Friday, 14 May 2021

Saviours of the Pops

 Winter has truly begun and we are waiting for, waiting for the 25th of December 1990 edition of Top of the Pops!

Cliffmas Day



25-12-90:   Presenters:  Mark Goodier & Anthea Turner

(27) KIM APPLEBY – Don’t Worry
Getting Christmas Day underway with her number 2 hit.
 
NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK – Hangin’ Tough  (video)
KYLIE MINOGUE – Tears On My Pillow  (video)
 
BEATS INTERNATIONAL feat. LINDY LAYTON – Dub Be Good To Me
Back together for one last studio rendition of their number 1 hit.
 
SLADE – Merry Xmas Everybody  (clip of TOTP 25-12-74)
MUD – Lonely This Christmas   (clip of TOTP 25-12-74)
ST. WINIFRED’S SCHOOL CHOIR – There’s No One Quite Like Grandma (clip of TOTP 25-12-80)

(55) THE BEAUTIFUL SOUTH – A Little Time
Also back in the studio for a new performance of their recent number 1 song.

ENGLAND/NEW ORDER – World In Motion  (video)
PARTNERS IN KRYME – Turtle Power  (video)

BOMBALURINA – Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikini
In the studio with their summer number 1. Oh yeah.

BONEY M – Mary’s Boy Child – Oh My Lord  (clip of TOTP 25-12-78)
THE HUMAN LEAGUE – Don’t You Want Me  (clip of TOTP 24-12-81)

ELTON JOHN – Sacrifice  (clip of TOTP 21-6-90)
SNAP – The Power  (video) 
(2) VANILLA ICE – Ice Ice Baby  (video)

KYLIE MINOGUE – Better The Devil You Know 
In the Christmas Day studio with her devilish number 2 hit.

ADAMSKI – Killer
A totally fabulous live studio performance from both Adamski on keyboards and of course Seal on vocals.

STEVE MILLER BAND – The Joker  (video)
THE B52’S – Love Shack  (video)
SINEAD O’CONNOR – Nothing Compares 2 U
SHAKIN’ STEVENS – Merry Christmas Everyone  (clip of TOTP 12-12-85)
CLIFF RICHARD – Mistletoe And Wine  (clip of TOTP 8-12-88)

LONDONBEAT – I’ve Been Thinking About You
In the studio today with their number 2 hit.

(12) THE RIGHTEOUS BROTHERS – Unchained Melody  (video)
ALANNAH MILES – Black Velvet  (video)
MARIA McKEE – Show Me Heaven  (video)
THE FLYING PICKETS – Only You  (clip of TOTP 25-12-83)
PET SHOP BOYS – Always On My Mind  (clip of TOTP 25-12-87)
JOHNNY MATHIS – When A Child Is Born (Soleado)  (video)
MADONNA – Vogue  (video)

STATUS QUO – The Anniversary Waltz Part 1
Keeping the party in full swing with their number 2 hit. 

(1) CLIFF RICHARD – Saviour’s Day  (and credits) 
And Cliff wears the Christmas number 1 crown for the third year in a row!

Next up is January 3rd 1991 (doesn't look like there's going to be a Story Of/Big Hitsc for 1991)

40 comments:

  1. The highlight of this show was the two presenters all dressed up for Christmas and so happy to be together looking so smart. Oh, and the music wasn't too bad either.

    On the video front, Kylie Minogue was superb on Tears On My Pillow, The B52's with Love Shack, not to mention The Righteous Brothers with the superb Unchained Melody.

    TOTP past Xmas studio clips - the best ones on the show were The Human League at No.1 for Xmas 1981, and the previous year 1980 for St Winifred School Choir.

    In terms of studio guests - there were lots of them - it had to be Jive Bunny, but surely they could have had a video or two of theirs shown, even though 1990 was less successful for them than 1989, but instead Status Quo got a new studio appearance for The Anniversary Waltz Part 1, which was a kind of Jive Bunny sort of tune.

    Roll on January 1991 next week!

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  2. We will get another archive year a week Friday with two back-to-back episodes, whereas BBC Four will be showing the entire consecutive 1991 year until mid December (apart from the breaks of the Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Euro 2020, and the mostly important event of all, that is - the Proms.

    There hasn't been an announcement on the upcoming 'Story Of/Big Hits' compilation and documentary, they've said that BBC Two were showing it, but instead in this case they didn't, as the Beeb do confirm their schedules in advance for the next two weeks, as Twitter have now confirmed that there'll will be a 'Story of 1992' documentary as its has been commissioned, so far only 1 episode from 1992 has the perverted glam rocker GG in a November episode with his comeback single which failed to reach the UK Top 40 in which of that would have to get edited out and the other controversial person is an Australian entertainer covering a Led Zeppelin track in a January '93 episode, both of those may have to be edited at some point in the next year.

    Only 2022's breaking point, we do have the 2022 Commonwealth Games (as hopefully fingers crossed for BBC4, as the linear BBC3 will have to show the sport and it'll will be the first time that BBC4 will be siding away from major sporting events since the 2014 Commonwealth Games which was also held in the U.K.) and as for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, the linear BBC3 have the rights to that too along with BBC1 and ITV, but as for 2022 they will have to show '92 and then '93 for the first half of the year like they did with 1989 and 1990 (1st half) last year.

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    1. I don't quite understand how there can be a Story of 1992 without having first produced a Story of 1991. Doesn't make sense, so I expect the Story of 1991 may appear sometime later this year but before the 1992 episodes begin next January.

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    2. They have definitely made a Story of 1991 documentary, as Rozalla tweeted a picture of her recording it. This was some time ago - I think they made 1990 and 1991 back-to-back.

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  3. We must be getting close to the point where the TOTP studio will be moving from BBCTV Centre in Shepherds Bush where TOTP was broadcast from 1969-1991, marking the end of a long era, before moving to Elstree Studios, as Wiki only says 1991, but not when in 1991, so anyone know which is the last episode at TV Centre?

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    1. 3rd Oct was first of new format.

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    2. 3rd Oct was first of new format.

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    3. The new look show is a blast of fresh air in October although I'm not sure how well some of the changes will go down with the whole group. It's a proper shake-up.

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    4. Those that were looking to come off the blog at this point surely would be better staying until October 1991 so that they would have reviewed the whole era when at the original TOTP studios at TV Centre in West London stemming back to the start of these reruns if not all the way back to 1969.

      For my part, I'm looking to stay on well into the Elstree era from October 1991 and beyond, and up until around 1995-1996.

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    5. I'm really looking forward to the post Oct '91 editions. A little more amateurish than current editions perhaps but a lot less staid in my view. Certainly visually, to my memory, you would literally have no idea what was coming next.
      Some great moments a lot from the by satellite links; U2 performing One at a soundcheck in the States is one of my favourite ever show memories. I'll probably start to lose interest around '97 but '03 - '05 is another little period where it gets really good.

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  4. (Part 1)
    I'm sure no point was being made but I found it a little humourous that right before the Christmas Day 1990 Totp, BBC4 showed a compilation of cover versions. This was however a really enjoyable show, one of my favourite 25th Dec editions (admittedly there haven't been many that have been shown) with some fine singles and a scattering of clips from the christmas archives. In contrast to '89's strictly chronological xmas day edition, this one felt a bit like switching back and forth between two different end of year shows, one having started about 20 mins before the other one. Anyway, some good fun to be had with Mark and Anthea on hand to affably wave 1990 on its way.

    Kim Appleby; An up tempo, to the floor with you all, start to kick things off. Kim looks even more striking than usual this evening. The words still poignant. The tune still a bit humdrum.

    The videos start appropriately in January (before going all over the place) and we have a chance to recall how mediocre the music was at the start. New Kids; Shit. Kylie; Not so bad but maybe there were more festive images to be enjoyed than a young woman smashing a window and crying hysterically.

    Beats International; 2nd cover in under 10 mins. Oh just pull the cracker and enjoy it. Still not sure why this one was so huge.

    Slade; As Angelo rightly says from Christmas Day '74, not 1973 as the caption said. Still that's more accurate than when the clip appeared on the 25th anniversary show which inexplicably dated it as 1980! Good to see this rare clip get a showing and I watched it VERY closely. Just as the band finish their march off stage the camera on the original showing caught half a second of you know who frollicking in a santa costume. It was edited here. Good work BBC4.
    Mud; Another rarely shown clip. No ventriloquist dummy and Rob Davis looking like Tom Baker.
    St. Winifred's; She sounded even more like Orville the Duck this time round.

    The Beautiful South; A lovely performance with Dave and Brianna getting all coyly romantic for the briefest moment. Mark Goodier at the end makes some comment along the lines of 'it's almost like The Housemartins could be back together'. I'd say that was a bit rude but it's Mark so it can't be.

    Back to some videos. England / New Order; never stops bringing a glow of nostalgia. Showing the bit where Barney laughs. Sensible.
    Partners In Kryme; enjoyed it this time. No idea why.

    A 'chat' with a member of Candy Flip who doesn't appear to have much of a clue where he is. His 'oh wow!' response to Bomballurina makes Bomballurina almost worth watching. Timmy does his gurning thing and I realise that I will almost certainly never have to listen to that rubbish ever again.

    Boney M; At the time of release it made my sister cry her eyes out whenever it appeared.
    The Human League; I have a precious memory of sitting with my Auntie singing along to this but can't remember if it was xmas eve or xmas day '81.

    Sean from The Soup Dragons is another indie star to get dragged out of bed to offer some pearls of wisdom.
    "What are your hopes for 1991?"
    "Erm...lots of things".
    Thanks.

    Elton John; A fine No.1 and a nice change of tone. Not there for the big day (too famous) but great to see again.

    Snap!; Missed off the zeitgeisty intro again and cut it too abruptly but just a glorious blast from the happy, innocent past.
    Vanilla Ice; Seen it too recently to care much.


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  5. (Part 2, Apologies. Too much to mention in one go)

    Kylie; Still don't like this one much. Sorry. Kylie looks great though. Maybe trying to look like Lady Miss Kier (WHO ISN'T ON DESPITE SELLING AS MUCH AS THE JOKER!!!). Move on.

    Adamski; You're right Angelo, what a great performance! Completely live. Classic. Seal whips off the coat to get the ladies screaming (have that, Shaky!) and a rave moment right there in the studio. Highlight of a great show.

    Steve Miller Band; This is on but....
    The B52s; Brilliant single, classic video, Kate's hairstyle.

    Sinead O' Connor; The tone drops again to a classic No.1 and the performance that switches to the video before being rudely cut off. Still great to see.

    Totp2 returns with Shaky doing the jazz hands along with the slippery floor dance. The sax guy Iam sure is wearing a jumper made from wrapping paper. Nice memories.
    Cliff; Prefer what's coming up.

    Londonbeat; In the studio doing one of the singles of the year. Great fun. Totally in the spirit. Love those guys.

    The Righteous Brothers; Reissue time. Still powerful.
    Alannah Myles; Forgot this made No.2. Great single. Heard it in the car with my Dad on the DLT show quite a while before it made the charts.
    Maria McKee; Back at school. A joy to revisit.

    The Flying Pickets; The bald man doesn't scare me so much now.
    PSB; Only the No.1s so no Pogues and Kirsty.
    Johnny Mathis; Bethlehem 1976

    Madonna; Good to get this one near the end. Still looks stylish and iconic as heck.

    Status Quo; Back in the studio for the medley Pt 1. I guess it was always going to happen.

    Cliff Richard; Mr. Foil jacket at No.1. Well it sounds good and I know we would've all sung along (apart from Dad) at the dinner table that afternoon.
    So goodbye to a year that is so special to me. These repeats are not quite how I remember it but what a journey. On to '91 then.

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  6. Great hosts for this years Xmas show and some fine performances.

    Kim Appleby and Kylie both providing storming pop songs. A big fan of Don't Worry and BTDYK is one for my favourite Kylie songs.

    We've had some great "live" performance this year and Adamski/Seal are the highlight of the show for me. Fabulous stuff.

    Enjoyed Londonbeat, Beats International and Beautiful South as well. All in all a great show. Mark and Anthea bring a nice festive feel to the proceedings. Not sure what happened with John Leslie from Blue Peter, wasn't he cancelled for a while?

    So finally then it's onto the best and worst of 1990.
    Not the finest musical year, some of it has dated very badly. The lows were very low, and most of it was middling to OK.
    I was 15/16 in 1990 so some of this years music holds great memories for me although I understand that may not be felt by everyone on the blog. Musically 1991 is a huge improvement I promise...

    There were however a few bright spots so I will share my Crackers and Turkeys below:

    Crackers (My 1990 Best of…Compilation Album)

    Sinead O’Connor – Nothing Compares To You
    Lonnie Gordon – Happenin’ All Over Again
    Beats International – Dub Be Good To Me
    B52’s – Love Shack
    Faith No More – From Out Of Nowhere
    Primal Scream – Loaded
    Adamski (Seal) – Killer
    Madonna - Vogue
    Janet Jackson – Escapade
    Alannah Myles – Black Velvet
    Kylie Minogue – Better The Devil You Know
    Betty Boo – Where Are You Baby?
    Don Pablo’s Animals – Venus
    Talk Talk – Life’s What You Make It
    Elton John – Healing Hands (yes the unplayed side!)
    DNA/Suzanne Vega – Tom’s Diner
    The KLF – What Time Is Love?
    Sonia – End Of The World
    Dee-Lite – Groove Is In The Heart
    George Michael – Playing For Time
    Londonbeat – I’ve Been Thinking About You
    Bass-O-Matic – Fascinating Rhythm
    Maria Mckee -Show Me Heaven
    Aztec Camera/Mick Jones – Good Morning Britain
    Belinda Carlisle – (We Want) The Same Thing
    Soup Dragons / Junior Reid – I’m Free
    Kim Appleby – Don’t Worry
    Dream Warriors – My Definition Of A Boombastic Jazz Style (performance of the year)
    The Farm – Altogether Now


    Turkeys (hopefully never to be heard again)

    NKOTB: This One’s For The Children/I’ll Be Loving You (Forever)/Cover Girl/Step By Step/Didn’t I (Blow Your Mind This Time)
    Bombalurina: Seven Little Girls Sitting In The Back Seat
    Jamie J Morgan – Walk On The Wild Side
    Jive Bunny and the Mastermixers – Let’s Swing Again / The Crazy Party Mixes
    Madonna – Hanky Panky / Justify My Love
    Steve Miller Band – The Joker
    Cliff Richards – Silhouettes / From A Distance
    MC Tunes – Tunes Split The Atom
    Happy Mondays – Kinky Afro
    Rita McNeil – Working Man
    Julee Cruise – Falling
    SNAP! – Mary Had A Little Boy

    MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE...

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  7. I'm with you on so many of your favourites Morgie. Being just a year younger I can see a lot of school anthems in that list. We Want The Same Thing fantastic record! Five stars for Escapade too, some joyous 4th year memories tied up with that one. The only big difference for me would be that Kinky Afro would go in my favourites list.

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  8. My top ten of 1990 (in no particular order) would have to be as follows:

    What Time Is Love? - The KLF
    Love Shack - The B52s
    Groove Is In The Heart - Dee Lite
    I'm Free - The Soup Dragons
    Tears On My Pillow - Kylie Minogue
    You've Lost That Loving Feeling - The Righteous Brothers
    Unchained Melody - The Righteous Brothers
    Miracle - Jon Bon Jovi
    Blaze Of Glory - Jon Bon Jovi
    I'll Be Your Baby Tonight - Robert Palmer & UB40

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    1. Palmer and UB40 song is a great track. Good call.

      Great to see KLF getting some love as well.

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    2. I tried to fit I'm Free in my list but it didn't quite make it. That guitar solo though! The video as well is fabulous and would've been in my top 5 videos of the year.

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  9. Here's my favourites of the year. I've done 20 with four just missed out selections. They're more or less in order of preference. The top 3 could all have been my No.1

    20. Roam, The B52s
    19. Come Together, Primal Scream
    18. Escapade, Janet Jackson
    17. Shine On, The House of Love
    16. Close To You, Maxi Priest
    15. Vogue, Madonna
    14. The Only One I Know, The
    Charlatans
    13. Enjoy The Silence, Depeche Mode
    12. Being Boring, Pet Shop Boys
    11. Kinky Afro, The Happy Mondays
    10. Show Me Heaven, Maria McKee
    9. Fascinating Rhythum, Bass O Matic
    8. Got To Have Your Love, Manteonix
    feat. Wondress
    7. I've Been Thinking About You,
    Londonbeat
    6. What Time Is Love, The KLF
    5. We Want The Same Thing, Belinda
    Carlisle
    4. Blue Savannah, Erasure
    3. Groove Is In The Heart, Dee Lite
    2. Killer, Adamski

    No. 1 for me though has to be The Power, Snap!. It was the sound of Paris, April 1990. The Berlin Wall down, everything new and exciting. Just the intro can bring back that feeling instantly. Maybe if I was a year older or a year younger it wouldn't have been my single of the year which is really the main reason why it is.

    Just Under;

    Dirty Cash (Money Talks), Adventures of Stevie V
    There She Goes, The La's
    Happening All Over Again, Lonnie Gordon
    Downtown Train, Rod Stewart

    Worst of the year (No order apart from the Top 3);

    10. Loving You, Massivo feat Tracy
    9. Gimmie Some Lovin', Thunder
    8. Walk On The Wild Side, Jamie J
    Morgan
    7. Seven Little Girls, Bomballurina
    6. The Crazy Crazy Party Mixes (and
    everything
    else they put out that year) Jive
    Bunny
    5. The Space Jungle, Adamski
    4. Get Up, Technotronic feat Ya Kid K
    3. Hangin' Tough, New Kids On The
    Block
    2. Thunderbirds Are Go, FAB feat MC
    Junior Parker
    1. Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka
    Dot Bikini, Bomballurina

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    1. Agreed with Roam and Being Boring being in the best pf the year, can't believe I missed them.

      Was a fan of both Space Jungle and FAB at the time so I would rescue them from the second list.

      As for Bombalurina appearing twice...well you noticed them, which may have been the point 😂😂😂

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    2. Love both B52s' big singles of the year but 'Roam' really hit me at 14, the sound and the sentiment.
      Funny thing is I definately remember hearing the FAB single on the Breakfast Show on the way to school (must've been just before end of term) and thinking, "Oh dear, how dreadful!", like a middle aged man! It was the grunty Parker samples that really got on my nerves. You're right Timmy's main purpose was probably just to be noticed!

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  10. I see the 24th January 1991 edition currently only has a 25 minute slot.

    Was this a shorter episode?

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    1. A couple of episodes in Jan 1991 were cut down to 25 minutes due to news reports on the Gulf War.

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    2. Of course. I had forgotten about the Gulf War. The Radio 1 chart show had bulletins every 30 minutes for a few weeks as well.

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  11. i no longer regularly contribute to this blog, as both at the time and now in retrospect it was getting heavy-going for me with regard to what was filling up the singles charts. i was still following contemporary music at that point, but very much focused on album-oriented and/or less commercial stuff instead

    however, despite that i have still managed to find myself 10 crackers amongst the dross for tracks featured on totp in 1990 (although two or three of them have lost their shine a bit over the years):

    mantronix - got to have your love
    black box - i don't know anybody else
    aerosmith - dude looks like a lady
    B52's - love shack
    happy mondays - step on
    madonna - vogue
    en vogue - hold on
    caron wheeler - livin in the light
    bass o matic - fascinating rhythm
    pet shop boys - being boring

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    1. Hi Wilberforce. Great to hear from you.

      Great top ten especially PSB, Bass-O-Matic, En Vogue

      Wasn't a fan of anything Black Box put out after Ride On Time.

      I think 91 is a much better year musically so maybe hear from you before Xmas!

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    2. thanks morgie! yes - maybe with stock aitken & waterman disappearing plus the novelty of sampling starting to wear off, 1991's shows will be of a bit more substance? i actually consider the early 90's to be the last hurrah in pop music, and own quite a few tracks from that era accordingly - although i suspect the majority of those will never get to be featured on the show ha ha

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    3. Good to see you on here again Wilberforce. I hope you're doing ok. Yes, another fan of Got To Have Your Love. A real classic that one. One of the best tunes of the early '90s.

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    4. Wilberforce I have missed you!...even if there is zero common ground on our top 10s! That's music taste for you.

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    5. thanks sct - i know we have never been that close in venn diagram terms when it comes to our musical tastes, but i have always had the impression we would get on well in person regardless of that?

      i still follow the blog to some extent, although i admit to skimming over much of it in favour of just reading reviews and opinions of what little i find/found of interest at this point in time. whether or not i make more regular contributions in the future depends on how much i like(d) what is to come. but as morgie has suggested with regard to what the charts were like in the last two or three years of the 80's: to quote d:ream "things can only get better"!

      talking of d:ream: they are a good example of an act that had an excellent hit in the early 90's in my view - not with the above though, but "u r the best thing"

      ps: thanks to mic 12 for his comment as well

      btw: "groove is in the heart" would have been a dead cert for my top 10 crackers back then. but i went off it big-time about 15 years ago when i belatedly realised the whole shebang was nothing but samples! and after that: when i acquired the vernon burch track they looted ("get up"), i edited out the bit in question so i could listen to it without being reminded of that!

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    6. as a result of the above, i thought i'd do a quick skim through the 1990 shows and pick a top 10 turkey list based on tracks i remember i would have ran out of earshot as quickly then as i would now (if not faster thse days - despite an arthritic hip ha ha):

      sinead o'connor - nothing compares 2 u
      beat international - dub be good to me
      candy flip - strawberry fields forever
      pat & mick - us it up and wear it out
      reg - sac-a-rifice
      roxette - it must have been love
      mc hammer - u can't touch this
      bombalurina - itsy bitsy etc bikini
      steve miller - the joker
      vanilla ice - ice ice baby

      a top 10 list so strong in terms of contenders, that even the likes of kylie, jive bunny and the ninja mutant turtles (whose efforts i no doubt found equally repellent at the time, but have mercifully since been erased from my memory) could not find a place in it!

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    7. btw i've noticed regarding the top 10 turkey's list i've just submitted:

      5 are covers (most if not all of which are practically karaoke)
      2 are utterly reliant om samples
      1 is an ancient resissue

      that leaves just 2 totally original tracks - which in itself is a pretty damning statement on the state of pop music in 1990!

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  12. Well not too much to comment on as all the usual suspects were featured (except strangely Beats International and Band Aid 2), some with longer clips than others. Three things stuck out for me:

    - The superb live performance by Seal and Adamski – check out the concentration on the latter’s face.
    - They just cannot play all of ‘Nothing compares to U’ !
    - Johnny Mathis – for some reason seeing this 1976 clip of the video that they always showed at the time brought back so many happy memories of my childhood and the happy Christmas’s spent with Mum and Dad, and wishing they were still here….

    So, I see others have offered up their top10s etc. for 1990. So, here’s mine (in no order). I have to say there were several others that could have made this list….I seem to be out on a limb with some of these!

    1) Sacrifice – Elton John
    2) Working Man – Rita McNeil
    3) Nothing compares to U – Sinead O’Connor
    4) Killer – Adamski
    5) Show me Heaven – Maria McKee
    6) It must have been love – Roxette
    7) Dub be good to me – Beats International featuring Lindy Layton
    8) Hold On – Wilson Phillips
    9) Downtown Train – Rod Stewart
    10) Crying in the Rain – A-Ha

    This list is a little easier with many contenders but I’ll call out the No1’s first that defied belief for my taste..

    1) Turtle Power – Partners in Kryme
    2) The Power – Snap
    3) Ice Ice Baby – Vanilla Ice
    4) Hangin’ Tough – New Kids on the Block
    5) WorldinMotion – England World Cup Squad
    6) Dirty Cash - Adventures of Stevie V
    7) Thunderbirds are go – FAB featuring MC Parker
    8) Going back to my roots – FPI Project
    9) Walk on By – Sybil
    10) Birdhouse in your soul – They might be Giants

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    Replies
    1. Nice to see Downtown Train in your Top 10. A bit of anthemic soberness (probably not the most appropriate word for both Rod and Tom Waits I realise) amongst all the dance sounds. So takes me back that one.
      I think you know where we differ! Fair enough. Dirty Cash got me because it was stuck for a while behind Killer and both singles being played regularly finally got me into the dance stuff.

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    2. Ps no arguments about Hangin Tough. Jeez that was awful.

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  13. Can I rescue Birdhouse from your turkeys list?. I quite like it (although I admit it's an acquired taste)

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  14. From Acerben on digital spy.

    "I've just had an email back from Head of Music TV Commissioning at the BBC( Jan Younghusband) . I asked whether she could confirm that Story Of 1991 would be shown at some point or had the series been discontinued.

    She has responded:

    "We think it will go out in the autumn, date to be confirmed. There is a new run of films coming to be announced soon."

    Probably no point going back to ask why - my best guess would be that production/editing was put on hold due to the proposed changes to the BBC programming budget, and perhaps now that has been decided and/or they've seen how well the BBC Two repeats have done, it's back on?"

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    1. Thanks for the update. Good to know we are likely to see this eventually

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  15. Best Songs From 1990 that were featured on Top Of The Pops.
    January - Got To Have Your Love,Nothing Compares 2 U,Could Have Told You So,More Than You Know

    February-Hello,Shine On,Brassneck,Enjoy The Slience,Dub Be Good To Me,Probably A Robbery,Infinity,Talking With Myself

    March- Loaded,This Is How It Feels,Strawberry Fields Forever,Blue Savannah,Lily Was Here,Love Shack, Chime,The Power,Birdhouse In Your Soul,Ghetto Heaven, Mama Gave Birth To The Soul Children

    April - Step On,Kingston Town,Black Velvet,Vogue, Real Real Real, Escapade,Pictures Of You,Dirty Cash,Killer,From Out Of Nowhere,The Sex Of It

    May- A Dream 's A Dream,Better The Devil You Know,Circlesquare, Take Your Time, Won't Talk About It,Hold On (En Vogue), Roam, I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For (The Chimes),Policy Of Truth, Doin The Doo,It's My Life, Hear The Drummer (Get Wicked), World In Motion,The Only One I Know

    June - The Only Rhyme That Bites, Sacrifice,Touched By The Hand Of Cicciolina, It Must Have Been Love, Close To You, Hold On (Wilson Phillips), U Can’t Touch This

    July - She Comes In The Fall, Naked In The Rain, Rockin Over The Beat, I'm Free,Wash Your Face In My Sink,Tom's Diner,Only Your Love,

    August - Hardcore Uproar, What Time Is Love, Where Are You Baby,Listen To Your Heart, Heart Like A Wheel, The Joker, Groove Is In The Heart

    September - It's My Life, Groovy Train, Then, Livin' In The Light, Black Cat, I've Been Thinking About You,Suicide Blonde, Fascinating Rhythm, Show Me Heaven,World In My Eyes, It's A Shame (My Sister), Epic, Taste, Tunes Split The Atom

    October - So Hard, More, Let's Push It, Unchained Melody, Don't Ask Me, Kinky Afro, We Want The Same Thing, Mother Universe, Blue Velvet,A Little Time,Crying In The Rain,Good Morning Britain,Dressed For Success, I'm Your Baby Tonight

    November (Part 1)- Wicked Game, Being Boring, Falling, Step Back In Time, Close To Me, There She Goes

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    1. November (Part 2) - Unbelievable, Don't Worry, My Definition Of A Bombastic Jazz Style.

      December - (They Long To Be) Close To You,Crazy, Disappear, Sadness (Part 1), All Together Now

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  16. So farewell, 1990 and the many many earworms I've been stuck with (which is always the likes of Fog on the Tyne and T.U.R.T.L.E. Power rather than the good'uns).

    Even though 1989 was much stronger overall, and I remember 1991 likewise (the 16 weeks of a certain number 1 notwithstanding), some of my favourite songs of all time have been in this year's eps, including Roxette, B-52's, Kylie, Inspiral Carpets, Belinda Carlisle, Beautiful South and many more.

    On the other hand, way too many tedious megamixes and forgettable dance acts, and reliving Italia 90 was much less exciting than living through it at the time.

    This Christmas special wasn't a bad approximation of the year overall. I could have done without the Christmas songs of years gone by, but that's more to do with the endless TOTP2 Christmas specials, compilation albums etc we've been saturated with over the years, and I don't think all of those things became so ubiquitous until the middle of the 1990s?

    Anyway, thanks for another set of blogs and comments all (I got a bit behind but hope to be on it more in 1991. We'll all need to steel ourselves for THAT endless number one though)

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