We have arrived at a metaphorical line in the sand episode with these TOTP repeats as we say goodbye to the ‘golden mic’ slot whereby hosting duties were undertaken not by Radio 1 DJs but by pop stars and celebrities from the worlds of comedy, sport and showbiz. Introduced by new executive producer Ric Blaxill in March 1994, the very first incumbents were Take That’s Robbie Williams and Mark Owen heralding in a huge list of non-traditional presenters from Suggs to Skunk Anansie’s Skin and from Dennis Pennis to Gina G. Some choices really worked like the cast of The Fast Show, some really didn’t – Keith Allen as alter ego ‘Keithski’ was just plain annoying. Whether you liked it or not, at least it was an attempt to shake the format up after the ultimate failure of the ‘Year Zero’ revamp. The final ‘golden mic’ hosts are the Spice Girls which, given their profile at this time, was definitely a case of going out at the top. I have to say that, on balance, I was a fan of this particular invention and I’m not convinced that the regular roster of hosts, introduced by incoming executive producer Chris Cowey, that followed (including Jamie Theakston, Zoe Ball and Kate Thornton) will be any sort of improvement but maybe I’ll be proved wrong.

Anyway, we start with Wet Wet Wet and the time of their first incarnation was nearly at an end. It had been a good run – their debut single and hit “Wishing I Was Lucky” had been released just over ten years prior to this point and their subsequent run of 23 Top 40 singles included three No 1s. Even when their career was supposedly in the doldrums – that period between the second and third albums with the 90s in its infancy – they still only had one single that could be considered a flop (“Put The Light On” stalled at No 56 in 1991). Even then, their next release was “Goodnight Girl” which topped the charts. Having said all that, the signs were there that their conveyor belt of success was starting to slow down – three of their last four singles (including this one “Strange”) failed to go Top 10. For me, their sound had become just too safe by this point. “Strange” was perfect daytime radio fodder with its easy on the ear sound and prominent brass parts but ‘fodder’ was the significant word in that description; it was ‘filler’ not ‘killer’.

As well as sonic stagnation, the band was facing internal struggles. After the tour to support the “10” album, drummer Tommy Cunningham left over a dispute about songwriting royalties feeling he was frozen out of what had always been a four way split. Meanwhile, Marti Pellow was in the middle of fighting his alcohol and drug addictions and would also leave the band in 1999. I wonder if his peroxide blonde haircut seen in this performance was a cry for help similar to the style Robbie Williams sported at Glastonbury after leaving Take That where he was clearly under the influence of something stronger than a few light ales. As for the Wets, there was one final hit in the 90s – a cover of “Yesterday” for some reason – and that would be it for seven years until they reunited for a Greatest Hits album. They are currently touring but with bassist Graeme Clark the only* original member in the line up.

*Guitarist Graeme Duffin is also still with the band having been a touring member since the early days. He was previously reluctant to do any promotional work with the other four members partly on account of his suffering from a stammer.

Next a band who were following a similar career trajectory to our opening act but that’s about all they had in common – I’m clearly not saying Faith No More were anything like Wet Wet Wet! However, both bands were approaching hiatuses that would last for years, both were experiencing line up changes (guitarist Dean Menta had recently been fired and replaced by Jon Hudson) and both had recently released albums which seemed to demonstrate a downturn in creativity. In the case of the San Francisco rockers, their optimistically titled “Album Of The Year” proved to be anything but with reviews in the press ranging from lukewarm at best to downright caustic (if funny). Look at this:

“ ‘Album Of The Year’ leaves one feeling like waking up and finding last night’s used condom – sure, the ride was fun while it lasted but what remains is just plain icky. And you definitely don’t want it in your CD player.”

Stomberg, Jeremy. “Faith No More: Album of the Year: Pitchfork Review”. Pitchfork.

Heh and indeed eeeyeww! Anyway, the one track that did get a bit of love from the critics was lead single “Ashes To Ashes”. Absolutely nothing to do with the Bowie classic, it was a described as a “moody rocker” though I think I’d probably go with ‘doom-laden’ rather than ‘moody’. Apparently, the rumour from Ground Control was that this was more like the classic Faith No More sound but as I could only name you three of their tracks (and one of them isn’t actually theirs), I don’t feel qualified to make any sort of judgement.

As Mrs Merton would say, “It’s Hooky and the boys!”. Yes, I’d forgotten this but Monaco, Peter Hook’s side project band away from New Order, had a second hit besides the excellent “What Do You Want From Me” called “Sweet Lips” which made a respectable No 18 in the charts. However, it wasn’t Hooky and the boys in this performance but Pottsy and the boys with Hooky nowhere to be seen. Nobody seems to know why he wasn’t there but I liked the response on X from @DonOftheDead80 who said “He was playing Hooky”. Heh. Anyway, to counter his absence, we get Hooky’s parts in the song covered by the promo video which is intercut with my old Our Price colleague Pottsy doing his thing in the studio. It’s a clunky device but I guess it just about works. As for the song, it’s got much more of a dance vibe to it than its predecessor so did it counter the criticism that the band were just a pop version of New Order? Maybe but for me, it’s nowhere near as strong a single as their debut though it pisses over most of its Top 40 peers which was just as well as it was also the band’s final Top 40 hit. A third single from their debut album “Music For Pleasure” was released but it peaked at No 55. A second album just called “Monaco” was rejected by Polydor though it was eventually released on Papillon Records but lead single “I’ve Got A Feeling” was withdrawn due to sample clearance issues and a second track “See-Saw” only received a limited 12” single release. Relations between Pottsy and Hooky deteriorated to the point of the band splitting but the duo are together again performing as Peter Hook & The Light.

Right, who’s this? Oh, it’s that Rosie Gaines. Who? Yeah, I’d forgotten about her as well but she was a member of Prince’s New Power Generation and duetted with the diminutive one on “Diamonds And Pearls”. Her solo hit “Closer Than Close” is widely regarded by those who know as a club classic and an absolute banger in the cannon of house music. It goes without saying that I’m not one of those in the know. The title track of her album that was released in 1995 became a No 4 hit two years later when it was remixed after bootlegs circulating in the club scene had created an underground buzz. An official release on Big Bang Records saw it crossover into the mainstream. Wikipedia tells me that it got categorised as part of the ‘speed garage’ scene to which my response was “the what?”. Wikipedia, of course, can answer my question and tells me that the genre was characterised by a four-to-the-floor rhythm, breakbeats, warped bass lines and time-stretched vocals. Yeah, I’m still clueless. All I know is that “Closer Than Close” does next to nothing for me and I particularly did not enjoy it when Rosie does some scatting at the end.

It’s “Time To Say Goodbye” – no, not literally – it isn’t a very short, truncated episode of the show but Andrea Bocelli and Sarah Brightman with their No 2 hit. With the crossover appeal it had (non-traditional record shop visitors were buying it), a prolonged stay on the chart was inevitable and it duly spent five weeks inside the Top 10 and eleven on the Top 40 aided by some heavy airplay on Radio 2.

The cover of the single includes the tagline ‘A Tribute To Henry Maske’ which I didn’t notice at the time I would have been selling it in the Our Price store in Stockport so who was/is Henry Maske? Well, he was a five times German boxing champion and one of the country’s most popular sporting figures. Fair enough but what did he have to do with “Time To Say Goodbye”? Good question. The track was performed by Andrea and Sarah at the start of Maske’s last professional fight in 1996 (Brightman had already performed another song at one of Maske’s earlier fights) and it was also played at the end to mark Maske’s exit. The track didn’t bring him any luck as he lost that final bout – the only loss of his professional career. I guess it would have at least been a poignant soundtrack for the boxer much as it was when played at the end of my hometown football club Worcester City’s final match at their St George’s Lane ground that I mentioned in my last post. Of course, there is another goodbye song that can still bring tears to the eyes if the comments on YouTube about this clip are anything to go by. Seriously, check them out…

Now, here’s a thing. This is yer actual George Michael actually in the TOTP studio for the first time since 1986 when he performed “Where Did Your Heart Go?” as part of Wham! Bizarrely though, he isn’t performing but rather has a little stilted chat with Geri Halliwell before introducing the video for “Waltz Away Dreaming”, a track written by himself and one Toby Bourke and performed by the pair as a duet. This must be one of the least remembered George Michael hits not least because it didn’t feature on any of his albums (it eventually made it onto his “Ladies & Gentlemen” Best Of but inexplicably just the cassette version). I can barely recall it and I worked in a record shop and I still couldn’t have told you how it went. As for Toby Bourke, he was/is an Irish songwriter and the first artist signed to the independent record label Aegean that George founded after his split from Sony. Their track was dedicated to George’s Mum who had died in the February of 1997. Right, that’s all the facts out of the way – I’d better listen to the thing now…

…hmm…well, the video is giving me Narnia vibes which I don’t think suits the tone of the song which is meant to be a beautiful ballad but I found it meandering and rather soporific. It just doesn’t go anywhere rather like George’s record label which folded soon after and whose roster of artists included Trigger, Primitiva and Bassey Walker. Anyone? No, me neither. However, it was the first European record label to adopt the Liquid Audio secure electronic music delivery system which allowed music streaming and music downloads. Have that Spotify!

Although extensively used in classical music, there aren’t many pop songs that feature the word ‘waltz’ in its title. “Tom Traubert’s Blues (Waltzing Matilda)”? Does that count? Oh, hang on. Hers another by that rascal Malcolm McLaren…

After nearly four years and five Top 5 placings, Eternal are finally No 1 in the singles chart with “I Wanna Be The Only One”. It was a prophetic song title as it was the group’s only chart topper and it was only in pole position for a solitary week. Still, a No 1 record is a No 1 record and not every artist can claim to have had one. This gospel-inflected, joyous pop/soul track was always more likely to do the trick for the girls than one of their more melancholy efforts like previous single “Don’t You Love Me” or their mid-tempo dance tracks like “Save Our Love” as it was another one of those songs that would cut a swathe through people’s perceptions and reach the mainstream. It was and remains a fun track. Aided on vocals by BeBe Winans (of the extended musical Winans family) it was perfect for Summer playlists and was in step with the upbeat, good feeling that the General Election result had ushered in.

I’m pretty sure that I witnessed the announcement that Eternal were No 1 in person as it was made in Albert Square, Manchester where a mini Radio 1 Roadshow was taking place. It was on a Sunday and I think that as the chart countdown got to the No 1 position, Eternal were introduced on stage to perform their hit. Yes, I’m sure that happened and I haven’t made it up. Sadly, I’d given up on my diary a few weeks before so there isn’t any confirmation of events written down. This commercial peak for Eternal was over pretty quickly. Parent album “Before The Rain” had only been out for six months before a Greatest Hits package was released for the Christmas sales rush which seemed a bit odd. Maybe it was a contractual obligation thing. Said album was a hit but within two years, their last eponymously titled album made just as a duo by the Bennett sisters was a flop. The group split soon with the inevitable reunion rumours resurfacing most recently in 2023 with the four members from the original line up but Louise Redknapp and Kéllé Bryan pulled out over the Bennetts’ refusal to appear at LGBTQ Pride events.

The play out video is “I Have Peace” by Strike. Unsurprisingly, I don’t recall this one at all – my only memory of this lot is their 1995 No 4 hit “U Sure Do” though apparently they did have three minor hits after that and before this one. Wikipedia tells me that “I Have Peace” contains a sample of Level 42’s “Leaving Me Now”. Really? Let me have a listen…

…oh yeah – there’s it is. That tinkling piano part. It’s not an obvious steal for a dance track but it just about works. Despite it being their last UK chart hit, they would continue for another ten years supporting the likes of the Backstreet Boys, Jocelyn Brown and in a nice, full circle ending to the show, the Spice Girls.

Order of appearance	Artist	Title	Did I buy it?
1	Wet Wet Wet	Strange	Nah
2	Faith No More	Ashes To Ashes	I did not
3	Monaco	Sweet Lips	I bough their first single but not this one
4	Rosie Gaines	Closer Than Close	No
5	Andrea Bocelli and Sarah Brightman	Time To Say Goodbye	Nope
6	George Michael and Toby Bourke	Waltz Away Dreaming	Negative
7	Eternal featuring BeBe Winans	I Wanna Be The Only One	I did but for my wife who liked it
8	Strike	I Have Peace	And no

Disclaimer

I make no claim to the rights of this show and all ownership and contents including logos and graphics belongs totally to the BBC or copyright holder(s).

All opinions on the music and artists featured are my own. Sorry if you don’t agree.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m0028dyz/top-of-the-pops-30051997?seriesId=unsliced