Tuesday, 11 August 2015

Top of the Pops Substitute

Big thanks to Stephen Murphy and his team once again for providing us with a detailed look at what Top of the Pops 12th June 1980 might have looked like.....

Oooh ~ Steve Wright is the host!
 
 
 
Top of the Pops June 12th 1980
http://www.4shared.com/video/FUsczmvWce/TOTP_061280.html
 
(28) SURFACE NOISE - The Scratch (and chart countdown)
Their only top 30 hit which peaked at 26.
 
(54) JOAN ARMATRADING - Me Myself I
Her second of only three top 30 hits, this one peaked at 21.
 
(34) QUEEN – Play the Game
Third single from The Game, peaked at 14.
 
(17) TEENA MARIE - Behind The Groove (17)
This week's Legs & Co routine
 
 (25) MANHATTAN TRANSFER - Twilight Zone - Twilight Tone
Their penultimate hit now at its chart peak.
 
(48) HOYT AXTON - Della and the Dealer
A surprise inclusion in the show at his chart peak at 48.
 
(23) JUNIOR MURVIN - Police and Theives
Peaked at 23.
 
(21) LIQUID GOLD - Substitute
Their second and final top ten hit peaked at 8.
 
(30) THIN LIZZIE - Chinatown
Peaked at 21.
 
(31) THE POLICE - Six Pack
This was a collection of the band's first five singles plus The Bed's Too Big Without You, it cost £5.99 at the time and it peaked at 17.
 
(14) OMD - Messages
Peaked at 13.
 
(29) IRON MAIDEN - Sanctuary
The band's first top 30 - just - peaking at 29.
 
(1) THE MASH - Theme From MASH (Suicide is Painless)
Final week at number one.
 
(2) DON MCLEAN - Crying
But he'll have tears of joy next week.......
 
 
 ************************************************************************
 
Stephen Murphy has re-made his version of the 'strike show' 12th June 1980 edition of Top of the Pops. Here's the running order and the link ~

Top Of The Pops And The Dealer
Host Peter Powell
http://www.4shared.com/video/ze_W6Itwce/TOTP_12_06_80_New.html
...
(28) Surface Noise - The Scratch (Charts)
(42) Splodgenessabounds - Two Pints Of Lager
(2) Don Mclean - Crying.
(25) Manhattan Transfer - Twilight Zone (Video)
(12) Lambrettas - Daance (r)
(34) Iron Maiden - Sanctuary
(14) OMD - Messages (r) 2905
(6) Roberta Flack And Donny Hathaway - Back Together Again (Legs And Co)
(48) Hoyt Axton - Della And The Dealer
(23) Junior Mervin - Police And Thieves (r)
(21) Liquid Gold - Substitute r
(5?) Regents - See You Later
(1) Mash - Theme From Mash
(27) Rod Stewart - If Loving You Is Wrong (Old Style Credits
 
 
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39 comments:

  1. John G11 August 2015 at 14:06

    Hmm, looks like Yewtree considerations prompted Stephen to insert a different host into this "show," as it was definitely meant to be JS that week. A pretty good line-up, all the same. It's hard to believe that Joan Armatrading only had 3 Top 30 hits, when she is such a classy singer and songwriter. This excellent effort deserved to go higher than 21 - the Me Myself I album is also very high quality, arguably her best work.

    That was quite a change of image and musical direction from Man Tran! The video was beyond cheesy, and the song hardly played to their strengths as a vocal unit. It seemed like a deeply misguided attempt to appear more contemporary, though the look and sound felt more 1978 than 1980. I'm surprised the Hoyt Axton song only got to 48 - given the amount Radio 2 used to play it, you might have thought it had gone Top 10! I remember being surprised to find out that Hoyt was a singer, as hitherto I had only known him for his acting role in Gremlins...

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  2. wilberforce11 August 2015 at 16:14

    i knew i should have picked joan armatrading (of whom i can't say i share john g's enthusiasm) rather than the brothers johnson in my chart! once again i allowed my heart to rule my head, which is probably why i'll never make number one...

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  3. wilberforce11 August 2015 at 16:21

    given that "six pack" was a: a blatant promotional item, b: a lot of people had already bought at least some of the police's previous singles already and c: the average cost of a single was less than £1 at the time, £5.99 is an absolute rip-off! i suppose you have to say in the circumstances it did as well as it did to reach no. 17. but given its outrageous format, if i'd been responsible for the charts them i would have banned it!

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  4. wilberforce11 August 2015 at 16:25

    sadly i can't get the link for this episode to play! and i'm not prepared to download it as who knows what nasties might be on board with it, so it looks like i'll have to miss out...

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  5. wilberforce11 August 2015 at 16:28

    can't somebody put this on youtube?

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    Replies
    1. Angelo11 August 2015 at 20:06

      I think Youtube and Vimeo won't let it upload that's why its on 4shared, but my laptop won't play it either now - getting the 'file not found' error message.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous11 August 2015 at 23:50

      did anybody try Daily Motion ?
      Sean

      Delete
    3. Angelo12 August 2015 at 11:08

      It works fine on my smartphone now I've just downloaded the 4shared app :-)

      Delete
    4. wilberforce12 August 2015 at 11:30

      why won't youtube allow this video to be uploaded? is it something to do with what it's called, or is there some way the youtube software can detect copyright violation? whatever the problem, surely it can be overcome with a bit of lateral thinking...?

      Delete
  6. Arthur Nibble11 August 2015 at 16:43

    Boo boo boo! I’m going to stomp and scream here – the whitewashing of Jim’ll and the lack of a complete Regents video for their single lost me several points I would have gained this week. I’ve got the hang of this game, though – put me down for exactly the same line-up as Bama Boogiewoogie! :-D

    Surface Noise sounded like a cross between Channel 4 background music and a sotto voce Shakatak. No thanks!

    Joan Armatrading’s song reminded me of a sound engineer called Vivian Fisher who released a completely acapella version of the marching band song “Blaze Away”, impersonating all the instruments, under the pseudonym of Me, Myself and Me Again in 1978. On the B-side Vivian simply explained how he did it! I’m pretty sure he plugged the single on “Blue Peter”.

    I was looking forward to ManTran but forgot that their selling point, the lovely Laurel Mass̩, had suffered a bad car accident since their last showing and left the group by this stage, replaced by Cheryl Bentyne Рmore like Michael Bentine in this weird effort.

    More ‘hands up for offside’ squealing now as, surely, TOTP wouldn’t have played Hoyt Axton’s “snorted his coke” lyric, Dreadful song by a fat Diego Maradona lookalike, singing lyrics about a cat not saying a mumbling word – er, cats can’t speak! Unless it spoke catalan? Boom boom tish!

    Ah, Liquid Gold. Obviously big things in front of them – well, at least in front of Ellie, as this was the end of their time near the top. Soon from now they’d be failed Song For Europe also-rans.

    Not many Cosmo Smallpiece gawps from those serious musos in The Police. I wouldn’t have had the same restraint myself! “The Bed’s Too Big Without You” actually gained got a TOTP outing in January 1981, courtesy of a top 35 version by Sheila Hylton.

    Good to see OMD in stroppy Malcolm mode again, but our show compliers could have taken a video for Iron Maiden’s “Sanctuary” off the shelf…
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbvip51V4IE

    Now, if only Bama had been in charge of TOTP instead of Robin or Michael!

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    Replies
    1. wilberforce11 August 2015 at 19:14

      well done arthur for bringing the one-man band to our attention - the "how i did it" b-side (sadly unlike the a-side not on youtube) reminds of when i wrote and recorded something and singing and playing all the instruments myself for an academic exercise - i didn't have any lyrics for the piece in question, so ended up writing some that explained the recording process!

      also: apologies in that it seems della did have the same kind of dealer as john martyn - i thought in such a "harmless" country and western song that any such reference must surely be to playing cards! also arthur: cats CAN speak! well, this one on youtube can anyway (rather hilariously):

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjZrUn03kXI&list=PLF72C3E0A45E3093C

      Delete
    2. wilberforce11 August 2015 at 19:15

      arthur, have stephen murphy and bama boogie woogie actually ever been seen in the same room at the same time?

      Delete
    3. Arthur Nibble12 August 2015 at 00:10

      I haven't seen Bama Murphy round these parts for a while!

      Thanks for the nod re "Blaze Away" - it seems Vivian Fisher used the same technique for the theme tune to "Blott On The Landscape"!

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZS06nrvET78

      Delete
    4. wilberforce12 August 2015 at 11:14

      "blott on the landscape" coincidentally starred the now-late george "arfur daley" cole...

      Delete
    5. Anonymous12 August 2015 at 21:53

      Blaze Away by Me, Myself And Me Again was played a few times on Junior Choice and I can remember Vivian Fisher being interviewed on the programme. I obtained a copy from a charity shop a few years back - at the time I had completely forgotten about it so it was a real surprise find! The B side is actually rather disappointing - it's just the A side with the various 'instruments' (tape tracks) isolated in turn.

      Delete
  7. Arthur Nibble11 August 2015 at 17:03

    I forgot to say...

    That was a brilliant match-up for Legs & Co's routine to "Behind The Groove", both in terms of being in synch and being the perfect routine for that bubbly tune. Genius.

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  8. Paul major11 August 2015 at 18:10

    The show was gud it was better than nothing

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  9. starry11 August 2015 at 21:49

    Happy to hear the Liquid Gold track again. And I agree another good sync to Legs and Co. The Manhattan Transfer was ok I guess but it was somewhat eclipsed by the other disco in this program. The Scratch for the chart rundown sounded groovy.

    The Queen track kind of sounds like a typical Queen song but pleasant enough, they are so used to this production sound/harmonies and vocal combo that they could hardly go wrong with it.

    Maybe the Joan Armatrading track could grow on me, I'm feeling a bit lukewarm on it, the melody feels a bit stilted at times and contained for her.

    Junior singing about the police or The Police? Definitely the latter for me, just a much more memorable tune even if Junior's vocal has smooth soul to it.

    The Thin Lizzy song has energy with those guitars but the chorus feels weak. The comparison here is probably between them and Judas Priest. I'd say Judas Priest rock more.

    I'd rather Don had been number 1 rather than Mash at this point.

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  10. Anonymous11 August 2015 at 23:48

    anybody manage to D/L this? - 4shared is really hard to work - maybe if you have it you could give it a go on vimeo thanks guys

    lady in distress

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    Replies
    1. Dory12 August 2015 at 00:19

      The 4shared link worked perfectly of me at first attempt from Angelo's link.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous12 August 2015 at 00:49

      Yeah i downloaded it to my phone 2day. But if you download off 4 Shared B very careful the download button i think is right under the video window. There r things around it flashing saying download

      Delete
    3. Anonymous12 August 2015 at 00:51

      Which could viruses or malware

      Delete
    4. Angelo12 August 2015 at 10:29

      Vimeo won't let it be uploaded unfortunately

      Delete
  11. Anonymous12 August 2015 at 06:31

    4shared is perfectly safe, the site is like many others of it's type, it finances itself by using pop up window advertising, just close any pop up windows it generates, its that simple. I have had an account with them for years. You can either stream the videos on site or download them to keep on your computer. Being a member makes it easier to download.

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  12. Angelo12 August 2015 at 11:15

    The Six Pack version of The Bed's Too Big Without You is quite different from the album version

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  13. Anonymous12 August 2015 at 21:41

    Video not playing for me this time - I don't normally have problems with 4shared but it can sometimes be a bit flakey. I'll try again another day.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Unknown12 August 2015 at 21:42

    I had no memories of the Surface Noise track until I heard it but it is nothing special so I'm not surpised the title didn't ring any bells. It was good to see that performance of Me Myself I, I was expecting to see the video. There is no video for the Teena Marie track so it was obviously going to be the thing Legs and co strutted their funky stuff (sho nuff) to. The success of the Manhattan Transfer song was a mystery as the BBC didn't repeat the 1959-60 Twilight Zone series until 1983 on the strength of the movie the same year. The Hoyt Axton song was a total surprise and I have zero recollection of this from the time.
    I remember buying the Six Pack that summer and I still have it somewhere. I was never a massive Police fan (never got any of their albums) but I bought a few of their singles and this was a good way to get all 6 in one go. The OMD track seems to have been around for ages but still shines but the MASH has outstayed its welcome. All in all not a bad show and it would have been nice to see Man Tran and the Police in the flesh had it actually happened. Bit weird to end with the Don McLean video but an interesting idea. The bits where Steve Wright's voice is overdubbed to introduce the acts makes me smile because they remind me of Whose Line Is It Anyway where they would redub new voices on old film footage.

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  15. wilberforce13 August 2015 at 19:16

    i tried the link again to no avail - it says something like "use utorrent to get this file now", but unless i can get it streamed a la youtube then i'm not interested for fear of picking up viruses (through ignorance or whatever)! maybe angelo can ask stephen to re-upload it?

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    Replies
    1. Anonymous13 August 2015 at 23:13

      It has been re uploaded wilberfoce the link is above. Hope it works in time for the midnight showing

      Delete
    2. wilberforce15 August 2015 at 15:12

      bah - still can't get it to work! i'll try the link tomorrow on someone else's laptop to see if that makes any difference. failing that i'll try watching it at the local library...

      Delete
    3. Angelo16 August 2015 at 00:44

      Youtube have blocked the whole show unfortunately, but they did allow the Legs routine to Teena Marie......
      https://youtu.be/J3wnC9Fta7M

      Delete
  16. Anonymous13 August 2015 at 22:25

    Try this 1http://www.4shared.com/video/aWvbvsapba/The_Second_1.html

    ReplyDelete
  17. THX14 August 2015 at 16:39

    I got it to work! Joan Armatrading had some very fine singles and this is one of them, I like her way with a tune, she didn't sound like many others in this era.

    I used to really like the Manhattan Transfer Twilight Zone track when Mike Read played it, though in my mind I get it mixed up with Twilight Café by Susan Fassbender. I still think it's a fun disco quirkfest, the Rod Serling impression isn't half bad (unlike the video).

    Ah Teena Marie from Gilligan's Island there. No wait a sec... Anyway, jolly decent disco, maybe not as memorable as some, but grooves away nicely.

    Hoyt's track sounds like it should be the theme song for one of those comedy trucker road movies spawned by Hollywood about this time. I quite like it, it's jaunty enough.

    A Police track that sounds a bit reggae? Well I never did. One of those country houses Blur sang about later in the video.

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  18. Unknown15 August 2015 at 01:06

    thanks Stephen really well put together - and Angelo for letting us know about this - looking forward to next few weeks especially ELO & ONJ @ no.1

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    Replies
    1. Dory15 August 2015 at 12:14

      Yes, and if the ELO warm-up single and video of I'm Alive in June 1980 is anything to go by, then we can look forward to the follow-up and feel-good Xanadu as new No.1, and also across Europe in July 1980.

      Delete
  19. charlie cook18 August 2015 at 12:05

    Thanks for this - downloaded fine for me.
    Never seen the Police video before - were those girls from Hot Gossip?

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    Replies
    1. Angelo18 August 2015 at 20:48

      Yes I think the video was made by and for the Kenny Everett show

      Delete
    2. charlie cook19 August 2015 at 00:01

      I thought I recognised them from my dreams :-)

      Delete
  20. Anonymous26 October 2015 at 23:10

    This Episode Has Been. Totally annihilated, Totally Remade. New Line Up New Presenter and Will Be Put Back On 4shared In A Few Days

    ReplyDelete

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