Popchartfreak

Aswad were long overdue a proper hit by 1988 and those of us of a certain age still had love for Brinsley as one of the child stars of Here Come The Double Deckers, so it was great they finally got a breakthrough and bumped reggae back into the charts ready for the 90's resurgence. Taja Sevelle was cool and looked like she might be a stayer - but sadly not. Ship Of Fools is decent but the next two singles were Erasure at their best to date, bar Sometimes.

145 (25) FEEL THE NEED IN ME - The Detroit Emeralds 0Axt_80nsfU The much-covered original hit the UK charts in 1973 as a soul-funk proto-disco groove for The Detroit Emeralds, smooth and essential, but it came out in the USA in 1972 so it's been shifted back - and it's dropped a surprising 120 places in my rating! It's still a great song, they had another hit with a re-record in 1977 and acts a-plenty have had hits with it in various genres and years. That might explain why it just didn't seem as fresh when I was re-doing my charts. It's undeniably a key track, but I'd prefer to listen to many other soul classics from 1972 to this one.

162 (20) CROCODILE ROCK - Elton John 75r0nQu-hMs Well here's a shock to me, Croc Rock was Elton's first chart-topper for me in 1972, and I have fond memories of carrying my reel to reel tape recorder round from 8 Sheepwalk's 2-bedroom house to our upgraded 108 Sheepwalk 3-bedroom so me and my brother would stop arguing in a tiny room. That would be RAF Swinderby out in the sticks of Lincolnshire. The houses are still there, but all sold off. Anyway, it was the first thing I took, I got the new house all to myself and could play the latest top 20 recordings, of which this was my fave. Pseudo Diamond's Little Darlin' (which I also loved) and very 50's pastiche fun, it was utterly catchy. I think overplay over the years has reduced the appeal of it a bit, but not worry Elton still has a monster to come to keep him inside the Year-End top 20.

165 (28) LOOP DI LOVE - Shag OMW8DDyi9Mw Talking of which, here's JK's chart-topper for me, Loop Di Love. The vocals have been slowed down to make his reedy voice a little more gruff - King was notorious for Top Of The Pops appearances where he was made to sing live - invariably his records would drop the following week as singing is not his forte. I liked that he used the name Shag, and got away with it on the BBC - one could innocently refer to the seabird or the dance, but we all knew what he meant. The song? It's very silly, and very catchy, a nursery rhyme with girlie backing singers and a prominent fiddle upfront. I think I'll quit while I'm ahead.....

179 (97) (I CAN'T GET NO) SATISFACTION - Bubble Rock -HhPZoL-vac Jonathan King was always up for taking the piss out of fellow popstars, parodies or otherwise, and this one was a dig at Bob Dylan and The Rolling Stones, using Jagger/Richard lyrics done Dylan folkie style. All the bite and anger of the Stones original is gone, replaced with whimsy folk pastiche. It came out in 1972 on JK's album and then just sat there for 18 months until he decided to drop it as a single under yet another pseudonym: by this time he'd had hits under 3 or 4 alter-ego's (and I do mean Ego) one of which is still to come. This made my 97th slot of 1974, but I have moved it back into the year it came out for this exercise. Staying amongst my top 200 faves of 1972 is still not bad.

183 (27) BEG, STEAL OR BORROW - The New Seekers NUeT1-n5IBA The New Seekers 3rd number one for me inside 8 months, it was a great UK entry, not nearly as chirpy as usual Eurovision entries, and there were some great harmonies going on, especially Peter Doyle and Eve Graham, loved their voices. It was big enough to end as my 27th fave of the year, and I still enjoy hearing it, as long as it's not too frequently played. Which a song has to endure to rate highly in my revamped charts for 2 or 3 months on a weekly basis. That explains the drop of over 150 places in my affections: there are other New Seekers songs I prefer these days.

thanks both and one year out only each! Doh! Round 1: missed the beginning today oops 12 points: (and got memory blank when I literally wrote about it in my 1972 thread yesterday afternoon). No excuses! :lol: Round 2: 39 3 in 10: 3 ( )

I didn't say it was an issue, it was just descriptive. Nothing wrong with it per se at all, but it shows they are generally low-paid jobs (my niece worked for one chain - before it closed last month - when she's not at Uni). Just like I started in factories shifting boxes or stuffing rolls into bakery bags. Not highly paid. The end result: you get a fluid workforce who will happily leave at short notice for a better-paid job and very long lines as 2 or 3 of 'em try to cope with masses of people wanting tickets and popcorn. During the weekdays it's great for old people. cheaper tickets, no queues, 2 members on staff on duty, one for the popcorn tickets and one for spare, don't even get the tickets checked. So I don't go at weekends or evenings if I can help it, I only went last time on a Saturday as a treat for my 10-year-old great nephew to see The Wild Robot! Fine if you enjoy standing in line for 20 or 30 minutes though but he was getting very bored and agitated and there's no mobile signal inside to do it online while you wait. promises of sweets and drinks coming up was my solution :teresa:

2 huge "million-sellers" for me gone there, and several more left on the list. There are 3 that dont belong quite in that elite league and as yet they aint shifting!

I still get saddened by anything Mel & Kim, much too young to pass away especially after going through all she did, and I did buy this single, I thought it was under-rated compared to other SAW stuff around at that time. Crash is pretty good, though never a top 10 fave in my charts, if I remember right. (checked, peaked at 14).

Dana was a number one for me in 1970, I even preferred it to Mary Hopkin's entry, and it's still quite sweet, though if I chose to play one of her hits I would go for Fairytale these days - not the Eurovision winning song! France Gall is also cute and catchy, and Samantha Janus I charted but havent heard it in ages. I thought it was OK at the time. The others I dont remember! :o One day I'll do a Eurovision top 100, I reckon I could easily find 100 I like a lot or love :)

183 (39) SEASIDE SHUFFLE - Terry Dactyl & The Dinosuars p62dmF2Bdpw AKA Jona Lewie grabbing a novelty hit 8 years early, Seaside Shuffle fits in with the myriad novelty and retro-referring tracks of the early 70's, the jaunty singalong was fine for traditional British summertime at the beach which still dominated working class life at that time - the package holidays to Spain were up and running but they hadn't really become affordable for most. A day out at Skeggy was the reality for us, and this fun tune was amusingly grounded in reality. 50 years on it doesn't quite resonate with the jetsetting holidays of the 2020's but it has its period charm.

185 (55) WHAT'S YOUR NAME - Chicory Tip lPPOUTaIgRE Follow-up to Giorgio Moroder's ground-breaking song, what with the synths and all, but it was really more-of-the-same-but-not-quite-as-good, but in 1972 this novelty ditty still seemed futuristic - and indeed it was. Pity the song is so disposable though, it's not actually bad as such, it's quite catchy and I still like the synths but it's a bit too cheerful for it's own good.

187 (68) DOOBEDOOD’NDOOBE DOOBEDOOD’NDO - Diana Ross PXHc_ImIUCk I still fondly recall this getting slagged off in the NME when it came out, bad reviews are always entertaining even if they are wrong. The title though was always going to work against this one being fondly remembered, but I still like it a lot. It's not up to Diana's 1970/71 classics but it's ahead of her move into drippy ballads and has more in common with Surrender than All Of My Life. That said it's still dropped 119 places in my affection.

206 (23) DESPERATE DAN - Lieutenant Pigeon cXOa9mrZRlk I must be the only person in the world that preferred the follow-up to the monster Mouldy Ol Dough at the time, and still do! This topped my chart and romped in 23rd fave of the year. I still enjoy the more upbeat tempo of this one to the more plod-ish Mouldy, but I doubt had this come out first that it would have been a hit.

219 (85) TAKE ME BAK 'OME - Slade YEOoXjdnOmw Slade were huge in 1972, and they did pretty well in my charts of the time too - but 50 years on I find I don't love their laddy Glam Rock quite as much as I did: Gudbye T' Jane rolls in at 336, and mama Weer All Crazee Now drops at 227 having just missed the top 100 at the time. Take Me Bak 'Ome is the best of the three rockers, but they still have the follow-up to the massive Coz I Luv You to come.

Thanks Jade! :) still on a roll today I'm afraid... :o round 1: 39 round 2: 39 3 in 10: 3 ( )

Oh no question The Righteous Brothers masterpiece would win in almost any week (Be My Baby would be a close thing for me). It's a cornerstone in popular music and remains as powerful as the day it was finished. Love Cilla, but yeah, no but, yeah. Come Tomorrow is a good Manfred track, seen them do it many times in concert. Del Shannon's may be the runner-up for me, an under-appreciated track, if it werent for The Seekers classic. Saw them on their final tour too. The other three I dont recall, but I love the original of Goin' Out Of My Head, that charted for me as an oldie in 1975. Betty Everett sounds fine, I like it, I usually like her stuff. Dodie West does a nice job, I wonder if this was my first introduction to the song and the reason I loved it in the 70's - it was very familiar to me when I noticed it as an oldie. Billy Fury was a fave act, but this one rings no bells, but it's OK. There's none I dislike in this batch..

Joe Le Taxi, one of the best tracks of 1988, love it. Lenny Kravitz did too, I bet. :teresa: Vanessa was prob better in the 90's overall though when she was a bit more mature.

restricting my picks to those I actually paid cash for: We Pray, Tinlicker, Good neighbours' Home, Beautiful Things, Stargazing, Lifeline, Bright Lights, Coming Back To Me Goodtop 5 of the year for me that one, Lover's Leap, Bus, and some others I like like the Eurovision tracks, but didnt buy. :cheer:

three huge faves of 2024 for me so far, in Die With A smile, Tinlicker and Starburster, with goodies I also bought from The Cure, Dua Lipa... my rundown as always is delayed until all the peaking 2024 tracks have finished their chart runs :lol:

4th January 1975 It's a new year, I turn 17, and Minnie Ripperton grabs an early 1975 chart-topper with her gorgeous Lovin' You. What a range she had, and so tragic she died young. There are lots of new entries as the Christmas songs drop, the highest is Pilot at 3 with the fab January, their third top 20 in a row, and threatening to be their 2nd number one. Neil Sedaka, with an assist from Elton, goes for his 4th top ten, and future huge USA smash, Bad Blood, outdoing all of Elton's singles since Bennie & The Jet gave Elt a 5th number one. The Wombles replace themselves in the top 20 with the album track The Orinoco Kid - this one may well be my fave Mike Batt Wombling track, it has that classic Cowboy vibe to it, only not cleaning up Dodge City, it's cleaning up Wimbledon Common. I was there not long ago, the Wombles need to work a bit harder. The Glitter Band have a change in style for their 5th non-Gary track, the rather good Goodbye My Love at 28 - a record that never ever gets radio play, and I fail to see why it's been forgotten, we liked it in the UK at the time! Footsee was a mid-60's stompalong dance track that became bi at the Wigan Casino Northern Soul scene, so some bright spark added Wigan to the artist, added some live sounds, and hey presto another big hit that's been forgotten. It's fun, but 50 years on no-one from then will be attempting those energetic dance moves! New at 37, I have the re-issued 12 inch single. Sweet Sensation have a soundalike follow-up, Purely By Co-incidence, which is quite pleasant, BTO go full-on rock follow-up, Roll On Down The Highway, and Mac & Katie Kissoon finally get that elusive UK hit, Sugar Candy Kisses. I always liked Mac's vocals, from their version of Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep onwards. Philip & Vanessa do a cover of the old Hoagy Carmichael 1938 standard, Two Sleepy People - I actually bought their album in the bargain bin years later to get hold of the record - and it's a song I still like, but it's not been heard of for decades. It seemed like a vintage song to 17-year-old me, what with it being 20 years old when I was born and all, but this cover is actually 13 years older than that now and the song is 87 years old. The Stylistics continue to prefer mush over soul, with Star On A TV Show slipping in, Georgie Fame returns with his Ali bandwagon song, after being away over 3 years from my retro charts, and Graham Central Station think a funked-up version of The Detroit Emeralds' classic is a good idea. 1 ( 3 ) LOVIN' YOU - Minnie Ripperton # 1 2 ( 1 ) #9 DREAM - John Lennon # 1 3 ( NEW ) JANUARY - Pilot # 3 4 ( 2 ) CHILD OF LOVE - Caston & Majors # 1 5 ( 7 ) DOWN DOWN - Status Quo # 5 6 ( 5 ) I’VE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU - ABBA # 1 7 ( 6 ) CAN’T GET IT OUT OF MY HEAD - Electric Light Orchestra # 1 8 ( 10 ) BE MY BABY - The Ronettes # 1 9 ( 11 ) SO LONG - ABBA # 9 10 ( 15 ) BAD BLOOD - Neil Sedaka featuring Elton John # 10 11 ( 12 ) THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN - Lulu # 7 12 ( 14 ) SHA LA LA (MAKE ME HAPPY) - Al Green # 4 13 ( 8 ) WHERE DID OUR LOVE GO? - Diana Ross & The Supremes # 3 14 ( 9 ) WALKING IN RHYTHM - The Blackbyrds # 4 15 ( 18 ) YOU CAN MAKE ME DANCE, SING OR ANYTHING - The Faces featuring Rod Stewart # 15 16 ( 42 ) THE ORINOCO KID - The Wombles # 16 17 ( 17 ) YOU’RE THE FIRST THE LAST MY EVERYTHING - Barry White # 2 18 ( 21 ) DREAMER - Supertramp # 15 19 ( 13 ) SLEIGH RIDE - The Ronettes # 10 20 ( 4 ) CHRISTMAS (BABY PLEASE COME HOME) - Darlene Love # 4 21 ( 23 ) HOW DOES IT FEEL - Slade # 16 22 ( 20 ) WOMBLING MERRY CHRISTMAS - The Wombles # 20 23 ( 19 ) MS GRACE - The Tymes # 15 24 ( 43 ) SHAME SHAME SHAME - Shirley & Company # 24 25 ( 28 ) ALL I WANT IS YOU - Roxy Music # 1 26 ( 30 ) NEVER CAN SAY GOODBYE - Gloria Gaynor # 1 27 ( 25 ) LONELY THIS CHRISTMAS - Mud # 1 28 ( NEW ) GOODBYE MY LOVE - The Glitter Band # 28 29 ( 16 ) LOVE IS ALL - Roger Glover & Friends featuring Ronnie James Dio # 16 30 ( 27 ) YOU AIN’T SEEN NOTHIN’ YET - Bachman-Turner Overdrive # 1 31 ( 31 ) I GET A KICK OUT OF YOU - Gary Shearston # 1 32 ( 54 ) SINCE I FOUND MY BABY - Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose # 32 33 ( 45 ) CRYING OVER YOU - Ken Boothe # 33 34 ( 22 ) MIDNIGHT SHOW - Ron Dante # 22 35 ( 40 ) IRE FEELINGS (SKANGA) - Rupie Edwards # 10 36 ( 47 ) TOBY - The Chi-Lites # 36 37 ( NEW ) FOOTSEE - Wigans Chosen Few # 37 38 ( 34 ) STARDUST - David Essex # 9 39 ( 24 ) ANGIE BABY - Helen Reddy # 1 40 ( 26 ) LADY MARMALADE - LaBelle # 8 41 ( 38 ) I CAN HELP - Billy Swan # 9 42 ( 36 ) GET DANCIN’ - Disco Tex & The Sex-o-lettes # 2 43 ( 60 ) MY MAIN MAN - The Staple Singers # 43 44 ( 32 ) THEN HE KISSED ME - The Crystals # 1 45 ( 37 ) DRACULA’S DAUGHTER - Thunderthighs # 12 46 ( 41 ) MAGIC - Pilot # 20 47 ( NEW ) PURELY BY COINCIDENCE - Sweet Sensation # 47 48 ( 52 ) DO IT, DO IT - The Peppers # 48 49 ( 44 ) PICK UP THE PIECES - Average White Band # 41 50 ( 39 ) GOODBYE NOTHIN’ TO SAY - The Javells featuring Nosmo King # 12 51 ( 29 ) MORNING SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN - Donny & Marie Osmond # 3 52 ( 46 ) HOW LONG - Ace featuring Paul Carrack # 1 53 ( 33 ) HEY MR CHRISTMAS - Showaddywaddy # 20 54 ( 61 ) I'M A WOMAN - Maria Muldaur # 54 55 ( 56 ) GONNA MAKE YOU A STAR - David Essex # 13 56 ( 51 ) SHBOOM (LIFE COULD BE A DREAM) - Sha Na Na # 50 57 ( 50 ) BEACH BABY - The First Class # 1 58 ( 58 ) ARE YOU READY TO ROCK - Wizzard # 58 59 ( NEW ) ROLL ON DOWN THE HIGHWAY - Bachman-Turner Overdrive # 59 60 ( 59 ) HURT SO GOOD - Susan Cadogan # 59 61 ( 35 ) YOU CAN HAVE IT ALL - George McCrae # 35 62 ( 53 ) KILLER QUEEN - Queen # 1 63 ( 65 ) THE LIFE OF THE PARTY - The Jackson 5 # 63 64 ( 64 ) LONELY PEOPLE - America # 64 65 ( 55 ) JUKEBOX JIVE - The Rubettes # 18 66 ( 70 ) NIGHTINGALE - Carole King # 66 67 ( 49 ) LUCY IN THE SKY WITH DIAMONDS - Elton John featuring John Lennon # 20 68 ( NEW ) SUGAR CANDY KISSES - Mac & Katie Kissoon # 68 69 ( 69 ) DING DONG, DING DONG - George Harrison # 69 70 ( NEW ) TWO SLEEPY PEOPLE - Phillip & Vanessa # 70 71 ( 72 ) PLEASE TELL HIM THAT I SAID HELLO - Dana # 71 72 ( NEW ) STAR ON A TV SHOW - The Stylistics # 72 73 ( 73 ) BLACK SUPERMAN (MUHAMMAD ALI) - Johnny Wakelin # 73 74 ( NEW ) ALI SHUFFLE - Georgie Fame # 74 75 ( NEW ) FEEL THE NEED - Graham Central Station # 75

Thanks Rollo, 5 days? Eek! Fresh from a pub quiz last night where I got us a point for Gracie Abrams currently at 1, but lost one for not remembering Take That's hit Giants. The clue was Norse Mythology Jotunn. Soldiers was not the correct answer and I wasnt misremembering Rag n Bone Man's hit after all, as I thought at the time. Cost us £35 oops :lol: round 1: 39 round 2: 39 3 in 10: 3 ( ) I think my brain must still have been game-ready after last night :o :lol:

220 (92) SONG SUNG BLUE - Neil Diamond lSy9dt5FeS0 The final entry in Neil Diamond's fabulous early career, at least in terms of UK hits, though creatively it was all downhill from here-on pretty much - most of his great songs predate 1973. This was a sweet singalong hit which I was convinced was called Song Song Blue until I saw it written down somewhere. Which might have made no sense lyrically, but sounded correct. It's not up there with Cracklin' Rosie, that's for sure, it plods a bit these days but at least I don't have to listen to a former massive love which has been Karaoke'd to death this century, there's no escaping Sweet Caroline.

222 (62) SYLVIA'S MOTHER - Doctor Hook & The Medicine Show 7LXpnNKNxJI Dennis Locciere on vocals, and Shel Silverstein writing all of their best quirky, early songs, this UK smash crossed over into a big song for me. I still like the pseudo-OTT-understated emotion and semi-serious lyrics, but I like it less than other tracks from Dr Hook these days, but I still have a nostalgic fondness for it.