vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Oct 24, 2020 12:17:48 GMT 1
18/1, Campbell, and, yay, Halo James to start. The singer's surname is James. They do the thing of starting the song with the chorus. Calculated. Sums up the song, really, it's a focus group rather than heart and soul.
Lil Louis. This time not banned. It's basically a relationship lecture to some house backing. It's a bit bizarre. Not sure how it became a hit, I think I'm glad it did. Campbell picks up on it being philosophy.
Charts. Just thinking, this show marks the 1 month anniversary (oxymoron) of me passing my driving test. First time, woo. Martika at no. 23. She looks classy. Too classy for a fairly by-numbers record, the archetype of album filler, presumably only out because she's unexpectedly made it big. Is this basically an audition for something a bit more interesting? Hence not looking like a trashbag ho like some of the others of the era?
49ers, see above. Charts. Lot of new entries. Megadeth are entitled to a play, that should be a contrast. And indeed they're on now. It's not as mega or dethy as you'd expect, it's really Quo strength.
Breakers, Campbell mixes up the numbers. Neneh Cherry with another cheap video, Sinead O'Connor ditto. Wow, where did this latter one come from? Nothing like her hard-pop from previous, stripped back and nakedly emotional. Should have given it more of a play. Give it a chance of being a hit.
Quireboys. See above. Top 10. Unusually we stop at 2 so that we can see the latest bodily waste from Minogue, surprise surprise, it's a cover, surprise surprise, it's appalling. Her attempts to hit the "high" notes (they're not that far off the regular stave) are PHYSICALLY painful. God, this must be the worst top 2 since last week.
Et finalemente, someone who once hit the indie charts under the name Stupid Babies. Another dance record with nothing to stand it out from feedback.
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Oct 25, 2020 12:59:17 GMT 1
21 years, 1 month, and 1 day before Birmingham City win the League Cup. Mayo and Brambles and new very shouty, very cheap looking, and very very ugly graphics.
We start with Yell!, or, as I overheard someone in Woolies, "who the hell are Yell!?" The combined total IQ of people buying this has to be about 3. We know that SAW have intergalactically dire standards, but this one somehow manages not even to aspire to reaching the heights of the Reynolds Girls. I hope every copy of this single had a slow-acting poison on the vinyl. This is worse than sh*t, this is positively EVIL.
Public Enemy. Heh, someone is having a laugh putting this after Yell!. The Bomb Squad production and the staccato aggression are a diametric opposite in every possible respect. The video is a sample of others, so this seems to be an unexpected release.
Charts. Are these new graphics too? Yes. More emphasis on the number than on the artists. We cut to Del Amitri, which is Spanish for "of the amitri". It sounds like one of those American rock bands who decide to have a no. 1 hit by doing something ballady. Albeit a higher standard, which is because Del Amitri are Scottish and Scottish bands are better pro rata than American bands. This is not opinion, this is fact.
Breakers, which means we get another SAWmill pointless dance remix of a single that didn't need it. Thanks to Lonnie Gordon, who is a woman. Why are people continually falling for this, and, more crucially, why is a national broadcaster giving them such oxygen of publicity? Wrecks-n-Effect, who put the C in rap. And And Why Not?, with something that's palpably better, and palpably deserved a full play more than Yell!.
FPI Project get YET ANOTHER PLAY WITH YET ANOTHER POINTLESS REMIX. f*** it.
Quincy Jones and Ray Charles, at 27, with a hit I don't remember, and with reason, it's rubbish. What a waste of talent. Horrible tinny artificial backing. Disco REALLY has a lot to answer for, it basically replaced the Funk Brothers and Wrecking Crew with f***ing zeroes and ones.
Charts. Oh, the background of the graphic is the picture in the middle, albeit faded into another colour. I want to see a non-mover so I see how they do the symbol. Nope, don't get any.
Brambles is resolutely unenthusiastic about the whole show, moody teenager in the shopping centre mien. "This is going all the way to the top", she deadpans. It's Phil Collins with Eric Clapton. This is a "live" performance rather than the wish-fulfilment video. I have a sneaky regard for this one. It's normally elements I abhor - pompous cock-rock, Phil Collins - but it comes together a treat.
Adamski. I don't see anything in this. Instrumental lacking any sort of hook.
Sinead O'Connor. Whose brief minute in the breakers has seen her go from 30 to 3. Wow. Nailed on no. 1 next week? After looking so strong in songs like "Mandinka" she seems so vulnerable now. It's a remarkable interpretation and remarkable portrayal. Just think, if all singles were released in blank sleeves, this would have gone from 28 to 1. One of those rare beasts - a cover that is better than the original. And despite all that we get it cut off.
Top 10. May as well go straight to the playout. Which is Gino Latino, because we have not had enough sh*te Italo house in the last month. How the hell did this become a thing?
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TheThorne
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Post by TheThorne on Oct 25, 2020 13:05:09 GMT 1
Top 10. May as well go straight to the playout. Which is Gino Latino, because we have not had enough sh*te Italo house in the last month. How the hell did this become a thing? one word, drugs
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Oct 26, 2020 0:44:12 GMT 1
Desmond. Brookes. God, I hate those graphics. They look as if they just gave the job to the work experience kid who picked the first font he could find. Even worse, the highest climber is Lonnie Gordon. What's frustrating is that there's a really good song buried in here (and possibly a strong voice) but it is 100% spoilt by the identikit production. Should have gone full Amii Stewart on it, throw in lightning bolts or whatever to build up to that chorus. Or give it to Moroder.
Wreckx-n-Effect on for no evident reason. Did it even go up from last week? Atrocious.
Charts. The background colour to the charts thing is taken from the pic. So Kym Mazelle is wearing orange, so the background is orange. Non-mover is a triangle with the base on the right. Birdland at 32. That needs a play.
And Why Not? are a sort of boy group with some credibility, at a time when black musicians were not pigeonholed into rap and so on. It's an interesting record, slightly skew-wiff, a sort of on-beat reggae, with tempo changes, although not as good as their previous one.
The latest in the Let's Have A Cheap Hit With An Utterly Needless And Harmful Cover Version is Sybil. It should be compulsory that covers can only be released if the original is given equal publicity. Maybe it would stop this sort of desecration. Even her voice sounds like the original. Only weaker.
Breakers. Birdland, who are explosive. Deserve more than a brief burst. Beloved with almost a novelty. Eurythmics who are catching up with The Hooters from half a decade before.
New in at 22 a band who are off to Egham for a play. House Of Love. They keep getting to no. 41. About time they got a bona fide TOTP hit. This is a bit more gothic than their previous singles and more commercial. Which means it's not as good. But it still stands out on this show. I mentioned before about the poor arrangement of an episode; same happening with this one, why start with 3 dance singles out of 4 and put real music fans off before getting to something good? Space them out, people.
Mantronix, who on last week's chart were positioned as going down, which was wrong. I can't be doing with this. I'm sure on Channel 4 teletext the adverts had the name as Mantronik.
Charts. Raze at 30. They never seem to get on despite often earning a performance. Cher. Going country. Her voice is too good for this one. Not for me, Clive.
Technotronic, new in at 3 (!), and supporting Madonna. Ya Kid K finally gets the credit. She looks ridiculous, like a self-parody in orange kappa slappa garments and Kevin the Teenager baseball cap. Have they changed the backing at all from the first single?
Top 10. Sinead O'Connor is indeed the no. 1. It is like walking into a cold shower after the dross that has polluted this programme lately. Maybe there is hope.
Playout is Skid Row. Now, I'm not a fan of cock rock, but from a programme planning perspective this definitely deserved being on the main show more than, say, Sybil, to make the show more varied. But the programme is turning into SAW propaganda, I'm surprised they didn't find a way to stick Ehhhm Sonia on again.
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SheriffFatman
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Post by SheriffFatman on Oct 26, 2020 12:59:40 GMT 1
Technically I think Yell! were not a Stock Aitken Waterman act, although the track was produced by Phillip Hammond, so I don't really know what the difference is.
I like the Mantronix one, sorry. Fantastic bassline.
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SheriffFatman
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Post by SheriffFatman on Oct 26, 2020 14:51:40 GMT 1
Technically I think Yell! were not a Stock Aitken Waterman act, although the track was produced by Phillip Hammond, so I don't really know what the difference is. I like the Mantronix one, sorry. Fantastic bassline. Ha ha, I did of course mean Pete Hammond, Phillip Hammond is a former Chancellor of the Exchequer. Searching Wikipedia for the origin of Yell!'s absolute naffness, I see they were actually signed by Simon Cowell. There we are then.
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Oct 27, 2020 13:16:46 GMT 1
8 Feb, Davies, and we start with Yell!, whose shitwank career came to a juddering halt when a tabloid revealed one of them was in his thirties.
Janet Jackson, with a song that might have been worthwhile had it a tune, or lyrics, preferably both. This would not be a hit, no matter how minor, without the name Jackson attached. It's like having water-flavoured soup. An utter blank.
Charts. The Cramps at no. 35. I am guessing this will not get a play yet it would be an absolute standout amidst the dance blandness.
Norman Cook, with a new band, Beats International, who start off with the bassline from "Guns Of Brixton" and have a cute-as-a-speckled-pup lead singer in Lindy Layton, whom the press dub as having been in Grange Hill, but I don't remember her in it at all. This is remarkably good, it's chill, it's endearing, it's wonderful. Bravo. Davies predicts it will top the charts.
Of The Amitri, same performance as before.
Lisa Stansfield with a RIDICULOUS hat. Very jazz-tinged, it's reminiscent of Swing Out Sister. Rather bold as it is a lot less commercial than you'd expect, they're positioning her on the strength of her vocals.
Charts. Skid Row at 12 is high for a metal record. We go back to 24, for a band making their debut, it's Beloved, naturally, given the need to repeat breakers. Ridiculous poncho. Although the song is pleasingly mellow, albeit it teeters on the edge of becoming a novelty single. I do like the way the vocals are hidden in the mix.
Phil Collins, same as before, the video has an introductory bit where a theatre manager is bemoaning the loss of a star. Eric Clapton suggests "Bill", "he was a drummer in a really good band when the singer left..."
Top 10. Sinead still no. 1. Playout is The Cramps. No, it is Eurythmics, who don't deserve a play. Too many repeats meaning some interesting new entries entirely miss out. I'm not sure whoever plans out the show has a Scooby.
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Tom
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Post by Tom on Oct 27, 2020 13:40:31 GMT 1
8 Feb, Davies, and we start with Yell!, whose shitwank career came to a juddering halt when a tabloid revealed one of them was in his thirties. Janet Jackson, with a song that might have been worthwhile had it a tune, or lyrics, preferably both. This would not be a hit, no matter how minor, without the name Jackson attached. It's like having water-flavoured soup. An utter blank. Charts. The Cramps at no. 35. I am guessing this will not get a play yet it would be an absolute standout amidst the dance blandness. Norman Cook, with a new band, Beats International, who start off with the bassline from "Guns Of Brixton" and have a cute-as-a-speckled-pup lead singer in Lindy Layton, whom the press dub as having been in Grange Hill, but I don't remember her in it at all. This is remarkably good, it's chill, it's endearing, it's wonderful. Bravo. Davies predicts it will top the charts. Of The Amitri, same performance as before. Lisa Stansfield with a RIDICULOUS hat. Very jazz-tinged, it's reminiscent of Swing Out Sister. Rather bold as it is a lot less commercial than you'd expect, they're positioning her on the strength of her vocals. Charts. Skid Row at 12 is high for a metal record. We go back to 24, for a band making their debut, it's Beloved, naturally, given the need to repeat breakers. Ridiculous poncho. Although the song is pleasingly mellow, albeit it teeters on the edge of becoming a novelty single. I do like the way the vocals are hidden in the mix. Phil Collins, same as before, the video has an introductory bit where a theatre manager is bemoaning the loss of a star. Eric Clapton suggests "Bill", "he was a drummer in a really good band when the singer left..." Top 10. Sinead still no. 1. Playout is The Cramps. No, it is Eurythmics, who don't deserve a play. Too many repeats meaning some interesting new entries entirely miss out. I'm not sure whoever plans out the show has a Scooby. Lindy Layton wasn't in Grange Hill, she was in a show called Press Gang. Never realised she was only 19 at the time until they mentioned it on The Story Of...documentary. She hasn't aged well, wouldn't even know it was the same person! Dub Be Good To Me is one of those songs I feel I should like more, both then and now, though I do like the intro.
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Gezza
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Post by Gezza on Oct 27, 2020 13:49:59 GMT 1
Yes Yell is not a SAW production though it is Pete Hammond who was a mixer at PWL so there is a connection. Same with Sybil which is only remixed by Tony King another mixer at PWL. Technically though neither are directly SAW.
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TheThorne
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Post by TheThorne on Oct 28, 2020 11:09:08 GMT 1
8 Feb, Davies, and we start with Yell!, whose shitwank career came to a juddering halt when a tabloid revealed one of them was in his thirties. Janet Jackson, with a song that might have been worthwhile had it a tune, or lyrics, preferably both. This would not be a hit, no matter how minor, without the name Jackson attached. It's like having water-flavoured soup. An utter blank. Charts. The Cramps at no. 35. I am guessing this will not get a play yet it would be an absolute standout amidst the dance blandness. Norman Cook, with a new band, Beats International, who start off with the bassline from "Guns Of Brixton" and have a cute-as-a-speckled-pup lead singer in Lindy Layton, whom the press dub as having been in Grange Hill, but I don't remember her in it at all. This is remarkably good, it's chill, it's endearing, it's wonderful. Bravo. Davies predicts it will top the charts. Of The Amitri, same performance as before. Lisa Stansfield with a RIDICULOUS hat. Very jazz-tinged, it's reminiscent of Swing Out Sister. Rather bold as it is a lot less commercial than you'd expect, they're positioning her on the strength of her vocals. Charts. Skid Row at 12 is high for a metal record. We go back to 24, for a band making their debut, it's Beloved, naturally, given the need to repeat breakers. Ridiculous poncho. Although the song is pleasingly mellow, albeit it teeters on the edge of becoming a novelty single. I do like the way the vocals are hidden in the mix. Phil Collins, same as before, the video has an introductory bit where a theatre manager is bemoaning the loss of a star. Eric Clapton suggests "Bill", "he was a drummer in a really good band when the singer left..." Top 10. Sinead still no. 1. Playout is The Cramps. No, it is Eurythmics, who don't deserve a play. Too many repeats meaning some interesting new entries entirely miss out. I'm not sure whoever plans out the show has a Scooby. Lindy Layton wasn't in Grange Hill, she was in a show called Press Gang. Never realised she was only 19 at the time until they mentioned it on The Story Of...documentary. She hasn't aged well, wouldn't even know it was the same person! Dub Be Good To Me is one of those songs I feel I should like more, both then and now, though I do like the intro. Yep she was cute, she looked like my girlfriend at the time or my girlfriend looked like her to be more accurate, she was a little rave chick. Last time I saw her online she hadn’t aged well either but better than a Lindy
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vya
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Post by vya on Oct 29, 2020 22:24:21 GMT 1
I'm surprised at the mediocre quality of many of the tracks on the January 1990 episodes - I guess it was that time of year lull in single releases.
Yell, obviously, have probably the worst of the lot, but Megadeth's Alice Cooper cover has nothing to commend it, either.
Sinead O'Connor is heads and shoulders above most everything else, with Mantronix and Del Amitri making a case for themselves too. Otherwise.....fast forward.....
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vya
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Post by vya on Oct 30, 2020 21:41:15 GMT 1
Well, a new month - 02:02:90, and a vast improvement in quality. Not quite a classic episode, but some fine tracks among the others.
Lonnie Gordon's 1990 singles (previously heard as a featuring artist on a Simon Harris track) are as good as late period SAW get - harking back to when they were more concerned with dark clubs than soap operas. I think "Beyond Your Wildest Dreams" is up there with the very best they ever did, but "Happenin All Over Again" is a class act too.
No, Bruno, Wrecks-N-Effect's "Juicy" is NOT brilliant (and surely they are too young for some of those lyrics) - BUT the track is it largely based on, Mtume's "Juicy Fruit" truly is a lost classic, which succeeds in being much more erotic by being (a bit) less blatant.
And Why Not? "The Face" is much better than I recall it being, but I still rate "Restless Days" as a cut above this
Sybil, "Walk On By" - not horrid, but a needless cover, really, a bit overproduced, the barer housier style of her take on "Don't Make Me Over" worked much better
House of Love - "Shine On". Gorgeous. Indisputable classic. Hope they go far now they have a major label behind them, although the bizarre choice of debut single (the rather naff "Never") and the OK but not attention-grabbing follow-up "I Don't Know Why I Love You" suggest Fontana don't really know what to do with them. At least they haven't overpolished and commercialised them, anyway. Well, not much.
Mantronix - "Got To Have Your Love" - wonderful record (especially if you avoid the version with the vaguely misogynistic rap break), I think more or less forgotten until a very inferior cover version revived it years later. The bassline though.
Cher "Just like Jesse James". About as mainstream as mainstream rock-pop gets, but brilliant and enduring. For all small town dudes with big city attitudes.
Technotronic - "Get Up". Crap.
Sinead O'Connor - "Nothing Compares 2 U" - just simply stunning, an obvious timeless classic from the first listen
Skid Row - "18 And Life" - very mainsteam US rock aimed at teenagers but done so very well, and appealing despite all that
Breakers: Birdland - "Sleep With Me". Widely mocked in the music press (well, the NME), and kind of basic, but blazing with energy anyway
Beloved - "Hello". A name check for the underappreciated Kym Mazelle is especially welcome. This is obviously fun, but clearly they have done and will do much better
Eurythmics - "King and Queen of America" - ooh a return to form, like the House of Love, saving the best single for third release from the album, after two pretty average tracks.
Disconcerting to me about this episode (and noting that the BBC subtitles don't always get the lyrics right either) - Birdland DON'T sing "Do I shag you, as clear as the night?". The House of Love DON'T sing "I need a sister, of despair" (or maybe "of disdain"?), Skid Row DON'T sing "18 and Life lived Carrie". I can't remember what the allegedly actual lyrics are, but for the last 30 years (nearly 31...) (and having listened to "Shine On", especially, more times than I care to think of, although I bought all three of these singles, in that time....) I could have sworn it was as stated here....
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vya
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Post by vya on Oct 30, 2020 23:36:30 GMT 1
huit fev
Yell! Who on earth thought Big Fun needed a tribute act?
JJ "Come Back To Me": 30 years on and I still haven't decided whether this is super-bland or super-lovely. Maybe both. Not a fraction as good as "Let's Wait Awhile", though. The cut here is brutal, though.
WHY DO THEY NEVER HAVE RAZE ON TOTP "BREAK 4 LOVE" (in its original version anyway) is so so fine.
Beatz Intz "Dub Be Good To Me". This is actually rather brilliant, I'm not sure if this combination of disparate elements SHOULD work on paper, but it sure does on vinyl. Jam hot. Had no idea something this good would be on the way when Cook's first rather dire first post-'Martins single came out (the Normski side, not the Bragg side, that was OK), nor after the much better but rather earnest second one. Another case of saving the best for the third single.
From the womb: "Nothing Ever Happens". Another case of saving the best for the third single from the album, "Kiss This Thing Goodbye" was pleasant enough, "Stone Cold Sober" less good, but with some fun B-sides ("I ran into a Sunday Sport reporter, who was following his nose; he said, I'll get back to you, but first I need a picture without clothes") . But really this is the sound of a pretty mediocre act overachieving. But how. Four good tracks on the CD single as I recall. The new acoustic sound of the new decade. It can't possibly last. (I think it was an Australian, not an American businessman who "snapped up Van Goghs for the price of a hospital wing", though).
Lisa Stansfield "Live Together" - a bit too blatant in recreating the formula of her recent no 1 down to the Rochdale Female Barry White Introduction. She has a lovely voice, and the style (hat + curl) is kind of cute, and resolutely and proudly unmetropolitan. Hanging about at railway stations in the north-west is, well, in the spirit of Homeward Bound, too. OK .
Beloved - "Hello". Geez that is some way to dress. Not quite as hippy as Wayne Hussey. I'd heard of them through the soundtrack of "Sammy and Rosie Get Laid", one of the most overrated films in 1980s British cultural history. Record Mirror had a nice article going through all the characters mentioned in the lyrics. It was definitely a more innocent time when Bryan Hayes was the rudest man in Britain (well, let;'s be honest, England). This is fun, really fun. The whole album "Happiness" is uplifting and lovely, a big hug in the depths of wintertime. And the remixed version "Blissed Out" also.
Phil C - "I Wish It Would Rain". Already so out of date. Albeit more like an OK library book than a mouldy loaf. The guitar is almost comically over the top though. To be fair he has done much much worse.
Skid Row - "18 And Life". I love the poetry and sheen of this, the characters and story, the combination of soft and hard, of tenderness of toughness. This was never my preferred genre of music, but Skid Row had at least three absolute crackers of singles in their catalogue (see also "I Remember You" and "Wasted Time" as well as this one)
"Nothing Compares 2 U". Stunning, still. Breathtaking, even.
"King and Queen of America" - I've had the horrific thought that Donald and Ivana might have been the most plausible claimants to that title when this song was recorded. The video is of the same high standard as the song.
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vya
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Post by vya on Oct 31, 2020 0:12:21 GMT 1
Valentines Day plus one
Black Box "I Don't Know Anybody Else": kudos to them for having the nerve to come back (and under the same name too in addition to all their pseudonyms) after that rather embarrassing Milli Vanilli-esque exposure thing. Mind you everyone else was doing this by now, so. I'm not sure she's not referencing the 49ers with some of the "touch me" stuff here. Identical formula as before, ingredients not quite as good, nowhere near as good, even, but infectious and insistent and not entirely dislikeable.
"Just Like Jesse James". Love it. Not a lot. Well...there is some minor magnificience here.
Eric Clapton "Bad Love". And to think people complain now about Morrissey's political views (while passing Roger Water's far more extreme and unpleasant opinions go unmentioned). Whatever, l'art pour l'art and that. But this is true rock god masterfulness, slick and hard in full effect. So so good. Brutal brutal edit.
Renegade Soundwave in the top 40! That's mad. A bit of skullduggery.
Weddoes - "Brassneck". Now that's what I call toxic masculinity. Amazing. Extraordinary record to make the top 30. Brilliantly primitive. Gedge's static appearance adds to the effect.
Rod the Mod "Downtown Train"- the combo of a Tom Waits song and Rod who always "means it man" is a flawless one. Not substantially different from the original, just a bit more polished and accessible. But Rod does passion. And does it well. Cut off too soon again.
Sybil - "Walk On By". Not as good as the cover version just cut off. In fact it's rather poor.
DM - "ETS". Quite obviously the sublime peak of their varied career to date. Becoming a stadium act might have been the making of them.
Michael Bolton - "How Am I Supposed To Live Without You": a definite indicator of the greater cultural sophistication of the UK over the US at this point is that this embarrassing overblown narcisstic tosh filled with neverending intense preposterousness didn't get close to no 1 here. "Get over yourself you ridiculous man" is really the only plausible response to this four-minute whinefest.
Stranglers - "96 Tears" - more confirmation they are now essentially reduced to being a covers band, as always goes down well at Southend seafront. Still, this has the same hammond-led charm and fluency as their take on "Walk On By" ages earlier. And it's not like they are UB40.
Sinead - yes yes yes
Tina Turner - "Steamy Windows"- competent bluesy pop-rock I suppose if you like that sort of thing.
The problem with the BBC, as this episode is one of many to demonstrate, is how they oversystematise everything, they follow principles and throw common sense in the bin. No doubt with management slogans and self-righteous ideologically bound justifications from intellecutal non-entitites in HR. They've imposed these strict time limits for how long they will play tracks for, depending on whether they are on video or in the studio, and impose them rigidly, as a matter of policy, without common sense or individual judgement or discrimination intervening. And then later on they will swing the other way, with 11 minute Michael Jackson videos. No common sense. No happy medium.
In other words: some great tracks on this edition, but we didn't see enough of them, and had to endure too much dross in between them - too many little bits of too many songs.
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vya
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Post by vya on Oct 31, 2020 14:02:57 GMT 1
Two two two
Tina Turner - "Steamy Windows": I don't care for this sort of thing at all, but I suppose it's competent in its way
Chris Rea - "Tell Me There's A Heaven": this is curious, musically and lyrically somewhere between a childrens' lullaby and a hymn. Sensitive and not without beauty, but does it work? Still not sure. Cut off much too soon, of course.
Beats Int - "Dub Be Good To Me": still a success
Cliff Richard - "Stronger Than That": bland
Breakers: Thunder - "Dirty Love"; "Like a cheap shoe you were all over me"?! raw pub rock, best saved for a raw pub. Electribe 101 - "Talking With Myself" - a thing of genius, wonder and beauty, haunting and mesmeric; the combination of geeky Kraftwerk keyboard guys & wannabe torch singer Claudia Brucken-aspirant with Frankie Knuckles remix is perfect. One of the best things for ages. Jamie J. Morgan - "Walk On The Wild Side" - nothing redeeming about this at all, and noting his involvement with the ur-"Buffalo Stance" is not sufficient mitigation Renegade Soundwave - "Probably A Robbery" - blimey they are on. "started as a dipper but I married a stripper" is a line and a half. Mute Records electronica with added cockneyisms. Not amazing but something.
Guru Josh - "Infinity" - not a band, Mark, just a half-dressed Thatcherite dentist. Would have worked better with Pan's People or Ruby Flipper on stage "interpreting it". Musically it now seems very dated, but a snapshot of its time. A simpler, happier time.
Adam Ant - "Room At The Top" - a pale imitation of his moments of deserved acclaim and glory. This'd have been a B-side, at best, in 1982. "An 18th century brain in a 21st century head" seems something to aspire to, though, maybe, relatively. Good to see him back, but...
Sinead O'Connor - still an utterly magnificient recording
Aerosmith - "Dude (Looks Like A Lady)" - not sure why they re-released this, as opposed to, say, the recently overlooked "Janie's Got A Gun". Verges on being the work of a Rolling Stones tribute act. Not my thing.
Highlights both in the breakers: Electribe and Renegade
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Nov 1, 2020 9:26:15 GMT 1
Day after Valentine's Day. I still detest this video. Turner. We have The Wedding Present in the studio. Wow. We however start with the highest new entry at 5, which is Black Box, still with the fake mimer, and with a single that sounds exactly the same as the last one, same fake a cappella introduction, same opening burst of vocals, same pause for the same instrumental backing. Which cretins bought this? Only interesting thing is the graphic at the beginning was a black box pouring out the track name, group name, and number. They're obviously trying to detract from the ugliness of the typeface with gimmicks.
Cher. Wonder if she will marry a chap whose surname is Ansheralike? The graphics do a little gun shape out of the song title. She's selling sex appeal. I'm not buying it.
Clapton at 25. "Bad Love" so the graphic makes a little heart shape. Heh, Phil Collins on drums. How can a video so expensively shot have so little imagination in it? Then again, the song is bog-standard. Next.
Charts. Thunder, Renegade Soundwave and Adam Ant kick us off with new entries. FNM's "Epic" with a rare rise of 38-37. Bet they won't play it. Chris Rea, Macca, Stranglers all in. Is this 1990 or 1980?
New in at 24, The Weddoes. Deep joy. The graphic is a box falling from the top, spilling open to reveal the words within. Gedge can't be arsed to mime. Doing the bare minimum. Solowka is wearing a Ukrainian Peel Sessions t-shirt. This is feckin epic. A rollercoaster of explosion. And naturally the BBC cut it off.
Rod Stewart. Feck me, this IS 1980. Choo choo train in the graphics. It's a bit wistful, it is the classic 1985 rawk fogbound video, it suits Rod's voice. Nice girl in the video. Cut short before it kicks up. God almighty, BBC, if you want more songs in it, add 10 minutes to the programme LIKE IT ALWAYS FECKIN USED TO BE.
Sybil. Baswell. I'm guessing the graphics will make a little person walking. Actually, no, they just zoom on screen as per. Is that a comment on the unoriginality of this?
Charts and Depeche Mode. Hello, this is an actual pop song, they've eschewed the industrial. Graphic makes a circlet. This is a big new entry and this has big mainstream appeal. Could this bring them a no. 1 hit?
Back to the studio for Turner to say "I won't tell you the number 1 in case you already know it" which makes no sense at all. Michael Bolton, graphic comes in as a question mark. As in, "why would anyone on any possible planet in any possible universe buy this utter utter utter utter gash?"
Ironically they could use the ? for the next one as it's "96 Tears". Sounding note for note like the original. Well done Stranglers, you've become the f***ing SAWmill. With charming blandness the graphic for the songtitle strangles the group name into a rocket-like needle. This is COMPLETELY pointless.
Top 10. The non-mover triangle is now based on the left. Sinead O'Connor is a non-mover at no. 1 but the graphic points up. The chyron for the song just rotates in. It remains magnificent. Naturally the BBC cuts it off. Feckin hell.
Playout is Tina Turner. Well, this is a very very retro show. Cher, first hit 1965. Clapton, 1964. Stewart, 1968 (US albums). "Walk On By", 1962. Bolton, born in about 1905. "96 Tears", 1966. Stranglers, 1977. Turner, 1966. Doesn't that say something about the complete vapidity of the contemporary music scene? Nobody is interested in pushing any new talent that's not a corpo-whore.
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vastar iner
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I am the poster on your wall
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Post by vastar iner on Nov 1, 2020 10:02:00 GMT 1
A Desmond and a half. Goodier. The audience looks to have an average age of 24. Turner to start with a steamy window type graphic. I seem to recall this being trailled on Wogan months before. Was the single delayed? It's bluesy, her voice is still stellar, but it's just dull. They should have let her rip live.
The 24 flies in on wings as Chris Rea's "Tell Me There's A Heaven", which makes me think he should change his first name to Dire. Is this Comic Relief or something? Or a Christmas song that's two months late? It's so blatant an attempt to tug at the heartstrings that it has the opposite effect.
Charts. Another rare move, Renegade Soundwave going 40-38. Funnily enough, they got namechecked in a song that peaked at 38.
Beats International. They had no idea what to do with the graphic. Just a bouncing 2. They've gone 15-3-2. Slowly slowly catchy number one monkee. Maybe this exposure will push them over the top. Lester is wearing a James hoodie. They don't cut this much.
Highest new entry at 19 is Cliff. Going hi-NRG. The video is in the same vein. Did nobody have a quiet word with him? But again it's Oldies Time.
Breakers. Could have done with this last week. Thunder. Well, they may be new(ish), but the sound (and look) is definitely Accadacca 1977. Electribe 101 with Billie Ray Martin. This is more like it, this is how to do house music. Ethereal vocals set free by an anchor of a track. Jamie J Morgan with "Walk On The Wild Side", a needlessly danced up version of an iconic track, and what do they remove from it? The bassline. These people DO NOT HAVE A f***ing CLUE. And Renegade Soundwave get a brief appearance. They could have the shortest TOTP career ever. This definitely needed a longer play.
Guru Josh, according to Goodier, "might sound like a curry to you". There speaks a man who has never eaten anything stronger than haddock and wants to look hard in front of ver kids. Oh yes, this is euphoric. Although the saxophonist looks like he was last in Lord Rockingham's XI. 1990s, time for Guru. We shall see. An unusual rave anthem as you don't need to be off your tits on e to enjoy it.
Charts. Adam Ant at 22, big climber. In the studio, first time for a while. Is the leather jacket Westwood? Has hints of Plantagenet. Best bit is the swoopy vocals before the chorus. It's not quite Goddard in his pomp, but it's very decent. (Benny Hill was in the video for that one, did you recognize him?)
10, the non-mover graphic has swapped again to base on the right. DM go up 11. Well, there's a chance. Sinead remains at the top, no room for Adam. New performance, just her on stage with nothing else around, but same graphic. You'd think there would be a lesson in this. You don't need tarts or fashion or slebs to have a massive hit, you just need talent.
Playout. Aerosmith. Another two decade old act. This looks and sounds like it was thrown together in 10 minutes because the label pushed them to release SOMEthing.
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SheriffFatman
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Been spending most our lives living in the Cheshire countryside
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Post by SheriffFatman on Nov 3, 2020 12:44:17 GMT 1
So glad this thread has got going again.
The graphics said Eurythmics were at 11, when they were at 29. Pretty poor that no one spotted that before it went out.
Have we just had Phil Collins with Eric Clapton on guitar, and then Eric Clapton with Phil Collins on drums? It's effectively like they've formed a band. As far as the quality of the music is concerned I'd really rather they hadn't.
I'm sure it can't be a complete coincidence that Beats International have started to appear on these repeats just as I've started to see a meme on social media saying "Tank fly boss walk jam nitty gritty, you're listening to advice from Professor Chris Witty".
That Wedding Present track was excellent, and the performance was hilarious. I really should look into them more, I completely ignored them at the time, I was only 12 mind.
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vya
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Post by vya on Nov 6, 2020 22:13:20 GMT 1
Dydd Gŵyl Dewi
Jakkkkkki Brambles, free from Capital Radio now. Not the best presenter TOTP has had, but not the worst, not the worst morally certainly.
Shakin Stevens - "I Might": now being promoted, possibly ironically, possibly not, by Viz magazine, but for sure a hangover, even more than Adam Ant, from a rapidly disappearing world. Far from his best.
Rod Stewart - "Downtown Train". Pity it's filmed on the NY Subway, as Rod was (I think by this time) living in one of the very few actual real villages to be on the London Underground. The lyrics fit Essex every bit as much as Brooklyn, so why not chuck in some shots of a Central Line train edging past Epping Forest in the video? Tom Waits + Rod Stewart + Trevor Horn is indisputably a killer combination of top talents, and all of them are on form.
Jamie J Morgan - "Walk On The Wild Side". "Lou Reed must be feeling very proud" says Jakki. No, I think he'd rather remove his name from the credits. Atrocious. Completely fails to get the essence or the feel of the song, and that's not even to mention to the atrocious added rap bit which is nearly as obnoxious lyrically as the observation that "penetration is as simple as popping a pimple" line in the unneeded rap added to some versions of the otherwise luscious Mantronix track doing the rounds. Looking good diving? Not at all.
Electribe 101 - "Talking With Myself (Frankie Knuckles Remix)" - conversely, utterly sublime. A steam bath in a bleak bit of the Hungarian countryside in the depths of winter. It doesn't get better than this. A timeless, gorgeous, classic to wallow in, forever.
Various Artists - "Brits 1990 (Dance Medley)" - the BBC and their industry mates trying to be cool. At least Jimmy Savile's not involved. Nor, this year, Sam Fox.
Michael Bolton - "HAISTLWY". If you didn't know why she'd left him at the start of the song, you soon will.
Beats Int - "Dub Be Good To Me". I'm not convinced this is necessarily better than the SOS Band version, but it is different, and is not contemptible, unlike the Jamie J Morgan cover inflicted on our ears earlier.
Oddly though, one of the best tracks on this edition was just playing in the background when Jakki was brambling on - "Sueno Latino" by Sueno Latino, from the summer of 89. No reason for it to be there at all, but it put a lot of what was here thoroughly in the shade.
(All the breakers feature in the next edition, so discussion saved for then. But why skip The Stone Roses' "Elephant Stone", straight in at no 8? A re-release, sure, but hardly anyone had heard it before, let alone bought it, and it is actually kind of breathtaking and groundbreaking, maybe more so than "Fools Gold", and maybe better than that too)
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vya
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Post by vya on Nov 6, 2020 22:29:29 GMT 1
Международный женский день
Bruno. To be Frank.
Guru Josh - "Infinity: 1990's Time For The Guru": still hilarious and not quite too naff.
Gloria Estefan - "Here We Are": passibly decent and with some emotion, actually, not quite as drowned in corporate blandness (or cocaine) as much as her marketing team might like.
JT & The Big Family - "Moments In Soul". I don't know why they are bothering to mime this, everyone knows that they are not actually singing or performing on it. Bring back Ruby Flipper! "From Venice": Mestre, I bet. You can't really go wrong with a mix of elements out of Soul II Soul and the Art of Noise, though. (A Touch Of Soul's "We've Got The Love" from a few months earlier was maybe a better rendition of a similar idea though. On the same record label, too. Possibly even the same people behind it.)
Innocence - "Natural Thing". An act responsible for several utterly top notch singles in 1990, of which this is merely the best known. Taking the "ambient house" idea that Sueno Latino and 808 State had pioneered and making a full song out of it. Quite lovely.
Marc Almond - "A Lover Spurned". To be mean, it sounds like it's been excerpted from the soundtrack of a slightly second-rate musical comedy. Within those limitations, it's alright. Shakespeare had "The Merry Wives of Windsor" as well as "Hamlet". And how on earth could Solo Marc ever hope to live up to Soft Cell's legacy?
Erasure - "Blue Savannah". Not sure if Erasure, unlike the PSBs, ever officially had an "imperial period" where they could do no wrong, but if they did, I think they must be about midway through it now. Extraordinary that such unconventional (and indie label), but often brilliant, records could have such exposure and commerical success.
David A Stewart & Candy Dulfer - "Lily Was Here". Bruno says new parents are naming their newly born daughters "Lily" in honour of this track? Really? An A&R man was listening to Kenny G a bit too much, I think. Inoffensive.
Bros - "Madly In Love". Worse than a tragedy; a mistake. Ultra-environmentally friendly though, to recycle half a chorus they already had a hit with a few months earlier. In theory this could be OK, but in practice, oh no... It's over, boys, it's over...
Beats Int - etc
B52s - "Love Shack". Annoying and gimmicky, intentionally & self-consciously so. I still haven't worked out the rationale behind releasing what is obviously a summer track in the coldest part of the year. To bring cheer? Until you've heard it too many times, maybe.
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