April 9, 20232 yr Author 3RD DECEMBER Not many forecasters had predicted a fifth week at the top for Joel but "Uptown Girl" defies the odds and stays ahead of the field though its sale of 67,592 copies is well down week on week (the lowest tally in 15 weeks), 22% in fact and was outsold on the last few days of the chart week. The song that did it? Well that was Paul Young who, possibly, with an additional day may have toppled Joel, "Love Of The Common People" moves 5-2 on a sale of 66,708 and seems assured of the No 1 spot next week. hCuMWrfXG4E The Thompson Twins have had a great 1983 finally getting their big breakthrough with "Love On Your Side" back in February and whilst they may have been slightly disappointed by the performance of their last single "Watching" which bombed at No 33, all is back on track with a new album due in early 1984 and a return to the top 10 with "Hold Me Now" which flies 14-5 (45,747). It is their first top 5 hit and they are seemingly benefitting from a settled line-up after years of change and struggle, the fact that they write all their material must be adding to their bank balances as well. uaO3f_OS2BA It's been 10 years since "Nutbush City Limits" was in the charts during which time Tina and Ike Turner have separated and Tina released four solo albums which all left the UK public less than impressed. Turns out all she needed was the right cover version and she's found that in Al Green's "Let's Stay Together" a No 7 hit in 1972, Turner's version expands 16-7 (44,183) this week to mirror the original's peak and launch album No 5 entitled "Private Dancer" which is due early in 1984, the single is produced by Heaven 17 who add a synthpop pinch of magic to the production. HYu6Ccem_TE Formed last year by a bunch of friends who performed in local amateur dramatics The Flying Pickets take their name due to the fact that several members took part in the miners strikes of 1972 and 1974 and starred in productions which included a cappella performances. They've had the idea to transfer theatre into pop music and have covered the Yazoo track "Only You" and this week become the surprise stars of the top 10 as they jet 60-9 (35,071) this week. Presumably the success was unexpected as the group are filming a rush video this week for the single and must now be considering an album of their covers. F139hh2LPz0 Eurythmics third album "Touch" debuted at No 8 last week and contains the No 3 hit "Who's That Girl" and new single "Right By Your Side" which becomes their fourth top 10 in a row after rising 15-10 (28,271). With a calypso feel it might be the perfect remedy for the cold weather and a soundtrack to a fair few office parties- don't discount it from being a big Christmas hit! 9zgYjoHT0Dc Also climbing into contention is Marilyn who shoots 9-4 (47,005) with "Calling Your Name" thanks to a mid-drift baring performance on TOTP but it's all over for "Say Say Say" which ebbs 2-3 (49,045), Shaky drops 3-8 (41,786) and surprisingly The Assembly fall back 4-6 (44,761). 1- UPTOWN GIRL- Billy Joel (67,592) 2- LOVE OF THE COMMON PEOPLE- Paul Young (66,708) 3- SAY SAY SAY- Paul McCartney & Michael Jackson (49,045) 4- CALLING YOUR NAME- Marilyn (47,005) 5- HOLD ME NOW- Thompson Twins (45,747) 6- NEVER NEVER- Assembly (44,761) 7- LET’S SAY TOGETHER- Tina Turner (44,183) 8- CRY JUST A LITTLE BIT- Shakin Stevens (41,786) 9- ONLY YOU- Flying Pickets (35,071) 10- RIGHT BY YOUR SIDE- Eurythmics (28,271)
April 9, 20232 yr Hold Me Now is definitely one of my top 20 80s songs, majestic. Bit unlucky for Paul Young there - shame as it's a great song.
April 9, 20232 yr Uptown Girl prevented two songs from reaching #1 by margins of less than 1,000 copies then!
April 9, 20232 yr Hold Me Now is amazing - lots of childhood memories :wub: Love of the Common People is by far Paul Youngs best song too.
April 9, 20232 yr Can’t remember The Assembley track but love the Vince Clarke synths alongside Sharkeys vocals!
April 9, 20232 yr Also Hold Me Down is by far the best Thompson Twins songs! Also love The Flying Pickets Xmas chart topper a fantastic cover and one of my fav Xmas no1s and songs of all time!
April 11, 20232 yr Love of the Common People is by far Paul Youngs best song too. Nah I prefer 'Come Back And Stay'. I like 'Love of the Common People's use of backing vocals. I can't think about the song any more without thinking of Noah and The Whale's 'LIFEGOESON'! 'Hold Me Now' is definitely Thompson Twins best song in my opinion, I think its influenced by the contemporary popularity of American soft rock like Toto. Edited April 11, 20232 yr by TheSnake
April 13, 20232 yr Author 10TH DECEMBER Well the charts throw up a genuine shock this week as leading all week and right up to the death Paul Young is narrowly defeated at the eleventh hour by the Flying Pickets who fly (apologies) past him to nab a surprise No 1 single with their cover of Yazoo's "Only You". The Song powers 9-1 on a sale of just 96,934 thanks in the main to a TOTP performance which certainly caused comment in the press and saw demand for the single explode- could it hang on for Christmas? well the answer will come in just 3 weeks. Commiserations then to Paul Young who can feel rightly robbed losing out by under 9,000 copies and must curse how the weeks fell as with a TOTP performance of his own he would doubtless be sitting at the top today, in the end his sales expanded to 88,094 but it wasn't enough. qgDKtLPp46s No strangers to the festive No 1 spot themselves Slade make another surprise resurgence to score their 15th top 10 single and the first one in over 2 years. "My Oh My" surges 15-5 (54,587) just in time to pose a threat to the top spot for the big day and has just the anthemic feel that proves especially popular in the Christmas market, they of course had the Christmas chart topper ten years ago with "Merry Xmas Everybody" which has been a constant seller in December's since thanks to regular re-issues and 1983 is no exception with the song debuting at No 72 this week, it should do even better this year given "My Oh My"'s success. iNlIGz4gWSM Rounding off an excellent 1983 Tracey Ullman's festive offering is a cover of the Doris Day track "Move Over Darling" which made No 8 in 1964, it's taken from her debut LP "You Broke My Heart In 17 Places" which it's fair to say hasn't overly impressed at retail as it moves 50-37 this week to a new peak. She has of course released it at a very competitive time of year but hopefully the single will add some additional sales as it climbs 21-8 (38,692) in just its second week. TlPdFO7JeJY Cliff is celebrating 25 years in the business this year and his latest album "Silver" is his thank you to his fans containing his last single "Never Say Die" which peaked at No 15 in September and his current release "Please Don't Fall In Love" which this week floats 20-9 (35,088) to become his 50th top 10 single, a record that puts him just 6 top 10 hits (not counting the re-issue of "Hound Dog/Heartbreak Hotel" in 1971) behind the current record holder Elvis Presley- but that should just be a matter of time before Cliff overtakes. 7Wy1BiNBbns Thompson Twins continue to move nearer the summit 5-4 (59,194), Tina Turner also improves 7-6 (53,194). It's all over for Billy Joel as he slides 1-3 (62,815) and was never in with a shot at retaining the top slot as his sales swell to 673,404 to become the 3rd biggest selling single of the year behind "Karma Chameleon" and "Red Red Wine", also falling are Marilyn 4-7 (47,481) and Assembly dip 6-10 (32,368). 1- ONLY YOU- Flying Pickets (96,934) 2- LOVE OF THE COMMON PEOPLE- Paul Young (88,094) 3- UPTOWN GIRL- Billy Joel (62,815) 4- HOLD ME NOW- Thompson Twins (59,194) 5- MY OH MY- Slade (54,587) 6- LET’S STAY TOGETHER- Tina Turner (53,295) 7- CALLING YOUR NAME- Marilyn (47,481) 8- MOVE OVER DARLING- Tracey Ullman (38,692) 9- PLEASE DON’T FALL IN LOVE- Cliff Richard (35,088) 10- NEVER NEVER- Assembly (32,368)
April 13, 20232 yr Quite a performance of Only You there, I can see why it was talked about! My Oh My is probably my favourite Slade single, such an anthem. The Cliff song is a massive schmaltz...
April 13, 20232 yr The Slade song is great I only discovered it 5-6 years ago. All other Slade songs tend to get forgotten about Barr Merry Xmas Everybody. Edited April 13, 20232 yr by fiesta
April 13, 20232 yr I find the success of Only You a little baffling. It just makes me want to listen to Alison Moyet.
April 13, 20232 yr Certainly the original of Only You was better, but stick some dudes in snowman outfits at Christmas and you had a smash in the 80s. The Flying Pickets freaked me out a bit as a kid. My Oh My is a good Slade track, but I preferred Run Run Away.
April 13, 20232 yr Bit of a shame Slade couldn’t get the Xmas #1 ten years after Merry Xmas Everybody Edited April 13, 20232 yr by chartjack2
April 13, 20232 yr Slade I think really do go down the Rod Stewart route with 'My Oh My'. Tracey Ullmann's version of 'Move Over Darling' continues the 60s nostalgia The acapella version of 'Only You' certainly paved the way for a certain caravan 3 years later!
April 13, 20232 yr 'Thriller' and 'Hold Me Now' are quite easily my highlights from these last few posts :wub:
April 13, 20232 yr The Slade song is great I only discovered it 5-6 years ago. All other Slade songs tend to get forgotten about Barr Merry Xmas Everybody. Cum Feel The Noise and Everyday are huge standouts for me still!
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