Alvin feels like another top ten hit
24/05/84 (Janice Long & Mike Smith)
Status Quo – “Going Down Town Tonight” (23)
Went up three more places.
The Style Council – “You’re The Best Thing” (11) (video)
Became their second of three top ten hits in 1984, peaking at number 5.
Wham! – “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go” (4)
On it's way to number one of course ~ surprising it didn't enter the charts at the very top.
Howard Jones – “Pearl In The Shell” (25) (video)
A third top ten hit from his number one debut album, Human's Lib, it peaked at number 7.
Alvin Stardust – “I Feel Like Buddy Holly” (17)
Alvin had two top ten hits in 1984, this was the first of them, peaking at number 7.
Duran Duran – “The Reflex” (1) (video)
Final week at number one.
Evelyn Thomas – “High Energy” (26) (+ credits)
Her only top ten hit, peaking at number 5.
Next up then is May 31st.
I downloaded it but when I play it there's no sound, anyone know what's wrong?.
ReplyDeleteIt worked fine for me, you haven't got it on mute by any chance have you?
ReplyDeleteIt's a .avi file - I haven't got the means to play it on my ageing PC :o(
ReplyDeletedownloaded the said file twice but it has no folder destination, useless mega
ReplyDeleteThere is another copy here : vimeo.com/228901936
DeleteThe start is missing but can be seen on You Tube if you search for Status Quo Going Downtown Tonight (Studio TOTP).
Just downloaded the Vimeo copy and it plays fine with sound - thanks.
DeleteHopefully the 31st May show with Skinner & DLT will be easier, as it was shown on UK Gold, so there is bound to be a crisp version of that one to watch.
DeleteHappily this download played OK for me, though all the studio performances and chart rundowns are on YouTube for those who are having difficulties - it's also possible an alternative download may appear in the next couple of days.
ReplyDeleteSmitty and Janice make for a reasonable team, not least because the former is a bit more restrained here than on some earlier shows - could have done without his Simon Le Bon impression on the closing link, though! Janice slips in a quick congratulations to Everton for winning the FA Cup (no replay this time), and seems to get very excited indeed by the Wham performance.
Smitty makes much of the fact that this could be Quo's last TOTP outing, as presumably the band must have announced by this point that they were splitting and the next tour would be their last. As things turned out it wouldn't even be the last appearance for this line-up, and that's just as well as this dreadfully pedestrian, throwaway effort would have been no way to bow out. No wacky antics from Rick this time in a strictly by-the-book performance, and Alan Lancaster manages to look as if he is enjoying himself. Sadly, it seems that Rossi and Parfitt were not getting on by the time Rick died, though I guess after 50 years of almost constantly working together that isn't too much of a surprise.
A complete change of pace next courtesy of Paul and Mick, standing in what is presumably supposed to be the Café Bleu of the album title. It's a decent song, though marred somewhat by Paul's straining attempts at a falsetto. I remember this Wham performance vividly from the time, not least thanks to the then-fashionable "message" t-shirts. Given what happened last Christmas, the "Choose Life" slogan feels a bit ironic now, but it is great to see George in his prime, just at the moment when his creative juices fully started to flow with this overplayed but still effervescent Motown homage. Pepsi makes her TOTP debut here too.
A forgotten offering from Howard Jones next, but it's quite catchy and considerably better than his overwrought previous single. Nice to see Jed, minus chains, back and taking a starring role in the amusing video too. Alvin Stardust is someone else I remember seeing on TV quite a bit at this time, and it was a surprise to me when I later learnt how far back his career actually went. This Mike Batt tune may have restored him to the Top 10, but it's a lacklustre effort which miserably fails to evoke the classic songs and artists that it references, not helped by Alvin's weedy vocals.
We close with Evelyn Thomas in the studio and "Duncan Norvelle" once again well to the fore. This still sounds good today, and Evelyn certainly puts a lot of energy into her performance, acting out some of the lyrics Nik Kershaw-style.
Mike Batt's involvement on Alvin Stardust was not in the least surprising, considering that the song sounded a lot like parts of The Wombling Song from 1974, especially the bit that goes 'Uncle Bulgaria.........", so in 10 years what had changed?
DeleteThe playout this week with Evelyn Thomas was unusually the highlight of the show for me, especially as they played the song in full until the last note, which is unusual for a playout, but at the same time understandable considering she was invited to the show to perform it. 10 out of 10 for me!
i heard or read somewhere that rick parfitt (who was actually my musical hero when i was in my early teens!) had actually left quo shortly before his death. but despite celebrating a half century of the band's official existence this year, rather than take a well-earned retirement francis rossi seems more determined to plough on regardless than ever!
DeleteI heard Rick had left Quo because his health was not up to touring anymore, though there may have been a falling out too, it happens. Let's be thankful they didn't make another movie!
DeleteYes, it was health reasons that prompted Rick to leave Quo a few months before he died, but apparently relations with Rossi were already bad. One reason for this was because Rick wanted to work again with Alan Lancaster and John Coghlan, as he had really enjoyed the "Frantic Four" reunion a couple of years previously, but Rossi wasn't interested in a further reunion. I gather that if Rick had lived, his plan had been to team up with Lancaster and Coghlan, so you could have ended up with rival versions of Quo touring. Apparently Rossi has upset a lot of fans by making no mention of Rick on stage since his demise.
Deletecould that also mean that they no longer do the stuff that rick wrote and sang lead vocals on i.e. "rain", "mystery song" (that were probably their two best efforts in my opinion), etc?
DeleteIt's sad when these things happen to a band's legacy after someone has passed away.
DeleteJust look at Queen - with Freddie gone and John Deacon (who always fiercely guarded the band's legacy, as did their manager) out of the picture, Brian May & Roger Taylor have prostituted the band's entire catalogue so that godawful adverts routinely use versions of their songs. It annoys the hell out of me!
Yes, it is sad, particularly in this case as Francis and Rick always looked as if they were good mates. I don't know if Rain and Mystery Song are still in the setlist, but I agree with Wilberforce that they are probably the best things Quo ever did.
DeleteFully agree with you Noax. I could understand them bringing out Made In Heaven but nonsense like the Five collaboration and versions of Queen with a different lead singer were wholly unnecessary.
DeleteI would add Living On An Island to the list of Quo's best songs, another Rick Parfitt lead.
i thought it was a bit of a shame that george michael never replaced freddie in queen as it was quite clear from when he performed with them for the mercury tribute gig that he was similar in style. and he also had pretty much shot his creative bolt as a solo act anyway by that point. perhaps had freddie croaked a few years later that might have happened (especially post-"outing"!), and a much more happy and fulfilled george might have still been with us as a result?
DeleteI agree. I wasn't thinking of the 92 concert when I commented on different lead singers, I meant the nonsense that has happened in recent years. George's version of Somebody To Love was particularly good.
Deletetalking of the "outing" of george, does anyone else agree with my view that if not a planned publicity stunt then it was something that he wanted to happen as a release from his frustration at being a closeted homosexual who (for whatever reason) felt unable to come out of his own accord?
DeleteGeez, no wonder Status Quo were thinking of calling it a day if this is the best they could do, a thin gruel of a rock song with a nasty cheapo synth more prominent than the guitars.
ReplyDeleteStyle Council attempt to go all classy on us, with Paul not quite making those high notes, and did they have to use the take where he plucked lint from his jumper? Nice enough, but very wine bar soul.
Wham! with one of their biggest hits, proving that time away was not ill spent. "You make the sun shine brighter than Doris Day" is such a great line, but who would have imagined Doris would outlive George?
The brass on this Howard Jones hit is really strong, and why it sticks in my mind all these years later, a solid uptempo number with a wacky video giving Jed a swan song in the limelight. Why do people on TV or in films wake up from nightmares by sitting bolt upright, eyes wide? Has anyone ever done that in real life?
Alvin Stardust with the Indian summer of his chart career, a Mike Batt ditty that Cliff Richard could have recorded, except Cliff would never have namechecked Macca or Paul Simon. A delicate little thing, too sorry for itself, though.
Duran Duran in their final week and it's back to the video, then Evelyn giving it welly under the credits. Impressive footstomper of a club track, with what we now know is a Village People homage powering it along.
The Style Council video had a similar backdrop with wine bar-and-chairs-in-the-night to the Paul Young & Zucchero video for Senza Una Donna a few years later in 1990:
Deletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V69vs8JmXYM
The same backdrop was used by Simply Red in 1989 with their big No.1 If you Don't Know Me By Now, although they did it in black and white:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTcu7MCtuTs
Sorry to be a chart pedant yet again, but that Simply Red song only got to No.2. Thank god.
DeleteSimply Red only had one number one, the truly hellish 'Fairground.' If the repeats continue, we won't get to 'enjoy' that until 2023.
DeleteStyle Council - watching this on video gave the impression of contentment and fulfilment in Paul Weller's life at this stage going out with DC Lee. The music had changed to a smoother slushy female-influenced style to what was The Jam which had a heavy alpha-male style typical of single men with no love in their lives. Also Weller was looking smooth, clean cut, fresh out of the shower, carefully combed hair, happy, and jumper to go with it (now that is a real change), so is anyone really surprised? The old adage that a man is mostly influenced by the woman in his life certainly holds true here.
ReplyDeleteWham - with DC Lee now out of the group, and six months since Wham's last outing with Club Tropicana, this return came with a bang, and also introduced Lee's replacement Pepsi to give the band a fresh new look to go with the white message T-shirts. I particularly liked George's ceroc dance moves with Shirlie, in the style of the Wham Rap video from early 1983, now brought to the TOTP stage for the first time. Brilliant stuff!
Howard Jones - the jazz section at the start of the video made me think that Jones's whole music style had changed and moving away from synth pop, but I think he was just experimenting here on this song, as the song was not really that much of a change of style once the jazz section was done. However, it was interesting how he was now evolving from his 1983 debut.
Chart Rundown - I have to come back to the topic of Relax by Frankie Goes to Hollywood still going up the charts, and now at No.21. This being three months after being at No.1 with it, and also not influenced by any follow-up single, as Two Tribes was still nowhere in sight and not released to the general public, which makes Relax and even greater achievement to still be climbing up the charts and close to breaking the top 20 for the second time. Good Lord, how do they do it?
I wasn't staring or nuthin', but was this the Wham! performance with the shuttlecocks down the trousers?
ReplyDeleteWell not much to write home about on this show really…
ReplyDeleteStatus Quo – Going down town tonight – What’s changed? Rossi’s green guitar seems to have finally disappeared but this is a re-recorded version of a track from their recent album ‘Back to back’ but I don’t suppose it sounds much different. At least they’re having fun though.
Style Council – You’re the best thing – Best thing they ever did for me….
Wham – Wake me up before you go-go - So who hasn’t joined in the ‘yeah yeah yeah’ section with gusto on the dance floor. Utterly irresistible pop that catapulted Wham into the big league and meant all their future releases bar one would make the top This is a great performance which displays fully the joy and energy of the song and the band plus entourage. George Michael was a genius.
Howard Jones – Pearl in the Shell – zzzzzzzzz
Alvin Stardust – I feel like Buddy Holly – Face it; Mike Batt has written some great songs….’Closest thing to crazy’, ‘A Winter’s Tale’, ‘Walls of the World’, ‘Summertime City’, ‘Nine Million Bicycles’, ‘Super Womble’….(perhaps not the last one!). However, this effort is insipid for me.
Duran Duran – The Reflex – You bet this won’t be number one next week Janice!
Evelyn Thomas – Hi Energy – zzzzzzzzz
I quite liked the DJ pairing on this edition though.
What I have found for any ‘pop pickers’ interested is a 1971 edition on YT that I haven’t seen before and is well worth watching. Not sure if anyone has mentioned it one here before. Be warned that the host is Saville though….
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwHj9yzDHp4
Highlights are:-
Labi Siffre – It must be love – A wonderful live performance of a great song with the flute players in shot at one point and Labi swapping guitars to play the acoustic instrumental break.
T Rex – Jeepster – Probably my favourite track from T Rex. Released without the band promoting it as they had left the Fly label for EMI and I always wondered how it was shown on TOTP. Captures the energy of the band and adoration of the crowd brilliantly.
Piglets – Johnny Reggae – Ditto…I wondered how this (JK overseen) hit was promoted. Now we know.
Olivia Newton-John – Banks of the Ohio – Just great, although the guys singing the low “where the waters flow” echo seems a bit off key.
Slade – Coz I Luv you – Jimmy Lea’s muted violin dominates this great no1 for me.
Chart rundown – Mixtures – Pushbike Song – I loved the charts being shown with the crowd dancing in front and intervals between various sections of the chart. This is a great dance record too.
‘Pans Trio’ – What happened to the other girls I wonder?
Neil uploaded full and better quality totp 24th May 1984 https://we/tl/XmqTqCPPgs
DeleteTrying to download the better copy but the link don't seem to be working.
Deleteyeah, the link doesn't work for me either
DeleteSct353, back to your JS show of 1971, and like you, I did like the way the full chart rundown in those days at the start of each show had a glimpse of studio audience dancing in between each number in the chart rundown, and that large video screen effect, which must have been an amazing feat in those days. It's a shame that method was not continued through to the 80s.
DeleteIt's interesting also that TOTP in Nov 1971 was still broadcast in black&white (including the superb cartoon video for The Piglets with Johnny Reggae) and I wonder when the first colour TOTP show was transmitted, as it couldn't have been much longer after that.
You can also see on the end credits of this 1971 show that the video from The Piglets was called 'The Piglets Film', as the term 'video' was still not invented till about ten years in the future.
New link https://we.tl/N7q3g67fVM
DeleteThanks sct for linking to that 18/11/71 show. My own favourite here was Tokoloshe Man, a fantastic record that still sounds pretty unique today - the parent album, Kongos, is also well worth a listen. The Pushbike Song was on the 14/01/71 edition, though I notice that the same poster has also made that available on YT.
DeleteDory - TOTP went into colour in November 1969, but for some years thereafter the BBC created b/w versions for overseas sales to countries that did not have colour yet. I would assume that only the b/w version of this particular show survives in the Archives.
Oh, is 'Tokoloshe Man' on that show? That's sold it to me for a viewing then! I agree with you John, that is an awesome song completely ignored by radio today sadly.
DeleteJohn Kongas had a strange chart career; just two no4 hits (the other one was 'He's gonna step on you again' which was also great). Then nothing!
DeleteHe's Gonna Step On You Again is another great track, and far superior to the Happy Mondays cover. As far as I'm aware John Kongos was never that comfortable being a rock star, and much preferred working behind the scenes as a writer and producer. His sons are in a band together these days - they call themselves Kongos, imaginatively enough!
DeleteAh, good to see the old TOTP Orchestra in action again! In black & white, which would have been how a toddler Relic-to-be would have seen it (405 lines!). Although in practice I would probably have been in bed by this time anyway - some of my very earliest memories are of being put to bed at ludicrous times. Indeed, later on in the 1970s I recall having to be all ready for bed if I wanted to watch TW and TOTP (in colour by this time - my late mother kept receipts for expensive purchases so I can confirm that my folks bought their first colour set in January 1972)!
DeleteYes Labi Siffre was the highlight. Here's a singer-songwriter who could actually play guitar, as opposed to being able to strum a few chords in order to get their song across.
This is the first time I've noticed a similarity in the vocal style of 'Johnny Reggae' and 'Luton Airport' from 8 years later. There's no connection as far as I can tell.
And didn't Livvy look thin? I'm sure she bulked out a bit for 'Grease' just a few years after this.
Oh yes, and Savile doing his brother Percy thing again...
Surprised Savile didnt blame 'brother Percy ' for his misdeeds!
Deletepossibly for the first time in these re-runs, all i can say here that this really is a piss-poor show with absolutely nothing that hasn't been on already being of the remotest interest to me. so i'm not going to even bother with individual reviews. for those who don't already know, i am planning to "retire" as a reviewer at the end of 1984. but if there are any more shows like this, then i could well pack it in before then!
ReplyDeleteWe absolutely forbid it! This forum's almost like Hotel California - you can check out any time you lke, but you can never leave....
Deleteha ha arthur, i remember suggs saying the same about being a member of madness a year or two back. obviously time will tell if i stick to my guns and stop reviewing shows in detail at the end of this year or even before that. but i can tell you now that even if that happens, then i'll almost certainly still follow the blog (if not endeavour to watch the shows themselves) and post comments when felt applicable...
Deleteby the way, the fact that most of what little comments have been posted here relate to downloading problems, demonstrate just how god-awful this particular edition was!
Heh, sometimes it looks as if a lot of people are more interested in downloading shows than watching the official screenings on BBC Four (!).
DeleteSome of us don't have BBC Four ;o)
DeleteThe latest thing I've heard is that you need a BBC account to access iPlayer. I haven't checked and I've no intention of going there!
That's half true, or at least at the moment. I log onto the BBC site to listen to the radio, because the catch up service is really handy if you listen to as much radio as I do, but on my Smart TV I don't need to log on at all to see iPlayer - I recently watched the whole of that Aussie sci-fi show on BBC Three there no bother.
DeleteI suspect they're laying the groundwork for subscription services, much like Virgin, Sky, Netflix, etc. Except you get a lot more for a lot less with the BBC, so I worry for the future.
Not the greatest show, but then again not as bad as several on here are saying.
ReplyDeleteFair enough, its a terrible, terrible start. Quo have never really appealled to me, but I could reluctantly admire their song-writing in the early days. This is just garbage of the highest order and several post-codes away from any sort of tune.
Style Council. A great song with gorgeous backing, kind of spoiled by the static video performed in an over-used cafe/bar-after-closing scenario. No sign of DC Lee, aurally or visually, which brings us neatly to. . .
Wham. George is starting to hit his song-writing peak now with this oh-so-evocative piece of 80s pop (inspired by a mis-written Ridgeley note to his mum). As mentioned above it is almost impossible to listen to this without, at some point, joining in. Hard to imagine how the guy who wrote this joyous ode-to-live could become a depressed, reclusive, drug-addled has-been. Sad. And a waste.
The best thing that Howard Jones ever did is up next. That is not, however, much of a recommendation.
Alvin Stardust. An atrocious 'tribute'. Hard to believe that the man who wrote this also wrote Remember You're A Womble. Oh how the mighty have fallen.
The worst rhyming couplet? "..... like Paul Simon in the words he FOUND, oh I wish I was homeward bound".
Duran have another week at the top before we get one of those rare play-outs with the singer in situ. And its a bit of a disco belter albeit one that is spoilt by that insistant dum-dum-dum-derum-dum derum beat that seems to have cropped upin millions of songs since. Still, the girl can sing.
Scores then. Some good stuff, musically with Weller's lot and Wham being the best, and Quo not. 5
Smitty and Sister Cheggers weren't bad, although in truth, they don't take up much air-time in between the songs. No moments of groan - apart from that inadvisable LeBon imitation. 6.
Any sign of the 31st May show with Skinner & DLT? Someone hopefully has a UK Gold version, although those did have truncated breaks for commercials, so an original BBC1 copy would be better methinks.
ReplyDeletetotp 31th May 1984 is here https://we.tl/k8JlYbK1Fg
Deletegia, it's an avi. file, and cannot open it. Any chance of a different format please?
DeleteDory, this file i downloading from D42 on vimeo. vimeo.com/183231210 Try from vimeo
DeleteNow MP4 format 31st May 1984 https://we.tl/PZMbApV4gy
DeleteStill trying to download the better quality link to 24/5/84 but still can't get it. On Neil's 4shared page it's showing as an M4V file which doesn't play at all.
DeleteI can put it this on Wetransfer, but format still M4V
DeleteIf you can, Gia,i'll try it on there. Thanks.
Deletetotp 24th May 1984 https://we.tl/eHGuL8LUpS
DeleteThanks again gia. Unfortunately every one of these WeTransfer links is coming back on my computer as 'No results found', so it looks like I'll have to give up on this one.
DeleteVery strange situation.Can you try on another comp (of friend or someone)?
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThanks for making this available (in formats which I can watch), but to be honest only the first number was worth watching for me - the rest was typical Hurll-era solo artists miming to records with fake mics and pretentious videos. Oh yes, and Wham! - an all-time classic pop number but also with a Hurllesque (is there such a word?) 'style over substance' presentation.
ReplyDeleteThe opening number is my fave from the 'pop Quo' era - I certainly prefer it to their previous effort. What needs to be borne in mind is that we are now entering what in my opinion is the nadir in the history of music recording. It's very likely that, apart from the vocals and guitar solo, the whole thing is entirely synthetic. See also Queen from this period. There was a bit of a backlash to this in the 1990s but music itself had moved on by then and things never fully recovered.
As for the presenters, I never heard Mike Smith's Radio 1 shows but he was certainly quite comfortable in his position as a Capital Radio jock. History now shows us that he overreached. And I was never very keen on Janice Long anyway.
Oo! A Kiwi contraband website which worked perfectly first time for me. Thanks, Sean!
ReplyDeleteIt’s Shitty accompanied by what looks like a Scouse Bet Lynch, in a show with an overload of white tops. And so it came to pass that Roland Rat’s superstar status was spat out by an arse who stopped us seeing this on BBC4, and they never got round to spelling Chaka Khan’s surname correctly in the duration of her hit’s mugshot reign.
“Down Down”? Definitely yes. “Down Town”, with its horrible plinky plonk keyboards? Have a guess.
A ridiculously waffly intro by Shitty into a vid where either Paul Weller had a zitty left hand side of his face or he was reading the lyrics off one of those next-to-camera idiot boards.
“Go Go”? No no! Put some black trousers on for goodness sake! So, George, you’re not planning on going solo? Hmmm.
Good to see Ged back in the frame and getting star billing in Howard’s video. Too much cheese before bedtime, though, mate.
It’s old Shane Fention with what sounds like “A Christmas tale” with a few new notes. Next up, “Remember You’re An Alvin”.
Whoever called that number one “Gag Reflex”, I take my hat off to you. In fact I’ll go and put one on just so I can take it off!
And finally (bong – no, hang on, they’ve turned Big Ben’s pilot light out) a cross between “Relax” and “In The Navy” which I bet Old Baldie Fan Dancer would have killed to perform on.
Not much to say about that one, though Mike Smith was (last link excepted) tolerable this time at least.
ReplyDeleteThe Quo song was so average I've forgotten it already, the Style Council song is at least better than their usual guff though.
Sadly the Wham! song is the only one of theirs that I'd gladly never hear again as it's been vastly overplayed since. Whereas the Howard Jones one hasn't, is a good tune so is probably the best thing on the show for me (and it's nice to see Jed getting another moment in the sun)
The Alvin Stardust is regrettably (as I usually love Mike Batt's songwriting) twee in the extreme. You certainly can't accuse the Evelyn Thomas song of that given that it whips along at such a pace, and it's quite enjoyable though one that becomes annoying if heard too often.
Status Quo discover synths and are back on TOTP again ready for Live Aid the following year. This is so bad it hurts and I'm not sure what the crowd are getting so excited about but there is some really over-enthusiastic and inappropriate dancing going on in the background.
ReplyDeleteMike Smith manages to crash the intro to the Style Council which they only show part of anyway. By this time Weller was borrowing from everywhere and this is a jazzy re-write of Holland Dozier Holland's 1972 Top 30 hit Why Can't We Be Lovers. But it's a corker. The video is a perhaps little boring although nicely done with the shadowy lighting, close ups and image mixes.
Wham return having dropped their old band for a bunch of misfit sessioners. Andrew still the best at playing air guitar live and on record. This is pure pop and it' not hard to see why this was such a massive hit. Interesting that they got there first with the Big Message tee shirts ahead of FGTH and 12 years ahead of Trainspotting with the Choose Life message.
The Charts and we miss out from seeing Everything But The Girl again, they are obviously the new Cocteau Twins. Billy Joel still in the chart despite not being seen since January. Were they trying to tell him something? Oh and Marilyn stuck at number 40 which means his manger must have had a garage full of his singles all bought from chart return shops.
Sadly the Our Price shop I worked in wasn't a chart return shop although we did get a few limited edition releases and a few goodies/freebies. It was exciting ringing up Gallup to get the Top 75 chart ahead of transmission on Tuesday mornings. We had to write down the whole Top 75 and re-arrange the singles in the racks in chart order and place orders from the record companies as titles going up were bound to sell more that week. We were also supposed to dead stock the singles that dropped out the Top 75 (ie return them to the record companies for recycling) but we didn't always have time. Tuesdays were busy days.
Funny recurring dream video from Howard Jones and the reappearance of his mate Jed. Musically he's copied ABBA's old trick of starting with the chorus although looses a point for not featuring the title in the chorus. I had for gotten just how good this one was but he should have called it The Fear Goes On.
I feel like Buddy holly, well you can't have him (ha ha). This was truly awful and I can't see why this made the charts, its so bland.
Durab Durab still at the top (yawn). I very much enjoyed the playout with Evelyn Thomas which is such a great song, a top notch disco dance track but a fantastic pop song as well As a regular attender of gay night clubs in London at the time (mainly Heaven and Bolts) I was used to hearing a lot of these HiNRG songs and some had been around for a while but this was one of the best. Brilliant!
i didn't realise that marilyn had a third bite of the apple chartwise (albeit not much of one). i had a listen and thought it had quite a funky groove, although like the last single the rest of it was a bit too soul/gospel for my liking. perhaps the reason for his lack of continued success was that he was treading too closely in the footsteps of boy george musically as well as visually? that reminds me when the commodores about not getting any radio airplay in white/mainstream stations - when told why, their record company were told "we've already got earth, wind & fire representing that kind of music"!
Deleteby the way, why does everyone seem to think that the word "lose" is spelt as "loose" these days?
Bama - the record shop I worked in was a chart return shop. I remember all the staff getting a bollocking when someone put through a new release on the chart return terminal (it was Millward Brown in my day) a few days before it was officially out.
DeleteI don't recall sending the singles back after they'd dropped out the chart although we did get a few freebies, the one I remember is the Clock clock (they were a disposable dance act from the mid nineties).
For Frankie's The Power of Love we were sent a Power Of Love battery-operated vibrator. Seriously! The batteries had "The Power Of love" printed on them We all wanted it but in the end the manager took it home (we didn't ask what he did with it!).
DeleteAt Our Price the singles had to be sent back to the record companies for a refund but they only took a certain percentage of sales back, which is why all the unsold albums ended up in Our price's special cut price sales racks.
We didn't get sent anything like that, but we used to have a rep come in once a month to showcase the latest dirty videos.
ReplyDeleteYou could always tell if the record companies were desperate to make something a hit, they'd give the shop four or five free copies for every one we purchased so we'd sell them for 50p.