A rare Friday night appearance for TOTP which has been shifted from its historical Thursday slot to accommodate the previous night’s FA Cup replay. This would be the last time it would ever happen after occurring three times consecutively in the 80s and a further time in 1990. Was it worth the extra 24 hours wait? Let’s find out but it does include nine ‘new’ songs so I guess that’s a good thing?

…or maybe not. Has there ever been a more lifeless opening to an episode of TOTP? “Stars” was the third hit for British DJ and producer Francis Wright aka Felix though I’m not entirely convinced that it even qualifies as a dance track so lacking in energy is it. It’s not helped by the guy fronting the song. Talk about a lackadaisical performer?! Seriously, put some effort into it!

I didn’t know this until now but apparently “Stars” is a cover version of a song originally recorded by Sylvester – yes that Sylvester, the disco ‘queen’ of “You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)” fame. I have to admit that’s the only track I know from his back catalogue and even then only via the Jimmy Somerville cover from 1990. As such, I had to look up his original version of “Stars” and, perhaps unsurprisingly, it’s superior to the Felix take on it in every way. I’m no disco aficionado by any stretch but a tone deaf music hating hermit can hear the difference.

“Stars” was already at its peak of No 29. Felix would have two more chart singles, both of which were remixes of debut hit “Don’t You Want Me”.

OK a dodgy start admittedly but the next song would turn out to be the second biggest selling single of 1993! Given the way the year has panned out so far though, I’m not sure that’s much of an accolade. The song is “(I Can’t Help) Falling In Love With You”, the band is UB40 and both are protagonists in a tale as old of time of commercial popularity not always equating to cultural worth.

Without a Top 10 hit since the Robert Palmer collaboration “I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight” in late 1990, UB40 were suddenly back with their first ever single to enter the charts inside the Top 10. Well, 1993 was the year of reggae/ragga/dancehall I guess so why wouldn’t the UK’s most well known reggae band want a piece of that action? Except there was an element of the accidental about this future No 1 record that belies the notion that this was pure cynicism on behalf of the Brummies. Their cover of the Elvis 1961 hit was recorded for submission to the soundtrack of a rom-com starring Nicolas Cage called Honeymoon In Vegas with said soundtrack being made up of cover versions of Elvis tunes. What the band didn’t realise was that there version of the song wasn’t the only one recorded and a version by U2’s Bono was the one selected for inclusion.

In fairness, the soundtrack was a very country music affair with the likes of Trisha Yearwood, Dwight Yoakam and Willie Nelson featuring so UB40 would probably have been an outlier in such company. Their recording lay in the Virgin vaults unused and unloved (even by the band themselves most of whom didn’t want it put on their latest album “Promises And Lies”) until it was discovered by film music supervisor Tim Sexton who convinced director Phillip Noyce to use it in his erotic thriller flick Sliver. I think therein lies some of the problem for UB40 and their version of the song in that it is associated with a film that is generally perceived to be a duffer, hogwash, a right old stinker. Clearly all involved were hoping for a Basic Instinct 2 – Sharon Stone, who infamously made her name by crossing her legs in that film, was even on board. It was universally panned by critics and received nominations for the Golden Raspberry Awards in just about every category. Maybe subliminally, the brickbats the movie received tainted people’s view of UB40’s track.

Or maybe not. Maybe I’m the one spouting hogwash? After all, it topped the charts both in the UK and in America where it was No 1 for seven weeks. It’s just that retrospectively it doesn’t seem to have stood the rest of time too well. Compared to say Pet Shop Boys’ treatment of “Always On Your Mind”, it just doesn’t seem very cherished in the canon of Elvis covers. I’m not a fan I have to say. It’s all very clunky sounding and what was with the altering of the song title and the adding of brackets? Was that meant to imply that this wasn’t just a cover and that they had in fact literally made it into another song entirely or as the infernal Louis Walsh would say ‘made the song their own’? Do you know what, I think that’s enough time spent on it for one post. After all, it’ll be back on soon enough.

We stick with the new songs with a man who, despite being famous for having one of the sweetest of soul voices, had never pulled up many trees when it came to having big hit singles in the UK. Prior to his No 2 duet on “The Best Things In Life Are Free” with Janet Jackson the previous Autumn, Luther Vandross never had a Top 10 hit in this country. Sure his albums had sold well but somehow it has never quite translated into singles success. Given that Janet Jackson boost though, could “Little Miracles (Happen Every Day)” bring him a huge hit under his own steam? Well, ‘No’ is the blunt but honest answer as it topped out at No 28 making it the second single on this TOTP that an appearance on the show failed to propel any further up the charts. Was the programme losing its power to generate sales or were these just anomalies?

Luther Vandross has never done anything for me I have to say, either his uptempo numbers or slow ballads of which this single falls into the latter category. It sounds like a vocal exercise in search of a tune to me. Maybe if they’d spent the budget for the performance on a gospel backing choir (which clearly exists on the record) instead of his Showaddywaddy style jacket then maybe things might have turned out better.

Next we get to gatecrash that Bon Jovi party as host Tony Dortie promised at the start of the show but quite what did he mean by that? Surely not exclusive access backstage or to the after show party at some swanky nightclub. Well, no of course. It’s as another of those ‘live’ crossovers to a concert date, this time in Glasgow. Wasn’t the last time they did this for Bruce Springsteen also in Glasgow? I think it was. Must have had some sort of arrangement with the venue which Wikipedia tells me was the SEC Centre. Jon Bon Jovi’s singing on “In Your Arms” here sounds a little bit strained like he’s singing from his throat rather than his diaphragm but Richie Sambora is always reliable with his double neck guitar to the forefront. Attaboy Richie!

After using up my Jon Bon Jovi waxwork story in the last post, I’ll have to resort to pulling out the tale of my disgrace on the dance floor of a Sunderland nightclub this time. Having imbibed too much alcohol on a night out when a student at Sunderland Poly, I crashed out in the toilets of Rascals club and made rather a mess of a toilet bowl. My friend Robin came to check out if I was OK and, seeing the state of me, suggested we call it a night and leave. “I’m not going home ‘til I’ve danced to the Jovi” came my reply from the cubicle. “OK, let’s get back out there” encouraged Robin. “I can’t stand up” I declared in a sorrowful tone.

“In Your Arms” peaked at No 9.

Another new song and another turkey. What do Charles And Eddie have in common with the aforementioned Luther Vandross? Nothing really except they both recorded songs called “House Is Not A Home”. Well, almost. Luther’s was a version of the marvellous Bacharach and David tune which actually includes an indefinite article ‘a’ in its title and which Dionne Warwick famously had a hit with. The Charles and Eddie song was written by the latter and was a bit shit. Oh come on! It was! Some nondescript soul on a faux Motown tip? No thanks.

The whole Charles And Eddie phenomenon was basically a one trick pony revolving around that horribly catchy “Would I Lie To You” chart topper. Nothing else they released came close to its success and six months on from it nobody was that interested in the duo any more as evidenced by the No 29 peak of this single. Still, at least they could say incontrovertibly that they were not a one hit wonder.

Someone in the TOTP production team must have been a big Runrig fan! The Celtic rockers bagged (or maybe blagged) themselves a first ever appearance on the show with previous hit “Wonderful”, a single that only made it to No 29 in the charts, and now they were back in the TOTP studio with the follow up “The Greatest Flame” and this one only made it to No 36! Surely these were Breakers at best?!

What’s that you say Tony Dortie? They were at No 2 in the album charts? Oh, is that why they made the show’s running order? They were in the album chart feature? Only, the onscreen caption doesn’t say that and, having checked the chart record of parent album “Amazing Things”, something else doesn’t quite add up. Yes, it did go to No 2 in the charts but that was in its first week of release in March. By the time of this TOTP show it had dropped out of the chart altogether so it would appear Tony was telling some porkies.

As for the song, it’s so laboured and slow. It never picks up at any point – just one monotonous dirge. And I thought Felix were bad. They look like the most uncomfortable, unconvincing band ever to play the show. Last time the lead singer wore a leather jacket but he’s outdone himself this time in the naff stakes with a sleeveless version. I’m sorry if this sounds harsh but they look so out of place. Was this really what the kids wanted?!

Some Breakers now starting with Dire Straits and a taster from their live album “On The Night” which I’d forgotten all about (I was quite prepared to stay in utter oblivion of its existence to be fair). The “Encores EP” was recorded to capture the band’s On Every Street Tour and included four tracks including “Your Latest Trick” which was the fifth and final single from their iconic “Brothers In Arms” album. Yes, despite my previous derogatory comments, it is an iconic album whether we like it or not. Looking at the track listing for “On The Night”, four of the ten tracks on it were from “Brothers In Arms”, the same amount as from the “On Every Street” album the tour was promoting. Make of that what you will.

Of the other three tracks on the EP, I only know the theme from Local Hero. I’ve tried with this film, I really have but I just don’t get it. I have a friend who swears by it but I can’t see it. Literally. Nothing happens. I mean, yes there’s a plot but it’s so slow. Look, I can appreciate nuances and that not everything has to be all bangs and crashes like a Jerry Bruckheimer film but come on! I need something a bit more engaging.

Anyway, back to Dire Straits and I’m wondering if they’d have been better off choosing “Money For Nothing” to promote the EP. Surely more well known than “Your Latest Trick”. I mean, if the EP was purely designed just to help sell the live album. I’m basing that on the fact that the “Encores EP” only made it to No 31 in the charts. All part of the walk of life I suppose.

A song now that instantly reminds me of 1993 and which I think probably gets an unjustified bad rap. The Spin Doctors looked a bit like Nirvana and sounded a bit like a poppier version of Extreme when they weren’t doing acoustic ballads – too glib and uninformed? Probably but I’ve only got so much space in one blog post to describe these things so needs must. This lot were one of those bands that we cottoned on to long after the US audience had shown an interest – their debut album “Pocketful Of Kryptonite” had been released nearly two years prior to this appearance with the singles “Little Miss Can’t Be Wrong” and this one “Two Princes” both having been hits months before they transferred over here.

The latter was the first and biggest hit the band had over here ultimately peaking at No 3. A funky, jumping number with an instant hook that attached itself to your brain immediately refusing to let go, it was a genuine crossover hit that allowed the band to traverse from their alternative rock trappings into the mainstream. It was a great airplay hit as well helping it to swell sales. I liked it a lot. So did a friend of mine who was so enamoured he asked me to purchase the album for him on my Our Price store discount – I’ve never asked him what he made of the album.

A few more hits followed but “Two Princes” would be the song that the band would be remembered for and it seemed to me that they paved the way for a number of American rock bands with an alternative edge but pop sound to make inroads into our charts like Gin Blossoms, Semisonic and Hootie And The Blowfish.

Somehow though “Two Princes” became an albatross around the band’s neck. It was rated No 21 in Blender magazine’s 50 Worst Songs Ever poll and featured in a sketch on the Sarah Silverman Program as evidence of someone having something wrong with them when “Two Princes” is the only song on their iPod which they’ve owned for five years.

Some songs are just so ingrained in our brains/hearts/cultural lives that it’s hard to remember their initial impact on us or even their backstory. For instance, I had totally forgotten that “Jump Around” by House Of Pain was originally released in October of 1992 and had only made No 32 in the UK charts. It was rereleased seven months later and went Top 10.

This was literally a huge record both in its sound and reach. I heard this played at every Manchester nightclub I went to around this time (not that many admittedly but a few) and was guaranteed to fill the floor, turning it into a heaving, sweaty mass moving in cohesion just like the scenes in the single’s video. It’s the high pitched squeal that is repeated 66 times during the course of the record that makes it. The origin of the source material is disputed. Some say it’s from Prince’s “Gett Off” while others have posited the theory that it’s “Shoot Your Shot” by Junior Walker And The All Stars. The band themselves say it’s actually Divine Styler’s “Ain’t Sayin’ Nothin’” which samples “Shoot Your Shot”. Whatever the truth, it made “Jump Around” one of the most instantly recognisable tracks of the 90s.

An American hip-hop trio comprising Everlast, Danny Boy and DJ Lethal, they styled themselves as Irish-American urchins both in their music (their follow up was called “Shamrocks And Shenanigans”) and their image and branding (their logo included a shamrock and the legend ‘fine malt lyrics’). They never came close to replicating the success of “Jump Around” and split in 1996. Everlast forged a successful solo career and the band gave reunited in 2010 and again in 2017.

Tina Turner is on the rise with “I Don’t Wanna Fight” after her TOTP appearance last week. Taken from the soundtrack to her film biopic What’s Love Got To Do With It, it will peak at No 7. That soundtrack did even better going all the way to No 1 and selling 300,000 copies in the UK alone. I was surprised at the time about its success given that Tina’s “Simply The Best” compilation had been a huge seller over Xmas of 1991.

However, the music supervisors of the film were clever as the soundtrack wasn’t just another Greatest Hits under a different name. The track listing was mostly made up of re-recorded versions of songs from the Ike And Tina Turner era rather than her massive rock hits from the mid 80s onwards so there was very little overlap with “Simply The Best”. The film’s plot is mainly based around that part of Tina’s life leading up to the climax of her finally leaving her abusive relationship with Ike. Only two tracks feature on both albums – “What’s Love Got To Do With It” (unsurprisingly) and “Nutbush City Limits”. Add to that the power of a popular film and its ability to sell soundtracks (look at how The Bodyguard OST flew off the shelves) and I don’t really know why I was surprised at its success at all.

There were two sets at Glastonbury this year that I watched in full (on TV you understand as we established weeks ago that I’ve never actually been to Glastonbury). One was Paul McCartney (along with millions of other people) but the second was a bit more of a surprising choice – to me as much as anybody – and that was Saint Etienne. I found myself alone in the house on the Saturday afternoon with wife and child out and so I tuned into the Glasto coverage. Saint Etienne were on and I watched their whole set from start to finish and enjoyed it.

I was surprised at how deep their catalogue was and that they had far more decent tunes than I remembered but more than that I enjoyed their live performance which was a huge improvement on the last time I saw them 30 years previously. Yes, around 1993 I caught them in Manchester on the So Tough tour. They were supported by a pre-mainstream Pulp who were by far the better band on the night. Sarah Cracknell and co played for 43 minutes with backing tapes and at the end of their set Sarah said “We don’t do encores, we’re not a rock band”. I wasn’t impressed.

Fast forward to 2022 and Sarah seemed in a much better mood and genuinely happy that the band could still command an audience. She was even still rocking the feather boa look she wore on this TOTP and her backing singer still had the same bob haircut. The song they perform on the show here – “Who Do You Think You Are” – was actually a double A-side with “Hobart Paving” with the former actually being a cover of a 1974 hit from Opportunity Knocks winners Candlewick Green. No really. I mean that most sincerely folks (ask your parents, kids!).

The single peaked at No 23 but they would return with the wonderful but cruelly ignored Xmas single “I Was Born On Christmas Day” with national treasure Tim Burgess of The Charlatans.

Oh and one final thing. Why is Ian ‘Mac’ McCulloch* of Echo And The Bunnymen on drums in this performance?!

* I know it’s not really him

That didn’t take long! Ace Of Base are No 1 already with “All That She Wants”. After the second best selling single of the year made its debut earlier in the show via UB40, here comes 1993’s third best selling single. Not surprising really as it was No 1 in just about every country in Europe and also in the US.

I didn’t get it though. Sure it was catchy but it was also intensely annoying which is not something I’m looking for in a record. Apparently though Ace Of Base have quite the legacy with artists like Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Clean Bandit and even Beck have quoted them as an influence.

Perhaps rather stupidly I always thought the line ‘all that she wants is another baby’ meant that the song’s protagonist literally wanted another baby (i.e. becoming pregnant). It turns out – and I surely would have realised this if I’d bothered to listen to the lyrics more closely – the word ‘baby’ referred to a sexual partner and perhaps more explicitly a one night stand. The clue is in the very next line ‘she’s gone tomorrow’. How did I misunderstand this?!

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/m001b0cd/top-of-the-pops-21051993