Julian_

Mike Oldfield’s move towards “accessible” music gave us “Moonlight Shadow”. Despite being in some ways a straightforward pop song it still stands out as not being like anything else in the charts. Another unexpectedly great song from Bucks Fizz here too, and the original Sakamoto instrumental would be contending for the top place. 9 Mike Oldfield Moonlight Shadow His 1st Top 40 of the decade sung by Maggie Reilly: it's a beautiful and tender song that retains his unique stamp 8 Bucks Fizz When We Were Young Their 6th Top 10 and very different from the others: a magnificent, dramatic and punchy track with heavy synths 8 David Sylvian And Riuichi Sakamoto Forbidden Colours An excellent vocal version of the brilliant and distinctively Oriental instrumental "Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence" 8 Iron Maiden The Trooper This will be Top 5 on re-release and it's a hugely exciting whirlwind of guitar riffs: one of their very best songs 7 Marillion Garden Party Their only early '80s Top 20 hit about class snobbery: an enjoyable synth laden track that progresses interestingly 7 Tom Robinson War Baby 1st solo hit for him away from the Tom Robinson band about the Cold War: an interesting and enjoyable song 7 Heaven 17 Come Live With Me A 2nd Top 5 hit, and it's strikingly different from "Temptation" but a lovely and well delivered reflective track 6 Freeez I.O.U. Their biggest hit: I wish I loved the song itself more but the track is impressively experimental and groundbreaking 6 Donna Summer She Works Hard For The Money Probably her best remembered and most streamed early '80s hit, this is thematically strong and well performed 6 Paul Young Wherever I Lay My Hat (That's My Home) 524th #1: it's originally by Marvin Gaye but this is a very nicely done and heartfelt cover that strips the song back 5 Toto I Won't Hold You Back Already their last Top 40 and a decent ballad, notable for being sampled in "Another Chance" by Roger Sanchez 5 Truth Confusion (Hits Us Every Time) 1st and biggest hit for this UK soft rock band: this is nothing remarkable but a pleasant and radio friendly song 4 Nick Heyward Take That Situation The #11 peak for this is his highest as a solo artist: some of the lyrics are a little naff but it's not bad and quite fun 3 Electric Light Orchestra Rock 'N' Roll Is King This is an original song but sounds like a late '50s rock and roll cover: it's the least I've enjoyed a single from them 3 The Funk Masters It's Over Only hit for this UK funk band formed by a Radio London reggae presenter: this leaves very little impression on me 1983 Group 12: #1108 25/06/1983 Mary Jane Girls All Night Long 13 46-31-24-16-{13}-21-31-46-72->9 #1109 25/06/1983 Jimmy The Hoover Tantalise (Wo Wo Ee Yeh Yeh) 18 54-35-26-19-{18}-22-32-55->8 #1110 02/07/1983 Roman Holliday Don't Try To Stop It 14 40-32-23-20-15-{14}-20-32-51->9 #1111 02/07/1983 Malcolm McLaren Double Dutch 3 42-19-10-7-4-{3}-4-7-11-19-30-46-74->13 #1112 09/07/1983 Eurythmics Who's That Girl? 3 29-9-4-{3}-4-7-13-24-34-51->10 #1113 09/07/1983 The Cure The Walk 12 34-17-{12}-16-18-30-42-75->8 #1114 09/07/1983 Bananarama Cruel Summer 8 36-21-11-10-{8}-13-16-30-43-72->10 #1115 02/07/1983 Men At Work It's A Mistake 33 55-37-{33}-44-50-73->6 #1116 25/06/1983 A Flock Of Seagulls Transfer Affection 38 61-43-{38}-41-55->5 #1117 09/07/1983 Elvis Costello Everyday I Write The Book 28 40-32-34-30-{28}-36-48-63->8 #1118 16/07/1983 Echo And The Bunnymen Never Stop 15 30-{15}-17-22-35-50-74->7 #1119 09/07/1983 Musical Youth Tell Me Why 33 47-34-{33}-37-42-72->6 #1120 02/07/1983 The Lotus Eaters The First Picture Of You 15 71-42-36-27-25-23-21-{15}-15-21-31-45->12 #1121 02/07/1983 Oliver Cheatham Get Down Saturday Night 38 59-44-{38}-42-44->5 #1122 09/07/1983 Midge Ure And Mick Karn After A Fashion 39 43-{39}-39-58->4

1 1944 2 The Code 3 Wasted Love 4 Bangaranga 5 Arcade 6 Zitti E Buoni 7 Toy 8 Tattoo 9 Stefania 10 Amar Pelos Dois Top 6 are all great and I think “Bangaranga” could yet creep upwards.

“Better The Devil” has bog standard SAW production and is very of its time so I can’t love it, but the song itself is good.

Depeche Mode - Everything Counts Elton John - I’m Still Standing Herbie Hancock - Rockit Kraftwerk - Tour De France Paul Young - Come Back And Stay Spandau Ballet, Genesis and Carmel just missing out Tiebreak Flashdance I’m actually away in Denmark for the long weekend though could possibly listen in.

“Michelle” streaming relatively well is interesting - suggests more of the televotes were genuine than in the last couple of years and that the hijack vote fell off dramatically.

I tend to struggle with songs with adult romantic themes sung by children, and “Leave (Get Out)” is no exception. It is well written though.

Drippy A1

Week 20: 1 1 Olivia Dean Man I Need 1,079,000 2,180,000 2 2 Sam Fender and Olivia Dean Rein Me In 948,000 1,630,000 3 3 Dave featuring Tems Raindance 738,000 980,000 4 4 Raye Where Is My Husband! 721,000 1,330,000 5 5 Alex Warren Ordinary 674,000 2,850,000 6 6 Olivia Dean So Easy (To Fall In Love) 644,000 1,020,000 7 7 Huntr/x, Ejae, Audrey Nuna, Rei Ami & KPop Demon Hunters Cast Golden 615,000 1,950,000 8 8 Taylor Swift The Fate Of Ophelia 612,000 1,360,000 9 9 Bella Kay Iloveitiloveitiloveit 603,000 10 10 Djo End Of Beginning 572,000 1,760,000 11 11 Zara Larsson Lush Life 570,000 3,610,000 12 12 PinkPantheress Stateside 538,000 670,000 13 13 Olivia Dean Nice To Each Other 502,000 1,280,000 14 14 Bruno Mars I Just Might 482,000 15 15 Sombr 12 To 12 459,000 980,000 16 16 Sienna Spiro Die On This Hill 443,000 610,000 17 17 Taylor Swift Opalite 411,000 820,000 18 20 Tame Impala Dracula 409,000 540,000 19 19 Sombr Homewrecker 409,000 20 18 Harry Styles Aperture 408,000 21 21 Sombr Back To Friends 384,000 1,300,000 22 22 Disco Lines and Tinashe No Broke Boys 373,000 1,090,000 23 23 Dominic Fike Babydoll 356,000 1,100,000 24 24 Alex Warren Fever Dream 347,000 25 26 Zara Larsson Midnight Sun 336,000 440,000 26 25 Sabrina Carpenter Manchild 332,000 1,140,000 27 27 The Killers Mr Brightside 326,000 7,130,000 28 31 Harry Styles American Girls 322,000 29 29 Milky Just The Way You Are 320,000 430,000 30 28 Haven featuring Kaitlin Aragon I Run 315,000 420,000 31 30 Olivia Dean The Hardest Part 313,000 1,030,000 32 32 Ravyn Lenae Love Me Not 312,000 1,450,000 33 33 Chappell Roan Pink Pony Club 307,000 2,120,000 34 35 Goo Goo Dolls Iris 301,000 4,860,000 35 34 Olivia Dean A Couple Minutes 301,000 480,000 36 40 Dominic Fike White Keys 298,000 310,000 37 37 Fleetwood Mac Dreams 297,000 4,230,000 38 36 Benson Boone Beautiful Things 296,000 3,230,000 39 38 Sombr Undressed 292,000 1,170,000 40 39 Olivia Dean Dive 290,000 960,000 41 41 Olivia Dean OK Love You Bye 278,000 780,000 42 43 Justin Bieber Daisies 271,000 770,000 43 42 Olivia Dean Baby Steps 262,000 440,000 44 44 Teddy Swims Lose Control 259,000 3,070,000 45 48 Ella Langley Choosin' Texas 256,000 300,000 46 45 Fleetwood Mac Everywhere 256,000 4,420,000 47 46 Saja Boys, Andrew Choi Neckwav, Danny Chung, Kevin Woo, samUIL Lee & KPop Demon Hunters Cast Soda Pop 249,000 960,000 48 49 Noah Kahan The Great Divide 245,000 49 47 Sonny Fodera, D.O.D. and Poppy Baskcomb Think About Us 244,000 340,000 50 50 Lola Young Messy 240,000 1,850,000 55 65 Michael Jackson Billie Jean 235,000 3,750,000 56 55 Prince & The Revolution Purple Rain 234,000 2,010,000 57 54 Bad Bunny DtMF 234,000 420,000 58 57 Olivia Dean Let Alone The One You Love 229,000 410,000 60 66 Justin Bieber featuring Nicki Minaj Beauty And A Beat 226,000 1,470,000 67 68 Alex Warren Carry You Home 210,000 1,260,000 70 71 Fleetwood Mac Landslide 209,000 1,810,000 72 73 Sean Paul featuring Keyshia Cole (When You Gonna) Give It Up To Me 207,000 500,000 75 74 Olivia Dean I've Seen It 203,000 350,000 78 79 Kehlani Folded 194,000 450,000 81 82 Calvin Harris And Clementine Douglas Blessings 190,000 830,000 85 88 Myles Smith Nice To Meet You 186,000 1,100,000 87 84 Gunna & Burna Boy WGFT 186,000 400,000 88 91 Drake featuring Wizkid & Kyla One Dance 185,000 5,070,000 89 86 Sienna Spiro You Stole The Show 184,000 290,000 90 87 Esdeekid and Rico Ace Phantom 182,000 390,000 91 92 Fleetwood Mac Silver Springs 182,000 900,000 94 96 Florence And The Machine Dog Days Are Over 181,000 3,540,000 95 98 The Verve Bitter Sweet Symphony 180,000 3,160,000 98 - Stereophonics Dakota 179,000 2,930,000 100 - The Neighbourhood Sweater Weather 178,000 2,680,000 - 100 Tate McRae Sports Car 177,000 1,000,000 - 97 Tyla Chanel 176,000 250,000 @Maestro will be pleased at “Dakota” being back.

21/5: 1 1 Rein me in (1) 2 2 Man I need (1) 3 3 Iloveitiloveitiloveit (2) 4 4 Dracula (4) 5 7 Billie Jean (1) 6 6 Ordianry (1) 7 5 Drop Dead (1) 8 16 Beat it (3) 9 25 Human nature (9) 10 10 So easy (5) 11 40 Go (11) 12 8 Fever dream (4) 13 21 Don’t stop ‘til you get enough (3) 14 12 Homewrecker (10) 15 9 Beauty and a beat (1) 16 14 Where is my husband! (3) 17 13 Lush life (3) 18 11 Midnight sun (11) 19 15 Raindance (2) 20 17 American girls (1) 21 19 Stateside (5) 22 26 Choosin’ Texas (22) 23 20 White keys (14) 24 18 Daisies (2) 25 22 Nice to each other (5) 26 30 Dirty Diana (4) 27 23 Babydoll (12) 28 24 Golden (1) 29 27 Just the way you are (8) 30 28 12 to 12 (8) 31 29 The fate of Ophelia (1) 32 32 I just might (7) 33 36 Smooth criminal (3) 34 33 Mr Brightside (10) 35 42 Free your mind (35) 36 - Earrings (36) 37 47 Man in the mirror (2) 38 35 End of beginning (2) 39 38 Die on this hill (12) 40 - Material lover (40) 41 37 No broke boys (3) 42 - Bad (3) 43 44 Iris (3) 44 31 Doors (18) 45 39 Back to friends (7) 46 - The way you make me feel (3) 47 45 Dreams (22) 48 43 Love me not (2) 49 41 The hardest part (23) 50 49 The great divide (13)

Week 20: 1 1 Olivia Dean The Art Of Loving 320,000 600,000 2 2 Harry Styles Kiss All The Time. Disco, Occasionally. 285,000 3 4 Michael Jackson The Essential 180,000 2,280,000 4 3 Fleetwood Mac 50 Years: Don't Stop 169,000 2,000,000 5 5 The Weeknd Highlights 139,000 1,720,000 6 6 Sabrina Carpenter Man's Best Friend 132,000 440,000 7 7 Ed Sheeran +-=÷x (Tour Collection) 131,000 640,000 8 8 Alex Warren You'll Be Alright Kid (Chapter 1) 125,000 430,000 9 9 Sabrina Carpenter Short n' Sweet 107,000 1,000,000 10 10 Noah Kahan Stick Season 106,000 830,000 11 11 Oasis Time Flies... 1994-2009 106,000 2,520,000 12 12 Linkin Park Papercuts 103,000 500,000 13 13 Taylor Swift The Life Of A Showgirl 99,000 740,000 14 14 Raye This Music May Contain Hope 99,000 15 16 ABBA Gold 96,000 6,240,000 16 15 Fleetwood Mac Rumours 96,000 3,650,000 17 17 BTS Arirang 95,000 18 18 Tate McRae So Close To What 93,000 350,000 19 19 Elton John Diamonds 89,000 2,020,000 20 24 Noah Kahan The Great Divide 85,000 21 20 Oasis (What's The Story) Morning Glory 85,000 5,700,000 22 21 Arctic Monkeys AM 83,000 2,410,000 23 22 Sombr I Barely Know Her 79,000 170,000 24 23 Eminem Curtain Call: The Hits 79,000 3,610,000 25 25 Olivia Rodrigo Sour 75,000 1,320,000 26 27 Olivia Rodrigo Guts 73,000 770,000 27 26 50 Cent Best Of 50 Cent 72,000 840,000 28 29 Pitbull Greatest Hits 68,000 690,000 29 30 Maroon 5 Singles 68,000 1,060,000 30 28 EsDeeKid Rebel 67,000 140,000 31 31 Queen Greatest Hits 64,000 3,270,000 32 32 Billie Eilish Hit Me Hard And Soft 63,000 660,000 33 33 Red Hot Chili Peppers Greatest Hits 61,000 2,370,000 34 36 Bruno Mars Doo-Wops & Hooligans 60,000 2,490,000 35 35 Oasis Definitely Maybe 60,000 3,070,000 36 32 Calvin Harris 96 Months 59,000 290,000 37 34 Sam Fender People Watching 59,000 340,000 38 38 Post Malone The Diamond Collection 59,000 560,000 39 40 Katy Perry Teenage Dream 59,000 2,090,000 40 70 Michael Jackson Thriller 57,000 4,810,000 41 41 Charli XCX Brat 57,000 590,000 42 42 Rihanna Good Girl Gone Bad 57,000 2,580,000 43 39 Mumford & Sons Prizefighter 57,000 44 65 Michael Jackson Bad 56,000 4,510,000 45 43 The Beatles 1967-1970 55,000 1,380,000 46 44 David Bowie Legacy 55,000 1,210,000 47 46 OneRepublic The Collection 55,000 110,000 48 45 Zach Bryan With Heaven On Top 54,000 49 48 Ed Sheeran ÷ 54,000 4,540,000 50 49 Lady Gaga The Fame 54,000 3,650,000 52 53 Green Day Greatest Hits: God's Favorite Band 53,000 800,000 53 51 SZA SOS 53,000 770,000 54 52 Chappell Roan The Rise And Fall Of A Midwest Princess 53,000 610,000 55 47 Gorillaz The Mountain 53,000 56 50 Bad Bunny Debí Tirar Más Fotos 52,000 120,000 57 56 Teddy Swims I've Tried Everything But Therapy 52,000 140,000 59 55 Lily Allen West End Girl 51,000 140,000 63 59 Don Toliver Octane 50,000 64 63 Taylor Swift The Tortured Poets Department 49,000 1,040,000 65 66 Olivia Dean Messy 49,000 170,000 66 62 Bruno Mars The Romantic 49,000 67 67 Avicii Avicii Forever 48,000 120,000 73 75 Harry Styles Harry's House 47,000 980,000 74 64 Robbie Williams Britpop 47,000 75 76 Fred Again… USB 001 EP 46,000 220,000 76 72 Charli XCX Wuthering Heights (OST) 46,000 77 79 CoCoMelon Nursery Rhymes By CoComelon 46,000 400,000 83 83 Taylor Swift Folklore 44,000 1,030,000 85 85 The Killers Rebel Diamonds 43,000 280,000 86 89 Madonna Finally Enough Love - #1s Remixed 43,000 340,000 87 86 Little Mix Between Us 43,000 710,000 90 90 Gracie Abrams The Secret Of Us 42,000 360,000 95 91 Louis Tomlinson How Did I Get Here? 40,000 100 - Sam Smith In The Lonely Hour 39,000 3,160,000 - 100 Fontaines DC Romance 38,000 310,000

Another group with a strong average and nothing that’s worse than boring. “Flashdance” is one of the most joyous bits of power pop in existence while the other top pick is the completely contrasting dramatic “Pills & Soap”. 9 Irene Cara Flashdance... What A Feeling Her last hit with another big film song and a huge US #1: this is an incredibly exhilirating and uplifting power ballad 9 Imposter Pills And Soap Elvis Costello's only Top 40 under this name criticising Thatcher: the storytelling and anger here is very powerful 8 Elton John I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues It's an easy listening song but I love the lyrics and the lilting rhythm that capture the feeling of being separated 8 H2O Dream To Sleep 1st hit for this Scottish band which was inspired by "Only You": it's a lovely tender song and I like the lead's voice 7 David Bowie China Girl Bowie did the original version with Iggy Pop in 1977 but it's been turned into an infectious Eastern flavoured hit 7 Ultravox We Came To Dance Their 10th Top 40 and all have been strong: I think this is one of the weaker ones but still very enjoyable new wave 7 Michael Jackson Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' The 4th single from "Thriller" about gang rivalry: it's much better than the 1st but far inferior to the 2nd and 3rd 6 Rod Stewart Baby Jane 523rd #1: Rod's 1st chart topper in 5 years and nothing out of the ordinary but a strong song with a nice flow to it 6 Altered Images Bring Me Closer Last of their 6 Top 40 hits: overall they've been coonsistently good and well performed, and this is a nice closer 5 Kajagoogoo Hang On Now Their 3rd hit in 5 months, and I prefer it to the 2nd one, but it won't be enough to reverse the diminishing returns 5 Shakatak Dark Is The Night Their others this year will miss the Top 40: this does have a rather nice chorus melody over a gentle jazzy track 5 Shalamar Dead Giveaway Their 4th Top 10 hit before the success falls away: it has a bit more drama to it than some other hits of its kind 4 Agnetha Faltskog The Heat Is On Her 1st solo Top 40 and she won't be back this century: this is quite twee and seems more like a pre ABBA single 4 Imagination Looking At Midnight Their 8th hit in 2 years, and the production has nice parts but it does feel like they're slowly running out of steam 3 Twisted Sister The Kids Are Back Their 2nd and last Top 40 though they'll have a few more misses: this is very ordinary and indistinct for its style 3 David Joseph Let's Live It Up (Nite People) His only later hit will stall at #61: this is another not very memorable and longer than it needs to be soul song 1983 Group 11: #1093 18/06/1983 Bucks Fizz When We Were Young 10 23-{10}-10-13-22-43-55-63->8 #1094 18/06/1983 Marillion Garden Party 16 24-{16}-23-33-51->5 #1095 28/05/1983 Mike Oldfield Moonlight Shadow 4 71-53-42-27-19-{4}-4-4-5-7-12-16-18-29-35-39-50->17 #1096 04/06/1983 Nick Heyward Take That Situation 11 48-43-40-21-14-{11}-14-24-43-71->10 #1097 18/06/1983 Freeez I.O.U. 2 44-23-7-5-3-{2}-2-2-3-10-16-25-26-41-61->15 #1098 11/06/1983 Truth Confusion (Hits Us Every Time) 22 58-41-24-{22}-23-26-54->7 #1099 18/06/1983 Electric Light Orchestra Rock 'N' Roll Is King 13 58-25-15-14-{13}-17-23-36-58->9 #1100 18/06/1983 Paul Young Wherever I Lay My Hat (That's My Home) 1 62-30-12-3-2-{1}-1-1-2-9-20-31-36-48-73->15 #1101 25/06/1983 Heaven 17 Come Live With Me 5 33-16-7-6-6-{5}-9-19-27-34-63->11 #1102 18/06/1983 The Funk Masters It's Over 8 45-34-29-15-{8}-10-14-21-29-39-54-69->12 #1103 18/06/1983 Donna Summer She Works Hard For The Money 25 46-36-33-30-29-{25}-35-47->8 #1104 18/06/1983 Toto I Won't Hold You Back 37 42-{37}-38-52-68->5 #1105 25/06/1983 Tom Robinson War Baby 6 39-17-{6}-7-9-18-26-38-63->9 #1106 02/07/1983 Iron Maiden The Trooper 12 26-{12}-12-19-24-39-54->7 #1107 02/07/1983 David Sylvian And Riuichi Sakamoto Forbidden Colours 16 28-20-18-{16}-20-30-40-56->8

Fell behind oops… there’s so much this year that doesn’t really bring up strong feelings. It’s just “oh yes there was that”. There isn’t anything I really like in the last few. The ones I really do not enjoy are “Start Without You” and “California Gurls”: I find the chorus very grating in both cases. Thankfully Katy had some great stuff to come later in the same campaign. Otherwise “In My Head” is moderately pleasant and better than most of what Derulo would offer up later. “Please Don’t Let Me Go” is fine but nothing more - I prefer the follow up “Thinking Of Me”. “Gettin’ Over You” is alright but a bit messy and there were other songs that did what it does better. “Green Light” is terrible but in a more enjoyable than it has any right to be sort of way.

Hmm nope there definitely aren’t 7 songs here better than “Crazy In Love”. There’s a reason that’s known by most of the general public and most of this lot are forgotten to varying extents. “Dumb” is nothing special but rather boppy.

OK I’m very likely going with Tuesday 26th for the listenthrough. 3 sets of votes and 32/36 songs have points. It will be an interesting contest. 😮

Certainly Italy do well by being unashamedly and unflinchingly Italian. It would be interesting to explore British culture more - you could use Celtic instruments or the Welsh choir tradition for example, but weave it into something that feels current.

I do find the Italian success every year a real head scratcher. I have liked many of their entries in the past but the post Måneskin years have seemed to me like default success. This year’s in particular I thought seemed very old fashioned with staging that was quite odd, but maybe it was just lost on me.

I feel really bad for him as well. He had the basic artistry and the beginnings of a great song but he clearly didn’t have the support required to turn it into a killer song, polish the lyrics and come up with a slick stage performance. The BBC people involved just didn’t know what to do with this I suspect as it isn’t in their MOR vocabulary, so just ended up letting it bomb.

Temptation Flashdance Pills & Soap When You Were Young Moonlight Shadow The First Picture Of You

The other option is Thursday 28 but that feels a bit close to the deadline, as I know people like to have another listen after the session.

We have our first voter already. 😮 I’ve realised I can’t actually make Thursday for the listenthrough oops. I could do tomorrow or Tuesday or Tuesday next week (26th). Any preferences?

“Wake Me Up” I probably wouldn’t put in GA’s absolute A tier but it’s very good and well produced. I think this was single #7 and I expected the quality to really be going downhill by this point but it wasn’t.

I honestly thought throwing the juries out of the semis was one of the better rule changes. If you can’t stand out enough in a group of 15-18 for the public to vote you into the Top 10 we don’t need you on the Saturday. At least nobody who DNQed finished Top 8 on the televote.

OMG at Switzerland coming 9th in the Jury vote and 9th in the televote and being 11th combined! 💀 💀 I wasn’t a fan of the song but wow. 💔

Well I certainly didn’t for see that Bulgaria landslide although I did think tonight it really stood out more than it had in the semi. Very pleased for them! I did think it would be a strong televoter so felt it was looking very good for it as soon as it was acing the jury vote. Pretty good Top 10 for the most part. Other than Israel obviously being much higher than the song deserved the one I really don’t get as ever is Italy. But Romania ended up being my favourite of all so nice to see that 3rd. I really enjoyed Greece and Moldova on the night so good to see them in there.

“Move Ya Body” is so clever and infectious and still sounds great! The best to miss the Top 10 here by miles.