June 9, 20169 yr Arf at the comments (Wedding Bells/Under Your Thumb esp), and shock horror I agree with them all though will add Godley & Creme I adore that video, one I recorded on my betamax along with Don't You Want Me at the time. I didn't bother with the others, though FB3 was fab too. JK is back under Yewtree isn't he? That should mean permaban for a year or so till they either advertise for more people to come forward, visit the States (as he worked there) ask everyone he ever met if they want to press charges, have a holiday, come back, and then drop all charges. Judging only by previous Yewtree tactics, of course.
June 10, 20169 yr Had a strange moment watching TOTP last night when the three Zoo dancers were doing Diana. "I'm sure that's the girl from Tight Fit!" I said. True enough, the blonde dancer in that routine, Julie Harris, would become a performer in the "bloke plus two girls" version of Tight Fit the following year with male model Steve and Pete Waterman's future wife Denise. She's still performing today with Tight Fit apparently.
June 10, 20169 yr Author We’re now just over a week away from Christmas 1981. We’ve skipped a week, so expect some instant repeats from last night. Simon Bates is on hosting duty. Duran Duran kick things off, so that’s one repeat. A dull ballad from Cliff Richard next. Somehow this got to number two. Mind you, it won’t be the last uninspiring Cliff song to be high in the chart in December. After a welcome break, there was a medley at this point but we have been spared its horrors. Why would anyone want to listen to a Chas & Dave medley? Another instant repeat, this time from Godley & Creme. They’ve left the bacofoil suits at home this time. The Swapshop presenters are performing under the name Brown Sauce have also been cut - thank goodness. Noel Edmonds’ views on whether brown sauce causes or cures cancer are unknown. Rod Stewart is up next. If Turkey join the EU in the next ten years, I will stand naked in Trafalgar Square and sing Young Turks. Christmas is definitely here as The Snowmen perform the Hokey Cokey. This would be a good time to watch Bill Bailey perform the Hokey Cokey in the style of Kraftwerk. A break for the first part of the chart rundown. Collaboration time with Jon (Anderson) and Vangelis (Papathanassiou). I’m actually one of those people who owned a Vangelis album before the Chariots Of Fire soundtrack. Back to the chart rundown with the rainbow flag graphics. Having been cut from last night’s programme, Status Quo survive this time. On the top eleven rundown and The Human League are at number one. Find out next week whether David Jensen’s Christmas number one prediction came true. A nice cheerful end to the programme with Altered Images. Gregory’s Girl provides a good link to the football...
June 10, 20169 yr Why would anyone want to listen to a Chas & Dave medley? Me :) I love Chas & Dave. Aiin't no pleasing you is one of my favourite songs.
June 16, 20169 yr Author And so on this rather miserable June day (in this part of the country at least), we reach Christmas Eve 1981. As well as Kenny Everett’s first programme for BBC television, viewers were also able to see a special live edition of TOTP, hosted this time by David Jensen and some pandas. A great start with a seasonal classic from Wizzard. Miss Snob doesn’t seem to have been able to make it. The song reached number 41 this time round. It is actually a remake, as the original master was lost. Anyway, it still sounds great at any time of year. One of the most successful bands of the year, Adam and the Ants, have been cut. His 2016 shows have got some good reviews. On to Elvis Costello then. Still classy although not his best effort. Bucks Fizz with one of their better songs. The same cannot be said of the costumes. The Police, with one of the oddest pronunciations of the word “spirit” in musical history, have been cut. Kool and the Gang give us the worst song of the night. Let’s hope I still think it’s the worst song of the night by the end of the programme. Naturally Jensen gets the title wrong. First part of the Christmas chart rundown, complete with crackers. Oh, he’s got the Kool and the Gang title right this time. Abba are another victim of the editor’s axe. A repeat from Altered Images has survived. Good work Mr (or Ms) editor. Time for the middle bit of the chart. Dollar avoid having the worst song of the night thanks to the presence of Kool and the Gang. The top eight finishes with Human League in the festive number one spot. A studio performance this time, rather than the video. We play out with the theme tune from Phil Lynott. Tomorrow night we get the New Year’s Eve edition with the number ones of the year and then two 1982 compilations later in the evening. Happy Christmas.
June 16, 20169 yr Author The original show was only in a 40-minute slot, so I assume tonight's repeat will be padded out with a bumper set of mind-numbingly tedious trailers before and after the programme.
June 17, 20169 yr Quality-wise that was one of the best TOTPs of the year. Including Kool and the Gang. Great to see the audience dancing to the theme tune at the end! My Zoo / Tight Fit link-spotting eyes were busy again last night. The dancer in the yellow and black checked jacket played a "native" in the video for the Lion Sleeps Tonight...
June 19, 20169 yr And so on this rather miserable June day (in this part of the country at least), we reach Christmas Eve 1981. As well as Kenny Everett’s first programme for BBC television, viewers were also able to see a special live edition of TOTP, hosted this time by David Jensen and some pandas. A great start with a seasonal classic from Wizzard. Miss Snob doesn’t seem to have been able to make it. The song reached number 41 this time round. It is actually a remake, as the original master was lost. Anyway, it still sounds great at any time of year. One of the most successful bands of the year, Adam and the Ants, have been cut. His 2016 shows have got some good reviews. On to Elvis Costello then. Still classy although not his best effort. Bucks Fizz with one of their better songs. The same cannot be said of the costumes. The Police, with one of the oddest pronunciations of the word “spirit” in musical history, have been cut. Kool and the Gang give us the worst song of the night. Let’s hope I still think it’s the worst song of the night by the end of the programme. Naturally Jensen gets the title wrong. First part of the Christmas chart rundown, complete with crackers. Oh, he’s got the Kool and the Gang title right this time. Abba are another victim of the editor’s axe. A repeat from Altered Images has survived. Good work Mr (or Ms) editor. Time for the middle bit of the chart. Dollar avoid having the worst song of the night thanks to the presence of Kool and the Gang. The top eight finishes with Human League in the festive number one spot. A studio performance this time, rather than the video. We play out with the theme tune from Phil Lynott. Tomorrow night we get the New Year’s Eve edition with the number ones of the year and then two 1982 compilations later in the evening. Happy Christmas. Did Wizzard and Slade become classics simply because they rereleased them ever year in the 80s? Was this Roy Woods first performance of this after the release in 73?
June 19, 20169 yr Author Did Wizzard and Slade become classics simply because they rereleased them ever year in the 80s? Was this Roy Woods first performance of this after the release in 73? I don't think they got a formal re-release every year, although copies may well have been available in at least some record shops. I think the main reason is that they are good Christmas songs. They both sound very much "of their time", but also have a distinct Christmas feel to them.
June 20, 20169 yr Yeh like John Lennon Happy Xmas(War is Over re-entered at 18 in the chart in December 1981 on the last show due to the left overs (probabaly huge) from Jan 1981 when it re-entered the top 10. What did everyone think of the 1982 story then? I think the studio looks very different in some of the performances in the Hits show - seemed darker or something!
June 23, 20169 yr Author We’re now into 1982 with the first TOTP of our tenth year as members of the Common Markeet, hosted by Peter Powell. The programme starts the way the last normal TOTP of 1981 ended, with a performance of Phil Lynott’s theme tune with some dancers. Foreigner were next. UKIP’s Mike Read has clearly been involved in the decision to cut that performance. Time for Alton Edwards, whoever he is. After hearing it, who cares? Apparently, he is Rozalla’s cousin. Nuff said. On to Meat Loaf with one of his typically quiet songs and a contribution from Cher. Get well soon Marvin. As a special treat, there are two songs I’d forgotten today. Here’s the second, from Mobiles. Powell tells us they are from Eastbourne. They must have been the youngest people in town by at least 50 years. The song is even more 80s than Yellow Pearl. After Powell has told us that Mobiles will be big in 1982 (they weren’t), we get the first bit of the chart rundown, complete with the first draft of the design for the rainbow flag. Some jazzy-type stuff from Shakatak. Oh, and the producer is playing with his gadget again. The next bit of the chart - complete with the Tweets. Tweets, mobiles, TOTP really was ahead of its time. A repeat from Jon & Vangelis. No complaints from me. It’s amazing how Vangelis can make a grand piano sound just like a synthesizer. The top eight rundown finishes with Human League still at number one. Madness play us out. No programme tomorrow night as BBC4 are covering Glastonbury. More specifically, there’s some James to look forward to (although I may be struggling to stay awake by then after being up all night).
June 25, 20169 yr Just watching this episode now - Peter Powell getting into his 80s fashion it seems - very new romantic lookin in his shirt and tie!
June 29, 20169 yr Haha it was hilarious though it gives me the creeps to think what was happening on TOTPs at the time
June 30, 20169 yr Did Wizzard and Slade become classics simply because they rereleased them ever year in the 80s? Was this Roy Woods first performance of this after the release in 73? Wizzard, Slade & Elton did 1973 xmas singles, John & Yoko having done a classic the year before, which opened up the pop floodgates for 70's christmas pop songs. At the time, at christmas, Phil Spector's xmas album and a few ancient classics tended to grab the radio plays, but it wasn't wholesale like it is today. Singles tended to get periodic reissues every few xmasses which is why they recharted sporadically into the 80's and 90's, though some like Slade I expect were never deleted. Wizzard's 81 pereformance was the first time since 73 to chart, though it definitely came out in 1974 again cos it topped my chart again that year, and then was absent until 1981, when it did it again. B-)
June 30, 20169 yr Getting huge radio airplay hroughout the 70s even without the reissues I assume? Not huge airplay, I don't recall. The entire network is handed over to christmas songs these days, virtually, but they were more slotted in amongst the usual current hits in place of the oldies that radio always played. Even Radio 1 played a LOT of old records (up to 20 years old). It's hard to imagine Radio 1 playing records that old these days, it's Radio 2's domain. There also wasn't much in the way of alternatives either, local radio wasn't widespread in the regions, Radio Luxembourg faded in and out in the evenings, and TV had no MTV's until the mid 80's. Basically, pop fans, 2 stations, one of them aimed at older listeners...!
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