I don't recall "Precious" from the time but at least it sounds like the Jam are doing something different from their usual sound.

Just listened to Precious and the music style and especially the bassline remind me of a soon to come top 10 classic on this thread.

The Jam's popularity is still incredible a couple of years after their first in-at-#1 moment! I know they were my mum's first concert. 'Town Called Malice' is another good addition to the top 10 ^_^

 

(my nan's first concert was Marmalade so there's something about my family and fruit preserve bands x)

I imagine todays charts would do your head in then PCF 😅

 

Bucks Fizz and Jon & Vangelis had such long staying power!

 

 

Yes indeed, the old-fashioned up, up, up, peak, down down down trajectory was rarely altered much in the days of expensive singles so the modern yo-yo'ing for months on end is wrong on so many levels. Kick 'em out after 10-15 weeks, it''s just the same people playing the same songs anyway, or Playlists. Let's have some fresher more interesting stuff in the charts :lol: Shorter chart runs never made any difference to longevity and classic status :cheer:

 

Ah, it was the bloody Jam fanbase robbing The Stranglers of a number one. Malice was a good single, and it def showcased Weller's forthcoming Northern Soul Style Council period, so it made sense for The Jam to split up - I'd been to see them at Bingley Hall, Stafford, and they were really bangin! Even if as usual all the tall people stood in front of me. I distinctly recall standing on a coke can for a view of the stage, but one-legged postures are only good for a limited time unless you are hopping about. Ideally I should have bought two cans...

 

Anyway Golden Brown is the better record and almost did 100,000!

Town called Malice is ok but not sure if #1 worthy

did it make it cos of multiformating or something?

Town called Malice is ok but not sure if #1 worthy

did it make it cos of multiformating or something?

 

Looking at their chart history between 77-82 they clearly had built a big fanbase up so they entered the chart high up on week one but think Town Called Malice was a huge single and probably their biggest hit so it def deserved to be no1, albeit I like Golden Brown better but it’s close!

20TH FEBRUARY

 

 

When "Town Called Malice/ Precious" deposed "The Model/ Computer Love" at the top last week it became the first instance in the 30 year history of the charts that a double A Side replaced a double A side at No 1 a fact I omitted to mention last week. Perhaps more interestingly this week was the news that EMI had lodged an official complaint with BMRB over the Jam Single, in short that it had an unfair advantage over other records as the 12" has a live version of "Town Called Malice" and that fans had in effect bought both versions "artificially" inflating sales of the disc. EMI is of course home to the Stranglers who lost out on what was otherwise a dead cert for the No1 spot. With the investigation concluded BMRB have decided that no chart regulations have been infringed and that therefore the Jam track is allowed to stand. This week the track holds at No 1 on a sale of 178,000 copies bolstered by, in effect, two Fridays and Saturdays as the chart returns to a Monday- Saturday week, the song has now sold 301,000 copies in just 14 days and has really ignited the charts of 1982 from their slumber with the highest weekly tally so far of 1982.

 

 

It left The Stranglers once again stranded at No 2 on a strong sales itself of 117,000. Most eyes are turned to the track below which prove to the main challenger to The Jam next week.....

 

 

That's because the major beneficiary from TOTP were Soft Cell whose "Say Hello Wave Goodbye" shoots 18-3 (112,000) to become the bands third top 10 single on the trot. The band's debut album "Non Stop Erotic Cabaret" is home to all three singles and this week surges 8-5 to reach a new peak for the LP.

 

 

 

With fifth album "English Settlement" due this week, XTC are no strangers to the charts with 4 top 40 hits to their credit over the last 3 years but never, to date, a top 10 hit. Not any more as "Senses Working Overtime" climbs 17-10 (45,000) this week to become their biggest hit.

 

 

The general sales bonanza mean some impressive figures this week, OMD climb 6-4 (110,000), and Tight Fit continue to improve 8-6 (76,000). Almost everything does better sales wise even though they drop Kraftwerk drop 4-5 (77,000) Shaky drops 3-7 (67,000), Christopher Cross eases 7-8 (54,000) and Meat Loaf declines 5-9 (51,000)

 

 

 

1- A TOWN CALLED MALICE- The Jam (178,000)

2- GOLDEN BROWN- The Stranglers (117,000)

3- SAY HELLO WAVE GOODBYE- Soft Cell (112,000)

4- MAID OF ORLEANS- O.M.D (110,000)

5- THE MODEL/ COMPUTER LOVE- Kraftwerk (77,000)

6- THE LION SLEEPS TONIGHT- Tight Fit (76,000)

7- OH JULIE- Shakin Stevens (67,000)

8- ARTHUR’S THEME (BEST THAT YOU CAN DO)- Christopher Cross (54,000)

9- DEAD RINGER FOR LOVE- Meatloaf (51,000)

10- SENSES WORKING OVERTIME- XTC (45,000)

 

Wow, I would never have expected Say Hello Wave Goodbye to register a week easily over 100,000 sales. Same goes for Maid of Orleans :o

 

(I appreciate the longer 'week' but even so I'm surprised)

I read a stat a long time ago that back in the physical era Friday and Saturdays were by far the biggest sales days and accounted for roughly 60% of weekly sales so it also matters which days were included, I doubt an extra Tuesday and Wednesday (for example) would have resulted in much difference.

Ah that does make a lot of sense, I was forgetting in this age of streaming that all things weren't quite as equal back then

The jangle pop of Senses Working Overtime is good, one of the few non-electronic tracks of the time. Going for the counting numbers chorus like Tom Robinson did a few years earlier for 2468 Motorway.

 

Soft Cell going for an epic ballad in Say Hello Wave Goodbye. Marc Almonds vocals are probably a bit marmite for some but I really like the track.

I'm 50/50 on Say Hello Wave Goodbye if I'm honest. I do like it, but his vocals definitely prevent me from loving it. He sounds a bit out of tune in places to me.

Even with the inflation, those are some impressive sales. I knew there was some ill feeling from Stranglers fans about The Jam blocking them from #1 - with them being from broadly similar genres, I suppose it could have been the 80s equivalent of Blur vs. Oasis (except with better songs than 'Country House' and 'Roll With It').

 

'Say Hello Wave Goodbye' is my favourite Soft Cell song, the storytelling over the circling synths is quite compelling. They and OMD came very close to #2 that week then. Adding in Kraftwerk at #5, that must be one of my favourite sets of songs in a Top 5 in history!

 

'Senses Working Overtime' is another great song, fantastic for "Swindon's finest" to get their moment in the Top 10.

Yeah a truly stunning Top 5, with impressive sales to match!

What a great top 10 as a whole, 1982 really is delivering.

 

Say Hello is my 2nd fav Soft Cell track, great epic ballad and storytelling. I do also love the way the XTC song builds up to the chorus with the strange vocals, great stuff!

Say Hello Wave Goodbye is wonderful, easily Soft Cell's best song, especially this 12 inch version which starts with the clarinet solo being weaved around that keyboard sound for three and a half minutes before Marc's vocal comes in.

 

love Say Hello Wave Goodbye

only heard it recently and for ages and ages only knew the David Gray cover from the early 00s included in his White Ladder album. Think I still prefer it to the original.

The original vocal on SHWG is awful sadly however when he rerecorded the song for the best of in the early 90s he sorted it all out and really is a glorious track. Thankfully that was the first version I had heard of it so I was somewhat surprised by the original mix when I heard it.

you mean for the new version that charted in 91? think it was for Memorabilia?

Yes that one