vya
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Post by vya on Jun 19, 2020 21:51:42 GMT 1
Nothing much to say about 26th Oct episode, as one song apart (which I am sure we have not seen the last of), everything else had been on previously, either in full-ish in the studio, cut brutally on video, or cut just a little bit more brutally as a breaker. Better to have put on the Beloved, or Raul Orellana, or (especially) Arthur Baker & the Backbeat Disciples than to have repeated some of this stuff.
2nd Nov, a bit of a better show, although more repeats here too than one might like.
Martika - I Feel The Earth Move. Almost completely won over by this now. Quite storming.
Luther Vandross - Never Too Much '89. Can't knock Luther, really, and the song is more than perfectly fine. But the remix adds nothing of positive value at all.
D-Mob introducing Cathy Dennis - C'mon And Get My Love Insubstantial airy fun
Deborah Harry - I Want That Man It's astounding, in retrospect, to think that only a decade separates this from Blondie's breathtaking career highlights. The song, and the performance, is a pleasure, of course. And based on what little we've seen of here so far one might hope that Martika might follow in such revered footsteps.
Milli Vanilli - Girl I'm Gonna Miss You No need for this. Not in general, nor on this edition, again.
Phil Collins - Another Day In Paradise. Corporate wokeness before the term was invented. I'm not sure that it's not preferable to hear him being sententious about sort-of public affairs than it more commonly was about his personal life, but really neither option might be preferable. Musically, a generic 80s Phil Collins track, really, skillfully put together, at least.
Breakers: The Beloved - "The Sun Rising". Much more like it. Would have been good to get more of this. Vaguely New Orderish: dancey with their past an indie band not (yet) expunged. Atmospheric and attractive. Mixmaster - "Grand Piano" a.k.a Black Box a.k.a. Starlight a.k.a Wood Allen a.k.a Gino Latino etc etc etc. Don't think they are pretending that this is anything other than a clever enough collage of samples layered together. Better than Jive Bunny.
Kylie Minogue - Never Too Late. Something a little unexpected going on here. And it's now happened for three singles in a row, but, after some absolute tosh, it appears that Kylie is consistently putting out appealling, almost sophisticated dance-pop tracks that hanker back to 70s disco. SAW have clearly promoted her into their premier league, making her one of the few recipients to get their most accomplished compositions and productions. Jason and Sonia won't get their hands on anything like this, for sure. It's a simple enough song, but it's really rather good. The chart position (new entry at 17) is disappointing though: it suggests her old fans aren't that interested, and new ones haven't come along, and maybe won't. A pity, but I wouldn't change a thing.
Jive Buuny & the Mixmasters - That's What I Like If the video editor would just let the track continue to the bit that passes for the chorus (or at any rate the bit where the title of the track is song), the ToTP presentation would be a little less objectionablly abrupt. Never thought I'd ask for more of the rabbit, but....
Transvision Vamp - Born To Be Sold. What a video. And how the husky voice suits Wendy James, as do the low-slung bass parts. This is bit rawer than the TV we've known, not quite but almost leaning towards swamp blues. Not their finest moment, but showing a side we've not really heard before, and it works.
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Jun 21, 2020 9:14:39 GMT 1
12/10. Gary Davies promising a great show tonight. With Cliff Richard, Sinitta, Living In A Box. Wow, outright lies in the first dozen words. Starting with Chris Rea. "The Road To Hell". Not a good omen given that I am doing my driving test in a month or so. He was last on with "On The Beach", and this sounds...well, like a copy. Same structure and similar feel. "On The Beach" is also not a good omen for driving either.
Highest new entry is the cartoon fast food for hawks with "That's The Way I Like It". Hm, a cover of KC? Nope, Davies has completely butchered the title. He has ONE f***ing JOB TO DO and he f***ed it up. Christ on a bike. Well, Hawaii 5-0 theme, then a bit more of the Chubster, Chris Montez, Surfaris, and then it cuts off. It is as artless and slapdash as the first.
40. Wedding Present go up 1. That would guarantee a full play had they been on the breakers last week. And indeed that would have propelled them much higher. But we get Cliff with a new entry with something quiet, and which does not stop the audience yelling at random moments. God, they're thick as sh*t.
Belinda Carlisle, naturally given she was a breaker last week. Still nowhere near the Go-Go standard, but then again, very few things are. This is a great shoutalonger though.
Charts. Milli Vanilli get a play. Sinitta. Oh God, this is like the ninth circle of Hell. Like with 99% of the SAWmill output and 100% of Sinitta's, there is not one ounce of artistic integrity in this whatsoever. Nobody with any shred of taste, intelligence, or dignity would buy this.
Living In A Box, meh, top ten, can skip that, playout is Fresh 4 with Lizz E. This is really good, got a chillout vibe, very warm production work.
OK. What can I say about that episode? It is one of the most morally repellent ones yet. The highest climber was relegated to the playout and Britain's best indie band does not get a play despite twice getting to qualify for one. Yet they do the thing AGAIN of playing the songs that were breakers last week so they get a double dip.
I have serious questions about the song selection. You'd have to be blind, deaf, and dumb to choose that Sinitta sh*te. But it's a SAWmill song so there is almost guaranteed to be payola involved. It's also not as if Cliff needs the publicity either.
I'm pretty sure that whoever is choosing the songs is getting a backhander. There's no other rational explanation.
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TheThorne
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Post by TheThorne on Jun 21, 2020 9:28:11 GMT 1
Yes and they will rub salt into your wounds next week when they get the #33 into the studio. Question though, were Wedding Present asked to go on, they may have said no but still no excuse as it had a decent quality video.
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Jun 21, 2020 9:35:47 GMT 1
Well, then the horse throws you off, you get right back on. 19/10. Mark Goodier saying this is the best of Radio 1 and BBC together. And how do we commence this Best half-an-hour? D-Mob and Cathy Dennis. This must be some new definition of "best" of which I have hitherto been unaware. This is utter bog-standard thrown-together-in-three-minutes bandwagon dance sh*te, She's babelicious though. I suppose that's all that matters now.
Billy Joel. Starts at the beginning. Which helps to show how they missed out the entire middle of the song when it jumps about 50 years in the chronology.
Charts. Alice Cooper with the rare 40-38 climb. Note by the way how D Mob get a play for a new entry at 36 but the Wedding Present didn't for being higher.
And studio for Martika at 33, which is also where the Wedding Present were. This is the most f***ing corrupt show going. And, well, this is utterly horrible. What a contrast from the first single. Marta is giving it everything with her performance and her voice is fine, but that backing. God almighty. It's got all the soul of a rotting badger that's been at the side of the road for a month and which has been hit by 37 BMWs.
Breakers. Adeva, which is the same as all the other Adeva songs, and will doubtless get to the same chart position. Queen, which is the same as all the other Queen songs that are not Bo Rap or from Hot Space. De La Soul with something else laidback, Plug One's rap is basically independent of the backing. The effect is pleasing. But how funny they have breakers this week.
Cher with her gigantic dildo. No ta.
Deb"orah" Harry. This is wayyyyyy short of her Blondie peak. Audience by the way look to be in their early thirties. It's sort of struck me now. This is not a TOTP nightclub atmosphere, this is happy hour at a yuppie bar. It is dreadful, stale, clichéd. Even the whooping is "ooh, someone needs to whoop now" rather than genuine exhilaration. Needs a serious revamp. Scrap the theme tune for starters.
Charts. Sibyl. Pointless. Other than it's another artist who was at a Wedding Present position and who gets a play.
Top 10. Jive Bunny is no. 1. We get to hear a bit of Jerry Lee and what might be Chuck Berry or Beach Boys before it cuts off. Playout is Oh Well, who are at 37, with, like Sibyl, a pointless and unmeritorious cover, and, again, lower than the Wedding Present were when they were twice ignored.
Seriously, BBC. f*** off, you bent ****s. You're meant to be showing an exciting music programme and instead of fresh new material that's not known by the country you show the same useless cretinous shitstainy dance covers. It is positively criminal.
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Jun 21, 2020 10:56:52 GMT 1
26/10. Bruno Brooks introducing Rebel MC at no. 3. Yeah, that wasn't on in the last couple of weeks. Because it had an unexpected dip. Could that have cost it a no. 1 spot? Having to pick up momentum again?
Queen, what a surprise, and Carlisle, ditto. Charts. Chris Rea, another repeat.
Highest new entry is Lisa Stansfield at 13. That's a bit of a surprise, not many new acts going in so high. She's a bit thick. Doesn't know why her baby's gone away when she gives several very explicit reasons why he would do so. Also she seems quite smiley for someone who seems to have driven her boyf to suicide.
Living In A Box. Gah. Charts, Brookes refers to the Tower of Power (which was NOT Radio 1), De La Soul, Adeva, Top 10, Milli Vanilli.
Well, that was an almost 100% pointless show. Five new entries to the top 40 and, with one exception, the programme was entirely repeats. What the actual f*** is going on?
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Jun 21, 2020 11:15:18 GMT 1
2 November to get up to date. Turner and Crane. Apparently the best music show in Britain. Voted by cretins, probably. Starting with Martika, who, this time, is dressed as a sort of executive beefeater. Its hardly cutting edge. Luther Vandross, emphasis on the last syllable. Taking an old record and sticking a dance beat on it. Well, that's 2 in a row. Charts. D-Mob. Repeat. I remember seeing a thing about marketing Cathy Dennis, that they focussed on certain colours to associate with her (red/yellow/green) and everything was around that. Sums up the musical quality. Dancin' Danny D putting the c in rap. Deborah Harry, repeat. Milli Vanilli, I mean, Christ alive, AGAIN? ? Turner introduces a song about the homeless with the perkiness of Spongebob dipped in espresso. Is she like this at funerals? Meanwhile a tax-dodging adulterer-by-fax multi-millionaire takes the moral high ground. f*** OFF. Breakers. Beloved, this is mellow. Definitely more worthy of a full play than, well, anything else on the show. Mixmaster, this isn't, we seem to be going back to the year of the medley. Highest new entry at 17 is Minogue, so naturally she is payola-ed on in full. This is beyond atrocious, isn't it? Literally unlistenable. FF to the bunny. Who comes after The Surfaris? Again we do not find out. Playout is Transvision Vamp with a list song. Needs a LOT more oomph.
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vya
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Post by vya on Jun 26, 2020 20:52:24 GMT 1
9 Nov 1989, the day the Berlin Wall came down.
Nicky Campbell in an intringuingly psychedelic top and dull conventional pale jeans. Trying to look ultra-hip and ultra-ordinary at the same time. Not usually a good move. And mumbling a bit throughout,too. Enunciate, man, you're a DJ!
A pretty decent episode, overall, but the video cuts were particularly brutal.
Electribe 101 - "Tell Me When The Fever Ended" One of the chart debuts of the year. What's not to love about Billie Ray Martin, here a highly emotive, even over-emotive, almost operatic female singer putting her heart and soul into the (somewhat obsessional) lyrics while three anonymous plain guys pound the keyboards behind her? Criticism: her on-stage performance has too much motion, reducing the degree of gravitas required to truly get away with presenting such a song. But very, very promising. The album is very fine, too.
Eurythmics - "Don't Ask Me Why" Annie Lennox has never lacked for gravitas, indeed maybe has some to spare. This is a case of well-crafted, accomplished, talented musicians at work, etc, but still strikes me as essentially an album track rather than something sufficiently distinctive to stand out as a single. It is much better than "Revival", though.
Linda Ronstadt & Aaron Neville - "Don't Know Much" As performers, absolutely the real deal, and singing live too. A charming song, even if the musical backdrop is very generic "US late 80s big name duet ballad".
New Kids On The Block - "You Got It (The Right Stuff)" "Some say they are better than Bros" says Nicky. Which is very generous of them. More patently manufactured, probably, but so all-American that a direct comparison on these terms is harsh. Anyway, this is seriously not good.
The Alarm and the Morriston Orpheus Male Voice Choir - "A New South Wales" On the other hand, this is heart-wrenching and powerful in its understatement and force of message. I think I'd go as far as saying, by far, the best thing the Alarm ever did. A track I happily listen to today, and one whose message, sadly, still rings true today.
Breakers: And Why Not? - "Restless Days (She Screams Out Loud)". Now this lot have more in common with Bros than do NKOTB. Albeit without the macho posturing. Semi-pop, semi-almost indie, with youthful energy and a smile. An appealling and somewhat subtle song. Why cut it off just before they scream, though?; Quireboys - "7 O'Clock". In the same area of barroom blues at the Dogs d'Amour, but without the eccentricity (or depth of despair) of the latter's recent minor hit. Not so good, but it seems exceedingly disrespectful not even to include a hint of the chorus in what we see.
Mixmaster - "Grand Piano" "Italy's Pete Waterman" says Nicky. Worse megamixes have been made. Italo house retains a breezy charm still. Nice to see the guy behind Black Box include in the video as the one "performer singing" element someone pretending to be someone pretending to be Lolleata Holloway pretending to sing a line from "Love Sensation". Meta.
Janet Jackson - "Rhythm Nation" Even more than "Miss You Much", this isn't about the song, and certainly not about the melody, but about the overall effect. The regimentation of the rhythm. The recruitment song for the youth wing of the ruling party of a post-modern dictatorship.
Lisa Stansfield - "All Around The World" You can't smile and be taking seriously while singing a song with these lyrics. Even sounds like she was smiling when the single was recorded. I suppose that could be part of the intended psychological effect - look at just how utterly obsessed I am. I prefer her last single.
The Wonder Stuff - "Golden Green" After two absolutely cracking and barnstorming Top 40 singles, and one fairly indifferent one ("..Disco King?"), the Stuffie's fourth is a bit of a let down. Or maybe just a hoe-down. Folkier, camp fire stuff. I'm not won over.
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Jul 3, 2020 16:40:43 GMT 1
Only one left on the iplayer and it's 9/11. No, not that one. Nicky Campbell in a Magic Eye t-shirt. New in at 32, Electribe 101. Billie Ray back on ver Pops after S-Expressing it. Tonight, Matthew, I am going to be Alvin Stardust. Fantastic soaring voice, this is basically taking house to a much, much higher level of sophistication. It suits the sparse backing perfectly. Not sure she needs to do the ants in her pants dance though.
Eurythmics. "Here Comes The Rain Again". Oh, no, it's a different title, but it sounds pretty much the same. Lazy, Annie & Dave. Very lazy. At least the chorus is different (and sounds very good, they needed to keep that going for the verses).
Something very special very soon. Ooh, wonder what that is? "Lambada" is in at 40, that's going to be this year's Birdie Song. Quireboys, deserved new entry. The Alarm with a male voice choir. Bore da.
The special thing is Linda Ronstadt and Aaron Neville singing live. Hm, OK. I have different standards. Neville is dressed as a builder from the Village People for some reason. Great voices, but the song is drek.
Some people say they're better than the Beatles, some say they're even better than Bros, Qui sont? New Kids On The Block. Aaaaaauuuuuuugggghhhhh, this is truly, truly, stomach-emptyingly abysmal. There's no tune, the backing is generic, they look like utter ****s. Music as absolute product.
The Alarm. It's a big ballad about mining and stuff. Not sure what it's meant to be saying other than history is a bit sh*t. Will give Peters kudos for trying.
Breakerinos. And why not? And Why Not. Bouncy and bright pop that's a major's idea of being indie. Quite like this though. A rather startling morph into the drunken blues rock of Quireboys. Very little of the breakers.
Charts. Felly in the pic looks nothing like Felly in the video.
Mixmaster at 12. Bog-standard strung-together medley sh*te. Someone has a sense of humour, cutting the video as it says "Don't Stop".
Janet Jackson in the studio. Wow. This is a harder edged Janet, someone's found the volume control and a Dummies Guide to the Bomb Squad. Easily her best work yet. It could almost be Kon Kan. Terpsichorean, lol.
That big top ten. The modern day Gracie is still atop the charts. Playout is the Stuffies. Folk tinge to their indie. Worryingly commercial.
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vya
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Post by vya on Jul 4, 2020 0:01:12 GMT 1
16 Nov
Mayo
808 State - "Pacific 707" (or 202 or other numbers, or as it originally was, State). An excellent start. Also proof that even though the Berlin Wall has only been down a week, folkx from the Eastern Bloc are already flocking to Rochdale, or Manchester. Groundbreaking, atmospheric, spacious, delightful. Pity they cut it off before the mad and intense climactic bit that easily rivals anything Lil Louis thrust upon the world.
UB40 - "Homely Girl". I'm sure the humourless, cultureless, puritanical, joyless, wokerati on the rise today would cancel this, for any number of reasons, but the best I can say about it, either its defence, or in general is: it's inoffensive. Given their recent homewriten material, maybe UB40 reverting back to idiot jukebox mode isn't a bad idea at all.
Jimmy Somerville & June Miles-Kington - "Comment Te Dire Adieu". Can't but welcome a Francoise Hardy cover making the charts, and, while a bit of an interlude, this ticks a lot of the right boxes. Actually I think it might just even be better than the original. The two very different voices complement each other greatly. An elegant JM-K acts out some of the lyrics with hand actions for the francically challenged, JS dresses and dances like a political activist. What is this adulation of Tyson (on his t-shirt) about? (Neneh Cherry named her daughter that, too) Was it really not obvious that he was a bad lot?
Kaoma - Lambada Obligatory once-a-year very exotic track that people dance to abroad. Before it, Mayo suggests it might be this generations "Twist" (happy not to await the Fat Boys' cover). Then, at the end, knowingly, and very ahead of his time, he says "We're going to have to think very carefully about this European unity thing". Well, quite. Musically, not without charm.
D-Mob introducing Cathy Dennis - "C'Mon and Get My Love" Repeat performance. The framework of something that could be really good is here, but it's not complete and doesn't quite fit together or fizzle as it could.
Iron Maiden- "Infinite Dreams (Live)" I have no idea whether this is a track that repays repeated listening or is a strictly fans-only thing. Less instant, thus potentially more sophisticated then, than their recent big hits. Video is a bit Spinal Tap, probably knowingly so.
Breakers: Prince & Sheena Easton - "The Arms Of Orion": more or less the nearest thing the purple man ever did to a conventional mainstream unthreatening middle of the road pop song. So you could say, oh what a waste of talent! (but given the hit and miss nature of the more experimental stuff...) I rather like it, in a radio wallpaper way. They duet well together. Fine Young Cannibals - "I'm Not The Man I Used To Be". Not sounding like anything else in the charts, clearly carefully crafted, musically, vocally and lyrically, and a bit retro. Definitely some talent here.
Phil Collins - "Another Day In Paradise" I think you missed again.
Lisa Stansfield - "All Around The World". She will surely do better than this, her voice is lovely at least.
Inner City - "Whatcha Gonna Do With My Lovin'" Decidedly their best single (of three) since they made the misguided move of trying to reinvent themself not as Detroit Techno Innovators but rather as something like a conventional vaguely souly vaguely housy pop group.Still, 3/5, no more. Bright and breezy and not unpleasant.
All in all pretty average.
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vya
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Post by vya on Jul 4, 2020 22:19:20 GMT 1
23rd Nov. Brambles and (Jenny) Powell
To some (not me) considered a groundbreaking edition.
Big Fun - "Can't Shake The Feeling" While immeasurably superior to their Jacksons cover (and indeed the dinghied Carole King one), this does little to dispel the suspicion that the boyz have the role they have because they can do synchronised dancing. And the songwriters clearly thought so little of it that they gave up writing verses halfway through, making the rest of it one endlessly repeated chorus.
Bobby Brown - "Roni" I'm sure the studio version on the single was a bit tighter than the live version on the video, but I don't get the sense that this mid-tempo almost-but-not-quite-a-ballad style really suits BB.
Fine Young Cannibals - "I'm Not The Man I Used To Be" Head and shoulders above the first two songs on the show. And very skilful dancing going on between the group. Languid melancholy, classy stuff.
Ben Liebrand Remix - "The Eve Of The War" Not an abject travesty of a remix, but (as ever the words before "but" are superfluous)....a hymn to a generation unable to accept anything from before their time (even only 11 years before) without bringing into narcissistic aligment with their passing and transient preferences. The originality and sharpness of the original is blunted by an utterly generic rhythm track that screams "We have to do this, because it's 1989". Damn the Whig version of history. Leave the past alone!
Stone Roses - "Fools Gold" Leaving it late, but they did make a habit of it, but waiting until the penultimate month of the 80s to bring out possibly the most overrated track of the decade (not single, the AA side has some appeal) says something about the Roses. Yes, it has a significant place in the history of English indie music, but really the change of direction it helped instigate was really not one for the better. If only we'd known then that they'd already recorded all of their best material. All three of their (generally excellent) previous singles on Silvertone rank higher than this one IMO.
Happy Mondays (with Kirsty MacColl) - Hallelujah I think actually the Mondays were the real Madchester (Rave On) innovators, as this sounds like a natural evolution of what they'd been doing since at least since the time of that album with the unfeasibly long name (roping in Karl Denver along the way too, come on!). Loping grooves and indie guitar, but with less keyboard than New Order. Innovative, obviously drugged-out, infectious. Plus, Big Fun may do synchronised dancing, but the Mondays have Bez. And Kirsty here too!
Linda Ronstadt & Aaron Neville - "Don't Know Much" Repeat performance
New Kids On The Block - "You Got It (The Right Stuff)" The video especially underlines that this is another case that exemplies the daft trend of the UK foolishly adopting US trends unthinkingly, moronically, even. Rubbish, but catchy. Although the middle eight has something to recommend it: the best part of the song by far.
Prince & Sheena Easton - "The Arms Of Orion" Play out with something mildly pleasant and unchallenging, maybe aspiring to be this year's "She's Like The Wind". Which is obviously precisely what we look for from both Prince, and Sheena Easton.
All in all, FYC and Mondays apart, this was mediocre.
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vya
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Post by vya on Jul 10, 2020 21:40:37 GMT 1
St Andrew's Day, the Bit in the Middle.
Kaoma - "Lambada" Number one for five months in Portugal, apparently. And they are our oldest allies?
Inner City - "Whatcha Gonna Do With My Lovin'" Slick and smooth and attractive but still kind of coasting given the ensemble
808 State - "Pacific 707" Heads and shoulders above most tracks here.
Gloria Estefan - "Get On Your Feet" Dire. The chorus is either an advertising jingle or could be adapted, by SNCF most likely, to warn of an impending train approaching. The verse at least is less irritating but less memorable.
Jimmy & June - "Comment te dire adieu" Assez bien
Rob 'n' Raz featuring Leila K - "Got To Get" God, this is inane. As far from being what its lyrics promise as can be. Indeed, kind of 1989's "Holiday Rap", with Sweden's MC Miker G And DJ Sven.
Breakers Kate Bush - "This Woman's Work: utterly sublime and beautiful and meaningful. Tears For Fears (with uncredited Oleta Adams) - "Woman In Chains": utterly beautiful and meaningful and sublime. So naturally we only see tiny snippets of each.
Tina Turner - "I Don't Wanna Lose You" Not my thing. Other people's thing, no doubt.
NKOTB - "You Got It" I do hope it's not a chronic condition.
UB40 - "Homely Girl" Whatever
Bush and TFF put everything else here, maybe 808 State apart, utterly in the shade. Poor, poor.
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vya
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Post by vya on Jul 10, 2020 21:58:00 GMT 1
7th Dec, A sharp-suited Goodybags
Big Fun - "Can't Shake The Feeling" How long will their career last? I just don't know. Probably not very long though.
Kate Bush - "This Woman's Work" We don't see nearly enough of this, but this is a thing of wonder. I find Bush hit and miss, but this is something only she could do, with such depth of feeling and sensitivity.
Soul II Soul - "Get A Life" Less taut than their two summer hits, maybe a bit more of a (Funki Dredd) party number. Aiming for the Christmas no 1, with the kids' chant making us think of Oliver or pantomime? Regardless, this is fun, and strong, and positive, and appealling, even if it's a bit too much of a loose baggy monster. But Soul II Soul are clearly both A Good Thing, and responsible more than anyone (of acts in the top 40 charts, at least) responsible for a notable change in the musical direction this year.
Sydney Youngblood - "Sit And Wait" Also rather nice, even if, minus the Raze element, it's not that far off from being a replay of his previous hit, and the song is probably little too simple for its own good. But likeable.
Dusty Springfield - "In Private" A second "Scandal" single. Not earthshattering, but agreeable.
Ben Liebrand Remix - "Eve Of The War" As discussed previously
Breakers: Latino Rave - "Deep Heat '89": more blatantly an advert for an album even than singles generally had become by then, a megamix promoting a dance compilation LP. But even the short excerpt we see here suggests the compilers have fine taste and access to strong tracks. Clever bit of marketing. Hmm. Queen - "The Miracle". The video (with kids dressed up as members of Queen) is more memorable than the song, unfortunately. Simple Minds - "Sign O' The Times". No no no no no no no no no no no no no no no you don't. Really you don't. What were you thinking?
Erasure - "You Surround Me". Really nailing the sensitive, melodious, electro-pop thing here, Clarke and Bell on a roll. They have now turned into a rather superb singles act, who somehow manage to have big hits without really following any of the rules or conventions. More power to their elbows. (Bit disconcerting now to see two videos in a row, this and the excessively pompous Johnny & the Self-Abusers dross, featuring the World Trade Center towers, though.)
Jason Donovan - "When You Come Back To Me" A hint too hard of trying for the Christmas number one. Not his worst single to date. But geez he is no Rick Astley.
NKOTB - "You Got It" You really don't.
Alexander O'Neal - "Hit Mix (Official Bootleg Mega Mix)" Talk about milking an album. We only get to see a bit of "Fake" on the play-out here, but that's already been a top 40 hit in one mix in 1987 and another mix in 1988, and now the start of another megamix (whatever "official bootleg" means) in 1989. "Criticize", especially, was great, but time for some new material, surely?
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Jul 12, 2020 8:52:13 GMT 1
16.11. Mayo. "They've never done it before." 808 State. Not convinced by the clarinet playing. I still wear long-sleeve t-shirts. This is not the sort of track that translates well for TOTP. It's a decent enough comedown track. Feels like they cut it short.
UB40 have recruited a load of cuties for their latest video. Being video director must be great. This record otherwise is the definition of cash-in.
Top 40. June Miles-Kingston gets a credit. Hm, last week's show seems to have had no impact on the charts. Interesting. If worrying. Somerfield and M-K get on the show. Somerville has gone Full UB40. Only having hits with worthless covers. This is woeful indeed. It was a pretty poor choice of song to start with, but the backing is 100% by numbers and the vocals entirely unengaging. Horrid.
Kaoma. This year's Balearic summer soundtrack, obviously. The video tells a story so it's one up on the Birdie Song. God, this is going to be everywhere.
Charts and D-Mob. God, the same rap twice. Or have they just looped the track? I'm losing the reason to live.
New in at 12. They play as little as they can get away with. No wonder, it's rubbish.
Breakers. Prince & Sheena. This could have been Roberta Flack & Peabo Bryson. Godawful. FYC with a definite step up.
Phil Collins, f*** off.
Top 10. Stansfield still at no.1 with a poignant ballad, yet the audience is going "wooo!" and "yeah!!", possibly because they're morons.
Powell and Brambles next week, well, something to enjoy there. Playout is Inner City, who have given up writing new songs and just releasing their old stuff under a new title.
That was an awe-uninspiring show. Someone needs to kick up the song choices. Deff out the top 40 if necessary.
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Jul 12, 2020 9:17:05 GMT 1
23 November. Building up to the Christmas market. Jenny Powell introduces Big Fun with about as much enthusiasm as I would have done. Jesus f***ing Christing f***, you really have to have been brain dead to have bought this.
Bobby Brown with a live clip video. Which is as imaginative as the song. Well, that's a pretty dreadful start, two songs that actually take away from the store of human achievement.
FYC in the studio. Who would have thought that two erberts from The Beat would score a US number 1 album? This one is really good, chillout backing and Roland's voice, which could easily be annoying, just about works with it.
Another remix. Ben Liebrand doing War Of The Worlds. Are people doing these for a bet? What next?
New in at 13. Stone Roses. THANK GOD. Although I'd have played the aa-side which is more representative of their sound hitherto. Even so this stands out a country mile from the utter sh*te that's been on in the last few weeks.
Charts, meh. Happy Mondays with Kirsty MacColl. Heh, baggy takeover. This is shambolic, confused, confusing, and magnificent.
Neville & Ronstadt. Meh.
Top 10. New no. 1. NKOTB. See comments on Fig Bun. It doesn't have a tune, it doesn't have lyrics, it doesn't have any production values, all it is there for is to sell posters. Everyone involved should be prosecuted for crimes against humanity. Utterly, utterly, utterly hideous and indefensible.
Playout is Prince doing his 1970s ballad worst. f*** off.
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Jul 12, 2020 23:35:30 GMT 1
30 November. Davies. Starting with a song that's been no. 1 in every country in Europe, bar the UK. It is the Lambada. OK, so this is an extremely strong reason for Brexit. Because the rest of Europe has patently lost their collective marbles.
Inner City. The singer is gorgeous. The song...less so.
Chartissimo. "Leela" K. Up to no. 10 now, big dancefloor smash from Manchester. Thought that was last week? No, it's 808 State.
First non-repeat song is Gloria Estefan, so it may as well be a repeat, it's basically the same as her previous oeuvre. And next is Somerville & Miles Kingston, God, this is a dreadful and pointless episode. Remember Paul Miles-Kingston? No chance of a duet with Jimi.
Charts finally get something fresh. Rob & Raz with Leila K. Meh, it's a bit basic. But at least it's not a repeat.
Breakers. Kate Bush, with Tim McInnerny in the video. This is very out of place in this pissweak episode. As is the next one, Tears For Fears with Oleta Adams. These should have been given full plays to get their full emotional impact. I question the choice of making these breakers but giving more attention to Gloria feckin Estefan.
Studio again, Tina Turner. If this isn't Diane Warren, it is a bloody good impression. Can't really be bothered with this, though, it's so below what Turner could do.
I see that UB40 are the playout so I may as well give up on this episode right now. This was pretty atrocious. Again a depressing, predictable, mainstream lowest common denominator selection of tracks. I will only pause to note that Ali seems to be promoting Pato Banton. Whoever he is.
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Jul 13, 2020 8:53:32 GMT 1
And finally. To get up to date. 7 December, we are winding up to the Christmas market.
Goodier introduces a "big top 10 smash". Fig Bun. My God. ISIS have a point.
Kate Bush on video. This is wonderful. Listening back in 2020 it's weird to have an album artist in the singles chart.
Top 40. Van Morrison & Cliff Richard. Definite Christmas market pitch.
Highest new entry, in at 5, Soul II Soul. Another great track. What a contrast to last week's apology of a show. It's so laid back as to be horizontal. I can even forgive the kids in the chorus.
Sydney Youngblood, augh, it looks like he was a one-song wonder, this is nowhere near as good as his debut. It sounds like a b-side, all it does is occupy space for no good reason.
In the middle of the hip-hop-happening party atmosphere, Goodier announces that we should look at Ceefax page 641 for details of four new transmitters. #accidentalpartridge
Dusty Springfield. Yeah, this has the air of a lost sixties classic. She has so much room in her voice that she can just cruise along effortlessly in this one.
Charts. Andy Stewart in at 30. Jeff Wayne is at 3, with a godawful techno/classical mashup. Breakers, Latino Rave, which is basically a medley made up of songs that are already, to all intents and purposes, medleys. Pop is eating itself. Queen, who have gone full Minipops for the video. God almighty, someone had to make a full leather/lurex set of outfits for pre-teens. Simple Minds with a live EP led off by a cover and with a knock-off video, which is, let's face it, a blatant cash-in. Socialist principles, peeps!
Erasure. Dressed as radar screens. This is a really good single, not that there's anything wrong with the pure pop they've generally produced beforehand, but this seems to have a lot more depth to it, lots more layering in the instruments, a chorus that teases before going in an unexpected direction, even the pace is more considered. Unusual release for the Christmas market.
Jason Donovan. Christ on a bike. Can't the cretins buying this sh*t just hear the palpable difference between the production-knocked-off-in-two-minutes weak-as-p*ss-voiced miasma that this is to, say, Kate Bush earlier? Are there no depths to which SAW will not stumble? This is utterly horrid.
Indeed, I should have turned off after Erasure, because we have Donovan, the worst number 1 possibly ever, and Alexander O'Neal with a cheapass medley/remix/whatever. A depressing end to an episode with strong highlights.
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vya
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Post by vya on Jul 17, 2020 21:43:34 GMT 1
14 Dec.
Rob N Raz ft Leila K - "Got To Get" Certainly the inferior of the two top 40 hits in 1989 with these three words at the beginning of their title
Madonna - "Dear Jessie" I presume the choice of singles from this album (in the UK) was a question of the record company trying to cover all bases - here roping in the kids en route to a pantomime watching TV with their parents. It's alright, I suppose, maybe, but, well, America got "Oh Father" which might be the best thing she ever recorded.
Van Morrison & Cliff Richard - "Whenever God Shines His Light" A contrast of styles, although in general I'd say as performers Van and Cliff are not in the same league. Somehow, though, the combination works rather well, Van taking the lead and throwing himself into, with almost gospelly vocals, and Cliff being a bit showier and almost shrill. So so good to see Van the Man here, though. Don't let the goldfish go.
Latino Rave - "Deep Heat 89" Talk is cheap. So is this. If cleverly done. Could have done with less Technotronic though.
Wet Wet Wet - "Broke Away" The Wets still trying to be taken seriously as Real Musicians. Honestly if Marty Pellow would had just learned to smile less and scowl more, they'd never have had to do this. It's OK-ish but not the delight that some of their unashamed pop was.
Tina Turner - "I Don't Want To Lose You" Yawn
Electronic - "Getting Away With It" Considering it takes personnel from three of the consistently finest singles act of the past half-decade, this ought to a thing of wonder and charm, melody and knowing introspection. And so it is. Fabulous.
Jive Bunny & the Mastermixers - "Let's Party" Well, if people are going to pay for this stuff, I can't blame the DJs for putting it out.
Alexander O'Neal - "Hit Mix (The Official Bootleg Megamix)" Seems odd to have this on the runout two weeks running (I was expecting a bit of "Donald Where's Your Troosers". No video, I guess). At least this time as well as "Fake '89" we get a bit of the superior "Hearsay" and the more superior still "Criticize". But still. If people are going to pay for this stuff, though....
Electronic?: brilliant. Van the Man?: fantastic (the song only a bit so). Everything else?: not so much.
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Jul 18, 2020 8:56:47 GMT 1
400 years before an overture. Nicolo Campbelli. We start with Swedish house. Intro for the first song is that very Swedish house has a sauna (er), and like a sauna, this is hot, steamy, enervating. FULL PARTRIDGE It is Leila K. Is it me, or does she run out of breath before she gets to the end of the verses? I also doubt she's ever rapped before. Those three-note stings are getting on my tits.
Madonna. Well, this is not very Madonna, it's psychedelic. Reminds me of Freiheit. It's rather charming. Animation video making it look like it's a film theme. Shame it gets cut off.
Campbell throws in a mention of "troosers". Hm. Charts. Van & Cliff. Singing live. They do not really mesh voicewise, Van's being far more dirty and bluesy. It's needs a lot more kick though, the backing is basically Sesame Street.
Latino Rave. Basically Jive Bunny. Track starts with Technotronic. Latino?
Charts again. The original WWW. Oh God, they've got a double bass and piano on stage. This is obviously going to be SERIOUS and therefore a punt at the Chrimbo no. 1. And it's dire. The whole song is an introduction. Nothing happens, there's no progression, it's just testcard music.
Tina Turner. Video this time, looks Cuban, more interesting than the song.
Electronic. Supergroup of New Order, PSB, and Smiths. This is as fine a single as you would expect from that sort of mashup, but shouldn't Neil Tennant feel a bit embarrassed standing there on stage like he's a major component in this song when his contribution is nugatory? I think I'd've at least stood behind a synth or something.
Campbell says the main Christmas no. 1 challenger isn't in the chart yet. What does he know? Top 10, Andy Stewart up 20, warrants a play. Donovan going up, God, people are thick. 3 no. 1s in 3 releases, history being made, and it's Jive Bunny. This is even more artless than the others, although the animation has improved, but the core songs are fantastic. "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" FINALLY gets to top the charts. Good news for Miss Snob and Class 3C. Cuts off before Glitter...
Playout is Alexander O'Neal. I'd rather have the bunny.
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vya
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Post by vya on Jul 18, 2020 9:13:34 GMT 1
21 Dec 1989.Not really a Christmas treat. Bruno It Takes Two Brookes and Anthea Turner
F.P.I. Project present Rich In Paradise - "Going Back To My Roots" Hey you, don't be silly....I'd quite forgotten that the instrumental version of this did the rounds for several weeks before the vocal version, fresh in a different coloured sleeve, arrived. Hearing this again, what stands out is not just its spaciousness, but its status as a bridge between dance trends of years past - is this the final hit single to be based around that sample from Lyn Collins' "Think" that had been ubiquitous in late 87/early 88?, and with which the crowd are chanting along - contemporary ambient trends, and even some of the house sounds of the early-to-mid-90s. Not bad.
Duran Duran - "Burning The Ground" A sound rule, in life as in music: if everyone else is doing something, because it is a new trend, or suddenly deemed to be the right thing to do, DON'T: in the elegant chaos stand to one side, let the mania of the moment subside. So in the age of the naff megamix, here is the Duranies' one, trying to do something more than simply stringing bits of sounds together .But it doesn't work. Very much less than the sum of its parts.
Sonia - "Listen To Your Heart" SAW must be delighted that they have found someone to whom they can palm off their weakest songs to, who'll still get a hit with them. I have wondered if this crosses the boundary between "really poor" and "so bad it's good", but, no. There is a warped kind of genius behind all this though. "They 'ave stolen my 'eart awye!"
De La Soul - "The Magic Number" I've always thought that De La Soul are very overrated, even among their D.A.I.S.Y. age counterparts, and this song does not sway my opinion.
Silver Bullet - "20 Seconds To Comply" Straight Outta Aylesbury. A bit of a curio now, like nothing else very much other than this previous single. Newly aggressive and menacing rap, but really not a relative or precursor of gangsta rap. Sci-fi, Bladerunner meets Robocop. Always reminds me that this is the week Ceaușescu got his comeuppance.
Breakers: Bon Jovi - "Living in Sin": More substantial than some of the more up-tempo stadium posturing they've been up to recently; Beautiful South - "I'll Sail This Ship Alone": Loneliness in seaside towns. How English. And what a wonderful track, quality songwriting + appropriate use of violins; 49ers - "Touch Me": Another case of Italian DJs getting a model to pretend to mime someone else's lyrics - but Aretha Franklin (and someone more obscure for the chorus)! C'mon... A bit primitive, but on the dancefloor an absolute banger; All About Eve - "December": Autumnal rather than wintery, but quite lovely.
Bros - "Sister" "Britain's best group", apparently. Don't know about that, but this is something of a return to form for them after all that jean-wearing quasi-rock prancing earlier in the year. Haunting and rather beautiful.
Band Aid II - "Do They Know It's Christmas" To improve this: more Chris Rea, less everyone else (especially Cliff Richard though). The problem with this version of the track is summed up by the image of Marty Pellow posing by a clipperboard grinning moronically while Cliff sings the lyric about the "clanging chimes of doom". On the plus side the imminent downfall of communism in Eastern Europe and of associated client states in Africa is going to do far more to alleviate poverty on the continent than any number of crap versions of this song.
The Christians - "Words" An act with some talent adapting an Irish folk tune. Maybe too subtle to be effective in a three-minute burst though.
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Jul 18, 2020 9:27:21 GMT 1
Palindrome. Turner and Brookes. Are they porking? FPI Project and a witless audience going woo yeah for no reason. What they seem to have done is taken the Odyssey track "Going Back To My Roots" and removed the vocals. Is this basically an attempt to see how sh*t things can get and still become a hit? They've tacked something else in there that is a bit sh*te. We're getting towards Peak Cashin for house, peeps.
Duran Duran. Yes, it's a medley of remixes, or a remixed medley. God almighty.
Bottom 10 of the charts. Sonia has flopped, I wonder if she will get a play nevertheless. All About Eve.
Oh, WHAT A f***ing SURPRISE, SONIA IS RIGHT UP NOW. JESUS f***ing CHRIST. THIS IS OUTRIGHT f***ing BRIBERY. Song is as ever utter gash.
De La Soul, wich what looks to be a last-minute thrown together video. This is actually rather good fun, rather than their more thoughtful preceding oeuvre.
Charts. Silver Bullet should get a play. If they give the SAWmill's back-up toxic midget a play, then they should too. And indeed they do. Much more harder-edged than most of the rap that makes TOTP.
Breakers. Bon Jovi with some would-be-grand country-rock. Beautiful South with an outright BLATANT Christmas no. 1 tilt, there are a number this year, this sounds so commercial and basically cynical exploitation, shabby stuff. 49ers with something like Black Box but better. I like the girl in the video, she has amusing facial expressions. All About Eve, Julianne is so naturally lovely, this is quite a sweet song, something of the Pre-Raphaelite about it.
Talking of blatant Christmas no. 1 pitches...Bros, taking their sister's death and making a hit out of it. Jesus.
Top 10. Andy Stewart still going up. New in at no. 1 is Stock Aitken Waterman Use Dying Children To Promote Big Fun. Christ on a f***ing bike. Significant that the best singers are not SAWmill clones. Putting Stansfield against Sonia was so cruel.
Playout is The Christians, which means that Andy Stewart has been entitled to three plays and has not had one. Someone has an agenda. But the Christians' song is the best thing on the show. Great video-sound combo as well.
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