To remind us we're alive, to remind us of the 2nd of March 1995 edition of Top of the Pops!
Larynx no more
And a big thanks to Anonymous for these two editions of TOTP2:
2-3-95: Presenter: Keithski Allenski
(2) MN8 – I’ve Got A Little Something For You
Getting the show underway with a third time in the studio but the song was now at its peak.
(21) MIKE & THE MECHANICS – Over My Shoulder
Performing their first top 40 hit for four years, and it peaked at number 12.
(10) NIGHTCRAWLERS – Push The Feeling On (video) (and charts)
Peaked at number 3.
(3) ALEX PARTY – Don’t Give Me Your Life
A second time in the studio and the song went up one more place.
(NEW) CHER, CHRISSIE HYNDE & NENEH CHERRY with ERIC CLAPTON – Love Can Build A Bridge (video)
This year's Comic Relief song and it will get to number one in three weeks time.
(16) ELTON JOHN – Believe
He's here tonight and the song went up one more place.
(14) SCARLET – Independent Love Song
Back for a third time, but the song had already peaked at number 12.
(NEW) FAITH NO MORE – Digging The Grave
In the studio and the song peaked at number 16.
(1) CELINE DION – Think Twice (video)
Fifth of seven weeks at number one.
(TOTP2) FREE – All Right Now (clip of TOTP 4-6-70) (and credits)
Peaked at number 2 in 1970.
9th of March is next.
29-9-77: Presenter: Ed Stewart
ReplyDelete(4) JEAN-MICHEL JARRE – Oxygene Part IV (and charts)
(35) ROSE ROYCE – Do Your Dance
(2) DAVID SOUL – Silver Lady (video)
(28) BOB MARLEY & THE WAILERS – Waiting In Vain (danced to by Legs & Co)
(NEW) PETER BLAKE – Lipsmackin’ Rock ‘N’ Rollin’
(18) RAM JAM – Black Betty (video)
(27) DAVID ESSEX – Cool Out Tonight
(NEW) THE STYLISTICS – I Plead Guilty
(21) DONNA SUMMER – I Remember Yesterday (video)
(NEW) GOLDEN EARRING – Radar Love
(1) ELVIS PRESLEY – Way Down (stills) (crowd dancing) ®
(30) GIORGIO – From Here To Eternity (and credits)
Didn’t realise Peter Blake the actor was an aspiring singer. Sounded like an outtake from Grease 😊
DeleteThis episode went out a few weeks after the death of Elvis Presley, and so unsurprisingly we find the King at No.1 for the fifth week with the help of Legs & Go and the studio audience in the absence of any Presley footage for this song. The Peter Blake new entry was also seemingly a tribute to Presley.
DeleteLove the two outdoor videos from David Soul and Ram Jam with the flares clothing style at the time in full show. Never seen the Donna Summer video, but this time some cabaret fashion and style, and everyone seemed so slim in those days.
Really good to see an Ed Stewart repeat, one of, I think, only four to survive. He's a friendly presence and has an informality about him as you'd expect from an old hand who's stepped in at the last minute. Reaching right back into my memories of tv, Ed Stewart was a face that would've caused my infant self to hide behind a cushion. The other was Peter Marshall. No idea why. I was perfectly happy watching him on Friday and he does a fine job particularly the little interview with Giorgio Moroder who's picture at the start is....eye-catching.
DeleteNice that some '77 electro both starts and ends the edition.
Any live performance from Rose Royce is a treat then a classic '70s walking about and looking at things video from David Soul. Two choices of casual wear; the first being with jeans that were remarkably close to being drainpipes. I did not see that coming. Changes then to denim mega flares. Perhaps a passing car driver had pointed and laughed. Really love 'Silver Lady'. What a classy chorus that has.
Legs & Co dance to Bob Marley's 'Waiting In Vain' though with the sound off it could've been a reissue of 'Portsmouth'. Still they do look lovely in their posh wedding reception outfits and an extra twist where they line up to descend some troublesome steps. Whoosh. Bye. Gill looked a little apprehensive for a moment.
Peter Blake who's name I didn't previously know but yes I certainly remember the one and only Kirk St. Moritz! Interesting that he's doing an Elvis tribute here with what sounds like a 'Grease' reject when 10 years later he played a man who styled himself on Tony Manero. Good entertainment though you could predict most of what was coming.
A few weeks later 'Black Betty' had a classic raunchy Legs routine but here is Ram Jam performing it at what looks like a pub beer festival. A not very well attended one. Rocking though.
David Essex being David Essex and The Stylistics looking by now a little old hat but charmingly so. Then a brilliant video for Donna Summer with Donna looking absolutely sparkling in white tails and top hat. Very of its time. I half expected Fozzie Bear to run on stage and join her.
Golden Earring back in the charts with 'Radar Love' and back in the studio. The first performance from Dec '73 also survives which must be a rare occurrence. Sounded completely live. Very edgy and exciting.
Good to see an edition where the lately departed Elvis Presley is at t?he top. Always loved 'Way Down' and given a rollicking dance from Lulu and Pauline. The King smiles down from the big screen and being a '77 show the camera frequently flashes up the pictures in stark close up.
"Byeeee!!!". Yes thanks Ed. Hopefully the edition where he introduces the girls named '?????" will also get a showing.
The Nightcrawlers - love the girls and their sexy outfits on this new video. I counted minidress, miniskirt, shorts, hot pants and bikinis on this video, and loved how all the girls got together at the end. The male lead mimed poorly and out of synch on the video which was the only letdown on the video, and I'm guessing it was someone else's voice.
ReplyDeleteAlex Party - already at No.3 and those red minidresses going on nighties were back again to prop up the single, and kept the viewer watching straight after the Nightcrawlers video with more sexy girls.
Cher, Chrissie Hynde & Neneh Cherry - love the Eric Clapton contribution on the single, and not sure why the video was shot in black & white considering the ladies look great in colour. Was the Comic Relief budget very tight?
Elton John - back in the TOTP studio and for over 20 years by now, Elton was the ever present TOTP studio performer, and the new hair was still evolving very well at this point in 1995.
Scarlet - love the pretty lead singer, but the song I have to say was very ordinary to say the least, and sounded very 80s, as did the hairstyle.
ReplyDeleteOh dear, another rubbish presenter. again, can’t hear what he was saying. Not funny Keith.
Oh well, I guess we can’t be so lucky as to have an episode as good as the previous…Back to dire..
MN8 - …FF
Mike and mechanics - ok, but its not one of their best
Nightcrawlers - bit repetitive. Video was dreadful
Alex Party - ..sounds like a Whigfield reject. Not even saved by the ladies in skimpy nighties
Cher etc - sounds like a Eurovision reject. Waste of a talented cast
Elton John - sounds like a reject from the Lion King.
Scarlett - weird, I thought i remembered this as a fast transvision vamp type song, but this was a dirge.
Faith no more - not digging the song…
Four noteworthy singles at peak position outside the Top 40 this week with no TOTP for them:
ReplyDeleteNo.43 Pharao - There Is A Star
This new Finland outfit's video was played on TOTP2 a couple of weeks before as one of the new releases to watch. Pity it didn't take off with a Top 40 placing, as the video is quite tasty and with a sound reminiscent of 2-Unlimited or Snap.
No.46 Bon Jovi - Please Come Home For Christmas
Good Lord, a re-release of a Christmas tune only a couple of months after Christmas 1994, but can you imagine if this got back into the TOTP chart rundown and even another TOTP play in March!
No.50 Hootie & The Blowfish - Hold My Hand
This group was the big thing in America at the time which I remember on Kasey Kasem's America's Top 10 shown on late night ITV at the time, but this the first of four singles in the UK between 1995 to 1998 was actually their best placing at a peak of No.50.
No.88 Doop - Huckleberry Jam
This first follow up to Doop around a year after Doop reached No.1 in spring 1994 was a real disappointment, especially not managing a Top 75 listing, and many of us thought that Doop was their only single, but it clearly wasn't.
Glad you mentioned Hootie. Loved that single and ended up buying the album, and the next 2 albums as well. Great band,
DeleteKeith Allen was awful. Just not funny.
ReplyDeleteMN8 - solid pop fun but not new.
Mike and Mechanics - if you'd asked me when this came out I don't think I'd have said it was as late as 1995.; It's fine.
Nightcrawlers - the singer used to give me the creeps, not sure if it was how he looked as much as that mmm noise he makes!
Alex P cracking dance tune but I did get dumped once whilst this was playing on the radio behind me so that was kind of hilarious.
Comic Relief - can't deny the star power and quality but I kind of prefer it when Comic Relief songs have a comedy element.
Elton - not my favourite of his, but quality performance.
Scarlet - love.
FNM - I like this track and fnm generally but the performance itself was a bit rough and ready.
TOTP2
ReplyDeleteThis week In Recorded For Recall from March 1979, the No.4 hit by Chic called I Want Your Love was my favourite Chic track, as this came out shortly after Le Freak in the New Year, and was refreshingly not as overplayed as Le Freak, which gave it a lot more appeal, and it was great that Chic made it to the TOTP studio to perform the new single, as all other Chic chart hits in the late 70s seemed to come only on video or through Legs & Co performances.
What a way to close out the show with the Anniversary Playout section, the week celebrating Karen Carpenters's birthday, as she would have been 45 in 1995, but was sadly lost at the age of 32 in 1983, and TOTP showed the famous 1970 studio video for Close To You with Karen famously sitting perched on the letter U.
I'm very late with this one. Well, I did actually do a review but it didn't post for some reason. I probably didn't press send or something equally technologically baffling. This will be from memory as I didn't want to sit through Keith Allen a second time. I watched it on headphones and after the 2nd link I took them off every time he spoke. Mark. Tony. Come back. Please!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteMN8; As before.
Mike & the Mechanics The showroom set has no cars but here are some Mechanics. A really charming song is 'Over My Shoulder'. Understated, breezy and wholly smile inducing. None of these things I would ever previously have associated with this band, good as they always were. Great song and it's sole appearance.
Nightcrawlers; Another brilliant bit of dance with some classic mangling of semantics. I'd forgotten how simple the video was. Simple but it's effective.
Alex Party; Dressed again like company reps though its refreshing to see a dance singer genuinely look like a company rep rather than a model. Still enjoying this with a great singalong chorus which we certainly would've done if ever it was played at the nightclub I went to at uni in '95/'96.
Cher, Chrissie Hynde & Neneh Cherry; After the abominable 'comic' effort for 1993's Red Nose Day, it was probably always likely that it would be a serious one for 1995. I think the Judds original was first shown on Red Nose Day 3 in 1991 for the various films and when the phone numbers appeared on screen. Done beautifully here and the artists involved means it's heartfelt but never syrupy.
Elton John; Good on him, he never passed up a chance for a studio appearance. Very authorative and self assured with a pop star glow and one must say, bloody good hair. Good song. Audience standing around him not so good.
Scarlet; A third appearance for the ever marvellous 'Independent Love Song '. These two girls were clearly thought of as the successors to Dina Carroll's crown. A shame that they never followed this single but a wonderful thing to see them over the last few weeks I think another live vocal as it seems to differ from the single in the middle section. A real treat.
Faith No More; Impressive live vocals but OK single.
Celine Dion; The other video for 'Think Twice' which could've first been shown in these repeats not long after it was originally at No.1, it's been on the show so long. '90s relationship problem videos are so quaint.
Ending with a burst of the classic clip of 'All Right Now' from 1970. Simon Kirke walloping the cymbals like they've just offended him and a brilliant vocal from Paul Rodgers. A version that to me sounds better than the single.
A rather underwhelming show this week with 2 songs on for a 3rd time which means we miss out of other tunes, even in the Top 20.
ReplyDeleteMN8 – I’ve Had Quite Enough Of This One.
I do like this MIKE & THE MECHANICS tune. Quite an 80s power ballad sound for "Over My Shoulder" and a strong live vocal.
The cheapest video of 95 belongs to the NIGHTCRAWLERS (and John Reid) with "Push The Feeling On" Incomprehensible lyrics which apparently are "Their lives again, Their lives will pull us through". 28 years it's taken me to google that.
Enjoyed the second outing for ALEX PARTY and her nightie clad girls. Followed by charity gathering together CHER, CHRISSIE HYNDE, NENEH CHERRY and ERIC CLAPTON with a decent cover of "Love Can Build A Bridge"
Still one of ELTON JOHN's finest tunes "Believe" makes the Top 20. Should have been a much bigger hit.
Another third timer SCARLET with some actual part-live lyrics this time. Singer has come dressed as Jon Pertwee,
Liked some of the early 90s FAITH NO MORE tunes but "Digging The Grave" is an awful racket.
Not even worth commenting on the presenter.