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Top of the Pops on BBC Four - Thread Three

Started by daf, November 05, 2020, 08:25:18 PM

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Icehaven


kalowski


Icehaven


Jackson K Pollock

They were supposed to be replacing the tired, old-guard Radio 1 djs with cool new youth presenters, and the white guy (whose name I've already forgotten, sorry) opens with the exact same nothing line Mark Goodier always used to spout when he had nothing else to say ("Could that be a future number one?").

——

Love Voice of the Beehive, that would have really appealed to the 11-year old me: sexy, punky, shambolic fun.

——

Yes, what the hell was the point of that pre-performance interview with Belinda Carlisle? She looked peed off, and quite rightly.

——

Also, the set looks pretty much the same as whatever they were doing for the last several months.

daf

Christ, these "interviews" are excruciating - come back Simon Bates, all is forgiven!

daf


Icehaven

Quote from: Jackson K Pollock on October 15, 2021, 08:53:01 PM
They were supposed to be replacing the tired, old-guard Radio 1 djs with cool new youth presenters, and the white guy (whose name I've already forgotten, sorry) opens with the exact same nothing line Mark Goodier always used to spout when he had nothing else to say ("Could that be a future number one?").

Yeah he's exactly like Nicky Campbell/Mark Goodier only a couple of years younger. Even dressed the same. Ridiculous.

Camp Tramp

"Bigger than the Japanese Sumo wrestler!"

Which one?


Jackson K Pollock

I'm always genuinely staggered/impressed how bizarre the charts were back in 1991:

"Here's this week's breakers: Carl Cox and the hysterical Monty Python!"

——

(Fake) EDIT: Also, just finished the first episode - unless I missed it, did they not bother running down 40-11? That's not cool...

gilbertharding

I'll have to catch up with all this, but I'm glad I caught 2 Unlimited singing live.

Egyptian Feast

This grinning Big Fun fucker doing the interviews is clearly papping himself.

Nice to see two members of Belinda's backing band rocking Conrad Poohs t-shirts.

non capisco

That Morrissey song was so perfunctory you imagine even he forgot how it goes halfway through.

Does anyone have any memories of bands or singers properly cunting up the live vocals we can look forward to coming up? (Kurt Cobain doesn't count.) It's all been boringly in tune so far. I'm hoping for more utterly wayward displays like New Kids On The Block the other month, but even worse. Let's have some singing as flat as the Chelmsford skyline that we can all laugh at. I'm not sticking with this if it's Kenny Thomas and Ian Walking In Memphis every bloody week for the next two and a half years.

Top 10 including number 1 as the second item after the first performance can jump arse first onto a judas cradle thankyou very much, fuck right off with that. First Brexit and Covid, now this. Stone me, what a life.

non capisco

Walking In Memphis, right. He sees the ghost of Elvis going into Graceland and then says "there's a pretty little thing waiting for the King down in the jungle room". So there's a woman in there waiting to fuck Elvis' ghost? A preordained interdimensional hookup situation? She's summoned Elvis via ouija board or through a medium, I take it. "Hello, Elvis mate. Always fancied you. Well up for a bunk up if you can manage it in your incorporeal form. No, no need to materialize where I am. I'll come to yours."

Starlit

Was someone singing the samples live on the DJ Carl Cox tune?

daf

#1784
Quote from: non capisco on October 15, 2021, 11:20:33 PM
That Morrissey song was so perfunctory you imagine even he forgot how it goes halfway through.

Think Kirsty MacColl's on there doing BV's - totally wasted on this weak lemon drink of a song (and I'm complimenting it by considering it a song!) *

This was the final straw in me buying Morrissey 12 inches - Thus far and no further would I go in the pursuit of the elusive good B-side. Ironically, he actually gets 'any good' right after this by sacking old Fairground Attraction and hiring Ronno from the Dave Bowie band.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

* (Just checked . . . it was was Chrissie Hynde. Point still stands - what a waste!)

bigfatheart

I quite like My Love Life, although not to the extent that I can articulate why or defend it from anyone else's criticism. That's about as ringing an endorsement as I can give Morrissey at this point, though.

Mixed feelings watching all that. My own childhood memories of watching Top of the Pops are mostly mid to late 90s, so a lot about the new set-up felt slightly familiar, mostly the studio, I suppose. 2 Unlimited showing up felt like a big moment of shedding the last trappings of the 80s while the 90s arrived in full force, although I'm sure we'll have Paul Young or somebody showing up in a week or two to prove me wrong.

Dortie and Franklin were pretty rubbish, though. As others have said, what particularly stood out about Franklin was how indistinguishable from the Radio 1 lot of the era he was. That would've been fine, if a little bland, had he joined alongside them, but with so much hype about the new presenting team you can see where the backlash came from. And these two will be the ones chosen in a few months to carry it on on their own after everyone is let go! I dread to think how bad the rest are going to be.

You could see, particularly in the first episode, them straining every sinew to pack the show with artists who could do a job live, either established live acts or Proper Singers With Proper Voices. Let's see how long that lasts. Oh, and the Quo were definitely miming in spite of it all, right? You couldn't hear the pyro or the granny claps, and Tommy Lee Jones Francis Rossi's vocal was far too clean.

bigfatheart

Oh, and looking ahead, next week's episode starts with a song that features voiceover parts from
Spoiler alert
Mike Read
[close]
. Somehow I don't think he'll be in the studio to perform them.

dissolute ocelot

I liked Andy Bell's striped sleeveless jump suit with a flattering drop crotch. Very fashion forward.

I don't know if it's the way it's mixed or filtered or recorded, but everything sounded really dull and samey. (Probably not helped by about 50% of the people on stage looking bored. Cheer up Belinda's backing singers, you didn't have to meet Tony Dortie! At least Stevie was happy.)

Chicory

I don't miss 'The Wizard' at all, it was sounding out of place by about '88.  'Now Put Up With This' or whatever it's called is passable, it delivers a theme tune like FedEx deliver a parcel.  Certainly better than Vince Clark's uncharacteristically bland three note effort that carried it through the Britpop years.

Revealing the number one at the start is sheer perverse lunacy (even when it is him with that) but it can't have lasted that long because I don't recall it being a fixture as the 90s progressed and TOTP became must-see teenage telly on a Thursday and then Friday.

That Crystal Waters follow-up is a prime 'Old Pop In An Oak' if ever I heard one.

daf

3 October 1991: Presenters: Tony DOrtie & Mark Fr@nklin *

(04) | ERASURE – Love To Hate You
(25) | VOICE OF THE BEEHIVE – I Think I Love You
(22) | KENNY THOMAS – Best Of You
(20) | BELINDA CARLISLE – Live Your Life Be Free
NEW | STEVIE WONDER – Fun Day (video)
(10) | JULIAN LENNON – Saltwater
ALBUM | STATUS QUO – Let's Work Together
- - - - - - - - - - - (Breakers) - - - - - - - - - - - -
(31) | D.J. CARL COX – I Want You (Forever) (video)
(30) | MONTY PYTHON – Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life  (video)
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -



(01) | BRYAN ADAMS – (Everything I Do) I Do It For You (video)

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -




- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
* (New titles, and a new theme tune – "Get Out Of That" by Tony Gibber)

dissolute ocelot

Clearly Bros weren't saluting enough magpies.

Sebastian Cobb

lol at that mayo interview

didn't have him down as relatively religious

dissolute ocelot

Quote from: Sebastian Cobb on October 16, 2021, 04:16:33 PM
lol at that mayo interview

didn't have him down as relatively religious
He was quite well known for it even back in the early 90s. Although generally with a sense of humour: referring to himself as the vicar, playing church music, and reading out people's confessions on the radio. He seemed to avoid the ghetto of religious programming, and was happy to play sexy or sacriligious pop, so he wasn't obnoxious about it, but it was mentioned in virtually every interview he did.

Sebastian Cobb

I think it's slightly before my time although i'd probably heard him on the radio/seen him on totp I wouldn't have been around smash hits etc.

It's kind of funny how he was interested in politics then - and has a politics degree, Kermode jokes how he's the political one these days on their radio show.

Captain Z

Quote from: daf on October 16, 2021, 03:48:35 PM
JULIAN LENNON – Saltwater

I loved him as Phil in The Thick Of It. The song has major "Save Your Kisses For Me" vibes.

Sebastian Cobb

Mark Franklyn addressing the camera through a video wall is legitimately terrifying.

Sebastian Cobb

You know the first episode is dross when you're actually glad to hear walking in memphis

monkfromhavana

Quote from: Sebastian Cobb on October 16, 2021, 10:34:45 PM
You know the first episode is dross when you're actually glad to hear walking in memphis

I kept waiting for the breakbeat to kick in, then was disappointed that it wasn't 1992.

daf

10 October 1991: Presenters: Tony DOrtie & Mark Fr@nklin

(24) | D.J. CARL COX – I Want You (Forever)
(29) | MORRISSEY – My Love Life
(35) | MARC COHN – Walking In Memphis
NEW | QUEEN – The Show Must Go On  (video)
(27) | CATHY DENNIS – Too Many Walls
ALBUM | SIMPLY RED – For Your Babies
- - - - - - - - - - - (Breakers) - - - - - - - - - - - -
(33) | OLETA ADAMS – Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me  (video)
(32) | MARIAH CAREY – Emotions  (video)
(22) | PUBLIC 'ENERY – Can't Truss It  (video)
(11) | KIRI TI KANAWA – World In Union  (video)
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
(19) | 2 UNLIMITED – Get Ready For This



(01) | BRYAN ADAMS – (Everything I Do) I Do It For You (video)

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Behind The Scenes (Relaunch October 1991)

Norton Canes

Quote from: daf on October 16, 2021, 03:48:35 PM
3 October 1991: Presenters: Tony DOrtie & Mark Fr@nklin *

Where to start? Way too much to process. Why do they keep mucking about with things? 

The Good:

  • The titles, I guess, with their freakily lopsided, futurist take on the logo. Thought it might be CGI at first, then I remembered there wasn't that much CGI around on TV even by the early 90's, and there was too much detail on the fixtures and reflections, and... oh, it's there in the studio, anyway. Wonder if it still exists?
  • It's nice they've extended the design aesthetic to the caption, too
  • People! Real people (well, Top of the Pops punters) actually in touching distance of the presenters, again!
  • Its, uh... its energy, you can't fault it for that, at least
  • Some nice pans across the studio from one performance to the next
  • Less fewer videos. Come on, no-one watches TOTP for the videos, however much they love Stevie Wonder
  • That horrible dance music relegated to a few brief seconds in the Breakers. Go make some proper records, guys!
  • Say what you like about Franko and Dorts but at least we've finally got a bit of diversity

The Bad:

  • Losing the top 40 rundown, obv. Play it over Stevie, no-one cares. In case anyone was wondering (no?), here's that hot 40 in full
  • And not even voicing the top ten. Come on, guys, put a shift in
  • 'Get Out Of That'. I mean, it's got a tune, fair enough, but it's definitely 'a theme' rather than a decent track on its own right
  • 'Consultant: Paul Gambaccini'. Ah, right. That explains a lot

The Meh:

  • The set. Scaffold, rigs, those weird transparent pipe things... all a bit routine

The Endearingly Dated:

  • That lo-tech CRT set it turns out we've been watching Erasure on

Anyway, it's nice that Erasure are still the go-to band when you want to open a fresh, new-look chart music show, having opened the first episode of The Roxy a few years previously. In fact, there's a bit of a Roxy vibe about this Year Zero Pops, with its reckless bending of the rules around who can perform (but don't worry, all the performances you see here have been declared officially eligible!). Great turn by VOTB too, with Melissa sporting an ensemble Andy Bell probably wishes he'd worn. So an impressive opening one-two, and not even a insipid offering by Kenny Thomas (looking uncannily like the love child of Bob Mortimer and Paul Whitehouse) or the preamble to an interview with Belinda Carlisle that turns out to be longer than the actual interview with Belinda Carlisle can kill the brave new vibe. No, that honour goes to the double hammy of Julian Lennon and Status Quo, the show suddenly blasting its own foot with both barrels just as it was beginning to prove itself. I know we were a few years off Radio 1's great Quo cull of 1996 but still, what were the production team thinking. Would love to have seen the look on Stanley Appel's face when he'd got them all booked and in rehearsal only to be told by Frances Rossi "Nah sorry mate, not singing live".

Finally (and it really is finally, now there's no play-out video), for those who've found this new direction a little too breathtaking, here's Bryan to reinstate some comforting familiarity. Apparently Let's Talk About Sex got as close as any number 2 did to outselling Everything I do... this week.

Right I'm hung over, I'm off for a delicious breakfast of Funday Flakes and Crisp Biscuits