I don't don't want a lot for Christmas, all I want is the 1st of December 1994 edition of Top of the Pops!
Lily season
1-12-94: Presenter: Lily Savage
(36) SOPHIE B. HAWKINS – Don’t Don’t Tell Me No
Getting December underway but the song got no higher.
(30) ROXETTE – Run To You
Performing the fourth single from their top 3 album Crash Boom Bang, and it went up three more places.
(2) THE STONE ROSES – Love Spreads (video) (and charts)
Their fourth and final top ten hit, from their top 4 album Second Coming, and it got no higher.
(25) ERASURE – I Love Saturday
In the studio and the song went up five more places.
(20) CELINE DION – Think Twice (via satellite)
Very slowly climbing all the way to the very top.
(NEW) MARIAH CAREY – All I Want For Christmas Is You (via satellite)
Our first ever sighting of this Christmas mega-classic. The last of its kind maybe, of the all-time great Christmas singles? And it will peak at number two this year.
(NEW) MIGHTY MOPRH’N POWER RANGERS – Power Rangers (video)
Will peak at number 3.
(7) EAST 17 – Stay Another Day
Performing what will be of course this year's Christmas number one.
(1) BABY D – Let Me Be Your Fantasy (video)
Second and final week at the top.
(TOTP2) THE THREE DEGREES – My Simple Heart (clip of TOTP 6-12-79) (and credits)
Got to number 9 in December '79.
8th of December is next.
TOTP2 03-12-1994 (Johnnie Walker returns!) https://we.tl/t-TP8PwNHOiY
ReplyDeleteInteresting prediction on the show that Motorhead & Ice T with their new single Born To Raise Hell would be a TOTP chart entry the following week. Impressive video, but only got to No.47 as a new entry and then tumbled out of the Top 60.
DeleteGood to see the Rolling Stones as a chart prediction, as it did make it to No.36 the following week as peak position, with no play on the show, so this TOTP2 clip of the video was all we got.
And we get the new video from Whigfield as a chart prediction, which went on to be a studio performance as show opener on the main TOTP the following week.
Sorry to be an anorak over an edition I haven't yet seen but if The Three Degrees clip was from 6/12/79 it was actually from 'The Basil Brush Show' (1/12/79). Info listed on TV Pop Diaries website. It's the one where either one of the ladies' mics is not working or they decided not to do the main harmony!
ReplyDeleteNever mind that, but hope everyone watched the 14/6/79 edition of TOTP tonight, but had edited out the two best songs on the show, i.e., the video of Night Owl by Gerry Rafferty, and Boogie Wonderland by Earth Wind & Fire, in order to mince down the show to 30 minutes for the schedules, but they kept in the video for H.A.P.P.Y. by Edwin Starr. Good Lord!
DeleteShame that they had to cut those. Love 'Night Owl' though it does crop up when That's TV repeat Series 2 of The Kenny Everett Video Show. Different video I think. Mystified as to why they would cut out 'Boogie Wonderland'. A more entertaining vid from that year anyone? Look forward to seeing the shortened show nonetheless. 'Gercha!'
DeleteBoogie Wonderland has been the benchmark video since these reruns began, in terms of the record number of people in the group, where I counted 15 people on stage in the band. Some groups have come close, like Kool & The Gang with 11 people on stage in the TOTP studio, and there have been the occasional performers with 12, but this has always been the one to beat for band personnel numbers on stage, and one of the best dance track videos of all time:
Deletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=god7hAPv8f0
Couldn't really find much to comment on this show, except for the fact that the Live By Satellite slot this week which went to Celine Dion, seemed to be disguised as the video for the song?? And then Mariah Carey celebrating the 60s with a sexy 60s outfit and black & white performance for TOTP.
ReplyDeleteChart rundown - Reel 2 real ft The Mad Stuntman gets a new entry at No.14, with no feature on the show, perhaps waiting to bring him on next week, but the single fell out of the Top 20 the following week, so the first Reel 2 Real record to get missed on TOTP altogether. So too The Grid new entry at No.17 also falling out of the Top 20 next week, and no play while in the Top 40.
The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers was a throwback to Turtle Power which got to No.1 in 1990, but this was certainly not destined for No.1!
The staging team must have had a good budget for this one, lots of elaborate things going on - perhaps because so much was on satellite so they gave more of a show in studio? No idea why Erasure were on all the arcade machines but it was fun.
ReplyDeleteThere's a run of new entries in the mid teens that don't get shown which is odd and cries out for the return of the Breakers.
Sophie B Hawkins starts really rough but eventually this improves. She was always a bit background for me but I don't hate it.
Roxette - all the hearts obviously. Marie looks and sounds fab, lord i miss her. I think we have a few years' wait to see them in the studio again with Wish I Could Fly in early 99 unless they pop in in 95 for The Look 95 and the Greatest Hits album? Can't quite remember.
Stone Roses - always good to hear them. I remember how big of a deal and subsequent letdown The Second Coming was for a lot of people. It's not as bad as people made out at the time it's always hard for acts to follow something so beloved.
Erasure - Andy B is another one who has had some vocal issues tonight. I like this track though it's not as immediate as some of their others.
Celine D - I HATED this back then but mainly because it was number one for so long and I didn't like Celine's warbling. She - and it - has grown more on me over time. And feel for her a lot, she's had such a rough time of things in life yet seems like a fun, kooky person (which I wish was more reflected in her music).
Mariah - so it begins, an almost thirty year trek to the top. It's weird watching all this Christmas stuff in the heat! Nice performance and it's a great track, however much the song's ubiquity has annoyed people in the years since.
Power Rangers - an exclusive we did not need. Poor Reel 2 Reel, Gloria and Pj and Duncan who all got looked over for this absolute tripe. I get that they were huge at the time (though never understood why, the TV show looked dated and cheap at the time, never mind now, but at least wait until it charts.
East 17 - Lily was right about its future. Like Mariah, the oversaturation of this track has made people hate it but it's a genuinely great song and a nice performance here.
Baby D - thanks for a short and respectable run at the top, shame we didn't get a studio visit at any point.
Honestly I really enjoyed that show again. Apart from the Power Rangers, obviously.
And the prediction ticker anticipating a new entry from 'Boyz One', bless. That's the biggest blight on the otherwise enticing 1995 horizon.
DeleteYes indeed, poor Reel 2 Real as a new entry this week at No.14 and not shown throughout its chart run by TOTP, I'm making a stand and sticking up for The Mad Stuntman too, so having watched the video this morning, I was very impressed, especially the introduction by Zig & Zag who were the big thing at the time on Channel 4's TV show The Big Breakfast:
Deletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dnbb5vKJviI
Forgotten all about the third SOPHIE B. HAWKINS hit this year. "Don’t Don’t Tell Me No" a really good tune, Liked the staging and performance of this as well. Strong start to the show.
ReplyDeleteFinally we get ROXETTE on the show with a tune from their latest album. "Run To You" a fairly by the numbers tune from them, which still makes it great. Always sad to see Marie knowing what's to come.
THE STONE ROSES just about still going. Would never had put "Love Spreads" as a 94 tune. A nice reminder of earlier indie times.
Single handedly doubling the Electric bill for the BBC it's ERASURE and a ton of Amusement Arcade machines. "I Love Saturday" one of their forgotten tunes and it's rather fine in fact. Enjoyed that.
CELINE DION with the first, but certainly not the last appearance of "Think Twice" which will be Number One in 9 weeks time! On her way to becoming an International Superstar. Written by Andy Hill and Pete Sinfield who have serious form (Land of Make Believe and other Bucks Fizz tunes). One of my all time favourite tunes. Love it. Might be in the minority here...
MARIAH debuts her Xmas standard "All I Want For Christmas Is You". 123 weeks on the chart so far and finally made Number One in 2020. Loved the satellite performance here, a huge improvement on the video. Good to see Les Dawson getting some work on the right of the backing singers there.
MIGHTY MOPRH’N POWER RANGERS – Come back Mr Blobby, all is forgiven. Never understood the appeal of the TV series. Some dodgy Japanese footage with some cheap American high school stuff bolted on. Kids loved it though.
Best in show goes to EAST 17 with "Stay Another Day" Stone-cold Classic! Nice staging as well.
Second non-studio Number One in a row as Baby D gets a second week. Still find this really average.
Quality show. Can we have Lily every week? She was fabulous.
Three divas on this show and Lily Savage was the only one I could tolerate. Lily did a good job, showing reverence and not completely over the top.
ReplyDeleteSophie first with “Don’t Don’t Tell Me No I’ll Never Be On TOTP Again”. Sorry, my dear. Nice stage setting, almost like a mini-musical. Note Sophie stick her hand quickly on the bench when lifting a leg onto it, thus avoiding undergarment outage.
Roxette give us MOR pop, not my bag but give me that over ‘Boyz One’ any day.
A ‘wacky’ video for the return of Stone Roses. I preferred cheese spreads to that track to be honest.
Non-mugshots: the only top 40 week for London born West Indian rapper Darkman (real name Brian Mitchell) and the first of just two weeks for techno / groove outfit Blue Bamboo. I wonder if there was any retruning banjo on the Grid’s “Texas Cowboys”?
Bingo, another hit for Erasure! Andy misses a couple of high notes – ouch. I’d have had Andy nick the lever of a one-arm bandit for his mic to keep with the staging.
The next two songs will never be listened to or critiqued by me for different reasons.
You may have read in a previous post that I’d changed jobs in October 1994 and was commuting 60 miles to work each way. On my first day I was not just made manager of a small department, but one of the team had left before starting and I was tasked with doing their work as well as mine. Add to that I was stuck in an office with the worst and most feral bunch of people I ever suffered in an office, and by Christmas I was showing the first effects of what was going to be a full blown nervous breakdown until a director saw what was happening and changed my job as he’d had a breakdown years back and recognised the signs. “Think Twice” was in the chart just as I started to feel unwell and I always associate that song with my lack of wellbeing at the time, so I can’t bear to hear it.
As for Pariah, I don’t like her and I’m sick to death of this song being a hit year after year. To think of all the great Christmas songs – Wizzard and Elton John to name but two – which deserved number one, if not higher chart placings than they obtained, and this and the Professional Irishman make six-figure sums every year by people downloading their hits for parties. Shudder.
What a complete waste of 3 minutes 20. Why? Why some stupid kids’ video instead of showing us one of the previously mentioned top 20 new entries? Duh.
East 17’s best song but, lads, please put some vests on. I could have imagined Simon Mayo lurking in the background ready to give Brian a wedgie.
Shame that’s it for Baby D. Enjoyed that turn while it lasted.
We exit with “My Simple Hut”. Helen was always my favourite. Not that you asked to know.
Another cracking edition with one absolute clunker though that doesn't spoil it too much. Another point lost for the entirely pointless introduction but then again they were hardly likely to entice The Stone Roses to do it.
ReplyDeleteGreat to see the late Paul O'Grady in his Lily Savage guise doing a fine job in the presenting role. The red ribbons worn by the artists in the studio because the show was broadcast on World Aids Day, then in its 6th year.
Sophie B Hawkins; Always good to see Soph and her gently eccentric ways. Good single. She has one other really good single to come I think. A lot of thought gone into that set and it makes me a little sad to think that this extravagance is soon to pass and be replaced by a set that will never change. Sophie gets into it, kicking at the leaves and jumping onto a bench wearing what looks at a glance like completely unsuitable footwear.
Rosette; Don't remember this single and rather enjoyed that. Should've got higher in the charts. Per Gessle seems to have picked up on 'Parklife' judging by his top.
The Stone Roses; Humourous link to the band that was certainly the main talking point in the music press for the previous month. Yes the album was a disappointment and I bought it I think the day it came out but what a single to come back with! 'Love Spreads' still sounds awesome with some stunning moments as well as my favourite line of the whole year; "... she's over there, YEAH!!".
The video is a grippingly chaotic jumble of images though I think I could live without seeing Ian Brown slumped on the floor with a towel over his privates. My favourite moment is the wonderfully unsubtle pro vegetarian scene. No idea but I'd make a guess that the chicken was Mani. Should've played the whole single.
Erasure; And relax...A delightfully understated performance by Erasure of a very underrated single. The arcade games make a kind of sense though why Andy is sitting on top of one is a little less easy to figure. Still it makes for a nice, casual few minutes. I noticed one said 'Swop Shop'.
Celine Dion; 'Think Twice' by satellite. What, the video was transmitted by satellite? That doesn't look like a satellite performance. I'm sure there was another one with her on a boat or looking out to sea.
Of course a remarkably long journey to the top where it then pitched up for weeks. I vividly remember watching TOTP on a snowy evening in early March, getting a university application form filled in before a next day deadline and it was at No1. I do like it though. A stately, sombre tune with a classic contorted face guitar solo.
Mariah Carey;. Ah now this IS a satellite performance. I remember this very well and haven't seen it in full since it was broadcast. Glossy and a hundred times better than the video that has been shown at least as many times as years in Santa Claus' life. Mariah never more cute than here and the whole thing races along. Did anyone else think the set looked like the 'Blue Peter' studio in the '70s?
Mighty Morph'n....I can't be arsed.
East 17; Spot on Lily! Heading to the Xmas No.1. Still an attractive and sobering listen. Live on the verses, mimed on the choruses it seems to be. Brian rather shaky in the key dept at first which he seems to acknowledge with a smile to the camera but he gets it together in the 2nd verse.
Baby D; A fond goodbye till... Friday.
A cheery link and a "See ya!" from the middle of an excited crowd. Yeah, farewell Paul.
No wonder The Three Degrees are an abiding early pop memory for me. A few weeks after their TV special at the Royal Albert Hall (may have stayed up to watch) they showed up as musical guests on 'The Basil Brush Show' (definitely would've watched). Love this song. Why no top harmony? It is the main melody is it not? Lovely Helen Scott my favourite too Arthur. BBC4 showed some vintage children's TV for its 100 year celebration. How I wished this Basil Brush edition had been shown.