Topic: Topic: Top of the Pops on BBC Four - Thread Two.

[Head Gardener]

whenever I watch TOTP with my lad he always comments how much he hates the presenters, Peter Powell and Simon Bates tend to come in for the most abuse, makes me so proud

[daf]

26 May 1988: Presenters: Mark Goodier & Steve 'Murderer's Gloves' Wright

(19) DEBBIE GIBSON – Out Of The Blue
Razor Sharpening Video Pyramid
(13) LA MIX – Check This Out (video)
Chuck This Out
(15) OFRA HAZA – Im Nin’Alu
Monstrous
- - - - - - - - - - - - (breakers) - - - - - - - - - - - -
(22) CLIMIE FISHER – This Is Me
(25) ASWAD – Give A Little Love
(28) THE STYLE COUNCIL – Life At A Top People’s Health Farm
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -


https://www.flickr.com/photos/51106326@N00/sets/72157678784790655/

(11) HOTHOUSE FLOWERS – Don’t Go
Eurovision Dung Contest
(17) MICA PARIS – My One Temptation
Never Mind the Ballads, Here's The Flugelhorn Solo
(18) SCRITTI POLITTI – Oh Patti (Don’t Feel Sorry For Loverboy)
Miles over Greenland
(1) WET WET WET – With A Little Help From My Friends
He's Getting Smugger all the time
(14) HEART – What About Love (video / credits)
What about those Gloves?

[Sebastian Cobb]

Fun Marti Pellow fact: his missus and her sister sued the makers of Irn Bru bars because they reckon they fucked their teeth.

[Bobby Treetops]

Steve Wright looks like he presenting the show halfway through doing the washing up.

[Satchmo Distel]

Can you post a photo of what Wright is wearing?

[Satchmo Distel]

Fun Marti Pellow fact: his missus and her sister sued the makers of Irn Bru bars because they reckon they fucked their teeth.

They wanted to sue Marti for doing the same.

[daf]

 

[Mr Banlon]

"I've left a body dissolving in an oil drum !"

[kalowski]

 

As if any more evidence were required to prove this man was an unrelenting cunt.

[Better Midlands]

I spent an evening with Steve Wright's son in Camden about 12 years ago, not much to report - he was alright.

[Sebastian Cobb]

I spent an evening with Steve Wright's son in Camden about 12 years ago, not much to report - he was alright.

While out with my then housemate's extended friend group I had a pint and a nice chat with Gregor Fisher's son.

[Satchmo Distel]

http://left-and-to-the-back.blogspot.com/2010/08/one-hit-wonders-11-steve-wright-im.html

[The Culture Bunker]

http://left-and-to-the-back.blogspot.com/2010/08/one-hit-wonders-11-steve-wright-im.html

He's 27/28 years old on that sleeve, which seems almost unbelievable. He looks about 50.

[non capisco]

He's 27/28 years old on that sleeve, which seems almost unbelievable. He looks about 50.

Common with Radio 1 DJs of a certain vintage, that. I have no doubt that Simon Bates first emerged from Ma Bates' chuff already looking at least 48, with a side parting.

'Australia' by Manic Street Preachers, Mica Paris wants her chorus back.

[OnlyRegisteredSoICanRead]

(11) HOTHOUSE FLOWERS – Don’t Go

(17) MICA PARIS – My One Temptation

(18) SCRITTI POLITTI – Oh Patti (Don’t Feel Sorry For Loverboy)
 
(1) WET WET WET – With A Little Help From My Friends
 

I thought my head was going to implode during this particular blandfest.

[Satchmo Distel]

Despite the very tough competition, Wright was definitely the DJ With The Most Punchable Face circa-1984-1988. He was also such a money-grubbing bastard that he appeared in Bullseye Christmas Special in 1992.

https://youtu.be/3AcXEoqEmQQ?t=626

[daf]

2 June 1988: Presenters: Nicky Campbell & Peter Powell (Stuck in a broom Cupboard Special!!)

(18) ASWAD – Give A Little Love (video)
Tres Joli Chapeaux
(14) DESIRELESS – Voyage Voyage (video)
La Brush Bonce
(23) TIFFANY – I Saw Him Standing There (video)
She Was Just Seventeen Sixteen and 8 months
- - - - - - - - - - - - (breakers) - - - - - - - - - - - -
(22) THE TIMELORDS – Doctorin’ The Tardis
(27) VOICE OF THE BEEHIVE – Don’t Call Me Baby
(25) FIVE STAR – Another Weekend
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
(5) AZTEC CAMERA – Somewhere In My Heart
With these Two Drummers, you are really spoiling us!



(21) ROD STEWART – Lost In You (video)
He Was Just Forty Three, You Know what I meee . . .
(1) WET WET WET – With A Little Help From My Friends
Being for The Benefit of Mr Charidee
(4) BELINDA CARLISLE – Circle In The Sand (video / credits)
Photo Finish

[Norton Canes]

(14) DESIRELESS – Voyage Voyage (video)

"Sur le Gange ou l'Amazone
Chez les blacks, chez les sikhs, chez les jaunes"

Non!

[Norton Canes]

Oh get to fuck, Proms on BBC4 again tonight.

[buzby]

19 May 1988: Presenters: Simon Bates & Gary 'Sgriddy Poliddy' Davies

(14) PREFAB SPROUT – The King Of Rock ‘N’ Roll

Late 80s chart resurgence #1:  McAloon makes a chart comeback with what would be the band's biggest hit. Produced by Thomas Dolby, hence the synth-heavy sound (which makes the band miming look particularly redundant). I have a real soft spot for tihs track, especially the daft, over-literal video

(16) DEREK B – Bad Young Brother

Miming again - there's nothing more pathetic than seeing a rapper and his hype men miming. Nearly every previous rapper that's appeared on ver Pops has peformed live - was he not very confident in his abilities?

(17) AZTEC CAMERA – Somewhere In My Heart

Late 80s chart resurgence #2: Roddy finally makes his Top 10 breakthrough. Like McAloon & co, this would prove to be Aztec Camera's only Top 10 single (by now ,the band was basically a Frame solo project). The parent album Love had been recorded around the East Coast of the US with session musicians and pop and dance producers (the single was produced by electro-funk artists & producer Michael Jonzun, brother of Maurice Starr). Again, like Prefab Sprout, the largely synthetic production makes the band miming a bit incongruous (a screaming Fender Strat solo coming from a Gibson archtop always makes me chuckle).

The single does not really fit with the rest of the songs on the album, and Frame had recorded it for use as a potential B-side.

(12) BELINDA CARLISLE – Circle In The Sand (video)

Like her previous #1 hit, this was another Rick Nowels (who also produced the Heaven On Earth album) and /Ellen Shipley co-write. On the basis of this song in particular it's no surprise that much later on Nowels became a very frequent collaborator of Lana Del Rey's.

The video was directed by Sheffield Art School graduate Peter Care, who directed many of Cabaret Voltaire's early videos (including Sensoria) and they soundtracked his cult short film Johnny Yesno. The clever compositing effects  used to to produce the 'moving photographs' are impressive, but by her third single we are already at the 'don't bother miming, just point the camera at those cheekbones!' stage.

(3) LIVERPOOL FC – Anfield Rap (Red Machine In Full Effect) (video / credits)

Derek B Is Back Again (in a writing capacity). Excellent use of Shankley and Beatles samples, Brian Moore and John Barnes rapping as a warm up for World In Motion. Nice nod to Liverpool's warehouse rave club Quadrant Park (a.k.a 'the quad') in the graffiti on the backdrop too.

[buzby]

2 June 1988: Presenters: Nicky Campbell & Peter Powell (Stuck in a broom Cupboard Special!!)

The studios at TV Centre had been condemned due to an asbestos scare (presumably the same scare that led to the Dr Who story The Greatest Show On Earth being set in a big top in the car park). Unfortunately the studios aren't the only thing that should have been condemned - Powell and Campbell's laddish banter is skin crawling, taking us right back to the Savile and DLT era.

(14) DESIRELESS – Voyage Voyage (video)

A hit as a re-release after being given a typical Hammond and Waterman PWL Hi-NRG remix (labelled the Britmix' by CBS). The original version had failed to reach the Top 40, having stalled at #53 the previous November. CBS had however failed to redub the video with the 7" edit of the Britmix, so we get the original 1987 version on TOTP.

The video was directed by French art and fashion photographer Bettina Rheims,and features a very young and pre-fame David Caruso

(23) TIFFANY – I Saw Him Standing There (video)

Fucking hell - who let her cover this, and more to the point, approved it's release? Her voice is totally unsuited to song as she has no 'belting' voice so it just comes out painfully strained, and together with the horrible cheesy backing it sounds like a bad karaoke recording. Just awful.

(22) THE TIMELORDS – Doctorin’ The Tardis

I'lll cover the song on the next episode but the video needs a mention too. The first appearance of Ford Timelord, who had originally been planned to front the song (for the full history of Ford Timelord and his other incarnations, see my previous post here). The video was filmed in Wiltshire and Somerset by their longtime collaborator Bill Butt, and the presence of Glastonbury Tor, Cherhill White Horse and the Avebury Stone Circle are presumably due to Drummond's love of ancient monuments.

The abandoned airfield was RAF Yatesbury, an ex-training base (situated almost in the shadow of the White Horse) that had been opened during WWI and closed in 1965.

(25) FIVE STAR – Another Weekend

Five Star have now caught up with Michael Jackson's 'Bad' sound and image. Not sure if Steadman was behind those costumes - nice that they have included skateboard kneepads so they could do the knee drops and slides without hurting themselves. The track has got a serious case of '808 Cowbell' infection though.

[Natnar]

Five Star have now caught up with Michael Jackson's 'Bad' sound and image. Not sure if Steadman was behind those costumes - nice that they have included skateboard kneepads so they could do the knee drops and slides without hurting themselves. The track has got a serious case of '808 Cowbell' infection though.

I don't think it's a coincidence that Five Star started to go down the dumper as soon as Michael Jackson came back with Bad. They'd been ripping off his act for the previous couple of years.

[Norton Canes]

presumably the same scare that led to the Dr Who story The Greatest Show On Earth being set in a big top in the car park

In The Galaxy, I think you'll find!

[Norton Canes]

Which led to the greatest 'what might have been' lost crossover in the history of television as the fire alarms in one of the studios went off, meaning the cast of the series filming there had to join Who cast members in the car park...

[non capisco]

Another stinking episode. I never thought it was possible for the charts of 1988 to have a Beatles cover in it that's somehow worse than Wet Wet Wet's but that Tiffany thing comfortably surpasses it in the unpleasant stakes. Her flat sandpaper vocals rasping over that naff session band lamely pootling away. The falsetto "oooh!"s with all the joie de vivre of your third week in a gulag. She occasionally sounded like Kim Shattuck from The Muffs doing sarcastic karaoke. Hideous.

I noticed the old 'creepy lecherous wally' side of Peter Powell that he'd been successfully suppressing since about 1985 (my theory is Janice Long had a word at some point) came oozing back out under the influence of his new mate Nicky Cuntbell. Three odd years of apologetic semi-dignity thrown in the dustbin, up scaling Wally Mountain once more like it was 1979 again but with much, much shitter music.

[Bobby Treetops]

Another stinking episode.....

...apart from 'Voyage Voyage' by Desireless, it's a banger (although the PWL version is best avoided).

[daf]

9 June 1988: Presenters: Simon Mayo & Peter Powell

(4) THE TIMELORDS – Doctorin’ The Tardis
Samplin’ The Glam-hits



(18) FIVE STAR – Another Weekend (video)
They're Bad, they're Bad, They're really, really, Bad
(23) VOICE OF THE BEEHIVE – Don’t Call Me Baby
Pinching all the pollen from the corned-beef flowers
(7) MICA PARIS – My One Temptation
. . . is a double-breasted Leather Flag
- - - - - - - - - - - - (breakers) - - - - - - - - - - - -
(28) FIELDS OF THE NEPHILIM – Moonchild
(24) SABRINA – Boys (Summertime Love)
(31) JAMES BROWN – I’m Real
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
(15) MAXI PRIEST – Wild World
Cool Cat
(12) MORRISSEY – Everyday Is Like Sunday
Come Friendly Bombs
(1) WET WET WET – With A Little Help From My Friends
Everyone, B-sides Bragg
(19) ERASURE – Chains Of Love (video / credits)
Finger Comb

[kalowski]

(12) MORRISSEY – Everyday Is Like Sunday
Come Friendly Bombs

I know yer man Moz is now #canceleed but this is a fucking great song. Every second of it delights.

[The Culture Bunker]

It went horribly wrong for them afterwards, but that first Voice of the Beehive album (that includes 'Don't Call Me Baby') is ace too, despite the shit title.

[sweeper]

9 June 1988: Presenters: Simon Mayo & Peter Powell

My god, that closing link is a thing of wonder: Powell inexplicably leaning on a woman's head; Mayo putting his hand on Powell's bonce, and Powell's momentary slip into hostility: 'get off me'; two middle-aged women waving and mugging maniacally throughout. Mesmerising.

1988 really is the worst year for presenters, isn't it? I live in fear of another Campbell/Mayo team up. Dreadful. I know Mayo is now a much beloved broadcaster, but I've always thought he was a 'porridge faced wanker.'