Mike & The Mechanics

TOTP 22 JUN 1995

Posted on December 1, 2023 by 80stastic

These mid 90s TOTPs were all over the place musically. I’m looking for some sort of thread that links the acts on this particular show together and apart from an over arching theme of dance music, I can’t really detect one – it’s all a bit…not exactly eclectic but more…well…haphazard. There’s Britpop, soft rock, cover versions, a novelty record…and Mike And The Mechanics. If the running order is unpredictable one thing that is completely, absolutely unequivocally guaranteed is that host Simon ‘Smug’ Mayo will trot out a string of lame lines that he thinks are shit-your-pants funny. What a plank.

1995 really was in the midst of an identity crisis. Look at the opening act – the prince of Eurodance Haddaway had somehow managed to secure himself four consecutive Top 10 hits between 1993 and early 1994 but the wheels had pretty much come off by this point. His second album “The Drive” did nothing in the UK (I’m not sure we even stocked it in Our Price as I don’t know it’s cover art at all) but somehow its lead single “Fly Away” propelled him into our charts one more time despite everybody knowing (including himself surely) that he was living on borrowed time. Being a resourceful lad, he’s decided the best way to extend his shelf life was to do his best 2 Unlimited impression complete with bringing in a female vocalist to accompany him just to hammer home the Ray and Anita comparison. I guess it worked as “Fly Away” made it to No 20 but this track surely didn’t live long in anyone’s memory.

It’s the aforementioned Mike + The Mechanics next with the title track from their latest album “Beggar On A Beach Of Gold” though curiously they’ve added an ‘A’ to the title of the single. “A Beggar On A Beach Of Gold” was the follow up to “Over My Shoulder” which performed well reaching No 12 in the charts. Its successor couldn’t repeat that though peaking at No 33. Was there a reason for this? Well, this track has Paul Young (not that one) on lead vocals whereas “Over My Shoulder” saw Paul Carrack doing the heaving lifting when it came to the singing. Now, wasn’t their biggest hit “The Living Years” also sung by Carrack so is there a pattern emerging here?

*checks Mike + The Mechanics discography*

Hmm. Not really. Paul Young was the vocalist on “Word Of Mouth”, “Silent Running (On Dangerous Ground)” and “All I Need Is A Miracle” which were all UK Top 40 hits. I’m sure OMD went through a small phase in the mid 80s where their singles sung by Paul Humphreys were hits but those that had Andy McCluskey on the microphone didn’t though. The only other band that comes to mind where the vocals were shared is Tears For Fears but they had big hits with songs sung by both Curt Smith and Roland Orzabal. I seem to be looking at a theory that doesn’t hold water so I’ll move on.

The sadly departed Paul Young (still not that one) was also the singer in Sad Café best known for the hits “My Oh My” (not the Slade song!) and “Everyday Hurts” though I have to say that watching Paul here, I’m not reminded of those hits but taken aback by his resemblance to the actor, screenwriter and novelist Mark Gatiss or rather Mark Gatiss as a League Of Gentlemen character. Perhaps Les McQueen of Crème Brulée?

We’re back to the dance music now with another airing of the video for “(Everybody’s Got To Learn Sometime) I Need Your Loving” by Baby D. A take on The Korgis’ hit of the same name (almost), it was at its chart peak of No 3 this week so not quite equalling the success of their chart topper “Let Me Be Your Fantasy”. Baby D herself was one Dee Fearon and if that surname sounds familiar then it could be due to this guy…

Yes, Dee is married to Phil Fearon of Galaxy fame. You may recall him having a clutch of jaunty pop hits in the mid 80s. A little known fact is that Phil also had a song with the word ‘fantasy’ in it that also got to the top of a chart – sadly for Phil it was the Best of the Rest chart as his single “Fantasy Real” peaked at that most unfortunate of chart positions No 41 in 1983. Yes, Phil’s fantasy of a No 1 record wasn’t real. He should have asked his wife about how to bag a chart topper. “What Do I Do?” indeed.

As predictable as a controversial VAR decision every weekend, here comes Simon Mayo with some inappropriate reference during his link to the next act. Introducing “Shoot Me With Your Love” by D:Ream, he makes some asinine comment about selling bullets to Iran which I’m assuming was his attempt at being topical as the US imposed oil and trade sanctions on Iran over their sponsorship of terrorism, pursuit of nuclear weapons and hostility to the Israeli – Palestinian peace process in this year. Yeah, nice one Mayo. Nothing was off limits to you was it in your pursuit of a cheap gag. What a prick! And look at what he’s wearing to present a music programme reflecting current trends – a shirt and tie! He was only three months away from his 37th birthday at the time of this broadcast – not exactly down with the kids was he?

As for D:Ream, this was the lead single from their second album “World” and the majority of the online reaction to it after this TOTP repeat aired on BBC4 recently went along the lines of “Bloody Hell! Robbie Williams nicked this tune for ‘Let Me Entertain You’!”. I have to say I concur. The chorus hook of both songs is interchangeable. I didn’t I notice this at the time, probably because:

Robbie’s song wasn’t released until nearly three years after D:Ream’s single
“Shoot Me With Your Love” was hardly that memorable a tune in the first place. Come on, D:Ream are remembered for one song and one song only by the vast majority of people!

Anyway, it did reach No 7 which isn’t to be sniffed at (“Let Me Entertain You” peaked at No 3) whilst parent album “World” also did pretty well with a chart high of No 5 though it sold five times less copies than its predecessor “D:Ream On Vol 1”.

More identity crisis stuff now. A big ballad from a dance act? Maybe it’s more of an anthem than a ballad but even so. Despite being one of M People’s best known songs, “Search For The Hero” is not one of the band’s biggest hits. The third single from their “Bizarre Fruit” album, it did stretch their run of consecutive Top 10 hits to eight but I would have thought it peaked much higher than No 9. Not so. Its status might be due to the fact that its profile was raised not once but twice by external factors. Firstly, a year after its release, it was used as the music for a Peugeot 406 car advert and then, on 29 June 1996, M People performed it at a celebratory concert at Old Trafford to mark the final match of the Euro 96 football tournament. Heather Small was so attached to the idea of the song that she basically rewrote it as her first solo single in 2000 and called it “Proud”. Again, it was latched upon for a sporting purpose becoming the official theme for the London 2012 Olympic bid and, of course, was used as a running gag throughout the BBC sit com Miranda.

It wasn’t just Heather Small who liked to recycle though (as she did by taking “Search For The Hero” and turning it into “Proud”). M People’s record label Deconstruction reused the whole “Bizarre Fruit” album by rereleasing it as “Bizarre Fruit II” just a year later with the radio edits of “Search For The Hero” and “Love Rendezvous” replacing the original album versions plus the band’s version of “Itchycoo Park” by Small Faces added to the track listing. Cheeky blighters.

And now, perhaps one of the most pointless cover versions of all time – Amy Grant’s take on Joni Mitchell’s “Big Yellow Taxi”. Why? Just…why? Well, to get a hit obviously but sheesh, this is totally without merit. A sanitised, horribly 90s version of a song when the original is so well known? No thanks. Amy doesn’t even do the infamous high/low vocal followed by the cringy laugh at the end. Maybe she thought that was a step too far? Maybe she thought that would be disrespectful to Joni? Maybe she thought she was being respectful by not doing it?

For whatever reason, enough punters bought this to send it to No 20 in the UK singles chart, Amy’s biggest hit since “Baby Baby” made No 2 in 1991. Surely it isn’t possible that people didn’t know the 1970 original? Or maybe they were reminded of it but in the pre-streaming days of 1995, the closest thing to having access to Joni’s song (unless you shelled out for the “Ladies Of The Canyon” album it was on) was to buy the Amy Grant version? Not everything was simpler back in the day I guess.

It’s the kings of the TOTP exclusive next as, for what seems like the umpteenth time, Bon Jovi are here with, yep, another ‘exclusive performance’. This time it’s to promote their new album “These Days” which was released the week after this show aired and which would knock Michael Jackson’s “HIStory” Best Of off the top of the charts. There’s no Niagara Falls or American Football stadium location tonight though as they are in the TOTP studio in person. The song they perform here is the album’s title track and, for what it’s worth, it’s pretty good I think. Now I have been known in the past to not be immune to the guilty pleasure that is the Jovi – I once refused to leave a nightclub in Sunderland until I’d danced to them despite being legless through drink – so I may be a little biased but still, I think the song holds up. More reflective and mature than some of their earlier, bombastic stadium rock.

Jon seems to have grown out that shorter haircut he was sporting for the “Always” single back in the Autumn of 1994 and there’s also a change in the band line up as original bass player Alex John Such has been replaced by Hugh McDonald. This track would eventually be released as the fourth single from the album in February 1996 so we may see it again when the BBC4 repeats get to that point in time.

Simon Mayo has another one of his ludicrous non sequiturs for us next as he states that Bon Jovi had recently picked up two Kerrang! awards and a Kerplunk award. For God’s sake man, please just stop!

Right, on with the music and what’s going on here then? Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer teaming up with EMF to do a cover of “I’m A Believer”? Well, it seems to me that in the case of Vic and Bob, they had a history both with this song (it was performed by Vic on the first ever TV show of Vic Reeves’ Big Night Out) and with teaming up with indie rock bands to do cover versions (they, of course, collaborated with The Wonderstuff to take Tommy Roe’s “Dizzy” to No 1 in 1991). As for EMF, it looks to me like a desperate attempt to restart their career which had exploded with UK No 3 and US No 1 “Unbelievable” in 1990. The success of that single and parent album “Schubert Dip” hadn’t sustained and their latest album “Cha Cha Cha” (released in March 1995) had peaked at No 30 and yielded just one minor hit single. By comparison, Vic and Bob were flying with a second series of The Smell Of Reeves And Mortimer having just finished airing. It made sense to associate yourself with a successful act when you’re trying to regain your own popularity and if the plan was to bag themselves a massive seller then it was a case of mission accomplished as “I’m A Believer” peaked at No 3. However, this would prove to be a temporary return to glories. One final throw of the dice in the form of the wonderful follow up single “Afro King” failed to make the Top 40. The band split not long after though have reformed at various points down the years and are currently a functioning entity.

I read Bob Mortimer’s autobiography recently and he comes across as a very humble, vulnerable and warm human being. He was actually very shy as a school kid which looks at odds with his exuberant performance here. One last thing, what was the deal with EMF and songs with the word ‘believe’ in them? “Unbelievable”, “I Believe”, “I’m A Believer”…I would liked to have heard them take on Bucks Fizz’s “Land Of Make Believe” – now that really would make for an interesting cover version!

Six weeks now for Robson & Jerome at No 1 with “Unchained Melody”. SIX WEEKS! I never watched Soldier Soldier, the TV series that spawned this duo so I dug out the infamous clip on YouTube. Here it is…

Hmm. I can’t really see why this scene would have ignited a clamour to be able to buy and own a copy of these two actors doing “Unchained Melody” if I’m honest. If only YouTube had been around back then, maybe all those people who bought the record would have been satiated by being able to watch this clip over and over again instead and we wouldn’t have had to endure Robson & Jerome at all!

The play out track is “Daydreamer” by Menswear but they will be in the studio on the next episode of the show so I’ll keep this short. This was the band’s second single release but their first to be made available extensively after debut “I’ll Manage Somehow” was only printed in very limited quantities meaning that it couldn’t sell enough copies to get in the charts. “Daydreamer” therefore became the band’s first Top 40 hit when it peaked at No 14, also its debut entry position.

Order of appearance	Artist	Title	Did I buy it?
1	Haddaway	Fly Away	Never happening
2	Mike + The Mechanics	A Beggar On A Beach Of Gold	Nope
3	Baby D	(Everybody’s Got To Learn Sometime) I Need Your Loving	No thanks
4	D:Ream	Shoot Me With Your Love	Nah
5	M People	Search For The Hero	No
6	Amy Grant	Big Yellow Taxi	Negative
7	Bon Jovi	These Days	I did not
8	Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer / EMF	I’m A Believer	I wasn’t – no
9	Robson & Jerome	Unchained Melody	As if
10	Menswear	Daydreamer	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/m001snq6/top-of-the-pops-22061995

TOTP 02 MAR 1995

Posted on October 6, 2023 by 80stastic

Five of the nine songs on tonight’s show have already been featured in recent weeks but then the whole of this week’s Top 40 was in chaos so no wonder the running order was a bit off. So what was going on then? Well, for the second time in as many months, there was a bit of a cock up with the compilation of the sales data that informed the charts and every position apart from the Top 8 was affected. Even worse was the fact that the error wasn’t noticed until after the charts were announced and broadcast on the Sunday chart show. A recalibrated Top 40 was rapidly published on the Monday but in a curious move, TOTP head producer Ric Blaxill chose to base the Thursday night show around the incorrect chart. Maybe it was a case of supporting the more public version that the BBC had broadcast as to not have would have undermined the corporation’s authority as the custodians of the chart? Or maybe Blaxill just thought people wouldn’t have noticed the rectified chart and so just wanted to not draw attention to the error?

Whatever the reason, the decision seems a little odd in retrospect but surely the bigger mystery is why Keith Allen was asked to host the show. OK, maybe not why Keith Allen per se but why was he allowed to do it as the character of ‘Keithski Allenski’. The online reaction to his…erm…performance was overwhelmingly negative with most reactions being along the lines of “what the Hell was that?!” and “Why is he shouting all the time?!”. It’s clear he was trying to send up ‘yoof’ presenter and one time beau of Janet Street-Porter Normski but was Normski still a big name by 1995? Wikipedia tells me that the programming strand DEF II which was produced by Street-Porter and which housed Normski’s rhyming/rapping presenting style was off the air permanently by May 1994. Obviously Allen’s creation had some longevity as I know instinctively 28 years later who he is parodying but back in 1995 would it have all seemed a bit old hat? Talking of hats, apparently the one Allen was wearing wasn’t actually his but one he fished out of the BBC prop store that was used by EastEnders character Ethel! Anyway, whilst we’re discussing whether Normski was still a big name at this time, how well known was Keith Allen himself? Well, if you’d been a fan of The Comic Strip Presents…in the late 80s you’d have seen him in the episodes The Bullshitters and The Yob. He’d also been in Danny Boyle’s excellent Shallow Grave but I’m guessing an awful lot of people knew him as that bloke who got round the back in the video for New Order’s “World In Motion” during Italia ‘90. I read his autobiography Grow Up a few years back and it was an entertaining read though I’m not sure if I warmed to him that much by the end of it. I did have sympathy for him though when he revealed that his Dad wouldn’t let him watch the 1966 World Cup final for a childhood misdemeanour on the morning of the game.

He starts the show in high octane mode extorting the audience at home to “rip up the shag pile” – it doesn’t really get any better and you could say the same for first act MN8 who were never higher in the charts than they were right now – “I’ve Got A Little Something For You” is up to No 2 which means a third TOTP studio appearance for the band. As such, I haven’t got much else to say about them. Right, I’ll try one last google search for inspiration…

*sound of keyboard tiles clicking*

Right then. Let’s have a look…

*scans results*

Usual Wikipedia entry…official fan page on Facebook…hang on, what’s this? There’s a device designed to alleviate period pain called MN8?! Apparently, it’s a small device that is attached discreetly to underwear. Sadly there’s nothing discreet about MN8 the band and their personalised underwear which they are all to keen to whip out during this performance.

https://youtu.be/wHFbmDEpgqk?si=DSoeMQsa0Eeu20am

Next a song that was actually at No 20 rather than No 21 as the TOTP graphic advised but it’s splitting hairs I guess. It would go onto be the band’s second biggest hit ever though when it finally came to a halt at No 12. If you were asked to name 3 in 10 on Ken Bruce’s Popmaster quiz for Mike + The Mechanics could you do it? There’s “The Living Years” their US chart topper, UK No 2 and funeral standard obviously and then there’s…erm…well, actually there are some more. Their debut single “Silent Running (On Dangerous Ground)” in 1986 made No 21, “Word Of Mouth” got to No 13 in 1991 and “All I Need Is A Miracle” was a massive radio airplay and Top 5 US hit though it didn’t make the UK charts until it was rereleased in 1996 to promote a Best Of album.

Then there’s this, the lead single from the “Beggar On A Beach Of Gold” album. If you asked AI to create the optimum AOR airplay hit, it might well come up with “Over My Shoulder”. A pleasant melody allied with Paul Carrack’s golden soul voice, how could it fail? Well, the whistling in the middle eight was considered an impediment by some it has to be said. Did it really add anything to the track by going all Roger Whittaker on it?

It certainly didn’t put daytime DJs off playing it. My wife and I went to Prague around this time and we seemed to hear it everywhere. However, my biggest memory of hearing it in the radio was in 1996 when it was played on the coach taking us to the airport in Madrid. We’d had a great holiday there but I got a case of Montezuma’s Revenge on the last day from an ice cream and spent the night on the hotel room bathroom floor. Somehow I had to get myself together to make the flight home the following morning. I hauled myself onto the coach and kept everything crossed or rather clenched. First tune on the radio that morning? “Over My Shoulder”. It wasn’t anything over my shoulder I was was worried about though. Any movement under my seat on the other hand…Miraculously, I managed the entire journey home without incident. Unfortunately though, the whole episode has left me with some rather unpleasant associations with “Over My Shoulder” none of which is the fault of Mike + The Mechanics to be fair.

I recently listened to an interview with Paul Carrack who discussed his time in the band and why he left. He told the story of how he’d put together an album in 2000 showcasing his career to that point but was still required to pay the licensing fee to include “The Living Years” on the track listing despite being the vocalist on the song. At that point, he realised he needed to be in control of his own catalogue of music and his time in the band came to an end. Asked by the interviewer if he’d heard any material by the rejuvenated Mike + The Mechanics (they reformed in 2010 with a new line up), Carrack quickly replied “Not really”. Oof!

Keithski is back banging on about tearing up carpets again before introducing “Push The Feeling On” by Nightcrawlers. Like many a 90s dance tune, it had an elongated gestation period before a massive hit was finally birthed. Originally released in 1992, it only made No 86 but its B-side was a remix of the track by DJ and producer Marc Kinchen which picked up a lot of play in the clubs and eventually was given an official release as a single in 1994 which made No 22 in the UK charts. Encouraged by that success, Kinchen returned to the track to tweak it a little more and it was released for a third time under the title “New MK Mixes for ‘95” which would become the definitive version of the track.

Now I couldn’t have picked this one out of the myriad dance tunes that dominated the 90s without re listening to it but now that I have, let’s address the elephant in room. This is the same tune as that intensely annoying We Buy Any Car jingle! Well, sort of. It’s actually based on the 2021 track “Friday” by Riton X Nightcrawlers featuring Mufasa and Hypeman which itself was obviously based on “Push The Feeling On”. Those fiendish marketing guys even got YouTube sensation Musafa to be in the ad campaign.

Anyway, back in 1995, none of us could have predicted there would be this thing called YouTube (except perhaps David Bowie) but we did have the video which was basically a procession of people posing in a Photo Booth. The director obviously went for fast clips with bold colours (check out those hairstyles) but the image that dominates for me is that of main Nightcrawler John Reid with his incredibly long, lank hair and weary expression. Maybe he hadn’t managed to sell his vehicle to We Buy Any Car.

Another dance tune next but we shouldn’t really be surprised. By my reckoning, every other hit in the Top 20 this week is a dance tune. Honestly, they were everywhere. Look at this lot:

N-Trance
Perfecto Allstarz
MC Sar and The Real McCoy
Bucketheads
Clock
Nicki French
Ini Kamoze

That’s not even including MN8 and Nightcrawlers that we’ve already seen tonight and now here’s Alex Party! Their hit “Don’t Give Me Your Life” is up to No 3. It would eventually peak one place higher. I don’t really have anything else to say about this one so instead I’m going to talk about Keith Allen’s intro for it and specifically his use of the phrase “Acieed!”. This was obviously a reference to the infamous “We Call It Acieed” single by D Mob from 1988 which got banned by the BBC amidst a tabloid backlash against the acid house movement and rave culture. Whilst it’s certainly true that the track did lead to the phenomenon of the younger generation going around randomly shouting the phrase aloud, would the kids of 1995 have known about? Clearly, he was sending up the whole ‘wicked DJ” persona for laughs but would the kids have got his cultural reference and joined in with the joke?

Future No 1 incoming and it’s this year’s Comic Relief song. After the dance track “Absolutely Fabulous” by Pet Shop Boys the previous year and the awful novelty record of “Stick It Out” by Right Said Fred in 1993, the charity went for a big ballad this time round. “Love Can Build A Bridge” was a country & western song by mother and daughter duo The Judds which had already been used for a charity record as recently as six months prior when Children for Rwanda covered it in aid of Save The Children. However, despite a TOTP appearance, it failed to make the Top 40. Comic Relief clearly saw legs in the song though and drafted in not one but four artists to record it. The combination of Cher, Chrissie Hynde, Neneh Cherry and not forgetting Eric Clapton would add the necessary star power to propel it to the chart summit.

However, it only ranks at No 15 in the best selling Comic Relief songs of all time. The next time a single was released in aid of the charity, they played the percentages much better and instead of taking a punt on a track relatively unknown to the UK public, they co-opted the appeal of a band rather than a song. The Spice Girls were at the height of their fame in 1997 and the decision for their latest single release (“Mama /Who Do You Think You Are”) to be used as the official Comic Relief song was always going to guarantee sales. It stands as the fourth best selling Comic Relief single of all time.

Curiously, both Cher and *Chrissie Hynde’s last singles released prior to “Love Can Build A Bridge” were the same song. Cher had a minor hit with “I Got You Babe” in 1993 alongside cartoon characters Beavis and Butt-head whilst Chrissie bagged a No 1 with UB40 on the same track in 1985. Both were terrible in my humble opinion.

*Credited as Chrissie Hynde and not as part of The Pretenders obviously

Keith Allen’s had a change of outfit for the next intro and put on the football shirt of his beloved Fulham FC. Now why’s he done that? Do you think it could be to wind up famous Watford supporting Elton John who is the next act on? I wouldn’t put it past him. Elton’s in the studio to perform his latest single “Believe” and as it’s one of his trademark plodding ballads, they’ve positioned the audience in a circle creating an in the round effect. Clearly the studio director has instructed them to sway as per tradition for such a song. It’s all as unconvincing as the single earring Elton’s sporting.

When Elton finished his Glastonbury set this year, he had his getaway planned so meticulously that he was back for his kids bedtime in minutes. Or as my Elton hating mate Robin put it, you could still hear the crowd booing as he tucked them in.

Back to that Top 40 foul up now and the curious case of Scarlet. Their hit “Independent Love Song” had peaked at No 12 a fortnight ago and then slipped down to No 14 the following week. In the incorrect chart announced seven days later on Radio 1 it was listed as a non mover and so TOTP Executive Producer Ric Blaxill took the decision to book them for the show again. However, when the rectified chart was published, Scarlet had fallen to No 16. In keeping with the show’s protocol of not featuring acts that were going down the charts, Blaxill really should have cancelled Scarlet’s booking but instead he honoured it making them part of a very elite club to have appeared on TOTP while their record descended the Top 40. Well I never.

P.S. As with his “Acieed!” reference, I’m not entirely convinced that ‘ver yoof’ would have got Keith Allen’s Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons name check in his intro.

The exclusive performance this week comes from Faith No More whose single “Digging The Grave” was released the week following this broadcast. I was never really that into these guys. I quite liked “We Care A Lot” and “Epic” is an…well…epic song but after that? Not so much for me thanks. What? Their cover of “Easy”? What about it? I could never figure out the point of it nor who was buying it. This track, however, was a return to their grunge rock tendencies and must have completely passed me by as I don’t recall it at all. Thankfully. What I do like though is the band standing behind Keith Allen as he does his intro for the No 1 record with a look on their faces that says “What the f**k is this guy going on about?!”.

Said No 1 is Celine Dion again with “Think Twice” which is exactly what I’m having to do to come up with something to say about this one again. Right think…that’s once…and that’s twice. I’ve got nothing. I could have done with that Top 40 cock up working in my favour and moving Celine down the chart.

Order of appearance	Artist	Title	Did I buy it?
1	MN8	I’ve Got A Little Something For You	No
2	Mike + The Mechanics	Over My Shoulder	Negative
3	Nightcrawlers	Push The Feeling On	Uh uh
4	Alex Party	Don’t Give Me Your Life	Nope
5	Cher, Chrissie Hynde, Neneh Cherry and Eric Clapton	Love Can Build A Bridge	Not even for charity
6	Elton John	Believe	Nah
7	Scarlet	Independent Love Song	Really should have but no
8	Faith No More	Digging The Grave	I did not
9	Celine Dion	Think Twice	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/m001qwr3/top-of-the-pops-02031995

TOTP 11 APR 1991

Posted on July 16, 2021 by 80stastic

Right, I’m starting to get behind on writing up these TOTP reviews. I’m averaging over 3,000 words per post so with two shows being shown on BBC4 a week….I could have easily written multiple books over the number of years I’ve been doing this. With that in mind, I’m going to have to whizz though some of these acts with just a cursory nod to detail and research.

Tonight’s host is Anthea Turner (groan) and we start with The Wonder Stuff who have arrived at that crossroads that most indie type bands arrive at eventually. The one where they look at the sign that points to ‘Megastardom and riches but hand your soul in at the door’ one way and ‘stay credible, critically acclaimed and penniless’ the other. A fork in the road encountered by many before and since. Spandau Ballet started out as the pin up band for the New Romantics cult but made the decision to go mainstream and be one of the biggest bands in the world when they recorded the “True” album. One year on from this TOTP broadcast, The Shamen would go from an underground indie / dance hybrid to being all over our TV screens with a No 1 single and a gurning pop star rapper in Mr C. For now though, it was the turn of Miles Hunt and the gang and they chose fame and fortune with the release of “Size Of A Cow”. The lead single from new album “Never Loved Elvis”, this was a catchy, knock about, shout-a-long tune that was much more pop than anything they had ever done before. It’s almost like a prototype for Blur’s “Country House”. It was hard not to like it though. Hunt himself throws himself into the song with a tartan suit borrowed from Andrew Ridgely and his ruffled shirt. It’s almost like an audition to be the next Dr Who (had it still been on air back then ).

The album would be a huge success going Top 3 whilst “Size Of A Cow” peaked at No 5. Around this time they played a gig at Walsall’s Bescot Stadium to 18,000 fans but had they lost any of their original fan base? If they hadn’t, their loyalty may have been tested to the limit when they teamed up with Vic Reeves for a cover of “Dizzy” later in the year.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-P-vjvP6b1Y

Madonna‘s only single of 1991 was “Rescue Me”. Nothing to do with the 1965 Fontella Bass single of the same name, this was the second of two new tracks from her mega selling “Immaculate Collection” Best Of album. The first had been the controversial “Justify My Love” and initially there had been no plans to release “Rescue Me” as a follow up but after extensive airplay, Sire Records changed tack and gave it an official release. The video shown here was hastily cobbled together using footage from Madonna’s 1987 Who’s That Girl World Tour.

I have to say it’s not one of my favourites of hers by some distance. I wasn’t that keen on all the spoken word verses although I suppose the chorus is catchy enough. Apparently, when it debuted at No 15 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in March 1991, it was the highest new entry for a song since The Beatles’ “Let It Be” went straight in at No 6 in March 1970. That can’t be right can it? Whilst we’re talking about the song’s chart performance, it should also be noted that it peaked at No 3 in the UK (Madonna’s fourth of nine singles to peak at that position ) and was the 27th of her 70 UK hit singles! 70! That’s nearly one for very year she’s been alive isn’t it? Actually how old is Madonna now?

*checks Wikipedia*

She’s 62. Close enough.

A bit of a patronising intro from Anthea next as she says of Alison Limerick‘s “Where Love Lives”:

“Alison Limerick first released her debut single last year. It didn’t do so well but she’s released it again and now it’s a hit….”

It’s the tone in her voice, the small grimace on her face and the downwards motion hand gesture that seem a bit snide to me. If this was a text message it would have a sad face emoji at the end of it. Enough of Anthea though.

Alison is one of those names that have been around for ages like Ruby Turner or Beverley Knight but who surprisingly doesn’t have the number of hits that you would think they do. “Where Love Lives” is one of just six Top 40 UK hits. Actually its two of six as it was a hit again in 1996. As Anthea correctly pointed out, it was first released in 1990 when it peaked at No 87 but after extensive play in the clubs, it warranted a re-release – with the addition of the suffix (Come On In)’91 – and it was a No 27 hit. It reached its highest peak though when remixed in 1996 when it made No 9.

Alison looks damn cool here as she gives a slick performance with her Grace Jones style crew cut and sharp dance moves. She has worked with acts as diverse as The Style Council, This Mortal Coil and The James Taylor Quartet and she continues to record and sing live to this day.

It’s another showing of the Gary Clail On-U Sound System performance of “Human Nature” from the other week next although I think Anthea stuffs up the intro by saying Gary Clail and the New Sound System. I’ve played it back three times now and I’m pretty sure that’s what she says. I know I sound pedantic but her job on TOTP was literally to say the names of artists and their songs. You can’t get that shit wrong, you really can’t.

As for Gary, although “Human Nature” was the only hit he had that enabled a TOTP appearance, he had his eyes on the prize as way back as 1985 when he featured on an On-U Sound System track called “Half Cut For Confidence” The backing musicians on it were industrial hip-hop legends TackHead but they were credited as TOTP an acronym for The Occult Technology of Power but surely it was also a deliberate pun on the BBC music show?

“Human Nature” peaked at No 10.

Not sure I remember this one. Monie Love and Adeva together? Nope it doesn’t (and yes I’m going there) ring any bells. When I saw the title of their single, I assumed it was a cover of the Anita Ward disco classic “Ring My Bell” that went to No 1 in 1979 but no, it isn’t. This was the sixth and final single to be taken from Monie Love’s “Down To Earth” album so we had heard quite a lot from her over the last year or so. The same could not be said of Adeva who had not been near the charts for nearly two years when her debut album provided her with four Top 40 hits including three that peaked at No 17. Would it be mean to suggest it was Adeva whose career needed a shot in the arm off the coat tails of Monie Love? Probably yes but it is true that “Ring My Bell” would be her last ever Top 20 hit.

The video rather predictably goes with a boxing match concept thereby including both the ringing of a bell theme and setting up a confrontation as in Monie Love vs Adeva. There’s no actual punches thrown though as all the action is done from the safety of their respective corners.

This wasn’t really my cup of tea at all and I’d rather it had been a cover of Anita Ward.

Now here’s a line that you would never have expected to hear and which actually doesn’t make any sort of sense but then it is from the mouth of Anthea Turner so….

“We’ve got a real treat for you now. A stage full of expensive suits. In those suits are Mike + The Mechanics…”

A bit to unpack here. What is the big deal about some middle aged men wearing expensive suits? Were we meant to be jealous? If so, how is that a treat for us? Or were we meant to admire how good they looked in them? With the greatest respect to Paul Carrack, Mike Rutherford and Paul Young (not that one) et al, I don’t think the suits made that much difference in the looks department.

“Word of Mouth” would peak at 13 whilst its parent album of the same name went silver certifying 60,000 sales. Its cover art seemed to influence a much cooler band 14 years later. Have a look…

It’s the top selling albums of the month feature next and for March 1991 they were:

1.Eurythmics – “Greatest Hits”

2. Chris Rea – “Auberge”

3. The Farm – “Spartacus”

4. REM – “Out Of Time”

5. Debbie Harry / Blondie – “The Complete Picture”

Well, that seems a bit better than recent months. Yes, two are Best Of compilations but what Best Ofs! The Eurythmics one was their first ever and I for one was certainly looking forward to it coming out. It would go on to be the second best selling album of the year after it was pipped at the post by Simply Red’s “Stars”. Although it wouldn’t stand the test of time, at least “Spartacus” was by a new, up and coming band after months of the Top 5 being populated by the likes of Elton John, Madonna and Pavarotti. Talking of time, REM’s “Out Of Time” was really starting to establish them as a world conquering band. It was only really Chris Rea that was letting the Top 5 down.

Another glimpse of patronising Anthea next as she seeks to make us all dismiss the fact that Dannii Minogue is not just Kylie’s sister by pointing out that Dannii Minogue is actually Kylie’s sister. After highlighting her genealogy, Anthea says “she’s a great little actress, she’s got a charming personality…”. No doubt Anthea thought she was being complimentary but it just doesn’t come across like that. The use of the word little seems unnecessary and the charming personality vibe indicates that there is a silent ‘though’ implied.

“Love And Kisses” was her debut hit but I don’t think time has been kind to it. There’s not much of a tune in there and it seems to hinge on an energetic dance routine rather than any musical virtues.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-CdWiqRNo4

Chesney Hawkes is still No 1 and we get the video this week although there seems to be some confusion over this as I have found two different promos for “The One And Only”. The one that TOTP shows is a straight forward performance of the song in a gig setting intercut with some scenes of Chezza arriving at the venue, being mobbed by fans and signing some autographs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mk82Ns6vdk

However, there is also another video that seems to have an A-ha “Take On Me” inspired plot to it. In this one, two female friends go to the cinema to watch Buddy’s Song (the film that launched Chesney and that features “The One And Only”) and Chesney steps out of the film and into the cinema auditorium to beckon one of the girls to come to a storage room with him. It’s not really a winning chat up line. There then follows some intertextuality themed escapades as Chesney gets pulled in and out of the film pursued by his father played by Roger Daltrey in hot pursuit. Eventually Chesney and cinema girl both end up in the film together before a climatic snog. Now apparently, ‘cinema girl’ is played by Saffron from Republica and if this is true, then this is the second time in a matter of weeks that I have been unaware of her presence on the show. We saw her recently as the vocalist for N-Joi on their “Anthem” single. I don’t know, a character from soap opera Families turning up in The Mock Turtles and now someone being in a Chesney Hawkes video whilst also fronting a dance act. These were strange times indeed.

Did someone mention The Shamen before? Well, here are the very fellows with “Hyperreal”. Taken from their “En-Tact” album, it achieved what previous singles “Pro-Gen” and “Make It Mine” hadn’t by becoming the band’s very first Top 40 hit. I have to say that I didn’t think it was as good as either of those but it was still pretty decent tune anyway.

Tragically, this would be the last single release before band member Will Sinnott drowned whilst swimming off the coast of Canary Island La Gomera. Electing to carry on, Colin Angus pressed forward with the release of “Move Any Mountain” (which was basically a remix of “Pro-Gen” under a new title) and it would cement the band’s reputation as chart stars when it peaked at No 4 in the Summer.

For posterity’s sake, I include the chart run down below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qgUCeaSM8co

Order of appearance	Artist	Title	Did I buy it?
1	The Wonder Stuff	Size Of A Cow	I didn’t
2	Madonna	Rescue Me	No but I did have The Immaculate Collection with it on
3	Alison Limerick	Where Love Lives	Nope
4	Gary Clail / On-U Sound System	Human Nature	Liked it, didn’t buy it
5	Monie Love / Adeva	Ring My Bell	Nah
6	Mike + The Mechanics	Word Of Mouth	And the word was no
7	Dannii Minogue	Love And Kisses	Definitely not
8	Chesney Hawkes	The One And Only	It’s a no
9	The Shamen	Hyperreal	Negative

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/m000xp0h/top-of-the-pops-11041991

TOTP 04 APR 1991

Posted on July 15, 2021 by 80stastic

In the last TOTP Rewind post, I was talking about sibling rivalries mainly as a device to shoehorn in a segue to Dannii Minogue who had appeared on the pop scene of 1991. I’m going to stick with that theme for this next show review and indeed extend it to cover the whole social unit of ‘families’. Now of course, there are lots and lots of examples of groups including brothers and sisters in their ranks and indeed, in some extreme cases, of the whole band consisting purely of same family members. There’s The Corrs, The Pointer Sisters, Sister Sledge, The Jackson 5, Kings Of Leon, Hanson etc. My challenge, should I wish to accept it (and I do), is to interweave the concept of family into every act on this particular TOTP. Is it possible? I’m going to give it a go. Wish me luck….

…we begin with Inspiral Carpets and their new single “Caravan”. Not the easiest of starts given that I don’t think any of the band were related to each other. I have to say I don’t really remember this stage of the band’s career at all. This track was from their sophomore album “The Beast Inside” which was released nearly a year to the day after their debut studio album “Life” and which went Top 5 so I must have sold some copies of it in the Our Price I was working in but it seems to have passed me by. I remember the next album “Revenge Of The Goldfish” and its singles “Dragging Me Down”, “Bitches Brew” etc and also their 1994 LP “Devil Hopping” which included “Saturn 5” and “I Want You” but “The Beast Inside”? Barely a flicker. Critical reception of the album was mixed from what I can tell but “Caravan” sounds pretty melodic to me whilst retaining the band’s trademark sound. Its No 30 chart peak seems a bit meagre and unjust.

Right, I can’t fail at the first hurdle on this ‘families’ theme so there is of course that well known link to Noel Gallagher’s employment with them as a roadie before he formed Oasis with his brother Liam but that’s more about Oasis than Inspiral Carpets. Look, I’ll have to play my joker card early and fall back on the ever reliable @TOTPFacts for this little gem about singer Tom Hingley’s Dad:

Inspiral Carpets frontman Tom Hingley's dad, Ronald Hingley, was a Lecturer in Russian at Oxford University. If you own an Anton Chekhov book, there's a good chance he translated it. He also wrote biographies of the likes of Boris Pasternak and Stalin. #TOTP pic.twitter.com/QfHLJcxwuK
— Top Of The Pops Facts (@TOTPFacts) July 2, 2021

Family value: 5/10

A less than convincing start but the next one is an open goal. “Deep, Deep Trouble” by The Simpsons. A single by an actual family! Yes, it’s a cartoon family and not a real one but you can’t look a gift horse in the mouth. This, of course, was the follow up to the No 1 single “Do The Bartman” and was equally as annoying. It seems to be a tale of how Bart messed up mowing the lawn thereby missing a family day out and finally resulting in him throwing a party while his parents were out. Ah, we’ve all done it (I haven’t actually). There are references to Mom and Dad and Bart being their S-O-N. Like I said, an open goal for the families theme which I will gladly put in the back of the net.

Thankfully, this was the second and final single by The Simpsons that would make the charts (it peaked at No 7) so after finally ridding ourselves of Jive Bunny last week, it’s a double whammy as Bart, Homer and the rest depart forever this week. By the way, It’s not that I don’t like The Simpsons (as in the TV show), it’s just that I really couldn’t be doing with / see the point of their musical offerings.

Family value: 7/10

The first of three dance acts on the show tonight are next and it’s N-Joi with “Anthem”. This was their second visit to TOTP in a matter of months after their “Adrenalin EP” had charted at No 23 but “Anthem” was the track that they would become most famous for. Not only did it break the Top 10 over here but it was also a No 2 record in the US Dance chart. As I’ve said many time I’m not and never was much of a dance head but this sounded like a retread of “You Got The Love” by The Source featuring Candi Staton to me. No doubt someone could explain that it doesn’t even have the same bpm or something.

As host Gary Davies says, the singer on the track is called Saffron but I never until this moment twigged that it was the same Saffron who would gain fame as the lead vocalist for Republica of “Ready To Go” fame later in the decade. She seems to do more dancing than singing in this performance though and when I say dancing I mean doing a pretty rigorous work out routine full of high kicks and twirling. Did she do any of that while fronting Republica? I can’t remember so I’d better check…

*checks YouTube*

Not really. There was a lot of jumping about but it was all bit free form. Her N-Joi dance moves seemed a bit more rehearsed.

In 1995, DJ Sister Bliss of Faithless selected “Anthem” as one of favourite tracks describing it thus:

“And what an anthem it is! …That whole EP is fantastic, it’s the sound of the time but it doesn’t date. It’s a reliable classic. It’s always the last tune of the night – people must be bored with me playing it. it reminds me of driving around the M25 looking for the rave and ending up in a field with 10,000 smelly people.”

10,000 smelly people? Bliss indeed!

What? How am I going to squeeze a ‘families’ theme into this one? Erm…would you accept Sister Bliss?

Family value: 2/10

Despite being only 15 months into the new decade, we had already seen a slew of hits from the 80s reappearing in the Top 40. Some had been due to terrestrial TV premieres of blockbuster films like Top Gun and Dirty Dancing leading to the likes of Berlin and Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes having their soundtrack hits reactivated. Then there were the Best Of collections by artists being promoted by the re-release of their 80s hits. Talk Talk and Madonna were prime examples of this and also falling into this category were The Waterboys. In 1991, their collection “The Best Of The Waterboys 81–90” was released and was preceded by the re-issuing of their most famous song “The Whole Of The Moon”. I must admit to being surprised by this – not only by its existence but also by its commercial success. The album soared to No 2 in the charts yet the band had only had two Top 40 hits by this point neither of which had made the Top 20. Usually Best Of albums would be compiled to showcase a run of hit singles that an artist had racked up but this wasn’t the case with The Waterboys. Their albums though were well received and their most recent (1990’s “Room To Roam”) had peaked at No 5. They were also a very big live draw and had toured extensively over the years so they would heave reached a lot of people that way.

The band were in a state of flux come 1991 with disagreements over the band’s musical direction causing some members to leave. They would also leave their record label Ensign (an imprint of parent label Chrysalis) for whom all their back catalogue had been recorded. Ah, that’s why the Best Of album came out. A deliberate cash-in by the label to maximise the profitability of the band’s music that they owned. Anyway, “The Whole Of The Moon” smashed its previous 1985 chart high of No 26 when it went Top 3 at a stroke easily becoming their biggest ever hit. Now I’d loved this song back in ’85 and indeed my wife had the album it was from (“This Is The Sea”) but I couldn’t quite understand why it was so popular six years on. Maybe it was music fans trying to reclaim the charts from all those ghastly dance tunes that had taken up residency there?

As for the ‘families’ theme, well The Waterboys have had over 85 members through their ranks over the years including the likes of Karl Wallinger (World Party), Ian McNabb (Icicle Works) and Liam Ó Maonlaí (Hothouse Flowers) which is more than the legendary The Fall, so I think they could seriously claim to have the biggest rock family tree of all time.

Family value: 8/10

Next up, a band who I have rather a lot to say about and the first thing is that I love(d) The Mock Turtles. I had no idea who they were until they released “Can You Dig It?” but they had actually been around since 1985. It wasn’t until 1990 though what they really started to get some traction when debut album “Turtle Soup” was released on the Manchester label Imaginary Records which was also home to acts such as Cud and The Chameleons. The album included early singles “And Then She Smiles” and “Lay Me Down” the latter of which prompted interest from the majors including Virgin and they were duly signed to subsidiary label Siren Records. Siren chose “Can You Dig It?” which was originally the b-side to “Lay Me Down” as the next single to launch them on the label and, having added a pop sheen to it with some additional guitar work, it was an immediate hit. Its infectious groove and spiralling guitar riff proved irresistible and the added wah wah guitar in the middle eight worked a treat. It managed to traverse the thin line between attracting daytime air play whilst also trading off the Manchester effect which was still just about going into 1991. I fell for it hook, line and sinker.

An album was hastily recorded for Siren called “Two Sides” which included “Can You Dig It?” and a re-recorded version of “And Then She Smiles” from “Turtle Soup” but no other tracks made the switch to the new label. There’s some great pop tunes on “Two Sides” (I know because I bought it) yet it didn’t seem to do anything commercially. “And Then She Smiles” was re-released as a follow up single but just failed to make the Top 40 whilst third single “Strings And Flowers” disappeared without trace. It’s almost become a forgotten album, overshadowed by its indie predecessor. It’s not even on Spotify although “Turtle Soup” is, an expanded version of which was released by Cherry Red Records recently. Not even an in store appearance by the band at the Our Price I was working at could boost the sales of “Two Sides”. Ah yes, that in store PA. This was the first one we’d had at the shop since I’d been working there and it seemed like a big deal. As it was taking place in their hometown, a large crowd had gathered for the event. The band were smuggled in around the back and then positioned behind the counter for a signing session. We had the single blaring out on the shop PA constantly and the drama was heightened when my colleague Craig decided to switch the store lights on and off frantically to announce their appearance. There were even some whooping in the crowd. Business seemed to be brisk and the band duly signed whatever was put in front of them and it all seemed to be going quite well.

And then Jude Law turned up. Yes, the BAFTA award winning actor Jude Law. “Why?” you might well ask. Well, this was before Jude had made any films so he wasn’t that well known except to those of us who religiously tuned in to Granada soap Families in which he was starring at the time. Families was basically Aussie soap Sons And Daughters translated for a UK audience but with a twist -the plot was set in Cheshire, England and Sydney, Australia with he connection being a guy called Mark Thompson who leaves his family in the UK to be with his true love Diana Stevens in Australia. Then there’s the quite dark twist that unbeknownst to Mike, Diana had given birth to his son Andrew who ended up travelling to England where he met Mike’s daughter Amanda by his English wife and they fall in love not realising that they were half-brother and sister!

Me and my wife used to watch Families all the time when it was repeated late night on Granada. We were skint most of the time so we weren’t out partying that much and it kind of became a habit. So we’re happily watching the ongoing shenanigans which included Jude Law on screen as Mike Thompson’s son Nathan (he would have been around 18 I think) and Nathan’s brother called Mark who was played by a guy called Martin Glyn Murray. Still with me? Good. Fast forward to this episode of TOTP and we’re watching The Mock Turtles perform and we both look at each other and say “Isn’t the guitarist that bloke from Families?” We peered again and concluded it really did look like him but why would that actor bloke be in a pop band as well? So when Jude Law turned up at The Mock Turtles PA, it must have dawned on me that it was indeed ‘that bloke from Families‘ (that’s how we found things out back in the early 90s kids – no internet back then!). So Jude approaches the counter and asks me if he can nip behind it to go and see his mate to which I replied “Sorry mate, no chance”. Jude protested so I had to ask the manager if he could allow it which he did as I recall. Somewhere along the line he also managed to get a free pass for the shop staff to attend the gig that the band were playing that night at the Manchester Academy (maybe letting Jude Law behind the counter was his leverage). Excellent!

So, me and my wife popped down to The Academy that night and ended up standing close to Jude Law (though I was bored of him by now) but also Peter Hook and Caroline Aherne. They weren’t the only names there that night. Steve Coogan was also there. Oh yes, if the families theme wasn’t fulfilled by a soap opera actually called Families then there was also the fact that the lead singer of The Mock Turtles was the brother of comedian and TV star Steve Coogan. Whilst researching this post I came across a full recording of the gig posted on YouTube by Martin Coogan and at the end there are some scenes of the after show party where Steve Coogan makes an appearance. At this point he had long curly hair and somebody says to him “It’s him off Sit Down innit?” meaning Tim Booth from James. He doesn’t look too impressed. Mind you the same guy says to Jude Law (who’s managed to get himself back stage at The Academy with more ease than he did behind the counter at Our Price) “Ooh it’s him off Blue Peter“. Ha!

Well, I think that’s enough Mock Turtles stories for one day but there on again in a couple of shows time….

Family value: 10/10

Next is a song that I had completely forgotten about. Actually, it’s not that there’s nothing in the memory banks for it and more that my brain has shifted, re-edited and morphed it into another song entirely. There’s a good reason for this as well and that is that “Here We Go (Let’s Rock & Roll)” by C+C Music Factory is almost identical to their previous hit “Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)”. No wonder I can’t recall it – it’s been completely subsumed by their debut hit. In my head their singles timeline went straight from “Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)” to “Things That Make You Go Hmmm…” but here is the evidence to the contrary.

The video looks like the set of Aliens 3 to me and what is that freaky looking thing writhing around on the floor in a gas mask at the start of it? Here’s @TOTPFacts with some info which goes a long way to explaining the whole visual imagery going on in this promo:

This C+C Music Factory video was directed by Marcus Nispel, whose credits also include the 2003 version of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and the 2009 version of Friday The 13th. #TOTP
— Top Of The Pops Facts (@TOTPFacts) July 2, 2021

That explains that then. I’m struggling to fit a families theme into this one but….the history of C+C Music Factory is littered with lawsuits and fallings out including Martha Wash suing for a settlement on her vocals being uncredited on the chorus of “Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)”. There is also the case of rapper Freedom Williams (who is credited on “Here We Go (Let’s Rock & Roll)”) who, having left the group in the mid 90s, started performing shows under the C+C Music Factory name causing founding member Robert Clivillés to denounce it as “the biggest insult in the world”. So basically they were like a typical family with loads of members feuding and holding grudges against each other!

Family value: 4/10

Host Gary Davies goes all embarrassing uncle at a wedding in the intro to the next one as he says “Some more music now for you to boogie to…” WTF?! Boogie to?! At a time when the show was struggling to accommodate and reflect the domination of the charts by dance music and indeed were struggling to remain relevant to the musical landscape, comments like that really didn’t help. And who were the boogie-meisters in question? Well it was Black Box of course with the fifth single to be released from their “Dreamland” album which came out nearly a year prior to this.

I can’t find the video for “Strike It Up” online anywhere (copyright issues again) but it features Katrin Quinol up there again miming to the vocals who were actually supplied by Martha Wash. Yes, her again! And guess what, Martha had to sue the asses off Black Box as she had with C + C Music Factory to get her due credits. She might as well have given up on singing and taken up a career as a lawyer by this point!

“Strike It Up” peaked at No 16 but Black Box would not be seen inside the UK Top 20 ever again. Hurray! As for the ‘families’ concept…erm…well…I’ll have to resort to the family feuding theme again with Martha Wash as the common link between rock family trees.

Family value: 3/10

This must be the last ever TOTP appearance for Feargal Sharkey I think. “I’ve Got News For You” was certainly his last ever Top 40 hit anyway. Gary Davies says his vocal in this performance is live which is pretty impressive. Whether you like it or loathe it, you just cannot deny that Feargal’s voice is unique. He was only 32 when he made his last album (“Songs From The Mardi Gras” from which “I’ve Got News For You” was taken). Surely he had a bit more to give musically?

After a successful career in the business side of the music industry, Feargal spends a lot of his time fishing these days and campaigning about pollution in chalk based rivers. None of this has anything to do with my families theme though so I will have to delve into Feargal’s back catalogue and reference “My Perfect Cousin” from his time with The Undertones and his very first solo single “Listen To Your Father”. Job done!

Family value: 6/10

It’s the second of five weeks at the top for Chesney Hawkes and “The One And Only”. Chesney, of course, is often referred to as a classic, nay optimum one hit wonder – one huge No 1 hit then nothing, zero, nada. Except it isn’t actually true*. There was one other Top 40 hit for young Chesney which was called “I’m a Man Not a Boy” which was the follow up to “The One And Only” and was also taken from the Buddy’s Song soundtrack. It got nowhere near to repeating the success of its predecessor when it peaked at No 27 yet it remains a bona fide chart hit and therefore legitimately negates the one hit wonder claim. I wonder if it was a huge wake up call for Chesney that this pop star lark might be a short lived thing when “I’m a Man Not a Boy” hit its chart peak? Apparently he reached the point where his phone calls were not being taken by his record label and his career was kaput within two years after the failure of second album “Get The Picture” in 1993. In truth, Chesney mania was all over well before the end of 1991 though. At least he scores high on the families theme-o-meter as his brother Jodie was the drummer in his band whilst his Dad Chip was in 60s hitmakers The Tremeloes.

*see also Doctor and the Medics, Men At Work etc

Family value: 8/10

The play out video is “Word Of Mouth” by Mike + The Mechanics who are the second act on tonight’s show after C + C Music Factory to have a plus sign in their name rather than the word ‘and’. This always seemed like a bit of an anomaly to me and not very 1991 at all. It almost has an echo of being a 70s glam rock stomper with all those singalong ‘na na na nas’ and hand claps. Also, I thought we’d seen the last of Mike Rutherford’s spin off project as it had been over two years since “The Living Years” had been a big hit when its subject matter of a son confronting his unresolved conflict with his father amidst his grief at the latter’s death tugged at the heart strings of the population. Oh, there’s my ‘families’ theme ticked off! Suddenly though they were back with a No 13 hit and the album of the same name performed reasonably well going silver and peaking at No 11. It did not produce any further hit singles though.

There are all sorts of rock family tree connections with this lot. There’s Genesis of course but also Sad Café (via vocalist Paul Young) and all sorts of acts associated to Paul Carrack including Squeeze, Ace, Roxy Music, The Pretenders and The Smiths. Not quite up there with The Waterboys but certainly worthy of a decent family value score.

Family value: 7/10

For the sake of posterity, I include the chart run down below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6New3AbKtM

Order of Appearance	Artist	Title	Did I buy it?
1	Inspiral Carpets	Caravan	Nope
2	The Simpsons	Deep Deep Trouble	Of course not
3	N-Joi	Anthem	Nah
4	The Waterboys	The Whole Of The Moon	No but my wife and the album
5	The Mock Turtles	Can U Dig It?	Not the single but I bought the album
6	C + C Music Factory	Here We Go (Let’s Rock & Roll)	No
7	Black Box	Strike It Up	Hell no
8	Feargal Sharkey	I’ve Got News For You	It’s another no
9	Chesney Hawkes	The One And Only	Negative
10	Mike + The Mechanics	Word Of Mouth	I did not

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/m000xh7f/top-of-the-pops-04041991

TOTP Rewind – the 90s

My memories of 90s chart music

TOTP 22 JUN 1995

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TOTP 02 MAR 1995

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TOTP 11 APR 1991

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TOTP 04 APR 1991

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