I'm not back from holiday just yet and this is the 9th of May 1991 edition of Top of the Pops!
Sunny glasses and Cher
9-5-91: Presenter: Gary Davies
(8) ELECTRONIC – Get The Message (D.N.A. Groove Mix)
Getting the show underway tonight but the song was at its peak.
(12) SEAL – Future Love Paradise
Became his second of eleven top 40 hits but it got no higher.
(26) ROXETTE – Fading Like A Flower (Every Time You Leave)
Peaked at number 12.
(5) REM – Losing My Religion (video) (Album Chart)
From their number one album Out of Time.
(4) ROD STEWART – Rhythm Of My Heart (video) (Album Chart)
From his number two album Vagabond Heart.
(3) ROXETTE – Joyride (video) (Album Chart)
The title track from their number two album.
(2) SIMPLE MINDS – Let There Be Love (video) (Album Chart)
From their number two album Real Life.
(1) EURYTHMICS – Love Is A Stranger (video) (Album Chart)
From their number one album Greatest Hits.
(15) BEVERLEY CRAVEN – Promise Me
Became her only top ten hit when it peaked at number 3.
(24) MICHAEL BOLTON – Love Is A Wonderful Thing (video)
Went up one more place.
(27) T99 – Anasthasia
Became their biggest hit when it peaked at number 14.
(1) CHER – The Shoop Shoop Song (It’s In His Kiss) (video)
Second of five weeks at number one.
(10) BLUR – There’s No Other Way (video) (and credits)
Went up two more places.
16th of May is next.
Excellent show this one, with mainly ballads, and then salads on the playout, with nothing lower than no.27 featured, cos of making space for the Album charts slot.
ReplyDeleteBeverley Craven - highlight of the show for me, and what a beautiful lady with a voice and style to go with a heartwarming, heavenly tune. A quick look on wiki says that she was born in Sri Lanka when her father was working out there for Kodak, and the family returned to Britain when she was two, so thank goodness they came back. Anyway she got pregnant shortly after this TOTP performance, as she was 8 months pregnant with her first child when performing Promise Me at the Brit Awards in Feb 1992, and had two more children after. She will be 58 next week, and has been recovering from breast cancer, diagnosed in 2018.
Michael Bolton - need to check out the whole video this weekend after seeing the endless supply of hotties. I mean he could have offered one for Paul Young and one for Zucchero, as they were still going without a woman at No.4 this week.
Anasthasia - lowest ranked single in the chart to get onto the TOTP roster this week, and preferred to Quadrophonia for an invite on the show, but judging by the gorgeous dancer with the bikini top at the back of the group, is it any surprise? I mean, she even had her won lyrics on the single, and didn't she move well with those dance moves? Second best thing on the show after Beverley Craven!
Playout - Blur video shown for the first time as they make it to the Top 10, and the video seems to be all about family time at the weekend, possibly Sunday roast, and that big jelly dessert held up like a trophy at the end of video was just mouthwatering, wasn't it?
Beverley Craven was one of those frustrating earnest artists who took a long while to get to the chorus in her songs - check other top 40 hits "Holding On" and "Woman To Woman" as exhibits B and C - but I think "Promise Me" is ace.
DeleteI’m gonna support the Beverley Craven Fan Club here rather than squeezing it in my review. BC nearly became a top Olympic swimmer but gave it up at 16 to pursue songwriting and music, being spotted by Bobby Womack and touring as a backing vocalist. The eponymous debut album is a joy and she played practically all of it live at a concert I went to in a venue off Kingsway in 1992. The last show I saw with BC in 2018 at the Union Chapel, Islington was the ‘Woman to Woman’ tour with Judie Tzuke and Julia Fordham. As Dory mentions, she was suffering from cancer and about to undergo more treatment, but her acidic wit shone through on stage and made everyone laugh. It’s a mystery why Beverley’s hits dried up after this stunning debut which is a staple of many ‘Love Songs’ compilations.
Delete
ReplyDeleteWhat the hell is zebra boy wearing!
ELECTRONIC – Get The Message (D.N.A. Groove Mix)
So this rather a neat idea. A different mix rather than a copycat performance. Less guitar and much more electronic.. interesting..prefer the 7" mix myself.
SEAL – Future Love Paradise
Where's Wendy and Lisa then? I'm confused.
Great tune this (nice lifting of the last line of Killer to open the first verse here). No doubt Mr. Seal is a real talent. Very intense.
ROXETTE – Fading Like A Flower (Every Time You Leave)
This is probably my all time favourite Roxette track. Beautifully written and performed. And it even sounds great as a dance track. Nice pre-filmed performance.
ROXETTE – Album No 1 I bought
EURYTHMICS – Album No 2 I bought.
BEVERLEY CRAVEN – Promise Me
This is a beautiful tune. Always nice to have a live vocal as well. Whatever happend to...etc..
MICHAEL BOLTON – Love Is A Wonderful Thing
Still desperately in need of a haircut and it's a poppy love song that is average at best. Heavy rotation on Steve Wright's Sunday Love Songs awaits..
T99 – Anasthasia
Same guys as Quadrophonia then. That's a decent tune. This isn't. Does the rappers Mum know he's up past bedtime? Sorry love but you ain't fooling no-one that that's your voice.
2 of my all time favourite tunes in the Top 3 folllwed by CHER still at Number One..come on love, get your arse over to the TOTP studio.
BLUR – There’s No Other Way
Not sure why we need this again. Could have picked another new entry.
Morgie, Beverley Craven won Best British Newcomer Award at the Brits and had became pregnant soon after "Promise Me" became her big hit (she did had two top 40 scrapers off the same album), she then took five years out when she had two other daughters, and she made a tortous but admirable recovery from breast cancer two years ago and is still touring.
DeleteThanks Arthur. Shame she didn't have more success. Very talented lady
Deletemorgie: wendy & lisa not only did some collaborating with seal, but also recorded an album of their own with his producer trevor horn - which for some strange reason remains in the vaults 30 years later!
Deletei read an interview with the pair in more recent times - where they described the experience as somewhat harrowing as mrs horn (who was also trevor's manager) was a devout jew who had already converted him. and tried to do likewise with them!
I've heard Seal's debut countless times since I bought it in Summer '91 and I still don't know exactly where they appear. So much of it is Seal harmonising with himself, 'Future Love Paradise' and 'Deep Water'for example. Their contribution is a very subtle one certainly.
DeleteIs this the first time an artist has made a return visit for the same hit, but with the remix instead? Not a remix years later, I mean, but a couple of weeks later? Anyway, it's not very good compared to the original, and Johnny looks a bit of a berk miming the guitar when the remix has taken most of that off.
ReplyDeleteSeal, still resolutely refusing to balance a ball on his nose, with a ho-hum lead track from his EP. Seems to be going for a science fiction vibe here, as opposed to the mediaeval vibe of Kiss from a Rose.
Didn't recognise the title of the Roxette tune, but once it started I was like "Oh yeah, this one." Still slavishly ripping off Heart, who frankly did this sort of thing better.
Vagabond Heart sounds like an album title even David Essex would be too embarrassed to use.
By all rights we should have had Ken Bruce introducing Beverly Craven, but Gary will do. Painfully sincere, high-voiced mumsy pop, at least she didn't have a paint pot on her piano. Got some stick for having her tour sponsored by Tampax, but that sounded pretty savvy to me.
Michael Bolton determined to show off his "fun" side but the hoarse bellow remains very much in evidence, and takes the amusement factor down a number of notches.
T99, jeez, was that rapper even shaving yet? He should have mimed the backing dancer's lines, he would have been more convincing than she was. When it started I thought, this'll be fun, but it wasn't really.
Maybe if Stranger Things continues to 1991, we can get Winona miming to The Shoop Shoop Song in one episode. She'd love that. Ahem.
Sunday lunch with Blur, I have the same reaction to trifle myself. The pie looks awfully grey and unappetising, mind you. A friend of mine believes there's no such thing as a bad Blur video, and most of them are pretty good, it's true.
I’m going to miss Gaz when he finally goes.
ReplyDeletePoor Johnny Marr, looking like a spare tit in a nudist colony for Electronic’s guitarless track. Could’ve at least given him a keytar to try and fit in.
Seal with obvious star quality and a mellow groove which admittedly wasn’t his best. We find out from his guitar technique that Seal’s left handed.
Time for Roxette’s monthly new hit, sounding like Abba lite in the verses and Heart rewriting Alice Coooper’s “Poison” for the chorus.
Hooray! Last occasion for a while that we suffer the time-wasting and worthless album chart rundown. Here we see Bill Berry looking at Michael Stipe and thinking “What a prawn” and we get another snippet of Rod’s top 3 hit.
Excellent live vocal from Beverley Craven, though at one stage her offstage backing vocalist sounds a half note out which was a bit jarring. As for Beverley’s tour sponsor, if I had a band right now we’d need to be sponsored by Deep Heat and Immodium.
Oh dear, Micky Bolton provides a slop thin facsimile of Phil Collins-type ‘soul’. Best thing about this was that woman at the start of the video.
T99 with an absolute fcuking row. Dentist drill rave with an identikit blah blah blah rap. T99 FF FFS.
That was the end of the show for me, as I can’t stand the chart topper and I can’t stomach the grey and unappetising band in the outro.
Some interesting tunes peaking outside the top 40 this week from previous Top 40 regulars, plus an interesting new off-shoot from a previously disbanded ELO:
ReplyDeleteNo.43 - Elvis Costello - The Other Side of Summer
Elvis without The Attractions. Did The attractions fall out with Costello at some point, as I didn't follow their demise?
No.56 - Black - Feels Like Change
The same Black that had good chart success in 1988 had no such like in the 90s, and I was surprised to see he was still releasing new material in 1991.
No.59 - KC & The Sunshine Band - That's The Way I Like It
1991 seemed to be obsessed with re-releasing chart classics of the 70s and 80s, as I can't imagine so many of these tracks were in TV ads. This disco classic from 1975 would be well tucked into the disco hall of fame if one exists.
No.60 - ELO Part II - Honest Man
Five years after the end of ELO, some remnants of the group, including Bev Bevan, Kelly Groucutt, and Mik Kaminski formed ELO Part II who travelled extensively to perform live, now without Jeff Lynne and Richard Tandy. I remember buying their debut album, and I also went to see them at one of their concerts in London around this time.
That's the Way I Like It was indeed in a TV ad, thanks to the deregulation of TV listings a bunch of new titles popped up to take advantage of it.
DeleteCan't remember the exact mag, but the ad drove everyone up the wall by featuring KC every bloody ad break for about three months. Liz Smith danced her way out of the newsagents' in the ads. One of the reasons I gave up watching TV commercials.
Elvis Costello first fell out with The Attractions before recording their album "Goodbye Cruel World". The band was first split up in 1986. Costello reunited with the band at least once more but there were always tensions, most notably with Attractions bassist Bruce Thomas.
DeleteHonest Men was ELO Part II's debut single off their first album, five years after the break-up of the original ELO, and with an accompanying video with new lead singer, and the only single to break into the Top 75 with a peak position of No.60:
Deletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOMiufjH43I
It's a pity that there were no more singles, but the group went on until 1999 with a total of two albums, both of which were re-issued this year (2021).
After Bev Bevan retired in 2000, the rest of the group performed under the name The Orchestra, the latest name they use and still tour as, to the present day.
Sadly we lost Kelly Groucutt in 2009, Pete Haycock in 2013, Hugh McDowell in 2018, and Louis Clark earlier this year (2021), three of which were in the original ELO line-up with Jeff Lynne and Bev Bevan.
....so is that why we get 'Jeff Lynne's ELO' these days?
DeleteNot sure why they reformed as "Jeff Lynne's ELO", but probably something to do with Bev Bevan having part ownership of the original name, and not willing to come out of retirement to join Jeff Lynne and Richard Tandy for the reformation of the band in 2014. I also noticed that ELO Part II later evolved into "The Orchestra" which is how they tour now, separate to Jeff Lynne's ELO still touring.
DeleteThe ITV Chart show a couple of days after this TOTP show went out, had its Top 10 video rundown with the Nomad video for Just A Groove at their No.9, considering TOTP didn't need to show the video which was an s-express style of video with its retro feel. The Chart Show on this rundown got it well wrong with Seal, putting him at no.6 on their chart, when he peaked at No.12 on the official BBC Chart. Also the Cathy Dennis video went down well on this same Top Ten rundown:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrzPmYAkwvc
Electronic - interesting idea playing a different mix, but not a patch on the original [pre post comment - didn’t register that there was no guitar on it. How embarrassing.]
ReplyDeleteSeal - not unlike rise from a kiss, but quite enjoyable. Were wendy and lisa hidden by the smoke? [pre post - not just me wondering why they were mentioned!]
Roxette -I had forgotten how many hits they had! Definitely in full Heart mode for this one [not first to mention Heart again!]
Albums - not sure why they persisted with this spot, but amused that they play more of these than they do of the Breakers. Was the Love is a Stranger really an amalgam of previous videos, or a special GH mix?
Beverley craven - don’t remember this, but it was quite splendid. In the style of female singer songwriters from the 60s - best song of the night so far.
Michael Bolton - never saw his appeal, and this hasn’t changed my point of view.
T99 - ooh this is interesting, I thought as it started, then the kitchen sink flew in. What a row! Sounded like one of those competitions where they play three records at the same time.
Gary was talking about who was involved in Seal's Album.
DeleteHi all, I fell a little behind with the shows. I'll skip reviewing 25th April and 2nd May editions as it's rather too long ago. Needless to say 'Last Train' was as belting a performance as I remembered.
ReplyDeleteGary that top is for (fashion victim) teenagers!
Electronic; An unusual appearance miming to an alternative mix of the single. I've always loved this song but not so keen on this version. Good of them though to offer us something extra. Barney, as with the last appearance, not looking like he's planning to join The KLF's retinue any time soon.
Seal; So assured of his abilities is our man at this stage that he doesn't even have to write a whole new song. Just reprise the end of 'Killer' and riff beautifully on that for four minutes. Great to see a studio performance of this. He was such a hero at the time. Maybe the single has dated a little with all those hipper than thou reverberations but to me it still sounds fabulous. How did he get so boring?
Roxette; I do like this one. A nicely understated song with a bit of soft metal takeoff near the end. No whistling either.
Album Charts; Would like to have seen the 'Who's That Girl' video for the Eurythmics entry.
Beverley Craven; Goodness that must've taken courage to sing live on her debut appearance. Certainly more powerful than Feargal Sharkey's wibbleathon a few weeks ago. To be honest though I've never been that keen on this song. To me it's a little too music college and those very technical deep breaths in the chorus only add to it. 'Woman to Woman' though was a fabulous single and it's good to know that she's back to performing. If she did another tour with Judie Tzuke and Julia Fordham I'd certainly try and go.
Michael Bolton; Love is indeed a wonderful thing. Your hairstyle and 'Baywatch' howling however isn't.
T99; Plenty more of this sort of thing coming along. As well as women in gold lace tops. Irrotating.
Have to say that is one hell of a good top 10. No.2 for me though is one place too low.
Cher; I noticed for the first time ever that on the wall in this video is a Doors poster! They're everywhere in '91. Sadly not on Totp repeats.
Blur; I thought I remembered this video ending an edition. Great single which I recall a DJ (I think it was Mike Read) comparing it at the time to a Jimi Hendrix Experience record. The guitar and drum breaks do have some of that feel. Still a strong tune and a funny video though Damon made an odd decision to change his hair from the Byrds look BEFORE Totp showed the video. The mum by the way played one of the teachers on Grange Hill. I think she was the art teacher. She wasn't H.E anyway.
It was most disappointing that The KLF did not get a second appearance on TOTP when still going up at No.2, and two weeks after opening the show as a new entry at No.3. In the end, they only had that solitary appearance as a new entry, when they were still on the rise two weeks later and could have been shown again.
DeleteMy take on it is that The KLF was too strong for TOTP with the group's ingenuity and originality, and the number of people on stage, and they were more for a programme like Sunday Night At The London Palladium where they had theatre-style seats and audience which by now The KLF had evolved into something more for wider age range of audience to appreciate, and TOTP was by now being watched primarily by the under-30s.
There is actually only 1 appearance each for all of their remaining hits, studio for 'It's Grim Up North' and 'Justified and Ancient' and the video for 'America; What Time Is Love'. All brilliant though. I agree, maybe two different appearances was just too much for the production team to handle. Video excerpts of all the Stadium House trilogy singles get shown on the Xmas edition but The KLF apparently had bigger plans for that show. So the story goes an anarchic thrash metal/rave appearance with Extreme Noise Terror was planned for Dec 25th but turned down by the producers. They of course fulfilled that plan a couple of months later.
DeleteSorry only '3am Eternal' and 'Trancentral' vids get shown. The 'Trancentral' vid is a blast. No idea why that wasn't shown while the single sat at No 2.
DeleteGary presides over a show that for me is dominated by one song (see above).
ReplyDeleteElectronic – Get the message – Glad it’s not just me. This sounded different and not in a good way.
Seal – Future Love Paradise – Not such a killer song as his last release.
Roxette – Fading like a Flower – Lot of love for this on hear and I’ll add mine to it. Don’t like the haircut though.
Albums – Good to see a snatch of Rod’s big hit again.
Beverley Craven – Promise Me – 10/10
Michael Bolton – Love is a wonderful thing – Like others here I never got the appeal (second bad haircut on this show!). The song is not too bad however and infinitely preferable to his big hit.
T99 – Anasthasia – Truly awful, who bought this stuff? Hasty skip.
Cher – Shoop Shoop Song – Guess this will be a skip soon but I’m still enjoying it for now.
Blur – There’s no other way – What’s for dinner?
It was a shame that Rod Stewart only got that one showing of this song when a new entry at No.20. The following three weeks at No.3 when Rod should have been due another showing, he was nowhere to be seen, and probably cost him a No.1 spot for one of his best ever tunes. Same misfortune for The KLF this week as I mentioned above in reply to Mic 1,2,1,2.
DeleteHa ha, I bought a lot of this kind of thing, have this T99 12” plus Quadraphonia, Cubic 22, N-Joi etc. This appearance was shocking but there were usually good mixes to be had, in these cases unrecognisable from the original :-) I also bought Blur, Flowered Up, St. Etienne, Doors, Electronic - seemingly spent all my cash on records (and beer) back then.
DeleteIt was intriguing that Gary made numerous mentions of the 'Simple Truth' concert on this edition but made no mention at all of Chris de Burgh who from what I recall was the main driving force behind the event and whose song gave it it's name. If this edition had been two years earlier Chris would've probably been invited to co-host it. To be fair no one else involved was mentioned either.
ReplyDeleteFor what it's worth I've always had a soft spot for 'Where Peaceful Waters Flow'.
Yeah I wondered about that....it was included on the 1988 No1 album 'Flying Colours' having been released in 1987 as a single (reaching No55) ahead of 'Missing You'. The re-release for the Campaign for Kurdish Refugees was a No36 hit in May 1991 so perhaps will feature in the chart rundown if nothing else?
DeleteI'm with you on 'Where Peaceful Waters Flow'.... plus many more underrated songs from Chris.
I had 'The Getaway' on cassette which I then sold at a car boot sale in a fit of 17 or 18 year old self consciousness. I have still got 'Spanish Train & Other Stories' on LP. 'Old Friend' and 'Just Another Poor Boy' are also very fine songs. To give aid to The Kurdish refugees so soon after the Gulf War was a hugely admirable thing.
DeleteWeek late to the party but can't not comment on double Roxette goodness :) Guess they must have filmed FLAF when they were over for Joyride? Still one of their moat underrated tracks and I owned it on cassette single (as well as the album obviously) and played it to death.
ReplyDeleteSeal is not his best and recycles too much of Crazy.
Beverley Craven - good track but whatever happened to her?
Ver Bolton - Do secretly enjoy his 1992 songs (Time Live and Tenderness is perhaps my favourite) but the hair, the expressions... just no.
I do like that Blur video, whilst the song sounds Baggy, that video clearly has the seeds of Britpop
Craven went on to be a full-time mother the year after this new single, with the birth of her first child. She then went on to have two more children, and all three are now young adults in their 20s. Beverley herself was diagnosed with cancer in 2018, having had to undergo double mastectomy, and has been recovering since, although I'm not sure if she is still singing or writing music nowadays. She turned 58 a few days ago on 28th July.
Delete*I mean 1991 for Bolton, obviously.
ReplyDeleteSad to hear BC had cancer, hope she is in better health now