vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Apr 28, 2018 8:52:21 GMT 1
25/7. Dixie Peach, heh. Seriously. We have a new typeface. Davies doesn't speak in the intro. Did he mention Glitter? We start with Arrow, who are not Arrows. Don't remember this but this is actually great fun. It's like a 1978 dancehall classic. Upbeat and bouncy. In a year of utter drek it stands out a mile.
And as if to prove that the highest new entry is Madonna. Did a musician ever touch that backing? Complete crap. She's not even that hot despite her poor man's Clare Grogan impersonation.
Shergal Farkey. This is a curio. It sounds like it's an introduction in search of a song. Missed opportunity.
Peach is learning from Davies to the extent that he is standing in exactly the same way. Top 40. I bet it won't be. 40 is "Orchestral Manoeuvres". Are they out of the dark? And I was right, they stop at 11.
Breakers. The Cure to start. This is terrific, and again it shows up the vapidity of the top end of the charts. Pointer Sisters next with a forgotten and forgettable song. Dire Straits with a fun single and video.
Top 10. Trans X. This is really out of place. It is a 1981 cast-off, they seem to have revived the Einstein-A-Go-Go set. How did this become a hit? I don't mean that in a derogatory sense, more that surely the DJs in full on yuppie mode would have eschewed this. Obviously it's not a patch on (say) Honey Bane, but it is still a worthy addition.
The rest of the top 10 is crap. I mean, seriously crap. Jaki Graham, Denise LaSalle, Opus, Madonna (TWICE!! WHAT THE f*** IS YOUR MAJOR MALFUNCTION, PEOPLE?), K*** and the Gang, Faltermeyer, and the no. 1. Sadly Sister Sledge are off the top after a month of holding off the tidal wave of sh*te. So who is no. 1? Oh. Eurythmics. This is OK. And it's overdue.
Bit of a brutal cut-off. We conclude with Opus, but not the Laibach version. God, this is sh*te.
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Apr 28, 2018 8:58:13 GMT 1
Hmmm. I see why they cut the intro short now, in looking up another video of Arrow. Davies says that he is presenting with the only man on Radio 1 with a better suntan than him. Ooooops.
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on May 7, 2018 20:41:21 GMT 1
August the 15th be with you. Powell is not stupid enough to make racist remarks about Dixie Peach. On commence avec King, who now sound (as well as look) like The Mission. Paul King is still rocking the "no mike" vibe which ought to go out of fashion some day. I can't even remember what this is called and I'm listening to it. PK is selling the hell out of it but it is a doomed effort. Best thing about it is the bridge, which sounds like the record has slightly warped. Otherwise it is safe to forget this once more.
UB40 and Chrissie Hynde. Well, it's no expense spared on the video. UB40 are getting into the dangerous territory where their two biggest hits are cover versions. About time they had a bigger hit with something self-penned. I mean, this isn't bad, it's a decent original song and a decent take on it. (Oh, the video just changed from rehearsal to performance.) But it's not that VITAL. Not like their "Red Red Wine" which was a largely forgotten track given a smashing lease of life.
Phil Collins is live in the studio with "Take Me Home". That sounds like a threat to me. Well, it's not atrocious, he says, damning with faint praise, but it's just "there". Is this a Christmas song that's got lost? Would have been better with some bells. Builds up to a sort of bagpipey finish for no adequately explored reason.
Powell says Collins normally takes August off to be with his family. Which one? The wife he dumped by fax? Anyway, we go to no. 40. Total Contrast. Who? I can only assume they are named ironically as they are two black chaps wearing white. They're no 2wo Third3. To what are they a total contrast? Good music? This is utterly by numbers. It would be no. 1 for 15 weeks today though because it would be bought onto the playlists and nobody would be bothered to fast forward.
Charts. Hello, we've had 40 and 39. So Dio at 38 must be on shortish. Baltimora is running at them with his trousers down at 33, missed the number. Bloody hell, they had Collins on for a non-mover? D Train well inside the 40. Springbok is in the charts twice. Amazulu at 13, that's probably the best one in the charts. Princess the highest climber at 11. Are we going to see her?
No, it's breaker time. Hahaha, we do see Dio. Video taken from Labyrinth. This is like a parody. I think there's a law about that, isn't there? The more accurate a parody, the less a parody it is. 33, Baltimora. Spent even less on the video than UB40. Heh, this is earwormy.
Wow. Kate Bush is the highest new entry at 9. And yet that doesn't warrant a full play? About time she got another chart-topper.
Top 10 is in videos. Nik Kershaw at 10 with "Don Quixote", which I assume he wrote because he fancied a holibobs in Spain. Poor man's "Riddle". Bush again. The Cars at 8 with a huge climber. Live Aid brought this back, they played it over the footage of starving kids to tweak at the heartstrings. Peter Powell talks over most of it saying that they're stopping water shortages in Africa by shipping children from Bolton over. Girl in the video is HOTTTTTT.
Sir Billiam of Idol is down to 7 with some fun. Eurythmics at 6, TOTP wisely eschew the pointless bracketing. Dire Straits at 5. Tina Turner doesn't break her UK no. 1 duck, shocker. UB40 again. Madonna at 2 with some utter sh*t. Oh God, she's also at no. 1. People of Britain, you are thick as sh*t.
I'm calling D Train as the playout. Wow, I was right. Funky. I remember them from a couple of years back. Biggest hit a bit out of nowhere.
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Post by Earl Purple on May 8, 2018 10:29:32 GMT 1
In a recent episode we saw what might have been our first ever "lyrics" video. During the performance of "Lavender", Fish was holding up a flip-pad with the lyrics on various sheets.
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on May 15, 2018 22:05:14 GMT 1
There were other lyric videos before. "Subterranean Homesick Blues" and "Shaddap You Face" for instance.
22/9. Wright and Davies. And we start with Lisa Lisa AND Cult Jam. My cup runneth over. God almighty, this is utterly woeful. It's basically the 12 inch of "Just Because You're Losing". Can't stand it. FF.
Cars. Nope, can't be bothered either. Baltimora. Great name. Bloke is not even close to beginning to hint about miming. Methinks the nearest he got to a recording studio was delivering pizzas next door. But this is so much more fun than Lisa double. Although I prefer the video mix.
Top 40 breakers. Dan Hartman, 5 and a half years since his last hit. Burst of applause for no reason. Can see why it has taken so long, this is sh*t. Next is Mai Tai. f***ing hell, what has HAPPENED to music all of a sudden? Everything is anonymous bland beige boring computer-generated sh*te.
Next up is the highest new entry at no. 34, which suggests the public is bored sh*tless too. Marc Almond, which is at least a bit different, something of the Jacques Brel about it. Darkly fascinating.
Now Kate Bush. In the studio. Has she appeared on Ver Pops before? Why is this only at no. 4?
Charts. Bored. Amazulu at 12 is the most exciting thing there. We should see them but we haven't. Princess at 10 instead because we need more anonymous bland beige boring computer-generated sh*te.
OK, deposed her. Let's go back to the top 10. God almighty, that's boring too. UB40 at 2 and "could be next week's number one". Let's hope, given that Ms Ciccione is boring the sh*t out of me at no. 1.
Amazulu get the deathcurse of the playout. Announced at being no. 12 but the chyron has it at 13. It's not enough to save the show. It was in fact very badly put together - so many of the songs sounded the same. And it's not as if there were no options elsewhere.
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Post by suedehead on May 15, 2018 23:25:48 GMT 1
Now Kate Bush. In the studio. Has she appeared on Ver Pops before? Why is this only at no. 4? Have you forgotten her performing Wuthering Heights? Those performances in front of an audience who hadn't got a clue who she was.
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on May 16, 2018 7:28:32 GMT 1
The only memories I have of "Wuthering Heights" are of the video.
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Post by Earl Purple on May 28, 2018 20:55:06 GMT 1
In recent episodes Bowie & Jagger have been #1, we had Redbox whom Peter Powell introduced as a band who had been around a couple of years and had finally made it, then later Lloyd Cole was on the same episode but he'd already had a hit with Perfect Skin. We also had Midge Ure that episode.
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Post by o on May 28, 2018 22:03:07 GMT 1
And?
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Post by raliverpool on May 28, 2018 22:21:28 GMT 1
In recent episodes Bowie & Jagger have been #1, we had Redbox whom Peter Powell introduced as a band who had been around a couple of years and had finally made it, then later Lloyd Cole was on the same episode but he'd already had a hit with Perfect Skin. We also had Midge Ure that episode. Back in 1985 Mick Jagger was an ancient 42 years old; and David Bowie was getting long in the tooth at 38.
Fast forward to this weekend and the BBC's Biggest Weekend Festival shows an hour of Radio 1 playlisted artist Liam Gallagher who is currently 45 years old (& older than comedian Peter Kay).
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Post by Earl Purple on May 29, 2018 10:06:59 GMT 1
In recent episodes Bowie & Jagger have been #1, we had Redbox whom Peter Powell introduced as a band who had been around a couple of years and had finally made it, then later Lloyd Cole was on the same episode but he'd already had a hit with Perfect Skin. We also had Midge Ure that episode. Back in 1985 Mick Jagger was an ancient 42 years old; and David Bowie was getting long in the tooth at 38.
Fast forward to this weekend and the BBC's Biggest Weekend Festival shows an hour of Radio 1 playlisted artist Liam Gallagher who is currently 45 years old (& older than comedian Peter Kay).
Well if we compare the Rolling Stones in 1965 (the year they started having number ones with their own songs) to Oasis in 1995 (the year of their first #1 and their most successful album), then both these people were 22 at the time (Mick was still 21 at the time of "The Last Time"), and we're referring to 20 years later and 23 years later, so they'd be 42 and 45. Anyway it did make Bowie & Jagger the oldest of the pairings to reach #1 in 1985: Elaine Paige (36) & Barbara Dickson (37) Phillip Bailey (33) & Phil Collins (34) Ali Campbell of UB40 (25) & Chrissie Hynde (34) David Bowie (38) & Mick Jagger (42) incidentally it was the 2nd time a song featuring Mick Jagger knocked "I Got You Babe" off #1.
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SheriffFatman
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Post by SheriffFatman on May 29, 2018 20:33:19 GMT 1
I am confused about the timings of the episodes now. I had my Sky+ set to record the late night repeats, but this Thursday they appear to be showing an episode in the early evening then not repeating it.
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on May 29, 2018 20:43:30 GMT 1
12/9/85. Summer's gone. Reid and oh God Wright. We join mid-joshing so someone said something racist or child-abusey. We start with one of the, at most, five disco records ever recorded worth listening to - Amii Stewart's "Knock On Wood" which has returned to the charts apropos of nothing. She's singing live. Needs to be more of that to separate the talents from the soapstars. )Talking of which Simon May co-produced it.) This is a tremendous performance. Thumbs very well up.
More live performance now, from Montreux, as Huey Lewie and Dewie knock out one of the many Powers Of Loveses. Can't be arsed with this. Heard it about a trillion times.
Now another singer live in the studio. Maria Vidal. Who? At 26, apparently. She is not singing live, Wright, you lying f***. This looks and sounds like it's from the Kids From Fame. And that's not a compliment.
Charts. Blancmange at 40. Don't remember that single. Renato has left Rene, who has changed sex and race. Colonel Abr"ah"ams. Red Box at 30. That was a good one. Midge Ure eschewing the subjunctive. Rebecca Storm at 22. No, never heard of her. Sounds like she's made up. Billy Idol in the charts twice.
Back to 13. Marillion. Fish has no voice. So they put him on Ver Pops. Makes sense. He's doing the Dylan bit with cue cards. You can actually hear the rip of the paper. I'm not sure what the point of this is. It undermines that this is a rather sweet and tender love song. Dilly dilly!
Top vierzig breakers. Spinning globe. It's Riff Pilchard. Surrounded by kids. Ooer. And now they're swimming. Oog. This is crap. Red Box. Now this is brilliant. And Midge Ure. This too is brilliant. Wow, things are looking up. Video featuring one of those executive pin toys that are something of the rage in yuppie circles.
Instead of the top 10, we stick with no. 10. Mai Tai. Rubbish. We've got time so we're going to have a top 10 video thing. Princess at 10, rubbish as well. Bush at 8. Down. Damn. Mad Donna at 7. Rubbish. We're on the transatlantic thing again where the British acts are great and the Americans not. Amii Stewart excepted. Cars at 6. Meh. Wonder at 5. His entire career after about 1981 has been a disappointment. Baltimora at 4 amongst a lod of somewhat higher budgeted things. UB40 at 3. All going down. Bonnie Tyler up to 2. Favourite for no. 1 next week. Ooh, Grand Canyon. I've been there. She seems to have the Village People behind her.
Can't remember who is no. 1. Oh, it's Bowie & Jagger. This video is hilarious with the sound turned down. What the intercourse is David wearing? A leopardskin onesie?
Playout is Bananarama with something I've forgotten about. Quite rightly.
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Jun 3, 2018 9:10:34 GMT 1
Numfty-numf. Powellbates. We have Madonna, alas. But two bands making their debut. First one is Red Box. Now, this is a truly brilliant single. One of those with the wrong title, as it is somewhat buried in the lyrics. But this is an anthem for the planet. Lots of drummers. Is one of them Carrie Grant? An affirmation of identity and individuality. The drummers are making the most of their cameo.
That's the best song this year, perhaps. Now it's Madonna with "Angel". OK, let's get shot of this sharpish. Just the same old cliched pap. Video seems to be acut up from other videos. Well, if she can't be arsed to make a video, or an interesting song, then I can't be arsed to watch it.
Midge Ure. Well, back up the heights from the depths. Why is this a solo credit though? It sound very U-Vox. Brooding and slightly sinister with a big big chorus. And you can't begrudge Midge a hit after Band Aid.
Top 40. A non mover at 40 for Blancmange. That doesn't happen very often. Both the non move at 40 and the Blancmange bit. Thompson Twins with "Don't Mess With Doctor Dream". Is that the doctor of "Doctor Doctor"? There are two Powers Of Love in the charts and neither is the FGTH one.
Breakers. Cameo. No codpiece, no hit. 31, Rene & Angela. Never heard this or of them. And Billy Idol. Fun tune. Now more debutants. Lloyd Cole. Surely he's been on before. Rather sweet and inoffensive, but it needs a bit of a kick. It's a bit sub-Sarah.
Top 10. Mai Tai in their now-customary number 9 position. Baltimora hanging on in there, they came close to bouncing back up the charts. A rarity in such rarefied chart air. Bonnie Tyler is still at 2, bit of a surprise. Shame they can't get Bojag into the studio. We end up with Col. Abrams. Is he a real colonel? Don't care. Don't care for the song either.
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Post by o on Jun 4, 2018 16:55:19 GMT 1
Funny to hear the term dilly dilly in Marillion's Lavender blue. And nice mistake on Shakys title, lipstick, power and paint!
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Jun 16, 2018 8:35:03 GMT 1
26/9. Longpeach. Depeche Mode with a very industrial sound to start. This I have never heard before. It's like one of their 1981 love songs having been dipped in Throbbing Gristle. It's pretty decent, completely un-hit-single-ish, yet it's at no. 21. Gahan still looks like he's the pre-teen idol.
Long is perky for Idol. Live video. He's come a long way from Gen X, he now looks like a bona fide rock star. Which I suppose he is. Song is a chorus needing a verse. But what a chorus.
Jennifer Rush. This is surprisingly bearable 30 years on. But that might be because I've turned the sound down and am listening to Cocteau Twins instead.
Charts. John Parr at 38, looking 58. In Germany, Five Star are known as Funf Star. I do like this Clarendon italic. They're still saying Colonel Abrahams. Maria Vidal somehow is at 11.
Right. Breakers. Five Star. Crap. Damned. Good. Although these stage invaders do not look much like traditional Damned fans. Then again this doesn't sound like traditional Damned. Dead Or Alive. The same as their previous records.
Highest new entry. Style Council. They all look like they've stepped of a yacht. God, this is pathetic. The further Weller gets from The Jam, the worse he gets. Gave up, fast-forwarded.
Video top 10. Mai Tai. They seem to be always around. Baltimora at 9. Stewart, Marillion. The good ones are going down. Red Box up to 6 with a magnificent single. Who the f*** is buying "Angel"? The deaf? Midge Ure at 4. Race to the top with Red Box. Wonder at 3, and we pause at 2 for Bonnie Tyler. Can't be bothered with this, the no. 1, or the playout from Vidal.
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Jun 17, 2018 8:46:05 GMT 1
Threeten. Gary Davies and Paul "Who?" Jordan who has gone with the rolled up sleeve jackets look. The line-up does not look too good. Mostly American pap. Talking of which, Colonel Abrams. I think he is on a mini trampoline. It's rubbish.
Highest new entry. No. 20. Iron Maiden. OK, fanbase buy. Live video. Dickinson is no fool, no need to waste money on something that will barely be shown. Sounds like a parody of Spinal Tap. Rubbish.
Cameo. Rubbish.
Charts. New entries from The Alarm and Level 42. Breakers candidates. A-HA, not A-Ha. The Cult and The Cure. Risk of confusion. And breakers. John Parr. Film theme. Think this was not written for the film, hence them just shoehorning the film title in brackets. Smiths. I was more into J&MC. The Cure video deserves a longer play.
Rene & Angela. Utter rubbish.
Top 10. We get more Abrams. f***ing hell. Dilly dilly. Tyler with a plummet. Red Box at 4, slowly but surely. We're getting quite a bit of this. New no. 1. Rush is at 2. How? So...it must be Midge. Thank God. The second-best song in the top 10 is at no. 1. Just disappointing it's not called "If I Were". I remember at the time Midge getting to no. 1 was actually quite a news story - made Radio 4's Today programme as being a sort of feelgood that a Band Aider had got recognition in his own right.
And the No Star playout confirms that it was the only song worth listening to on a desperately poor show.
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SheriffFatman
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Post by SheriffFatman on Jun 19, 2018 23:47:39 GMT 1
I can’t believe The Whole Of The Moon has been climbing slowly and made it as far as 23 but they haven’t shown it, not even amongst the breakers. There does seem to be a very strong tendency in 1985 for Top of the Pops to gravitate towards whatever music in the charts is crapest. (Or has it been on a show they’ve skipped?)
The Show by Doug E. Fresh is a fascinating historical relic, even if not actually any good. Commercially, hip-hop was certainly in its infancy at a time when artists thought they could enhance their track with the theme music from Inspector Gadget and by unexpectedly breaking into Michelle by The Beatles.
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Post by o on Jun 20, 2018 10:21:42 GMT 1
Are there any on this week as I looked and couldn't see any
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Jun 24, 2018 9:19:49 GMT 1
17/10. Powell and Reid. Colonel Abr"ah"ams. We start with Shaky whose rockabilly revivals are becoming ever more pale. Was this release for the sole purpose of showing off a new jacket? Otherwise it is pointless.
A-ha. Who have spent £100,000 on their video. Wow, that's really expensive. Thing is, the song shouldn't really need the video, it's a brilliant slice of synthpop. Especially the chorus bit where it goes all staccato. Although not sure what "Take On Me" actually means.
Elton John with a high new entry. Maybe he will get a solo no. 1 at last? "Nikita". Isn't that a bloke's name? Quite sweet, not that challenging, no depth.
Top 40. Read not-so-subtly sneaks references to his meisterwork in the rundown - "former no. 1 for Georgie Fame", "long-running". Breakers include Level 42, a rather interesting Grace Jones cut (surely that deserved a full play?), the Miami Vice theme which we can hear every week anyway.
Colonel Abr"ah"ams. Bored. Video top 10. Red Box going down, sad face. Madonna with another slice of sh*t. What the f*** is happening to Britain? Midge hanging on at 2, not bad for an ex-no. 1 to last so long. Powell tries a tortured sentence involving number 1 titles. Bored with Rush. And the playout is f***ing Madonna.
Anaemic show.
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