We are the seed of the new breed, we are the 2nd of December 1993 edition of Top of the Pops!
Hatty Christmas
2-12-93: Presenter: Tony Dortie
(9) M-PEOPLE – Don’t Look Any Further
Opening tonight's 3D special but the song went no further.
(6) U2 – Stay (video) (and charts)
Went up two more places.
(17) BJÖRK – Big Time Sensuality (via satellite)
At its peak.
(3) MR. BLOBBY – Mr. Blobby (video)
All set to do battle with Take That for Christmas number one.
(19) EAST 17 – It’s Alright
In the studio tonight and the song did alright and peaked at number 3.
(20) SNOOP DOGGY DOGG – What’s My Name? (video) (Breakers)
His first hit but it got no higher.
(13) THE BEE GEES – For Whom The Bell Tolls (video) (Breakers)
Peaked at number 4.
(12) VILLAGE PEOPLE – Y.M.C.A. (Remix) (video) (Breakers)
Got no higher.
(NEW) TAKE THAT – Babe
Here in 3D tonight and soon on their way to another number one.
(1) MEAT LOAF – I’d Do Anything For Love (But I Won’t Do That) (video)
Seventh and final week at number one.
9th of December is next.
Did anyone see the news last night that the Christmas Day Top of the Pops has been axed. In its place a review of the year with performances from various places. ie, things you'd get on YouTube. I still think seeing an artist make it or continuing to make it before a national audience is the greatest thing but obviously watching stuff while walking down a busy street is regarded as superior.
ReplyDeleteIf this is just because of cost then there must be some music TV that's affordable. I'd propose a revamp for 'Rock Goes To College' (different title of course). Get a new or established act booked for a live set at a college / university. You'll get an audience of said college students and their friends and family. I'd love to see people like Jenny Beth, Bat For Lashes, Michael Kiwanuka, Idles do that. Wouldn't cost must. Oh well. Minutes silence for the passing of Totp.
Moved it to BBC2 at 10.40pm but like Mic1212 says, no studio performances, just clips from elsewhere.
DeleteEnd of the road then for the Pops. At least we have the repeats.
DeleteM-People - right, interesting one this, as it seems to be one of the most covered songs of all-time. The earliest version that I remember is The Kane Gang in 1984 which I thought was the best cover using their two lead male vocalists. This new M-People cover in 1993 cleverly dropped in a male backing vocalist to add to Heather Small's lead vocals, and it came off very well, but still not as good as The Kane Gang in my opinion.
ReplyDeleteU2 - a different video this one to the one we had a couple of shows ago with Bono in a black & white video. This new colour video for the chart rundown was without Bono and seemed to showcase a city which looks like Amsterdam, but not quite sure. Besides it's one of U2's greatest songs and still love it 29 years on.
Mr Blobby - the start of the video seemed to portray Snap's Rhythm Is A Dancer, and then turning into a send-up of various other videos of 1992-1993, like Shakespeare's Sister and Genesis, with Noel Edmonds and Carol Vorderman making additional appearances for good measure to make the rest of the video somewhat palpable I guess.
Meat Loaf - finally we get to the 7th and last week at No.1, and BBC4 still keeping up with playing no less the four minutes of the video every week, although with middle section edited out, it still comes off well, keeping in the gorgeous beauty at the going off into the sunset with Meat Loaf at the end of the video.
A 3D edition which was frequently bold, unintentionally hilarious and very entertaining. Oddly I can clearly remember picking up the 'Radio Times' for that week with the surviving Dr.Whos for the 'Dimensions In Time' special for Children In Need (my main memory was being excited about Nissa making an appearance) but I have no memory at all of anything being in 3D. I do remember an ITV special evening as a child when we queued up for ages in the local hifi store for glasses then went to get a tin of chocolates when they'd run out! Dec '82 I think it was after having a look online. Anyway, this was a great half hour with Tony on good wisecracking form.
ReplyDeleteM People not in 3D but still with some well placed set designs to do a strong cover of Dennis Edwards' 'Don't Look Any Further'. Hard to ruin this great tune and it's well done in every way. The Joe Cocker soundalike looked just like the singer from Toploader.
Welcome Tony with required specs perched on his head (?) and all sorts of gold and green and red whatsits flying around. 1st 3D clip to charts and U2's 'Stay (Faraway So Close)' and we get a dept store top of the range TV demonstration. The actual video would've been probably more impressive in 3D but scenes of Amsterdam (I think) and Venice show off the effects, and of course U2's self worth, very effectively. I found the parade of masked figures oddly moving at the end.
Satellite time and ironically it's a straightforward live clip of Bjork performing 'Big Time Sensuality', a single that has one of the most 3D friendly videos of the time. It's still a real treat to see her do it live and she's really captivating. What a beautiful smile she has.
What a beautiful smile our next artiste doesn't have. Hmm at least this wasn't in 3D. Mr.Blobby I hated but I kind of like this video for taking the mick out of 'Rhythm Is a Dancer' and 'Stay' and the clip of Garth Crooks' reaction to the goalposts breaking apart is still really funny.
East 17 dressed moodily for the 1st in a really fine run of singles. Brilliant this one. I bet they were a little miffed that they didn't get the 3D studio turn.
Breakers in 3D which actually are a decent bunch. Snoop Dogg which Tony talks over gets a fairground ride, The Bee Gees a dramatic American landscape and hilariously, for Village People, a dog walking down a footpath. Please more of this.
The 3D goes into overdrive for Take That with their new single and it's a dizzying mix of back scenes swirling about and hearts and telephones flying towards us. The band stay serious remarkably and I'm surprised that Robbie didn't playfully throw his hand towards the camera when it drifted towards him. For sheer novelty value easily one of my 10 favourite studio performances of these repeats!
Last week at No.1 for the Loaf and Tony clearly doesn't want it there anymore. I don't either but I can take one last showing of the video. Sort of end of an era with this going down.
Mic won't enjoy this critique one bit...
ReplyDeleteSame dopey theme tune, but special intro graphics for a 3D edition which scores 3D out of 10D for its content and dreadful visuals.
10 seconds of M People, then I didn’t listen any further.
U2 with the first of our boring 3D output. Non-mugshots: The only top 40 hit for American rapper Sagat, while the show starts to sag at the seams. See what I did there?
Tony is correct about Bjork’s distinctive voice, but we’re still at that early stage where her name’s pronounced to rhyme with York. Peak of the week (but a very low bar for me) with some glacial ambient rave pop and some join-the-dot eyebrows.
Oh Christ, no! Mr Blobby lasted less then M People for me and that’s a feat in itself.
What looks like a landslide under those phones for East 17, about to break into America according to Dorky. They never managed a single week in the top 100 there. I’m envious of the USA. What was this track called again?
Then we get three Breakers ‘videos’ where the artistes involved are replaced by boring stock footage. I wonder if the record companies were advised their videos wouldn’t be used? Anyway, average rap from Snoop, boring AOR from the Bee Gees and a reheated disco cowpat for Christmas.
Dorky makes a classic number one forecast for Take That’s song, way too slow or uneventful to make the summit and with an intro which reminded me of ELO’s “Telephone Line”. Mind you, Mark taking lead - I liked some of his solo stuff.
“Why is Meat Loaf still at number one?” asks Dorky. I bet he rued that sentence the following week.
Arthur, I enjoy everything you've ever written!
DeleteThanks Mic! Always enjoy your critiques too.
DeleteMy Take That comment got lost in translation - I meant to say it made number one but didn't sound as stroNg or immediate as their others.
Just noticed that the U2 song Stay Faraway So Close at No.6 this week was a double A-side with I've Got You Under My Skin as a U2/Frank Sinatra joint performance. Wonder if we will see the U2/Sinatra single while this is still climbing the charts in the 1994 New Year hopefully.
DeleteChart rundown - noticed a couple of singles at the lower end of the Top 40 on this weeks TOTP chart rundown:
ReplyDeleteNo.35 David Bowie - The Buddha Of Suburbia
Bowie was clearly still trying in the 90s, but was only getting a fraction of the record-buying public's interest and chart results as he did in the 70s and 80s, and this new one was a case in point where peaking outside the Top 30 was becoming the norm for Bowie.
No.38 Luther Vandross - Love Is On The Way
Last single for the year, and with a few more to come in 1994 and 1995 before releasing only the occasional single for the rest the decade, Vandross was still releasing singles with some sort of regularity at this point.
Want a night of TV in glorious 90's 3-D? Well don't look any further...
ReplyDeleteI rather like this M-PEOPLE number. Didn't realise it was a cover. Mark Bell is apparently the Hucknall lookalike on joint lead vocals. Good start to the show.
Things then go very European for U2 who don't even get their own video shown just some 3D nonsense. Still not loving the tune. Then we stay in France for BJÖRK and her wailings of "Big Time Sensuality" Not her best and she's thrashing around like she's got indigestion, maybe some rennes would help....
Jeremy Clarkson with a full head of hair and a lot of early nineties non-entities appear with MR. BLOBBY who was hugely popular with the kiddiwinks at the time. Video starts of stealing from SNAP! and then moves on to spoofing other famous vids. Now I love a good novelty record as much as the next person but this is not a good novelty record. Sorry Mr. Blobby, your song is crap.
The EAST 17 lads have been vandalising those phone boxes (wouldn't get sort of behaviour from Take That) and frankly its not alright with me. Always takes ages to get going this one, not one of their better efforts.
Breakers (and nobody is getting their video shown this week it seems)
SNOOP DOGGY DOGG – Did somebody say Just Eat?
THE BEE GEES – Good one this
VILLAGE PEOPLE – Completely Unnecessary
TAKE THAT are in full 3D with their new single apparently called "Take That Babe" which brings a whole new meaning to the song. If you are getting dizzy it's because for this 3D effect to work the camera had to be moving. Thank goodness I didn't find my 3D specs. At least the song is decent enough.
Terrible show - next!
Sorry I've been MIA for a while, life has been really hectic. Did any of you get out 3D glasses to watch? I must have some somewhere from when it was a big thing at the cinema but can't find them. I do love these early December episodes when they speculate about the Christmas number one and think Blobby is going to be a short lived novelty rather than the main contender
ReplyDelete