edition of Top of the Pops from the 16th of January 1992 cannot be shown on BBC4 because of Adrian Rose. But happily, Anonymous has made it available here at We Transfer.
16-1-92: Presenters: Tony Dortie & Adrian Rose
(NEW) THE WONDERSTUFF – Welcome To The Cheap Seats
(3) WET WET WET – Goodnight Girl
(7) CE CE PENISTON – We Got A Love Thang
(9) KISS – God Gave Rock And Roll To You II (video)
(16) DES’REE – Feel So High
(26) THE WEDDING PRESENT – Blue Eyes
(29) PAULA ABDUL – Vibeology (video) (Breakers)
(20) CLIVILLES & COLE – Pride (In The Name Of Love) (video) (Breakers)
(10) GENESIS – I Can’t Dance (video) (Breakers)
(22) THE BEAUTIFUL SOUTH – Old Red Eyes Is Back
(1) QUEEN – Bohemian Rhapsody/The Days Of Our Lives (video)
January 23rd is next.
I found little of interest on this show apart from the fact that The Prodigy didn't get a main slot at No.2 which was their peak this week, as they only got a Breakers slot last week, so they should have had at least a full showing this week at No.2!
ReplyDeleteAlso Queen, on their last week at No.1, at last got the flip side of the single shown with its own video footage for The Days Of Our Lives, but in combo with Bohemian Rhapsody, so this week a combined value of 5 minutes of video play, followed by last two shows ago getting the full 6 minutes of the Bohemian Rhapsody video on its own.
However, I noticed four tunes at peak this week from previous chart regulars, with no TOTP mentions or showings for their new singles:
No.14 Michael Jackson - Black Or White (remixes)
These various remixes by Clivilles & Coles were basically totally ignored by TOTP even now at No.14, in favour of other singles well below them in the charts.
No.35 Belinda Carlisle - Half The World
Not as popular in the 90s as she was in the 80s, but still had a few more hits to go through the 90s, so not moving anywhere for the time being, she would continue with new music until 1999.
No.42 ABC - Say It
Surprised that ABC were still going in 1992, but this was their penultimate single before calling time on their career, as their final one-off single in 1997 only made No.57. Anyway, Say It had a nice video, showing the band evolved to the 90s quite well, and having some Black Box sounding backing sound on the single:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBm6s2-y6AA
No.53 Luther Vandross - The Rush
Also surprised to see Vandross still going in 1992 having started off in the UK charts in 1983, but apparently had plenty more new singles until at least 1996, but only the occasional rare one after that.
This show was also found lacking for me for some reason, maybe not having that shared BBC4 watching experience with 300K+ fellow viewers has an impact.
DeleteAdding to the near miss analysis, the great Lush dropped out of the Top 40 chart this week after reaching the dizzy heights of 35 last week with their For Love EP (another ignored EP?). They would eventually make it into the studio four years later with Single Girl and Ladykillers. The For Love EP contains an excellent version of Wire’s Outdoor Miner btw.
PS. Back to the 90s on BBC 6Music today. In full on early 90s rave mode at the moment.
I read a UTube comment recently under a 90s chart hit that the early 90s music scene had a dark vibe about it, which I guess refers to the very noisy nature of the music. Certainly the late 90s had a more mellow vibe with more emphasis on boy and girl bands, whether or not you could dance to their music!
DeleteYeah, looking back things were a bit heavy in the early 90s as Thatcherism turned into (John) Majorism. Grunge, shoegaze, darkcore, trip hop, progressive house, heroin chic. The turning point? D:Ream and Things can only get Better and The Spice Girls.
DeleteSpot on Sid, even TOTP during the 80s got more covered up during the Thatcher era with either more male backing dancers, typically with Kylie Minogue performing in the TOTP studio as an example, or cautious-dressing female backing dancers.
DeleteAt this point at the start of 1992 however, it was just over a year since Thatcher left the scene at Nov 1990, and the female backing dancers were now more confident to go back to the more undressed nature of the 70's before the Thatcher era, much like Legs & Co, as you can see on the Isotonik studio performance which really an eye-opener, and led the way with was what to come in the later 90s where even on pop videos it was all out baring flesh on many pop singles.
Darn, a couple of tracks on here I would have loved to get a BBC4 showing.
ReplyDeleteFirst of those would be The Wonderstuff and Kirsty MacColl, one of their best singles and it sounded like nobody else, in a good way. Never been sure about the lyrics ("And I dragged a lawnmower over his thighs!") but the lilting, insistent melody and arrangement is top notch, and Kirsty's harmonies really make it special. Miles dressed as Laurence Llewelyn Bowen.
The Wets I could do without, so moving straight along to the rudely-named Ce Ce Peniston who delivers a fair dance effort in a very loud voice. Did she even need a microphone? Work that crowd!
I like all the Bill & Ted movies, the first is one of the funniest comedies of the 80s, and the last, belated one was really sweet (must be my age), but their taste in music was never their strongest suit. Exhibit One: giving KISS another hit in the 90s. Squawking, plodding cover that's a downside of the very funny first sequel. Station!
Des'ree shows up to class up the studio, but she's just a teensy bit dull and unexciting. It's a nice song, but kind of listless to hear. Was she pissed off when Gabrielle arrived on the scene and stole her act?
Not one of The Wedding Present's best, but eh, it'll do I suppose. Some guitar abuse in the latter stages to try and make it distinctive, but doesn't help.
Breakers - please tell me we hear Paula Abdul's Vibeology on the programme in coming weeks, that's a tremendously wacky pop single, should have been huge but wasn't. I really liked it, though.
The other track performed that should have got a BBC4 airing was The Beautiful South's Old Red Eyes, probably my favourite of their songs with a lush (hah!) production and hard-edged, sorrowful romanticism to the tale of someone drinking themselves to death. Rather have this than Fairytale of New York again.
Oh, Queen, FF - no, wait, the other A side at last! For a final single with Freddie this was a far better tribute than bloody Bo-Rhap for the millionth time, a truly poignant number with him telling his fans he still loves them at the end.
There was to be no main slot for Paula Abdul, as this week's Breakers slot with Vibeology at No.29 was all she got on the show, as the next two weeks she was at No.19 for both week's so in the old-style pre-revamp TOTP she would have got a full play the week after the Breakers slot, but since this new style TOTP where there was less opportunity for second showings for non-no.1 records, and most songs got only one showing, wether main slot or breakers!
DeleteShame - I just checked out the video for Vibeology on YouTube and it reminded me what a great single it was. All over the place, totally nuts, but loads of fun.
DeleteJust checked out the video for myself, and yes it was fun all along, but if you don't get a full play on TOTP the week after being on The Breakers, as was regular on the pre-revamped TOTP, it will limit your chart position, and I think this was the case for Paula Abdul, as time was closing in on her career at this point with only two further singles to come after Vibeology - the next one in 1992 only getting to No.73!
DeleteYes indeed, this looks like the last we will see of Paula Abdul on TOTP, as following her No.73 peak follow-up to Vibeology, the final single came in 1995 and only reached No.28, and not sure if she got to the TOTP stage with it.
DeleteWere they really so starved for songs this week that we had to have both a pre-release AND double Queen?
ReplyDeleteAnyhooo....
Wonderstuff - This is great, but sometimes Miles and Kirsty seemed to be off in terms of harmonising with each other. And also it's not in the charts so loses marks for that.
WWW - ZZZ
CCP - It's alright, but no Finally.
Kiss - Yeah, it's fine, I guess.
Des'Ree - I remember hating this at the time but I don't mind it now. Also reminds me of how every week on The Masked Singer, Rita Ora will insist that somebody is 'Des-i-Ree'.
The Wedding Present - I always like the idea of them better than their actual music But my colleague's husband is sometimes a member and he's here looking like a tiny child! I guess it was 30 years ago...
Paula A - her most forgettable song so far
Gensis - I don't really like Genesis. This one is OK in small doses but by small doses I mean Breaker size as I'm just watching the full thing on next week's episode and it's boring me.
C&C - What have they done with their Music Factory and can they retrieve it please and make some better tunes than this?
Beautiful South - I do love their storytelling. Bit baffled why Brianna and Dave are miming their backing vocals. And further proof that Paul Heatonis one of those people who has always been and will always be, middle aged.
Queen - Should've just played Days of Our Lives
Didn't know that C&C from the C&C Music Factory stood for Clivilles & Cole. Are you sure, or are you just joking?
DeleteI just looked back at the singles catalogue of The Beautiful South up to this point, and where Brianna and Dave are on main vocals, their songs did much better, getting Top 10 status every time. When Heaton took over on main vocals and put those two in the background, this no.22 peak with Old Red Eyes was the best position they managed since 1989 when The Beautiful South debuted, showing that Heaton had less impact than the other two.
Yes, the C+C were Clivilles and Cole, a production duo of a sort very in vogue at the time.
DeleteRe: TBS, I liked that they all started laughing when the audience thought they'd finished and they still had a minute to go.
Rad, love the WWW comment. Very clever!
DeleteThe ITV Chart Show Top Ten following this episode, had Isotonik at No.10 with no video, Blue Pearl as high as No.8 when they only got to No.14 in the official chart (but at least we get to see the video), and would you believe, Ce Ce Peniston at No.3 when she only got to No.6 on the official chart:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=127Gn2Cn6m8
Thanks again, Anonymous.
ReplyDeleteOh God, it’s the anti-dream team of Laters and Ponce. No wonder that presenter didn’t want his shows shown – stupid haircut, goldfish eyes and no presence whatsoever.
Dickensian pop with The Wonderstuff. Agreed the joint vocals aren’t always in the same key, and the drummer misses his cue after the instrumental, but I still take my top hat off to them.
The Wets have invited their drummer along this time and he loads up the highest cymbals yet on the show.
Blimey, Cecilia belts that out, doesn’t she? Fine effort but an off-the-peg sounding number nevertheless.
Kiss with a Sly Stallone lookalike and the worry of electrocution any time after someone left the tap on and flooded that floor.
Des’Ree gives us an okay song but it’s no “You Gotta Be”. They’re making the most of that dry ice / smoke machine, aren’t they?
Wahay. The Yorkshire Mark E Smith and what counts as a last dance ballad for The Wedding Present. Dave, please try to mime your guitar at least.
Lost for words about Paula Abdul. I really can’t describe that, but not meaning to be nasty either.
First we have Ce Ce, now it’s the full surnames of C&C with – oh dear, an awful re-mix, C&C F&F.
Genesis. Such hahahilarious chaps. Ahem.
Paul – “I co-write our songs and you don't, I want to sing this one”.
Dave & Brianna – “But the band has bigger hits when we sing”
Paul – “I’ll scream and scream until I’m sick – and I’ll unplug your vocal mics”.
Dave & Brianna – “Sheesh”.
Another fine storytelling song with happy tune and sombre lyrics, in all fairness.
Queen still? Quick chop.
It's interesting regarding The Beautiful South. Anyone with commercial sense would keep a winning formula going until it dries up with the record-buying public, but what do they do after the No.1 A Little Time?
DeletePaul Heaton removes Dave & Brianna from lead vocals for the next three singles up to and including this one Old Red Eyes, and they peak at 43, 51, and 22 with Heaton on lead vocals on all three singles.
Good Lord, it seemed that pride and ego over-ruled commercial sense in the case of The Beautiful South, but they are all still a unit at this point, so it will be interesting to see how long that Heaton can keep the other two in the group before they give up and move on. The next single will peak at No.30 a couple of months later, so it will be interesting to see what happens with this one and two further singles released in 1992 thereafter.
It was the final Beautiful South single of 1992, "36D", which was partly the catalyst for Brianna Corrigan leaving the band. She was unhappy at the lyrics of that and a couple of other TBS songs, especially "Mini-Correct", feeling women were being written about in an unflattering manner. "36D" was a 46 flop.
DeleteSo how long did Dave Hemmingway stay on?
DeleteDave stayed with TBS until they split in 2007 citing the humorous reason of "musical similarities".
Delete30 years ago to the day (for me) and the presenters are back in vision at the top of the show which was good to see.
ReplyDeleteKicking off tonight with a folk Doctor Who and Kirsty. Seriously I do adore this tune. This exclusive performance explains why the song charts so high next week
The Wets just a step away for the summit for a second time. Nowt wrong with this tune but never going to be a fave. The sort of MOR Westlife churn out at the end of the decade.
Ce Ce Peniston finally makes it to the studio. Great dance record this and a fabulous voice as well. Always amazed her success over here was limited to the mid 90s. Need to have a word with whoever lit this set. Ce Ce disappears half the time.
Film cash in time for Kiss. One of many US dumb jock movies with added time travel (can't think where they got that phonebooth idea). Just dreadful.
Now here's a massive improvement. Des'ree with a powerful vocal and a storming tune. Nice, you gotta be enjoying this one…
First of 12 for The Wedding Present in their record breaking year.. watch these tracks drop like a stone in Week 2. Will we get 12 TOTP perfomances? No strong feelings either way about this tune, just a bit bland really.
Breakers;
Paula Abdul. Nope sorry, not great this one.
Clivilles + Cole. I was such a fan of this and the follow up (A Deeper Love) which both peak at Number 15. Release day I was at Mark One Records in Wokingham picking up both 12" on release day.
Genesis. Memorable video. Decent tune.
Possibly my favourite Beautiful South tune up next. Great band and they produced so many great records.
Finally we get a bit of the other Queen side and a different Rhapsody performance. Nice video for "days" although the artist still seems to think he's drawing Morten Harkett.
A really good show tonight with some strong performances, shame BBC4 viewers missed out.