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Post by vya on Jul 9, 2021 23:37:54 GMT 1
11.IV Turner
Wonder Stuff - Size Of A Cow In retrospect there's a West Midlands track back from this to the entertaining glam rock, Noddy Holder reborn, etc, the Stuffies were never really part of the indie scene at all, more music hall even. Accomplished pop fun without pretension, and they almost throw the kitchen sink in, sound-effect wise, to good effect. Fine way to start the show indeed.
Madonna - Rescue Me Mixed feelings about this. There's a slickness that is appealing, but the combination of breathy spoken word verses and hooky short chorus...feels a bit of a rerun of other recent Madonna work. Not close to her best.
Alison Limerick - Where Love Lives (Come On In) Sharp haircut, nearly robotic dance moves, this is a reasonably decent slice of London house that sounds very much of its time. Nodding back to both Italo House and Rhythm Nation period Janet Jackson, and something that always sounded like it would be a hit.
Charts: not much really noteworthy
Gary Clail On-U Sound System - Human Nature Nearly magnificent
Monie Love & Adeva - Ring My Bell A bit less than the sum of its parts, somehow, unfortunately.
Mike & The Mechanics - Word Of Mouth Dictionary definition of driving rock. Not devoid of charm. But I bet Patrick Bateman would love it.
March top 5 Albums Blondie - Heart of Glass (puts everything on the show in the shade) REM - Losing My Religion (class) Farm - All Together Now (oh god) Chris Rea - Auberge (unassuming) Eurythmics - Love Is A Stranger (REALLY puts everything on the show in the shade)So the best tracks are oldies...
Dannii Minogue - Love And Kisses Lame
Chesney Hawkes - The One And Only He's enjoying himself. It's not dreadful. Keeping "Sit Down" off the top is annoying tho
The Shamen - Hyperreal Talk about saving the best for last. Beyond where the Beloved have been, from indie properly into dance, with added depth and mysticism. Some beauty here. Special.
Really that Shamen track just shows up how mediocre much of the other offerings were
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Post by vya on Jul 5, 2021 20:47:17 GMT 1
ohfourohfour Davies
Inspiral Carpets - Caravan Seems a bit of a step backwards for the Inspirals, both rawer and less exciting than a string of excellent singles in 89 and 90 had been. Give us more organ! A disappointing comeback, in fact.
Simpsons - Deep, Deep Trouble Who needs a tune anyway (samples behind the chorus apart)? How long can this cash-in endure?
N-Joi - Anthem A welcome re-release. Even if it already, by early 1991, sounds of its (autumn 1990) time, spacious, bouncy, London post-Italo house, a sound of pirate airwaves in the SE postcodes a few months before that. Now made available to the Woolworths-going mass.
Charts: The two lowest chart entries, from Alison Limerick and The Shamen, among the highlights here
Waterboys - The Whole Of The Moon In its way not an unwelcome re-release, either. Not subtle, the Celtic over-emoting is akin to that of Rod Stewart, and they've done more complex, more complete songs since recording this. But as it deserved to be a proper hit first time out, yes, well done.
The Mock Turtles - Can You Dig It Another re-release (well, polished re-recording), while there is definitely a bit of jumping on the Madchester bandwagon by their new major label record company, this is fun and sing-along, if unchallenging. And it really does sound like the music that you'd expect the brother of Alan Partridge to make. Glad it's finally got a bigger audience.
C&C Music Factory - Here We Go (Let's Rock & Roll) A weaker cookie-cutter carbon-copy accompaniment to their previous. Some nice touches, and samples, but, ah, we heard them last time. This is The Look of Love Part II, not a new single in its own right.
Black Box - Strike It Up Rather this than a megamix, and the use of organ (samples) here beats that of the Carpets earlier tonight. Seaside ballroom stuff, whether Rimini or Blackpool. Essential it is not. Appealling neither.
Feargal Sharkey - I've Got News For You Dull, mostly.
Chesney Hawkes - The One And Only "Chip and Chesney Hawkes heading to Romford as part of ‘dream’ tour" (The Romford Recorder, 24 February 2017). Some dream.
Mike & The Mechanics - Word Of Mouth A bit too aggressive in its relentless beat and sententious, un-profound, obvious, lyrics.
Unexpectedly I think the Mock Turtles, who never even aspired to set the world on fire, were the highlight here.
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Post by vya on Jul 5, 2021 20:13:31 GMT 1
XXVIII.III, Brookes
Dannii Minogue - Love and Kisses Oh god I hope Jason and Craig McLachlan don't have siblings. Seriously weak. A one-line chorus hook where they forgot to write a song to accompany it.
Bee Gees - Secret Love It's OK, but Diana Ross will make a better stab of it, if she's not done so already a few years back. Also, whereas this style (and tune) suits "Chain Reaction", there's not much discretion hinted at tonally here.
Gary Clail On-U Sound System - Human Nature This is a thing. Great riffs and hooks, and the lyrics are true, and then the "let the carnival begin" interlude is more sinister and menacing still. I remember Steven Wells' review saying "no the problem is capitalism". Nah mate, Gary Clail gets it. Quietly magnificient, muscially above all.
Charts: Not sure the Soft Cell (naff) remix isn't the best thing mentioned here
Snap! - Mega Mix The last thing we need. Second only to a global pandemic. (On tour with MC Hammer, oh joy?) Alexander O'Neal could just about maybe nearly get away with it, Bobby Brown couldn't, Black Box certainly couldn't, who's next? The 49ers? Malandra Burrows? Surely it is over for them, a year too late.
James - Sit Down A bit more polished than its original release, what on earth is this gem doing in the top 10? I'm not sure that recent singles (like "Lose Control") weren't in some ways even more accomplished, but this is (a) an obvious big hit and (b) no less obviously going to prompt wacky and annoying behaviour on dancefloors. Wow.
Scritti Politti ft Shabba Ranks - She's A Woman Obscure Beatles Track + Sensitive and Slightly Weedy Pop + Reggae = Something Really Rather Fine.
Definition of Sound - Wear Your Love Like Heaven A British De La Soul, sort of. Main problem with this is how blatantly they're emulating De La, although it's far from improbable that DoS themselves are the more interesting and creative of the two acts. Nice samples in the mix. Not earthshattering but a success.
Rolling Stones - Highwire More or less about the decision of the US to intervene after Iraq invaded Kuwait, well, they have more political sus than Right Said Fred, at least. The sound is immediately recognizable as the Stones, and it'd sound great in a full, un-socially distanced, stadium. Neither a career peak or low.
Chesney Hawkes - The One And Only This is so much more polished and respectable than a counterpart of this sort of thing in the 70s would have been. Which is our loss.
Jive Bunny & the Mastermixers - Over To You John (Here We Go Again) Surely the joke is over. I think even the Rotherham DJs know it's over, given that this was for charidee, mate.
An odd mix ranging from excellent to dreadful
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Post by vya on Jul 4, 2021 22:54:54 GMT 1
Day after the Spring Equinox, Turner "The emphasis is on talent". Well, we'll see.
Jesus Loves You - Bow Down Mister Boy George's most eclectic record, but hardly his best. Sing-a-long, though. Too much E, mate.
Simple Minds - Let There Be Love Before they Became Pompous, they could be pretty appealing. Not any more though.
Banderas - This Is Your Life Slick, contemporary, progressive, sophisticated innovative dance-pop with a real song (and real singer) attached. I like it. Check their no 41 follow-up "She Sells" for a step beyond this though.
Charts: not mega appealling selection of things climbing TBH
Quartz introducting Dina Carroll - It's Too Late The better calibre of Suburban Wine Bar Music, now that Demis Roussous is not in general circulation.
Pet Shop Boys - Where The Streets Have No Name (Can't Take My Eyes Off You) It gets a bit Southend Pier (the family entertainment far end before it burned down bit, not the mods and rockers and Bad Manners fans and fighting and drinking shore bit) at a point here. Silly? Yes. Preposterous? Maybe. Genius? Not quite, but nearly. That the PSBs have the confidence to pull this off is a point in their favour.
Breakers: Definition of Sound - Wear Your Love Like Heaven: seems fun Scritti Politti ft Shabba Ranks - She's A Woman: in no way should this work, but it kinda does Jane's Addiction - Been Caught Stealing: bludgeoning and sweaty, old school rock values for better or worse
Feargal Sharkey - I've Got News For You More smokey jazz bar than wine club, this is kind of (almost impressively) earnest. But Sharkey is so much better at bunberying.
Roxette - Joyride Too polished for its own good, could do with a bit more eccentricity to add character.
Hale & Pace & the Stonkers - The Stonk At least it has no pretentions about its artistic value (even if it considers itself amusing). A long way from Simple Minds' track, if as appealling.
Megadeth - Hangar 18 There is a real pop sensibility here, among and amid the noise. As Megadeth can't really make it among the serious hard rockers, this is fitting.
Curate's egg.
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Post by vya on Jul 4, 2021 22:19:57 GMT 1
1403 Mayo, red noses all round
Chesney Hawkes - The One And Only Nik Kershaw for some reason I found unutterably naff at this time. As both a songwriter (as here) and performer he is nothing of the sort. This is not really his best composition though, it's too straightforward. The lyrics are a bit...facile/obvious, and it's easily to imagine Tremelo Jr getting annoying, Jase Gone Indie-ish for Kids. But. It's alright. No more, but no less.
R.E.M. - Losing My Religion Deserves to be played in full. Supreme. There's a real anger here, along with musicianship and lyrical skill.
Ride - Unfamiliar Deep, swirling, amazing, entirely un-TOTP1991. Lead (but not the best) track of their finest EP, in both sound and cover art terms (these things came as a package). Layered, complex, gorgeous. Make Today Forever.
Charts: I love that Vixen track (far from their best though it is)
Bee Gees - Secret Love You took a mystery and made me want it. Then repeated it and made me think not.
Queen - I'm Going Slightly Mad Poor, frankly.
Massive (Attack) - Unfinished Sympathy Pure, astounding, quality. Best thing here, even in the face of strong competition. Only act likely to appear on ToTP who went on to have a member serving as the artistic director of an EFL football team. I mean, does more then one EFL club have one of those? Take me home, Nympsfield Road...
Rod Stewart - Rhythm Of My Heart Somewhere in that ambigious territory that nestles nervously on the boundaries of Theydon Bois and south-of-the-Clyde Glasgow, and more to the point on the narrow high wall between Generic Rod and Parody Rod, it's all here. Over-emoting, bagpipes, but as ever, He Means It, Man. There are more shameful Rod records from this period to love than this ("Almost Illegal", for example). A real guilty pleasure.
Happy Mondays - Loose Fit The Mondays are by now above all a Phenomenon. And when they are doing their own thing more or less largely unchanged by fame. Which maybe serves above all to highlight their limitations. There are some fab sonic aspects on this track between verbal sections.
Clash - Should I Stay Or Should I Go The charts at this time are a funny place. There are worse tracks than this one doing the rounds, as well as many better.
Jesus Jones - Who, Where, Why Why, indeed.
A very mixed episode, very very good in parts, and also, unusually, an almost entirely (Jesus Jones the most glaring exception) guitar-led one. But overall, more pluses than minuses
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Post by vya on Jun 27, 2021 23:42:15 GMT 1
07 - Dollar - Mirror Mirror 09 - Madness - It Must Be Love 08 - OMD - Maid Of Orleans 07 - Fun Boy Three & Bananarama - It Ain't What You Do It's The Way That You Do It 08 - Derek & The Dominoes - Layla 10 - Dollar - Give Me Back My Heart 06 - Joan Jett & The Blackhearts - I Love Rock 'N' Roll 09 - Kid Creole & The Coconuts - I'm a Wonderful Thing Baby 08 - ABC - The Look Of Love 05 - Bananarama - Shy Boy 06 - Madness - Driving In My Car 09 - Boystown Gang - Can't Take My Eyes Off You 07 - Rocker's Revenge - Walking On Sunshine 08 - Chicago - Hard To Say I'm Sorry 04 - Beatles - Love Me Do 10 - Marvin Gaye - (Sexual) Healing
I've gotta say: that was a breathtakingly good set of songs
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Post by vya on Jun 25, 2021 23:02:38 GMT 1
Steps edited in to mine too!
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Post by vya on Jun 22, 2021 20:05:43 GMT 1
07 - Chef - Chocolate Salty Balls (PS I Love You) 08 - Steps - Tragedy 04 - Fatboy Slim - Praise You 01 - 911 - A Little Bit More 07 - Offspring - Pretty Fly (For A White Guy) 07 - Armand Van Helden featuring Duane Harden - You Don't Know Me 05 - Blondie - Maria 05 - Lenny Kravitz - Fly Away 09 - Britney Spears - Baby One More Time 04 - Boyzone - When The Going Gets Tough 08 - B*Witched - Blame It On The Weatherman 03 - Mr Oizo - Flat Beat 05 - Martine McCutcheon - Perfect Moment 04 - Westlife - Swear It Again 07 - Backstreet Boys - I Want It That Way 02 - Boyzone - You Needed Me 05 - Shanks & Bigfoot - Sweet Like Chocolate 04 - Baz Luhrmann - Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen) 07 - S Club 7 - Bring It All Back 08 - Vengaboys - Boom Boom Boom Boom 06 - ATB - 9pm (Till I Come) 04 - Ricky Martin - Livin' La Vida Loca 07 - Ronan Keating - When You Say Nothing At All 04 - Westlife - If I Let You Go 06 - Geri Halliwell - Mi Chico Latino 07 - Lou Bega - Mambo No 5 (A Little Bit Of ...) 05 - Vengaboys - We're Going To Ibiza! 04 - Eiffel 65 - Blue (Da Ba Dee) 08 - Christina Aguilera - Genie In A Bottle 02 - Westlife - Flying Without Wings 04 - Five - Keep On Movin' 07 - Geri Halliwell - Lift Me Up 06 - Robbie Williams - She's The One 04 - Wamdue Project - King Of My Castle 01 - Cliff Richard - The Millennium Prayer 01 - Westlife - I Have A Dream
Too many number ones, and too many of them are not good
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Post by vya on Jun 19, 2021 12:14:04 GMT 1
7 Mar Campbell
Hale & Pace - The Stonk Getting the BBC to make comic records is like asking them to pick the Eurovision entry. The Welsh male voice choir bit maybe, though.
Joey B Ellis & Tynetta Hare - Go For It! (Heart and Fire) Inexcusable putting this charmless tuneless dross on three consecutive episodes. FFWD.
Quartz ft Dina Carroll - It's Too Late Carroll has an appealing voice, and this production and arrangement is not at all unpleasant, although one wonders which "Tapestry" track will be next for the contempory dance treatment.
Charts: more than a few promising new entries here, so I guess the breakers won't appear...
Living Colour - Love Rears Its Ugly Head Really a fabulous record, a bit funk, a bit rock, a bit...purple, man it'd have been great to have them on TOTP doing the full song. Such a groove and such soulfulness and expression in the vocals.
Ned's Atomic Dustbin - Happy Quite an eccentric record, two basses, as Campbell notes, a combination of loudness and bareness. And not really a chorus to speak of. Potentially the peak achievement of British grunge, despite, or because of all that. The riffs are the winning thing, and the drumming ties it all together.
Top 5 Feb albums (see, no breakers!) George Michael - Freedom 90 Elton John - Healing Hands Chris Isaak - Wicked Game Gloria Estefan - Coming Out Of The Dark Queen - Innuendo (OK, ok, but I think the breakers would have presented a more interesting and lesser known set of songs)
Xpansions - Move Your Body (Elevation) So insistent that it's hard not either to be drawn to it, or maybe to despite it utterly. I don't despise it, maybe as it is not unexciting.
Roxette - Joyride A bit more polished and obvious than the more spiky and eccentric highlights of their previous album, the incongruous line about "her beautiful balloon" notwithstanding, and "the sunshine is a lady, who rocks you like a baby". Random words plucked from a dictionary? Not sure they know what "joyride" now means in the UK (and in Ireland, what might it mean there?). Coming up, a song about twoccing. Competent, but too many primary colours.
The Clash - Should I Stay Or Should I Go? Go, probably, really.
Charlatans - Over Rising Even they seem to be ramping the dance beat up a bit now. But the hammond-led sound is unique. Not their strongest song, but the gift of the Charlatans is maybe more about creating and expressing moods. This is OK. And it has a proper conclusion
What was annoying (more annoying than Campbell) was what could have been on the breakers: LL Cool J, Dream Warriors, Bee Gees, Jesus Loves You (i.e. Boy George), Echo & the Bunnymen, Banderas, R.E.M., not a bad track among them
Still the better show of the two, but no classic
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Post by vya on Jun 19, 2021 11:45:51 GMT 1
28 Feb Brambles
N-Joi - Adrenalin Hardish, drivingish, house broadly in an 808 State vein. Not much in the way of a hook, more a persistent threat, with annoying bleeps, and early 80s synths. Creative, not quite robotic, dancing. In all, a curio.
Stevie B - Because I Love You (The Postman Song) Piano balladry, a bit bland but at least it is unobtrusive. Lots of space in the music, but not much breathing speech on the vocal track. File in the "this is what they like in America" box
Free - All Right Now FFWD
Charts: Gulf War bowlderlised "Massive" the best new entry by a long, long, way, Living Colour the only climber I'd care to hear
Massive [Attack]- Unfinished Sympathy Impressed that Brambles mentions (i think fairly accurately) their pre-history. A string section on stage suited and bowtied. Dignified, haunting, magnificent. Singlehandedly outdoes everything the Wild Bunch (if we omit the original take on what became "Buffalo Stance", Smith & Mighty and even Soul II Soul have done in just a few minutes. Gaining respect with a cool British dialect.
The Clash - Should I Stay Or Should I Go? Advert success means they finally get a top 10 hit. The thing is they did so many things vastly superior to this. I'd rather live by the river.
Breakers Quartz ft Dina Carroll - It's Too Late: attractive if inessential stripped-down post-Soul II Soul-style cover Mantronix - Don't Go Messin' With My Heart: more post-Soul II Soul sounds, but the song isn't up to much Almighty - Free N Easy: meat and potatoes rock with a bit of gruff rawness
Jesus Jones - Who? Where? Why? Well they were adding dance tracks and samples to their indie guitar shtick before "WFL", I suppose. Maybe the problem is not so much that they jump on bandwagons as that they're not very good. Stretched out, a less witty, more washed, more polite, Pop Will Eat Itself. We don't need that.
The Source ft Candi Staton - You Got The Love A fine record (can't really go wrong with Knuckles or Staton, let alone both), but I wish TOTP would bring back Pan's People or Ruby Flipper and give us a "Disco Duck" reinterpretation in dance
Madonna - Crazy For You (remix) If nothing else this shows how her sound, her lyrical concerns, and image have all developed since its original release. It's a bit better than OK, but no "Oh Father"
Simpsons - Do The BartmanNo thanks (broken down but not fully destroyed bit of the Berlin Wall in the video dates it)
Joey B Ellis & Tynetta Hare - Go For It! (Heart and Fire)Not only is it from Rocky V, but MC Hammer is involved. Unlistenable.
Brambles actually a pretty decent presenter here. Apart from Massive Attack the music was mostly nothing special, or rather worse.
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Post by vya on Jun 11, 2021 21:01:45 GMT 1
21 Feb, Goodier
Chris Rea - "Auberge" A fairly generic and boring Chris Rea track, really, maybe with added horns, he's done much better.
Kenny Thomas - "Outstanding" A misleadingly named track. But "Vaguely tolerable" wouldn't scan.
Chart highlights: MBV are gone, what is here is less promising than last week
DJH ft Stefy - "Think About.." Advanced Italo House mining familiar seams in the sample mines, with added wurlitzer for good measure. The miming is more preposterous than is typically the case though. Track is mildly fun (until the unnecessary male rapper enters), but insubstantial. Surely the summer of 1989 can't continue for much longer.
Thunder - "Love Walked In" This lot are so earnest. And mediocre at best.
Breakers: Julian Cope - "Beautiful Love": pacey and enjoyable rather than essential Stevie B - "Because I Love You (The Postman Song)": US FM ballad but with lots of space Joey B Ellis And Tynetta Hare - "Go For It (Heart and Fire): from Rocky V, of the same calibre as the Mutant Turtles tracks Weird excerpts of the songs that didn't represent them well
Xpansions - "Move Your Body (Elevation)" A renamed rerelease that had been all over Kiss FM the previous year. A (London?) twist and take off of Italo House too, really. Fairly attention-catching in its way. For a week or so.
MC Hammer - "Here Comes The Hammer" An old, and particularly unappealling, track from him. Please let him go! Zero redeeming qualities to this at all. Utter rubbish.
Oleta Adams - "Get Here" Real quality
The Simpsons - "Do The Bartman" No
Living Colour - "Love Rears Its Ugly Head" Such a brilliant innovative act with loads of should've-been-better-known songs finally getting a hit. The plaintive passionate voice of the singer is probably the highlight here, but a real grower of a track. Probably the best thing on this episode.
Hmm.
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Post by vya on Jun 11, 2021 20:29:35 GMT 1
14 Feb, Davies
Nomad fr MC Mikee Freedom - "(I Wanna Give You) Devotion" OK. But admittedly not a patch on "Devotion" by Ten City from a coupla years earlier, which had one or two elements (well, soulful vocals) in common.
Kylie Minogue - "What Do I Have To Do" The basis of something really good. I can imagine K-Klass could have made something rather haunting with this. But decent.
Chart highlights: Some good new entries here, Living Colour, MY BLOODY VALENTINE, actually lots of decent indie stuff here. Will they show any of it though? (I remember it was Tommy Vance presenting the relevant edition of the top 40 countdown on R1, just like years earlier)
The Source ft Candi Staton - "You Got The Love" Didn't realise they'd even borrowed parts of Frankie Knuckles' "Your Love" video, but why not? Maybe the people who are patently not Candi Staton mouthing the lyrics is a dig at Black Box, C&C, Milli Vanilli, 49ers, Technotronic, Snap!, etc, etc. A fine piece of musical art.
808 State - "In Yer Face" Trying to look more baggy manc than dance, not sure this is a good idea. Inimitable 808 State style, but a little bit more incidental than some of their other tracks. OK though. A welcome presence.
Free - "All Right Now" More unnecessary 70s revivalism.
Railway Children - "Every Beat Of The Heart" A re-release, and one I have a real soft spot for. Kind of 80s pre-Roses jangly fey indie paced and ramped up a bit, lovely guitar sound. (Real indie band signed to major label, not created by them, like so many). Rather lovely. I could listen to this over and over.
Chris Isaak - "Blue Hotel" Not as magical as "Wicked Game", but atmospheric still, more than Americana revivalism (a male Lana del Rey avant le jour?) , more a chorus and a plaintive yelp than a complete song, but breezy and cinematic and a gorgeous voice (as well as suit). Good stuff.
Praise - "Only You" Patently manufactured Enigma cash-in (on a car ad, I think) commanded by someone who'd been listening to "Heaven and Las Vegas" too much, too, but OK within those constraints. But putting "To Here Knows When" on this edition would have been a better example of something actually enigmatic...
The Simpsons - "Do The Bartman" The worst hit single Tracey Ullman has had any even indirect association with. Maybe putting (a cartoon representation of) Neil Kinnock in the video would redeemed it a bit. Not actually the worst rap we've had on TOTP recently, though.
Jimmy Barnes with INXS - "Good Times" Bluesy pub rock, err, not my pint of bud, thanks.
There really should have Breakers tonight (Julian Cope, Jellyfish...), but in places a sound edition, the Railway Children being the real icing on the cake.
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Post by vya on Jun 4, 2021 21:27:35 GMT 1
7 Feb Brookes
Kim Appleby - "G.L.A.D." Missing Mel musically, as well as in every other way. Too conscious a nod to F.L.M., but the real problem is that whereas this perfectly decent track would have filled dancefloors in 1987, now those days are gone. There's a happy energy here, the now obligatory rap break is less objectionable than many, but somehow it's all too late.
Gloria Estefan - "Coming Out Of The Dark" Oh this is SO manufactured for big stadium shows, with added gospel choir. But this is not in which her strengths lie...
The UK Mixmasters - "Night Fever Megamix" From the same source as Yell! and Bombarulina, says Bruno. And this a recommendation? Jive Bunny (who clearly inspired the video, too) have a lot to answer for. And Bee Gee "tribute" acts too. Dear, dear, hideous.
Charts: No number 40 apparently (it was "Someday" by Mariah Carey, pop-pickers). Ah, climbers only. How odd.
Oleta Adams - "Get Here" Seems this is legit now that Massive Attack can be called by their name again in Beebland. Her voice is haunting, and there is next to nothing inessential in the recording. (Perhaps superior to the Brenda Russell original). Moving, heart-wrenching, quality. Something other than pop, really, too.
The Simpsons - "Do The Bartman" I'd rather not, to be honest. Oh my ears. (The video is entertaining, at least. And it is a better take on the post-Beasties world than what Morris Minor and the Majors did)
Kenny Thomas - "Outstanding" Old school English soul updated a bit. They'll love it at the better joints on Canvey Island. Seemingly all live vocals here, too. But why does it leave me indifferent?
Top 5 albums of Jan Phil Collins - "Do You Remember?" (music for and by bank managers) Whitney Houston - "I'm Your Baby Tonight" (sing it, Whitney!) Enigma - "Sad(e)ness Part 1" (well beyond Taize) Elton John - "Healing Hands" (Reg revival warranted) Madonna - "Vogue" So top two both greatest hits collections
N.K.O.T.B. - "Games" Oh no, the restyled (on the record if not in Bruno's introduction) New Kids are trying to be more "mature", or at least, as mature as Vanilla Ice. They are unconvicing as hard lads, but they were that before. So it's not even original. The bareness of the production and instrumentation is a plus. Like "Ice Ice Baby", when they shut up, there is something here.
2 In A Room - "Wiggle It" Infectious. Needs to be quarantined. Better than MC Hammer though.
KLF ft Children of the Revolution - "3a.m. Eternal" KLF is gonna rock ya!
The Source ft Candi Staton - "You Got The Love" Ah this a record with a complex history. Nice bit of Frankie Knuckles in the background of this (close to submlime) version. And the voice on Staton. A classic in the making, surely.
Two reforms this week: Missing out a lot of the charts, and by the looks of it being a bit less brutal in cutting the video clips. The second one is definitely a good thing.
The pick of songs was a bit hit and miss though, and Bruno faintly ridiculous.
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Post by vya on Jun 4, 2021 20:55:15 GMT 1
31st Jan Turner, another shorter than usual edition
EMF - I Believe Weak compared with Single I. A few interesting touches. Teenage energy, yes. Major-label shaped ersatz rebellion? That too.
Ralph Tresvant - Sensitivity #NiceGuysOfOkCupid. Slightly less than the sum of its parts, unfortunately. Not dreadful but he is selling himself so hard it's almost embarrassing. A theme tune for condom adverts, maybe.
Charts: far too much 70s revivalism, in one form or another
Nomad ft MC Mikey Freedom: "(I Wanna Give You) Devotion" Not a hit first time round, although it's so insistent and in-your-face it was always gonna break through. The female vocals, a mix of Salsoul gospel, are the (disco) icing on the cake, the rap is competent too. Since the first release "Maggie came but now she's slaughtered" has come true (reference in the rap to the poll tax confirms the point). Very English
Praise - "Only You" At its worse: an inferior imitation of Enigma. At its best: a pastiche of the Cocteau Twins not on peak form. Patently manufactured, though, with the sampled panpipes an' Marvin Gaye an' all. But tolerable.
Kylie Minogue - "What Do I Have To Do" Possibly her finest moment to date. Less poppy, more mature, space-age sounds, refreshing, but maybe shows up the limitations of her voice more than more recent singles have done.
Soho - "Hippy Chick" A new TOTP performance, both singers in big ties with the word "CENSORED" on (apparently a reference to BBC approach to dissent from UK participation in the Gulf War). This is a rather brilliant record.
KLF - "3a.m. Eternal" (non-naff) conceptual art as pop record. Genius. Featuring a brick mobile phone in this presentation. Mad, genius. ("Dressed like the Ku Klux Klan" japes Turner)
Vanilla Ice - "Play That Funky Music" Oh, please turn it off. This is worse than MC Hammer. Please let his career end soon, too.
(Continuing omission of Oleta Adams' "Get Here" from the show seems wrong. Might be a Gulf War BBC Excessive Censorship thing - the lyric about "crossing the desert like an Arab man" was what i suppose would now be called a micro-aggression, apparently. Idiots everywhere, then as now)
With the exception of the ice cream man, this wasn't worse than tolerable
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vya
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Post by vya on May 28, 2021 21:08:13 GMT 1
24 Jan Mayo, an unusually short edition to allow a news update on the Gulf War.
Tongue N Cheek - Forget Me Nots Fails the "do it differently or do it better" test on both points, unfortunately. From an act capable of a bit more.
Robert Palmer - Mercy Mercy Me/I Want You Mid-market suburban wine bar music. But why'd you not play the originals?
2 In A Room - Wiggle It They can't sing. No way is this a positive example of US culture entering the UK realm. Fun? I suppose so. Annoying, for sure.
The Simpsons - Do The Bart Man As regards the music, no way is this a positive example of US culture entering the UK realm. Fun? I suppose so. Annoying, for sure.
Off-Shore - I Can't Take The Power Worst thing so far tonight. Just dull.
A Tribe Called Quest - Can I Kick It? Great layering of samples and slick optimistic rap. In the same sort of areas as De La Soul (in the vid), but superior.
Rick Astley - Cry For Help Escaping SAW, going deeper into balladry. Not unsuccessfully. Maybe laying on the elements a bit thick though (the intro verse barely progresses before throwing us into the chorus, the instrumentation is generic, the gospel choir is overwhelming), but with a bit more development, this could have been really good. Really this is only half a song, and therein lies the problem.
Queen - Innuendo Epic in a minor way, and like nothing else around at the time. The band's talent indisputably on display all-round. Probably the point of the lyrics only became clearer at the end of the year.
Not so great overall
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vya
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Post by vya on May 28, 2021 20:40:05 GMT 1
19 Jan Campbell, as ever trying too hard to be funny
Soho - Hippychick Peace signs on tops to coincide with start of the Gulf War, presumably. Which seems to contradict the lyrics. Jumping out. Unpretentious fun, verging on brilliance. "I stopped loving you since the miners strike" is a line. How soon is now? Great start to the show.
Belinda Carlisle - Summer Rain Overproduced, of course, but relatively subtle and tasteful, with a bit of a melancholic undertow. OK but no Circle In The Sand. (And cut off at precisely the wrong moment)
Charts: The Big Dish! Golden sophisto-pop! Orbital! Oleta Adams! Promising...
Alexander O'Neal - All True Man Ah, at last some new material from him after rereleases, remixes, megamix, etc. Worth the wait? More or less. But somehow this is less than the sum of its parts (some gorgeous instrumentation there), and I suspect fashion has moved on. Pity as there's something here.
Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes - (I've Had) The Time Of My Life Films (and TV screenings thereof) are now messing up the charts nearly as much as TV ads and soap stars. Obviously Warnes and Medley could have made something sublime together, whereas this is merely tolerable.
KLF - 3am Eternal (Machine Gun fire edited out because of Gulf War).Both in appearance and sound, this is quite mad. Even by KLF standards. A brilliant recipe of multi-faceted parts. A bit of Tricky Disco in there I think. The kind of creative brilliance that ToTP was once made for.
Breakers: The High - Box Set Go: a re-release from last summer, Madchester before it got too dancy, deep, psychedelic, attractive, introspective, yes. A Tribe Called Quest - Can I Kick It? Fluent vaguely mellow rap, agreeable and hopeful The Stranglers - Always The Sun: another re-release, and an utterly gorgeous one, polished musically, sharper lyrically
Sting - All This Time Not sure the wackiness of the video compliments the song (probably trying too hard to tone down its lyrical seriousness), a slick and smooth sound, but one of the stronger solo singles from Sumner.
Seal - Crazy Gets better and better on repeated listening.
Enigma - Sadness (Part One) A worthy and almost brilliant number one. Diabolique ou divin? Je ne sais pas.
Ralph Tresvant - Sensitivity Slick new man lyrics, a kind of accompaniment to the O'Neal number earlier. Problem is his voice is too weak to really pull this off. Not enough space in the track either, it's a regimented smoothness. Nice but.
A pretty strong edition
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vya
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Post by vya on May 26, 2021 22:45:24 GMT 1
Tenth Jan Brambles
Bananarama - Preacher Man Generic contemporary dance beats, but old pre-SAW-era living-in-a-South-London-squat style soft vocals to give a hint of 1982 as well as 1991. Inexplicable that the planned release of the far superior "Trippin' On Your Love" was pulled in favour of this not unpleasant but inconsequential piece of fluff. On a train to blandsville.
Whitney Houston - All The Man That I Need Whitney Whitneying very much better than she has done for some time, but the video cut is typically brutal and doesn't really do the song justice. Powerful, beautfiful, yeah a bit overproduced but her voice blows all that away. Would have loved to have heard it in full.
Charts; The High with a re-release, the Prefabs with an EP, the Stranglers with an excellent re-release, it's a new year! Will there be breakers tonight? Of course not!
Pop Will Eat Itself - X, Y and Zee Blander than their previous (often dull or over-cartoonish) fayre, even with a hint of Italo-house pianos, and also Italo-house-ish creative use of samples. But the TEDIUM. Can anything good come out of Stourbridge? On balance, no.
John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John - The Grease Megamix As good as it was in the 70s of course (I admit the subtitles made me notice things I'd never noticed before in the lyrics). But relevant to Jan 1991 and essential ToTP inclusion? Hardly.
Off-Shore - I Can't Take the Power Cheap generic lazy house. So poor.
Jesus Jones - International Bright Young Thing A touch harder than "Real Real Real", almost nodding back to their initial uncompromising brilliance, only more compromised and less brilliant. Looking at how they're playing at being BBC (Mark Goodier) approved wacky in their choreographed rebellious dancing and head-rocking, in retrospect it's obvious they were always destined for the corporate gig circuit on which they went on to spend years. Not without some nice touches, but if this is the future I'm emigrating.
MC Hammer - Pray Christianity has been the source of much insightful, inspirational, beautiful, meaningful, and eternally valuable works of art over the centuries. And also this. Thoughts and prayers for those who have it inflicted upon them.
Enigma - Sadness (Part One) The titular reference to the Marquis excised for the UK market, but the innovative mix of Gregorian chant, fimrly in the pre-Summorium Pontificum era, and sensitively and carefully paced beats and other stuff is much more where it's at. Rather wonderful, even.
Robert Palmer - Mercy Mercy Me/I Want You Well the man is capable and not without emotion and the songs are up there. A better two-in-one offer than what Will to Power offered.
Iron Maiden - Bring Your Daughter....to the Slaughter Fun bit of acting going on here. Obviously an early-Jan no 1 but no worse for that. And preferable to the PWEI and Jesus Jones chart exploits earlier.
Sting - All This Time Birettas still in here. Biblical quotes too. This really is TradCath night. Polished, not unlikeable adult pop for the FM radio, but with more depth than most. I like it.
A mixed bag.
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vya
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Post by vya on May 22, 2021 21:23:09 GMT 1
3 one 90 one Davies
Betty Boo - 24 Hours Less gimmicky, more straightforward than her previous, maybe more appealling for it. A bit minor though. She's dressed as a cross between a bumble bee (possibly referencing a rap lyric) and the post below a Belisha beacon.
Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes - (I've Had) Time Of My Life The gap between rereleases of film songs that were big hits (as those films now get TV debuts) before gets ever shorter. Competent performers, tolerable song, but why?
Gazza - Geordie Boys (Gazza Rap) He's having a laugh, and good for him. We're not though. Bad luck for us. Put your shirt on man!
Black Box - The Total Mix They think it's all over. It is now. Hurry, hurry and go away.
Seal - Crazy Classy and almost futuristic, clearly a vocal talent to watch out for. Even if the lyrics are maybe a bit too impressionistic rather than precise. Fine production and electrosoundscape too. The best thing here so far, by far.
C&C Music Factory ft Freedom Williams - Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now) Commercial dance aggression, a step beyond Jam & Lewis and New Jack Swing with added 70s female vox, this sounds potentially massive and in its way groundbreaking.
December Albums Cliff Richard - Saviour's Day Carreras/Domingo/Pavarotti - O Sole Mio Phil Collins - Do You Remember? Elton John - Sacrifice Madonna - Vogue
Anthrax - Got The Time Adolescent frustration, relatively raw and bare, kind of entertaining. Had no idea it was a Joe Jackson cover...
Patsy Cline - Crazy In its way a classic, charming and despairing in one.
Iron Maiden - Bring Your Daughter... To The Slaughter Accessible for the Maiden track, if hardly their finest moment. Theatrical, almost pantomimesque.
Orchestra on the Half Shell - Turtle Rhapsody Saving the worst for last.
Considering the slim pickings offered by the post-Xmas chart this show wasn't half as bad as it might have been
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vya
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Post by vya on May 11, 2021 22:49:48 GMT 1
St Dominic of Silos, St Ammon, St Dominic of Brescia Brookes, in a "cuddly studio" apparently
Snap! - Mary Had A Little Boy The best thing to be said about this is that there is some space in the music. If there is a version in which more space replaces Turbo B's offerings, I'm sure that would improve it vastly.
Carpenters - Close To You Sentimental. Too much so.
Charts: the first (only?) top 40 chart hit to mention Hezbollah? And Innocence going down already, disappointingly.
INXS - Disappear A song lacking a proper middle 8, the chorus just barges in. Instrumental bit with humming is nice enough, a bit early 80s.
Enigma - Sadness (part 1) "Gregorian music": well, up to a point. Far more interesting and appealling than anything else on here so far. Not sure this combination of medieval and (post) modern should work, but it mostly does.
John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John - The Grease Megamix "The 80s return": the 70s, surely? No doubt about the quality of at least some of the material here, even if a re-release is not strictly necessary.
MC Hammer - Pray My taste in religious music is definitely closer to Gregorian chant than to this.
Status Quo - The Anniversary Waltz Part 2 Not half as strong a medley as Part 1 was. Getting into the Quo as Jive Bunny territory.
Cliff Richard - Saviour's Day More hook-laden and appealling than the tedium of "Mistletoe and Wine", at least. Not actively repulsive nor quite bland.
Vanilla Ice - Ice Ice Baby Actually Turbo B is maybe not so bad a rapper. Or even lyricist.
Jive Bunny & the Mastermixers - The Crazy Party Mixes Surely this can't continue for much longer?
What a mass of almost unmitigated dross, leavened only by the superfluous, from start to finish
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vya
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Post by vya on May 10, 2021 22:59:04 GMT 1
The 12th day of Advent Mayo
Shakin' Stevens - The Best Christmas Of Them All Early Elvis revivalism at a 1981 variety show. Shaky is Shaky, a national treasure, almost, and I imagine he has no illusions about the quality or memorability, or lack thereof, of this song. A very British Christmas sound and feel. Destined to go the same way as Woolworths.
Righteous Brothers - You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling Atmospheric, haunting, charming, Real Quality. And its 1965 origins are closer to 1990 than where we are now....
Charts: Innocence - "A Matter of Fact": their best yet, a smooth and classy and smooth and rather sad thing. But we will hear it here? Surely not!
Yazoo - Situation 1990 Now a remix of a 1982 b-side. Enough of the original Basildon toughness here, the update kind of complements rather than overwhelms it. Nice keyboard/synth games as well as Alf. Welome, but hardly essential or the spirit of the times (if there is one).
Malandra Burrows - Just This Side Of Love Emmerdale Farm actress joining the singing bandwagon. This is ultimately Kylie's fault, then. Very sub-par in almost all regards. To be kind, rubbish. Makes the Prisoner Cell Block H theme song sound like an epic for the ages. Things were different then.
Breakers INXS - Disappear: a bit slick, like it should be on an advert, then the chorus enters in an unsubtle manner. Not their worst, but. Enigma - Sadness (Part 1): "ambient" looking to a more remote past than Shaky. Appealling. George Michael - Freedom 90: real maturing both in attitude and in songwriting. Performance too. Classy Carpenters - Close To You: yet another re-issue. Syrupy but of course.
Seal - Crazy A little less innovative than "Killer" (but so are most), but rather taut, possibly slightly too polished, with carefully controlled anger underneath, loosening up a bit towards the end. Promising.
Black Box - The Total Mix Oh no. Another megamix. Why? Lazy. They know their time is up. And knew it was really once "Ride On Time" was up. The excerpt here concentrates solely on their blandest single to date, "Everybody Everybody", so why bother?
Chris Isaak - Wicked Game A league or several above most of the other tunes here.
Vanilla Ice - Ice Ice Baby Well the best part of this is from 1981 too. Not sure it improves on repeated listening.
Dimples D - Sucker DJ Also not new. More Christmas variety show stuff, really.
Big cultural identity crisis underway, is the conclusion of this mostly unappealling mismatched mishmash of old and older and occasionally new.
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