Here we go again and it’s Mike Read yet again. Azymuth over the chart rundown. Only vaguely remember this.

 

So we start with a reminder that The Buggles did have another song.

 

Anyone in the mood for The Nolans. No, thought not. Oh look, we can see the famous TOTP orchestra.

 

Ah, this is better. Time for some Boomtown Rats. As ever, Bob is miming to a different song.

 

Legs & Co and the Bee Gees. What a combination. Spirits Having Flown must be about a whisky bottle thrown across the room.

 

Oh dear, Dollar massacring The Beatles again. Mike Read’s mention of Jimmy Savile survives the editor’s knife. What a shame this performance also survived. By some miracle, Read didn’t spit on the floor after mentioning a foreign currency.

 

The Specials next to raise the (2) tone. Faded out far too soon.

 

The latest rockabilly wannabes now with Matchbox. Hmm, next please.

 

Sheila B Devotion. Oh dear, not a great week this week.

 

Now for this week’s forgotten number from The Regents. It made number 11 but I have no recollection of it whatsoever.

 

A return to quality at last with The Pretenders still at number one.

 

A forgotten Kool & The Gang song to finish.

 

Really enjoyed this week's episode, only The Nolans grated.

 

Speaking as a Beatles mega-fan I should have hated Dollar's version, but I love it. Sorry! Actually I loved most of the tracks on, and recall The Regents quite clearly - note the inspiration for Susanne and Joanne in the Human League a year later. Yay!

 

MIke Read's OK with Dollar - it's only the Euro he has a problem with. And Frankie Goes To Hollywood. And my jumper*.

 

(see previous Radio 1 Roadshow tales)

Yes, there was some definite Human League fashion there :lol:

Much better episode than last week. Really like the Dollar version of that song and remember the Regents well. I've never understood why Brass In Pocket reached the top when the band had many better singles. My personal fave is Stop Your Sobbing.

Funnily my fave Pretenders song is the other Ray Davies song they covered I Go To Sleep, I used to love Brass In Pocket but it has got a bit boring now, however I still love Garbage and Special, which is based around Brass In Pocket.

 

Interesting to hear another Buggles song other than Video. Trevor Horns son recently topped the charts as a member of Sam & Womp, I wonder if he will become as successful as his father...

Edited February 6, 201510 yr by fiesta

OK, time to sample the delights of another TOTP, 1980-style. The Selecter over the chart so it’s a decent start.

 

The Revillos (formerly The Rezillos) open the proceedings. This didn’t grace the top 40.

 

Kenny Rogers next. A bit on the dull side but I’m sure there will be worse to come before 8.00.

 

Azymuth with added Legs & Co and a lengthy commentary from David Jensen. Good grief. With no lyrics to interpret, they just made something up.

 

John Foxx next. He left Ultravox! and took the exclamation mark with him.

 

Another showing for the Madness performance from earlier in the month (it’s still January in TOTP-land).

 

The Shadows have been cut but we do get Rupert Holmes who was edited out a couple weeks ago. A bit of an oddity, this one.

 

The Ramones with their interpretation of Baby I Love You. A great version of a great song, produced by Phil Spector before certain rather unfortunate events.

 

Jon and Vangelis with some random dancer. This song has an intro almost as long as Song For Guy.

 

Oh dear, Billy Ocean is still a thing. I said Kenny Rogers wouldn’t be the low-point.

 

Rupert Holmes is back although he now calls himself Steve Wright.

 

And it’s The Specials at number one for some more 2-Tone magic. Oh, is that all we get?

 

And to end, some Queen over the closing credits.

 

I once read that they used to cut the Specials song to avoid the last verse which says to wear a condom, "cap".

 

My fave tonight was the next No.1, great story song from Kenny Rogers. Awful video quality though.

Edited February 13, 201510 yr by Common Sense

Not as good tonight apart from the Specials and Queen.

 

 

Used to have to endure Kenny Rogers all the time when I was young, as they were my parents choice in music..

 

We've Got Tonight is my fave song he did but even then I prefer the original by Bob Seger

Thoroughly enjoyed the Legs and Co section. We all laughed our socks off at that.

 

Despite being featured in Guardians of the Galaxy I still hate the Pina Colada Song. Absolutely awful.

Same sort of subject matter covered way more successfully by Kate Bush in Babooshka. But then I suppose I am biased.

 

The Revillos were great but where did they pick up the bass player and guitarist from?

 

Once again my 5 year old leads the way by liking John Foxx and the Specials best tonight.

She actually cheered when she realised it was on!!

After his brief appearance last week, it’s time for Steve Wright’s first go at hosting TOTP. Insert your own “Great face for radio” comment. His glasses are about as big as television screens of the day.

 

John Peel may well have missed this show. His son, Tom (Ravenscroft) was born on the day it was shown. Thanks to Twitter for that!

 

Jefferson Starship over the chart. Still persisting with that garish yellow background.

 

The Tourists to open proceedings so that’s a good start.

 

A fairly inoffensive Cliff Richard song next.

 

Legs & Co do their thing to The Whispers. This is just as rubbish as I’d remembered.

 

The obligatory Boomtown Rats performance has been cut. Thankfully, the Nolans also failed to survive the editor’s knife.

 

This week’s forgotten song comes from The Chords. Very much Jam wannabes. No, Steve, we didn’t see a lot more of The Chords. This was their only hit.

 

And this week’s forgotten song is followed by a previous week’s forgotten song. Here are The Regents again.

 

Queen up next with a song which is very definitely not forgotten. Twenty-five years ago yesterday (18 Feb), Freddie Mercury made his last public appearance at the 1990 Brit Awards.

 

A low-scoring Pointless answer from earlier this week in the form of The Selecter.

 

Aussie metal from AC/DC. Not long after this programme (35 years ago today to be precise), Bon Scott died.

 

This week’s “only on TOTP” moment would have come with AC/DC followed by The Buggles. However, Trevor Horn & co. are on the cutting-room floor.

 

The Specials complete one of the best triplets of number ones in history (following Pink Floyd and The Pretenders).

 

Finally, Joe Jackson over the end credits.

I once read that they used to cut the Specials song to avoid the last verse which says to wear a condom, "cap".

 

My fave tonight was the next No.1, great story song from Kenny Rogers. Awful video quality though.

 

Just watching last weeks episode now is Kenny Rodgers piece of country turd the next no1?? Really?! It's awful and I can't even recall it so can't have been a memorable no1 like The Pretenders say which I have heard. Lenny sounds like something from the 50s. How'd it enter as high as 10?

Just watching last weeks episode now is Kenny Rodgers piece of country turd the next no1?? Really?! It's awful and I can't even recall it so can't have been a memorable no1 like The Pretenders say which I have heard. Lenny sounds like something from the 50s. How'd it enter as high as 10?

 

kenny Rogers appealed to older record buyers who still bought singles in those days - country music was HUGE in the 50's and 60's in an MOR vein. It would be the equivalent of older music fans today going out and buying George Michael's next single and making it number one I guess. Trouble is they buy albums not singles these days, so older acts are represented on the albums charts not the singles charts...

Just watching last weeks episode now is Kenny Rodgers piece of country turd the next no1?? Really?! It's awful and I can't even recall it so can't have been a memorable no1 like The Pretenders say which I have heard. Lenny sounds like something from the 50s. How'd it enter as high as 10?

Don't worry. Only two weeks then we have Blondie. A week later and we have Going Underground.

 

Some classic #1s later on in the year mixed in with some awful dross.

I judge it if I've heard the song before even tho it's not in my era then it must be a classic. The current song by the Specials is a classic no1 as I've heard it plenty of times growing up even without releasing the artist who made it!

We’re now up to mid-February and an edition broadcast on a Friday due to coverage of the Winter Olympics. There was an hour of Olympic action before the show and it was followed by a Francis Durbridge crime drama. Martin Jarvis was in the cast.

 

Kool and the Gang over the chart. Not a good start. At least that horrible yellow background has gone.

 

Matchbox open the main proceedings with a song almost as naff as its title. Interesting use of a double bass there.

 

Keith Michell proves that a novelty song can also be good.

 

Flying Lizards occupy this week’s “Oh, did they have another song?” slot. Yes, they did. And somebody on the production team is playing with his new toy. Who thought they were a one-hit wonder, Mr Bates? The great British public, that’s who.

 

Elvis Costello next. Not one of his best, but still pretty good.

 

Michael Jackson gets the Legs & Co treatment. Not one of his best, so pretty awful really.

 

Dave Edmunds with a classic piece of rock ‘n’ roll.

 

Jon and Vangelis back again.

 

The Shadows, with another one of their instrumental covers, have been cut.

 

Marti Webb adds to Andrew Lloyd Webber’s list of hits (with Don Black this time).

 

Stiff Little Fingers have also been cut. Sadly, that means we miss Simon Bates pretending to be their biggest fan.

 

Kenny Rogers with the number one. How did this ever top the chart?

 

The Ramones with a classy cover over the credits.

 

Matchbox proving that naff can be class, I love every cowboy cliche they bung in, it's an affectionate homage to rockabilly past and any similarities to Three Wheels On My wagon are likely to be intentional (buzz buzz a diddle it - parp!). Fab!

 

The word "sadly" and the phrase "Stiff Little Fingers have also been cut" have no business being in close proximity, not even to see Mr Our Tune spout an unlikely opinion :lol:

Keith Michell proves that a novelty song can also be good.

 

I thought it was awful. Didn't he learn anything from Sugarhill Gang a few months earlier on how to get his rhymes to at least be close to being on the beat?

It’s another Friday edition of TOTP due to the Winter Olympics. Earlier in the day, viewers could have watched Grange Hill with, among others, a young Alex Kingston in the cast.

 

Rainbow over the chart. Oh dear, that yellow background is back.

 

Shakin’s Stevens made his first appearance on the programme but it has been cut. Strange decision, but there you go. Sadly, there are many more appearances to come.

 

Instead, we go straight to a magnificent Blondie video. To-niiiiight make it riiiight. Not sure about the bin liner Deborah Harold is wearing.

 

The Beat with an original composition to follow their cover of Tears Of A Clown. The Beat’s attempt to record with Fat Les ran into trouble when they tried to use the name The BeatLes.

 

The Buggles again. Yes, we get the message, they had more than one hit.

 

Back to the good stuff with The Tourists. Typical tourists though, glad to be back home again. See, that’s the difference between tourists and travellers.

 

Up next, a return to some slush from Fern Kinney.

 

The Ramones again. This seems to be on every week. Oh dear, Peter Powell is claiming to be a massive fan. Methinks he wasn’t. Still, it was nice of Chrissie Hynde to lend Joey Ramone her hair.

 

Legs & Co dance to the “music” of The Whispers, the band’s first, and biggest, hit. Still sounds just as bad now as it ever did.

 

Cliff again. Not a great song but, as we all know, there was far worse to come.

 

This week’s “Only on TOTP” moment has been cut. Cliff was followed by some more out-and-out rock from Iron Maiden (another debut performance).

 

Kenny Rogers still at number one. Thankfully, this is its last week. Kenny Rogers now lives in the UK and calls himself Paul Hollywood.

 

A great finish with Peter Gabriel (and an uncredited Kate Bush).

 

and as usual, my 2p worth... :lol:

 

great episode, like or love them all, except Kenny's which is tolerable. The right two were cut, debuts or not, for a change.

 

Epic: Blondie

 

Great: Buggles, Cliff, Whispers, Peter Gabriel

 

that concludes the official ratings. (The rest were good)

 

 

The Twittersphere was not happy with the cuts :lol: